(based on a message by Aaron Burgess)
SPECIAL DAY: EASTER
TEXT: LUKE 24:1-8
TITLE: “YOU CAN’T KEEP A GOD-MAN DOWN”
INTRODUCTION: A. Rudyard Kipling, The Jungle Book: Mowgli, the man cub, asks the animals what’s
the most feared thing in the jungle. He’s told that when two animals meet on a narrow
path that one must step aside and let the other pass. The animal that steps aside for no
one would then be the most feared.
Mowgli wants to know what kind of animal would that be? One tells him it’s an
elephant. Another tells him it’s a lion. Finally the wise old owl exclaims, “The most
feared thing in the jungle is death. It steps aside for no one.”
1. We find that statement to be so true
a. It doesn’t matter how physically strong, financially rich, fantastically popular or
overwhelmingly powerful
b. Death is an absolute truth for all of us
2. No one is exempt from death
a. Heb. 9:27 – It is appointed to all men once to die and after that the judgment.
b. Ecc. 7:2 – …for death is the destiny of every man.
B. But death was not the destiny of Jesus Christ
1. Since He was God in the flesh, death had to step aside for him
2. Lk. 24:1-8 – On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women
took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone
rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the
Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes
that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed
down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look
for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he
told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be
delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised
again.’ ” Then they remembered his words.
3. Like a coward steps aside for the brave, death cowered in the presence of the power
of Jesus Christ.
a. Rom. 6:9 – For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot
die again; death no longer has mastery over him.
b. Today we celebrate Easter
--A celebration that death could not keep a God-man down!
I. AN EXPLANATION OF THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RESURRECTION
A. What is it that separates Jesus from all the other religious leaders of the world?
--It’s that death stepped aside for Him and not them.
1. Death did not step aside for Muhammad or Buddha or Confucius
a. Their religious teachings made an impact on the world but they died never to be seen alive again.
b. But Jesus was more than a great teacher, more than a man, He was God and He proved His
superiority over all religious teacher by conquering the grave.
c. Stan Jantz: “To this day, hundreds of millions of people put their faith in Muhammad, Buddha or
Confucius, but they all died centuries ago. Not one of them rose from the dead – none even claimed
that they would come back from the dead. Of all the great spiritual leaders who walked the earth,
Jesus is the only one who died and then rose again from the dead.”
2. Jesus’ resurrection is the most important and crucial part of our faith.
a. If the resurrection did not happen, then the claims of the New Testament are nothing more than a lie
b. Arthur Ramsey put it bluntly: “No resurrection, no Christianity.”
c. Without the reality of the resurrection, our Bible is just a collection of good sayings and good
advice
--Even the worst counselors give good advice every now and again
3. The resurrection is important to our faith because it’s what guarantees the absolute validity about who
Jesus was and the truth of His teachings
--If there was no resurrection of Christ, then our faith is based on the teachings of a mere man.
B. Consider with me the inherent difficulties if the resurrection of Jesus is just a story
1. If there’s no resurrection then there’s no life after death
a. If Jesus stayed in the grave, then so will we.
b. If His work on earth ended at the cross, He can’t give eternal life to anyone because you cannot give
away what you do not possess yourself.
2. If there was no resurrection then there’s no meaning in life
a. This world is a pretty meaningless place without the hope of eternity
b. 1 Cor. 15:19 – If we have hope in Christ only for this life, we are the most miserable people in the
world.
3. If there was no resurrection then there’s also no forgiveness of sins.
--1 Cor. 15:17 – If Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless, and you are still under
condemnation for you sins.
C. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is absolutely essential for us to have any hope at all
1. Essential means “indispensable; cannot do without;”
2. There’s no hope for a meaningful life without it.
II. AN EXAMINATION OF THE INTEGRITY OF THE RESURRECTION
--Because the resurrection of Jesus is so important to our faith, I want you to know without a shadow of a
doubt that it happened just as the Bible said
A. You can just take God’s word for it but you can also investigate the facts and see that there is a mountain
of evidence that supports the truth of the resurrection.
1. You may have never heard of Sir Lionel Luckhoo. But if you open the Guinness Book of World
Records, you’ll discover that he is listed as the most successful trial lawyer ever. He had 245
successful murder defenses in a row.
To give you an idea how good that is, I want you to think about the TV show Perry Mason. The
producers had him lose a case after he won 70 successful ones, because they didn’t think anyone
would find his character credible without a loss every now and again.
Although Lionel Luckhoo had fame, success, and wealth he felt empty inside. The older he got, the
more meaningless life seemed to him. At age 63, he turned his analytical skills to the claim that Jesus
rose from the dead. He found that the message of Jesus’ resurrection satisfied his personal needs and
his intellectual questions..
He wrote: “I have spent more than forty-two years as a defense trial lawyer in many parts of the
world. I say unequivocally the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is so overwhelming that it
compels acceptance by proof which leaves absolutely no room for doubt!”
2. Dr. David Seamands tells of a Muslim who became a Christian in Africa: “Some of his friends asked
him, ‘Why did you become a Christian?’ He answered, ‘Well, It’s like this. Suppose you were going
down the road and suddenly the road forked in two directions and you didn’t know which way to go,
and there at the fork in the road were two men, one dean and one alive. Which one would you ask
which way to go?’”
B. I know it’s pretty difficult for some people to believe that a person could come back from the dead
--That’s why I’m asking you to consider four proofs that point to the validity of the resurrection:
1. First, consider the proof of the empty tomb
a. It’s hard to deny the fact that Jesus’ tomb was empty
--No one was ever able to produce a body
b. But to be fair, just because the tomb was empty it doesn’t conclusively prove that Jesus rose from
the dead.
c. People who deny that the resurrection happened present basically three explanations for the empty
tomb (other than the resurrection)
1). Some say that Jesus really didn’t die on the cross
a). They say that Jesus merely swooned from the torture, pain, and exhaustion of the crucifixion
and that when they took him down from the cross, his body was merely mimicking death.
--they literally claim that Jesus was buried alive
b). Then after three days, he was revived by the cool air of the tomb and walked out under his
own power.
c). Of course, if you believe that scenario, then you believe that Jesus not only survived the
crucifixion, he was also able to disentangle himself from about 70 pounds of tightly-wound
grave cloths, move a huge boulder that covered the tomb, and then overpower a bunch of
armed Roman guards that Pilate had stationed near the tomb.
--And he did all that without the benefit of food and water for three days. (Yeah, right!)
d). Dr. William D. Edwards, Journal of the American Medical Association: “Clearly, the
weight of the historical and medical evidence indicates that Jesus was dead before the
wound in his side was inflicted . . . Accordingly, interpretations based on the assumption
that Jesus did not die on the cross appear to be at odds with modern medical knowledge.”
2). Others say that the disciples stole the body
a). This theory was first proposed by the Sanhedrin, who worked to gain Jesus’ crucifixion
i. Mt. 28:12 says that the chief priests on the Sanhedrin “devised a plan, they gave some
Roman soldiers a large sum of money, telling them ‘You are to say, his disciples came
during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’”
ii. Mt. 28:15 continues: The soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And
this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.
b). However, the theory that the disciples stole the body has several weaknesses:
i. First, Roman soldiers did not sleep on duty
--IF Roman soldiers were known to be asleep on duty, they would face the death penalty
ii. Second, the disciples were not strong enough to remove the stone and then carry Jesus’
body out of the tomb before the soldiers could stop them
*These Roman soldiers were not blithering idiots. They were some of the best fighting
men in the world.
*Jesus’ tomb was heavily guarded and when Roman soldiers were told to guard
something, they did it with expertise.
*It’s absurd to believe that the eleven remaining disciples could have gotten by, through
or around the soldiers and stolen Jesus’ body.
3). Some say the disciples were hallucinating
a). They wanted so much to believe that Jesus was alive that they saw something that really
wasn’t there.
b). Again, this theory has it’s problems:
i. First of all, the disciples weren’t expecting Jesus to rise from the dead
*Mk. 16:11 states that when reports of the resurrection first came to the disciples, they did
not believe them.
--“When they heard that Jesus was alive and that some had seen him, they did not
believe.”
ii. Second, the same hallucination could not possibly occur to hundreds of people in several
different locations over a period of forty days
--If anything, such a consistent report from that many people is proof FOR the
resurrection, not a hallucination.
4). The BEST EXPLANATION for the empty tomb is not that Jesus didn’t die or that the disciple
stole the body or were hallucinating.
a). The easiest explanation is simply that God raised Jesus from the dead
b). You have to jump through some pretty big hoops to really explain it any other way
--It’s a lot simpler to believe that Jesus rose from the dead
2. The second proof is the testimony of the eyewitnesses
--A lot of people saw Jesus alive after His death
a. If several of us were playing golf and I hit a hole-in-one, I’d go and tell a lot of people about it. If
they didn’t believe me, I’d call up those of us who played together that day and have them confirm
my story.
--Any sensible person will believe a report corroborated by several witnesses
b. But the Bible reports that Jesus appeared not just to a couple of people but hundreds of people
during the forty days after his resurrection and each of them told similar stories about their
experiences.
1). He appeared to Mary Magdalene in John 20
2). He appeared to two men walking to the village of Emmaus in Luke 24
3). He appeared to the twelve disciples (who couldn’t believe their eyes)
a). He even had to say to them, “Why do you doubt who I am? Look at my hands and my feet.
--He was saying, “You can see that it’s really me!”
b). In Luke 24, Jesus says, “Touch me and make sure that I am not a ghost, because ghosts
don’t have bodies, as you see that I do.”
4). The most convincing report of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances is given to us by the apostle
Paul in 1 Cor. 15:6 – “Jesus was raised on the third day according to the scriptures and he
appeared to Peter and then to the Twelve. After that he appeared to more than five hundred of
the brothers at the same time most of who are still living.”
a). Paul is saying that resurrection of Jesus didn’t happen in a corner somewhere
b). Large numbers of people saw Him alive: in different locations, at different times, and in
different circumstances over a forty day period.
5). Lee Strobel, The Case for Easter points out that if every person the Bible identifies as being an
eyewitness to Jesus’ resurrection were called to the witness stand to be cross-examined, it would
take 129 hours to hear their testimony at only 15 minutes a person.
--In other words , it would take from breakfast on Monday until Friday at dinner time listening
around the clock to hear the testimony of those witnesses.
3. The third proof is the transformation of the twelve disciples
a. What else would account for the changes if the lives of the disciples except the power of the
resurrection?
1). The eleven remaining disciples were hiding in a room after Jesus’ death out of fear the same
thing that happened to Jesus would happen to them
--They were wimps, weenies and cowards
2). But after seeing Jesus alive again they became bold and courageous
b. Peter denied Jesus three times because he was afraid of a servant girl who recognized him
1). But a little more than 6 weeks later, Peter is preaching about Jesus to a crowd of thousands of
people.
2). What would change Peter so quickly, except for the fact that he had seen Jesus alive?
c. What else would possess these guys to continue to preach and risk their lives if the resurrection
was a lie?
1). Would you be willing to stake your reputation, your family, and your well being for a lie?
2). Almost every one of Jesus’ close disciples was executed for their faith in Him.
a). They died because they believed He rose from the dead
b). Peter was crucified upside down. Paul was decapitated.
c). These guys were serious about proclaiming the resurrection because it was all true!
4. The fourth and final proof: the work of Jesus today
a. The risen Jesus is still working people’s lives today
b. Did you know that over the last several years, more people were won to Christ than ever before?
--Around the world, the gospel message of Jesus Christ is spreading like wildfire.
c. Yes…Jesus still touches lives today
1). There are those here in this church who will tell you the same thing about their lives
--Jesus’ power has touched them
2). They will tell you that Jesus’ resurrection power has freed them from alcohol or drug addiction.
--It has saved their marriages, brought them out of deep depression and given them a purpose
3). Some of them will tell you that the reason they are still alive today is because they’ve met the
risen Jesus.
CONCLUSION: A. The November, 2001 Sports Illustrated magazine was covering the baseball World
Series in which the Arizona Diamondbacks recovered from a slump to defeat the New
York Yankees in the last inning of the final game. It started the editors thinking about the
greatest comebacks in history. So, they produced their list of the "TOP TEN
COMEBACKS OF ALL TIME."
It was quite a broad list. Elvis Presley was on it, as a result of his TV special in 1968
that revived his sagging career. Muhammad Ali made the list when he returned from his
forced seven-year exile from boxing, to reclaim the world championship. Harry Truman
made the cut, owing to his 1948 victory over Thomas Dewey when all the polls had him
losing by a large margin. When Michael Jordan gave up baseball and returned to his first
love of basketball, he found a spot on the top ten comebacks in history. Even humanity
was on the list-after recovering from the Black Plague of the 14th century when 25
million Europeans died. Number two among the all-time comebacks was a tie between
Japan and Germany, devastated in the Second World War but becoming world economic
powers within a generation.
And number one- named by the editors of Sports Illustrated magazine in the
November 12, 2001, issue-the greatest comeback of all time ... Jesus Christ. AD 33.
1. Maybe you need a comeback.
a. Life has you down and feeling defeated.
b. Your chances are slim and none and slim just took the bus out of town.
2. That’s okay.
a. You can place your hope and trust in the greatest comeback of all time: the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
b. Through Him you can experience victory both in this life and the next.
B. Death could not keep the God-man, Jesus Christ, down
1. If you’ll truly trust in Him, there’s nothing that can keep you down, either
2. Ray Stedman: “The resurrection is not only good news; it is the best news possible
3. Rom. 6:3-5 – “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism
into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of
the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him like this in his
death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.”
a. Do you need to be united with Christ in His resurrection?
--Do you want abundant and eternal life?
b. There’s no better day to make a decision to turn your life over to Him than today.
