Easter Sunday
TEXT: Luke 24:1-12
MESSAGE: “THE RISEN KING”
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C.S. Lewis – The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia) Beaver talking about Aslan: “They say Aslan is on the move- perhaps has already landed.” And now a very curious thing happened. None of the children knew who Aslan was any more than you do; but the moment the Beaver had spoken these words everyone felt quite different…
At the name of Aslan each one of the children felt something jump in its inside. Edmund felt a sensation of mysterious horror. Peter felt suddenly brave and adventurous. Susan felt as if some delicious smell or some delightful strain of music had just floated by her. And Lucy got the feeling you have when you wake up in the morning and realize that it is the beginning of the holidays or the beginning of summer…
“14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain…19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” -1 Corinthians 15:14;19
- Thomas Arnold (Professor of modern history at Oxford) said…“No one fact in the history of mankind…is proved by better and fuller evidence of every sort” than the fact that “Christ died and rose from the dead.”
- Gary Habermas, a noted resurrection expert, states that about 75% of critical scholars (skeptic & non-skeptic) accept the historicity of the empty tomb.
“It was now about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over the whole land…” – Luke 23:44
“For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you.” – Isaiah 60:2
TEXT: Luke 24:1-12
What real “hope” do we have because of a Risen King?
We have…(1. A Surprising Hope, 2. A Healing Hope, 3. A Restoring hope)
1. A Surprising Hope (v. 1-4)
“But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel.”
2. A Healing Hope (v. 5-7)
“5 And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.”
“It was a counseling question…It was a rhetorical question. It wasn’t looking for information. It was trying to push them. It was trying to show them their error. It was trying to show them they were disoriented to who Jesus really was and what he really came to do. It was almost a rebuke, but it was a glorious rebuke. It was joyful. It was loving. It was therapeutic. It was out to heal.” – Timothy Keller
3. A Restoring Hope (v. 10-12)
“Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, 11 but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. 12 But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened.”
“It is historically certain that Peter and the other disciples had experiences after Jesus’ death in which Jesus appeared to them as the risen Christ.”– Gerd Ludemann, Atheist Scholar
TAKEAWAYS: How can you find hope in the Risen King today?
– Examine the Evidence
- v. 11 “…these words seemed to them an idle tale…”
– Allow It To Examine You
– See That the Story Isn’t Over
“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit…” – 1 Peter 3:18