Resurrection Sunday April 12, 2020
A DIFFERENT VIEW OF THE EASTER STORY
Sitting at his writing table, the old man knew the urgency of writing down the thoughts that had come to his mind, yet there were questions…
Who believes what we have seen and heard? Who would have thought GOD’s saving power would look like this?
The prophet Isaiah set the questions aside and began writing…
The servant grew up before God—a scrawny seedling, a scrubby plant in a parched field. There was nothing attractive about him, nothing to cause us to take a second look.
One look at Him and people turned away, no one wanted to be tainted by this scum. He was looked down upon and passed over, a man who suffered, who knew pain firsthand. But the fact is, it was our pains He carried— our disfigurements, all things wrong with us. We thought He brought it on himself, that God was punishing Him for His own failures. But it was our sins that ripped and tore and crushed His body—our sins! He took our punishment and offered us forgiveness. Through His bruises we are healed. We are all like sheep who have wandered away and gotten lost. We have all done our own thing, gone our own way. And God has piled all our sins, everything we have done wrong, on Him.
As difficult as it was, Isaiah continued to write…
He was beaten. He was tortured. But He did not say a word. Like a lamb taken to be slaughtered and like a sheep being sheared, He suffered in silence. Justice miscarried, and He was led away to be crucified. Did anyone really know what was happening? He died without a thought for His own welfare, beaten bloody for the sins of the people.
They buried Him in a borrowed grave. Even though He had never hurt a soul or said one word that wasn’t true. Still, it is what GOD had in mind all along, to crush Him with pain. The plan was that He give himself as an offering for sin so that He would see life come from it—life and more life. And GOD’s plan will deeply prosper through Him.
Because He looked death in the face and didn’t flinch, the sinless One became sin for the many. Because He embraced the company of the lowest, He took up the cause of all black sheep.
With those words, the old man laid his quill down as the ink on the scroll began to dry. He slowly walked to the small window in his room and as he looked out on the city, tears began to fall. The questions came again…
“Who believes what we have seen and heard? Who would have thought GOD’s saving power would look like this?
About seven centuries later, a quiet man, walked those same streets of the same city. He was a Servant of the people, in that He listened to them, a novelty during the days of Roman dominance. He had the ability to heal people of their diseases while sharing the news of One who wanted a loving relationship with them. There were many religious people, leaders in fact, that became jealous because throngs of people were following the gentle man. The things He taught were contrary to the traditions and customs of the day, and the spiritual leaders could not abide being contradicted and made to look foolish.
Finally, enough was enough! The Servant, God’s Son, Jesus, was seized by a mob on the orders of the High Priest. They beat Him, insulted Him and finally took Him to Pilate, the Roman ruler of the territory. The angry and irrational crowd gathered in the courtyard and began bringing charges against Jesus. They said, “We found this man undermining our law and traditions, forbidding taxes to be paid to Caesar, setting Himself up as the Messiah-King of Israel. He is stirring up unrest among the people with His teaching, disturbing the peace everywhere, starting in Galilee and now all through Judea. He is a dangerous man, endangering the peace.”
Pilate listened to the tirade but was not convinced. He said, “You brought this man to me as a disturber of the peace. I examined Him in front of all of you and found there was no truth to your charge. It is clear that He has done nothing wrong, let alone anything deserving death. I am going to warn him to watch His step and let Him go.”
But they kept shouting back, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” Finally, Pilate caved and gave them what they wanted. They hung Jesus on a cross by pounding spikes in his hands and feet. Yet in the midst of His torture and pain, Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing.”
While hanging there on the cross, Jesus said He was thirsty, so a soldier soaked a sponge with vinegar and held it up to His lips. When Jesus took a sip, He bowed His head and declared, “It is finished!” With that He gave up His spirit. His purpose on earth was complete. Now the choice to believe in Him was left to every individual.
There was a man by the name of Joseph, a member of the Jewish High Council who had not gone along with the plans and actions of the council. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Given permission, he took Jesus down from the cross, and wrapped His body in a linen shroud and placed Him in a tomb chiseled into the rock, a tomb not yet used because it was meant for Joseph himself. It was the day before the Sabbath, which was just about to begin.
After sundown, the high priests and Pharisees, the religious leaders, arranged a meeting with Pilate. They said, “Sir, we just remembered that the liar, Jesus, announced while He was still alive, ‘After three days I will be raised.’ We have to get that tomb sealed until the third day. There is a good chance His disciples will come and steal the body and then go around saying, ‘He has risen from the dead.’ Then we will be worse off than before, the final deceit surpassing the rest.” Pilate approved their request. The tomb was sealed, and a guard posted.
While it was still dark on Sunday morning, women came to the tomb carrying the burial spices they had prepared. They found the stone rolled back from the tomb, so they walked in. But once inside, they did not find the body of the Jesus. They were puzzled, wondering what to make of it. Then two men appeared. The women were awestruck and fell down in fear. The men said, “He is not here but raised from the dead. Remember how He told you that He had to be handed over to accusers, be hung on a cross, and in three days He would rise?” The women then remembered Jesus’ words.
One of the women remained near the grave until a man approached, who she thought was the gardener. But when He spoke her name, she looked into His eyes and realized it was Jesus.
Running back to Jerusalem, the woman told the disciples that she had seen the risen Jesus. Several thought she was crazy or had seen what she wanted to see. But Peter needed to see for himself and ran to the tomb. He stooped to look in and saw a few grave clothes, that was all. He walked away puzzled, shaking his head.
Later that same day Jesus joined two men walking to a nearby town. They did not recognize Him while they walked and listened as He shared from Moses, the prophets and Psalms, all the things that the Scriptures said about Him. Only later at the evening meal, when Jesus took bread and broke it and gave it to the men, were their eyes opened. They too, ran back to Jerusalem and confirmed the women’s story that Jesus was alive.
While they were reporting all this, Jesus himself appeared to the whole group and said, “Peace be with you.” They thought they were seeing a ghost and were scared half to death. He continued speaking to them, “Look at my hands; look at my feet—It is really Me!”
Then He said, “Everything I told you while I was with you comes down to this: All things written about me in the Law of Moses, in the Prophets, and in the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
Today, there are no more prophecies needing to be fulfilled before Jesus calls all who believe in Him to heaven. However, Jesus did tell His followers one more important thing. “Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, and there will be famines and plagues in many lands, and there will be terrifying things and great miraculous signs from heaven. And there will be strange signs in the sun, moon, and stars. And here on earth the nations will be in turmoil, perplexed by the roaring seas and strange tides. People will be terrified at what they see coming upon the earth, for the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then everyone will see Jesus coming on a cloud with power and great glory. So, when all these things begin to happen, look up, for your salvation is near!”
And in the meantime Jesus tells us today, as He told his followers, that if we put our faith in Him, He would send God’s Comforter, the Holy Spirit, to live in us. When the Comforter comes, the Spirit of Truth, He will take us by the hand and guide us into all truth. He won’t draw attention to Himself but will make clear to us all that Jesus said and did.
Today, Isaiah’s questions can still be heard… “Who believes what we have seen and heard? Who would have thought GOD’s saving power would look like this?” However, today we have the answer! “For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Authors: God-The Holy Spirit, Isaiah, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John
Resources: The Message
Written by: Ginny Lawson
I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! — Revelation 1:18
Flowers! Easter lilies! Speak to me this morning the same sweet lesson of immortality you have been speaking to so many sorrowing souls for years. Wise old Book! Let me read again in your pages the steady assurance that “to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21).
Poets! Recite for me your verses that resound the gospel of eternal life in every line.
Singers! Break forth once more into hymns of joy — let me hear again my favorite resurrection songs.
Trees, blossoms, and birds; and seas, skies, and winds — whisper it, sound it anew, sing it, echo it, let it beat and resonate through every atom and particle on earth, and let the air be filled with it. Let it be told and retold again and again, until hope rises to become conviction, and conviction becomes the certainty of knowing. Let it be told until, like Paul, even when we face our death, we will go triumphantly, with our faith secure and a peaceful and radiant expression on our face.
O sad-faced mourners, who each day are wending
Through churchyard paths of cypress and of yew,
Leave for today the low graves you are tending,
And lift your eyes to God’s eternal blue!
It is no time for bitterness or sadness;
Choose Easter lilies, not pale asphodels;
Let your souls thrill to the caress of gladness,
And answer the sweet chime of Easter bells.
If Christ were still within the grave’s low prison,
A captive of the Enemy we dread;
If from that rotting cell He had not risen,
Who then could dry the gloomy tears you shed?
If Christ were dead there would be need to sorrow,
But He has risen and vanquished death today;
Hush, then your sighs, if only till tomorrow,
At Easter give your grief a holiday.
~ May Riley Smith
A well-known preacher was once in his study writing an Easter sermon when this thought gripped him: “My Lord is living!” With excitement he jumped up, paced the floor, and began repeating to himself, “Christ is alive. His body is warm. He is not the great ‘I was’ but the great ‘I am.’ ”
Christ is not only a fact but a living fact. He is the glorious truth of Easter Day!
Because of that truth, an Easter lily blooms and an angel sits at every believer’s grave. We believe in a risen Lord, so do not look to the past to worship only at His tomb. Look above and within to worship the Christ who lives. Because He lives, we live. ~ Abbott Benjamin Vaughan
Excerpted from Streams in the Desert by L. B. Cowman, copyright Zondervan.
THERE IS NO GREATER DAY THAN TODAY TO BE PASSIONATE ABOUT YOUR FAITH!
Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.
Would you consider listening to the Word of God and following along in your Bible with me. I am already into my 5th time through the New Testament this year and it becomes sweeter and a greater blessing each time. If you do not have a CD drama reading of the New Testament, we will provide you with one... "English Standard Version, New International Version, or King James) Let me know of your desire to join me and I will break "shelter in place" to deliver one to you.
There are a couple of pictures I have attached for you from our trip to Israel. One is a picture of some in our group entering the tomb to see that Jesus is not there!
The other is a plaque outside the tomb presenting that fact.
Pastor Dale
Robin said to let you see inside the tomb... He is not there - He is risen! (Last picture) Thanks to many of you, we were there!
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