Church Requel
Where do you search for Jesus? If you don’t find Him maybe it’s because you’re looking in the wrong places. We celebrate Jesus’ resurrection on this Easter Day 2018 and talk about what this means for each one of us. This is such incredible good news it must be shared.
The Most Incredible Message - Luke 24:1-12 NIV
He is risen! {He is risen indeed!} We celebrate Resurrection Day each year by the name of Easter. Our annual Christian holiday. Imagine that first Easter, when Jesus’ followers didn’t know what we know. What would that have been like? By stepping into their lives we recognize what it is like for many people today to discover the real and risen Savior.
#1: When we search for Jesus ___________ what we’re looking for.
Imagine that first group of women looking for Jesus by searching in the tomb.
“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.” Luke 24:1-3 NIV
That’s where they expected to find Jesus because that’s where they last saw Him, where they last experienced Him. They walked with Joseph to deposit Jesus’ dead body in the tomb. But Jesus wasn’t there!
Often the same is true for us too. We remember an earlier experience of church or a younger version of ourselves with some degree of faith. And we try to return to that place or to that person only to discover that Jesus is no longer there.
Those who are searching for the real and authentic Jesus, don’t give up! The search is worth it! Jesus does want you to find Him, but not among the dead relics of your yesterdays.
#2: When we search for Jesus ____________ but among the living.
“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?’” Luke 24:4-5 NIV
Every time someone encounters angels in the Bible, it is a frightening experience. They are God’s messengers. They told Mary about Jesus. They told Joseph (Jesus’ earthly father) to marry Mary & to flee to Egypt. Their message this time? To ask a question! Why look here?
When I was a kid one of my favorite games to play with my Grandma was “I SPY.” She would hide a red bottle cap and we had to find it. She would sit in her easy chair and yell out “cold” if we were far away, “warmer” if we got closer and “Mark you’re on fire!” If we were right on top of it.
Angel saying “why look for living among the dead” was their way of saying “cold!” What about you today? Are you searching for Jesus where you last found him, only to find out that that version of Jesus is just a dead memory? Don’t look for Jesus there because…
#3: The most incredible message: _______________ .
“He is not here; he has risen!” Luke 24:6a NIV
This is WORTH the celebration! This is why we sing and dance! We don’t find Jesus among the tombs of dead people, because He is not dead. He is alive and well!
Have you ever done a Facebook search for an old high school friend and been surprised by what you found? That person you knew so well in 1975 no longer has long brown hair. Has held a long career (NOT IN ROCK AND ROLL), has gained a little weight and a few wrinkles! And they live in a whole different place now! Why? Because they are living their living lives!
That what living people do! Jesus is the same. (Except for the weight and the wrinkles. Ha!) We wouldn’t expect to find our old high school friends back in high school. And we shouldn’t expect to find Jesus where we last saw Him either! He’s alive and doing amazing, incredible things.
What we should ask is, “Jesus, where are You at? Help me to find You! I want to be where You are!” The search is SO WORTH IT! Why? Because the Bible makes it very clear that Jesus’ resurrection is not just for Him, but also…
#4: Remember what Jesus said! If we believe in Him ________ .
I love this part of the story because the angels don’t just leave it at “He’s not here.” They remind the women of what Jesus said.
“Remember how he told you, while he was still with you…” Luke 24:6b
When we search for Jesus we also need to be reminded about what Jesus said to us! And for that we have The Bible - the living, breathing, inspired Word of God. Jesus’ Holy Spirit still speaks through His Word! If we want to find Jesus, this is where we start.
Like any good detective looking for someone who is lost, who has the opportunity to read their diary, we should want to do that too if we want to find Jesus! Here’s what we will find about what Jesus said about his death and life and ours!!!
“I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.” John 11:25-26 NIV
And to make sure we get it, we are reminded of this truth again…
“By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will also raise us also.” 1 Corinthians 6:14 NIV
Here is a fascinating Christian truth. If we are searching for Jesus but we can’t find Him, it’s not because He’s dead. It’s much more likely that it’s because we are dead! Oh we may be alive in a physical sense, but not in a spiritual sense.
Jesus also talked about our need to be born again (anew, from above). The Bible talks about us being dead in our transgressions (Eph. 2:1). To know Jesus and to be able to believe so that we might also be resurrected means that we need new life now!
#5: Such good news needs to be ___________ with others.
“When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others.” Luke 24:9 NIV
The very first thing these women did upon hearing this incredible good news was to go back and tell the disciples. Imagine their excitement! They’d just seen not one, but two Angels and were given the best news possible. Very human to want to share the good news. BUT - these disciples (the very ones who would eventually give up their own lives telling others the good news of Jesus) DID NOT BELIEVE at first!
#6: Give room for others to _____________ in their own way.
“They did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened.” Luke 24:11-12 NIV
So two things we learn here:
1st - Just because something is so obviously true and exciting and wonderful for us, doesn’t mean that it will be the same for other people. And that’s ok! Often we Christians get in our own way when other people struggle with their belief. Remember that even Peter and James and John didn’t believe the first time they heard it either! We have to give some room for people to work through their own doubts about what we so firmly have faith in.
2nd - Each person finds Jesus in their own way. It’s not the same for everyone. The women believed from the angels. Mary M. believed when the gardener turned out to be Jesus. Thomas believed when he poked his hands into the holes.
Every person finds Jesus in his or her own way. And that’s ok! Maybe you were saved at an altar… or a revival meeting… or by reading Scripture… or by having someone debate the merits of the Christian faith with you… or by experiencing the wonders of God’s creation. The way it happened for you may not be the way it happens for the other people in your life. Don’t focus on the method but on the message.
Jesus is alive and well. He is risen. And because He is risen, I believe I will rise too some day! And if you believe in Jesus, you too will live and be resurrected. Then we’ll have an eternity together to celebrate!