Resurrection Hope
Series: EASTER SUNDAY
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 12th April 2020
00:00:00 --> 00:00:06 Well, happy Easter everyone. My name is Steve Jeffrey. I'm the senior pastor here at St. Paul's
00:00:06 --> 00:00:15 and what a fantastic day for you to be tuning in to St. Paul's and to be engaging with the
00:00:15 --> 00:00:22 wonderful news of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. This is a day that marks all days. This
00:00:22 --> 00:00:29 is the day that celebrates, that remembers the most significant historical event ever.
00:00:29 --> 00:00:35 This is the one that changes the course of history. And yet I acknowledge that for some,
00:00:35 --> 00:00:43 that is not the case. In fact, a Sydney newspaper printed an article in its Easter edition a number
00:00:43 --> 00:00:50 of years ago now. And the author, a social commentator made this comment about Easter and
00:00:50 --> 00:00:56 about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And, you know, it is a positive comment. It says
00:00:56 --> 00:01:05 Christians celebrate new life at Easter, but in a religious sense. The focus of their festival
00:01:05 --> 00:01:14 is the belief that tragedy and grief symbolized by the crucifixion can give way to new life,
00:01:14 --> 00:01:23 which is symbolized by the resurrection. And that pain and loss are essential steps on the journey
00:01:23 --> 00:01:32 towards enlightenment. And so the author suggests there that Easter is a festival of hope, a celebration
00:01:32 --> 00:01:40 of faith in the future, a reminder that despite our failures and our frailties and our flaws,
00:01:40 --> 00:01:49 personal resurrection is a possibility for any of us. And so for the author of that article,
00:01:49 --> 00:01:57 a positive article, the resurrection of Jesus is in fact symbolic. Whether it happened or not
00:01:57 --> 00:02:06 is irrelevant for him. It's an example. It's a metaphor for life, for new life and growth
00:02:06 --> 00:02:14 through suffering. And so for some, a day like today is a great day, a metaphor for hope beyond
00:02:14 --> 00:02:21 potentially things like coronavirus. The author represents the view of many in our society when
00:02:21 --> 00:02:29 it comes to the resurrection. And it appears to be an intelligent, conciliatory and a rational view
00:02:29 --> 00:02:39 for them. The resurrection is a myth that it's okay to believe if it happens to work for you.
00:02:40 --> 00:02:44 If it helps you in life, then believe the resurrection.
00:02:46 --> 00:02:50 Now, if you've tuned into us today, I want you to know from me right from the start,
00:02:50 --> 00:02:57 that as I look at the Bible and as I speak about the resurrection of Jesus this morning,
00:02:57 --> 00:03:04 I'm not merely putting another alternative in front of you. I'm not putting in front of you a
00:03:04 --> 00:03:12 support system for life. The resurrection of Jesus is not for me a satisfying myth that helps me
00:03:12 --> 00:03:19 interpret life and helps me live life so that it becomes livable and even enjoyable.
00:03:20 --> 00:03:25 When I look at the Bible, when I speak about the resurrection this morning,
00:03:25 --> 00:03:34 Easter is about real persons, historical events and divine intentions that actually happened.
00:03:34 --> 00:03:42 The resurrection is more real and it's more exciting and more terrifying and more life-changing
00:03:42 --> 00:03:49 than any myth or any other truth claim in the history of the world.
00:03:50 --> 00:03:52 That's my starting point.
00:03:53 --> 00:04:02 This Easter, the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, he's alive.
00:04:04 --> 00:04:06 He's not a memory.
00:04:06 --> 00:04:16 A mere historical figure like Caesar or Shakespeare or Abraham Lincoln.
00:04:17 --> 00:04:22 He is back from the dead with a glorious eternal body.
00:04:22 --> 00:04:30 He's alive and he's reigning right now as the king of the universe and he's making this offer
00:04:30 --> 00:04:39 of real, genuine, eternal life and hope to everyone who hears me speak these words today.
00:04:40 --> 00:04:41 You.
00:04:41 --> 00:04:47 So, I've got three things in mind this morning.
00:04:47 --> 00:04:48 This is my introduction.
00:04:48 --> 00:04:52 Three things in mind and if you've got the St. Paul's app in front of you and if you haven't,
00:04:52 --> 00:04:53 I'd encourage you to get there.
00:04:53 --> 00:04:59 Go to St. Paul's app and open it up and you'll find some outline there for my message today.
00:04:59 --> 00:05:00 I've got three things in mind.
00:05:01 --> 00:05:06 Three things that the resurrection does for us from Mark that just read out to us.
00:05:06 --> 00:05:08 It changes our minds.
00:05:08 --> 00:05:10 It challenges our minds and reshapes our worldview.
00:05:11 --> 00:05:18 It changes our hearts and it gives us hope and it changes the whole course of our lives.
00:05:19 --> 00:05:22 So, first of all, challenging minds and reshaping worldviews.
00:05:22 --> 00:05:33 Now, the challenge to our mind about the resurrection is there in Mark chapter 16 verse 6.
00:05:34 --> 00:05:34 Right there.
00:05:34 --> 00:05:38 Don't be alarmed, he said.
00:05:39 --> 00:05:42 You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene.
00:05:42 --> 00:05:44 He was crucified.
00:05:45 --> 00:05:46 He has risen.
00:05:47 --> 00:05:50 He's not here and see the place where they laid him.
00:05:50 --> 00:05:59 And so, the challenge for our minds is that Jesus, who was dead, came back to life after he was dead.
00:05:59 --> 00:06:05 Now, the fact that he was dead, the fact that Jesus was crucified, that's not unusual.
00:06:06 --> 00:06:19 You know, around Jesus' time in first century Palestine, there were dozens of these little movements where there was a leader who gathered a bunch of people behind him and they declared that they were the savior of the world.
00:06:19 --> 00:06:29 And, you know, it sort of worked for a bit until in every other case, including the case with Jesus, the leader was killed.
00:06:30 --> 00:06:31 They were executed.
00:06:31 --> 00:06:40 And in every other case, except for the one with Jesus as its head, they just collapsed and went home.
00:06:40 --> 00:06:41 The movement's finished.
00:06:41 --> 00:06:48 With the leader dead, everyone just simply went back to life.
00:06:50 --> 00:06:52 Except this one led by Jesus.
00:06:53 --> 00:06:57 Only one movement didn't collapse with the death of its leader.
00:06:57 --> 00:07:02 In fact, it exploded with the death of its leader.
00:07:02 --> 00:07:07 Within 200 years, Christianity was dominant in the Roman Empire.
00:07:07 --> 00:07:20 And to this day, right now, it is the largest and the most widely spread culturally and geographically of all religious faiths.
00:07:20 --> 00:07:21 So what's the difference?
00:07:21 --> 00:07:38 The Bible says the Christian church has maintained and claimed for 2000 years that after Jesus was killed, he came back to life and he appeared to his followers and many others.
00:07:39 --> 00:07:44 That is, the resurrection of Jesus is what changes everything.
00:07:45 --> 00:07:49 The Bible says that's why Jesus' followers didn't go home.
00:07:49 --> 00:07:55 That's why Christianity exploded and continues to do so.
00:07:57 --> 00:07:58 But this is the year 2020.
00:07:59 --> 00:08:01 You know, I live in Chatswood.
00:08:01 --> 00:08:05 It's one of the major centers of the secular city of Sydney.
00:08:05 --> 00:08:09 And most people around me don't believe what I've just said.
00:08:09 --> 00:08:10 And, you know, I get that.
00:08:11 --> 00:08:11 I understand that.
00:08:12 --> 00:08:17 You know, this is a challenge to our mind and challenge to our worldviews after all.
00:08:17 --> 00:08:21 And so, let me just say, I want to say this gently.
00:08:21 --> 00:08:25 It's really important not to be intellectually lazy at this point.
00:08:27 --> 00:08:32 Dismiss the resurrection as implausible.
00:08:32 --> 00:08:53 And you have to come up with an alternative explanation as to how this one little movement exploded like it did and penetrated globally into all different kinds of socioeconomic groups and cultures and languages.
00:08:53 --> 00:08:56 But the others didn't.
00:08:58 --> 00:09:06 Many want to dismiss the resurrection without coming up with a historically plausible alternative explanations for it.
00:09:06 --> 00:09:20 So, one historical tactic is to accuse the original texts, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, which we've read from a couple of them this morning, as being unreliable.
00:09:21 --> 00:09:24 Some prefer to call the historical documents legends.
00:09:24 --> 00:09:33 And our Bible reading, which is read out to us from Mark 15 and into 16, challenges that too.
00:09:33 --> 00:09:35 So, if you've got that open, that would be fantastic.
00:09:36 --> 00:09:39 Three times in eight verses, I want you to see this.
00:09:40 --> 00:09:42 Mark 15 verse 40.
00:09:43 --> 00:09:45 Mark 15 verse 47.
00:09:45 --> 00:09:48 Mark 16 verse 47.
00:09:48 --> 00:09:55 Mark writes down the names of the eyewitnesses to the resurrection.
00:09:56 --> 00:10:01 Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome.
00:10:02 --> 00:10:03 Why?
00:10:03 --> 00:10:05 Why three times?
00:10:05 --> 00:10:21 Well, the answer of one New Testament scholar is that this has all the marks of the way that historians did history in the first century.
00:10:22 --> 00:10:26 These women are clearly described here as eyewitnesses.
00:10:26 --> 00:10:27 Have a look at the text with me.
00:10:27 --> 00:10:32 At Mark 15 verse 40, some women were watching.
00:10:33 --> 00:10:35 And again, 15 verse 47.
00:10:35 --> 00:10:41 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph's saw where he was laid.
00:10:41 --> 00:10:43 16 verse 4.
00:10:43 --> 00:10:48 When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away.
00:10:49 --> 00:10:50 Then in verse 5.
00:10:50 --> 00:10:53 As they entered the tomb, they saw.
00:10:53 --> 00:10:54 And then in verse 6.
00:10:55 --> 00:10:57 See the place where they laid him.
00:10:57 --> 00:11:10 It's pretty obvious that Mark sees these women as clear eyewitnesses to not just the death and the burial, but also the resurrection of Jesus.
00:11:10 --> 00:11:17 But let's not forget this is first century Palestine.
00:11:17 --> 00:11:20 Really crucial for us to keep it in its context.
00:11:20 --> 00:11:23 And this itself creates a problem.
00:11:24 --> 00:11:36 You see, one of the early arguments against the truth of Christianity and the accounts of the resurrection of Jesus is that it's based on the eyewitness testimony of women.
00:11:36 --> 00:11:46 A first century Greek philosopher named Celsus was one of the early and probably fiercest opponents of Christianity.
00:11:47 --> 00:11:53 And he wrote that the resurrection was clearly a lie because women were the eyewitnesses.
00:11:54 --> 00:12:00 And women, according to him and the culture of that time, were regarded as hysterical and unreliable.
00:12:00 --> 00:12:20 And so the question is, if Mark is making all this up, and Matthew, Luke, John as well, if they're making it up, why would they have put women down?
00:12:20 --> 00:12:26 Why would they have recorded women as the only eyewitnesses to Jesus' empty tomb?
00:12:26 --> 00:12:37 The only way to account for the women being recorded as the eyewitnesses of Jesus' resurrection is that they were.
00:12:39 --> 00:12:41 And that they were writing history, not legend.
00:12:43 --> 00:12:49 Mark has written this as an historical record of actual events.
00:12:50 --> 00:12:54 Events that challenge the way we see the world.
00:12:56 --> 00:13:00 Now, at this point, it's easy to go, well, okay.
00:13:01 --> 00:13:03 It may have happened in their mind.
00:13:04 --> 00:13:07 You know, ancient people, a little bit gullible when it came to miracles.
00:13:07 --> 00:13:10 They don't have our modern, developed mind.
00:13:10 --> 00:13:14 And we've learned a thing or two in the past 2 years.
00:13:15 --> 00:13:20 See, it's easy to assume that their worldview was different than our worldview.
00:13:20 --> 00:13:24 Like, in the first century, they were gullible.
00:13:25 --> 00:13:30 And they were open to the idea of a resurrection where we're clearly not in our modern, developed mind.
00:13:32 --> 00:13:39 And again, if you look at Mark, got that text in front of you, you see that Mark challenges us not to be too quick here,
00:13:39 --> 00:13:41 to jump in and conclude that they were ignorant and gullible.
00:13:41 --> 00:13:51 One thing you'll notice as you read through Mark is that Jesus himself tells his disciples quite earlier on, quite clearly,
00:13:52 --> 00:13:56 that he will die and that he will rise again on the third day.
00:13:56 --> 00:13:59 He does it in chapter 8 and he does it in chapter 10.
00:14:00 --> 00:14:04 And the weird thing is the third day comes after his death.
00:14:04 --> 00:14:05 It arrives.
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 It's the third day.
00:14:06 --> 00:14:10 And it seems that no one is expecting the resurrection.
00:14:11 --> 00:14:13 The men are sleeping in or something.
00:14:13 --> 00:14:17 And the women have bought spices in their Woolworths home delivery.
00:14:18 --> 00:14:19 And it's a traditional thing that you did.
00:14:19 --> 00:14:23 You went and anointed a dead body with spices.
00:14:23 --> 00:14:24 And so they've got the spices.
00:14:25 --> 00:14:30 And even the disciples of Jesus aren't sitting around at breakfast time,
00:14:30 --> 00:14:32 eating their Weet-Bix and going,
00:14:32 --> 00:14:34 Hey guys, you know, it's the third day.
00:14:35 --> 00:14:36 Do you think we should just go and have a look?
00:14:37 --> 00:14:39 Just check it out.
00:14:39 --> 00:14:40 Just in case.
00:14:44 --> 00:14:47 Even as these women are going to their tomb,
00:14:48 --> 00:14:50 they're wondering who's going to open the stone.
00:14:50 --> 00:14:52 Who's going to roll it away from them.
00:14:54 --> 00:14:56 They've prepared everything except how to get in.
00:14:59 --> 00:15:01 The resurrection, the point is,
00:15:01 --> 00:15:04 the resurrection took everyone by surprise.
00:15:06 --> 00:15:11 The resurrection was just as impossible for them to believe as it is for us today.
00:15:12 --> 00:15:19 Even their first thought at seeing the empty tomb was not that Jesus had resurrected from,
00:15:19 --> 00:15:21 had been risen and come back to life.
00:15:22 --> 00:15:24 But that someone had stolen the body.
00:15:24 --> 00:15:29 So I just want to say to you,
00:15:29 --> 00:15:30 wherever you're sitting now,
00:15:30 --> 00:15:33 is that if you doubt the resurrection of Jesus,
00:15:34 --> 00:15:35 I want to say,
00:15:35 --> 00:15:36 so did they.
00:15:37 --> 00:15:38 So did they.
00:15:39 --> 00:15:43 But they did allow the evidence to challenge their worldview.
00:15:43 --> 00:15:52 We need to be careful of what the Oxford Don C.S. Lewis called chronological snobbery.
00:15:53 --> 00:15:56 It's where we think that those have gone before us,
00:15:56 --> 00:15:59 especially those who have gone a long time before us,
00:15:59 --> 00:16:01 were just naive and gullible and stupid.
00:16:02 --> 00:16:04 They just believe anything.
00:16:04 --> 00:16:14 We need to be careful that our chronological snobbery isn't an excuse for intellectual laziness
00:16:14 --> 00:16:18 and narrow worldview assumptions ourselves.
00:16:20 --> 00:16:23 Doubting the validity of the resurrection is okay.
00:16:23 --> 00:16:26 But at least have an open mind to the evidence.
00:16:26 --> 00:16:32 But also, if you want to write it off as implausible,
00:16:34 --> 00:16:36 then at least for integrity's sake,
00:16:36 --> 00:16:42 come up with an alternative, historically plausible reason
00:16:42 --> 00:16:50 why this little group exploded to all corners of the globe
00:16:50 --> 00:16:54 and changed the world for over 20 centuries.
00:16:56 --> 00:17:01 It did not die with the crucifixion of Jesus.
00:17:02 --> 00:17:09 The Christians, the Romans, and the Jews all agreed
00:17:09 --> 00:17:14 that the tomb where they laid the dead body of Jesus
00:17:14 --> 00:17:17 was empty after three days.
00:17:19 --> 00:17:21 So what happened to the body?
00:17:21 --> 00:17:27 Why did hundreds of people claim to have seen him resurrection
00:17:27 --> 00:17:29 at the risk of their own life?
00:17:29 --> 00:17:33 Why couldn't the opponents of Christianity produce the body?
00:17:34 --> 00:17:38 Why did these early Christians joyfully give their lives
00:17:38 --> 00:17:41 to see this message of the resurrected Jesus
00:17:41 --> 00:17:44 spread to the ends of the earth?
00:17:44 --> 00:17:52 So allow your worldview to be challenged.
00:17:53 --> 00:17:56 If you do allow your worldview to be challenged,
00:17:58 --> 00:18:03 then there's a word of mercy here.
00:18:05 --> 00:18:07 Changing hearts and receiving hope.
00:18:07 --> 00:18:10 There's a word of mercy and grace to your heart.
00:18:10 --> 00:18:16 This is why looking at the evidence of the resurrection of Jesus
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 is so essential for us.
00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 It's crucial for us.
00:18:19 --> 00:18:22 This historical event is not just an intellectual exercise
00:18:22 --> 00:18:25 of historical evidence that shapes our worldview.
00:18:25 --> 00:18:26 It's about mercy.
00:18:27 --> 00:18:27 It's about grace.
00:18:28 --> 00:18:31 And it's about hope for your lives right now in 2020.
00:18:33 --> 00:18:35 Look at this wonderful word of grace and mercy.
00:18:35 --> 00:18:36 Have a look.
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 Mark chapter 16, verse 7.
00:18:37 --> 00:18:42 Go tell his disciples and Peter,
00:18:44 --> 00:18:46 he is going ahead of you into Galilee.
00:18:46 --> 00:18:49 There you will see him just as he told you.
00:18:50 --> 00:18:54 Notice what the women were not told.
00:18:54 --> 00:18:56 They were not told, you go back there
00:18:56 --> 00:19:00 and you tell those faithless, backstabbing,
00:19:00 --> 00:19:02 cowardly disciples of Jesus
00:19:02 --> 00:19:05 that if they pull their socks up,
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 they may well see him.
00:19:06 --> 00:19:09 If they come back to him and they groveled to him
00:19:09 --> 00:19:11 and they had better grovel,
00:19:12 --> 00:19:15 if they have any hope of Jesus reinstating the movement,
00:19:16 --> 00:19:18 then they better come back and grovel.
00:19:18 --> 00:19:20 That's not what was said here at all.
00:19:21 --> 00:19:23 Of course, that would have been warranted
00:19:23 --> 00:19:26 given what they had done to Jesus in abandoning him.
00:19:27 --> 00:19:30 But Jesus doesn't work the way you and I work.
00:19:31 --> 00:19:32 He's forgiving them.
00:19:32 --> 00:19:34 He's calling them back to himself
00:19:34 --> 00:19:37 even before they had even taken any steps to repent.
00:19:39 --> 00:19:42 You see, this is a word of mercy and grace and forgiveness.
00:19:42 --> 00:19:44 But notice the biggest word of grace here
00:19:44 --> 00:19:47 is simply the name Peter.
00:19:49 --> 00:19:51 You see, there's a whole bunch of disciples.
00:19:53 --> 00:19:55 But Peter gets a special mention.
00:19:56 --> 00:19:57 And this is so incredible.
00:19:57 --> 00:20:00 Peter, he's the one who said,
00:20:00 --> 00:20:02 I will never disown you, Jesus.
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 I will die before I disown you.
00:20:05 --> 00:20:09 And yet he denies Jesus three times in his hour of need.
00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 Jesus is arrested.
00:20:14 --> 00:20:16 And Peter, one of his keenest supporters,
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 abandons him.
00:20:18 --> 00:20:21 It's a terrible betrayal by Peter.
00:20:21 --> 00:20:23 He turns his back on God
00:20:23 --> 00:20:25 and he runs to save his skin.
00:20:25 --> 00:20:28 And so if the word to these women
00:20:28 --> 00:20:30 was simply go and tell the disciples
00:20:30 --> 00:20:33 and they had relayed that message to the disciples,
00:20:33 --> 00:20:35 Peter may well have sat in the corner and gone,
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 this is not for me.
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 This is not for me.
00:20:41 --> 00:20:42 My betrayal is too great.
00:20:44 --> 00:20:47 And yet the word of Jesus
00:20:47 --> 00:20:49 through these angels to these women,
00:20:49 --> 00:20:53 to Peter is that I have plans for you, Peter, as well.
00:20:55 --> 00:20:58 He was the biggest screw up.
00:20:59 --> 00:21:01 And he becomes the biggest of the leaders
00:21:01 --> 00:21:02 in the early days of the church.
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 His screw up the biggest,
00:21:05 --> 00:21:06 his repentance the deepest,
00:21:07 --> 00:21:09 and his grasp of God's mercy and grace to him
00:21:09 --> 00:21:11 in Jesus the greatest.
00:21:13 --> 00:21:16 And that is the good news of Christianity.
00:21:16 --> 00:21:18 This is why it's mercy and grace to us.
00:21:19 --> 00:21:21 This is the good news of Easter Day,
00:21:22 --> 00:21:24 that salvation is by grace.
00:21:24 --> 00:21:25 It's not by our works.
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 It's not by our effort.
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 It's not by our strength.
00:21:27 --> 00:21:28 Salvation comes to us
00:21:28 --> 00:21:33 by the witness of Jesus Christ dying on the cross.
00:21:33 --> 00:21:36 Salvation comes to us by Jesus
00:21:36 --> 00:21:38 when we admit our inability
00:21:38 --> 00:21:40 and our weakness and our failure,
00:21:41 --> 00:21:43 when we admit that we need a savior.
00:21:43 --> 00:21:49 Jesus, the resurrected king,
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 is the savior that we need.
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 Forgiveness is offered to Peter.
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 It's offered to us
00:21:54 --> 00:21:56 with the resurrection of Jesus.
00:21:56 --> 00:22:00 You see, when a criminal completes a jail sentence,
00:22:00 --> 00:22:03 they fully, completely, totally satisfy the sentence.
00:22:04 --> 00:22:06 And when they walk out of prison,
00:22:06 --> 00:22:09 what the law has no more claim on them.
00:22:09 --> 00:22:11 They've paid the penalty.
00:22:11 --> 00:22:12 They've paid the debt.
00:22:12 --> 00:22:13 They are now free.
00:22:15 --> 00:22:17 And Jesus Christ came to pay the penalty
00:22:17 --> 00:22:20 for our crimes against God
00:22:20 --> 00:22:23 because all of us are Peters.
00:22:25 --> 00:22:28 We have all denied him explicitly
00:22:28 --> 00:22:30 by rejecting him.
00:22:31 --> 00:22:35 His right for his to rule over our life as our creator
00:22:35 --> 00:22:39 or implicitly by going about our daily life
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 as if he doesn't exist
00:22:40 --> 00:22:42 or doesn't in fact matter.
00:22:44 --> 00:22:47 It's an enormous crime,
00:22:47 --> 00:22:48 a huge crime against our maker
00:22:48 --> 00:22:50 for which he holds us accountable
00:22:50 --> 00:22:53 and the penalty is huge.
00:22:54 --> 00:22:56 The sentence is death,
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 in fact, eternal death,
00:22:57 --> 00:22:59 separation from our creator forever.
00:22:59 --> 00:23:06 And Jesus stepped in for us on Good Friday.
00:23:09 --> 00:23:11 He went to the cross for our sin
00:23:11 --> 00:23:14 and he cried out from the cross,
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 it's finished.
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 The job's done.
00:23:18 --> 00:23:22 He must have satisfied the penalty to its fullest
00:23:22 --> 00:23:25 because on Easter day,
00:23:25 --> 00:23:28 he walked out of the tomb free.
00:23:29 --> 00:23:33 Death could not hold him down.
00:23:33 --> 00:23:37 In Jesus, God has stamped paid in full
00:23:37 --> 00:23:39 right across history
00:23:39 --> 00:23:41 so that no one can miss it.
00:23:42 --> 00:23:44 And because Jesus was raised from the dead,
00:23:44 --> 00:23:46 God can come to us
00:23:46 --> 00:23:52 with a word of mercy and grace and hope.
00:23:52 --> 00:23:55 And so,
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 if you allow
00:23:56 --> 00:23:59 the challenge to your minds
00:23:59 --> 00:24:00 to change your worldview
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 and the word of grace
00:24:01 --> 00:24:03 and mercy and forgiveness
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 to fill up your heart,
00:24:05 --> 00:24:06 then finally,
00:24:06 --> 00:24:08 the resurrection changes
00:24:08 --> 00:24:10 the whole course of your life.
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 Easter day
00:24:12 --> 00:24:14 does not just change our thinking
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 and fill our hearts,
00:24:15 --> 00:24:18 it changes the way we live our lives.
00:24:18 --> 00:24:20 The whole course of our lives
00:24:20 --> 00:24:22 is reorientated
00:24:22 --> 00:24:23 by that little word there,
00:24:24 --> 00:24:24 go.
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 The resurrected Jesus,
00:24:28 --> 00:24:30 the one who conquered death,
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 sin and evil
00:24:31 --> 00:24:34 and is enthroned as ruler
00:24:34 --> 00:24:35 of the universe,
00:24:35 --> 00:24:37 now directs the course of your life
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 as your creator
00:24:38 --> 00:24:40 and as your redeemer.
00:24:42 --> 00:24:43 Live
00:24:43 --> 00:24:44 with Jesus
00:24:44 --> 00:24:45 as the gracious,
00:24:45 --> 00:24:46 merciful,
00:24:46 --> 00:24:47 loving master
00:24:47 --> 00:24:48 of your life.
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 He sets the agenda.
00:24:50 --> 00:24:52 He calls the shots
00:24:52 --> 00:24:53 and he calls them
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 to go
00:24:54 --> 00:24:55 and tell people
00:24:55 --> 00:24:57 about the life
00:24:57 --> 00:24:57 and the hope
00:24:57 --> 00:24:59 that is available to them
00:24:59 --> 00:25:01 in Jesus Christ.
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 And I think that's why
00:25:03 --> 00:25:06 verse 8 of Mark,
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 it's the last verse,
00:25:07 --> 00:25:10 it's such a shocking way
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 for Mark,
00:25:11 --> 00:25:13 his account of the life
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 and the resurrection
00:25:14 --> 00:25:14 of Jesus,
00:25:15 --> 00:25:17 it's just such a shocking way
00:25:17 --> 00:25:17 to end.
00:25:18 --> 00:25:20 Trembling and bewildered,
00:25:20 --> 00:25:22 the women went out
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 and fled from the tomb.
00:25:24 --> 00:25:25 They said nothing to anyone
00:25:25 --> 00:25:27 because they were afraid.
00:25:31 --> 00:25:33 They were trembling
00:25:33 --> 00:25:35 and bewildered on Saturday
00:25:35 --> 00:25:37 as their hopes
00:25:37 --> 00:25:38 were dashed
00:25:38 --> 00:25:39 with his crucifixion.
00:25:40 --> 00:25:41 They can't
00:25:41 --> 00:25:43 now
00:25:43 --> 00:25:43 be trembling
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 and bewildered
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 that death
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 is now being conquered.
00:25:47 --> 00:25:47 The resurrection
00:25:47 --> 00:25:49 changes everything.
00:25:49 --> 00:25:50 It changes the whole
00:25:50 --> 00:25:51 course of your life.
00:25:51 --> 00:25:51 The resurrection
00:25:51 --> 00:25:54 is the answer
00:25:54 --> 00:25:55 to every single
00:25:55 --> 00:25:57 human being's
00:25:57 --> 00:25:57 deepest longing
00:25:57 --> 00:25:58 and that is
00:25:58 --> 00:25:59 to live.
00:25:59 --> 00:26:02 to live
00:26:02 --> 00:26:03 life
00:26:03 --> 00:26:03 well
00:26:03 --> 00:26:04 forever.
00:26:06 --> 00:26:07 That's why
00:26:07 --> 00:26:07 the beauty
00:26:07 --> 00:26:08 in the fitness
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 industry
00:26:09 --> 00:26:09 booms.
00:26:09 --> 00:26:09 It's why you
00:26:09 --> 00:26:10 the baby boomers
00:26:10 --> 00:26:12 are still wearing jeans
00:26:12 --> 00:26:12 because you still
00:26:12 --> 00:26:13 want to be in your 20s.
00:26:14 --> 00:26:16 We want to be young
00:26:16 --> 00:26:17 and vibrant
00:26:17 --> 00:26:17 and healthy
00:26:17 --> 00:26:18 because
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 those were the days
00:26:19 --> 00:26:21 before the emotional pain,
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 the responsibility
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 and the frailty.
00:26:23 --> 00:26:24 We want to live
00:26:24 --> 00:26:25 and we want to live
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 well.
00:26:26 --> 00:26:28 One of the reasons
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 why it's just
00:26:29 --> 00:26:29 so hard
00:26:29 --> 00:26:30 for us to suffer
00:26:30 --> 00:26:32 in this world
00:26:32 --> 00:26:33 is that we think
00:26:33 --> 00:26:33 that this physical
00:26:33 --> 00:26:34 world is it
00:26:34 --> 00:26:36 and when you lose
00:26:36 --> 00:26:36 it,
00:26:37 --> 00:26:38 you lose the best
00:26:38 --> 00:26:38 and the most
00:26:38 --> 00:26:39 precious thing.
00:26:42 --> 00:26:42 The resurrection
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 gives us hope
00:26:43 --> 00:26:44 beyond that.
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 This is not just it.
00:26:46 --> 00:26:47 There is more
00:26:47 --> 00:26:47 to come.
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 The resurrection
00:26:48 --> 00:26:49 means that everything
00:26:49 --> 00:26:50 Jesus promised
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 is true.
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 God is going
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 to perfectly
00:26:53 --> 00:26:53 rebuild
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 the world.
00:26:54 --> 00:26:55 The resurrection
00:26:55 --> 00:26:57 changes everything.
00:27:00 --> 00:27:02 There is hope
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 for the wheelchair
00:27:03 --> 00:27:04 bound,
00:27:05 --> 00:27:06 for the person
00:27:06 --> 00:27:08 with crippling
00:27:08 --> 00:27:09 emotional pain.
00:27:11 --> 00:27:12 No religion
00:27:12 --> 00:27:14 in the world
00:27:14 --> 00:27:15 except
00:27:15 --> 00:27:16 biblical
00:27:16 --> 00:27:18 Christianity
00:27:18 --> 00:27:20 promises us
00:27:20 --> 00:27:21 new
00:27:21 --> 00:27:22 and perfect
00:27:22 --> 00:27:23 minds,
00:27:24 --> 00:27:24 hearts
00:27:24 --> 00:27:25 and bodies
00:27:25 --> 00:27:26 forever.
00:27:28 --> 00:27:30 Only in Jesus
00:27:30 --> 00:27:30 Christ
00:27:30 --> 00:27:31 can people
00:27:31 --> 00:27:32 find such
00:27:32 --> 00:27:33 hope
00:27:33 --> 00:27:34 for life
00:27:34 --> 00:27:35 now
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 and for life
00:27:36 --> 00:27:36 forever.
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 And so
00:27:40 --> 00:27:43 when I read
00:27:43 --> 00:27:43 of people
00:27:43 --> 00:27:45 in an attempt
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 to being helpful
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 and positive,
00:27:48 --> 00:27:50 turn the resurrection
00:27:50 --> 00:27:51 into a metaphor
00:27:51 --> 00:27:53 for new life
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 and growth
00:27:54 --> 00:27:55 through suffering,
00:27:57 --> 00:27:58 you empty
00:27:58 --> 00:27:59 Easter of its
00:27:59 --> 00:27:59 hope.
00:28:01 --> 00:28:02 Can you
00:28:02 --> 00:28:02 imagine
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 the first
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 responders
00:28:04 --> 00:28:04 to the
00:28:04 --> 00:28:05 resurrection
00:28:05 --> 00:28:06 in the first
00:28:06 --> 00:28:06 century
00:28:06 --> 00:28:08 going to the
00:28:08 --> 00:28:08 poor,
00:28:08 --> 00:28:09 to the
00:28:09 --> 00:28:09 slaves,
00:28:09 --> 00:28:09 to the
00:28:09 --> 00:28:10 outcasts,
00:28:10 --> 00:28:10 to the
00:28:10 --> 00:28:11 diseased
00:28:11 --> 00:28:12 in society
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 and saying
00:28:13 --> 00:28:13 to them,
00:28:14 --> 00:28:15 let me tell you
00:28:15 --> 00:28:15 about the
00:28:15 --> 00:28:16 resurrection.
00:28:16 --> 00:28:17 Jesus
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 is a
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 great symbol
00:28:19 --> 00:28:19 of our
00:28:19 --> 00:28:19 good
00:28:19 --> 00:28:20 triumphs
00:28:20 --> 00:28:20 through evil
00:28:20 --> 00:28:22 and so
00:28:22 --> 00:28:22 go and be
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 nice to
00:28:23 --> 00:28:23 one another.
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 Can you
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 imagine the
00:28:26 --> 00:28:26 crippled and
00:28:26 --> 00:28:27 the diseased
00:28:27 --> 00:28:27 and the
00:28:27 --> 00:28:28 poverty
00:28:28 --> 00:28:28 stricken,
00:28:28 --> 00:28:28 the
00:28:28 --> 00:28:29 tormented,
00:28:29 --> 00:28:29 the
00:28:29 --> 00:28:30 outcasts
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 in their
00:28:31 --> 00:28:32 state of
00:28:32 --> 00:28:33 despair?
00:28:35 --> 00:28:35 That's
00:28:35 --> 00:28:36 just what I
00:28:36 --> 00:28:36 needed to
00:28:36 --> 00:28:36 hear.
00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 I just
00:28:40 --> 00:28:40 needed a
00:28:40 --> 00:28:41 positive message
00:28:41 --> 00:28:42 like that to
00:28:42 --> 00:28:42 help me cope
00:28:42 --> 00:28:43 day by day
00:28:43 --> 00:28:44 with my
00:28:44 --> 00:28:44 crippling
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 pain and
00:28:45 --> 00:28:46 loneliness and
00:28:46 --> 00:28:46 hunger.
00:28:47 --> 00:28:49 you see,
00:28:49 --> 00:28:49 the
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 resurrection
00:28:50 --> 00:28:51 as a
00:28:51 --> 00:28:51 nice
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 symbol
00:28:52 --> 00:28:54 has no
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 power to
00:28:55 --> 00:28:55 change
00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 anything.
00:28:57 --> 00:28:58 It offers
00:28:58 --> 00:28:58 us no
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 hope at
00:28:59 --> 00:28:59 all.
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 The
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 message of
00:29:02 --> 00:29:02 Easter
00:29:02 --> 00:29:04 is not
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 we are
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 all in
00:29:06 --> 00:29:06 this
00:29:06 --> 00:29:06 together
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 and
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 together
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 we will
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 all get
00:29:09 --> 00:29:09 through
00:29:09 --> 00:29:09 this.
00:29:11 --> 00:29:11 It's
00:29:11 --> 00:29:12 not even
00:29:12 --> 00:29:13 that Jesus
00:29:13 --> 00:29:14 will support
00:29:14 --> 00:29:14 us and
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 encourage
00:29:15 --> 00:29:15 us to
00:29:15 --> 00:29:16 get
00:29:16 --> 00:29:16 through
00:29:16 --> 00:29:17 this
00:29:17 --> 00:29:17 together.
00:29:19 --> 00:29:19 Even if
00:29:19 --> 00:29:20 it is a
00:29:20 --> 00:29:20 worldwide
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 crisis,
00:29:23 --> 00:29:23 the hope
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 of Easter
00:29:24 --> 00:29:24 is that
00:29:24 --> 00:29:24 Jesus
00:29:24 --> 00:29:25 Christ
00:29:25 --> 00:29:26 himself
00:29:26 --> 00:29:28 is the
00:29:28 --> 00:29:28 answer.
00:29:31 --> 00:29:32 He is
00:29:32 --> 00:29:33 our hope.
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 He is
00:29:34 --> 00:29:35 the one
00:29:35 --> 00:29:36 who conquered
00:29:36 --> 00:29:36 death.
00:29:37 --> 00:29:37 He is
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 risen.
00:29:38 --> 00:29:39 He sits
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 as conqueror
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 and Lord
00:29:41 --> 00:29:41 and King
00:29:41 --> 00:29:42 of Kings
00:29:42 --> 00:29:43 of all
00:29:43 --> 00:29:43 things.
00:29:43 --> 00:29:44 He reigns
00:29:44 --> 00:29:45 supreme
00:29:45 --> 00:29:46 over life
00:29:46 --> 00:29:46 and death
00:29:46 --> 00:29:47 and every
00:29:47 --> 00:29:48 circumstance.
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 He is
00:29:49 --> 00:29:50 risen and
00:29:50 --> 00:29:50 promises us
00:29:50 --> 00:29:51 the same
00:29:51 --> 00:29:52 if we
00:29:52 --> 00:29:52 trust in
00:29:52 --> 00:29:52 him.
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 He calls
00:29:54 --> 00:29:54 us to
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 give our
00:29:55 --> 00:29:56 lives to
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 him and
00:29:57 --> 00:29:57 to experience
00:29:57 --> 00:29:59 true joy,
00:29:59 --> 00:30:00 true freedom
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 and true
00:30:01 --> 00:30:01 hope.
00:30:03 --> 00:30:04 You see,
00:30:04 --> 00:30:04 the resurrection
00:30:04 --> 00:30:07 makes you
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 free from
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 this life
00:30:09 --> 00:30:11 enough to
00:30:11 --> 00:30:12 be brave
00:30:12 --> 00:30:13 and
00:30:13 --> 00:30:13 courageous
00:30:13 --> 00:30:14 and
00:30:14 --> 00:30:15 sacrificial
00:30:15 --> 00:30:15 and
00:30:15 --> 00:30:17 patient
00:30:17 --> 00:30:18 and joyful
00:30:18 --> 00:30:19 no matter
00:30:19 --> 00:30:20 what the
00:30:20 --> 00:30:21 circumstances.
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 The
00:30:23 --> 00:30:23 resurrection
00:30:23 --> 00:30:24 means you
00:30:24 --> 00:30:24 can face
00:30:24 --> 00:30:25 the worst
00:30:25 --> 00:30:26 things in
00:30:26 --> 00:30:27 life with
00:30:27 --> 00:30:28 hope and
00:30:28 --> 00:30:29 with joy.
00:30:29 --> 00:30:30 The
00:30:30 --> 00:30:30 resurrection
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 means you
00:30:31 --> 00:30:31 can give
00:30:31 --> 00:30:32 yourself to
00:30:32 --> 00:30:33 serving God
00:30:33 --> 00:30:33 in this
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 world that
00:30:34 --> 00:30:35 he loves
00:30:35 --> 00:30:35 and is
00:30:35 --> 00:30:36 redeeming
00:30:36 --> 00:30:37 and remaking
00:30:37 --> 00:30:38 through
00:30:38 --> 00:30:39 Jesus
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 Christ.
00:30:43 --> 00:30:43 So
00:30:43 --> 00:30:44 friends,
00:30:44 --> 00:30:47 if Jesus
00:30:47 --> 00:30:47 did not
00:30:47 --> 00:30:48 rise from
00:30:48 --> 00:30:48 the dead,
00:30:50 --> 00:30:50 he would
00:30:50 --> 00:30:52 hardly even
00:30:52 --> 00:30:52 get a
00:30:52 --> 00:30:53 mention in
00:30:53 --> 00:30:53 the history
00:30:53 --> 00:30:54 books.
00:30:55 --> 00:30:56 The
00:30:56 --> 00:30:57 resurrection
00:30:57 --> 00:30:57 of Jesus
00:30:57 --> 00:30:58 changes
00:30:58 --> 00:30:59 everything
00:30:59 --> 00:31:01 in life.
00:31:01 --> 00:31:02 It's
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 because
00:31:02 --> 00:31:03 Jesus is
00:31:03 --> 00:31:04 risen and
00:31:04 --> 00:31:04 reigning
00:31:04 --> 00:31:05 that we
00:31:05 --> 00:31:06 have plastered
00:31:06 --> 00:31:06 everywhere
00:31:06 --> 00:31:07 at this
00:31:07 --> 00:31:07 church
00:31:07 --> 00:31:07 St.
00:31:07 --> 00:31:08 Paul's
00:31:08 --> 00:31:08 Chatswood
00:31:08 --> 00:31:09 that we
00:31:09 --> 00:31:10 treasure
00:31:10 --> 00:31:10 Jesus
00:31:10 --> 00:31:11 for God's
00:31:11 --> 00:31:11 glory
00:31:11 --> 00:31:12 and the
00:31:12 --> 00:31:12 joy of
00:31:12 --> 00:31:13 all people.
00:31:13 --> 00:31:14 He is
00:31:14 --> 00:31:15 our greatest
00:31:15 --> 00:31:15 treasure.
00:31:16 --> 00:31:16 And so
00:31:16 --> 00:31:17 wherever you
00:31:17 --> 00:31:18 are watching
00:31:18 --> 00:31:19 this stream
00:31:19 --> 00:31:19 from,
00:31:20 --> 00:31:20 whether it
00:31:20 --> 00:31:21 be in
00:31:21 --> 00:31:23 North America,
00:31:23 --> 00:31:24 somewhere around
00:31:24 --> 00:31:25 in the suburbs
00:31:25 --> 00:31:25 of Chatswood,
00:31:25 --> 00:31:26 out in
00:31:26 --> 00:31:26 regional New
00:31:26 --> 00:31:27 South Wales,
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 in parks
00:31:28 --> 00:31:28 or the
00:31:28 --> 00:31:29 Central Coast
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 or Singapore,
00:31:30 --> 00:31:30 wherever you
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 are,
00:31:31 --> 00:31:33 this message
00:31:33 --> 00:31:33 is for
00:31:33 --> 00:31:34 all people.
00:31:35 --> 00:31:35 Whatever
00:31:35 --> 00:31:36 culture you're
00:31:36 --> 00:31:36 sitting in,
00:31:36 --> 00:31:37 whatever your
00:31:37 --> 00:31:38 cultural heritage,
00:31:38 --> 00:31:38 whatever your
00:31:38 --> 00:31:39 worldview,
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 whatever your
00:31:40 --> 00:31:40 belief system,
00:31:41 --> 00:31:41 whatever your
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 upbringing,
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 whatever your
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 current circumstances
00:31:44 --> 00:31:45 in life,
00:31:45 --> 00:31:46 Jesus is risen
00:31:46 --> 00:31:48 and he reigns
00:31:48 --> 00:31:49 supreme over
00:31:49 --> 00:31:49 all.
00:31:50 --> 00:31:52 This is a
00:31:52 --> 00:31:53 life-changing
00:31:53 --> 00:31:54 message.
00:31:56 --> 00:31:57 And if you
00:31:57 --> 00:31:58 are not
00:31:58 --> 00:31:59 someone who
00:31:59 --> 00:32:00 is currently
00:32:00 --> 00:32:01 a believer,
00:32:01 --> 00:32:02 a truster in
00:32:02 --> 00:32:02 the Lord Jesus
00:32:02 --> 00:32:03 Christ,
00:32:03 --> 00:32:04 can I call
00:32:04 --> 00:32:05 you,
00:32:05 --> 00:32:06 implore you
00:32:06 --> 00:32:07 to come to
00:32:07 --> 00:32:07 life in
00:32:07 --> 00:32:08 Jesus this
00:32:08 --> 00:32:09 Easter.
00:32:10 --> 00:32:10 Let the
00:32:10 --> 00:32:11 evidence change
00:32:11 --> 00:32:12 your mind,
00:32:13 --> 00:32:14 let his
00:32:14 --> 00:32:15 word of
00:32:15 --> 00:32:16 mercy and
00:32:16 --> 00:32:17 grace fill
00:32:17 --> 00:32:17 up your
00:32:17 --> 00:32:18 heart,
00:32:19 --> 00:32:19 and let his
00:32:19 --> 00:32:20 call on your
00:32:20 --> 00:32:21 life change
00:32:21 --> 00:32:21 the priorities
00:32:21 --> 00:32:22 of your life.
00:32:23 --> 00:32:24 Happy Easter.