Transformative Power of the Resurrection: A Call to Believe

Well, I too want to extend and my Easter greetings resurrection Sunday. Um I think I think Adam Pastor Adam settled you know when we say um you know Christ is risen the congregation is called to respond he is risen indeed. And so with all the might that you can bolster up would you respond with me? Christ is risen indeed. See, I don't know where Adam went, but I I knew they I knew they had something more in them because there's something about that just to declare that as we come to the central the centrality of our faith. [00:40:19]

So now we're at the resurrection and we want to talk about the significance of it. We want to talk about the centrality of of this day because if we don't have resurrection day, we don't have a Christian faith. Have you ever um bought something or thought of buying something and maybe you were a little bit apprehensive? Maybe you were a doubter. Maybe you didn't believe all the hype. I don't know if you remember back into the late 2000s, 2007, 2008, there was this little uh device called the iPhone that was created. [00:42:24]

And there are many in the Christian faith who doubted. And there's some of you here today, you doubt. You've come here because you were brought by a family member. And maybe you've kept the Christian faith on the sidelines of your life. And yet you come into this moment, the moment of the Christian church to recognize and to celebrate the risen Christ. This is our day. And Paul would put it like this. He says, "And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless and your faith faith is useless." [00:45:14]

The resurrection is the center of the center. It's the very core of our Christian faith is we would see Jesus as the center and the center moment of Jesus' life was this moment where he walked out of a tomb. And for then on it would be this recognition that Jesus Christ paid a penalty for sin and death. And the resurrection is proof that indeed that which he declared, that which he came for succeeded. The resurrection is the very center of the center. [00:46:40]

In John, it would be talking about belief. It would be talking about these rich theological interactions. It would be backed up by seven unique signs, seven unique statements about who Jesus Christ was. And through it all, it it was all written as John says in John 20:31, these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. And so today I want you to know that because the resurrection is the very center of the center. [00:48:29]

The resurrection keeps us from claiming Christianity as a religion of moralistic naturalism. The resurrection keeps us from claiming Christianity as a religion of moralistic um naturalism. What do I mean by that? It just means that Jesus did not die on a cross so that we could become better people. You think, well, we're supposed to be worse people. No, no, no. We're going to see how Jesus brings spiritual life where there is spiritual death. And sometimes people come to the Christian faith and they say, "Oh, it's just, you know, I'm going to try and be a good person." [00:50:09]

And suddenly Jesus was standing there among them. We're going to see this again a little bit later on in the text, but you know, Jesus just showed again, there was nothing natural about the resurrection. There's nothing natural about Jesus just appearing in the middle of a room. Um, and so suddenly there was Jesus standing there and he says, "Peace be with you," he said. And as he spoke, he showed them the wounds in his hands and in his side. And they were filled with joy when they saw the Lord again. [00:52:02]

And this is indeed what Jesus Christ has done. Jesus again did not die so that you could become a better person but rather we see in passages like Ephesians 2 where it says God was rich in mercy made you alive in Christ just as we see in the resurrection life coming out of death. Jesus wants to take that sin that separates you from God. Sin that holds you back from the flourishing of God. And that sin is not something that is just cast aside, but rather it is placed upon Jesus. [00:52:59]

They were pointing people to this this empty tomb that would forever and eternally remind us that indeed what Jesus set out to accomplish on the cross, what God has set out to accomplish on the cross was fully realized in that resurrection. So again, it's it's like pe second Timothy. He would say having a form of godliness but denying its power. Do you get that? having a form of God. So in other words, you're doing a lot of good things, but you think, I'm just doing it in my own efforts. [00:54:35]

You know, I don't know if you can imagine if you were out swimming in deep waters and say you started to drown and you you were gasping, you were struggling, you were panicking and all of a sudden there's a lifeguard that jumps out and says, "Here I am." And you think, "Good, they're going to come and get me. But could you imagine if that lifeguard stood at the edge of the water and called out to you and said things like, you know, just try a little harder, swim a little with better technique, you know, and and while you're at it, you should be kind to the fish. [00:55:51]

And yet in the midst of this all, we see that Jesus is going to come alongside the doubters. And Jesus responds with grace to the doubter who is in need of resurrection power. Jesus responds with grace to the doubter who is in need of resurrection power. Look what it it it goes on to say. Says one of the 12 disciples Thomas nicknamed the twin was not with the others when Jesus came. They told him we've seen the Lord. But he replied, "I won't believe it unless I see it. [00:57:06]

I I just want you to know that you know the very posture of Jesus is coming toward you with grace and mercy. Do you notice what he says to the people in the room? He says he says peace be with you to those who believe but peace be with you to those who are doubting. Sometimes we we don't fully grasp what it meant in the first century when people would impart this blessing of peace upon others. But the significance was more than just a greeting, more than just a kind statement, a kind religious statement that people would throw around. [00:58:28]

And I tell you this message that earlier on in the book of John, God would say that he did not send his son to condemn the world. The world was condemned already, but to give life in him. And that's what Jesus does. He doesn't come in a posture of condemning, but rather of extending grace. And I don't know who needs to hear it in this room, but some of you, you may feel like God could never love me. God would never extend his grace to me. And I just simply say the resurrection points to the very fact that Jesus that God postures himself toward you not to condemn. [01:00:00]

And so, oh that we might lean into the evidences that would remind us that the resurrection of Jesus Christ isn't just a legend, isn't just a metaphor for life, that in its reality, it actually happened. And so, oh that you would lean into, especially if you're a doubter today, that you would spend time reading and listening to the evidences of the resurrected resurrection of Jesus Christ. Again, it's it's not like it's a secondary issue. There can be a lot of things that we wrestle with in our faith, but you cannot be a Christian and not embrace the reality of the resurrection. [01:04:30]

And so we believe in the resurrection because as some would put it, it's far too ridiculous of a story to be made up. In fact, one atheist Bartman, he would put it like this. He says, "It's hard today to understand just how offensive the idea of a crucified Messiah would have been to the most first uh to the most first century Jews since no one would have made up the idea of a crucified Messiah. Jesus must really have existed, must really have raised messianic expectations and must really have been crucified." [01:08:24]

And yet there is this explanation like how what about the empty tomb? Like maybe for some they would think well it was just a legend. You know this whole thing about Jesus crucifixion that happened but his resurrection it was just a legend. Well you realize that when we study the texts of the scripture that we're going very far back in the dates very very close to the original autographs that the the the Bible was written in. And in Paul when he would write and pen the words in first Corinthians 15 it was like 50 to 54 AD. [01:09:45]

And then again, as I've already mentioned, when we think of of the resurrection, you know, we've got this empty tomb and then we've got these disciples who stake their life on the empty tomb. You know surely those that there's been many people who have lived for lies but how many people are are willing to die for a lie would an entire group of of disciples who after the crucifixion kind of went back into their own worlds and we see Peter even went back to fishing and you know what would make him want to go and proclaim the message of Jesus' resurrection. [01:11:31]

So maybe you're saying I I don't believe well I've got a lot of books for you resources. In fact, he's um finishing up a book and it's just on the resurrection. It's 5,000 pages long just on the proof of the resurrection. So maybe you say, "Well, you know, my my my three minute glance um on YouTube, you know, I I don't believe yet." Well, have we got resources for you? You can go on our website and under the resource section, there is a lot of of of resources, documents, uh websites that you can go just to lean in and study this. [01:13:47]

For those that have placed their faith in Jesus Christ, that supernatural work of bringing spiritual death, transform, transforming it to life. In John chapter 20, what is what does Thomas say? He says, "My Lord and my God." God. In other words, you are the leader of my life and you are the supernatural eternal, all-knowing person who formed all things, created all things, all things created by him and for him. Paul would say in Colossians, this is Jesus. So, he says, "My Lord and my God." [01:14:41]

And today, I invite you to come and to trust that which Jesus Christ has done. If the resurrection didn't happen, then we're all wasting a morning. But I've staked my eternity on it. I believe that I've experienced new life in Jesus Christ. And so I invite you to come and to experience it if you've never received Christ as your savior to pray a prayer. It's not in the words that save you, but in the acknowledgement as you would come and say, "Jesus, I I don't just want you to make me a better person. [01:17:20]