The Risen Savior

Looking up at palm fronds with the sun in the background

What does it mean to believe in Jesus' resurrection? This is an important question, because it is the difference between an eternity in heaven or hell. It is the difference between joy in Christ and just getting by. It is the difference between the things you hear on Sunday making a difference in your life when no one is watching, and not.

Today, we are going to look at the difference that belief makes in the life of several disciples here and what difference that belief should make in your life. As we will see, belief isn't having listened to some teaching. It isn't surface-level understanding, nor is it perfect understanding. The difference that belief makes in the life of these disciples and our own is the living differently in light of the information we have.

Remember What Jesus Said

Let's begin here in verse 1. Here are some faithful, dedicated women who followed after Jesus (Luke 8:1-3). They have honored the command to not do any work on the Sabbath day, and they are now coming to prepare the body for its decomposing. Of course, they are surprised to see the stone rolled back and no body there, but rather than rejoicing, they are perplexed, something our two angels friends correct.

The angels point out that they are well in the wrong place, searching for the living among the dead like that! I remember taking a golf cart for a spin at Pursell, when I got myself lost (I've a TERRIBLE sense of direction). I ended up on this path well away from the golf course when the little screen started to warn me that I was searching for golf among the graveled hiking paths, and that if I did not correct my course, the cart would deactivate! Thus began the quick race against the now counting down clock to return to the course! The cart was rightly fussing at me to be making such an obvious (to anyone else) mistake.

The angels point out that Jesus Himself had said that He would rise. It is only then that the women remember His words and then run to tell the other disciples. Amazingly, despite this testimony, the disciples dismiss their claims as idle talk, foolishness. I'm sure that the women reiterated everything that the angels said, including the fact that Jesus Himself said that He would rise. Peter (and John as we see elsewhere) fares a bit better in that he gets up and investigates the claims, but it isn't totally clear that has has come to a full understanding of what happened here. But if he could only remember and believe!

One commentator put it like this: “It is not sufficiently considered how much more we need recollection than information.” In other words, learning new things is useless if we don't call them to mind. The ladies and the other disciples had heard Jesus say many times that He was going to die and three days later rise again. But they obviously did not recall these words, as they were not living in light of them. Why make effort to prepare a body that will not stay in the grave?

We are a forgetful people. We have access to so much information, but we do not call it to mind. Then we end up searching for the living among the tombs! We search for happiness among shameful search history. We search for peace among anxiously overthinking. We search for true security among a hoarded pile of cash. When we forget what Jesus says, we look for Him where He is not, among the dead and dying things of this world. Looking for happiness, peace, and security are not bad things! It is looking for them in the wrong places is where you find trouble. You were not designed to get those things from stuff here, even good stuff here. You can't find true security even in wise financial planning. You can't find everlasting love even in the best of marriages, wonderful and God-glorifying as those are.

You can only find what you are looking for in Christ!

Receive What Jesus Offers

So how do we find what we are looking for in Christ? That's where the second part of our passage comes in.

Two other disciples are walking along the road to Emmaus talking about what has gone on. Jesus approaches them, and in some mysterious way keeps them from recognizing Him. He draws out of them (for our benefit) what they are talking about and how they are thinking about it. They are of course sad because they think Jesus is still dead. I love the moment of them saying that this all happened in the last three days. We are all sitting here saying, "Come ON! You're soooo close!" They just couldn't get out of their heads the idea of a suffering Messiah, a Messiah who would die and rise.

This shouldn't have been hard! Some have calculated that there are 333 prophecies and fulfillments of Jesus' Messiahship! There are plenty of them that predict the suffering Messiah, particularly in Isaiah (chapter 53 is the most famous). Somehow they miss this, but we shouldn't be too hard on them. It is very easy to see how the murder mystery was obvious the whole time, once you know what to look for. For most modern films, the highest billed actor among the suspects is the killer. We know the end of the story, so we know what to look for. Though I think we actually run the risk of missing the fact that Jesus enters into His glory!

Now, I want to point out something here. Notice the word that Jesus uses in that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and then go to glory. Why was Jesus' death necessary? In other words, why couldn't Jesus just have taken over the throne when everyone was thrilled to have Him king? He could feed, He could Heal, He could teach, what else do you need?

Well, He goes through the Bible to show exactly why that was necessary. But Luke doesn't tell us what Jesus said here!! We are coming to the end of a scroll! There's no room! Or is there? Put it in the sequel? One commentator said that those passages are likely spelled out in the book of Acts. Wherever you see a disciple quoting from the Old Testament, that is from there. That could be, but if He is explaining all of Scripture, there might simply be too many passages to mention.

I could imagine Jesus walking through redemptive history to show that mankind is sinful, and there is no hope for them unless someone acts a substitute for them. Think of it. Adam and Eve started in paradise, and yet they could not keep themselves from sin. From there, God's people were given great rulers: Moses, Samuel, David, Solomon and yet, they couldn't even keep themselves from sin, much less anyone else. God's people were given rituals, a series of sacrifices. But did they take away sins completely? No. They had to be offered every year. The sacrifices weren't the ultimate solution. God gave prophets preaching reform, but for all their reminding and exhortation, God's people fell into sin again and again. That was and is the constant problem, and sin isn't a problem just because it causes all the pain and brokenness in the world. Sin is a problem because it is an offense against God. We've heard about crimes against the state, crimes against a nation, and crimes against humanity, each one worse than the last one, but crimes against God? Crimes against the Creator? Crimes against the source of life? The Source of Joy, happiness? Crimes against a gracious God?

If God were to just ignore crimes like that, He would be denying His own Goddness! He would be saying that it is no big deal to commit crimes against God! That isn't just.

But full justice requires everyone be punished. That's what all these movies we make are about aren't they? We design a computer to get rid of enemies and then the robot takes out ALL enemies! The main characters eventually croak out something about showing mercy, but that doesn't really compute. To give mercy is to deny justice, isn't it?

Not with Jesus. With Jesus, God takes the punishment for sin on Himself. Justice is now satisfied! True mercy and grace are displayed on the cross! He takes your sin on Himself, and He places His righteousness on you when you come to Him ready to give up your sins and follow after Him. That's what you need.

And when you receive it, God gives you access to Himself. We saw what a crime it is to offend God. What a joy it must be to be in His presence. To be with the Creator of the universe, to Be with Love Himself. That's the Gospel.

That is what He offers to you.

And you can only get it through Him.

Will you?