Easter Sunday

April 16, 2006

Scripture Readings: Matthew 27:57-66; Matthew 28:1-10

Hymns: 202; 187; 190; 208; 198; 201; 733; 732; 193

            Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. The word of God taken for our instruction in righteousness this Easter morning comes from the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians 15:14-20:

14 And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. 15 Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up——if in fact the dead do not rise. 16 For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. 17 And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! 18 Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable. 20 But now Christ is risen from the dead.

If Christ is not Risen...

But Now Christ is Risen from the Dead!

Introduction

If you have been following the news recently you have probably become familiar with The Da Vinci Code. Maybe you have read the book, or heard they are making it into a movie. Others may have followed the lawsuit that was recently in the news regarding the material in the book. For those who may not be familiar with The Da Vinci code, let me just say that the subject brings out a growing sentiment in our world which seeks to undermine the Biblical Jesus that we know and believe in. The Da Vinci Code and many other books like it have been published with the premise that you and I and many others through the past seventeen to twenty centuries have been lied to about who Jesus Christ really is. They say that Jesus was just a common man who died, but most certainly did not come back to life. That, they say, is simply a myth that was created by the church, to keep people interested and filling the churches.

Anti-Christian and heathen teaching, isn’t it? Yet we will find that these same thoughts have been taught and promoted since the time of the apostle Paul - and it is still being taught under the guise of Christianity today. I said that this is taught under the guise of Christianity, because as Paul points out in this section, anyone who denies the resurrection of Jesus or even the resurrection from the dead in general, denies the whole of Christianity. This morning we will consider these words of Paul as he quite literally plays the Devil’s advocate by stating, “If Christ is not risen...” and then goes on to reveal five tragic results of this denial of Christ’s resurrection. May the Holy Spirit again bless us as we consider the question regarding the reality of the resurrection of Jesus! Amen.

Part 1 -

If Christ is not risen, our preaching and your faith is in vain... But Now Christ is Risen from the Dead!

There were some in Corinth who were denying the resurrection from the dead, and Paul begins his defense of the truth of the resurrection in a strange place. Instead of proving the resurrection he disproves the denial of the resurrection. He says, If it is true that Christ is not risen, “then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty.” Here is the first tragic result of denying the bodily resurrection of Jesus: our preaching and your faith is in vain.

In other words, if Christ did not rise from the dead after His death and burial, you and I are wasting our time. If Christ did not rise from the dead, then the words that I speak to you every week in Bible studies, in worship service and in private devotions and conversations are empty and without meaning.

I regularly remind you that the reason we come to church, the reason we pick up and read our Bibles at home is to strengthen our faith. But Paul continues to point out that if the preaching is empty, which is meant to strengthen faith, then it would also be true that what you have been learned from that preaching, your faith is also empty. Yes, we are all wasting our time. If Christ is not risen then everything that we have come to know and believe in about Jesus is empty and worthless, it’s all been a waste of time.

Is that how we feel? Do we feel like we are wasting our time when we spend one or two or more hours to hear the message of Jesus on Sunday morning. Do we feel like it is a waste of time to read our Bibles or have our private or family devotions? We shouldn’t! Paul assures us that we are not wasting our time, reminding us in verse 20, “But now Christ is risen from the dead.” Since He is risen neither our preaching nor our faith is worthless. Instead they are full of comfort and hope in the life to come!

Part 2 -

If Christ is not risen, the apostolic eyewitnesses are liars... But Now Christ is Risen from the Dead!

In the opening verses of this chapter, Paul lists six separate resurrection appearances of Jesus: He appeared to Peter, to the disciples without Thomas, and then again when Thomas was present, to over five hundred of His followers at one time, to James, and then to Paul himself. In all there were hundreds of people who witnessed the resurrection of Jesus. These people didn’t keep it to themselves, Jesus told them to tell the world that He was not dead, but alive.

This message that we hear and proclaim, the faith that we share is based on the words of those individuals. But Paul says, If Christ is not risen then “we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up.” Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, Peter and Paul - they were all liars! And not only are the New Testament writers liars, but the Old Testament prophets were lying as well when they prophesied of the resurrection of the Messiah, and of our resurrection. If Christ is not risen then our faith, our message is all based on a lie. Proponents of The Da Vinci Code would have us believe just that - that it was all a lie!

But Paul again assures us, “But now Christ is risen from the dead.” The witness of the prophets, apostles and evangelists is true – Christ is risen, He is risen indeed!

Part 3 -

If Christ is not risen, we are still in our sins... But Now Christ is Risen from the Dead!

Earlier I mentioned that a denial of the resurrection of the dead, in essence is a denial of the whole of Christianity. In verse seventeen Paul shows us why. He says, “And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!” Already back in verse 14 Paul discussed the emptiness of our faith if Christ’s resurrection never happened. Now he adds that our faith if futile (good for nothing) if it is based on a dead Savior.

This is a good reminder to us about what faith is. Faith in and of itself is not what is important. People have faith in all kinds of things. But our faith is only as good as the object we have faith in. For example, in our jobs many of us depend on others to get certain things done for us. We have faith in those individuals to get the job done. If they don’t complete their required task, our faith that they would get the job done means nothing. Many people have faith in Buddah, in Krishna and many other “gods”, but that faith is not going to help them on Judgment day.

The same is true for us. If Christ didn’t rise again on the third day then His work for our redemption was not complete, and as a result, we are still in our sins. We remain guilty before God and will receive the just condemnation for our sins. If Christ did not rise from the dead, then we are still dead in our trespasses and sins. You see, rejecting the resurrection of Jesus is the same as rejecting the effectiveness of His sacrifice, and makes His death just as useless as the faith that we have in a dead Savior. Our faith is only as good as the object of our faith, and if we trust in Christ, who did not rise from the dead, then our faith is futile.

“But now Christ is risen from the dead” and His resurrection is the proof that His sacrifice on the cross was sufficient and was fully acceptable to God. Our sins have been forgiven!

Part 4 -

If Christ is not risen, the dead in Christ have perished... But Now Christ is Risen from the Dead!

We have all had to deal with the pain of the death of a loved one. Even our youngest members are familiar with death and what it means. While it is always hard for us to lose those who are close to us, it is such a comfort to know and be assured that those who have died in Christ live on with Christ in heaven. While we struggle with the earthly loss of our brother or sister in Christ, we rejoice in their heavenly gain. We are reassured when we hear those words of Jesus, “Because I live, you will live also” (John 14:19).

But all of that is lost if Christ is not risen. If Christ is not risen, Paul says, “Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.” If Christ never rose from the dead, then those who have died confident in Jesus and the blessing of living with Him for all eternity, have in fact perished. There is no hope for them. There is no promise of eternal life.

Our resurrection from death is based on Christ’s resurrection, and if He did not rise from death to the glories of heaven then neither have our loved ones who have died in Christ, and neither will we. If Christ did not rise then we can have no hope in a life to come. Those who have died before us trusting in Jesus have perished.

“But now Christ is risen from the dead.” Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life, and He offers us comfort through the knowledge that those who have died in Christ share in His victory over death and live with Him forevermore.

Part 5 -

If Christ is not risen, the living in Christ are to be pitied... But Now Christ is Risen from the Dead!

Paul has just finished speaking about our hopelessness in death if Christ did not rise from the dead. If Christ is not risen, and our hope in the eternal glories of heaven is just an illusion, then all that we have is our life right here and right now. Paul continues in verse 19, “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.” Obviously, as Paul has already stated, if Christ is not risen, and we have no hope after death, then our hope in Christ is only valuable in this life. But if this is all that our faith in Christ offers, then “we are of all men the most pitiable.”

Think for a moment about the things we do because of our faith: We take time out of our busy lives to go to church, read our Bibles, and witness our faith to others (all time which the world considers to be wasted); we avoid the temptations of the world which they consider to be fun and exciting; we struggle with persecution brought on because of our faith, bearing our cross before the world. And after all the earthly pleasures we have given up, we find out that our hope in Christ is just a dream? What fools we would be! Christianity without a risen Savior, and without the sure and certain hope of our resurrection from the grave, is worse than no religion at all! If Christ is not risen, then we are the biggest fools that have ever lived.

“But now Christ is risen from the dead” and we who are alive and remain are of all people the most blessed!

These are the results of believing that Christ did not rise from the dead. But the truth of Christ’s resurrection nullifies all of Paul previous arguments, and shows us the many and great blessings which are ours because of His resurrection. Let us not fall prey to the thought becoming more prevalent in our time that Christ did not bodily rise from the dead. Our entire faith rests on the resurrection. Dear Friends in Christ, Christ is risen and as a result our faith and our preaching are not in vain, our sins are forgiven, the dead in Christ live, and we who are alive and remain are of all people the most blessed!. Thanks be to God that Jesus did rise from the dead, and for all the blessings which we receive through His resurrection. “But now Christ is risen from the dead!” Yes, He is risen indeed! Amen.

Pastor Nathanael Mayhew