Well, good morning, church. Would you turn with me again to Luke chapter 24?
I'd like to pick up Luke's resurrection narrative in verse 36.
So that's page 832 in the Pew Bible. Let me encourage you to follow along there.
We will look at Luke 24, 36 through 49.
Let me pray, and then I will read for us.
Father, on this great day when we remember and celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus,
grant us by your Holy Spirit open minds and receptive hearts to embrace the risen Christ
and to live in the hope and the power of his resurrection.
In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Amen.
All right, so Luke 24, 36 through 49.
As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them and said,
Peace to you.
But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit.
And he said to them, Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts?
See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself.
Touch me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.
And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.
And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them,
Have you anything here to eat?
They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate before them.
Then he said to them, These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you,
that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures and said to them,
Thus it is written that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead,
and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.
And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you.
But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.
Well, from the earliest days, Christians defined their message, their belief,
their understanding of the person of Jesus with a word that we translate into English as gospel,
or better translated, good news.
You know, but the funny thing is that this word that they used to encapsulate their message,
gospel, good news, it wasn't necessarily a religious word.
It wasn't a word that you'd hear at the local temple or visiting the local shrine.
In fact, you were more likely to hear the word gospel or good news in the marketplace or in the Senate.
It was what we might call today a secular word, a word about realities in this world.
You know, the word gospel was used in the Roman Empire often to describe great victories that had been won
or momentous events that changed the live reality of those in the empire.
Something like, you know, Caesar has conquered the barbarians along the Danube.
Send forth the good news.
Our borders are now safe.
Four is over.
Prosperity is on the way.
You know, some kind of imperial edict like that.
But isn't that interesting?
For the first Christians, what happened in the person of Jesus was not an event that could be relegated
or put into a merely religious or spiritual category.
Instead, it had profound history-altering impact on every part of our shared human experience.
It meant something in this world.
But a gospel wasn't just about realities in this world.
It was also good news.
It was news about something that had happened.
You know, we can often mistakenly think of Christianity not as news,
but primarily as instruction or advice, can't we?
You know, we mistakenly think that Christianity is just sort of a new moral code to follow.
I think in our popular imagination, Christianity is not like reading the New York Times.
It's more like reading Better Homes and Gardens, right?
It's not news.
It's just some tips about how to live a better life.
And this mistaken approach to Christianity, I think it goes very deep into our shared cultural memory.
Recently, I've been reading the autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.
You know, and in his mind, nearly every religion could be boiled down to a few core principles.
That there's a God who made everything, and that there will be rewards and punishments based on your moral progress in this life.
So that means for Franklin that religions are really about teaching us how to live moral and virtuous lives.
They're not really good news, but they ought to be good instruction, good advice.
And Franklin was all for religion in that sense.
But the truth is, while Franklin's summary is a woefully inadequate view of any religion,
it misses the mark completely for the heart of Christianity.
Because it wasn't merely good advice or good instruction that Christians proclaimed.
It was good news.
It was like a victory report from the front lines that brought hope and joy,
because something had happened that changed history and had the power to change our lives if we let it.
So what was this news?
Why was the death and resurrection of Jesus good news?
Well, the passage in Luke 24 that we just read shows us.
When Jesus appears to his disciples on this first night after the resurrection,
we see just why his resurrection is gospel good news.
And there are two things here that I want us to see.
The first has to do with our material world.
And the second has to do with our moral world.
In other words, the resurrection of Jesus is good news for our material world,
for our broken creation.
And it's also good news for our moral world, for broken creatures.
So let's consider those two things.
Consider first that if the resurrection of Jesus is true,
then it means that the broken material creation is being and will be mended.
The broken material creation will be mended.
We see this in the first paragraph of our passage, verses 36 through 43.
The risen Jesus comes among his disciples and says,
Peace to you.
And then Luke writes,
They were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit.
Well, I think that's a pretty reasonable response.
Don't you?
I mean, after all, here's something that people in the first century believed
that sounds very modern to us.
Everyone in the first century believed that dead people stay dead.
Right?
Just like us.
Dead people stay dead.
Especially after crucifixion, which was a terrible way to die.
And especially after being in a tomb for a couple of days.
So we mustn't think that belief in the resurrection just sort of cropped up
because first century people were superstitious or pre-scientific.
They had seen Jesus killed and he was dead.
And that was the end of the story.
But now, here was Jesus in front of them.
And how would they account for it?
Perhaps, they thought, it's an apparition.
It's a spirit.
But notice how adamant Jesus is to demonstrate that he is before them bodily.
It's not a spiritual experience they're having.
He's there in the flesh, in his body.
See my hands and my feet.
Touch me.
I'm flesh and bones.
And then he says, do you have anything to eat?
And he takes the broiled fish that they hand him and he eats it before them.
That's a wonderful kind of earthy scene, isn't it?
It's so earthy that it just sort of has this ring of truth about it.
In other words, it's hard to believe the disciples making up a story like this.
I mean, if I were making up a story, right, about someone conquering death and overcoming the grave,
I don't think I'd have it run like this, would you?
There he stood in our midst.
We were scared out of our minds.
He showed us his hands and feet, his flesh and blood.
And then, oh, then, he ate some lunch.
I mean, talk about an anticlimax, right?
But if it is true, perhaps this risen body of Jesus is more important and wonderful than we realize.
Why is the risen Jesus so adamant that they know that he's been raised in the flesh?
Well, think about the last time they saw Jesus' body.
He was hanging a few feet above the ground, arms splayed, nailed to an implement of imperial torture, a cross.
And his body had been wounded and torn and bruised and pierced.
There was the one that they had begun to put their hope in.
There was the one they thought was their king, and perhaps even more than a king.
But as they saw him crucified, how could any of those things be true?
He was beaten and torn, his body broken, never to be mended.
And yet now, now here he was before them, whole, mended.
And it would take time for them to realize the full meaning.
But don't you see?
If in Jesus God took human flesh,
then that means the creator willingly became a part of his material creation.
Though it was broken and full of pain,
God didn't reject it or abandoned it.
Instead, he entered into it.
And on the cross, he endured the worst that the material world could endure.
Suffering, pain, brokenness.
The broken body of Jesus that went into the tomb
was the creator's solidarity with the brokenness of the whole fabric of the material world.
Every grief that you and I feel,
all the decay, all the death, all the loss,
Jesus Christ willingly became one with the whole story
of the broken and groaning material world.
So don't you see what wondrous love this God has for you and me?
But that wasn't the end of the story.
When Jesus emerged from the tomb on Easter in the same body that was torn,
it meant a new direction for all creation.
You see, the God who made all things
and in solidarity suffered with all things
was now making all things new.
The healing of the material world began on Easter Sunday.
God was righting the wrong
and mending his broken world from the inside out.
But of course, right, we rightly ask,
where is this healing today?
There's still brokenness.
There's still injustice.
Still creation is groaning.
And yes, God's healing, mending work is not yet fully complete.
But because of Jesus' resurrection,
we know it will be.
How so?
Well, how do you know that spring is coming?
Yeah?
Well, the days get a little longer.
The weather gets a little warmer.
Unless you live here in New England,
then it's always cold and it's always dark.
And we live in utter despair.
But then one day as you're walking along,
you see something utterly out of place.
Where once there was only withered grass and dirt,
a flower has pushed through to the sky.
A crocus pushes through a sign
that winter's cold will be broken
and a new season is coming.
And how do you feel in that moment?
What do you feel?
Hope.
Now, friends, if we feel that way
because a flower pushed through the dirt,
how much more can we live in hope
knowing that in Jesus,
God has taken our material creation into himself,
suffered its deepest pain,
and broken through death into resurrection life.
The mending has begun
and it cannot be turned back.
And do you know what this means?
It means that the human longing,
the human longing for justice
is not a mere wish, dream,
or a cruel joke.
Our hearts cry for the world to be put right,
to be mended,
to be restored.
That hard cry is not just a mirage.
You see, I think when humans long for justice,
what we want,
what we really want,
is more than just for people to be treated fairly,
although that's certainly part of it.
I think what we yearn for
is what the Bible calls not merely justice,
but shalom,
peace,
the fabric of the world repaired,
and the world made right and whole.
What is it that sustains you?
What is it that sustains you
to keep longing
and keep working
for that sort of healing?
Do you have an anchor?
Do you have an anchor that supports you
through disappointment,
through setback,
through failure?
What will be your ballast
when the brokenness
seems to have the upper hand,
when the dark winter of injustice
seems to be never ending?
What will be your anchor and your ballast?
For Christians,
we have an anchor.
There is a ballast.
There is a sturdy hope.
The resurrection of Jesus,
the body of our Lord,
mended,
promising
that all of creation
will not be abandoned to the gay,
but one day healed.
Do you have that kind of ballast
in your life?
But the resurrection of Jesus
wasn't just good news,
isn't just good news,
for a broken creation.
It's also good news
for broken creatures.
What this passage of Luke
is showing us
is that if the resurrection
of Jesus is true,
it means not just that
the broken material creation
will be mended,
it also means that
broken moral creatures,
broken moral creatures
can be forgiven.
Look at what Jesus says
in the next paragraph
of our passage,
starting in verse 46.
And he said to them,
thus it is written,
that the Christ should suffer
and on the third day
rise from the dead,
and that repentance
for the forgiveness of sins
should be proclaimed in his name
to all nations
beginning from Jerusalem.
Because Jesus died
and rose again,
there is forgiveness of sins.
And according to Jesus,
nearly all of Scripture
pointed to him in this way.
That's what he says
in the verses leading up
to what I just read.
Nearly all of Scripture
pointed to this central fact.
Think about it.
In the law of Moses,
the rock was struck
and water poured out.
A Passover lamb was slain
and the people escaped slavery.
In the prophets,
the return from exile
was foretold
because a coming king
would in a mysterious way
bear the sins of the people.
And in the Psalms,
we hear the psalmist cry out,
my God, my God,
why have you forsaken me?
But then we also hear
the psalmist say,
you will not abandon
my soul to the grave
or let your Holy One
see corruption.
These threads,
these tunes,
this symphony of the Old Testament
resonates with the recurring theme
again and again
that sinners will be reconciled
at a great cost
and that cost will be borne
by another.
But who will bear it?
Who will bear the cost?
A lamb?
A servant?
No.
The king will.
God will bear it for his people.
God will divest himself of glory
and stand in the place of sinners.
The offended one
will take the offense
so that the offenders
can be forgiven.
Do you see what was happening
at the cross?
The true rock
was being struck.
The true lamb
was slain.
The true king
cried out,
my God, my God,
why have you forsaken me?
What was it
that was happening there?
Well, an innocent one
was being condemned
as a criminal, right?
But why?
Because he stood there
in our place.
It wasn't just the suffering
of material creation
he took upon himself
at the cross,
but it was the just sentence
of our failed moral record.
The judge of all
was judged
in our place.
But in the resurrection,
in the resurrection,
a new verdict
was cast.
If at the cross
Jesus was condemned,
in the resurrection
he was vindicated,
he was justified,
he was pronounced innocent.
But that new verdict
that overturned
the old verdict,
that new verdict
wasn't just for himself.
If he died for us,
he also rose for us.
In his death,
we see our sins
and all their horror.
But in his resurrection,
we see our forgiveness
and our healing
and our acceptance
in all of its beauty.
So the risen Jesus
stands among his disciples
and he says,
peace to you.
Peace to you.
And the forgiveness
of sins
can now be announced
to all people
everywhere
starting right here
in Jerusalem,
he says.
But it won't stop there.
This forgiveness
is for not just Jerusalem,
but for Judea
and for Samaria.
And then the gospel
will advance.
It's for India
and it's for Ethiopia
and then it will keep going.
It's for Rome
and it's for Shanghai
and then it will keep going.
It's for New Zealand
and it's for New Haven.
The forgiveness of sins
is for you, friends.
Now I wonder,
is the forgiveness of sins
a practical matter for you?
Of course,
if there is a God
who created us,
then a reconciled relationship
with our Creator
seems fairly practical,
I think.
But if you're struggling
with that,
think about it this way.
You know,
in this life,
you are certain
to have broken relationships
with fellow humans.
As human beings,
the one thing,
tragically,
we seem really good at
is hurting
and offending one another.
And of course,
we're told
we must forgive.
We have to forgive.
It's the only way
to release
the bitterness
and the pain.
It's the only way
to stop
the cycle of violence.
we have to forgive
each other.
But how?
How will you forgive
those who've wronged you?
How will you release
the bitterness
and pain
that eats you up inside?
Or must you carry it
all your days
like a weight
that drags
against your soul?
How will you do it?
Friends,
try as we may.
The reality is
only those
who've been
forgiven
have the power
to turn
and forgive.
When you see
the weight
of your wrongs
and failings
borne by Jesus,
when you see
that His resurrection
is the real verdict
over your life
that you've been released
of your great
and many wrongs,
only then
can you turn
to those
who've wronged you
and do the unthinkable.
Only then
can you too
forgive.
How many friendships,
how many marriages,
how many wars
and conflicts
could be healed
if we knew
this power?
If this power
was ours
that only
the resurrection
of Jesus
can bring?
And friends,
this is a power
held out to you.
And so,
the resurrection
of Jesus
is good news.
It's good news
for this world,
not just some
corner of our lives
we call spiritual
or religious.
It's good news
for our material lives
and our moral lives.
It's good news
of justice.
It's good news
of reconciliation.
It's the good news
from the front lines
that the decisive victory
has been won
and now we're called
to order
our entire lives
around it.
To take this truth
into our hearts
and our lives,
to receive it
with what the Bible
calls belief
and to order
our whole lives
around it.
And that reordering
is what Jesus means
by the word
repentance.
In verse 45.
Now,
of all the words,
that one sounds
like a religious word,
right?
Come on.
Repentance.
But it simply means
to change your mind.
To change your mind
and to live your life
in light of the good news.
I remember hearing
a story of World War II
about a Japanese soldier
stationed on a remote island
in the Philippines,
I think in like 1944
or something,
as the war was
kind of grinding on
in the Pacific.
But when the war
had come to an end
in 1945,
this soldier
apparently kept fighting.
At first,
he hadn't heard the news,
but then search parties
actually did reach him,
but they couldn't convince him
that the battle had ended.
One article I read
said that they actually
carried photos
from his family members
to him,
but he thought
that they were fakes
because his hometown
during the war
had been bombed and rebuilt
and the buildings
and the images
didn't match his memories.
So he couldn't be convinced.
So for 30 years,
apparently,
he held out
continuing to wage war
on his little island
despite all the messages
he had received.
Imagine if this lonely soldier
had just believed the news.
He could have come home.
He could have been reunited
with his family.
He could have been
part of rebuilding
his life and his country.
I wonder,
what do you make
of this good news
of Jesus' resurrection?
Perhaps you're not ready
to fully embrace it
and order your life
around him as Lord.
And that's understandable
if you're new to Christianity
or still trying to figure out
what you believe about Jesus.
But, you know,
what is on offer
in the resurrection of Jesus
is so great.
The news is so good
that you can't just
sort of forget about it.
You have to look into it.
You have to look into
what this passage calls
the witnesses.
Jesus says to his disciples
in 48,
you're witnesses
of these things.
The best thing you can do
is to consider
these witnesses
for yourself.
Take up a book
like the Gospel of Luke
or the Gospel of Mark
and read it.
Consider this good news
for yourself.
And if you do,
it's good to keep in mind
a few things
about these witnesses.
Consider the date
of these witnesses.
Most of the New Testament
was written only a few decades
after the events
that they describe.
Historically,
that's incredibly close
to the events themselves.
Certainly not enough time
for sort of legends
to grow in the telling.
And consider not just
the date of those witnesses,
but consider the character
of the witnesses.
As you read,
do they seem to be
spinning a tale
for power or prestige?
Historically,
we know that nearly
all of them
died as martyrs
for their testimony
to Jesus.
They had very little
to gain,
earthly speaking.
Their character
seems trustworthy.
But finally,
consider not just
the date
or the character
of the witnesses,
consider also
the power,
the impact
that they had.
Kenneth Scott Lotzerey
was a church historian
at Yale
in the first half
of the 20th century,
and he wrote this
in one of his works
on Christianity.
He said,
why did Christianity
succeed despite
getting more severe
opposition than
any other religion?
Why did Christianity
succeed though it had
no influential backers
in high places
but consisted mainly
of the poor and slaves?
How did Christianity
succeed so completely
that it forced
the most powerful
state in history
to come to terms
with it
and then outlive
the very empire
that sought
to uproot it?
It is clear
that at the very
beginning of Christianity,
there must have
occurred a vast
release of energy
perhaps unequaled
in our history.
How does a failed
messianic movement
in first century
Palestine
change the world?
How do you explain
that unprecedented impact?
But you know,
as you consider
these witnesses,
it would be helpful
to consider
your own beliefs too.
You know,
don't just put the
message of the
resurrection to the test,
put your own beliefs
to the test.
What resources
do you pull from
to work for justice
when the setbacks
and failures
seem insurmountable?
What resources
do you pull from
to practice forgiveness
when you've been
hurt or wronged?
Is there anything
in your worldview
to empower you
to live
the way the
resurrection of Jesus
could empower you
to live?
And if not,
why do you keep
on holding on
to your worldview?
Why do you remain
on the island
fighting a long
forgotten war
when the victory
has been won
and the new creation
is underway?
Give your life
to Him.
Hear Him say,
peace to you,
your sins are forgiven.
Now go and live
as an agent
of the new creation
right here in the
midst of the old
until the great day
comes when the glory
of God
covers the earth
like the waters
cover the sea
and God makes
all things new.
Let's pray together.
Father, we pray
first a prayer
of great rejoicing
and thanksgiving.
that Christ
is raised
and the great
hope that we have
not just for the
life to come
but the great
hope and strength
it gives us
for living our lives
now.
Father, we ask
that you would
grant faith
to those who
have been wrestling
with the claims
of Christ.
Let them surrender
to His beauty
and to know
your peace.
Father, grant
courage to those
whose hearts
are drawn to
consider these things
more deeply
Lord, help them
to follow through
with the curiosity
and the desire
to explore these
things more fully.
And for those
who believe in you,
grant us renewed
hope
that life in your
resurrected kingdom
is life abundant.
Make us a people
who rejoice in hope
and who live as
people of hope
loving and forgiving.
to the praise of
your name, Jesus.
Amen.