“Easter: Good News for You!”
This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be
glad in it! Amen. Which do you want first, the good news, or the bad news? That’s
the question we often ask. This morning, WE celebrate the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth as the
greatest GOOD News. But, there were some on that first Easter morn who
actually considered the resurrection of Jesus to be the worst bad news. The resurrection of Jesus was bad news for the scared soldiers.
The enemies of this Rabbi Jesus had gone to the Roman governor: “‘Sir,’ they
said, ‘we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, “After
three days I will rise again.” So give the order for the tomb to be made
secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body
and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception
will be worse than the first.’ ‘Take a guard,’ Pilate answered. ‘Go, make
the tomb as secure as you know how.’ So they went and made the tomb secure by
putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.” It should have been routine, easy duty. The “prisoner” they were
guarding was already dead, after all. Not too likely to escape! But,
then, on Easter morn, “There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord
came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on
it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.
The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.” What they experienced that morning was astonishing. Would the
governor believe such a story? How would they explain that the body they
were guarding was gone? His enemies hatched a plan: “They gave the soldiers a large sum of
money, telling them, ‘You are to say, “His disciples came during the night and
stole him away while we were asleep.” If this report gets to the governor, we
will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.’” This was a big risk for the soldiers. Discipline in the Roman
army was strict and unforgiving, and the punishment for falling asleep on guard
duty was death. What would happen when this false story of them sleeping
got to the governor? The resurrection of Jesus was also bad news for the gutless governor,
Pontius Pilate. He knew Jesus was innocent, he declared “This man has done
nothing to deserve death” and tried to set Jesus free. But, finally he
gave in to the angry mob stirred up by Jesus’ enemies, shouting, “Crucify,
crucify!” He gave in because this rabbi’s enemies were inciting a riot among the
huge Passover crowd. There had been a riot at last year’s Passover, which
got Pilate into big trouble with Rome, and he couldn’t have another riot at
Passover again this year. And, so, against his better judgment, against
all the principles of Roman justice, to save himself and his position, the
gutless governor gave in to their demand, and condemned an innocent man to
death. That was a serious malfeasance of office for a Roman governor, and if
this miscarriage of justice got back to Rome, he would be sacked. On Good
Friday afternoon when he ordered the tomb to be sealed, Pilate hoped this
incident was all behind him, and would soon be forgotten. But, now, this!
A fantastic claim by his followers—that this rabbi has risen from the dead! The resurrection of Jesus was especially bad news for the phony priests
and Pharisees. To them, religion was mostly a business, which made them rich and
powerful. They pretended to be waiting for the great hope of their people, the
promised Messiah sent from God. But, really, a Messiah didn’t fit into
their business plan right now. For, a Messiah would mean an end to the
temple sacrifices from which they skimmed a lucrative income. And a
Messiah could inspire the people to rebellion against Rome, which would also
bring down the phony priests and Pharisees from their positions of power. The common people still thought this Rabbi Jesus was the promised
Messiah. But, one thing would prove beyond a doubt he was not. The
Old Testament Scriptures prophesied that the Messiah would rise from the dead on
the third day. If only this Jesus would just stay dead and buried, the
incident would be over, and Jesus of Nazareth would be forgotten. Which do you want first, the good news, or the bad news? The
scared soldiers, the gutless governor, and the phony priests and Pharisees
actually considered the resurrection of Jesus bad news. But, for others on
that first Easter morn, and for you, also, on this Easter morn, his resurrection
is the greatest Good News. Three years before, the dejected disciples had left everything to
follow Jesus. For three years they listened to his marvelous teachings,
witnessed his wonderful miracles. One of them, John, put it this way in his
Gospel: “We beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,
full of grace and truth.” “Who do you say that I am?” Jesus had recently asked them. Peter
replied for all the disciples, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
But, now, he was dead, and all the hopes and dreams of the dejected disciples
had died with him—or so they thought! The Gospels tell us that the weeping women had followed Jesus from
Galilee and cared for his needs. When everyone else deserted him and fled,
the Gospels report these faithful women were there, at the cross, watching from
a distance as their beloved Jesus was crucified, dead, and buried. “Very
early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way
to the tomb . . . so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body.” His mournful mother Mary was also there at the cross. Some 33
years ago, the angel had told her: “You will conceive and give birth to a Son,
and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be
called the Son of the Most High.” When he was taken as a baby to the
temple, the prophet Simeon had ominously predicted, “This Child is destined to
cause the fall and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be
spoken against . . . and a sword will pierce your own soul also.”
His mournful mother Mary felt that sword pierce her soul on Good Friday, as she
watched her Son die in agony. Which do you want first, the good news, or the bad news? The
resurrection of Jesus was the greatest Good News that first Easter morn, for the
dejected disciples, the weeping women, and his mournful mother Mary. “You
are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. . . . He is not
here! He is risen!” Their dearest friend, their beloved rabbi, their
precious Jesus, the Lord they loved, lives again! And, nearly 2,000 years later, on this Easter morn, the resurrection of
Jesus is still the greatest Good News, for YOU. Paul puts it this way in
1st Corinthians: “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are
still in your sins. . . But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead,
the first to rise of those who have fallen asleep. . . Thanks be to God!
He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Which do you want first, the good news, or the bad news? The bad
news is, we are sinners, deserving of punishment. But, Scripture tell us
the glorious Good News we celebrate at Easter: “Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous,
to bring you to God”; “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours, but
also for the sins of the whole world”; “For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that
whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God
did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world
through him”; “Everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his
name.” The resurrection of Jesus is the greatest Good News for YOU.
Because, by his suffering and death on the cross, he endured the punishment and
paid the penalty for your sins. His resurrection means that you are
completely forgiven by God. “I am the resurrection and the life,” Jesus promises. “Whoever believes
in me, even though he dies, yet shall he live.” “For my Father’s will is
that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life,
and I will raise him up at the last day.” The resurrection of Jesus is the
greatest Good News for YOU. Because he lives you also will rise from the
dead to eternal life. Paul says in 1st Thessalonians, “We would not have you be ignorant,
brothers, about those who fall asleep . . . We believe that Jesus died and
rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have
fallen asleep in him. . . and so shall we be forever with the Lord.
Therefore comfort one another with these words.” The resurrection of Jesus
is the greatest Good News for YOU. For, Easter means that your departed loved
ones who trusted in Jesus are asleep in Jesus, and you will be reunited with
them, “and so we shall be forever with the Lord.” Easter is Good News for you, because Easter means that your sins are
all forgiven, you are justified, reconciled to God, at peace with him through
his Son. Easter is Good News for you, because Easter means that even though you
die you shall live forever. Easter is Good News for you, because Easter means that you will have a
wonderful reunion with your faithful loved ones in heaven. “Easter: Good News for You!” Return to Top | Return to Sermons | Home | Email Church Office
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