The Easter Outlook

Good morning and welcome to the Panhandle. Wow, kinda crazy here. The last two weeks it was shorts and tee-shirt weather, this morning there is a dusting of snow on the ground and the front porch shows 19 degrees.

We still have social distancing going on up here so the kids are doing “distance learning.” It's taking some getting use to for both the students and teachers. Also in the church on Sundays it's still just me and my family. With just four people in the church it feels kind of lonely and sounds kind of hollow, but I'd rather go over there to preach and stream than from our house.

Yesterday we celebrated Resurrection Sunday at our church and across the U.S. I pray that as y'all celebrated Christ Jesus' resurrection yesterday it was a great time of celebration. I thought since we just had a time of remembrance of the miracle of the risen Saviour I would post my sermon/study for yesterday.

Dr. Seamands tells of a Muslim who became a Christian in Africa. "Some of his friends asked him, 'Why have you become a Christian?' He answered, 'Well, its like this. Suppose you were going down the road and suddenly the road forked in two directions, and you didn't know which way to go, and there at the fork in the road were two men, one dead and one alive--which one would you ask which way to go?'" Warren Webster, April, 1980, HIS, p. 13.

This Easter finds us in a time of COVID-19, social distancing, and uncertainty. Yet with all that is going on we can hold on to the reality of the bodily resurrection of Christ Jesus from a Jerusalem grave. It is only the resurrection of Christ Jesus that gives us a foundation for morality, spirituality, and even rationality ~ Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied. (1 Corinthians 15:12–19). But Christ Jesus has risen and that is what gives Christians our distinctive outlook on life.

What impact did that first Easter have on the women who made their way to the tomb? What did it do for them? How did it change them? And how can you have the same experience today? That first Easter morn we learned that we don't have to be afraid.

Matthew 28:1-8

Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave.

2 And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it.

3 And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow.

4 The guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men.

5 The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified.

6 "He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.

7 "Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you."

8 And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples.

1. We Don't Have to be Afraid

During his years as premier of the Soviet Union, Nikita Khrushchev denounced many of the policies and atrocities of Joseph Stalin. Once, as he censured Stalin in a public meeting, Khrushchev was interrupted by a shout from a heckler in the audience. "You were one of Stalin's colleagues. Why didn't you stop him?" "Who said that?" roared Khrushchev. An agonizing silence followed as nobody in the room dared move a muscle. Then Khrushchev replied quietly, "Now you know why." -

Today in the Word, July 13, 1993.

“Do not be afraid.” (vs. 5). Many of us are subconsciously dominated by fear, worry, and anxiety. Approximately 40 million American adults — roughly 18% of the population — have an anxiety disorder, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. (May 8, 2018). One study showed that the odds of developing an anxiety disorder have doubled in the past four decades (World Health Organization). 

The women were nervous and afraid. Think about it, who wouldn't be. Christ Jesus had been crucified as an insurrectionist just three days earlier. Christ Jesus' dead body had been hastily prepared and placed in a borrowed tomb. So now after the Sabbath and Passover, Mary Magdalene, the other Mary (the mother of James and John), Salome (named in Mark's gospel) went to finish the job correctly. At the tomb the ladies would have to deal with, indifferent at best; Roman guards place there to make sure no one stole Christ Jesus' body. 

If that weren't scary enough, on the way to the tomb the ladies felt a powerful earthquake and at the tomb they found some men in bright shiny clothes. And unless they regained their senses and ran off the Roman guards would have still been laying there like dead. So yeah, definitely a time to be afraid.

But listen to the first words of the Easter message: The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.” (Matthew 28:5-6). And so because Christ Jesus beat death and is risen, we don't have to be afraid. Even in this time of this Coronavirus pandemic we don't have to be afraid. Cautious, yes. But afraid, no.

That first Easter gives us:

2. Awestruck Minds.

The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. (vs. 5).

Once they got over their initial fear, imagine how surprised, and how confused the women must have been. Then when the message of the angel finally sunk in how the surprise and confusion must have turned into wonder and amazement. Evangelist Gipsy Smith used to say, “I’ve never lost the wonder.”

A fan once startled Mark Twain by telling the famous author, “I wish I had never read Huckleberry Finn.” With a scowl, the great humorist asked the reason for such a remark. “So that I could have the pleasure again of reading it for the first time,” came the reply.

Come to the empty tomb and hear the Easter miracle new once more. Hear how Easter is about an empty tomb, not colored eggs or candy. Hear how Easter is about a risen Saviour who cleanses all your sins. Hear how Easter points you to the love and saving grace of Christ Jesus and be awestruck.

That first Easter gives us:

3. Open Mouths.

“And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead.” (vs. 7). A message this great demands sharing. If you were to win a million dollars or be honored in a special way, you’d probably want to share the news with your family and closest friends.

Bishop William Taylor of the Methodist Church was a heroic Christian who went to California in the gold rush of 1849 and settled in San Francisco. He discovered there was no church for him to preach in, and not many people wanted to hear him. So, on Sunday morning, he would roll a wooden barrel down to a street corner, climb up on it, and shout, "What's the news?" Then, as nomads and natives gathered around, the preacher would announce, "Thank God, my brethren, I have good news for you this morning!" And he would proceed to preach.
(1000 Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching.)

Notice how brief the turnaround time between hearing and telling was. The women didn't say, “We are just women no one will believe us.” They did not say, “We are...”, what ever excuse you want to put in here. No they went immediately to share their news. To share the good news, no the greatest news ever; Christ Jesus is risen, He is alive!

That first Easter gives us:

4. High Hopes.

In Storytelling: Imagination and Faith, William J. Bausch shares: "In the Greek Orthodox tradition, the day after Easter was devoted to telling jokes...They felt they were imitating the cosmic joke that God pulled on Satan in the Resurrection. Satan thought he had won, and was smug in his victory, smiling to himself, having the last word. So he thought. Then God raised Jesus from the dead, and life and salvation became the last words." William J. Bausch, Storytelling: Imagination and Faith.

“And indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him.” (vs. 7). One of the greatest things about the resurrection of Christ Jesus is the certainty it gives us of seeing our Lord again.

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

And in Acts 1:10-11 we read ~ And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven."

We started with an angel telling the women the good news, Christ Jesus is risen. We finish with the angels telling the disciples and us that not only is Christ Jesus risen, but some day He is coming back for His own and we will be with Him forever.

This is a day for joy and celebration! For a total life change! For a different perspective! Because of our risen Saviour, Christ Jesus we can face life without fear, with awestruck minds, with open mouths, and with high hopes. Christ Jesus is risen! He is risen indeed!

Thanks for dropping by and I pray you'll stop by next week.