9 April 2023 | Sermon Notes
ESPN has a documentary television series called 30-for-30. I’ve watched a number of episodes in the series, but my absolute favorite episode is the one called “Four Days in October.” I have watched that episode many times. The episode is about the year the Boston Red Sox at last “reversed the curse” and won the World Series after an 86-year drought. The episode, “Four Days in October,” is about the four days in October when, against all odds, they managed to come back from a three-game deficit to the New York Yankees in the American League Championship series. The year it happened (2004) Jess and I were living in the Boston area. We were newly married. And we got swept up into the fever. Everyone did. In those four days in October, the Red Sox played marathon, extra-innings games that went into the wee hours of the night. But everyone was staying up for it. Students, professors, workers, bosses, the young, the old…everyone was all in, and everyone was coming to work the next day bleary-eyed and thrilled at the previous night’s late victory. And the Red Sox kept winning, literally against all odds, and they ended up winning the World Series. It was incredible. And every time I watch that episode of 30-for-30, I get fired up all over again. I remember the victory. I remember the feeling. I remember the celebrations. I remember the joyful disbelief we all felt. So, yeah, I love watching that 30-for-30. I have watched and rewatched that episode many times, and I could watch that episode once-a-month easy. I am happy to look back and remember that victory.
Celebrating Easter every year is like that! Every Easter we look back and rewatch the victory of Jesus in his resurrection from the dead. We reread that victory, and we remember those incredible events, when against all odds, when it seemed like all hope was lost, when the hour was late, when Christ was betrayed, falsely accused, beaten, sentenced to death, executed, died, and was buried, he overcame and was raised victorious from the grave. That’s Easter. We re-watch the episode, and we get fired up all over again. And that’s why I love Easter and never tire of rewatching the greatest episode in history!
But Easter is more than looking back. At Easter, we also look forward. When I was a kid, we used to get toy catalogs in the mail. Do you remember these wonderful things? These colorful, shiny pages. Pages and pages of toys! And I would carefully leaf through these catalogs as Christmas approached and even circle a few toys I wanted to get. In fact, I believe there is a picture of me with Santa in the mall, and I’ve got one of these toy catalogs with me, just to make sure he understood exactly which toy I had in mind. Anyway, I remember after I had selected a few toys I would still hold on to the catalog, and in the days leading up to Christmas, I would pull it back out and look at my selections again and daydream and look forward to Christmas and the day when they would arrive. Do you ever do this with an online order? I do. I will order some fun gadget with some birthday money, and I will pull back up the order receipt on my phone. And I’ll check the delivery status. And I’ll even go back to the product page and just reskim the info because I’m so looking forward to getting it and using it, and I love thinking about how great it will be when it gets here because I’ll be able to do this or that with it and I can’t wait; I’m looking forward to its arrival every day.
Well, Easter is like that, too! At Easter, we don’t just look back at the great victory; we also look forward to all that the victory means for us. We look forward to all the blessings and gifts that flow out of Easter. At Easter, we pull out the toy catalog again and review what’s coming because Christ rose from the grave. At Easter, we pull out the order receipt and daydream about the arrival of all that Christ’s resurrection guaranteed for us. And we have permission and warrant to daydream about all that we will receive because Christ is risen.
And that’s what I want to do this morning. I want us to not only remember that Easter happened, but I want us to consider all that it means for us. I want us to consider how and why Easter is such good news for us, today! So, how is Christ’s victory in his resurrection a victory for us? And why is his resurrection good news for us?
To answer these questions, we’re going to look at probably the best single passage in the Bible on the significance of Christ’s resurrection for believers. The explanation comes from the Apostle Paul, and the passage is chapter 15 of Paul’s first letter to a church in the ancient city of Corinth in the first century. This letter is usually referred to as 1 Corinthians.
In chapter 15 of first Corinthians, Paul lays out the significance of Christ’s resurrection. He first begins by looking back at what happened at Easter, and then he moves to its significance. Let’s read these opening verses together.
1 Corinthians 15:1-8 | The Good News of Easter
“[1] Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, [2] and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. [3] For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, [4] that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, [5] and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. [6] Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. [7] Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. [8] Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.”
So this is the message of Easter: Jesus was raised on the third day, and in fact, there are lots of people who saw him alive, including Paul himself. [Please see our handout on the evidence!]
Problem
But in this church in Corinth, there is a problem.If we jump down to verses 12-13, we will see the problem Paul is confronting. Paul writes, “Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised” (vv. 12-13). So this little fledgeling church isn’t sure if and how Christ’s resurrection applies to them. Their theology is a little shaky and even illogical. And so Paul begins to explain what the message of the resurrection means for believers.
And this is where we’re going to spend our time this morning, considering the joyful significance of Easter for believers. So, let’s go! The first significance comes in the very next verse, verse 14…
Easter means Victory over Doubt
In verse 14, Paul says, “And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:14). So Paul says if Christ has not been raised, then all your doubts are true. The content of all preaching is empty. The faith you have is empty. But, if Christ is raised from the dead, then the preaching is true and your faith is true. If Christ is raised from the dead, then the Gospel message is true and your faith is valid, and doubt dissipates. Let me explain.
Imagine I said to you that I am a really good athlete. And I start to rattle off all these things I can do. I can dunk a basketball, I say. I can run so fast. I can do a standing long jump so far. I can do so many pullups and so many pushups. And you look at me, this middle aged guy, and think, “Yeah, right.” But then, I walk over to the corner of the stage and proceed to run, tumble, and vault into a double backflip. If I did that, how would that change your view of my other claims? You’d likely go, “Oh, I guess he really can dunk a basketball and broad jump so far and do so many pushups” and so forth. You see, by me doing the grand feat of double backflip, I confirm all the smaller claims. And this is how it is with the resurrection. The grand feat of the resurrection confirms all the other, smaller claims of Christianity.
Think about it. Jesus said many things. Jesus made many claims. But the biggest, most measurable claim he made was that he would die and rise again. So, if he keeps his word on that big claim, you have to say, “Oh, I guess he was probably telling the truth about the other things, too.” If he was right about that, then he is probably right about this, too. That is the logic. And the disciples draw this same conclusion. When Thomas, one of the original 12 disciples sees the risen Jesus, he exclaims, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:29). Thomas knew if the resurrection was true, then it must all be true. If the resurrection is true, it’s all true.
And it is all true…
- Jesus’s teaching is confirmed. If he was right about the resurrection, then he was right about loving your enemy, him being the way, the truth, and the life.
- The Old Testament is true. Jesus loved to quote and invoke the Old Testament as truthful scripture. If he was right about the resurrection, then he is right about the OT.
- The Apostles really were sent with authority. Jesus commissioned the apostles to go and speak in his name, saying he would be with them. They spread across the globe with the Gospel and wrote the New Testament documents. If Jesus was right about the resurrection, then he was right about the apostles. They really are sent and authorized messengers of Jesus.
- Other religions are wrong. And, as J. Bowlus pointed out at the student retreat, the resurrection not only proves Christ, but disproves other religions. Why? Because other religions discredit the resurrection. But if Christ is raised, which is the Christian belief, then they are wrong.
So, Paul says, if Christ hasn’t been raised, then their preaching and our faith is empty and futile. But Christ has been raised! So their preaching is true. And our faith, from first to last, is true. So, do not doubt. Easter means victory over doubts. A couple verses later we see the next point.
Easter means Victory over Sin
Paul writes, “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins” (1 Corinthians 15:17). If there is no Easter, we’ve got a problem: You’re still in your sins. But, since Christ has been raised, just the opposite is true: You are no longer in your sins! How is Easter and the resurrection connected to that? Let’s think through it.
What is sin? Sin is all the ways we have gone against God, either directly or indirectly by not doing what he has commanded, like loving our neighbor. This disobedience to God can happen through the things we think, say, do, or leave undone. That is sin. And sin is a kind of debt. In fact, when people sin against each other, we often use this language of debt. We say stuff like, “How can I make it up to you?” In sinning against them, we intuitively feel we have taken something from the other person (e.g., respect, love, obedience) that we now owe them. And the Bible likewise speaks of sin as a kind of debt to be paid (Col. 2:14).
So what do we owe God to pay this debt? A perfect life. Think about it. Adam, the first person, was given a perfect life, but he wrecked it. And we’ve been living in the fallout ever since. If you wreck a brand new car, you owe a brand new car. So we owe God a perfect life. But for all of human history, no one has been able to pay off this original debt.
So what happens if you cannot pay the debt? Eternal death and punishment.
Now, here’s where it gets interesting and hopeful. Jesus, as the Son of God, actually had a perfect life. He knew no sin. And, rather than condemn all of us sinners, he said he would give his perfect life for our sake. The only person who ever lived who could pay this debt, agreed to pay this debt! This is what the cross is all about. Jesus said he would go to the cross willingly as our substitute. Like all those Old Testament sacrifices for sin that could never really atone for human sin, Christ would offer himself as the sacrifice that could actually pay off the debt and deal with our sin record once and for all.
Great! That is truly amazing! But, how would you know if it worked? Well, do you remember what the penalty for the unpaid debt was? It was eternal death and punishment. So, if someone could pay the debt, eternal death and punishment would be canceled, right? That’s how that works. If you have unpaid speeding tickets and they’re threatening jail time, when you pay the tickets the jail time goes away. So, if Jesus gave his perfect life to pay our debt, and if it really worked, you would expect eternal death and punishment to be canceled.
And friends, that’s what Easter means! That is why Easter is so important and such wonderful news! The resurrection of Christ proves that he did in fact pay our debt. His resurrection confirms that the work of salvation really is done. You’re no longer in your sin!
And that’s such wonderful news! Because our sin was separating us from God. And it would separate us from God eternally in hell if we never dealt with it. So by Christ putting away our sins, our relationship with God can be restored. It means we can go home.
So, when we see the resurrected Jesus, we celebrate for him and for ourselves because we have victory over sin and we have the promise of heaven forever with God. And now, all of this, of course, points to the next great victory of Easter for us.
Easter means Victory over Death.
So it is not just that Jesus is victorious over death, but that for all of his followers, they too will receive this same victory over death. Paul writes, “[51] Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, [52] in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. [53] For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. [54] When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” [55] “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” [56] The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. [57] But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:51-57). We have victory through Christ! We will be changed! We will put on the imperishable! We will put on immortality! What great good news! There is nothing like it!
Recently, I have stumbled my way into a bunch of health podcasts. The Huberman Lab and Peter Attia’s podcast. They have these longform podcasts where they interview scientists and doctors about achieving better health and longer life. It is all very interesting, and I am grateful for their work and expertise and for their willingness to share this information for free. But the more I have listened, the more I have also been struck by the weight and the emptiness of it all.
The weight: There are so many regimens to follow. I need to get up every morning and get sunlight on my retinas and not through glass. I need to mind my water intake. I need to delay caffeine for 90 minutes after waking up. But I need to hold off on caffeine up to 14 hours prior to bedtime. And I need to load up on supplements. I need to take cold baths and alternate them with really hot sana treatments. I need to go at least 12 hours every 24-hour day without eating. You get the picture? The more I listen to these great podcasts, the longer the list gets.
But it is all ultimately empty. Not only do these methods not address my deepest needs as a person and soul, but they do not address my fundamental problem: death. The fittest bodies still die. And honestly, the irony of all this health-focused living is that if there is no resurrection from the dead, you really should do just the opposite. Why? Because you might get hit by a bus tomorrow. So why waste your time in ice baths and avoiding dessert? And that is what Paul points out. In verse 32, he says, “…If the dead are not raised, ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die’” (1 Corinthians 15:32a).
But the promise of Christ’s resurrection is that we too shall be raised. Death is swallowed up in victory! Oh, how I wish all these doctors and scientists would know the hope of putting on immortality. Friends, though we die, yet shall we live. Though friends and family depart, yet shall we be reunited. This is the hope of Easter. And we’re invited to look forward to this resurrection.When Lazarus dies, his sisters are of course very upset. And do you know what Jesus’s first word of comfort is? Not “It’s part of God’s plan,” though it was. Not “My presence should be enough,” though it should be. No. What is the very first thing he says? “Your brother will rise again.” When two dear friends confront death, his encouragement is the promise of resurrection.
So, Easter means victory over death! Let us cling to that victory! Cling to it today!
Easter means Victory Over Trials
Imagine your spouse or maybe your parent announces you’re going to the beach. You are so excited. You think okay I am going to get in a little better shape, and so you start exercising more. You think oh, I need a new bathing suit, so you spend hours and too much money getting one. You run to the store and get a beach umbrella, too. You decide you’re going to work on your tan a bit, so you don’t burn at the beach. You’re so excited. Sure, you’re spending time and money and energy, but it is all worth it. You can’t wait for the beach. You gladly do it all. The night before the trip, you even giddily stay up late packing your bags. You gladly wake up early to leave for the trip. But when you wake up, your spouse says bad news, the beach trip is canceled; there was an error with the booking. What becomes of all your effort? It all becomes meaningless. You say why did I waste all my time on that. Why did I waste all my money? Why did I waste all my energy? You see, the preparation and sacrifice was only meaningful and good when it was attached to a happy ending. But imagine then, if suddenly, your spouse says they got an email and the trip is back on. What would happen? Instantly, you would gladly re-accept all that you had done leading up to it. The prep would all, instantly, be deemed “worth it!” That is the power of a happy, victorious ending.
And this is what the promise of resurrection life means for us. If Christ is raised and we are raised with him, and if we will live forever with God, then every moment that leads up to that future has been transformed by this happy ending! And Paul ends this chapter making this very point. He writes, “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58). All of this current life is transformed by the forthcoming resurrection life. The impact of this truth on our current lives is twofold…
First, all that we suffer and experience has meaning because we will carry our lessons forward. Paul, in another letter, writes, “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison…” (2 Corinthians 4:17). Everything you are going through, because there is life after death, has a purpose. We are being prepared for an “eternal weight of glory.” Like the beach trip, all the preparation becomes meaningful and lighter and even joyful. Now, as you endure hardships and loss, you can think this is not empty suffering of a godless universe coming from nowhere going nowhere. Instead, this suffering is part of a larger story. God is working on you, changing you, getting you ready for heaven.
Second, all that we suffer and experience is now transformed by the promise of victory. How much we can endure when we know there is victory ahead! Our kids ran cross country for years, and every race, no matter the circumstances, no matter the rain or the heat or the trial, when they came around the bend and saw the finish line and they knew they’d done it and victory was in reach, every kid’s pace quickened. When we remember that resurrection life with our Savior awaits, the naysayers are silenced, the doubts dissipate, the burden lightens, and our pace quickens, even if it is a limp.
And so whatever you’re facing, whatever you’re enduring, I hope your soul will rally today because…
Conclusion
Oh friends, the news of Easter is such good news! It means victory! The resurrection of Jesus guarantees our resurrection, and indeed the renewal of all things. Easter tells us the story of humanity and the world is not, ultimately, a story of death and chaos (as the scientists and atheists say) but one of life! New life! Restored life and beauty. Victory!
The other day Jess showed me a touching video. In this video, the family is recording their elderly father as he enters a parking lot. As he enters, he sees a gorgeous 1973 Corvette. And you can tell he’s taken with it. He begins to reminisce. He used to have a car just like that when he was a young man. But he had to give it up. That’s life. You know, sacrifice, loss, and goodbyes. After all, he had a family. He had responsibilities. And so away the car went but oh what a nice car it had been. As he continues to look at the car, his daughter holds out her hand. He asks what’s this. It’s the keys. You can watch him trying to take it all in. They hug. The keys are his; the car is his. And the video ends with his face lighting up as he hits the gas and the engine roars.
You watch that video and you will tear up. Of course, it’s just a car. But I think it touches a heartstring. I think that scene touches on one of the deepest longings in our hearts, the longing for restoration, for return, for resurrection. And like that car, one day, all that we’ve sacrificed, all that we’ve bid farewell to, will be returned to us.
One day we will get the keys to a new life. What was given away and spent, used up, will be returned brand new. One day we will get the keys to a brand new body. What was wounded will be mended. What was lost or given away in health will be returned. One day we will get the keys to a heavenly mansion. What was donated in service to serve the Kingdom will be restored a hundredfold. And the loved ones whose memories we’ve locked away in our hearts, one day we will receive the keys to unlock those memories and see them returned to life and fellowship and friendship.
Why? Because of the love of God displayed in the victory of Christ. Because of the victory of Christ, we can have victory over doubt as faith becomes sight. Because of the victory of Christ, we can have victory over sin as we sin no more. Because of the victory of Christ, we can have victory over death as we receive immortal bodies. Because of the victory of Christ, we can have victory over trials as we are now ready to receive the weight of the glory of eternity.
This is the victory of Easter. Christ’s victory is our victory.
Do you know this victory?
Jesus offers this victory to anyone who looks to him. Have you looked to him? Friends, if you are looking to him today as your King and Savior, be encouraged by the reminder of Easter. Your hope is great, and your hope is secure. But friends, if you have not looked to Jesus, don’t wait! Look to him.
I invite you to do that now through prayer. Will you pray with me to Jesus?