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The Ascension of Jesus
Ephesians 1:18-23
April 27, 2025

We spent the last several weeks building up to Easter, and last Sunday
We had a wonderful time celebrating the resurrection of our Lord.

We looked at His arrest, and His trial, and His crucifixion,
And His burial, and His resurrection.

And it just occurred to me not to stop there,
But to examine two more very important events in the life of Christ.

• THIS MORNING we will look at “The Ascension of Jesus”
• TONIGHT, “The Second Coming of Jesus”

I WOULD START OFF BY REMINDING YOU THAT
These events were on Jesus’ mind even
While He was being arrested, tried, crucified, and even resurrected.

Do you remember the trial of Jesus?
• I’m referring specifically to that second one that occurred in the middle of the night in the house of Caiaphas.

Do you remember how they were finally able to condemn Him?

Matthew 26:63-64 “But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.” Jesus said to him, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.”

• They threw all sorts of false accusations against Him and He said nothing.
• But when the chief priest illegally ordered Jesus to testify against Himself
• And to answer whether or not He was “the Christ, the Son of God”,

Jesus said this:
“You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.”

At that moment Jesus quoted two Old Testament passages
To reveal His identity.

Psalms 110:1 “The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”

• Incidentally, it was the same verse Jesus used to silence the debaters when He
was teaching in the temple in Matthew 22:44.

But when they wanted to know who Jesus claimed to be,
He said, “I am the One who will soon be seated
At the righthand of God ruling over His enemies.”

But He didn’t stop there.
He also quoted Daniel 7:13-14

Daniel 7:13-14 “I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him. “And to Him was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed.”

That passage reminded that He would also return with the clouds of heaven and would rule this world.

So even when Jesus was being tried,
He was bearing testimony to His ascension and second coming.

We understand why His focus would be there.

The writer of Hebrews taught us:
Hebrews 12:2 “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Even as Jesus endured the cross
His focus was beyond the suffering,
Which He despised or thought little of.

His focus was on “the glory set before Him”,
That He would set “down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Jesus found strength in His suffering by looking beyond it
To the glory of His ascension and second coming.

That was at that second trial at the house of Caiaphas.

But then we came to that third trial
• That was done publicly to cover the bases at the council chamber.

Luke 22:67-69 “If You are the Christ, tell us.” But He said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe; and if I ask a question, you will not answer. “But from now on THE SON OF MAN WILL BE SEATED AT THE RIGHT HAND of the power OF GOD.”

There He doubled down and reminded them again that as God’s Son,
He will soon be seated at God’s right hand.

Or how about when He stood before Pilate?
John 18:36 “Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.”

You can see that the ascension was important to Jesus.

But it wasn’t just at His trial where we see a focus on His ascension.

Do you remember the words He spoke as He hung on the cross?

Luke 23:42-43 “And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”

Even while dying Jesus welcomed that thief into the joy of His suffering
And admitted Him into the kingdom which Jesus would soon be enjoying.

Or how about at His resurrection?
• Peter and John had run to the tomb, but didn’t see Jesus and then went home.
• Mary Magdalene however stayed there weeping.

And then Jesus revealed Himself to her:
John 20:16-17 “Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’”

Even there Jesus was reminding Mary of what He had taught them the night before.
• He was going away.
• Clinging to His earthly presence was the wrong mentality.

Do you remember what He taught them Thursday night?

John 14:1-3 “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”

John 14:12 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.”

John 14:28 “You heard that I said to you, ‘I go away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced because I go to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.”

John 16:7 “But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.”

John 16:28 “I came forth from the Father and have come into the world; I am leaving the world again and going to the Father.”

And even in His high priestly prayer:
John 17:11-13 “I am no longer in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are. “While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled. “But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves.”

That has been His focus the whole time hasn’t it?

Jesus continually looked past the suffering to the fact that
He would very soon be sitting on heaven’s throne.

No man, regardless of their scheming,
Would be able to thwart God’s eternal decree
That Christ would sit on the throne.

As we have often referenced:
Psalms 2:6-9 “But as for Me, I have installed My King Upon Zion, My holy mountain.” “I will surely tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. ‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession. ‘You shall break them with a rod of iron, You shall shatter them like earthenware.’”

Jesus had certainly come to suffer and die
And give His life as a ransom for many,
But He was also aware that the story did not end there.

He would very soon be exalted to the throne of heaven
Where He would sit at the Father’s right hand.

That is the event we want to examine this morning.

Now, before we get into the point I want to leave with you,
I do want to give you (similar as the way we did when discussing His burial)
Some of the theological realities of His ascension.

• We covered these before, I think, when we studied Luke’s gospel, let me give you them quickly again.

• We can’t spend long on them, so if they grab your curiosity you’re going to have to go home and dig them out on your own.

• But let me just quickly give you the theological significance found in the fact that Jesus ascended to the Father.

1) CERTIFICATION OF MINISTRY

The ascension, just like the burial of Jesus and the resurrection of Jesus,
Also served as a tremendous proof that His ministry was from God.

You may remember John 6 where
• Jesus began by feeding the 5,000
• That night He walked on water to the other side of the sea
• The crowd found Him and wanted more bread

It was there that Jesus gave the famous sermon that
He was the bread from heaven.

• But the people balked at the notion that He had claimed to come from heaven
• And that they should eat His flesh and drink His blood for eternal life.

John 6:60-62 “Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this said, “This is a difficult statement; who can listen to it?” But Jesus, conscious that His disciples grumbled at this, said to them, “Does this cause you to stumble? “What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before?”

There Jesus said that His ascension
Would be a sort of verification of His ministry.

You don’t believe Him when He says He came from heaven
Well perhaps you’ll believe Him when you see Him go back.

2) COMMENCEMENT OF PRIESTHOOD

We already noted how Jesus quoted Psalms 110:1 in regard to His ascension, but that is not the only significant verse in that Psalm.

Psalms 110:4 is also very important.
Psalms 110:4 “The LORD has sworn and will not change His mind, “You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek.”

The 110th Psalm teaches us that Jesus is ascending to the Father
And He is ascending to fulfill His role as our great High Priest.

In reality that verse inspired the entire book of Hebrews
And comes with much more depth than we can address here.

But it suffices to say that
If Jesus is going to intercede as a priest on your behalf before the Father,
Then He will need to approach the Father.

His ascension marks the beginning of that ministry
Which SECURES YOUR SALVATION.

Hebrews 9:24 “For Christ did not enter a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us;”

Hebrews 7:25 “Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

3) CLARIFICATION OF HIS RETURN

Do you wonder what the return of Christ will be like?

There is an entire eschatological view today called preterism
That says Christ already returned, and that it was a spiritual return.

But we don’t buy that.
Because Jesus gave us a picture to know exactly what His return would be like.

Right after Jesus ascended into heaven we read:
Acts 1:11 “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.”

• Jesus didn’t spiritually ascend and He won’t spiritually return.
• It was a physical ascension and it will be a physical return.

Revelation 1:7 “BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.”

4) CREATION OF OUR EXPECTATION

Not only does the ascension give us a picture
Of what to expect at His Second Coming,
But it also clarifies what we can expect to happen in our future.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.”

There are those today who also deny that the rapture is real.
• They say that there will be no event in which believers are caught up in the air to meet Christ.

But Paul told the Thessalonians that this is exactly what will happen.
Just as Christ ascended so will the church.

5) COMPLETION OF THE PLAN OF GOD

Think about all that God has determined from the beginning.

Ephesians 4:10 “He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.”

• That is to say so that He might “fulfill all things”
• That He might bring all things to their fulfillment.

Currently Christ reigns in heaven,
• From which He has sent the Holy Spirit to equip His church.
• He is saving and sanctifying His bride, preparing her for the great wedding
feast.
• He is interceding for her and securing her to Himself
• And once His bride is home, He will return to destroy the wicked.
• His ascension is a necessary part of that plan.

So there’s 5 important realities about Christ’s ascension.

But I didn’t give you the most important one.
That is the one I want us to think on a little bit more this morning.

The most important theological reality of Christ’s ascension is this:

THE CONFIRMATION OF HIS REIGN

When Jesus ascended, He ascended to the throne.

That is what He told the Jews at His trial.
• He quoted Psalms 110:1 that He would be seated at the right hand of power.

He told His disciples when He met them in Galilee:
Matthew 28:18 “And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.”

And you might remember that this was the message
Peter preached even at Pentecost.

When Peter stood to explain the appearance of the Holy Spirit,
Peter taught that His arrival meant that the King had taken His throne.

Acts 2:32-36 “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. “Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. “For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET.” ’ “Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.”

Peter told the masses who had rejected the Lord
That He was now seated at the right hand of Power.

• He is now Lord and Christ.
• God has raised Him and God has exalted Him.
• And you made a grave mistake in crucifying Him.

HIS ASCENSION CONFIRMS HIS REIGN.

And that is WHAT WE WANT TO THINK ON
In the remainder of our time here together this morning.

Namely that after Jesus was raised from the dead,
He ascended to take His seat on Heaven’s Throne.

TONIGHT we’ll talk about how
He will one day descend to claim Earth’s Throne as well.

But let’s discuss the current reign of Heaven’s King.
1 Corinthians 15:25-27 “For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be abolished is death. For HE HAS PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him.”

And I want you to know that this is an interesting quote by Paul.

Paul states that Christ must reign until all His enemies are destroyed.
And to support that He quotes Psalms 8:6
“He has put all things in subjection under his feet.”

But that is an interesting quote from Paul.

WHY?
Because Psalms 8:6 is clearly about humanity.
• It is the Psalm where David contemplates the grace of God to humanity.

Psalms 8:4-6 “What is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him? Yet You have made him a little lower than God, And You crown him with glory and majesty! You make him to rule over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet,”

David marvels that God has treated humanity so graciously,
Even giving him dominion over the earth.

Now the writer of Hebrews jumps on that train as well.
The writer of Hebrews uses Psalms 8:6
• To remind us of the sting of the fall
• And how man, because of sin, is not currently in his rightful position.

Hebrews 2:6-8 “But one has testified somewhere, saying, “WHAT IS MAN, THAT YOU REMEMBER HIM? OR THE SON OF MAN, THAT YOU ARE CONCERNED ABOUT HIM? “YOU HAVE MADE HIM FOR A LITTLE WHILE LOWER THAN THE ANGELS; YOU HAVE CROWNED HIM WITH GLORY AND HONOR, AND HAVE APPOINTED HIM OVER THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS; YOU HAVE PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET.” For in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to him.”

So the writer of Hebrews quotes that Psalm and says,
“but we don’t see it happening.”
• Man is not currently ruling over all things.
• Something is wrong.
• Something is out of order.

But he does not stop.
Hebrews 2:8-9 “YOU HAVE PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET.” For in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to him. But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.”

The writer of Hebrews said we don’t see all things subjected to man,
But we do see “Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels”

And what do we see now?
“because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor”

The writer of Hebrews speaks of Jesus
As the man who came to fix the problem.

Jesus came and suffered as our sin demanded,
Now He has ascended to put things back in their rightful order.

That is why Paul quotes that verse about Jesus.
Jesus is the ultimate man, now reigning on heaven’s throne.
“He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.”

For a little while lower than the angels, but now exalted above them.

And I want you to understand THE DEGREE OF HIS AUTHORITY.
To do that, let’s return now to the passage we read to open the sermon.

BACK TO EPHESIANS 1:18-23

This is Paul’s prayer that
The church will understand all that is theirs in Christ.

Just look at the prayer in verses 18-19a
“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.”

• I want you to know the HOPE that is yours.
• I want you to know the RICHES of your inheritance.
• I want you to know the greatness of His POWER toward you.

I just wish you could catch a glimpse of how powerful Christ is.

And then Paul strives to explain Christ’s power.
(19b) “These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead…”

Now there’s your FIRST indication of power.
It is RESURRECTION POWER.

The power that is available to you through Christ is resurrection power.
• The same power that God used to raise Christ from the dead
• Is the power that is available to transform your life as well.

And certainly we could talk about the resurrection and even the resurrected life of a believer as a testimony to that power, but time just won’t permit.

It is the NEXT indication of power I want you to see.

(20b) “and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.”

LET’S LOOK AT THAT FOR A MOMENT.
Paul not only talks about resurrection power, but REIGNING POWER.

He wants you to understand THE CURRENT POSITION of Christ.

HERE IS WHY.

Look down at verse 22-23
“And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.”

• Paul says Christ is the head of the church.
• Paul says we are Christ’s body.

• Paul says He “fills all in all”
• And Paul says we are His “fullness”

There is an unbreakable union between the church and Christ.
Just as a man and women get married and become one flesh,
So also are we joined with Christ.

He the head, we the body.
He the filler, we the fullness.

That is why Paul will say in Ephesians 2 that we were made alive with Christ, we were raised with Christ, and we are seated with Christ in the heavenly places.

If I might say it just a simpler way.
We are Christ’s and Christ is ours.
We are united with Him.
We are one with Him.

Now we are understanding why Christ spoke so much about it,
Even in the upper room.
His ascension is a tremendous benefit to us.
This is good for us!

And because we are united with Christ
Paul wants you and I to understand just how much authority He has.

He wants you to know the advantage that is yours
Because you are the bride of Christ.

So when we talk about His reigning power
Let Paul show you just How far He ascended.

Look at it:
(21) “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.”

I just want you to see Christ’s position.
Because His position benefits you.

One thing I have learned in all my years traveling to Africa
Is how different Africans think than Americans in many different areas.

One of those areas is politics.
• In America you won’t give much thought to the race or ethnicity of a candidate,
• You will be more likely to consider his political beliefs and his platform.

And that’s not to say no one in Africa cares about such things.
But they are far more prone to vote along tribal lines.

Because if a man from my tribe is elected president of the country
That’s going to be good for my tribe.

Well, I want you to think like our African brothers and sisters
For a moment and understand the point.

Here we have Christ, the head of your tribe, your husband.
And I want you to understand WHERE HE SITS.

(21) “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.”

Let’s examine those words for a second.

“rule”
It is the Greek word (ar-KHAY)

Most of the time when that word shows up
It speaks of the beginning or of origins.

But it is used in a sense of authority because it speaks of
That which has precedent by reason of being there first.

We think of colonization or tradition in this way.
• Namely that the way we did things first seems to have a higher rank of authority
than something new.
• Just as a person who claimed the position first has a certain level of
preeminence.

So here Paul is saying that Christ is seated “far above all rule”
Or any established leader or tradition or way of doing things.

“and authority”
That word is (ex-oo-SEE-ah)

Matthew really likes to use that word.

Matthew 7:29 “for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.”

Matthew 8:9 “For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.”

Matthew 9:6 “But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then He said to the paralytic, “Get up, pick up your bed and go home.”

This word speaks of judicial power to make decisions.
• It is like that centurion spoke of.
• I have authority to make someone do something.
• He recognizes that same authority in Jesus.

So here we see that Christ is the highest of all judicial authorities.
If you go up the chain of command high enough, it ends with Christ.

Everyone; all authority; eventually answers to Him.

“and power”
That is the word (DOO-na-mis)
• It’s where we get our word for “dynamite”
• It is just raw power.
• Often times the word is translated “miracles”.

But in an authority sense we understand it to speak of
The one who is the strongest.

In a base culture, the strongest guy wins the room.
• If he can physically dominate you, then he gets to be in charge.
• He has the most power and therefore he is in charge.

Well Paul says that Christ is far above all other powers.
There is no strong man stronger than Him.
There is no brute bully that can intimidate Christ and make Him yield.

CHRIST IS THE STRONGEST OF THE STRONG.

“and dominion”
That is the word (koo-ree-AH-tace)
• It speaks of governing authorities and governments.
• In Colossians Paul speaks of “thrones and dominions”

So we are talking about political power.
World governments and all of their power.
Military strength and weapons of war.

Those who rule because
They have the strongest armies and the most weapons.

And Paul says that Christ is far above all of them.
• There is no government that has the dominion that He has.
• There is no army that can compare with His army.

“and every name that is named”
It is simply Paul’s way of saying, everyone.

There is not a human or government or demonic force
Or strong man or judge or power lifter or ninja or navy seal
Or Philistine Giant or anyone who is equal to Christ.

HE IS ABOVE THEM ALL.
• Any way in which you choose to measure power, Christ has more.
• Any way in which you choose to establish authority, Christ is above it.
• Any way in which you choose to talk about control, Christ is at the top.

“not only in this age but also in the age to come.”
And it always will be this way.
• There is nothing coming that will ever unseat Christ.
• He is on the throne and He always will be.

God “put all things in subjection under His feet”

So church, for must a moment
As we talk about the reigning Christ who ascended to His throne
I want you to understand the power and authority that He has.

POWER OVER ALL ESTABLISHED ORDERS
• Every tradition or preexisting rule of government.

The Chinese like to boast that they have been a nation
For over 5,000 years…well good.
CHRIST HAS PRECEDENT.

POWER OVER ALL JUDICIAL DECISION

We see rogue and corrupt judges today
Who make rulings and decisions to seek to defy any and everyone.
CHRIST WILL HAVE THE FINAL SAY IN ALL JUDICIAL DECISIONS.

POWER OVER ALL STRONG FORCES

Rather demons or strong men or even raw natural power.
CHRIST IS STRONGER.
He calms seas, He holds the sun, He quiets storms.
There is no raw power like His raw power.

POWER OVER ALL GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES
• Do we suppose the United States is strong because of our military?
• Perhaps you fear Russia or China or some other military force.

NONE COMPARE TO CHRIST AND THE ARMIES OF HEAVEN.
1 angel came and destroyed 185,000 Assyrians outside the walls of Jerusalem,
And Jesus has myriads of myriads of angels at His disposal.

There is no governmental power like Christ’s power.

POWER OVER ALL IMPORTANT PEOPLE
Who has the right to give orders and be in control?

The pope in Rome claims that his word is infallible,
But he found out recently it’s not.

CHRIST’S WORD IS FAR HIGHER THAN HIS.

Church I simply want you to understand that Christ reigns.
He is sovereign over all.
He is the High King of Heaven.

When governments become corrupt or judges go rogue.
When strong men threaten or demons about.
Do not fear, Christ is over all.

HE IS YOURS AND YOU ARE HIS.
Nothing can happen outside of His sovereign control
And all things must happen according to His divine plan.

1 Peter 3:22 “[Jesus] is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him.”

That is why we can read such verses with confidence.
Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

It is because Christ reigns.
And it’s not even close.
He reigns “far above” them all.

• They are not free to do as they please.
• They will not get away with all that they have done.
• For as we will see tonight, the One who currently reigns in heaven will soon return and reign on earth.

This morning just respond to the ascension of Jesus the way the apostles did.
Luke 24:51-53 “While He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they, after worshiping Him, returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple praising God.”

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Countdown to Easter
Easter Sunday

The Resurrection of Jesus
Mark 16:1-8
April 20, 2025

This morning we come again on Easter Sunday.
Every year we focus on this pinnacle event of the Christian faith.

Perhaps Paul said it best:
1 Corinthians 15:1-8 “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.”

That so perfectly states the importance of this message.
• It is the message that was preached.
• It is the message we received.
• It is the message by which we were saved.
• It is the message in which we stand.

The truth that Jesus Christ,
• Although fully God, came to this earth in full humanity.
• He lived a perfect and sinless life, fulfilling the Law of God and demonstrating by His power that He truly is the Son of God.
• He then laid down His holy life on our behalf by submitting to death on a cross in order to pay the debt of the sins of His people.

But He did not stay dead.
God raised Him from the dead.

That is the wonderful reality we are examining this morning.

For the last 3 weeks we’ve been counting down to this.

WE SAW HIS ARREST –we emphasized that what Jesus did, He did alone.
• No one joined Him, no one helped Him.
• All abandoned Him.
• He fought the battle alone.

WE SAW HIS TRIAL – where we emphasized who He endured this for,
• He suffered for the citizens of His kingdom;
• Namely those who hear His words and obey Him.

WE SAW HIS CRUCIFIXION – where we asked why He did it.
• Because He came to save sinners.
• We saw His love for them.

WE SAW HIS BURIAL –we emphasized how He did it.
• That Christ went all the way into death in order that He might save us.

John 13:1 “Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.”

Jesus Christ came to this world as a man to save sinners
By bearing their sin and suffering the wrath they deserve
On the cross He paid the wage of sin which is death.
He is the only One who did that.

This morning we see Him vindicated as God raises Him from the dead.

THIS MORNING WE LOOK AT HIS RESURRECTION.

As we examined the other events leading up to this,
We always chose one gospel account in order to gain one point about each event.

But this morning as we look at the resurrection
I want us to look at all of them.

Certainly we can’t examine them all fully, but we can look at each of them enough
To gain one more very important point.

THE EFFECT OF THE DEATH, BURIAL, AND RESURRECTION OF JESUS.

We saw what He did and why He did it.
Now we want to examine the effect it should have on us.

And to do that we need to take a quick look at all 4 accounts.

Now, before we examine how they differ
I think it is vitally important to point out where they are all the same.
• It is beneficial to understand what they all have in common.

And this truth is the one thing they all share.
1. Women arrived early,
2. The stone was rolled away,
3. And the tomb was empty.
That is the truth that all 4 accounts consistently share.

CERTAINLY
Some will tell how the stone was moved…
Some will tell who entered the tomb to verify that it was empty…
Some will tell how the angels explained the empty tomb…
Some will tell about the conspiracy to cover it up…

But THE CHIEF POINT that every gospel account makes clear is this.
1. That stone we saw rolled in front and sealed was moved.
2. The man we saw dead and buried was gone.
3. And God chose to use women as the first testifying witness to the fact.

Every gospel writer shows us that.
The stone was moved, Jesus was gone,
And it was women who discovered it.

The fact that every gospel writer indicate that women were there first is a remarkable testimony to the authenticity of the gospel accounts.
• If these men were making this story up they would have never used women as their chief witnesses
• No one in that day saw women as a credible witness.
• They only would have included that fact if that is exactly what happened.
• They are telling the truth.

AND THE TRUTH IS THAT
The stone was moved and Jesus wasn’t in that tomb.
All four point that out.

But there is information also to be gained
By examining the specific details which each writer includes
That may not show up in every other account.

That is because each man has a different point to make.

So let’s begin by turning to: MARK 16:1-8
#1 THE PHENOMENON OF THE RESURRECTION
Mark 16:1-8

We’ll start with Mark’s gospel because it was the first one written.
• It is also the most curious.

Mark’s details are brief.
He only gives 8 verses.

I know that in your Bible you can also read verses 9-20,

And I don’t have time to go all through it, except to say that
It is obvious that those verses were not in the original manuscripts.
They were not a part of Mark’s original gospel.

• As people made copies it is clear that people added to what Mark had to say,
• Most of which can be found in other gospel accounts, so we don’t fret it terribly,
• But it is clear for a number of reasons that it was not a part of Mark’s gospel.

When you read the 8 verses on the resurrection that Mark includes
There is one thing that jumps out and that is AMAZEMENT!

It may even seem abrupt the way that Mark closes his gospel in verse 8,
But if you’ve read Mark
You know that this is the perfect ending to His gospel.

I first learned this from John MacArthur,
So I don’t want to take credit, but he’s absolutely right.

In Mark’s gospel you see the women approaching the tomb…
And they have one main concern…
• “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance of the tomb?”

• Their biggest concern is how to gain access to the body.
• But to their surprise when they arrived the stone was already moved.

Matthew tells us how it was moved,
But Mark’s point is the response of the women.

(5) “Entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe; and they were amazed.”

You see the phrase, “they were amazed.”

Even when they encounter the angelic messenger
His first words in verse 6 are, “Do not be amazed…”

It is a Greek word that means to be “struck with terror”

The angel then tells them that
• Jesus has risen from the dead, “just as He told you”
• And that He is headed to Galilee to see His disciples.

And then Mark closes his gospel account with this verse.

(8) “They went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had gripped them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.”

And you say, what a strange way to end his gospel, but for Mark it is not.

IN MARK 1, Jesus enters the scene,
• Is baptized, is tempted, and begins His ministry.
• He calls Simon, Andrew, James and John
• They go to Capernaum where Jesus begins to teach.

And we read:
Mark 1:22 “They were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.”

In verse 25 Jesus casts out a demon and then we read:
Mark 1:27 “They were all amazed, so that they debated among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.”

IN MARK 2 Jesus forgives and heals the paralytic that is lowered through the roof and then we read:
Mark 2:12 “And he got up and immediately picked up the pallet and went out in the sight of everyone, so that they were all amazed and were glorifying God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this.”

IN MARK 4 Jesus calms the storm and we read:
Mark 4:41 “They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”

IN MARK 5 He delivers the Gadarene demoniac and casts all those demons into the pigs, and we read:
Mark 5:15 “They came to Jesus and observed the man who had been demon-possessed sitting down, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the “legion”; and they became frightened.”

Later in the chapter Jesus heals the hemorrhaging woman, and we read:
Mark 5:33 “But the woman fearing and trembling, aware of what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.”

Then Jesus raises the little girl from the dead, and we read:
Mark 5:42 “Immediately the girl got up and began to walk, for she was twelve years old. And immediately they were completely astounded.”

IN MARK 6 He walks on water:
Mark 6:51 “Then He got into the boat with them, and the wind stopped; and they were utterly astonished,”

IN MARK 9 Jesus is transfigured:
Mark 9:6 “For he did not know what to answer; for they became terrified.”

Later in Mark 9
Mark 9:15 “Immediately, when the entire crowd saw Him, they were amazed and began running up to greet Him.”

You see the words over and over, “amazed” – “fearful” – “astounded”

Mark 11:18 “The chief priests and the scribes heard this, and began seeking how to destroy Him; for they were afraid of Him, for the whole crowd was astonished at His teaching.”

Mark 12:17 “And Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were amazed at Him.”

Mark 15:4-5 “Then Pilate questioned Him again, saying, “Do You not answer? See how many charges they bring against You!” But Jesus made no further answer; so Pilate was amazed.”

DO YOU SEE MARK’S POINT?

And then when Jesus is raised from the dead:
(8) “They went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had gripped them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.”

What is Mark showing you?

THE AMAZING JESUS!
• There is no one else like Him!
• There is no one who talks like He talks.
• There is no one who works like He works.
• There is no one with power like He has.
• There is no one with conviction like Him.

And Mark closes his gospel the same way.
HE IS AMAZING!
Nothing can stop Him, not even death!

One of the problems with a routine celebration of the resurrection
Is that the frequency can lead to familiarity
And before long we lose our wonder.

Mark wrote his gospel to point out that
THERE WAS NOTHING FAMILIAR OR NORMAL ABOUT THIS.

Jesus Christ went into death and came out the other side.
No one else ever demonstrated such power over such a foe.

So see the phenomenon of the resurrection.
• See the miraculous nature of it.
• Be amazed, Jesus was dead and now He is alive.

Next, let’s turn to Luke’s gospel (Luke 24)
#2 THE PURPOSE OF THE RESURRECTION
Luke 24:1-12

Certainly there is more to Luke’s account than just the 12 verses we just read.

And some things unique to Luke’s gospel alone:
• Luke alone includes the story of the two men on the road to Emmaus and
how Jesus appeared to them.
• Luke also includes (as does John) the time Jesus appeared to the disciples
in the upper room in Jerusalem.
• Only Luke includes that final commissioning of Jesus before He ascended in
Jerusalem.

And there are a lot of things we could take away from his gospel account,
But as with Mark, reading Luke makes one theme really stand out.

HERE IN LUKE’S GOSPEL,
• The women arrive at the tomb.
• Here they enter the tomb just like Mark said.
• And again, as Mark said, (5) “the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground”
• And, just as in Mark we see an angel directing the women that Jesus has risen.

But the way the angel speaks and what he says
Comes from Luke with a different feel.

(5b-7) “…the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? “He is not here, but He has risen. Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.”

Here we listen to the angels who sound genuinely perplexed
That these women would be so surprised that Jesus’ body is missing.

“Why do you seek the living One among the dead?”

As if to say,
• “Do you routinely go look for missing people at the cemetery?”
• Is this normal for you to look for people who are alive here?

And the angels say, (6) “Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee”

So there is a now a reference to explain
Why these women should not have been so surprised.

Jesus had told them this was going to happen.

(7) “saying that the Son of Man MUST be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.”

Indeed, Jesus had said that very thing.
These things were necessary; they must happen.

And then we read in verse 8, “And they remembered His words”

WELL THEN
• The women run to the disciples and tell them what the angels had spoken.
• (According to Matthew’s gospel they had also seen Jesus by this point, but Luke does not include that).

But the apostles don’t believe it.
(11) “But these words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe them.”

So there is another case of people who just can’t seem to wrap their minds around what Jesus had already said MUST happen.

And then Luke includes another story, unique to his gospel about these men on the road to Emmaus and how Jesus joins their caravan.

These two men, like everyone else, are filled with despair.

(21-24) “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened. “But also some women among us amazed us. When they were at the tomb early in the morning, and did not find His body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive. “Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just exactly as the women also had said; but Him they did not see.”

These men are totally shocked by the announcement of the resurrection,
And they aren’t believing it either.

And notice the rebuke Jesus gives them:
(25-27) “And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.”

WHAT IS THE EMPHASIS THERE?
It is on their failure to read and believe the Scriptures.
• You have not understood Isaiah 53 that the righteous One would bear our sins and our sorrows.
• You have not understood Psalms 22 that they would pierce His hands and feet.
• You have not understood Psalms 118 that they would surround Him like bees, but God would deliver Him.
• You have not understood Psalms 16 where David promised that God would not allow His Holy One to undergo decay.

ARE YOU SEEING LUKE’S POINT?
1. You have women who have forgotten the words of Jesus.
2. You have disciples who won’t believe the testimony of witnesses.
3. You have these two men who have not understood the Old Testament.

Luke shows the root of the problem with all the fear and despair,
It is that they have not believed what the Bible teaches
About the resurrection of the Christ.

And that is a shame because His resurrection, as Jesus pointed out,
Is “necessary”

Jesus had to die and be buried and be raised.

So Luke highlights two main points in his gospel.
1. We believe Christ rose from the dead because the Scripture says He did.
2. We believe Christ’s resurrection was necessary because the Scripture says it was.

And that forces us then to think on the purpose of the resurrection.

What was the purpose?
Why did He have to rise?

Let me give you a few:
1) TO VALIDATE HIS ATONEMENT

Romans 4:25 “He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification.”

Jesus wasn’t raised to justify us, His death did that.
His resurrection proved our justification.
That is to say, the resurrection proved the cross worked.

Because God raised Jesus
We know that He was in fact sinless and acceptable to the Father
And therefore His work of atonement was effective.

2) TO CONQUER DEATH

Hebrews 2:14-15 “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.”

Is there a greater foe than death?
It is cold, it is harsh, and it is permanent.

There is nothing that grieves humanity more
Than when death shows up uninvited.

JESUS CONQUERED DEATH
The resurrection proves that.

Revelation 1:17-18 “When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.”

3) TO SECURE OUR SALVATION

There is no doubt that on the cross Jesus purchased our pardon,
And the resurrection proves that.

But Jesus needs to be alive for more than just to prove the cross.
His ministry now is NOT to just go around proving He is alive and that the cross worked.

Jesus needs to be alive to apply the cross.
• He now works constantly as the High Priest of believers.
• He now continually intercedes on our behalf so that when we sin, we do not lose our salvation, but rather are protected by Him.

Hebrews 7:23-25 “The former priests, on the one hand, existed in greater numbers because they were prevented by death from continuing, but Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently. Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

Surely you understand that a dead priest does you no good.
If you want someone to intercede on your behalf when you mess up
At the very least that person needs to be alive.

Jesus is alive and He holds His priesthood permanently,
And therefore “He is able also to save forever” those who are His.

That is why Paul wrote:
Romans 5:9-10 “Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.”

It was His atoning death that brought you to God,
It is His resurrected life that keeps you there.

It is the Scripture that tells us that it happened.
It is the Scripture that tells us why it happened.
It is the Scripture that tells us why it had to happen.

They were all rebuked for failing to believe the Scriptures.

Luke’s gospel emphasizes how important it is for you to study the Scriptures and know the reality and significance of the resurrection.

Now go to John’s gospel (John 20)
#3 THE POWER OF THE RESURRECTION
John 20:1-17

John’s gospel is also a lengthy account.
John is enamored with all the times Jesus manifests Himself to the 12.
• He shows twice when Jesus did it in Jerusalem
• Then takes you to Galilee and shows you one there too.

But one of the interesting aspects of John’s gospel is
How he really focuses on the story of Mary Magdalene.

When we put the gospel accounts together it becomes more clear what occurred.
• All the women set out together on Sunday morning, but Mary Magdalene obviously ran ahead.
• She got to the tomb when it was dark, while we read that the other women got there after sunup.
• Mary also didn’t enter the tomb or see the angel.
• All she saw was the stone was moved and she immediately assumed the worst.

John focuses on her despair and pessimism.

(2) “So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.”

She sees the stone moved and comes to one conclusion:
Someone must have taken the body.

Now you know
• The story of how John and Peter ran to the tomb, and it is clear that Mary ran with them.
• You know how John outran Peter but stopped at the doorway and how Peter barreled right on in.

But Peter and John left, but Mary stayed in the garden weeping.

That is when two angels show up.
(11-13) “But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”

Unlike the other women, Mary seems unphased by the angels,
HER GRIEF IS TOO GREAT.

But when they want to know why she is weeping she says it a second time, (13) “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”

Again Mary’s only conclusion is that His body has been stolen.

And then Jesus Himself approaches Mary,
But like the men on the road to Emmaus, she doesn’t recognize Him.

He also asks here why she is weeping, and we get her for the third time, (15) “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”

There is no other possibility for Mary
Other than that Jesus body has been stolen.
She is overcome with grief and despair.

BUT LOOK WHAT HAPPENS.
(16-17) “Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’”

There is the power of the resurrection!
Grief turned to joy!

Jesus had said that earlier hadn’t He?
John 16:20-22 “Truly, truly, I say to you, that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will be turned into joy. “Whenever a woman is in labor she has pain, because her hour has come; but when she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy that a child has been born into the world. “Therefore you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.”

The resurrection is what grants the power to turn grief into joy.

EVEN NOW FOR US, WHEN A BELIEVER DIES,
We are sad for the immediate separation,
But we do not grieve without hope.

For Jesus said:
John 14:19 “After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also.”

THAT IS JOY!

AND IT’S NOT JUST MARY.

Where do we find the disciples during all of this?
(19-20) “So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord.”

There they were in fear, huddled with the door locked.
But Jesus entered and peace and rejoicing entered the room.

But of course Thomas wasn’t there, and he DOUBTED it all.
(26-28) “After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.” Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.” Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”

DO YOU SEE THE POWER OF THE RESURRECTION?
• It took grievers and turned them into rejoicers.
• It took the fearful and gave them peace.
• It took doubters and made them believers.

These disciples were locked in a room for fear
But the resurrection turned them into
The boldest and bravest witnesses the world has ever seen.

THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST HAS POWER.
IT CHANGES LIVES.
John wants you to see that.

And one final account, turn to Matthew 28
#4 THE PROCLAMATION OF THE RESURRECTION
Matthew 28:1-10

Now there are some things here that only Matthew shows you.
• Matthew tells you about the earthquake.
• Matthew tells you about the guards becoming like dead men.
• Matthew tells you about the conspiracy to cover up the resurrection.

But Matthew also has a unique focus
On the necessity that this message must be proclaimed.

When the angels speak to the women in the tomb.
(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.”

When Jesus appears to the women as they are leaving.
(10) “Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.”

Then Matthew emphasizes the necessity of a true testimony
For he talks about a false testimony that is circulating all throughout Israel about how Jesus’ disciples supposedly stole Jesus’ body.

And then Matthew gets right to the point.
(16-20) “But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

MATTHEW’S FOCUS IS PRETTY CLEAR ISN’T IT?
GO AND PREACH THE RESURRECTION.

And can we just point out that this is exactly what they did!

Acts 2:24 “But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.

Acts 2:32 “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.

Acts 3:14-15 “But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, but put to death the Prince of life, the one whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses.

Acts 4:2 “…they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.”

Acts 4:10 “let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by this name this man stands here before you in good health.”

Acts 4:33 “And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all.”

And we could go on and on and on, but you get the point.
THEY PREACHED THE RESURRECTION.

As we look at all 4 of these resurrection accounts,
We begin to understand the effect it is meant to have on your life.

So let me ask you a few questions
To see if the resurrection has rightly effected you.

1) Does the resurrection of Christ amaze you? Mark wants it to.
• Are you blown away by the fact that this righteous man died upon a cross and God raised Him from the dead?
• Are you amazed at all that Christ can do and all that Christ did in order to save you from your sin?

2) Do you believe and understand the resurrection of Christ? Luke wants you to.
• Do you believe what the Scriptures said about His death and resurrection?
• Do you understand why He had to die?
• Do you understand why He had to rise?

3) Has Christ’s resurrection changed your life? John wants it to.
• Has Christ given you hope instead of despair?
• Has Christ given you peace instead of fear?
• Has Christ changed your view of the world and of life and of suffering?
• Do you now overcome the world because of what He did?

4) Are you a proclaimer of Christ’s resurrection? Matthew wants you to.
• Is it the most important thing that has ever happened to your life?

One thing you cannot deny about the writers of the gospels is that
THERE WAS NOTHING BIGGER TO THEM
Than the fact that Jesus died, was buried, and rose from the dead.

1. Nothing else amazed them like that.
2. Nothing else was as important as that.
3. Nothing else changed them like that.
4. And they didn’t want to talk about anything else.

AND THEN WE COME TO THE CHURCH TODAY

We are captivated and amazed on a daily basis,
• But is it with Christ or is it with the flashing lights and sparkling trinkets of the world?

There are plenty of things that are important to us,
• But where does the resurrection of Christ rank on our list?
• Is it more important than politics, than the economy, than our favorite sporting event?

Where does your joy rest?
Where does your hope reside?
What gives you peace?

And honestly, we’ll know the answer
To those first three questions by examining the last one.

WHAT DO YOU TALK ABOUT?
WHAT IS YOUR MESSAGE?

“Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.”
Or as Adrian Rogers put it, “What’s down in the well comes up in the bucket”

One thing is certain about the apostles.
The resurrection had a profound effect on their life.

IT SHOULD ON OURS AS WELL.

1. Jesus Christ is fully God who became fully man.
2. He lived on this earth, perfectly obeying the Law of God and earning a righteousness that far surpasses anything we ever did.
3. He then offered that righteous life up to God on our behalf and He gave Himself up to death to cover our debt.
4. And God raised Him from the dead indicating that His death was successful and our redemption is secure.

Nothing matters more than that.
That fact should change your life.

IF IT HASN’T, ASK YOURSELF WHY NOT?
• Ask yourself if you really believe it?
• Ask yourself if you have ever confessed the risen One as Lord of your life?
• Ask yourself if you have been raised with Christ?
• And then commit your life to Him.

And this morning we simply want to close
Rejoicing that our salvation is secure because our Savior lives.

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The Burial of Jesus
Matthew 27:57-66
April 13, 2025

Tonight we come to the final event
Leading up to the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.

It is THE BURIAL of Jesus.

Some have found it curious that the gospel writers
Were so adamant about adding details of this reality.

In some ways, I suppose,
The burial seems like an anti-climactic part of the entire scene.

And yet we find that all 4 gospel writers
Determined to include this one detail, that Jesus was buried.

And not only the gospel writers,
but clearly it was important to all of the apostles.

1 Corinthians 15:3-4 “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,”

Paul is specific to include it.

Even after the apostles had died and the early church began to establish a clear systematic theology, we begin to see the various creeds.

You are familiar with the one known as “The Apostle’s Creed”
(They didn’t write it, but those who studied their teaching did)

“I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty. From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic* church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.”

Even there the burial is not overlooked.

We know that burial was an important reality to Jews.

• You will remember that Judas returned the money of his betrayal and you will remember what they used it for.

Matthew 27:7 “And they conferred together and with the money bought the Potter’s Field as a burial place for strangers.”

It was important in Judaism not to leave bodies out to rot.
A dead body just eaten by the birds was grotesque and defiling.

The Law demanded that even the most vile criminals should be buried.

Deuteronomy 21:21-23 “Then all the men of his city shall stone him to death; so you shall remove the evil from your midst, and all Israel will hear of it and fear. “If a man has committed a sin worthy of death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his corpse shall not hang all night on the tree, but you shall surely bury him on the same day (for he who is hanged is accursed of God), so that you do not defile your land which the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance.

Aside from that, we even find Jesus speaking of His own burial.

John 12:1-7 “Jesus, therefore, six days before the Passover, came to Bethany where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they made Him a supper there, and Martha was serving; but Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with Him. Mary then took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and given to poor people?” Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it. Therefore Jesus said, “Let her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of My burial.”

I think it’s clear to us then that the burial of the Lord
Is far from just one of those insignificant details
That all the writers happened to include.

We should know by now that the gospel writers didn’t play that game.

They were very specific about every detail
As each one gave not only a historical fact,
But a theological point in everything they included.

And the burial of Jesus should be looked upon in the same light.

Tonight, as we examine it, I want to do two main things.

1. I also want to consider the theological ramifications about burial.
• What Jesus burial meant and what it means for us.
• I don’t know that we’ve ever discussed this before,

2. I want us to examine Matthew’s gospel account of the resurrection
• And learn what he would teach us about the event.

So maybe you can already let your mind begin to think about
Why this is important and what it means for us.

So first, let’s just talk about Jesus’ burial from a “birds eye view”

Something that all the gospel writers
Would have unanimously wanted to show you.

And perhaps I would start by just asking you, why the burial matters.
What significant truth do we learn here?

Now before you go too far, I would point out that I think there is one way in which our hymnology has not done us a ton of favors.

We sing the song “One Day” and you are likely familiar with the chorus, which is one of the few hymns that mentions the burial of Jesus.

“Living He loved me, dying He saved me, buried He carried my sins far away…
Rising He justified, freely forever, one day He’s coming, O glorious day!”

That hymn looks upon the burial as that scapegoat in the Old Testament
That Jesus was in some sense carrying our sins away below the ground.

I’ll admit that it is an interesting picture,
But you won’t find that imagery used in Scripture
As a legitimate explanation of His burial.

And yet the burial is theologically significant, WHY?

1) CERTIFICATION OF DEATH

This is, hands down, the most important aspect of the burial of Christ.
IT PROVES HIS DEATH.

You just don’t bury people who are alive.

The Heidelberg Catechism addresses this wonderful clarity:
Question 41: Why was He also “buried”?
Answer: Thereby to prove that He was really dead.

They site only one verse as proof, and it also is enough.
Acts 13:29 “When they had carried out all that was written concerning Him, they took Him down from the cross and laid Him in a tomb.”

The main purpose of revealing the burial of Christ
Is to emphasize the death of Christ.

He did not escape alive.
He died on the cross.

And the gospel accounts in absolute unison verify this fact.

Pilate verified it:
Mark 15:43-45 “Joseph of Arimathea came, a prominent member of the Council, who himself was waiting for the kingdom of God; and he gathered up courage and went in before Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus. Pilate wondered if He was dead by this time, and summoning the centurion, he questioned him as to whether He was already dead. And ascertaining this from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph.”

Clearly there the centurion also verified it.

Joseph and Nicodemus then verified it by burying Him.

The women then verified it by watching Him be buried.

This is what the burial is for, to prove death.

As we said this morning, death is a requirement for redemption.
Romans 6:23a “For the wages of sin is death…”

And this goes all the way back to the garden.
Genesis 2:15-17 “Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. The LORD God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”

The original announcement of God is that when sin occurs,
Death is the only acceptable consequence.

And when God’s demands were more clearly spelled out in the Law, we saw it again.
• The demands of the Law also had to be met which required death for sin.
• Over 50 times in the Law the death penalty is prescribed for sin.

Hebrews 9:22 “And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”

And it is not just bleeding, it is because the life is in the blood
The cost of sin is death.

If Jesus doesn’t die then the wage of sin has not been paid.
And to verify death, we get the burial.

There’s your chief theological point about the burial of Christ.
The burial proves He died on the cross.

As we examine the Scriptures we also see that out of that flow some other important understandings about the burial of Christ.

2) VERIFICATION OF MINISTRY

That is to say,
Jesus burial is set up to verify His ministry as the Son of God.

HOW?

Remember what Jesus said?
Matthew 12:38-41 “Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. “The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.”

The religious elite wanted a sign from Jesus to further prove His authority to say the things He was saying.
• Jesus told them, “No”.
• I’ll only give you one sign, He said.
• Death, burial, and resurrection.

Jesus specifically referenced
Jonah’s stay inside the belly of the sea-monster as evidence.
With the focus there of “three days”

It equates to sure and certain, undeniable, absolute and total death,
With undeniable and absolute resurrection.

The burial proves death,
And coupled with His resurrection validates His entire ministry.

But that’s still not all that the burial speaks of.

3) ILLUSTRATION OF CONVERSION

Since burial is primarily a sign of death,
Christ’s burial even becomes an analogy of Christian conversion.

DO YOU REMEMBER Paul’s argument in Romans to people who thought that once you claimed grace you could just live however you wanted?

Paul balked at such a ridiculous notion and look what he said:
Romans 6:1-4 “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”

Paul said there that “we have been buried with Him through baptism into death”

Paul there says that as Christians we identify in Christ’s burial.

Again:
Colossians 2:8-12 “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority; and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.”

Once again you see it, “having been buried with Him in baptism…”

What is Paul talking about?
He is talking about a genuine conversion to Christ.

Those who think you can get saved and live however
Reveal a faulty conversion.

How does a person become a Christian convert?
How does an unbeliever enter the state of salvation?

The answer:
DEATH & RESURRECTION

Matthew 16:24-25 “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

Again in:
Luke 17:33 “Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.”

In short, you must deny yourself; you must lose your life.

What did Paul say?
Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”

Or consider:
Romans 6:6 “knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;”

DEATH IS NECESSARY.

John 12:23-26 “And Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. “He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal. “If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.”

The way we are converted to Christ is through death.
It is death to self.
It is abandonment of our old life.

But that is not something that can be readily seen.
That is not something that is initially easily identifiable.

So we take a man or a woman who claims to have died to self and given their life to Christ and what do we ask them to do?

We ask them, have you really died?
• And they say, “Yes”.
And we ask them to do what?
• Be buried.

BAPTISM IS THEIR BURIAL.
It is the outward verification of their spiritual death.
Baptism is the only outward mark or sign that we perform.

Scripture teaches that burial is important to verify death,
And that is what our baptism is.

Baptism doesn’t save (it is neither the death nor the resurrection)
But it does serve as a sign of genuine death.

Following that we are raised, and that is also what baptism points to.

There is another important aspect of burial.
4) MAGNIFICATION OF RESURRECTION

Once a person is buried, there is only one thing that they need.
They need resurrection.

BURIAL SORT OF NARROWS THE FOCUS.
• A buried person needs only one thing.
• Jesus cried out to Lazarus and said, “Come forth!”
• There was no other need greater than that.

Now go back to Romans 6:4
Romans 6:4 “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”

You see of course that we “were buried with Him through baptism into death”,
But don’t miss the application.

“SO THAT as Christ was raised from the death through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”

Burial necessitates resurrection, and also pushes for it.
Staying buried is not the goal.

We don’t put people under the water and leave them there,
We bring them up.

And you could actually say there is that one moment of tension while they are under the water.
• Could you imagine if we held people there for a few moments?
• It wouldn’t take long before people started getting nervous.

Burial is not the goal, burial cries for resurrection.

So not only does burial prove death, but burial also pushes for life.
And it magnifies the importance of life.

And that leads us to the 5th aspect of burial.

5) DEMONSTRATION OF FAITH

I often speak of this at the graveside of funerals.

It is a farming analogy.
1 Corinthians 15:35-37 “But someone will say, “How are the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?” You fool! That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies; and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else.”

I like to talk about the cotton farmers of our area
• Who spend an enormous amount of money, even go into debt in order to buy seed.
• And then they do the strangest thing.
• They go and bury it in the ground and walk away.
• They do it in hopes of a future crop.
• You plant a seed to reap a harvest.

Every planting season is an act of faith and every burial is the same.

It is an act of faith that God will raise the dead.

It is the faith that Jesus was demonstrating
As He said, “Into Your hands I commit My Spirit”

He was trusting that God would bring Him back from death.

Our baptismal burial is our way of doing that too.
1) We declare our death
2) We submit to burial
3) We demonstrate resurrection
4) We trust that the Spirit of God has given us new life in Christ.

So you see the numerous theological aspects that we gain from burial,
And ultimately they all stem from the main purpose
And that is that burial proves death.

1) Jesus was buried because He died.
2) Jesus was buried so that He could rise and prove His ministry.
3) We are baptized to join Him in burial to show that our old life is gone.
4) As we are buried in baptism it focuses our mind to the necessity of the new life found only in resurrection.
5) And when we are buried in baptism it demonstrates our faith that we have been given new life that will soon become visible to everyone.

That is the theology behind the significance of burial,
But most importantly to prove death.

Now you know the main points, so now let’s look at Matthew’s gospel and learn the specific points he wanted us to know in addition to that.

We’ll make it simple as we look at Matthew’s gospel, just two main points.

#1 PROPHECY
Matthew 27:57-61

Introduced for us here is the figure known as Joseph of Arimathea.

If you look at all the information about him in the gospels
We get quite a picture about him.

Mark 15:43 “Joseph of Arimathea came, a prominent member of the Council, who himself was waiting for the kingdom of God; and he gathered up courage and went in before Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus.”

Luke 23:50-51 “And a man named Joseph, who was a member of the Council, a good and righteous man (he had not consented to their plan and action), a man from Arimathea, a city of the Jews, who was waiting for the kingdom of God;”

John 19:38-39 “After these things Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate granted permission. So he came and took away His body. Nicodemus, who had first come to Him by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds weight.”

All 3 of those gospel writers are clear that
• Joseph is a good man,
• a righteous man,
• a God-fearing man,
• And even a disciple of Jesus.
• They indicate that he was waiting for the kingdom.

Mark says he was a member of the Sanhedrin,
Luke said he did not participate in the trial of Jesus.

They also mention his fear of public confession of Jesus.
• John’s gospel makes often mention of the fear of being removed from the
synagogue for confessing Jesus.
• Both in John 9 with the parents of the man born blind, and again in John 12.

John 12:42-43 “Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God.”

It seems that Joseph had fallen into that category.

But as Mark pointed out,
After the death of Jesus, Joseph “gathered up courage”.
• No more a secret disciple; no more a man of fear.
• Joseph, inspired by the death of Christ goes public,
• And John includes that Nicodemus did as well.

All of that is good and important information
That each gospel writer used to make their own points.

But there are two pieces of information that only Matthew includes.
• One, that Joseph was (57) “a rich man”
• And that the tomb where Joseph buried Jesus was (60) “his own new tomb”

And with that we are well-aware of what Matthew wanted us to see.

Isaiah 53:9 “His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.”

Matthew sees 2 very important truths in the burial of Jesus.
1) He is the prophetic redeeming arm of Isaiah
2) He is innocent

By pointing out that Jesus was buried in a rich man’s tomb,
He shows us that Jesus is the One Isaiah spoke of.

He is the one “with a rich man in His death”

And all of those facts we read about in Isaiah 53
About bearing our griefs and our sorrows
Are once again verified in Jesus’ burial.

So not only do you see the redemption of Jesus in His ARREST:
• Defending His own
• Submitting to the arrest, telling Peter it must happen this way
• Healing the servant’s ear

And not only do you see the redemption of Jesus in His TRIAL:
• Testifying that He will be seated at the right hand of power.
• Testifying that He is the Son of God.
• Not seeking to escape condemnation.

And not only do you see the redemption of Jesus in His CRUCIFIXION:
• Bearing God’s wrath
• Interceding for sinners
• Carrying it all the way to death

But you also now see the redemption of Jesus even in His burial:
• He is buried exactly as Isaiah 53 indicated.

Matthew shows you that.

And by showing us that, it opens the door
To another important truth about Jesus.

And that is that the burial of Jesus defends His innocence.

The innocence of Jesus is also a major theme throughout the gospels.
• Pilate publicly declares Jesus innocent 4 times.
• Herod declares Jesus innocent.
• The thief on the cross says “this Man has done nothing wrong”
• The Centurian says, “surely this Man was innocent”

AND NOW THANKS TO THE DOTS MATTHEW CONNECTS
WE ALSO SEE IT IN HIS BURIAL

“Yet He was with a rich man in His death, BECAUSE He had done no violence, nor was there any deceit in His mouth.”

Instead of being buried with the criminals of Rome,
Jesus was vindicated in his death,
• By receiving an honorable burial in a rich man’s tomb just as the prophet’s had proclaimed.

After participating in the “Messiah in the Passover” meal last Sunday night, it’s not hard to see Matthew’s evangelistic purposes as well.

Matthew includes that Jesus body was “wrapped…in a clean linen cloth”
And then hidden away in the tomb.

Now understanding
• The Jewish tradition of that second piece of matza bread,
• How it is wrapped up in linen and hidden away for a time,
• It is not hard to see the point Matthew is making to his Jewish audience.

You see all the symbolism that is important to Matthew.

And certainly we don’t overlook any of that.

Though the ultimate vindication of Jesus
Will come in 3 days when God raises Jesus from the dead,
It is not hard to see that God is already vindicating Him.

God is already declaring
• Jesus is innocent
• Jesus is Isaiah’s “arm of the LORD” who bore our griefs and carried our sorrows.
• Jesus is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

So from Matthew’s perspective, the burial is yet another clear indication
That Jesus is in fact our Redeemer.

So that is the first aspect Matthew shows us.

#2 CONSPIRACY
Matthew 27:62-66

Here we run up against the famous conspiracy of the Pharisees.

We read (62) “Now on the next day, the day after the preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered together with Pilate,”

Something interesting here is that this is the Sabbath.
• This is the day of rest.

Incidentally that is exactly what Jesus’ followers are doing.

Luke 23:56 “Then they returned and prepared spices and perfumes. And on the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.”

I wonder if they had any idea that they were truly resting on that day for the first time in their life? Probably not yet.

But while Jesus’ followers are resting,
The religious elite are still scheming.

What are they afraid of?

(63) “and said, “Sir, we remember that when He was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I am to rise again.’”

They are afraid of a resurrection.
• They also fear a faked resurrection in the case that the disciples might come and steal His body.
• So Pilate gives them a guard and permission to make the grave as secure as possible.

It has always been humorous to me here the amount of effort
Put into keeping Jesus dead, and even that won’t work.

Psalms 2:4-6 “He who sits in the heavens laughs, The Lord scoffs at them. Then He will speak to them in His anger And terrify them in His fury, saying, “But as for Me, I have installed My King Upon Zion, My holy mountain.”

This is a foolish plan, and Matthew exposes it.
They couldn’t kill Him without His help and they can’t keep Him dead.

Peter will say:
Acts 2:24 “But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.”

BUT MATTHEW WANTS YOU TO SEE THE CONSPIRACY.

Matthew will show another one with regard to the resurrection.
Matthew 28:11-15 “Now while they were on their way, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened. And when they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, and said, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’ “And if this should come to the governor’s ears, we will win him over and keep you out of trouble.” And they took the money and did as they had been instructed; and this story was widely spread among the Jews, and is to this day.”

Matthew is vindicating His gospel
By showing you the roots of one of the main deceptions of his day.

He shows you what it means and then verifies that it is true
By debunking one of the chief attacks against it.

All of that to say that Christ’s burial is important.
• It matters that He died.
• It matters that He was buried.
• And certainly it will matter that He will be raised.

One other thing, people often ask:
Where did He go for those 3 days?

Well first we return to Jesus’ words on the cross:
Luke 23:43 “And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”
• That should be a pretty definitive answer.
• Jesus went to paradise.

Where is that?

Remember earlier in Luke’s gospel?
Luke 16:22-26 “Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. “In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. “And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’ “But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. ‘And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’”

• There we see the place that the Old Testament refers to as “Sheol” or the place of the dead.
• We see Abraham’s bosom or “paradise” on one side and we see the place of torment or “Hades” on the other.
• This is where Jesus went.

What did He do there?

1 Peter 3:17-20 “For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong. For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water.”

Jesus declared victory.
“He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison”

He went to all of those demons who have been trapped there since the days of Noah, and any others who have joined them such as the rich man He spoke of in Luke 16.

Jesus went and declared their defeat.

They invited Him into death and that was a mistake.
They were in no way ready for His presence.

Revelation 1:17-18 “When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.”

Jesus, in effect, descended into death and declared “Game over!”
• He eternally condemned all that were in Hades
• He ushered all that were in Paradise into the presence of the Father.
• They are now free to be in His presence now that Christ has paid their debt.

All of the I.O.U.’s that all the Old Testament saints wrote
As they sacrificed sheep after sheep and goat after goat,
Had now been paid off.

Jesus declared victory.
He went to conquer the grave.

But now, we have set the stage.

1) Jesus has been arrested.
2) Jesus has been tried.
3) Jesus has been crucified.
4) Jesus has been buried.

And now we wait.
All of our anticipation moves now to this one point
As we await the resurrection of the Savior.

And we’ll examine that next Sunday morning.

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The Crucifixion of Jesus
Luke 23:26-49
April 13, 2025

As you know we are currently looking at the events
Surrounding the arrest, trial, crucifixion, and burial of the Lord.

TWO WEEKS AGO WE LOOKED AT HIS ARREST,
Specifically in Mark’s gospel and focused primarily on the point that
What Jesus did, He did alone.

• There is no Co-Redeemer.
• No one accompanied Him.
• No one stood with Him.
• Everyone abandoned Him.
• The battle He was fighting, He was fighting alone.

LAST WEEK WE LOOKED AT HIS TRIAL,
We saw just one part of His trial in John’s gospel
As He stood before Pilate the first time.

The point we focused on there was “Who” Jesus was doing all this for.

The answer was that He was doing it for those who are in His kingdom.

WHO IS THAT?
John 19:37b “Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”

Specifically, those in the kingdom
Are those who hear and heed the voice of Christ.

• Those in the kingdom are those who are submitted to the King.
• And for them Jesus was securing a kingdom.

Well THIS MORNING we move forward in the narrative
And look at THE CRUCIFIXION OF CHRIST,

Again, while there are many angles from which one could cover the cross,
And while there are many points that could be made,
We again want to just focus on one.

• In His ARREST we noted He did it alone.
• In His TRIAL we noted He did it for those in His kingdom.

This morning as we examine the crucifixion we want to know one thing:
WHY DID HE DO IT?

• Why did He submit to the arrest in the garden?
• Why did He consent to the trial?
• Why did He offer Himself up to be crucified?
• What was His motive?

And the answer is a simple one:
TO SAVE SINNERS

It is a familiar truth to us.
Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

John 12:47 “If anyone hears My sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world.”

1 Timothy 1:15 “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all.”

That is what Jesus came to do,
That is why He offered Himself up to death.

And this morning to examine this more fully
We are going to look at LUKE’S GOSPEL.

You are aware by now that every gospel account comes with a different feel.

Luke’s reads with the most compassion, mercy, and sympathy.

At the arrest:
• Only Luke mentioned Jesus healing the ear of the man Peter attacked.
• Only Luke omitted that all the disciples fled from Jesus.
• Luke was the only one to seemingly give credit to Satan, even over and
above the evil men he was using.

At the trial:
• Only Luke mentions the eye contact Jesus made with Peter as he denied the
third time.
• Only Luke mentions that 3rd trial held at the council chamber where Jesus
willingly offered up that He was not only going to be seated at the right hand
of Power, but that He was also the Son of God.

Luke is keenly focused on the fact that Jesus, who was God,
Came to identify with sinners and that all that is happening to Him
Is a result of that identification.

Luke has tunnel vision.
He is focused on the task at hand.
He sees Jesus in His role as Savior.

As Luke shares his account of the crucifixion of Jesus,
Luke shows us a Jesus who is focused and determined
To accomplish His purpose of saving sinners.

He shows us a Jesus who never loses sight of redemption.

Through all the trials, all the beatings, all the mocking, all the brutality,
Jesus never loses sight of why He is there.

As we look at it this morning,
Let us simply marvel at the Savior
Who perfectly accomplished what He came to do.

We’re going to break this text down into 6 points.
Obviously we can’t cover every aspect of every verse looking at it like that,
But we can draw out that one main theme I want you to see.

Jesus is the Savior and He is focused on saving sinners.

#1 HE DOESN’T MOPE, HE WARNS
Luke 23:26-31

Here we pick back up with the narrative.
• The chief priests and the elders have seemingly won.
• They overpowered Pilate and Pilate has given Jesus to be crucified.
• Now Jesus is being led away with the cross on His back.

But before Luke tells us of the crucifixion, we are first told something of the caravan that is accompanying Him.

And we see a pretty remarkable object lesson.

First you see is “Simon of Cyrene”
(26) “When they led Him away, they seized a man, Simon of Cyrene, coming in from the country, and placed on him the cross to carry behind Jesus.”

• We know all about the Romans and their right to force a man to carry a load.
• We remember Jesus saying if they force you to go one mile, go two.

But just for a moment see the image that is demonstrated here.
What a visual illustration Simon becomes for us.

Here is Jesus being led to Golgotha that He might be crucified
And there is Simon behind Him carrying a cross.

I don’t know if there is a better image for Christianity than this.

Matthew 16:24 “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.”

Simon becomes a living illustration of that calling.

At the same time, Simon’s involvement is quite a contrast to what we see from the rest of the caravan.

(27) “And following Him was a large crowd of the people, and of women who were mourning and lamenting Him.”

These aren’t followers of Jesus, these are sympathizers of Jesus.
There is a drastic difference here.
• Pilate was a sympathizer, but he was not a follower.

Knowing Jesus was innocent, and feeling remorse for His suffering
Is certainly accurate, but as a requirement of salvation
It is less than the Lord requires.

He requires those who would follow Him to take up a cross and follow.
THIS CROWD ISN’T DOING THAT.

And Jesus addresses them.
(28-31) “But Jesus turning to them said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. “For behold, the days are coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bore, and the breasts that never nursed.’ “Then they will begin TO SAY TO THE MOUNTAINS, ‘FALL ON US,’ AND TO THE HILLS, ‘COVER US.’ “For if they do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

Jesus turns to these “Daughters of Jerusalem” and warns them.

It was only 4 days ago that Jesus first announced this:
Luke 19:41-44 “When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. “For the days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side, and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”

It was only a few moments ago that these people confirmed what Jesus prophesied:
Matthew 27:25 “And all the people said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!”

And here Jesus warns them again of the judgment that is coming.

• He says that women are going to be grateful that they are barren and won’t have to watch the slaughter of their children.
• He says people are going to pray that mountains and hills will fall on them.

He is talking about the coming day of judgment
That will fall upon all those who have rejected Him.

Some will certainly say He is referring to A.D. 70
When Rome destroyed Jerusalem and that is certainly part of it.

But A.D. 70 was itself just a foreshadow
Of the real judgment that is yet to come.

Revelation 6:12-17 “I looked when He broke the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood; and the stars of the sky fell to the earth, as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by a great wind. The sky was split apart like a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. Then the kings of the earth and the great men and the commanders and the rich and the strong and every slave and free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains; and they said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; for the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”

There is coming a day when God will get even with His enemies.
And Jesus warns these women of that day.

Of particular concern here to Jesus
Is the spiritual blindness of this crowd.

(31) “For if they do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

• “they” is the Jews who condemned Jesus.
• “these things” are the rebellion against God they have instigated.
• “the tree is green” indicates the obvious ministry of Jesus.
• “dry” indicates when the truth of Christ is not as easy to see.

If men can reject and crucify Christ when He is right in front of them teaching and working miracles, how will they later be led to faith in Him when He is nowhere to be found?

HE IS CONCERNED FOR THEM.

WHAT WE LEARN OF THE SAVIOR HERE!

Here we have Jesus.
• He is maligned and beaten, He is bruised and bloodied.
• These women are weeping for Him.

But He is NOT interested in garnering sympathy.
• He is not interested in an emotional uprising.

Jesus has one focus and that is saving sinners.

So even in this moment of horror as Jesus is being led to death,
He is still preaching salvation and warnings of judgment
To the crowd that condemned Him.

He is headed to Golgotha
But what concerns Him most is sinners head to hell.

How much love does He have for sinners?
Isaiah 53:8 “By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation, who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?”

The crowd could not see why He was dying, but He knew exactly why.

He doesn’t mope, He warns
#2 HE DOESN’T THREATEN, HE INTERCEDES
Luke 23:32-34

Here we are again confronted with Luke’s constant emphasis
That Jesus was “numbered with the transgressors”.

(32-33) “Two others also, who were criminals, were being led away to be put to death with Him. When they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left.”

That is identification at its finest.
Jesus is being treated as a criminal on a cross.

This is the most horrific case of injustice and disrespect
That the world has ever seen or will ever see.

In all the times in your life when you may be disrespected or mistreated or overlooked, it will never even come close to what the Lord faced here.

And I know how we like to respond when we are so treated.
• We like to fire off about it.
• We like to broadcast it.
• We like to get in someone’s face and let them know this is wrong.
• We turn to social media and air our grievances.

But what Jesus does is nothing like that.

Please don’t fly past the most understated phrase in the Bible.
4 words
“there they crucified Him”

• Could such a monumental action really be described with such brevity?
• Is that really it?
• Scripture contains no gruesome details.
• There is no reference to all the medical implications.

Jesus Christ was nailed to a cross like a common criminal
And if you aren’t careful you can read right over it.

But have you ever wondered
• What He said as they stretched Jesus out over that wooden frame?
• What He said as the soldiers drove nails through His hands and feet?

(34) “But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”

The verb “was saying” is in the imperfect tense which indicates a repeated action.
• Jesus kept saying it.
• He is repeating it.

• He is interceding for the soldiers that throw Him on the cross.
• He is interceding for the one who drives the nails in His hands.
• He is interceding for the one who drives the nails in His feet.
• He is interceding for those who are genuinely delighted at the scene.

That is what Isaiah said:
Isaiah 53:12 “Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors.”

Surrounding Him are those callous soldiers.
• Driving nails in His hands and feet.
• Gambling for His clothes.
• In a moment mocking Him as He hangs on the cross.

You see that clueless crowd.
(35) “And the people stood by, looking on…”

You see those arrogant rulers sneering at Him.
Even the criminals hanging beside Him join in the attacks.

Matthew 27:44 “The robbers who had been crucified with Him were also insulting Him with the same words.”

AND JESUS INTERCEDES FOR THEM.

His reasoning before the Father?
“they do not know what they are doing.”

THIS IS NO SMALL EXPLANATION.
It actually becomes the BASIS FOR HOPE
Throughout the preaching of the apostles.

1 Timothy 1:12-13 “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief;”

Acts 3:17 “And now, brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did also.”

Acts 13:27 “For those who live in Jerusalem, and their rulers, recognizing neither Him nor the utterances of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled these by condemning Him.”

1 Corinthians 2:8 “the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory;”

This prayer of Jesus became a great source of hope
Among those who had blown it previously in life.

That Jesus prayed for those who were ignorant.
They didn’t know what they were doing.

And Jesus asked for God’s mercy over this heinous sin.

NO, it wasn’t a prayer that guaranteed salvation for all men for all time.

But it does clearly reveal the motive of Jesus.

Even as these men are nailing Him to the cross
He does not lose sight of why it is happening.

This cross is about Him saving sinners and that is how He prays.

How much does Jesus love sinners that He would pray like this over those who are actively killing Him?

He doesn’t mope, He warns
He doesn’t threaten, He intercedes

#3 HE DOESN’T REACT HE ENDURES
Luke 23:35-39

Every other segment we will look at focuses on
Something Jesus said on the cross before He died.

But not this segment.
• In this segment Jesus is silent.
• It is His enemies who are doing all the talking.

But that is what makes it remarkable.

LISTEN TO THE VERBVAL ABUSE SURROUNDING THE CROSS

Those rulers…
• Masterminds of His arrest in the garden
• Guilty of a corrupt trial
• Hypocrites who won’t go in the Praetorium, but who will condemn an innocent Man.

(35) “He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One.”

Listen to the soldiers
• Who literally don’t know anything about anything as it pertains to Jesus:

(37) “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!”

And then even the lowlife criminals…

(39) “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!”

They are all mocking Him and daring Him to exit the cross.

Can we first just go on record as saying, “Thank You Jesus for not listening to them!”

“save Himself…save Yourself…save Yourself”
We should be grateful He didn’t.

But as they hurl abuse after abuse at Him, He remains silent.

WHY?
Because He is at work accomplishing His task.
• He is bearing scorn and reproach.
• He is identifying with sinners.

You are witnessing a most devoted Man focused on His job.
• He is not concerned about the banter.
• He is not moved by the slander.
• He is not tempted by the dares.

He came to save sinners and nothing is distracting Him from that.

1 Peter 2:21-25 “For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.”

Peter marveled at a Man who could be so wrongly reviled,
But who ignored it all because He was focused
On bearing our sins in His body on the cross.

He didn’t have time for a debate.
He wasn’t interested in proving Himself.

Coming down from the cross was not on His mind.

It would not have worked anyway.
Luke 16:27-31 “And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers—in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ “But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ “But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’ “But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”

• They didn’t believe when He turned water to wine.
• They didn’t believe when He healed the paralytics.
• They didn’t believe when He gave sight to the blind.
• They didn’t believe when He opened the ears of the deaf.
• They didn’t believe when He walked on water.
• They didn’t believe when He multiplied the fish and the loaves.
• They didn’t believe when He restored withered limbs.
• They didn’t believe when He raised the dead.

Coming down off the cross would not have convinced them either.

But even that didn’t matter.
At this moment He was not there to convince sinners,
He was there to atone for them.

And nothing could distract Him from His mission.

Hebrews 12:3 “For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

Jesus endured it all and stayed focused on His mission.

How much does He love sinners to remain so focused?

#4 HE DOESN’T NEGLECT, HE SAVES
Luke 23:40-43

Perhaps Jesus’ most famous encounter on the cross.

It is apparent that while on the cross, one of the criminals finally heard the gospel and believed it?

You ask, “Who preached the gospel to him?”
• The chief priests who said, “He saved others…”
• The Roman soldiers who said, “You are the King of the Jews…”
• Pilate who hung the sign “This is the King of the Jews” above His head…”
• Perhaps he even heard Jesus praying for the forgiveness of those who
crucified Him.

This man believed what he heard and cried out to Jesus for salvation.

“Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom!”

But let’s be honest…Jesus has His own problems.
Besides, this guy was just mocking a few moments ago.
• This man was guilty,
• This man was a criminal,
• This man had been a blasphemer,
• And Jesus was busy.

It’s like riding in an ambulance to the hospital,
But deciding to stop along the way to help a man change a tire.

But Jesus doesn’t ignore the man.

Instead, Jesus saves Him.
“Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”

And by now you know that the only way Jesus can make that offer
Is if He agrees to take that man’s sin upon Himself.

At this point, do you want his too?
At this point, are you asking for more?

But what is Jesus focused on?
He is saving sinners.

In the midst of His greatest pain
He is still in the process of saving sinners.

He is not distracted.
He is not self-centered.

How much does He love sinners?

#5 HE DOESN’T RETREAT, HE FINISHES
Luke 23:44-46

There are certainly many details here
That Matthew and Mark include that Luke omits.

Matthew and Mark both point out that Jesus was facing the fury and the wrath of God, even crying out, “ELOI, ELOI, LAMA, SABACTHANI” which is “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

They point out that Jesus is bearing God’s wrath against sin on the cross.

Luke only alludes to it as he mentions the darkness that fell over the cross from “the sixth hour…until the ninth hour.”

And Luke only alludes to the accomplishment of the cross by pointing out that “the veil of the temple was torn in two.”

Luke instead puts his primary focus
On something else Jesus said.

(46) “And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, INTO YOUR HANDS I COMMIT MY SPIRIT.” Having said this, He breathed His last.”

Understand this for a moment.
Jesus just spent 3 hours bearing the full fury of the wrath of God on sinners.
• He has drank the cup that could not pass from Him.
• He has been treated like the sinner that each of us actually is.
• He has paid a price that every sinner can not pay in an eternity in hell.

Jesus has just been treated by God on the cross
Worse than any criminal has ever been treated.

Isaiah 53:10a “But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief…”

But understand something.
• The wages of sin is not suffering…
• The wages of sin is not blood shedding…
• The wages of sin is not shame and humiliation…

The wages of sin is DEATH
If Jesus is going to save sinners He is going to have to die.

AND THAT IS WHAT HE DOES.
He dies.

Acts 2:22-23 “Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know— this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.”

Acts 3:14-15 “But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, but put to death the Prince of life, the one whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses.”

Acts 5:30 “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had put to death by hanging Him on a cross.”

Acts 10:39 “We are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross.”

Acts 13:28 “And though they found no ground for putting Him to death, they asked Pilate that He be executed.”

Romans 5:10 “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.”

But before He dies
He cries out to the Father and in effect says, “I’m putting all My trust in You that even though I go into death, You will bring Me back out of it.”

• Jesus is trusting in the justice of God.
• Jesus is trusting in His own righteousness.
• Jesus is trusting in the power of God.

It’s one thing to tell someone to hold the rope
While you go down in the hole,
But here Jesus tells God to hold the rope
While He does down into death.

And then Jesus jumped right in!
Philippians 2:8 “Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

Jesus gave Himself even to death.
Hebrews 9:11-12 “But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.”

If you think praying for sinners is remarkable…
If you think suffering for sinners is remarkable…

WELL WATCH HIM HERE DYING FOR THEM.

He goes all the way!
He finishes His work!

John’s gospel says it specifically:
John 19:30 “Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.”

How much does Jesus love sinners?

#6 HE DOESN’T LOSE, HE WINS
Luke 23:47-49

At this point Jesus is dead.
• He has finished His task.
• He has carried it through to the end.
• He has loved to the max.

DOES IT WORK?

We immediately get the answer.
(47) “Now when the centurion saw what had happened, he began praising God, saying, “Certainly this man was innocent.”

Here we have a pagan that turned to a worshiper of God.

Do you realize that in a matter of just a few hours
As Jesus hung on the cross we already saw two people saved?

Jesus came to save sinners and that is what He did on the cross.

And not just the centurion…

(48) “And all the crowds who came together for this spectacle, when they observed what had happened, began to return, beating their breasts.”

The crowd is visibly shaken and disturbed by what they just witnessed.

And you say, “Yes, but that doesn’t mean they got saved there.”
• No, they didn’t.

But many of them will back in Jerusalem in 50 days for
“The Feast of Weeks” or as you know it, “Pentecost”.

On that day, Peter will bring this scene back to their minds
And call them to repentance and 5,000 will be saved.

Do you understand what Jesus was doing here?
HE WAS SAVING SINNERS.

Do you understand why?
BECAUSE JESUS LOVES SINNERS.

• He loves them even though they conspire against Him.
• He loves them even though they arrest Him.
• He loves them even though they try Him and condemn Him.
• He loves them even though they mock and scorn Him.
• He loves them even though they beat and scourge Him.
• He loves them even though they nail Him to a cross.
• He loves them even though they sneer at Him while He is dying.

And He loves them so much He goes all the way to save them.

Romans 5:6-8 “For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

JESUS CHRIST CAME TO SAVE SINNERS.

And this morning church, we rejoice in that fact because we are sinners.

Colossians 1:21-22 “And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach”

Colossians 2:13-14 “When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.”

• We are conspirers
• We are mockers
• We are blasphemers
• We are vile and disobedient thieves

But this morning we praise Jesus Christ
Because He looked beyond that and gives His life in our stead anyway.

We can do nothing but praise Him and marvel at His great love for us!

AND THIS MORNING, we do that as we celebrate the Lord’s Supper one more time before Easter.

Only this morning, instead of our regular “Time of Preparation” we are going to stand a sing a hymn of praise to Him and then partake.

LORD’S SUPPER

• Deacons come forward

Isaiah 53:1-6 “Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.”

• Give bread to deacons
• Deacon prayer
• Deacons pass out bread

Matthew 26:26 “While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

• Take bread

Isaiah 53:7-12 “He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth. By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation, who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due? His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth. But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand. As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities. Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors.”

• Give juice to deacons
• Deacon prayer
• Deacons pass out juice

Matthew 26:27-28 “And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.”