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There are many different 3 word statements one could make... "Hey, watch out!!", "Wow, look there!!", "I hate...", "I love you." But the 3 in today's title have literally changed the world. "He is Risen!!" Not just that He HAS, but that He STILL IS risen. Nothing can possibly be more powerful than that. Into a world of death, disease, sickness, and decay; Life has come with a simple, powerful declaration, "He is risen!!"
Luke 24:1-12 gives us one account of the story, and within we find several reactions from those who have received the news, they cover the gamut from awe and wonder to shock and doubt. I wonder what my reaction would have been... At the same time, we find several things revealed about Jesus. We'll look at those in after we enjoy my Pastor's story of a "great reveal" moment he had in Middle School years -- As the youngest of 4, he was eager to share new things and big moments with his older siblings. On the day he got new glasses, his oldest sister's boyfriend was over and they were catching a moment alone with the bathroom door mostly closed. He pushes the door open for the big reveal, but the guy's elbow is right in line to push the door closed again. BANG!! Right in the nose and the new glasses are broken in under an hour!! Uuuugggh!! Not every "big reveal" goes to plan in our lives, does it?? The mystery book or movie (NO SPOILERS, PLEASE!!), the home makeover, the bride coming down the aisle... some good, some bad, depending on the moment, right??
At Easter, the celebration of the Resurrection is the one moment in history after which everything changed. It reveals what is most true. These revelations are as follows -
-- Jesus is the Messiah and Christ -- Jews had been waiting for centuries for the promised King, just too bad they don't all recognize Him. For the rest of us, Jesus is the Christ. Not a "last name", but a title meaning, "anointed one." The Church was based on Peter's* revelation of who Jesus was, not on the man himself. The entire rest of the Bible up to His birth has been in preparation for His coming to set the world right.
-- Trust - everything Jesus said about Himself, about us, and about the world was/is true. He is ultimately trustworthy. He is the reigning King of all, we can anchor our lives in Him.
-- Victory - over sin and death. The more we try to be good, the more bad we see in ourselves. Jesus won the battle, we just have to have faith and walk in His victory. Death can cause fear and confusion in our natural lives, but Jesus' resurrection means that death doesn't get the last word. C.S. Lewis spoke of this in his book, "Miracles" -- "In the resurrection, He has forced open a door that has been locked since the death of the first man. He has met, fought, and defeated the king of death. And everything is different because He has done so."
-- Hope - the resurrection wasn't just good for Jesus, but for us. It was like a "down payment" on the New Creation. A vision of the future. And most importantly, it was a bodily resurrection, not just a spirit leaving a body as we see in the movies.
After Jesus rose, we find accounts of His appearing to His followers without being recognized right away. Mary was there at the Tomb thinking He was the gardener, the group on the road to Emmaus thought He seemed familiar, but didn't realize until they sat down to eat with Him.
There was something different, but familiar about Him. That is the vision of the New Heaven and New Earth He was giving them, and in turn, us. The world we have now has its moments of wonder and beauty, but it also has chaos, disease, destruction, disappointment, etc... The world to come will have all the wonder (familiarity), but none of the loss, sickness, chaos, etc... (differences) Just thinking of Jesus as a great teacher and a good man is not enough to change the world for anyone to this extent. Only having faith in Him as the Living God will do.
So how do we take part in all this "amazingness"?? Turn with me to Romans 10:9-13 --
"...if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in Him will never be put to shame." For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile -- the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on Him, for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.""
"He is Risen" -- these words change the World. -- "He is Lord" are the words that change us.
Claiming this for ourselves means that if Jesus is Lord, sin is not. If Jesus is Lord, addiction is not. If Jesus is Lord, sickness is not... the list goes on... God Bless!!
Footnote -- *Peter -- I know his name means "rock" and the Catholics see him as the First Pope. The fact is, they're reading it wrong. If you look at the grammar, the word "rock" relates back to the revelation that Peter spoke, not to his name.
In Christ Alone -- powerful song!!
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