Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
Easter 2025 - Resurrecting Hope
26 Plays1 month ago
John 20:11-18; Gen. 3:8-10; John 11:25
Recommended
Transcript
From Mourning to Celebration
00:00:00
Speaker
Have you ever thought that there's a small fact about Easter? That before we formally consider it a celebration of life, it was indeed a time of mourning.
00:00:13
Speaker
and If you were blessed enough to be here on Friday this past week, ah you walked through exactly what Jesus walked through on his way to Calvary.
00:00:25
Speaker
It would have only been a few days before his disciples would have watched their friend their loved one, the one who had been living with them and traveling with them for the last three years, the one whom they believed would have been the coming Messiah to be taken away to be crucified at Calvary.
00:00:47
Speaker
Now just think about that for just a moment. They had placed all of their hopes and all of their dreams into the coming kingdom that Jesus would usher in. But friends, on that Friday,
00:01:00
Speaker
as they took him down from the cross, they would have been devastated, they would have been disappointed, and they would have been in despair as his body was brought down from the cross and his body was laid in the tomb.
00:01:17
Speaker
For the disciples, this would have been a gut punch, this would have been a knockout blow any hope that they would have had that Jesus was going to rule and reign as he had talked about.
Disappointment and Despair: Unmet Expectations
00:01:31
Speaker
Friends, it's in this hour of despair that the disciples were experiencing what's called unrealized hope. Unrealized hope is when you think something is going to turn out one way, and it doesn't.
00:01:47
Speaker
We've all experienced that unrealized hope. Unrealized hope may be one of the most painful things in life that you and I have to endure. It leads to disappointment. It leads to despair.
00:02:01
Speaker
And it leads to perhaps devastating consequence in your consequences in your life because simply you thought something was gonna turn out one way and it didn't.
00:02:12
Speaker
Perhaps you're here this morning and you've experienced some type of devastating loss this year. Maybe it's one of your closest relationships that has suffered. Perhaps it's some type of diagnosis that your doctor recently gave you that's making your future seem uncertain.
00:02:31
Speaker
These things can be heavy. Oh, so heavy. They can be devastating, and they can make us question whether or not God still cares. Is He at still work in the world?
The Empty Tomb: Mary Magdalene's Encounter
00:02:44
Speaker
But friends, the gospel tells us that right in the middle of the disciples' darkest hour is when the light of hope shines.
00:02:55
Speaker
Perhaps you're here this morning in need of renewed hope. If that's the case, friends, you're going to get it today. If you're needing renewed hope, can I get an amen? Picture this with me. It's the third day and Jesus has just died. They've taken him down from the cross.
00:03:11
Speaker
They have placed him in the tomb. And in the early, early hours of the morning on Sunday, a woman named Mary Magdalene makes her way through this garden right to the entrance of the tomb.
00:03:24
Speaker
Another place in in the Bible tells us that she came to anoint the body of Jesus. But as she arrives, she finds the tomb empty. Everybody say empty.
00:03:35
Speaker
If you're taking notes, simply write this in your notes column. The tomb is empty.
00:03:44
Speaker
Her first reaction is pretty typical, I think. A reaction that you and I would have if we had gone to the tomb expecting one thing, but finding something else.
00:03:56
Speaker
She went there to anoint, but what she realized was Jesus was not there. His body was not there. But her reaction was one that she thinks somebody stole the body.
00:04:10
Speaker
And so she's devastated. Look with me, John chapter 20. um If you have your Bibles, go and take them out. If you don't have a Bible, there should be one right there in front of you. we We will have the same verse on the screen here. This is from the New Living Translation.
00:04:24
Speaker
This is what we preach out of. and this is what I teach out of. Verse 11 in chapter 20, John chapter 20, verse 11 and following says, Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept, she stooped and looked in.
00:04:43
Speaker
She saw two white-robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying. Dear woman, why are you crying? the angels asked.
00:04:58
Speaker
Because they have taken away my Lord, she replied, and I do not know where they have put him.
00:05:05
Speaker
She turned to leave and saw someone standing there. It was Jesus. But she didn't recognize him.
00:05:16
Speaker
Mary is at the entrance of the tomb, friends. She's she's come with a purpose. She's come to anoint Jesus' body, but as she gets there and peeks inside, she's noticed there's something missing.
00:05:30
Speaker
She gets so focused on that which is missing that she realizes something that is indeed there. Two angels. Mark tells us they're dressed all in white.
00:05:43
Speaker
Brother Pease read from the Gospel of Luke today and said these long-robed, white eight white-dressed angels were sitting there getting ready to speak to Mary, and she's so focused on what she's missing, she fails to see what's right there.
00:05:58
Speaker
She's so focused on Jesus' body, nowhere to be found, that she misses these two angels that are sitting right there where Jesus' body
Fixation on Absence vs. Hope
00:06:06
Speaker
used to be. See, friends, the tomb is empty.
00:06:12
Speaker
and I thought to myself this week, isn't this much like us? Don't we sometimes get so fixated on what's not there, on what's missing, when we're devastated and when we're disappointed or we're losing hope, that we often go, man, look at what I don't have.
00:06:32
Speaker
Look what's missing. Look what that other person did to me.
00:06:38
Speaker
When our dreams are shattered and our future becomes unclear, it's quite easy to focus on the wrong things. Those things don't give us any hope, but instead we are to focus on those things that do provide us hope.
00:06:51
Speaker
And we see here Mary is crying, the tears are streaming down her face, verse 11 tells us, and that she's heartbroken. She tells the angels, i'm I'm heartbroken because not only is Jesus dead, but his body is nowhere to be found. His body has disappeared.
00:07:09
Speaker
It's almost, if you will, adding insult injury. Not only is she sad and greed because of Jesus' death, but now his body's gone.
00:07:23
Speaker
She's distraught. She's distracted. So much so that as she turns and leaves, picture this with me, she's at the entrance and she's peering inside and there's no body of Jesus, but there's these two angels and she's so distracted, she's so distraught that as she turns to leave, verse 14 says what?
00:07:46
Speaker
She sees somebody standing there, but she doesn't recognize who it is.
00:07:53
Speaker
Friends, Resurrection Hope was standing right there in front of her and she didn't see it. She was in such a fog of despair, she didn't realize it was Jesus.
00:08:04
Speaker
The one whom she'd been following for three years. The one who promised this new kingdom that would be ushered in. Intimately, she has sat and eaten meals with Jesus, and yet, face to face, she doesn't recognize who he is.
Recognition and Renewal of Hope
00:08:21
Speaker
And I thought to myself this week, can we really blame her? Think about it. She went to the tomb expecting what? A body, and for him to be dead. And yet, she gets there and she sees something unexpected.
00:08:35
Speaker
that he's alive. This reminds me of this Easter egg hunt that we have here at the church every year. we We have it right here across the street at Billy and Cheryl's beautiful backyard, just just right across the the road here.
00:08:50
Speaker
It reminds me of the bags and bags of candy that we ask you guys to donate. And it's all this candy that we stuff meticulously in all these eggs. And then the volunteers go out and boy, they they're crafty. They hide all these eggs, really tough places. And and Billy might still find some in his backyard this week.
00:09:11
Speaker
But the beauty of it, friends, is these kids are so excited. They're so anxious. And I don't think it's for the candy. Okay, it might be a little bit for the candy.
00:09:21
Speaker
But they're excited to find the egg in the most unlikeliest of places. And when you see them find it, you know, oh, they squeal with joy, a big old smile, their eyes open up.
00:09:34
Speaker
Friends, the same is true for hope. Hope can be found at just the right time. oftentimes when we least expect it, as long as we keep our eyes open. Easter is a reminder that God is in the business of awakening hope within you and within me.
00:09:52
Speaker
He does this in many subtle ways, often can be missed if we don't watch for them. Hope can come through a simple conversation with a friend. Have ever really been down in the dumps and somebody just happens to reach out and call you?
00:10:06
Speaker
And just that call changes everything, changes your entire outlook. Sometimes it's a simple call. Sometimes it's an answered prayer that you've been praying for for a long time. And when that prayer gets answered, it's like a rejuvenation of hope.
00:10:20
Speaker
Sometimes it's a text message or it's a letter in the mail, which Kim and I are anxiously awaiting our son who is in boot camp right now to send us a letter. Does he not know that we are waiting for this letter to come?
00:10:35
Speaker
Friends, hope can be found in the most unlikeliest of places if we simply keep our eyes open. And just like a child searching for an egg in the backyard during an Easter hunt, we can expectantly search on the horizon for God's subtle signs of hope that he's just he's wanting you to catch this morning.
00:10:55
Speaker
As Jesus meets Mary in the doorway of the tomb, his immediate concern is for her her tears. Do you notice that? says the tears are streaming down her face. Look with me in verse 15 and following. Verse 15 says, this is Jesus replying, he says, dear woman, why are you crying?
00:11:14
Speaker
He doesn't say, why are you here? He doesn't say, did you bring the necessary herbs to anoint me? The very first thing he says is, why are you crying?
00:11:26
Speaker
It's a response, for friends, of compassion. Jesus is known for compassion. He says, who are you looking for? And she thought he was the gardener.
00:11:38
Speaker
Don't miss that little detail. Sir, she said, if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and I will get him.
00:11:48
Speaker
Mary, Jesus replied. And she turned, and she cried out, Rabboni, which means teacher in Hebrew. Don't cling to me, Jesus said, for I have yet to ascend to the Father.
00:12:03
Speaker
But go and find my brothers and tell them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and to your God. And Mary Magdalene found the disciples and told them, I have seen the Lord. And then she gave them his message.
Comfort in the Promise of Resurrection
00:12:21
Speaker
Friends, just at the moment when Mary had given up all hope, Jesus meets her in her tears. Why are you crying, he asks.
00:12:32
Speaker
Why are you sad is probably a better translation here. Why the emotion of tears? When I read this, I often think, really, Jesus?
00:12:45
Speaker
We've been following you for three years. We saw you beaten, spat upon, crucified, brought down and put in the tombs.
00:12:59
Speaker
Why am I crying? Why am I sad? but What Jesus wants her to know is, what you thought was the end isn't the end.
00:13:11
Speaker
You may think the tomb is empty, but but I'm somewhere else. I'm getting ready to ascend to the Father. She thinks here that he's the the gardener. right John gives us this neat little detail Why does she say he's the gardener?
00:13:28
Speaker
Have you ever thought about that? it's It's an interesting take. Jesus is here and John is saying, Mary, you might be initially confused at who I am, but you notice as soon as he said her name, Mary, says instantly she knew.
00:13:45
Speaker
It's like hearing from your father and you know your father's voice in a crowd of other men and when you hear your father's voice or you hear your mother's voice, you go, oh, that's my dad or that's my mom.
00:13:56
Speaker
Right? Oh, oh, teacher. It's you. How could I have missed it? And you can imagine she's wiping away the tears. Wanting to hug them. Wanting to reach out. Wanting to grab them.
00:14:07
Speaker
And he says, no, hold on. You can't do that right now. Friends, he's the gardener here because he is the gardener in the Garden of Eden. Where it all initially broke.
00:14:20
Speaker
And John's letting you know Jesus is coming back to the garden to fix things. and Friends, this is exactly what he does on the cross. Look with me real quick. Genesis chapter 3, all the way back to the beginning, all the way, even if you don't know your Bible, it's at the very, very front.
00:14:41
Speaker
Genesis chapter 3, starting in verse 8, says, When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden.
00:14:55
Speaker
And so they hid from the Lord God among the trees. Then the Lord called out to the man, where are you? And he replied, I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid.
00:15:10
Speaker
I hid. i was afraid because I was i was naked. right We often said, if you were here a couple weeks ago, naked in the Bible often refers to shame right The equivalency here.
00:15:23
Speaker
What God had set up perfectly in the garden for man and woman to live in harmony with Him was broken because they disobeyed a very simple command. Do not eat from that one tree.
00:15:37
Speaker
And they did. And sin and death entered the world. And everything was broken from that point forward. And there was shame. See friends, that's what sin does. Sin makes you feel shame.
00:15:51
Speaker
Jesus is indeed the gardener, and John wants us to know that. Flip back with me real quick now to John 20 where we were.
00:16:07
Speaker
God came searching for his creation. but he could not find them because of their shame. They were naked and so they hid. And so the story of Easter is about a God who re-enters the garden to search for those who he loves and to offer them a second chance, a restoration, a new life.
00:16:29
Speaker
Just as Jesus speaks Mary's name, she recognizes him and in the middle of her darkest moment, friends, he comes right at the right time.
Symbolism of Resurrection: Seasons and Eden
00:16:39
Speaker
I thought about that this week. This might be a ah real stretch of an illustration, but follow with me. In other places other than Texas, there are seasons.
00:16:50
Speaker
Some people have told me there are four of them.
00:16:55
Speaker
If you've ever endured someplace that has a really harsh winter, you know it's fun like the first couple of weeks. You're out maybe shoveling, you're maybe doing a snowman and that kind of thing, but it gets old real quick.
00:17:08
Speaker
And you can't wait for the time when spring begins, when new buds come on the trees. And you're waiting and waiting for these first signs of life to spring forth.
00:17:21
Speaker
Martin Luther once said, Our Lord has written the promise of resurrection not just in the book alone, but in every leaf in springtime.
00:17:33
Speaker
The seasons of life remind us that God brings life from death. And he can bring life to the most hopeless of situations in your life. And friends, he shows up right on time.
00:17:46
Speaker
You can hear as Jesus calls out Mary's name here almost a shift in tone, right? She goes from being sad to having this renewed hope. Rabbi, she says. Teacher, she says.
00:18:02
Speaker
What I thought was once an end is no longer an end. I thought you were dead, but now you are alive. I came to find a body, but the tomb was empty.
00:18:13
Speaker
To which he simply says, go back and tell everybody. Can you imagine what she went back and told the disciples? I bet you she said, he is risen.
00:18:25
Speaker
Oh wait, let's try that again. He is risen!
00:18:30
Speaker
Let's try that one more time. He is risen!
00:18:34
Speaker
You see, friends, what Mary discovered at the empty tomb that morning was that the most final thing was not the most final thing. It was the beginning.
00:18:46
Speaker
Jesus rising from the dead meant that sin and its ultimate outcome, which is death, could not overcome Jesus. He held power and sway over it Death did not have the last word or the final say.
00:18:59
Speaker
He did. And he still does today. The powerful revelation that comes with this truth is that if Jesus can overcome death, there is nothing in your life or in my life that he cannot overcome and defeat as well.
00:19:14
Speaker
Flip back, John chapter 11, just a few chapters. I'm going to use my nice, nifty bookmark that somebody made for me today and gave it to me.
00:19:26
Speaker
Miss Lizzie, thank you for that.
00:19:30
Speaker
Chapter 11, verse 25 says this. Jesus makes this audacious claim. I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live even after dying.
00:19:45
Speaker
Everyone who who lives in me and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?
Invitation to Embrace Hope and Faith
00:19:55
Speaker
Friends, Jesus is the resurrection and the life. He is the hope of life eternal. And He is the key to true life now. Jesus said to His followers then, and He's saying to you here this morning, this Easter morning, this resurrection Sunday morning, as you sit in those pews, I am the resurrection and the life.
00:20:16
Speaker
He is the hope of eternal life. And it's our belief. It's not just up here. It's not just in our head. It's not just intellectual. It's an ascent. It's a knowing and living out this deep trust in Him that ensures that the worst things may happen to us in this life, but friends, that's not the end.
00:20:36
Speaker
there's There's a whole new, better life waiting for us.
00:20:42
Speaker
And so on this Easter morning,
00:20:46
Speaker
going to things just a little different here today. So those of you who are used to seeing a certain way that we close church, will it'll be a little bit different this morning. I simply want you to sit in prayer.
00:21:02
Speaker
All heads bowed, all eyes closed. And I'm going invite those of you that are here this morning who need Jesus in your life to simply stand.
00:21:14
Speaker
It's different, I know. I normally ask you guys to come forward and I would receive you down front. This morning I'm going to make it really easy for you. Why do I do that, you say. Some people are not comfortable in a public display to come up front.
00:21:28
Speaker
I'm going to make it really easy for you this morning. If you are in a time of destitute, if you are in a time of desolation, if you are in a time where you don't know what the future looks like for you and you do not know Jesus, friends, today is the day that I invite you to simply stand when everybody else is praying.
00:21:47
Speaker
You may be visiting here this morning and the last thing on your mind was your salvation and your eternal destiny. Maybe you've been far away from church for a really long time and the Lord is drawing you back today.
00:21:59
Speaker
Today is your day. But, Pastor, we have Easter lunch.
00:22:05
Speaker
Pastor, I have family in College Station. This will get in the way of that. No, it won't. We're we're quite early.
00:22:14
Speaker
so Don't pass up this opportunity, friends. If today you're searching and you're seeking and you need somebody who can give you that hope, there's only one person who can.
00:22:29
Speaker
And I'm gonna tell you with ah the best joy in my heart, this is why I love being a Christian.
The Unique Resurrection of Jesus
00:22:37
Speaker
Nobody else can make this claim. Buddha still in the grave.
00:22:42
Speaker
Muhammad still in the grave. Confucius still in the grave. Friends, there's only one person who's not in the grave, and that is Jesus Christ.
00:22:53
Speaker
As Judy plays the piano here in just a moment, will you just do me a favor? Everybody, heads bowed, eyes closed, praying for those who would respond. and she plays As she plays the piano and I pray for you, if you feel the conviction of the Holy Spirit, and i' austin I'm often asked, what does that feel like, Pastor?
00:23:14
Speaker
You'll know it when you know it. It is that shame that is within you that says, I'm not living the way God wants me to live right now. It is the conviction of sin that I've been away from the church too long.
00:23:32
Speaker
As Judy plays and I pray, with everybody's head bowed, everybody's eyes closed, all I ask is for you to stand up. Would you do that for me? Judy play.
00:23:47
Speaker
Brothers and sisters, church family, pray with me.
00:23:53
Speaker
Pray for those who are about to stand from their seats.
00:23:58
Speaker
Pray that they may have the courage to stand. Pray that they may have the courage to be counted. Pray that lives will be changed. Pray that change will be broken here and now.
00:24:12
Speaker
Pray that old wounds will be healed. Old addictions broken. Eyes will be opened. Hearts will be crushed for the Lord. Divided families will be reunited.
00:24:28
Speaker
Pray that broken relationships will be restored. Pray that the despair and discouragement that you feel will be overcome. And it's in the mighty name of Jesus.
00:24:40
Speaker
If that's you this morning, with all heads bowed and all eyes closed, I simply ask you to stand from your seats. Stand and be counted. Don't miss this opportunity.
00:24:52
Speaker
It's a time between you and God right now.
00:24:57
Speaker
He wants to change lives. He wants to renew hope. He wants to build back in you that which is lost.
00:25:06
Speaker
Don't leave here without finding Jesus.
00:25:11
Speaker
It's in Christ's name we pray. Amen.