SERMON OUTLINE
We Remember The Resurrection Because It Is:
TRANSCRIPT
I bring you greetings once again in the name of Our Risen Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. As we know, there are certain special days in the Christian calendar where we specially remember certain events in the life and Ministry of our Lord Jesus. We remember His Incarnation, His virgin birth. We remember sometimes His triumphal entry into Jerusalem. We remember His death on the cross atoning for our sins on Good Friday, and on Resurrection Sunday, we remember the resurrection.
And this is what the Apostle Paul tells Timothy to do in our text in 2 Timothy 2:8: "Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel:”
But why do we especially remember the resurrection? The resurrection was the centre of the apostolic witness. Remember, as we read in the responsive reading in 1 Corinthians 15, the Apostle Paul reminded the Corinthians of the message that he had preached to them. And central to that message was the resurrection; Jesus rose on the third day according to the scriptures. And this was not something unique to the Apostle Paul; this was the message preached by all the apostles. Paul said, "whether it were I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed” (1 Corinthians 15:11). This was the apostolic message. The apostles were sent forth as witnesses of the resurrection, as we read in Acts 4:33: "And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.”
The Apostles were sent as witnesses of the resurrection. That's why it was one of the qualifications of an Apostle to have seen the risen Lord Jesus, to have been commissioned by the risen Lord Jesus. That's why the Apostle Paul, when he was defending his apostleship, made mention of that fact: "have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord?" (1 Corinthians 9:1). And in all the preaching of the Apostles recorded in the book of Acts, the culmination of the message is the resurrection. The resurrection is always mentioned as something central and important and crucial.
And yet, the resurrection was something disbelieved all along, even laughed at by many of those who heard the message. Again, in 1 Corinthians 15:12, that was one of the problems in the Corinth Church: "How say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?" It is a message that was scoffed at, laughed at. "How can the dead rise? How can Jesus rise from the dead?" The Jews in the time of the Lord spread false rumours about the resurrection. We read in Matthew 28 how they bribed the guards to say that it was the disciples who had stolen the body. And in the preaching of the Apostle Paul, also in Acts chapter 17 when he preached to the Athenians on Mars Hill, when they heard of the Resurrection, many mocked, they laughed at it.
And so also today, perhaps more than ever, it is considered the height of foolishness to believe that someone could rise from the dead. What then is so significant and so important about the resurrection? Why do we believe it? Why do we refuse to relinquish it in the face of all this scoffing and mocking and disbelief? Why do we celebrate it instead of just keeping quiet about it or keeping our belief to ourselves? Why do we gather to remember the resurrection?
I think there are three reasons that we can consider why it is important for us to remember the resurrection. First of all, we remember the resurrection because it is a confirming truth. Secondly, we remember the resurrection because it is a convicting truth. And thirdly, we remember the resurrection because it is a consoling truth.
I. A Confirming Truth
First of all, it is a confirming truth. We read in the gospels of the perfect life of the Lord Jesus, how He perfectly obeyed the law of God as our substitute. We read of His perfect sacrifice of Himself on the cross atoning for our sins, and this is fully sufficient to secure our pardon. He bore on the cross the full weight and penalty of our guilt. He satisfied on the cross the full measure of the wrath of God that was due to us. And so He said as He gave up the ghost, "It is finished." But because on the cross he had accomplished our redemption, because it was finished, He did not and He could not remain under the power of death. He could not be held by death, but He arose victorious from the grave on the third day.
And that glorious resurrection demonstrates, it confirms, it declares, it vindicates His perfect sacrifice. It seals to us this truth that indeed it is finished, that His sacrifice on our behalf is complete, that it is accepted. Therefore, as we read again in 1 Corinthians 15:14, the emphasis, if there is no resurrection, if Christ is not risen, then we are yet in our sins, we have no hope. There is no confirmation that the sacrifice has been accepted, that we are actually saved, that it is actually finished. The resurrection confirms this very wonderfully.
Sometimes when we need to travel, we need a visa, don't we? I need a visa to come here and preach, and nowadays it's all electronic. In the old days when they gave you a visa, they put it in your passport. Nowadays it's all electronic. And sometimes you wonder whether you really have it or not. And so they send you an email to confirm that the visa has been granted. And even though it's all electronic, they tell you to print out the visa, print out the email as a confirmation just in case you need to confirm it. Now of course the email is not the visa, but it serves to confirm that the visa has been granted, that you have it. It's a confirmation, it's a vindication that you really are allowed to enter the country and to be there and to do whatever it is you came there to do.
In a similar way, the resurrection confirms it, vindicates it, seals. Without the resurrection, we have no hope because if there is no resurrection, then that leads us to believe that the sacrifice of the Lord on our behalf was not accepted. It leads us to believe that our redemption is not accomplished, it leads us to believe that we are yet in our sins, there is no salvation for us. But by the resurrection, we know that the Lord has finished His work, that He risen from the dead, dies no more, and we who are in Him will not die but have everlasting life.
By the resurrection we see the demonstration, the vindication that death has no power over Him because He has conquered death. He has gained the victory over death itself. It is truly finished, and there is nothing more for us to do. It has been accomplished and done by the Lord Jesus, and so our salvation is secure.
It's not like the furniture that you buy from places like Ikea. When you buy furniture from there, it's cheap, and one of the reasons it's cheap is you have to assemble it. So when you buy it, it's not finished. When you make the purchase, there's no guarantee that what you see in the picture will actually be in your house because you have to put it together. And if you're like me, sometimes you put it together wrongly, and what actually appears in your house is not what you see in the catalogue. It doesn't look so nice. Things are the wrong way around because you have to assemble it.
But the resurrection confirms and demonstrates and seals for us the truth that salvation is accomplished. It is truly finished. The salvation that we have in the Lord Jesus is not “Assembly Required” but it's already been done. It is perfect, it is complete, and the resurrection gives us a wonderful confirmation of that, that really it has been done by the Lord Jesus. He has paid it all, our sins are forgiven, washed away, cleansed by the blood of the Lord Jesus if we only believe. We are saved forever securely.
Hence again, the preaching of the Apostles. If you'll look with me at Acts chapter 13 and see how the Apostle Paul preached this message. In Acts 13:30, the Apostle Paul, after preaching of the Lord Jesus, the death of the Lord Jesus, His burial, He emphasised the resurrection. "But God raised him from the dead: And he was seen many days of them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses unto the people. And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee."
The resurrection demonstrates this truth that Jesus is the son of God, that He is our perfect Saviour. "And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of David.” “Sure”? How do we know they are sure? Because He is risen, no more to see corruption. "Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption: But he,” – that is Jesus – “whom God raised again, saw no corruption. Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.”
That's the importance of the Resurrection. It confirms the wonderful truth of our salvation in Jesus Christ. It confirms our forgiveness in Him. It confirms our security in Him for all eternity. It confirms our resurrection on that day when He comes again. And because of what it confirms, the resurrection also serves to convict.
II. A Convicting Truth
It is a convicting truth. It points us to our duty now, how we are to live now in service to the Lord. The resurrection vindicates the claim of the Lord Jesus to be the Son of God, to be the judge of the Earth. In Acts chapter 17, this is the point that was made again by the Apostle Paul on another occasion. In Acts chapter 17:13, this is Paul preaching to the Athenians. "And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.”
The resurrection gives assurance to all that Jesus has been appointed the Son of God to judge the world, that we all will have to stand before Him and be judged. When we remember the resurrection, we remember the Judge. We remember our duty to repent. God has called and commanded everyone to repent because there is a judgment. We remember our duty to be clean, to be pure, to be holy, to be sanctified when we tremble before the one who judges even the hearts and thoughts and intentions and motives.
We remember that the Lord Jesus, as God, sees not as man sees. Man looks on the outward appearance, God looks on the heart. "I, the Lord, search the heart, I try the reigns to give everyone according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doings” (Jeremiahs 17:10). The resurrection sets forth Jesus as Lord, as the choir reminded us just now so wonderfully. Jesus is King. Jesus is risen. He is Lord. We are reminded, therefore, when we remember the resurrection, that He must be Lord of our lives, that He is our Lord and Saviour, that we must live in obedience to Him, that we must serve Him.
Reference was made by the Apostle Paul in His preaching to the second Psalm. And if we turn to Psalm 2, we see this Jesus set forth as Lord. Psalm 2:6, "Yet, yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion." Who is this King? The Son of God. "I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my son, this day have I begotten thee." Remember, when Paul was preaching, this was the verse he referred to. The resurrection points to this, that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God, that He is the King whom God has set on the Holy Hill of Zion.
“Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.”
The resurrection reminds us to kiss the Son, to serve Him because He is risen as King and Lord. He reigns. The resurrection convicts us about our duty to seek after holiness, to live a holy and sanctified life, that we who are in the Lord Jesus are risen with Him to walk in newness of life, not as we used to live in sin and iniquity, but in newness of life, in holiness, in righteousness.
Because we remember the resurrection, we remember that we have been raised in this newness of life, we are in Christ, we belong to Him. We're not of the world any longer. We don't belong to the kingdom of darkness. And so, our affections must be set on things above, as Paul says in Colossians 3:1, "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.”
As Paul says also in Galatians, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." The resurrection reminds us that our affections must not be on the things of this world, the things of this Earth, because these things are passing away. Jesus is risen as Lord and King, and He comes to bring His kingdom, to establish His kingdom, which is not of the earth. And we live for that kingdom. We belong to that kingdom. We prize and treasure the things of that kingdom. We set our affections where Christ is. He is above.
Because He is risen, so our desires are on those things, the worship of God, the service of God, the work of the gospel. That's what we prioritise. That's what we do. We seek the things that are above. We prioritise the things of the kingdom, the things of Christ, because He is risen, and we live for Him now.
III. A Consoling Truth
But then also, because of what the resurrection confirms, it serves not just to convict us as to our duty, but also to console us, to comfort us in our doubts and fears. Sometimes we are confronted by doubt. Sometimes the devil whispers. He magnifies the filthiness of our sins. He sends his fiery darts to cause us to be unsure. Am I really saved? Are my sins, which are many, really forgiven? Is God really pleased with me? Am I justified in His sight? Can I really stand before Him knowing all the things that I have done?
Sometimes we doubt. The resurrection consoles and comforts. Again, because it reminds us that through Jesus Christ, there is forgiveness for all sins, for every sin. He has finished the work of atonement. And so, the Apostle Paul here in 2 Timothy, Paul as he writes this epistle, is facing imprisonment and even impending death. Timothy will now be left without the Apostle Paul to continue the same work of the gospel, to face the same kind of opposition and persecution.
But Paul exhorts Timothy to remember the resurrection. “Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel” (2 Timothy 2:8). And this will console and comfort Timothy and help him to endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 2:3), to endure afflictions, to persevere through persecutions. It will be a great comfort to Timothy, as it is to us.
“Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David,” – that’s a reference to God's promise, a reference to the perfect fulfilment of God's promises, a reference to our assurance. We have the sure mercies of David, sure mercies promised in the covenant of God, the hope of an everlasting kingdom wherein dwelleth righteousness, where we will be found righteous in Christ, clothed with the righteousness of Christ.
The resurrection is a reminder of Christ's victory over all the forces of darkness that now oppose us. And for all who endure affliction in this world, in this life, for all who endure persecution from the world, the resurrection consoles and comforts. These enemies have already been vanquished. Whatever our struggle is now, victory is assured because He is risen. He is victorious.
All of this Paul says is “according to my gospel” (2 Timothy 2:8). Therefore, Paul himself and also Timothy, as Paul exhorts him, will continue to labour in the gospel to the end. As Paul says here, "I am bound. I suffer trouble as an evildoer even unto bonds. But the word of God is not bound” (2 Timothy 2:9). That is to say, Paul will continue to preach the gospel even while he is in chains, even while he is in the prison. The word of God is not bound. The gospel still has all its power. The gospel doesn't depend on Paul. The gospel is the gospel of Christ who is risen and victorious. The gospel always has its power, even when we are in bonds, even when we are despised and rejected. The gospel has lost none of its power. And Paul will continue to preach wherever he is, to whomever he can, because the gospel is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes.
There is full salvation available to all because Jesus is risen. Because He has accomplished that victory over sin and death, the forces of darkness cannot overcome those who are in Christ. The forces of darkness cannot overcome the work of the gospel that is done in the name of Christ. The resurrection consoles us that just as Jesus said, "I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18), so He will keep that promise. Because He is risen, He has already won the victory.
Just as we are convicted by the truth that Jesus is Lord and we must serve Him, so also we are comforted and consoled. Jesus is Lord. We serve the King of Kings. There is nothing that can defeat Him when we serve Him and do His will. "If God be for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:33). What a comforting truth that Jesus is risen. We serve a risen Lord and Saviour.
And so the Apostle Paul is willing to suffer all things for the sake of the elect, for whom Jesus died. He labours in hope because he remembers the resurrection. In 2 Timothy 1:9, Paul speaks of God who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began. Because it comforts us, and encourages us, and helps us to labor without fear, to labour in great hope, to labour in joy, even though the work is difficult.
The Apostle Paul, because of the resurrection, was looking for a crown. 2 Timothy 2:11-12a, "It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: If we suffer, we shall also reign with him". And in 2 Timothy 4:6, Paul said, "I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.” But he is departing in hope, without fear, without despair. “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord,” who is risen, who is alive, “the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.”
He is risen. He's coming again. And in that glorious hope we labour. We know that our labour is not in vain in the Lord because He is risen, and we see the power, the power of the gospel still today, the power of the risen Lord Jesus today, to save.
This is an increasingly secular age, as I'm sure we all know. More and more today, there are people who are turning away from the gospel, despising it, rejecting it, reviling it, dismissing it as something old-fashioned, superstitions of the past. Nowadays, we think of ourselves as very progressive. We've moved on from these childish things. Now we know the truth. Now we understand the universe. What need do we have of these old books and old traditions? And sometimes, as we seek to minister and do the work of the gospel, it can seem very difficult. It can seem that there is no place in the world for the Lord Jesus.
But we are reminded, when we remember the resurrection, of the power of God to save, the power of the Lord Jesus to give life to all who come to Him. And as we look beneath the shell of this secular age, we see the same brokenness, the same trouble caused by sin, the same separation from God, the same yearning after life from those who live in the shadow of death, who through fear of death are still held in bondage.
We see the power of the message of the resurrection, that the Lord Jesus has come and conquered death, to deliver those who are held by the power and fear of death. And when we preach the gospel, because He is risen, we preach in hope, that the Lord can work powerfully to save even the hardest of hearts. And that is why we labour. That is why we are willing to suffer for the sake of the Lord Jesus, for the sake of His people.
And so, in all this, we see how important and how relevant the resurrection is for us. It is very meaningful for us. It has a great impact on our lives now. It is a confirmation of something that happened long ago, but something that continues to be important, central to us today. That is why we remember the resurrection. That's why we celebrate it, even though there are many who want nothing to do with it, or who might even scoff at it. Because it confirms, it gives us a grounding for our lives. It convicts, it gives us a motive, an impetus for our duty. And it consoles, it gives us hope, helps us to persevere in hope.
So let us remember the resurrection. And if I may say this in closing, we remember the resurrection not just one day a year. Yes, this is Resurrection Sunday; we especially remember the resurrection. But really, every Lord's day, we remember the resurrection. We worship on the Lord's day because that is the day that He rose from the grave. Every Lord's day, when we meet together, we bear witness that we serve a risen Saviour. He rose on the first day of the week. We meet and worship on that day to remember the resurrection every week as we look forward to His soon return.
So our labour is not in vain in the Lord because He is risen, and He is returning. May the Lord encourage and comfort and convict us as we meditate on these truths. Let's close with a word of prayer.
Our gracious Father in Heaven, indeed, we give you thanks and praise that our Lord Jesus is risen from the grave, risen in victory, risen in glory, seated now at your right hand. He reigns as King over our lives, King over all this Earth. And we look forward to the time when He will return to establish His kingdom here on this Earth, when all the Earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
Surely it is a great hope, a great confidence that we have because you have assured us that the Lord Jesus is risen. We meet in that hope. We praise and worship in that joy. And we pray you would establish the truth of the resurrection in our hearts, that we may go forth with great hope and confidence to live for the Lord, to serve Him, to serve you until the end. We commit all this into your hands, seeking your blessing this day and all the days to come in the name of our risen Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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