Easter Brings Resurrection Hope - Resurrecting Hope, part 1
Are you in a hopeless situation? There is nothing that our God cannot do. You can have hope because anything is possible. Choose to embrace the hope that is offered to you in Jesus. Let hope lift your spirits. Easter is the power of God’s love revealed.
Easter is the reminder that because Jesus is alive, we have hope. This four-part Easter series is about the hope we have in Christ. It will be encouraging and will help you overcome life’s greatest challenges. The resurrection of Jesus Christ instills hope in the face of life’s trials. Easter is a reminder that you live day in and day out with power that can overcome any challenge. In our darkest days, it gives us light. In overwhelming discouragement, it gives us faith. In the midst of devastating loss, it gives us joy. In times of divisiveness, it gives us something that unifies us. The tomb is empty. Jesus is alive, and that gives us hope!
Embrace the hope of Jesus and know that anything is possible with God.
Do you NEED HOPE today?
The message of the gospel is a message of hope in Christ the Lord. Jesus gave hope to the sick and spoke hope to the spiritually lost and outcast of society. In Jesus there is hope. Easter is a reminder that there is hope in all of life’s troubles.
Hope for healing.
Hope for bondages to be broken.
Hope in forgiveness.
Hope in death.
Hope for eternal life in glory, all because of the resurrection of Jesus. Resurrection hope because the tomb is empty.
Jesus is alive forever and he is returning soon, just as he promised.
The days following Jesus’ crucifixion must have been some of the darkest times for his followers. They had placed all their hope in him and now he was dead. Hope seemed gone. But three days later when the women went to the tomb to anoint Jesus’ body, they found the stone rolled away. The tomb was empty, and Jesus had risen! The curse of sin and death is broken. Jesus has overcome. Now let resurrection hope fill your heart. Grab ahold of resurrection hope; a hope that is found only in the gospel message. Let faith arise. Jesus is alive. He is risen!!! Hosanna in the highest. Easter is the reminder that because Jesus is alive, we have hope.
Can you imagine how devastated the followers of Christ must have felt on Friday, the day Jesus was crucified? They had placed their hope in Jesus and the coming kingdom of God. The Messiah, who was to deliver the people of God out of bondage, is now dead. They must have felt like they were kicked in the chest and all their hopes gone.
Have you ever been disappointed? Disappointments might look like:
Your long-awaited vacation is cancelled because of Covid. Hope of getting the rest you desperately need is shattered.
You’re nearing graduation only to find out that you’re missing a required class. A hope and excitement of graduating with your class has melted away.
A friend in remission of cancer has just told you that the cancer is back. Your hopes for this friendship to last for years to come is diminished.
Do you need renewed hope today? Maybe things have not been easy. Life, health, work, or relationships have been challenging for some time now. Some of our church family and friends have experienced loss, even in this past month. Hearing of a medical diagnosis and surgery needed for a friend has caused hope to shrink. It feels like the weight of the past two years and the Covid nightmare is so heavy. The future looks bleak. The fighting over in Ukraine and all the lives lost, people being displaced from their homes, buildings, even entire cities destroyed. At times you may wonder where is God is in all this? Everything seems hopeless. No hope for the future. Yet scriptures tell us that, in the middle of the darkest hour, there is hope.
Hope appears when we least expect it.
It is early in the morning. It has been three days from the time Jesus was crucified, died, and laid in a tomb. Mary heads to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus for burial. There wasn’t time to anoint the body when Jesus was first placed in the tomb. When Mary arrived, she found the tomb empty and open. The stone had been rolled away. Mary feared that someone had taken Jesus’ body. Fear must have gripped her heart.
‘Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. 13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”
“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” 14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus’ (John 20:11-14, NIV).
Mary looks inside and sees Jesus’ body gone. Her focus is only on the area where Jesus’ body once laid. Mary must not have seen or realized the fact that two angels were standing next to where Jesus’ body had once laid. Her eyes filled with tears, her mind captivated with fear and her heart broken. Not only is Jesus dead but now his body has disappeared. It has been taken away and is nowhere to be seen.
Where is your focus today? The pain? The problem? The unknown? Don’t look past the fact that the tomb is empty. Don’t look past what the empty tomb means. Realize the empty tomb speaks of resurrection hope.
When you lose hope, all you see is the emptiness of the situation. You appear to develop tunnel vision of the situation. Mental and spiritual tunnel vision. The only thing you can perceive is hopelessness and loss. The answer may be directly in front of you, but you cannot recognize it for the lack of hope in your heart.
Mary hears the angels speak, but she appears unconcerned that they were standing in the empty tomb where Jesus’ body should have laid. Mary might be in emotional, mental, spiritual shock and she begins to share her feeling of being heartbroken that Jesus was dead and his body missing. Mary was focused on what she intended to do—to anoint Jesus’ body. Mary was focused on what she expected to find—Jesus’ body. Mary was focused on what she could not do, so much so that she was blind to the possibility of what all this meant. Mary’s hope had vanished. She could not find hope in an empty tomb.
Mary turns to leave and sees Jesus. But she did not recognize him. She did not realize who was before her. Resurrection hope was standing right before her, yet Mary appeared blind to the hope of God. Her hopelessness and despair clouded her mind and spiritual eyes to the truth of resurrection hope in Christ the Lord.
Have you ever misplaced your keys, wallet, or cell phone? You look everywhere: the bedroom, office. In your purse, under the couch, your pocket, the counter, the dresser, the dirty clothes hamper. Your hope of finding that lost item is waning as you keep searching with no avail. A realization that the lost item may really be lost takes hold and you stop looking. Its hopeless. It’s gone. And then someone asks you, are looking for these, are these yours? I found them on your lawn. You are suddenly relived. Fear is gone. Joy replaced the hopeless feeling. That is what’s about to happen to Mary.
Easter is a reminder that God is in the business of awakening hope in the hearts of people who are feeling hopeless. He does this in ways that only he can do.
Have you missed any of the subtle ways God inspires hope? It may come in the form of a song, a text message, an everyday conversation at the grocery store, a note card, a word of encouragement of someone praying for you. Or God may use a dream, a memory, a sign on the side of the freeway. Jesus loves you. You are not alone. And your hope is renewed.
Easter comes at just the right time.
As Mary turns away in despair from the empty tomb, Jesus confronts Mary regarding her sadness of heart and her tears of sorrow.
He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).
17 Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her (John 20:15-18).
Mary has almost given up all hope. Not recognizing Jesus at first, she confuses Jesus to be the gardener and seeks to know where he might have placed Jesus’ body. Then Jesus, in a familiar tone, speaks Mary’s name. Suddenly Mary recognizes the voice of Jesus. Jesus steps in at the perfect time and heals Mary’s sad and broken heart. The hope in Jesus that Mary and others knew that had been thrown away by Jesus’ death is now restored in Jesus’ resurrection.
The broken relationship that occurred in the garden when Adam and Eve sinned can be restored because of Jesus’ sacrifice of shed blood, death, and resurrection (see Genesis 3:8-10).
Easter offers hope, of renewed relationship with God Almighty. Easter offers hope in a hopeless situation. New growth springs forth following a harsh, cold winter season. The fresh green leaves of spring sprout forth. The budding of trees speaks of new life out of what appeared to be dead or dormant trees.
Allow the season of spring to reinforce the truth of the gospel that Mary received when she recognized Jesus having been resurrected from the dead. Mary’s hope was resurrected and restored. Mary’s joy renewed. The pain and sorrow that Mary once experienced is gone knowing Jesus has victoriously risen from the dead. As you read the scriptures you can almost feel the spiritual energy erupting in Mary’s voice and heart. He is risen!! Jesus is alive.
The dream of spiritual restoration and spiritual healing is possible. The dream of physical, relational, emotional healing is possible. All things are possible. Eternal life with Christ in glory is possible. No longer does a person need to be burdened down with guilt and sin. No longer hopeless regarding the curse of sin and death. The hope of forgiveness of sin is possible in Jesus’ name.
People around the world need to hear and know that the message of Easter is all about the resurrection hope that anyone can experience in Jesus. Easter is not about cute bunnies. Easter is not about chocolate. Easter is about experiencing resurrection hope. Easter is prophecy fulfilled. Easter is the power of God’s love revealed.
Jesus’ resurrection is victory over death.
‘Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” 27 “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”’ (John 11:25-27).
Mary discovered that the empty tomb was not the end, but rather the beginning of life eternal in Jesus’ name. Jesus risen from the dead means that sin and death no longer have a hold on a person whose faith is in Jesus.
Easter is a powerful revelation of the power and presence of God Almighty. The revelation that comes with knowing the truth that if Jesus can overcome death, then there is nothing in our lives that he cannot defeat or overcome.
Jesus told his disciples and tells us today: I am the resurrection and the life. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations.
In Jesus, you can have hope of life eternal. In Jesus, you can have forgiveness of sin.
Do you believe in the resurrection? Do you have the hope of eternal life? Do you know Jesus as savior? All are welcome to follow Jesus. Understand, knowing about Jesus is not the same as having faith in Jesus. Knowing about Jesus is not the same as trusting and believing Jesus is your resurrection savior.
Place your faith in the risen savior. Let resurrection hope arise in your heart and know for certain Jesus is Lord and savior. Invite Jesus into your heart. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the truth of the gospel and the resurrection hope. Like Mary, tell others about the hope you now have in the resurrection. In the empty tomb. Jesus is alive! He is risen!
Suggested Praise and Worship
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This and other sermons brought to you by Faith Chapel, an Assemblies of God church in Pleasanton, CA.