Transcription downloaded from https://sermonarchive.gfcbremen.com/sermons/58686/he-lives/. Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions. Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt. [0:00] Take your Bibles again and turn to the Gospel of Matthew, the 27th chapter. Matthew chapter 27. [0:15] I'll begin reading at the 57th verse. Verse, the historical facts of Jesus' death and burial are crucial evidence that his astonishing resurrection wasn't some kind of a hoax. [0:39] Let's listen as Matthew gives us many of those details. As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. [0:57] Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. [1:17] He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there across from the tomb. [1:31] The next day, the one after preparation day, the chief priest and the Pharisees went to Pilate. Sir, they said, we remember that while he was still alive, that deceiver said, After three days, I will rise again. [1:53] So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. [2:08] This last deception will be worse than the first. Take a guard, Pilate answered. Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how. [2:21] So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard. [2:33] That guard probably involved anywhere from 10 to 20, maybe 30 Roman soldiers. We'll see as we continue into chapter 28 that it speaks of the guard in plural. [2:48] After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. [2:59] There was a violent earthquake for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. [3:11] His appearance was like lightning and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. [3:25] The angel said to the women, Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here. [3:37] He has risen just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, He is risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. [3:54] There you will see him. Now I have told you. So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid, yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. [4:09] Suddenly, Jesus met them. Greetings, he said. They came to him, clasped his feet, and worshipped him. [4:21] Then Jesus said to them, Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee. There they will see me. [4:33] While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priest everything that had happened. [4:43] When the chief priest had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, telling them, You are to say, You are to say, His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep. [5:03] If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble. So, the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. [5:18] And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day. Christianity is not merely a set of beliefs, not a set of doctrines or ideas that we believe. [5:39] It is that, but it's far more than that. All of its teachings rest squarely upon historical facts. God's acts in human history to save sinners through the Lord Jesus Christ Paul tells us this is the gospel. [5:59] That Jesus Christ, God's Son, died on the cross for our sins, was buried, and was raised the third day according to the Scriptures. [6:13] That's the very core. That's the heart of the gospel, the foundation. And unless those events happened, we have no gospel. [6:24] We have no Savior. We have no Christianity. That being the case, it's no surprise that the historicity of Christ's resurrection should be denied and attacked. [6:43] And I don't mean just in the 21st century of unbelief that we live in, but in the first century. And indeed, while Jesus was still in the grave, the first lie was hatched to deny the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. [7:00] And so, what we find in the gospels are many eyewitness accounts of these saving acts of the Lord Jesus. And they're careful in the first place to account for the fact that Jesus Christ really died. [7:15] died. You see, there's more than one way to deny the resurrection. And some deny it by denying that he really died. It's called the swoon theory. [7:29] That Jesus merely swooned on the cross and went unconscious, was taken down. And when he was taken into the cool of the tomb, he revived and walked away, never having died. [7:40] Well, apart from a real death, there can be no real resurrection. And so, his death had many eyewitnesses to prove that he really died. [7:53] As Paul can later say as he stood on trial, these things were not done in a corner. As if to say, they weren't hidden away in some secret place, but were all out in the open. [8:07] You remember the two disciples on the road to Emmaus that met Jesus but didn't realize who he was and they said, and he asked, what you're so sad about? And they said, well, because of what happened. [8:18] Well, what happened? He asked. And they said, are you the only stranger in Jerusalem that doesn't know what happened in these days? That Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved by God by many works, was falsely accused and crucified. [8:36] Everybody knows it. You must be the only one that doesn't. And so he died during Passover week when the population in Jerusalem, we're told, could swell to ten times its normal size. [8:49] So there were multitudes of people that saw the crucifixion. Luke in chapter 23 says a large number of people followed him out of Jerusalem to the place of the skull where he was crucified. [9:03] He goes on to record that the people stood watching and stood there watching until he died. And when all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place after his death, it says that they beat their breast and went away. [9:26] Many stayed to the very end. And then there was the Jewish chief priests and the scribes and the elders. They were there. They were there to gloat over their victory and to mock Jesus while he's being tortured to death. [9:42] There were some believers there. We know Apostle John was there. We know that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was there. And also many faithful women that ministered to Christ and his disciples during his ministry. [9:55] And the Roman centurion and his execution squad of soldiers, they were there. And one of the responsibilities of the centurion was to ensure that the criminal suffered all the way to death. [10:09] It was the death sentence after all. And Rome made sure that justice was served to the very end. And so this centurion in charge had a front row seat to his death. [10:25] And he testified to it. We saw this Friday night. That when Joseph went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus, Mark says, Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. [10:42] Some men lingered for four days. Jesus was there six hours and was gone. And so, Pilate summoned the centurion and he asked him if Jesus had already died. [10:55] And when he learned from the centurion, yes, it was so, he then released the body to Joseph for burial. Important testimony from the centurion to Jesus' death. [11:09] And the Jews, the Jewish leaders, wanted the bodies of the cursed men down before sundown for this special Passover Sabbath. And so the soldiers were sent to break the legs of the criminals. [11:24] and they broke the legs of the two thieves to hasten their death. But Scripture says, when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. [11:37] Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. water separates from the blood after 45 minutes from death have passed. [11:57] Jesus was dead. The water and the blood had separated. And John says that he saw it personally and testified to it in his fourth gospel. [12:11] And there were many still living who could account for the same thing, that when that spear went up into his heart, out came water and blood. He really died. [12:21] There was Joseph and Nicodemus who took down the body and laid him in Joseph's tomb after wrapping it in strips of linen with 75 pounds of herbs and spices and then rolled the heavy stone across the door. [12:36] Several faithful women were there watching it all and saw him buried. So the fact, the historical fact of Jesus' death is well attested to by eyewitnesses of all kinds, both believers and unbelievers. [12:54] So those who hold to some swoon theory have stubborn facts to answer for. So with the real death and burial, a real resurrection can then follow. [13:07] But here, we learn of the first denial of Christ's resurrection. chapter 27 of Matthew verses 62 to 66 tell us how this came about. [13:21] It says on the very first day, the very next day, this is the day after the crucifixion, Jesus is still in the tomb. The chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. [13:33] Sir, they said, we remember that while he was still alive, time out, that's further testimony to his real death. While he was still alive. [13:44] In other words, he's no longer still alive. Thank you for that evidence. He really died. So, the enemies of Jesus have confessed. But we remember that while he was still alive, that deceiver said, after three days, I will rise again. [14:03] Now, their concern is not at all that Jesus might actually rise from the dead. But only that his disciples might make it look like he rose from the dead. [14:14] So, they tell Pilate, give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. [14:26] And the last deception will be worse than the first. The first deception was he claimed to be the son of God. But the last one will be that he rose from the dead and that will be worse than the first. [14:44] We wonder, did they lie in bed all night worrying about this? What needless worry warts these Jewish religious leaders were? [14:55] Because, in fact, nothing was further from the minds of the disciples than Jesus rising from the dead. That was the last thing in the world they were expecting and they will not even believe it once it has happened. [15:13] And they've been told so. So, get the irony of this. That Jesus' own disciples had forgotten what his enemies had remembered. [15:24] That Jesus had said, three days after I'm crucified I will be raised to life. He told that to the twelve often when he was with them. [15:35] Let me just read the fourth time he's told them to you to see how blunt he was with them. We're going up to Jerusalem, he said, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and teachers of the law. [15:48] They will condemn him to death and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life. [16:02] And the text says they didn't understand what he meant by being raised from the dead. What's not to understand about that? [16:14] Well, from this side of the cross we see it clearly but remember they really believed he was God's son, the Messiah and in their theology they had no room at all for Messiah dying. [16:29] Messiah can't die, he's to reign forever and ever. So whatever death and crucifixion meant, they had nowhere to put this idea of rising from the dead. [16:41] So they weren't expecting Jesus' resurrection and neither were they close to hatching a plot to steal the body and claim that he arose. Their only plan was to hunker down and lie low, hiding for their lives behind locked doors for fear that they might be the next ones to be crucified. [16:59] So this is the plan of the Jewish leaders to be sure this deception of a resurrected Jesus never sees the light of day. And Pilate says, okay then, take a guard. [17:12] Go make the tomb as secure as you know how. So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard. Either a wax or a clay seal would be fixed on that stone in such a way that no one could get inside the tomb without breaking that seal, giving the clear evidence of tomb tampering. [17:37] So the guard then as well was posted. The Roman guard, Roman soldiers are given to guard the tomb and ensure that no one tampered with the body of Jesus. [17:49] So none of this was to keep Jesus from coming out. I think sometimes our hymns give that impression and perhaps there's some reason for that. [18:01] But these chief priests didn't believe that was going to happen. Not at all. It was only to keep the disciples from getting in and stealing the body and spreading the lie that they posted the guard and the seal. [18:18] Now, do you see how God overturns the evil plan of his enemies and makes it serve his own good purposes of providing further evidence for the resurrection of Christ from the dead? [18:32] God knows how to take what is meant for evil and to work it for good. He foils the plans of the nations and thwarts the purposes of the people but the plans of the Lord stand firm forever. [18:45] The purposes of his heart through all generations. He's the God most high and nothing and no one can frustrate his plans. And so with the tomb made double secure the third day dawns. [19:01] And with the two Marys going to the tomb they're wondering they've got a problem on their way to the tomb. Who will roll the stone away from the tomb? It's huge. [19:12] It's heavy. One estimate said it was around a thousand pounds perhaps. But when they arrived they found that that was already taken care of for them. [19:25] Chapter 28 begins there was a violent earthquake for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and going to the tomb rolled back the stone and sat on it. [19:36] His appearance was like lightning and his clothes were white as snow. Interesting isn't it that both Jesus' death and resurrection are punctuated with an earthquake. [19:50] An earthquake. and here's this angel sitting on the stone still shining with the brilliance of the glory of heaven from which he's just come. [20:03] And these Roman soldiers they were prepared to deal with a few fishermen maybe lurking around in the dark to come and steal the body of Jesus away. They were in no way prepared to deal with an angel from heaven. [20:19] and were so terrified of him that they shook and became like dead men. The word there for shake is the same word used for earthquake. [20:31] There was an outward earthquake and then they had their own earthquake when they saw this angel before them and then they lost it. They became as dead men. [20:43] They were unconscious so much for the security of the tomb. Well when the women arrived the angel said to them do not be afraid for I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. [20:56] He's not here. He's risen just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay and then go quickly and tell his disciples he has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. [21:09] There you will see him. Now I have told you. the angel did not roll the stone back from the tomb to let Jesus out. [21:23] We will see later on on this first resurrection day that Jesus just goes right through a locked door. It's a real body and yet it has powers to do things that our bodies don't do but he just comes right on through the locked door and he could come just right on through whatever stone was in front of the door of the tomb. [21:47] No the reason the angel rolled back the stone was not to let Jesus out but rather to let the women in and Peter and John and other witnesses to come in and to see the empty tomb and then to go and tell that he is risen and that's precisely what these women hurried off to do. [22:08] They literally ran with the good news. I doubt that you ever saw women running like this on a normal day but they were running with the good news that Jesus lives and so should we. [22:21] This is news to run with. Another account from Luke says the angel said why seek ye the living among the dead? [22:34] He's not here but is risen just as he said. and then quoted Jesus words to them about being crucified and on the third day being raised and then Luke says then they remembered his words. [22:49] Oh come to think of it now that you've said it he did say that and so they're running back to tell the others and suddenly there he was the resurrected Jesus and he said greetings and they fell to the ground and clasped his feet and worshipped him proving at once that he is God the son whom he claimed to be because he accepted their worship worship that is to be given only to God and also proving that this was no phantom body this was no vision or apparition they clung to his feet they could feel his feet and were not letting go of them it was a real physical body not just some spirit of Jesus that lives on well Jesus repeats their assignment to go tell the disciples whom he calls my brothers my brothers he's not ashamed to call them brothers even after they had forsaken him even after they had denied that they knew him even as they had ditched him and left him to fend for himself and this word go tell my brothers must have caught them did he really say my brothers did he call us that you see [24:28] Jesus does not despise the weakness of his disciples but he stoops to help them in their weakness stoops to encourage their faith and to fan it into a flame and given a few weeks you will not even recognize these men so bold and courageous and strong is their faith in the Lord Jesus what a savior this is the savior now seated on the throne he's not unable to sympathize with you and your weakness he's not condemning and beating on you he's not despising he is pitying you and helping you in your weakness well next we have the record of the great cover up in chapter 28 11 to 15 while the women were on their way to tell the good news to the disciples some of the guards not all of them a lot of them were probably hiding somewhere for their lives but some of the guards went to the city into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened it was Roman soldiers handed over to the chief priest to go and set the guard at the tomb and so they returned to the chief priest to tell them what had happened now the chief priests were chiefly made up from the party called the Sadducees and according to Acts 23 8 the [26:01] Sadducees say there is no resurrection and there are no angels and these guards are coming from the tomb to tell them what about a real resurrection and about a real angel he sits in heavens and laughs at man's attempts to cover up the resurrection of his son and so here they come to the chief priests and they spill it all out to them a violent earthquake a real angel came down awesome he went to the tomb single-handedly rolled the stone away and sat on it himself and priest that tomb was empty there wasn't anyone inside there well these chief priests have a real dilemma on their hands don't they the very guard that they posted to ensure that no one stole the body and no lying story about some resurrection from the dead could happen instead that very guard become the confirming witness and testimony to a real resurrection of Christ from the dead with a real angel rolling back the stone to show that [27:29] Christ was indeed risen how the Lord thwarts the purposes of the people and fulfills his own well what are they to do well they they call a meeting when you don't know what to do you call a meeting and they gathered the elders this is part of the Sanhedrin the high court of Israel and they're discussing their problem the chief priests spill the beans to them tell them what the this is what these these guards told us so it's a moment of truth then for these Jewish religious leaders what will they do but they show once again they care nothing zero for the truth they don't care about the truth all they care about is maintaining the control of the people that's why they turned Jesus over Pilate knew it was for envy and the chief priests voted for a cover up plan to deny the resurrection of Christ they'll pay the soldiers a large amount of hush money to tell a lie instead of the truth so much for the ninth commandment so much for the right use of the offerings that people brought to the temple here's the lie they put into the soldiers mouths you're to say his disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep excuse me isn't that why the guard was posted in the first place to keep that very thing from happening and if they were all sleeping then how could they know that his disciples or anyone for that matter came away and during their sleep and stole the body you see it was such a flimsy cover up it was also embarrassing and costly for the guards to confess this for the punishment for a [29:35] Roman guard's dereliction on duty was great even execution in some cases oh but the chief priest promised the guards if this report gets back to governor pilot we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble I think they were saying we've got more money where this came from we know how to silence and handle pilot too excuse me but if these guards had really fallen asleep while they were guarding the tomb would you chief priest not be the first ones to go tell pilot to punish them for their dereliction of duty you see your story just doesn't hold up on any level it was a lame lie to be sure but they had the guards over a barrel you see and so they agreed due to the large amount of money but also the promise of protection from trouble they took the money and they told the lie now [30:41] Matthew is writing his gospel around 30 years after the resurrection and he's able to say that this story about the disciples stealing the body away while the guards slept this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day 30 years later as flimsy as it was with all the eyewitness evidence on record to the contrary the lie lived on no doubt helped along by the father of lies the devil himself but you know it doesn't it doesn't need a credible lie when sinners would rather believe the lie than believe the truth for if Jesus is still dead then we don't have to sweat anything that he ever said about him coming back to judge the living and the dead about him being the judge to determine the eternal destinies of men based on what they did with him no if he never rose from the dead well we can write it all off as a fanatical claim of a mere man who's died and is dead that's why the lie is so believable men don't want to believe the truth oh but if he is risen from the dead as he promised then every other thing that he ever said is also true no one comes to the father but by me and because [32:19] I live you disciples of mine you will live also his resurrection guarantees yours it's interesting that about a hundred years after Matthew's gospel so about a hundred and thirty years after the resurrection Justin Martyr a Christian apologist of the second century writes a defense of Christianity to Trifo the Jew and he's defending Christianity before this Jew called Trifo and he writes to him you Jews have sent chosen men throughout the whole world to proclaim that Christianity is a godless and lawless heresy started by one Jesus of a Galilean deceiver whose disciples stole him by night from the tomb here we are hundred and thirty years after the resurrection and the lie just lives on well it's it's even into this century it's still being believed there's somebody that believed it that you know quite well it was [33:33] Saul of Tarsus a Pharisee brought up in the greatest Jewish pharisaical instruction in Jerusalem who no doubt heard and bought into the lie carrying the party line of the stolen body of Christ by the disciples you know he worked with the chief priest who hatched the lie and he got letters from them to go and to persecute any Christians that he could find over a hundred miles away in Damascus of Syria and he devoted his life to persecuting believers seeking to rid the earth of every remembrance of that Galilean deceiver Jesus of Nazareth that is until he met him the risen Christ on the road to Damascus who in a blaze of heavenly glory knocked him to the ground and calling him by name said [34:35] Saul Saul why are you persecuting me and Saul from the ground says who are you Lord and he says I am Jesus whom you are persecuting it's just a matter of days that Saul went from being the persecutor of Jesus and his followers seeking to rid the earth of this lie about a resurrection to being a new man in Christ forgiven and now preaching the very gospel he once tried to stamp out preaching that Jesus is the Messiah the Son of God as he claimed and he is a living risen Savior indeed he has risen from the dead he became a bold preacher of the resurrection of Christ even when because of it Governor Felix blurted out you're out of your mind [35:37] Paul your great learning has made you mad well he would say with the rest of the apostles when they were drug before the Jewish religious authorities for proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead we cannot help but speak of that which we have seen and heard you can cling to your flimsy lie about a stolen body we can't help but speak about the truth we've seen we've heard a living resurrected Jesus they were willing to die for that reality and indeed many of them did Paul as he went everywhere preaching the resurrection of Christ was laughed down by the idol worshipping philosophers of Athens when he finally came in his testimony to the resurrection of Jesus at 1730 and 31 he tells these idol worshippers in the past God overlooked such ignorance you bowing down to stone and wood he let the nations go their own way but now he [36:47] God your creator commands all people everywhere to repent for he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he appointed and he's given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead that's when they sneered but a few believe the resurrection of Jesus from the dead is God's proof to all men then and now that the day of judgment is still on you see they thought it was over with we'll take care of this deceiver we'll kill him we'll bury him and we won't have to deal with this talk about a coming day of judgment and him being the one making the decisions and Paul says no you know God raised him from the dead and that's the proof that judgment is still on that date on the calendar of heaven is coming the judge is living and he's coming back to judge all men [37:52] I wonder if this living judge is your savior if so you have nothing to dread about that day of judgment but if you're outside of Christ you'll face what we talked about last week the wrath of him who sits upon the throne and the lamb oh but if he is your savior then there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus so why does the resurrection of Christ matter so much why is the New Testament so concerned about giving us proof after proof after proof eyewitness after eyewitness after eyewitness why is God so careful to expose the lie with credible eyewitness accounts well because as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15 if Christ is not risen then our preaching is useless zero and so is your faith more more over we are liars because we said [39:01] God raised him from the dead and your faith is futile you're still lost in your sins and you're to be pitied more than all men because the historical fact of the resurrection of Jesus body from the dead is the linchpin on which hangs the whole of Christianity Paul's not one for playing games in religion don't you like that about him I like that about a man I'm not here to play games if it's not true turn off the lights lock the door let's all go home Christianity is not worth the paper that the Bible is written on if Jesus is not risen let's eat and drink and be merry for tomorrow we die oh but if it is true and he really rose from the dead then it's worth everything it's worth you your heart your life your money your all your reputation if [40:12] Christ has risen from the dead and everything else he said is true for Christ has indeed been raised from the dead the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep for as in Adam all die so in Christ all will be made alive but each in his own turn Christ the first fruits and then when he returns those who belong to him it matters it matters what's going to happen to you if you belong to Christ his resurrection guarantees yours resurrection to eternal life do you belong to Jesus are you one of those have you confessed with your mouth that he is Lord and believed in your heart that God has raised him from the dead you are saved do you believe he died on the cross for your sins and because he died and then was raised to life you have eternal life that's the gospel my friend believe it receive it embrace the savior as your one and only hope of heaven you see the resurrection of [41:29] Christ has been dismissed by some as just something that the believers talk themselves into believing that they saw it's true isn't it that if someone wants to see something bad enough they can convince themselves that they actually saw it look there's Jesus in this crust of bread did you see it in that cloud in the sky some people can talk themselves into believing that if they want to see it bad enough that was not the case with the resurrection of Jesus from the dead they were not longing to see it happen rather there was no anticipation of seeing Christ risen unbelief the one common denominator of all these eyewitnesses account unbelief they didn't believe it they weren't looking for it these women they weren't going to the tomb on that third morning to see Jesus risen from the dead they went there to find a body that they could pour spices on and anoint for burial Mary Magdalene when she first saw came around the bend and saw the stone rolled away oh no someone's come and stolen the body not oh praise the Lord what he promised on the third day has happened not at all wasn't in her mind at all she runs back saying they've taken him we don't know where they put him she thinks they stole the body when they're afraid that the disciples will steal the body the eleven disciples didn't wake up on that third day and say hey remember guys he said the third day he'd rise again let's get to the tomb this is the third day no they didn't even believe the women when they came and told them he was risen because their words sounded like nonsense like gibberish the eyewitness accounts of [43:28] Jesus resurrection were not gullible people predisposed to seeing their savior alive from the dead they were all doubters to a person until they were surprised to see him to touch him to hear him and only then could they not believe any longer so we read on the day of resurrection Jesus appeared to the women to Peter to two on the road of Emmaus to the eleven minus Thomas and of this appearance on the evening of that first day of resurrection we're told the doors were locked for fear of the Jews and suddenly there he was standing before them they're frightened thinking they've seen a ghost and he says look at my hands and my feet and he showed them his sigh wounds still visible it's I myself touch me and see a ghost does not have flesh and blood as you see [44:30] I have and while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement he asked them do you have anything here to eat and they gave him a piece of broiled fish and he took it and ate it in their presence do you see how this Jesus stoops to help his weak faith disciples to believe the unbelievable that Jesus is alive they were convinced of it and later they tell Thomas who was absent that day we have seen the Lord well that settles it then I guess he's risen indeed you know better not Thomas not doubting Thomas oh no it didn't matter what they said and how many of them there was unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my fingers where the nails were and put my hand into his side [45:32] I will not believe and exactly one week later his disciples were in the house again and Thomas was there that day and though the doors were locked Jesus came and stood among them and said peace be with you and then he turned and said to Thomas put your finger here see my hands reach out your hand and put it into my side stop doubting and believe is that not Jesus gentleness with his own all Thomas could say was my Lord and my God and then Jesus told him because you've seen me you've believed blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed that would be you who believe that would be me we've not seen but we have believed the credible eyewitnesses of those who did see you see we don't need to see it's been testified to over and over again by credible witnesses in God's inspired word and they're not a bunch of gullible [47:07] Christians that were expecting Jesus to rise from the dead do you see how that strengthens their testimony which would you rather have a bunch of Christians say okay it's the third day let's go see him and they all say yes he's alive or those who said I won't believe it unless I put my fingers in the nail prints and my hand into his side that's a testimony I want to hear if it overcame such doubt and unbelief as that we don't need anything else no rather it's just the problem of man not wanting to believe the truth so man's sinful unbelief is overruled and worked together for good to give a stronger confirming testimony of Jesus real physical resurrection from the dead so Peter can write to you and to me and to his hearers though you haven't seen him you love him that can be said of many of you here this morning you've never seen [48:09] Jesus but you love him you love him there's no doubt about that and though you have not seen him yet you believe in him and are receiving the goal of your salvation the salvation the goal of your faith the salvation of your souls you're filled with joy unspeakable and full of glory you've never seen him but you believe and you you have the joy and peace that comes from believing blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe those are the words of Jesus the living savior he's good on his word and you will have that blessing of eternal life count him your savior your lord say with Thomas my lord and my god worship him we're going to sing a song that says behold our god that's what we're saying about this one who rose from the dead yes he's the creator but he's also the redeemer that died for our sins and rose again on the third day and lives for us and because he lives he is able to save completely all who come unto [49:36] God through him why because he always lives to make intercession for us you put your trust in this Jesus it should be a comfort for you to know that he's in heaven in a real body as real as yours and mine only glorify and he has all the power of heaven and earth to see that you his trusting disciple gets all the way home to heaven because he ever lives and he sends grace and mercy to help us so that no one is lost that puts their trust in him why is this so important it's for your comfort it's for your comfort to know he indeed is who he said he is the son of God it was proven by his resurrection it's for your comfort to know how would we know we know that Jesus died on a cross and the bible says he died for our sins but how do we know that the father was satisfied with his atoning sacrifice because if his sacrifice didn't satisfy the justice of God then I've still got a problem [50:45] I still have sins to be punished but the resurrection is God's amen to Jesus it is finished he suffered all that was needed of the wrath of God to take away our sins and to separate us from them as far as the east is from the west to remember them no more to blot them out in his own blood so that we know that there is no wrath remaining for us you see the resurrection is important that you might have that comfort to be able to face death and know that there is no more sting in death for me Jesus took the stinger and bore the wrath and death is now my entrance into glory hallelujah behold our God stand with me and let's sing it of our savior from the overhead behold our God our Gode verse