The Victory Has Been Won!
Part 2
Sermon Notes: Sunday, March 30, 2008
Rev. Jim
O’Neal, Senior Pastor
I Corinthians 15:12-28 NRSV
12Now if
Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can
some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? 13If there is no resurrection of
the dead, then Christ has not been raised; 14and if Christ has not
been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in
vain. 15We are even found to
be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that he raised Christ —
whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16For if the dead are not raised,
then Christ has not been raised. 17If
Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your
sins. 18Then those also who
have died in Christ have perished. 19If
for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be
pitied.
20But in
fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have
died. 21For since death came
through a human being, the resurrection of the dead has also come through a
human being; 22for as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in
Christ. 23But each in his own
order: Christ the first fruits, then at
his coming those who belong to Christ. 24Then
comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, after he has
destroyed every ruler and every authority and power. 25For he must reign
until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26The last enemy to be destroyed
is death. 27For “God has put
all things in subjection under his feet.”
But when it says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is plain that
this does not include the one who put all things in subjection under him. 28When all things are subjected to
him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to the one who put all things
in subjection under him, so that God may be all in all.
A.
Introduction
1. Tombs
a. In the book “WHO IS
JESUS?” author Bruce A. Demarest says:
“Throughout the centuries men have tried to honor their heroes by
erecting lavish monuments: the massive
pyramids of Egypt, built as resting places for the Egyptian pharaohs; the
glistening Taj Mahal, the
tomb of an Indian emperor and his favorite wife; Lenin’s tomb in Red Square,
the place where the body of the Marxist leader is preserved by some mysterious
process; the burial vault at Mount Vernon, the site of President Washington’s
interred body.”
b. “In its stark simplicity Jesus grave
can’t compare with these costly crypts.
But the tomb of Jesus excels in the most important respect. It lies empty! He is not there!”
2. Today’s Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:20
a.
That is the wonderful message of Easter. Today’s Scripture proclaims what the
followers of Jesus had truly witnessed: “The fact is that Christ has been raised from the dead! He has become the first of a great harvest of
those who will be raised to life again!” (1 Corinthians 15: 20
NLT)
b.
Jesus, who had been dead, came back to life! So what does this Good News tell us? It, of course, means wonderful and glorious
things that the Son of God was raised from the dead. Last Sunday, on Easter, I shared two of these
great truths. This morning I will
discuss two more of these awesome truths concerning the meaning of Easter.
B.
Easter is about victory!
1. Middle Ages Easter
Eve Worship
a.
In the middle ages, Christians would gather at 12 o’clock outside
the Church sanctuary to celebrate a midnight mass. Beneath the silent stars a liturgist would
read one of the Gospel accounts of the resurrection of Jesus. Next followed the joyous
hymn: “Jesus Christ Is Risen Today.” Then the people shouted praises to the Lord
and rang bells! After this the priest
would hold up a lighted candle and bid all, “Come and receive light!” And the people would bring out candles. Several leaders would get their candles lit
and then turn and light someone else’s candle.
That person would turn and light the next person’s candle and so on
until everyone’s candle was lit. With
flickering flames in hand the people would proceed to the door of the
Church. Those at the front of the group
would knock loudly, and the multitude in Latin would proclaim: “Open wide, O you
gates! Open up, O you ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in!” A voice from within demanded, “Who is the King of glory?” And the answer broke forth in
exultation: “He is
the Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, victorious in battle!” (Pastor’s
translation of Psalm 24:7-8)
b.
Easter is not about doom and despair. Easter is about victory! When Christ arose He defeated sin and
death. Boasting in Christ, Paul shouts: “Death is swallowed
up in victory! O death, where is your
victory? O death, where is your
sting? How we thank God, who gives us
victory over sin and death through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (1
Corinthians 15: 54c-55 & 57 NLT)
2. Bishop Desmond Tutu
a.
Speaking at a church in this country, Bishop Desmond Tutu
proclaimed that Jesus Christ will be victorious over evil. He stated that the Lord is transforming our
world into His Kingdom. He closed by
shouting: “It is Christ that will win for ever and ever. Amen!”
b.
Christians are a people of hope and confidence. Jesus has defeated sin and death. If we trust in Him, He will raise us up and
give us His victory! And Jesus will win
the final victory. As the Bible
says: “In
Christ God was reconciling the world to himself.” (2 Corinthians
5:19a RSV) Through Jesus, God is
bringing the
C.
Easter tells us that people matter!
1. Bible witness
a.
Jesus proclaimed: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that
whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John
3:16 RSV) Paul told us: “God shows his love
for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.” (Romans
5:8 RSV) Again Jesus says: “I have come in
order that you might have life --- life in all its fullness.” (John
10:10b TEV) And Paul, also, says: “For
I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love. Death can’t, and life can’t. The angels won’t, and all the powers of hell
itself cannot keep God’s love away. Our
fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, or where we are—high above the
sky, or in the deepest ocean—nothing will ever be able to separate us from the
love of God demonstrated by our Lord Jesus Christ when he died for us.” (Romans
8:28-39 TLB)
b. You
are precious to our Creator. You are so
important to God, that God willingly gave His own Son to bring about your
redemption. God loves you so much that
the Almighty wants your life to be blessed and full. God’s love is so strong that the Creator will
never forsake or abandon you. Nothing
can break the bond of God’s love for you.
And in Jesus, God will get you through all difficulties in this life,
till you receive the joy of the eternal victory in Heaven!
c.
Not only does the Bible tells us that people matter to God, it
also tells us that people should matter to us.
When Jesus was asked by a man, “Which commandment in
the law is the greatest?” He said to
him, “You
shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and
with all your mind, and you shall love your neighbor
as yourself.” (From Matthew 22:36-37 & 39 NRSV) And further Jesus said to His disciples: “A new command I
give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one
another. By this all men will know that
you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35
NIV) John tells us the same: “Dear friends, let
us love one another, because love comes from God. Whoever loves is a child of God and knows
God.” (I John 4:7 TEV) “The commandment we have from him (Christ) is this: those
who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.” (I John
4:21 NRSV)
d. Disciples
of Jesus are kind and loving. They treat
people with respect and value them.
2. Child Praying
a. A young mother ended her evening time
of prayer and devotions with her children by praying the Lord’s Prayer. One night, her youngest child said, “Mommy
let me lead the Lord’s Prayer tonight.”
Mother said, “OK.” And her little
boy intoned, “Our Father who are in Heaven. How’d you know my name???”
2. Child Praying…. continued
b.
The Almighty knows not only your name, but truly who you are, and
the Creator loves you very much. You are
precious to God. So is the person to
your right and left. So is the person in
front of you and behind you. Indeed, everyone
in the world is of sacred worth to God. Human
beings matter to God. That is why Jesus
came into our world. That is why He died
on the cross to save us from our sins.
And that is why the Almighty raised Him up on the third day! God did all of this for us, in and through
Jesus Christ, because God loves us so very much. Everyone is important to our Creator. Therefore, as Christians we are called to
treat others as if they mattered, because of course they do matter. We are called to be concerned about the
dignity and well being of our fellow human beings. What are you doing to bless and help others? People, who hold the Easter faith in their
hearts, are not selfish. “Easter people”
help other people, live justly, and are compassionate in word and deed.
D.
Conclusion
1. Last Sunday: We looked at
two of the great truths of Easter.
Because Jesus rose from the grave:
a. We no longer have
to fear death!
b. We no longer have
to fear life!
2. Recap: Today, we lifted up two more
Easter joys:
a. Easter is about
victory!
b. Easter tells us
that people matter!
The
Victory Has Been Won!
The joyous message of Easter:
1. We
no longer have to fear death!
2. We no longer have to fear life!
3. Easter is about victory!
4. Easter tells us that people matter!
Corinthians 15:12-28 NRSV
12Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised
from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the
dead? 13If there is no
resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; 14and if
Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith
has been in vain. 15We are
even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that he
raised Christ — whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not
raised. 16For if the dead are
not raised, then Christ has not been raised.
17If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you
are still in your sins. 18Then
those also who have died in Christ have perished. 19If for this life only we have
hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
20But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the
first fruits of those who have died. 21For
since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead has also
come through a human being; 22for as all die in Adam, so all will be
made alive in Christ. 23But each
in his own order: Christ the first
fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. 24Then comes the end, when he
hands over the kingdom to God the Father, after he has destroyed every ruler
and every authority and power. 25For
he must reign until he has put all his enemies under
his feet. 26The last enemy to
be destroyed is death. 27For
“God has put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when it says, “All things are put in
subjection,” it is plain that this does not include the one who put all things
in subjection under him. 28When
all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to
the one who put all things in subjection under him, so that God may be all in
all.