Week 3 RISEN resurrection myth or miracle 1015am media
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6. Why this SERIES?
We have a HOLY FAITH!
We have RESURRECTION
HOPE to Announce!
We have a LORD to
OBEY!
He said “Go and Make
Disciples”
7. What CAN we Do
Together?
REMIND someone to
consider JESUS
INVITE someone to join us
these NEXT SUNDAYS
LEAD a GROUP using a
GUIDE to discuss the
RESURRECTION.
14. TEXTS
“He is not here; he has risen!”
—Luke 24:6
“On the evening of that first day of the
week, when the disciples were together,
with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish
leaders, Jesus came and stood among them
and said, ‘Peace be with you!’”
—John 20:19
15. Things don’t normally come back to life,
but a couple thousand years ago something
happened that had never happened before.
A few brokenhearted people went to the
tomb of a man they loved, a man who had
just recently died, a man who they had
watched soldiers crucify and pierce.
16. They were told by a shining angel that He
wasn’t there. The tomb was empty.
“He is not here; he has risen!” (Luke
24:6).
17. That one fact, that single piece of news, is
much more important than anything else
that has ever happened in the history of the
world.
To this day, all of human history is roughly
divided into “BC,” what happened before
Him, and “AD,” what happened after Him.
18. The reason for that is not simply that the
tomb was empty. It wasn’t so much about
where Jesus wasn’t. It was about where
Jesus was.
19. “On the evening of that first day of the
week, when the disciples were together,
with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish
leaders, Jesus came and stood among them
and said, ‘Peace be with you!’”
-- John 20:19
20. 20 After he said this, he showed them his
hands and side. The disciples were
overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
[VERSE 20]
21. All of a sudden, Jesus was with them.
He was letting them
know,
“Now you have a reason to live
and a reason to die, and you
have a reason to hope beyond
all life and all death.”
22. All of a sudden He was with Mary. He was
communicating to her, “You don’t
have to go through life being
afraid anymore. Not of
anything. Not even death.”
23. All of a sudden, He was with Peter, saying in
essence, “You don’t have to go
through life feeling guilty
anymore because you failed
so often. Not even because
you failed Me by denying Me
before I died, because I’m
restoring you.”
24. Then He was with Thomas. His message
was, “You don’t have to go
through life doubting anymore.
Not about God. Not about Me.
You can live with faith and
hope and joy.”
25. Now, that’s good news!
But is it true news?
If it’s true, then the resurrection means that
your past is not unforgivable, no matter
what you’ve done.
So, if you need an injection of hope—and
this is true news—then this is very good
news.
26. EVIDENCE FOR THE
RESURRECTION
The apostle Paul wrote, “And if Christ has
not been raised, our preaching is useless
and so is your faith” (1 Corinthians 15:14).
27. Here is how Michael Green put it in an
old book called Man Alive!:
Christianity does not hold the resurrection
to be one among many tenets of belief.
Without faith in the resurrection there would
be no Christianity at all. The Christian
church would never have begun and the
Jesus movement would have fizzled. . . .
Christianity stands or falls with the truth of
the resurrection. Once you disprove it, you
have disposed of Christianity.
28. If you go to the Guinness
Book of World Records,
you’ll find the most
successful lawyer in
history was a man named
Sir Lionel Luckhoo.
He won 245 successive
murder acquittals as a
defense attorney.
29. 1.
THE EVIDENCE OF
THE EMPTY TOMB
He is not here; he has risen! Remember how
he told you, while he was still with you in
Galilee: “The Son of Man must be delivered
over to the hands of sinners, be crucified
and on the third day be raised again.” (Luke
24:6–7)
30. Here are some objections to the
resurrection that people have come up with.
And here are a few easy ways to refute
these objections.
31. Objection #1:
“The Swoon Theory”
First proposed in the 1800s, this theory
states that Christ never really died, that the
reason He got out of the grave was because
He was never really dead to begin with. The
shock from the loss of blood on the cross,
His wounds, and all that He suffered sent
Him into a semi-coma.
32. Objection #2:
“The Stolen Body
Theory”
Some say Jesus couldn’t possibly
have risen from the dead. There’s not a
chance. That kind of stuff doesn’t happen.
The body had to have been stolen.
35. After all, it was early in the morning when
these exhausted, emotionally drained,
psychologically jaded disciples saw a tomb,
which looked like Jesus’s tomb. It was
empty, they jumped for joy, thinking He was
alive, and the rest is history. However . . .
38. Apostle John
John wrote, “Then you will know the truth,
and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32),
which leads us to this—the evidence for the
resurrection which is both contemporary
and personal.
39. The Disciples
When you think about it, what was the initial
reaction of all the disciples?
• They all fled.
• Peter went back to fishing.
40. • Mary came to the tomb at the first
Easter sunrise with spices. Why? Not
to find a risen Savior! She came to anoint
a dead body. In fact, when she first saw
Him, she mistook Him for the gardener.
41. • One minute they’re defeated . . .
the next they’re dynamic.
• One minute they’re crushed . . .
the next they’re confident.
• One minute they’re having a
pity party . . . the next they’re
taking on the world.
• One minute they’re paralyzed
with fear . . . the next they’re
filled with faith.
42. John R. W. Stott wrote, “The transformation
of the disciples is perhaps the greatest
evidence of all for the resurrection.”
43. 4. Human Nature
When people are expecting death but find
life, it causes an uproar. This is what
happened historically at the time of Christ.
44. 5. Historians Agree
Something triggered the birth of a
worldwide movement two thousand years
ago that “turned the world upside down”
over the span of a few years.
45. If Jesus wasn’t resurrected, what’s the
catalyst for this world-changing movement?
One scholar said, “The coming into
existence of the Church rips a great hole in
history, the size and shape of the
resurrection.” What does the secular
historian propose to stop it up with?
46. Many More
Frank Morrison, a journalist and
lawyer, set out to disprove the
resurrection. He investigated it and
devoted his life to Christ as a result.
47. Many More
Josh McDowell, as a young agnostic
headed for law school, investigated the
resurrection and was converted and has
helped convert thousands of young
agnostics.
48. Lee Strobel was an award-winning
legal editor at the Chicago Tribune and
an athiest until he investigated the
resurrection and became one of
today’s great apologists.
49. John Singleton Copley, one of the
greatest minds in the legal circles of
England and three times Lord Chancellor
of Great Britain, had a similar
experience. He said, “I know what
evidence is and evidence like that for the
resurrection has not broken down yet.”
50.
51. The only one who may not yet have written
or declared their decision is sitting in this
church right now.
John wrote, “Then you will know the truth,
and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32).
52. If you have believed these truths and are
willing to receive Christ today, please pray
this prayer.
53. Dear God, thank You for sending Your
Son, Jesus Christ, to earth.
I believe Jesus was who He said He was and
proved it by rising from death.
I want to discover and begin following Your
plan and purpose for my life.
54. I want to get to know You personally.
Thank You, Jesus, for dying for me and
forgiving all my sins.
I receive You as my Lord and Savior.
Thank You for Your free gift of eternal life.
AMEN.
