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The Multiple Emotions of Resurrection Sunday

The Bible is full of remarkable mornings.

There's the morning Abraham grabbed Isaac and headed out for a little hike to Mount Moriah. The morning Jacob woke up and set up those pillars of stone in honor of God at Bethel. The morning in Babylon when the sun started shining through the bars of the lion's den and Daniel made it through the night. And what about that morning after the disciples spent a terrible night at sea in the storm on the Sea of Galilee?

Every one of those mornings is great. You could literally go on and on and on.

But nothing — nothing — can compare to the morning we're talking about here.

There has never been a morning like this one before. There will never be one like it again. This is the morning when our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ conquered death, hell, and the grave. The morning when Jesus pulled the stinger from death and gave eternal life to all those who place their faith in him.

No question — this is the best morning ever.

1. It Was a Morning of Huge Sadness

Here's the thing about the best morning ever — it did not start out that way.

Many times we're going through stuff and we don't see the best morning right away.

Luke 24 opens on the first day of the week, at early dawn. The women came to the tomb carrying the spices they had prepared. They found the stone already rolled away. When they went in, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. And while they were perplexed about this, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. The women were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground — and the men said to them:

"Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise."

— Luke 24:5–7

But when the women told all of this to the eleven and to the rest, the words seemed to them like an idle tale. They did not believe them. Peter ran to the tomb anyway, stooped in, saw the linen cloths lying by themselves — and went home marveling at what had happened.

Now here's the context for all of that.

The burial preparations had been started by Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea the night Jesus died — you can read that in John 19. The women were coming to finish what had been started. And where were the disciples? Locked in the upper room. Trembling with fear. Convinced they were probably going to get the same kind of death Jesus had just taken.

The women were sad. The disciples were scared.

Just as Jesus had said in Mark 14 — when the shepherd gets struck, the sheep will be scattered. And here they were.

Why were they so colossally bummed out? Because they had all believed that Jesus was the Messiah. They had placed their faith in him. They had expected he would set up his kingdom, throw off the bondage of the Romans — bada bing, bada boom — and get it going. Now he was dead.

Even though he had told them about the cross and the resurrection, they hadn't grasped the full meaning. Throughout Scripture it says we're veiled — he gives us eyes to see and ears to hear. But in their carnal minds, they had banked their entire future on his claims to be the Messiah, and on their understanding of what the Messiah was actually supposed to do. Now he'd been executed. They were demoralized. Disillusioned. Despondent. Defeated.

The one they'd placed all their hope in was gone. This man — who had so radically changed their lives by his power and demonstrated a love and a power of God that they couldn't even comprehend — had just died a violent and humiliating death. Shock and chaos abounded throughout Jerusalem.

If you are soundly saved, you can understand that grief. Because if there's no resurrection, we are the most to be pitied. Paul laid it out plainly in 1 Corinthians 15:12–19:

Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

He's telling us — if Jesus is still dead today, then we all have reason to be colossally bummed out. To grieve without end. To have no hope at all. If Jesus is dead, then we are all headed to hell. None of us have hope beyond this life. No one has a reason for life. We lose it all. And we are — without a doubt — the most miserable people on the planet.

That's exactly why we get so jacked about the resurrection, and about all the evidence that goes with it. There is so much evidence that Jesus actually rose from the dead that it is an indisputable historical fact.

2. It Was a Morning of Intentional Help

In the middle of all that grief and fear, God the Father took great pains to deal with the hearts of those who were soft toward him — those who were his children.

God cares about us when we hurt. And on that morning, here are just some of the things he did to encourage those who were grieving:

1. He rolled away the stone from the tomb — not to let Jesus out, but to let his followers in to see for themselves.
2. He sent an angelic messenger with the good news that Jesus was alive. Never had the world heard a message like that one. He is not here — he has risen. It still reverberates through all the halls of eternity.
3. He had a specific word of encouragement for Peter — Peter, who had denied him. Mark 16:7 records the angel's instructions: "Tell the disciples and Peter." He called Peter out by name. That's pretty remarkable.
4. He met Mary Magdalene outside the tomb. She had a great love for the Master. Great love begets great love.
5. He left a message inside the tomb. The interior was not a scene of chaos — it was a scene of serenity and order. The burial cloth that had been around the Lord's face was folded and set aside deliberately. That spoke volumes about what had happened in that tomb that morning.
6. He revealed himself to two disciples as they traveled — walking with them, explaining everything that had taken place, giving them a window into the full meaning of it all.
7. He met with his disciples that evening to show them he was alive — in the flesh, standing right in their midst.
8. He went back again a week later just for Thomas — because Thomas wasn't there the first time, and he needed the same assurance the others had received.

And that is just a sampling.

It's also worth pausing on what Luke 24:45 records: "Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures." These men had been with Jesus all that time and still couldn't quite get it. We need God to open our minds and our eyes to what the Scripture actually says. That's not a sign of weakness — it's an honest acknowledgment that without him, the full weight of it doesn't land.

For us, 2,000 years removed from the resurrection, the message has not changed. We still need to hear the good news that Jesus has risen from the dead. He is alive today. That means we have hope for tomorrow.

The person trapped in sin who sees no avenue of escape — Isaiah 61 says he came to set the captives free. He came to set you free. If you come to Jesus for salvation, he will be there to hear you and to save you. Not just to help you get through this life, but to save you from God's righteous wrath. And as much as we don't want to hear it — we deserved God's righteous wrath. And Jesus took it upon himself.

"I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades."

— Revelation 1:18 (Jesus speaking)

There is so much proof that Jesus lives. Everyone needs to know that Jesus is alive.

3. It Was a Morning of Jolting Understanding

When the disciples were cowering in the upper room out of fear for their lives, something miraculous happened right in front of them.

Jesus himself stood among them and said: "Peace to you."

They were startled and frightened. They thought they were seeing a ghost.

But Jesus had something to say about that:

"Why are you troubled? Why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have."

— Luke 24:38–39

And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. Then, to settle it once and for all, he asked if they had anything to eat. They gave him a piece of broiled fish — and he took it and ate it right in front of them.

This was no vision. No ghost. Flesh and bones, eating fish, standing in the room.

Most of the disciples hadn't fully believed until that very moment. Now they were convinced.

Luke 24:41 captures the whole atmosphere in one phrase:

"While they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling."

In today's language — it seemed too good to be true.

And honestly, when you really get your mind around authentic Christianity, to this day it still seems too good to be true. The peace that passes understanding. The joy the Spirit imprints on your heart. The changed lives. That's the proof. The disciples were beside themselves with joy — it was an exciting moment for the followers of our Lord.

This is what needs to happen in the lives of people living in our world today.

The world needs to realize that Jesus Christ is more than a baby in a manger. More than some sad sack who got himself crucified. He is more than a story in an old book. Jesus is alive. He is real. And he is the only hope you have of not facing the wrath you in fact deserve — of having your sins forgiven and gaining entrance into heaven.

That's what this day is about. He died for our sins while we were yet sinners. He was buried. And on the third day he kicked open the back door of that tomb and forever made the way for you and me to enter eternal life — by simply trusting him as Savior and believing upon him.

And that is not a "well, everything else has failed, I'll try this for a while" kind of decision. You go all in. You put all your chips to the center of the table: This is my Savior. I have no other. Jesus, take me. I'm yours. Give me that new life.

Jesus posed a question to his disciples in Matthew 16: "Who do you say that I am?" In that moment, Peter had the right answer. Do you?

And Pilate had to answer a question in Matthew 27 that every person on the planet eventually faces: "What shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?"

What is your answer to that question?

4. It Was a Morning of Huge Spiritual Repercussions

As they ate together that first resurrection morning, Jesus said to his disciples:

"These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled." Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things."

— Luke 24:44–48

God's plan was to save the world — and these men had been called by the Father to be the witnesses of it. They were to spread the news that a great spiritual victory had been won when Jesus rose from the dead.

And every one of them lived that out to the death.

Peter refused to be crucified like his Savior — they crucified him upside down, because he said he was not worthy to die the way his Lord had died. John survived an attempt to boil him alive, and when that failed, was exiled to the island of Patmos where he wrote the book of Revelation. Every one of them lived a horrible life to the death — and they did it with joy.

You can't change my mind. I'm going to live with a smile on my face no matter what.

Why? Because they had nothing to lose. Take this life — that's fine. You can't touch the one to come.

They knew what had been permanently defeated the morning Jesus walked out of that tomb.

Death Was Defeated

Imagine the struggle that ensued early that morning as death had to give up the Prince of Life.

No more would death be able to claim the victory and sting the human race with its bitter curse. Jesus entered into death's domain and rendered it helpless. Now, for the child of God, death is merely a doorway — from this land of sorrow to that heavenly land of splendor, where every tear shall be wiped from every eye, and the saints of God will live forever in the glorious presence of their exalted Savior.

Hell Was Defeated

When Jesus entered death for mankind, he faced down hell itself. And when he arose and ascended to the Father, everything changed. Now, all those who believe in Jesus go directly to the Father when they leave this world. Hell has been forever removed for the child of God.

The Grave Was Defeated

All through this life, humans fear the moment when they will lay down their body in death. We struggle for the next breath — life is built into us. But here's the perspective we sometimes miss: that hole in the ground is nothing more than a place to store this old, worn-out, sin-ridden carcass until the day of the resurrection.

When we lay this flesh down, our spirits ascend to the Father in heaven. The next time we see our bodies, they will be glorified and made like his body — read Revelation 1 and look at Jesus's glorified body, knowing that one day we too will be forever changed to be just like our Lord and Savior.

So instead of weeping for the departed saint, we ought to shout for joy. These folks have outrun us. They're already home with Jesus. There's grief for those still here, and for how much the loved one will be missed — but for those who died in Christ, they won the biggest prize this life has to offer.

"A good name is better than precious ointment, and the day of death is better than the day of birth."

— Ecclesiastes 7:1

When you understand what the resurrection means, that verse makes complete sense.

Sin Was Defeated

In truth, sin had been taken care of three days earlier at the cross. But the resurrection of Christ from the dead is God the Father's amen to the sacrifice of his Son. The one who is alive can save all who come to him by faith.

"Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them."

— Hebrews 7:25

That is a big verse. It promises great things to everyone who will believe the message. And the word believe here isn't "well, yeah, I guess so." It's faith. It's all in.

Sin does not have to defeat you. Jesus won the victory over sin at the cross, and he nailed its coffin shut when he rose from the dead. You can be free — by faith in him.

Satan Was Defeated

The old devil. The old slooh foot. The dragon. The accuser of the brethren. The old serpent. Whatever name you want to call him, the outcome is still the same — he is the enemy of God and of the people of God. And if he could take every one of us out right now, he would. He is out there every single day trying to deceive you, trying to counterfeit what God has going on so that you will fail and he will laugh at you.

But on that resurrection morning, he was permanently defeated.

He tried every way he could to short-circuit Christ's plan to go to the cross — the slaughter of the innocents in Bethlehem, the storm on the Sea of Galilee, the temptation in the wilderness, the oppression in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus endured every single one of them. He weathered every storm and made it to the cross.

And when he cried "It is finished," Satan heard the foundations of his kingdom crack.

Then on the third day, when Jesus rose from the dead, Satan witnessed the destruction of every plan and every scheme. He saw his power broken and himself judged. Revelation 20 is clear about what comes next for him.

Victory has been forever won.

Because He Lives

Because he lives, you and I can be saved by the grace of God.

Because he lives, we have our sins washed away forever.

Because he lives, we can go to heaven when we leave this world.

Because he lives, the grave has no power over those who believe.

Because he lives, eternal life is our present possession — not someday, now. Eternity has already started.

Because he lives, one day we will live with him in that heavenly city — it doesn't matter what goes on down here.

Because he lives, I'll never have to take another step in this world alone.

Because he lives, there is hope. There is help. And there is a home waiting for us in eternity.

Because he lives, my sins have been removed as far as the east is from the west. My name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

Because he lives, God is my Father and I am his child. And that is not something every person on earth can say. We are all God's creation — but only some of us are his children. And to get to be one of them is amazing.

Because he lives, sin no longer has any dominion over me. It just doesn't. I still sin. I still struggle. But it doesn't own me like it used to.

Because he lives, I am saved forever.

You could go on and on until you had exhausted all the vocabulary of all the languages of all the people on the planet — and still not get to the bottom of it.

He lives. He's alive.

Have you come to the realization that Jesus is alive and that he is what you need? Do you understand what will happen if you die without him? Do you realize there is no way into heaven except through Jesus Christ? Do you know that his death was for you?

His death will not mean anything to you until you bow before him in repentance and humility and confess your sins to him.

And for those of us who have already done that — this is a wonderful day to come before the Lord and renew your commitment to him. When you understand the true meaning of the cross and the resurrection, when you win, you praise him — and when you lose, you praise him. In any circumstance you can be thankful, even if not thankful for every circumstance.

We still get frustrated. We still stumble. We still get upset. But when we come back daily in repentance to the foot of the cross, his peace washes over us. Because this is not all there is.

Because he lives, you can face tomorrow.

And because he lives, all fear is gone.