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The Saints you actually can go ahead and be seated if you for that way people can look around and find seats as they come in. But but hey I'm glad you're here. You know nearly 2 ,000 years ago our Savior rose from the grave rose from the grave and defeated death and now sets the right hand of the Father interceding for us the Saints those that are in Christ so that so that we can declare this as Paul quoted in 1st Corinthians 50 says.
Oh death where's your victory. Oh death where is your sting. It no longer has reign over us. Sin no longer has reign over us enslaving us. Those that are in Christ because of Christ. All other religions as they meet as they pray as they gather as they as they proselytize they are proselytizing a dead.
A leader that is in the grave. Mohammed is in the grave. Right that those leaders did not raise from the dead but Christ has risen from the dead and we of all people have great hope we will certainly have a resurrection like his.
That's the beautiful part is it's not just him raising from the dead it's his raising from the dead so that we too may raise from the dead. And we have a lot of reason to celebrate today. Don't do we come on guys.
Amen. Amen. So I want to say a special welcome to all of our covenant members this morning as we do each week. Thank you for your faithfulness. Thank you for bringing your gifts and using them for the glory of God and for the benefit notification of the body.
I say it each week. I don't want you to lose sight of it. You are loved. We love you. We love you dearly. This body loves you the triune. God loves you. God the Father who chose you God the Son who redeemed you and rose from the dead defeating death.
And God the Holy Spirit who now dwells within you as a son as a seal a guarantee for that glorious inheritance and resurrection. But I also want to say a special thank you to all of our guests that have joined us today.
Thank you for being here. We're so glad that you're here for you to are loved by the people of God. We care for you deeply and we want you to feel welcome. Our goal and our heart is that all of us members non-members guests every one of us children adults would grow in the fear and knowledge of God today.
Amen. Amen. Well if you are a guest today I didn't bring one of the one of the connection cards up with me. But we would ask that if you got one of those bags if you're a first-time guest as a connection card in it if you would please fill that out.
There's an area where you can ask for information about the church you can ask for prayer. There's an area you can fill out a section of prayer. And we meet every Tuesday a group of us here and we will pray specifically for that need for you.
And you can drop that connect card into the offering plate here in a little bit as it comes by. And so we're. We're just thankful that you're here. But let's go ahead and start our service this morning.
All right. How about it. Y 'all ready to worship. I am. Let's stand as a call to worship this morning which comes from Isaiah 53. It's the first six verses. And if you're not familiar again if you're a first-time guest we take scripture and we have a read and response.
So I will read a section of this passage and then as a people y 'all will read the next section of that passage and response is a corporate involvement. But Isaiah says who has believed what he has heard from us.
For he grew up before him like a young plant and like a root out of the dry ground. He had no form or majesty that we should look at him. He was despised and rejected by men a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And as one from from whom men hide their faces. Surely he has borne our grease and carried our sorrows but he was pierced for our transgressions. Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace. Hold on with his wounds.
We are healed. Let's declare that church go back to that one. Please upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace. All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way. The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
We just celebrated Good Friday just just a couple of days ago didn't we celebrate Good Friday. What makes Good Friday so good is that he who knew no sin became sin for us so that we might become his righteousness.
That's good. It's good that the the creator of all things the second person the Godhead became like man to represent us to be the true and better Adam and pay the penalty for our sins at the cross and take that punishment which was death for the wages of sin is death.
And he took it for us so that today we get to stand and celebrate in his resurrection as Christ was able to rise and say death has no claim on me. It has no victory over me. I have victory over death.
Let's pray a prayer of adoration to our great God who has redeemed us in such a way. Dear Heavenly Father and Lord we come to you this morning. We bow before you humbly. We know that we have no righteousness of our own.
We have no ability to to be made right before a holy a just and perfect God. For we were at enmity with God. We were all stillborn in Adam. Our our father had had brought us in through sin because of his iniquity and sin against you.
We were born in that and we had no hope. We were hopeless. We would not turn to you. No one turns to you. All of us had turned our own way. Oh but God you set out to redeem a people for yourself. And you have accomplished it by sending your own son Jesus Christ to pay the penalty for us and to defeat death so that we may no longer feel the pangs of death.
We may experience a sleep a temporal sleep in this world as we bury our loved ones as we ourselves will one day go to the grave if Christ does not return. But we know that that body will be raised and given a glorious body just as the glorious body of our risen Savior who now sets the right hand of the Father intercedes on our behalf.
We thank you. We are overwhelmed with gratitude and gratefulness to you. For you are worthy of all praise. And we ask this morning as we as we sing as we as we preach as we pray as we read your word. Oh Lord.
I pray that you would be honored. Lord set aside all of the the the thoughts and the concerns and the details and all the stuff that has gone on in our lives this week and let us be solely focused on you and and your kingdom purpose today.
For your kingdom is the only thing that stands. We thank you. We pray that you were honored in it. That this worship would be a sweet smelling aroma to you in Christ's name. Amen. Jesus every promise you ever made those promises don't we because we do experience we talked about the resurrection.
We we know it's power. We know that that our Christ our Savior has risen. But yet we still see the death around us. Don't we. We still see sin around us. But we hold to the promise that he has defeated it and that one day he will return and put the final enemy under his foot which is death.
I want to read from first Corinthians chapter 15 as our scripture reading this morning I believe it'll be on the screen. I'm gonna read the first few verses and then skip down to verse 12 on through the chapter where Paul says.
Now would remind you brothers. Oh man we need to be reminded often. Don't we. I would remind you brothers of the gospel I preached to you what you received and in which you stand and and by which you are being saved.
If you hold fast to the word I preached to you unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received that that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures that he was buried that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures.
Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead how can some of you say that. But there is no resurrection of the dead. But there is no resurrection of the dead. Then not even Christ has been raised.
And if Christ has has not been raised and 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 also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
If in Christ we have hope in this life only we are all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
For as in Adam all died so also in Christ shall all be made alive each in his own order. Christ the firstfruits. Then it has coming those who belong to Christ that's us. Then comes the end when he delivers the kingdom to God the father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.
For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. Christ reigns today doesn't he. And he's putting the enemy under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For God has put all things in subjection under his feet.
When I when it says all things are put in subjection it is plain that he is accepted put all things in subjection under him and all things are subjected to him. Then the son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him that God may be all in all.
This is the reading of God's Word this morning our scripture reading. And in light of that I want us to go to the Lord and a prayer of confession and assurance as we do each week one of acknowledging that sometimes we fall prey to that flesh.
Right. Every day we do I say sometimes I do every day don't you. We fall prey to the flesh. It wars against us. We now have a nature that wants to serve God and live a holy life. But we still have the flesh that Jesus himself is is working on.
The Holy Spirit is sanctifying us. So we pray a prayer of confession and acknowledgement of that sin in our lives. But it's not penance as Christ has paid for it. And so we pray a prayer of assurance along with it that we are therefore now not under any condemnation.
So pray with me as we pray this prayer of confession. And this morning Oh Heavenly Father we bow before you once again. And Lord we acknowledge our sin both individually corporately as it as our flesh wars against us and oftentimes wins the victory of that battle and draws us and our hearts and our minds away from our communion with you.
It wreaks havoc on our brothers and sisters. Our own sin does it. It causes disunity. Father my selfishness hurts my brothers and sisters. But more importantly my selfishness had to be had to be punished upon the cross.
My Savior took it upon himself. So why should I go on sending that grace may abound. Oh Lord forgive us. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. And we battle and we fight. Oh but Lord we we know that even still we get to come before you.
We get to come before you in righteousness perfect holiness. Not because of what we do. Not because we were good and we went to church and we read our Bible every day. And we prayed every day. Not because we shared the gospel with somebody.
Not because we we know a bunch of theology and and and we know scripture and having a lot of it memorized. Not because of any of those things. For none of those things or of any value if they're not done out of a love for Christ.
And we only have a love for Christ because of what he has done for us out of his love for us. It is his righteousness that allows us to come boldly into the throne room of our father. Now for you were our judge and executioner.
But in Christ you have become our father. You have adopted us sons and heirs joint heirs with Christ. We thank you for your great mercy. We thank you for the assurance that we get to stand in this morning knowing that there is therefore now no condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus.
And all God's people said this song's again I'm Jordan stormy banks praise you this morning. You will reign forever.
Lord what an awesome day to be in your house Lord and worship you and praise you our risen Savior. You are risen Lord and we have so much Lord we have so much to look forward to Lord. Lord I pray this morning Lord that you would just or that you would be with this be with the remaining of this service.
Lord I pray that you would be with pastor Nathan as he as he brings your word this morning. Lord I pray that you would just knowing him give him the words to speak. Lord open all of our hearts open our ears open our minds or carry out any distractions we may have.
Jesus father Lord. Lord I pray that you would bless this offering this morning Lord. Father we love you we praise you we ask all these things in your son Jesus precious and holy holy name and all of God's.
People said open up your copy of God's Word to John chapter 20. John chapter 20 this is a familiar text. If you have a copy of God's Word with you whether on your phone or had or a physical copy with you I highly encourage you to be able to see it for yourself as we walk through.
The text is important for you saying to be able to study God's Word on your own and part of Sunday gathering is equipping you for that very purpose. And so those of you that are guests you may be accustomed to churches putting the passage up on the screen.
We do not do that on purpose because I want our people and you to learn how to delve into God's Word on your own. So John chapter 20 familiar passage here I want us to read. Starting in verse 1 we're gonna read through this account where John writes.
Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early. Well it was still dark and and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciples the one whom Jesus loved and and said to them they have taken the Lord out of the tomb and we do not know where they have laid him.
So Peter went out with the other disciples and they were going toward the tomb. Both of them were running together but the other disciple out ran Peter and reached the tomb first and stooped to look in.
He saw the linen cloths lying there but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came following him and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there and the face cloth which had been on Jesus's head not lying in the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself.
Then the other disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in and he saw and believed for as yet they did not understand the scriptures that he must raise from the dead. Then the disciples went back to their homes but Mary stood weeping outside the tomb and as she wept she she stooped to look into the tomb and she saw two angels in white setting where the body of Jesus had lain one at the head and one at the feet.
And they said to her woman why are you weeping. She said to them they have taken away my Lord and I do not know where they have laid him. Having said this she turned around and saw Jesus standing but she did not know that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to her woman why are you weeping. Whom are you seeking supposing him to be the gardener. She said to him sir if you have carried him away tell me where you have laid him and I will take him away.
Jesus said to her Mary. She turned and said to him in Aramaic Rabboni which means teacher. And Jesus said to her I do not cling to me for I have not yet ascended to the father but go to my brothers and say to them I am ascending to my father and your father to my God and your God.
Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples I have seen the Lord and that he had said these things to her. This is the reading of God's holy inspired word. Let's let's bow our heads once again let's pray please pray with me that the Holy Spirit would illuminate our hearts and minds to the truth of this word.
Oh Lord we humbly come before you once again and we acknowledge our frailty. We acknowledge that we oftentimes read your your precise scriptures wrongly. We read ourselves into it. We we read our preconceived ideas into it.
But we ask that you not allow us to do such a thing this morning. Or that we would be true to your word Lord help us Holy Spirit illuminate our hearts and minds to its truth to guard my lips from error.
And we do ask this morning that for those who are in here who may not be in Christ this morning Holy Spirit we ask that you would awaken them. They would see the glory of of the risen Savior today and see the power of God in that great resurrection and the substitution that Christ gave on behalf of his children the Lord.
I pray that you would work in our midst today be honored in Christ's name. Amen. Well I'm gonna go out on a limb and I'm gonna assume that if you are with us this morning you believe in the resurrection at least a mental assent to the facts.
After all there is far too much historical evidence and even more trustworthy biblical evidence to the fact that this is true for any sane person to try and deny of the resurrection of Christ. So the question is not whether or not you believe the facts of Christ raising from the dead but whether you have experienced its power in your life.
That's the distinction. You can know the truth you can know the facts. But have you experienced that power in your life. I would like for all of us to be like the Apostle Paul when he said in Philippians 3 he said that I may know him and the power of his resurrection.
That I may know him and the power of his resurrection. You may know of him. You may know of his resurrection. But do you know him. And do you have you experienced the beauty and power in that glorious resurrection from the dead.
Because the resurrection of Christ as most of you already know is very different than any other thing that's ever happened now. Did Jesus raise people from the dead in his earthly ministry. He did. We have accounts of people in the New Testament being raised from the dead.
Here's the difference. Those people then died again. They were simply brought back to life momentarily. But this resurrection is something different. This is a resurrection that claims death no longer has reigned.
Death no longer has a hold of him. Have you experienced that power. I think there are many professing Christians today who are very committed to their Lord. They're committed to their church. They may be committed to good deeds.
They may be committed to evangelism. They may be very committed Bible readers and studiers. They may love theology. You may have a whole library of old dead saints that you love to read. You may have all of Calvin's commentaries and you've gone through them all.
You may love those things all of them together. However you may very well still be plagued by doubt fear and anxiety in your life. Many Christians are you were overcome by these things. There are a number of reasons why we struggle with this and one of those may be that we have never truly experienced the power of the resurrection as I have said.
Or that we have experienced it. But we've lost sight of it. We've lost sight of that wonderful powerful work of God and miraculous act of God. We see a perfect example of this here in Mary Magdalene. I love how John focuses attention on Mary in this account.
Look at look at verse 1. He says. Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early while it was still dark and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. See we know from other gospel accounts over in Mark we see that there are two other women with her Mary the mother of James and and Salome.
I think is how you pronounce it. These other two women are with him. However John doesn't even mention the other two in this account which leads some people to say the gospel accounts are not accurate.
You see how they have different accounts. He doesn't even mention the other two. That's not the purpose John. He's just this is his way of writing. He strips away all other distractions. He stays hyper focused on what he wants us to see in that very moment in his account.
And he obviously wants us to see the actions of Mary Magdalene here. But before we do that I think it would be helpful for us to to know a little bit about this particular woman that will help us see maybe why John is focusing his attention here.
There's so many Mary's in the New Testament. It's hard to it's hard to keep them straight isn't it. It gets a little bit confusing. There's a lot of Mary's a very common name of that day and and Magdalene was not her last name.
They didn't have last names during that day. They probably called her this because she was from the city of Magdalene. That's probably how she got that nickname. That's how they would different differentiate the Mary's.
Hey where you from. We're going to identify you with where you're from. She's commonly associated wrongly with the woman that washed Jesus's feet with her hair and Luke 7. But this is not her. She gets confused with the woman that Jesus saved from stoning.
But scripture does not say this. But we do know something about her past a matter of fact over in Luke in chapter 8 in the first two verses we see we see her. We see where Luke says. Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.
This is Christ of course. And and the twelve were with him. And also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities. Mary called Magdalene from whom seven demons had gone out. So Mary Magdalene is here and we we do know that she apparently had seven demons.
This tells us two things about Mary. I believe number one is before Jesus she had the seven demons. Right. So we know this. We don't get a lot of detail about what life was like for Mary with those seven demons.
But from the accounts that we have of other people who have demons it probably wasn't very pretty. It was probably a life of torment very miserable terror and slavery that she had undergone for her life.
But the second thing that we see is that once Jesus had freed her from this this torment had freed her from these seven demons. She dropped everything and followed him. You can imagine why. Right. You can imagine living a life of torment.
You have seven demons that are just tormenting you day and night and destroying your life and and wreaking havoc on everything good in your life. And then here comes here comes Jesus and he immediately gets rid of them delivers you from that torment.
From that point on she was one of the women that used all of her resources used her giftings to support the ministry of Jesus to support the other disciples in every way that she possibly could. This was true commitment wasn't it.
You can see why. She knew she wasn't going to get any position or accolades. She knew she wasn't going to be one of the twelve apostles. Right. She knew she wasn't going to be given any kind of position or or authority.
She gladly served from the shadows all the way to the end. All the way to the end when it seemed most bleak. I want you to think about this for a second. This is what Mary had been delivered from. Peter had been delivered from his sin hadn't he.
Peter had been delivered and all the other apostles have been delivered from being fishermen. This woman has been delivered from seven demons that had tormented and destroyed everything everything even remotely good in her life.
And so when things get most bleak when the mighty Peter runs and hides and denies his his Lord three times this woman stayed close to her Lord as close as she possibly could. She stayed close. She watched him beaten and humiliated.
She stood right near him during the crucifixion seeking to comfort him. When the men were cowards she stood right in the midst of the enemy seeking to serve her Lord. And now on the first day of the week here she comes the tomb early.
She comes while still dark. We see a see a bit of a Proverbs 31 woman in that right. It's still dark. She's gotten up early to go handle business. And what does she do. She goes and she sees the stone have been taken away from the tomb.
Even after all that she had seen. She is still committed to her Lord. Isn't she. Mary is still committed to her Lord. She and two other women set out early not knowing if the guards were gonna move the stone.
That was a heavy stone. There's no way those women could have moved it. They don't know if they're gonna be able to move it knowing that they're going to be mocked and ridiculed not expecting anything in that tomb but a lifeless corpse.
But it's the corpse of their Lord and they desire to care for him. This is commitment. Is it not. She loves her Lord. But just as they get there look there at the second part of that verse and one. And they saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.
Right. Mary's first thought was not he's alive. It's not our first thought. Even though this had been clearly told to all of them by Jesus he was pretty clear about it. Wasn't he even in the midst of that.
They don't know. Look at verse 2. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciples. Resurrection didn't even cross her mind. She immediately runs. Notice the panic response that the other two.
The other two didn't even react this way. We don't even have an account of the other two doing the exact same response as Mary. Mary's responding out of trauma. Think about it. Think about her past again.
This is why we wanted to look at her past demon possession torment. Just a ridicule shame and guilt her entire life. The reality of this broken world and of our own brokenness drove her to be blinded in a moment of reaction.
She has this desire to serve her Lord. She doesn't even see the spiritual realities in the midst of it. She panics. She just sees the tomb open and she runs. She doesn't think about resurrection at all.
Does she. Because she's overwhelmed by the by the realities of her position and her current reality. Look at the passage. Then what does she do. She runs to the other disciples the one whom Jesus loved now as a side note everybody kind of makes a joke about this.
That that what he's doing is saying that that kind of bragging like Jesus really loved this disciple. That's not what it is. I think he's writing this in a way of humility. He has to tell the story of what's happened.
And he's telling the story in a way where he doesn't even mention himself. He's wanting to hide behind the fact that Jesus loved him. Not because he loved Jesus. Right. I love that. But he says and said to them they have taken.
This is what Mary says. They have taken the Lord. He's her Lord. Is any master. He's her Lord. And they have taken him out of the tomb. And we do not know where they have laid him. And then in verses 3 through 8 we see Peter and John run to the tomb.
Of course. And when they see for themselves look down at verse 9. For as yet they did not understand the scripture. I said it a moment ago. Right. Jesus already warned them. The scriptures had attested to this.
The Old Testament had even prophesied of this. Jesus himself had told them that this was going to happen. But they didn't understand it. It says that he must rise from that rise from the dead. Then the disciples went back to their homes.
Typical guy thing. Right. Here's the facts. Here's what we know. Let's go home guys. Nothing we can do. Nothing we can do. We we we see the tomb is empty. They must have taken his body. I guess we lost all.
Right. Let's go home. Re regroup. Let's figure out what's gonna happen. But not Mary. I'll thank the Lord for the persistence of women. Right. Look at verse 11. Oh but Mary stood weeping outside the tomb.
She feels hopeless. Doesn't she. She's devastated. All she wanted was to care for the body of her Lord. And now the one that she loves so dearly who delivered her from her past. Who delivered her from torment and hell and damnation.
And all of the things that even in this life had crushed her is being desecrated. At least in her mind. They've taken his body. Hopelessness that has plagued her that ruled her. That fear and anxiety comes rushing back over her flesh.
And her flesh takes over over the past few days. She has watched the one that she loves so dearly that has redeemed her her Lord. She saw him arrested. She watched him be wrongly arrested taken in by those that hate him.
She stood and watched him get beaten brutally. She watched him ridiculed and spat upon and ultimately crucified and killed. She has seen his lifeless body. The one that she had hoped in and had followed had given her the last few years of her life to and now she can't even care for his body.
She must have been overcome by emotion. We can't read scripture and detach from this. There's human emotion all involved in this narrative of a historical truth of what happened. This woman is weeping.
She feels the weight of all of it. And it's overwhelming her. You know that feeling. Don't you of the hopelessness and the anxiety of this world. When all seems dark you're being crushed under the weight of your perceived reality.
Notice how I said that you're not being crushed under the weight of the reality. You're being crushed under the weight of your perceived reality. And this is her perceived reality in the moment she feels it.
It's weighing down on her. And it says that she's as she wept. She stooped to look into the tomb. She's standing there. She's weeping. The men have already looked in the tomb. They've already gone in there.
She looks in the tomb. I can only imagine her grieving and her grasping for hope for something thinking hoping. Maybe we missed something. In verse 12 it says that she saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had laid one at the head and one at the feet.
It this is how grief-stricken this woman is. She doesn't even see this miraculous thing in front of her. Think about that for a second. She sees the angels. She obviously knows they're angels. All of the sudden there are these two angels wearing white casually just sitting in the tomb.
And she doesn't even think twice about it. She's overcome by anxiety and fear that she does not even notice something miraculous in front of her. Not for what it is. Her perceived reality is distorting the reality in front of her eyes that she sees God working.
It's kind of like us at times. Isn't it now be careful. We're not reading ourselves into the text but this is a narrative that is showing us a human response to something happening. And all of us have a propensity towards that same human response.
Don't we we become so distracted by our anxiety and our fear that comes from sin. Paul had already taught Paul's told us be anxious for nothing. Right. That that fear doesn't come from the Lord. That's our flesh that we don't even notice God working in the midst of it.
We don't see God's providential caring hand at work. We just don't see it even when it's obvious. Look down at verse 13. These angels they said to her woman now this is a term of endearment right. In our day if I walked up to one of you went one.
You'd be like you probably slap me right. Rightfully so. But in this day this is a term of endearment. It's it. This is ah a woman created by God. This is a good thing. They say woman why are you weeping huh.
It's almost like this the spiritual realm is setting her going. Man these guys yeah they're kind of dumb like we've told them. We've told them again we've written it. It's like it's all there. It's out in the open.
They don't even see it in front of them. Like here's two angels set in a tomb talking to you. And you're still like distraught and don't get it. Why are you weeping. She said to them they have taken my Lord.
There's that my Lord again. Right. That just like in verse 2. And I don't know where they've laid him. This word Lord Krios means master. She she's claiming him as master. They've taken him. He may be dead he may be in the tomb.
But he is still my Lord. He's still my master. He is the Lord the master over all things. But here in verse 13 she makes it very personal. Doesn't she. He even in death is my master. He's not just the king.
We've sang songs this morning about Jesus reigning as king. Haven't we. That's all good. And well and we should. Jesus reigns as king. But you don't realize he's your king. Even the lost pagan world out there that that that rails against him and and runs over his laws and his goodness.
He's their king. He's king over all. But here she is. She's making it very personal. He is my master. He's my king. And I don't know where they've laid him. He's our master. He's our Lord. He's the Lord of all.
Yes she is distraught by anxiety and fear. Look at verse 14. Having said this she turned around and saw Jesus standing here again. But she didn't even know that it was Jesus. And we don't know why. I don't know if it was her anxiety.
The same situation with the angels. We just know that he hadn't revealed himself to her yet. Look at verse 15 and Jesus said to her no no. Hold on. Some kind of blindness going on here gotta be. Because if she loves him so dearly she's been with him for long time.
She's gonna recognize his voice. Wouldn't she. But she doesn't. And he says the same thing that the angels said woman why are you weeping. Term of endearment. Of course. And he says whom are you seeking.
Almost as if Jesus is thinking Mary Mary. And why would I be in there. Why. Why would I be in there. But Christ knew he knows the heart of man knows the heart of woman. You know she didn't have the power to see him.
You knew she didn't have the power to believe at that moment. She made assumptions based on her limited perspective. Didn't she it says supposing him to be the gardener. She said to him sir if you've carried him away tell me where you've laid him.
And I I will take care. I will take him away. Her commitment to the Lord though short-sighted and and burdensome she's still carrying that out. She was willing to go get his body herself to bury it herself.
Notice something in the midst of this. I will do this for my Lord. I will care for him. I will honor him. I think many Christians live like this. Don't we. What can I do for God. We've been redeemed we've been saved not by our own merits or work.
But now on this side of salvation we have a propensity to think what can I do for my Lord. What do I need to do to take care of my Lord. What do I need to do. Me me me I. And in the midst of doing this we find ourselves in despair.
Don't we. When I do this I find myself exhausted and overwhelmed and doubting every time I become burdened down with. I need to do this for God. But look what Jesus said to her verse 16. And in the midst of in the midst of her saying I'll go get his body.
I'll bury him. I'll let me take care of the Lord Jesus. In that moment he reveals himself to her and he exposes that Mary you you don't have to do anything for me. I'm doing it for you. I'm the one doing it right.
What does he say. He's he just says Mary he says her name. This woman has been blinded by grief sees clearly. Now he says her name and she turned and said to him an Aramaic rabbi which means teacher. Why.
Why does she see now. Why was she blinded before. But now she sees how is this possible. Because Jesus the risen Savior called her by name. Jesus revealed himself to her. Jesus had said already in his earthly ministry says my sheep hear my voice.
And they come to me. They follow me. My sheep hear my voice. A moment ago she was planning on finding her Lord's body and caring for it and now she is in the presence of the risen Lord. Can imagine how she responded that grief just turned to overwhelming joy.
And she probably she's probably trying to just fall at his feet and hang on to his feet hug him love on him. In verse 17 Jesus said there do not cling to me for I have not yet ascended to the Father. She doesn't want to let him go.
I'm sure she's like it's finally being revealed to her the beauty of this. And he says. But go to my brothers go to the men those men that just went home and they're just I don't know if they're giving up.
I don't know he knew what was going. I don't know but whatever was happening to say to them. I am ascending to my father and your father to my God and your God. Jesus reminding them of their oneness with him this oneness that that he has bought that he has brought them into.
In verse 18 Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples I have seen the Lord. You can imagine what that scene must have looked like busting the door in screaming going crazy. The men are like what's this crazy woman talking about now what is happening.
But she's seeing the Lord and that he had said these things to her. The atmosphere of that day it changed. Hadn't it. The whole of the of the day that was doom and gloom has now changed. It was covered in anxiety and fear overwhelmed.
And now it's rejoicing and celebration and thankfulness. In a matter of hours she has gone from. They have taken his body to now I have seen the risen Lord and this changed everything. For this she was committed to her Lord.
Wasn't she got to give it to her. She was committed probably far more than the rest of the disciples the men. But in the midst of her commitment she was plagued by fear anxiety and overcome by the flesh.
Her perceived reality crushed her. All the disciples before the resurrection they were afraid that Jesus would be taken away. They thought they would take their body take his body. They loved him they served him but but not with the power and the certainty that each one of them had once they saw the power of the resurrection.
You realize that. Right. Everything changed in that moment just as Paul said in Philippians. Right that I may know him and the power of his resurrection. It's what I need to know. I need to be reminded of.
I need I need to see it. I need to know it experientially because otherwise I am overtaken by the flesh. Because I don't see the power of God at work in front of me. They loved him they served him. These are the people Mary Magdalene included that we see boldly proclaiming the risen Savior throughout the book of Acts.
These are the people particularly the men who were willing to go and die for this fact again that's more historical evidence. Right. It's hard to deny it. You can understand one or two of them being crazy and loopy enough to go and die over over a scam that they had made up.
That the risen say that the Lord had risen. But all of them all of these men Peter who denies Jesus three times and is afraid to go be with his Savior in his moment of need is now the Peter who who says don't crucify me like my Savior.
I'm not worthy of it. Crucify me upside down. I'm willing to die because I've seen the power of the resurrection. I've seen that he has risen. And just like that passage in 1st Corinthians 15 we read a moment ago we too now will share in that resurrection.
Once we see the power that God resurrected Christ from the dead. Oh now we have. We have nothing to be anxious about. We have nothing to fear. We're not the ones that are doing all the things for Jesus.
Jesus did all the things for us. And we get to rest in it. And we get to walk in the good works that God had prepared beforehand just as Paul said in Ephesians. Right. Oh it's not up to us when we try and live the Christian life upon our our works and and us doing things for our Savior even though it's coming from a heart of goodness because our Savior has has redeemed us just like Mary Magdalene had been delivered from the seven demons.
But yet the weight of that you cannot bear I cannot bear. Our flesh will overcome that it will bear down on us. And the anxiety and fear of this life. The exhaustion of all of those works will crush you.
You can't. But once you've seen tasted that the Lord is good and you've seen the power of the resurrection and you are constantly experiencing the power of the resurrection. Now this burden is easy and his yoke is like now you're walking in the power of God the Holy Spirit that is within you convicting you of sin.
Drawing you into walking in these good works that God has prepared you beforehand doesn't mean that you don't strive. But your striving now comes with the proper perspective of reality. Before you had a distorted perspective of reality.
But in in light of the resurrection. Oh now you see reality. Now you see the final enemy will be put under King Jesus. But he has defeated it. It's already a done deal. He's just waiting to gather all of his sheep and then he's going to do away with it.
And it's certain. And just like the song we sang earlier this we know we will see the victory come. It is most certain the power of the resurrection guarantees that. So this Easter this resurrection day do not be content with just acknowledging the facts about the resurrection of Jesus has called you by name.
You have and can experience this power. And it's no longer what I can do. It's Wow. Look what he's done. Look what he defeated. Death no longer has dominion. Oh death. Where is your victory. Oh death.
Where is your sting. I can rest in that freeing power. We can rest because we have experienced the fear and anxiety of this world. But we can. We can experience it with hope. This is Paul said in Romans 6 5.
He says. For if we have been united with him and a death like his we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We of all people have ultimate hope. Amen. Amen. In light of this as we do each week let's let's prepare to go to the Lord's table as we are reminded of what our Savior has done for us as we partake of the wine and the bread.
And there's significance in all of this. I try to remind you all the time there's a reason Jesus prescribed wine for the Lord's Supper. There's imagery in it that's pure. There's no impurities in it. Just as his blood was pure.
There's also more imagery in it. There's a bitterness to wine. Is there not. It symbolizes the bitterness of what Christ had to undergo with the cross. Does it. And we are reminded of that that bitter cup that that Christ said if this cup could pass for me.
He's speaking of the bitterness of that cup that going to the cross. But he willingly did so. But there's also a sweetness to wine and the beauty of bringing us in and being part of the glorious the glorious resurrection of Christ.
The unleavened bread that we partake of today. We don't eat wafers and crackers here. We eat actual unleavened bread as Jesus prescribed. There's no leaven in a little leaven. Leavens the whole lump. Right.
There's imagery there. There's beauty there of the perfect spotless body that was given over for us Christ Jesus the the God man whom God the Father poured his wrath upon and he took our sins. There's so much beautiful imagery there.
But also it's a taste as we partake. And as you come to this table as you walk around here and gather those elements and go back to your seat and partake. You can look around. You can see brothers and sisters partake you you know what those brothers and sisters are proclaiming to you.
And you're proclaiming to them. I stand firm acknowledging that my Savior has paid for me and I am in him and he is in me. And I am following and obeying King Jesus. He is my Lord he is my Savior. But you're also proclaiming and because of that we are unified in one.
Because of that we there's a reason we do this communally on the Lord's Day. Right. You don't take the Lord's Supper at home with your family. This is here for the body to come in and declare oneness in Christ.
It's a beautiful picture. This is not penance. This is not your time to go. Oh man I gotta get rid all my sins. I gotta now be careful. Don't come in an unworthy manner if you have unrepented sin. If you know you're in sin against God and you refuse to repent of it.
Don't come to the table if you're not in Christ or you're not sure. If you're in Christ they come talk to one of the pastors. Do not go to this table. Paul said in 1st Corinthians he said he said some of you are sick and some have even died for coming to the table in an unworthy manner.
There's something uniquely special about this table that is more than just a remembrance. You don't. You don't get sick and die over just a remembrance. This is beauty. This is a beauty. And we see the beauty of the cross in this table.
Don't lose sight of that not let it become habit just because we do it every single week. Remember this is focusing our attention and our affection and our hope and our rest and all on Christ and Christ alone.
Amen. If you are in Christ today you are welcome to this table. If you are in good standing with a local Evangelical Church then you are welcome to this table. The way this works is. There'll be Pastor Jeremiah.
You'll be on this side. Pastor Keith will be over here. You will come up take of the elements come back through here and go back to your seat. You can pray individually. You can pray as a family. You can pray as a group and then partake in those elements.
And then we will. We will join back together and close in singing. Let's pray for our time at the table. Oh dear of my father. We thank you for your great sacrifice of sending your son to be to be the propitiation for our sins.
Make an atonement for for us that could not atone for our own sin. I pray as we come to the table that you would be honored in it. Do not let us lose sight of this beautiful picture of the gospel and the oneness that we have in Christ.
The oneness were brought into the triune God the oneness that we have together as siblings in the faith adopted children. We thank you. We pray that you would guard our hearts from unrepentant sin. Lord if we are living in direct rebellion against you today do not allow us to partake of these elements but allow us to.
Then lay it at the foot of the cross. Repent turn from it run from it and and then boldly come to this table. We thank you for this this ordinance. We ask that you would be honored in it. We ask that you would express your presence with us.
In a unique way as you do each week in Christ's name. Amen.