Jesus Continues to Reign

The Resurrection of Jesus and the Empty Tomb

If you'll turn with me, please, to the Book of Revelation, Chapter 1. Before we look to the Word of God, let us pray one more time to ask His blessing upon our time. Our gracious Heavenly Father, as we consider Your Word once again, we ask that by Your Spirit You would gather with us, that You would protect us from distraction, Lord, that You would give us hearts and minds that are desirous to understand Your truth and that in all things, Jesus Christ would be glorified in this hour, we pray in His name, Amen.

I believe it was Friday evening that I went into what we call the break room at our office and was warming up a chicken sandwich, the second half of a chicken sandwich, as I recall, which is always never as good as the first half of the chicken sandwich, but I was warming that up and I turned on the television and was going to catch some news and instead, it was around that time on the Fox News channel for the O 'Reilly Factor.

Now personally, I'm not, I don't want to offend anybody here, but I'm not a big fan. I personally have difficulty with any discussion of any important issue that cannot go for more than seven seconds before there is an interruption, so just not my favorite person, but that wasn't on, it's supposed to be on, instead, there is a movie and evidently, the movie is based upon a book that Mr. O 'Reilly wrote called Killing Jesus.

And so I started watching it and it caught my attention because I had never made the connection between Frasier Crane and Herod. I don't know what the color is in Herod's world, but, the color of the world, the sky is in Herod's world, but it took me a few seconds, but I finally realized, Herod, that's Kelsey Grammer.

I'd never, that's how strange is that? And so I was watching it and it was the early part of the story and, you know, okay, well, you know, killing the little boys in Bethlehem and, okay, I, I, I, I, I'm so far so good.

And then we came to John the Baptist and John the Baptist is, well, at least he was baptizing, it would have really bummed me out had he been sprinkling or pouring or something like that, but at least, at least he was, he was getting them down there good.

I mean, he was almost making them bubble and so that was, that was pretty good. So, that was all right with that. And, but then Jesus comes and he's watching John baptize and a conversation develops between John and Jesus and it becomes very clear, very quickly, Jesus hasn't a clue what John is talking about.

John's saying, you're, you're the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world. I am? He has no earthly idea. And John's, John's the only one who seems to know what's going on here and, and after just a few minutes of this odd, strange departure off into zaniness, I found a better use for the television screen.

Confusion About Jesus in Popular Culture

Today around our land there are all sorts of people saying all sorts of things about Jesus the Messiah. And, of course, we've, you know, it has to happen this time of year. The, the necessary books have come out and the necessary videos have come out from this person who has the new insight as to why we can now be confident Jesus never existed.

There was some guy in England doing that. I'm not even sure if that was just not a retread of last year's guy that did that. It could have been. I don't know. There's always somebody and, and then there's, you know, somebody trying to come up with a theory about this and a theory about Mary Magdalene's got to get in there someplace.

And, you know, we, we just almost become so accustomed to it that even people in the world start tuning it out. It's like, yeah, yeah, it must, Easter must be coming. It's just that kind of thing. But even amongst those who would call themselves Christians, a lot of different things are being said about Jesus this day.

Some of our, some of our fellow believers have gotten up very early this morning and they had a, a sunrise service. I remember a few of those back in the olden days. Not here, but I remember a few of those.

We don't have a liturgical calendar and, and in fact, I think we're anti-liturgical calendars. So, I never had a sunrise service that I can remember anyways. Would have been really interesting two mornings ago with the blood moon, you know, put it all together and read a few John Hagee books and all would be well.

But we, we managed to survive through all of that too. But as I think about what's being said, you're, you're going to have, you're going to have a, a small remnant and then you're going to have people by tradition, especially in the southern United States, where you're still going to have a pretty solid biblical teaching about the fact that what we're celebrating today is truly the resurrection.

That truly the grave was empty, not because of any robbery, not because they put them in the wrong place. It's not, not just a spiritual thing. There was truly a resurrection. In fact, I'm, I'm thinking of one person today who knows that to be the case.

Some of you might recall about, I don't know, was it a decade ago or so? We had a debate and it was myself and Dr. James Renahan versus two very liberal scholars, John Dominic Crossan and Marcus Borg.

Marcus Borg passed away a few weeks ago and I can still remember that debate very clearly where at one point and I don't remember whether it was, I can remember the look on, on, on John Dominic Crossan's face.

I think it was him who said it, but it might've been Marcus Borg, but basically about halfway through the debate, they looked at us and they're like, so you think the grave was empty because Jesus came out of the grave?

Yeah, that's what we've been saying all along. Wow. I mean, it was just sort of like it was a new thought. Uh, how, how, how novel of you, you know? And, and yeah, uh, yeah, that, that's actually what we're saying.

But then you're going to have a whole spectrum of people in the liberal churches and, and they're going to sing a lot of the same songs and they're even going to repeat some creeds and things like that.

But the reality is almost no one in those congregations will actually believe that Jesus rose from the dead. It's a, well, what it is is it's, it's a spiritual thing. And what we're celebrating today is that, you know, when you believe in Jesus, then you have new life and he had new life, but, but it, it, it doesn't really have anything to do with, with bodies and graves and things like that.

It's, it's just a, it's just a spiritual thing. That's what you're going to hear. But even amongst those who today will proclaim that the grave was empty because it really was empty, there had been a body in there and there wasn't a body in there and that that actually means a resurrection, the Greek term anastasis, that which died coming to life again.

The Resurrection Changes Every Day of the Year

Yeah, that's true. But how many people, honestly, honestly, let's, let's be brutally honest with ourselves this morning. How many people take today seriously? Because my suggestion would be is if you really take today seriously, then that will impact how you, you live on the third Thursday of August too.

Now, before you start looking through your calendar program or something like that, I don't know what the third Thursday of August is. The point is that if you really, really believe in the resurrection, if you really believe that Jesus rose from the dead, it is going to impact the entirety of your life and not just during the spring, but during the summer and during the fall and the coming winter.

Because if Jesus rose from the dead, that that makes him completely different than any other of the founders of religions or anything like that at all. In fact, if you think about it, then what it means is that what he said was true, that what he prophesied was true, and that it means that the Father has accepted his work upon the cross.

He has set his seal upon him. That empty tomb is the loudest, most important and clear and the cross was real and therefore he really has been brought up to that very position of power and authority that he claimed was his.

That all authority has been given to him in heaven and earth. And if that's the case and you don't deal with that, if that's the case and you just sort of live your life and you know, every once in a while you go to church and sort of tip your hat toward God a little bit and maybe even say a prayer once in a while, but if you just live your life as if you're Lord and he's not, then you don't really believe that he rose from the dead or you're just schizophrenic.

You're just ignoring the reality of that empty tomb and what it must mean for all the rest of human history. And so what I want to do this morning is I'd like to look at the rest of the story because the Jesus that many people today, even when they're willing to say, yeah he rose from the dead.

Well, what's he been doing ever since then? A lot of people who call themselves Christians sort of go, well, building my mansion? Well, okay, there's a slight sense in which that's, you know, I go to prepare a place for you.

Okay. But you think that's all he's been doing? What is the position of Christ? And for many people, the resurrected Jesus is pretty much limited to that horrific painting of Jesus holding the little lamb, you know.

I don't know how he ceased being Jewish and became Anglo-Saxon, but he's holding this little lamb and he's sort of cuddling with it and all and it's just meant to just make us feel so warm about Jesus.

And what's interesting to me is when I see Jesus after his resurrection in the New Testament, warm and cuddly is not the first thought I get. I mean, let's look together at verses 12 through 18 of Revelation chapter one.

Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me and having turned I saw seven golden lamb stands and in the middle of the lamb stands I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe, reaching to the feet and girded across his chest with a golden sash.

His head and his hair were white like white wool, like snow, and his eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like burnished bronze when it was made to glow in a furnace and his voice was like the sound of many waters.

In his right hand he held seven stars and out of his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword and his face was like the sun shining in its strength. When I saw him I felt his feet like a dead man and he placed his right hand on me saying, Do not be afraid.

I am the first and the last and the living one. And I was dead and behold I am alive forevermore and I have the keys of death and of Hades. Therefore write the things which you have seen and the things which are and the things which will take place after these things.

And then he goes on to describe from that in the letters to the seven churches. He uses each one of these descriptions of himself as he introduces himself to each one of these churches and as he brings his lordship to bear upon what's going on in each one of those churches, he knows what's going on.

He's reading the thoughts and minds and intentions of everyone involved in these churches and he brings his sovereignty to bear in these letters to the churches. Now, this is not the picture of Jesus that is commonplace amongst most people in the world today.

In fact, that's one of the things that I find so reprehensible personally about the idea of a crucifix. Oh, there's everything right in considering the death of Christ and his suffering on our behalf and the self-giving and everything else, but God emptied that cross.

And especially when I realized that within the Roman Catholic system there is no finished work. That sacrifice is re-presented over and over again. It perfects no one. It becomes a blasphemy when you do not allow Jesus to be who Jesus is after the cross and after the resurrection.

And here you have a description of him. And I'm not just talking about the physical description because I don't think Jesus has a big old sword coming out of his mouth in the sense that he's always carrying the sword around and shaking it around and things like that.

The point is that he speaks and what he's speaking is what? It's the word of God. The word of God which is a sharp two-edged sword, so on and so forth. And so this is meant to be a description, not one that we draw pictures based upon, but it's a demonstration of Jesus in his exalted state and he is powerful.

He holds the keys of death and Hades. He is the living one. He is the first and the last. He's alive forevermore. He has conquered death. And he hasn't just decided, okay, I'm done. You know, we often speak of the fact that he's seated at the right hand of God.

But all that means is the work that he came to do has been accomplished. His work of redemption is a finished work. There's not anything to add to it in the future. We don't have to add our sufferings to it or anything like that.

It is a finished work. But we cannot then take that and say, and because he sat down, you know, he has taken a 2 ,000 year nap. That was a lot of work and now he's just resting up. Got a lot of things to do once Armageddon comes.

As if he's just somehow ceased to be active. That's not the case. And when we present, for example, not only the resurrection, but then the ascension of Jesus into heaven, for many people it's sort of like, well, now the Holy Spirit comes and Jesus just becomes, well, we don't know what Jesus is anymore.

We read stories about him historically and things like that, but what he's actually doing now, we're very unclear on. And if we're unclear on that, then it's no wonder that when we proclaim Jesus Christ is Lord, for many of us, what that means is something very, very intensely personal.

And it is intensely personal, but it's not just intensely personal. Especially in our day, where religion is only personal. There can be, we've seen the past couple of weeks, most people in our society have come to the conclusion, you're free to have your religion and you can have it between here and here.

And that's it. It cannot impact your life. It cannot impact your beliefs. It cannot impact your speech. Freedom of religion exists right there. That's it. Very clearly, that's how a lot of people now think and that's how they're willing to act.

And so, when we talk about Jesus Christ being Lord, are we only saying, well, his Lordship is right here. Right there. There it is. There's, well, he needs to be Lord there. There's no question about that.

But if he's Lord there, not only there need to be ramifications in my life as a result and in my speech and in my view of the world and everything else, but is that the only place where he's Lord? Or is the offensiveness of the Christian message that he is Lord, period.

That he is Lord overall. Now, as Paul said, there's a special way in which he is Lord of believers. Because we know him, we love him, we willingly submit to his Lordship, we revel in that Lordship, we desire that Lordship.

But the fact of the matter is, if that tomb was empty, he is Lord of every single person living on this planet, every power that exists in this universe. Because he said, all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.

And he is exercising that authority and that means that when we proclaim his Lordship, we're not just saying, well, you need to set up a little island of Jesus Lordship in your heart. That's not what we're saying.

He is Lord and if you want to experience his blessing, if you want to experience God's blessing in your life, then you need to repent and believe. You need to bow the knee before him because someday every knee will bow.

Now, my friends, I just said that and most of us, we know the text, right? Philippians chapter 2. Someday every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Unless you've not read your Bible or you're just visiting or something like that and that's fine, that is a biblical text. Most of us know it and we know it well. Have you ever thought what it means? I see so many people and they just, they get all upset because, well, you know, I saw a Muslim saying that someday Allah will reign over all the earth and Sharia will be established everywhere.

I'd like to look at those people and go, and? Well, that's terrible. Why? Well, it's terrible that they think that Sharia would reign everywhere. That's their understanding of God's law, right? Do you think that's ever going to happen?

What about that bowing the knee thing? Do you think when Jesus, when everyone bows to Jesus that they're going to continue to be rebels at that point and detest God's law and continue to go against God's law?

Or do you think Jesus is actually going to someday rule and reign in completeness? Well, that's different. Exactly how? Well, it is different. I realize it's different because Jesus brings his Lordship in a completely different way.

I understand what the differences are, but they don't. Their rejection is the very idea that their liberty could be taken by somebody else, but, you know, when you have an absolute Lord, His liberty is all that matters.

It's not mine. And when you look at Jesus in Revelation chapter 1, He seems to have all power within His church. You read the next couple of chapters, incredible insights into the nature of the church and the problems that can exist in the church.

And Jesus is not giving suggestions to these churches. He's giving commandments to His churches. He has the right to do that because He has that power. But you and I both know it doesn't stop there, does it?

It doesn't end there. Look at chapter 6. Look at chapter 6. We, I'm sure everyone has, we have memorized everything that Pastor Frye said about the book of Revelation just a few years ago. And that you all remember exactly everything that was said about each of the seals and trumpets.

Actually, probably Pastor Frye doesn't remember everything he said about the seals and the trumpets when it comes to the book of Revelation. But in verses 15 through 17, now I'm not raising this text because it became a rather odd point of contention in a debate I did recently on paedo-baptism.

I've actually raised this text many times myself, just not in the context that it ended up coming up there. But look at verses 15 through 17. Then the kings of the earth and the great men, the commanders and the rich and the strong, and every slave and free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks and the mountains.

And they said to the mountains and to the rocks, Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of their wrath has come and who is able to stand?

Now, that text came up in my debate because my paedo-baptist opponent said this is an example of Jesus as mediator of the new covenant mediating wrath against new covenant members. To which I went, huh?

Because that's not what it's about. Not even close to what it's about. Not even the ballpark of what it's about. But what it is about is saying something that should catch your attention. Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne and from the what?

The wrath of the Lamb? The wrath of the Lamb? The wrath of the Lamb? Now, I haven't spent much time around lambs. I really haven't. But I'm not really overly certain that I would be completely terrified of the wrath of a lamb.

I mean, it's a little bit like the wrath of a kitty cat, you know? I mean, okay, you know, they've got claws. I guess, all right. But, you know, it just doesn't strike me as something to be terrifying.

And yet, these people are calling for the rocks and the mountains to fall on them and hide them from the wrath of the Lamb. Here is the resurrected Christ. He isn't carrying a little lamb. He is the Lamb.

He's already been described earlier in the book of Revelation. Remember chapter 5? The Lamb appears. John's weeping. No one's worthy to open the scrolls and undo the seals. And here comes, he looks, and there is the Lamb standing as if slain.

The marks of the blood still upon the neck of the slain sacrifice. It's a picture of Christ. It's a picture of Him who has given Himself. He is the Lamb of God. And yet, the when it comes to those who are outside of Him, it comes to those who will not bow the knee to Him, will not submit to His Lordship, He's still called the Lamb.

But His wrath, His wrath is horrible. For indeed, when you think about who it was who became incarnate, when you think about who it was who voluntarily gave Himself, you see the great and amazing thing is to think on this.

In Christianity, we actually say that that Son of God, that second person of the Trinity who created all things within heaven and earth, visible, invisible, principalities, powers, dominions, authorities, all things created by Him for Him.

He is before all things. In Him all things hold together. He is the one who became incarnate. He is the one whose message has been preached. He is the one that men are commanded to believe in, to repent, to bow the knee before.

There eventually comes a time when that patience of God, that proclamation of that free gift of salvation, it comes to an end and now it is time to sum up all things in Christ and that involves punishment for sin for everyone who is outside of Jesus Christ.

And so when you consider the majesty and power of the person, the incarnate Son of God who was the Lamb of God, when His wrath must rightfully come, what kind of a wrath will it be? What kind of a wrath will it be?

We are meant to look at that phrase and it's meant to strike us and make us go, that's strange, but it's meant to force us into consideration who it was, what He did and once we come to that point in time where man has said no, no, no for the last time, where man has said no, I will not submit.

I am my own autonomous Lord. Once that has been said for the last time and the seals are opened and the wrath of God begins to fall upon man, then you have the description of the wrath of the Lamb for the great day of their wrath, Father and Son has come and who is able to stand?

It's a rhetorical question. There is no answer. There is no answer. Is this the Jesus that is being spoken of today across this world? Is this the Jesus that people are hearing about? Are they being called to recognize that this one who rose from the dead is now seated at the right hand of the Majesty on high and that He is worthy of every man's worship?

In Western culture it just doesn't make any sense anymore. We don't have kings. We're each autonomous, right? It just doesn't people hear that and they're like, man, you're going back to the Stone Age.

How can that have any meaning to me? Well, when you think about what He's done, when you think about who He is, and then you dare see yourself for who you are because, you see, if you recognize the biblical message, you realize you're His creature.

He made you. He made you. That allegedly autonomous mind of yours, who formed it? Who made it? Who gave it the capacity that it has? Each one of us thinks we're so much wiser than others, but you don't have anything that hasn't been given to you by your Creator.

By this Lamb, He made you. The blood that is pulsing through your body right now, the heart that is beating, the lungs that are breathing in air, all came from His hand. That's why you had to have for secularism to rob man of his consciousness of God, you had to have God as Creator removed from his thinking.

It was necessary. It couldn't happen without it. And that's what's happened. And that's why mankind can even look at this and go, well, this description of Jesus may be true, but what does that have to do with me?

Because they don't see the connection between Creator and the creation. If you really recognize you are made, that you have been formed by another, you will seriously consider the character and identity of that Creator.

Mankind doesn't do that anymore. Will someday turn with me to chapter 19 of the book of Revelation. There's another picture there. Another picture of this resurrected Lord, beginning in verse 11. And I saw heaven open, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it is called Faithful and True.

And righteousness he judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems. And he has a name written on him, which no one knows except himself. He is clothed, that he robed, dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God.

And the armies which are in heaven clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it he may strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron.

And he treads the winepress of the fierce wrath of God the Almighty. And on his robe and on his thigh, he has a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Now there's a description. There's a description that if we have any spiritual life within ourselves at all, if we have any spiritual awareness, it should immediately cause us to stop.

To stop thinking about what's coming on Monday. To stop thinking about the challenges that are coming in the next week. To stop thinking about the finances or relationships or anything else that might be distracting you and cause you to think about this one and the description of him.

He rides on a white horse. He's called faithful and true. That means he has authority. He will judge properly. It's in righteousness that he judges and wages war. Don't you wish, just on a human level right now, as we think about the decisions that are being made by people called judges in our land, that we could think of a single one of them that was faithful and true?

A single one of them that could be said, in righteousness he judges? We want that. We know that that's right and that's proper and that's good and that's what we should desire. And we have one who will judge in righteousness, but he will judge and that's not the only thing that's said, and he wages war.

He wages war. There is no neutrality toward this one. His eyes are a flame of fire. He sees everything. There's nothing hidden from him. Yes, even the innermost recesses of your thoughts, those places that you think are absolutely free of all influence but your own.

He sees them because his eyes are a flame of fire. On his head are many diadems. Many diadems, not just one. He has all authority. That's what he said. All authority has been given to me in heaven and earth.

He has a name written on him which no one knows except himself. He knows the very secret things of God. He has clothed the robe dipped in blood. Wonder why? And his name is called the Word of God. Armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean are following him on white horses.

There is no division. There is no rebellion. All of heaven follows him in unity. And since his name is called the Word of God, it reminds me of John 1 .1, from his mouth comes a sharp sword so that with it he may strike down the nations and he will rule them with a rod of iron and he treads the winepress, the fierce wrath of God the Almighty.

From his mouth comes a sharp sword. It certainly is amazing to me that as you listen to mankind growing more and more bold in the expression of his hatred toward God and the expression of hatred toward the Gospel, mankind doesn't come up with anything new in his rebellion, does he?

The Word which exposed mankind's hypocrisy in the days of Jesus and a thousand years later and a thousand years hence continues to do so. Romans 1 continues to expose man suppressing the knowledge of God and man engaging in all of his sin.

And that sword, that Word of God, strikes down entire nations, allowing him to rule them with a rod of iron. That also involves, however, the expression of the fierce wrath of God the Almighty. There are many today that don't think you should say anything about the wrath of God.

That doesn't attract people today. I don't know how you can deal with the New Testament without recognizing that its teaching is that if God does not express his wrath, he's not just. He's not just. For many people today, justice, who cares?

Justice is me getting what I want from somebody else, not true justice. But he treads the winepress, the fierce wrath of God the Almighty, because even though he is the Lamb of God, he is also the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

And that wrath flows naturally from recognizing that God is holy, his law represents his holiness, and therefore cannot simply be put over on the side. God be considered something that was just for somebody else, it expresses his true nature, and it cannot simply be laid aside.

There's an entire world religion that thinks that it can be. Stood in a mosque in South Africa, small minority there, and looked out across that sea of faces, have attempted to explain God's law represents his very nature.

And if he can just simply forgive without atonement, forgive without that law being fulfilled, then he's not just, and his law does not represent him, and hence we don't really even know who he is. We cannot have peace with him.

And here you have that expressed in the words of scripture. Even though he is the Word of God, even though he is the one who has provided for salvation, his clothes, the robe dipped in blood, yet that is all the more reason why he must tread the winepress, the fierce wrath of God, because he experienced it himself.

He who knew no sin was made to be sin in our behalf. If you could simply forget about God's holiness and forget about his law, then you could forget about the cross as well. And on his robe and on his thigh he has the name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

That's what's so offensive to people. We don't want kings, we don't want lords, we got rid of them. We, if you think about it, if you think about it, the average person in western culture today is in essence by the way they live, the way they view the universe, the way they view themselves, is in essence saying that they could wear a t-shirt, because that's how you proclaim everything today, right?

To wear a t-shirt. And mankind today in western culture is wearing a t-shirt that says, King of Kings. Is that not what mankind does? If you think that you're the center of the universe, oh I'm not the center of the universe, do you begin your thoughts with God?

Is God the center that makes sense of everything else or are you there? And you make God bow to you. You make God an object of knowledge. Think about it. You've put yourself in the center. You've put yourself there.

You're claiming to be King of Kings and Lord of Lords. No one will rule or reign over you. No one can have lordship within your heart, within your mind. That's sacred ground and sacred because it's yours.

You will not submit to any authority that tells you how you should live. That's what mankind is doing. My friends, there can only be one King of Kings and only one Lord of Lords. And there will be inevitable conflict between the true King of Kings, the true Lord of Lords and any pretender.

And you see a person who bows the knee before Jesus Christ is not wearing a t-shirt that says King of Kings and Lord of Lords. That person is already saying, that's not me. I know who I am. I know that I am but a creature.

I know that I have sinned before a holy God. But anyone who has not done that is in rebellion. Now let me ask you once again. In our land today, in pulpits around the world today, when it was joyously proclaimed as I hope and pray that it was in so many, many places, Jesus Christ is risen.

That was a truthful statement. But was it followed up with, and because He is Lord, we must bow the knee. We must bow the knee and live as His servants. We must rejoice in being called His servants, His slaves.

In how many places even in our land is that resurrection seen primarily in light of what He can now do for me rather than seeing that empty tomb changes everything about how I must live. Everything. Because if I died with Him, if I was buried with Him, if I rose again with Him, if His death, burial and resurrection is my death, burial and resurrection, then I am dead to this world.