Friday was a bad day, but it wasn’t the end of the story. After Jesus died and Joseph laid His body in the tomb, Joseph rolled a large stone in front of the grave. It was almost as if Joseph was putting to rest the hope that he had put in Jesus. It was over; all the anticipation that Jesus had produced died with Him. Sometimes our lives can feel like that too. In particularly dark days, we might begin to lose hope. When a loved one dies, we might feel like we can’t face another day. When chronic illness or emotional pain is relentless, we might consider the promises of God to be dead. But everything changed shortly after dawn on a Sunday nearly two thousand years ago. With the burst of dawn came an angel like lightning. The tremors from the earthquake still reverberate today. Jesus was gone, the tomb was empty, no stone or seal could stop God’s power from raising Him from the dead. The resurrection has dawned on our darkness, and with it the certainty of God’s promises takes on new light. Jesus’s resurrection assures us of our own resurrection some day in spite of death (Jn 11:25). The victory that Christ won is our everyday reality even when we might be losing to temptation or wrong thinking (Rm 6:5-6). In the resurrection, God turned the world upside down. He turned darkness to light and brought hope out of despair. These effects were not only for the first century, but they impact today as the gospel works in hearts and lives. As God changes us and saves others, the resurrection again turns the world upside down. So don’t fixate on the tomb; it’s empty. Look to God “who raised Jesus from the dead and will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you” (Rm 8:11). – Pastor Rory
Sunday at Liberty
9AM: Pastor Rory–Titus 1:10-16–Contrasting Cretans, 2
10AM: Pastor Nate–Matthew 28:1-15–The Messiah’s Bodily Resurrection (sermon notes)
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