John 20

Christians worldwide are celebrating the commemoration of the resurrection of Christ today. The resurrection is a fundamental Christian doctrine upon which Christianity stands or falls. Without the resurrection, Christianity has no hope to offer. Paul makes that point clearly in 1 Corinthians 15:11-19.

In the gospels; the events leading to the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Christ are well documented. But for the purpose of this article, we would look to the gospel according to John and specifically, Chapter 20. We will consider five points about the resurrection clearly taught in the text.

The Resurrection Is historical.

The empty tomb of Christ points to a true historical event. Christ was crucified. He was buried. And he resurrected. Dr Simon Gathercole of the University of Cambridge in an online article noted that,

The historical evidence for Jesus of Nazareth is both long-established and widespread. Within a few decades of his supposed lifetime, he is mentioned by Jewish and Roman historians, as well as by dozens of Christian writings. Compare that with, for example, King Arthur, who supposedly lived around AD500. The major historical source for events of that time does not even mention Arthur, and he is first referred to 300 or 400 years after he is supposed to have lived. The evidence for Jesus is not limited to later folklore, as are accounts of Arthur.

[1] To establish the historicity of the resurrection, let\’s look briefly at three points worth considering.

(i) It happened on a specific day.

The resurrection is recorded to have happened on the first day of the week which is a Sunday. Jesus was crucified and buried on a Friday. He rose on the third day. The disciples will further adopt this day as the Lord’s day—the day of worship. That day became the believers “solemn assembly” when they met to worship (Deut. 16:8, Jn 20:19; 26, Acts 20:7).

ii) There Were Eyewitness Accounts

Jesus didn’t vanish into thin air when he resurrected. He showed himself to people as proof of his resurrection. Mary Magdalene (vv. 1-2; 11-18), Peter, John and the other disciples (vv.3-10; 19-20), Thomas  (v.26). In Jewish tradition, witnesses must be two or more to be admissible and the events met that criteria (See Deut. 17:6; 19:5).

(iii) The Resurrection Wasn’t A Hoax.

Before Christ resurrected, there were fears his disciples will steal his body and feign a resurrection (Matt.27:62-66). However, firstly, the disciples were not expecting a resurrection to go to the extent of faking one (vv. 2; 9). They had also locked themselves up for fear of the Jews and there was no indication they had the capability of stealing the body (v.19). Moreover, the tomb, according to Matthew was under security guard (Matt. 27:66). Finally, the folded grave cloths defeats a robbery. What grave looter has the luxury of time to nicely fold grave cloths?

(iv) There Was An Empty Tomb

That there was an empty tomb is evidence for the resurrection. If Christ didn’t resurrect, then his body must have been seen in the tomb. However, all who came to the scene looked into the tomb and didn’t see Christ’s body. Mary Magdalene thought the body had been stolen. Peter and the other disciples looked into the tomb and saw nothing. There was simply no body in the tomb. A very informative article from the gospel coalition by Paul Rezkalla, titled 4 Reasons to believe in the empty tomb is worth our attention in this discourse. These four points are (i) The empty tomb predates the gospel, (ii) the body was buried in Jerusalem, (iii) the empty tomb was discovered by women and (iv) there were claims of a stolen body. [2]

A Fulfilment Of Scripture

John speaks of the resurrection in relation to Scripture: “for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead” (v.9). Jesus, while he was with them also spoke of his death and resurrection (John 2:19-22). Paul also speaking of the resurrection says it is “in accordance with Scripture” (1Cor.15:1-3). The resurrection happened as Scripture prophesied. On the road to Emmaus, Jesus rebuked the disciples for not believing what was spoken of him about the events in Scripture of his death and resurrection:

And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself (Luke 24:25-27).

We see Christ walking them through Scripture—the Old Testament— and opening their eyes to the truth of what was written about him.

The Resurrection Is The Foundation Of The Great Commission 

When Christ appeared to the disciples, he charged them with the great commission: “Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” (vv.21-23).

Christ sends the disciples, gives them his very breath of life — the Holy Spirit and puts authority in their proclamation of the gospel which when believed brings life, and damnation to those who will not believe. Because Christ rose, the disciples had the power and basis upon which to witness about the gospel (1Jn. 1:1-3, 1Pet. 1:16-20). Paul says  “if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain” (1Cor.15:14 ff). Christ rose from the dead and that\’s the hope of believers and sinners who will run to him in faith. Matt Permann in an online article titled Historical Evidence for the Resurrection points out seven reasons for which the empty tomb gives credence to the resurrection. And he mentions preaching of the gospel as the first. He wrote:

The Resurrection Teaches Christ’s Divinity.

One thing we cannot miss in John’s gospel is Christ’s divinity. John opens his book with: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”. (John 1:1). Thomas’ response to Christ in v.28 is instructive: “My Lord and my God!” Being a Jew, that would have been a blasphemous statement if Christ was not God. And knowing who Christ was, he would have rebuked Thomas if his assertion about him was inaccurate. Again, we will note in the text that, when Thomas first told the disciples he would see the marks on Christ’s hands before believing, Jesus wasn’t present. But in Christ’ second appearance to the disciples, he showed Thomas his crucifixion marks:

Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe. (vv26-27).

Christ’s omnipotence and omnipresence is displayed in that event. He knew Thomas’ doubts though he wasn’t physically present when Thomas expressed those doubts. All things are bare and naked before God (Heb. 4:13). Christ is God. Peter tells us it was impossible for death to hold him down  (Acts 2:24).

Faith And Eternal Life In Christ

John ends his account by saying:

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God , and that by believing you may have life in his name (vv. 30-31).

To John, this is his overarching motive for writing his gospel account; that people will come to faith in Christ. The end goal of Christian ministry is leading people to faith in Christ by the preaching of the gospel. Anything else apart from this has no grounds. All we do as Christians and ministers of the gospel must have this one goal: that people “may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God , and that by believing [they] may have life in his name.” Anything else is, borrowing Paul’s words, to be counted as dung.

Notes:

1 Dr Simon Gathercole, What is the historical evidence that Jesus Christ lived and died https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/apr/14/what-is-the-historical-evidence-that-jesus-christ-lived-and-died.

2. Paul Rezkalla, 4 Reasons To Believe In The Empty Tomb, https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/4-reasons-to-believe-in-the-empty-tomb

3. Matt Permann, Historical Evidence for the Resurrection, https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/historical-evidence-for-the-resurrection

The post Five Facts About The Resurrection appeared first on TGN.

And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (Luke 2:8-11)

The title of this article is the first line of a popular Christmas Carol written by Nahum Tate, 1652-1715.

1: While shepherds watched their flocks by night,
all seated on the ground;
the angel of the Lord came down,
and glory shone around,
and glory shone around.

It depicts the annunciation to shepherds of the birth of Christ which we celebrate as Christmas. Christmas is the most celebrated religious festival in the world and as the centuries have gone on, the festival is no longer observed by Christians alone. Today you have people from all religious persuasions marking the day in one shape or form, helped in part by the commercialized undertones of the season.

Around this time of the year there are feelings of happiness and cheer in the air. The stores are filled with all sorts of merchandize and Christmas decorations are everywhere to help make the season a merry one. But the question still remains, what is it about the season we are celebrating?

Is Christmas really worth the funfair?

One of my favourite Christmas pastimes is to let my mind wander to first century Bethlehem, just to put myself in the shoes of the first celebrants of Christmas, because until we capture their reason for celebrating Christmas, we may never truly appreciate what the season should really be about especially, in our 21st century commercialized world.

Luke records the first incident of Christmas in Luke 2:8-11. The Shepherds were not expecting anything out of the ordinary; it was just another day in the ‘office’. But their lives were about to be changed forever. They were visited by an angel of the Lord, and he brought with him the glory of the Lord. They were terrified as they should be. Whenever the glory of the Lord appears to sinful people, the response has always been terror. When man stands in the shadow of God’s glory, his wretchedness becomes as clear as the daylight. That’s exactly what happened to the prophet Isaiah when he saw the Lord in Isaiah 6:1-5, his response was “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”

Like Isaiah, the shepherds were filled with great fear. They knew what happens when a sinful person comes into contact with a holy God. Christmas without the message is a terrifying experience. And what is the message?
“Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (vv.10-11).

This was the day the whole world had been waiting for. The day when the seed of the woman who was promised back in Genesis 3:15 was revealed. This was the day when “…God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5).

All of us were under the curse of the law due to our disobedience and rightly deserving of God’s just condemnation. But the angel’s message was one of hope “unto you is born this day…a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord”

Though he was speaking to the Shepherds, the message “unto you” by extension is our message. Jesus came for each of them personally as he came for all the people. Christmas is a personal redemptive mission where the creator of the universe made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (Phil 2:7-8).

If you’re not yet a follower of Jesus Christ, know that “unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord”. He came for you, and his message is, repent and believe for the salvation of your soul. If you’re already a follower of Jesus, do not be drowned in the commercialization and merchandize of the season. Jesus wants you to renew your affections for him and do what the shepherds did, “When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child” (Luke 2:17).

Have a Merry Christmas!

The post While Shepherds Watch Their Flocks By Night appeared first on TGN.