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Luke 24:1–11

¹ But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. ² And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, ³ but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. ⁴ While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. ⁵ And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? ⁶ He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, ⁷ that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” ⁸ And they remembered his words.

⁹ And returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. ¹⁰ Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, ¹¹ but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

You may not like to hear it, but you are dying. “On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero” (Chuck Palahniuk). No matter how full your life is now, eventually (unless Christ comes back first) you will die. And until that time, you will watch as those around you – people you care about and love – will die too. They will die and you will die because of sin.

Scripture says that because you are sons and daughters of Adam and Eve, you are born under the curse of sin. Because of that curse, you will die.  “In Adam all die” (1 Cor. 15:22). But it is even worse than that. Because of your sin, you are already dead. You are born a creature destined for eternal death under wrath of God.

So what is to be done? What can you, who are dead and dying, do about it? Or, has someone else done something about it?

Indeed, Someone has.

The women arrive at the tomb early in the morning to finish what had been started. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus had begun the work of embalming Jesus’ body back on Friday. They were back to finish their work for the dead. They didn’t know the One who had died had finished off death.

They find the tomb open. They see two men in dazzling apparel, and they were so astonished, they bow their faces to the ground.

They are asked, “What are you doing with those spices? Those are for the dead. No dead people here. Why are you looking for the Living One where only dead ones should be? He is not here. He is risen! Don’t you remember what He told you? It was necessary for the Son of Man to be handed over to sinful men, suffer, die, and on the third day rise again. Remember?”

And it all came back to them. They remembered His words.

Even though you do not chose to die, Jesus did. Because He is the eternal Son of God, He could not die. So He chose to be born in your likeness, your flesh. He was baptized into your sin so He could carry it. He takes your sin – all of it – so there is no more sin in you. He takes that sin and marches to His death knowing that on the third day – today, Resurrection Day – He will rise. But now, this Jesus, the Living One who died and rose again, chooses to stay among you who are dead in sin so He can raise you to eternal life.

So, you here, remember what He has said to you. “I baptize you in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Because you are baptized into Me, you are in Me. Here. Take, eat, and drink My living Body and My living Blood. You cannot die anymore. I am the Resurrection and the Life. He who believes in Me, even if He dies will life. And everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die” (Gal. 3:27; Mt. 26:26-28; Jn. 11:25-26).

Jesus’ resurrection gives you all the answers to death in your life.

When you staring your own death in the face, when your body decays, remember, “He is risen!” When you are laying your friend or family into the ground, remember, “He is risen!” When you are undergoing painful treatment for disease, remember, “He is risen!” When you are fired, when you can’t afford the mortgage, when the bills pile up, remember, “He is risen!” When you look around and see how messed up this world is, remember, “He is risen!” When you fall, when you stand, when life gets you down, and when life is good, remember, “He is risen!”

Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

Amen.[1]

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

[1] I am thankful for a sermon by my friend, Pr. Timothy Winterstein, as inspiration for portions this sermon.