Share New Life - Luke 24:1-6, 36-49

Jesus willingly gave his life on The Old Rugged Cross and his life’s blood ran down the beam of the cross and spread as a blanket covering the ground where all of our sins lay at his feet—and those sins and all other sins that we will ever commit were hidden from his sight forever and will never again be held against us. Nothing else is more valuable to us—however; nothing else is more horrible than his excruciating pain that ended in his physical death there on the cross.

In my mind’s eye I can visualize many examples that picture the passion period as ugly, approaching darkness and imminent death. Leaves turn and then fall from the trees; fruit rots and fall to the ground. Sap, the life blood of trees and plants goes down into the roots and ground and even some animals hibernate through a cold, dark winter period.

Jesus was hurriedly placed in a borrowed tomb because the beginning of the Sabbath was approaching and Jewish law prevailed over the burial of his body. No labor was allowed on the day of the Sabbath. As the new week arrived, people resumed their life’s work. Even the apostles returned to the routine of their life. Then there were the ladies that had been closest to Christ, who felt that they should return to the grave site and complete the customary anointing process. It was as if ladies today would return to the grave site to rearrange the flowers and put the final touches on the decoration of the burial. The shocker that came should have been expected because many had been told that Christ would not remain in the tomb. It was empty!

Now, look at the comparison between his death and resurrection. In my mind’s eye I can visualize many things that picture the resurrection of our Lord as an event that is nothing less than the beautiful season we call spring time. I see the new life that blossoming forth; I know that the sap has started to rise and the new nourishment is something like a good breakfast in the early morning. The buds swell, the leaves start forming, and blossoms mature and fall away with nourishing fruit well on the way. There is no ugly in springtime—just as there is nothing more beautiful than our risen Savior. Nothing is more valuable to us than his resurrection and nothing is more beautiful than new life in the springtime.

It may be necessary for me to sound somewhat redundant but I must stop here to remind you that I am attempting to compare [if it is possible] the death of Christ that was for the remission of our sins to the resurrection of our Savior, on the third day, making our resurrection and ascension possible. Jesus was born one time; he died one time; he was resurrected one time and he lives one time—forever. How-ever the pictures of the reasons come back every year, at the same time—and on time just like a clock. I do not remember missing a single year out of the last sixty reminding others of these two most monumental of all events.

Carefully looking back causes one to think that biblical scholars and writers may have placed more emphasis on one event to the expense of the others. Let me add two more events…The Physical Birth and Earthly Life of Christ. The emphasis placed on the birth of Christ has been shifted to the field of commercialism. This has become so obvious that it causes one to grieve over the fact that Santa Clause is more popular throughout the Christmas season than our Savior.

Ask and answer this question. If we study carefully the major events in the life of Christ—is it possible for us to conclude that any one of the events is more important than any other?

• Christ was. God was. The Holy Spirit was. God, Christ and the Holy Spirit are. Do you believe this? Is there any thing else that is more important?

• Christ was born physically. So Christmas. Happy time. Important?

• Christ lived about 33 years and learned to be human and taught man how to be like Christ, a spiritual being. Do we profit from this picture of his earthly work?

• Christ died on the Cross paying the debt for our sins, which we could not do. Nothing can ever be more important to a lost person.

• Christ was buried like a man and arose as a spiritual being. Showed us how. We call it Easter. Without resurrection, his death means nothing.

• Christ remained on earth forty days—moved about as spirit, with no doors necessary but he communicated with mortal man proving his death by showing his scars. There were hundreds of witnesses. He commissioned his church and promised to send the Holy Spirit.


• He left earth by way of a cloud and ascended back into heaven…thus paving the way for our ascension. How will you be caught up?

There you have the seven [7] major events in the life of Christ. Seven [7] is God’s complete…perfect…number. Now what I have in mind is for you to tell me which of these events is the most important. There are a small number of the churches in the Protestant movement that place an extra-ordinary emphasis on the very narrow thought process that claims that ‘absolutely everything depends upon Christ and the Cross…and if you listen closely it even seems that the cross is emphasized more than Christ.’ I do not totally disagree with this; however, we can not say that there is a lesser importance in any other event in his life.

• Where would we be today if Christ had refused to give up his Holy Lordship in heaven for thirty-three years?

• Who would have written the New Testament if he had not selected the twelve?

• What worshipful body would we have if he had not established his church?

• How could we be saved if he had not died for us?

• How could we be sure that the dead in Christ will come forth from the grave without Easter?

• How could we know about our journey from the grave to heaven if he had not showed us the way? He Arose!

• How would we know that our room will be decorated and ready for us when we get there if he had not told us where he was going and what he would do?

It is Easter Sunday 2007, and I am glad that I can be satisfied and happy to tell you that this is one of the greatest days of celebration that has ever been. Christmas Day 2006, was just a few weeks ago. It reminded us that Christ gave up his home in Glory and was born as a babe in the manger to be our Savior. How could anything be more important? The olive branches carried down the isles of First Baptist last Sunday by our beautiful, innocent children reminded us that Christ rode the donkey into the city to start the horrible scene leading to his death on the cross. No other day in history was any more important.

The more I study the results of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ—the more I realize that the story of his life is composed of many events or parts—none of which can be said to be less important than any other. My point here is found in your answer to the following question. What would his death on the cross have accomplished if he was still in that borrowed tomb…dead?