Who Rose From the Dead (Easter)
Tom Shrader opens an Easter message and new series called 'Who Is This?' by presenting substantial historical and archaeological evidence for the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ, citing scholars who affirm the New Testament's reliability. Drawing from 1 Corinthians 15, he explains that Christ died for sin and rose as the firstfruits of resurrection, making eternal life available to all who trust Him. He closes with a pastoral invitation to doubters, casual attenders, and seekers to return over the following weeks and honestly examine who Jesus is and what His death and resurrection mean for their lives.
“If you take the events of Friday night, the crucifixion, and you couple it with today, the resurrection, if you take the fact that on Friday night, Jesus said, 'It is finished,' and today, in a sense, God is saying, 'Amen,' as God raises Jesus from the dead — it's the epicenter of history.”
— Tom Shrader
Series: Who is this?
Recorded: 2012 at East Valley Bible Church
Duration: 21 min
Themes: resurrection, easter, eternal life, evidence for faith, hope, forgiveness, new life, who is jesus, doubter, skeptic, casual churchgoer, seeker, new believer, feeling spiritually distant, returning to faith, questioning christianity
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:14, 1 Corinthians 15:20
Theological Themes: bodily resurrection, firstfruits, soteriology, salvation, biblical reliability, 1 corinthians 15, atonement, christ died for sin
Full Transcript
Opening Prayer
Father, we come to You this morning with hearts that are filled with joy. It gets no bigger for us than this day. This is the day where we stop and look back on what was, for us, the most important day in all of history. It is the day when Jesus rose from the dead. We don't mean that in some figurative way. God, we know that it was a bodily resurrection, that You raised Him, that He who was dead is not just was alive, but He is alive. Father, thank You for that awesome and amazing truth. I pray that in the next few minutes, You would take that truth and drill it deep into our hearts and minds — what it exactly means to us here today, almost 2,000 years later. We ask it of You in Christ's name, amen.
Welcome
As you were singing that song, I try to anticipate what it will be like at that moment. I remember last year going home from Easter service and making a note to talk to Tim and ask him to play "Mighty to Save" right before the message. It seems even more significant now. Let me just read to you some of the words you just sang: "Everybody needs compassion, a love that's never failing" — that idea that everyone needs forgiveness. I was watching you sing, and it was amazing to me the number of men who were lifting their sunglasses and wiping their eyes. I got the sense it wasn't because the sun was in them, but an emotional response to the reality of what you sang: "So take me as you find me, all my fears and failures, and fill my life again."
Thank you so much for being here today. I think honesty is pretty good, so I want to acknowledge that there are basically three types of groups here this morning. There are those of you we see almost every Sunday — virtually every Sunday of the year you are spending it here on our campus, and we are glad you are here. Then there are some of you who would call Redemption Church home, but the reality is we don't see you terribly often, and maybe today can motivate you. And then there is always a large group we see a couple of times a year on special occasions, and you got here somehow — either out of some sense of obligation, or somebody got you here with the promise of ham. It is amazing what you will do for food.
I want you to get this: we are really happy you are here, and we thank you for coming. This may strike you as odd, but you have been prayed for, literally for months, for this moment in this place. We pray that what you see here would be so different from what you see in the regular world that there would be something attractive to you — that you would at least want to ask, "What is the difference? What do I see here?" To all of you, we want to give hope.
Introduction to the Series
Today is, in a sense, the first message of the series. In your bulletins, the titles of the series are listed — it will be technically six weeks, four more to come. The study guides for the series are done and just came in. You can pick them up in the bookstore afterwards, or download them online for free, so take whichever works best for you.
I would guess most of you have seen a movie, a television show, been to a play, or read a book where you start with the final scene and then work back through how the story arrived at that point. That is what we are doing. If you look at these titles, what we are starting with is the question: who is this? Who is Jesus? In all four of the Gospels, we see moments where people — the Pharisees, the disciples themselves, people in general — stop after Jesus does something, whether a miracle, teaching, calming a storm, whatever it is, and they say: "Who is this? Who is this guy?" So we start today with the question of who it is that rose from the dead. Then we will look back at how this resurrection became important, and how Jesus' death became significant — in fact, essential — for our eternal life.
The Historical Evidence for the Resurrection
I think some of you might be surprised by the massive, even overwhelming evidence that supports the historical resurrection of Jesus Christ. When you stop and look at the evidence, I understand that in the culture it may be fashionable to mock or to question, but when you look at the evidence, I believe it leads you to one inevitable conclusion: that Jesus rose from the dead and, this is really important, He is alive today.
William Ramsey is considered by many to be one of the greatest archaeologists in history. He set out, as many have done, to undermine the Gospels and disprove and discredit the New Testament. After thirty years of study, Sir William Ramsey wrote this: "Luke is a historian of first rank. Not merely are his statements facts of trustworthiness. This author should be placed along with the very greatest of historians." That is what you read over and over again from those who set out to disprove the record.
Professor of Classics at Auckland University, E.M. Blakelock, writes this: "I claim to be a historian, and my approach to classics is historical, and I tell you that the evidence for the life, death, and resurrection of Christ is better authenticated than most facts in ancient history." F.F. Bruce from Manchester University writes, "If the New Testament were a collection of secular writings, their authenticity would generally be regarded as beyond all doubt." Clark Pennick writes, "Skepticism regarding the historical credentials of Christianity" — listen to this — "is based on irrational bias." What he is saying is that if you approach the evidence as you would in a court of law —
The Evidence for the Resurrection
I will look at the facts, and nothing but the facts, and wherever the facts take me, that is where I will go — that is the conclusion, that is the verdict I will render. As one historian has noted, if you do that and look at these facts, they are overwhelming. Yet another historian writes and challenges us, saying that Roman historians have for a long time taken for granted the historical accuracy of the New Testament documents.
In the days of Jesus' burial, when they entombed someone, they placed a stone in front of the grave. The tomb was hollowed out of solid rock, and a stone would be rolled in front of it — a stone that would weigh somewhere between one and a half and two tons, requiring not just several men but an intricate system of pulleys to move. When the women came that first morning, that stone was gone.
The Roman guard left at the tomb was the elite guard — the highest trained, the most disciplined. They knew that if that tomb were found empty, they would be tortured and humiliated. The seal of Rome was on the tomb, declaring that anyone who tampered with it would be executed. And yet the tomb was empty.
There were all sorts of people alive at that time who knew this, and all they wanted to do was disprove it. All they had to do was produce the body, or point to the tomb and say Jesus was still there. His burial wrappings were left behind — if someone had stolen the body, they would have taken the wrappings too. It is as though He simply evaporated. He rose.
Witnesses to the Risen Christ
The empty tomb alone is not enough — but the empty tomb was accompanied by a risen Christ. There were people who on many occasions saw Jesus. There are eyewitness accounts spanning dozens of years afterwards. And there is the transformed life of the disciples themselves.
Remember, just a few days before the resurrection, Peter was intimidated by a servant girl and said he did not even know Jesus. And now this same Peter stands with the courage to take on literally all the power — not just of the Roman Empire, but all the power the Jewish leaders could bring against him. That transformation demands an explanation.
As I said, we no longer need to laboriously walk through all the evidence. It is so overwhelming, so out there, so available. If you are wondering, go home and search resurrection facts. I think if you pursue these facts with an open mind, you might quickly become convinced — not just of the resurrection, but of the reality of who Jesus is.
The Epicenter of History
That is why we sang that first song: the greatest day in history. If you take the events of Friday night — the crucifixion — and couple them with today, the resurrection, something extraordinary emerges. On Friday night, Jesus said, "It is finished." Today, in a sense, God is saying amen, as He raises Jesus from the dead.
This is the epicenter of history. Everything prior to this moment looks forward to it. Everything subsequent looks back to it.
Why Did He Rise? Why Did He Die?
The question before us now is not whether Jesus rose, but why He rose — and why He died. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 15:
> "The first thing I did was place before you what was placed so emphatically before me: that the Messiah died for our sins, according to what the Scripture tells us, and He was buried and raised on the third day — again, exactly as the Scripture says — and He presented Himself alive to Peter, and then to His closest followers, and then at one time to a group of 500 people."
I want to speak to a particular group who may be here today — the doubters. Perhaps more than doubters: skeptics, or even those who are antagonistic. Let me challenge you for a moment to simply be honest.
The Honest Condition of Our World
When you look at the world, you have to conclude it is a mess. And when you look at yourself — and this is where it gets a little painful — you are at best less than perfect. My guess is that in your own heart, at times, you realize that you are a mess.
Here are some words I once wrote to describe myself before I knew Christ: unhappy, afraid, worried, restless. There is a yearning, a hopelessness. Is that not the world around us? We read recently about an artist's presentation responding to the tsunami that struck Japan on March 11, 2011. In that disaster, 20,000 people were killed. But in the year that followed — from March 11, 2011 to March 11, 2012 — 50,000 Japanese people committed suicide. Twenty thousand were swept away by the tsunami. Fifty thousand voluntarily said that life was not worth living. Something is missing. Something is wrong.
What We All Need
Think about the song you just sang: everyone needs compassion. Everyone needs a love that is a perfect love. We need love desperately from one another, but that love is always imperfect. We need a love that never fails. We need forgiveness. That is our ultimate problem — our sin. We can explain it away, or pretend it does not exist, or pretend to be a victim rather than a villain. But you sang it: Jesus is the author of salvation. He rose and He conquered the grave.
I went through those words and found myself drawing a circle around them. So every one of you can say this today — though perhaps some of you are saying it for the very first time: "Take me as You find me. All my fears, all my failures — fill my life. I give my life to You." How amazing is that? To be able to say, I do not need to pretend.
That is what we feel — and that is what religion says: get good enough, and then God will accept you. But what Christ says is something altogether different.
The Cost of Sin and the Power of the Resurrection
Jesus died for our sin — that is what the Bible tells us. That He died is, in itself, a historic fact. But the reason He died was for you, for me, for all of us. The wage of sin is death. When we sin, we separate ourselves from God, and it was Christ who died on the cross to do what you could not do.
Paul is remarkably honest in 1 Corinthians 15, the resurrection chapter. He addresses why Christ died, and then he writes this: if there is no resurrection, there is no living Christ. As he puts it in 1 Corinthians 15:14, if Christ has not been raised, everything we told you is smoke and mirrors, and everything you have staked your life on is smoke and mirrors. Not only that, Paul says, we would be guilty of telling a string of bold-faced lies about God.
But then listen to this — 1 Corinthians 15:20: "But the truth is, Christ has been raised, the first in a long legacy of those who were going to leave the cemeteries." We have to wait our turn — Christ first, then those who are coming with Him. And Paul breaks into those triumphant words: "Oh death, where is your victory? Oh death, where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, but the power of sin is in the law. Thanks be to God, who gives us victory through death."
Life Fuller Because of Christ
Here is what the Bible teaches: for those of us who know Christ, it is not just about the sweet by and by. He is saying that life is richer here, life is fuller here, because all of a sudden you become the person you were created to be. You sense that something is wrong — and you get that. But then He promises life after death.
I was standing right over there as you were singing about victory over death, and it occurred to me that this is Susan's first Easter with Jesus. Remember, last year it was a big deal that she got here — she hadn't been to church in a long time, and she really wanted to be here. Today, as much as she wanted to be here, she is in a far better place. And you and I will be too, one day. It is a promise to those of us who know Christ.
What Is Missing: Hope
I think a lot about life, and it strikes me that what is missing in so many people's lives is hope. Tim Keller writes that human beings are hope-shaped creatures — we need it to survive. Victor Frankl, writing in *Man's Search for Meaning*, says that hope is just as important to survival as air and water. Let me tell you where we find hope: you find hope in Jesus Christ, and nowhere else.
An Invitation to Encounter Jesus
What we want to do over the next five weeks is answer the question, who is Jesus? The goal is to help you, in a sense, encounter Jesus. For those of you we see every week, we hope to say thank you and to remind you that you have followed Christ — and that although life does not necessarily mean it is easy, it is worth it. For those of you we see casually, we hope to motivate you, not just to be here more regularly, but to give you hope that you can live fully for Christ, because that fluctuation in and out is often an indication of a life with Christ that is going up and down.
And then there is that group of you who are here today and would say, honestly, you do not care that much about this — you came for a friend or a family member. We would challenge you to take a serious look at life. You can fool others, but you cannot fool yourself, and you ultimately cannot fool God.
Something Is Missing — and It Is Jesus
Your life is missing something. Your natural instinct is to assume it is a financial need or an educational need — if you just get that degree, or that job, or that person, if you get her to go out with you or him to marry you, if you get that scholarship, or if you reach retirement and can finally relax. There is always something. There is something missing, so there is always something else you want. Let me tell you what is actually missing: it is Jesus.
I want to be very bold here. I want to suggest that God brought you here today for a reason, and I want to boldly suggest it was not just to hear a message from me, but to hear a message from God. The message is that He loves you, and that He sent His Son to die so that you could have eternal life — and that eternal life begins today.
Why You Were Invited
I would challenge you, invite you, and plead with you to join us over the next six weeks as we look at what is missing, what is wrong, what sin is, and who this Jesus is. Why did He die? What was behind all of that? It is okay to acknowledge that you are not sure you understand all of it. When He died, what was accomplished? How can we find real life? How can we find meaning in this world? These are the questions we will be working through together.
If you are here today because somebody invited you, I want to tell you a little secret: they invited you because they love you. They may have even risked the relationship, thinking that if they reached out and invited you, you might think they were crazy, or you might push them away. But they love you and care for you so much that they want you to know Christ. We have prayed and prepared for today and for the next five weeks, and we invite you to join us. It will be a special time, and we continue to pray that God will speak to you through His Word and apply the Spirit to your life.
The message is this: Jesus came and lived and died so that we could have eternal life, and eternal life begins today. To those of you who sense something is missing — I know there is. It is Jesus. Join us next week. We would love to see you then.
Closing Prayer
Father, thank you for this amazing time. Thank you that Jesus rose from the dead. God, thank you that it is a historical fact, and that You gave us all of this evidence so that we can live with a level of certainty. We pray for those who are here this morning who…
Father, thank you for Your word that records the truth. Thank you for loving us when we are not lovable. God, more than anything, thank you for Jesus, for His life, for His death. We pray to You now in His name, amen.