Witnesses of the Resurrection (Luke 24:36-53)
All other religions talk about living good and diligent lives; however, the central ideology of Christianity is resurrection after death. When we become witnesses of that, it is the greatest thing.
Let us bless one another, Happy Easter. Let the blessing of the resurrection be upon the individuals and families worshipping in the church, in their homes, and especially out of state. The title of today’s message is Witnesses of the Resurrection.
1. Jesus Christ
It is a fact that Jesus Christ died on the cross and resurrected; the real problem is, how can we become the witnesses of that? That is where all the blessings are contained. If we are not able to become witnesses of the Resurrection, then everything we are doing will become nothing, because the Lord has told us to do something very important, which is to become witnesses. He said we will become the witnesses to testify this to the ends of the earth. He says we are the witnesses of the Resurrection, I hope you hold onto these words of the witness.
1) Death and Resurrection
Resurrection must come after death. There is no resurrection without death. There are more than 3,000 religions in the world, and all of them signify death. Everyone on this earth dies, but Christianity talks about death and then resurrection. If a Christian loses hold of the meaning of resurrection after death, we fall into religion. All other religions talk about living good and diligent lives; however, the central ideology of Christianity is resurrection after death. When we become witnesses of that, it is the greatest thing.
All around the world, this Sunday is celebrated as Resurrection Sunday. The Lord does not want us to stop with just celebrating this feast, but he wants us to become witnesses of this. In order to become witnesses, we must be aware of the truth. What is the meaning of the death of Jesus Christ? Why did Jesus have to die and be resurrected? This is the core message of the Bible. Today, in the passage, it says Jesus testified of everything in the Old Testament for why he had to die on the cross and resurrect. If our lives aren’t able to prove the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, that is a failed life.
(1) Sin – Death (1Cor. 15:3)
The death of Jesus Christ is because of our sin, including Original Sin that we received from Adam and Eve as well as our consequential sins. Because of that Sin, our spirit was separated from God. A baby in the mother’s womb should be with the Spirit of God, but instead we are born without the Spirit of God because of sin. This is what happened because of Adam, and because we are living a life separated from the Spirit of God, we are captured by the spirit of Satan. And the incident of Jesus Christ’s death on the cross was the incident that ended all problems and curses.
If He didn’t die on the cross and resurrect none of this would be useful. 1 Cor 15:17 says if Christ had not been raised, your faith is futile and you would still be in your sins. It is true that Jesus died for our sins, but if he did not resurrect, we would still be in our sins.(2) Death, Satan (Heb. 2:14)
He is the one who overcame death and the devil who has authority over death (Heb 2:14). Only He is the God and the Messiah, and that’s why He resurrected according to the scripture. So, do not only talk about the death of the cross, but talk about the death and resurrection as a set. Because we only talk about the death, we lose power.
(3) Resurrection (1Cor. 15:4)
That’s honestly not even our faith. It says in the Bible that even your faith is futile, and our lives are constantly in sin. Christ resurrected in three days. It says in 1 Cor. 15, that if we humans don’t get resurrected as well, there is no need for Christ to have been raised. This is Christianity; other religions don’t talk about resurrection. Only God himself can overcome death.
2) Spiritual eyes
(1) Disciples of Emmaus (Lk. 24:15-16)
We read Luke 24 today, but earlier in verse 13, it talks about two disciples who, after Jesus’s death, are walking on their way to Emmaus. They are walking along this road and they had experienced Jesus’s death, but they are hearing rumors that he had resurrected. Jesus joins them on their journey but they don’t recognize him. They’ve experienced Jesus’s death on the cross, but not his resurrection. There are many Christians like this today. There are many people who believe Jesus has died on the cross, but they don’t believe that Jesus has resurrected and is now with me in spirit after the resurrection. Because He resurrected, Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand of God on the Throne of Heaven, and He is also with me; but there are many people who don’t believe this.
(2) Scriptures – Concerning Jesus (Lk. 24:27)
In verse 27, it says that while they were walking, Jesus explained to them what the Scriptures, starting from Moses, say about Him. In Luke 24:32, it says that while Jesus was explaining this to them, the disciples felt their hearts burning. No one has seen the resurrection. However, when you are able to see through the scriptures and working of the Holy Spirit that the resurrection had to take place, then the Holy Spirit works upon you. We have never seen the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ 2000 years ago, however, it is through the words of the Bible that make our hearts burn and makes believe.
(3) Spiritual eyes opened (Lk. 24:32,35)
These disciples’ spiritual eyes were opened. We have physical eyes and spiritual eyes. The spiritual eyes are able to see the resurrection of Jesus. How could we see this even though Jesus Christ is a Spirit? When the Holy Spirit begins to work upon us, we are able to believe it. This is the core of Christiantiy. All other religions have good content. But there is nothing about God being alive and walking with us. And God desires us to become witnesses of this.
3) Union
In Rom. 6:5, we have been united with Christ in his death. What does this mean?(1) Death – Union (Rom. 6:5)
Jesus’s Christ’s death on the cross has resulted in forgiveness of all our sins, but we are also dead on the cross with Him. We are also certainly united with Him in our resurrection. I’ve been completely changed. I have died on the cross with Christ. The “me” that rejected the existence of God is dead; the “me” that used to claim myself as my own God, and the “me” that designed my own life is dead on the cross. And now, Christ who is resurrected is united with me and living in me. Now even if you try to fail, you cannot, because God never fails; it is just your misconception because you misunderstand the meaning of the resurrection. He is walking with me. The sinner “me” has died and now I have the life of Christ living in me.
(2) Resurrection – Union (Rom. 6:5)
The resurrection means I have been changed from death to life. Rom. 8:2 says that through Christ Jesus, the law of the Spirit of life has set me free from the law of sin and death.
(3) Dead to sin, Alive to God (Rom 6:11)
We are now alive in Christ and we are ones who are controlled by the Holy Spirit. And now what kind of life should we live? What does it mean for us to live in the law of Spirit of Life?
2. Life (Rom. 8:2)
Everyone lives their life thinking, even now. It’s evidence that we’re alive.
1) Thoughts
However, even your thoughts come in two varieties: thoughts of the spirit and thoughts of the flesh. The thoughts of the flesh are death, but the thoughts controlled by the spirit are life and peace. What are the thoughts of the flesh, and what are the thoughts of the Spirit? Anything that is not the word of God are fleshly thoughts. If you think from the word of God, those are thoughts of the spirit, then you will have peace and life.(1) Thoughts of the flesh – Death (Rom. 8:6)
We have been resurrected and united with the Holy Spirit, but what is important is our thoughts. When you face an incident/problem/crisis, if you have thoughts from the flesh, they will lead to death.
(2) Thoughts of the Spirit – Life and peace (Rom. 8:6)
However, the thoughts of the Spirit come from God’s Word. As evidence that God is alive in me with his Spirit, he gives us his word. When you face a problem or an incident, don’t try to fix it with physical thoughts but find the answers in the Word of God. We are always trying to fix our problems, but it doesn’t work, and we are afraid. Because these thoughts are fleshly, they will take you into death. I hope you can have the thoughts of the Spirit.
What does the Word of God say about this? As evidence that God is with me, he gives me his Word. That is what led David to survive even while King Saul pursued him. David did not survive because of his bravery; the brave thoughts of the flesh lead to death; he had the thoughts of the Spirit. King Saul was chasing him to kill him for 15 years, but David was thinking the thoughts of the spirit. Because the Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for He is with me. He did not memorize those words, but they were from the Holy Spirit.
King David was a king of wars, and David had experienced countless wars, but he never had a physical thought, only thoughts of the spirit because he acknowledged the LORD as the main character of war. The Lord is my refuge. There were many superpower nations attacking Israel, and Israel didn’t have the greatest military, but what did David say at that time? David said the Lord is my shield. God will be our fortress. He will be the banner of victory. This is how David overcame everything.
This is not difficult; this is how the people who believe in the resurrection will live in their faith. If you do not believe in the resurrection, it’s impossible; you have no choice but to live in the thoughts that lead to death. The fact that we too will resurrect in the future is an undeniable fact. However, as we live on this earth until Jesus returns, what is the resurrection faith? More specifically, what kind of thoughts will we live our lives with? We must live our lives with the thoughts of the spirit. That person will become the witness of the resurrection.
Because God is alive and giving us His word, moment-by-moment. The future generation says that they are scared of the future because they haven’t lived it yet. The people of the world are saying because of the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be more pandemics in the future. If you’re thinking fleshly thoughts, you’ll keep going into death. At that time, what does the Word of God say? It’s all recorded in the Bible. As evidence that God is resurrected and is with you even now, He will give you His word.
Then, our lives will change to a life of resurrection, full of life and peace. Because God is alive and giving me His Word. It doesn’t matter even if you are accused, because even that false accusation will not overcome God living within me. It is okay even if you fail, because failure cannot overcome God. I have been unified with the Lord, so I myself cannot fail. It’s okay if you even have cancer because the Lord is living within me, so the thoughts of the spirit can overcome cancer. However, people thinking thoughts of the flesh die because of those thoughts; the problem isn’t the cancer.
(3) Scriptures – Remind you of the Word (Jn. 14:26)
In Jn 14:26, it says the Spirit within us will remind and teach us of the Word. As evidence of the resurrection, we are following God’s word.
2) Master
He is my master.
(1) Grape vine and branches (Jn. 15:5)
John 15 tells us about the vine and the branch; as long as the branch remains on the vine, it will bear fruit.
(2) Follow the Word (Jn. 15:7)
As long as I put my thoughts and emotions, heart and spirit in the Lord, He will take control of my entire life into the direction of saving.
(3) Fruits (Jn. 15:5, Ps. 1:2-3)
Psalms 1 says that the one who meditates on the Word day and night is like a tree planted by a river that bears fruit in its season.
3) Things above (Col. 3:2)
In Colossians 3:1, it says that we who are of Christ must seek the things above. We are living on this Earth and we need the things of the Earth (money, food, etc.), but if we have received salvation with Christ, set our hearts on the things of above. Then the things of the Earth will begin to follow. If you are chasing after the things of the Earth, you will be taken captive by those things. Seek the things above, why?
(1) Christ – Right hand of God (Col. 3:1)
Because Christ is seated at the right hand of God and he is with us in the Spirit. If you are able to pray, then God will answer with His heavenly angels transcending time and space. We live on this earth, but we seek the things above.
(2) Blessing of the throne of heaven, background
We give everything to God in prayer.
(3) Transcend space and time – Prayer (Rev. 8:3-5)
In Rev. 8:3-5, the angels take our prayers as incense up to God and bring answers back to us. That means we are people who live on this Earth with the blessings of the throne of heaven. Today during this worship, the moment you say, “Yes, this is true,” God will open the doors of answers immediately. Immediately, when Daniel resolved before the Lord, and God opened the gates of heaven and sent an angel with answers to Daniel. That is the characteristic of people who live with faith in the resurrection.
3. Promise of the resurrected Lord
There is a promise that God has given us, in the Bible.
1) Bible
(1) Fulfilled the Old Testament – Christ (Lk. 24:44)
In Lk 24:44, everything in the Old Testament was a prophecy of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It was the Pentateuch, the books of the law of Moses, the book of prophecies, and the Psalms; everything that was written about Jesus had to be fulfilled, and they talked about Him. Everything in the Old Testament talks about Jesus Christ; what about him? It is how we can receive eternal life. It doesn’t matter how diligently you live, it will all lead to death. Even if someone is very old, if they are thinking with the thoughts of the spirit, they will be very young. Someone who is only thinking about what to eat (thoughts of the flesh), they are already dead. The thoughts of our spirit are life and peace; you shouldn’t think about the things you eat, because the things you eat are just another way to stand as a witness of the resurrection.
(2) Heart – Realized the word (Lk. 24:45)
The Lord was teaching them about the Old Testament scriptures that prophesied about the resurrection of Jesus Christ that had to take place. In verse 45, the Lord taught them about the Old Testament and scriptures so their minds could be opened to have faith in the scriptures and the resurrection. We’ve never seen the death or resurrection, but God opens our hearts so we can realize the truth.
Paul went into the evangelism field of Philippi, and it says he opened the heart of Lydia. This is the overall ministry of God. If God does not open your heart, you cannot understand a message, even if the message is very eloquent or Jesus is standing right in front of you Himself; the disciples did not believe. God has to open your heart, and this is entirely God’s ministry, and He does this through the word of the Bible, and therefore it is recorded that this word movement will be proclaimed to the rest of the nations.
(3) Proclaim to all nations beginning from me (Lk 24:47)
How can we proclaim the gospel to all 237 nations. All we have to do is align ourselves to the direction of this word, with the evidence of the resurrection and with the thoughts of the spirit. You shouldn’t just try to work, however, because you try to run your business with just physical thoughts, that is death. We should work and study diligently but physical thoughts are death. We need the thoughts of the spirit, of God’s Word.
Therefore, your work and studies should relay the gospel message to all 237 nations. Even now, God is alive and giving and fulfilling His Word. God does not answer you according to your thoughts but according to His Word. John 1 tells us that God is the Word. Isaiah 40:8 says that the Word of the LORD is eternal. In Heb. 4:12, The Word of God is sharper than any double-edged word, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, judging the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Therefore, I must be created with God’s word, and my thoughts need to be the thoughts of God’s Spirit. That person will do the work to become the witnesses of Jesus’s resurrection. Why do people die even after being successful? Because they are living with only the thoughts of the flesh. What does “death” mean? It means you’re always afraid and worried; even if nothing is happening, you may be constantly attacked with anxiety or thoughts of panic. It’s because this person is thinking physical thoughts. They may have the skills to succeed, but this person is living with the spirit of death.
The resurrected Lord is with me in Spirit and he is seated at the right hand of the throne of God but is also with me in spirit, teaching me and reminding me of the Word of Christ. God does not give us disasters, but gives us peace. This person of peace must do God’s work, so you can be used as a witness of the resurrection. Your physical thoughts may say you need to succeed, but those are the thoughts of the devil. In Matthew 4, Satan tempts you with the things to eat, and the second thing he tempts you with is your pride, and the third thing is the glory and success of the world to take away your worship. People do succeed in the world, but after their success, Satan kills them spiritually, and this is relayed from generation to generation.
2) Witness
May you think the thoughts of the resurrection, in other words, be the witness of the resurrection. Being a witness of the resurrection means that the One Who has resurrected is with me, even as He is at the right hand of the Throne of God. I have been united with God, and now I am chasing after God’s word. Try this. It doesn’t matter what situation you are in, good or bad. If something good happens to you and you think, “This is great,” that’s a physical thought. Find God’s Word. If you have succeeded and feel good about it, those are physical thoughts.
You need to find God’s Word, why did God allow me to succeed? That was Joseph, who become the governor of Egypt. That’s great, but it’s not the end. With that, he saved Egypt and the world. David became king; that was success, but David never thought physical thoughts, he thought of building the temple. As a king, he went out on countless wars. If David had been thinking physical thoughts, he would have been too afraid to go to war, but every time he went out, he had the thoughts of the spirit–the thoughts of victory. When the Word of the LORD told him to go out, he won 100% of the wars. The resurrection means he is victorious, and our thoughts must be the thoughts of victory.
Through the words of Christ, nothing else matters. The world talks about the 4th Industrial Revolution, but that doesn’t matter to us. You might die, but think of the thoughts of the Spirit, what God’s Word says about it. We may even face death, and it’s sad, but think the thoughts of the spirit, the eternal heaven. On the last day, we will be resurrected, so we live our lives as witnesses of the resurrection, with peace.
(1) Sent the promised Holy Spirit (Lk. 24:49)
In verse 49, Jesus says, “I am going to send you what my Father has promised, but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” The Lord ascends, and we want him to be next to us, but He promised He would come upon us in the Holy Spirit. So, stay until you have been clothed with power from on high. When Jesus says remain in the city, he means don’t move.
You and I have this blessing, until you’ve received the power of being filled with God’s Holy Spirit. This time of worship is that necessary time. Invisible to your eyes, the Holy Spirit of power is with you. If you don’t have strength, you are struck with depression, being enslaved by the fear of your environment, being seized by the fear of the future, worrying over what to eat. God transcends these thoughts, but our thoughts are stuck on this level because we don’t have strength.
(2) Power (Lk 24:49)
If a person has strength, they change. Wait until you have this power. To the members of the Early Church, Jesus explained the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God for 40 days. But when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will receive power and be witnesses until the ends of the earth.
(3) Concentrate (Lk 24:49)
In other words, concentration. Even this time of worship is a time of concentration. If you come to worship and only think physical thoughts, it is to your loss. It doesn’t matter how powerful you are, if you are thinking physical thoughts, you are dead. However, the one who thinks the thoughts of the spirit will come to life and save others. Jesus’s standard is, how are you thinking? He never asks if you go to church or not. He asks if you are thinking thoughts of the flesh or of the spirit. You need to receive spiritual power from heaven, like charging your battery. We need to receive the filling of the spiritual power of God, then we can overcome the world.
3) Church
(1) Church (Lk. 24:53)
If your phone isn’t charged, it can’t function. Even if the hardware is fine, if it is not charged, you can’t use it. We need to receive the filling of the Power of God; then, you can overcome this world. But you talk so much because you can’t do this, and you have so many excuses, because you’re smart and you have to make excuses, “It’s not me, it’s because of that person,” . You blame others; kids blame parents, parents blame their children, the members of the church blame the pastor, and the pastor blames the congregation. This is evidence that the people are lacking strength, so they keep saying words that lack strength. The person with strength can overcome this and anything–depression, panic attacks, addiction. Wait until you have this power of the Holy Spirit.(2) Every Day (Ac. 5:42)
Every day you need this power before you can go out into the world, and that is how you become a witness of the resurrection. The Holy Spirit is inside of you, but wait until you have his power. That’s why we need to have a time of concentration and meditation on God’s Word. This is promised to us: there is nothing I do. What do I do every day? I just do this, there’s nothing else I can do. I don’t run a business or study. If you want to run a business or study, then you need to have this strength. If you don’t have power, you will only have thoughts of the flesh and of death, “everything is difficult and I’m so afraid.” I hope you will have strength, and God has promised to give it to you.
If you don’t have this strength, all you need to do is pray, holding onto God’s Word and the covenant. Then, as evidence that he has resurrected and is with us, God will intercede through our thoughts and emotions and His Spirit. This is a water cup. If I want to fill it with juice, I need to spill out the water first. SImilarly, you need to throw away your thoughts, so the thoughts of the spirit can replace them, until the Spirit of Christ completely fills me and I will be led in every single thing that happens today, being filled with the Spirit of God. You need to go into all of your meetings of the day already having received the answer.
Because He is resurrected, He gives us His Word. Because we are not able to have this, we keep having to use our brain instead, which leads to mental problems. This is why academic elites often have mental problems; we were not created to think deeply on our own; we were created to think with the Spirit of God. Today’s worship is very important, but it’s also important for you to go into your daily lives prepared to meet anyone, so be filled with the Spirit of God prior to meeting anyone that day. Because you’re not able to do that, you wake up afraid of what will happen today. That is a person who cannot become a witness of the resurrection.
(3) In the field (Ac. 5:42)
God is already giving you the Word that will be fulfilled throughout the week on Sundays. This is why worship is so important (Lk. 24:53). Worship is the method to continuously be a witness of the resurrection because God continuously gives His word though worship. If you lose hold of worship, 100% no doubt about it; you are in death. You lose hold of worship when you are doing something else, what else are you doing? You’re busy thinking physical thoughts. I’m not telling you to not think about those things, but God is telling you to do the physical things with spiritual strength. Because eventually you will fall into fear in a situation that you cannot solve on your own. The person loses hold of worship because of the pandemic, “I didn’t want to give worship anyway; this is great.” That person is going to die. They think thoughts that are always physical. Even though Jesus Christ resurrected and is with me, my thoughts are always physical.The disciples constantly praised God in the temple. The first church, Mark’s Upper Room, should be a model for us because they worshipped constantly in prayer. In the Old Testament, there was the temple, and in the age of the wilderness, there was the tabernacle; this was evidence that God is with us. Satan disrupts our worship, but if that takes place, then it is finished. It doesn’t matter how much they succeed; that person is already dead. Satan takes that person and drags them away, That is why people have mental afflictions. There are so many churches and theological seminaries in America, but the mental problems are accelerating drastically, why? Is it because we’re not working or studying? It’s because we don’t know what true worship is. There are many churches and seminaries, but none of them know what worship is. Through worship, you need to receive the strength of God and receive His Word. Then take His word home and to your field to restore worship there too.
Acts 5:42 says the members of the Early Church gathered in the temple courts and their homes and worshipped continuously. When you hear these words, what do you think? “I guess the members of the Early Church didn’t study or work, how could they worship every day?” They gave worship everyday, testifying and teaching about Jesus Christ because they were receiving evidence everyday. If you aren’t receiving evidence every day, you can’t stand as a witness, but because you receive evidence every day, you can stand as a witness. We need to restore this blessing of the Early Church.
Conclusion
Throughout this week, although the resurrection is a historical fact, I hope you can become witnesses of the resurrection. That is the difference between a religion and the gospel of Christianity. If you do anything else, you are just following another religion. Religious people succeed more than you. The Lord tells us to be witnesses of the resurrection, but you need to have the uniqueness of being a witness of the resurrection, not someone who is good at public speaking, but a witness. God has given this blessing to you and has promised to be with you for all of eternity. I hope you will enjoy this blessing this week.
1. Life of Christ that has overcome death
2. United with me
3. Witness of Christ
Prayer
Let us hold onto the Word that God has given to each individual and pray. A prayer that has no choice but to receive answers. Let us pray.
Offering Prayer
God, we thank You. We thank You for overcoming death, resurrecting, sitting at the right hand of the Throne of God, and for being with us through the Holy Spirit. We desire to live with you as witnesses of the resurrection. We believe that You will give us the evidence that we may stand as witnesses in all problems, incidences, and circumstances.
We return the material blessings You have given to us as offering. We pray that this will be the offering that saves, everywhere it is used. May this be the offering that is used for the Temple Construction to save all nations, and may the businesses and studies of all the members of the Early Church be the one to save. We believe that the Lord will work so that we may be the witnesses of the resurrection. In Jesus Christ’s name we pray, amen.
Benediction
Let us pray. We thank Jesus Christ who has died for a sinner like me on the cross, suffering and being crucified. We thank and praise you for being the firstfruits of the resurrection, being crucified on the cross. We who have received this tremendous grace wish to be witnesses of God, proclaiming this gospel message to the ends of the earth. We pray that you will help us to always be victorious wherever we are in this world, living in the Spirit. We believe that you will be with us in your Spirit forever and always. Amen.