Resurrection Chaos (Luke 24:1-12)
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If you have your Bibles with you this morning, I invite you to turn with me to Luke 24. Obviously on Resurrection Sunday, we are going to study the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. As you know, there are four gospels in the New Testament, and each of them tell the glorious story of the empty tomb. All four tell the same story, but each of them are intentionally recorded a little differently. Each gospel author shares his unique and personal perspective on the resurrection, and today we are going to look at the empty tomb through the chaotic lens that the gospel of Luke provides.
In this closing chapter to Luke’s, you can feel the panic, stress, and confusion that accompanied the chaos of that moment. Something tells me that you, much like me, are no stranger to chaos. We indeed live in a broken world, a sinful world, where things seldom go as we desire. Every morning, I turn on the news and am appalled by what I see. When I think there is no way, things may get worse, it gets much worse. Little makes any sense in this upside-down world. It’s chaotic, confusing, frustrating, and heartbreaking at the same time. On top living in a chaotic world, there’s the chaos of our lives. I have job that I love, but it’s hard and stressful work, I have wife whom I adore, but marriage can be challenging. I have two teenage sons that I mean the world to me, but their are two teenagers living in my home who do teenage things! I have dog whom we thought would be a stress relief for me, but often that needy dog simply adds to the frustration and chaos of my life! Surely, you can relate!!!
In Luke 24, while everything was going perfectly according to God’s perfect and sovereign plan, nothing seemed to be going right for those who loved Jesus. Their world was chaotic, nothing made any sense, they were stressed, anxious, and perplexed. Though Jesus had foretold them everything that was going to occur, they simply could not understand why things were happening the way they were… With that in mind, read along with me Luke 24:1-12… Today, I want you to see four truths from this chaotic scene of scripture that I believe offer us great understanding and hope in our chaotic word.
1) In chaotic moments, our minds struggle to remember gospel truth (vs. 1-7).
Verse 1 helps to set this magnificent scene for us. We are simply told that one the first day of the week, at early dawn that is right before the rising of the sun, a group of women who loved Jesus deeply come to His tomb with spices which they had prepared. Now, the closing paragraph of chapter 23, inform us why they are doing what they are doing. There, we are informed of a good and righteous man named Joseph of Arimathea, who went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Look with me to verses 53 and following, “And he took it down and wrapped it in a linen cloth, and laid Him in a tomb cut into the rock, where no one had ever lain. It was the preparation day, and the Sabbath was about to begin. Now the women who had come with Him out of Galilee followed, and saw the tomb and how His body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and perfumes. And on the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.”
The women saw where and how Jesus’ body was buried. They personally witnessed the manner in which the whole burial process was rushed to be accomplished before the start of the Sabbath. They saw how Joseph and Nicodemus, two men who secretly followed Jesus, did their best, but their best wasn’t good enough. It would be much like me and one of my sons cleaning the kitchen in my home. It may be sufficient for the time being, it may get the job done, but it probably won’t fully meet my wife’s standards. Now, don’t mis understand, I don’t say that as a jab at my wife at all, for I greatly appreciate and stand amazed at how my wife can see things that I can’t, how she notices details that guys like me normally miss. The women in this story, notice a need, and out of their affection for Jesus, they gather spices and perfume, so that at the first light after the Sabbath, they could give Jesus a loving and proper burial.
Even through Jesue was dead, everything that day was going according to their plan in verse 1. There was a need, they had the solution, and they were on mission. However, notice how things quickly begin to unravel and become chaotic. They show up at the tomb, and the large stone that covered the grave was rolled away. The gospel of Mark informs us that as the women were nearing the tomb, it dawned on them that they would be unable to remove the stone. They neglected to secure the help of strong man to unseal it, but when they arrive, the door was wide open. And so, in curiosity they entered the tomb to discover that Jesus’ body was nowhere to be found. This was an obvious sign that the resurrection had occurred, but instead of being filled with awe and worship the text informs us that these women were perplexed, meaning they were at a complete loss, they could not understand and were utterly confused by what they saw.
And immediately they go from a state of great perplexity to great fear. For in the middle of verse 4, they suddenly find themselves in the presence of two men who are dressed in dazzling clothes. There is no doubt that these two men were angles robbed in the radiant splendor of God. The Greek word for dazzling is the exact same word to describe the shinning garments worn by Christ on the mount of transfiguration. It literally means their clothes were flashing forth a bright light. Such a heavenly spectacle flooded their hearts with great fear and reverential awe, as they immediately bowed their heads and covered their faces in their presence.
Notice, what the angelic men say in verse 5… “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here but has risen. Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful me, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.” I love their opening line! “Why are you here, why do you have all the spices and perfumes… why are you looking for a living person in a dead man’s tomb. He’s not here, for He is alive, risen from the dead! Oh, what a humbling reminder that when our lives are shaken, when the trials of life catch us by surprise, our naturally tendency is to look for answers and solutions in the wrong places. These precious women came to the tomb that day, expecting to care for Jesus’ dead body. They came with all the supplies to care for Him. There is nothing in the text to suggest that they expected Christ to be anything other than dead. For they had personally witnessed his gruesome death on the cross. They were there when the soldier thrusted his spear into His side and pierced his sacred heart. They personally saw what was left of his mutilated and lifeless body that was laid in the tomb. In their minds, there was no way Jesus would be alive, for they had completely forgotten what Christ had previously told them. So, the angels graciously remind them that Jesus Himself previously told them that such atrocities would occur. That He would be handed over to evil men, be crucified, but in three days, He would rise again.
Church family, when life gets hard, when things don’t go according to our plan, when trials come, our minds typically don’t recall that which we know. We panic, we grow confused, and we foolishly look for explanations or answers to questions in all the wrong places. Oh, how quickly, we turn to the world for guidance, we look to psychology, sociology, and justice. Oh, how naturally, we will turn to google, our friends, books and experts for their wisdom. But remembering gospel truth? Remembering that Christ, God’s humble and faithful Servant was handed over to sinful men, crucified as He poured His life as a guilt offering, that He gloriously rose again, validating that our sin debt had been paid in full. Thinking about those truths isn’t our initial response to chaos, is it? And let’s be honest, why should it? Why should our minds rush to those truth?… I’m so glad you asked!!!! 2 Peter 1:2-4… “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”
Friends, pay attention to these verses… Grace and peace are multiplied to us, everything we need for life and godliness, everything we need to overcome the evil desires of our heart that feed the chaos in which we live, are found in Him, who lived, died, and raised again. Oh, remember what He told you, the angel said!!! For you can be sure that Jesus has spoken everything you need to know to live faithful and righteous life for Him in the chaos of your world. That’s why when life falls apart the seams, our hearts and minds should seek peace, grace, and guidance in His words and His example.
Listen, hope and peace are found in Christ alone. There is no other fountain for such things. Oh, how we must train our brains to run to the truths of the gospel. But that’s not all, for we must not simply think gospel saturated thoughts, but we must live gospel saturated lives. Theologian J.C. Ryle once wisely wrote, “The Gospel which we possess was not given us only to be admired, talked of, professed, but practiced! It was not meant merely to reside in our intellect, memories, tongues, but to be seen in our lives.” Please understand, the gospel truths of scripture guide us to live righteous lives amidst the chaos. They beckon us to come and die to ourselves and live for the glory of God. They counsel us on how we are to live in both the good times and the difficult moments of life. This is why it’s so important that we discipline or minds to keep the gospel message of the Bible ever before us, and live within the community of faith where our brothers and sisters can remind us of the truth. Our world is broken, we live in a chaotic environment, we sin, and we are sinned against, and our minds will fail to find quality rest and true guidance apart from finding them in the truths of the gospel, which undoubtedly we will often struggle to remember.
2) In chaotic moments, God will often deploy surprising voices of truth (vs. 8-11).
Look again with me to verses 8-11… “and they remembered His words, and returned from the tomb ad reported all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them were telling these things to the apostles. But these words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe.” Some fascinating things to consider in these 4 short verses. First of all, we really see how difficult it is to believe in the resurrection. Even those who were with Jesus the most, who saw Him perform miracle after miracle, proving He was sovereign over all things. That same group of people also heard Him proclaim numerous times that He would be handed over to sinners, crucified, but would rise back to life on the third day. Those were the ones who were caught completely off-guard by the empty tomb. The women were perplexed by the empty tomb, and the disciples, who were hiding in fear, considered it complete nonsense. We see how challenging it was to believe here in this passage, but secondly notice how desperately we need divine assistance in accepting the gospel message. As Isaiah 53:1 reminded us, it takes the strong arm of God to reveal gospl truth to our hearts. Listen, no one comes to believe in the life, death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord apart from the work of God. It is God alone who initiates, calls, transforms, sanctifies, and glorifies those who believe. The Bible repeatedly affirms that salvation is completely a work of the Lord. It is a gift of grace which can only be received by faith, when God sends His messengers to deliver this message. We see that too here in this text. As God surprisingly sent the women two majestic angels to proclaim the resurrection of the Lord. They were unable to put the pieces together on their own. Even though they had all the pieces of the puzzle, all the needed data points were there, nothing was missing, yet they still needed divine assistance to make sense of it all. And as they remembered, implying they believed in faith, God sends them to report the resurrection to the anxious disciples.
We read of that divine commission in the gospel of Mark, where the angel sends this same group of women to go and inform the eleven. The text reads…. “Entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe; and they were amazed. And he said to them, ‘Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you.’” Isn’t in intriguing that God didn’t send the angels to the disciples, but instead chose another surprising voice, a group of women. God chose them to be the first to ever proclaim the good news of Jesus’ resurrection.
When the disciples needed divine revelation God sent them Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James and group of other women. I’ll remind you, that in the ancient world, women were viewed as second class citizens. In most cases women were not even allowed to be witnesses in a court of law. And yet God surprisingly chose these precious women who so loved the Lord to be the first to herald the gospel message. Oh, what a wonderful and glorious testimony to God’s love for women, to the courage of women, and the dignity of women. But more than that, hear me out church, this small group of women were the only eyewitness who saw Jesus’ death, burial, and the empty tomb. The disciples ran in fear. Only John appeared at the cross, the other ten were nowhere to be found. They are the only ones who witnessed the torture of the cross, they are the ones who witnessed the tragic events that were foretold in Isaiah 52 and 53 unfold. They saw Jesus marred more than any man, pierced, crushed, scourged, put to grief, and poured out as a guilt offering. They heard with their ears, Jesus crying out, “it is finished”, and they observed His death. When everyone fled, they were there. When Jesus was buried, it was the women, not a disciples, who followed Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus to the tomb. Only they saw where and how His body was laid to rest. And on Easter morning, only these were up at dawn to return to that tomb and find it completely empty. Therefore, this group of women are the only credible eyewitness testimonies to consider.
But even their witness and personal testimony were not enough to convince all the disciples. Verse 11 declares that the women’s words appeared as nonsense to the men, and they would not believe them. The Greek language here implies that the disciples originally thought that the resurrection was foolish, idle talk, or some kind of fable. To them it mattered little how the story had cohesion and consistency. It didn’t matter how the women shared details that have no other explanation. They would not believe, because the truth they came to share seemed like complete gibberish.
Oh, how quick our hearts are to write off the truth which we most desperately need to hear. Instead of hearing with ears of faith, we tend to listen with ears of reason and feeling. And so, if things don’t make sense to us or make us feel good, then obviously they must not be true. Why, because in our fallen nature we have concluded that we ourselves determine what is right, what is wrong, what is true, and what is false. Such foolish thinking naturally leads to the chaos we see every night on the evening news. The great puritan thinker John Owen wrote, “Without absolutes revealed from without by God Himself, we are left rudderless in a sea of conflicting ideas about matters, justice and right and wrong, issuing from a multitude of self-opinionated thinkers.” Think of that word picture for a second… without truth revealed by God, we are rudderless in a sea of conflicting worldviews. We will simply bounce from wave to wave of people whom we consider to be cool or experts. In such a world we are without all hope and simply must go along wherever the winds of our culture may lead. That’s a scary thought isn’t it… But God and His relentless grace has sent and will continue to send messengers to you with His glorious truth.
Most of these messengers, by the way, will be surprising voices of wisdom. They probably won’t have professional credentials, diplomas, certifications, or licenses, most will not be considered experts in the field, but listen, such titles mean very little when speaking God’s truth. Instead, the people you need to hear are the ones who simply love the Lord the most and are disciplined in listening to His voice. Those are the people you need to listen to; they are the ones you need to lean into when your world is rocked by the chaotic storms of life. Listen, God delights to use simple, normal, everyday people who love Him to share the truth of the gospel. And they prove to be the most powerful and helpful voices you can ever hear. Perhaps, today he’s nudging you to share truth with someone whose caught in the chaotic storms of life. Will you be faithful to speak them, or maybe I should ask, are you willing to listen to the voices of truth that God is sending your way? Maybe you the one stuck in the chaos, and God has sent numerous people to speak truth to you, but you have refused to listen. Will you humble yourself before the voice of God, will you believe in Him and trust His truth? This brings us to the third point…
3) In chaotic moments, we need to marvel over the resurrection of Christ (v. 12).
Verse 12 informs us that not all the disciples considered the women’s testimony as nonsense. Notice how Peter responds… “But Peter got up and ran to the tomb.” Now we know that according to the gospel of John, that he wasn’t alone, nor was he the first. In fact, John shares with us that he outran Peter to the tomb that day. But nonetheless, only two of the eleven rush to investigate the message that was shared with them. Running ahead like this was very typical of Peter. He was clearly a man of action, who at times said things and did things impulsively. But rushing to get to the tomb, was the correct response to what they had heard. Notice specifically what Luke records, “stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrapping only; and he went away to his home, marveling at what had happened.”
When Peter saw the empty tomb, when he saw the linen clothes lying there, he began to marvel over it all. The Greek word marvel expresses astonishment and amazement without indicating whether Peter understood the full implications of everything he saw and heard. Maybe this is implying that Peter was still mulling over the facts and evidence. But one thing is for sure, this disciple continued to think critically about everything he had heard and everything he observed that day regarding the empty tomb.
Church family, when our world becomes chaotic, we too need to run to the empty tomb. We must reflect and marvel often on the reality that Jesus was not found among the dead. We need to marvel over all the evidence ourselves. Listen, all the testimony recorded in Scripture, all the historical evidence should stir our hearts with praise. For since the tomb is empty, we have great reason to be filled with hope in the midst of chaos. Listen church, the empty tomb, it validates the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Had Jesus not risen from grave, the cross would lose all it power. His death would have been meaningless. But sense the tomb is empty, we know we can be completely forgiven of our sin, accredited His perfect righteousness, and be made acceptable to God. 1 Corinthians 15:17 proclaims, “if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.” You see, apart from the resurrection of Christ, we are all trapped in our sin and have zero hope of heaven. Our eternal destiny is secured in hell without an empty tomb. But praise be to God, as Paul would say later in 1 Cor. 15… “Death is swallowed up in victory!” There is hope for us beyond the grave, beyond this chaotic world, for He is alive. You see, sense Christ has risen, both the power and penalty of sin have been completely broken for those who believe in Him. The empty tomb reminds us that we are set free from the chains of our sin. Listen, this means that followers of Christ can overcome deep rooted sinful habits and addictions that have destroyed their lives. By His grace, we can change and grow in faith. Now, certainly we will never be sinless this side of eternity, but oh how we can mature in the Lord and experience His freedom.
Friends, do you realize that much of the chaos in your life is a direct result of your sinful thoughts and choices? Do you realize that? This is why, its vital that we marvel over the empty tomb! Perhaps, you are here today, and your life is a mess, your trapped in sin, and you know that the chaos you are experiencing and will continue to endure is of your own making. My friend, the tomb is empty, there is hope for you in Christ! You simply must turn to Him in faith by turning away from your sin and believing that the sinless Son of God died on the cross in your place and rose again. You must trust that Christ bore your sin on the cross, that He endured the wrath of God toward your sin as He suffered and died on Calvary. Believe in those gospel truths and live for Him in joyful obedience by following His example. If your tired of the chaos of your world, I invite you to join me in marveling over the empty tomb where you can find true rest for your weary soul and have the hope of eternal life in heaven. If that is the desire of your heart this morning, please come find me or one of the other pastors this after this service, for we would love to pray with you, answer questions, and encourage you as you seek to follow Christ as your Lord and Savior.
4) In chaotic moments, we will find what we need the most in the Truth of Scripture (vs 13-53).
Immediately after Peter examined and marveled over the empty tomb, we are told that two of the Lord’s disciples had left Jerusalem and were walking on the road to Emmaus. And on that journey, they couldn’t help but talk about what they had experienced over the past week. They literally were just trying to make sense over the death of Jesus, and the women’s testimony of the resurrection that they quickly wrote off as nonsense. They were so confused, when all of the sudden the resurrected Jesus Himself joins them on the journey, but somehow they are unable to recognize His appearance and His voice. And so, Jesus, simply asks them, what on earth are you two talking about? And one, named Cleopas begins to tell the stranger everything that occurred to them in Jerusalem. They share with this stranger how Jesus the Nazarene was a mighty prophet of God who was arrested and crucified. And in notice verse 21, Cleopas says, “we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel.” In other words, they were hoping Jesus was going to be the king who would rescue Israel from the tyranny of Rome. Just as we studied in Isaiah 53, they were not looking for a humble servant, or a sacrificial lamb, they wanted a national hero. And the disciple then goes on to tell resurrected Lord about the women and empty tomb. Now, pick up with me in verse 25 and following… “And He said to them, ‘O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.”
I wish we had the detailed transcript of that sermon. I would have love to know the passages that Jesus referenced as He explained everything to these two men. Perhaps He started in the garden of Eden, and the promise of the Victorious Man who would one day crush the head of the serpent, maybe He spoke of Abraham and Issac, or the bronze snake lifted up in the wilderness, certainly He spoke of Leviticus 16 and explained the sacrificial system and rituals that were to occur annually on the Day Atonement. Surely, He spoke of Isaiah 53 and the Servant of God who would be greatly humiliated before He would be gloriously exalted. Possibly, He quoted the Psalms or Zechariah. The possibilities are limitless, because everything that was written in the Prophets ultimately points us to Christ Himself. Oh, to have heard the resurrected Lord explain Himself throughout “all the Scriptures.”
Later that evening, after reaching their destination, the two men invite Jesus to eat with them, it was there that their eyes were finally opened and they finally recognized that it was the resurrected Lord Himself who was with them all along, it was the Messiah who was explaining these wonderful truths to them. And immediately Jesus vanished from their sight. Verse 32 is so powerful, it reads, “They said to one another, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?’” Instead of marveling over Christ’s sudden disappearance, they found comfort, peace, hope, and joy in God’s Word. Oh, how they needed much more than just a word of encouragement, a prayer, or a Bible verse. When their world made no sense, they needed to see Jesus in all the Scriptures. That alone is what brought them comfort in their chaotic world. And that joy they experienced in their hearts being warmed by the truth overflowed and led them to quickly return to Jerusalem to share with the disciples everything they had seen and heard.
Amazingly, there, as these two men are reporting everything to the disciples, Jesus just happens to appear again in their midst. And He shows the disciples the scars from the crucifixion and invites them to touch His flesh to prove to them that He had risen. But don’t mis verse 41… “While they still could not believe because of their joy and amazement.” As wonderful as this amazing reunion was, they still struggled to believe. So pay attention to what He says to them in verses 44 and following… “‘These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.’ Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and He said to them, ‘Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.’”
The disciples that night were still struggling with unbelief, they had no direction, and were hiding in fear. Amazingly, the appearance of the resurrected Lord wasn’t enough, so the Lord pointed them to the Word of God opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. Remember this was before the Holy Spirit was sent to do that work us. They, like us, needed Divine assistance to see and accept truth. The Dutch Renaissance philosopher Erasmus once wisely wrote… “On these pages you will find the living Christ, and you will see Him more fully and more clearly than if He stood before you, before your very eyes.” The disciples needed to see Christ, not just physically, but in the scripture. For from the Word of God, Jesus reveled Himself to them in all His glory and gave them hope, peace, encouragement, guidance, and promised them power so that they could boldly live out the faith in joyful obedience. Everything they needed for life in their chaotic world, Jesus pointed them to Himself as He is revealed in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and Psalms. He shows them that the Bible is all about Him. And He takes that grand redemptive story, the gospel that runs throughout the entire Scripture, and He works and presses that message and the great doctrines of God deep into their hearts. And these men were never the same after this… For as God’s Word takes root in our hearts, we begin to live for Him and we can’t help but share all that He has done with our friends and family. This message transforms everything about our lives, as it brings light to the darkness and hope to the chaos.
In our upside-down world, where little makes sense anymore, oh how we need the guidance, comfort, peace, and hope that only the scriptures can give. This is why it is so important that you plant your life in a church that faithfully proclaims the gospel of Christ and the Word of God, and is comprised of people who will lovingly remind you of truth. Church family, our world maybe broken and chaotic, but the tomb is empty, Christ is risen, and everything we need is found Him, in His Word, and in the Scriptures. There’s hope in Jesus! He is the only fountain of hope. Do you know Him? Have you crowned Him, Lord of your life? In the midst of your chaos, run to Him and find rest for your weary souls… pray with me!