최중현 교수(롬한인장로교회) 영어설교- Who Are You Looking For?(Luke 24:1-12)

Who Are You Looking For?

(Luke 24:1-12)

1. Today is Easter, when Jesus rose from the dead three days later.

(1) There have been many changes in the history of the church starting from Easter. The first of these is to worship on the first day of the week, that is, Sunday, and also to look at the direction of the life of faith, to make it a hope through living faith in the resurrection. However, if we look around us, we see that there are still many believers who do not understand the meaning of resurrection and who live steeped in outdated laws. So why? Could it be because they still do not believe in the resurrection? So this text is a really important passage.

(2) Today’s text is a good record of the disciples at the time thinking about resurrection. The text begins with the story of women looking for Jesus’ body at dawn on the first day of the week. So why did the women visit the tomb in the dark and scary dawn? According to the previous verse, because the Lord passed away three hours before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea quickly placed the Lord in his tomb, and Nicodemus held a funeral with 100 nitra worth of spices. So, since the women could not offer spices and myrrh, they waited for the Sabbath to end and as soon as it ended, they came to offer spices and myrrh. According to Luke 23:56, “When the women saw the tomb and where the Lord’s body was, they returned and prepared spices and myrrh.”

(3) So did they come to the tomb believing that the Lord was alive at this time? No. So, in verses 2-4 of the text, it says that they were distressed when they saw the empty tomb. Everyone, how much has the Lord emphasized His resurrection during His public ministry? However, no one recognized the resurrection of the Lord. So today, we would like to receive grace together with the title [Who are you looking for?] in response to the angel’s question in verse 5 of the text, [Who are you looking for?]

2. First, let’s look at the hypotheses of those who do not acknowledge the Lord’s resurrection.

(1) At the time, the Lord’s resurrection was a very controversial topic.

1) So, looking at the hypotheses of those who do not believe in this resurrection, first, there is the fainting theory. The theory that the Lord fainted literally means that the torture he suffered was so severe that he could not stand it and fainted. Then, three days later, he was resuscitated. This is a truly absurd hypothesis.

2) The second theory is that it was a temporary burial. Joseph of Arimathea, who took the body at the time, would be able to manipulate it well.

3) Third, there is also a theory of body theft. This theory is explained in detail in Matthew 28:11-15, so you can refer to it.

4) The fourth is the fantasy theory. The story goes that the disciples at the time saw a vision.

5) Fifth, there is the twin theory. This theory originally states that Mary gave birth to identical twins. So, it is said that they mistakenly thought that he was resurrected when they saw another living twin Jesus. So what do you think about these hypotheses?

All / The Lord has clearly risen from the dead. So the angel’s question in today’s text is a really important question.

(2) So what was the answer of the disciples to the angel’s question today? Let’s look at verse 5. “Why do you look for the living among the dead?” That’s right. The angel clearly said that the Lord is alive and is still here. That is why he asked, “Do you seek him among the dead?” So are we not still seeking the Lord among the dead? So in verse 6, he rebuked them to remember what he said when he was in Galilee. That’s right. The Lord has been emphasizing his resurrection many of his days. Then, in verse 8, we see that when they remembered the words of the Lord, they really remembered what the Lord had said. Then, deep in their heart, they were filled with confidence, and eventually they came to believe in the resurrection of the Lord. Everyone, the Lord’s resurrection is a clear fact. So, the author Luke emphasized the word [fact], and because of this fact, he made it known to the 11 apostles and everyone else, which is the content of the entire text.

(3) So what was the attitude of the disciples when they heard this? Let’s look at verse 11. That’s right. [They thought it was in vain] They did not believe in the resurrection of the Lord. That’s right. They couldn’t believe it after just hearing about it. However, among them, Peter ran to the tomb to check, and when he saw that only the linen shroud was placed on the stone slab where the body had been placed, he was ‘amazed’ and returned home. Everyone, even Peter, the Lord’s greatest disciple, did not believe. That’s right. It is so hard to believe that person die and come back to life. That is why faith in resurrection is so important.

3. So how can we believe in this incredible resurrection?

(1) That is, faith in resurrection arises from faith based on the Word. It is said that the Word is alive and has power. So, when you believe the Word, the belief that the dead have risen, so the angel asks the second question: Let’s look at verses 6-8. That’s right. It means remembering the words of the Lord. So, when they remembered the words, their heart became warm and their eyes became bright. Then these women came to believe in the resurrection of the Lord. But let’s look at verse 32 of the text. The two disciples who were disappointed in Jerusalem and were on their way to Emmaus walked with the resurrected Lord, but they did not recognize Him. In terms of distance, considering the distance between Emmaus and Jerusalem, it means that they walked with the Lord for probably 3 hours and 30 minutes. However, they only thought about the Lord who was dead and never thought about the Lord who was alive, so they did not recognize the Lord even though He was by their side. But what happened when the Lord opened the Bible to them? Let’s look at verse 32. [Their heart was warm and their eyes were bright and they recognized the Lord]. That’s right. True faith arises when faith is based on the Word. So, the angel’s question to these women today was the Lord’s word. Then, when they remembered the words, faith in the Lord’s resurrection arose. That is why the word is so important.

(2) Second, the Lord uses those who love Him as witnesses of His resurrection. Everyone, no matter where you go in the world, no one will go to the graveside happy. However, with a woman’s body, this is especially true in the early hours of the morning. Nevertheless, the only reason these women went to the grave was because they loved the Lord so much. That’s right. Their love for the Lord was so great that these women were able to overcome the fear of the grave and the fear of the dark. So, in John 20:15, when Mary asked him she thought he was the keeper of the garden and said, “Lord, if you have taken it, tell me where you have laid it, and I will take it.” She begged to at least hold on to the body. Everyone, look at the situation at the time. What would the atmosphere be like if all the disciples ran away, Peter betrayed the Lord, and Judas Iscariot sold the Lord for 30 pieces of silver? Nevertheless, these women followed the Lord until the end, crying as they watched His suffering. That’s right. Women who loved the Lord so much. So, out of this love, the Lord gave them the honor of showing Himself first and used them as witnesses to announce His resurrection. That’s right. I believe that the Lord knows that we love Him like the women who loved Him so much.

(3) So now, let us decide and live with the faith of resurrection. If you look at today’s text, you will see the [common point] of those who do not believe in the Lord’s resurrection. That is a realistic prejudice. Let’s look at the women first. The women’s preconceptions were filled with images of the Lord who had already died. So even after seeing the empty tomb, they could not think of resurrection. So, he rebuked dead faith. So what about the disciples? They were disappointed to see the Lord being dragged along helplessly. That is why they did not acknowledge Mary Magdalene’s words. In particular, in [Mark 16], it is said that this Mary was a woman possessed by seven demons. So the disciples would have heard this woman’s words as the words of a woman who had lost her mind. That’s right. Preconceptions based on reality did not acknowledge the resurrection. So, resurrection faith is a living faith.

[Then what is the conclusion of today’s text?]

It lies in the words [faith] and [known]. That’s right. If we believe in the resurrection, we must now make it known. To do that, we must first have solid evidence. So what is the evidence of the resurrection? That is the Word. So the authors of the Gospel wrote this part with clear conviction and testified. So, I pray that we will stand firm in the Word, become witnesses who even believe in the resurrection, and spread the gospel.