TEACHING NOTES Introduction Today we celebrate the greatest day in history—the resurrection of King Jesus. We all know the story. Usually on Easter Sunday we hear the same message about how Jesus died, rose again, and how we just need to believe in Him so we can go to heaven someday. The Gospel is so much bigger than that. So today we’re going to focus on what believing this story requires of us. ‌ Matthew 4:17 17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” ‌ Repent = Grk. metanoeo - turn around, change direction, change of mind. Often repentance is described as “stop not believing and start believing.” But this is only the first baby step of repentance. To repent is to stop living like everyone else and start living in obedience to Jesus. ‌ The kingdom of heaven = Grk. basileia ton ouranon - the rule, reign of heaven. Ancient Israel was intended to be the kingdom of God on earth. But they repeatedly disobeyed God and worshiped the gods of other cultures. They turned away from God’s Word for sexual immorality, greed, materialism, idolatry, and even sacrificed their children to other gods (Molech and Baal). As a result, God left Israel and allowed them to be conquered by Assyria and Babylon. Jesus came to do what Israel failed to do and fulfill God’s promise to Abraham that “all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Gen. 15:3). ‌ Is at hand = Grk. engizo - has come near, is here. Jesus is saying that something has changed in the world. The reign of heaven is invading the reign of sin and satan. God is taking His world back. ‌ Matthew 4:23 23 And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. ‌ The gospel of the kingdom = Grk. euangelion tes basileias - While the modern gospel is often focused on our need for forgiveness of sin—which is important—this was not the main focus of Jesus’ Gospel. The true Gospel is bigger than God providing a way of forgiveness. The Gospel is about the kingdom of God invading the kingdom of darkness, the world ruled by evil. Jesus preached the Gospel of the kingdom and in the book of Acts the apostles preached the Gospel of the kingdom. ‌ Gospel = Grk. euangelion - This was a common word used in Greek culture. When a king conquered a region, the king would travel to the major cities to declare his reign. Before the king arrived an apostolos (apostle/messenger) would be sent to proclaim the euangelion. This message would describe the identity of the new king, his accomplishments/battles won, and call the people to submit to their new king or face the consequences. This is the context for what we call the Gospel. ‌ Euangelion: Identity of the King Accomplishments of the King Call to submit to the King ‌ The Gospel of King Jesus: Identity: Jesus is the Son of God-Messiah-King-Savior. Accomplishments: Jesus has defeated sin, satan, and death. Call: Repent and submit to King Jesus. ‌ The Problem: We want a Savior, but not a King. A Savior does things for us. A King requires us to do things for Him. ‌ This is not a new problem. This is why they killed Jesus. At Jesus’ trial, Pilate gives the people a choice. ‌ John 19:1–3 1 Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged him. 2 And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head and arrayed him in a purple robe. 3 They came up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and struck him with their hands. ‌ Crown of thorns = In God’s kingdom, everything is opposite from how our culture operates. Jesus is being crowned King, but not in a way we would expect. Much like the Triumphal Entry where Jesus rides a donkey instead of horse, He is crowned with thorns instead of a golden crown. This implies that Jesus is a different kind of King and Messiah than they were expecting. ‌ Hail, King of the Jews = While these soldiers are doing this to mock Jesus, they are actually speaking the truth. John includes this detail to show the irony that only Jesus and the Romans speak the truth in this story. The Jews (God’s chosen people) are the only group getting everything wrong in this story. ‌ John 19:4–5 4 Pilate went out again and said to them, “See, I am bringing him out to you that you may know that I find no guilt in him.” 5 So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Behold the man!” ‌ I find no guilt in him = In this story there is a great irony. God’s chosen people are accusing God’s own Son of treason and blasphemy, while a pagan governor is declaring Him innocent. ‌ John 19:6–8 6 When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.” 7 The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.” 8 When Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid.” ‌ Crucify him yourselves = Pilate is likely being sarcastic, because the Jews were not allowed to carry out the death penalty while under Roman rule. The Jews have brought Jesus to Pilate for this very reason. They know that they can’t kill Jesus, so they need the Romans to do it. ‌ I find no guilt in him = Even this pagan governor knows that Jesus is innocent. ‌ Pilate was even more afraid = Why? Because claiming the title “Son of God” was a larger claim than claiming to be a king. In the Roman empire, the emperor’s title was “Son of God.” If Jesus was claiming to be the actual Son of God, this is a much bigger problem than Pilate anticipated. This local problem has now become a national problem. ‌ John 19:9–10 9 He entered his headquarters again and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. 10 So Pilate said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?” ‌ Where are you from? = Since the Jews have just said that Jesus claims to be the Son of God, Pilate wants to know what Jesus has to say about this. If Jesus is the Son of God, then He had come from heaven. However, Jesus refuses to answer. ‌ I have authority to release or crucify you = Pilate assumes that he is actually the one in charge here. Jesus is about to correct that assumption. The only thing that will happen is what Jesus allows to happen. ‌ John 19:11 11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.” ‌ You would have no authority = The Bible is clear that those who are in authority in this world are in those positions only because God allows it. All authorities on earth are under the authority of God, whether they know it or not. ‌ The greater sin = Jesus clearly states that at least this sin is greater than others. Rejecting Jesus as the Messiah-Son of God-Savior-King is the greatest sin in that it is a rejection of the only One who can forgive all sins. ‌ John 19:12 12 From then on Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.” ‌ Pilate sought to release him = A third time Pilate can find no guilt to justify keeping Jesus in Roman custody. Pilate wants out of this problem. ‌ You are no friend of Caesar = Anyone living at that time in the Roman empire would have known what this meant and how serious it would be. The phrase “friend of Caesar” was a popular statement of status. If a Roman governor was called “friend of Caesar” he has job security and high status with the emperor. To lose this status would be deadly to Pilate’s career and could even lead to his own execution. The Jews knew that Pilate had previously been in trouble with Caesar for being too harsh and causing disorder. ‌ John 19:13–14 13 So when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Stone Pavement, and in Aramaic Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” ‌ Behold your King = Pilate tries one more time to avoid condemning Jesus. He brings Jesus out to the Jews again and sits on the judgment seat. This signaled that Pilate is about to make a final decision. ‌ John 19:15–16 15 They cried out, “Away with him, away with him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.” 16 So he delivered him over to them to be crucified. ‌ We have no king but Caesar = In other words, “we want to go along with the culture around us.” The chief priests are the Sadducees, who were theologically liberal and politically in bed with Rome for their own profit. These same “priests” had used their power to turn the Temple into a business and take most of the surrounding land from their own people. If Jesus was the Son of God, that meant the end of their schemes and oppression. So they would rather kill Jesus and keep serving Caesar. ‌ What if the story ended there? ‌ If the story ended with the cross, we wouldn’t be reading it today. ‌ Jesus was the first nor the last man to claim to be the Messiah and be killed for it. However, all other would-be Messiahs were killed, their followers stopped believing, and those movements ended quickly. But Jesus and His followers were different. The disciples didn’t stop believing and went on to change the world. ‌ If the next part didn’t really happen, we wouldn’t be reading it today. ‌ If the resurrection didn’t really happen, we would have likely never known about this story. The fact that the disciples spread the story of the resurrection all over the Roman empire successfully is a miracle. Some say they could have been lying. The fact is, people die all the time for things they believe. People don’t die for something they know they are lying about. The disciples didn’t preach that they “believed” Jesus rose from the dead. They preached that they “saw and touched” the risen Jesus (1 John 1:1-4). ‌ John 20:1–2 1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. 2 So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” ‌ They have taken the Lord = Notice that Mary Magdalene still believes that the crucified Jesus is still “Lord.” The Greek word for “Lord” is kyrios and is the Greek equivalent for the Hebrew Adonai, which is the title for God in the Old Testament—often translated “LORD” in English. ‌ John 20:3–5 3 So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. 4 Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. ‌ John 20:6–7 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, 7 and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. ‌ John 20:8–10 8 Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9 for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10 Then the disciples went back to their homes. ‌ The Rest of the Story: - Jesus appears to His disciples. - Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit into them. - Jesus reteaches them the Scriptures. - Jesus gives them a mission. - Jesus ascends to the throne of God. ‌ The rest of the New Testament after the Gospels tells us how to understand what Jesus has done for us. The writings of the apostles interpret this story for us and explain how to live out the Gospel. In Paul’s letter to the Colossians, we find a beautiful explanation of the Gospel. ‌ Colossians 1:13–14 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. ‌ Transferred us to the kingdom of his Son = The Greek word for “transferred” here is metestesen, which means “to be turned away from or removed from.” Paul is saying that Jesus died and rose to rescue us from our slavery to sin/satan and bring us into the kingdom of King Jesus. ‌ Redemption = Grk. apolytrosin - deliverance, release from bondage. This was term related to slavery in the ancient world. We were enslaved to sin and satan’s dominion over the earth. Jesus came to set us free from this bondage. The salvation story in the New Testament must be understood as a new Exodus. In the Exodus story, God rescued Israel from literal and spiritual slavery in Egypt. Jesus came to do the same, but for Israel and all the other nations. The Gospel is the ultimate Exodus for all people. ‌ Forgiveness = Grk. aphesis - pardon, liberation. In the Bible, sin is described as a spiritual entity that we allow to rule us (Gen. 4:7). Forgiveness is to be released from the hold our sins have on us. When God forgives us, He releases us from the death sentence. ‌ Colossians 1:15–16 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. ‌ He is the image of the invisible God = Jesus came to “show us the Father” (John 1:14-18; 14:8-9). When Jesus arrives on the scene, Israel had been taught by hypocrites and had a twisted view of the character of God. Jesus came to correct that and show us who God really is. ‌ All things created through him and for him = Since Jesus created all things (John 1:1-3), all things are “for him.” To follow Jesus is to live every part of your life for Him. Only then do we find what life is really about. ‌ Colossians 1:17–18 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. ‌ In him all things hold together = Not only did Jesus create all things, all things He created and held together or held in order by Him. ‌ He is the head of the body, the church = Jesus is the leader of the Church, not human pastors. Pastors are supposed to be under-shepherds with Jesus being Head Shepherd. The Church is the body of Christ who should operate as the kingdom of God on earth. ‌ In everything he might be preeminent = In other words, Jesus intends for His followers to put Him first in all things. ‌ Colossians 1:19–20 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. ‌ In him all the fullness of God dwells = See John 1:14-18. ‌ Reconcile all things = Jesus was doing more than reconciling humans to God. Jesus starting a whole new creation (Rom. 8:19-23). ‌ Making peace = See Rom. 5:1-5. ‌ Colossians 1:21–22 21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, ‌ You who once were = This is repentance language. Remember, Jesus’ message was “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” When we follow Jesus, we leave behind the ways of this world and follow the ways of Jesus. ‌ Reconciled = Grk. apokatallasso - reunited. All that Jesus did for us was done to reconcile/reunite us with our Heavenly Father. ‌ To present you holy and blameless = Those who believe in Christ as required to live holy/different lives. It would make no sense for Jesus to die for our sins only to have us take it for granted and continue living in sin. ‌ Above reproach before him = One day we will all stand before Christ and be judged. If we are faithful to Christ by living a repentant life, we will be declared righteous before Him. ‌ Colossians 1:23 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister. ‌ If you continue in the faith = Following Jesus (being saved) is not about believing a set of facts or theological ideas. Following Jesus is about faithfulness or living in allegiance to King Jesus. ‌ Stable = Grk. themelioo - established and grounded. Steadfast = Grk. hedraios - being firm, solid, convinced, settled. ‌ Not shifting from the Gospel = Many modern Christians shift in and out of their faith. While they may not stop believing the story, their faithfulness is on and off like a light switch. True followers of Jesus stay faithful and repentant. ‌ Conclusion Is Jesus really your King? Are you submitting every area of your life to King Jesus? ‌ Matthew 4:17 Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. ‌ Today we invite you to change your allegiance. Come out of the kingdom of darkness and be transferred to the kingdom of light and life. But this is not a one-time decision, it is a lifetime of staying faithful to King Jesus. ‌