The Resurrection of the Lord Rev Mark Duer
Luke 24:1-12 April 20, 2025
Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia "This is the day the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it." Our hope in life is well founded, built on Christ's epic battle and His ultimate victory over sin, death, and the devil.
Shouts of joy resound in the tents of the righteous!
“Mighty Victim from the sky, hell's fierce powers beneath You lie; You have conquered in the fight, You have brought us life and light. Alleluia!”
Brothers and sisters in Christ, on this Day of the Resurrection of our Lord, the church gathers to sing the traditional Easter hymns, to chant its alleluias, to put out the white paraments.
We gather around the altar with great joy, for the most triumphant victory has been won by our Lord and Savior.
St. Peter tells us in 2 Peter 1:19 “We have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.”
St. Luke’s gospel is proclaimed and preached today as that prophetic light that in fact dispels the spiritual darkness of this world.
In the early morning of the first Easter, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome went to the tomb to anoint Christ’s body with spices.
They were at the tomb with the rising of the sun. The women saw that the stone at the entrance to the tomb had been rolled away, they entered the tomb, they did not see the body of Jesus, and they were perplexed—or at a loss.
Luke 24:4-8 “While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. 5And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, "Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.”
Jesus told his disciples about his death and resurrection 3 times. The third time he told them this was going to happen was in Luke 18.
Luke 18:31-33 “And taking the twelve, he said to them, "See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. 32For he will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. 33And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise.”
When the disciples heard the news about Jesus’ resurrection on the first Easter Sunday, they were afraid. On the evening of the resurrection, they locked themselves in a room out of fear.
The same can be said of the women at the tomb. When the 2 men in dazzling apparel proclaimed from the tomb that Jesus Christ had risen from the dead the women were frightened.
Luke 24:8-9, says that the women, “remembered His words. 9Then they returned from the tomb and told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.”
The women from the tomb did eventually go and tell the disciples what they had seen, but it took a little time for them to come to grips with everything. We're no different than the women at tomb. We're no different from the disciples locked away in a room.
Repentance is the beginning of recognizing our sinfulness. Especially our sins of putting everything else as more important than God’s Word and being faithful disciples.
1 John 1:6-9 “If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
1 Corinthians 15:11: “Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.” The Corinthians believed because they were hearing the preaching of the gospel. The lamp that shined in the preaching of the gospel dispelled the spiritual darkness in and amongst the Corinthians. So, it is with you today.
Christ has risen from the dead, never to die again. He has defeated sin, death, hell, and everlasting condemnation. The power of His cross is poured into Holy Baptism, the preaching of the Gospel, the Lord’s Supper and Holy Absolution.
These gifts are given by Jesus as His way of coming to you to forgive your sins and to strengthen you for the road ahead.
What better way to celebrate God’s victory over sin and death than to have a feast? What better way to celebrate the Lord’s triumph over the grave than to dine at His holy Table?
Indeed, the Lord is good. He has risen! He is not in the grave, but here, with us in the salutary gift of the Lord’s Supper.
The prophet Isaiah foretold God’s victory over sin and death, as well as a celebratory feast that God Himself would prepare: Isaiah 25:6-8:
“On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined. 7And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. 8He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.”
God kept His promises and destroyed our greatest enemy of all (death) in the death and resurrection of His Son. And in His grace, He has also given to us a feast of “rich food” in the Supper of His Son’s body and blood.
For what can be richer, what can be more satisfying than the very bread of heaven Himself?
In this feast of victory, it is not an imagined Jesus that we dine with. It is not a mere symbol of a far distant Savior.
It is the risen Christ Himself who steps into our midst and feeds us with His crucified and risen flesh and blood for the forgiveness of our sins, life, and salvation.
As forgiven sinners, the Lord gives you the gift of the Holy Spirit to guide you and direct you in your daily life.
Colossians 1:10 “Walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”
1 John 4:11-13 “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. 13By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.
As forgiven sinners, through the holy spirit you produce the fruits of the spirit which leads you to good works.
These are helping your neighbors in any need. Being faithful in volunteering at the church, and in our communities.
We also want to be good stewards of everything we have, and give our gifts and offerings in joy from the abundance our Lord has given us.
Galatians 5:22-25 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
Whatever trails and sufferings, or problems with relationships, money problems, or health issues you may be going through, the Lord will be with you.
The fruits of Christ’s redemption have been given to you. The darkness is dispelled…the morning dawns…the light shines in your midst and in your lives.
Your sins have been washed away, Jesus Christ who has defeated the old evil foe. May the Lord fill your Easter with forgiveness, joy, and the peace that surpasses all understanding.
Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia. Amen.