Why do you seek the living among the dead?

 Luke 24

20 April 2025 – Resurrection Sunday

 Verses 1-12

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 

• The sabbath would have ended at sunset on the Saturday, but little could be done during the hours of darkness. So the women were astir early on Sunday and they set off for the tomb.
• They were expecting a corpse to anoint, but what they find is bewilderment.
• Mark tells us that they were discussing the problem of moving the heavy stone from the tomb’s doorway

 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 

• Matthew speaks of one angel who rolled the stone away.

3 but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 

• When later on the beloved disciple came to the tomb, he was diffident about entering it (John 20.5), but the women had no such hesitation.

4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. 

• The angels address the women as though they were on a quest. But there’s a strange difference between this quest and others that we find in Luke’s gospel. In chapter 5, a group of men peel back the roof of a place where Jesus had been teaching to lower their paralyzed friend into the room where Jesus was so that the friend could be healed. In Luke 7, a captain in the Roman army sends a group of elders to Jesus, asking Him if Jesus could heal the captain’s servant. In Luke 17, as Jesus entered a town, a group of lepers, that is a group of men with skin diseases came out to Jesus to be healed by Him. In Luke 19, as Jesus entered Jericho, a man by the name of Zacchaeus ran up Sycamore tree trying to get a glimpse at the great Healer who had come to town, so that he could confess his sins to him.
• What’s interesting is that in each of these accounts, folk were looking for Jesus to receive a blessing FROM Him. But in this case, we see the women looking for Jesus wanting to bless Him. And this is an awesome thing – wanting to bless the Lord simply because he’s been so good and so kind. But I would also contend that in spite of their good intentions, they are looking in the wrong place because they lacked understanding of the meaning of Jesus’ words.

5 And 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?

• This startling question gets to the root of the matter immediately. Jesus is not to be thought of as dead: therefore, he is not to be sought among the dead.

6 He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee,

• f. 9.22; 9.44 (43-45); 18.31-32 (33)
• That Jesus is not there is self-evident, but that Jesus is risen is a proclamation of the resurrection

7 Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.

• Son of Man connection – Daniel 7
• “Must” = divine purpose
• Hosea 6.2 could be a connection allusion to Israel’s restoration
  • “Come, let us return to the Lord;
    for he has torn us, that he may heal us;
    he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.
    2 After two days he will revive us;
    on the third day he will raise us up,
    that we may live before him.

8 And they remembered his words,

• Remembering the words of Jesus brings about a conviction of belief, thought, and action.
• They had heard the words before, but Jesus had often spoken metaphorically, and they had probably taken the strange words about resurrection in some such way. Now they saw that Jesus had intended them to be taken literally.

9 And returned from the sepulcher, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest.

• The women weren’t told to bear witness to what they had experienced but they did so out of the joy of their hearts

10 It was Mary Magdalene and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles.

• Women were not considered reliable witnesses
  • Josephus says, “from women let no evidence be accepted, because of the levity and temerity of their sex.”
  • Philo said that women were “irrational” and should not be trusted.

11 And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not.

• The men were not impressed. The apostles were not men poised on the brink of belief and needed only the shadow of an excuse before launching forth into a proclamation of resurrection.

12 Then arose Peter, and ran unto the sepulchre; and stooping down, he beheld the linen clothes laid by themselves, and departed, wondering in himself at that which was come to pass.

• The linen cloths still in the tomb is evidence that Jesus’s body had not been taken by grave robbers or by his disciples attemping to steal the body, or by his enemies, who would rather not have taken the time to remove the cloths
• The word apostle is from the Greek, “Apostolos,” meaning emissary or messenger. This is the messenger of the Good News of Jesus Christ. Notice that unlike the women, Peter… the apostle… returns home with no message to share.

Thom Rainer who is a researcher and author, books of his I know that some of you have read, in one of his studies say that 82% of the unchurched are at least somewhat likely to attend church if they are invited. I want to say that again. 8 out of every 10 people say that they are at least somewhat likely to attend church if they are invited. I’m not even talking about explaining the gospel, or telling them about Jesus, or the hope that’s in you – I’m simply talking about an invitation come and see. Moreover, Dr. Rainer says that another 38%, an additional 4 out of 10, are more open to considering matters of faith during Eastertide. Go. Tell. I don’t want you to do it out of guilt, out of shame, or out of some kind of pro-forma religion.

After the angel commands the women to go and tell, he specifies the people that they are to go and tell this information to. “But go, tell his disciples and Peter he’s going before you to Galilee. Notice how Peter is singled out among the disciples. At first glance, you would think nothing of it because Peter has always been the de facto spokesperson for the disciples. But remember what I said earlier in our sermonic time together – Peter denied knowing Jesus. Essentially Peter blasphemed Jesus.

The Bible says that “he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities”. Even though Peter turned his back on Jesus, denied him three times, and ran away for fear, Jesus is giving him the message to come meet him in Galilee. He’s saying, come meet me in the place where our life together began. Come meet me where we walked together and talked together and broke bread together. Come meet me in the place where we once had an intimate relationship. Come meet me in the place where you saw me work miracles and your heart burned for God. Turn from the place you’re in now and come back to me.