It all boils down to this...

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:16-20 ESV) In a very real sense, the Resurrection is the climax in the Incarnation of Christ - He has won the victory. But the Epilogue is the part that pulls everything together: when the dust all settles, what difference does it make? How is it more than just an exciting story? Jesus tells us: He has all authority. What He has done can and will make a difference here and for eternity in the life of everyone who will trust and follow Him. What that means for us is simple: take it to the streets; let them know; live it and let it be known.

Super Spin...

While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ And if this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day. (Matthew 28:11-15 ESV) It's hard to imagine how anyone nearby the resurrection of Christ could not be impacted in such a way as to repent, trust and worship Christ. Except for "the spin." Spin is nothing new in D.C. It has been around since The Garden - taking the facts, taking the statements of God, and twisting them in such a way that we doubt the love and truthfulness of God. Many times, we trust in the spin instead of Him. Despite the spin, He is Risen from the dead; He has not deceived us; He is Lord of all.

We Remember!!!

Luke 24:1-8 On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ” Then they remembered his words. God has been constantly telling us to remember, and finally someone does! The Disciples remembered what Jesus had said about rising again! It's starting to sink in! May God work in our hearts today, to let a little more sink in, about who Christ is, why He came, and what our response should be, as we remember and celebrate His resurrection.

Definitely a time to think...

Luke 20:41-44 Then Jesus said to them, “Why is it said that the Messiah is the son of David? David himself declares in the Book of Psalms:“‘The Lord said to my Lord:“Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’ David calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?” As Jesus pointed out what was really important during his final days and hours before the cross,one key question had to do with the Messiah. Were they looking for a mere mortal? Or is He something more? They knew He was to be in the line of David, but David had said He would be even more. He would be The Lord. And He is. Definitely something we need to come to terms with this Passion Week. He is risen from the dead and He is Lord.

You can deny it all you want, but...

There came to him some Sadducees, those who deny that there is a resurrection, and they asked him a question, saying, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies, having a wife but no children, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. Now there were seven brothers. The first took a wife, and died without children. And the second and the third took her, and likewise all seven left no children and died. Afterward the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had her as wife.” And Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.” Then some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” For they no longer dared to ask him any question. (Luke 20:27-40 ESV) The Sadducees were in denial about many things: their need of repentance and salvation, the Lordship of Jesus, and the fact of the resurrection. They took their denial to Jesus' grave, and then, when He did rise, tried to deny it ever happened. The is coming - for some to eternal life, and, in Jesus' words, for some "to eternal damnation." Deny it all you want - It's Friday, Sunday's coming. The resurrection is real.

The Tax Trap...

Luke 20:20-21, 23-26 Keeping a close watch on him, they sent spies, who pretended to be sincere. They hoped to catch Jesus in something he said, so that they might hand him over to the power and authority of the governor. So the spies questioned him: “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach what is right, and that you do not show partiality but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. He saw through their duplicity and said to them, “Show me a denarius. Whose image and inscription are on it?”“Caesar’s,” they replied. He said to them, “Then give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” They were unable to trap him in what he had said there in public. And astonished by his answer, they became silent. That first Easter, like this one, was near April 15th. Taxes were on people's minds. They didn't like them, nor the taxcollectors who gathered them. They also wanted to discredit Jesus. Here was a way to get at both. But like them, we are the problem. We don't like taxes, but we expect too much from government. We want them to provide all we need; we trust in them instead of God. And, like them, we often want free from God's expectations on our lives; we are not will to give to God what is God's. Jesus gets to the core issues here this final week before the cross: "Am I willing to give, or is all I want to do is get?"

Knowing He knows...

Luke 20:17-19 Jesus looked directly at them and asked, “Then what is the meaning of that which is written:“‘The stone the builders rejectedhas become the cornerstone’? Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.” The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him immediately, because they knew he had spoken this parable against them. But they were afraid of the people. Jesus had just given the Parable of the vineyard stewards - about how a vineyard owner (God) had entrusted His vineyard to some stewards (the Jewish leaders.) When He sent servants to His stewards(the Prophets) to receive the harvest of the vineyard, they stewards rejected, beat, and even killed His servants. Finally, He sent His Son. The Jewish leaders were not numb - they knew He was addressing them. But this also spoke more deeply to the first paragraph of the chapter. If Jesus knew their hearts and intentions, then they should realize He does have the authority of the Vineyard Owner, and that He is the Son of God. He is all-knowing and has all authority.