I want to share with you this morning a story about two men…one you probably already know a lot about…the second…if you’re unfamiliar with some of the New Testament…you’re probably not as familiar with.
What one man did and said has everything to do with Resurrection Sunday.
He’s a man who was sent to replace his mostly-inept predecessor as the governor of the Roman province of Judea.
This man had one basic goal: Keep the peace, keep the lid on, don’t let things boil over…but that was not going to be easy because there was already in progress a tense situation that had developed between the Jews and Rome even before this new governor took office.
A situation that showed signs of a revolution…primarily because the Jews were noted for being a rebellious bunch that lacked the art of submission.
The new governor hardly steps off the boat from Italy when he runs into his first problem…there’s a man in prison in Caesarea…seems he did something to upset the Jewish leaders.
This new leader is not acquainted with Jewish law…as a result he cannot understand the charges brought against the man in jail…his Roman background prevents him from understanding why the Jews would want to kill this man simply because he keeps talking about a dead man named Jesus who he claims is alive [Acts 25:19].
To the new governor it’s all vague and confusing….so three days—just three days—after he takes office, he makes the 60-mile trip from Jerusalem to Caesarea to first…make a social call and pay his respects to the Sanhedrin…the Jewish religious council…and secondly… to find out why they are so intense about killing this guy in jail.
If you’re familiar with this story you probably already guessed the man in jail is Paul…he had been there for two years because the previous governor, wishing to do the Jews a favor, left him imprisoned [Acts 24:27].
The new Roman governor is Festus…once in Jerusalem he’s confronted by the chief priests and leaders who are bringing many and serious charges against Paul which they could not prove…they couldn’t prove them because they weren’t true.
Paul simply says to Festus, “I’m not guilty of anything. I committed no offense against the law of the Jews …against the Temple…or against Caesar”.
Need to understand that Festus…the governor…is not a bad man…he’s basically a new man on the scene…he doesn’t know Paul…he doesn’t know Jewish law…he’s a Roman governor…this whole case is a mystery to him.
Festus…wanting to do the Jews a favor, asks Paul if he is willing to go back to Jerusalem and stand trial there.
Paul then throws a wrench in the works…FIRST…he says, “I’m a Roman citizen and I ought to be tried right here…if I’m guilty, punish me. If I’m innocent, release me.
Paul is unwilling to go back to Jerusalem…Scripture reveals that if he had consented to return to Jerusalem the Jews were setting an ambush to kill him on the way.
Even if that failed…if he made it back to Jerusalem safely…the Jews would at least have the home field advantage at the trial to press their charges.
Then the SECOND thing Paul says will change the course of his life forever. He says the words, “I appeal to Caesar.” (25:11)…need to understand the importance of that statement.
In the days of the Roman Empire only a few were actual Roman citizens…in fact it was hard be a Roman citizen…in the first century there were over 50 million inhabitants of the Roman empire but only about 5 million—only 10% of the entire population—were considered to be full Roman citizens. (The Greco-Roman World of the New Testament Era: Exploring the Background of Early Christianity (James S. Jeffers, IVP Academic, 1999))
To be a Roman citizen was considered very prestigious…it was an honor…one of the benefits of being a Roman citizen was that if you were charged with a crime and felt you weren’t getting a fair hearing you had the right to skip all the lower courts and make an appeal all the way up to Caesar himself.
Such a person would be sent directly to Rome to have an audience with Caesar…it was like appealing to the Supreme Court…there was only one catch. Once you made such an appeal, you couldn’t change your mind later.
Now…this many sound like a history lesson but it’s pertinent to the story…at this point two other people enter the story—man by the name of King Agrippa II and his sister Bernice…it was his father…Herod Agrippa I, who murdered the Apostle James and put Peter in jail.
Herod Agrippa II is king of a tiny territory northeast of the Sea of Galilee…he has no authority in Judea but he is someone who is well-versed in the Jewish religion… he and his sister have come to Caesarea to pay their respects to the new governor.
While they are there…because Agrippa has a history of the Jewish religion…Festus decides to ask for Agrippa’s help…Agrippa doesn’t have to consent…this isn’t his territory…he’s being more or less a friendly consultant in the matter.
Agrippa is different than Festus…in addition to knowing Jewish law he also knows quite a bit about Jesus and His death…so he says, “I would like to hear this man myself.” And Festus says, “Tomorrow you will.” (25:22)
Now listen to how the new governor Festus states the case against Paul.
There is a certain man here whom Felix left as a prisoner…the chief priests and elders of the Jews brought charges against him and asked that he be condemned. I told them that it is not the Roman custom to hand over any man before he has faced his accusers and has had an opportunity to defend himself against their charges…When his accusers got up to speak, they did not charge him with any of the crimes I had expected. Instead, they had some points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive. I was at a loss how to investigate such matters. (Acts 25:14-20)
It’s been over 2,000 years and the struggle still continues…in these words you get an insight into how the secular mind deals with the Resurrection.
Did you get that? “A dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive” and the clincher: “I was at a loss how to investigate such matters.” [25:20] …you see, Roman law didn’t cover resurrections. Insurrections, yes. Resurrections, no.
It’s just too much to comprehend…the words of Festus rings across the centuries—”I was at a loss how to investigate such matters.” …of course he was, and every modern-day Festus stumbles over the Resurrection in the same exact way…walking away scratching his head.
The accusations against Paul are really summed up in one sentence which is the whole problem of Resurrection Sunday… ‘a dead man named Jesus whom Paul asserted to be alive [25:29] …Paul believed it…the Jews didn’t believe it…. and the Romans couldn’t understand it. The Jews said Jesus was dead, Paul said he was alive.
To Festus, it’s all incomprehensible…he’s never heard anything like this before… he doesn’t know what to say…how to react…or even where to begin.
Paul isn’t guilty of anything…he’s not a murderer…or a thief…he’s not a criminal …maybe a little over enthusiastic about this resurrection thing. But that’s it.
Festus represents all the broad-minded people of the world…when people come face to face with a true believer, they don’t know what to say…they don’t even know where to begin…Festus doesn’t believe it but he doesn’t know what to do with it either.
For 2,000 years the world has looked at the Resurrection in exactly the same manner as Festus…they hear the words…they know what we as Christians believe …there’s not a person in this country that’s not familiar with Easter…but they don’t know what to do with it.
It’s still a problem today…unbelief has a thousand excuses…some people refuse to believe that God raises the dead because they’ve never seen it happen and they only believe what they see…in fact the wording in the Greek suggests that…it reads: ‘why is it considered unbelievable by you if God raises the dead?’
People confess… “If I can’t do it and I don’t know anyone who can do it, therefore I don’t think it can be done.” …NOW I freely admit that in one sense reality is on the side of unbelief…there are plenty of funerals…but…where are the resurrections? That’s because the problem is if I can see…I’m not believing it.
I believe the issue is not…intellectual…scientific…mechanical…or biological…as if we had to somehow understand how the dead could be raised…in the end…the problem is a matter of the heart.
Many people simply do not believe what God has said…they worship their own intellect…if they can’t explain something, they assume it can’t be true.
But for the Christian the truth is…if God can create and give life…why can’t He do it again after death?
Our deeper struggle comes when we stand by a casket and look down at the face of someone we love…many of us even Christians at that moment wonder… “Is it possible that I will really again see this person?” Death seems so final.
During those times we need more than arguments from logic or philosophy…we need hard facts…well, Scripture gives us those hard facts if people would simply observe them.
There seems to be confusion regarding the length of time Jesus spent in the grave…most people believe Jesus’ crucifixion took place on Good Friday…and He was back to life on Sunday…two days.
According to Jewish law, to be declared legally dead, a person had to be dead for three FULL days or more…that’s why Jesus delayed four days before going to the tomb of Lazarus…therefore, if Jesus had risen from the dead before being in the grave 3 days, He would not have been considered legally dead.
The Bible nowhere states that Jesus’ crucifixion was on a Friday…scholars assume Jesus died on Friday, thus promoting a Good Friday hoax… Scripture clearly says Jesus was in the grave for three days…Mark 8:31; Matthew 27:63…other verses say “in three days” (Matthew 26:61, 27:40, John 2:19 – 20, Mark 14:58, 15:29)…still others speak of “the third day” (Mark 9:31, 10:34, Matthew 16:21, 17:23, 20:19, 27:64, Luke 9:22, 18:33, 24:7, 21, 46, Acts 10:40, 1Corinthians 15:4).
This then, is the order of events:
Wednesday night: Last Supper in the Upper Room, and the arrest in Gethsemane
Thursday morning: Conclusion of Trials and Crucifixion
Thursday afternoon: Death at 3pm… Burial before 6pm Counting of days begins.
Thursday Day ends at 6pm: Day 1
Friday Night starts at 6pm: Night 2
Friday Day end at 6pm: Day 2
Saturday Night starts at 6pm: Night 3
Saturday Day end at 6pm: Day 3
Jesus rises on Sunday
After His resurrection He gave us more than ample evidence that He rose from the grave…appearing to least 10 different times to hundreds of people.
- He appeared first of all to Peter. I Corinthians 15:5
- He appeared to Mary Magdalene. See Mark 16:9
- He appeared to two disciples as they were walking to Emmaus. Luke 24:13–15
- He appeared to all eleven of the apostles the same day. John 20:19; Luke 24:33–36
- He appeared to more than five hundred at one time. 1 Corinthians 15:6
- He appeared to James. I Corinthians 15:7
- He appeared to the eleven apostles again, one week later. John 20:26
- He appeared to seven of the apostles while they were fishing. John 21:1
- His disciples saw Him ascend into heaven. Acts 1:9
- He appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus. I Corinthians 15:8
TWO THINGS
First…what were the Romans…and especially the Jews thinking during the 40 days Jesus walked the earth after His resurrection… ‘uh, didn’t we just kill this guy’ really…no one thought it strange He’s up walking around…performing miracles …and talking to people…not even people who had known Him recognized Him.
Why was He unrecognizable?
- They were not looking for a resurrected Jesus…He was dead.
2. He was not recognizable because He existed in a greater dimension of reality…’He appeared to them in a different form [Mark 16:12]…Jesus was not physical as we are physical…what’s that mean…He could pass through walls and unlocked doors…appearing and disappearing at will…I’d say He was not as physical as we are.
3. Jesus was in His transformed resurrected body…they were unable to see Him fully with their mortal eyes ‘their eyes were opened and they recognized Him’ [Luke 24:31].
Second thing…It’s amazing that Christians around the world celebrate Lent…as Southern Baptists we don’t observe Lent…nothing wrong with Lent…Lent is the 47 days between Ash Wednesday and Resurrection Sunday…it’s the Christian season of spiritual preparation before Easter.
During Lent Christians observe a period of fasting…repentance…moderation… self-denial… spiritual discipline…reading the Bible…and spending more time in prayer to draw nearer to God…isn’t that what we’re supposed to be doing every day?
What we really should think more about are the 40 days after His resurrection…that time that showed the world that He lived again…His physical Resurrection and bodily ascension into Heaven to join the Father at the Throne confirmed the Divinity of Jesus.
Is it difficult to believe that God raises the dead? …not if we believe in God! …not if we believe the testimony of God.
For those who don’t believe in God or in the testimony of God no argument will ever suffice…there is nothing you can say that will cause them to believe…but for those believing in God and His testimony…no arguments are needed.
If God can raise Jesus then He can also raise your loved ones who are now dead…is it any harder for God to raise 10 million people than to raise one?
If God can raise the dead…what difference does it make as to how many…the cause of death…the location of the remains…none of it matters to God…that’s irrelevant.
This line of reasoning answers the question about those whose bodies were destroyed in a fire or who were lost at sea…God will have no trouble reassembling the atoms that make up the molecules that constitute the bodies of those who died believing in Jesus…there is not a place anywhere on earth that will not give up the dead on the day when Jesus calls them from the grave.
Paul’s defense before Festus and Agrippa in Acts 26 is the greatest defense of the Christian message in the N. T. …in many ways it’s the climax of the book of Acts.
Paul retells the story of his conversion and proclaims the power of the Resurrection …Paul’s explanation to the king resonates across the centuries: “Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?” (Acts 26:7) …that is the question of the ages.
He adds these words in [v 22] “…I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen—that the Christ would suffer and, as be the first to rise from the dead…”
Paul’s not adding any hype to the story…. ‘just the facts ma’am’ …Festus reacts the way all doubters react…it’s just too much to take…Festus interrupts Paul and shouts, You’re out of your mind, Paul! [26:24] …no sane man can talk that way… that statement is the final verdict of the secular mind.
Truth or the possibility of truth doesn’t enter in because everyone knows that dead men stay dead…there simply was no category for this strange doctrine…for Festus he concludes that Paul, who is obviously a well-educated and brilliant man, had simply gone crazy because Festus can’t really think of anything else to say [26:24].
For Festus unless he’s ready to become a Christian, he must say Paul is crazy…for Festus, only two alternatives are possible…it’s the greatest question of life… Either I believe him for who He is…or I reject him and His claims. Yes or no.
Still the question plagues modern man. Who is this Jesus of Nazareth? It’s been 2,000 years but Festus is still with us…there are two things the people of the world cannot understand.
First, they cannot understand the Resurrection…it’s a miracle which baffles the mind…it seems man has an answer for everything, but he’s still baffled by an empty tomb he cannot deal with.
Secondly, because they can’t deal with the Resurrection, they can’t figure out anyone who can. They think we’ve all gone nuts.
We’re in agreement with the words of Paul when he replied to Festus…we’re not mad…what we believe is both true and reasonable…the evidence is there for all to see…the empty tomb is still empty. No one has ever found the bones of Jesus. No one ever will.
As far as being a myth or legend, the Resurrection of Jesus stands as the best-attested fact in all human history…a certainty that invites everyone—skeptics and scholars alike—to examine the evidence.
What should we do with all this? If you’ve never made the choice, it’s time to come to grips with it…where do you stand on the question of Jesus Christ? …with Festus or with Paul? …with secular man or with the church?
No question is more important… more crucial…more vital…your eternal destiny is riding on it.
This is the greatest issue of life…the issue of Jesus and your relation to him…there are only two alternatives…either you believe Him for who He is or you reject Him and His claims…there’s no middle ground.
Resurrection Sunday…or Easter as the world calls it…will never be Easter for you until you make the determined decision to accept Jesus into your life…and realize the promise that Jesus made…that whoever believes in Me will never die…it’s a promise for the believer that death ceases to be death at all.
That which God did for Jesus he will also do for those who follow Jesus in faith.