NJ UBF Easter Conference Message (by M. Emmanuel O.) Date: April 9, 2023.
YOU ARE WITNESSES OF THESE THINGS
Passage: Luke 24:1-53
Key Verse: Luke 24:46-48
“He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.”
Dear God, we thank you for giving us Easter celebration, about Jesus Christ who died for our sins and resurrected, giving us living hope that we will be raised…
help us trust your word and help us to participate in your salvation work as witnesses of the resurrection power in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Teach us by the Holy Spirit, we pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.
INTRODUCTION
Happy Easter my dear brothers and sisters (in Christ). Easter reminds me of the huge price Jesus paid for my sins and the living hope He gives to all believers – that we will be raised. Yesterday, we listened to a powerful message by Mssn Matthew J. Kim – “Father, forgive them” – and heart moving testimony by Mssn Mary Lee. Mssn Matthew taught with great passion about the crucifixion of Jesus – His death and burial. Jesus was a man without sin, yet He had to face a hard brutal death on the cross with a lot of injury and blood. We learned that Jesus had to suffer this way because our sins are so evil and need very brutal punishment. Jesus paid the price for our sins 100%. And even in pain, Jesus made an important prayer for us; “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.”
Today, our passage is about the resurrection of Jesus after three days, and how He helped many early disciples to believe that He is risen according to what has been written in scriptures, so that they can become living witnesses of the complete gospel that saves us. I pray that from this message we may learn to believe the Scriptures, accept the gospel and obey Jesus’ command for us to be witnesses of the resurrection faith.
PART 1 – REMEMBER HE TOLD YOU (1-12)
[Read vs. 1-3] 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.
After Jesus was crucified and buried, for many of His followers, it was like their hope was lost, sealed up in the tomb. They were all mourning their master. To them, the death of Jesus was a tragic loss. They did not understand that Jesus’ death and burial is a blessing as it brought us forgiveness and opened the way of resurrection to eternal life. Some women who followed Jesus and witnessed everything about His crucifixion and burial, decided to show love and care for their master who was buried in the tomb. So early in the first day of the week they rushed to the tomb. When they got there, they found the tomb was open and empty.
We know that Jesus did not need an open tomb before He will rise, He is able to disappear through walls, the open and empty tomb was supposed to be a clear evidence/witness to remind the people about Jesus’ words that He would be raised, but they could not see this clear proof of resurrection because their minds were closed with unbelief and the popular fear of the power of death. Their common sense accepted the reality and power of death, rather than the words of faith which Jesus Christ taught while He was with them. We need to repent from unbelief and the trap of common sense. Common sense/unbelief cannot help us believe God’s word, it only limits us from living out our full potential of expressing faith in God who can do all things. Although the women’s action of bringing spices showed how they loved Him, they were spiritually disappointing due to their stubborn unbelief and failure to remember the words of Jesus. God helped them by sending Angels to teach them and remind them of the words of Jesus Christ.
[Let us read verses 5b-8] The Angels said; “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.”
The word of God from the Angels changed the women from unbelief and restored their faith in the living words of Jesus Christ, and they became first witnesses of the risen Christ. Halleluyah! God has given us His Word, the Bible, also He gave us many Angels, not two, but many Angels in the form of Bible teachers who pray and labor to teach the Bible so that we can remember God’s word every week and be changed from unbelief and believe God’s Word. For us to live a victorious life over all our challenges, we need to study (know) the word of God, believe it and always remember it.
Joshua 1:8 – Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
Let us pray for God to give us true faith to believe that; with God all things are possible; with God all sicknesses are healed; with God our fears are calmed; with God we can be fruitful as Bible teachers and make America a Kingdom of Priests and holy nation; ..and with God even the resurrection of our bodies from the dead is possible. The women gladly went to tell the disciples what they had seen and heard, but no one believed their report.
PART 2 – IT IS TRUE! JESUS IS RISEN!! (13-44)
[Read vs. 13-16] Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him. The women broke the news of Jesus’ resurrection early morning on that first day but no one believed them. By evening, the risen Jesus appeared to two other disciples who were walking along the road to Emmaus (near Jerusalem). Jesus joined their walk but they were prevented from recognizing Him. This way, their faith may be based mostly on Jesus’ Bible teachings rather than sight.
While studying this, I noticed that these disciples already knew a lot about the man Jesus; they knew His name and His community, they knew He was a mighty prophet of God, and that He was crucified, dead and buried. They also heard that He is risen. With all these we can say that they are ready to be Christ’s witness! But, no, their unbelief prevented them from sharing the good news of Jesus’ resurrection. So Jesus taught them the Bible to help them remember and believe, then He revealed Himself to them and disappeared. The two confessed that their hearts burned all along as Jesus spoke, they were battling with faith and common sense. This is what happens to us when we struggle to believe God’s Word. Our hearts burn.. can this (Word, promise,..) really be true?!..Brethren, all of God’s Word is true. If you know even one verse of the Bible, you can be witness of Jesus.
Early Missionaries conquered the world with one popular verse – John 3:16. We need to deal with this problem of unbelief so that we can bear much fruit for Jesus with one word of God. What is your life key verse? Believe it, it is true. [For those who don’t know/have any Bible verse, repent and come for Bible study. Many humble Bible teachers are here to help. We all need the true word of God for our salvation, faith and hope in the resurrection gospel.] The two instantly became next witnesses of Jesus and they ran to the disciples to tell them the good news that set them free, but no one believed them too.
As humans in flesh, it is very difficult to believe the gospel of resurrection, especially because it defies/fights our common sense. Have faith in God. Only God can help us believe and firmly hold on to the gospel of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Now for the doubting disciples, Jesus knew that it was dangerous for the whole world if these early disciples continued to doubt the resurrection gospel, and to help, Jesus finally appeared to them and showed many convincing/undeniable proofs of His resurrection. And most important of all, Jesus reminded them about the word of God concerning His resurrection.
I will rush through these evidences and the teaching, but I want you to locate the hidden message:
- His greetings, “peace B.E with you..” (vs. 36, Mk 4:39)
- L.ook at my hands/feet, touch me (vs. 39)
- He ate some f.I.sh (vs. 42-43)
- He taught from scriptur.E.s (vs. 44-47)
- His command for them to li.V.E as witnesses (vs. 48)
BELIEVE the scriptures/word of God…
The most important evidence of His resurrection is the Scriptures. He said; “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in His name.” In John 20:29, Jesus had said to Thomas, blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. Brothers and sisters, our faith in the gospel of the resurrection of Jesus Christ should be totally based on the Scriptures – which is the true word of God. It says Jesus is risen! (Luke 24:6-7)
Believe it! Teach it! It is true!
PART 3 – YOU ARE WITNESSES OF THESE THINGS (45-53)
[Please Read vs. 46-48] He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. After revealing Himself to the disciples by many physical proofs, Jesus finally spent some time to teach them the Bible so that their faith and witnessing can be based on the everlasting Word of God. [ Gen 3:15, Psalms 22:1-31, 16:10, Isaiah 53:1-12, Hosea 6:2, Daniel 9:26 ]
Jesus was preparing a group of witnesses who shared moments with Him while He was on earth, and had experienced the complete events of His death, burial and resurrection as living eye-witness. Jesus’ death for our sins, His burial and His resurrection according to the Scriptures is the complete gospel that saves them and us and this gospel must be preached by witnesses to all nations, that men may believe it and receive forgiveness for all their sins. Who are the witnesses today? It is you and I, all of us that are saved by Jesus have become witnesses.
Jesus trained the early disciples as witnesses of the gospel so they can overcome their unbelief, preserve the gospel they experienced and pass down the complete gospel from one generation to another.
The gospel is also very precious to God, because in the beginning, man sinned and became separated from God, and He had to provide His only Son as the only sacrifice to pay for our sins. Therefore, our salvation is not by our effort or moral standing, but by humble faith in Jesus Christ, the free gift of God. God is hoping that all American students and all people would repent, get free from sin, addiction and death, and become united with Him forever. And for this precious mission, God is constantly raising many witnesses among us today: Bible students, Bible teachers, Shepherds, Pastors and Missionaries of the gospel of Christ. We study the Bible, believe the gospel and teach it with compassion because we believe it has power to save all people from the power of sin and death. And we do this with a living hope that our labor is not in vain, for just as Christ was raised, we will also be raised from the dead.
[In verse 49] Jesus said he would send to the disciples what God has promised. This promise is the Holy Spirit. In Acts 1:4-8, Jesus asked the disciples to wait for the baptism of the Holy Spirit so that they can receive power to be witnesses of the gospel of Christ to the whole world. The Holy Spirit is God’s Mighty power in us that empowers us to witness Jesus to all nations with total confidence. This gospel could last through all ages because of Jesus’ intensive Bible teaching, and by the help of the Holy Spirit. In Acts 2:32,36 Apostle Peter, after being filled with the Holy Spirit, was able to witness the gospel of Jesus Christ boldly to a total of 5,000 people.
With the help of The Holy Spirit we too can overcome our fears and physical limitations and raise 7000 Bible students for America. With the Holy Spirit we can become confident witnesses of the true gospel of Jesus Christ’s death, burial and resurrection.
In the final verses, Jesus instructed and blessed them before ascending into Heaven while they watched. They were filled with joy, and they praised God.
God is still raising witnesses in our world today. Many Missionaries/Bible teachers heard the word of God, believed it and have become witnesses of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Like Jesus, they continue to sacrifice their life/comfort to serve gospel mission to the ends of the earth. Matt. 28:19-20 (..go and make disciples of all nations..). I grew up in a Christian home where my parents disciplined me and taught me the Bible, but I did not pay much attention to the Bible. I thought the Bible was just a boring and lengthy book that wanted to distract my life and my school studies. Nevertheless, I had some interest in Bible quiz for competitions and I loved to hear war stories from the Bible because it was action movie for me.
I lived selfish and lustful, without love for people. I was competitive and full of worldly ambition. I was not interested in loving my neighbors as the Bible teaches, I was only concerned about my personal success in life, here on earth. I had no resurrection hope. So I was not doing anything about becoming a witness of Jesus’ resurrection. By God’s Mercy, He fanned that little flame of my desire for Bible action movies and Bible quiz. When I got into the University I was able to meet a classmate – Bro. Justin who invited me for Bible study in UBF Lagos, Nigeria. With the support of my Bible teachers I could study the Bible with a humble heart, and accept the word of God for my salvation based on Isaiah 53:5-6 “But he was pierced for my transgressions, he was crushed for my iniquities; the punishment that brought me peace was on him, and by his wounds I am healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
God’s Grace was with me to protect me from many temptations, and His Mercy forgave my sins. I was able to grow from Bible student to become a Bible teacher for my campus. By the Grace of God I made a personal decision to live for Jesus Christ based on Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Now I have resurrection hope and I live as a witness of the resurrection gospel of Jesus Christ. I am not perfect. By God’s Divine mercy I have become a witness of these things to American students. God made a way for me to come to the USA as an engineering postgraduate student. I serve as Missionary of the gospel of Jesus Christ, I am blessed to cowork with my dear Sheps. Angela and many New Jersey coworkers. I thank God Who has made me a witness and Bible teacher to Rutgers University students. God is helping me to reach out to students unashamed by the power of Holy Spirit. Recently Mssn Peter and I started fishing for Bible students on Rutgers campus. I also try to share gospel tracts and post Bible verses on my WhatsApp/Facebook status. God blessed me to start studying the Bible with one student, Bro Nick, who has not studied the Bible before. I hope and pray to serve him faithfully for him to believe the gospel of Jesus’ death and resurrection and one day he too will boldly be a witness for Jesus.
CONCLUSION
Easter period holds all about the gospel that saved us. Jesus’ death and burial paid the price and buried all our sins. Jesus’ resurrection gives us hope that we will be raised and united with God forever. This is the hope that Jesus tried to plant in the hearts of the early disciples, but they struggled with their common sense and unbelief. But by using the true word of God, Jesus could make them believe and become confident witnesses of this gospel. We pray for the Holy Spirit to help us raise 7000 Bible disciples who believe the gospel and teach it as faithful witnesses in our generation, and make America and the whole earth a Kingdom of Priests and holy nation.
LET’S READ THE KEY VERSE… Luke 24:46-48
“He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.”
PRAYER
Dear God, we have heard your word today. Thank You for giving us Jesus Christ, Who was crucified and He overcame death by His resurrection. Fill us with Holy Spirit. Help us believe Jesus’ resurrection gospel and proclaim this gospel as faithful witnesses in our generation. In Jesus’ name. Amen.