EASTER SUNDAY
DR. JIM DIXON
APRIL 4, 1999
JOHN 20:1-17
In the 1930s, Dr. John Minder was the college dean of the Florida Bible Institute. There was one student at the college who was constantly causing problems, and that student’s name was William. William was always getting into trouble. Well, it was Easter Sunday, March 28, 1937. Dr. John Minder had been invited to speak that Easter Sunday morning at a small Baptist church 150 miles north of the campus. He decided to take William with him. William didn’t want to go, but the college dean, Dr. Minder, said, “You’ve got to go, and not only that, William, you’re going to be giving the message. In my place, you’re going to preach the sermon!” William protested. He said, “I’ve never preached before.” John Minder said, “This is going to be your very first time. Just do the best you can. If I don’t think it’s good enough, I’ll stand up and finish things off.”
Well, they got up to the little church, 150 miles north of the Florida Bible Institute, and William saw ranchers with their families heading into the sanctuary that Easter morning. He was amazed to see hunters with their hunting dogs going into the sanctuary. William had secretly memorized four sermons by a Baptist preacher named Lee Scarborough. William had done this because he knew he was going to a Christian college, and he thought, “At some point they’re going to ask me to preach,” and he wanted to be able to surprise people. But as he went into that little sanctuary, he was nervous. As they began to sing songs, he became more nervous. When it finally became time for William to stand up and preach, he was scared stiff. His knees were shaking. The perspiration was just pouring down his face. He couldn’t think well.
He tried to remember the first of those four sermons that he had memorized, and he just couldn’t remember much, so he moved on to the second sermon. William wound up preaching all four sermons in a total of 8 minutes. He sat down, embarrassed and exhausted, but that Sunday, Easter Sunday, March 28, 1937, was the very beginning of the preaching ministry of William Franklin Graham, better known as Billy.
Now, on this Easter morning, I have good news and bad news. The bad news is, I’m not Billy Graham, but the good news is, this isn’t my first sermon. Nevertheless, I must say every time I stand up here, I feel, in some measure, nervousness. This is particularly true on Easter Sunday, whether we’re at Fiddler’s Green or whether we’re here in this sanctuary, because I always know that on Easter there are people present who do not normally attend church. I always know that, on Easter, there are some present who, perhaps, have never truly heard the gospel before. I consider it a scary privilege to share the gospel of Jesus Christ.
This morning, I want to share three promises given by Jesus Christ, three promises from His Upper Room Discourse. Now, the Upper Room Discourse was, of course, given by Christ to His disciples in the Upper Room during Easter Week. He spoke these words to His disciples in the Upper Room on Maundy Thursday, the night that He shared the Last Supper with them, the night before He went to the cross. He knew He was going to be leaving this world. He had important things to say to His disciples. He gave, in that Upper Room Discourse, these three promises.
The first promise is found in John 16:33. The Upper Room Discourse is found in John’s gospel, chapters 13-17. The first promise is found in John 16:33. Jesus said to His disciples, “In the world, you will have tribulation.” Jesus wanted His disciples to understand the cost of discipleship. He wanted them to understand the cost of the gospel. Jesus wants us to understand the cost of the gospel. He doesn’t want me to preach a cheap gospel. He wants you to understand that if you accept Jesus Christ, there is a cost. In the world, you will have tribulation.
The word tribulation comes from the Latin tribulum. The word tribulum was first used to describe the threshing of wheat which involved a kind of violent shaking process. The word tribulum began to be applied to people, and it referred to suffering—suffering that was generally caused by affliction or persecution. Jesus wants all of us to accept Him and to understand that, in this world, there’s going to be some suffering, and perhaps some persecution.
This last Monday night, on the A&E channel, there was a special on the Vatican. The Vatican City is, of course, the smallest independent state in the world. It is only 109 acres, and yet it is—spiritually, ecclesiastically, governmentally—the center of the Roman Catholic world. In Vatican City, there stands the Basilica of St. Peter’s, the largest ecclesiastical structure in the world. Beneath St. Peter’s Basilica, it is believed that the bones of Simon Peter are buried there. According to the A&E channel, they have found the bones of Simon Peter in the deepest regions beneath St. Peter’s Basilica in a special vault. The bones have been carbon dated to the first century. The skeleton is complete, except it is missing the feet. Scientists have determined that the feet were chopped off of the body.
Early church writings tell us that Simon Peter was crucified upside down by the order of Emperor Nero. Historians know that when people were crucified upside down, they were removed from the cross by chopping off their feet. These may well indeed be the bones of Simon Peter, but what really matters is to understand that Simon Peter was just one of hundreds of thousands of believers in Jesus Christ who suffered, one of many who were persecuted.
Paul was beheaded at Three Fountains in Rome, also by the decree of Nero. Of course, James, the head of the Jerusalem Church, was pushed from the pinnacle of the temple. He survived the fall, but then was stoned to death where he fell. All of the apostles died martyrs’ deaths, with the exception of John. He was incarcerated for his testimony to Jesus Christ on the penal colony of Patmos. They all suffered.
Vatican City itself is built on the very site where the Emperor Nero butchered Christian men and women, where he rolled them in tar and lit them on fire for his amusement, where he wrapped them in animal flesh and fed them to packs of wild dogs, where he had Christians crucified and cut in two. In the first three centuries of the Christian world, Christians sometimes lived in catacombs, in dens, and caves of the earth. They were sometimes banished from their families.
Even today, in many parts of the world, Christian men and women are being persecuted. Tribulation is happening even today. Of course, this is true in many of the nations that are dominated by radical Islam, fundamentalistic Islam. This is true in some of the nations of the former Soviet Union. This is true in some of the remaining Communist nations, from China to Cuba to North Korea. The persecution of Christians has been documented by Freedom House and Amnesty International and by the NAE. That’s why our Congress, two years ago, issued a proclamation. Unanimously, they expressed their outrage at the slaughtering of Christians around the world.
Jesus said, “In the world, you will have tribulation.” Of course, we are so lucky, so blessed, so fortunate, to live here in the United States of America and to enjoy the freedoms we have. But, even here, if you really believe in Christ and you really follow Christ, there is going to be some suffering involved simply because you march to the beat of a different drummer. The way of Christ is antithetical to the way of the world. The way of Christ is antithetical to the way of our culture. The world says, “Serve yourself,” but Jesus said, “Serve others.” The world says, “Please yourself.” Jesus said, “Please God.”
When you come to Christ and you accept Christ, you can no longer take your values from the world. You can no longer take your values from Hollywood or Wall Street. You can’t take your values from academia or the media. You can’t even take your values from the church, because many churches do not follow Christ. If you come to Christ and you accept Christ, then you must take your values from Christ Himself and from His Word, and you must march to the beat of His drum. Jesus said in the Upper Room Discourse, “If they hated Me, they will hate you. If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you. In this world, you will have tribulation.”
There’s a second promise much brighter in the Upper Room Discourse. The second promise is, “I will not leave you desolate.” John 14:18 says, “I will not leave you desolate.” The word for desolate is the Greek word orphanos, from which we get the word “orphan.” Jesus was saying, “I will not leave you an orphan. If you accept Me, you will have tribulation in this world, but I will not leave your desolate. You’ll not be an orphan.”
Now, on January 5 of this year, January 5, 1999, the United States Food and Drug Administration a drug for anxiety has been approved, and it has been approved entirely for dogs. It has been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration to be administered to dogs, to help them with what animal psychologists call “separation anxiety.” According to animal psychologists, 5,500,000 dogs in this country are suffering from separation anxiety. This is roughly 10% of the canine population of America. Animal psychologists claim that these dogs suffer from separation anxiety when their masters leave them at home alone for the day. They suffer from separation anxiety when their masters leave them at a kennel while they go away on vacation. They suffer separation anxiety when they are sold by one master to another master. And so, for a dollar a pill, you can give your dog Clomicalm.
Now, the APA, the American Psychological Association, tells us that dogs are not the only ones who can suffer from separation anxiety. The APA tells us that people suffer from separation anxiety. People suffer deeply from separation anxiety, and they can suffer from separation anxiety when their children go away to college. Mom and dad can feel separation anxiety, and even the children who are going away can feel separation anxiety. Also, when a person goes through the tragedy of a divorce, they can experience separation anxiety. Of course, very deeply and very profoundly, when a person experiences the death of a loved one, the death of a spouse or child or parent or friend, there can be deep separation anxiety.
Jesus knew He was leaving the world, and He knew the anxiety the disciples would feel. He had journeyed with them and walked with them for three years. He wanted to assure them and comfort them. He would not leave them desolate. Yes, they would have tribulation in the world, but they would not be orphans. He said that He would fulfill this promise in two ways. First, He said, “I will not leave you desolate. I will come to you. A little while and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me.” This is not a reference to the Parousia—this is not a reference to the second coming of Jesus Christ. When Christ comes again, the world will see Him. The Bible says, “Behold, He’s coming with the clouds and every eye shall see Him. All the nations of the earth will cry out on account of Him when He comes again.” But this is a reference to the resurrection, and on this all Bible scholars agree. Jesus said, “I will not leave you desolate. I will come to you. A little while, and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me.”
Most Bible scholars believe Jesus was referring to His resurrection appearances. He would come back to them soon to show them He was alive. And indeed, in Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and the Book of I Corinthians, the 15th chapter, we see that Jesus appeared eleven times. On eleven different occasions, Jesus appeared to His followers, to those who loved Him, because He wanted them to know that He was alive. He wanted to give them that reassurance and that comfort.
But there’s a second sense in this Upper Room Discourse that Jesus would fulfill this promise to not leave us desolate. Jesus goes on to say, “I will not leave you desolate. If you love Me, My Father will love you and We will come and make our home in you.” What an amazing promise. Jesus is saying to those who accept Him and those who believe in Him, “You will become a temple of God, a temple in which God Himself dwells.”
This, of course, is a reference to Pentecost. Pentecost comes from the Greek word which means “fiftieth.” It was 50 days after Easter when the Holy Spirit descended, the Holy Spirit came upon the company of believers. The Holy Spirit fell upon the church and indwelt the women and men who believed. The Holy Spirit came and took up residence in the souls and the spirits of those women and men who believe in Jesus. And so, through the Holy Spirit, the Father came. Through the Holy Spirit, Jesus came to be always with His people.
The Bible tells us that when you accept Christ as your Lord and Savior, when you take Him as your Lord and Savior, by His Spirit He comes within you and you become a temple of the Living God and He never leaves you and He will never forsake you.
In the Upper Room Discourse, Jesus calls the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete. I want to read you a little story. The paraclete is a word which literally means “one called to the side for the sake of comfort and counsel.” Sometimes the word paraclete is translated by the word “comforter.”
I read recently the story of a man who was undergoing heart bypass surgery, and he gives this explanation of what happened. He said, “The day before the surgery, an attractive nurse came into my room to visit. She took hold of my hand and told me to feel it and hold it. I thought that was a great idea. ‘Now,’ she said, ‘during the surgery tomorrow, you will be disconnected from your heart. You will be kept alive only by virtue of certain machines. When your heart is finally restored and the operation is over and you are recovering, you will eventually awaken in a special recovery room but you will be immobile for as long as six hours. You may be unable to move or speak or even to open your eyes, but you will be perfectly conscious and you will hear and you will know everything that is going on around you. During those six hours, I will be at your side. I will hold your hand exactly as I am doing now, and I will stay with you until you are fully recovered. Although you may feel absolutely helpless, when you feel my hand you will know that I will not leave you.’
“It happened exactly as the nurse told me. I awoke and could do nothing, but I could feel the nurse’s hand in my hand for hours and that made the difference.” Well, you see, that nurse was a paraclete. She had come alongside to comfort. This is the word Jesus uses to describe the Holy Spirit. He’s the Paraclete, come alongside to comfort us. This is His promise, that throughout all of our lives—yes, in the world we will have tribulation—He’ll not leave us desolate. He will send the Holy Spirit to indwell us, not simply to hold our hands but to embrace our souls. What an amazing promise.
Thirdly, finally, we have this promise from Christ in the Upper Room Discourse: “I go to prepare a place for you.” That’s John 14:2. In the world you will have tribulation, I will not leave you desolate, and I go to prepare a place for you, for all who accept Me.
In the full context, Jesus said, “Let not your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, that where I am, there you may be also.” Dwelling place. The word in the Greek is the Greek word monai. This word monai, this word for “dwelling place” in the King James translation of the Bible is translated by the English word, ”mansion.” The word monai is rendered by the English word “mansion.” “In My Father’s house are many mansions… ” This is because of the Latin Vulgate when the Greek New Testament was translated into Latin, the word monai was rendered by the Latin word manso from which we get the word ”mansion.” But the problem is, the Latin word manso never meant “mansion.” It simply meant “place of habitation.” It simply meant “residence.” It simply meant “house or dwelling,” just like the word monai means “house or dwelling.” Jesus is simply not saying, “I’m going to prepare a mansion for you.” There’s no promise of a mansion in the sky. Jesus is simply saying, “I’m going to prepare a dwelling for you, a dwelling place.
Where is it? Jesus tells us it’s in His Father’s house. Bible scholars agree that the Father’s house is simply a label for heaven. “In heaven are many dwelling places, and I’m going to prepare a place for you.”
I cannot tell you this morning what heaven will be like. The Bible doesn’t give us a full glimpse of heaven. The Apostle Paul was once taken there. He said he saw things too beautiful to describe, and he saw things he was not permitted to explain to us. But we know heaven is incredible.
I read recently the story of William M. Dyke. William M. Dyke was blinded at the age of 10. In a tragic accident, he lost his sight. He grew up to be a very intelligent young man—very witty, a great sense of humor, and by all accounts, very handsome. He went to an ivy league school, graduated with honors, and then he went for his doctorate in England at Oxford University. It was in England that he met an admiral’s daughter and fell in love with her. They were engaged to be married.
The admiral encouraged William M. Dyke to receive a special surgery that he might regain his sight. It was complex, it was risky, and it was extremely expensive, but the admiral said to William, “I’ll pay for your eye surgery.” This was done. When William woke from his surgery, his face was wrapped. His eyes were covered in gauze. He would have to wait for a period of days before he could find out whether or not he had his sight. He insisted that he wanted his gauze to be taken off in the midst of his wedding. When he married the admiral’s daughter, and as she was coming down the aisle… He wanted his gauze to be taken off at that moment, so the first thing he would see, if he saw, was his bride.
This was done, incredibly. And so, at the wedding, he was standing down front and she was coming down the aisle. They began to peel the gauze off. As she was almost to him, the final piece of gauze came off, and he realized the operation had been a success, an amazing success. He looked at his bride and he said to her, “You are more beautiful than I ever could have imagined.”
I wonder what it is going to be like when the gauze is taken off for us and we see Jesus. I wonder what it’s going to be like when the gauze is taken off and we see the place He’s prepared for us. I wonder what it’s going to be like when the wrappings are taken off and we see heaven.
Imagine for just a moment that you’re a bird and you’re in a bird cage. You have a little perch there and you have a swing in your bird cage. You’ve got a little cup that holds water and another little cup that holds food, bird seed, and that’s how you spend your days. But one day someone comes along and opens the door to your bird cage and takes you outside of the bird cage and takes you to this incredible valley with lakes and rivers and forests and meadows and blue sky and lots of other birds with beautiful colors, and you are released there and you are told that this is your new home. How many of you would want to go back to your bird cage? How many of you would think, ”Oh, I miss my little perch. I miss the cup of water and the cup of seed.” I mean, heaven is so much greater than earth. I mean, earth is like the bird cage.
Paul said, “To live is Christ and to die is gain.” The Bible says, “The suffering of this present time is not worth comparing to the glory that is to be revealed.” Jesus has said to us, “In the world you will have tribulation. Be of good cheer. I have overcome the world.” By His death and by His resurrection, He has overcome the world. He has said, “I will not leave you desolate,” and He has said, “I go to prepare a place for you.”
The only way that you can arrive in that place is by accepting Him. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but by Me.” The Bible says, “There is no other name under heaven given amongst men whereby we may be saved.”
This morning, on this Easter Sunday, as we close, we invite you to ask Jesus into your heart and to receive Him as your Lord and Savior. Jesus wants you to do this with eyes wide open, knowing there’s going to be a cost as you follow Him faithfully in this fallen world. He wants you to know that He will never forsake you or fail you. He will not leave you desolate. He will actually take up residence within you. He wants you to know that He’s prepared an eternal home for you and for all who believe in His name. Let’s look to the Lord with a word of prayer.