Rev. David Holwick Easter Sunrise
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
April 24, 2011
Luke 24:13-32
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I. Contrasting moods on a special day.
A. We come to this sunrise service anticipating a full day.
1) It is a happy and positive time.
2) We associate it with spring flowers and bright new dresses.
3) I have been invited to two dinners and intend to go to both.
a) The second hostess asked me if I minded filet mignon...
B. The first sunrise service was anything but positive.
1) They were coming to prepare a funeral.
2) They had very heavy hearts.
3) All their hopes were dashed.
4) Most of them were filled with guilt for how they had
let Jesus down.
II. Consider the turmoil of that week.
A. They were pumped up by Palm Sunday and the cheering mobs.
1) Undoubtedly, they thought some of that fame would rub off
on them.
2) That's why at the Last Supper they were arguing about who
would be greater when Jesus launched his kingdom.
3) Failure was not crossing their minds at all.
B. In two days it was all destroyed.
1) Jesus was arrested, convicted, executed.
2) His beat-up body was laying on a stone slab in a new tomb.
3) All those hopes were dashed.
III. Think of your greatest disappointment.
A. Everyone has their personal list:
1) The person you thought you would marry, but didn't.
a) Maybe you have googled or Facebooked them...
2) The job you thought you would have forever.
3) The life goal you were certain you would reach, but didn't.
B. Disappointment can redefine you in a good way.
A number of years ago, Charles Swindoll was invited to
speak at a small Bible college.
The new president was fighting valiantly to help the school
overcome its most recent troubles which were pretty big.
Swindoll wanted to help however he could.
The president greeted Swindoll with great enthusiasm as he
walked into the airport terminal.
When Swindoll asked, "How are you?" the guy replied loudly
with a huge smile, "Fantastic!"
Swindoll stuck out his hand and he shook it so hard his
shoulder hurt.
"Well, that's good," Swindoll said. "How's the school?"
"Outstanding! Just outstanding!"
Swindoll thought to himself: Hmmm, nothing's that good.
But Swindoll had to admit, the guy's enthusiasm was
infectious.
He was exactly what motivators and leadership experts tell
you to become.
Charles Swindoll wholeheartedly believes in choosing to
approach every challenge with a great attitude.
But he doesn't think a person should abandon reality and
live in fantasyland.
A year later, Swindoll returned to speak at the college
and the president met him again.
Like the year before, everything was "Fantastic!," although
the student body had dwindled noticeably and worry hung
in the air like a haze.
Sometime after Swindoll's second trip and before his third,
the president's world had come apart.
His wife had left him, his children were adrift, the school
struggled financially, and enrollment had sunk to an
all-time low.
The place was on the verge of closing its doors.
When Swindoll stepped into the now-familiar terminal, he
didn't see his friend standing in his usual spot.
He was sitting on a bench with his head down, clearly
distracted until Swindoll walked up and stood right in
front of him.
The president looked up without a word.
Swindoll took him by the shoulders, stood him up, and
embraced him.
"How are you?" Swindoll asked.
The man hugged him in silence.
Tears hung heavy from his eyelids as he said, "I'm growing
and I'm learning. But I'm no longer fantastic."
Pain had enrolled his friend in a very difficult curriculum
that would earn him an advanced degree in reality and
brokenness.
#63427
1) The disciples had just taken this course too.
2) And if you haven't taken it yet, I guarantee you will
someday.
IV. After God humbled them, he turned them around again.
A. The disciples were different people after Good Friday.
1) Their pride was deflated.
2) They had a more honest and realistic assessment of life.
3) They saw that Jesus wasn't joking when he said there would
be a heavy price in being identified with him.
B. The one thing that remained was their devotion to him.
1) The women wanted to take care of his body decently.
2) His friends were still talking about him all the time.
C. And then they saw Jesus again.
1) It is interesting that they were oblivious at first
a) Mary Magdalene thought he was a gardener.
b) The two guys on the road to Emmaus thought he was a
clueless pedestrian.
2) At the instant of recognition, everything changed for them.
a) The two guys recalled how their hearts had burned.
b) Everything made sense now - it was all part of God's
age-old plan.
V. Knowing Jesus is what makes the difference.
A. For some people, this is just a special religious day.
1) Perhaps a little more pumped up, that's all.
B. But maybe you know what it is to have your heart burn.
1) Jesus is no longer just a religious figure from ancient days.
2) He is a living Lord that you can know personally.
3) He reminds you that earthly disappointments hurt only for
a time.
4) God has better stuff in store for you.
C. If you don't know him, you can.
1) Accept him as your Savior.
2) Honor him with your life.
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SOURCE FOR ILLUSTRATION USED IN THIS SERMON:
#63427 “Growing, But No Longer Fantastic,” adapted by David Holwick from
the sermon "Encountering Jesus Along Life’s Road" by Charles
Swindoll, Kerux Sermon #63062.
This and 35,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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