Trapped In The Tomb? - TGT
April 16, 2017 Speaker: Dan Grissom Series: I'm Alive!
Topic: Easter Scripture: Luke 24:1–12, John 11:38–44, 1 Corinthians 15:20
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Two bodies lay in two different tombs, separated by time and just a few miles. Lazarus has died, and his wrapped body has begun to smell. A few weeks later Jesus is laid in a similar tomb just a few miles away. His body was not wrapped as carefully. The process of decay begins for him as well.
But – on the first Easter Sunday morning, the tomb of Jesus is revealed to not be the dead end it seemed to be! Jesus rises from the dead, forever conquering sin and death for Lazarus and for us! Jesus was not trapped in the tomb, but he leaves behind his graveclothes and bursts forth resurrected and transformed.
Back to the grave of Lazarus. Because it is Jesus who stands outside his tomb, his tomb will not hold him either. A voice calls him, “Lazarus, come out!” Life returns to rotting flesh. The tomb will not hold him either. He stumbles out and into the light.
The dark tombs of our life seem just as hopeless as the tombs of Lazarus and Jesus. Divorce, job loss, sickness, the death of someone we love, depression… all these and more can plunge us into sudden darkness that seems impossible to escape. And eventually our final tomb will be faced when death comes for each of us.
Because of Jesus, the tombs of our lives, those dark places of fear, failure and pain, these can be places of transformation. They help us face our need for God. They reveal his true identity and love for us.
This Easter, the resurrected Jesus calls to you… “Come out!” We can experience freedom from the tombs of our life, just as Jesus was free that Easter morning!
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