If Someone Should Rise from the Dead

It is finished. It could be that I have cited in my preaching these three words from the Gospels more than any other three words in the Bible. It stirs something up inside of me every time I hear or speak them. The original Greek phrase is Τετέλεσται (tetelestai), and it is a declaration of being accomplished, completed, fulfilled. It has often been described as the “paid in full” stamp on an outstanding invoice. In this case, the sin debt that humanity owed was paid in full with the blood of the Son of God. How does that not send chills through you?

Three other words also come to mind for this weekend: He is risen. The sacrifice was only part of the story. For Jesus to triumph over sin and death, he had to defeat both by rising from the grave. The declaration by the angel at his tomb (“he is not here but is risen”) signaled the crushing of the serpent’s head and the offer of eternal life to all who would believe and follow him.

Those two three-word phrases encapsulate Easter weekend. We gather on Good Friday to reflect on the sobering scene of Jesus crucified. And on Easter, we pull out all of the stops. We run to the tomb at the news of his resurrection and celebrate that death no longer holds any sway over us.

Small Group Curriculum

Sermon Notes

The Gospel of Luke | Pt. 4
If Someone Should Rise from the Dead
Pastor Todd Dugard // Luke 16:19–31
April 15-16, 2017

There was one person…

…who had bad things come his way in this life (v. 20-21)

…who died, receiving comfort in heaven (v. 22a)

…who had read the Word of God and accepted its message

…and who trusted in what he could not see

There was another person…

…who had good things come his way in this life (v. 19)

…who died, suffering anguish in hell (v. 22b-28)

…who had read the Word of God but rejected its message (v. 29)

…and who relied only on what he could see (v. 30-31)

And what will they say about you when the time comes?