Sunday
Morning Bible Study
June
25, 2017
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it address the person who is: Empty, lonely, guilty, or afraid
to die? Does it speak to the broken
hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk – Meat – Manna Preach for a decision
Is the church loved? Regular: 2900
words Communion: 2500 words Video=75wpm
Israel
We are now about two weeks away from the last day to jump on to our trip to
Israel in November. Final payments will
be due on July 8.
Yes it’s a lot of money ($3398/person), but it truly is the trip of a
lifetime.
We will be visiting over 50 sites in Israel. You will see the Bible come
alive.
While some tours will place an emphasis on visiting old churches in Israel,
we will place our emphasis on visiting actual archaeological sites.
If you are concerned for your safety, yes there are concerns, but the
nation of Israel knows more about handling terrorists than anyone.
Because our group will be small (about 20 folks), we will be able to get
more done and have more interaction with our sites.
We are offering an optional two day extension to Petra as well..
We’ve arrived at the pinnacle of Jesus’ ministry.
Luke told us what Jesus’ main purpose was in life:
(Luke 19:10 NKJV) for the Son
of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
He would do this by dying for our sins.
We saw Jesus arrive in Jerusalem on the previous Sunday, Palm Sunday, to
the shouts of an adoring crowd, crying “Hosanna”.
On the following Thursday night, Jesus celebrated the Passover with His
disciples before taking them back to spend the night at the Garden of
Gethsemane.
Judas showed up with a group of Jewish leaders and soldiers.
Jesus was arrested and went through a series of trials as the Jewish
leaders argued to have Jesus put to death.
Pilate has tried to get out of sentencing Jesus to death, but eventually
gave in to the pressure of the crowd and the Jewish leaders.
Jesus was scourged
Jesus was crucified.
And died.
23:47-49 Reaction to His death
:47 So when the centurion saw what had happened, he glorified God, saying,
“Certainly this was a righteous Man!”
:47 the centurion
The centurion was the man in charge at the execution site.
centurion – hekatontarchos
(“hundred” + “ruler”) – an officer in the Roman army in charge of a hundred
men.
Centurions were known for their deliberation, constancy, and strength of
mind.
“Polybius (vi. 24), states that the
centurions were chosen by merit, and so were men remarkable not so much for
their daring courage as for their deliberation, constancy, and strength of
mind.”[1]
Roman centurions are mentioned several times in the scriptures. They were
always outstanding men.
It was a centurion who sent
messengers to Jesus because his servant was ill.
The centurion didn’t think he was
worthy of Jesus coming to his home, so he asked that Jesus simply give the
“order”, knowing that whatever Jesus said would be done, even if from a
distance.
(Luke 7:9 NKJV) When Jesus
heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd
that followed Him, “I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even
in Israel!”
A centurion named Cornelius would
be the first Gentile to become a Christian (Acts 10).
God used several centurions to
protect Paul when he was arrested in Jerusalem and eventually extradited to
Rome (Acts 22, 23, 27)
:47 Certainly this was a righteous Man!
he glorified – doxazo
– to think, suppose, be of opinion; to praise, extol, magnify, celebrate;
to honour, do honour to, hold in honour; to make glorious, adorn with lustre,
clothe with splendour
righteous – dikaios
– righteous, observing divine laws; in a wide sense, upright, righteous,
virtuous, keeping the commands of God
Mark records,
(Matthew 27:54 NKJV) —54 So when
the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake
and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this was
the Son of God!”
(Mark 15:39 NKJV) So when the
centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed
His last, he said, “Truly this Man was the Son of God!”
:47 when the centurion saw what had happened
Lesson
Life Witness
The centurion was blown away by what he saw when he observed Jesus dying on
the cross.
Sometimes we don’t quite understand the importance of how we live our
lives.
People are watching.
Your words are important.
It’s important that people know what it is you believe.
Your life is also important.
It’s your actions, the way you live, even the way you die, that give your
words impact.
Jesus said,
(Matthew
5:16 NKJV) Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good
works and glorify your Father in heaven.
It’s your life, your good works, that bring glory to God.
People ought to be able to see the life of Jesus at work in your life.
Yet every once in a while I see some of my church
“friends” on Facebook posting things that I frankly would have a hard time
imagining Jesus posting.
I have a hard time when people are posting sexually
charged videos.
I have a hard time when people post their glee at their
upcoming drinking party.
I have a hard time when people post about how much they
hate certain people.
Whether you post to Facebook or not, what are your friends
thinking when they see you are no different from the unbelievers?
I love it when people post about loving their spouse, or
the blessing their kids are.
I love it when people post answers to prayer.
I love it when people post things they’ve learned from the
Scriptures.
My friends, we are living in the age of lukewarm Christianity, at a time
when the world is getting further and further from God.
There ought to be an increasingly clear contrast between the Christian and the
non-believer.
They should see our lives and wonder why we are so different.
As long as we are truly different.
:48 And the whole crowd who came together to that sight, seeing what had
been done, beat their breasts and returned.
came together – sumparaginomai
– to come together
crowd – ochlos
– a crowd
sight – theoria
– a viewing, beholding; that which is viewed, a spectacle, sight
seeing – theoreo
– to be a spectator, look at, behold; to view attentively, take a view of,
survey
beat – tupto
– to strike, beat, smite; of mourners, to smite their breast
breasts – stethos
(“stethoscope”) – the breast
returned – hupostrepho
– to turn back; to return
:49 But all His acquaintances, and the women who followed Him from Galilee,
stood at a distance, watching these things.
stood – histemi
– to cause or make to stand, to place, put, set; to stand; to stand by or
near
at a distance – makrothen
– from afar, afar
who followed – sunakoloutheo
– to follow together with others, to accompany
watching – horao
– to see with the eyes
:49 all His acquaintances … stood at a distance
acquaintances – gnostos
– known, notable
From the word “to know”, these are
all those who “knew” Jesus.
Earlier in the week, Jesus hadn’t come to Jerusalem by Himself.
He had a group of people that had followed Him all the way from Galilee,
including His disciples.
When Jesus was crucified, the only followers present were four women and
the apostle John present. (John 19:25-26)
Earlier in the afternoon, there
were some who stood close to Jesus.
(John 19:25 NKJV) Now there
stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife
of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
John records that he was there as
well.
As the afternoon has progressed, even these took a step back and watched
from a distance.
Jesus had told them the night before:
(Mark 14:27 NKJV) Then Jesus
said to them, “All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for
it is written: ‘I will
strike the Shepherd, And the sheep will be scattered.’
When He died, He died alone.
Lesson
Alone
There can be many reasons why we at times feel so alone.
Sometimes it’s our own harsh actions and mean attitudes that can drive
people away from us.
Video: Lord of the Rings – Sneaky
Little Hobbitses
Is it a wonder that Gollum lived alone for so long?
Sometimes loneliness is no more than a state of mind. We may actually have people all around us who
love us, yet somehow we still feel lonely.
Sometimes we have become truly abandoned.
That’s what’s happening to Jesus.
No matter what your reason for feeling alone, I hope you will hear
this. Jesus understands more than you
can imagine.
(Hebrews 4:15–16
NLT) —15 This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced
all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. 16 So let us
come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy,
and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.
You can go to Jesus to help you with the loneliness you
feel.
I wonder if sometimes we are expecting people to fill the emptiness inside
of us that only God can fill.
You can see this even in marriage.
Sometimes we fall into the trap of expecting our spouse to fill the
emptiness.
Now I appreciate the concept of a husband saying something like this to his
wife (“you complete me”), but the danger is going too far with that idea, and
expecting your spouse to fill that emptiness inside you that only God can fill.
Single people: You will go much
further in life and in any future relationships if you learn this now.
King David wrote,
(Psalm 27:10 NLT) Even if my
father and mother abandon me, the Lord
will hold me close.
Only God can fill your emptiness.
23:50-56 Jesus is buried
:50 Now behold, there was a man named Joseph, a council member, a
good and just man.
council member – bouleutes
– a councillor, senator; a member of the Sanhedrin
good – agathos
– of good constitution or nature; useful, salutary; good, pleasant,
agreeable, joyful, happy; excellent, distinguished; upright, honourable
just – dikaios
– righteous, observing divine laws; in a wide sense, upright, righteous,
virtuous, keeping the commands of God
:51 He had not consented to their decision and deed. He was from
Arimathea, a city of the Jews, who himself was also waiting for the kingdom of
God.
consented – sugkatatithemai
– to deposit together with another; to deposit one’s vote in the urn with
another; to consent to, vote for, agree with
decision – boule
– counsel, purpose
deed – praxis
– a doing, a mode of acting, a deal, a transaction; in a bad sense, wicked
deed, crime, wicked doings (our practices i.e. trickery)
Arimathaea – Arimathaia
– “heights”; the name of several cities in Palestine. The one mentioned in
Mt 27:57; Mr 15:43; Lu 23:51; Joh 19:38 appears to have been the same as the
birthplace of Samuel in Mount Ephraim.
(1
Sam 1:1 KJV) Now there was a certain man of Ramathaimzophim, of mount
Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the
son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephrathite:
waited for – prosdechomai
– to receive to one’s self, to admit, to give access to one’s self; to
expect: the fulfilment of promises
:50 a man named Joseph
We are now introduced to Joseph of Arimathaea.
Arimathaea is believed to be another name for Ramathaim Zophim, or “Ramah”,
the birthplace of the prophet Samuel (1Sam. 1:1)
(1 Samuel 1:1 NKJV) —1 Now there
was a certain man of Ramathaim Zophim, of the mountains of Ephraim, and his
name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu,
the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.
Eusebius and
Jerome identify Arimathea as Ramathaim-Zophim (Ramah of Benjamin), the
birthplace and burial place of Samuel (1 Sam 1:1, 19; 25:1).[2]
Video: Map – Jerusalem and Ramah
Ramah is about six miles directly north of the city of Jerusalem.
Joseph was a “council member”, or, a member of the Sanhedrin, yet he had
not voted to have Jesus crucified like the rest of the Sanhedrin.
We think it’s possible that he and Nicodemus were not even invited to the
trial of Jesus.
A.T. Robertson writes:
“It is fairly certain that both
Joseph and Nicodemus were suspected of sympathy with Jesus and so were not
invited to the trial of Jesus.”
Luke tells us that Joseph was “waiting for the kingdom of God”, but John
tells us that Joseph was actually a disciple of Jesus, but a “secret” one
because of his fear of the Jews. (John 19:38).
(John 19:38 NKJV) After
this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of
the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave
him permission. So he came and took the body of Jesus.
Matthew tells us that Joseph was also a wealthy man. (Mat. 27:57)
(Matthew 27:57 NKJV) —57 Now when
evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who
himself had also become a disciple of Jesus.
:52 This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.
went to – proserchomai
– to come to, approach; draw near to; to assent to
asked – aiteo
– to ask, beg, call for, crave, desire, require
The verb is in a “middle voice”
(asked for himself), which carries the idea that Joseph was asking Pilate for
the body as a personal favor.
:52 This man went to Pilate
John and Mark give us a little more
insight into this moment.
Mark tells us that when it came
time to ask for Jesus’ body from Pilate, Joseph got up his courage and went
boldly to Pilate (Mark 15:43).
(Mark 15:43 NKJV) Joseph of
Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom
of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of
Jesus.
Even though Joseph started out a
little timid when it came to following Jesus, he didn’t end that way.
He eventually got up his courage
and stepped up.
:53 Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a tomb that
was hewn out of the rock, where no one had ever lain before.
took it down – kathaireo
– to take down; without the notion of violence: to detach from the cross,
one crucified
wrapped it – entulisso
– to roll up, wrap together
linen – sindon
– linen cloth, esp. that which was fine and costly, in which the bodies of
the dead were wrapped; thing made of fine cloth
laid it – tithemi
– to set, put, place
a tomb – mnema
– a monument or memorial to perpetuate the memory of any person or thing; a
sepulchral monument; a sepulchre or tomb
had ever lain – keimai
– to lie; of an infant; of one buried; of things that quietly cover some
spot
:53 laid it in a tomb
Matthew tells us that Joseph put Jesus in his own tomb (Mat. 27:60)
(Matthew 27:60 NKJV) and laid
it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large
stone against the door of the tomb, and departed.
This would fulfill another prophecy.
(Isaiah 53:9 NKJV) And they
made His grave with the wicked— But with the rich at His death…
He died with criminals, but was buried in a rich man’s tomb.
:53 hewn out of the rock
hewn out of the rock – laxeutos
– cut out of stone
Illustration
Hamster and Frog
A mangy looking guy who goes into a restaurant and orders food. The waiter
says, “No way. I don’t think you can pay for it.” The guy says, “You’re right.
I don’t have any money, but if I show you something you haven’t seen before,
will you give me the food?” “Deal!” replies the waiter. The guy reaches into
his coat pocket and pulls out a hamster. He puts the hamster on the counter and
it runs to the end, across the room, up the piano, jumps on the keyboard, and
starts playing Gershwin songs. And the hamster is really good. The waiter says,
“You’re right. I’ve never seen anything like that before. That hamster is truly
good on the piano.” The guy downs the hamburger he ordered and asks the waiter
for another. “Money or another miracle,” says the waiter. The guy reaches into
his coat again and pulls out a frog. He puts the frog on the counter, and the
frog starts to sing. He has a marvelous voice and great pitch. A fine singer. A
stranger from the other end of the counter runs over to the guy and offers him
$300 for the frog. The guy says, “It’s a deal.” He takes the three hundred and
gives the stranger the frog. The stranger runs out of the restaurant. The
waiter says to the guy, “Are you crazy? You sold a singing frog for $300? It
must have been worth millions.” “Not so,” says the guy, “the hamster is also a
ventriloquist.”
Lesson
No Tricks
When it comes to explaining the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, some
people have cooked up some interesting explanations, as if it was all done with
tricks.
Before looking at some of those things, there’s a couple more things to
note.
John records that the experienced Roman executioners had certified that
Jesus was indeed dead. (John 19:31-37)
(John 19:31–37 NKJV) —31 Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the
bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a
high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that
they might be taken away. 32 Then the
soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was
crucified with Him. 33 But when
they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His
legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced His side
with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. 35 And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and
he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. 36 For these things were done that the Scripture should be
fulfilled, “Not one of His bones shall be broken.” 37 And again another Scripture says, “They shall look on Him whom
they pierced.”
Matthew recorded that after Jesus was buried, that a “large stone” was
rolled over the door of the tomb.
(Matthew 27:60 NKJV) —60 and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock;
and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and departed.
Engineers have estimated that a stone like that would have
weighted 1-2 tons.
A stone doorway would keep animals from disturbing your
dead loved one’s body.
Matthew also records that the Jewish leaders demanded that Pilate put a
Roman seal on the tomb, and station a Roman guard unit in front of the tomb to
keep anyone from stealing the body (Mat. 27:62-66)
(Matthew 27:62–66 NKJV) —62 On the next day, which followed the Day of Preparation, the chief
priests and Pharisees gathered together to Pilate, 63 saying, “Sir, we remember, while He was still alive, how that
deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise.’ 64 Therefore command that the tomb be made secure until the third
day, lest His disciples come by night and steal Him away, and say to the
people, ‘He has risen from the dead.’ So the last deception will be worse than
the first.” 65 Pilate said to them,
“You have a guard; go your way, make it as secure as you know how.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure, sealing the stone and
setting the guard.
These precautions would keep anyone from even thinking of
trying to steal the body.
And then there’s the fact that the tomb was carved out of solid rock.
Now … back to those wild ideas people have about the resurrection.
Some suggest that perhaps there was an escape hatch out the back, and that the
disciples might have stolen the body.
Yet we’ve seen that the tomb was carved out of solid
stone.
Some suggest that Jesus wasn’t really dead, but that He revived in the
coolness of the tomb, and simply walked away.
Yet the Roman executioners said he was dead.
Jesus had not only been crucified, but savagely scourged
as well. And now he moves the one ton
stone and overpowers the Roman guard?
I think not.
There were no “tricks” here. No
ventriloquist hamsters.
Jesus was dead. He was buried.
Next week we’ll see that He truly rose from the dead.
:53 where no one had ever lain
before
One of the places in Jerusalem that
could be the place where Jesus died and was buried is known as the “Garden
Tomb”.
The tomb itself has spots for two
bodies.
When tombs like this were cut out
of the stone, a platform was carved that would be the size of an average
person.
When the occupant of the tomb died,
the last adjustments would be made to the platform to accommodate the actual
height of the person who died.
In the “Garden Tomb”, one of the
spots has been left uncut, while the second spot has been adjusted to fit a
body.
:54 That day was the Preparation, and the Sabbath drew near.
the Preparation – paraskeue
– a making ready, preparation, equipping; that which is prepared,
equipment; in the NT in a Jewish sense, the day of preparation; the day on
which the Jews made necessary preparation to celebrate a sabbath or a feast
The word paraskeue is the
word in Modern Greek for the day “Friday”.
the Sabbath – sabbaton
– the seventh day of each week which was a sacred festival on which the
Israelites were required to abstain from all work; the institution of the
sabbath, the law for keeping holy every seventh day of the week; a single
sabbath, sabbath day; seven days, a week
drew near – epiphosko
– to grow light, to dawn. This doesn’t mean that it’s literally “near
dawn”, but that the Sabbath day was about to start. The Sabbath started at 6:00
p.m.
:54 the Preparation … the Sabbath
Friday is the day when observant Jews prepare to celebrate their Sabbath.
For example – no cooking is allowed on the Sabbath, so you prepare your
meals the day before.
The Jewish Sabbath begins at sundown on Friday, around 6:00pm.
The Jews want the bodies buried by 6pm.
The disciples won’t have much time to do their burial preparations.
:55 And the women who had come with Him from Galilee followed after, and
they observed the tomb and how His body was laid.
followed after – katakoloutheo
– to follow after
come with – sunerchomai
– to come together; to assemble; to go (depart) or come with one, to
accompany one
observed – theaomai
– to behold, look upon, view attentively, contemplate (often used of public
shows); of important persons that are looked on with admiration; to view, take
a view of
the tomb – mnema
– a monument or memorial to perpetuate the memory of any person or thing; a
sepulchral monument; a sepulchre or tomb
was laid – tithemi
– to set, put, place; to place or lay; to put down, lay down
:55 they observed the tomb
One more dumb idea about Jesus’ resurrection.
Some have suggested that the real problem was that everyone went to the
wrong tomb on the following Sunday morning.
Yet Joseph knew where the tomb was.
It was his tomb.
The women knew where the tomb was.
The guards knew where the tomb was.
And even if everyone went to the wrong tomb, why didn’t the Jewish leaders
just go to the right tomb and produce the body after the apostles started
claiming that Jesus was risen?
:56 Then they returned and prepared spices and fragrant oils. And they
rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment.
they returned – hupostrepho
– to turn back; to turn about; to return
prepared – hetoimazo
– to make ready, prepare; to make the necessary preparations, get
everything ready
spices – aroma
– spice, perfume
fragrant oils – muron
(“myrrh”) – ointment
the Sabbath – sabbaton
– the seventh day of each week which was a sacred festival on which the
Israelites were required to abstain from all work; the institution of the
sabbath, the law for keeping holy every seventh day of the week; a single
sabbath, sabbath day; seven days, a week
rested – hesuchazo
– to keep quiet; to rest, cease from labour; to lead a quiet life, said of
those who are not running hither and thither, but stay at home and mind their
business; to be silent, i.e. to say nothing, hold one’s peace
the commandment – entole
– an order, command, charge, precept, injunction; that which is prescribed
to one by reason of his office; a commandment; a prescribed rule in accordance
with which a thing is done; a precept relating to lineage, of the Mosaic
precept concerning the priesthood; ethically used of the commandments in the
Mosaic law or Jewish tradition
:56 prepared spices and fragrant oils
When Jesus was initially buried, Joseph was helped by Nicodemus, and
together they had Jesus wrapped in cloth with a hundred pounds of spices. (John
19:39-40)
(John 19:39–40 NKJV) —39 And
Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture
of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds. 40 Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen
with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury.
The purpose of the spices was not to embalm the body, but to cover up the
stink as the body decayed.
In burial traditions of that time, the body was left for about a year to
decay until all that’s left was the bones.
The bones would then be collected and stored in a “bone box” or an
“ossuary”.
It was common for the first couple of days for the body to be visited
regularly and for more spices and perfumes to be added to the body.
That’s what the women will be doing early on Sunday morning. They were planning on adding more spices to
Jesus’ body. (Mark 16:1)
(Mark 16:1 NKJV) —1 Now when
the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and
Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him.
:53 laid it in a tomb
When Paul gave a summary of the gospel to the Corinthians, he wrote,
(1 Corinthians
15:3–4 NKJV) —3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received:
that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He
was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all clearly state that Jesus was buried.
The good news that we can be saved from the penalty of our sins and live
forever in heaven is based on three things.
He died for us. He was buried. He rose again.
The burial speaks of the finality of death.
We use the phrase “dead and buried” to speak of the finality of death.
I think we all wish that death wasn’t so “final”.
I keep seeing a theme on TV shows, that when a character dies, don’t be
surprised if the producers find a way of bringing them back to life.
Lesson
It’s Not Over
Perhaps you’ve been facing the death of a dream.
Something you’ve been hoping for a long time is now dead and buried.
Perhaps you’re facing the death of a relationship.
Maybe you have health concerns and you are facing death itself.
It’s not over.
I’m not trying to say that your dream or relationship is going to go back
to where it was. I’m not saying death
won’t happen. But you never know what God has in mind.
The fact that Jesus was dead and buried in a tomb on Friday afternoon, but
was alive and well on Sunday morning shows us that with God, nothing’s
impossible.
Maybe you have reached the point where you are so sick of the sin in your
life, and you want to know the way out.
Maybe you are beginning to realize that you simply don’t know God, and you
need Him in your life.
Jesus died on a cross so you could be forgiven and you could know God.
Will you open your life to Him today?