Resurrection Is Coming: Entrust Yourself to the Father

In this new sermon series we will see that l ike Jesus, we are called to faithfully obey even unto death by entrusting ourselves to the Father with the certain expectation that by the Father's power we, like Jesus, will experience resurrection and exaltation. 

This main idea possesses three components 

1. A Call to Faithful Obedience 

2. An Invitation to Trust the Father 

3. A Certain Expectation of Resurrection 

A Call to Faithful Obedience 

The text begins with a transitional comment by Jesus who said to his disciples," The Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified "(Mt. 26:2) . This not only signals a change in focus of Matthews content but also reminds the reader that it is for this very reason Jesus came. Jesus knew why He had come. He acted on this earth fully aware of the pain and sorrow that laid just ahead of Him. His work included death, even death on a criminal’s cross (Phil. 2: 4-11). 

He dreaded this work. He shook in horror under the anxiety produced by imaginations of the torture He knew lurked around the corner (Mt.26:37-38). Though the path God the Father called Him to travel led Him to a painful and "premature" death (age 33), obedience demanded He walk the path. 

Amazingly He indeed walked faithfully. He had the right and the authority to forego His mission. He could have called on the Father's deliverance and to Him the Father would have sent" more than twelve legions of angels" to rescue Him (Mt. 26:54). But Jesus knew why He came and He walked faithfully,

 

“Now my soul is troubled. What should I say - Father, save me from this hour? But that is why I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name." (Jn. 12:27) 

Though Jesus knew the trouble that awaited Him, "He set his face like flint" (Is. 50:7) and “determined to journey to Jerusalem" (Lu. 9:51). To this same call and path we, Jesus' disciples, are called. We must like Jesus "pick up our cross and follow Him" (Mt. 16:24-25; Lu. 9:23-24). We must not count our lives as something to be saved at the expense of being faithful to the LORD. To be His disciples we must walk with Him up calvary's hill and die. 

An Invitation to Trust the Father 

How did Jesus endure? He possessed absolute confidence in the Father. We see His trust manifested in the Garden of Gethsemane. There Jesus knew a troubled and sorrowful heart as He anticipated this world's sin and condemnation being thrust down upon His shoulders. He trembled to His bones. He was afraid “even unto death" (Mt. 26:38). Yet, though He desired that the cup of God's wrath not come upon Him, He opted and desired even more that the Father's will rather than His be done (Mt. 26:39). 

In essence, He said, "I wish that these hardships would by-pass me, but I desire even more that Your will be accomplished!" In pursuit of the Father's will Jesus submitted Himself to the Father's plan including the suffering which He would experience according to that Father's will. In I Peter, Peter expressed the heart of the matter. In His suffering, particularly the suffering experienced in Mt. 26-28, Jesus remained sinless by entrusting Himself to the Father who judges justly. 

1 Peter 2:21–25CSB 21 For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 22 He did not commit sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth; 23 when he was insulted, he did not insult in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten but entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree; so that, having died to sins, we might live for righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. 25 For you were like sheep going astray, but you have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. 

He submitted Himself out of trust in God. This empowered Him to commit Himself to faithful obedience even when it cost Him greatly. We are called to follow His example as we to come to trouble on the path of obedience (I Pt 2:21). In suffering we know the temptation to seek relief or spare ourselves by turning to ourselves or some other god promising us rescue. God, instead, calls us to endure by entrusting ourselves to the Father just as Jesus did. 

A Certain Expection of Resurrection 

Jesus not only knew death awaited Him, He also knew with certainty that on the other side of death resurrection would come. The first hint of Jesus' resurrection expectation in Mt. 26-28 comes in his words to the disciples who approached Jesus with complaints. After a woman anointed Jesus with "very expensive ointment" (Mt. 26: 7) in order "to prepare [Him] for burial" (Mt. 26: 12), the disciples accused her of missing an opportunity to sell the oil and give to the poor (Mt. 26: 9). 

Jesus rebuked them for missing the beauty of her action and then pronounced, "Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her” (Mt. 26: 13). 

In this moment when the reality of death stared Jesus in the faith as his body received burial treatment, Jesus turned His heart and mind to the gospel. With His words He called the attention of the disciples to the same. "This gospel [Good News]" will be "proclaimed in the whole world" (Mt. 24:14, 26:13). 

What is this gospel? Matthew only utilized the word, gospel, three times outside of Mt. 26:13. In two instances, the proclaiming of the gospel of the Kingdom is accompanied by "the healing of every disease and every affliction" (Mt. 4:23; 9:35). In the third instance, the gospel proclaimed is good news to those who endure faithfully even when their obedience leads to death at the hands of the nations who will kill the disciples (Mt. 24:9-14). When taken together, one cannot escape the resurrection message of the good news. 

Jesus' Kingdom announces victory over man's worst enemy- death and all that leads to the grave. Jesus, after being prepped for burial looked forward to the days after his resurrection in which the good news of resurrection would be preached to all. 

1 Corinthians 15:12–20 CSB 

12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say, “There is no resurrection of the dead”? 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised; 14 and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation is in vain, and so is your faith. 15 Moreover, we are found to be false witnesses about God, because we have testified wrongly about God that he raised up Christ—whom he did not raise up, if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. 18 Those, then, who have fallen asleep in Christ have also perished. 19 If we have put our hope in Christ for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone. 20 But as it is, Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 

His awareness of His own coming resurrection appeared again as He broke bread with His disciples. There He served the cup and bread; then He spoke, 

"I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drinks it new with you in my Father's Kingdom " (Mt. 26:29). 

That moment of dining would not be their last meal for ever, for Jesus new that though He would die, He would also rise and enjoy their fellowship again. This certainty of His resurrection is seen again in the accusation levied against him both by the Council of religious leaders and the mob of mockers (Mt. 26:60; 27:40). 

Clearly Jesus taught that He the true temple would be destroyed but in three days He would rebuild the temple. He would rise again. According to the chief priests and Pharisees, Jesus said Himself very clearly," After three days I will rise" (Mt. 26:63), and when the angels met Mary and Mary Magdalene at the empty tomb, the angel announced the good news, "He is not here, for He has risen, as He said" (Mt. 28:6). 

The evidence is clear, Jesus walked faithfully in obedience even unto death with the full expectation that on the other side of death awaited resurrection life. He would rise on the third day. Just as He promised, Jesus did rise. The tomb is empty, death has lost its stirs. Just as He rose so shall all who are in Him. Those who walk in His ways and endure to the end by faith will also be raised. He was the first fruit from the grave. We are the rest of the harvest guaranteed by Him.