Where Is The Body Of Christ — Westlake Bible Fellowship

0:01 Opening pleasantries and introduction

Well, morning. Good morning. It is great to be here. We're able to come up Friday night and spend yesterday, being able to hang out with some family, and it made for a good arrival into town, and what a great time of year to be up here. I feel a little guilty, to be honest.

When John called and asked if I'd be interested in a date, he mentioned one of the available dates being Easter weekend. And I was like, well, that sounds great. He's like, well, you can come up and see some family and you know, hit two birds with one stone, so to speak. I was like, yeah, it's a great idea. It's like, who doesn't want to speak Easter weekend?

Like was mentioned before, yeah, Christmas is nice and easy. Speak of the birth of birth birth of Christ. Easter is probably the second most easiest message to speak. You get to talk about the resurrection. Everybody's happy.

This is great. This is good news. Right? This is the good news of the gospel. Jesus is risen from the dead.

So we're going to continue in Luke chapter 24, following the next phase, the next picture of following Christ through the book of Luke, studying the book of Luke. Continue the saga. Where is Jesus? Where is the body of Christ? Is my question I want to pose this morning.

If you were to title the message perhaps that this theme will be developed a little bit further, Where is the body of Christ? Perhaps put on your sleuth hat, if you will, because Luke's gonna give us some good clues to where is the body of Christ in a sense, and we'll look at it from a couple of different angles. First, a little review. We've been looking at different pictures of Christ along the last couple of weeks that I was able to hear some of the ones that have spoken the past couple of weeks. Mister Boss, I didn't get yours.

Sorry. But the last couple of pictures that I was able to to listen to was we saw Christ in the garden as he was being tormented, if you will, he was in anguish, was in grief, we saw a picture of him presented that he would be meek, though possessing great power, he was meek. We saw him on trial as mister Gonzales would have would have given different viewpoints of different characters along Jesus' trial and presented Jesus as the lamb of God innocent in trial. His character during the trial. Dad talked about Christ on the road up to the cross.

We see another snapshot as if you took a picture. Snapshot of Jesus bearing at that point, I don't know if they had already pawned his cross member off to Simon of Cyrene or not, but he stops and talks to the women that were weeping for him saying, Weep not for me. Christ's selflessness pictured in a snapshot. Mr. Morris gives us a picture of Christ on the cross.

And on the cross, he thought not of himself. Mister Morris asked us that question, what will you do with Jesus? Christ was not thinking of himself on the cross. He was thinking of the thief beside him. The thief beside him made a good choice.

So, there's a couple of a little review there, and we're going to consider Christ the snapshot, if you will. Well, where is Christ? Where is the body of Christ? He gives us Luke, back to our sleuth hat, some details. And I I do find it interesting the details that he gives us.

3:56 Reading Luke 24:1-12

They said to them, why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but he is risen. Remember how he spoke to you when he was in Galilee saying, the son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and the third day rise again. And they remembered his words. Then they returned from the tomb and told all these things to the 11 and to all the rest.

And it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, the mother of Jesus... Of James... Joanna, Mary, mother of James, and the other women with him, who told these things to the apostles. And their words seemed to them like idle tales, and they did not believe them. But Peter rose and ran to the tomb, stooping down.

He saw the linen cloths lying by themselves and departed, marveling at himself at what had happened. So interestingly enough, a detail that Luke doesn't bring out here is a fact... Well, there is no Jesus in this section here. So I ask you the question, where is the body of Christ? Luke doesn't mention him in these first 12 verses.

He shows up a little bit later on the road to Emmaus. He shows up in some of the other gospels as meeting with a few different people here and there. But in Luke's gospel, he gives us the date, first day of the week, the time, very early in the morning, who, these were certain women, they were listed in, let's see, just a few verses ago. Verse 55 in chapter 23, the women who had come with them from Galilee, They're named again in verse 10 there, Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James. The who?

Not the who, but the who. And what happened? What they found. So you have all of your clues. Now this is a little reminder a little reminder, if you will, of why Luke was even writing this book to begin with.

If you want to, flip on back to chapter one of Luke. Let's just take a look And why was Luke... Let's remind ourselves of why was the book of Luke written in the first place? Luke chapter one and verse one, in as much as many have taken in hand to set an order a narrative of of those things which have been fulfilled among us just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered to them delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having a perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, that you may know the certainty of the things instructed. Which you This is the reason why Luke was written.

We have been seeing these snapshots and pictures of Jesus through this time. That, here's the reason, that you may know the certainty of the things that you were instructed. So when Luke gives us facts about the resurrection of Jesus Christ, these were the facts that in his in his interpretation, in his mind, were necessary for us to know the certainty of the things that we have learned. Brothers and sisters, these are real things that had happened. Now while he may...

I don't want to say leave out. He may omit, for instance, the earthquake that happened while Christ was on the cross. I don't know why I didn't put that in there. I guess it wasn't important. There's no earthquake mentioned in Luke chapter 24, and there is in the other gospels.

But the important... I I think it's because that we are not to be distracted with the physical shakings that were happening around here. It was of no consequence that the earth shook. It was consequential that Jesus Christ was not in the tomb. This tomb was empty.

8:44 The stone was rolled away

We we have some insight from some of the other other Gospels. But verse two is all by itself, if you notice there, but they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. I have a few ideas. This is a little purely my own thoughts. You will allow me a little bit to look at this idea.

What was the stone here? Was it perhaps thinking about the stone that was rolling, I think of Daniel, the stone that rolled and crushed. It was a it was a picture of god's judgment, crushing the the statue that was made of in Nebuchadnezzar's dream. It came down. It was it was a picture of of judgment crashing.

Well, the stone here is rolled away. Judgment is passed. Perhaps another thing could be when Jesus was brought that woman that was caught in adultery, remember, and they brought stones with which to stone her. And he said, he who is among you, without sin, cast the first stone. And they all dropped their stones and left.

There was no stone thrown there, and neither is there a stone or a judgment here in the tomb. Stone is rolled away. The man placed the stone in front of the tomb. Correct? Man's attempt to cover Jesus failed, rolled away.

Peter, Simon Peter, was called Simon, changed his name to Peter, Rock upon which I build my church. And so here's the here's the picture. Here's the the little the little vision. And again, this is my idea. This is the stone.

A physical stone that man had set up has rolled away. And the only stone that remains is the stone on which Jesus builds his church. Just an idea. Just an idea. There was no stone.

There was no body. The body of the Lord Jesus was not there. They went in and they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus, Luke twenty four three. They did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. Why is this important?

Why is this a fact that Luke would want us to know? This really happened. This was true. This isn't a this isn't a story or a fairy tale. The body of the lord Jesus was not in the tomb.

He is risen. Why is that important? Well, it's because the lord Jesus said it would happen And it is very important to the Lord Jesus and to us that the Lord Jesus does exactly what he said he was gonna do. Remember down in verse eight, another verse that's all on its own. They remembered his words.

The angels that were there, the ones that were Recording in progress. Garments said, why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not Recording stop. Remember how he spoke to you while he was in Galilee? Three times he prophesied his death.

Twice he specifically says, I will rise on the third day. The son of man, they quote him here, the son of man must be delivered in the hands of sinful men, be crucified, and on the third day, rise again. Jesus said it, so he did it. This is an important truth for us to remember, to remind ourselves of, and a a very important hallmark of the book of Luke. These things happened.

This is what was said about Jesus. This is what happened. An example of that is in Luke chapter seven. If you wanna look back there just to see in in a little point of where he was given a prophecy, fulfilled the prophecy, reminded other peoples about it. Was that verse 22?

Go ahead and start in verse 22 there. Luke chapter seven twenty two, go and tell John all the things that you have seen and heard, that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them, and blessed is he who is not offended because of me. So I was like, well, is that a prophecy? Yes. This is a prophecy.

This is a quote from Isaiah 61. Isaiah 61 verses one and three. Did John know it was a prophecy? I would suggest that, yes, he did. In in John chapter...

Or Luke and John. John the Baptist chapter four and verse 18 is when Jesus speaks for the first time, gives this idea or gives this message from the same chapter in Isaiah, Isaiah 61. Why do I think that John knew that it was a prophecy there? Well, it's because he references, I believe, the same prophecy in chapter three verses eight and nine when he talks about trees bearing fruits worthy of repentance, and every tree that is not... Does not bear good fruit is cut down and cast into fire.

This was an analogy, but it's kind of random there. John knew what he was talking about. At the end of Isaiah 61 versus about three or four, he's talking about trees there in that in that passage. But it's it's the... Don't get lost on that.

It's still Easter egg, if you will. Jesus did what he said he was gonna do. These things that were prophesied in Luke seven, are you the Christ or do we look for another? And Jesus says, look at these things that I've done. Not that I've done them in the present, but these things were spoken about me in the past.

Isaiah 61, these things are completed. Jesus spoke of him rising from the dead. These things were completed, and Luke thought that was important to to to pass along to us. This idea that he rose as he said is the capstone of salvation. We think of the gospel simply in the fact that, like Paul would write it in Corinthians, Christ died for our sins.

15:50 He rose again on the third day

The gospel in in the in the sense is the fact that my sin debt that I owed was taken care of. The Lord Jesus paid it. The tomb that I was supposed to be buried in is empty, not because I'm not going in it, but because the Lord Jesus went in it for me, and he's come back out again victorious. So this is the gospel. This is the exciting part of resurrection Sunday.

We've been tracking it through all the way to this point that... Well well, really, we've been in sin all the way until this point. Until Jesus' death, his bloodshed accomplished the payment for sin. Next is that he's risen, risen from the dead. This is good news.

The capstone of salvation is accomplished here in the fact that Christ has risen from... This is the the end of the story. Everything that we know... Let me just repeat to say, everything we know to this point that Luke has been told us has been for the certainty of knowing what you've been instructed. This is the final final piece to that puzzle.

The lord Jesus is risen. So where is the body of Christ? Look at chapter 22 and verse 69. If Christ, Lord Jesus is going to do what he said he's gonna do, somebody read verse 69, Luke twenty two sixty nine, and tell me where is the Lord Jesus? Where is the body of the Lord Jesus Christ right now?

Somebody shout it out. Right hand of the father. Hereafter, the son of man will sit on the right hand of the power of god. This is not the only place where Jesus is mentioned. The body of of Jesus.

Where is the body of Jesus? He's at the right hand of God. Hebrews 10 chapter 12, he sat down at the right hand of God. Acts seven fifty six, where Stephen is, he's standing at the right hand of God. Hebrews eight chapter one, seated at the right hand of the throne of majesty.

Where is the body of Christ? He's at the right hand of God. Luke twenty two sixty nine, I will sit down at the right hand of the power of God. Colossians three one, he is sitting at the right hand of God. Right hand of God is mentioned again where Christ is in first Peter, Colossians a couple of times, Romans, first Corinthians.

Where did I miss? Rome... Revelation three twenty is another place that Christ is is. We see him sitting, we see him standing, and in Revelation three, I stand at the door and knock. He's seeking.

19:24 Who is the body of Christ?

Colossians chapter one and verse 24, his body, which is the church. Several other times, well we can look at Colossians, it's mentioned there twice. Look at Colossians chapter one. Sorry to have you flip around so much. The verse 18.

Colossians one eighteen, and he who is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he may have the preeminence. Verse 24 as well, I now rejoice in my sufferings for you and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ for the sake of his body, which is the church. Doesn't get much clearer than that. Here is this idea now. Moving on from the foundation, the joy of the resurrection in the gospel.

This found... This foundation idea that now Jesus' represented body on Earth is us, the church. This physical body that was here is now risen, seated in heaven. His representation is now here in us, the church. So we're going look at a few things about the body of Christ.

We're gonna look at one thing about the body of Christ and a couple of other things from this passage. Let me strike a division, so to speak. We've read our passage. We've considered the snapshot of Jesus in the empty tomb, the absence of Jesus, if you will. He's risen.

The joy of salvation capstone in the in the resurrection. Now we're gonna consider a few things from Luke 24 about the body of Christ. The risen body of Christ and who we are as representation of the body of Christ. So the the question, where is Jesus? Where is the body of Christ?

Is answered twice. It is in heaven. We rejoice because Christ is risen. He's also here with us and among us here on earth represented in the body of Christ. So why...

How is that how is that important? How is that applicable? Well, for a person seeking. We see the women here seeking Jesus. Correct?

We see them coming on the first day of the week here prepared to find Jesus. They're looking in a spot that they think that he might be. And what is their conclusion? They found not the body of Christ. So brothers and sisters, the the question that I wanna ask you is, as the body of Christ, does somebody come and visit us in our home, at our place of work?

Do they even come into our church and leave questioning, I didn't see the body of Christ. Where was the body of Christ? I didn't find the body of Christ. Is it something that we can take upon ourselves? We are the representation of Christ's body here on earth.

Is is my testimony something that the the world, the seekers of the world can observe and say, that is part of the body of Christ. I am a member. It should be obvious. It should be visible. Where is the body of Christ?

I hope that he is found in me. I hope he's found in you. I hope that when somebody would walk into the door here, at first, obviously see, wow, I see the body of Christ, and not walk away having not found the body of Christ. We see the women here as seekers. I think the women are also a picture of of what we can be as well.

24:11 Admonishment to seek living things

Why do I, as a Christian who is alive in Christ, seek living things among the... What do I mean by dead things or living things? Well, the activities that I do, the things that I let come in through my eye gate and my ear gate, are they living or are they dead? Am I seeking satisfaction satisfaction from life that is dead things or living things? The angels asked the the women this question, why do you seek the living among the dead?

You know there is no life here. This is a graveyard. Why do I seek the living things among the dead? A lesson from the from the women here. Some of us perhaps need to stay at the resurrection.

Perhaps you not... You you have not recognized the true fact of the fact that the... Sorry. The fact that Christ has truly died and rose for your sin individually. And past that, brothers and sisters in Christ, do people say I found the body of Christ here?

Am I still looking for living? Am I looking for life and things that are dead? One more thing from the women here. As seekers expecting to see the body of Christ in application for us would be that they came prepared. If you wanna look there at the end of chapter 23, the women who had come with him from Galilee followed after and they did a couple of things.

26:25 Prepared to meet the body of Jesus

They came on resurrection day morning to give Christ his proper place. See where I'm going? They wanted to ascribe to the Lord Jesus, their dead Lord, his proper place to accomplish the things that were necessary for burial, that were that were honoring to his body, that were that were customarily appropriate, but really it's the honor factor. They wanted to honor and to... In that sense, this is the definition of worship, to ascribe to the Lord Jesus his proper place, and they were prepared to do so.

If the women at his funeral can do so, what would prevent me as a Christian in today's day and time being prepared to meet the body of the Lord Jesus? To be prepared to serve, to be prepared to honor the Lord Jesus in heaven, to serve his body here on earth. These women were prepared. They came with their prepared spices, and they found nobody in the tomb, but they found the empty tomb. So we have this idea of being prepared.

We have the admonition the to seek living things, and I think those are both directly applicable to Christians. Be prepared to meet the body of the Lord Jesus in whatever answer that you may put him in, whether it would be the Lord Jesus who is seated on the right hand of the power of God, come prepared to meet him. If we're coming to meet with our local body of believers, Christ... The expression of Christ's body on earth, come prepared. Bring something worth having.

The other gospels mentioned that they bought these spices. They had they had personal sacrifice for them. They bought the spices, they brought them. They came prepared. Also, are we an accurate representation of the body of Christ to where that others looking in can look at us and see, wow, I found the body of Christ.

I hope each and every one of you today can have that realization. I have been with the body of Christ. These women will have to wait for another chapter and for us another week to see where the body of Christ shows up next. And I hope that's helpful. I hope that's encouraging as we think about those things.

Praise the Lord that he is risen. The gospel is completed. The fact that he is risen from the dead. I hope these things are helpful. Let's pray.

Our heavenly father, we thank you so much for your son, the lord Jesus Christ, and as we remembered him in his death this morning, his body that was broken, his blood that was shed, we thank you now that that we remember with joy the fact that he's risen from the dead, the joy and the hope that that gives us that we too can be risen from the dead following after him as he is the first fruits of the resurrection. He is the first fruits of our salvation. Lord, we thank you for the finished work of salvation in Christ rising from the dead. We thank you for these these ideas of... From Luke 24 and remembering the applications that are for us.

We ask that you would help us to be encouraged by them and to go forth in the week and to remember them. We pray this in Jesus' name.

Where Is The Body Of Christ — Luke 22-24

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Where Is The Body Of Christ — Luke 22-24

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