Apr 20, 2025

Easter Sunday

Passage: John 20:1-31 — John says he wrote his gospel for one reason. To persuade whoever reads it to believe. Believe what? That Jesus is the Messiah, the promised king who would deliver God’s people from sin and suffering. And that he was the Son of God, God himself in human form. What’s the proof of these claims? The proof, John says, is that he rose from the grave. He’s not dead, John says, He’s very much alive. His resurrection is the final of seven signs John gives in his gospel proving that Jesus was exactly who he claimed to be. I saw the risen Christ, John says. I touched his scars. Many others saw him too. And this fact changes everything! If verifies the existence of God and proves the identity of Jesus. It completely vindicates his claims about who he was. So that’s the big idea: The resurrection changes everything. If Jesus is dead, Christianity’s dead. But if he’s alive, then what we’re talking about tonight is the most important news in the world. John makes his argument by addressing our heads, and then our hearts. He focuses on the fact of the resurrection, and then the beauty of the resurrection. We’ll walk through it in two parts tonight.