[Robert Dick] Good afternoon, brethren. Good to see all of you here. Good to be here. I don't know how many months ago it was that the call went out for volunteers to pick up the first Sabbath of each month and help out Mr. Light. Mr. Sexton put out the plea, and Diane and I sat and looked at the first month, and said, “No, we're gone this one. No, we're gone this one. No, we're gone this one.” And I think the only one, out of all of them, that we could say, “Absolutely totally unencumbered,” was today. So I sent off an email to Mr. Sexton and Mr. Light, and said “I'll throw my hat in the ring for the first Sabbath in April.” And here we are.

Your pastor said earlier, he said, “I just want to confirm that you're on for the first of April.” And I thought, “Oh man, what a set-up!” So I wrote him back and said, “I noticed the first of April was a Sunday, and I'm not into that.” (Laughter). So he sent me back an email with an emoticon – appropriate for the response. And I said “Yes, I am here for the first Sabbath in the month of April.” And we're all ready to go, so everything is copacetic.

I enjoyed the presentations – I shouldn’t say presentation – that takes away from the sobriety and the importance of it – at the contributions of the Griswold family today. Our paths go back to 1984, when I was pastoring Northern Indiana and Southern Michigan congregations, and had one of the clan in my congregation. So when I see the name Griswold, my mind goes back to the Chicago district that I was a part of in 1984, when we moved to Elkhart, Indiana, and began interacting with the greater Chicago area.

I was also thinking, anecdotally, before I get in the sermon, that I could be one of the patriarch native sons of this area – this church area – were it not for some wrong-headed thinking on the part of my grandfather. I have shaken my head I don't know how many times. I understood, but I still shook my head. Going on 80 years ago, my father graduated a few miles down the road from Dallas High School. And a year or two after he graduated, my grandfather who had brought his family, first of all, from Western Nebraska, then to Eastern Nebraska, and then to Dallas, Oregon. He looked around and said, “It's too green around here.” And he moved back to Caldwell, Idaho, where he felt more comfortable with how barren it is. And as a result, that is where I was born, and I could very well have been born in Dallas, Oregon, if they had just remained stable. I know I have family members still in the area. I probably have a couple of cousins that live somewhere around the Dallas area with the same last name. Then I have extended relatives with the last name of Fleming, and I've lost track of them probably 40, 50 years ago, but I would imagine there are probably some of the Fleming's in the general area. So, some long standing deep roots to the Willamette Valley from many ages ago.

As was mentioned in the sermonette, we have just concluded the Days of Unleavened Bread, and a lot of well anchored individuals sitting in the congregation – people who have been a part of the Church of God for many decades. And as a result we get used to the traditions and the stories that are a part of those traditions. During the Days of Unleavened Bread, or leading up to the Days of Unleavened Bread, it's not unusual for someone, in a message, to message any one or all of these – the plagues on Egypt, the original Passover in Exodus 12, Israel's departure from Egypt, the crossing of the Red Sea, the murmuring in Sinai. And then a switch over to the New Testament: Christ's last week before His crucifixion, He and His disciples discussion the evening of the last Passover that He shared with them, the arrest, the beating, and the crucifixion.

These are our stories. They are a part of our tradition. They are a part of what should be our stories. They are a part of our memorials. We take a breath, now that the Days of Unleavened Bread are over, it's almost like having a stick shift car. We put the foot on the clutch, we grab the shifter, and we shift it up a gear, and now we're focused on Peter's sermon on the day of Pentecost, the traditions that the law was given to Israel on the day of Pentecost, the miracles of languages, the giving of the Holy Spirit, the phenomenal conversion, almost like dominoes falling, of thousands upon thousands upon thousands within the first month or two, starting with the day of Pentecost and the time thereafter.

What is interesting with these two stories, which, as I said, should be deeply embedded within our culture, is the simple fact that certain stories are rarely, if ever, told. What took place during the fifty days between the two stories? As I said, these are deeply anchored. They're so much a part of our culture that we can speak in shorthand. We simply mention a word, and the mind of the listener, who is also part of the church, can fill in the whole story that goes with that particular word. But there were 53 days between the crucifixion and Pentecost. The world didn't stand still during those days. The followers of Christ didn't simply leap from the crucifixion scene into the midst of the celebration of the day of Pentecost. So let's tell the story of the seven weeks in the Spring of 31 AD.

We usually end our Passover season story with the death of Jesus Christ, and then proceed to Passover. The burial of Christ was, in itself, an interesting and also a though provoking event. We know how disheartened the disciples were. We know how they betrayed Him – how they all left – how Peter was braggadocio and said he would never do it, and Jesus Christ simply saying, “Look, before the rooster has had the opportunity to crow three times, you're gone. You're out of here.” And indeed he did, with great sorrow, exactly as his Savior said he would. Then men whom Jesus Christ had hand picked were, so to speak, hiding in the bushes during all of the heavy times. From the arrest in the Garden until after the crucifixion, these men were all hiding. With the exception of the women who were near the crucifixion site and John the apostle, all the rest of them seemed to have found a place either distant or apart for fear. But Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all describe those who were of a greater courage and yet not as closely attached as the twelve. In all four accounts, a gentleman named Joseph, from the city of Arimathea, is mentioned. When they tell us about this particular man, we find a highly honorable man – and a man who was willing to take chances that none of the disciples were willing to take. He was a part of the very governing body that signed Christ's death warrant.

As Jesus Christ made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem before the Passover season, He had created a social tipping point where the Pharisees said, “At this particular point in time, if we don't so something about this man, we are going to jeopardize our very positions in the Roman government. We have reached a place where we can no longer delay. This man has to go or we will go.” And so, as He entered Jerusalem, Christ, in concert with the resurrection of Lazarus and the effect that it had, He essentially signed His death warrant. And the body that was determined to take His life included Joseph of Arimathea, who was of a totally and completely different opinion. Consider how dangerous it is to be part of a governing body where virtually all have determined that this man must die, and you are not only someone – you know, you're far past someone who is ambivalent – you are a supporter of this man.

I'd like you to turn to John, chapter 3. Time goes on, and certain sayings even age to the place where generations are not familiar with them, but Paul Harvey and the years – decades ago – when he was on radio, had a radio program called, The Rest of the the Story. What I've told you is a part of a story, but Joseph of Arimathea was not unique. We find an individual in John, chapter 3, and verse 1, who was introduced to us in the New Testament. It says:

John 3:1 – There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews – which meant that he, like Joseph of Arimathea, was a member of the Sanhedrin. This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these things that You do unless God is with him.” And so here in John, chapter 3, we are introduced to a gentleman by the name of Nicodemus. Later on in John, chapter 7, the temperature has ratcheted up in Jerusalem. Christ has created enough disturbance for the Pharisees that they are beginning to see Him as someone that must eventually be dealt with. And in John, chapter 7, beginning in verse 45:

John 7:45-49 – There are officers that came to the chief priest of the Pharisees, and they said to him, “Why have you not brought Him?” They wanted Christ brought. They said “Well why didn't you bring Him?” The officers answered, “No man ever spoke like this Man!” He floored us with His speaking. The Pharisees said “Are you deceived also? Did you not bring Him because he has convinced you also?” Verse 49 says: This crowd that does not know the law is accursed. He said, “You know all these simpletons out there that don't know any better – that this man is a fraud and a charlatan – then they are accursed. You should know better!”

Now, as they're berating those who didn't bring Him in, low and behold, the name Nicodemus comes on the scene again. And as John says:

V-50-53 – Nicodemus (he who came to Jesus by night, being one of them) said to them, “Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?” They answered and said to him, “Are you also from Galilee? Search and look, for no prophet has arisen out of Galilee.” And everyone went to his own home.

Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus were two men on a council of 70 men who were not walking the same walk, nor treading the same path, nor the same mindset as were all the rest. At the time of Jesus Christ's death, everyone is aware of and attuned to what is said in John, chapter 19. But let's go back there to simply punctuate the story that we're currently telling. We all know that when Jesus Christ died the holy day was approaching. There was limited time to get Him off the stake; get Him in the ground before the sun set. And Joseph of Arimathea, being a member of the Sanhedrin, had enough clout that when he went to Pilate to ask for the body of Jesus Christ, he carried enough weight to be able to be given the body. And so in John, chapter 19, and verse 38:

John 19:38-40 – 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. And Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes – about one hundred pounds. We all know the story of Joseph of Arimathea, but Nicodemus was there, and his contribution was worth probably five figures in today's money. The value of what he contributed to the proper, respectful burial of Jesus Christ – being 100 pounds of myrrh and aloes – probably cost multiple times more than if you had a full funeral today. 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. And then it goes on, of course, to make the point they placed Him in His grave, because the preparation day was arriving.

The very first people to rise to the level of honor and heroism were not the twelve – or the remaining eleven. And ironically, they were people who were part of the very body who had determined that this man must die – Joseph, Nicodemus. The politics of the situation? Well, what can you say? Politics are politics. There is never a time where politics smells any different than what politics smelled like at an earlier time. The Jews were typical of the politically minded people of the world. And when I say the Jews, I mean their leadership – the Sanhedrin. They were as politically oriented and motivated as any politicians have ever been or are today – always looking to maneuver things to their political advantage. They already knew what the story line was, that had been given them, about Jesus Christ. They already knew that there was spread about the statement that “you can take this man's life, but within three days He'll come out of the grave.” And they said, “We need to be sure that we avoid any political problems. Now our political problem that we're worried about is that somewhere between now and three days from now, some of those who are His followers are going to come in at night, under the cover of night, steal His body, so that they can begin to propagate around the area that He is risen.” They no more believed that Christ would rise from the dead than the man in the moon. But they also knew, politically, the value of the absence of His body, and the ability to promote that He had risen. And so they went to Pilate and said to Pilate “We have a problem.” Pilate listened, and he said “Yes, you have a problem. I don't have a problem, you do. So take care of it. If you're worried about the political fallout of this man's body somehow disappearing in a three day period of time, then you have permission to hire and set guards, put them before the tomb and keep them there as long as you think it needs to be done, so that the story will never get around that He has risen from the dead.”

Some of these pieces of the story I will give you simply as citations. There is enough that went on in the seven weeks between Days of Unleavened Bread and Pentecost that, literally, you can't even read all the pieces of it as snippets. So in this particular case, if you wish to look at the political dialog between Pilate and the Pharisees, you simply have to go to Matthew 27, and verses 57 to 66 – describes their fear of the political consequences of Christ's body disappearing. And then, so that we give you a piece of it, I'd like you to turn over to Matthew 28, because as we all know, despite their best efforts, His body did disappear before the end of their period of concern. And so they had another political problem. They thought they had solved their political problem by hiring guards and placing them at the tomb. They didn't realize that this wasn't a matter of disciples stealing a body. This was a matter of the Son of God rising from the dead miraculously. And no set of guards, no matter how many, were going to keep that from happening. And so when their dilemma materialized the story says the following – Matthew 28, and verse 11:

Matthew 28:11-15 – Now while they were going, behold, some of the guards came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that had happened. When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers saying, “Tell them, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.’ And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will appease him and make you secure.” So they took the money and did as they were instructed, and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day. Now John is writing, probably, 60 some years later, and he says the story – that the spin on the story – has stuck. It is the common political line, even now – another 50, 60 years later – that His disciples came and stole the body. A convenient set of bribery, and following the bribery, the opportunity to connect with the Roman governor – to make sure that there were no consequences for all the fabrications that were made. And as a result, only the followers of Jesus Christ believed in the resurrection – or those who would later be called – and the Jewish population, in general, simply bought what was published in the daily Jerusalem Times of that day and time – that His body had been stolen, nobody had found it, and everyone was satisfied with the report.

Have you ever stopped and considered deeply the effect of the death of Jesus Christ – the immediate effect of the death of Jesus Christ – upon His disciples? As I said, we know the story of their backing away from Him after His arrest, but the story of what happened after He was resurrected is much deeper than initially meets the eye. To put it succinctly, at the death of Jesus Christ, even though they had spent three and a half years with Him day and night, at the death of Jesus Christ, His disciples did not yet understand that there was a first and a second coming. If you go online today, and you google, “Does Jewish religion believe in a Messiah?” you would find some interesting articles. The Jewish faith does believe in a coming Messiah. But the whole concept of two comings – two comings with different purposes – is just simply not a part of Judaism. And it wasn't part of Judaism at this point in time. And so the disciples simply did not grasp the concept of two comings, and as a result with a Savior who had died, when you don't believe in one and two with a savior who has died, it's all over. It's done. It's over.

John, chapter 20. If you want to put a marker, to save a lot of turning of pages, something in John 19 and 20 would be a good marker, because we're going back and forth there multiple times – probably more than any other location. But in John, chapter 20 (give me time to get to John 20, instead of trying to read to you John 21). John, chapter 20, verses 1 through 9, has a subject heading my Bible. It talks about the Resurrection of Christ, so I'm not going to read verses 1 through 8, which are talking about the resurrection, but I want to read the comment from John in verse 9. And that is:

John 20:9 – For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. So at this particular point in time – you can read verses 1 through 8 – but following the resurrection of Jesus Christ, before they all had the opportunity to see Him, and be convinced that He actually was the real thing, they had a period of wondering and floundering, because they did not conceptually understand that Christ was going to rise from the dead. They didn't know a first and second resurrection (coming).

One of the events that took place on Sunday was Jesus Christ coming along two disciples as they walked on the road to Emmaus. And that particular account is instructive, not just to them, but if you understand what went on, it is instructive to us also. Luke, chapter 24, beginning in verse 13:

Luke 24:13-21 – Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him. And He said to them, “What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?” Then the one, whose name was Cleopas, answered and said to Him, “Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?” It was almost like, “Well, what rock did you just crawl out from underneath? Everybody here and in all the surrounding areas knows the headlines.” And He said to the “What things? What things are you talking about?” So He baited them. So they said to Him, “The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. So you see where their mindset was. This wasn't first and second coming. These men simply reinforced the scripture I read to you earlier. “We've lost our hope. We're walking here dejectedly, a seven mile journey, talking together. We're commiserating with one another, because it looked so great. It looked so wonderful, and then they killed Him. And it's over.” What's interesting is what follows. As we go on to verses 25 and 26, we see Christ's response.

V-25-27 – Then He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?” You know, a seven-mile walk is a good walk. It's a lot of time for conversation. So He first of all, simply said to them, with a verbal head shake of,  “Oh my, oh foolish ones! Oh how slow can you be to believe what is there – what is written in the prophets and was spoken by them.” Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?” And beginning at Moses…. So he began in Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy – the books of Moses. And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. Well, you talk about an education! And you talk about the timeliness of an education! Ears were probably opened. It was like, “Wow, I never thought of that.” “Aah, is that what that meant? You know, I've heard that a hundred times in sermons and never connected the dots.” But He, with these two men, on a seven-mile walk, walked through the entire Old Testament, pointing out all of the scriptures related to Him, which, by the time He was finished, would have given them a very thorough opportunity to understand that there is more than one coming of Jesus Christ.

The women didn't get it. We've already shown you that the men didn't get it. John, chapter 20 – all we need are a couple of little snippets here. John, chapter 20, begins with the account of Mary Magdalene coming to the grave, even before the sun was up. It was still dark. It doesn't even indicate that it was even twilight. It was dark. And she came, and she saw that the stone had been taken away. And so here she is – it is probably still black – maybe pitch black. She arrives, stone is rolled back, there is nobody in it, and instead of saying, “Hooray, He's resurrected!” Verse 2:

John 20:2 – Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, they've taken Him away! They've stolen His body!” She couldn't connect the dots.

I don't need to read them to you – let me add to the listing Luke 24, verses 1 through 8, and Luke 24:10. All of these scriptures speak to the same thing. An absent body did not equate to a resurrection. John, chapter 20 – I'll give you one more piece here. We see Mary Magdalene in verse 1. When we come down to verse 11, we now see Mary. So Mary Magdalene had gone to the tomb, and she said, “Who took His body?” Verse 11 – Mary comes to the tomb.

V-11 – She stood outside of the tomb weeping, and as she wept, she stooped down and looked into the tomb, and she saw two angels in white sitting – one at the head and the other at the feet – where the body of Jesus had lain. And they said to her, “What are you crying about?” Then they said to her “Woman why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord.” You know, even seeing two angelic beings – one at the head and one at the food of where He had lain – did not create a light bulb that said, “Something here is special. Something is different. Something is of a higher order.” Mary, as with Mary Magdalene, said, “Who stole Him? Who took the body? Why did they haul the body away?”

Luke 24. I gave you some of the scriptures, but I'll add one more to it, because I think you need to understand how broad this was. It wasn't a matter that some got it and some didn't. It was that they didn't get it. In Luke chapter 24, After the women had been there, they came back to the disciples, made a report. The disciples heard the report and some of them went running. And Peter was among those who was the first sprinter to make the arrival, and in Luke, chapter 24, we see in verse 10:

Luke 24:10-11-12 – It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them, who told these things to the apostles. And their words seemed to them like idle tales, and they did not believe them. They were a step beyond. They were saying, “We don't believe the body is gone.” But Peter arose and ran to the tomb; and stooping down, he saw the linen clothes lying by themselves, and he departed, marveling to himself at what had happened.

As we read all the reports – and the climax to this particular piece is, again, back in John 20 – it appears there was only one out of the entire group who had a light bulb moment. John, chapter 20, and verse 6:

John 20:6-8 – Then Simon Peter came, following him – now in Luke we saw only Peter going, but in John, John lets us know, “There were two of us that ran to the site. Peter was one and I was the other.” Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. And he saw the linen clothing lying there, and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen clothes, but folded together in a place by itself. Then the other disciple – John never refers to himself in the first person – he is “the other disciple” or “the disciple that Jesus loved” – Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed. Eleven men, multiple women, Sunday – still very dark until twilight – going back and forth making reports to one another – different times and places going to look themselves. One individual out of the entire group said, “Aah, He was resurrected.” Everyone else is saying, “What happened to Him?” – the most incredulous, “Who stole His body?” Others simply saying, “We don't know what's happened. We don't know where He's gone. Who removed him?” The less cynical just simply said, “Well, why did you transfer His body somewhere else?” rather than, “Why did you steal it? Tell us where you have transferred it to so we can continue with our burial preparation for Him.”

When the two disciples on the road to Emmaus saw Him disappear – we now connect the two stories – they turned around, and they headed back to Jerusalem to report to the eleven. We all know the story of the road to Emmaus – that when Christ disappeared, He took their blinders off. He took the time to expound to them all the scriptures, from Moses through the prophets, about Himself. And when He was finished, He vanished. And when He vanished…you know, you and I don't know what kind of miracle it took for Him to walk with them and they didn't know who He was. In like manner, it doesn't tell us how He vanished. Nor, in like manner, does it tell us how the blinders came off. But when the blinders came off, they said, “We have been walking with the resurrected Jesus Christ.” And it was now time to forget Emmaus. It was time to turn around and get back to Jerusalem, because we've got something to report to the rest. And so they turned themselves around, and they headed back to Jerusalem to make their report, which is described in Luke 24 – Luke, chapter 24, beginning in verse 33:

Luke 24:33-43 – So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together – so, spin around on your heels, head back to Jerusalem, catch the rest of them, give your report. And they said: “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread. Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, “Peace to you.” But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit. And He said to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do you doubt? Look at My hands. Look at My feet. It’s Me. It’s Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones….” When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. But while they still did not believe for joy – that's a vast improvement. You know, we all love the “it's too good to be true” events – they're not the same as “you can't con me.” So, while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, “Have you any food here?” So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb And He took it and ate in their presence.

And then he said to them, “Okay, Christ was the Master and God is the Master – I think Mr. Griswold, in his sermonette, as he talked about his sister, gave us an excellent example of the fact that God is the Master of teaching moments. There is no one who knows a teaching moment like God. Christ had a teaching moment. He had ears that were so in tune it was incredible. So He said to them…. They saw Him. They had gotten over the fact that He wasn’t a spook – a ghost of some sort. They touched Him and handled Him. They watched Him sit down and enjoy a plate of fish and some honeycomb. And He said:

V-44-45 – “These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you.” He said, “Let's go back. Let's go back to all the conversations we had that went in one ear and out the other. Let's go back to all the conversations that you nodded your head in agreement, but you didn't grasp and didn't comprehend. These are the things which I spoke to you while we were together.” “That all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.” And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.

Brethren, we don't usually grasp the level of ignorance that the disciples had, even after three and a half years in the presence of Jesus Christ. It required phenomenal teaching moments. And this was one of them. The two on the oad to Emmaus, they had theirs. They came back as reporters, and now He had their ears too. And He said, “Alright, gentlemen, now it's time for all the rest of you to get the same education as two men as we walked the road.” And He sat down and He went over the whole story. He went from the very beginning. You know, He probably began – if we can go back and fill in – He began with Moses. As I picture myself sitting there, listening to Him speak, I'm anticipating the very words out of His mouth would be, “At the Garden of Eden…” as He described the serpent who would bruise a heel, and a head that will be stepped upon, and said, “Let's start here. I'm going to expound everything related to Me from beginning to end.” Whew, this is a very busy first day. This is all Day One. This is all Day One. We haven't even gotten to the second day, and we're already into stuff clear up to here.

There was one missing – our famous friend Doubting Thomas. He wasn't there. So in John 20, eight days later, Thomas did arrive. And Thomas had the opportunity to be a part of the same education and the same learning. You can read about our friend Doubting Thomas in John 20, verses 24 to 29. But the importance of that is – in addition to the fact that we know that Thomas also had to be convinced – when Thomas said, “Now I believe,” Christ said, “You know what, Thomas? I'm glad you believe, but it would have been so much better if you had believed without having to put your finger in a nail hole – without having to probe My palms and My feet.” He put it a little differently. He said, “You know, I'm glad you do understand, but blessed are those who understand without seeing. You said, ‘Now I've seen, now I believe.’” He said, “Blessed are those who believe without having to see first.”

We're eight days in to the period of time. We are now eight days into a 50-day plus period, between the death of Christ and Pentecost. What about the rest of the time? The rest of the time we are acquainted with in Matthew, chapter 28, first of all. In Matthew, chapter 28, in one of the empty tomb accounts – Matthew 28 is a parallel to those empty tomb accounts we've already read – but between verses 5 and 10 of Matthew 28, we are given the following information. Verse 5:

Matthew 28:5-7 – But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for He is risen as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee, and there you will see Him. So among the pieces to the puzzle of those seven weeks is a promise from the angel that Jesus Christ is going to appear to you in Galilee. Now the statement here is not, “He will not appear to you anywhere else but Galilee,” but I want you to know, as He promised, He will appear to you in Galilee.

One of the things that we have to wrap our minds around, as we walk through the period of time from the death of Christ until the day of Pentecost, is that the word disciple has layers to it. We focus on eleven men after Judas leaves. If you will remember back in the training period, Jesus Christ not only sent out His twelve disciples as trainees, but He sent out what He simply referred to as the seventy – and referred to them also as disciples. And if you will round it off by simply going to the day of Pentecost, and the accounting in the book of Acts, that on the day of Pentecost there were 120 disciples present doing what Christ had told them to do: “Wait here.” And so, there are disciples and there are disciples and there are disciples. And here He is simply saying, “Tell them that I will appear to them in Galilee.”

Mark 16. Let's go to the book of Mark. Mark 16 – we find Mark in his resurrection story. Now we have all four. We've looked at John. We've looked at Luke. We've looked at Matthew. And now we look at Mark. And in Mark, chapter 16, you will notice that the first eight verses refer to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And again, they are talking about the same events. So we don't need to read it all, we simply need to focus on verse 7, where the angel says:

Mark 16:7 – But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that He is going before you into Galilee. And there you will see Him, as He said to you. And so all of them, even though some of them saw Him that first night. They had an opportunity to dine with Him again eight days later when Thomas was now present. They also knew that they were going to have additional time with Him apart from Jerusalem. And they all knew that it was incumbent upon them to migrate up to Galilee for whatever it is that Christ had in mind during that particular point in time. We see, so far, between the Sunday night first, and then a week later, we see the eleven, we see the women who were the most intimate members of the inner circle, and we see maybe one or two others whose names are mentioned.. But that still leaves a significant body of people who had, by His way of seeing things, been disciples. If you want to refer to first tier and second tier – I don't know how you want to describe it – but the 70 were also followers of Christ. And I said, we know by looking, that by the time Pentecost came there were 120 that said, “Yes, we do believe He was resurrected. We believe what He has told us to do and we are abiding by it.” So it wasn't just the small inner core.

The icing on the cake is found in the writings of one who wasn't part of it all at that point in time. The apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians, chapter 15 – the resurrection chapter – the apostle Paul, in writing about the resurrection, made the following statement – beginning in verse 3 of 1 Corinthians 15 – he said:

1 Corinthians 15:3-8 – For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James – that is, His physical brother, James – then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. So he compartmentalized all of those that had the chance to see Him. And by the story that we have, and by the chronological accounting, the only place where the 500 could have seen Him at once would have been in Galilee. And so as Jesus Christ had instructed the angel to tell the disciples, “You need to remember what He said to you, that He is going to be with you in Galilee. So there is a point in time where you need to pack your knapsacks, and you need to head north, because there is more yet to come.”

John 21 now. In John, chapter 21, verses 1 through 3, John is doing a summarization. He's talking about what took place after the crucifixion and the resurrection. And he said:

John 21:1-12 – After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself – so he said, “After these things that I've already told you about “– about the evening of Sunday – and a week later, He said, “Now we continue on,” and He showed himself at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way – this is how it happened: Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We are going with you also.” They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing. But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Then Jesus said to them, “Children, have you any food?” They answered Him, “No.” And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea – so he was first in and swimming hard – but the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from land, but about two hundred cubits) – it was about 300 yards off shore, but Peter, as soon as he knew who it was, he dove overboard and started swimming – and the rest rode the boat in with the fish, dragging the net behind them. And then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish which you have just caught.” Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land, full of large fish – one hundred and fifty-three – and although there were so many, the net was not broken. Jesus said to them, “Come and eat breakfast.” Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, “Who are You?” knowing that it was the Lord.

It's an interesting situation. The more you understand the seven weeks between Passover week – Days of Unleavened Bread week – and the day of Pentecost, it was a tremendous transitional period of time in both understanding and commitment. If we lean on our traditional stories alone, we don't really grasp that at the end of three and a half years, there was still substance missing. And these seven weeks fill in a hole – a period of time of tremendous learning – coming to grasp, coming to grips with, coming to conviction – about those things that they would then give their lives for in the years and the decades following these events. So in verses 12, He said:

V-12-14 – “Come and eat breakfast.” Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, “Who are You?” knowing that it was the Lord. Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish. This is now the third time Jesus showed Himself to His disciples after He was raised from the dead. So it's a time marker. Time one – the Sunday evening following His resurrection. Time two – a week later with Thomas. Now, as the angel had instructed, they’d migrated to Galilee, and this is the third time that Jesus Christ has now appeared to His disciples.

Following this particular event they had moved far enough along. Now John and Peter were the dominant personalities among the twelve. There is no question or doubt in terms of who simply had the force of personality. These two men did. We saw that John was the quick learner – that John upon looking in and seeing the tomb was empty – Peter was scratching his head, saying, “What's going on?” – and John says, “He's resurrected.” They were on different learning curves. Peter wondering. Peter with the exuberance…just the open personality that he had, when he perceived it was Christ on the shore, “I'm going to do the 100 yard dash – 100 yard butterfly. I'm out of here.” And he was to the shore. He had been a part of the audience on that first evening, listening as Christ expounded everything from Genesis to the end of the Old Testament about Him – first coming, second coming, coming as a sacrificial lamb, coming as Lord and Master. But he perceived, even at this point in time, that Peter was not totally with it, because as soon as they were finished eating – this is that famous place where he turned to Peter – and He said, “Peter, do you love Me?” And Peter told it all when he said – the beauty of this is in the understanding of the language they were speaking – Peter said, “You are a very good friend.” And between the lines, running through Christ's mind is, “I'm not asking for a good friend. I'm asking for somebody that would give their life for Me.” And so He asked him again, “Peter, do you love Me?” And Peter tap danced a second time. And Christ was not going to let him off. And Peter knew that he had been backed into a corner. And He asked him a third time, “Do you love Me?” and it agitated Peter. You know how it feels when you don't want to answer an embarrassing question and a person won't let you loose? They ask, and you say “I'm going to deflect it.” And you find a stubborn person says, “I'm not going to let that go. I want an answer.” And you deflect it the other direction. And they hold on to it a little further, and you say “You know, I'm stuck. I have learned that this person is not going to accept anything but a look in the eyeball answer to the question that I have been asked.” And Peter realized that's what it was. Peter basically told – when you read critically the last half of John 21 – Peter simply was saying, “I have not reached the level of commitment that You have really asked of me.” And Jesus Christ said, “You will. And you will prove it by the forfeiture of your life.”

You know, it's something to know, in principle, that God could ask of you to die for your religion. He could ask it of any of us. If you read the martyr-ology of all the dark ages of tens of thousands of people who died because they wouldn't recant their faith. But you know, it's another thing – at the very start of your journey – to have somebody look you in the eye, and say, “Let me tell you the end of the story. Before your journey ever begins let me tell you how it's going to end. You are going to die for this religion. So as you get started, just understand for the rest of your life, you will carry in the back of your mind that you're a dead man – you're a walking dead man – and you won't be able to get around it. It's a very sobering second half to John 21.

On this third appearance to the disciples, Peter was not yet there, and Christ said, “I'm not going to let this pass. I'm demanding of you and expecting of you things that are great. We need to understand one another.”

Matthew, chapter 28, as we draw close to the end of that period of time. Matthew, chapter 28, verse 16 – this is another appearance.
Matthew 28:16-20 – Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him. But some doubted. Here we are in what has to be at the minimum a fourth appearance, because John did us the courtesy of telling us that on the shore of the Sea of Galilee was the third appearance. Now they are at a mount – a place appointed where they would meet – and Matthew simply accounts for the fact that, even though we're at number four now, we still have some among the eleven who doubt. And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on Earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

After roughly a month with His disciples in Galilee, they departed the northern part of the area that they had worked during the three and a half years that they had been together, and they set their focus south again and headed for Jerusalem. We pick up the story in Luke, chapter 24. The commitment, at this point, had been cemented sufficiently, that even though Peter was not like set cement, and even though some doubted, they were all to the place where they were willing to continue to take instruction. I know that's not something foreign to us, is it? There are times in our walk in life and our Christianity where we say, “There is more that I've got to learn. There is more that I've got to be totally committed to. But I am committed to listening to instruction and following it, even if I don't have it all figured out yet.” In Luke, chapter 24, and in verse 49, He said:

Luke 24:49-53 – Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you. But tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high. How many times on Passover evening did Jesus Christ promise them a promise? “I will send you the comforter and He will lead you into all knowledge. I will send you, I will send you, I will send you.” And so now again he says “Behold, I send the promise of My Father upon you,” and all they had to do was rewind the memory tape back to that Passover evening, and what they were listening to with their own ears – that we read from John 13 through 17 – and say, “I know what He's talking about.” He says, “I will deliver on My promise, but you have to do your part. You have to stay put in Jerusalem until that time comes.” And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven. And they worshiped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God.

There was a transformation between His appearance to them the fourth time on the mount and the end of the seven weeks. These were a group of men that walked with Him from Galilee to the suburbs. They were right on the edge. You’re only a mountain ridge over from Jerusalem – the Mount of Olives is separating you from Jerusalem. They were willing to go over the hill, on to Jerusalem, and stay for however long it was. And if you read the full account, Christ didn't…. You know, I'm putting words into – or thoughts into His mind – if you'll allow me a little liberty – but the perception is, He had taken them far enough, at this particular point in time, that there wasn't additional to learn about them by simply letting more time expire. So they didn't have to sit for weeks and weeks, saying, “Well, He promised, He promised, He promised.”' It was no more than ten days total between the time they saw Him disappear and they experienced the day of Pentecost. But this group of men were people that as they saw Him disappear into Heaven, they worshiped Him, they returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and they spent their time together continually in the temple praising and blessing God. This is a transformed group. This is a group that has gone to finishing school. They had their education up to the crucifixion. Now they were finishing it off.
Since Luke wrote the book of Luke and also wrote the book of Acts, the last verse of the last chapter of Luke is nothing more than the first verse, or the first chapter, of the book of Acts, when it comes to story flow. So let's finish the story with the first twelve verses of the book of Acts. And with that, we will have the picture of the seven weeks in the spring of 31 AD.

Acts 1:1-12 – The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which He said, “you have heard from Me. For John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven, as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.” Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey.

Now you have the story that is rarely told. As I said, it is a beautiful, a natural, an annually customary thing to tell the stories that relate to both the Old and New Testament Passover season. And we're all looking forward, fifty days down the line from the set marker in the Bible, to the day of Pentecost, when a whole additional set of stories will be a part of our heritage and a part of our reminder and part of our encouragement. But between those two events – bookended by Days of Unleavened Bread/Passover on one end and Pentecost on the other end – is a story that usually falls in the cracks between those two tremendous stories. It is a story that we've told today. A story of seven weeks in the spring of 31 AD.