Many people work hard to live forever. For example, the Coalition for Radical Life Extension, an Arizona-based nonprofit, is on a mission to “cure aging.” Its founder, James Strole, labours to make “mortality optional” and to “put an end to The End.” Likeminded individuals are willing to do almost anything to cheat death— from supplements to exercise, from medical procedures to cryogenic freezing. And, if they can’t physically live forever, many at least desire that their work ensures, their reputation remains, or their legacy perseveres. Whatever path taken, many people work hard to live forever.

On Easter, God’s people celebrate that we can live forever, that death—our great enemy—has been defeated, that the tomb was empty, that Christ has been raised. Today we are reminded that immortality doesn’t require a self-care regimen, a medical discovery, or a scientific breakthrough. It requires resurrection.

SERMON MANUSCRIPT 

Many people work hard to live forever. For example, the Coalition for Radical Life Extension, a nonprofit based in Arizona, is on a mission to “cure aging.” Its founder, James Strole, “is interested in extending life not by days and weeks, but by decades and even centuries, to the degree that mortality becomes optional—an end to The End.”

They want immortality and, those who share that desire are willing to do almost anything to make it happen. Some use positivity and meditation, others diet and supplements, still others regular medical treatments. I read about one man who reads the newspaper upside down in a mirror “to keep his mind supple.” Some have been cryogenically frozen, believing that it’s just a matter of time until technology finds deaths’ cheat codes. 

Others, however, work to ensure, at the very least, their name lives forever, their reputation remains, their legacy is eternalized. Whatever path they take, many people work hard to live forever. 

This morning we’ve been celebrating that we can live forever, that death—our great enemy—has been defeated, that the tomb was empty, that Christ has been raised, that immortality doesn’t require a self-care regimen, a medical discovery, or a scientific breakthroughs; it requires resurrection. And that’s what we’re going to talk about today.

Now, many Christians assume that the theme of resurrection begins with Jesus but, actually, it begins all the way in Genesis and runs through to Malachi. There’s anticipation in the Old Testament.

Abraham the patriarch, for example, knew it was possible. In Genesis 22 his faith is tested by God. [22:2] Isaac was the son through whom God swore to build a world-blessing nation, a promise that would be hard to keep if the kid’s dead, sacrificed to that same God.

[22:3–5] In the midst of confusion, one thing is clear to Abraham: he and Isaac are coming back down that mountain. [Heb 11:17–19] The patriarch knew resurrection was possible and was hoping in it. 

Job, the sufferer, thought about resurrection as well. You may remember that Job lost everything and, in his agony, wondered about death. [14:10, 14] Job knew death would end his pain and hoped in something afterward but wasn’t sure yet.

But it seems he’s learning. [19:25–26] Job knows that, in the end, God will vindicate him. It also seems he’s thinking about resurrection.

Resurrection is anticipated by the psalmists. [Ps 16:10] David knows that Sheol is a real place and that God won’t leave him there. [17:15; 21:4; 71:20] While it isn’t fully formed, do you sense the hope?

The prophets add clarity. Hear Isaiah’s testimony. [Isa 25:8; 26:19] And then there’s Ezekiel. [Ezek 37:3–6] Daniel chimes in. [Dan 12:1–2] Here’s Hosea. [Hos 6:1–2; 13:14] As we skim along the top of the OT we find that Abraham, Job, the psalmists, and the prophets all anticipated resurrection.

In fact, maybe the clearest proof that this is what was expected comes in the NT where, as you know, we find two groups of feuding Jewish leaders, the Pharisees and Sadducees. One of their many tension points was resurrection. [Acts 23:6–7; Matt 22:23, 29–30] At least we can say that resurrection was a topic of conversation. Why? Because it was anticipated in the OT.

Like a child going to Disneyland for the first time—they aren’t exactly sure what it’s going to be like but they are sure that, when they get there, it’s going to be amazing—“the happiest place on earth,” right?

The OT people didn’t have all the details about resurrection but they knew it was coming and looked forward to it. And, as we celebrate today, this OT anticipation found its realization in Jesus Christ.

Jesus knew resurrection was coming, even for himself. More than once, Jesus predicted it. [Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:33–34] Obviously, he made good on those predictions. Adding to Luke’s account which was read for us earlier, let me read Mark’s abridged version. [16:1–8]

Now, there have been a number resurrections recorded in Scripture before this point. For example, the widow’s son in 1 Kings 17, a man thrown on Elisha’s grave pops back to life in 2 Kings 13. There’s the resurrection of Jairus’s daughter in Mark 5, the young man at Nain in Luke 7, Lazarus in John 11, and then a bunch of unknown saints during Jesus’s crucifixion in Matthew 27. 

So, what make’s Jesus’s resurrection different? Why is his empty tomb the realization of the anticipation and not the others? Well, because all the others who were raised, died again. [IBS] Jesus was raised in glory, to permanent, everlasting, irrevocable, incorruptible life. That’s what the OT anticipated, what creation needs, what humanity longs for.

Speaking for myself: the thought of “curing aging,” of extending life by a few decades appeals to me very little if I’m still going to be in this body. Honestly, living forever in a body that’s broken inside and out doesn’t sound like a win to me. Immortality is less appealing when it includes loneliness, regret, depression, immobility, and self-consciousness. I don’t want the resuscitation of Lazarus; I want the resurrection of Christ, don’t you?

And we get it, brothers and sisters! After he came back from the dead, Jesus’s followers can’t stop talking and writing about it. There’s celebration in the apostles. Like from an acorn comes an oak tree, so the doctrine of resurrection grows from the seed of anticipation in the OT, sprouting to realization in Jesus, and then stretching its branches in celebration in the NT.

Paul calls it the linchpin of our faith. [1 Cor 15:16–20] Christianity is the only faith system that is easily nullified. If the body of Jesus is found, we pack up and go home. We’re done. 

But it won’t be because his body’s in heaven with the Father. So, we have a hope we can celebrate like Paul does. [Rom 4:25] The Father raised the Son from the dead, announcing the acceptability of the sacrifice that paid for our sins. Because he is raised, we are forgiven. 

[Rom 6:4] Notice that we share in Christ’s resurrection, not Lazarus’s. And, in his perfect glory-soaked resurrection, not only are we forgiven but we’re free to live the life he calls us to live—the good life—to bear good fruit for him (Rom 7), to be filled with his power and to never be separated from his love, even by death (Rom 8:38–39). It’s exciting! That’s why Paul celebrates resurrection. How could he not?

And Peter joins him. [1 Pet 1:3] For those who trust in Jesus Christ, the new birth we receive gives us a living hope in an imperishable future inheritance. As we sang earlier, “Hallelujah, praise the one who set me free / Hallelujah, death has lost its grip on me / You have broken every chain / There’s salvation in your name / Jesus Christ, my living hope.”

From Paul to Peter, from John to James, the NT celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. Because he was raised there is freedom from sin, guilt, and shame; there is hope beyond death; there is power and purpose, love and liberty, comfort and consolation.

This is where the rubber meets the road, friends. That which was an anticipation in the OT, a realization in Jesus, and a celebration in his followers, can be an expectation in us.

[1 Cor 6:14; 15:23; John 6:39–40] Resurrection can be our expectation, something to which we look forward and something by which our lives are shaped. God is offering that to you and to me.

Ray Kurzweil is a former engineer for Google who received the National Medal of Technology in 1999 and was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2022. Recently he predicted that, in less than a decade, nanotechnology—tiny robots placed in our bodies—will be able to fight against ageing and illnesses by fixing us on a cellular level. He also said that this will allow people to eat whatever they want and stay thin. Ultimately, Mr. Kurzweil predicts that this technology “will allow humans to achieve everlasting life by 2030.”

Friends, we don’t have to wait until 2030. It’s available now and it’s robot-free. In fact, it’s free altogether. 

Well, free for us. God paid an immeasurable price when he sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the debt that each of us owes because of our rebellion. The Bible says we’re all guilty of high treason against the throne of the Creator, deserving of eternal capital punishment because our crime was against an eternally holy God. That’s justice.

But God so loved the world that he gave his Son, Jesus, the Christ, the Messiah, to died in our place—punished as a criminal though without crime, a sinner though without sin. And the Father raised him on the third day, a stamp of approval on that payment, and now offers eternal life to all who believe in him. That’s grace.

If you’ve never believed in Jesus for this gift, for this forgiveness, for this eternal life, then I invite you to that decision today and, when we close, I want to pray for you specifically. 

But, for the rest of us, those who have trusted in Jesus and received that gift, do we live like it’s true? Do we live with the expectation of resurrection at the forefront of our minds?

Are you fearful? Your life is in his hands. Are you in pain? You won’t always be. Are you lonely? You are headed toward eternity with one who loves you more than you can understand. Are you insecure? No, you’re completely secure in Christ and headed for resurrection. Are you timid? You’ve got the power of God pumping through your veins. Are you dying? We all are. But our death leads to true life!

Do you see the freedom that the expectation of resurrection brings?

Many people work hard to live forever. But we don’t have to. In fact, we need to stop working and trust in him who has done all the work for us. There truly is “an end to the End,” but it comes through resurrection, that which was anticipated in the OT, realized in Jesus, celebrated by the apostles, and that which should be expected by all who believe in him for it.

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