Sermon Notes - John 20:1-18 - When it clicks! - Littleby Baptist Church - December 10, 2023

1.     We are entering our final two chapters of John.

a.      But I did not want to leave it where we ended last week before going into Christmas.

b.     Jesus’ death on the cross and His burial point to prophesy and to Him being the perfect sacrificial lamb of God.

c.      With His death our debt is paid.

d.     Not partially paid, not put on layaway to see if we can pay the rest.

e.      Our debt has been paid in full.

f.      Ephesians 2:8-9

g.     Have faith in who Jesus is and what He did for you, and you will be saved.

h.     A gift that cannot be earned.

i.       A gift that Jesus freely gave when He allowed Himself to be arrested and again when He gave up His spirit.

j.       An amazing gift offered to all.

k.     But He is not done yet.

2.     As we look at these verses, we continue to see John’s intent on helping people see that Jesus is God.

3.     John 20:1

a.      Jesus had freed Mary from the bondage of her sin.

b.     She has since been devoted to Him.

c.      Following Him and now mourning Him.

d.     When she arrives at the tomb she finds it open and empty.

e.      She was not sure of what to make of it, so she ran to the disciples.

4.     John 20:2

a.      After the horrible events of the last couple of days.

b.     After seeing Her Savior beaten and murdered.

c.      Her thoughts when to the worst possible scenario, someone stole Jesus’ body.

d.     I am sure most of us could relate to her.

e.      When it feels like we are getting hit our tendency is to be a half empty kind of person.

f.      Like Mary we might forget the things we have learned.

g.     Forget how God has worked in the past.

h.     It is easy to get caught up in the emotion and miss what God is doing.

5.     John 20:3-4

a.      John, the other disciple, and Peter took off running to the tomb.

b.     They had to see what Mary was talking about.

c.      I could imagine what was going through their minds…

d.     Was Mary mistaken?

e.      Had she gone to the wrong tomb?

f.      Why would they take Jesus’ body?

g.     Did Jesus tell us about this before He died?

h.     A lot of potential thoughts, doubts, and uncertainty.

6.     John 20:5

a.      John stopped, looked in but did not go in.

7.     John 20:6

a.      Peter did not hesitate and went straight in.

8.     John 20:7

a.      Peter noticed the body was gone.

b.     But more questions followed.

c.      Why would thieves taken the time to remove the wrapping around Jesus’ head?

d.     Why would they remove the burial cloths to move a dead body?

e.      Why would they take the body of a carpenter’s son who had just suffered a dishonorable death?

f.      Why, why, why… lots of questions and no answers.

9.     John 20:8

a.      John entered.

b.     Saw that Jesus’ body was gone.

c.      Saw that the grave cloths were laying there.

d.     John saw all of this and believed!

e.      He believed that Jesus had risen from the dead!

f.      Not sure John understood all of it yet.

g.     But maybe he was remembering that Jesus said He was going away for a while but then they would see Him again.

h.     Maybe John was remembering that Jesus saying that He had conquered the world.

i.       Mark 9:30-32

j.       John may have remembered that Jesus said He would be raised three days after His death.

k.     Whatever it was that clicked for John, he believed that Jesus was alive.

l.       He may not have understood the theology behind it all yet, but He believed.

m.   When we first believe in Jesus, we know very little.

n.     Decades later we still don’t know all of it.

o.     But for each of us, something clicks, the Holy Spirit gets ahold of us, and we believe.

p.     When we share with others, we don’t know when it will click for them.

q.     So, we keep sharing.

r.      Keep loving and let God work.

s.      Over and over until it clicks for them.

10.  John 20:9

a.      They did not understand that Jesus had to defeat death.

b.     That this was a critical step to give us new life.

c.      They did not understand what it meant.

d.     John believed and Mary and Peter did not understand.

11.  John 20:10-11

a.      John and Peter left.

b.     Mary remained behind.

12.  John 20:12-13

a.      Mary saw two angels sitting where Jesus’ body had been laid.

b.     You would think that would cause a bit of a reaction.

c.      I know I would be a tad excited if I saw two angels sitting here.

d.     My response would be a lot different than Mary’s.

e.      It’s like she was blinded in her grief.

f.      She did not understand.

g.     She must have thought Jesus was dead and gone.

h.     To her it must have all been over.

i.       Sin, doubt, fear, anxiety, pain, and other emotions can lead us to feel this way.

j.       All we see is the problem and the loss.

k.     Mary did not see the angels before her.

l.       She did not recognize what had happened as John had.

m.   But that was about to change.

n.     Things were about to click.

13.  John 20:14-15

a.      Jesus is standing there.

b.     They are talking.

c.      But Mary does not see Jesus for who He is.

d.     Her pain continued to blind her.

14.  John 20:16

a.      Jesus said her name and she knew exactly who He was.

b.     John 10:2-4

c.      The Good shepherd called her by name, and she knew His voice.

d.     In a moment her life was changed.

e.      Her outlook went from despair to excitement.

f.      Knowing that Jesus is a historical figure is a good thing but that does not change our lives.

g.     Recognizing that He died for our sins and then defeated death giving us new life is eternity changing.

h.     It is something worth getting excited about.

i.       It changes who we are.

j.       It breaks through doubt, fear, anxiety, pain, and sets us free from our sins.

k.     Mary’s whole outlook changed when she recognized Jesus.

l.       As we look to Him as our Lord and Savior, it should change our outlook on life.

m.   We should be excited about what He has done, is doing, and will do in our lives.

15.  John 20:17

a.      Jesus called the disciples Brothers.

b.     When we look at how Jesus has referred to the disciples, this was a first.

c.      He had called them servants, disciples, and then shortly before His death He called them friends.

d.     Now Jesus calls them Brothers.

e.      Romans 8:15-17

f.      Through the redemptive work of our Lord Jesus, we have been grafted into the family of God.

g.     We are Children of the Father.

h.     We share in Jesus’ inheritance.

i.       Which means we are His brothers and sisters.

j.       He is the head of the Church and our Lord.

k.     He is to be honored above all.

l.       But He loves us so much that He has elevated us.

m.   He cherishes us.

n.     He died for us and has given us new life.

o.     A truly amazing gift.

16.  John 20:18

a.      Her day started horribly, but it changed for the better.

b.     Jesus called her name.

c.      Her life had changed.

d.     She went to tell the others.

17.  John was in the same boat.  

a.      His friend was dead.

b.     But when he saw the clothes lying in the tomb, he believed.

18.  Peter did not know what to think.

a.      He knew that Jesus had died.

b.     He knew there was something about the empty tomb.

c.      Maybe his denial of Jesus was preventing him from knowing the truth.

d.     Thankfully Scripture shows us that Peter is forgiven.

e.      Then God uses him in some amazing ways.

19.  You may relate to one of these three.

a.      You may know Jesus like Mary and John.

b.     If that is you, continue to follow Him and let Him work in you.

c.      You may be here today and think there is something about this Jesus and you want to know.

d.     You may be like Peter seeing something in the empty tomb, but not sure what it means.

e.      If that is you, I would love to help you fill in the final pieces so that you can see who Jesus is and what He did.

f.      So that it will finally click for you.