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Worship sermon日本語、한국、中国語 |
| Tokyo Calvary Church Sermon by Pastor Ryo Kasama March 31, 2024 “Time of Resurrection” Gospel of John, Chapter 20, Verses 1-10 It was finally my last sermon at Tokyo Calvary Church in Kasama. Easter services coincided on this day. In fact, the first service I held here in 2017 was the Passion Week service, and the second week was Easter. At this time, I am preaching on chapter 15 of the Gospel of Mark. Furthermore, this Bible passage was used in the service on April 12, 2020. Easter 2020 was exactly the week after the state of emergency was declared due to the coronavirus, and it was the first time we distributed it on Facebook. I remember preaching in a synagogue with no one around. It's very memorable in that sense. Easter service is even more important than Christmas for the church. Christmas is generally celebrated as the birthday of Jesus, but even more important than the birth is the resurrection. This is the proof that Jesus is the Son of God, and on this day Jesus was raised from the dead, and this is the day when the meaning of the building of the church was created. It was Friday morning when Jesus was crucified. Then, in the afternoon, he died on the cross. The body is then buried on the same day. At that time, it was common for Jewish burials to use the many caves around Jerusalem as morgues. A common method of burial is to place a stand in a cave, lay the body on it, leave it there for a while, wait until the place is completely reduced to bones, and then bury it again or scatter the ashes. Therefore, the body of Jesus was first placed in a cave. However, there were times when they tried to leave the bodies as intact as possible. Therefore, it seems that it was common practice to embalm the corpse by applying a special medicine called myrrh or oil. These are done out of the wishes of the bereaved family to be with them even for a little while, so graves are usually made to include them. So, on Sunday morning after the Sabbath, a woman named Mary Magdalene, who adored Jesus, went to anoint Jesus' body with oil. The first verse says, ``On the first day of the week, early in the morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb, and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb.'' When they came to enter the tomb, they found that the large stone that had blocked off the tomb containing Jesus' body had been removed. The text says that when she saw this, she hurried back without looking inside and told Peter and John about it. They may have thought that if they entered the tomb as it was, they might be ambushed by tomb thieves or people who viewed Jesus as an enemy. Verse 2 says, ``Then he ran to Simon Peter and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and told them,'' ``Jesus loved him. "Another disciple" is the evangelist John himself. When the two men were told this, they hurried to the tomb and found that Jesus' body had disappeared. The last ten verses say, ``Then these disciples went back to their homes,'' and they just went home. Unlike the other gospels, there is no angel appearing to tell his disciples of the resurrection of Jesus, but John's unique feature is that it only says that the body has disappeared. Nothing miraculous has been written at this point. However, in verse 9 there is a characteristic phrase written only in John's Gospel that is not written in the other Gospels. ``They still did not understand the Bible's statement that Jesus was bound to rise from the dead.'' The text says that the disciples did not understand anything when faced with this situation. They had already heard about Jesus' death on the cross and resurrection. However, even though I was listening, I was not understanding it at all. During his lifetime, Jesus repeatedly told his disciples that he would be resurrected. But they didn't remember it, or rather, they didn't believe it would happen. They were unable to fully believe Jesus' words. The resurrection of the dead is something that should never happen, so the reaction of the disciples is understandable. This must have been a question that Jesus asked his disciples while he was alive, asking them if they believed what I was saying. Unfortunately, the disciples were unable to answer that question. This incident made me realize that I hated it. There are three things that the disciples realized here. First, I clearly understood that Jesus does not lie. If Jesus said He was the Son of God, He was right, and He proved He was truly the Son of God through His resurrection, which is impossible for humans. . Jesus is true and he never told a lie. Through this, I came to believe that everything that Jesus talked about earlier about the kingdom of God and that not only Jews but all people will be saved is true. Everything Jesus said is correct. Those who have faith are required to first stand in this position. Second, the resurrection of Jesus is not just about the resurrection of the dead. It means that Jesus conquered death. The difference is that by surpassing death, death no longer comes to Jesus. By overcoming death, Jesus became a being with eternal life. Death is the final destination for all living things in this world. By surpassing even that, we can see that Jesus had the power to overcome everything. As the Son of God, he surpassed what no human being could surpass. This made me realize that I am a being that stands above everything. And the third point. What Jesus promised us is that just like Jesus, we too can have life. Jesus came to this earth to save all the people of this world. This salvation is meant to give life to people. Just as Jesus overcame death, it is a promise that will give those who believe in Jesus' words a life that will never die. The disciples did not realize this instantly, and would have to spend a long time learning this, but by being clearly reminded here that Jesus is the Son of God, they finally realized it for the first time. I was able to stand in a position of understanding. This is the same for us. Our faith is always growing. I think your level of understanding is quite different now than when you first started your faith, but it is something you acquire through various experiences and understandings. Above all, it begins with knowing the cross and resurrection of Jesus, just like the disciples. Believing in the resurrection of Jesus does not simply mean believing that Jesus is the Son of God. It means believing that we ourselves can be resurrected. Easter's role is to make sure we don't forget that part. And as we begin our new journey, I would like to conclude my sermon by praying for God's great grace and strength for this Tokyo Calvary Church. |
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電話でのお問い合わせはTEL.03-3894-7565 〒116-0002 東京都荒川区荒川5-47-4 |