Certain Hope
Luke 24:1-12
What does the world need more than anything else right now?
What do you need?
It’s a big question, isn’t it?
We’re living in chaotic times. Political upheaval unlike anything I’ve seen in my lifetime.
War in Ukraine. Global tensions ramping up. Economies lurching like ships in a storm –
tariffs, sanctions, shifting alliances.
Then there’s the ache closer to home – violence in schools, broken families, communities
tearing themselves apart over politics, identity, ideology.
We’re tired. Anxious. On edge.
The world is starving for hope.
But let’s make it personal. Maybe you’re not losing sleep over geopolitics — maybe it’s your
own storm.
You’ve hit a wall. You can’t see a way through. You’ve tried everything and nothing’s
shifting. That voice in your head tells you you’re a failure — and maybe you’re starting to
believe it. Depression hangs heavy. Shame lingers like a shadow. Health scares — yours or
someone you love.
And we long for hope. Even a flicker.
But then we pinch ourselves. Because we’re reasonable people aren’t we.
And that means, we’re not going to believe something just because it makes us feel better.
Hope we tell ourselves is sentimental. Pie in the sky when you die.
And we want reality. Not fantasy.
But then we hit Luke 24 - the passage we just had read.
And that changes everything. Three points for us today.
1. Hope is grounded
First up, Luke 24 means that hope is grounded.
When you’ve got a friend who’s going through a hard time - they’ve just had a breakup, or
lost their job, or they’re waiting on that scan — what do we do?
We put a hand on their shoulder and say, “It’s going to be alright.”
It’s kind. It’s well-meaning. But it’s utterly ungrounded. Because truth is — we don’t know if
it will be alright.
The world is full of belief systems that promise hope — but offer no evidence. No
foundation.
Buddhism says: follow the Eightfold Path, and you’ll reach enlightenment. But
where’s the proof?
Islam says: submit to the Five Pillars, and you’ll reach paradise. But how can we be
sure?
Secular humanism says: we’re just a cosmic accident — but hey, be kind anyway.
That’ll fix it, right?
Well, the past hundred years of bloodshed and war seem to suggest otherwise.
Only Christianity offers a hope grounded in history.
Harvard professor Ernest Wright once said,
“In biblical faith everything depends upon whether the central events actually
occurred.”
Ernest Wright
“In biblical faith everything depends upon whether the central events actually occurred.”
In other words, everything hinges on the bodily resurrection of Jesus. If it happened — it
changes everything. If it didn’t — Christianity falls apart.
No other worldview stakes everything on a verifiable historical claim. None of them.
That’s why Luke 24 is ground zero.
The women had seen Jesus buried - that was the end of Luke 23. They’d stood there —
heartbroken, shell-shocked — as his body was laid in a borrowed tomb. Just like Isaiah 53
had predicted hundreds of years earlier — “assigned a grave with the rich in his death.”
Now the Sabbath has passed. At first light v. 1 — before the sun has even risen — they come
to anoint his body properly.
But when they arrive, something’s off. They’re struck by three things:
1. The massive stone that covered the tomb – v 2 – had been rolled away.
2. The body of Jesus was gone – v 3.
3. Two dazzling figure – who match the descriptions of angels elsewhere in the Bible –
appear radiating light – v. 4.
Now let’s stop here. Because there’s a misunderstanding, I think we need to address.
It’s popular to believe that the early disciples were gullible and stupid. That three days after
the crucifixion, they were just sitting around waiting, longing for something to latch onto to
give them hope.
It’s what the author CS Lewis called chronological snobbery. The assumption that people 500
years ago were a bit stupid, and those living 2,000 years ago could barely string two
sentences together.
But of course, that’s just nonsense. First century people were surrounded by death. They
knew what death looked like. They knew the finality of the tomb.
So when the women ran to tell the disciples – v. 11 tells us the men thought they were mad.
“Leros,” it says in the original Greek. Now that was the word used in the medical sphere to
describe someone who was delirious. Mad!
No one – no one – expected a resurrection.
So how do we explain the empty tomb?
Let me share some of the theories, some of the alternative explanations for the empty tomb,
just so you can judge them for yourselves. I want to be fair.
So, some people say: “Well it’s simple. The women went to the wrong tomb. It was dark after
all so maybe they just stumbled in the darkness to a tomb that was being prepared for
someone else.”
Perhaps. But then Peter goes to the same tomb in broad daylight and finds it empty too? Are
we really to believe that they were all that stupid?
And if they have been, don’t you think once they started going round Jerusalem shouting
about the resurrection, the authorities would have simply produced the body. “Wrong tomb,
folks. Muppets!”
So, let’s try another theory. What’s sometimes called the swoon theory. Here it is. Jesus is
flogged so that ribbons of flesh are peeling off his back. He’s beaten, forced to carry his cross
up a hill. Five-inch nails are driven through his limbs. He’s hung on a cross for hours until
eventually he suffocates. And just to make sure – his executioners – who were experts in the
art of killing – drive a spear through his rib cage and up into his heart.
After that, so the theory goes, Jesus revived in the cool of the tomb; folded up his grave
clothes, rolled a massive stone uphill from inside the tomb and strolled into town?
Even non-Christian scholars have called the theory absurd. Listen to David Strauss:
“It is impossible that a being who had stolen half-dead out of the tomb, who crept about
weak and ill, wanting medical treatment, who required bandaging, strengthening, and
indulgence, and who still at last yielded to His sufferings, could have given to the
disciples the impression that He was a Conqueror over death and the grave, the Prince
of Life, an impression which lay at the bottom of their future ministry. ”
David Friedrich Strauss
“It is impossible that a being who had stolen half-dead out of the tomb, who crept about weak
and ill, wanting medical treatment, who required bandaging, strengthening, and indulgence,
and who still at last yielded to His sufferings, could have given to the disciples the impression
that He was a Conqueror over death and the grave, the Prince of Life, an impression which
lay at the bottom of their future ministry. ”
It is just inconceivable. So, what about another theory?
Maybe the disciples stole Jesus’ body. Sounds pretty plausible doesn’t it. They were sad,
disappointed. They’d lost their leader and wanted a miracle to rally around.
Well, here’s a video that sort of plays out that scenario.
Look, if all the other theories are shown to be utterly implausible, then there really is only
one option left. The explanation the angels gave - that Jesus really had risen from the dead.
That’s where I landed almost thirty years ago when I looked into the evidence.
The empty tomb is evidence that demands a verdict.
Did you notice how the names are given in verses 10 and 12?
Luke’s Gospel was written within a few decades of Jesus’ death and resurrection.
And so what Luke wants to do is give his readers the names of the eyewitness. “Check it out
for yourself. Go ask them!” Luke says.
The resurrection is not wishful thinking. It is a historical event. It either happened or it did
not.
If it happened, then it guarantees that death can be defeated. That life can follow death.
But if it didn’t, then even the Bible itself says that Christians are to be pitied more than all
people.
The Christian hope is grounded on a historical event.
And if it’s true – it’s more important than anything else in the world.
As the author CS Lewis put it:
“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance, the only
thing it cannot be is moderately important?"
CS Lewis, God in the Dock
“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance, the only thing it
cannot be is moderately important?"
The Christian hope is grounded.
2. Hope is necessary
Secondly, the Christian hope is necessary.
Look at verse 7. The angels say something crucial:
The Son of Man must be delivered over … must be crucified … must be raised again.”
Not “maybe”. Not “hopefully.” Must. Why?
Around 1910, the Times newspaper put out a request for essays responding to the prompt:
“What is wrong with the world?”
I wonder how you’d respond to that question?
Malaria, cancer, greed, TikTok, Trump?
Picture of GK Chesterton
The author GK Chesterton sent in a response, and he kept it brief. What is wrong with the
world?:
“Dear Sirs, I am.
Yours sincerely, G.K. Chesterton”
What we hope for reflects what we believe we most need.
So, if we think our biggest problem is our health, then we’ll hope for a doctor.
If we think its lack of self-esteem, then we’ll hope for a life-coach
If its lack of education, we’ll long for a teacher
If it’s a political problem, we’ll long for a leader.
But God has given us a man – a totally innocent man – who hung naked on a cross, and died
in agony and humiliation.
And do you know why?
Because the biggest problem in the world is “me”.
Look, we like to divide the world into two groups. So over here you have the really bad
people: you know murders, rapists, paedophiles. In there, you’ve got Hitler, Pol Pot, Idi
Amin, Fred West.
And then over here you’ve got the good people: Mother Theresa, Mahatma Gandhi. And I
guess, I squeeze in there as well.
But the Bible tells us there’s not two groups. There’s just one.
We’ve all rebelled against God. We’ve all sought to live our life our way where everything
revolving around ourselves – God included.
Sure, we’ve done that in different ways. And the way Hitler did it flowed out in far more
horrific acts than I’ve done. But the root problem is the same.
And all the problems I see in the world – whether it be wars, bloodshed, sickness or
heartbreak. It’s not something that’s distant and remote from me. It’s something that my
rebellion against God has contributed to.
All the terrible things have happened because we have collectively turned our back on the
one who made us and loves us. And that has brought death into the world.
And you see that’s why the hope of the cross and the resurrection is necessary.
Some people suggest that Jesus’ death was simply a demonstration of God’s love: “See how
much I love you, I’m willing to die for you”.
But that wouldn’t have addressed our fundamental problem. We don’t simply need love – we
need someone to address our rebellion and the death we deserve for it.
And you see that’s why Jesus went to the cross on that first Good Friday. He did it as our
substitute. Taking the punishment we deserve. Carrying our sin to the grave.
And the resurrection?
Well, its proof. Proof that his work worked. Sin defeated. Death destroyed.
Perhaps you’re here today and you think that’s just too good to be true. You know what
you’ve done. Things you’re ashamed of. Things that if the people around you knew about,
they’d want nothing more to do with you.
Or maybe you’ve been here before. You’ve already professed faith in Christ. And everyone
celebrated. But now you’ve slipped back into old ways. In fact, things are even worse than
they were before you became a Christian. “God can’t forgive that!”
Really?
Listen, God the Son took on weak human flesh. Lived a life as a humble carpenter. Was
mocked, beaten, flogged and nailed to a pole. He died in complete agony and abandonment.
And he did it in your place.
You cannot out-sin the cross.
You cannot undo what Jesus has already finished.
The Christian hope is necessary because nothing else could save us from ourselves.
3. Hope changes everything
Which brings us to our final point. The Christian hope changes everything.
It really does.
Take a look at verse 5—what the angels say to the women at the tomb:
“Why do you look for the living among the dead?”
Now, this isn’t said with sarcasm or scolding. It’s gentle. Pastoral. Almost tender.
One writer put it this way: the women were on the wrong premises (the tomb) because they
had the wrong premise (that Jesus was dead).
That’s what the angels want them to see: you’re looking for life in a place of death. You’re
acting as if Jesus is still in the grave. But he’s not.
And friends, I think it’s possible for us who are Christians to do the same.
We believe Jesus rose. We know the theology. We could explain it to someone else: Jesus
died to deal with sin, and rose again to conquer death. We know it up here.
But in our lived relationship with him? Sometimes, honestly, it’s like he’s still in the tomb.
It’s not personal. Not alive. We know about him—but we’re not actually knowing him.
Tim Keller had a powerful illustration for this. He said: think about someone you’ve loved
deeply—someone who meant the world to you—but who has passed away.
How do you relate to them now?
Well, you might visit their grave. You m
ight lay flowers. You might sit and remember. And
it's moving, it's meaningful. But it's not personal. You’re relating to a memory. You’re not
interacting. You’re not being changed in the moment.
And that’s how the women were trying to worship Jesus. As a memory.
But the angels say: “You can’t do that. He’s not here. He’s alive.”
My Christian friends, this is the turning point.
The resurrection means we don’t worship a dead teacher—we worship a living Saviour.
When we gather on Sundays… we’re not just singing songs or hearing a sermon. We are
meeting with Jesus. We are experiencing his presence. Right here. Right now.
It’s not enough to simply know that Jesus loves you.
You must know his love.
It’s not enough to know grace as a doctrine.
You must feel the freedom and joy that grace brings.
Now listen—I'm not saying you're not a Christian if you’re not feeling that right now. But I
am saying this: like the women at the tomb, God has something better for you.
Because your Saviour… is alive.
And here’s the next layer of this hope:
It means nothing is hopeless.
Not one thing.
This is utterly radical. Because if Jesus really did rise from the dead—physically,
permanently, 2,000 years ago—then that single moment rewrote the rules of reality.
It means that in the Christian life, resurrection always follows death. Always.
At that means that ultimately you are unbreakable.
Let me explain. Paul Miller, an American writer, describes the Christian life as being like a J-
curve.
Picture of a J-curve from the book
You go down—into death, suffering, loss—but then, just like a J, you come back up.
Every death is followed by resurrection.
Life with Jesus involves many little deaths:
Death to pride. Death to comfort. Death to control.
Sometimes it’s death to success, to health, to dreams, to relationships.
But the first Easter guarantees that all those deaths are not the end. They are the soil from
which resurrection springs.
Paul, in Romans 5, says this:
“ Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering
produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does
not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through
the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”
Romans 5:3-5
“Suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character, and character hope. And hope
does not put us to shame.”
Now that’s not poetic optimism. It’s a promise.
A living Jesus means hope that cannot be embarrassed—it is not foolish. Because it’s built on
reality.
Let me be concrete:
That relationship that’s breaking your heart right now? The pain is real. And maybe it won’t
heal overnight. But the power that raised Jesus from the grave is already at work in you—and
he has resurrection purposes for your pain.
That situation that feels beyond your fixing—where you’ve run out of ideas, strength, or
hope? That’s okay. You can let go of trying to control it. Because resurrection follows death.
And Jesus is alive.
And your body—your aging, aching, changing body? The world tells you to fight tooth and
nail against getting older. But in Christ, you don’t have to. As George Herbert put it centuries
ago:
“Death used to be an executioner. But the gospel has made him just a gardener.”
Because even death—even death—will one day bloom into glory. A resurrection body. No
more pain. No more grief. No more goodbye.
That is Christian hope. And it changes everything.
So—how will you respond?
Look at verse 8. The women remembered what Jesus had told them—that he would rise
again. And what do they do? They run to tell others.
That’s the call for every Christian. How can we stay silent? This is the best news in the
world.
But notice—most of the disciples don’t believe them. Verse 11 says they thought it was
nonsense.
Not careful scepticism. Not a weighing of the evidence. Just… dismissal. Ridicule.
Might that be what you are doing today?
But look at Peter in verse 12. He runs to the tomb. He investigates. He wants to discover the
truth for himself.
Maybe that’s where you’re up to today. You’ve heard the news, but you’re not yet sure.
Run to the tomb. Come and see.
Alpha course with info
We’ve got an Alpha Course starting this Thursday. No pressure, no preaching. Just a safe
space to ask your questions and explore the evidence. Why come?
Because the hope of Easter morning—it’s not just inspiring. It’s not just comforting.
It is true.
It is necessary.
And it changes absolutely everything.
Let me pray.
