Mike Novotny - Jesus Means Life After Death for You
Summary
In his Easter sermon "Jesus Means Life After Death for You," Mike Novotny gets into why Easter is such a huge deal—it tackles our two biggest questions: Who is this Jesus guy really, and what about death? He runs through Jesus' bold "I am" claims in John's Gospel (bread of life, light of the world, good shepherd, true vine, the way to the Father) that demand an all-or-nothing commitment, then hits hard on the resurrection evidence from 1 Corinthians 15—Jesus died for sins, buried, rose on the third day, and showed up to Peter, the apostles, over 500 people, and even skeptics like James and Paul. With stories like his daughter begging him not to say "you're all gonna die" on happy Easter, a real crucified skeleton find, and an Uber driver feeling too messed up for forgiveness, Mike shows Jesus came for broken folks first (like denying Peter or persecuting Paul) and conquered death so believers get real life after dying—no more sin, pain, or goodbyes. Bottom line: Easter proves Jesus is God, his cross forgives everything, his empty tomb guarantees heaven's waiting, so go all in on him instead of half-hearted faith, and face whatever with legit hope.
Easter is a Big Deal
Let me tell you right from the start my big idea for today. Here it is: Easter is a big deal. You probably knew that even before I said it. When you woke up this morning, if you’re watching at home, you felt this too—that even though it’s Sunday, it’s not an average Sunday. I bet you could feel it. Maybe the decorations in your neighborhood, maybe the Easter baskets the kids were searching for, maybe the Easter décor, maybe the Easter dresses, the Easter outfits. There’s Easter chocolate; there’s Starburst jelly beans. It is a great time of year because the best thing is you know Easter brunch is so, so, so, so close.
I was thinking the other day, what other major holiday celebrates breakfast quite like Easter? I love Easter. Then you come to church and you realize it’s not a normal church Sunday either. Maybe you could smell the Easter flowers here; maybe you could sense it—like, why does Pastor Mike have his shirt tucked in? One day a year, folks. One day a year. I’m uncomfortable to honor the name of Jesus. So, you know it’s Easter; we got donuts in the lobby. If you’re watching at home, I’m so sorry. We can give you Jesus, but we can’t give you those free donuts. So it’s a different Sunday, a better Sunday. There’s an anticipation in the air. You feel it from the first beat of the music, and that’s no accident because Easter is a big deal.
But today I want to propose to you that Easter isn’t primarily a big deal because of the amazing brunch, or the Easter dresses, or the donuts in the lobby, or the extra attendance. What makes Easter so amazing, from a Christian point of view, is that it gives us the answer to two of life’s most important questions.
Two Most Important Questions
If you’re taking notes in your program, I’d love for you to write this down: the two most important questions I think you need to answer personally are this: number one, what about Jesus? Number two, what about death? That’s a big question.
What do you personally do with Jesus? I’m not sure how much you personally know about Jesus, but when one of Jesus’s best friends, named John, recorded in this book the stuff that Jesus said, Jesus just refused to let people be kind of Christian, right? The stuff that came out of his mouth did not allow you spiritually to sit on the fence of faith. The claims he made were so big and so demanding and so amazing that back in the first century, either you were all in to worship and follow Jesus, or you were so put off and appalled by the things that Jesus would say.
Jesus' Bold Claims
Have you heard some of the things that Jesus said? Like, «I am the bread that came down from heaven—eat me. Believe in me, and your soul will be well-fed. Take a diet from me, and your very soul will die.» That was Jesus. Then he said, «I’m the light of the world. Follow me, stay close by my side, believe in me, and you will see the world as it really is. You’ll see how God is; you’ll see how you are; you will see the truth. Walk away from me with your own independent spirituality, and you will be in the darkness—deceived and just guessing when it comes to God.»
Jesus said that too. He said, «I’m the Good Shepherd, and y’all are like sheep. Stay right here by my ankles, and I will lay down my life to protect you from the wolf. Stray from me to live out your truth, and you are dead meat.» He said, «I’m like a vine, and you’re like branches. Remain stuck to me in faith, and you will produce fruit—a life that is pleasing to God. Separate yourself from me, and you will shrivel, and God will not be happy with a single thing you do, as good as it might seem to you.» And then Jesus said, «I am the way. You want to get to God? You want something good to happen to you after you die? I am not a way. I’m not an option; I am the way.» He said, «No one comes to God the Father but through me.»
When Jesus said stuff like that, it forced you to answer the question: what do you do about Jesus? You know you can’t give him knuckles and kind of respect him. You either got to think, «Whoa, no, that’s too much, » or you have to be all in to acknowledge him as God and King and Savior and Lord. And today the same question remains: what do you do with the real, unfiltered, unedited, adulterated Jesus of Nazareth?
Facing Death
Well, I would suggest that if you know what happened on that first Easter, you can answer that important question, and you can answer this question: what about death? My youngest daughter didn’t want me to tell you this part. My kids, because they’re pastor’s kids, get like the early release edition of the Easter sermon. It’s like the premium subscriber, except they don’t subscribe, and I just say it to them anyway. I said to my youngest daughter, my 13-year-old Maya, «I’m thinking about saying at the start of the Easter sermon, 'You’re all gonna die.'» Maya said, «Dad, don’t! It’s Easter; it’s supposed to be happy!» So I tried to justify myself, saying, «Well, Easter is about the resurrection of the dead. How can I talk about the resurrection of the dead if I don’t talk about people being dead?» To which she responded, «Dad, don’t!»
My kid was kind of right; you know, on Good Friday, we tend to talk about death and sin and the serious stuff, and Easter Sunday is for joy and happiness and hope. But I’m kind of right too. Death is something that all of us are going to face, no matter how fit we are. Some of us are closer than others, but all of us are mortal. We can try to avoid it and distract ourselves from it as we scroll on our phones, but sooner or later, you’re going to have to face it. What do you do with death—capital D death—your last breath? How do you face it? And all those lowercase d deaths, those little losses, the things that you had last year but not this year—how do you get through that with hope? How do you cope with the fact that some of you on this Easter Sunday are missing things that you had last year: a loved one who’s at the Easter table, a job that you loved, a pet that used to run around and eat up the Easter scraps. Sometimes, marriages don’t make it from Easter to Easter; sometimes, good health doesn’t survive from year to year. You’re going to face it as much as I do.
My question is, how do you deal with that? How do you face the reality of this death-filled world without just getting lost and depressed? How do you have this hope and joy that Christians talk about in a world where this is all around us? Today, I’d propose to you that Easter answers that question too.
So, as much as I’m tempted to spend the next 20 minutes talking to you about my favorite parts of Easter brunch (I could hint it would start with a cinnamon roll and end with another cinnamon roll), I’m going to leave the brunch and the bunnies for some other time. Today, I want to answer those two big questions and use Easter as the proof: what do you personally do with Jesus, and how do you personally face a world filled with death?
The Historical Reality of Easter
So let me remind you today, with an open Bible, why Easter is such a big deal. Grab a pen; let’s jump into part one: why is Easter a big deal? Here’s what I want you to write down: Easter is a big deal because, news flash, Jesus stopped being dead. Do you know the history? Thursday night, Jesus has gathered with his closest friends, and then one of them, named Judas, leaves and stabs Jesus in the back. He sells him out for a handful of money. He leads the soldiers to Jesus’s private prayer place. He’s arrested in the middle of the night, put on this totally unjust trial. He’s condemned, and by 9:00 a.m. on that Friday morning, he’s on a cross. By 3:00 p.m., Jesus of Nazareth is dead. When I say dead, I mean physically, biologically, no breath, no heartbeat, no brain waves—dead.
I was reminded of the gravity of that moment when I read an archaeological news story from 2017. Did you hear about this? Sixty miles north of London, in a little town called Fenstanton, archaeologists were digging. They found this full skeleton of a man in a grave that dated all the way back to the Roman Empire. They found the skull; they found the ribs; they found the arms; they found the legs. And what do they find smashed through this man’s heel bone? A two-inch nail. He was a victim of crucifixion. This reminded me of something I saw with my own eyes—a picture I took in Jerusalem of another man they found outside of the city. The nail was bent so the Romans couldn’t pull it out; they left it in his bone.
Can you imagine what it would have been like to be crucified? In fact, when they examined this man’s bones north of London, they saw signs of major trauma. And maybe one of the more traumatizing things, right next to where the nail was, was an indentation. The Romans had tried to pound the nail through; it wouldn’t go in, like a screw in your wall. They pulled it out, tried again, and killed him on a cross. And that’s how Jesus ended up dead. Can you imagine what he went through for us?
Let’s try to just feel a glimpse of it. Would you put your hand out like this for a second, all of you? Would you take your thumb and put it right here between the bones and push, just for two seconds, as hard as you can? Jesus, who is truly human, who came down from heaven with flesh and blood and bones and nerves—the Romans didn’t push, they pierced. But the Bible says that Jesus did that, and he actually chose that out of inexplicable love for people like us. Sin was serious in the eyes of God; there was a price that had to be paid. And instead of sending us the check, Jesus picked up the bill. He came down from heaven, took on flesh and blood as a human being, and he died on a cross. He was dead there for the forgiveness of my sins and yours. And if that seems too good to be true, then on the third day, just like he said, Jesus stopped being dead.
Do you know the history of that too? All of his friends assumed that dead people stay dead, just like you would. So his female friends went to honor their dead friend Jesus, except the big stone in front of the tomb was rolled away and the body was gone. They assumed someone must have taken Jesus; he has to be dead, until Jesus was standing in front of one of them, definitely not dead. They ran to tell the other disciples, and they thought it was nonsense. «Come on, ladies, dead people stay dead.» Until Jesus appeared to them too—definitely not dead. One of the guys named Thomas wasn’t there on that first Easter evening, and he said, «No, no way! Come on, unless I see it with my own eyes, I’m not believing you—dead people stay dead.» Until the next Sunday, Jesus appeared— not dead. People like Saul of Tarsus, who thought that Christianity was fake, just another twisted religion that people make up—that’s what they thought. In fact, he persecuted Christians with his own hands until Jesus showed up on the road to Damascus—definitely not dead.
Why is it now that 2,000 years later we count the date on our calendar from the approximate number of years since Jesus lived? It’s because he was not just some teacher; he was not just some religious founder. He was the guy who made the biggest claim in the world: «I am God among you, » and he fulfilled the greatest promise in the world: «I will come back to prove it.» That’s why the Christian faith did not take centuries and centuries to develop some big ideas about the resurrected Jesus. Let me read to you 1 Corinthians 15:4: «For what I received, I passed on to you as of first importance; that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, another name for Peter. Then he appeared to the twelve apostles. After that, Jesus appeared to more than 500 of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.»
Why did Peter stake his whole life on Jesus? Why did Paul give up his comfort and his riches to follow Jesus? Why did the early Christians face crazy persecution, some of them being persecuted and crucified themselves, to be faithful to Jesus? Why would they believe these big things—that Jesus is bread and light and resurrection and life? The answer is because Jesus did the biggest thing in the world: he died for their sins and he was raised from the grave, just like he said.
Speaking to Three Groups
So what about you? What do you do with Jesus? Well, I know on Easter Sunday there are all kinds of people in church today and all kinds of you watching at home. So let me speak to three groups; I’m guessing you’re in one of these three. First, I want to speak to those of you who are the kind of Christians who are all in with Jesus. Like this passage said, he is of first importance to your faith, your schedule, your budget, your values—everything. But let me speak to those of you who know you believe in Jesus; you consider yourself Christian. You do believe he died for your sins, you do believe he came alive on Easter morning, but you know it’s not like you’re super religious about it. Then finally, let me speak to those of you who aren’t quite sure: is this true? Is this religion really any different than all the other religions? Are you really saying a dude rose from the dead?
Let me start with the familiar faces here in church. I know a lot of you who are incredibly committed Christians. You are wagering so much on Jesus, right? Your weekend schedules are busy enough, and yet you carve out time as a priority to be in a place like this to lift up his name. Some of you, before you’ll eat a single bite of any meal on any day of the year, will fold your hands and speak the name. Some of you, when you make your budget—even though you’re not a billionaire—you give to the poor because Jesus said to give, to spread his name, because that’s what Jesus wanted. Some of you actually determine what’s right or wrong not based on how you feel or what your friends think, but on what Jesus said in this book that he loved you. You bet an insane amount on Jesus.
Easter would say to you, «Good choice!» If Jesus was just some philosopher back in the day, like any other philosopher, you might be taking a big risk. But if he really loved you enough to die for you, and if he really pulled off the greatest confirmation of his authority and identity by conquering the grave, you are no fool for opening the book every day, for speaking his name before every meal, for prioritizing your schedule, your values, your budget, your life. If Jesus is of first importance in everything you do, if you love him more than your spouse, more than your kids, more than this nation, more than your own feelings or instincts, you’re no fool.
If there’s a God who actually loved you enough to come down from heaven so you could get to heaven, who shed his blood so God would not be mad, but pleased with you, the most logical thing in the world would be to follow him with all of your heart, all of your soul, all of your mind, and all of your strength. But what about if you’re not there yet? What if you’re in group number two? You know it’s Easter, so you’re in church, but you’re not always in church. You’re a spiritual person, but not super religious. What does the Easter message say to a person like that? Honestly, I think Easter would say, «Nah, that doesn’t make sense. Wait. You believe that God died a gritty death on a cross? He rose from the grave to conquer your fear of death, and you’re going to treat him like your dentist? You’re going to stop in twice a year on Christmas and Easter and call on his name if there’s an emergency? No, no, no, no, no offense, but that doesn’t make any sense.»
I was trying to figure out how I would explain to Peter and Paul and Mary Magdalene the concept of worshiping Jesus with other Christians two times a year, and I think they would have gone, «Huh?» You can reject him if you want to; you don’t have to believe in him. But if you believe in your heart that God died for you, that he conquered the grave for you, then being kind of spiritual just doesn’t make sense. Jesus won’t allow it, and that’s why Jesus wants you here today. I get how it happens: life gets busy. You get your job in high school; you’re trying to pay off college debt, establish yourself in your career; the kids have tournaments. Things get busy; you kind of drift from those habits. But today, Jesus wants to remind you that Easter is a big deal.
Right? Following Jesus is worthy of our time, our everything, because this is the Jesus who gave up everything so we could have everything spiritual in the presence of God. You might be here out of habit or because Grandma really wanted you to come to make her happy on Easter, but God has you here for a greater purpose. He wants to be your bread that feeds you every day. He wants to be your light, so you never walk in darkness. He wants to be your vine so you can produce fruit. He wants to be your way, so that you know truth and have life. Today is God’s day of calling you back to a full-hearted commitment to the real Jesus. He’s worth it, and he still proves it.
But maybe you’re one of those people who’s not even sure, and when you hear that, you’re like, «Wait, Jesus wants my life? He wants me to surrender everything to his truth?» And you’re not so sure. Well, I respect the fact that you’re here today, and I hope that this story and the historical background of it just makes you curious enough to at least explore it. You might not buy it yet; you might not be back next Sunday. We don’t want your money; that’s not why we’re here. We would be remiss if, on Easter Sunday, we didn’t just ask you to, at the very minimum, understand the real Jesus. Because what he’s offering you is so good. He’s worth living for, and he’s worth dying for.
That’s why I really hope you can pick up one of these little books called «The Basics.» One of the main parts of this is about you and Jesus. This new edition is only 36 pages long, and I know some of you don’t read, so if that’s you, the chapter on Jesus is nine pages long—pages 20 through 28. After you get up from your Easter brunch coma, you could read this before the day is done, and I hope you do. If you’re watching at home, you can go to timeofgrace.org/backslashthebasics. If English isn’t your first language, you can find loas or Spanish translation on that website too.
If nothing else, I just want you and need you to know who the unfiltered, unedited Jesus was. He was—he’s maybe more than you thought. And maybe there are more facts to prove this Christian faith than you ever believed. I hope you take a next step. This is the name that will be spoken literally by billions of people on this day. They will sing his praises and treat him like no one else, and I pray that you and I, no matter where we’re from, can too.
No One is Too Far Gone
Now, before I jump to part two, let me just say one thing real quick. I need to make sure that some of you know that what I just said is for you too. When I get to meet people one-on-one, I find that there’s always someone in church every single Sunday, and there are a lot of people like this on Easter Sunday who assume that they’ve missed their chance. Right? They’re the black sheep in the family; they’re the person with the messed-up family, the broken marriage, the abortion, the divorce, the years apart from Jesus. If that’s part of your story, maybe you think like, «Yeah, I’m probably never going to be good with God. I lived like I was demon-possessed as a kid; I’m never going to make it with the angels in heaven.» If that’s what you think, you make me think of that Uber driver I had just about a year ago. Crazy thing happened: my car wouldn’t start and I lost my voice on the same day. So I was texting my family to try to give me a ride to church. No one was answering, so I ordered an Uber. This big, like, pimped-out Jeep rolls into my driveway. This woman’s driving. I jump in the passenger seat, and she and I have the funniest conversation on the drive to church, with me texting and her talking. Our phone was kind of perched up there like Uber drivers sometimes. She could read my texts, and we were joking and laughing, and then Jesus came up. We were just a few blocks from church here. We drove past the gas station, and she commented on just how expensive gas was. And I thought about this gas-guzzling, pimped-out Jeep, so I texted her, «Time to get that Prius.» My text came up; she laughed. And then I added, «It’s what Jesus wants.» Ding!
And suddenly, she got kind of quiet. And literally as we pull into the parking lot of this church, and she drops me off at the front door, she says, «Well, it wouldn’t be the first time I disappointed Jesus.» I wonder if that’s what’s in the back of your mind when you hear that name—some memory of what you did, how far you’ve been from this book, this place, this God. But if that’s you, I need to remind you who started with Jesus in the first Easter story. Do you remember the names? Mary, the first witness—do you know her story? Demonic, dark—Jesus spoke her name and revealed himself as God to her before anyone else.
Peter… do you know that story? He was the dude who denied he even knew Jesus the Thursday before Easter Sunday, and he appeared to him too. The disciples who fled and bailed on Jesus—they were cowards, not courageous—and he appeared. And what did he say? You guys? No. He said, «Peace be to you!» And Thomas, the doubter who didn’t have great faith—Jesus appeared to him personally. And Saul, who was murdering Christians—Jesus appeared to him. He appealed to the broken, the sinful, the lost because the message of his death and resurrection, the forgiveness of sins, did not have exceptions or asterisks at the end of the good news. It was for them; it’s for me; and it’s for you. So however bad it’s been, however messy your story is, please don’t assume that your chance is lost and you are too far gone. Not for Jesus. Good Friday and Easter are the proof.
You Are Going to Die
Which means we’re ready for part two. This is the crowd participation part of the sermon. Are you ready for it? All right. I need you to turn to someone next to you, look them in the eye real quick, and find a partner. All right? Now repeat after me, ready? In a nice loud voice, say to them, «You are going to die!»
Well, that’s funny to you all, right? All right, yeah, that’s true. Grab a pen, write this down. I’m going to cover this part quickly: Jesus is a big deal because—sorry to bring it up—you are going to die! Now, lots of us laughed when we said that, but I thought about our church family, and I just know that today we had husbands and wives saying those words with major surgeries, chemo, and cancer. My neighbor was here at the last service; she has a brain tumor. The doctors say she probably won’t make it to next Easter. We try to rebrand in America. Death; you go to a funeral, and what do we call it now? A celebration of life? I’ve been to a lot of celebrations; they don’t feel quite like that. Sooner or later, you face it. When you come face to face with it, and you start to believe what the Bible says—that death is not our friend—it’s not part of the circle of life. It is an intrusion and an enemy that brings deep fear and sadness.
And my question to you is: how do you face that? When the diagnosis comes, when you get the phone call that there’s been an accident, how do you deal with that? And until that like capital D death day, how do you just deal with life—with all of its losses? When pets die, and pregnancies don’t come to fruition, when sometimes relationships that had so much hope are torn apart, when your hopes and dreams to stay sober or stay connected to someone fail—how do you deal with that?
Jesus: The Resurrection and the Life
Well, the Jesus who conquered the grave has the perfect answer. Let me share with you one last passage from the Gospel of John, chapter 11. Jesus spoke these words to his friend Martha: «Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live even though they die, and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this? '»
I love how honest Jesus is. He doesn’t say, «Hey, become a Christian, and you’ll never die.» He said, «No, even though you will die, even though you will suffer, Christians aren’t immune from the pain of this world.» And yet, what did he promise in the midst of it? He said, «Because I am the resurrection and the life, you will live even if you die.» Am I the only one in the room today who can’t wait to die? I think people get freaked out about death, maybe for good reason. The process sometimes is very, very unpleasant. But have you ever just thought about how it will feel when your moment comes? I mean, when I’m gathered at a service like Easter worship, and I see people from all different backgrounds, tribes, countries, and languages—and just hundreds of us are lifting up the name of Jesus—when the harmonies of a few human vocalists just melt my heart, can you imagine when you hear the first chords of billions of people from every place on the planet surrounding the angels in the throne of Jesus?
Can you imagine how that church service will feel? I mean, I love a good cinnamon roll, but can you imagine the feast in heaven? Right? Jesus, I mean, it’s better than anything we’ve ever experienced, and no one has to do the dishes after it’s done, right? Can you imagine the people you love being with? With all of us, flawed people—around that Easter feast in heaven, there’s no drama or division; there’s no worry or frustration. No one’s tired or moody; sin is gone; pain is gone; death is gone. No one excuses themselves to take an aspirin because their body hurts; it’s all gone. Instead, there is just Jesus, who is the life.
I know we sorrowfully miss the ones we love, but if you believe in Jesus, even though you die, you get to live—and I cannot wait for that day. Some people without faith fear death; you don’t need to. The one who believes in him will live even though they die. And if that weren’t enough, then Jesus said, «And until that day comes, I am not dead.» One of his last quotes to his closest friends was, «Surely, I will be with you always.»
You might kind of be wandering spiritually, unsure if you’re good with God, unsure about faith in God in general, afraid to die, struggling in life. Here’s where you are: Easter points you back to the path. Who is Jesus? The one who is the way that leads to the most beautiful sight you’ve ever seen—the face of a smiling and forgiving Father in heaven. So my dear friends in Jesus, Easter is a big deal because it is all about Jesus, the resurrection and the life. Do you believe this? If so, say Amen!
Amen!
Prayer
Jesus, thank you not just for being a good teacher, but for being a perfect Savior. If you were like all those other religious founders, you would have just given us the list of things to make God happy that we could never keep. But that wasn’t you. Instead, you kept the list in our place. You didn’t threaten us with condemnation if we didn’t do everything; instead, you just offered us the free gift of eternal life in heaven through your name. That’s why we trust you; it’s why we love you; it’s why we follow you, even when it’s difficult. Because you’re worthy, Jesus; you’re worth it.
I know on Easter Sunday, all kinds of people come, all kinds of people watch, all kinds of people listen, and all of us need a different nudge from you. So God, whether it’s reading a book, or coming back to church, or starting a conversation, or asking a question, please just give us exactly what we need in this moment. That we would be one step closer to you, the God of life, the God of peace, and the God of eternal joy. We’re so grateful for the hope that Easter gives and we’re so grateful for the joy that we find in your Son, Jesus. It’s in his name that we pray, and all God’s people said, Amen!
I know on Easter Sunday, all kinds of people come, all kinds of people watch, all kinds of people listen, and all of us need a different nudge from you. So God, whether it’s reading a book, or coming back to church, or starting a conversation, or asking a question, please just give us exactly what we need in this moment. That we would be one step closer to you, the God of life, the God of peace, and the God of eternal joy. We’re so grateful for the hope that Easter gives and we’re so grateful for the joy that we find in your Son, Jesus. It’s in his name that we pray, and all God’s people said, Amen!