Come, See. Go, Tell.

COME, SEE. GO, TELL.

A message for Resurrection Sunday

By Pastor Brian Wilbur

Date: April 5, 2026

Series: The Basics of the Christian Faith

Note: Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

INTRODUCTION

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the turning point of history. A Man, though not a mere man, has conquered death. “[Our] Savior Christ Jesus… abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” (2 Timothy 1:10). The door is open to new life in the green pastures of God’s abundant grace. Jesus says to those who believe in Him: “Because I live, you also will live.” (John 14:19)

The message this morning is made up of two parts. Part 1: Come, see. Part 2: Go, tell.

First, we must come and see. Early in John’s Gospel, Philip told Nathanael, “We have found [the Promised Savior], Jesus of Nazareth.” Nathanael asked, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip answered, “Come and see.” Later in John’s Gospel, the Samaritan woman told the townspeople, “Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did.” Over and over again, Scripture invites us to come and see, to come and behold the works of the Lord (Psalm 46:8), to come and hear the words of the Lord, to come and discover what in the world God is up to and what it all means.

Second, after we have come and seen, we must go and tell. The Samaritan woman had first of all seen and heard Jesus at the well, and something opened up inside her because of her encounter with Jesus; then she went and told others about it. Philip had first of all found the Messiah, and he was compelled by this discovery; then he went and found Nathanael and told him about it.

When the religious leaders told Peter and John to stop proclaiming the gospel, they answered: “[We] cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:20) After you come and see something marvelous and transformative, you have to go and tell others about it. Nothing is more marvelous and transformative than the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

PART 1: COME, SEE

So I invite you to come and see this morning. Come and see Him. “Come and see what God has done” (Psalm 66:5). Come and discover the goodness of the good news. “Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!” (Psalm 34:8)

Like it or not, we all face death

But before we taste of the goodness of His risen life, we need to taste the grief of death. Approximately 160,000 people die in the world every day, which means about 58 million people die in the world every year. Ever since Genesis 3, death has been a defining feature of the world. Though the numbers are staggering, we don’t grieve the numbers. It’s far too abstract. We were created for deep, interpersonal relationships, and when people close to us are torn from us through death, we grieve.

Just within the last couple of weeks, members of our church family have grieved the loss of three individuals. Mary’s father Bill died: he was 99 years old. Brian and Chelsea’s baby Nolan was stillborn. And that young man Seth died in a motorcycle accident. Three very different situations, and your own experience of grief in these cases depends on your relationships with the people involved, although we must learn to grieve with those who grieve, as Scripture says. But the first man, Bill, enjoyed a long life upon this earth, almost making it to his one-hundredth birthday. The second, Nolan, was alive in the womb but never made it alive into the world. We cannot know what might have been. The third, Seth, was taken away in the prime of life, at only 20 years old, and from a human perspective the promise of his life and personality and gifts was prematurely cut short.

Sometimes we have been prepared, and sometimes we have not been prepared, for the losses that come through death. As far as I can remember, the first time that I was overcome with grief on account of death was when I was fifteen years old and was attending the private family viewing of my grandfather.

Death isn’t a natural part of God’s original design for the world. Death is an enemy that wreaks havoc on our world, an intruder that disrupts our relationships with one another, an invader that disrupts our relationship with the physical world. Death casts a shadow over every human on the planet, and it afflicts each and every one of us.

Jesus came into a world marked by death

When our Lord Jesus Christ came into this world, He came into a world marked by death and the fear of death. Our Lord did not seek to remain aloof from the bitterness of death, but faced it head-on.

Early in his life, the toddler Jesus and His parents became refugees on account of persecution. King Herod felt threatened by the news that this Jesus might be the promised Messiah-King of Israel, so Herod intended “to search for the child, to destroy him.” (Matthew 2:13) At the angel’s direction, Joseph and Mary and Jesus fled to Egypt and took refuge there until Herod died. In an unsuccessful effort to kill Jesus, Herod “killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under” (Matthew 2:16). How could we measure all of that grief that came to those families, on account of Herod’s hate for the child-king named Jesus? About this grief Scripture says:

“A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.” (Matthew 2:18)

Rachel “refused to be comforted”. On another occasion, Jacob refused to be comforted when he thought his son Joseph had been killed. Sometimes we carry the grief for a long time.

Eventually Jesus returned to Palestine with His parents, and they made their home in Nazareth. Jesus grew up and, when the time was right, was inducted into public ministry through being baptized by His cousin, John the Baptizer. John’s purpose was to prepare the way of the Lord, and having done so, his ministry began to diminish. As it happened, John got on the wrong side of another government official by the name of Herod and on the wrong side of Herod’s mistress, and in the end John, the great prophet and forerunner of the Lord, was beheaded. Although Jesus still lived, it was only a matter of time before He Himself got struck by death.

Jesus manifested His power over death

But first, He had to manifest His life-giving power in the face of death.

A WIDOW’S SON (LUKE 7)

Do you remember the widow in the town of Nain (Luke 7:11-17)? Her only son had died, and the funeral procession was underway. Who would care for this grieving mother who was now bereft of her only son? The Lord Jesus came upon this funeral procession, and when He saw the mother, His heart went out to her with tenderhearted compassion, and He spoke to her, “Do not weep.” (Luke 7:13) It is risky to tell a grieving widow not to weep, unless you have the power to un-do the cause of her weeping. And so, Jesus stepped forward and placed his hand on the platform that was carrying the dead man. And then Jesus addressed that dead man: “Young man, I say to you, arise.” (Luke 7:14) “And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. Fear seized them all, and they glorified God” (Luke 7:15-16).

JAIRUS’S DAUGHTER (LUKE 8)

Jesus raised the widow’s son (in Luke 7). In the next chapter (Luke 8), Jesus raised a man’s daughter. She was Jairus’s “only daughter, about twelve years of age” (Luke 8:42). “And all were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, “Do not weep, for she is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead.” (Luke 8:52-53) The girl was dead, but the Lord had come to awaken her, and so it was as if she was only sleeping. Jesus took the girl “by the hand” and said to her, “Child, arise.” (Luke 8:54) “And her spirit returned, and she got up at once. And he directed that something should be given to her to eat. And her parents were amazed” (Luke 8:55-56).

LAZARUS (JOHN 11)

Not long before His own descent into death, Jesus visited His friends Mary and Martha in Bethany. Their brother and the Lord’s friend Lazarus had died a few days earlier. Martha met Jesus and said to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” (John 11:21-22)

We should pause here and call attention to a common experience that may affect you in the midst of grief after a loved one dies. This experience is especially present when a person dies young, for most of us don’t protest against the fact that people die after they’ve attained to a ripe old age. But when a person dies young, we may think to ourselves: ‘Lord, if you had been here, my loved one would not have died. Why weren’t you here? Where were you? Why didn’t you come through for us? Why did you let this happen?’ It is okay to ask these questions. It is important to pour out your heart and your grief before the Lord. There is no easy answer or quick-fix to these questions. But you will learn in time that the Lord is not absent, the Lord is not unloving, and the Lord is weaving together an overarching story that incorporates all of the tragedies and heartaches along the way. You will have to learn to trust Him at a deeper level. And this issue of trust is where Jesus directs the conversation with Martha. Jesus says to Martha,

“I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26)

As overwhelming as grief can be, as painful as the loss of the tangible relationship is, the real issue is whether we are connected to Him. He raises Lazarus, not mainly to restore the temporary pleasure of their earthly relationship with Lazarus, but so that they will see God’s glory manifest through Jesus, so that our confidence will be anchored in Jesus forever. The words of John 11:32-44 are tender and moving:

³² Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” ³³ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. ³⁴ And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” ³⁵ Jesus wept.³⁶ So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” ³⁷ But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”

³⁸ Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. ³⁹ Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.”⁴⁰ Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” ⁴¹ So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. ⁴² I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” ⁴³ When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” ⁴⁴ The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” (John 11:32-44)

The Lord of life raises Lazarus from the dead, and as a result many people believe in Him. But the chief priests and the Pharisees didn’t believe in Him. They only envied Him and felt threatened by Him, and so “they made plans to put him to death.” (John 11:53)

Jesus had to face His own death

Finally, after a life in which He had to face the reality of death at many turns, He faced His own death. All according to plan, as Jesus Himself taught His disciples:

“the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.” (Mark 8:31)

But they didn’t understand. They’re arguing about which one of them is the greatest. He tells them again:

“See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days will rise.” (Mark 10:33-34)

But they didn’t understand. James and John jockey for a superior position, and the other disciples are angry at James and John for thinking they were superior. That is when Jesus called upon them to embrace the way of humble service:

“whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:43-45)

We must not only believe in Jesus and in His redeeming grace; we must also be transformed by Him. The way of Jesus must transform us into humble servants who devote our lives to the well-being of others.

So, Jesus and His disciples are on their way up to the holy city. Jesus enters Jerusalem, cleanses the temple, instructs the people, is anointed with costly ointment at Bethany, eats the Passover with His disciples and institutes the Lord’s Supper, prays in Gethsemane, is betrayed by Judas, is handed over to the religious leaders, then is handed over to Pilate, and then is finally handed over to be crucified. Of course, all of this ‘handing over’ was not ultimately in the control of human hands. Jesus Himself said,

“For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him” (Mark 14:21).

In other words, His death on the cross is according to the script, that is, according to the Scriptures. And the apostle Paul reflected further:

“[God] did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all” (Romans 8:32).

Just as the prophet Isaiah had foretold many centuries earlier:

“Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief” (Isaiah 53:10).

JESUS DIED ON ACCOUNT OF OUR SINS

And why? Jesus didn’t die merely to experience what we experience. Jesus didn’t die merely to show us how to die. Jesus didn’t die merely to demonstrate what it looks like to be resolute in the face of death or what it looks like to have unflinching devotion in face of extreme suffering. Jesus didn’t die merely to reveal His power to conquer it. Granted, all of those things are part of the overall meaning of Jesus’s death, but the core meaning of His death involves our sin:

“But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned–every one–to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:5-6)

Scripture teaches that there is an indissoluble link between sin and death. Sin is the thing that leads to death: “the soul who sins shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4). Death is the consequence of sin: “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 3:23). God determined at the very beginning that where sin breaks out, the judgment of death follows (Genesis 2:17). This indissoluble link between sin and death is the reason that atoning for sin is the only way to conquer death, because sin is the means through which death entered into the world in the first place (Romans 5:12). Jesus is the God’s Passover Lamb who took away the sin of the world (John 1:29), and He took away sin by atoning for it, by making satisfaction for it, through His death on the cross. In so doing, He satisfied the Father’s justice, dismantled death’s center of operations, threw off the bonds of death on the third day, defanged the devil who had held people in bondage to the fear of death, and opened wide the gate for human beings to be renewed and reincorporated into life with God. Deep down, isn’t ‘life with God’ what you really want? Don’t you want to be healed of ‘the stain of sin’ and ‘the lies of the serpent’? Don’t you want to be a fully alive human being who lives as a friend of God and walks in the promise and abundance of His forever kingdom? Don’t you want His life and peace and joy to be embodied in your everyday relationships with other people?

Jesus’s first followers were beset by grief after He died

Of course, Jesus’s first followers didn’t understand all of this as it was unfolding. After Jesus died on the cross and was laid in the tomb, His followers were beset by grief. This grief is captured by the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Jesus met them on the road, but they didn’t know it was Jesus, and they explained to him the perplexing events of the previous few days. They said,

“[We are conversing about] Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.” (Luke 24:19-21)

Mark those words: “But we had hoped”. There in those words is the source of much grief. For grief is ‘our hopes were dashed’. We had hoped one thing or another, but it didn’t work out, and now our hearts are broken. We might think that there is a big gap between their hoping that Jesus was the One who would redeem Israel, and our seemingly smaller hopes. In reality, though, all of our dashed hopes in one way or another relate to the fact that we live in this fallen world, in a world marked by sin and death, by pain and loss. And remember, even these early disciples’ hope that Jesus was the One to redeem Israel was in many ways tied to their hope that Jesus would deliver them from bondage to Rome. In reality, Jesus’s redemption runs much deeper. But the point is, that our dashed hopes are the reason for much grief. ‘We had hoped that Bill would reach his one-hundredth birthday.’ ‘We had hoped that Nolan would receive a miracle.’ ‘We had hoped that Seth would live a long and fruitful life.’ ‘We had hoped that Jesus would have delivered us from this stinking mess [whatever that stinking mess is for you or for me]?’ How many of our hopes are dashed, and consequently we grieve.

For those two disciples on the road to Emmaus, their grief was now joined to confusion, as they go on to say:

“Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” (Luke 24:22-24)

But His followers began to see their Lord who had indeed risen from the dead. The two disciples on the road to Emmaus recognized Him later that day when they were eating bread with Him at table. The Lord appeared to Simon Peter. The Lord appeared to His disciples on multiple occasions. As these moments unfolded one after another, and as the Lord continued to instruct them, they had the opportunity to process what it all meant and to put the pieces of understanding together.

Ponder the impact of Jesus’s resurrection

At a very basic level, just ponder the immediate impact of His resurrection. Jesus’s resurrection means that the Father’s approval rests upon Jesus, and that Jesus is who He claims to be – the only way to the Father, the only way to true life. Jesus’s resurrection means that death has been defeated. It means that evil doesn’t get the last word. It means that the corrupt religious leaders don’t get the last word. It means that the Herods and Pilates of the world don’t get the last word. It means that when all is said and done, evildoers don’t win. It also means that there is a hope that transcends the ups and downs of the present world, a hope that transcends the ups and downs of the Roman empire (or the American empire), a hope that transcends the ups and downs of social, economic, or political pressures. Indeed, it means that there is another kingdom, a better kingdom, a kingdom that is not subject to worldly politics, human scheming, and eventual decay. It also means, contrary to some forms of pie-in-the-sky spirituality, that the physical world is good – Jesus has a resurrected body, and they could touch it, and they ate with Him after He had risen – and so we can experience the beauty of God’s kingdom right here and right now in this present physical world.

Once we have come and seen, once we have recognized His victory and tasted the sweetness of His resurrection, once we have experienced His transforming power, then we must go and tell others about it.

PART 2: GO, TELL

This ‘come, see’ leading to ‘go, tell’ is built into the very structure of the resurrection narratives.

An angel addresses the two Marys at the empty tomb

When Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James “went to see the tomb” (Matthew 28:1) early in the morning on the first day of the week, they were met by an angel who had come down from heaven. The angel told these women,

“Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” (Matthew 28:5-7)

“Come, see” the angel says first, followed by, “Then go quickly and tell”.

The risen Lord meets Mary Magdalene outside the tomb

This opportunity to ‘go, tell’ is reinforced when the Lord Himself met with Mary Magdalene on that very first day when He rose from the dead. John paints the tenderhearted scene for us in chapter 20, verses 11-18. I would like to read it slowly, and then share a poem that has been written about it. John 20:11 begins,

¹¹ But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. ¹² And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. ¹³ They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” (John 20:11-13)

Comment: Though Mary doesn’t yet understand that the Lord is risen, her heart is in the right place. She loves Jesus. And why wouldn’t she love Him? She had afflicted by seven demons – her life had been in ruins – and Jesus healed her. She loved the One who had set her free.

The passage continues:

 ¹⁴ Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus.^15a Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” (John 20:14-15a)

Comment: The Lord has a sense of timing, the Lord has a sense of dramatic suspense, doesn’t He? All throughout the Bible, God waits for the right time to reveal Himself to us. We must wait patiently upon Him.

The passage continues:

^15b Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” ^16a Jesus said to her, “Mary.” 

Comment: The Lord speaks her name! She recognizes Him! And joy reawakens in her heart!

The passage continues:

^16b She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). ¹⁷ Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” ¹⁸ Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her. (John 20:11-18)

She has come and seen the risen Lord, and now the Lord commissions her to go and tell the disciples.

Reflecting on this tender scene between Jesus and Mary, the poet Malcolm Guite wrote this sonnet:

“He blesses every love which weeps and grieves

And now he blesses hers who stood and wept

And would not be consoled, or leave her love’s

Last touching place, but watched as low light crept

Up from the east. A sound behind her stirs

A scatter of bright birdsong through the air.

She turns, but cannot focus through her tears,

Or recognise the Gardener standing there.

She hardly hears his gentle question ‘Why,

Why are you weeping?’, or sees the play of light

That brightens as she chokes out her reply

‘They took my love away, my day is night’

And then she hears her name, she hears Love say

The Word that turns her night, and ours, to Day.”[1]

The Lord turns our night into day, our darkness into light, our grieving into gladness. We come to Him with a faint and broken spirit, and He speaks love to our hearts and clothes us with grace. It’s not a fairy tale. Because Christ is actually risen from the grave, we who are enfolded in His love are restored to life. And so, the blessed Mary Magdalene, with joy reawakened, becomes the first ambassador of the risen Lord, and goes to her brothers and declares, “I have seen the Lord.”

Jesus commissions His followers to take the gospel to the world

Dear friends, it is our privilege to carry the message of grace to our still broken world. Many remain lost. Many have grief. Many refuse to be comforted. Many have given up on hope, because their hopes failed them in the past. Many have given up on love, because their hearts have been broken too many times. Many have given up on church, because the church let them down. And in the middle of all this sorrow remains the debilitating effects of sin. It’s not just that we’re a grief-laden people. We’re a guilt-laden people, and our sins have separated us from the living God. I suppose that there are some people out there in the world who think that the church’s mission is to condemn people for their sins. But that’s not our mission, is it? What does Scripture say?

“For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:17)

“In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.” (1 John 4:9)

If that’s why God sent Jesus into the world, then do you suppose that Jesus sent us into the world for a different purpose? Surely not!

On the evening of the first day of the week, the risen Lord Jesus Christ visited ten of His disciples (Judas had turned away, and Thomas wasn’t with them on this occasion). Picture the scene. These ten disciples had locked themselves inside where they had gathered, because they were afraid of the Jews (John 20:19). Then Jesus shows up and says, “Peace be with you.” (John 20:19) Then “[He shows] them his hands and his side.” (John 20:20) As the disciples interact with the Lord, they begin to relax. And in seeing the Lord, joy begins to crack open in their heart. (John 20:20) The Lord has come to them, and they have seen Him, and they have tasted His goodness. Now they must be commissioned to ‘go, tell’.

And so the Lord says to them a second time: “Peace be with you.” (John 20:21) And then: “As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” (John 20:21) “As the Father has sent me” – not to condemn the world, but to give life to the world. We could transpose John 3:17 this way: “For Jesus did not send his followers into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through their Holy-Spirit-empowered proclamation and embodiment of the gospel.”

The ‘Holy-Spirit-empowered’ part is really important. After Jesus told them, “I am sending you”, “he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”” (John 20:22) We cannot ‘go, tell’ as Jesus’s commissioned ambassadors unless we are filled with the life of Jesus, unless we are filled with the power of Jesus, unless we are filled with the Spirit of the living God who is bestowed upon us by Jesus.

After telling them, “I am sending you” and after imparting the Holy Spirit to them, He then focuses attention on the heart of gospel ministry: “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” (John 20:23)

The ministry of the gospel is most fundamentally about the forgiveness of sins, about sinners being reconciled to God, about sinners discovering the peace of Christ, about sinners finding new life. It is our privilege to proclaim the promise of grace and pronounce forgiveness upon all who turn to Jesus. It is also our sobering responsibility to make clear that there is no forgiveness for those who refuse to believe. God is not going to forgive you because you reckon yourself a halfway decent person, not nearly as bad as that guy over there. But God will gladly forgive you and welcome you if you would only trust His dear Son – crucified for our sins, risen from the dead, ascended into heaven, and mighty to save. Everyone who believes in Him passes from death to life. “Everyone who believes in him will [never] be put to shame.” (Romans 10:11) 

Having come and seen for ourselves, we must go and tell others to come and see the Savior of the world. There is no one or no thing in all the world more beautiful to see!

ENDNOTES

[1] Malcolm Guite, “XV Easter Dawn”. Available online: https://malcolmguite.wordpress.com/2012/04/08/easter-dawn/