Andreas Köstenberger and Justin Taylor wrote about “Five Errors to Drop from Your Easter Sermon” in Christianity Today. Here’s a quick summary:
1. Don’t say Jesus died when he was 33 years old: “Jesus would have been 37 or 38 years old when he died in the spring of A.D. 33.”
2. Don’t explain the apparent absence of a lamb at the Last Supper by only saying Jesus is the ultimate Passover Lamb: “Even if it isn’t specifically mentioned in the Gospel accounts, eating the paschal lamb was an important part of every Jewish Passover.”
3. Don’t say the same crowds worshiped Jesus on Palm Sunday and then cried out for his crucifixion on Good Friday: “First, it is not entirely clear that the ‘Hosanna!’ crowd acclaiming Jesus’ triumphal entry is the same group of people as the ‘Crucify him!’ crowd gathered before Pontius Pilate.... Second, both crowds are expressing passion based on misunderstanding.”
4. Don’t bypass the role of the women as witnesses of the resurrected Christ: “First, it is a theological reminder that the kingdom of the Messiah turns the system of the world on its head.... Second, it is a powerful apologetic reminder of the historical accuracy of the resurrection accounts.”
5. Don’t focus on the suffering of Jesus to the extent that you neglect the glory of the Cross in and through the Resurrection: “It is, as the writer of Hebrews put it, ‘for the joy that was set before him’ that Jesus ‘endured the cross, despising the shame’ (12:2).... Jesus’ earthly work is indeed ‘finished’ (John 19:30), but his glorious work of ruling, reigning, and interceding continues to this day.”
Read the details for each point in their article. And for more on #5, see “What Does Christ’s Resurrection Mean for Us?”: “Only Christ’s death could serve as our needed sacrifice, but only Christ’s resurrection could make Him our living priest.”