How Do We Move From Confusion To Conviction? (Luke 24:1-12)

April 6, 2026·37 min·2 clips

The angels' question — 'why do you seek the living among the dead?' — is reframed as a challenge to anyone chasing fulfillment in things that can't satisfy.

1. Hope Church Podcast releases an Easter Sunday sermon by Pastor Todd Barham from Luke 24:1-12, titled 'How Do We Move From Confusion To Conviction?' 2. Barham is the senior pastor and church planter of Hope Church; no guest speakers appear; he also mentions launching a new podcast called 'Ask a Pastor' that week. 3. The sermon's core thesis is that the resurrection narrative in Luke 24 does not present a polished, triumphant scene but a progression through confusion, fear, and doubt before arriving at conviction. 4. Barham opens by identifying the post-pandemic erosion of trust — 'every expert with a smartphone had an opinion' and 'what was true one week changed the next' — as the cultural context in which Easter is being preached. 5. He argues that in a world of fake news, the resurrection is 'good news' and that 'without the resurrection there is no victory, no hope, no reason for us to be here today.' 6. Sermon point one — 'we start with seeking' — notes that the women came to the tomb before dawn expecting to anoint a corpse, not encounter a risen savior, and argues 'faith doesn't start with certainty, it starts with sorrow.' 7. Barham invites those attending out of obligation or grief to recognize that 'God meets people who seek him, even when they don't fully understand him.' 8. The two men in 'dazzling apparel' in Luke 24:4 are identified as angels; Barham notes the biblical pattern that every angelic encounter begins with fear and the phrase 'do not be afraid,' which he says 'never works.' 9. The angels' question — 'why do you seek the living among the dead?' — is applied broadly: Barham challenges the congregation to stop looking for fulfillment in approval, habits, and empty pursuits. 10. Point two — 'good news changes everything' — draws on the angels' declaration 'he is not here, he has risen' and Barham argues it is stated as fact: 'not might have risen, not we hope he has risen.' 11. He presents a historical argument: 'all the Roman government had to do was produce the body of Jesus and it would have killed the church — they never were able to do it.' 12. He frames the resurrection as testimony, not argument: 'the power of the resurrection isn't winning arguments, it's encountering a living savior.' 13. Point three — 'hide his words in your heart' — pivots on verse 8: 'and they remembered his words,' which Barham identifies as the actual turning point, not the empty tomb and not the angels. 14. He argues 'the resurrection didn't create truth, it confirmed what Jesus had already spoken,' and challenges those waiting for a new word from God to 'go back to what I've already told you.' 15. He distinguishes between using the Bible to 'justify your life' versus allowing it to 'transform your lifestyle,' calling everything outside the word of God 'fake news.' 16. Point four — 'now that you know the good news, go and tell it' — notes that the women ran back to tell the eleven, who responded with disbelief, describing it as 'an idle tale.' 17. Barham argues disbelief was the first response to the resurrection even among disciples who had heard the promise three times, and states 'disbelief is a natural response but it is not disqualifying.' 18. The sermon's tone is conversational and humor-inflected — jokes about Reese's eggs as a protein source, about the church's service time announcements being ignored — with sustained pastoral warmth across a four-point structure. 19. Those processing grief, doubt, or post-pandemic disillusionment with institutions who are open to a Christian framework will find this message directly addressed to their situation. 20. Those seeking doctrinal depth, academic theology, or unfamiliar with evangelical sermon formats are unlikely to find the content engaging.

As heard by us

A blunt Easter sermon that turns confusion, memory, and resurrection into one clear trust claim.

This Easter message keeps returning to one question: when everything feels scrambled, who can be trusted? It leans on Luke 24, treats the empty tomb as the ground for confidence, and links that claim to confusion, conviction, and the call to trust God.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

For when confusion is louder than confidence and you need an Easter reason to trust God right now.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Hope Church Podcast