I'm a doer, not just a hearer. I am humble before the Lord. I'm obedient to the
Lord. I am mature in the Lord. I'm enthusiastic about the Lord. Say that
one again. I'm enthusiastic about the Lord. Say that with a little energy. I'm
enthusiastic about the Lord. I know that. Faith coming by hearing and hearing by
the Word of God. Amen. In the book of Luke chapter 24 verse 11 and 12, I'll
read into your hearing from the Newt King James translation. It says this and
their words, somebody said their words. It says, and their words seem to be like
idle tales and they did not believe them. But Peter arose and ran to the tomb and
stooped down and he saw the linen clothing lying by themselves and he
departed marveling. Somebody say marveling. Marvelling to himself at what had
happened. Amen. You may be seated. Now today we're gonna talk from a thought
that centers around the amazing resurrection. The amazing resurrection.
Most of you know this story. Most of you know about this week because it's the
most important week, most important day on the Christian calendar. Resurrection
exceeds Easter. I mean not Easter but Christmas. I'm sorry. Resurrection exceeds
Christmas because the world kind of accepts, Cliff, the fact that he was born.
Nobody argue about that. Nobody argue the fact that he lived. But when you tell
folk he got up, you're gonna have a problem. So the resurrection was a
combination of the most powerful and passionate week in Jesus' life and in
his ministry. And before I go back and take a look, you know, at Luke's version
of the resurrection, I want to just highlight some of the things that took
place during the course of the week. That span of time from his arrival in
Jerusalem to the triumphant entry of them saying, Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in
the highest. Last week we celebrated Palm Sunday and we had a good time
remembering that he rode in on a on a donkey on the coat of a donkey and and
they saw him as their Lord and Savior. We even got into a moment where we shouted
Hosanna because we understood that it's important for us to all realize that we
need him to save us. But now let me capture some things that happened after
the shouting was done and Jesus continued to be about his father's business. You
know, if I was to ask you to think about your week from last Sunday when you
were jumping, you shouted to Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday,
to now. Some of you probably can play back your week with ease. Some of you,
you know, if you're my age you may have a hard time at times. You may have to kind
of really ponder something, but some of y'all got good minds still and just you
can play back your week. There was some good and some bad. During the course of
the week, Cliff, somebody may have even lied on you just to mess your week up. So
you've got a reason to look forward to the resurrection because you want that
week good, bad, and ugly whether you want to or not. It's behind you, but it's good
for us to look back at times and just think about what we went through this
past week. Play back, and that's all I want to do today before we get back to our
Texas to kind of play back some of Jesus' week. Those of you who are old
schoolers, you probably got most of this week memorized in your head. Amen. So I
just want you to just play a little with me in your head. See how the Lord
suret you. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with the whole weekend of
things that happened between the shout and the cross, there's a lot of things
that went on. This may be new information to you, and I hope that some of it will
serve as a memorial in your heart and your mind to know that this week is
important, and more so this day is the most important day of all. Now immediately
after Jesus' glorious entry into Jerusalem, he went into the temple.
Somebody say the temple. And in Cliff,
they were shouting and saying, Hosanna, he go in the temple and get indignant.
We don't like to see Jesus being indignant, so I call it righteous indignation.
Make it sound a little bit better because nobody want Hosanna coming in
riding on the donkey to go in the temple and turn something over. But he went
into the temple and in his righteous indignation, he cleansed the temple by
driving out the money changers. Somebody say the money changes. And those who
sold doves, because they were taking advantage of God's people who were
coming in the town to worship. Cliff came in from out of town. He didn't have a
dove with him to offer up for a sacrifice. Bolden sitting in the temple
knowing that doves are going at a, you know, normally a dollar a dove, but
because Cliff has got a need that he can't meet and he didn't bring no dove
with him, this same dove, I'm gonna charge him $12 because today is the
important day. This is the Passover week. This is important celebration. Cliff
needed a dove. So I'm gonna make some money off Cliff. That's what they were
doing. They were making some money and now people in the church are making some
money off you. You just don't know it, but they,
so in his righteous indignation, Jesus said he was gonna drive out the money
changers and those who were selling the dove. See, look at your life. He went
into the temple. You ain't gonna feel that, but what you got to see, you're now,
you are the, and when he come in you, you got to let him,
the Bible says your body is the temple of a living God, for behold, so when I'm
trying to say when he ride in the town after you get to shouting, how's that?
You got to let him come in and drive some things out because you know there's
something just ain't gonna just leave your life. You're gonna have to let him
drive them out. These four weren't just gonna leave the temple. Some of the
gospel say he even got a some cars, Cliff plaiting together and whip. Little
Jesus coming in on a baby donkey. Now all of a sudden he get righteous and
indignant at the same and whip. See that ain't the Jesus that we like to talk
about. We like to talk about the Jesus with the lamb on his shoulder and the
humble Jesus, but this same Jesus when you come against things that is of his
father's business, he will whip you. He will display some righteous indignation.
He said it is written my father house shall be called a house of prayer, but
you have made it a dinner. There's some folks stealing in the church.
Somebody said it ain't so, but there are some folk stealing in the church. There
are some folks right now today as we speak stealing on the Lord's Day, on
resurrection Sunday. There are some people in the church. I won't go in the
ways how they steal, but you know there are people who know how to steal from
you even on resurrection. And we need the Holy Spirit to drive some of that out
of, let me move on that was just the beginning after you know Hosanna. Then
he started to heal the blind and the lame that was in the temple. By doing that
the religious leader, the chief priest and the scribe, you know they became
indignant. Now they get upset because the people start to praise Jesus for what
he is doing in their lives. They got so upset to the point that they
wanted to plot how to kill him. See sometime envy and jealousy would turn
into pure hatred. You know when you don't get control of your envy and your
jealous of how you look at other folk, you can develop a spirit of hatred. Well
you can just see people and you just don't know nothing about them, but you
just see them. Somebody done planted a seed in your heart and in your mind about
a person. You don't even know, but just by pure hatred can show up. And when pure
hatred show up, guess what? Your mild manner of behavior would turn into hate
to the point you want to hurt. You know right now I know this is resurrection
Sunday, but I got to resurrect the USA. You know there's a spirit of pure
going around in America right now on all sides. A spirit of pure. Anytime you go
in a school and shoot up some kids, that's just pure.
You need to be careful that that spirit don't come on you. Let me move on because
I said I wasn't gonna stay here long. We just recapping this week. He taught
several powerful and thought-provoking parables. He taught the parable of the
wicked wine dresser, which was about stewardship. He taught the parable of
the wedding feast. And the wedding feast was designed to let the Jews know
because they rejected his invitation that the call was worldwide, that the call
was universal, and because they turned him down, there would be others out there
who would accept the call. So that call of salvation is still going forth today.
It's going to be going forth on leaf and it's going to be going forth when our
children leave because it's an eternal call. Until Jesus come back, the call of
salvation is going to always be relevant. Somebody needs to get saved. All
mankind needs to know who Jesus is. Then he taught the parable of the five wives
and the five foolish virgins. Some of you know this, and he was stressing the
importance of being ready, Cliff, and being prepared for his return. And so you
got to understand the Bible, so he's coming back, Brother Herb, as a thief.
And then he's coming back. No man know the hour, the day that he's coming back,
but we all know that he's coming back. And he told us to watch and we need to be
living on alert. Right now, instead of you living on alert, some of you are walking
around sleeping when you ought to be living. You ought to be paying attention
to what's going on around you and the times that you're living in so that you
will be aware what's about to happen because the spirit can reveal some things
to you even before the newsman. We need to be alert. We need to watch and so my
question is just a simple one. Are you ready today? Do you even know like they
said, on what time it is? Some folks come in the church on Resurrection Sunday,
clueless. On Resurrection, clueless. And I dropped by on my way to Heaven just to
tell you better wake up and figure out what time it is in your life, where you
are in your walk. How much time you got? You better figure out what. Then he
entertained some questions from the religious leader. Those questions weren't
sincere. They were designed to trap him, to say something that would be against
the law. So they asked him questions like, isn't lawful to pay taxes to Caesar?
They weren't concerned about no tax. They weren't going to trap Jesus. See, we get
Caesar mad at him. And Jesus kind of said, well, look at the money. See who
picture on it? Lincoln, Washington, Benjamin. Look at the money. Whoever's on the
money, that's who you pay it. So some of y'all dropped by here to tell me, for me to
tell you in this tax season, you got to the 15. Oh, it's 18 now. Okay, help me out
right there. Because I know mine already pays. I'm good. Mine already pays. But you
got you got to give back to Caesar what's here. Hey man, you spend Caesar money.
You got to give Caesar his money. And I know someone got upset when he
answered that question like that. And then they asked him questions about the
first and greatest command. Like they really want to know how much they love
God, how much they got to love them neighbor, and how much they got to love
themselves. Then they asked him a question, you know, is it lawful to heal on the
Sabbath? That would be like, is it lawful for you to do some work to heal
somebody on Sunday? Now in Jesus' wildness, no, they didn't care about whether you
were sick or not. They were just trying to get him to break the law. So he flipped
the script and said, well, now if you had a donkey or oxen and he fell in a hole on
the Sabbath, are you gonna leave him now? And let me say it on Sunday. He fell in
the hole on Sunday. Are you gonna leave him now to Monday? But you know, you just
got to wait. It's Sunday. I don't do no work on Sunday. You just hold out to
tomorrow morning and I'll come get you out. But in the meantime, it's NBA season
two. It's not like I'm gonna be studying the world while I leave you in the hole.
I'm gonna be watching. I figured I'd lighten up the mood a little bit on
resurrection Sunday. Can we talk about the course of Jesus week? Then he had a
knockdown, what I call a knockdown, drag out tough conversation with the
religious leader, where he denounced and rebuked their lifestyle by emphatically
calling them hypocrites. You know, we will probably like the religious leader too.
If Jesus came and got in our lifestyle basically, you ain't got no business
looking at what I do when I'm in church, Jesus. What I do when I say amen and
leave him, no concern of yours. Jesus, I love you, but look at don't mess with my
life. Don't you come and rebuke my lifestyle? I'm gonna call me no hypocrite.
You just don't know. I got up early this morning to come hear word about you. So I
dare you. Let me come and sit and strive for two hours and not leave you. You
gonna call me a all because when I leave here, my lifestyle don't look nothing
like I look right.
See, long as I was talking about the religious leader, y'all was happy, but I
can feel some tension that's coming on right now. My spirit is sensing that
there's some tension and I just hope it makes you think about your lifestyle
when you leave here. Now, if you ain't living here for critically, he ain't
talking to you. You ain't gotta get mad at him. But if the shoe fit,
there ain't no Easter message. What that got to do with the resurrection? I'm trying to resurrect you.
I know Jesus them God up and I ain't sure about you. I want to make sure you.
You know, that exchange enraged them to the point that they no longer was
thinking about killing him. They developed a plan to kill him. That plan
even included getting one of Jesus very own disciples to betray him for
30 pieces of silver. You know, I tell people all the time, betrayal is always
the inside. People who don't know you can't betray you. So it's people who are
close to you that have become too close to the enemy. In other words, there's some
people that you call your besties, but they are also friends with your enemy.
And they are the ones that can go back to your enemy and talk about. So you got
to be careful who you just label your besties, your rider. Because all of them
may not be riding and dying with you until they find somebody else they can
ride. So Jesus had one of his very own that he a disciple. We call him Judas.
I guess that's why you know about the name they kid Jews today. That name
Judas just got a bad rain. You know you say, Judas, you look at your kid, Judas.
Judas, they don't think about nothing good when they hear the name. Someone who
betrayed him. And then after that, he had that moment, what I call an honorable and
gut-riching moment in the God. You know, proud of that he had told Peter, hey Peter
man, look, you gonna betray me. You gonna deny me. But like most of us clear.
Oh the moment Peter said, I'm with you. To the end. You know, and I just drop out of
town before I get to the garden that sometime talk is,
see you don't really know what you will do until you under pressure. When there's
no pressure is on you. You'll do say anything. But when pressure in the old
day, when you say pressure bus pipe and some people just can't handle even people
who say I'm gonna be. So all that leads him to this garden where he go through
this trial of his own because in the flesh, clips, they want to really die
for you. He knew what his assignment was, but when it was time to fulfill that
assignment, he had to go and reconcile some different within himself. Because he
went to the Father's and law if it is possible. Not just one time, clear. He
went if it is possible, take this cup away from me. I didn't see what they're
about to do to me. And if it's possible, there's another way to get there. Crying
so hard. Somebody said that his sweat was like
cause he was under. And if I know if Jesus had a hard time handling
pressure, I know what you gonna do. If you don't have a spirit of God in you
when you're under.
I don't know what that pressure may be. It may be pressure from your fiance,
your boyfriend, your girlfriend, maybe present from your job. It may be
pressure from your mama and your daddy. But it's still
and what are you gonna do
when you're under?
Are you gonna say, Father?
If it's not possible, not my will,
but your will be done. In other words, God, this situation that I'm in is not
gonna change, but God, in spite of what I think about it, in spite of what I
feel, God let your will be done and not mine.
That's what you gonna have to do when you're under.
Cause it's easy to say God, your will be done in my life when there's no
pressure in your life.
When your fiance gave you an automaton
and telling his ride or die time and you just say, nah, we wait, we get married.
Pressure. Pressure.
Lord, if it be that will,
or it's gonna be her will or his will,
pressure.
He's right now, he's either on Sunday morning or early or Easter Sunday morning.
He's either to say, hey, the pressure ain't real, but wait, wait, wait, wait.
You got to leave here.
He got to be real bold and put pressure on you in here.
Let me move on. Let me, I'm just talking about pressure.
I don't got caught up in a moment there. Let me just talk about pressure.
But even under pressure, Jesus could have wimped out because he could still do
his will. He realized he had to submit to the Father's will. Now get this, your
life is not going to get any better until you start submitting to God's will.
Now he going to let you do whatever you want to do, when you want to do it, who
you want to do it with, because he is not going to violate your will.
But the minute you want your life to get on this resurrection Sunday, you came
here to hear me tell you, if you want your life to get, you're going to have
to submit your will to his will and then believe that his will for your life is
better than your very own. That he know more about you than you know about
yourself. Now following that precious moment, that precious moment in time,
Jesus was betrayed and then he was arrested. First he faced religious
leaders, the Sanhedrin Council, where they tried to bring people to falsely
testify against Jesus. In other words, they went out and found some people to
make us some lies about Jesus so that they could have enough evidence to take
him before the Romans so that the Romans could put him to death.
Jews did not have the authority to kill. They can judge each other, but the
Romans had to execute judgment when it comes to killing, but we were called
capital punishment. They can execute punishment for minor offenses, but when
it came to capital punishment, going to the cross, only the Romans could do
that. So now in order to get a case to the Romans, they got to go out and get
some liars. They got to find some people that are going to tell some lies on
him, say he violated their rules, their laws, anything that would cause them to
him look like he came against Rome so that now we have justification to take
him to be crucified. Now get this.
I think that's in here today to let some of y'all know before the week's
out, or even maybe even last week, you had some liars in your life. Some
folk just lie. And when they couldn't get the case, they went out and got
other folk just lie. You know, it's easy to get folks to believe a lie and
spread a lie more so than true. And I want to warn you that before this week is
out, some of you, somebody's gonna, and when they lie on you, you don't even need
to get offended. You don't need to get all out of salt and go back to your old
nature. You just say, hey, the spirit told me you were gonna show up this week.
I was expecting you to tell that lie. See, when you can't expect certain things
before it happens, you don't have to react the way people think you're gonna
react when they catch you by surprise.
So now he's before the council. The council didn't have enough, but they got
people to lie and then they now take him to the Romans. You know, and as he was
standing before power, you know, he really didn't want to kill Jesus. He had
some options, Cliff. There was another thief out there, that was somebody else,
a notorious criminal. And the Romans had this policy that I guess we were called
like when the president can pardon you, no matter how bad you've been. If you get
the presidential pardon, he's setting you free. And so the Romans had a policy that,
hey, we're willing to set somebody free. But when he wanted to set Jesus free,
because he didn't have enough evidence, the people rose up in an uproar and
they said, look, we want the other guy. We want you to release the criminal, but
put that guy to death. They just rose. And Cliff, I think brother Anthony said this
on Friday night. Some of those same folk that were shouting ho, a week ago and now
saying, y'all know the story. Some of the same people that were patting you on your
back last Sunday, it's stabbing you this. Some of the same people that say, I love
you today, next week. They'll be saying some things against you. They don't say,
where did the love go? The same people. So look here, you got to be careful what
people say with their mouth, because the mouth is not always a clear indicator
was truly in their heart, what they think about you. And so therefore you got to be
able to discern what people really think about you. So when they laugh in your
face and they skin and grin with you and they pat you on the back, you better say,
hey, the Holy Spirit that already revealed to me that today you said pat pat pat
and the next week you're going to be said crucified, crucified. The last week we
were taking off our clothes, laying them down in front of them, Hosanna. But all
because maybe he didn't do what we wanted him to do this week. He didn't live up
our expectation. We had an expectation that he won't come back like this powerful
king and overturn the Roma, but he didn't even overturn the Roma. If he didn't do
that, he is of no use. So we might as well crucify him. He didn't already got on
our last nerve when he rebuked us and called us hypocrites. So we might as
well go ahead and crucify. Might as well go ahead and just let him be killed.
Not realizing that even though it looked bad, it was all part of God's
plan. What they were meaning for evil, going to turn out and work for our good.
The thing that they thought was going to be the end of the story, just open up
the final chapter of the story. You know, Tonya said on Friday night that
that was not the last episode. It was just a cliffhanger to get you to come back
today to see how the story really ends. And see, I just about to tell you that
look, even though they took him, gave him to the Roma, they beat him down. You saw
the story on Friday night. You heard about it. Maybe they even alluded to some of
it this morning. Beat him down, nailed him to the cross, across, across the
instrument of death. Not just a quick death clip, but a slow and pain for death.
Where he hung on that cross, at least from noon to three, dying. The Bible say the
earth became dark while he was dying. Some even mentioned that again on Friday.
His seven last says why he was on that cross.
Then, when he finally releases spirit back to the father,
like most of his disciples, along with the Roma, and probably even some of you
sitting in here today thought that that was the end of the story.
Can I make it real? I think all of us have buried a loved one.
And over time, the feeling that you had when they were, you were at the grave
is not the same feeling that you have a year from now.
Because you move on with your life. Jesus' disciples moved on with their life.
All that teaching Clifton, he did, all the things he said, even though he told me
they're going to destroy this temple. And in three days, I'm going to write it
from the day they didn't get it. They didn't get it. They just believed what
they heard and what they saw at the time. I know they don't put the tomb there.
They don't put a stone in front of it. It must be.
So they started living like it was. There are a lot of people in church on this
very Sunday morning who's living like this.
They don't see life after death. They see death as the final
chapter. So when things get to that point, they give up hope.
And when loved ones die, they give up hope of ever seeing them
because they have a problem understanding the Resurrection.
If they understood and believed the Resurrection,
they will see death as a transition from one part of life.
I know you can't get that right down because that's something that is
for us to get in our natural minds. Sometimes natural truth is hard to
comprehend when you can't believe what you're hearing.
So we get back to our text. I'm going to finish up this.
Chapter 24. And let me start with verse one.
And I read through to verse 12. Chapter 24.
Luke's story. It says, now on the first day. Somebody say the first day.
Now on the first day of the week. That's why where we get Sunday from and that's
why we worship on Sunday. Because in the Christian phase, for the
most part, we have put Sunday in health, Sunday in high esteem.
That's why on the Roman calendar, Greek calendar, whatever calendar that came
from, Sunday is considered the first day of the week.
Because in the Jewish culture, you know, the Sabbath was Saturday.
And so what happens is when Jesus died on Friday afternoon,
you know, on the cross, three to six, well Friday is counted and in at six o'clock.
Friday's over in their calendar. Then now becomes the Sabbath,
which is from Friday night at six to Saturday night at two days.
So at six o'clock one on Saturday night, we're on the third day.
And I'll capture and count it. You say that's less than 96 hours. That's
less than 72 hours. How? That way. Yeah. Well, don't get wrapped around
the acts about the way you count hours. You got to look at it how God counts.
Not how you count. Because if you look at it how you count,
you'll be looking on the wrong.
You'll be like these guys sitting down and then forgot all about the third.
Okay. So on the first day of the week, very early, some say very early.
You know, still dark early before the rooster crow.
Early. You know, this will be like our three four
clock in the morning. Some of y'all ain't familiar with that time.
Some of y'all don't even know what it's like. Three or four o'clock.
No, they're there for me. And because you know you deep somewhere.
You know, you you turn over at that time. That's your last turn.
Because for you, they don't even start to seven o'clock and eight o'clock.
You know, it's just three o'clock in the morning early.
Me trying to find Jesus at three o'clock in the morning.
Ain't happening, captain, because I got up. Oh, Lord.
Early. I just dropped by again to tell you sometime
if you want to seek the Lord, you will have to find him early.
You will have to be in convenience to get up out of your deep sleep.
When the Spirit of the Lord touch you at three o'clock in the morning,
you need to wake up early and seek him so that he can be.
Stop lying to yourself like you're going to pray at nine o'clock when you get up.
You might want to set your phone for three o'clock.
Inconvenience yourself. I'm challenging some of y'all right now because
you know, he said we got to watch and he didn't say what time you ought to be in
a prayer for mine all the time. But I just want to challenge you
early on Monday morning. You got to go to work anyway.
So early tomorrow morning, three o'clock, four o'clock. We'll split the difference.
Just say four o'clock. I'll give you a break.
Just when you go home, just hit your phone. I'll phone and tell you to do it all.
You ain't ready to trust your spirit.
I can hear some of y'all thinking right now. I'm going to just let the spirit wake me up now.
You ain't ready yet.
You ain't ready to trust your spirit right now. You need to trust the clock.
Once you start trusting the clock, then your spirit will kick in.
My spirit wake me up every morning about the same time
when sports center is on about five o'clock in the morning.
I don't even have an alarm clock. Every morning I wake up at the same
sports center on.
Then Kishon J. Wheeler, Matt. Every morning wake up right there at that time.
I don't even set no clock because my spirit be looking for Kishon J. Wheeler.
Some of y'all sports people know who I'm talking about.
But I'm trying to say that same spirit can wake me up and say Jesus is calling
on you to wake up and pray. He's speaking to you in the same way as
I'm trying to tell you. Sometimes you've got to sacrifice and seek him early.
Early in your life, early in the morning. Man, can you imagine what it would be
like if your children truly found him?
What your life would be like if you had truly found him?
They, the word says, bear early in the morning. They and certain other,
somebody say women, with them. Wow. This was an all-woman movement.
Not a man to be found.
Early in the morning. Now they went out there for a different reason,
but the boys could have been looking too if they had been countenanced.
They should have known on the third day something was supposed to happen.
So now we got all these women and I can't understand why do we want to silence
women in the church today when they got up early on resurrection morning?
While the boys were sleeping in and then fearing running for their lives,
women got up.
Certain women, not just one, early.
They came to the tomb bringing spices which they had prepared. In other words,
these women realized that we didn't get time to prepare his body properly
on fry because you know the Sabbath here and we couldn't do no work.
So we had to stop, but now the Sabbath is over and it's early.
So we can go and do what we normally would have done by putting spices on his
dead because you know when Lazarus in the tomb
is having the third day, you know he's stinking.
They didn't want Jesus to be stinking on the third day
even though they was doing something good they didn't go that with their mind
that he wasn't.
They was doing the right thing in Resolatum, but they went that with an
attitude that he must still be, still be dead.
He got to be dead. We bring his spices so he don't stink.
We don't want him stinking up the tomb, you know what I mean? So we're gonna bring
well that's better than the men. Men didn't bring nothing.
In fact they left him on the cross some of them. They just gone, scattered.
Sorry boy, they ain't a ride or die. I'm a ride or die with you.
Then when he died they run.
So I believe there's some ladies that are ride or die more than some brothers.
So look at this, but they found the stone rolled away from the tomb.
Verse 2. Now Luke said that when they got there
they asked them on themselves who gonna roll the stone away.
So they went there with the expectation that somebody had to come in
take action. They needed help. We need some men to do this,
but God knew the men scared.
So when I can't get a man to do what needs to be done I'll just send an angel.
Down. Now he's gonna send an angel. At least don't get in my story now.
I done already brought the women in the story. I gotta bring the angel in the
story. Because ladies no matter what you think
you couldn't move them.
Your heart was in the right place, but God had to send an angel.
Now I ain't trying to speak to women weakness and anything and
well, but every now and then, ladies, you just need a man.
I know you say I don't need a man. I got my education. I got this. I got that.
But every now and
if you can't find a real one, find an angel then.
But no, the every now and
then. Oh Lord, I don't got off script here. Let me
get back over here because the women realized that they could not
roll the stone away.
They realized that. So God understood that they knew they couldn't roll the
stone. So because the boys were scared, he sent a
angel. Matthew's virgin say the earth quaked
and an angel of the Lord came down and moved the stone away.
See sometime there's some things in your life that's blocking you
from where you're trying to go and you can't move it
by yourself. You need to say God, I need you to send me some
because if you don't send me some help, this thing is going to keep me from
going where I'm trying to get.
But you got to have a heart to be trying to go somewhere.
I don't need to send you no help if you ain't doing other standing still.
If you ain't doing another marching time in place, I only need to send you some
help when you at least move into water director
that I want you to go in. But as long as you just meditating on it,
thinking on it, I really...
Verse 2 says they found the stone rolled away from the tomb.
Verse 3, they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
Verse 4, and it happened as they were greatly,
somebody said, perplexed. See they went in thinking one thing but when what they
were thinking did not happen, they got kind of perplexed.
You know how it is with you and I'm like that now. I go into certain situations
thinking one thing and when I'm thinking don't happen, I get
puzzled. I get bewildered. I get kind of confused.
Hey, what's going on? Somebody needs to slow this down
and tell me what is going. I came in thinking one thing and all of a sudden
I walk in here and I see something entirely different.
They went in looking for a body but when they got there,
they had the wrong expectation.
Even though they went, their expectation was just like the man.
They didn't expect him to be gone. So it happened when they were greatly
perplexed about this that behold, two men, the Bible says here,
Angelic being stood by them in shining garment.
They then as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to
them, why do you seek the living among the dead?
Man, y'all got to get there. It sounds like a simple little old question
but man that is a powerful question. Why are you trying to find
the living among dead things? Some of your life is not, your life is not
where it's supposed to be because you're looking among dead things.
Trying to find life and you can't find life that's going to make your life
better when you're hanging around.
Sometimes the dead things in your life got to, that's why they died.
They got to. I ain't talking about relatives and all that.
I'm talking about dead things that you're doing that don't bring nothing
beneficial to you. You're doing some things that just
is not beneficial to your spiritual growth. They're dead.
Like they say, you just carry around dead weight.
So they had enough sense to bow down and worship and show
profound respect when they got there. Then look at this. They ain't to give them
this revelation. He is not here but he is wise.
That's the whole reason we're here today because of that.
If that don't happen then everything that we're doing in the church
is in vain. If the resurrection didn't take place
then you might as well let's just leave here. Don't come back next year
and let's just go to the beach on Sunday. Let's just go and have us a beach
bash on Easter Sunday morning and just go and have some fun because
all we're doing now is in.
That's why it's important for you to believe in the resurrection.
Even though you may not understand it, you may not be able to comprehend it all
with your natural mind and your heart. You still got to believe that Jesus rose
from the dead. You got to believe that he got up on the
third day just like he said and now he's seated at the right hand of the father
in the seat and for you. You got to believe that. If you don't believe that
then guess what? Chris Daddard would be nothing more than
a formality for you. I go to church out of former
lizard. See today I did something on purpose. I came up here with my shirt
tell out you know comfortable shoes on
but back in the day
this was that day.
If mama ain't had no money for nothing else
she had some money for Easter.
We were gonna we were gonna get a basket and we were gonna get some new clothes.
We know that we were gonna get some new clothes and back there you know you got
them pattern leather. You can tell there was Easter Sunday
because all them little girls come in with them pattern
them long can-can dresses, pattern leather and then we had our
baskets.
That was our understanding of we didn't come now thinking about the
resurrection and how important it was to this story.
We can't never want to be dressed up because we got to look good on Easter.
When if you're going to dress up you ought to be dressed up on every Sunday
that you come to church.
So years ago this Easter a child would not have worked
for me because I wanted to be dressed up. I wanted to be
casket ready clean. From my head to my toe.
I mean the shoes I used to wear I believe will live again
because you pour water on them and they start moving.
But that was back in the day. I still got them but now you can pour water on
these and nothing don't happen.
So my point is is I don't want this day become such a formality and we dress up
for this day but we don't dress up for the rest of the year.
We don't live for him the rest of the year. We don't carry ourselves for him
the rest of the year.
Luke would they ain't you had to say verse six he is not here but he is risen.
Somebody say remember somebody shout remember.
Remember how he spoke to you spoke to you spoke to you.
Guess what he's talking to a bunch of women and he's saying y'all ought to
remember how he spoke to. So that means that these women was
privy to some of the same conversation that the boys were.
Remember how he spoke to you when he was in Galilee saying the son of man
must be delivered be delivered into the hands of sinful men in
Romans and anybody else who came against him and be crucified and the third day
rise again and look at verse eight say they
remembered his word. You came here today so that you can remember
some of Jesus word. You got to remember something that he has said
and spoke to your heart from this word and you got to be able to call it to
ring. Every now and then when you go to church
you don't come here just to come you come here to get something inside of you
so that when times get tough in your life you can say I can remember what he
said. He told me to love my enemy. He told me to
build my house on a rock and not on sand. My life should be built on stuff
they're gonna toss me to and he told me to let my life so shine that man
shall see my good works and glorify the father.
So he's telling me hey I remember when I leave here
I can't walk in darkness I got to let my life
you got to remember something and what you remember maybe not be what the
spirit bring to me but all of you ought to have a
remembrance of what the Lord has said to you.
So when times get tough in your life his words can comfort you
his word can also challenge you and his words can convince you
that what you believe in is not a lie.
Verse nine then they return from the tomb
and told all these things to the eleven.
And eleven though I'm gonna just say for the lack of a better term
the boy. They went told the boy and and to all the
rest most of them boys maybe some women sprinkled in but the
level was the key. Now look at this it was Mary Magdal,
Joanna, Mary the mother Jane and the and the other
women. They don't even say how many of them was
boy I know they were in trouble you get that many women coming at you boy you
you're in trouble. You just they were struggling when they got the facts they
know the truth and they know what they believe man they excited I mean when
they come well that's excitement man you you just cannot deny
when they come with that kind of energy they're gonna get your attention
and they told the apostle these things now look at this the apostles may have
had a block in their mind when they come to receive
and truth for information for women
because they weren't used to women bringing on revelation
most of the time there was some a man had to do
and so it was these women now when I looked up these women
and when you look back in what the earlier writers what Luke said
and Matthew said about them some of these women were prominent
women the Bible say they gave Jesus death
so in other words these women were prominent enough some of them not all
of them to be able to support Jesus ministry
why he ministered and now that he was dead they still felt a need
to support him even though they thought they were just supporting them and
putting perfume on his body but they didn't know that they were going to
become evangelists for the Lord they were going to tell the story
before man
this is one off God don't use women for that
or one off
I mean the one who had a husband that she would live with us
had no six of them and the one she was living with there wasn't anyone
huh then when she got a revelation who he was
she went running back telling them whole time
come see a man so ladies I just dropped by to tell you don't let nobody tell you
God can't use you if you open your heart up and
open your mind God probably already know you've got more
energy than most men we men pretend but we just don't have
a fire not all of us they've got to find some
people we ain't got we don't have that kind of
fire that ain't our nature but we need some fire plugs
and if they happen to be women that can bring the fire and the truth of the
gospel y'all better clap louder than that I'm
telling you God look at here if God could use the donkey
surely he can use the woman he can use whoever he
pleads to accomplish his
but always be mindful that there's going to be some hard-headed men out there
there's going to be some going to be some hard-headed men
because they told these things to the apostle but look here and their words
seem like idols you talking to people
ladies who walk with him who ain't with him who had the last supper with him
and now when the women come back say hey guess what he done rolled they say
there go to women they just gossiping again
they just lying they just running telling out of tales they just tell
barons that's all they see when you already got a
picture of how you think women act built up in your head
then when they come reveal truth to you you won't even accept it
some of y'all brothers sitting here I know you're educated you know been to
school and got multiple degrees but there's some women I that I can tell
you something
that can enlighten your mind
so every time a woman speak don't act like you listen to idol
tell because if you see her words as idol tells you're going to be just like
these disciples and they did not
did not believe them you know too late for me I wish I hadn't listened to
ladies in that more when she was alive because I'm coming to see now
there was some things that I consider idol
tell had a lot of truth to them but because I was
I'm supposed to know more about this word do you do I study I got the license
I got the law and so that was sometimes that she said
something and I treated it as idol
because I just could not comprehend what she was trying to give me
and I'm trying to tell you you're going to have to comprehend
what people are telling you in order for you to believe
what they're telling you and you're going to have to get past
the messenger so that you can receive
young tabard there's a good place to clap because I'm done
don't treat truth as idol tell believe the truth didn't look what it says
there but Peter and I'm done a rose and ran somebody say ran
he didn't just walk Peter was like that once he get over to something he's gonna
run now he don't came out of his nonsense and now he want to go see for
himself he ran to the tomb and stupid down he saw the linen clothes
lined by themselves and he departed somebody said marvellan
marvellan in other way he was amazed you know he was in awe
and he was wondering as he was departed later what done
what just happened what did I just walk up on what did I just see
something just happen because now my mind says it's changing I really came here
looking to see and find somebody wrapped up in that linen
because the world was already on the street that the disciples going to get
his body and they're going to steal it so that they can claim that he rose from
the dead but I came here and saw my with my own eyes
and and look here can I petonize this and boldenize this
and I came to the conclusion that if cliff
had came in here to steal the body he would not have taken time to undress
the body knowing that he them came and got a dead body
so in my mind I say surely nobody stole the body
he must have been raised just like he said so therefore now I leave that with
a new attitude that I believe I serve a
rhythm and to further the story
the boys was having dinner Jesus had to walk through the closed door
before Thomas could believe Thomas said look here I heard what y'all done said
I don't heard your testimony but unless I can touch him
and see that the nail prints in his feet touching side I ain't believing
nothing that's why we call him doubting some of you are doubting Thomas is here
today until you see a nail print or a whole print until you see
something that you can comprehend with your natural mind
you ain't gonna believe this and when Jesus showed up and told him to touch
he said now I believe he called him Lord and Jesus said look here
blessed are they who believe and have not seen
you are more blessed than Thomas because you are believing something that you
did not see you're believing that the resurrection of Jesus Christ
was a real event that it occurred and because of that
you have a way back to Christ you have a way back to the kingdom of God
you have a way to eternal life you have a way that you did not have
all because of his resurrection and the deeper truth that you got to
understand and get past your natural mind is that one day
you're going to be raised with him in a moment in a twinkling of an eye
give the Lord some praise on the day praise him for his amazing
resurrection hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah hallelujah our dancers are
going to come now share experience with you and I
pray that you open your hearts and mind to receive what they have amen
give him some praise that's