WEBVTT 00:00:00.520 --> 00:00:10.900 Good morning. He is risen. Amen. I want to welcome 00:00:10.900 --> 00:00:14.220 all of you here this morning for our Easter Resurrection 00:00:14.220 --> 00:00:16.640 Sunday service. Those of you joining us online, 00:00:16.980 --> 00:00:18.800 I want to welcome all of you as well because 00:00:18.800 --> 00:00:21.660 we are here today to celebrate the most important 00:00:21.660 --> 00:00:24.420 event in all of history from the very beginning 00:00:24.420 --> 00:00:27.179 of time, and that is the resurrection of Jesus 00:00:27.179 --> 00:00:33.009 Christ. And that is exactly what we're celebrating, 00:00:33.189 --> 00:00:36.210 the fact that our Lord and Savior came back to 00:00:36.210 --> 00:00:39.369 life. You know, this past week, we have looked 00:00:39.369 --> 00:00:42.049 at so many elements of what the Bible tells us 00:00:42.049 --> 00:00:44.310 is the Holy Week. Last week, we started with 00:00:44.310 --> 00:00:47.609 the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem and 00:00:47.609 --> 00:00:50.710 looked at how that was his public proclamation, 00:00:50.729 --> 00:00:54.070 that he was indeed the long -awaited Messiah, 00:00:54.350 --> 00:00:58.840 the King of Kings, the one who had been... looked 00:00:58.840 --> 00:01:02.159 forward to for generations, the King, the Messiah, 00:01:02.359 --> 00:01:04.620 the Savior, and that initial excitement by all 00:01:04.620 --> 00:01:07.420 the people on that triumphal entry as they cried 00:01:07.420 --> 00:01:11.280 out, Hosanna is the King, Hosanna in the highest, 00:01:11.379 --> 00:01:13.680 blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 00:01:14.400 --> 00:01:17.299 We read how that quickly soured as the week went 00:01:17.299 --> 00:01:18.980 on, and as we got to the end of the week, those 00:01:18.980 --> 00:01:23.150 shouts turned into crucify him. Give us the murderer 00:01:23.150 --> 00:01:26.049 instead of the innocent man. Crucify him. And 00:01:26.049 --> 00:01:28.430 we talked about some of that on Friday night. 00:01:28.890 --> 00:01:31.409 But the reason the people turned against him 00:01:31.409 --> 00:01:33.890 so quickly during this week was because he didn't 00:01:33.890 --> 00:01:36.430 come to overthrow Rome, which was their hope, 00:01:36.430 --> 00:01:40.689 their expectations. The people's need, our need 00:01:40.689 --> 00:01:45.469 today, was not the change of our outward... circumstances, 00:01:45.510 --> 00:01:48.230 it was the change of our internal circumstances. 00:01:48.650 --> 00:01:52.549 The change of a hopelessly corrupted heart and 00:01:52.549 --> 00:01:56.489 a nature bent on rebellion against God. Ultimately, 00:01:56.530 --> 00:01:59.409 the human race's denial of his kingship over 00:01:59.409 --> 00:02:02.670 the hearts and minds of humanity. That is what 00:02:02.670 --> 00:02:07.319 needed to change. And so he came. But because 00:02:07.319 --> 00:02:10.180 he came to give the people what they needed instead 00:02:10.180 --> 00:02:12.800 of what they wanted, he was given over to be 00:02:12.800 --> 00:02:17.159 crucified on the cross, where he died, paying 00:02:17.159 --> 00:02:19.259 the price for your sin, paying the price for 00:02:19.259 --> 00:02:22.400 my sin, paying a price we could never pay on 00:02:22.400 --> 00:02:25.219 our own, no matter how hard we tried or how long 00:02:25.219 --> 00:02:29.520 we had to try. We could not pay that price. And 00:02:29.520 --> 00:02:31.699 so he died on that cross on this place called 00:02:31.699 --> 00:02:36.620 Golgotha, and his death on the cross Paying our 00:02:36.620 --> 00:02:39.199 price for sin won us a victory we could never 00:02:39.199 --> 00:02:43.020 possibly win on our own. It won us a victory 00:02:43.020 --> 00:02:46.520 over the power of sin, which became powerless 00:02:46.520 --> 00:02:49.300 to rule over us from that point forward for those 00:02:49.300 --> 00:02:52.460 who put faith in Jesus Christ. We gained victory 00:02:52.460 --> 00:02:54.800 over the penalty that was due to us for sin, 00:02:54.939 --> 00:02:58.979 paid by his shed blood. Paul the Apostle said 00:02:58.979 --> 00:03:03.020 this in Colossians 2, verse 14. Speaking of Jesus, 00:03:03.139 --> 00:03:06.189 he says he erased the certificate of debt. with 00:03:06.189 --> 00:03:08.669 its obligations that was against us and opposed 00:03:08.669 --> 00:03:12.050 to us. And he has taken it away by nailing it 00:03:12.050 --> 00:03:15.409 to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities 00:03:15.409 --> 00:03:18.449 and disgraced them publicly. He triumphed over 00:03:18.449 --> 00:03:22.569 them in him. And it was that serpent of old, 00:03:22.689 --> 00:03:26.069 the devil, the one who originally tempted Eve, 00:03:26.270 --> 00:03:28.830 where she ate and gave to her husband, who also 00:03:28.830 --> 00:03:31.349 ate, leading to the fall of man. All of that 00:03:31.349 --> 00:03:34.289 was dealt with, just as was prophesied in the 00:03:34.289 --> 00:03:37.460 very beginning. As Jesus' death on the cross 00:03:37.460 --> 00:03:42.199 crushed the head of Satan. And after being crucified, 00:03:42.379 --> 00:03:45.599 the body of Jesus was placed into the tomb of 00:03:45.599 --> 00:03:49.280 Joseph of Arimathea. Placed into this not yet 00:03:49.280 --> 00:03:52.120 used tomb carved out of the rock near Calvary. 00:03:52.560 --> 00:03:55.460 A tomb. We've talked a lot about that this morning 00:03:55.460 --> 00:03:59.379 and Friday. A grave. A cave, if you will. A cave 00:03:59.379 --> 00:04:02.340 of darkness. A place. That represented isolation. 00:04:02.520 --> 00:04:05.520 A place that represented separation and fear 00:04:05.520 --> 00:04:11.379 and shame. A place of death. A place of the end. 00:04:12.259 --> 00:04:14.639 A place that when we think of them, we figure 00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:19.079 life is over. It is done. Places like this also 00:04:19.079 --> 00:04:22.660 represent our condition outside of Christ. The 00:04:22.660 --> 00:04:25.439 condition of humanity from birth. One, of being 00:04:25.439 --> 00:04:29.300 isolated from God because of our sin. One of 00:04:29.300 --> 00:04:31.720 looking forward to an eternity isolated from 00:04:31.720 --> 00:04:35.339 God because of our sin. Once our body dies, secondly, 00:04:35.439 --> 00:04:38.220 our soul would die being completely separated 00:04:38.220 --> 00:04:43.439 from him. The curse of sin was dealt with by 00:04:43.439 --> 00:04:47.160 Jesus. The curse of sin that placed us in spiritual 00:04:47.160 --> 00:04:51.519 death row was dealt with by Jesus. Jesus died 00:04:51.519 --> 00:04:53.779 on that cross and then was put into that dark 00:04:53.779 --> 00:04:57.259 tomb, that grave, to set us free. He was placed 00:04:57.259 --> 00:04:59.420 in that tomb to unshackle us from the power of 00:04:59.420 --> 00:05:02.759 sin and death. But that is not all. For three 00:05:02.759 --> 00:05:04.959 days later, after dying on the cross, after laying 00:05:04.959 --> 00:05:08.759 in that tomb, he got up and he walked out. Because 00:05:08.759 --> 00:05:11.560 death had been defeated forever. You can clap 00:05:11.560 --> 00:05:17.500 for that. Absolutely. His empty tomb loudly proclaims 00:05:17.500 --> 00:05:20.360 the truth that through Jesus Christ and through 00:05:20.360 --> 00:05:24.360 faith in him, you and I too can walk out of the 00:05:24.360 --> 00:05:27.459 grave of death. We can walk out of those shackles. 00:05:27.480 --> 00:05:30.240 We could walk into the light, set free from the 00:05:30.240 --> 00:05:33.180 power of that which condemned us. That is what 00:05:33.180 --> 00:05:35.220 we celebrate here today, Easter Sunday morning. 00:05:35.480 --> 00:05:37.579 But first, we're gonna spend some time worshiping 00:05:37.579 --> 00:05:39.959 him with our dear friend, Dennis Agajanian, who 00:05:39.959 --> 00:05:44.120 is here with us this morning. And his friend, 00:05:44.160 --> 00:05:46.470 Lonnie, who... I was told they've been singing 00:05:46.470 --> 00:05:49.189 together for 30 plus years, and so we're very 00:05:49.189 --> 00:05:51.350 excited to have them here with us to celebrate 00:05:51.350 --> 00:05:54.069 everything that this morning is. But first, if 00:05:54.069 --> 00:05:57.389 you will all join me in prayer. Father God, we're 00:05:57.389 --> 00:06:00.050 so grateful to you. We're so grateful, Lord, 00:06:00.129 --> 00:06:02.629 that from the very beginning you had a plan to 00:06:02.629 --> 00:06:06.509 redeem us from sin. Lord, as you knew that mankind 00:06:06.509 --> 00:06:09.350 would disobey you, and that because of that, 00:06:09.410 --> 00:06:11.810 death would enter the world, forever separating 00:06:11.810 --> 00:06:14.300 us from you, Lord. It may have looked like forever 00:06:14.300 --> 00:06:17.600 for us, but it wasn't forever for you. God, you 00:06:17.600 --> 00:06:19.819 came to this earth, clothed yourself in flesh. 00:06:20.699 --> 00:06:23.220 Father, you sent your son into this world to 00:06:23.220 --> 00:06:26.459 live a perfect life and then to die the death 00:06:26.459 --> 00:06:30.279 we deserve. But Lord, that death was the perfect 00:06:30.279 --> 00:06:33.839 atonement for all of our sin. A perfectly acceptable 00:06:33.839 --> 00:06:37.040 sacrifice to you, God, for everything wrong we 00:06:37.040 --> 00:06:40.680 have ever done, will ever do. Lord, it was all 00:06:40.680 --> 00:06:44.980 paid by you. Then, Lord, you went into that grave, 00:06:45.040 --> 00:06:48.579 and Lord, for most of your disciples, the women 00:06:48.579 --> 00:06:52.360 that were following you, that was the end. Lord, 00:06:52.420 --> 00:06:53.959 that was the end, because even though they had 00:06:53.959 --> 00:06:56.180 seen Lazarus raised from the dead, the one who 00:06:56.180 --> 00:07:00.779 raised him was now dead. And Lord, what was possible 00:07:00.779 --> 00:07:04.220 then? They thought it was over, Lord, but God, 00:07:04.259 --> 00:07:07.459 three days later, you proved that it was not 00:07:07.459 --> 00:07:10.199 the end. You proved that death could not hold 00:07:10.199 --> 00:07:13.569 you. And Lord, as much as we think of tombs and 00:07:13.569 --> 00:07:15.670 all that they represent, Lord, your empty tomb 00:07:15.670 --> 00:07:19.430 shouts truths that are glorious to behold, truths 00:07:19.430 --> 00:07:21.930 that change everything, God. And we're so excited 00:07:21.930 --> 00:07:24.129 to look at those today and to celebrate you, 00:07:24.230 --> 00:07:27.110 to lift your name up. So God, be glorified in 00:07:27.110 --> 00:07:30.149 this place. Be glorified in our lives. We love 00:07:30.149 --> 00:07:33.730 you so much. It is in Jesus' name we pray, amen. 00:07:34.009 --> 00:07:37.870 You know, the day Christ died was the first half 00:07:37.870 --> 00:07:39.750 of the most important event in all of history. 00:07:40.970 --> 00:07:43.810 Matthew says that when Jesus was dying on the 00:07:43.810 --> 00:07:46.709 cross, at noon in the very middle of the day, 00:07:46.750 --> 00:07:50.930 darkness covered the land for three days. A darkness 00:07:50.930 --> 00:07:53.709 that represented the sin that he was becoming 00:07:53.709 --> 00:07:57.529 for us. And when Jesus died, we're told that 00:07:57.529 --> 00:08:00.670 the veil in the temple was torn from top to bottom. 00:08:01.310 --> 00:08:04.470 The veil that separated humanity from the presence 00:08:04.470 --> 00:08:10.379 of God. A veil that was only Penetratable by 00:08:10.379 --> 00:08:13.959 one man, the high priest, once a year. But God 00:08:13.959 --> 00:08:16.459 himself tore that veil because when Jesus died, 00:08:16.680 --> 00:08:19.339 access to God was available to all people at 00:08:19.339 --> 00:08:22.220 all times. It tells us that the ground began 00:08:22.220 --> 00:08:26.139 to shake with an earthquake. But something much 00:08:26.139 --> 00:08:29.319 greater than these events was happening. Jesus 00:08:29.319 --> 00:08:33.639 Christ, the Son of God, was reconciling man to 00:08:33.639 --> 00:08:38.600 God. His was the final sacrifice. once and for 00:08:38.600 --> 00:08:43.240 all to take away the sin of the world. John said 00:08:43.240 --> 00:08:45.799 in his gospel in chapter three, verse 16, for 00:08:45.799 --> 00:08:48.960 God loves the world in this way. He gave his 00:08:48.960 --> 00:08:51.559 one and only son so that everyone who believes 00:08:51.559 --> 00:08:54.580 in him will not perish, but have eternal life. 00:08:55.679 --> 00:08:57.980 You see, if Jesus had not died, there would be 00:08:57.980 --> 00:09:00.659 no way for us to be forgiven. There would be 00:09:00.659 --> 00:09:04.259 no way for us to be redeemed and saved. But how 00:09:04.259 --> 00:09:07.899 do we know this? Well, the empty tomb of Jesus 00:09:07.899 --> 00:09:13.279 shouts those answers loud and clear. If you have 00:09:13.279 --> 00:09:15.419 your Bible with you or your app or your tablet 00:09:15.419 --> 00:09:17.179 or whatever device you're using, we're going 00:09:17.179 --> 00:09:20.360 to be in Luke chapter 24. And it says this in 00:09:20.360 --> 00:09:23.860 Luke 24 starting in verse 1. On the first day 00:09:23.860 --> 00:09:25.659 of the week, very early in the morning, they 00:09:25.659 --> 00:09:28.980 came to the tomb, bringing the spices that they 00:09:28.980 --> 00:09:33.000 had prepared. They found the stone rolled away 00:09:33.000 --> 00:09:36.090 from the tomb. They went in but did not find 00:09:36.090 --> 00:09:40.320 the body of the Lord Jesus. You see the... The 00:09:40.320 --> 00:09:42.799 they that came to the tomb was a group of women 00:09:42.799 --> 00:09:45.799 that had been traveling with Jesus all the way 00:09:45.799 --> 00:09:49.580 from Galilee down here into Jerusalem over the 00:09:49.580 --> 00:09:51.220 course of his ministry. There was a number of 00:09:51.220 --> 00:09:54.379 women that followed Jesus, whom Jesus healed, 00:09:54.559 --> 00:09:57.919 set free, did miracles in their lives. And when 00:09:57.919 --> 00:10:00.340 he was crucified at the very end of the previous 00:10:00.340 --> 00:10:03.539 chapter, Luke 23, it tells us that these women, 00:10:03.600 --> 00:10:07.340 quote, observed the tomb and how his body was 00:10:07.340 --> 00:10:10.899 placed inside. What that means is they watched 00:10:10.899 --> 00:10:15.200 him be buried. They watched his body placed within 00:10:15.200 --> 00:10:19.799 that tomb. They observed eyewitnesses to him 00:10:19.799 --> 00:10:24.600 being put behind that stone, sealed away. And 00:10:24.600 --> 00:10:26.320 for all of their lives, every time they had witnessed 00:10:26.320 --> 00:10:28.480 something like this, the person behind that rock 00:10:28.480 --> 00:10:33.159 stayed forever behind that rock, dead forevermore. 00:10:35.080 --> 00:10:37.500 And so it says they went to prepare spices and 00:10:37.500 --> 00:10:40.100 perfumes for him after the Sabbath. So after 00:10:40.100 --> 00:10:42.220 the Sabbath, they could come and anoint the body. 00:10:42.460 --> 00:10:44.580 And the reason they did this was because they 00:10:44.580 --> 00:10:48.480 expected to find the body already in decomposition. 00:10:49.669 --> 00:10:51.730 We know this from medical science today that 00:10:51.730 --> 00:10:55.649 after three days, the body, after the soul has 00:10:55.649 --> 00:10:58.090 left the body, begins to decompose after three 00:10:58.090 --> 00:11:00.629 days. And this was a normal practice in those 00:11:00.629 --> 00:11:03.889 times, a practice of anointing to help deal with 00:11:03.889 --> 00:11:06.230 the odors and whatnot that would come from a 00:11:06.230 --> 00:11:09.490 decomposing body. Now, when we visit a graveside 00:11:09.490 --> 00:11:13.009 today, many of us, if not all of us, have loved 00:11:13.009 --> 00:11:15.669 ones that are buried in a place near enough where 00:11:15.669 --> 00:11:18.309 every once in a while or often we go visit. When 00:11:18.309 --> 00:11:23.029 we do that, We expect that the body will be there. 00:11:24.110 --> 00:11:29.129 We don't go to the funeral place, the rest home, 00:11:29.230 --> 00:11:32.169 the cemeteries, whatever they are, the mausoleums. 00:11:32.190 --> 00:11:34.350 We don't go there and say, I wonder if their 00:11:34.350 --> 00:11:37.230 body's going to be there. Because we're sure. 00:11:38.350 --> 00:11:40.570 We're sure that the body's going to be there. 00:11:41.230 --> 00:11:45.350 Especially if we saw them buried there. If it 00:11:45.350 --> 00:11:47.690 was someone that you were present at their funeral 00:11:47.690 --> 00:11:51.370 and you watched their body be interred. And so 00:11:51.370 --> 00:11:53.870 when you go and visit, you know. And then you 00:11:53.870 --> 00:11:58.169 go and you remember their life. But the mere 00:11:58.169 --> 00:12:00.190 fact that you're standing there at a graveside, 00:12:00.269 --> 00:12:03.509 you remember death as well. You remember the 00:12:03.509 --> 00:12:06.669 loss. As you look around the cemetery, you are 00:12:06.669 --> 00:12:09.929 reminded that death is going to come from everybody, 00:12:10.169 --> 00:12:13.019 come for everybody. That every single one of 00:12:13.019 --> 00:12:16.360 us are going to face that death one day. And 00:12:16.360 --> 00:12:18.340 very often at times like this, whether it's at 00:12:18.340 --> 00:12:21.879 a funeral or a graveside, we reflect on the brevity 00:12:21.879 --> 00:12:27.000 of life. We reflect on how short it is. Right? 00:12:27.039 --> 00:12:28.960 You look back and you realize, where did all 00:12:28.960 --> 00:12:33.559 the time go? You're already at the end. And for 00:12:33.559 --> 00:12:35.659 many, those dreams and those hopes and those 00:12:35.659 --> 00:12:37.460 goals and all those things that maybe they never 00:12:37.460 --> 00:12:40.820 got to accomplish now feel like fleeting things. 00:12:41.519 --> 00:12:45.799 that you'll never ever get to experience. Now 00:12:45.799 --> 00:12:47.940 although a grave and a tomb remind us of those 00:12:47.940 --> 00:12:50.919 things, it should also remind us that the consequence 00:12:50.919 --> 00:12:57.139 of sin is sure. It is absolute. Nobody outside 00:12:57.139 --> 00:12:59.220 of a relationship with Jesus Christ gets away 00:12:59.220 --> 00:13:03.200 from the consequence of sin. And the first consequence 00:13:03.200 --> 00:13:06.720 of sin is that our physical bodies die. Everything 00:13:06.720 --> 00:13:10.730 in creation is dying. And that is one of the 00:13:10.730 --> 00:13:12.870 penalties that came with sin entering the world, 00:13:12.929 --> 00:13:15.970 that our physical body, which, believe it or 00:13:15.970 --> 00:13:19.570 not, was meant to be eternal, will face death. 00:13:20.769 --> 00:13:22.950 And that's why we have cemeteries all over the 00:13:22.950 --> 00:13:26.850 world. That's why we have all buried loved ones 00:13:26.850 --> 00:13:29.330 or been to services for friends or people we 00:13:29.330 --> 00:13:32.389 knew, because every single one of us will face 00:13:32.389 --> 00:13:35.789 that as we get towards the end of our life. The 00:13:35.789 --> 00:13:39.519 Bible tells us, for all have sinned. all have 00:13:39.519 --> 00:13:42.980 come short of the glory of God. The Bible says, 00:13:43.019 --> 00:13:47.559 for the wages of sin is death. And since all 00:13:47.559 --> 00:13:52.580 have sinned, all will die. So these women came 00:13:52.580 --> 00:13:56.539 to his tomb, ready with these spices, with absolute 00:13:56.539 --> 00:14:00.779 certainty that his body would be there, coming 00:14:00.779 --> 00:14:04.340 to do what you did when your loved ones passed 00:14:04.340 --> 00:14:07.669 away. But they arrived and they found that this 00:14:07.669 --> 00:14:10.809 giant stone that is rolled over the front of 00:14:10.809 --> 00:14:14.429 the tomb was gone. It was rolled away. It wasn't 00:14:14.429 --> 00:14:16.809 there. The tomb, the opening, it was exposed. 00:14:18.870 --> 00:14:21.950 Well, from their expectation, that was terrible 00:14:21.950 --> 00:14:25.370 in so many different ways. Because, of course, 00:14:25.450 --> 00:14:30.090 the body's in there. And so all the stuff that 00:14:30.090 --> 00:14:31.549 would come from that, they were worried. They 00:14:31.549 --> 00:14:33.409 go in and they see that the body is not there. 00:14:34.049 --> 00:14:37.830 There is no body. where a body should be. You 00:14:37.830 --> 00:14:40.570 can imagine their surprise. Instead of a tomb 00:14:40.570 --> 00:14:43.570 occupied by death, and all that it would remind 00:14:43.570 --> 00:14:48.610 them of in regards to that, it was empty. But 00:14:48.610 --> 00:14:51.570 not completely empty. The body may not have been 00:14:51.570 --> 00:14:53.110 there, but the grave clothes were still there. 00:14:54.350 --> 00:14:57.690 And the napkin, it says, the linen that was over 00:14:57.690 --> 00:15:00.409 his head was neatly folded and placed there as 00:15:00.409 --> 00:15:05.940 well. A tomb occupied by death says much. We've 00:15:05.940 --> 00:15:09.259 talked about these things already. But what does 00:15:09.259 --> 00:15:13.659 an empty tomb tell us? What does the empty tomb 00:15:13.659 --> 00:15:17.080 of Jesus tell us? What did it tell them? Well, 00:15:17.100 --> 00:15:20.779 naturally, they were perplexed, it says. They 00:15:20.779 --> 00:15:23.679 were surprised, and the only plausible explanation 00:15:23.679 --> 00:15:27.889 was a natural explanation. That if the body wasn't 00:15:27.889 --> 00:15:30.490 in the tomb, you know, Mary Magdalene ran to 00:15:30.490 --> 00:15:34.250 tell Peter somebody stole his body. That is the 00:15:34.250 --> 00:15:37.850 only way she could think to explain that a body 00:15:37.850 --> 00:15:41.250 who she had observed die on the cross, observed 00:15:41.250 --> 00:15:43.870 being buried in this tomb could possibly be not 00:15:43.870 --> 00:15:47.429 occupying that tomb anymore. Somebody stole the 00:15:47.429 --> 00:15:50.629 body. Verse 4 of Luke 24 we read on. While they 00:15:50.629 --> 00:15:53.779 were perplexed about this. Suddenly two men stood 00:15:53.779 --> 00:15:56.799 by them in dazzling clothes. So the women were 00:15:56.799 --> 00:16:00.700 terrified and bowed down to the ground. Why are 00:16:00.700 --> 00:16:03.480 you looking for the living among the dead, asked 00:16:03.480 --> 00:16:09.519 the men. He is not here, but he has risen. Remember 00:16:09.519 --> 00:16:11.940 how he spoke to you when he was still in Galilee, 00:16:12.039 --> 00:16:14.799 saying, it is necessary that the Son of Man be 00:16:14.799 --> 00:16:17.820 betrayed into the hands of sinful men, be crucified, 00:16:17.919 --> 00:16:21.679 and rise on the third day. And they remembered. 00:16:22.269 --> 00:16:27.250 His words. Suddenly, as they're wondering what 00:16:27.250 --> 00:16:31.129 this all means, pow, boom, bright light. We can't 00:16:31.129 --> 00:16:34.529 see. These two men standing there, they're angels 00:16:34.529 --> 00:16:36.730 that the other gospels tell us that had arrived 00:16:36.730 --> 00:16:41.750 to tell them that yeah, the body you were expecting 00:16:41.750 --> 00:16:45.110 to find, the body of the man you loved and had 00:16:45.110 --> 00:16:49.009 followed for so many years, he's not here. But 00:16:49.009 --> 00:16:50.850 I love how the angels said it. They didn't say 00:16:50.850 --> 00:16:56.500 it's. not here. Referring to just a lifeless 00:16:56.500 --> 00:17:03.279 corpse. They say, he is not here. He is risen. 00:17:04.240 --> 00:17:08.759 Just like he said he would. I find that funny 00:17:08.759 --> 00:17:11.359 so many times, myself included. We read the word 00:17:11.359 --> 00:17:14.539 of God. Jesus says something. God says something. 00:17:14.799 --> 00:17:16.819 And then two seconds later, we're like, that 00:17:16.819 --> 00:17:21.430 can't happen. And then we go back and we read 00:17:21.430 --> 00:17:23.809 it and we say, oh, the word of God, and then 00:17:23.809 --> 00:17:28.450 we look away. Well, I forgot already. He told 00:17:28.450 --> 00:17:30.329 you this would happen. Look what the angel says. 00:17:31.269 --> 00:17:34.589 He's going to be betrayed. He's going to be crucified 00:17:34.589 --> 00:17:36.829 out of all the possible deaths that existed, 00:17:36.910 --> 00:17:40.990 and he's going to rise on the third day. Like, 00:17:41.009 --> 00:17:47.730 what did they not understand? Now, whether it 00:17:47.730 --> 00:17:51.099 was their grief, Whether it was that part of 00:17:51.099 --> 00:17:52.740 them that even though they had seen miracles 00:17:52.740 --> 00:17:55.400 and walked with Jesus and all of this, that there 00:17:55.400 --> 00:17:57.559 was that part of them that still was like, I 00:17:57.559 --> 00:18:00.940 don't know if I could believe that. Either way, 00:18:01.039 --> 00:18:04.059 it says, when the angels told them, they remembered. 00:18:04.900 --> 00:18:07.900 And so, the gospels go on to tell us that they 00:18:07.900 --> 00:18:11.539 run back to tell the rest of the disciples. And 00:18:11.539 --> 00:18:13.500 I know what you're all thinking right now, right? 00:18:13.559 --> 00:18:16.720 The most important question. What about the spices? 00:18:18.410 --> 00:18:22.769 Did they just leave him on the ground? That doesn't 00:18:22.769 --> 00:18:25.509 matter, okay? Let's move on from the spices. 00:18:26.789 --> 00:18:29.809 They run back to the disciples. This empty tomb 00:18:29.809 --> 00:18:33.670 of Jesus, instead of being a quiet, dark place 00:18:33.670 --> 00:18:37.089 of death and despair, was now proclaiming an 00:18:37.089 --> 00:18:40.230 amazing truth, a truth that was being proclaimed 00:18:40.230 --> 00:18:42.769 loud and clear. And the number one thing that 00:18:42.769 --> 00:18:45.569 this empty tomb was proclaiming to them is that 00:18:45.869 --> 00:18:47.890 They and we don't have to be afraid of death 00:18:47.890 --> 00:18:51.950 anymore. Everybody's afraid of death in one way 00:18:51.950 --> 00:18:57.890 or the other because it represents the end. I 00:18:57.890 --> 00:19:00.349 want to have a family before I die. I want to 00:19:00.349 --> 00:19:02.829 achieve this in my life. I want to achieve this 00:19:02.829 --> 00:19:05.589 in my business, in my career. I have so many 00:19:05.589 --> 00:19:09.509 things I want to do, God. But death is the end 00:19:09.509 --> 00:19:13.509 of everything. It's done. And so people are afraid 00:19:13.509 --> 00:19:16.250 of death. Fear, just in general, it's a universal 00:19:16.250 --> 00:19:19.349 experience of all of mankind. We all have things 00:19:19.349 --> 00:19:22.970 we're afraid of. The young are afraid of rejection 00:19:22.970 --> 00:19:26.230 by their peers. The old are afraid of getting 00:19:26.230 --> 00:19:30.970 sick. There's fear of lightning, tornadoes, planes, 00:19:31.150 --> 00:19:34.549 financial ruin, assault, cancer. If you're bored 00:19:34.549 --> 00:19:36.789 one day, go Google how many phobias there are. 00:19:37.289 --> 00:19:42.710 Guess how many there are. They don't know. Because 00:19:42.710 --> 00:19:45.849 every possible thing in existence, somebody has 00:19:45.849 --> 00:19:49.170 a phobia for it, including a phobia of phobias. 00:19:49.210 --> 00:19:51.130 There is a scientific word for that that I did 00:19:51.130 --> 00:19:54.869 not write down. But one of the big fears that 00:19:54.869 --> 00:19:59.769 mankind has is death, dying, the separation. 00:20:00.970 --> 00:20:03.309 People are afraid because some, they don't know 00:20:03.309 --> 00:20:06.619 what happens after. Right? Is there an afterlife? 00:20:06.839 --> 00:20:09.440 Is there not an afterlife? Do I just cease to 00:20:09.440 --> 00:20:13.339 exist or am I going to stand before God or some 00:20:13.339 --> 00:20:15.920 go Buddha or, you know, they have all these weird 00:20:15.920 --> 00:20:19.599 notions and different reasons for fearing death. 00:20:19.920 --> 00:20:22.099 For some, it's just simply the separation from 00:20:22.099 --> 00:20:27.059 their loved ones or the idea of fading into obscurity. 00:20:28.160 --> 00:20:30.640 For some, they fear death because simply the 00:20:30.640 --> 00:20:33.480 idea of non -existence is just scary to them. 00:20:35.180 --> 00:20:37.359 But the empty tomb of Jesus declares that death 00:20:37.359 --> 00:20:41.220 isn't the end. Death isn't the finality that 00:20:41.220 --> 00:20:43.559 we think it is. There is such thing as life after 00:20:43.559 --> 00:20:45.740 death. You see, because the Bible tells us very 00:20:45.740 --> 00:20:50.380 clearly we are not just physical beings. As creations 00:20:50.380 --> 00:20:53.240 of God, we are created in his image. The Father, 00:20:53.259 --> 00:20:55.660 Son, and the Spirit is a trinity. We are created 00:20:55.660 --> 00:20:57.859 in the image of God. We have a body, we have 00:20:57.859 --> 00:21:02.660 a soul, and we have a spirit. And when our physical 00:21:02.660 --> 00:21:08.380 bodies die, Our soul lives on. Our soul lives 00:21:08.380 --> 00:21:11.759 on because it's eternal. And all the religions 00:21:11.759 --> 00:21:15.720 in the world have their own story of what happens 00:21:15.720 --> 00:21:20.019 to the soul when your body dies. They all have 00:21:20.019 --> 00:21:22.799 a story about where you go or how you get there 00:21:22.799 --> 00:21:24.880 or what happens when you get there. Out of all 00:21:24.880 --> 00:21:29.180 the religions in the world. And if you don't 00:21:29.180 --> 00:21:30.880 believe me, I challenge you to go look it up. 00:21:31.659 --> 00:21:34.079 Out of all the religions in the world and all 00:21:34.079 --> 00:21:36.180 their stories about the afterlife and how you 00:21:36.180 --> 00:21:39.380 get there, Christianity is the only one who has 00:21:39.380 --> 00:21:41.460 the head of its religion, the foundation, the 00:21:41.460 --> 00:21:44.619 purpose, the meaning of its religion, rise from 00:21:44.619 --> 00:21:50.059 the dead. Jesus himself is alive. Muhammad didn't 00:21:50.059 --> 00:21:53.299 rise from the dead. Confucius didn't rise from 00:21:53.299 --> 00:21:58.160 the dead. You go down the list. No, no, that 00:21:58.160 --> 00:22:01.380 God thing isn't true. Here's my false story about 00:22:01.380 --> 00:22:03.480 what death and afterlife is like, and they're 00:22:03.480 --> 00:22:07.480 still dead. But Jesus' tomb says we don't have 00:22:07.480 --> 00:22:13.000 to fear death. It also tells us that death isn't 00:22:13.000 --> 00:22:17.339 the end. It tells us that what he said about 00:22:17.339 --> 00:22:21.259 death and the afterlife, it's true. He corroborated 00:22:21.259 --> 00:22:25.920 it by his coming back to life. And some people 00:22:25.920 --> 00:22:27.779 are like, well, just anybody could say anything 00:22:27.779 --> 00:22:29.839 they want about anything, so where's your proof? 00:22:30.460 --> 00:22:33.200 And I don't have time to go through the mountains 00:22:33.200 --> 00:22:36.299 and mountains and mountains of evidence that 00:22:36.299 --> 00:22:38.680 the resurrection of Jesus Christ truly did happen. 00:22:38.819 --> 00:22:41.759 But Paul the apostle says that after Jesus rose 00:22:41.759 --> 00:22:46.119 from the dead, Peter saw him, eyewitness. The 00:22:46.119 --> 00:22:48.700 rest of the 12 apostles saw him, eyewitnesses. 00:22:48.759 --> 00:22:53.859 And then 500 others at one single time. saw the 00:22:53.859 --> 00:22:57.059 risen Lord. And what Paul says in that, and he 00:22:57.059 --> 00:22:59.000 goes, and most of those people are still alive. 00:22:59.099 --> 00:23:02.559 You can go ask them. You can go talk to them. 00:23:02.900 --> 00:23:05.240 Then he says, James, and then the rest of the 00:23:05.240 --> 00:23:07.779 apostles, and then Paul humbly says, and then 00:23:07.779 --> 00:23:13.259 finally, to myself. It's not just some story. 00:23:15.180 --> 00:23:18.240 There were hundreds of eyewitness accounts. In 00:23:18.240 --> 00:23:20.279 any court of law in the world today, if you had 00:23:20.279 --> 00:23:23.740 500 eyewitnesses to corroborate your story, that 00:23:23.740 --> 00:23:28.880 would be considered overwhelming evidence. And 00:23:28.880 --> 00:23:30.640 that's just one, like I said, in the mountains 00:23:30.640 --> 00:23:33.819 of things. What else does the empty tomb say 00:23:33.819 --> 00:23:36.299 to us? The empty tomb says that the sacrifice 00:23:36.299 --> 00:23:38.819 of Jesus Christ on the cross, where he laid down 00:23:38.819 --> 00:23:41.640 his life, it was acceptable to God the Father. 00:23:42.730 --> 00:23:45.269 You see, there was nothing we could offer to 00:23:45.269 --> 00:23:48.069 pay the price for our sins because we're corrupt. 00:23:49.930 --> 00:23:54.009 But the fact that Jesus rose from the dead means 00:23:54.009 --> 00:23:56.730 the sacrifice was enough to pay for all sin ever. 00:23:56.869 --> 00:23:58.789 And his coming back from the dead is a proof 00:23:58.789 --> 00:24:02.049 that God says, I accept that. I accept that on 00:24:02.049 --> 00:24:06.529 your behalf. I accept that for your sin. Him 00:24:06.529 --> 00:24:08.269 coming back to life and that tomb being empty 00:24:08.269 --> 00:24:12.190 says that he defeated death. And he defeated 00:24:12.190 --> 00:24:16.269 that which births death, sin. How do we know 00:24:16.269 --> 00:24:19.609 that? Because it couldn't hold him. It has no 00:24:19.609 --> 00:24:24.410 hold on him. Again, how many of us have ever 00:24:24.410 --> 00:24:26.549 visited a graveside and, oh, they weren't there 00:24:26.549 --> 00:24:29.769 anymore? Now, some of us are going to be, you 00:24:29.769 --> 00:24:31.390 know, splitting hairs. Well, yeah, it happened 00:24:31.390 --> 00:24:33.329 once. Yeah, because they moved the casket. Okay, 00:24:33.390 --> 00:24:44.710 I get it. But alive? Walking? No. Death still 00:24:44.710 --> 00:24:48.230 holds all who have died. Even Lazarus, he was 00:24:48.230 --> 00:24:50.410 raised from the dead, but guess what? He one 00:24:50.410 --> 00:24:54.309 day died again. Jesus is the only one who's alive 00:24:54.309 --> 00:24:57.930 today. It says that he's the one who knows the 00:24:57.930 --> 00:25:02.509 way out of the dark cave, the grave of hopelessness. 00:25:04.509 --> 00:25:08.250 You see, Jesus not only came back to life, but 00:25:08.250 --> 00:25:11.900 he walked out. Oh, and by the way, he left the 00:25:11.900 --> 00:25:13.579 grave closed there just so there would be no 00:25:13.579 --> 00:25:18.339 misunderstanding. Jesus said, I am the way, the 00:25:18.339 --> 00:25:21.140 truth, and the life. Nobody comes to the Father 00:25:21.140 --> 00:25:26.619 but through me. That means that it's him and 00:25:26.619 --> 00:25:29.779 only him. He went into the tomb for us to save 00:25:29.779 --> 00:25:33.180 us, and then he walked out showing us the way 00:25:33.180 --> 00:25:37.900 to new life. It's in him and through him. I read 00:25:37.900 --> 00:25:40.640 a story about a Muslim, a young Muslim man who 00:25:40.640 --> 00:25:44.319 came to Christianity in Africa. And his friends 00:25:44.319 --> 00:25:49.380 asked him, why did you become a Christian? And 00:25:49.380 --> 00:25:53.079 he said this, well, it's like this. Suppose you 00:25:53.079 --> 00:25:54.960 were going down the road and suddenly the road 00:25:54.960 --> 00:25:56.799 forked into two different directions and you 00:25:56.799 --> 00:25:58.440 didn't know which way was the right way to go. 00:25:59.000 --> 00:26:01.180 And there at the fork in the road were two men. 00:26:01.519 --> 00:26:04.900 One was dead, one was alive. Which one would 00:26:04.900 --> 00:26:10.759 you ask? is the right way to go. What else does 00:26:10.759 --> 00:26:14.140 the empty tomb of Jesus tell us? Not only that 00:26:14.140 --> 00:26:16.220 we can be forgiven, not only do we not need to 00:26:16.220 --> 00:26:18.440 fear death, not only are we set free from that, 00:26:18.559 --> 00:26:22.740 but it says we can live a new life now as well 00:26:22.740 --> 00:26:26.160 as an eternal life in the future. You see, Jesus 00:26:26.160 --> 00:26:29.839 didn't just come and pay our fine and then leave 00:26:29.839 --> 00:26:33.759 us locked up in prison. He didn't pay the fine 00:26:33.759 --> 00:26:37.660 and then go away. But I'm still chained in here, 00:26:37.740 --> 00:26:40.779 Jesus. Thank you for paying the fine, but the 00:26:40.779 --> 00:26:44.259 doors are still locked. He unlocked the doors. 00:26:45.119 --> 00:26:47.680 He came in to lead us out of the darkness and 00:26:47.680 --> 00:26:51.259 into marvelous light. The empty tomb tells us 00:26:51.259 --> 00:26:53.400 all, all who would believe in him and his death 00:26:53.400 --> 00:26:55.599 and what he did to pay for you. It tells us all 00:26:55.599 --> 00:26:57.480 that we could start over with a spotless record, 00:26:57.660 --> 00:27:01.799 that we could leave that old life behind, that 00:27:01.799 --> 00:27:04.279 dead life. Yeah, it could stay in the grave. 00:27:06.630 --> 00:27:08.609 Because if you put your faith in Jesus, that 00:27:08.609 --> 00:27:12.970 dead life has been crucified with him. 2 Corinthians 00:27:12.970 --> 00:27:15.509 5 .27, Paul says, therefore, if anyone is in 00:27:15.509 --> 00:27:18.369 Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed 00:27:18.369 --> 00:27:23.029 away, and see, the new has come. And you might 00:27:23.029 --> 00:27:28.250 say, well, new what? Well, a new heart, a new 00:27:28.250 --> 00:27:30.490 born -again spirit, a new way of thinking, a 00:27:30.490 --> 00:27:34.329 new way of doing things. How many of us in this 00:27:34.329 --> 00:27:36.089 room this morning and watching online, you would 00:27:36.089 --> 00:27:39.430 love to start your life over and maybe leave 00:27:39.430 --> 00:27:43.490 some things out this time? Anybody? You could 00:27:43.490 --> 00:27:46.769 think of a handful of things, maybe an encyclopedia 00:27:46.769 --> 00:27:51.029 set of things you would like to leave out. Well, 00:27:51.089 --> 00:27:54.869 we can't do that. But the Bible says we can start 00:27:54.869 --> 00:27:58.359 over in the eyes of God. that we could have that 00:27:58.359 --> 00:28:02.019 encyclopedia set of sins and wrongs and errors 00:28:02.019 --> 00:28:06.759 wiped clean, deleted. If Jesus can change an 00:28:06.759 --> 00:28:09.779 immoral woman into a godly woman, if he could 00:28:09.779 --> 00:28:13.720 change murderers into apostles, if he could change 00:28:13.720 --> 00:28:17.859 critical, harsh, judgmental people into people 00:28:17.859 --> 00:28:21.359 known as people of love, then he could change 00:28:21.359 --> 00:28:26.319 you too. If Jesus can walk out of the grave, 00:28:27.039 --> 00:28:30.740 Into a new life. He could lead you out of the 00:28:30.740 --> 00:28:35.880 grave into a new life too. He can give you that 00:28:35.880 --> 00:28:37.779 clean slate. He could allow you to start over. 00:28:37.920 --> 00:28:41.319 And this time, you could start over living with 00:28:41.319 --> 00:28:44.799 the Holy Spirit of God dwelling within you. The 00:28:44.799 --> 00:28:46.920 Holy Spirit of God teaching you and guiding you 00:28:46.920 --> 00:28:50.880 and leading you. And then after when you stumble, 00:28:51.079 --> 00:28:53.240 well, this is what the Bible says. There is now 00:28:53.240 --> 00:28:55.519 no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 00:28:57.609 --> 00:29:00.890 What means that you get to live day by day, walking 00:29:00.890 --> 00:29:03.490 with the spirit of God guiding you, learning, 00:29:03.690 --> 00:29:05.809 he's molding you, he's shaping you into the good, 00:29:05.829 --> 00:29:07.990 righteous person God knows you to be. And you 00:29:07.990 --> 00:29:09.710 go, but God, I know I'm a sinner. And he's like, 00:29:09.769 --> 00:29:14.329 done, paid for. But God, how do I live for you? 00:29:14.430 --> 00:29:19.490 How do I live this new life? Follow me. Follow 00:29:19.490 --> 00:29:22.789 me, he says. The empty tomb also tells us that 00:29:22.789 --> 00:29:26.130 resurrection and eternal life, they're possible. 00:29:26.890 --> 00:29:30.170 We don't have to be afraid of death. We don't 00:29:30.170 --> 00:29:32.450 have to listen to death and do what sin tells 00:29:32.450 --> 00:29:37.210 us to do. We don't have to worry about, you know, 00:29:37.210 --> 00:29:41.069 did God accept the sacrifice? We don't have to 00:29:41.069 --> 00:29:44.009 worry about, you know, can I really live a new 00:29:44.009 --> 00:29:48.789 life? But in the future, when my body dies, am 00:29:48.789 --> 00:29:52.970 I really going to live again? The empty tomb 00:29:52.970 --> 00:29:57.309 says yes. Because as Jesus was resurrected, you 00:29:57.309 --> 00:30:01.690 too will be resurrected in Christ. There's no 00:30:01.690 --> 00:30:04.369 uncertainty anymore. There's no question about 00:30:04.369 --> 00:30:06.650 what's going to happen when you die. Jesus rising 00:30:06.650 --> 00:30:09.009 from the dead proves the immense power of God 00:30:09.009 --> 00:30:13.250 himself. The immense power of God that raised 00:30:13.250 --> 00:30:16.150 Jesus from the dead, that power can raise you 00:30:16.150 --> 00:30:21.990 too. It proves that Jesus is who he claimed to 00:30:21.990 --> 00:30:27.319 be. When Jesus said, I am the Son of God. And 00:30:27.319 --> 00:30:30.579 people get all twisted and upset about that. 00:30:31.460 --> 00:30:36.160 He's the Son. Read it right there. When it says 00:30:36.160 --> 00:30:38.680 Jesus is the Son of God, that word Son doesn't 00:30:38.680 --> 00:30:45.039 mean biological offspring. It means of the same 00:30:45.039 --> 00:30:49.849 nature but different. That he is the second person 00:30:49.849 --> 00:30:52.910 of the Trinity, the Godhead. Jesus is God himself. 00:30:54.309 --> 00:30:57.950 Come to this earth to live a perfect life, but 00:30:57.950 --> 00:30:59.990 tempted in every way we are. Why? So that he 00:30:59.990 --> 00:31:05.170 could sympathize with us. He gets it. And then 00:31:05.170 --> 00:31:08.410 he went to that cross to die for our sins. He 00:31:08.410 --> 00:31:15.150 had none. He went into that tomb dead. Yeah. 00:31:15.920 --> 00:31:17.660 He did it for you and me, and then he walked 00:31:17.660 --> 00:31:22.839 out. Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the 00:31:22.839 --> 00:31:27.400 life. He was the sinless one. He was the innocent 00:31:27.400 --> 00:31:30.619 one. And so he was the only one that could pay 00:31:30.619 --> 00:31:35.000 the price. The Bible says that he would never 00:31:35.000 --> 00:31:39.660 see corruption. The Bible tells us that Jesus' 00:31:39.940 --> 00:31:42.420 body wasn't corrupt. He came back to life before 00:31:42.420 --> 00:31:47.200 corruption took over. And Jesus does more than 00:31:47.200 --> 00:31:52.640 just give life. He is life. That's why death 00:31:52.640 --> 00:31:56.220 has no power over him. When we put our faith 00:31:56.220 --> 00:31:59.140 and our trust in him, when we trust in his death, 00:31:59.220 --> 00:32:05.079 his burial, and his resurrection, he confers 00:32:05.079 --> 00:32:09.400 that life to us so that we too get to share in 00:32:09.400 --> 00:32:13.880 his victory over death. What does that mean? 00:32:13.940 --> 00:32:16.220 When we put our faith in Jesus Christ, we are 00:32:16.220 --> 00:32:18.700 born again. We are given new life. Our spirit 00:32:18.700 --> 00:32:21.160 is made alive and reconnected to God. We now 00:32:21.160 --> 00:32:28.000 have the power to say no when sin says yes. We 00:32:28.000 --> 00:32:29.759 have the power to say, I'm not going to do that. 00:32:30.680 --> 00:32:34.500 We have the power to say, no, I am not that person 00:32:34.500 --> 00:32:39.180 anymore. That person is dead. I'm a new creature 00:32:39.180 --> 00:32:42.200 in Christ. I don't have to listen to you, sin. 00:32:42.400 --> 00:32:44.559 I don't have to listen to you, devil. I don't 00:32:44.559 --> 00:32:49.740 have to listen to you, flesh. I have a new life. 00:32:51.619 --> 00:32:55.380 Now, if you believe the tomb is empty and you 00:32:55.380 --> 00:32:57.779 are following Christ, you've confessed him as 00:32:57.779 --> 00:32:59.920 your Lord and Savior, then by definition, you 00:32:59.920 --> 00:33:03.039 have followed him out of the tomb. The empty 00:33:03.039 --> 00:33:05.519 tomb means there's no more walking in shame and 00:33:05.519 --> 00:33:08.819 condemnation. There's no more walking in addiction 00:33:08.819 --> 00:33:11.660 and habits that are gonna kill you. There's no 00:33:11.660 --> 00:33:13.759 more walking in unforgiveness and bitterness. 00:33:14.000 --> 00:33:16.859 There's no more keeping score on how many good 00:33:16.859 --> 00:33:19.299 things did I do today versus how many bad things, 00:33:19.400 --> 00:33:21.500 and did I balance the scale right so God's not 00:33:21.500 --> 00:33:25.079 mad at me? There's no more defining yourself 00:33:25.079 --> 00:33:31.599 by your past, but instead by your future. You 00:33:31.599 --> 00:33:33.339 know, when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, 00:33:34.829 --> 00:33:37.349 The very first thing he told the people to do 00:33:37.349 --> 00:33:42.589 was take off his grave clothes. Why? Because 00:33:42.589 --> 00:33:45.450 living people don't wear dead people's clothes. 00:33:46.809 --> 00:33:52.910 They're stinky. Remember the spices. You don't 00:33:52.910 --> 00:33:55.289 go around with the trappings of your old life 00:33:55.289 --> 00:33:59.150 and death hanging off of you. You shed those 00:33:59.150 --> 00:34:05.390 things. There may be many here today. You believe 00:34:05.390 --> 00:34:07.529 in Jesus for your salvation, but you're still 00:34:07.529 --> 00:34:12.989 living as if he's lying in the tomb. Still giving 00:34:12.989 --> 00:34:16.150 in to sin and temptation and giving in to the 00:34:16.150 --> 00:34:18.329 wrong and going, oh, I can't do anything about 00:34:18.329 --> 00:34:23.250 it. Yes, you can. The power that created the 00:34:23.250 --> 00:34:26.170 entire universe dwells within you, God himself. 00:34:28.750 --> 00:34:32.789 Can you imagine months after Jesus raised Lazarus 00:34:32.789 --> 00:34:35.989 from the dead? He's still hobbling around in 00:34:35.989 --> 00:34:39.429 those grave clothes. Eventually somebody's going 00:34:39.429 --> 00:34:42.829 to be like, bro, why are you still acting like 00:34:42.829 --> 00:34:47.949 you're dead? You're alive. What did Jesus say 00:34:47.949 --> 00:34:50.429 to the paralytic? Take up your mat and walk. 00:34:51.590 --> 00:34:55.389 You are no longer paralyzed. But what if a month 00:34:55.389 --> 00:34:57.469 later you walked by and you saw him lying on 00:34:57.469 --> 00:35:01.590 his mat still? Unmoving, you'd be like, what 00:35:01.590 --> 00:35:03.789 are you doing, bro? You're not crippled anymore. 00:35:04.849 --> 00:35:08.969 Get up and live. You're not in the place of despair 00:35:08.969 --> 00:35:10.809 or darkness. You're not in the place of death. 00:35:10.929 --> 00:35:13.190 You're not in the place of change. You're free. 00:35:17.090 --> 00:35:19.210 And here's the big question for all of us this 00:35:19.210 --> 00:35:24.650 morning. If Jesus walked out of the grave, then 00:35:24.650 --> 00:35:30.170 why are you still crouched in the corner? Why 00:35:30.170 --> 00:35:33.849 are you still sitting in that dark grave as if 00:35:33.849 --> 00:35:38.809 the door isn't wide open? Why are you still sitting 00:35:38.809 --> 00:35:45.809 there with nothing holding you down while the 00:35:45.809 --> 00:35:49.469 stone has been rolled away? And Jesus is out 00:35:49.469 --> 00:35:54.309 there saying, follow me. I'll lead you to life. 00:35:56.050 --> 00:35:59.650 But you have to follow me. You have to trust 00:35:59.650 --> 00:36:03.269 me. Those prison doors have been flung open, 00:36:03.329 --> 00:36:06.070 ripped off the hinges. The stone has been rolled 00:36:06.070 --> 00:36:09.170 away, cast away as far as you can imagine. And 00:36:09.170 --> 00:36:12.250 if you have been crucified with Christ, it is 00:36:12.250 --> 00:36:15.190 no longer you who live, but he who lives in you. 00:36:15.670 --> 00:36:18.489 And the life you now live, you live by faith 00:36:18.489 --> 00:36:22.269 in the Son of God who loved you and gave himself 00:36:22.269 --> 00:36:26.110 for you. That is your reality this morning. That 00:36:26.110 --> 00:36:28.869 is the truth of your life this morning. Christian, 00:36:28.989 --> 00:36:34.289 you are free. Christian, you have been set free. 00:36:36.349 --> 00:36:43.849 Stop living in the tomb. The tomb is empty. He's 00:36:43.849 --> 00:36:49.489 not there anymore. For he has risen. He is alive. 00:36:50.969 --> 00:36:55.880 And he's alive in you as well. If the tomb is 00:36:55.880 --> 00:36:58.780 empty, what it means is that the impossible is 00:36:58.780 --> 00:37:02.500 now possible. You can walk out of the grave. 00:37:03.199 --> 00:37:06.260 You can leave behind sin and death, all of it. 00:37:06.300 --> 00:37:10.880 You can do it. Why? Because he did it. He led 00:37:10.880 --> 00:37:12.739 the way. The Bible says that he was the pioneer, 00:37:13.039 --> 00:37:17.679 the trailblazer of our faith. You can walk worthy 00:37:17.679 --> 00:37:19.400 of the Lord in this life, fully pleasing him, 00:37:19.480 --> 00:37:23.539 bearing fruit in every good work because he is 00:37:23.539 --> 00:37:27.360 alive. Some of you are here this morning because, 00:37:27.440 --> 00:37:29.500 well, it's Easter. Of course I go to church. 00:37:31.099 --> 00:37:35.420 And I'm so glad you're here. But you don't have 00:37:35.420 --> 00:37:39.199 a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Maybe 00:37:39.199 --> 00:37:42.900 your spouse does. Maybe your friends do. And 00:37:42.900 --> 00:37:45.340 maybe there's something in you that says, well, 00:37:45.360 --> 00:37:48.579 you know, I better go to church in case God is 00:37:48.579 --> 00:37:52.079 real. I don't want him to be mad at me. Or maybe 00:37:52.079 --> 00:37:54.340 it's just a tradition for you to come to church 00:37:54.340 --> 00:37:58.440 on Easter, but you've never fully got what it's 00:37:58.440 --> 00:38:01.480 about. You've never put your faith and trust 00:38:01.480 --> 00:38:04.059 in the God who created you and who died for you 00:38:04.059 --> 00:38:07.980 and who rose from the grave for you. And you 00:38:07.980 --> 00:38:11.960 are still shackled by sin. You've never acknowledged 00:38:11.960 --> 00:38:13.920 your sin to God. You've never come before Him 00:38:13.920 --> 00:38:16.960 and said, God, you're right. I've sinned against 00:38:16.960 --> 00:38:21.329 you. But you've definitely experienced the result 00:38:21.329 --> 00:38:28.429 of sin, in broken relationships, in broken promises, 00:38:28.650 --> 00:38:33.010 in the loss of hope, in the disappointment and 00:38:33.010 --> 00:38:35.469 the depression and the anxiety, all of that is 00:38:35.469 --> 00:38:38.130 the fruit of sin. And you've experienced it. 00:38:40.030 --> 00:38:45.150 And you've been living in a tomb, in a dark cave 00:38:45.150 --> 00:38:49.469 of darkness and despair, full of guilt, shame, 00:38:50.880 --> 00:38:55.320 regret, hopelessness. Well, guess what? Everything 00:38:55.320 --> 00:38:58.280 we've been talking about today is for you too 00:38:58.280 --> 00:39:03.380 if you put your faith in Jesus Christ. If you 00:39:03.380 --> 00:39:10.739 trust in Him. You can't. You've tried. You can't. 00:39:12.059 --> 00:39:15.820 Jesus did. And all you have to do is accept it 00:39:15.820 --> 00:39:19.199 and you too will be set free. He died for your 00:39:19.199 --> 00:39:24.860 sin too. He died to pay your penalty too. He 00:39:24.860 --> 00:39:27.599 entered the tomb of your life just like he did 00:39:27.599 --> 00:39:30.239 for everybody else. And he's telling you right 00:39:30.239 --> 00:39:34.719 now, follow me. I've taken care of everything. 00:39:37.000 --> 00:39:39.260 Trust in what I did. I died on the cross for 00:39:39.260 --> 00:39:42.019 you. Believe I did that for you. Believe I am 00:39:42.019 --> 00:39:45.000 God who shed his blood for you and you will be 00:39:45.000 --> 00:39:47.860 wiped clean. You will be made right with your 00:39:47.860 --> 00:39:53.539 creator. Just follow me, he says. Get up. Let's 00:39:53.539 --> 00:39:57.360 walk out of the darkness together. Let me lead 00:39:57.360 --> 00:40:02.699 you out into hope and peace and joy and forgiveness 00:40:02.699 --> 00:40:05.000 and grace and mercy. Why? Because he says, I 00:40:05.000 --> 00:40:08.659 am the way. And if you don't know me, I want 00:40:08.659 --> 00:40:13.019 to give you life. The empty tomb of Christ says 00:40:13.019 --> 00:40:16.389 to you this morning, you can start over. You 00:40:16.389 --> 00:40:19.090 could start over with a new life, and it starts 00:40:19.090 --> 00:40:22.289 with professing faith in who he is and what he 00:40:22.289 --> 00:40:28.690 did. Let's pray. Father, we're so grateful for 00:40:28.690 --> 00:40:34.849 your empty tomb. Lord, we know that you did all 00:40:34.849 --> 00:40:38.329 this for us. Your word tells us that it was for 00:40:38.329 --> 00:40:40.769 the joy set before you that you endured the cross. 00:40:43.179 --> 00:40:45.139 But Lord, your word tells us that you didn't 00:40:45.139 --> 00:40:49.300 just die. You came back to life, Lord. And God, 00:40:49.360 --> 00:40:52.440 as we come to the tomb this morning, as people, 00:40:52.519 --> 00:40:58.320 we look inside and it's empty. And Lord, we don't 00:40:58.320 --> 00:41:01.000 have to think, did someone steal your body or 00:41:01.000 --> 00:41:03.420 did they move the casket or any of that, Lord? 00:41:03.619 --> 00:41:05.739 Because we know according to your word and the 00:41:05.739 --> 00:41:07.760 testimony of so many in this room and in our 00:41:07.760 --> 00:41:12.440 lives around us that you were alive. That you 00:41:12.440 --> 00:41:16.260 walked out of that tomb. That the breath reentered 00:41:16.260 --> 00:41:20.659 your lungs and you got up. Defeating death, defeating 00:41:20.659 --> 00:41:26.099 sin, and proving to us that you are God. And 00:41:26.099 --> 00:41:27.880 that as you came back to life, you can raise 00:41:27.880 --> 00:41:31.219 us to life. Lord, we're so thankful for that. 00:41:32.800 --> 00:41:35.340 But God, maybe there's some here today, Lord, 00:41:35.460 --> 00:41:39.980 who've come to celebrate Easter. God, bless them 00:41:39.980 --> 00:41:42.610 for that. But Lord, they don't have a saving 00:41:42.610 --> 00:41:45.489 relationship with you. And Lord, they know it. 00:41:45.489 --> 00:41:47.789 As I'm talking right now, they know that they 00:41:47.789 --> 00:41:51.590 have never yielded their life to you. They have 00:41:51.590 --> 00:41:54.150 never put faith in who you are and said, I believe 00:41:54.150 --> 00:41:57.010 that you are God. And then I believe that you 00:41:57.010 --> 00:42:00.570 died for my sin on the cross. That I believe 00:42:00.570 --> 00:42:02.849 there is nothing I could do to pay my own price 00:42:02.849 --> 00:42:04.969 and one day I will stand before God Almighty. 00:42:06.530 --> 00:42:11.340 And without Jesus, I know I will be guilty. Lord, 00:42:11.400 --> 00:42:13.300 they've never then pleaded the blood of Jesus 00:42:13.300 --> 00:42:16.559 and said, please forgive me, God. I trust in 00:42:16.559 --> 00:42:19.719 what you did for me. I trust in the death of 00:42:19.719 --> 00:42:23.679 Jesus. And Lord, they have never experienced 00:42:23.679 --> 00:42:26.139 the new life that comes from the one who walked 00:42:26.139 --> 00:42:30.820 out of the grave. While we're praying, heads 00:42:30.820 --> 00:42:33.679 bowed and eyes closed, if you were in this room 00:42:33.679 --> 00:42:35.420 this morning and God is speaking to your heart 00:42:35.420 --> 00:42:39.150 about your need to be born again, Your need to 00:42:39.150 --> 00:42:42.489 be forgiven of your sins. Your need to come to 00:42:42.489 --> 00:42:44.449 Jesus Christ and receive the new life that he 00:42:44.449 --> 00:42:45.949 has for you because the one you're currently 00:42:45.949 --> 00:42:51.210 living is not working. And God is knocking on 00:42:51.210 --> 00:42:53.289 your heart right now and you hear his voice saying, 00:42:53.329 --> 00:42:57.050 come to me, follow me. If you're watching online 00:42:57.050 --> 00:42:59.550 and you're having the same moment where God is 00:42:59.550 --> 00:43:01.710 speaking to you no matter where you're at watching, 00:43:02.150 --> 00:43:06.489 I want to give you this opportunity this Easter 00:43:06.489 --> 00:43:11.809 morning. this resurrection Sunday, to come to 00:43:11.809 --> 00:43:15.550 Christ, to be saved, to receive the grace and 00:43:15.550 --> 00:43:17.550 mercy, the forgiveness of your sins, and the 00:43:17.550 --> 00:43:21.070 new life he has for you. And so while we're praying, 00:43:21.289 --> 00:43:24.070 if you want to receive Jesus Christ into your 00:43:24.070 --> 00:43:26.010 life this morning and be saved, I just want you 00:43:26.010 --> 00:43:28.190 to raise your hand where you're seated. Raise 00:43:28.190 --> 00:43:30.050 a high so I can see it. I see you on the side 00:43:30.050 --> 00:43:31.809 as well. You on the side as well in the back. 00:43:32.339 --> 00:43:34.480 Anybody else? I see you guys in the back as well. 00:43:34.500 --> 00:43:37.119 God is speaking to you back on the left. I see 00:43:37.119 --> 00:43:40.039 you as well this morning. More importantly, God 00:43:40.039 --> 00:43:42.360 sees you. I see you on the side. Anybody else? 00:43:42.380 --> 00:43:46.539 You want to be saved today. You want that resurrected 00:43:46.539 --> 00:43:51.659 life because the one you're living is dead. Jesus 00:43:51.659 --> 00:43:55.179 is here right now ready to save you. Anybody 00:43:55.179 --> 00:43:56.940 else? Just raise your hand so I could see it. 00:43:58.519 --> 00:44:01.980 God bless you on the side. If you're watching 00:44:01.980 --> 00:44:05.500 online, obviously I can't see you. But if you 00:44:05.500 --> 00:44:07.039 want to give your life to the Lord today and 00:44:07.039 --> 00:44:08.820 receive the forgiveness that I've been talking 00:44:08.820 --> 00:44:11.320 about, to receive the new life that Jesus has 00:44:11.320 --> 00:44:13.539 for you, I would just like you to type into the 00:44:13.539 --> 00:44:17.039 chat box that I am giving my life to the Lord 00:44:17.039 --> 00:44:20.460 this morning. In a moment, I'm going to pray 00:44:20.460 --> 00:44:21.920 with those of you that have raised your hand, 00:44:21.980 --> 00:44:23.619 but I want to give one more moment to anybody 00:44:23.619 --> 00:44:27.000 else. Maybe you've been hesitating for some reason. 00:44:27.059 --> 00:44:30.780 You're not sure. God is knocking. you feel it 00:44:30.780 --> 00:44:32.460 in the pounding of your heart, you need to be 00:44:32.460 --> 00:44:35.500 saved today. Just raise your hand where I can 00:44:35.500 --> 00:44:37.139 see it and let me pray with you this morning. 00:44:39.079 --> 00:44:44.420 God bless you. Father God, we are so grateful 00:44:44.420 --> 00:44:48.039 that your spirit is moving in this church. Father 00:44:48.039 --> 00:44:51.480 God, we are so grateful that you died on the 00:44:51.480 --> 00:44:53.800 cross for our sins, Lord, that those in this 00:44:53.800 --> 00:44:57.920 room and watching online who have said yes. I'm 00:44:57.920 --> 00:45:00.219 raising my hand. I'm typing in the chat. I'm 00:45:00.219 --> 00:45:02.480 saying, I want to be saved. I need to be saved 00:45:02.480 --> 00:45:05.460 today. God, we are so grateful that you died 00:45:05.460 --> 00:45:10.139 for them. And Lord, we trust in your word and 00:45:10.139 --> 00:45:13.880 your promises. Let's say if we believe in our 00:45:13.880 --> 00:45:16.460 heart and confess with our mouth, we will be 00:45:16.460 --> 00:45:19.969 saved. And so for those of you that raised your 00:45:19.969 --> 00:45:21.409 hand while we're all still praying together, 00:45:21.530 --> 00:45:23.010 if you've raised your hand in this room this 00:45:23.010 --> 00:45:25.210 morning to receive Christ, or if you're watching 00:45:25.210 --> 00:45:27.510 online and you wanna receive Jesus this morning, 00:45:27.750 --> 00:45:30.130 I'm gonna lead you in a prayer right now, and 00:45:30.130 --> 00:45:33.590 I just want you to pray with me out loud. It's 00:45:33.590 --> 00:45:35.710 nothing in the particular words that are used. 00:45:35.829 --> 00:45:38.030 This is about you meaning this from your heart. 00:45:39.230 --> 00:45:42.329 But it's simply a prayer of confession and asking 00:45:42.329 --> 00:45:44.070 God to come into your life. And so pray with 00:45:44.070 --> 00:45:45.610 me. Those of you that raised your hand, you need 00:45:45.610 --> 00:45:50.119 the Lord this morning. Say, Father God. I know 00:45:50.119 --> 00:45:54.199 I've sinned against you. I know I am guilty. 00:45:56.179 --> 00:46:03.619 My life has been one of death. So many things 00:46:03.619 --> 00:46:11.679 have suffered because of my sin. In God, there 00:46:11.679 --> 00:46:16.300 is nothing I could do about it. But I believe 00:46:16.300 --> 00:46:22.900 this morning, that you can. I believe, God, this 00:46:22.900 --> 00:46:30.400 morning that you can change my heart. And so, 00:46:30.420 --> 00:46:37.360 God, I put my faith in you. I believe you came 00:46:37.360 --> 00:46:43.000 to this earth. I believe you lived on this earth. 00:46:44.460 --> 00:46:48.300 And I believe you died on this earth for my sin. 00:46:50.349 --> 00:46:56.409 I believe you were buried essentially in my grave. 00:46:58.110 --> 00:47:02.550 But Lord, this Easter morning, I believe that 00:47:02.550 --> 00:47:06.170 you rose from the dead, walking out of that grave. 00:47:07.769 --> 00:47:10.630 And I believe, Lord, that you can give me new 00:47:10.630 --> 00:47:17.389 life too. Thank you for loving me so much. Thank 00:47:17.389 --> 00:47:22.159 you for doing all of this for me. Help me to 00:47:22.159 --> 00:47:28.420 live for you. Help me to walk in the light. Help 00:47:28.420 --> 00:47:34.860 me to shine your glory. It is in Jesus' name 00:47:34.860 --> 00:47:42.880 I pray. Amen. Congratulations. Those of you that 00:47:42.880 --> 00:47:45.099 have... Put your faith in Jesus this morning. 00:47:45.179 --> 00:47:47.760 You have entered into a relationship with the 00:47:47.760 --> 00:47:49.460 creator of the universe, the one who created 00:47:49.460 --> 00:47:53.679 you. He wants you to know him. He wants you to 00:47:53.679 --> 00:47:57.139 walk with him. What does that mean? It means 00:47:57.139 --> 00:48:00.719 a whole lot of things, but simply put, read his 00:48:00.719 --> 00:48:04.460 word because that is how God speaks to us. Worship 00:48:04.460 --> 00:48:07.780 him because he is worthy of the glory. Talk to 00:48:07.780 --> 00:48:10.940 him in prayer. If you gave your life to the Lord 00:48:10.940 --> 00:48:13.079 this morning, we have these white packets up 00:48:13.079 --> 00:48:15.039 in the front pews or in the back as you leave 00:48:15.039 --> 00:48:17.679 today. We call them new believer packets. And 00:48:17.679 --> 00:48:20.300 it's a whole slew of resources to help you start 00:48:20.300 --> 00:48:24.539 this relationship. And whether you plug in here 00:48:24.539 --> 00:48:27.480 or another church, plug into a Bible teaching 00:48:27.480 --> 00:48:29.860 church that is gonna teach you the word of God, 00:48:30.059 --> 00:48:33.840 that you would know the lover of your soul more 00:48:33.840 --> 00:48:37.840 and more each day. For the rest of us, we have 00:48:37.840 --> 00:48:41.030 an opportunity. every day to take this message 00:48:41.030 --> 00:48:44.309 to a lost and dying world, to tell them that 00:48:44.309 --> 00:48:49.409 the tomb is empty, that Jesus is alive, for he 00:48:49.409 --> 00:48:53.409 is risen. God bless you guys.