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>> Good morning, and happy
00:04:33.67\00:04:35.10
Sabbath.
00:04:35.20\00:04:36.97
And welcome to this high
00:04:37.07\00:04:38.27
Easter Sabbath.
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Isn't it beautiful outside?
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So glad you're here
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worshiping with us.
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And for those of you at home,
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we're so glad you've chosen
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to worship with us, as well.
00:04:47.38\00:04:49.85
I invite you now
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to open your bulletins
00:04:51.69\00:04:53.46
to our call to worship.
00:04:53.56\00:04:55.19
You'll see it on the
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screens, as well.
00:04:57.26\00:04:58.23
Please stand for the invocation.
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Let's bow our heads.
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Dear Father in Heaven,
00:05:39.77\00:05:41.34
we've come to worship You here
00:05:41.44\00:05:42.64
in this beautiful sanctuary
00:05:42.74\00:05:43.81
on this Easter Sabbath.
00:05:43.91\00:05:46.71
Jesus, when You were here,
00:05:46.81\00:05:47.51
You said, "I am
00:05:47.61\00:05:48.98
the resurrection and the life,"
00:05:49.08\00:05:51.88
that You hold the keys to death.
00:05:51.98\00:05:54.82
And when You rose that Easter
00:05:54.92\00:05:56.42
morning, You proved that You
00:05:56.52\00:05:58.42
do hold the keys to death
00:05:58.52\00:05:59.72
and You are the resurrection
00:05:59.82\00:06:00.79
and the life.
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So together we've come to
00:06:02.36\00:06:03.49
worship You and to praise Your
00:06:03.59\00:06:05.93
name because Christ is risen.
00:06:06.03\00:06:09.03
In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
00:06:09.13\00:06:11.87
[ "Jesus Shall Reign Where'er
00:06:11.97\00:06:14.34
the Sun" begins ]
00:06:14.44\00:06:16.91
[ Congregation sings ]
00:06:36.76\00:06:39.16
>> Good morning, girls and boys.
00:10:00.03\00:10:02.93
Happy Sabbath.
00:10:03.03\00:10:04.20
It's so great to see you here
00:10:04.30\00:10:06.47
in your Easter Sabbath costumes.
00:10:06.57\00:10:10.17
We are celebrating, aren't we,
00:10:10.27\00:10:11.47
this weekend the resurrection
00:10:11.57\00:10:12.51
of Jesus.
00:10:12.61\00:10:14.14
Say, I have a question for you.
00:10:14.24\00:10:15.04
How many of you have
00:10:15.14\00:10:16.54
a pet dog at home?
00:10:16.64\00:10:19.08
Anybody got a dog?
00:10:19.18\00:10:20.78
Oh, quite a few of you do.
00:10:20.88\00:10:22.02
Quite a few. Okay, great.
00:10:22.12\00:10:24.55
Well, when I was a little boy,
00:10:24.65\00:10:25.59
I had a dog, too.
00:10:25.69\00:10:27.69
But it's important for you
00:10:27.79\00:10:28.49
to know that right now
00:10:28.59\00:10:29.79
I don't have a dog, okay?
00:10:29.89\00:10:32.19
So, this last winter, when I was
00:10:32.29\00:10:34.00
going to Apple Valley Market to
00:10:34.10\00:10:35.53
do my Tuesday morning shopping,
00:10:35.63\00:10:37.97
I always carry a list, right?
00:10:38.07\00:10:39.63
What's on the list?
00:10:39.73\00:10:40.34
It's what I buy.
00:10:40.44\00:10:42.07
So, I felt strangely impressed
00:10:42.17\00:10:44.97
to go down the pet aisle.
00:10:45.07\00:10:47.11
You know which one that is,
00:10:47.21\00:10:48.04
right?
00:10:48.14\00:10:48.78
it has the cat food and the dog
00:10:48.84\00:10:50.95
food and all the treats for
00:10:51.01\00:10:52.08
pets.
00:10:52.18\00:10:53.28
This is strange.
00:10:53.38\00:10:54.38
I don't usually go down
00:10:54.48\00:10:55.25
this aisle, but I turned
00:10:55.35\00:10:56.48
the cart down that aisle.
00:10:56.58\00:10:58.22
And then I was very strongly
00:10:58.32\00:10:59.69
impressed to stop
00:10:59.79\00:11:01.56
in front of the shelf
00:11:01.66\00:11:03.66
that had the dog biscuits.
00:11:03.76\00:11:06.66
And I was supposed to buy
00:11:06.76\00:11:08.80
a box of dog biscuits.
00:11:08.90\00:11:10.00
That's the impression I had.
00:11:10.10\00:11:11.50
I said, "This is crazy."
00:11:11.60\00:11:13.67
It's not on the list, alright?
00:11:13.77\00:11:15.80
And I don't have a dog.
00:11:15.90\00:11:17.37
so why buy a box
00:11:17.47\00:11:19.77
of dog biscuits?
00:11:19.87\00:11:21.54
But, you know, I couldn't shake
00:11:21.64\00:11:22.48
the impression, so I did.
00:11:22.58\00:11:26.18
There it is, right?
00:11:26.28\00:11:27.75
You've all seen the dog bis--
00:11:27.85\00:11:29.12
You know what a dog biscuit is,
00:11:29.22\00:11:29.98
right?
00:11:30.09\00:11:30.72
Doggie bones.
00:11:30.82\00:11:32.02
These are not cookies.
00:11:32.12\00:11:32.95
These are for dogs.
00:11:33.05\00:11:33.86
Okay.
00:11:33.96\00:11:35.59
So, I took it home and I put it
00:11:35.69\00:11:37.89
way up on the top
00:11:37.99\00:11:39.89
shelf in the kitchen cupboard.
00:11:40.00\00:11:41.83
I thought to myself, "You know,
00:11:41.93\00:11:42.83
those bones are gonna get old
00:11:42.93\00:11:45.83
and they're gonna go stale
00:11:45.93\00:11:47.77
and I'm never gonna use them."
00:11:47.87\00:11:49.90
But there they were.
00:11:50.01\00:11:51.67
A few days later, however --
00:11:51.77\00:11:54.81
And this was during the winter
00:11:54.91\00:11:55.98
when the temperatures were down
00:11:56.08\00:11:57.21
in the single digits.
00:11:57.31\00:11:58.85
You remember how cold that was?
00:11:58.95\00:12:00.58
I went out through the garage
00:12:00.68\00:12:02.22
to the back deck to feed
00:12:02.32\00:12:04.05
the birds and the squirrels,
00:12:04.15\00:12:06.59
and as I opened the back door
00:12:06.69\00:12:08.22
to my deck,
00:12:08.32\00:12:09.89
what do you suppose I saw
00:12:09.99\00:12:11.63
on the other side of that door?
00:12:11.73\00:12:14.30
A very big dog,
00:12:14.40\00:12:18.00
a gray pit bull terrier dog.
00:12:18.10\00:12:22.84
Maybe we can have the picture
00:12:22.94\00:12:24.21
on the screen here.
00:12:24.31\00:12:25.97
It was very big.
00:12:26.07\00:12:29.48
And I noticed three things
00:12:29.58\00:12:31.78
about that dog immediately.
00:12:31.88\00:12:33.92
Number one, the dog was shaking
00:12:34.02\00:12:35.42
all over.
00:12:35.52\00:12:36.35
I mean, it was just freezing
00:12:36.45\00:12:38.89
out there, and this dog
00:12:38.99\00:12:40.39
was shivering terribly.
00:12:40.49\00:12:42.99
Number two, the leash was torn.
00:12:43.09\00:12:46.23
This dog had run away from home,
00:12:46.33\00:12:49.86
and his leash was broken.
00:12:49.96\00:12:51.07
Number three,
00:12:51.17\00:12:52.40
he had a metal dog tag.
00:12:52.50\00:12:54.70
"Aha!" I said.
00:12:54.80\00:12:56.10
"Now I can find out who the
00:12:56.20\00:12:57.11
owner is."
00:12:57.21\00:12:58.14
And so I bent down
00:12:58.24\00:12:59.57
and reached for the dog tag,
00:12:59.67\00:13:01.28
and he growled at me.
00:13:01.38\00:13:04.75
Okay. I backed off.
00:13:04.85\00:13:09.02
He could be growling
00:13:09.12\00:13:09.92
because he was angry,
00:13:10.02\00:13:10.95
or he could be growling
00:13:11.05\00:13:11.92
because he was hungry.
00:13:12.02\00:13:14.16
But I backed off.
00:13:14.26\00:13:15.99
I said, "You know, this dog
00:13:16.09\00:13:17.69
might be really hungry."
00:13:17.79\00:13:19.79
So I remembered
00:13:19.89\00:13:20.60
the box of dog bones.
00:13:20.70\00:13:21.63
I went into the house,
00:13:21.73\00:13:23.26
into the kitchen,
00:13:23.37\00:13:24.63
opened a box up,
00:13:24.73\00:13:26.84
grabbed a handful of these
00:13:26.94\00:13:29.30
Milk Bones, and took them out
00:13:29.40\00:13:31.47
and placed them just inside
00:13:31.57\00:13:33.98
the back garage door.
00:13:34.08\00:13:36.04
Then I went into the kitchen.
00:13:36.14\00:13:37.91
I waited about five minutes,
00:13:38.01\00:13:40.22
and I went back into my garage.
00:13:40.32\00:13:43.15
And the bones were gone.
00:13:43.25\00:13:44.72
He'd eaten them all.
00:13:44.82\00:13:46.82
So I went back in the house.
00:13:46.92\00:13:48.09
I got another handful of
00:13:48.19\00:13:50.49
Milk Bones and I took them out
00:13:50.59\00:13:52.63
and I spread them on the garage
00:13:52.73\00:13:53.46
floor.
00:13:53.56\00:13:54.86
Five minutes later,
00:13:54.96\00:13:55.83
they had disappeared.
00:13:55.93\00:13:57.90
This dog is really hungry.
00:13:58.00\00:14:00.54
So I grabbed another handful,
00:14:00.64\00:14:02.50
took them out there,
00:14:02.60\00:14:04.07
and this time the dog
00:14:04.17\00:14:04.97
was waiting right
00:14:05.07\00:14:05.74
by the kitchen step.
00:14:05.84\00:14:07.51
He knew what was coming next.
00:14:07.61\00:14:09.28
He was waiting for me.
00:14:09.38\00:14:10.98
And somehow -- and I don't know
00:14:11.08\00:14:12.41
how he did it -- he wrapped
00:14:12.51\00:14:13.65
himself up in a little throw rug
00:14:13.75\00:14:15.65
that I had there.
00:14:15.75\00:14:18.05
And I dropped the bones
00:14:18.15\00:14:19.85
right beside him.
00:14:19.95\00:14:21.79
Well, I went back in the house,
00:14:21.89\00:14:23.09
and I said, "You know, there's
00:14:23.19\00:14:24.36
got to be some way I can find
00:14:24.46\00:14:26.73
out who this dog's owner is."
00:14:26.83\00:14:29.56
It was a weekend.
00:14:29.66\00:14:31.03
A lot of businesses are closed
00:14:31.13\00:14:32.40
on the weekend, you know.
00:14:32.50\00:14:33.60
I said, "I'll call our friendly
00:14:33.70\00:14:35.94
local police dispatcher."
00:14:36.04\00:14:38.74
A dispatcher is somebody
00:14:38.84\00:14:40.01
who sends your phone call
00:14:40.11\00:14:41.58
where it ought to go.
00:14:41.68\00:14:43.04
So I called and she answered
00:14:43.14\00:14:45.15
and she said, "I know
00:14:45.25\00:14:46.05
where your call should go."
00:14:46.15\00:14:47.85
She said, "I'm gonna put
00:14:47.95\00:14:48.98
the call through to the animal
00:14:49.08\00:14:51.02
shelter in Benton Harbor.
00:14:51.12\00:14:54.29
They'll send somebody out
00:14:54.39\00:14:55.39
and take care of it."
00:14:55.49\00:14:57.19
In a few minutes, a big white
00:14:57.29\00:14:59.09
van showed up in my driveway.
00:14:59.19\00:15:01.76
A friendly man got out
00:15:01.86\00:15:03.26
with a leash
00:15:03.37\00:15:05.30
and he went into the garage.
00:15:05.40\00:15:06.17
He talked very softly
00:15:06.27\00:15:07.90
to the pit bull terrier.
00:15:08.00\00:15:11.34
He put the leash around his neck
00:15:11.44\00:15:13.51
and began to lead him
00:15:13.61\00:15:15.21
out of the garage.
00:15:15.31\00:15:16.61
But, you know, the dog turned
00:15:16.71\00:15:17.75
around, and he looked at me.
00:15:17.85\00:15:20.22
And I think I read the
00:15:20.32\00:15:21.15
expression on his face.
00:15:21.25\00:15:23.18
"I wish I could have some more
00:15:23.28\00:15:24.75
of those Milk Bones before I
00:15:24.85\00:15:26.72
go."
00:15:26.82\00:15:29.26
Three days later,
00:15:29.36\00:15:30.79
I called the animal shelter.
00:15:30.89\00:15:32.29
I said, "Has that dog been
00:15:32.39\00:15:33.26
rescued?"
00:15:33.36\00:15:34.56
They said, "Yes, the owner came
00:15:34.63\00:15:36.40
in yesterday and took his dog
00:15:36.50\00:15:39.03
home, and he was so happy you
00:15:39.13\00:15:41.67
found it."
00:15:41.77\00:15:43.17
So I felt really good
00:15:43.27\00:15:45.01
about that.
00:15:45.11\00:15:46.81
I think there's
00:15:46.91\00:15:48.51
a couple of lessons for me --
00:15:48.61\00:15:50.05
and maybe for you, too --
00:15:50.15\00:15:51.41
from this story.
00:15:51.51\00:15:52.61
Lesson number one,
00:15:52.71\00:15:53.75
I learned very quickly
00:15:53.85\00:15:56.75
that Jesus sees our beginning
00:15:56.85\00:15:59.92
and our end, right?
00:16:00.09\00:16:01.22
Jesus sees the future.
00:16:01.32\00:16:03.22
I didn't have dog bones
00:16:03.32\00:16:04.23
on the list.
00:16:04.33\00:16:05.09
I didn't have any reason
00:16:05.19\00:16:05.83
to buy any.
00:16:05.93\00:16:06.83
But He knew that dog
00:16:06.93\00:16:07.93
would show up on my back deck,
00:16:08.00\00:16:10.80
and He wanted me to be prepared
00:16:10.90\00:16:12.10
to serve one of His little
00:16:12.20\00:16:13.90
creatures with Milk Bones.
00:16:14.00\00:16:16.07
The second lesson I would say
00:16:16.17\00:16:17.31
I've learned
00:16:17.41\00:16:18.64
is that that dog was lost
00:16:18.74\00:16:20.81
and needed to be rescued.
00:16:20.91\00:16:23.75
You and I, in a sense,
00:16:23.85\00:16:24.88
are lost in a world of sin
00:16:24.98\00:16:26.55
and pain and suffering.
00:16:26.65\00:16:29.12
But Jesus rose from the tomb,
00:16:29.22\00:16:31.59
and He promised He was coming
00:16:31.69\00:16:32.89
back to rescue us and take us
00:16:32.99\00:16:35.89
to our true home in Heaven.
00:16:35.99\00:16:38.46
Isn't that wonderful?
00:16:38.56\00:16:40.33
I'm wondering, is there someone
00:16:40.43\00:16:41.46
here today that would be willing
00:16:41.56\00:16:43.47
to pray and thank Jesus?
00:16:43.57\00:16:45.87
You want to do it? Okay.
00:16:45.97\00:16:48.40
For looking after us.
00:16:48.50\00:16:49.30
What's your name?
00:16:49.40\00:16:50.17
>> Cameron.
00:16:50.27\00:16:51.04
>> Cameron. Go ahead.
00:16:51.14\00:16:52.84
>> Dear Jesus,
00:16:52.94\00:16:54.34
thank you for the Sabbath day.
00:16:54.44\00:16:57.25
And please help us to be good.
00:16:57.35\00:17:00.28
Amen.
00:17:00.38\00:17:01.32
>> Amen. Thank you.
00:17:01.42\00:17:02.78
You may now go back to your
00:17:02.88\00:17:03.69
seats, yes.
00:17:03.79\00:17:05.42
¤
00:17:05.52\00:17:12.43
¤
00:17:12.53\00:17:19.40
¤
00:17:19.50\00:17:26.61
>> Good morning.
00:17:26.71\00:17:27.74
Good afternoon, church.
00:17:27.84\00:17:29.74
Today's Scripture reading is
00:17:29.84\00:17:31.15
found in I Corinthians 15:51-54.
00:17:31.25\00:17:37.09
"Listen, I tell you a mystery.
00:17:37.19\00:17:39.59
We will not all sleep, but we
00:17:39.69\00:17:42.39
will be changed in a flash,
00:17:42.49\00:17:45.36
in the twinkling of an eye,
00:17:45.46\00:17:47.66
at the last trumpet, for the
00:17:47.76\00:17:49.56
trumpet will sound, the dead
00:17:49.66\00:17:51.93
will be raised, imperishable,
00:17:52.03\00:17:54.04
and we will be changed,
00:17:54.14\00:17:55.50
for the perishable must clothe
00:17:55.60\00:17:58.11
itself with the imperishable
00:17:58.21\00:18:00.61
and the mortal with the
00:18:00.71\00:18:01.78
immorality.
00:18:01.88\00:18:03.61
Immortality.
00:18:03.71\00:18:05.31
When the perishable has been
00:18:05.41\00:18:06.92
clothed with the imperishable
00:18:07.02\00:18:08.72
and the mortal with the
00:18:08.82\00:18:09.75
immortality,
00:18:09.85\00:18:11.89
then the saying that is written
00:18:11.99\00:18:13.36
will come true.
00:18:13.46\00:18:15.06
Death has been swallowed up
00:18:15.16\00:18:16.99
in its victory."
00:18:17.09\00:18:18.43
May we all be blessed this
00:18:18.53\00:18:19.49
Sabbath through our risen
00:18:19.59\00:18:20.03
Savior.
00:18:20.13\00:18:21.73
¤
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¤
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[ Music ends ]
00:24:46.82\00:24:48.58
[ Applause ]
00:24:48.68\00:24:50.45
>> There are few things
00:25:00.76\00:25:03.77
more impactful,
00:25:03.87\00:25:07.04
more seemingly integral,
00:25:07.14\00:25:10.54
more inescapable in this world
00:25:10.64\00:25:13.98
than death and dying.
00:25:14.08\00:25:19.61
How's that for a winner of a way
00:25:19.71\00:25:20.55
to start a sermon, huh?
00:25:20.65\00:25:22.45
Makes you want to stay
00:25:22.55\00:25:23.18
for the whole thing, doesn?t?
00:25:23.25\00:25:24.09
Yeah, don't -- I'll get better.
00:25:24.15\00:25:25.29
Hang with me here.
00:25:25.39\00:25:27.42
But first it is true, is it not?
00:25:27.52\00:25:29.39
I mean, there are truly
00:25:29.49\00:25:31.76
few things more impactful,
00:25:31.86\00:25:33.70
more seemingly integral,
00:25:33.80\00:25:35.73
more inescapable in this world
00:25:35.83\00:25:37.77
than death and dying.
00:25:37.87\00:25:40.50
And just in case you doubt that,
00:25:40.60\00:25:41.94
let me give you some statistics.
00:25:42.04\00:25:45.27
The industries that are built on
00:25:45.37\00:25:48.94
death and dying are vast.
00:25:49.04\00:25:51.91
You ever thought about this?
00:25:52.01\00:25:53.38
According to the Federal
00:25:53.48\00:25:54.72
Reserve Bank of St. Louis,
00:25:54.82\00:25:56.18
the annual revenue from
00:25:56.28\00:25:57.35
all funeral services
00:25:57.45\00:25:58.69
rendered in 2021 --
00:25:58.79\00:26:00.42
and then it was matched again
00:26:00.52\00:26:01.42
in 2022 --
00:26:01.52\00:26:02.92
in the United States was right
00:26:03.02\00:26:04.53
at $17 billion.
00:26:04.63\00:26:08.96
That's "billion" with a "B."
00:26:09.06\00:26:10.07
$17 billion.
00:26:10.17\00:26:13.97
And how about hospitals?
00:26:14.07\00:26:16.04
Now, I fully realize
00:26:16.14\00:26:17.24
that hospitals do a great deal
00:26:17.34\00:26:18.71
more than just death and dying.
00:26:18.81\00:26:20.14
I mean, there are babies
00:26:20.24\00:26:20.94
that are born there.
00:26:21.04\00:26:21.64
There's broken bones
00:26:21.74\00:26:22.34
that are set.
00:26:22.44\00:26:23.75
All kinds of good things
00:26:23.85\00:26:24.91
can happen there.
00:26:25.01\00:26:26.72
The fact of the matter is,
00:26:26.72\00:26:28.88
if there were no such thing as
00:26:28.98\00:26:31.32
death and dying, most hospitals
00:26:31.42\00:26:33.66
would have a birthing center,
00:26:33.76\00:26:34.89
a few orthopedists,
00:26:34.99\00:26:35.96
and maybe some odds and ends,
00:26:36.06\00:26:36.66
and that's it.
00:26:36.76\00:26:38.16
And just in case you're not
00:26:38.26\00:26:39.36
so sure about this, even though
00:26:39.46\00:26:41.46
I am personally very grateful
00:26:41.56\00:26:43.87
for the care that hospitals
00:26:43.97\00:26:45.93
give, the fact of the matter is,
00:26:46.03\00:26:48.37
is that if death
00:26:48.47\00:26:49.40
and dying were not here,
00:26:49.50\00:26:51.91
much of the hospital business --
00:26:52.01\00:26:53.04
and for that matter,
00:26:53.14\00:26:53.61
if I'm honest,
00:26:53.71\00:26:54.44
much of the pastoral business --
00:26:54.54\00:26:56.34
would be gone.
00:26:56.44\00:26:58.55
And you say, "Well, what
00:26:58.65\00:26:59.38
would that be?
00:26:59.48\00:27:00.12
what kind of hole would that
00:27:00.18\00:27:01.08
leave in the economy?"
00:27:01.12\00:27:01.78
Here it is.
00:27:01.88\00:27:02.92
According to the same source
00:27:03.02\00:27:04.39
here, the Federal Reserve there
00:27:04.49\00:27:05.29
in St. Louis, in 2023,
00:27:05.39\00:27:07.36
all the hospitals put together
00:27:07.46\00:27:08.69
in the United States
00:27:08.79\00:27:09.96
took in revenue
00:27:10.06\00:27:11.16
on average of $384 billion --
00:27:11.26\00:27:15.43
wait for it -- per quarter.
00:27:15.53\00:27:20.07
Per quarter.
00:27:20.17\00:27:21.64
$384 billion per quarter.
00:27:21.74\00:27:24.11
Death and dying are a huge part
00:27:24.21\00:27:25.71
of what fuels the financial
00:27:25.81\00:27:27.11
engine of this country.
00:27:27.21\00:27:30.01
And there is more.
00:27:30.11\00:27:32.05
Think of the impact,
00:27:32.15\00:27:33.05
for instance, that death
00:27:33.15\00:27:34.22
and dying have had on nearly
00:27:34.32\00:27:36.12
every aspect of every building,
00:27:36.22\00:27:37.92
every form of transportation,
00:27:38.02\00:27:39.49
and every event that you
00:27:39.59\00:27:40.82
or I have ever been a part of.
00:27:40.92\00:27:41.92
For instance, new cars.
00:27:42.02\00:27:43.69
They are very expensive.
00:27:43.79\00:27:44.99
Why?
00:27:45.09\00:27:46.29
In large part because they have
00:27:46.39\00:27:47.73
all kinds of structure
00:27:47.83\00:27:49.50
and electronics, such as side
00:27:49.60\00:27:52.47
impact beams, automatic lane
00:27:52.57\00:27:54.00
change avoidance systems,
00:27:54.10\00:27:55.24
ingeniously designed crush
00:27:55.34\00:27:56.81
zones, anti-collision radar,
00:27:56.91\00:27:58.07
et cetera, et cetera,
00:27:58.17\00:27:59.14
all to keep us from
00:27:59.24\00:28:00.71
killing ourselves and others.
00:28:00.81\00:28:03.61
Planes are the same way,
00:28:03.71\00:28:04.78
as our trains and buses,
00:28:04.88\00:28:07.08
bursting with safety technology
00:28:07.18\00:28:08.45
to keep us out
00:28:08.55\00:28:09.28
of a premature grave.
00:28:09.38\00:28:11.19
And how about buildings?
00:28:11.29\00:28:13.12
You know, buildings have
00:28:13.22\00:28:14.39
guardrails on balconies.
00:28:14.49\00:28:16.49
We have handrails on staircases,
00:28:16.59\00:28:18.46
warning signs
00:28:18.56\00:28:19.59
on electrical junction boxes,
00:28:19.69\00:28:21.06
anti-slip tape in stairwells,
00:28:21.16\00:28:22.83
armed security guards,
00:28:22.93\00:28:24.20
et cetera, et cetera, again,
00:28:24.30\00:28:25.93
all to keep us from an untimely
00:28:26.03\00:28:27.74
demise.
00:28:27.84\00:28:30.74
And on and on the list could go.
00:28:30.84\00:28:32.31
We as a planet are simply
00:28:32.41\00:28:34.51
saturated with all manner
00:28:34.61\00:28:36.81
of attempts to stop or stave off
00:28:36.91\00:28:38.81
as long as possible
00:28:38.91\00:28:40.35
death and dying...
00:28:40.45\00:28:44.09
which is why it is so good to
00:28:44.19\00:28:45.59
know that a time is coming when
00:28:45.69\00:28:48.76
death and dying will be no more.
00:28:48.86\00:28:52.36
And just in case you're not so
00:28:52.46\00:28:53.56
sure about that, take your
00:28:53.66\00:28:54.50
Bibles, 1 Corinthians chapter
00:28:54.60\00:28:56.20
15, please, verse 51.
00:28:56.30\00:28:58.23
Let's revisit what we heard
00:28:58.33\00:28:59.73
earlier for our Scripture
00:28:59.83\00:29:01.24
reading.
00:29:01.34\00:29:03.00
In your pew Bible, your red pew
00:29:03.10\00:29:04.17
Bible there, it's page 776.
00:29:04.27\00:29:05.84
776.
00:29:05.94\00:29:07.34
1 Corinthians chapter 15,
00:29:07.44\00:29:11.11
beginning with verse 51.
00:29:11.21\00:29:12.35
Now, a guy by the name of the
00:29:12.45\00:29:13.35
Apostle Paul is writing this.
00:29:13.45\00:29:15.88
He's writing it to the
00:29:15.98\00:29:17.72
church plant in Corinth.
00:29:17.82\00:29:19.82
We're all doing okay here
00:29:19.92\00:29:20.76
at PMC.
00:29:20.86\00:29:21.79
There are some churches that are
00:29:21.89\00:29:22.49
not doing so well.
00:29:22.59\00:29:23.32
And sometimes pastors,
00:29:23.43\00:29:24.36
if they're having a really
00:29:24.46\00:29:25.09
bad week with their church,
00:29:25.19\00:29:25.96
they will read Corinthians
00:29:26.06\00:29:27.86
and they are assured, "Well, at
00:29:27.96\00:29:28.96
least I'm not as bad as they
00:29:29.06\00:29:30.40
were," okay?
00:29:30.50\00:29:31.83
The Corinthian church had all
00:29:31.93\00:29:33.07
kinds of problems, including
00:29:33.17\00:29:35.10
great delusions
00:29:35.20\00:29:36.74
as to what death meant.
00:29:36.84\00:29:40.41
And so Paul here
00:29:40.51\00:29:41.38
spends a great amount of time --
00:29:41.48\00:29:42.48
We don't have time to do it
00:29:42.58\00:29:43.31
today, but this entire chapter,
00:29:43.41\00:29:44.68
chapter 15, it's a long chapter.
00:29:44.78\00:29:46.11
And it is addressed
00:29:46.21\00:29:47.32
to this issue of death.
00:29:47.42\00:29:49.05
Paul knows they have
00:29:49.15\00:29:50.25
to get this right.
00:29:50.35\00:29:51.69
It is so important.
00:29:51.79\00:29:53.32
Let's join the story here,
00:29:53.42\00:29:53.89
verse 51.
00:29:53.99\00:29:55.76
Paul says, "Listen, I tell you
00:29:55.86\00:29:57.46
a mystery.
00:29:57.56\00:29:58.89
We will not all sleep."
00:29:58.99\00:30:00.93
That is, we will not all die.
00:30:01.00\00:30:02.40
"But we will all be
00:30:02.50\00:30:03.60
changed in a flash,
00:30:03.70\00:30:05.80
in the twinkling of an eye,
00:30:05.90\00:30:06.90
at the last trumpet,
00:30:07.00\00:30:08.64
for the trumpet will sound,
00:30:08.74\00:30:10.21
the dead will be raised
00:30:10.31\00:30:11.57
imperishable,
00:30:11.67\00:30:12.61
and we will be changed,
00:30:12.71\00:30:15.71
for the perishable must clothe
00:30:15.81\00:30:17.15
itself with the imperishable,
00:30:17.25\00:30:18.75
and the mortal with immortality.
00:30:18.85\00:30:20.92
When the perishable has been
00:30:21.02\00:30:21.95
clothed with the imperishable,
00:30:22.05\00:30:23.42
and the mortal with immortality,
00:30:23.52\00:30:25.25
then the saying that is written
00:30:25.35\00:30:27.06
will come true.
00:30:27.16\00:30:28.56
Death has been swallowed up
00:30:28.66\00:30:30.13
in victory.
00:30:30.23\00:30:32.19
Where, O death, is your victory?
00:30:32.29\00:30:33.96
Where, O death, is your sting?"
00:30:34.03\00:30:37.40
And what's the answer?
00:30:37.50\00:30:39.40
It's gone. It's gone.
00:30:39.50\00:30:40.90
It's been taken away.
00:30:41.00\00:30:43.17
Can you imagine
00:30:43.27\00:30:44.81
what that is going to be like?
00:30:44.91\00:30:46.34
I mean, what a tremendous
00:30:46.44\00:30:47.84
thing that is going to be.
00:30:47.94\00:30:49.74
I mean, that day -- that day --
00:30:49.84\00:30:52.08
You know, when the time of
00:30:52.18\00:30:53.21
trouble is finished and you look
00:30:53.31\00:30:54.08
up and you see a cloud
00:30:54.18\00:30:55.55
the size of a man's hand
00:30:55.65\00:30:56.55
in the east getting closer,
00:30:56.65\00:30:57.42
you know, this dark cloud
00:30:57.52\00:30:58.32
that gets brighter and brighter
00:30:58.42\00:30:58.99
as it gets closer,
00:30:59.09\00:30:59.89
that sign of Jesus' return,
00:31:00.06\00:31:01.76
the best place that you need
00:31:01.86\00:31:02.96
to be is at a graveyard.
00:31:03.06\00:31:04.56
You need to find
00:31:04.66\00:31:05.49
the nearest cemetery.
00:31:05.59\00:31:06.73
Grab a lemonade, sit down,
00:31:06.83\00:31:08.03
put the cabana up,
00:31:08.13\00:31:09.03
sit, and enjoy the show
00:31:09.13\00:31:10.60
because that's gonna be
00:31:10.70\00:31:11.70
where God is gonna do
00:31:11.80\00:31:12.67
some of his greatest work
00:31:12.77\00:31:13.77
at the Second Coming.
00:31:13.87\00:31:15.00
At that time,
00:31:15.10\00:31:16.20
those that have died in Christ
00:31:16.30\00:31:17.34
will be raised up again,
00:31:17.44\00:31:18.64
perfect in every way,
00:31:18.74\00:31:19.97
never to experience
00:31:20.08\00:31:21.61
death or disease again.
00:31:21.71\00:31:22.71
Someone say Amen.
00:31:22.81\00:31:23.45
>> Amen!
00:31:23.55\00:31:24.68
>> I mean, what a day that's
00:31:24.78\00:31:25.31
gonna be!
00:31:25.41\00:31:27.28
But have you ever thought
00:31:27.38\00:31:28.25
what made it possible?
00:31:28.35\00:31:29.92
What will make it possible?
00:31:30.02\00:31:32.52
How can this happen?
00:31:32.62\00:31:34.99
Now, I'm not talking
00:31:35.09\00:31:35.62
about the mechanics.
00:31:35.72\00:31:36.46
I mean, if God were to
00:31:36.56\00:31:38.03
sit us down some day and say,
00:31:38.13\00:31:39.09
"Well, let me explain to you
00:31:39.19\00:31:40.06
how I resurrect a body," I mean,
00:31:40.16\00:31:42.00
I think we would just be sitting
00:31:42.10\00:31:42.93
there, you know -- "Blb-blb-blb.
00:31:43.03\00:31:43.93
I don't get it.
00:31:44.03\00:31:44.77
You know, it's beyond me.
00:31:44.87\00:31:45.57
It?ver my head.”
00:31:45.60\00:31:46.70
But we can understand at least
00:31:46.80\00:31:48.67
some of the fringes here.
00:31:48.77\00:31:49.97
What is it that gives
00:31:50.07\00:31:52.01
God permission?
00:31:52.11\00:31:54.04
In the context of the great
00:31:54.14\00:31:55.38
controversy between good and
00:31:55.48\00:31:56.75
evil, what is it that makes it
00:31:56.85\00:31:58.61
possible for this great thing,
00:31:58.71\00:32:00.15
this resurrection,
00:32:00.25\00:32:01.25
to take place?
00:32:01.35\00:32:05.59
1 Thessalonians chapter 4,
00:32:05.69\00:32:07.09
please, verse 13.
00:32:07.19\00:32:09.59
1 Thessalonians chapter 4,
00:32:09.69\00:32:11.13
beginning with verse 13.
00:32:11.23\00:32:12.69
That's page 795 in your
00:32:12.79\00:32:14.10
red pew Bible.
00:32:14.20\00:32:15.20
795.
00:32:15.30\00:32:17.03
Same guy is writing here.
00:32:17.13\00:32:18.17
This is the Apostle Paul again.
00:32:18.27\00:32:19.20
I Thessalonians chapter 4,
00:32:19.30\00:32:20.30
beginning with verse 13.
00:32:20.40\00:32:22.00
Now, the church plant
00:32:22.10\00:32:22.77
in Thessalonica
00:32:22.87\00:32:23.64
was much healthier than
00:32:23.74\00:32:25.07
the church plant in Corinth.
00:32:25.17\00:32:27.08
But this idea, the confusion
00:32:27.18\00:32:30.28
about death in that society
00:32:30.38\00:32:32.58
of that time was rampant.
00:32:32.68\00:32:34.78
And so Paul here is addressing
00:32:34.88\00:32:35.82
the same issue
00:32:35.92\00:32:37.19
or the same issue here
00:32:37.29\00:32:38.22
about death and what it means
00:32:38.32\00:32:39.65
and what it doesn't mean.
00:32:39.75\00:32:41.62
Let's join here, verse 13,
00:32:41.72\00:32:43.76
1 Thessalonians 4.
00:32:43.86\00:32:45.26
It says, "Brothers, we do not
00:32:45.36\00:32:46.43
want you to be ignorant
00:32:46.53\00:32:47.60
about those who fall asleep."
00:32:47.73\00:32:49.10
That is, those who die.
00:32:49.20\00:32:50.50
"Or to grieve like the rest of
00:32:50.60\00:32:52.17
men who have no hope.
00:32:52.27\00:32:54.10
We believe that Jesus died
00:32:54.20\00:32:55.34
and rose again,
00:32:55.44\00:32:56.24
and so we believe that God
00:32:56.34\00:32:57.87
will bring with Jesus those
00:32:57.97\00:33:00.71
who have fallen asleep in Him.
00:33:00.81\00:33:03.08
According to
00:33:03.18\00:33:03.91
the Lord's own Word,
00:33:04.01\00:33:05.35
we tell you that we who are
00:33:05.45\00:33:07.12
still alive, who are left
00:33:07.22\00:33:08.45
to the coming of the Lord,
00:33:08.55\00:33:09.85
will certainly not precede
00:33:09.95\00:33:11.99
those who have fallen asleep,
00:33:12.09\00:33:14.12
for the Lord Himself
00:33:14.22\00:33:15.32
will come down from Heaven
00:33:15.42\00:33:16.39
with a loud command,
00:33:16.49\00:33:17.73
with the voice of the archangel,
00:33:17.83\00:33:19.06
and with the trumpet call
00:33:19.16\00:33:19.86
of God."
00:33:19.96\00:33:20.80
This is what 1 Corinthians 15
00:33:20.90\00:33:22.10
was referring to, at the last
00:33:22.20\00:33:22.73
trumpet.
00:33:22.83\00:33:23.60
This is it, the Second Coming."
00:33:23.70\00:33:24.90
"And the dead in Christ
00:33:25.00\00:33:26.87
will rise first.
00:33:26.97\00:33:30.11
After that, we who are still
00:33:30.21\00:33:31.51
alive and are left will be
00:33:31.61\00:33:32.64
caught up together with them in
00:33:32.74\00:33:33.88
the clouds to meet the Lord
00:33:33.98\00:33:35.54
in the air, and so we will be
00:33:35.64\00:33:37.35
with the Lord forever.
00:33:37.45\00:33:40.32
Therefore, encourage each other
00:33:40.42\00:33:42.02
with these words."
00:33:42.12\00:33:44.19
Wow!
00:33:44.29\00:33:45.72
I mean, this is an astonishing
00:33:45.82\00:33:46.72
thing.
00:33:46.82\00:33:47.56
This is an astonishing thing.
00:33:47.66\00:33:48.89
And it is found firmly here
00:33:48.99\00:33:51.06
within the writ of Scripture,
00:33:51.16\00:33:51.96
this promise to us.
00:33:52.06\00:33:53.73
And did you see -- did you see
00:33:53.83\00:33:56.30
what makes the resurrection
00:33:56.40\00:33:58.87
possible?
00:33:58.97\00:34:01.24
It was there in verse 14.
00:34:01.34\00:34:02.40
Take a look again, verse 14,
00:34:02.50\00:34:04.37
1 Thessalonians 4:14.
00:34:04.47\00:34:07.31
"We believe that --"
00:34:07.41\00:34:09.44
who died? -- "Jesus died --"
00:34:09.54\00:34:11.88
and then did what? -- "and rose
00:34:11.98\00:34:13.88
again, and so --" you might as
00:34:13.98\00:34:15.42
well just put "and therefore" --
00:34:15.52\00:34:16.48
"and so we believe
00:34:16.58\00:34:18.45
that God will bring with Jesus
00:34:18.55\00:34:20.79
those who have fallen
00:34:20.89\00:34:21.92
asleep in Him."
00:34:22.02\00:34:23.63
There it is, crystal clear,
00:34:23.73\00:34:25.36
right there in front of us.
00:34:25.46\00:34:26.29
Our coming victory
00:34:26.39\00:34:28.16
over the grave was won
00:34:28.26\00:34:31.03
when Jesus rose from the grave.
00:34:31.13\00:34:34.04
That was its effect.
00:34:34.14\00:34:35.24
This was the price required.
00:34:35.34\00:34:37.01
The price was paid.
00:34:37.11\00:34:38.24
And now this tremendous gift
00:34:38.34\00:34:40.08
becomes available to us.
00:34:40.18\00:34:42.44
You see, often when we speak
00:34:42.54\00:34:43.75
of Christ's resurrection,
00:34:43.85\00:34:45.95
we focus solely
00:34:46.05\00:34:47.85
on its spiritual merits.
00:34:47.95\00:34:51.39
Now, there's nothing wrong with
00:34:51.49\00:34:52.55
focusing on the spiritual merits
00:34:52.65\00:34:53.76
of Christ's resurrection.
00:34:53.86\00:34:54.62
That's a fantastic thing.
00:34:54.72\00:34:56.22
I mean, Christ's resurrection
00:34:56.32\00:34:58.06
ensured our victory over sin,
00:34:58.16\00:35:00.30
over spiritual death.
00:35:00.40\00:35:01.53
And this is what baptism
00:35:01.63\00:35:03.00
is all about, right?
00:35:03.10\00:35:04.10
That's what the symbolism is.
00:35:04.20\00:35:04.97
We have our baptistery
00:35:05.07\00:35:06.13
tucked away back here.
00:35:06.23\00:35:06.84
We've had many,
00:35:06.94\00:35:07.44
many baptisms here.
00:35:07.54\00:35:09.04
When we are baptized,
00:35:09.14\00:35:10.27
we are expressing
00:35:10.37\00:35:11.47
our faith in the death
00:35:11.57\00:35:12.94
and resurrection of Jesus
00:35:13.04\00:35:14.68
and, therefore, in His ability
00:35:14.78\00:35:16.04
to put to death our old sinful
00:35:16.14\00:35:17.71
ways and raise us up
00:35:17.81\00:35:19.45
to new spiritual life in Him.
00:35:19.55\00:35:20.75
Amen?
00:35:20.85\00:35:22.35
Alright, so, the spiritual
00:35:22.45\00:35:24.15
application is all good.
00:35:24.25\00:35:25.45
We need to focus on it.
00:35:25.55\00:35:26.59
And -- And the Bible is
00:35:26.69\00:35:30.46
unmistakably clear that not only
00:35:30.56\00:35:33.46
our spiritual resurrection,
00:35:33.56\00:35:35.13
but also our physical one
00:35:35.23\00:35:37.63
is achieved by virtue
00:35:37.73\00:35:39.50
of Christ's resurrection
00:35:39.60\00:35:40.97
from the grave.
00:35:41.07\00:35:43.51
And notice carefully --
00:35:43.61\00:35:45.41
that physical resurrection
00:35:45.51\00:35:47.41
is far more important than
00:35:47.51\00:35:51.25
most people give it credit for,
00:35:51.35\00:35:54.85
including most Christians,
00:35:54.95\00:35:56.62
because it means
00:35:56.72\00:35:58.49
far more than most people know.
00:35:58.59\00:36:04.73
Let me show you what I mean.
00:36:04.83\00:36:06.29
Story.
00:36:06.39\00:36:09.43
Many years ago,
00:36:09.53\00:36:10.50
within the last 30 years,
00:36:10.60\00:36:11.73
at a church within 10,000 miles
00:36:11.83\00:36:13.30
of here, I got a phone call from
00:36:13.40\00:36:17.01
a leader in a previous district
00:36:17.11\00:36:19.41
where I had pastored.
00:36:19.51\00:36:21.34
And they said, "Hey,
00:36:21.44\00:36:22.41
Pastor Shane, how you doing?
00:36:22.51\00:36:24.01
Good to hear your voice.
00:36:24.11\00:36:25.31
Say, there is a Mrs. So-and-so.
00:36:25.41\00:36:29.12
She has passed away,
00:36:29.22\00:36:31.09
and her family is wondering
00:36:31.19\00:36:32.49
if you would be willing
00:36:32.59\00:36:33.46
to do the service."
00:36:33.56\00:36:36.26
Now, in the pastoral world,
00:36:36.36\00:36:37.16
this is not an unusual thing.
00:36:37.26\00:36:38.36
If you've been a pastor for any
00:36:38.46\00:36:39.49
length of time someplace,
00:36:39.59\00:36:40.60
you've built up relationships,
00:36:40.70\00:36:41.56
you've done funerals,
00:36:41.66\00:36:42.50
it's a special time, et cetera,
00:36:42.60\00:36:43.43
a special bond.
00:36:43.53\00:36:44.83
Often, even if you've moved on,
00:36:44.93\00:36:46.03
you'll get a phone call --
00:36:46.13\00:36:46.80
"Hey, would you come back
00:36:46.90\00:36:48.04
and do this funeral service?"
00:36:48.14\00:36:49.10
So, I checked with the pastor
00:36:49.20\00:36:50.47
there at that time.
00:36:50.57\00:36:51.17
He said, "Hey, no problem.
00:36:51.27\00:36:51.74
Come on down."
00:36:51.84\00:36:53.04
And so I got in contact with the
00:36:53.14\00:36:54.81
family and I asked a few
00:36:54.91\00:36:57.01
questions because, you see,
00:36:57.11\00:36:59.15
this dear woman had been pretty
00:36:59.25\00:37:01.38
much on the fringe of the
00:37:01.48\00:37:02.02
church.
00:37:02.12\00:37:02.68
She'd not been a regular part
00:37:02.78\00:37:04.79
of attending or being
00:37:04.89\00:37:05.75
a part of the church there,
00:37:05.85\00:37:07.02
but she liked to hear a sermon
00:37:07.12\00:37:08.49
every now and then, so she'd
00:37:08.59\00:37:09.16
show up.
00:37:09.26\00:37:09.96
I did not know her very well.
00:37:10.06\00:37:12.29
And so I asked some questions.
00:37:12.39\00:37:13.43
I said, "Now just to make sure.
00:37:13.53\00:37:14.73
So, this is so-and-so,
00:37:14.83\00:37:17.03
and she did thus and such?"
00:37:17.13\00:37:18.17
"Yes, yes, yes."
00:37:18.27\00:37:18.93
"Okay, yes. Okay.
00:37:19.03\00:37:20.07
I've got her mind."
00:37:20.17\00:37:22.04
So I write my funeral homily.
00:37:22.14\00:37:25.07
And the date comes,
00:37:25.17\00:37:27.34
and I drive down to the church
00:37:27.44\00:37:29.84
where the funeral service
00:37:29.94\00:37:30.71
was going to take place.
00:37:30.81\00:37:32.71
Now, it was a bit of a drive
00:37:32.81\00:37:34.65
to get there,
00:37:34.75\00:37:35.68
and I had not accounted
00:37:35.78\00:37:37.39
for the potential for traffic.
00:37:37.49\00:37:39.79
And so I was later getting
00:37:39.89\00:37:41.62
to the site of the funeral
00:37:41.72\00:37:43.19
than I had hoped to be.
00:37:43.29\00:37:44.19
I mean, most of the time, if
00:37:44.29\00:37:45.03
you're in pastoral ministry,
00:37:45.13\00:37:45.63
30 to 60 minutes minimum,
00:37:45.73\00:37:46.90
that's what you need to be
00:37:47.00\00:37:47.40
so you can get
00:37:47.50\00:37:48.03
all things taken
00:37:48.06\00:37:48.60
care of.
00:37:48.60\00:37:49.13
So, I got there 10, 15 minutes
00:37:49.30\00:37:51.10
early, and so I'm feeling the
00:37:51.20\00:37:52.60
pressure.
00:37:52.70\00:37:53.64
I get my notebook, I get my
00:37:53.74\00:37:54.70
Bible, get out of my car,
00:37:54.80\00:37:56.10
and I'm walking
00:37:56.20\00:37:56.71
towards the church
00:37:56.81\00:37:57.71
and I come to the steps
00:37:57.81\00:37:58.87
of the church
00:37:58.97\00:38:00.54
when who should come out of
00:38:00.64\00:38:01.84
the church but the dead woman,
00:38:01.94\00:38:06.61
the woman that I had written my
00:38:06.72\00:38:08.62
funeral homily for?
00:38:08.72\00:38:11.72
For being dead, she looked
00:38:11.82\00:38:12.52
really good.
00:38:12.62\00:38:15.52
And she came down the steps --
00:38:15.62\00:38:16.46
"Oh, pastor, it's so good
00:38:16.56\00:38:17.73
to see you!"
00:38:17.83\00:38:19.13
And I'm like, "It's really good
00:38:19.23\00:38:19.96
to see you, too.
00:38:20.06\00:38:20.43
Wow."
00:38:20.53\00:38:21.66
[ Laughter ]
00:38:21.76\00:38:23.57
And of course, you know, while
00:38:23.67\00:38:24.93
she's talking to me, you know,
00:38:25.03\00:38:26.23
I have this parallel track
00:38:26.33\00:38:27.04
going in my brain.
00:38:27.14\00:38:28.54
"What am I going to do?"
00:38:28.64\00:38:31.57
You see, in homiletics class --
00:38:31.67\00:38:32.97
I'll just let you in on the
00:38:33.07\00:38:34.18
world of pastoral training here.
00:38:34.28\00:38:35.11
In your homiletics class in
00:38:35.21\00:38:36.24
college and certainly in
00:38:36.34\00:38:37.28
seminary, when it comes to
00:38:37.38\00:38:38.71
funeral sermons, they say
00:38:38.81\00:38:39.85
personalize, personalize,
00:38:39.95\00:38:41.22
personalize.
00:38:41.32\00:38:42.85
Because so often, I mean,
00:38:42.95\00:38:44.19
there are other other traditions
00:38:44.29\00:38:46.22
out there that if you die, the
00:38:46.32\00:38:47.76
only thing that they will do is
00:38:47.86\00:38:49.26
read to you a script, a form,
00:38:49.36\00:38:50.73
and it doesn't even have your
00:38:50.83\00:38:51.89
name in it.
00:38:51.99\00:38:53.26
There can be some coldness to
00:38:53.36\00:38:54.30
it.
00:38:54.40\00:38:55.70
And so in our tradition,
00:38:55.80\00:38:57.33
we personalize,
00:38:57.43\00:38:58.43
personalize, personalize.
00:38:58.53\00:38:59.47
And that's what I had done.
00:38:59.57\00:39:00.17
I took what I knew
00:39:00.27\00:39:01.57
about this dear woman
00:39:01.67\00:39:02.60
and I wrote it in the homily
00:39:02.70\00:39:04.04
and she just walked out of
00:39:04.14\00:39:05.24
the church where I'm supposed
00:39:05.34\00:39:06.04
to conduct her funeral.
00:39:06.14\00:39:08.38
Like, "Ohh, what am I gonna do?
00:39:08.48\00:39:09.41
What am I gonna do?"
00:39:09.51\00:39:10.05
I?ooking at my watch.
00:39:10.11\00:39:10.61
The clock is ticking.
00:39:10.65\00:39:12.11
So I go inside, and because I
00:39:12.21\00:39:13.75
pastored in this area before,
00:39:13.85\00:39:15.08
I see somebody that I know
00:39:15.18\00:39:16.08
and I go over there and say,
00:39:16.18\00:39:17.02
"Hey, you know, I got a
00:39:17.12\00:39:18.05
question."
00:39:18.15\00:39:18.92
And right then, the family
00:39:19.02\00:39:21.32
of the woman who had passed away
00:39:21.42\00:39:22.56
came up to me.
00:39:22.66\00:39:24.26
"Oh, Pastor Shane, thanks so
00:39:24.36\00:39:25.33
much for making the trip.
00:39:25.43\00:39:26.16
We really appreciate
00:39:26.26\00:39:26.86
you doing this."
00:39:26.96\00:39:27.93
"Oh, yes, you're entirely
00:39:28.00\00:39:28.96
welcome.
00:39:29.06\00:39:29.43
Glad to
00:39:29.46\00:39:29.93
do it.”
00:39:29.93\00:39:30.30
And then I'm looking at my
00:39:30.53\00:39:30.57
watch.
00:39:30.80\00:39:31.33
You know, time is running out
00:39:31.47\00:39:31.73
here.
00:39:31.83\00:39:32.63
I got to find out who this woman
00:39:32.73\00:39:33.34
is.
00:39:33.44\00:39:35.94
I ask one of the people there.
00:39:36.04\00:39:38.44
I said, "Is there by chance
00:39:38.54\00:39:40.94
a picture of this dear woman
00:39:41.04\00:39:43.55
that's passed away?"
00:39:43.65\00:39:44.31
"Oh, yes, pastor,
00:39:44.41\00:39:45.21
there's a huge picture
00:39:45.31\00:39:46.48
of her sitting right next
00:39:46.58\00:39:47.78
to the casket in the sanctuary."
00:39:47.88\00:39:49.02
"Oh, good."
00:39:49.12\00:39:50.29
And I start to head for the
00:39:50.39\00:39:51.32
sanctuary door when one of the
00:39:51.42\00:39:52.45
elders says, "Hey, it's time.
00:39:52.55\00:39:53.89
We need to go on."
00:39:53.99\00:39:55.66
"Oh, no. Oh, no."
00:39:55.76\00:39:58.63
So, I'm thinking to myself,
00:39:58.73\00:39:59.39
"If I sit on the stage,
00:39:59.49\00:40:00.33
I can lean over
00:40:00.43\00:40:02.16
and I can look at the picture
00:40:02.26\00:40:03.73
and I will create this funeral
00:40:03.83\00:40:05.73
homily on the fly, okay,
00:40:05.83\00:40:07.27
personalized just for --"
00:40:07.37\00:40:09.14
I get up there and I sit down
00:40:09.24\00:40:10.24
and this thing is just out
00:40:10.34\00:40:11.04
of my view.
00:40:11.14\00:40:11.67
I cannot see it.
00:40:11.77\00:40:12.87
And, I mean, if you're doing
00:40:12.97\00:40:14.18
this kind of stuff at a funeral
00:40:14.28\00:40:15.31
service, that's not good,
00:40:15.41\00:40:16.11
alright?
00:40:16.21\00:40:17.41
So I'm thinking, "What am I
00:40:17.51\00:40:17.75
gonna do?
00:40:17.85\00:40:18.45
What am I gonna do?
00:40:18.55\00:40:19.11
What am I gonna do?"
00:40:19.21\00:40:19.71
And the clock is ticking.
00:40:19.81\00:40:20.72
I mean, the Scripture is read.
00:40:20.82\00:40:22.22
The congregation sings the hymn.
00:40:22.32\00:40:23.79
There's a special music
00:40:23.89\00:40:24.59
that's given.
00:40:24.69\00:40:25.39
And now it's time for my homily.
00:40:25.49\00:40:28.82
And I stand up to the podium
00:40:28.92\00:40:30.23
there, and I remembered --
00:40:30.33\00:40:31.59
I can still see them.
00:40:31.69\00:40:32.79
One of my one of my homiletics
00:40:32.89\00:40:33.80
professors said,
00:40:33.90\00:40:35.46
"You know, Pastor Shane --"
00:40:35.56\00:40:36.90
Not pastor at that time.
00:40:37.00\00:40:38.23
"Shane, if your sermon or your
00:40:38.33\00:40:42.64
homily is biblically sound, even
00:40:42.74\00:40:44.81
if you have other questions,
00:40:44.91\00:40:45.71
preach it with power.
00:40:45.81\00:40:47.91
Drive it home."
00:40:48.01\00:40:49.91
So I did.
00:40:50.01\00:40:52.38
And I laid that homily out for
00:40:52.48\00:40:54.08
somebody else and I preached it.
00:40:54.18\00:40:55.35
I preached it hard.
00:40:55.45\00:40:56.69
You know, "The Lord is coming!
00:40:56.79\00:40:57.85
Amen!"
00:40:57.95\00:41:00.49
I finish, I sit down, and I
00:41:00.59\00:41:02.32
thought, "Okay, here it comes.
00:41:02.42\00:41:03.26
Here it comes."
00:41:03.36\00:41:04.06
Because most of the time,
00:41:04.16\00:41:05.76
pastors will go down
00:41:05.86\00:41:06.70
after the service is concluded
00:41:06.80\00:41:07.76
and greet the family
00:41:07.86\00:41:08.63
before everybody leaves.
00:41:08.73\00:41:10.97
And so I go down there like...
00:41:11.07\00:41:11.70
[ Groans ]
00:41:11.80\00:41:13.20
And I greet the first person.
00:41:13.30\00:41:14.54
"Oh, Pastor Shane, thank you so
00:41:14.64\00:41:16.24
much.
00:41:16.34\00:41:17.51
It was like you had known her
00:41:17.61\00:41:18.44
for years."
00:41:18.54\00:41:19.57
[ Laughter ]
00:41:19.67\00:41:21.84
"Well, yes, she was a dear
00:41:21.94\00:41:22.54
woman.
00:41:22.64\00:41:23.08
Yes, yes, yes. Amen."
00:41:23.18\00:41:25.08
And they're all very
00:41:25.18\00:41:26.61
appreciative, and now I'm really
00:41:26.72\00:41:27.82
confused, right?
00:41:27.92\00:41:28.78
So, the sanctuary finally
00:41:28.88\00:41:31.15
cleans out.
00:41:31.25\00:41:32.75
And I told the elder
00:41:32.85\00:41:34.62
there, "We're gonna go over
00:41:34.72\00:41:35.29
to the reception."
00:41:35.39\00:41:36.69
And I said, "Hey, let me just
00:41:36.79\00:41:37.86
pay my last respects."
00:41:37.96\00:41:39.19
So I go past the casket,
00:41:39.29\00:41:41.20
and then I go to this
00:41:41.30\00:41:43.20
very large photo of this woman.
00:41:43.30\00:41:46.23
You know, I have my hands here
00:41:46.33\00:41:47.30
behind me, and I'm looking
00:41:47.40\00:41:48.20
at her.
00:41:48.30\00:41:49.94
And I realize I have no idea
00:41:50.04\00:41:54.74
who this woman is.
00:41:54.84\00:41:57.78
Not a clue.
00:41:57.88\00:42:00.32
I mean, as far as I could tell,
00:42:00.42\00:42:01.32
I had never seen her in my life.
00:42:01.42\00:42:05.85
Praise the Lord for two women
00:42:05.95\00:42:06.96
who lived
00:42:07.06\00:42:07.56
almost
00:42:07.62\00:42:07.89
identical
00:42:07.96\00:42:08.19
lives
00:42:08.19\00:42:08.69
[ Laughter ]
00:42:08.92\00:42:12.86
Now, there is a reason
00:42:12.96\00:42:15.16
I tell you that story.
00:42:15.26\00:42:17.73
The story is embarrassing.
00:42:17.83\00:42:19.13
I wish I had done better, okay?
00:42:19.23\00:42:20.57
Praise the Lord that He was able
00:42:20.67\00:42:22.24
to somehow make this a blessing
00:42:22.34\00:42:23.71
for the family there.
00:42:23.81\00:42:24.84
I'm glad for that.
00:42:24.94\00:42:26.07
But the fact of the matter is,
00:42:26.17\00:42:27.01
you know, I should have done
00:42:27.11\00:42:27.91
more digging, I should have
00:42:28.01\00:42:28.74
somehow, you know, done
00:42:28.84\00:42:29.28
something.
00:42:29.38\00:42:30.08
I should have called a time-out.
00:42:30.18\00:42:31.05
You know, "Give me 10 minutes
00:42:31.15\00:42:32.01
in the back room so I can fix
00:42:32.11\00:42:32.95
this problem," something like
00:42:33.05\00:42:33.48
that.
00:42:33.58\00:42:34.08
And I didn?o that, but --
00:42:34.22\00:42:37.29
but [chuckles] if we're honest,
00:42:37.39\00:42:43.99
from the perspective of far too
00:42:44.09\00:42:46.96
many people in the world today
00:42:47.03\00:42:50.57
is what happened that day
00:42:50.67\00:42:52.90
at that funeral,
00:42:53.00\00:42:54.24
not the same thing that
00:42:54.34\00:42:55.64
will happen to nearly all of us.
00:42:55.74\00:43:00.34
Again, in the world's
00:43:00.44\00:43:01.11
limited reckoning,
00:43:01.21\00:43:02.78
won't nearly all of us fade
00:43:02.88\00:43:05.58
from memory after we die?
00:43:05.68\00:43:09.98
Think about it carefully.
00:43:10.09\00:43:12.02
Of the many billions of people,
00:43:12.12\00:43:13.46
billions of people
00:43:13.56\00:43:14.46
who have lived on planet Earth
00:43:14.56\00:43:15.66
over the millennia
00:43:15.76\00:43:16.69
and that are now dead,
00:43:16.79\00:43:18.56
how many of them could you name
00:43:18.66\00:43:19.59
right now?
00:43:19.69\00:43:22.60
In fact, if we made a list,
00:43:22.70\00:43:23.60
let's say we all pooled
00:43:23.70\00:43:24.43
our resources here.
00:43:24.53\00:43:25.20
We got one giant tablet
00:43:25.30\00:43:26.37
of paper, right?
00:43:26.47\00:43:27.24
And we're writing down
00:43:27.34\00:43:27.77
all the names.
00:43:27.87\00:43:28.40
You can only list them once,
00:43:28.50\00:43:29.00
okay?
00:43:29.10\00:43:29.84
Even if we came up with a few
00:43:29.94\00:43:31.71
hundred names, it's a tiny,
00:43:31.81\00:43:33.74
tiny percentage of those
00:43:33.84\00:43:36.24
who have walked this planet.
00:43:36.34\00:43:39.75
How many billions of people
00:43:39.85\00:43:42.35
have been born, lived, and died,
00:43:42.45\00:43:44.45
and the rest of us living today
00:43:44.55\00:43:45.75
know absolutely nothing
00:43:45.85\00:43:47.06
about them?
00:43:47.16\00:43:50.19
Is this not why countless people
00:43:50.29\00:43:52.06
over the years have fallen
00:43:52.16\00:43:53.23
into despair?
00:43:53.33\00:43:55.40
Is this not why so many people
00:43:55.50\00:43:57.13
have decided that if this life
00:43:57.23\00:43:59.07
is all there is,
00:43:59.17\00:44:00.77
then it is worthless,
00:44:00.87\00:44:02.27
meaningless, and empty
00:44:02.37\00:44:03.77
to the highest degree.
00:44:03.87\00:44:06.17
Nothing lasts, they say.
00:44:06.27\00:44:08.21
Nothing is permanent.
00:44:08.31\00:44:09.08
It's all just so much dust
00:44:09.18\00:44:09.98
and so much wind
00:44:10.08\00:44:11.01
blown over the barren wastelands
00:44:11.11\00:44:12.15
of time and eternity.
00:44:12.25\00:44:13.55
Life is therefore meaningless
00:44:13.65\00:44:16.58
for there is no remembrance
00:44:16.69\00:44:18.49
of us.
00:44:18.59\00:44:21.39
"If no one can even remember
00:44:21.49\00:44:22.72
that we breathe on this planet,
00:44:22.82\00:44:24.29
what's the point?" they say.
00:44:24.39\00:44:30.57
And it may surprise you to know
00:44:30.67\00:44:33.03
that from this worldly
00:44:33.13\00:44:34.34
perspective,
00:44:34.44\00:44:36.10
even the Bible agrees with this
00:44:36.20\00:44:38.17
conclusion of meaninglessness.
00:44:38.27\00:44:41.21
Turn back to 1 Corinthians 15,
00:44:41.31\00:44:42.88
please, but this time look at
00:44:42.98\00:44:43.78
verse 12, page 775,
00:44:43.88\00:44:47.95
775 in your Pew Bible.
00:44:48.05\00:44:49.92
1 Corinthians 15, this time
00:44:50.02\00:44:51.75
beginning with verse 12.
00:44:51.85\00:44:54.79
Now, obviously this is earlier
00:44:54.89\00:44:55.89
in the chapter when Paul
00:44:55.99\00:44:57.09
is making his grand exposition
00:44:57.19\00:44:58.56
about the nature of death
00:44:58.66\00:44:59.86
and resurrection, et cetera.
00:44:59.96\00:45:01.43
Notice what he says here.
00:45:01.53\00:45:02.26
1 Corinthians 15:12.
00:45:02.36\00:45:04.67
He says, "But if it is preached
00:45:04.77\00:45:06.47
that Christ has been raised
00:45:06.57\00:45:07.67
from the dead,
00:45:07.77\00:45:09.27
how can some of you say
00:45:09.37\00:45:10.91
that there is no resurrection
00:45:11.01\00:45:12.51
of the dead?
00:45:12.61\00:45:14.04
If there is no resurrection
00:45:14.14\00:45:15.28
of the dead, then not even
00:45:15.38\00:45:16.24
Christ has been raised.
00:45:16.34\00:45:17.61
And if Christ has not been
00:45:17.71\00:45:18.85
raised, our preaching is useless
00:45:18.95\00:45:20.62
and so is your faith."
00:45:20.72\00:45:22.32
Ohh, that's uncomfortable.
00:45:22.42\00:45:23.89
"More than that,
00:45:23.99\00:45:25.05
we are then found to be
00:45:25.15\00:45:26.32
false witnesses about God,
00:45:26.42\00:45:27.72
for we have testified about God
00:45:27.82\00:45:28.86
that He raised
00:45:28.96\00:45:29.59
Christ from the dead,
00:45:29.69\00:45:30.93
but He did not raise Him
00:45:31.03\00:45:32.59
from the dead if in fact
00:45:32.69\00:45:34.40
the dead are not raised,
00:45:34.50\00:45:36.13
for if the dead are not raised,
00:45:36.23\00:45:37.23
then Christ has not been raised,
00:45:37.33\00:45:38.40
either, and if Christ has not
00:45:38.50\00:45:40.07
been raised, your faith is
00:45:40.17\00:45:41.37
futile.
00:45:41.47\00:45:42.67
You are still in your sins.
00:45:42.77\00:45:44.94
Then those who have fallen
00:45:45.04\00:45:45.97
asleep in Christ are lost."
00:45:46.07\00:45:47.48
And notice this.
00:45:47.58\00:45:48.91
"If only for this life
00:45:49.01\00:45:50.88
we have hope in Christ,
00:45:50.98\00:45:52.85
we are to be pitied
00:45:52.95\00:45:54.25
more than all men."
00:45:54.35\00:45:58.95
Now, I've heard some people say,
00:45:59.05\00:46:00.06
"You know what?
00:46:00.16\00:46:00.76
Even if Jesus didn?ome back
00:46:00.86\00:46:02.06
the second time, I would still
00:46:02.09\00:46:03.36
want to be a Christian."
00:46:03.46\00:46:05.03
First of all, I'm not so sure
00:46:05.13\00:46:05.86
that you're correct.
00:46:05.96\00:46:07.36
Second of all, the Bible says
00:46:07.46\00:46:08.93
that's a bad thing,
00:46:09.03\00:46:11.73
to live as a Christian
00:46:11.83\00:46:13.17
if there is no future,
00:46:13.27\00:46:15.84
to live as a Christian
00:46:15.94\00:46:17.07
if there is no resurrection.
00:46:17.17\00:46:19.04
Paul says, the Bible says, the
00:46:19.14\00:46:20.78
inspiration of the Holy Spirit
00:46:20.88\00:46:22.04
says that actually puts us
00:46:22.14\00:46:23.61
into the most pitiable group
00:46:23.71\00:46:25.08
on the planet.
00:46:25.18\00:46:28.08
Now, I don't know about you.
00:46:28.18\00:46:28.85
I've looked at a few
00:46:28.95\00:46:30.35
groups on planet Earth.
00:46:30.45\00:46:31.42
There's some pitiable folk
00:46:31.52\00:46:32.59
out there.
00:46:32.69\00:46:34.32
And Paul here says we should be
00:46:34.42\00:46:36.02
at the top of the list
00:46:36.12\00:46:38.23
if there is no resurrection.
00:46:38.33\00:46:40.53
Because if there is
00:46:40.63\00:46:41.66
no resurrection,
00:46:41.76\00:46:42.93
then life is indeed meaningless
00:46:43.03\00:46:46.60
and your faith and mine
00:46:46.70\00:46:47.70
is futile.
00:46:47.80\00:46:52.47
Blessedly, this life is not all
00:46:52.57\00:46:56.38
there is.
00:46:56.48\00:46:57.91
There is more.
00:46:58.01\00:46:59.41
And don't take my word for it.
00:46:59.51\00:47:00.25
Look at verse 20.
00:47:00.35\00:47:01.35
Paul here says, "But Christ
00:47:01.45\00:47:03.05
has indeed been raised from the
00:47:03.15\00:47:04.99
dead, the first fruits of those
00:47:05.09\00:47:07.09
who have fallen asleep."
00:47:07.19\00:47:08.06
What does "first fruits" mean?
00:47:08.16\00:47:09.39
What's gonna come next?
00:47:09.49\00:47:11.96
Second fruits and third fruits
00:47:12.06\00:47:13.13
and fourth fruits.
00:47:13.23\00:47:13.86
Us, the rest of us, right?
00:47:13.96\00:47:15.23
Christ is just the first one
00:47:15.33\00:47:16.33
of a whole bunch more to come.
00:47:16.43\00:47:17.33
Verse 21 -- "For since death
00:47:17.43\00:47:18.57
came through a man,
00:47:18.67\00:47:19.50
the resurrection of the dead
00:47:19.60\00:47:20.47
comes also through a man.
00:47:20.57\00:47:21.80
For as in Adam all die,
00:47:21.90\00:47:23.64
so in Christ
00:47:23.74\00:47:25.17
all will be made alive."
00:47:25.27\00:47:26.51
Someone say amen.
00:47:26.61\00:47:27.18
>> Amen!
00:47:27.28\00:47:28.21
>> Amen and amen.
00:47:28.31\00:47:29.68
Paul goes on here and he makes
00:47:29.78\00:47:30.71
his argument here, makes it
00:47:30.81\00:47:31.71
crystal clear so that everybody
00:47:31.81\00:47:32.65
can understand.
00:47:32.75\00:47:33.68
This life is not the end.
00:47:33.78\00:47:34.98
A better day is coming.
00:47:35.08\00:47:37.02
And he finishes with this,
00:47:37.12\00:47:37.75
verse 58.
00:47:37.85\00:47:39.52
"Therefore, my dear brothers,
00:47:39.62\00:47:40.69
stand firm.
00:47:40.79\00:47:42.22
Let nothing move you.
00:47:42.32\00:47:43.63
Always give yourselves
00:47:43.73\00:47:45.19
fully to the work of the Lord
00:47:45.29\00:47:46.93
because you know that your labor
00:47:47.03\00:47:50.27
in the Lord is not in vain."
00:47:50.37\00:47:54.00
[ Chuckles ]
00:47:54.10\00:47:56.24
What a promise we have.
00:47:56.34\00:47:59.14
This resurrection of Jesus --
00:47:59.24\00:48:02.01
I mean, it's a phenomenal thing,
00:48:02.11\00:48:02.94
right?
00:48:03.04\00:48:03.65
I mean, and the fireworks
00:48:03.75\00:48:05.48
of this event.
00:48:05.58\00:48:06.25
I mean, this is often
00:48:06.35\00:48:07.02
what we think about, right,
00:48:07.12\00:48:07.78
when we think about the
00:48:07.88\00:48:08.88
resurrection of Jesus.
00:48:08.98\00:48:09.65
And, again, rightly so.
00:48:09.75\00:48:11.05
I mean, this angel comes down.
00:48:11.15\00:48:12.62
Every time an angel shows up in
00:48:12.72\00:48:14.42
Scripture, people fall over.
00:48:14.52\00:48:16.66
I mean, it's a glorious event.
00:48:16.76\00:48:17.86
These beings that come
00:48:17.96\00:48:18.66
down here.
00:48:18.76\00:48:19.46
Boom! Right?
00:48:19.56\00:48:20.80
And all the soldiers in the
00:48:20.90\00:48:21.86
guard, the Roman soldiers fall
00:48:21.96\00:48:22.93
over as though they're dead.
00:48:23.03\00:48:23.70
They faint away, right?
00:48:23.80\00:48:24.80
And the stone is rolled away.
00:48:24.90\00:48:26.67
And we focused on this.
00:48:26.77\00:48:28.30
And how could we not?
00:48:28.40\00:48:29.30
I mean, 4,000 years of death
00:48:29.40\00:48:31.37
and degradation and decay, and
00:48:31.47\00:48:33.24
and it's all unraveled here,
00:48:33.34\00:48:34.88
with one angel
00:48:34.98\00:48:36.24
rolling around a stone here
00:48:36.34\00:48:37.51
and the power of God lifting
00:48:37.61\00:48:38.91
Jesus back up from the grave.
00:48:39.01\00:48:40.35
I mean, if we look at all these
00:48:40.45\00:48:41.55
things -- And we have to
00:48:41.65\00:48:43.35
remember also that that
00:48:43.45\00:48:45.75
resurrection was so much more
00:48:45.85\00:48:47.82
than just an amazing, incredible
00:48:47.92\00:48:49.82
miracle because the resurrection
00:48:49.92\00:48:52.59
of Jesus Christ is also --
00:48:52.69\00:48:55.03
listen carefully -- it is also
00:48:55.13\00:48:56.90
the source of assurance
00:48:57.00\00:48:59.37
that this life matters,
00:48:59.47\00:49:02.74
that this life matters,
00:49:02.84\00:49:04.14
that what we do in this life
00:49:04.24\00:49:05.61
has meaning.
00:49:05.71\00:49:06.84
We are not just living
00:49:06.94\00:49:08.38
for this moment.
00:49:08.48\00:49:09.71
We are preparing for eternity.
00:49:09.81\00:49:12.38
We don't have to live in despair
00:49:12.48\00:49:14.52
or depression because of the
00:49:14.62\00:49:16.12
supposed meaninglessness of this
00:49:16.22\00:49:17.62
life because this life
00:49:17.72\00:49:18.89
is not the end.
00:49:18.99\00:49:20.56
There is so much more that
00:49:20.66\00:49:21.69
is better and higher
00:49:21.79\00:49:22.92
and joyful to come.
00:49:23.02\00:49:25.63
And unlike those
00:49:25.73\00:49:26.63
who have no hope,
00:49:26.73\00:49:28.63
everyone who puts
00:49:28.73\00:49:30.10
their trust in Jesus,
00:49:30.20\00:49:31.53
if they should die,
00:49:31.63\00:49:33.77
Christ does not forget them.
00:49:33.87\00:49:36.91
You're familiar with the text
00:49:37.01\00:49:37.44
in the Bible.
00:49:37.54\00:49:38.17
it says God says he has engraved
00:49:38.24\00:49:39.87
us on the palms of his hands.
00:49:39.91\00:49:41.21
How often do you see the palms
00:49:41.31\00:49:42.34
of your hands throughout a day?
00:49:42.44\00:49:43.11
I mean, it's all the time,
00:49:43.21\00:49:44.45
and it's right there.
00:49:44.55\00:49:45.21
I mean, the point is clear.
00:49:45.31\00:49:46.41
We are precious in God's sight.
00:49:46.51\00:49:48.35
We are part of who He is.
00:49:48.45\00:49:50.35
We are His sons and daughters.
00:49:50.45\00:49:52.22
When it comes to Jesus, we're
00:49:52.32\00:49:53.29
his brothers and his sisters.
00:49:53.39\00:49:54.12
We are family.
00:49:54.22\00:49:55.59
He cannot forget us.
00:49:55.69\00:49:57.76
And even though we now
00:49:57.86\00:49:59.39
spend billions on funerals
00:49:59.49\00:50:01.46
and safety features in cars
00:50:01.56\00:50:04.37
and in buses, all attempting
00:50:04.47\00:50:05.90
to prevent death and dying,
00:50:06.00\00:50:07.80
when Jesus returns, all of that
00:50:07.90\00:50:09.77
will be instantly irrelevant,
00:50:09.87\00:50:14.24
for when Jesus returns soon
00:50:14.34\00:50:15.61
the second time, He -- by the
00:50:15.71\00:50:19.15
power of His own resurrection
00:50:19.25\00:50:21.15
and victory over death,
00:50:21.25\00:50:22.72
He will --
00:50:22.82\00:50:24.99
It's hard to conceive of this
00:50:25.09\00:50:27.06
'cause it's so far outside of
00:50:27.16\00:50:28.09
our normal day-to-day operation
00:50:28.19\00:50:28.99
here.
00:50:29.09\00:50:30.09
He will take every physical
00:50:30.19\00:50:32.23
particle that was us.
00:50:32.33\00:50:35.00
He will take every neuron
00:50:35.10\00:50:36.60
that inhabited our brains,
00:50:36.70\00:50:37.87
every cell that enlivened
00:50:37.97\00:50:39.27
our bodies, whether our ashes
00:50:39.37\00:50:41.17
were spread over the ocean
00:50:41.27\00:50:42.44
or buried deep in the ground
00:50:42.54\00:50:43.74
or lost entirely
00:50:43.84\00:50:44.91
to all human knowledge.
00:50:45.01\00:50:46.17
I've had some people say,
00:50:46.27\00:50:47.51
"Pastor Shane, I don't want to
00:50:47.61\00:50:48.88
be cremated because I'm not sure
00:50:48.98\00:50:50.21
if Jesus can put all that back
00:50:50.31\00:50:51.21
together."
00:50:51.31\00:50:51.81
[ Laughter ]
00:50:51.91\00:50:53.38
He can. He's really good.
00:50:53.48\00:50:54.78
He's really good.
00:50:54.88\00:50:55.65
I mean, some people sit down at
00:50:55.75\00:50:56.72
the holidays to do a 1,000-piece
00:50:56.82\00:50:57.82
puzzle and it takes them a long
00:50:57.92\00:50:58.59
time to do it.
00:50:58.69\00:50:59.45
Not so with Jesus. He's a whiz.
00:50:59.55\00:51:00.86
Never try to compete against
00:51:00.96\00:51:02.19
Jesus in puzzle putting back
00:51:02.29\00:51:03.59
together because He knows where
00:51:03.69\00:51:04.79
everything goes.
00:51:04.89\00:51:05.89
In an instant, in the blink of
00:51:05.99\00:51:07.23
an eye, at the last trumpet,
00:51:07.36\00:51:08.60
this transformation will take
00:51:08.70\00:51:09.60
place.
00:51:09.70\00:51:10.43
God will take all that was us
00:51:10.53\00:51:13.03
and restore us
00:51:13.13\00:51:14.67
perfectly in order
00:51:14.77\00:51:16.54
as us, never to see decay again
00:51:16.64\00:51:19.27
because -- hear it and hear it
00:51:19.37\00:51:20.44
well -- there are no graves in
00:51:20.54\00:51:22.51
Heaven.
00:51:22.61\00:51:24.61
No more funerals,
00:51:24.71\00:51:25.91
no more memorial services.
00:51:26.01\00:51:27.52
Oh, what a day that will be.
00:51:27.62\00:51:30.69
Because we serve a risen Savior,
00:51:30.79\00:51:33.66
our lives have
00:51:33.76\00:51:35.92
deep and profound meaning.
00:51:36.02\00:51:38.89
And may our hopes,
00:51:38.99\00:51:40.50
our decisions,
00:51:40.60\00:51:42.06
and, yes, even the smiles on our
00:51:42.16\00:51:44.50
faces richly reflect that fact.
00:51:44.60\00:51:47.04
[ Applause ]
00:51:49.77\00:51:51.84
[ "He Lives" begins ]
00:51:59.48\00:52:01.95
[ Congregation sings ]
00:52:32.55\00:52:34.95
Amen.
00:56:08.10\00:56:10.20
Lord Jesus, we could not be more
00:56:10.30\00:56:12.73
pleased at Your generosity to
00:56:12.83\00:56:14.64
us.
00:56:14.74\00:56:15.57
You not only laid down Your life
00:56:15.67\00:56:17.37
for us, but You also saw
00:56:17.47\00:56:19.04
fit to take it up again.
00:56:19.14\00:56:21.11
And because of that,
00:56:21.21\00:56:22.81
we can indeed live a life
00:56:22.91\00:56:24.01
of deep and profound
00:56:24.11\00:56:25.25
meaning in You.
00:56:25.35\00:56:27.15
Lord, may we understand
00:56:27.25\00:56:28.08
this great gift
00:56:28.18\00:56:29.18
that You have given to us better
00:56:29.28\00:56:30.62
because we were here today.
00:56:30.72\00:56:32.52
We ask this in the name
00:56:32.62\00:56:33.42
of Jesus.
00:56:33.52\00:56:34.32
Amen.
00:56:34.42\00:56:35.99
¤
00:56:36.09\00:56:43.16
>> Thank you for joining us
00:56:47.37\00:56:47.77
today.
00:56:47.87\00:56:48.84
You know, our goal
00:56:48.94\00:56:50.17
with every worship service
00:56:50.27\00:56:51.57
at Pioneer Memorial is that
00:56:51.67\00:56:53.11
our listeners will come to know
00:56:53.21\00:56:54.38
Jesus Christ as their personal
00:56:54.48\00:56:55.68
friend and Savior.
00:56:55.78\00:56:57.48
Have you taken
00:56:57.58\00:56:58.15
this step in your life?
00:56:58.25\00:56:59.81
Or would you like to know more
00:56:59.91\00:57:00.98
about what this step looks like?
00:57:01.08\00:57:03.08
If so, I have a special gift
00:57:03.18\00:57:04.79
that I would love
00:57:04.89\00:57:05.59
to put in your hands.
00:57:05.69\00:57:07.16
It's this little book called
00:57:07.26\00:57:08.46
"Steps to Christ."
00:57:08.56\00:57:10.59
Now, it's not a very long book.
00:57:10.69\00:57:12.03
As you can see,
00:57:12.13\00:57:12.73
it's only this thick.
00:57:12.83\00:57:14.83
But don't let the size fool you.
00:57:14.93\00:57:16.53
This is one powerful book.
00:57:16.63\00:57:18.90
In fact, this book is so
00:57:19.00\00:57:20.30
powerful, so life-transforming,
00:57:20.40\00:57:22.27
that it's become a favorite
00:57:22.37\00:57:23.34
for millions all over the world,
00:57:23.44\00:57:25.01
making it one of the most
00:57:25.11\00:57:25.91
translated and most published
00:57:26.01\00:57:27.18
books in history.
00:57:27.28\00:57:28.71
It can be yours for free
00:57:28.81\00:57:30.68
by calling the number
00:57:30.78\00:57:31.61
on your screen -- 877-HIS-WILL.
00:57:31.71\00:57:34.42
That's 877, the two words
00:57:34.52\00:57:36.18
"HIS WILL."
00:57:36.28\00:57:37.69
Call today.
00:57:37.79\00:57:38.99
You can also download
00:57:39.09\00:57:39.85
a free copy at
00:57:39.95\00:57:41.22
pmchurch.org/stepstochrist.
00:57:41.32\00:57:43.96
That's
00:57:44.06\00:57:44.79
pmchurch.org/stepstochrist.
00:57:44.89\00:57:47.86
Don't wait. Get your copy today.
00:57:47.96\00:57:50.17
A forever friendship with Jesus
00:57:50.27\00:57:51.83
is waiting for you.
00:57:51.93\00:57:53.34
¤
00:58:00.48\00:58:09.05
¤
00:58:09.15\00:58:17.76
¤
00:58:17.86\00:58:26.17