This morning as we open the Word of God together, 00:00:32.13\00:00:34.30 I'd like to invite you to turn in your Bibles 00:00:34.33\00:00:36.70 to the scripture reading for this morning. 00:00:36.73\00:00:40.67 In Matthew 28:6, 00:00:40.70\00:00:43.97 Matthew 00:00:44.01\00:00:45.34 28:6, 00:00:45.37\00:00:51.11 the Word of the Lord reads as follows, 00:00:51.15\00:00:53.11 and if we can read this together, 00:00:53.15\00:00:54.65 I'd surely appreciate that, together, 00:00:54.68\00:00:59.12 "He is not here for He is risen, 00:00:59.15\00:01:02.66 as He said, 00:01:02.69\00:01:04.53 'Come, see the place where the Lord lay.'" 00:01:04.56\00:01:08.80 He is risen. 00:01:08.83\00:01:12.20 Loving Father in heaven, 00:01:12.23\00:01:13.57 we celebrate 00:01:13.60\00:01:15.30 with deep anticipation 00:01:15.34\00:01:19.87 that our risen Lord will soon and very soon 00:01:19.91\00:01:24.88 become our returning Lord. 00:01:24.91\00:01:28.38 This morning as the world pauses 00:01:28.42\00:01:30.19 to contemplate, 00:01:30.22\00:01:32.69 sometimes on a social and economic level, 00:01:32.72\00:01:37.09 what this time of the year means. 00:01:37.13\00:01:40.03 We pray that the Easter bunnies, 00:01:40.06\00:01:42.60 and the colored eggs, and the baskets, 00:01:42.63\00:01:45.20 and the Cadbury chocolates 00:01:45.23\00:01:47.74 will not replace the empty tomb. 00:01:47.77\00:01:51.44 This morning, guide our hearts and minds away 00:01:51.47\00:01:53.78 from the tradition to the scriptural reality 00:01:53.81\00:01:57.95 that Jesus is alive and well, 00:01:57.98\00:02:00.55 and the signs all around us peel back to remind us 00:02:00.58\00:02:06.22 that He is coming again. 00:02:06.25\00:02:10.46 Now send Your Holy Spirit, 00:02:10.49\00:02:11.83 Lord, to awaken our hearts 00:02:11.86\00:02:13.60 in the sense of not only gaining knowledge 00:02:13.63\00:02:16.80 but being filled with a dedication to serve you 00:02:16.83\00:02:19.83 as our soon coming king, 00:02:19.87\00:02:22.77 in Your precious name, I pray. 00:02:22.80\00:02:25.71 Amen. 00:02:25.74\00:02:28.81 Traditionally, 00:02:28.84\00:02:31.05 this week is designated as holy week. 00:02:31.08\00:02:34.78 And I emphasize the word traditionally 00:02:34.82\00:02:37.32 because the Bible does not speak 00:02:37.35\00:02:39.85 of a holy week. 00:02:39.89\00:02:41.79 It speaks of a holy day, 00:02:41.82\00:02:44.93 remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. 00:02:44.96\00:02:50.80 The Bible Sabbath is from sunset Friday 00:02:50.83\00:02:54.74 to sunset Saturday. 00:02:54.77\00:02:57.67 Ironically though, 00:02:57.71\00:02:59.04 this is the only time of the year 00:02:59.07\00:03:02.04 where tradition gives 00:03:02.08\00:03:05.08 the Sabbath its proper standing. 00:03:05.11\00:03:08.02 Think about it, 00:03:08.05\00:03:09.42 yesterday was traditionally Good Friday, 00:03:09.45\00:03:13.42 tomorrow traditionally is Easter Sunday. 00:03:13.46\00:03:16.86 We call that resurrection Sunday 00:03:16.89\00:03:18.66 because the word Easter comes 00:03:18.69\00:03:20.20 from that tradition of Ishtar, that Phoenician God. 00:03:20.23\00:03:25.63 We believe in the newness of life, 00:03:25.67\00:03:27.74 but the newness of life comes in the recognition of the power 00:03:27.77\00:03:33.17 and the glory coming from Jesus and not from tradition. 00:03:33.21\00:03:39.28 And so the Bible collides with tradition all year long, 00:03:39.31\00:03:43.99 but to some degree, this week is the only week 00:03:44.02\00:03:48.72 where tradition has recognized that today 00:03:48.76\00:03:54.36 is the day that Jesus blessed, 00:03:54.40\00:03:57.43 today is the day 00:03:57.47\00:03:59.93 that Jesus blessed from creation, 00:03:59.97\00:04:02.10 today is the day 00:04:02.14\00:04:04.07 that Jesus is anticipating His resurrection on tomorrow, 00:04:04.11\00:04:08.18 today is the holy Sabbath day. 00:04:08.21\00:04:12.11 But when you think that your week has been tough, 00:04:12.15\00:04:15.88 just remember the week that Jesus had. 00:04:15.92\00:04:19.12 The week that led Him to be wrongly accused 00:04:19.15\00:04:22.99 and then to be betrayed 00:04:23.02\00:04:25.26 and then to be taken to the courts of Pilate 00:04:25.29\00:04:28.40 before the Jewish Sanhedrin, 00:04:28.43\00:04:30.70 the high priest, to be interrogated, 00:04:30.73\00:04:34.64 to be led, to be scourged and whipped 00:04:34.67\00:04:37.27 with a cat o' nine tail where blood 00:04:37.31\00:04:39.67 and His back being ripped 00:04:39.71\00:04:41.54 from the severe torture of the Roman guards, 00:04:41.58\00:04:45.75 and eventually to be led to the cross 00:04:45.78\00:04:48.68 where He paid the price for our redemption. 00:04:48.72\00:04:51.69 Before I even begin the message, 00:04:51.72\00:04:53.05 I say this morning, 00:04:53.09\00:04:54.42 "Thank the Lord that He was willing to pay 00:04:54.46\00:04:56.19 the price for our redemption." 00:04:56.22\00:04:59.23 We could not even talk about Jesus today 00:04:59.26\00:05:02.06 had He not paid the price for our redemption. 00:05:02.10\00:05:05.50 But the next time you think that you had a tough week, 00:05:05.53\00:05:09.00 remember the week that Jesus had. 00:05:09.04\00:05:11.57 It was not a tough week, it was a criminal week, 00:05:11.61\00:05:15.18 not enforced on Him but because of love, 00:05:15.21\00:05:18.21 He chose to walk our road 00:05:18.25\00:05:21.28 that one day by faith we will walk His road. 00:05:21.32\00:05:26.22 He chose to wore our robe, 00:05:26.25\00:05:28.82 to wear our robe that one day we might wear His robe. 00:05:28.86\00:05:34.63 He chose to have our thorns planted 00:05:34.66\00:05:37.83 on His head that one day 00:05:37.87\00:05:40.04 we might have the crown of glory planted on our head. 00:05:40.07\00:05:44.47 But this morning, cometh me 00:05:44.51\00:05:46.17 to the scene of a vicious crime, 00:05:46.21\00:05:48.98 stand with me at the intersection 00:05:49.01\00:05:50.78 of what was and what will be, 00:05:50.81\00:05:54.35 pause for a moment and inhale the scene, 00:05:54.38\00:05:59.02 like blackened soot escaping the mouth of an angry furnace. 00:05:59.05\00:06:03.12 On that day of death, 00:06:03.16\00:06:04.59 finality of death pains the night air, 00:06:04.63\00:06:08.06 as Jesus is laid, 00:06:08.10\00:06:10.37 as it seem to be in a tomb of great finality, 00:06:10.40\00:06:14.04 the stone is put in place. 00:06:14.07\00:06:16.10 The Romans sealed the tomb. 00:06:16.14\00:06:18.47 Jesus appears to be at His end and then to decide, 00:06:18.51\00:06:23.78 listen carefully, and you'll hear 00:06:23.81\00:06:25.18 the cacophony of demons rejoicing. 00:06:25.21\00:06:27.68 The restless clamor of satanic praise collides 00:06:27.72\00:06:31.55 with the discordant racket of hell-born dissidents. 00:06:31.59\00:06:34.59 Hell and its minions are now rejoicing 00:06:34.62\00:06:37.09 that it appears to them 00:06:37.13\00:06:39.43 that they have finally defeated Jesus. 00:06:39.46\00:06:42.73 Satan waited 4,000 years for that moment. 00:06:42.76\00:06:46.10 And it appears to the human eye that he had been successful. 00:06:46.13\00:06:51.37 The orchestrator of this symphony of death 00:06:51.41\00:06:53.27 stands erect proudly leading his rebellious minions 00:06:53.31\00:06:57.15 in the chorus of temporary praise. 00:06:57.18\00:07:00.82 They are soon to be reminded of their feeble efforts 00:07:00.85\00:07:03.28 for it is true, 00:07:03.32\00:07:04.75 it is true that you cannot keep a good man down. 00:07:04.79\00:07:08.96 Amen? 00:07:08.99\00:07:10.33 You cannot keep a good man down. 00:07:10.36\00:07:13.03 When Jesus proclaimed it is finished, 00:07:13.06\00:07:16.23 Satan knew that 00:07:16.26\00:07:17.63 what was finished was not Jesus but the plan of salvation, 00:07:17.67\00:07:22.27 what was finished was not the reign of Jesus 00:07:22.30\00:07:25.34 but the price He paid to redeem everyone of us, 00:07:25.37\00:07:27.71 and that is why they got together 00:07:27.74\00:07:30.51 and coalesced in the scheme to prevent Jesus 00:07:30.55\00:07:33.11 from coming forth, 00:07:33.15\00:07:34.72 but I love the words that history paints for us, 00:07:34.75\00:07:37.75 "Christ did not yield His life up 00:07:37.79\00:07:40.49 until He had accomplished the work 00:07:40.52\00:07:42.52 which He came to do." 00:07:42.56\00:07:44.23 And with the parting breath, He exclaimed, "It is finished." 00:07:44.26\00:07:47.36 The battle had been won, 00:07:47.40\00:07:48.96 His right and His holy arm had gotten Him the victory. 00:07:49.00\00:07:53.34 And as conqueror, listen carefully, 00:07:53.37\00:07:55.87 as conqueror He planted his banner 00:07:55.90\00:07:59.57 on the eternal heights. 00:07:59.61\00:08:01.41 You see the cross, the place of suffering, 00:08:01.44\00:08:05.45 the place of torment, 00:08:05.48\00:08:06.95 the place of persecution was in fact to heaven, 00:08:06.98\00:08:10.32 a declaration of the victory of Jesus. 00:08:10.35\00:08:15.76 Somebody else ought to say amen. 00:08:15.79\00:08:17.79 The cross was a declaration of the victory of Jesus, 00:08:17.83\00:08:22.13 but among the angels, 00:08:22.16\00:08:23.97 was there no joy among the angels, 00:08:24.00\00:08:26.43 all heaven triumph at the Savior's victory. 00:08:26.47\00:08:30.41 Satan was defeated and he knew that his kingdom was lost. 00:08:30.44\00:08:35.68 The chief priests and Pharisees accomplished 00:08:35.71\00:08:38.41 their evil desires, and the desires of their heart, 00:08:38.45\00:08:42.05 but yet in the recesses of their minds, 00:08:42.08\00:08:44.42 hear me carefully, 00:08:44.45\00:08:46.82 there was something about the name Jesus 00:08:46.86\00:08:48.66 that kept their wicked hearts troubled. 00:08:48.69\00:08:50.99 There was something about the work 00:08:51.03\00:08:52.36 that they had seen in the life of Jesus 00:08:52.39\00:08:53.83 that kept their wicked hearts uneasy, 00:08:53.86\00:08:57.00 and they devised a plan, go to Matthew 27:62-64, 00:08:57.03\00:09:01.34 unable to dismiss 00:09:01.37\00:09:02.70 the possibility of His divinity, 00:09:02.74\00:09:04.67 they devised a plan, 00:09:04.71\00:09:07.04 they remember the work that Jesus had done, 00:09:07.08\00:09:09.81 the dead He had raised, 00:09:09.84\00:09:11.38 the eyes He had opened, the cripple He made to walk, 00:09:11.41\00:09:14.28 the blind He made to see. 00:09:14.32\00:09:16.18 And they thought if He is possibly divine, 00:09:16.22\00:09:19.35 let us devise a plan, the Bible says, 00:09:19.39\00:09:21.96 "On the next day, 00:09:21.99\00:09:23.69 which followed the Day of Preparation, 00:09:23.73\00:09:25.56 the chief priests and Pharisees gathered 00:09:25.59\00:09:27.83 together to Pilate, saying, 00:09:27.86\00:09:29.53 'Sir, we remember, 00:09:29.56\00:09:32.33 while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, 00:09:32.37\00:09:36.71 'After three days I will rise.'" 00:09:36.74\00:09:39.67 They continued, 00:09:39.71\00:09:41.04 "Therefore command that the tomb be made secure 00:09:41.08\00:09:44.88 until the third day, 00:09:44.91\00:09:47.52 lest His disciples come by night 00:09:47.55\00:09:49.38 and steal Him away and say to the people, 00:09:49.42\00:09:52.49 'He has risen from the dead.' 00:09:52.52\00:09:54.09 So the last deception will be worse than the first." 00:09:54.12\00:09:58.49 Do you know if Jesus wanted to, 00:09:58.53\00:10:00.90 He could have prevented Himself from going in the tomb anyway, 00:10:00.93\00:10:06.10 but He went into our tomb to pay for our redemption. 00:10:06.13\00:10:11.14 And according to the plan of salvation, 00:10:11.17\00:10:14.74 the cadence of our redemption was set, 00:10:14.78\00:10:18.48 and these feeble men 00:10:18.51\00:10:19.85 thought they could keep Jesus from coming forth 00:10:19.88\00:10:22.62 from the tomb. 00:10:22.65\00:10:24.09 When they thought about His life, 00:10:24.12\00:10:25.45 the purity of His life led them to question 00:10:25.49\00:10:27.39 the permanence of His death. 00:10:27.42\00:10:28.76 Let me say that again, 00:10:28.79\00:10:30.13 the purity of His life led them to question 00:10:30.16\00:10:32.73 the permanence of His death. 00:10:32.76\00:10:34.63 You can almost hear the Jewish contingency 00:10:34.66\00:10:36.43 appealing their case to Pilate in the event 00:10:36.46\00:10:39.73 that He is the Christ, 00:10:39.77\00:10:41.70 we need to make sure that He does not come out. 00:10:41.74\00:10:45.21 Can I jump ahead of myself? 00:10:45.24\00:10:46.57 Thank the Lord, He came out. 00:10:46.61\00:10:49.88 Satan said, "Shut Him up." 00:10:49.91\00:10:51.25 What he did not know, in less than 72 hours, 00:10:51.28\00:10:55.12 heaven would say, "Get Him up." 00:10:55.15\00:10:58.52 There's a difference between "shut Him up" and "get Him up". 00:10:58.55\00:11:02.32 The Pilate's hands were washed, but his heart was troubled. 00:11:02.36\00:11:05.19 Look at Matthew 27:65-66, 00:11:05.23\00:11:09.00 he tried to recuse himself but he could not. 00:11:09.03\00:11:11.97 Then, "Pilate said to them, 'You have a guard, go your way, 00:11:12.00\00:11:16.91 make it as secure as you know how.' 00:11:16.94\00:11:20.28 So they went and made the tomb secure, 00:11:20.31\00:11:23.35 sealing the stone and setting the guard." 00:11:23.38\00:11:27.92 The tomb was sealed 00:11:27.95\00:11:29.35 and the Roman guards manned their post, 00:11:29.38\00:11:32.45 deceived by the darkness of their understanding, 00:11:32.49\00:11:34.79 the betrayers of Christ were willingly ignorant 00:11:34.82\00:11:37.79 of the fact that by the death of Jesus, 00:11:37.83\00:11:40.33 the plan of salvation would be accomplished. 00:11:40.36\00:11:42.83 Let me make that clear, you see, from antiquity, 00:11:42.86\00:11:46.90 from the day that sin entered the world, 00:11:46.94\00:11:50.24 from the day that Adam and Eve fell, 00:11:50.27\00:11:54.91 God assured mankind that He would not abandon us 00:11:54.94\00:12:00.15 to the darkness of sin. 00:12:00.18\00:12:01.92 Amen? Amen. 00:12:01.95\00:12:03.32 He assured us that one day, 00:12:03.35\00:12:06.72 He would come to conquer death 00:12:06.76\00:12:08.89 and once again open the gates 00:12:08.92\00:12:11.86 that we might have life and have it 00:12:11.89\00:12:13.93 not only abundantly, but have it eternally. 00:12:13.96\00:12:16.30 Look at the promise 00:12:16.33\00:12:17.67 in Genesis 3:15, 4,000 years earlier, 00:12:17.70\00:12:21.84 outside of the gates of man's evictions, 00:12:21.87\00:12:24.24 Jesus declared these words, 00:12:24.27\00:12:26.47 in Genesis 3:15 and the Bible said, 00:12:26.51\00:12:30.78 "And I will put enmity between you and the woman 00:12:30.81\00:12:33.75 and between your seed and her Seed. 00:12:33.78\00:12:36.38 He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel." 00:12:36.42\00:12:42.09 Now what is enmity? 00:12:42.12\00:12:43.46 Enmity is that discomfort, 00:12:43.49\00:12:46.06 when the heart is being led into sin, 00:12:46.09\00:12:48.23 enmity is that discomfort, placed there by God to say, 00:12:48.26\00:12:52.30 "This is wrong, don't do it. 00:12:52.33\00:12:54.70 This is the incorrect direction, 00:12:54.74\00:12:56.10 don't go there." 00:12:56.14\00:12:57.47 Enmity is the discomfort between hell and heaven, 00:12:57.51\00:13:01.74 between darkness and light, between error and good. 00:13:01.78\00:13:06.21 It is there placed by God to keep us understanding 00:13:06.25\00:13:09.15 that there is a way that seems right, 00:13:09.18\00:13:11.19 but then there is a way that is right. 00:13:11.22\00:13:15.52 John 10:18 makes it very clear that Jesus says, 00:13:15.56\00:13:19.06 "No one can take my life from Me." 00:13:19.09\00:13:21.10 He is the Lamb slain 00:13:21.13\00:13:22.46 from the foundation of the world. 00:13:22.50\00:13:24.73 You see, His death was not orchestrated by hell. 00:13:24.77\00:13:28.84 His death was ordained by heaven. 00:13:28.87\00:13:33.78 I remember the movie, I saw the Passion... 00:13:33.81\00:13:35.71 I saw that with about 4,000, 5,000 pastors 00:13:35.74\00:13:38.61 at NRB a number of years ago. 00:13:38.65\00:13:41.12 And they marveled at the brutality 00:13:41.15\00:13:43.18 of the whipping of Jesus as Mel Gibson, 00:13:43.22\00:13:45.19 the producer had portrayed. 00:13:45.22\00:13:47.22 They made it look as though Jesus died 00:13:47.26\00:13:49.79 from the whipping He took. 00:13:49.82\00:13:52.53 But He did not die from the abuse, 00:13:52.56\00:13:55.00 He died because of sin, 00:13:55.03\00:13:58.53 your sin and my sin. 00:13:58.57\00:14:00.84 He was wounded for our transgression. 00:14:00.87\00:14:03.41 He was bruised for our iniquity. 00:14:03.44\00:14:06.81 It is so easy to put it on the head of the Jews 00:14:06.84\00:14:08.74 and the Romans, but He died for me. 00:14:08.78\00:14:11.21 He died because of me. 00:14:11.25\00:14:12.91 He died because of my sin and your sin. 00:14:12.95\00:14:16.12 He was the Lamb slained 00:14:16.15\00:14:17.55 from the foundation of the world. 00:14:17.59\00:14:19.39 In John 10:18, Jesus says, "No one takes it from Me," 00:14:19.42\00:14:23.53 that is My life, "but I lay it down of Myself. 00:14:23.56\00:14:26.96 I have power to lay it down, 00:14:27.00\00:14:29.43 and I have power to take it again. 00:14:29.46\00:14:32.23 This command 00:14:32.27\00:14:33.60 I have received from My Father." 00:14:33.64\00:14:35.20 So when Jesus decided to enter the way of suffering... 00:14:35.24\00:14:40.18 My wife and I, not too long ago, 00:14:40.21\00:14:41.71 walked the Via Dolorosa, 00:14:41.74\00:14:43.61 there in the courts of the walls of Jerusalem, 00:14:43.65\00:14:46.72 we walked the Via Dolorosa, 00:14:46.75\00:14:48.58 and we saw as it were people carrying crosses, 00:14:48.62\00:14:50.99 but I thought to myself, 00:14:51.02\00:14:52.65 "They're carrying a wooden cross, 00:14:52.69\00:14:55.52 but Jesus carried 00:14:55.56\00:14:56.93 the cross of the world on His shoulder." 00:14:56.96\00:15:00.83 The cross of every suffering human being, 00:15:00.86\00:15:04.23 wherever sin had abounded, 00:15:04.27\00:15:06.70 His grace much more abounded. 00:15:06.74\00:15:08.94 Jesus carried my sin and your sin. 00:15:08.97\00:15:11.91 He carried sin that was yet to be perpetrated, 00:15:11.94\00:15:15.08 and He carried sin 00:15:15.11\00:15:16.44 that was thousands of years old. 00:15:16.48\00:15:18.28 And He took it to the cross. 00:15:18.31\00:15:19.78 "I have power to lay it down, 00:15:19.81\00:15:22.98 and I have power to take it again." 00:15:23.02\00:15:25.75 But the question I ask is how can you take life 00:15:25.79\00:15:28.66 from one who is life? 00:15:28.69\00:15:31.76 We're told again in John 1:4, 00:15:31.79\00:15:33.36 "In Him was life, 00:15:33.40\00:15:34.73 and the life was the light of men." 00:15:34.76\00:15:36.87 In Christ is life, original, 00:15:36.90\00:15:41.47 un-borrowed, and un-derived. 00:15:41.50\00:15:45.81 Let me make it clear for those of you 00:15:45.84\00:15:47.88 that are holding your amens to the end. 00:15:47.91\00:15:50.01 Let me make it clear, nobody created Jesus, 00:15:50.05\00:15:52.98 He is the Creator, come on, say amen. 00:15:53.01\00:15:55.38 Nobody decided to give Him life, He is life. 00:15:55.42\00:15:59.45 So when this superhuman came to the earth, 00:15:59.49\00:16:03.43 when this atomic beginning of all existence 00:16:03.46\00:16:08.43 decided to tune His power down, to come down here. 00:16:08.46\00:16:13.23 Can you imagine plugging a shaver 00:16:13.27\00:16:16.40 into an atomic power plant? 00:16:16.44\00:16:20.84 It'll fry not only the shaver but you too. 00:16:20.88\00:16:24.08 All the power harbored in Jesus 00:16:24.11\00:16:27.42 could annihilate the world had He not tuned it down 00:16:27.45\00:16:30.82 when He touched this planet. 00:16:30.85\00:16:32.75 He came through the delivery system 00:16:32.79\00:16:34.92 of a humble girl. 00:16:34.96\00:16:36.79 He tuned it way down so that her flesh 00:16:36.83\00:16:39.16 would not be consumed by His divinity. 00:16:39.19\00:16:41.36 What a gift? Amen. 00:16:41.40\00:16:43.50 And even though He looked to be a helpless babe, 00:16:43.53\00:16:45.53 He had the secret service of the angels of heaven. 00:16:45.57\00:16:49.37 Somebody said they didn't see how He came, 00:16:49.40\00:16:51.41 he came through the backdoor of Jerusalem, 00:16:51.44\00:16:53.58 but He came so that one day, we could go through 00:16:53.61\00:16:55.38 the front door of the New Jerusalem. 00:16:55.41\00:16:57.51 Amen. 00:16:57.55\00:16:58.98 This baby did not have His beginning in Bethlehem, 00:16:59.01\00:17:04.05 He is from everlasting to everlasting, 00:17:04.09\00:17:06.52 He was before the earth was, He later on would say, 00:17:06.55\00:17:09.56 "Father, glorify Me with the glory 00:17:09.59\00:17:11.56 that we had before the world was." 00:17:11.59\00:17:14.73 And how I wish today 00:17:14.76\00:17:16.13 in more churches and more pulpits, 00:17:16.16\00:17:17.83 the gospel of the resurrected Lord 00:17:17.87\00:17:20.44 would be preached and not tradition. 00:17:20.47\00:17:22.57 I believe that when the power of Christ is proclaimed, 00:17:22.60\00:17:25.77 when the veracity of the price 00:17:25.81\00:17:27.54 He paid for our redemption is accounted, 00:17:27.58\00:17:30.21 we will understand that everybody alive 00:17:30.25\00:17:35.28 has the freedom to partake of eternal life 00:17:35.32\00:17:38.05 if they would simply come to Jesus. 00:17:38.09\00:17:40.16 Amen. 00:17:40.19\00:17:41.52 It doesn't make sense, 00:17:41.56\00:17:43.36 in Christ was life un-borrowed, 00:17:43.39\00:17:47.13 original, and un-derived. 00:17:47.16\00:17:48.73 Didn't get it from anybody else, 00:17:48.76\00:17:51.50 He got it from Himself. 00:17:51.53\00:17:53.40 Jesus became what we was not, 00:17:53.44\00:17:55.70 Jesus became what He was not 00:17:55.74\00:17:57.77 so that one day, 00:17:57.81\00:17:59.14 we could become what we are not. 00:17:59.17\00:18:01.34 The Apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:21, 00:18:01.38\00:18:04.61 "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us 00:18:04.65\00:18:07.55 that we might become 00:18:07.58\00:18:08.92 the righteousness of God in Him." 00:18:08.95\00:18:10.82 Do you know, do you know 00:18:10.85\00:18:14.26 that there is no righteousness in us? 00:18:14.29\00:18:17.36 Yes. 00:18:17.39\00:18:18.73 Every good deed portrayed in our lives comes 00:18:18.76\00:18:21.50 from the presence of Christ working 00:18:21.53\00:18:23.67 through a vessel of flesh. 00:18:23.70\00:18:25.93 There is no good in us. 00:18:25.97\00:18:28.20 The unfortunate thing about this world as they say, 00:18:28.24\00:18:30.81 "Oh, you have a good heart." 00:18:30.84\00:18:32.21 There is no good heart. 00:18:32.24\00:18:34.81 As Jesus said to the rich young ruler, 00:18:34.84\00:18:36.48 "There is none good but one." 00:18:36.51\00:18:39.61 There's no good in any of us. 00:18:39.65\00:18:41.48 My hope today lies in the righteous character 00:18:41.52\00:18:44.75 of the risen Lord, 00:18:44.79\00:18:46.92 not in my ability to follow a set of rules. 00:18:46.96\00:18:49.96 Even the rules would lead me to a place of abandon, 00:18:49.99\00:18:54.16 frustration, without the power of Christ reigning in our lives 00:18:54.20\00:18:59.10 and in our hearts. 00:18:59.13\00:19:01.50 "He made Him who knew no sin to become sin for us 00:19:01.54\00:19:04.84 that we might become 00:19:04.87\00:19:07.11 the righteousness of God in Him." 00:19:07.14\00:19:11.18 Amen. 00:19:11.21\00:19:12.65 You got to understand what that means. 00:19:12.68\00:19:14.62 That means you cannot walk 00:19:14.65\00:19:16.62 through the gates of the New Jerusalem saying, 00:19:16.65\00:19:19.49 "I'll overcome one day." 00:19:19.52\00:19:21.76 We got to overcome down here. 00:19:21.79\00:19:23.93 We could overcome by the blood of the Lamb, 00:19:23.96\00:19:25.96 by the word of our testimony, 00:19:25.99\00:19:27.46 but we overcome down here before we get up there. 00:19:27.50\00:19:32.23 And so this thing called religion 00:19:32.27\00:19:33.70 is not sufficient, 00:19:33.74\00:19:35.07 it's the Christianity of Christ, 00:19:35.10\00:19:36.97 it's the power resident in Him that causes fallen humanity 00:19:37.01\00:19:42.38 to get up in the morning and say, 00:19:42.41\00:19:43.88 "I am a son of God. 00:19:43.91\00:19:45.71 I am a child of the King." Amen, somebody? 00:19:45.75\00:19:48.22 Amen. 00:19:48.25\00:19:49.58 We've got hope 00:19:49.62\00:19:51.52 because He went into the tomb, and He came out. 00:19:51.55\00:19:54.49 You see, Satan planned to bring Jesus down, 00:19:54.52\00:19:57.63 but heaven planned to lift Him up, and why? 00:19:57.66\00:20:01.33 John 12:32, notice what the Bible says, 00:20:01.36\00:20:04.27 "And if I be lifted up from the earth, 00:20:04.30\00:20:07.64 will draw all men unto Me." 00:20:07.67\00:20:10.84 By the way, do you know 00:20:10.87\00:20:12.21 that that's a fail-proof evangelistic method. 00:20:12.24\00:20:14.94 If we would simply lift up Jesus, 00:20:14.98\00:20:16.85 let me say that again, 00:20:16.88\00:20:18.35 if we would simply lift up Jesus, 00:20:18.38\00:20:20.82 more people will see Him rather than us. 00:20:20.85\00:20:25.12 If we would simply lift Him up. 00:20:25.15\00:20:27.29 In this fallen world, people need to hear about hope, 00:20:27.32\00:20:31.19 people need to know that there is hope 00:20:31.23\00:20:33.09 beyond the failures of their lives. 00:20:33.13\00:20:35.60 People need to know that there is hope 00:20:35.63\00:20:37.40 beyond the destitution of their homes. 00:20:37.43\00:20:40.07 People need to know that our failures 00:20:40.10\00:20:42.50 are not our permanent identity. 00:20:42.54\00:20:44.31 Come on, say amen. Amen. 00:20:44.34\00:20:46.21 We need to know that in Christ, our past can be wiped away, 00:20:46.24\00:20:50.15 our present can be redeemed, and our future can make sense. 00:20:50.18\00:20:55.65 We need to know that when death says, 00:20:55.68\00:20:58.15 "This is your final breath." 00:20:58.19\00:21:00.36 God says, "No, I will bring you forth perfect 00:21:00.39\00:21:04.86 from your dusty bed." 00:21:04.89\00:21:06.80 There's a day when everybody 00:21:06.83\00:21:08.20 who lived and died in Christ will come forth 00:21:08.23\00:21:10.60 in the first resurrection. 00:21:10.63\00:21:12.50 Satan cannot prevent the saints of God 00:21:12.53\00:21:15.17 from coming forth perfected. 00:21:15.20\00:21:19.11 That's what Jesus did for me. That's what Jesus did for us. 00:21:19.14\00:21:22.11 That's what Jesus did for my mother, 00:21:22.14\00:21:23.88 and for my stepmother, 00:21:23.91\00:21:25.25 and for my friends that are dying in Christ. 00:21:25.28\00:21:28.38 Every one of us has a hope 00:21:28.42\00:21:29.95 beyond the dusty beds of the grave. 00:21:29.98\00:21:32.82 So when you say goodbye to me, please don't say, 00:21:32.85\00:21:34.86 "So long," 'cause give me time, I'll be out. 00:21:34.89\00:21:37.93 Amen, somebody? Amen. 00:21:37.96\00:21:41.66 "If I be lifted up from the earth, 00:21:41.70\00:21:44.13 I will draw all men unto Myself." 00:21:44.17\00:21:47.27 That's why today, I remember 00:21:47.30\00:21:48.64 the words of Isaiah the Prophet, 00:21:48.67\00:21:50.17 Isaiah 53:5, who did He die for? 00:21:50.21\00:21:54.48 "But He was wounded for our transgressions. 00:21:54.51\00:21:57.25 He was bruised for our iniquities." 00:21:57.28\00:22:00.42 So when you get beside yourself 00:22:00.45\00:22:01.78 and start pointing out other people's sin, 00:22:01.82\00:22:03.49 find yourself a mirror and point out your own. 00:22:03.52\00:22:06.02 Amen. 00:22:06.05\00:22:07.39 "The chastisement of our peace was upon Him, 00:22:07.42\00:22:09.42 and by His stripes we are healed." 00:22:09.46\00:22:13.50 Amen. 00:22:13.53\00:22:14.86 You know what the word healed means? 00:22:14.90\00:22:16.56 It doesn't just mean the wound is closed. 00:22:16.60\00:22:20.67 It means there is no wound 00:22:20.70\00:22:23.44 that we can experience that is permanent as eternity. 00:22:23.47\00:22:27.88 You see, in eternity, the only one 00:22:27.91\00:22:29.61 that's going to bear wound is Christ, not us. 00:22:29.64\00:22:32.98 There'll be no signs of death. 00:22:33.01\00:22:36.69 There'll be no residual of the heartaches 00:22:36.72\00:22:40.76 that we bore in this life. 00:22:40.79\00:22:43.76 There'll be no memory 00:22:43.79\00:22:45.39 of the disappointment we face. 00:22:45.43\00:22:51.10 I know you're stunned. 00:22:51.13\00:22:53.50 Silence is not a bad thing if you're stunned. 00:22:53.54\00:22:56.94 There'll be no more records of murder, and crime, 00:22:56.97\00:23:00.48 and violence in the New Jerusalem. 00:23:00.51\00:23:05.05 Healed permanently, no reversal of sin, 00:23:05.08\00:23:08.48 it will not rise up a second time. 00:23:08.52\00:23:10.79 "The chastisement of our peace is upon Him, 00:23:16.12\00:23:20.00 and by His stripes," together, 00:23:20.03\00:23:22.53 "we are healed." 00:23:22.56\00:23:26.37 Nobody could expunge my record like Jesus. 00:23:26.40\00:23:29.87 Nobody could hit the delete button like Jesus. 00:23:29.90\00:23:33.64 Nobody could say, 00:23:33.68\00:23:35.01 "John, from the time you were born 00:23:35.04\00:23:36.38 until this moment, it's all forgotten. 00:23:36.41\00:23:38.71 It's all thrown away. 00:23:38.75\00:23:40.18 I put it in the vault of forgetfulness, 00:23:40.22\00:23:42.45 and I'm not even going to open it. 00:23:42.48\00:23:43.82 I've lost the number." 00:23:43.85\00:23:47.39 How much He loves us? 00:23:47.42\00:23:51.63 But I must say, His betrayers would have been better 00:23:51.66\00:23:54.46 not to have been born. 00:23:54.50\00:23:57.17 Mark 14:21, the Bible says, 00:23:57.20\00:23:58.80 "Woe to the man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed!" 00:23:58.83\00:24:02.20 You see, one of my aims, I read this text, 00:24:02.24\00:24:04.87 and I know it refers to Judas, 00:24:04.91\00:24:06.84 but I've determined in my life 00:24:06.88\00:24:09.44 that I don't want to live a life 00:24:09.48\00:24:11.28 to betray the name of Jesus. 00:24:11.31\00:24:14.48 This betrayal is far greater than 00:24:14.52\00:24:15.85 just what Judas did. 00:24:15.88\00:24:17.22 "It would have been good for that man 00:24:17.25\00:24:19.05 if he had never been born." 00:24:19.09\00:24:23.02 The newness of the death of Jesus 00:24:23.06\00:24:24.59 was echoed and reechoed 00:24:24.63\00:24:26.36 through the limitless regions of unfallen worlds. 00:24:26.39\00:24:29.70 The message that Passover Lamb was slained, 00:24:29.73\00:24:32.37 the bread of life was broken, 00:24:32.40\00:24:34.24 the blood of the covenant was poured out, 00:24:34.27\00:24:37.97 and at last, Jesus is at rest, 00:24:38.01\00:24:43.75 the long day of shame and torture has ended. 00:24:43.78\00:24:47.08 Finally, Jesus is freed from the persecuting hands 00:24:47.12\00:24:51.42 of the Roman government and from the recalcitrant, 00:24:51.45\00:24:55.32 rejection of the pharisaical Jews, 00:24:55.36\00:24:58.09 scribes, and Pharisees. 00:24:58.13\00:25:00.50 Finally, the long day of shame and torture has ended. 00:25:00.53\00:25:03.90 The trailing rays of the setting sun 00:25:03.93\00:25:05.73 bowed their head on the horizon as Jesus 00:25:05.77\00:25:08.07 is shut up in Joseph's tomb 00:25:08.10\00:25:10.67 where never a man laid before. 00:25:10.71\00:25:14.34 Finally, the crowd has dispersed. 00:25:14.38\00:25:16.61 The Son of God lays 00:25:16.64\00:25:17.98 in the tranquility of a perfect setting. 00:25:18.01\00:25:20.98 His work completed, His hands folded in peace. 00:25:21.02\00:25:25.82 And Jesus also even in the hours of His death 00:25:25.85\00:25:29.06 rested through the sacred hours of the Sabbath. 00:25:29.09\00:25:32.29 Come on, say amen. Amen. 00:25:32.33\00:25:34.53 Because He told a woman, 00:25:34.56\00:25:36.16 concerning the woman that followed Jesus, 00:25:36.20\00:25:37.90 the Bible says in Luke 23:56, 00:25:37.93\00:25:41.27 "Then they returned and prepared spices 00:25:41.30\00:25:43.30 and fragrant oils. 00:25:43.34\00:25:45.01 And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment." 00:25:45.04\00:25:49.81 Why did they do that? Because Jesus did it. 00:25:49.84\00:25:53.25 Why did Jesus do it? 00:25:53.28\00:25:54.62 Because He commanded for them to do it. 00:25:54.65\00:25:55.98 You see, it's so good to know 00:25:56.02\00:25:57.35 that when you live the Christian life, 00:25:57.39\00:25:58.72 you live a life in harmony with what Jesus did. 00:25:58.75\00:26:01.79 If you have any question about anything you do, 00:26:01.82\00:26:05.06 you'll never be lost if you do what Jesus did. 00:26:05.09\00:26:09.36 Do it because He did it. 00:26:09.40\00:26:12.73 Jesus did what He asked His followers to do. 00:26:12.77\00:26:16.81 "If you love me, come on, keep My commandments. 00:26:16.84\00:26:21.38 And My commandments are not burdensome, 00:26:21.41\00:26:22.91 the Sabbath is not just for the Jews." 00:26:22.94\00:26:24.28 It was not nailed to the cross. 00:26:24.31\00:26:25.68 It's not a long forgotten thing of the past, 00:26:25.71\00:26:28.48 but it is the cadence of the perfection 00:26:28.52\00:26:30.62 of the government of God, 00:26:30.65\00:26:32.29 a reminder that we can pause from our labors 00:26:32.32\00:26:34.99 and rest in the secure reflection 00:26:35.02\00:26:37.89 of what it means to spend time with our God, 00:26:37.93\00:26:40.16 not a minute, not an hour, but an entire day. 00:26:40.20\00:26:44.07 How much does our world need rest? 00:26:44.10\00:26:45.87 Come on. 00:26:45.90\00:26:47.24 How much does this fast-paced society, 00:26:47.27\00:26:50.97 even in the context of the Greenfields 00:26:51.01\00:26:53.54 of southern Illinois 00:26:53.58\00:26:54.98 and the mellowing hills of Thompsonville? 00:26:55.01\00:26:59.05 If you could call them that. Every one of us needs rest. 00:26:59.08\00:27:04.05 And the Lord knew that, so He gave us the Sabbath. 00:27:04.09\00:27:07.12 "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath." 00:27:07.16\00:27:09.69 Mark 2:27 and 28, 00:27:09.72\00:27:11.76 "Therefore the Son of Man is Lord also of the Sabbath." 00:27:11.79\00:27:15.56 Gave them a gift, 00:27:15.60\00:27:17.37 whenever the Sabbath comes around, 00:27:17.40\00:27:18.73 my body says, "John, even you could rest." 00:27:18.77\00:27:20.94 Amen, pastor? Even pastors could rest. 00:27:20.97\00:27:25.07 I heard a pastor one day say, 00:27:25.11\00:27:26.44 I forgot the television program, 00:27:26.47\00:27:28.21 I don't want to label anything insignificantly, 00:27:28.24\00:27:30.81 could have been ignorance, but somebody once said, 00:27:30.85\00:27:32.75 I heard a pastor say, 00:27:32.78\00:27:34.12 "Well, the Sabbath really can't be a day of rest 00:27:34.15\00:27:35.98 because we work so hard. 00:27:36.02\00:27:37.35 God doesn't want us to keep the Sabbath 00:27:37.39\00:27:38.72 because the Sabbath is the day that I work the hardest." 00:27:38.75\00:27:41.82 If you call preaching work, 00:27:41.86\00:27:44.89 then you don't know what work is. 00:27:44.93\00:27:47.06 It's a joy to preach the message about Jesus. 00:27:47.10\00:27:50.37 This ain't work. 00:27:50.40\00:27:52.23 To get paid for this is a privilege. 00:27:52.27\00:27:55.47 This ain't work, this is a joy. 00:27:55.50\00:27:59.84 The only thing I want to get paid for... 00:27:59.87\00:28:03.81 Well, I can't even ask for pay for that 00:28:03.85\00:28:05.18 'cause I can't even buy that. 00:28:05.21\00:28:09.72 Everything that I receive 00:28:09.75\00:28:11.75 from the Lord is a gift of His almighty grace. 00:28:11.79\00:28:17.23 So when I walk through the gates 00:28:17.26\00:28:18.63 into the New Jerusalem, 00:28:18.66\00:28:20.16 I'm not going to ask, "How much this costs?" 00:28:20.20\00:28:23.30 Because the lamb will be standing before us 00:28:23.33\00:28:26.74 to remind us 00:28:26.77\00:28:28.10 through the ceaseless ages of eternity, 00:28:28.14\00:28:31.37 the price of our redemption. 00:28:31.41\00:28:34.84 But I got to change the scene what a difference a day makes, 00:28:34.88\00:28:38.25 24 little hours, I got to borrow the phrase 00:28:38.28\00:28:40.78 from that old song 00:28:40.82\00:28:42.15 "What a Difference a Day Makes", 00:28:42.18\00:28:43.62 24 little hours, 00:28:43.65\00:28:45.85 you see, it's amazing 00:28:45.89\00:28:47.22 how the rising sun chases away darkness. 00:28:47.26\00:28:49.82 All of a sudden, 00:28:49.86\00:28:51.29 the Jewish leaders remember the declaration of divinity, 00:28:51.33\00:28:54.53 what did Jesus say in John 2:18 and 19? 00:28:54.56\00:28:58.03 When the Jews asked Jesus, 00:28:58.07\00:28:59.43 "What sign do You show us since You do these things?" 00:28:59.47\00:29:02.90 And Jesus answered and said to them, 00:29:02.94\00:29:05.14 "Destroy this temple and in three days, 00:29:05.17\00:29:08.74 I will raise it up." 00:29:08.78\00:29:10.45 Well, let me make the point, 00:29:10.48\00:29:11.81 the day to raise it up finally arrived. 00:29:11.85\00:29:14.42 The day to raise up that holy, 00:29:14.45\00:29:17.95 perfect temple finally arrives. 00:29:17.99\00:29:21.96 And they could not comprehend it. 00:29:21.99\00:29:24.69 They were interrogating the Life Giver, 00:29:24.73\00:29:27.93 and they could not comprehend 00:29:27.96\00:29:30.03 that the very one that came to save them 00:29:30.07\00:29:32.50 was the very one that they had rejected. 00:29:32.53\00:29:34.97 Well, I love these words, 00:29:35.00\00:29:36.34 "The night of the first day of the week 00:29:36.37\00:29:37.71 had worn slowly away. 00:29:37.74\00:29:39.27 The darkest hour, just before daybreak, had come. 00:29:39.31\00:29:42.98 Christ, still a prisoner in His narrow tomb. 00:29:43.01\00:29:46.95 The great stone was in its place." 00:29:46.98\00:29:49.28 I'm reading from the book Desire of Ages, 00:29:49.32\00:29:51.75 where the Library of Congress, hear me carefully, 00:29:51.79\00:29:54.86 the Library of Congress has categorized this book 00:29:54.89\00:29:59.16 as the best book ever written 00:29:59.19\00:30:01.60 about the life of Christ. 00:30:01.63\00:30:04.57 You didn't just say amen, did you? 00:30:04.60\00:30:06.57 Amen. Amen. 00:30:06.60\00:30:08.54 If the Library of Congress, 00:30:08.57\00:30:10.44 a secular institution can recognize the veracity 00:30:10.47\00:30:14.31 and the beauty of the inspiration, 00:30:14.34\00:30:16.18 why should we not? 00:30:16.21\00:30:17.55 Amen. 00:30:17.58\00:30:18.91 I echo the words again, 00:30:18.95\00:30:20.28 the great stone was in its place. 00:30:20.32\00:30:22.18 The Roman seal was unbroken. 00:30:22.22\00:30:23.79 The Roman guards were keeping their watch. 00:30:23.82\00:30:28.56 But they were unseen watchers. 00:30:28.59\00:30:31.29 Hosts of evil angels were gathered about the place. 00:30:31.33\00:30:34.83 Had it been possible, 00:30:34.86\00:30:37.23 the prince of darkness with his apostate army 00:30:37.27\00:30:40.94 would have kept forever sealed the tomb 00:30:40.97\00:30:44.94 that held the Son of God. 00:30:44.97\00:30:47.94 But I want to say this, even in death, 00:30:47.98\00:30:50.85 Jesus had secret service protection. 00:30:50.88\00:30:55.15 Continuing in that very famous book, 00:30:55.18\00:30:57.25 "A heavenly host surrounded the sepulcher." 00:30:57.29\00:31:00.32 Evil angels on one side, holy angels on the other, 00:31:00.36\00:31:05.06 waiting for the moment 00:31:05.09\00:31:06.80 to call the Prince of life back to life. 00:31:06.83\00:31:12.73 "A heavenly host surrounded the sepulcher. 00:31:12.77\00:31:14.90 Angels that excel in strength were guarding the tomb 00:31:14.94\00:31:18.17 and waiting to welcome the Prince of life." 00:31:18.21\00:31:22.28 Can you see it? 00:31:22.31\00:31:24.25 If the eyes can be peeled back to see what happens 00:31:24.28\00:31:27.75 in the spiritual realm, 00:31:27.78\00:31:29.12 you can see angels even now in this room 00:31:29.15\00:31:32.92 keeping watch over the people of God, 00:31:32.95\00:31:34.86 for the Word of God says, 00:31:34.89\00:31:36.32 "The angel of the Lord encampeth 00:31:36.36\00:31:38.93 around about those that fear Him 00:31:38.96\00:31:40.70 and deliver them." 00:31:40.73\00:31:42.06 I believe that. 00:31:42.10\00:31:43.57 I've been in situations where there's no explanation 00:31:43.60\00:31:45.70 why I'm still alive. 00:31:45.73\00:31:47.70 I've been on planes, Shelley, I've been on planes, Pastor CA, 00:31:47.74\00:31:51.21 where I know that had it not been 00:31:51.24\00:31:53.27 for the protecting hand of God. 00:31:53.31\00:31:54.98 It wasn't the skill of the pilot 00:31:55.01\00:31:56.88 but the grace of God. 00:31:56.91\00:31:59.68 I've been in cars and places, 00:31:59.71\00:32:01.78 my life should've been snatched away, 00:32:01.82\00:32:03.55 the streets of New York, and I know 00:32:03.59\00:32:05.12 that it was not my skillful choice 00:32:05.15\00:32:06.76 of the street I went down, 00:32:06.79\00:32:08.42 but it was the protecting hand of the holy angels. 00:32:08.46\00:32:11.86 I perpetrated sin in my life 00:32:11.89\00:32:14.40 that I know nobody could have delivered me 00:32:14.43\00:32:16.36 from but the holy angels of God. 00:32:16.40\00:32:20.54 So this morning, 00:32:20.57\00:32:21.90 I speak not of what may be speculated, 00:32:21.94\00:32:25.51 but I speak of my own experience. 00:32:25.54\00:32:27.58 That's why the Bible says they overcame 00:32:27.61\00:32:29.51 by the word of their testimony, can I testify today? 00:32:29.54\00:32:34.02 I serve a God who knows how to deliver, 00:32:34.05\00:32:36.69 but the God who knows 00:32:36.72\00:32:38.52 how to deliver was about to be delivered Himself. 00:32:38.55\00:32:41.89 The angels of God were waiting to give the declaring call, 00:32:41.92\00:32:47.06 "Son of Man, come forth," 00:32:47.10\00:32:48.86 but then all of a sudden, in the kingdom of heaven, 00:32:48.90\00:32:51.93 operation countdown is initiated, 00:32:51.97\00:32:54.94 like an enthusiastic football announcer, 00:32:54.97\00:32:57.44 heaven sounds the two-minute warning, 00:32:57.47\00:32:59.94 stick with me, in just two more minutes, 00:32:59.97\00:33:02.64 the King of glory will be declared victorious. 00:33:02.68\00:33:04.85 Stay with me, in just two more minutes, 00:33:04.88\00:33:07.15 the chains of death will be forever broken, 00:33:07.18\00:33:09.65 in just two more minutes, 00:33:09.68\00:33:11.82 the risen Savior will sing again, 00:33:11.85\00:33:13.72 and what do you say? 00:33:13.76\00:33:15.52 Heaven was in cadence with the plan of salvation. 00:33:15.56\00:33:21.33 In just two more minutes, 00:33:21.36\00:33:22.70 the hour of darkness will be replaced 00:33:22.73\00:33:24.07 with the hour of light, 00:33:24.10\00:33:25.43 bowed heads will be forever raised, 00:33:25.47\00:33:27.44 sadness will give way to exultation 00:33:27.47\00:33:30.24 and dormant graves will be ripped open never 00:33:30.27\00:33:33.98 to be inhabited again. 00:33:34.01\00:33:37.11 But I continue in my favorite book 00:33:37.15\00:33:39.61 outside of the Bible. 00:33:39.65\00:33:41.18 Clothed with the splendor of God, 00:33:41.22\00:33:44.55 this angel left the heavenly courts. 00:33:44.59\00:33:47.29 The bright beams of God's glory went before Him 00:33:47.32\00:33:50.09 and illuminated His pathway. 00:33:50.13\00:33:52.76 Let me tell you the way that God showed it to me, 00:33:52.79\00:33:55.10 like a Polish stealth bomber, 00:33:55.13\00:33:57.50 Gabriel positions his majestic frame 00:33:57.53\00:34:00.07 on the launching pad of the holy city. 00:34:00.10\00:34:04.11 He then leans forward and catapults himself 00:34:04.14\00:34:06.47 into heaven's rescue mission. 00:34:06.51\00:34:08.88 He tucks his wings close to his perfect frame 00:34:08.91\00:34:11.21 to minimize the turbulence, and all of a sudden, 00:34:11.25\00:34:13.72 the planets move out of the way, 00:34:13.75\00:34:15.52 for God is sending the Angel Gabriel 00:34:15.55\00:34:19.02 to remove the stone 00:34:19.05\00:34:20.39 that our risen Savior may come forth. 00:34:20.42\00:34:22.62 Amen. 00:34:22.66\00:34:25.23 The Bible says in Matthew 28, look with it, 00:34:25.26\00:34:27.26 look there with me, 00:34:27.30\00:34:28.63 Matthew 28:2-4, you guys are team for me. 00:34:28.66\00:34:34.14 Look at Matthew 28:2-4, look at this, 00:34:34.17\00:34:37.04 how the Bible describes 00:34:37.07\00:34:38.41 the beauty of this resurrection. 00:34:38.44\00:34:40.78 The Bible says, "And behold, there was a," what? 00:34:40.81\00:34:45.28 "Great earthquake." 00:34:45.31\00:34:46.65 I believe that was 00:34:46.68\00:34:48.18 the turbulence of the angel of God 00:34:48.22\00:34:51.49 breaking the sound barrier. 00:34:51.52\00:34:55.39 I've heard fighter jets pass over 00:34:55.42\00:34:57.29 the airport in St. Louis, 00:34:57.33\00:34:59.26 and you see them, then you hear them. 00:34:59.29\00:35:01.80 I believe that was the angel leaving 00:35:01.83\00:35:03.57 in his wake, a signature that "I'm on my way", 00:35:03.60\00:35:06.90 and I could imagine in the tomb, 00:35:06.94\00:35:08.47 the Lord said, "I hear him coming." 00:35:08.50\00:35:13.78 I apologize for my imagination, 00:35:13.81\00:35:16.95 but I believe that even in His death, 00:35:16.98\00:35:20.42 He was death, He died in humanity, 00:35:20.45\00:35:24.29 but you can't kill divinity. 00:35:24.32\00:35:29.09 "There was a great earthquake for an angel of Lord descended 00:35:29.12\00:35:31.96 from heaven and came and rolled back the stone 00:35:31.99\00:35:34.46 from the door and sat on it." 00:35:34.50\00:35:39.83 I don't know how you could miss that? 00:35:39.87\00:35:43.44 How you could get so comfortable 00:35:43.47\00:35:44.84 to fall asleep on the angel sat on it. 00:35:44.87\00:35:49.01 The angel sat on it. 00:35:49.04\00:35:53.42 The Angel Gabriel rolled away the stone as it was a pebble, 00:35:53.45\00:35:58.52 and he sat on it. 00:35:58.55\00:36:01.72 He said, "I need a place to sit. 00:36:01.76\00:36:04.43 Let me just sit on the stone 00:36:04.46\00:36:07.36 that held my Lord on the inside." 00:36:07.40\00:36:09.23 He sat on it. 00:36:09.26\00:36:10.97 That's a whole sermon right there, he sat on it. 00:36:11.00\00:36:14.14 Amen? 00:36:14.17\00:36:15.50 You see, it took all the Roman guards 00:36:15.54\00:36:17.37 with all the grub they had 00:36:17.41\00:36:19.17 for the morning to put that in place, 00:36:19.21\00:36:21.14 and Gabriel said, "Excuse me," 00:36:21.18\00:36:23.71 and he sat on it. 00:36:23.75\00:36:25.08 The Bible describes, 00:36:28.25\00:36:29.58 "His countenance was like lightning, 00:36:29.62\00:36:31.89 and his clothing as white as snow. 00:36:31.92\00:36:33.89 And the guards shook for fear of him 00:36:33.92\00:36:36.93 and became like dead men." 00:36:36.96\00:36:42.10 And I go back to my favorite book, 00:36:42.13\00:36:46.63 "As He comes forth in majestic glory, 00:36:46.67\00:36:50.41 the angels bow low in adoration 00:36:50.44\00:36:52.67 before the Redeemer and welcome Him 00:36:52.71\00:36:54.71 with songs of praise." 00:36:54.74\00:36:56.24 But what about the Roman soldiers? 00:36:56.28\00:36:58.01 "Brave soldiers that never had been afraid 00:36:58.05\00:37:00.58 of human power are now as captives taken 00:37:00.62\00:37:03.22 without sword or spear. 00:37:03.25\00:37:05.59 The face they look upon 00:37:05.62\00:37:06.96 is not the face of a mortal warrior. 00:37:06.99\00:37:09.06 It is the face of the mightiest of the Lord's host. 00:37:09.09\00:37:13.03 This messenger is he who fills 00:37:13.06\00:37:15.60 the position from which Satan fell." 00:37:15.63\00:37:18.00 And I give the name, Gabriel. 00:37:18.03\00:37:20.77 "It is he who on the hills of Bethlehem 00:37:20.80\00:37:23.24 proclaimed Christ's birth," to the lowly shepherds. 00:37:23.27\00:37:26.27 It is he who showed up at Mary's apartment and said... 00:37:26.31\00:37:28.91 "Blessed, hail, 00:37:31.98\00:37:35.65 you're about to have a baby." 00:37:35.68\00:37:37.72 "The earth trembles at his approach, 00:37:37.75\00:37:40.16 the hosts of darkness flee, and as he rolls away the stone, 00:37:40.19\00:37:44.46 heaven seems to come down to the earth. 00:37:44.49\00:37:47.96 The soldiers see him removing the stone 00:37:48.00\00:37:51.13 as he would a pebble and hears him say, 00:37:51.17\00:37:56.37 "Son of God, come forth, Thy Father called Thee. 00:37:56.40\00:38:01.71 And Jesus comes forward with the words, 00:38:01.74\00:38:04.08 "I am the resurrection and the life. 00:38:04.11\00:38:09.62 And I can proclaim it today, 00:38:09.65\00:38:12.45 I am the resurrection and the life." 00:38:12.49\00:38:16.79 The Desire of Ages said, "At the death of Jesus, 00:38:16.83\00:38:18.99 the soldiers had beheld the earth wrapped 00:38:19.03\00:38:21.10 in darkness at midday, but at the resurrection, 00:38:21.13\00:38:24.03 they saw the brightness of the angel illuminating 00:38:24.07\00:38:26.97 the night and heard 00:38:27.00\00:38:28.70 the inhabitants of heaven singing 00:38:28.74\00:38:30.21 with joy and triumph." 00:38:30.24\00:38:33.74 What did Jesus say? 00:38:33.78\00:38:35.34 "I am he who lives and was dead and behold, 00:38:35.38\00:38:37.51 I am alive forevermore." 00:38:37.55\00:38:39.58 And they heard a jingling when Jesus came out, 00:38:39.61\00:38:42.12 and then He said, 00:38:42.15\00:38:43.49 "I've got the keys of hell and the grave." 00:38:43.52\00:38:47.72 And they said, "He went in there empty handed. 00:38:47.76\00:38:49.46 What is that is in His hand?" 00:38:49.49\00:38:51.09 He's got the key that everyone 00:38:51.13\00:38:52.96 who is laying in the graves in Jesus 00:38:52.99\00:38:54.86 will come out one day. 00:38:54.90\00:38:56.87 The keys of death and the grave. 00:38:56.90\00:39:00.50 To God be the glory. 00:39:00.54\00:39:04.84 Suddenly, the scene changes, 00:39:04.87\00:39:07.58 the Roman guards don't remember Jesus, 00:39:07.61\00:39:10.45 they now behold when Jesus showed up, 00:39:10.48\00:39:12.85 circumstances suddenly changed. 00:39:12.88\00:39:15.28 At the resurrection of Jesus, everything changes. 00:39:15.32\00:39:18.92 You see the child you've been agonizing over, 00:39:18.95\00:39:21.02 suddenly accepts Jesus, the message 00:39:21.06\00:39:23.56 you've been studying suddenly makes sense, 00:39:23.59\00:39:26.03 the truth that you question suddenly 00:39:26.06\00:39:28.30 becomes clear, 00:39:28.33\00:39:29.66 the prayer that you've been praying 00:39:29.70\00:39:31.03 suddenly gets answered. 00:39:31.07\00:39:32.40 When Jesus shows up, things change suddenly. 00:39:32.43\00:39:35.64 Can I get an amen? 00:39:35.67\00:39:37.31 The freedom you've been searching 00:39:37.34\00:39:38.67 for suddenly comes your way, 00:39:38.71\00:39:40.34 the fear that shackle you suddenly leaves your mind, 00:39:40.38\00:39:43.14 the burden that you've been carrying suddenly 00:39:43.18\00:39:46.11 is lifted from you, 00:39:46.15\00:39:47.48 the storms that have been battering 00:39:47.52\00:39:49.48 you suddenly pass over, 00:39:49.52\00:39:51.59 and the Jesus that you thought you knew, 00:39:51.62\00:39:54.36 suddenly becomes real. 00:39:54.39\00:39:56.62 That's what happened when Jesus shows up 00:39:56.66\00:39:58.59 and the reason for this sudden change is this, 00:39:58.63\00:40:01.10 Jesus is not the "I was", He' is the great "I am". 00:40:01.13\00:40:04.50 Amen. 00:40:04.53\00:40:06.47 "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, 00:40:06.50\00:40:11.57 the first and the last, 00:40:11.61\00:40:13.68 who is and who was and who is to come, 00:40:13.71\00:40:17.35 the Almighty." 00:40:17.38\00:40:18.85 Amen. 00:40:18.88\00:40:20.42 We proclaim this message not with timidity 00:40:20.45\00:40:24.22 but with assurance, with blessed assurance. 00:40:24.25\00:40:27.36 And I prayed this morning that the death of Jesus Christ, 00:40:27.39\00:40:30.19 the knowledge of His resurrection 00:40:30.23\00:40:31.86 does not become a "ho-hum, 00:40:31.89\00:40:34.30 let me yawn my way through it" message, 00:40:34.33\00:40:36.93 but a "thank You, Jesus," 00:40:36.97\00:40:38.57 that even though the present seems 00:40:38.60\00:40:41.74 to be a moment of delay, the promises of God are sure, 00:40:41.77\00:40:46.64 as sure as the tomb is empty, Jesus is coming again. 00:40:46.68\00:40:52.35 We were in Jerusalem there, 00:40:52.38\00:40:53.72 and we went to one of the garden tombs. 00:40:53.75\00:40:55.82 They say that there are five in the Middle East. 00:40:55.85\00:40:58.72 They say that there are five, Matthew, five. 00:40:58.75\00:41:01.72 And the guy that was giving us the tour, he said, 00:41:01.76\00:41:03.66 "Now there are five places 00:41:03.69\00:41:05.49 that have been presently designated 00:41:05.53\00:41:07.53 as the place where Jesus rose from." 00:41:07.56\00:41:09.53 He said, "But I think the truth about this is He's risen 00:41:09.56\00:41:12.23 from the sixth place." 00:41:12.27\00:41:14.97 'Cause we really don't know where He rose from. 00:41:15.00\00:41:17.41 He says, "So here's the point, 00:41:17.44\00:41:18.77 we're not concerned about where He rose from, 00:41:18.81\00:41:20.78 we're glad that He rose." 00:41:20.81\00:41:25.08 And we went in the tomb, and they said, 00:41:25.11\00:41:26.65 "That's where his body was laid." 00:41:26.68\00:41:28.02 But then again, about a mile and half away, 00:41:28.05\00:41:30.15 somebody said the same thing there, 00:41:30.19\00:41:31.85 and about two miles away, they said the something there. 00:41:31.89\00:41:33.86 The fact of the matter is they couldn't find 00:41:33.89\00:41:35.56 any one of these tombs with the body of Jesus in it. 00:41:35.59\00:41:40.13 And here we are today in 2018 AD, 00:41:40.16\00:41:42.56 Anno Domini, in the year of our Lord, 00:41:42.60\00:41:44.40 which means atheist, agnostic, 00:41:44.43\00:41:46.60 believer or non-believer must operate 00:41:46.63\00:41:49.94 under the auspices that we live in the reality 00:41:49.97\00:41:53.98 that the entire world is labeled 00:41:54.01\00:41:56.68 in the year of our Lord. 00:41:56.71\00:42:01.15 Not a dead Lord, not a Lord that is hewn out of stone 00:42:01.18\00:42:05.32 or molded out of melted gold and silver, 00:42:05.35\00:42:08.32 but a Lord that liveth and reigneth and behold, 00:42:08.36\00:42:10.73 He is alive forevermore. 00:42:10.76\00:42:15.43 "Christ came forth from the tomb glorified. 00:42:15.46\00:42:18.67 And the Roman guards beheld Him. 00:42:18.70\00:42:20.10 Their eyes were riveted upon His face, 00:42:20.14\00:42:22.80 whom they had so recently mocked 00:42:22.84\00:42:24.27 and derided. 00:42:24.31\00:42:25.64 Can you imagine how they felt? 00:42:25.67\00:42:29.61 In this glorified being, they beheld the prisoner 00:42:29.64\00:42:32.48 whom they had seen in the judgment hall, 00:42:32.51\00:42:34.15 the one for whom 00:42:34.18\00:42:35.52 they had plaited a crown of thorns. 00:42:35.55\00:42:37.82 This was the One who had stood unresisting 00:42:37.85\00:42:41.22 before Pilate and Herod, 00:42:41.26\00:42:43.36 His form lacerated by the cruel scourge. 00:42:43.39\00:42:46.33 This was He who had been nailed to the cross, 00:42:46.36\00:42:50.03 at whom the priests and rulers, full of self-satisfaction, 00:42:50.07\00:42:53.23 had wagged their heads, saying, 00:42:53.27\00:42:55.20 'He saved others, Himself, He cannot save.' 00:42:55.24\00:42:58.77 This was He who had been laid in Joseph's new tomb. 00:42:58.81\00:43:02.48 The decree of heaven had loosed the captive.' 00:43:02.51\00:43:05.25 And I love this, 00:43:05.28\00:43:06.61 'Mountains piled upon mountains over the sepulcher 00:43:06.65\00:43:10.75 could not have prevented Him from coming forth." 00:43:10.79\00:43:15.72 Get another mountain, that's not big enough. 00:43:15.76\00:43:17.43 Get Mount Vesuvius, that ain't going to work, 00:43:17.46\00:43:19.39 get Mount Everest, that ain't going to work, 00:43:19.43\00:43:21.16 get Mount Kilimanjaro, 00:43:21.20\00:43:22.80 even the Mariana's Trench turned upside down, 00:43:22.83\00:43:26.50 put on the tomb of Jesus, could not keep Him in. 00:43:26.53\00:43:31.41 Excuse me if I'm a little enthusiastic today. 00:43:31.44\00:43:36.18 The angels message revives 00:43:36.21\00:43:38.71 the hope in the followers of Jesus, 00:43:38.75\00:43:40.98 Matthew 28:5 and 6, 00:43:41.02\00:43:43.25 "The angel answered and said to the women," 00:43:43.28\00:43:45.59 the faithful woman 00:43:45.62\00:43:47.12 who in His hour of greatest trial 00:43:47.16\00:43:50.26 didn't run like the men did, amen, ladies? 00:43:50.29\00:43:55.00 These women were not hiding for fear of their lives. 00:43:55.03\00:43:58.50 The women were hanging around, they stayed in the garden tomb. 00:43:58.53\00:44:02.40 They sat there in patient expectation 00:44:02.44\00:44:05.21 that the promise He made was sure, 00:44:05.24\00:44:07.91 and I could imagine if they had an iWatch 00:44:07.94\00:44:09.64 or an android watch, they might have said, 00:44:09.68\00:44:11.65 "The world's got 15 more seconds. 00:44:11.68\00:44:16.08 He's coming out." 00:44:16.12\00:44:17.45 He didn't come out after 72 hours, 00:44:17.49\00:44:20.56 He didn't come out the fourth day, 00:44:20.59\00:44:22.49 He come out within the third day. 00:44:22.52\00:44:25.36 There's some people that argue over, 00:44:25.39\00:44:26.86 "Was it 72 days? 00:44:26.90\00:44:28.43 Was it Wednesday? Was it Thursday? 00:44:28.46\00:44:30.67 Did He go in on Friday and come out Saturday? 00:44:30.70\00:44:32.87 How is it possible to have 72 hours 00:44:32.90\00:44:35.67 from Friday to Sunday?" 00:44:35.70\00:44:37.04 You could argue with the chronology, 00:44:37.07\00:44:38.71 I'm glad of the Christology. 00:44:38.74\00:44:41.41 He's not there. 00:44:41.44\00:44:43.14 You want to figure out 00:44:43.18\00:44:44.51 when He came out, one disciple said, 00:44:44.55\00:44:46.11 "While it was yet dark." 00:44:46.15\00:44:47.48 The other one said, "At the breaking of the day." 00:44:47.52\00:44:49.05 But all of them said, "He ain't there." 00:44:49.08\00:44:54.19 Amen. 00:44:54.22\00:44:55.56 And the Christian church today says to the world, 00:44:55.59\00:44:58.19 "He ain't there." 00:44:58.23\00:45:00.53 Where is your Lord? "He ain't there." 00:45:00.56\00:45:03.87 There ain't no place on earth that you can point to the tomb, 00:45:03.90\00:45:06.57 you can find Muhammad's tomb, you can find Buddha's tomb, 00:45:06.60\00:45:09.84 you can find the great tombs of all 00:45:09.87\00:45:11.47 the leaders of the past, 00:45:11.51\00:45:12.84 but there's no tomb with the name Jesus on it. 00:45:12.87\00:45:17.95 You know why? 00:45:17.98\00:45:20.02 The angel said to the women, 00:45:20.05\00:45:21.72 "Do not be afraid, for I know who you seek, 00:45:21.75\00:45:24.12 Jesus whom was crucified. 00:45:24.15\00:45:25.49 He is not here, for He is risen, as He said. 00:45:25.52\00:45:29.42 'Come, see the place where the Lord laid.'" 00:45:29.46\00:45:32.93 You see He's not there, why? 00:45:32.96\00:45:34.40 Because the Rose of Sharon would bloom again, 00:45:34.43\00:45:37.07 the bright and morning star would rise again, 00:45:37.10\00:45:39.50 the light of the world would shine again, 00:45:39.53\00:45:41.94 the oil of gladness would flow again, 00:45:41.97\00:45:44.47 the lion of the tribe of Judah will roar again. 00:45:44.51\00:45:49.84 The author of salvation would become 00:45:49.88\00:45:51.58 the finisher of our faith, 00:45:51.61\00:45:53.58 the Mighty God would become the everlasting Father, 00:45:53.62\00:45:56.48 and the Alpha would become the Omega. 00:45:56.52\00:45:59.62 The Apostle Paul left us this record 00:45:59.65\00:46:02.12 of the evidence of His divinity, 00:46:02.16\00:46:04.96 Lamb of God would become the eternal high priest. 00:46:04.99\00:46:07.46 And today, you may ask the question, then where is He? 00:46:07.50\00:46:11.80 Listen to the words of the Apostle Paul 00:46:11.83\00:46:13.97 in Hebrews 7:25, 00:46:14.00\00:46:16.47 when your day is going dark, and your hope is growing dim, 00:46:16.50\00:46:19.81 remember these words, 00:46:19.84\00:46:21.18 therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost, 00:46:21.21\00:46:24.61 to the what church? 00:46:24.65\00:46:26.28 To the uttermost. 00:46:26.31\00:46:27.65 We used to say in New York, Pastor CA, 00:46:27.68\00:46:29.02 from the gutter-most to the uttermost. 00:46:29.05\00:46:31.19 "He is able to save to the uttermost 00:46:31.22\00:46:33.86 those who come to God through Him seeing 00:46:33.89\00:46:37.69 that He always lives," 00:46:37.73\00:46:41.16 hallelujah, 00:46:41.20\00:46:43.30 "to make intercession for them." 00:46:43.33\00:46:45.67 Jesus was arrested so that we could be set free. 00:46:45.70\00:46:49.17 On that note alone, you ought to say, hallelujah. 00:46:49.20\00:46:51.44 He was arrested that we could be set free. 00:46:51.47\00:46:53.21 He was declared guilty 00:46:53.24\00:46:54.58 so that we could be declared innocent. 00:46:54.61\00:46:56.08 He was condemned so that we could be pardoned. 00:46:56.11\00:46:58.11 He walked our road so that one day, 00:46:58.15\00:46:59.71 we can walk His road. 00:46:59.75\00:47:01.55 He wore our thorns so that one day, 00:47:01.58\00:47:03.28 we could wear His crown. 00:47:03.32\00:47:04.65 He suffered the shame of death that one day, 00:47:04.69\00:47:06.55 we could share the glory of life. 00:47:06.59\00:47:08.39 Jesus rose to take His rightful place 00:47:08.42\00:47:11.29 as our high priest in the kingdom 00:47:11.33\00:47:13.60 so that one day 00:47:13.63\00:47:15.33 we will be able to sit with Him 00:47:15.36\00:47:18.80 in a place that we have no right to. 00:47:18.83\00:47:21.30 Amen. 00:47:21.34\00:47:24.37 I don't have any right to sit with Jesus, 00:47:24.41\00:47:27.44 but because of His blood and His salvation, 00:47:27.48\00:47:29.88 because of His forgiveness... 00:47:29.91\00:47:31.31 Somebody was asked the question, 00:47:31.35\00:47:32.68 "What are the steps of salvation?" 00:47:32.71\00:47:34.45 If you confess your sins, 00:47:34.48\00:47:35.82 He's faithful and just to forgive you of your sins 00:47:35.85\00:47:38.32 and cleanse you from all unrighteousness. 00:47:38.35\00:47:41.16 What are the steps of salvation? 00:47:41.19\00:47:42.86 Repent and be baptized, 00:47:42.89\00:47:44.93 that your sins may be blotted out. 00:47:44.96\00:47:46.70 What are the steps of salvation? 00:47:46.73\00:47:48.33 Repent and be converted. 00:47:48.36\00:47:50.27 Amen. That's right. 00:47:50.30\00:47:53.07 And when you walk with the Lord in the light of His Word, 00:47:53.10\00:47:57.91 what a glory He sheds on His way, 00:47:57.94\00:48:00.71 what He says, we will do, where He sends, 00:48:00.74\00:48:03.85 we will go, never fear, 00:48:03.88\00:48:06.15 only trust and obey. 00:48:06.18\00:48:10.45 And I close with the words of Dr. Luke, Xenia come. 00:48:10.49\00:48:14.56 I close with the words of Dr. Luke, 00:48:14.59\00:48:18.09 "For the rightful place 00:48:18.13\00:48:19.46 that Jesus has now taken," 00:48:19.49\00:48:21.90 in Luke 1:32-33, 00:48:21.93\00:48:25.80 "He will be great 00:48:25.83\00:48:28.07 and will be called the Son of the Highest, 00:48:28.10\00:48:31.84 and the Lord God will give Him 00:48:31.87\00:48:34.78 the throne of His father David." 00:48:34.81\00:48:37.68 Stop for a moment, his father David. 00:48:37.71\00:48:41.25 This sinful man, this recalcitrant adulterer, 00:48:41.28\00:48:46.32 this man who turned his back on the obedience of God, 00:48:46.35\00:48:49.32 the love of God, the love of Christ, 00:48:49.36\00:48:52.29 the love for the sinner, 00:48:52.33\00:48:53.66 He expunges the past 00:48:53.70\00:48:56.10 and sets us up as His lineage. 00:48:56.13\00:49:01.40 By grace, we can walk through the door, 00:49:01.44\00:49:03.41 and He can call us His children, 00:49:03.44\00:49:06.27 and we can call Him our Father. 00:49:06.31\00:49:10.68 The throne of His father, David, 00:49:10.71\00:49:13.21 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, 00:49:13.25\00:49:16.75 and of his kingdom, 00:49:16.79\00:49:20.16 there will be no end. 00:49:20.19\00:49:22.32 Amen. 00:49:22.36\00:49:25.59 Because he lives, 00:49:25.63\00:49:28.06 I can face tomorrow because he lives, 00:49:28.10\00:49:34.00 all fear is gone, 00:49:34.04\00:49:38.47 because he holds my future, 00:49:38.51\00:49:41.34 life is worth living because He lives. 00:49:41.38\00:49:45.68 Because He lives, 00:49:45.71\00:49:48.82 my mother is waiting for the day 00:49:48.85\00:49:50.32 when she hears the voice, "Come forth from your grave," 00:49:50.35\00:49:55.59 because He lives. 00:49:55.62\00:49:58.06 You can fall to your knees and ask for forgiveness, 00:49:58.09\00:50:00.36 and He'll hear from His kingdom, 00:50:00.40\00:50:02.40 He'll lean His ear to your voice 00:50:02.43\00:50:03.90 and extend you the pardoning grace 00:50:03.93\00:50:06.57 that will immediately bring you 00:50:06.60\00:50:08.64 into the adoption of a son or daughter of the mosaic God 00:50:08.67\00:50:12.24 because He lives. 00:50:12.27\00:50:14.64 There is no darkness 00:50:14.68\00:50:16.01 that he cannot remove from your life, 00:50:16.04\00:50:19.41 because He lives, 00:50:19.45\00:50:22.82 He will come again 00:50:22.85\00:50:25.22 to take us to our home 00:50:25.25\00:50:28.79 that is being prepared 00:50:28.82\00:50:31.16 even as we sit. 00:50:31.19\00:50:34.96 Why do you seek the living among the dead? 00:50:35.00\00:50:38.20 He's not here, for He is risen. 00:50:38.23\00:50:41.90 I want to invite you to stand with me to sing the song 00:50:41.94\00:50:43.84 Because He Lives. 00:50:43.87\00:50:45.21 He's not here, but He is risen, 00:50:45.24\00:50:49.24 He's not here, but He is risen. 00:50:49.28\00:50:52.61 We serve a risen Savior, and because He lives, 00:50:52.65\00:50:57.35 because He lives, we can face tomorrow. 00:50:57.39\00:51:00.49 God sent His Son 00:51:08.00\00:51:13.34 They called Him Jesus 00:51:13.37\00:51:18.61 He came to love 00:51:18.64\00:51:23.98 Heal, and forgive 00:51:24.01\00:51:29.48 He lived and died 00:51:29.52\00:51:34.69 To buy my pardon 00:51:34.72\00:51:40.43 An empty grave is there to prove 00:51:40.46\00:51:46.53 My Savior lives Together. 00:51:46.57\00:51:52.07 Because He lives 00:51:52.11\00:51:57.61 I... 00:51:57.65\00:51:58.98 Can face tomorrow 00:51:59.01\00:52:01.48 Because He lives 00:52:01.52\00:52:03.05 Because 00:52:03.08\00:52:04.65 He lives 00:52:04.69\00:52:08.39 All fear is gone 00:52:08.42\00:52:13.50 Because I know 00:52:13.53\00:52:19.33 He holds the future 00:52:19.37\00:52:24.61 And life is worth the living just 00:52:24.64\00:52:30.88 because He lives 00:52:30.91\00:52:36.69 How sweet to hold 00:52:36.72\00:52:41.96 A newborn baby 00:52:41.99\00:52:48.06 And feel the pride 00:52:48.10\00:52:53.54 And joy He gives 00:52:53.57\00:52:58.97 But greater still 00:52:59.01\00:53:04.35 The calm assurance 00:53:04.38\00:53:09.85 This child can face uncertain days 00:53:09.88\00:53:16.16 because He lives Raise that chorus. 00:53:16.19\00:53:21.33 Because 00:53:21.36\00:53:23.30 He lives 00:53:23.33\00:53:26.80 I can face tomorrow 00:53:26.84\00:53:32.07 Because He lives 00:53:32.11\00:53:37.45 All fear is gone 00:53:37.48\00:53:42.82 Because I know 00:53:42.85\00:53:48.89 He holds the future 00:53:48.92\00:53:54.23 And life is worth the living just 00:53:54.26\00:54:00.77 because He lives 00:54:00.80\00:54:06.81 Our Father in heaven... 00:54:06.84\00:54:08.18 Our Father in heaven, 00:54:10.88\00:54:13.78 Lord, this old, old story... 00:54:13.82\00:54:16.28 continues to be the hope 00:54:19.55\00:54:23.12 of the new day that is coming, 00:54:23.16\00:54:27.90 often repeated to death, 00:54:27.93\00:54:30.53 the trial, the scourging, 00:54:30.57\00:54:34.70 the accusations, 00:54:34.74\00:54:37.14 the betrayal of Jesus. 00:54:37.17\00:54:39.17 This often repeated story sometimes brings to our mind... 00:54:39.21\00:54:43.11 I've heard that story before, 00:54:46.38\00:54:50.65 but I just say, Lord Jesus, 00:54:50.69\00:54:52.02 I pray that the story of our redemption 00:54:52.05\00:54:53.89 will never be an old story. 00:54:53.92\00:54:57.33 It will never be a byproduct of religious jargon, 00:54:57.36\00:55:01.20 will never be a story that collects dust, 00:55:01.23\00:55:05.43 but will forever remain new in our souls, in our hearts, 00:55:05.47\00:55:09.54 in our minds, in our spirit, 00:55:09.57\00:55:12.11 will forever be the place where we clutch 00:55:12.14\00:55:15.94 onto the anchor of our salvation, 00:55:15.98\00:55:18.68 His name is Jesus. 00:55:18.71\00:55:21.88 We thank You, Lord, that there is no place 00:55:21.92\00:55:26.25 where your DNA can be found, 00:55:26.29\00:55:27.79 there is not place where empty cloaks still mark 00:55:27.82\00:55:31.53 the spot that you once laid, so we glory not in the cross, 00:55:31.56\00:55:37.10 we glory in the empty tomb, 00:55:37.13\00:55:40.27 we glory in the promise that You have said, 00:55:40.30\00:55:43.37 You will come again to receive us unto Yourself. 00:55:43.41\00:55:48.41 And so, Lord Jesus, we pray that today, 00:55:48.44\00:55:51.31 the hope has been revived in our hearts, 00:55:51.35\00:55:53.75 renewed in our spirit, 00:55:53.78\00:55:57.82 that we have once reclaimed again, 00:55:57.85\00:56:00.59 the very anchor of our name, Adventists, 00:56:00.62\00:56:03.96 looking forward to the Second Coming of Jesus. 00:56:03.99\00:56:08.96 So when we leave this place, 00:56:09.00\00:56:10.33 Father, maybe we proclaim it by the life we live, 00:56:10.37\00:56:13.00 by the words we convey, 00:56:13.03\00:56:15.07 by the embrace we communicate, 00:56:15.10\00:56:17.77 may we live this story over and over 00:56:17.81\00:56:22.84 until our faith is made sight. 00:56:22.88\00:56:28.12 And so, Lord Jesus, we hold on to that promise You've made. 00:56:28.15\00:56:31.75 And one day, we believe 00:56:31.79\00:56:34.09 that the heavens will depart as a scroll, 00:56:34.12\00:56:36.89 and the voice of the Life Giver 00:56:36.93\00:56:38.29 will call us to our eternal home. 00:56:38.33\00:56:42.40 We thank You, we praise You, 00:56:42.43\00:56:45.00 and we give You glory in Your holy 00:56:45.03\00:56:48.94 and precious name 00:56:48.97\00:56:51.41 and all of God's people said amen. 00:56:51.44\00:56:54.81