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We're continuing our series in 
First Corinthians and are in a 

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part of the book where Paul 
deals with the very central core

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issue of the Christian faith, 
namely the resurrection of Jesus

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Christ. 
Everything in the Christian 

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faith hinges on this one 
reality, this one truth. 

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If Jesus did not rise, as we 
heard last Sunday, then the 

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whole story of the Gospel 
doesn't mean anything. 

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It's empty, it's hollow. 
Then it's just an empty story. 

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But if Jesus did rise, that 
literally changes everything. 

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The resurrection does make him 
Lord and King, as he claimed to 

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be. 
The New Testament writers, when 

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they wrote the Gospels and the 
epistles, they did not question 

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did Jesus rise from the dead? 
That was not a question to them.

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That was fact. 
They knew, they had seen, they 

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had heard, they had touched 
that, experienced the presence 

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of the risen Christ. 
It's one thing to doubt an idea,

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to doubt a belief, or to doubt a
story. 

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But you cannot deny reality. 
You cannot deny facts. 

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You cannot deny something that 
happens to you. 

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Nobody else may believe you, but
this is what happened to you. 

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The disciples had been told 
Jesus would rise. 

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They didn't understand it. 
They didn't grasp it. 

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Their minds were not there and 
of course, was hidden from them,

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but they didn't understand. 
And when Jesus was still with 

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them, before he was crucified, 
they all had talked about. 

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They had turned up, yeah, this 
is a Kingdom coming, and he's 

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going to be the Lord. 
He's going to be king. 

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And but they misunderstood the 
content of it. 

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They had they had faith in 
Jesus. 

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He's the Messiah. 
Jesus knew he was the Messiah, 

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but their understanding was 
vastly different. 

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They had figured this out. 
Jesus would be king. 

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He'd been Messiah, this death 
thing that was not part of the 

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equation at all. 
And then Jesus would rule and 

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they would be part of his 
leading leaders in this Kingdom.

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The Kingdom of David would be 
restored as they had seen it in 

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the past, as they had heard 
about in the past. 

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But then very suddenly, very 
unexpectedly, everything had 

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gone very, very wrong. 
Jesus had gotten himself 

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arrested hours after they had 
this wonderful supper, the 

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Passover feast. 
Hours after that, just hours. 

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Not only had gotten arrested, he
was brought into the court and 

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tried unjustly. 
He was tortured, was beaten and 

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crucified and dead and put in a 
tomb. 

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That was a fact. 
They believed all that. 

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He was in the tomb. 
It was over. 

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It's done. 
Gone. 

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The religious leaders, they too 
knew it's over. 

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Finished. 
This Nazarene, this Jewish 

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Carpenter never going to cause 
us problems again. 

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He's done. 
He's finished. 

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Pilot knew he was finished. 
Pharisees knew he was finished. 

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The decision He was done. 
It's safe to say this there has 

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never been a greater contrast in
realities than these two, the 

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death of Jesus Christ and the 
resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

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There's never been a wider gap, 
a bigger contrast. 

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The hope, the promise, the 
expectation, the anticipation of

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Jesus the Messiah to in less 
than 24 hours, a devastating, 

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complete and utter, total sense 
of loss, despair and fear for 

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the disciples. 
That was it. 

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That was the end, The real, 
literal end. 

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With Jesus now in the tomb. 
It's over. 

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He's dead, He's gone. 
He's in the grave, he's in the 

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Messiah. 
But then at Easter, the story 

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changes. 
And we've heard the story many 

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times. 
He didn't stay in the grave. 

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He rose from the dead, much to 
the surprise, surprise and shock

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of everybody except himself. 
He knew this. 

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Then right after he was raised, 
the disciples struggled. 

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Who could blame them? 
We would too. 

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But as soon, but very soon, 
they, they, they, they. 

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Yeah, he's real. 
He's real. 

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He's here. 
This whole thing came back. 

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He met with them, he talked with
them, ate with them, and they 

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gained confidence in him. 
Oh yeah, he's alive and he's 

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back and don't understand this, 
but it's true. 

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It's real. 
Then just before Jesus left went

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to heaven, he gathered his 
disciples one last time and had 

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this question they asked him 
about but what was going on in 

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Acts verse one to six won't turn
to this he says they say so when

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they had come together they 
asked him, Lord, will you at 

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this time restore the Kingdom of
Israel. 

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But the fascinating thing is 
their mindsets were still pre 

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resurrection thinking they 
hadn't shifted yet that would 

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come at Pentecost. 
He had talked about a Kingdom. 

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They had no idea how far apart 
their thinking was from what 

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Jesus thinking was what Jesus 
knew was going to happen. 

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Yes, he died. 
He was in a tomb. 

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He's risen, but the purpose why?
What for? 

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Not to restore an earthly 
political Kingdom, as they were 

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anticipating. 
This was not God's purpose for 

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sending Jesus. 
He had a far greater, far 

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deeper, more powerful purpose 
than that. 

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Jesus made them no promise. 
It's not for you to know the 

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times and dates, the Father 
said, but you'll receive power 

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when the Holy Spirit comes upon 
you. 

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And on it goes for the apostles.
The resurrection was not an 

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idea. 
It was not a future, it was not 

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a dream. 
It was true. 

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It had happened. 
What the resurrection was for 

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the apostles initially, it was 
not what it was for Jesus. 

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The purpose of the resurrection 
was to bring life, for there had

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been death and was death. 
It was to conquer death. 

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Jesus did that. 
So what difference does it make?

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What difference does it make to 
you and I today? 

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Our title is The Effects of the 
Resurrection. 

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Last Sunday we heard of the 
importance of the resurrection. 

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It is vitally, absolutely, 
totally important, but what does

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it do? 
The apostles had been given the 

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mandate by Jesus in Matthew 28 
to go and tell everyone else to 

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make disciples, baptize them, 
teach them everything Jesus had 

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taught them. 
The question was not had it 

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happened that Jesus had risen 
from the dead? 

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It had happened and now 
everything followed from that. 

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The resurrection was then and is
today of utmost importance. 

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And as I mentioned last Sunday, 
the title was The Importance of 

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the resurrection Today it's the 
effects of the resurrection. 

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And if you followed last Sunday 
when Pastor Joe preached on 

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this, you may have noticed as 
you read the Scripture in the 

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ESV translation, the word IF was
used frequently, frequently by 

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the Apostle Paul to describe the
reality. 

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Paul mentioned a number of 
negatives. 

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If the resurrection did not 
happen then and if the 

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resurrection had not happened 
then five times the word if is 

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used in that passage that we 
heard last Sunday. 

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Paul was teaching the Corinthian
believers that the resurrection 

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had happened and but what if it 
didn't happen? 

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There were some people really 
questioned, do we rise from the 

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dead? 
Don't we rise from the dead and 

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so on. 
Paul says it's reality. 

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And so this morning we want to 
go and look at First Corinthians

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15 verse 20 to 34. 
Let's read First Corinthians 

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chapter 20 verse to chapter 5, 
verse 20 to 34. 

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Let's turn our Bibles to that. 
Paul writes. 

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But in fact, Christ has been 
raised from the dead, the first 

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fruits of those who fallen 
asleep. 

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For as by a man came, death by a
man has come also the 

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resurrection of the dead. 
For as in Adam all die, so also 

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in Christ shall all be made 
alive, but each in His own 

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order. 
Christ the first fruits, then in

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His coming those who belong to 
Christ. 

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Then comes the end, when He 
delivers the Kingdom of God to 

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the Father, after destroying 
every rule and every authority 

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and power. 
For He must reign until He's put

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all his enemies under his feet. 
The last enemy to be destroyed 

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is death. 
For God has put all things in 

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subjection under His feet. 
But when it says all things are 

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put in subjection, it is plain 
that He is accepted who put all 

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things in subjection under Him. 
When all things are subjected to

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Him, then the Son himself will 
also be subjected to Him, who 

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put all things in subjection 
under Him, that God may be All 

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in all. 
Otherwise, why do people mean? 

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What do people mean by being 
baptized on behalf of the dead? 

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If the dead are not raised at 
all, why are people being 

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baptized on their behalf? 
Why are we in danger? 

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Every hour I protest, brothers, 
by my pride in you, which I have

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in Christ Jesus our Lord. 
I die every day. 

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What do I gain if, humanly 
speaking, I fought with beasts 

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at Ephesus? 
If the dead are not raised, let 

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us eat and drink, for tomorrow 
we die. 

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Do not be deceived. 
Bad company ruins good morals. 

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Wake up from your drunken stupor
as is right, and do not go on 

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sinning, for some have no 
knowledge of God. 

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I say this to your shame. 
Paul was not just thinking this,

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he knew this. 
This was real. 

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He had experienced the risen 
Lord. 

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The resurrection has a deep 
purpose which we must focus 

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focus on for us to have an 
understanding of it. 

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In this passage, Paul focused on
the difference it made that 

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Jesus had risen from the dead, 
on the impact it had on him, on 

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the people, and will yet have on
everything, all in creation 

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included. 
To Paul, before he was a 

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follower of Jesus, he knew Jesus
had not risen from the dead. 

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He was dead. 
Paul knew that this Jewish 

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Carpenter had been arrested, 
killed, buried. 

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He was dead, but then he 
experienced him. 

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He had heard them talk about it,
but he was a Pharisee and he 

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wanted to get rid of these 
Christians. 

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But now for Paul, after he 
became a follower of Jesus, it 

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was no longer after he got got 
arrested by Jesus, so to speak. 

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Jesus revealed himself to him on
the road to Damascus and after 

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that he was a changed man. 
The impact was huge. 

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This reality was the foundation 
of everything with which He 

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built, and all everything else 
flowed out of that. 

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He says in verse 20. 
But in fact, Christ has been 

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raised from the dead, the first 
fruits of those who have fallen 

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asleep. 
The impact of the resurrection 

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is that death no longer has 
power over God's people. 

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Death is no longer the end. 
First point is death was 

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conquered to get to the roots of
what happened. 

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We may ask this do we even 
understand what life is and an 

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opposition to life or life are 
contrast to like do we 

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understand what death is? 
Every human being in this room 

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and everywhere else has a 
beginning. 

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Every human being has a 
beginning from their mom and 

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dad. 
Parents impart life to their 

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offspring. 
All children are the result of a

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husband and wife or a man and a 
woman. 

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Our lives that we live did not 
just spring into existence of 

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nothing. 
Life comes from life and 

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ultimately from God. 
All of it has a beginning and as

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we know it. 
All of life comes from life. 

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But life as we know it in our 
physical bodies today, it is not

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permanent. 
It dies. 

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It ends one day. 
My physical life, as you see me 

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and I see you, will one day end.
Sooner or later we will die. 

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Death is the great separator, 
the great divider that no one 

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gets past. 
But Jesus overpowered it. 

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He came back as a man. 
He died as a man, rose as a man.

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He was real. 
He's real for Jesus, this 

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journey to become a man, to live
as a man, that's what the event 

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season is all about, to serve as
a man, to suffer as a man, die 

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as a man, hard and painful rode 
as it was, but after he died, he

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came back. 
He rose from the dead, and the 

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reason he could rise from the 
dead was because of who he was 

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and what he was as God's Son. 
He had not sinned, but took our 

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sin and died for it. 
And the reason Jesus came to 

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this earth in the 1st place had 
everything to do with addressing

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the sin problem. 
He says in verse 21. 

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For as by man came, death, by 
man also has come the 

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resurrection of the dead. 
Jesus was a man, God in human 

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flesh, but a man. 
This is important to note for 

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us. 
Death was introduced through 

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Adam when that man Adam sinned. 
When that happened, all of 

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humanity was swept under the 
curse of death, and that curse 

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continues today. 
But then through another man, 

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death was overpowered. 
It was conquered, he says in 

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verse 22. 
For as in Adam all die, so also 

229
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in Christ shall all be made 
alive. 

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You and I concluded the death 
that came through Adam was 

231
00:12:27,800 --> 00:12:32,520
defeated at the cross by the by 
Jesus dying and rising from the 

232
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dead, from the tomb. 
Paul also writes that in Jesus 

233
00:12:36,280 --> 00:12:40,320
all will be made alive. 
Every soul will exist in 

234
00:12:40,320 --> 00:12:43,000
eternity in the state of 
conscious awareness throughout 

235
00:12:43,000 --> 00:12:45,720
all eternity. 
Jesus taught us much. 

236
00:12:46,560 --> 00:12:49,280
There is no end to quote UN 
quote this life that we've been 

237
00:12:49,280 --> 00:12:51,840
given. 
Yes, we're dead spiritually. 

238
00:12:52,240 --> 00:12:54,480
It's a wide topic. 
We can, we won't go into that 

239
00:12:54,480 --> 00:12:56,920
this morning, but spiritually 
we're dead, born dead in sin, 

240
00:12:56,920 --> 00:13:00,920
but not dead in a way that we're
not aware, not dead as in God 

241
00:13:00,920 --> 00:13:06,720
not speaking to us. 
Jesus said this in John chapter 

242
00:13:06,840 --> 00:13:09,240
5 verse 26. 
For as the Father has life in 

243
00:13:09,240 --> 00:13:13,880
himself, so he has granted the 
Son to have life in himself, and

244
00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:16,880
he's given him authority to 
execute judgment because he is 

245
00:13:16,920 --> 00:13:21,200
the Son of man. 
He says next verse do not marvel

246
00:13:21,200 --> 00:13:24,880
at this for an hour is coming 
when all who are in the tombs 

247
00:13:25,120 --> 00:13:28,720
will hear his voice and come out
those who've done good to the 

248
00:13:28,720 --> 00:13:31,760
resurrection of life and those 
who've done evil to the 

249
00:13:31,760 --> 00:13:35,160
resurrection of judgment. 
This is universal. 

250
00:13:35,160 --> 00:13:39,360
There's no human being who will 
he got past the judgment seat or

251
00:13:39,480 --> 00:13:42,560
he he skipped past. 
He's not going to no every one 

252
00:13:42,560 --> 00:13:46,080
of us is going that journey. 
When the Bible talks about the 

253
00:13:46,080 --> 00:13:49,360
judgment of God on evil people, 
it talks about those who are 

254
00:13:49,360 --> 00:13:51,280
dead and sin. 
They too will be judged. 

255
00:13:52,760 --> 00:13:54,760
They're not dead as in having no
awareness. 

256
00:13:55,240 --> 00:13:59,160
They're very much aware when the
Bible teaches about the judgment

257
00:13:59,160 --> 00:14:01,600
of God and sin for those who've 
died, the only way that judgment

258
00:14:01,600 --> 00:14:04,000
works is if they're not dead, as
being unaware. 

259
00:14:04,280 --> 00:14:06,560
They're judged, but in a state 
of awareness, a conscious 

260
00:14:06,560 --> 00:14:09,760
awareness. 
For Jesus as a man, physical 

261
00:14:09,760 --> 00:14:12,600
death was something he chose. 
He chose to die. 

262
00:14:13,280 --> 00:14:14,680
He talks about this in the 
Gospel of John. 

263
00:14:14,840 --> 00:14:18,440
I give my life. 
He says he chose to experience 

264
00:14:18,440 --> 00:14:20,720
it. 
But then Jesus turns around and 

265
00:14:20,720 --> 00:14:23,840
turns that curse of death into a
bridge to life. 

266
00:14:25,360 --> 00:14:29,400
And he says to his disciples in 
John 12, it says to the people 

267
00:14:29,400 --> 00:14:33,560
in John 12 verse 424, truly, 
truly, I say to you, unless a 

268
00:14:33,560 --> 00:14:35,920
grain of wheat falls into the 
earth and dies, it remains 

269
00:14:35,920 --> 00:14:38,480
alone. 
But if it dies, it bears much 

270
00:14:38,480 --> 00:14:43,080
fruit. 
He, he was that grain of wheat. 

271
00:14:44,160 --> 00:14:47,240
You see the positive that comes 
out of the negative by rising 

272
00:14:47,240 --> 00:14:49,720
from the dead, by choosing to 
die and then rising from the 

273
00:14:49,720 --> 00:14:53,120
dead, Jesus overpowered death. 
Jesus would would not have 

274
00:14:53,120 --> 00:14:54,560
conquered death if he had not 
died. 

275
00:14:55,480 --> 00:14:57,720
But through him dying as a man 
and rising from the dead, the 

276
00:14:57,720 --> 00:14:59,440
dead as a man, he gained that 
authority. 

277
00:14:59,520 --> 00:15:04,040
He said all authority through 
Jesus Christ, death as we know 

278
00:15:04,040 --> 00:15:05,440
it will abolish, will be 
abolished. 

279
00:15:05,440 --> 00:15:07,560
It will never be anymore. 
It's going to it's going to be 

280
00:15:07,600 --> 00:15:10,480
it's going to end. 
But it's interesting how Paul 

281
00:15:10,480 --> 00:15:13,880
words this, he says, but each in
his own order was 23 Christ the 

282
00:15:13,880 --> 00:15:16,000
first fruits, then at his 
coming, those who belong to 

283
00:15:16,000 --> 00:15:18,880
Christ when Jesus and when Paul 
talks about the first words 

284
00:15:18,880 --> 00:15:23,680
here, he talks, he's referring 
back to Leviticus chapter 23, 

285
00:15:23,680 --> 00:15:25,400
verse 9. 
When the Israelites would 

286
00:15:25,400 --> 00:15:29,720
harvest their fields, they were 
told by God and the law the very

287
00:15:29,720 --> 00:15:32,280
first part of the of the crop, 
let's say the chief of grain. 

288
00:15:32,280 --> 00:15:35,920
You bring that first chief to 
the to the temple and you give 

289
00:15:35,920 --> 00:15:37,920
it as a sacrifice. 
Whatever came off the fields, 

290
00:15:38,080 --> 00:15:40,640
whether it was grapes or 
whatever it was, you bring the 

291
00:15:40,640 --> 00:15:45,640
first part to God. 
And so when when Paul writes 

292
00:15:45,640 --> 00:15:48,120
this to the Corinthian church, 
they had a very good 

293
00:15:48,120 --> 00:15:50,480
understanding, no doubt of what 
Paul meant here. 

294
00:15:51,280 --> 00:15:53,880
And commentator that I read 
sometimes by the name of David 

295
00:15:53,880 --> 00:15:57,040
Guzik in his commentary in this 
passage, he mentions that this 

296
00:15:57,040 --> 00:16:00,400
is a direct connection from 
Paul's writing here to the story

297
00:16:00,400 --> 00:16:02,040
to the book of the law and 
Leviticus. 

298
00:16:04,840 --> 00:16:08,000
And Paul is saying that the new 
life in Christ is a sign of our 

299
00:16:08,000 --> 00:16:10,000
new life coming and following as
well. 

300
00:16:11,160 --> 00:16:12,920
Jesus was the first fruits. 
He was the first one. 

301
00:16:15,840 --> 00:16:18,200
And some here might think that. 
Well, yeah, but no, he wasn't 

302
00:16:18,200 --> 00:16:19,480
the first one. 
Wait a minute. 

303
00:16:19,480 --> 00:16:21,360
There was, you know, he raised 
Lazarus. 

304
00:16:21,920 --> 00:16:24,760
And in the Old Testament, Elijah
raised the widow's son. 

305
00:16:25,560 --> 00:16:28,480
Jesus raised a few more. 
He wasn't the first one. 

306
00:16:28,560 --> 00:16:30,480
Yes, he was. 
And this is where, again, I 

307
00:16:30,480 --> 00:16:32,280
refer to David Guzik. 
He says this. 

308
00:16:32,280 --> 00:16:38,960
He says Lazarus died again. 
Elijah, the widow's son, he died

309
00:16:38,960 --> 00:16:41,480
again. 
When Jesus raised the synagogue 

310
00:16:41,480 --> 00:16:43,560
ruler's little daughter, she 
died again. 

311
00:16:44,240 --> 00:16:47,080
Everybody in the flesh is was 
born. 

312
00:16:47,080 --> 00:16:51,800
Is is who's born and dies and is
resurrected, still dies, but not

313
00:16:51,800 --> 00:16:54,240
Jesus. 
That resurrection is different. 

314
00:16:54,920 --> 00:16:56,560
That's a different, totally 
different resurrection. 

315
00:16:58,280 --> 00:17:00,760
On the one hand, we already we 
all know what physical life is, 

316
00:17:01,840 --> 00:17:04,280
but when our bodies died, they 
won't remain dead. 

317
00:17:04,280 --> 00:17:06,359
There's coming a resurrection 
that's different. 

318
00:17:06,960 --> 00:17:10,640
Our bodies will die, but we will
rise to a new life that is never

319
00:17:10,640 --> 00:17:17,960
going to stop. 
The resurrection of Jesus is 

320
00:17:17,960 --> 00:17:23,440
different, never to die again. 
That's the greatest promise, the

321
00:17:23,440 --> 00:17:26,680
greatest hope, the greatest 
blessing that we can look 

322
00:17:26,680 --> 00:17:30,280
forward to and also the greatest
fear because those who are not 

323
00:17:30,280 --> 00:17:33,000
ready for Jesus, who've not put 
their trust in faith in what 

324
00:17:33,000 --> 00:17:38,680
will they do? 
That's the bridge, that's the 

325
00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:41,600
pivot, that's the that's the pin
on which it all hangs. 

326
00:17:42,480 --> 00:17:45,960
He did that for our sake. 
He had a very specific purpose 

327
00:17:46,120 --> 00:17:47,440
and that's what the effects of 
it is. 

328
00:17:47,520 --> 00:17:51,000
He changed everything. 
He the world uses death as a 

329
00:17:51,000 --> 00:17:52,920
tool. 
You don't like somebody, kill 

330
00:17:52,920 --> 00:17:54,840
them. 
That's what governments do, 

331
00:17:54,840 --> 00:17:56,160
right? 
They don't like that country. 

332
00:17:56,160 --> 00:17:57,480
Let's just kill those kill our 
enemies. 

333
00:17:57,560 --> 00:17:59,040
Let's kill those who don't like 
us. 

334
00:17:59,720 --> 00:18:05,800
Death is a tool to to to 
separate, to to isolate, to to 

335
00:18:05,800 --> 00:18:09,160
get rid of a problem, destroy 
human life. 

336
00:18:10,080 --> 00:18:14,680
That's what evil people do. 
And they killed Jesus. 

337
00:18:15,000 --> 00:18:18,800
Get rid of him. 
But they didn't count on who he 

338
00:18:18,800 --> 00:18:20,280
was. 
They didn't understand who he 

339
00:18:20,280 --> 00:18:23,600
was and what he would do. 
They couldn't permanently kill 

340
00:18:23,600 --> 00:18:25,720
him. 
He was holy. 

341
00:18:26,280 --> 00:18:30,960
He was God in the flesh. 
And he rose again, and he rose 

342
00:18:30,960 --> 00:18:34,440
to reign. 
His reign will be an absolute, 

343
00:18:34,680 --> 00:18:38,040
total, complete reign for all 
eternity. 

344
00:18:38,800 --> 00:18:42,200
And when he returns, those in 
the graves will rise. 

345
00:18:43,360 --> 00:18:46,080
Jesus will reign, he's Paul says
after that. 

346
00:18:46,080 --> 00:18:48,840
Then comes the end, verse 24, 
when he delivers the Kingdom to 

347
00:18:48,840 --> 00:18:53,040
God the Father after destroying,
listen, every rule and every 

348
00:18:53,040 --> 00:18:56,440
authority and power, for he must
reign until he has put all his 

349
00:18:56,440 --> 00:18:59,040
enemies under his feet. 
The last enemy to be destroyed 

350
00:18:59,200 --> 00:19:00,840
is death. 
You see, folks, there's so much 

351
00:19:00,840 --> 00:19:03,400
here which you don't have time 
to unpack, but this is true. 

352
00:19:05,680 --> 00:19:08,040
The resurrection of Jesus is 
about the resurrection. 

353
00:19:08,040 --> 00:19:09,400
It's about new life, but it's 
greater. 

354
00:19:09,400 --> 00:19:11,960
It's about rule. 
It's about ruling. 

355
00:19:12,040 --> 00:19:13,680
There's a purpose and meaning 
behind it. 

356
00:19:14,720 --> 00:19:15,960
And that brings us to the second
point. 

357
00:19:16,360 --> 00:19:20,240
Jesus resurrection reign means 
the end of all earthly human 

358
00:19:20,240 --> 00:19:22,760
rule. 
This scares some people so badly

359
00:19:22,760 --> 00:19:25,240
because they want to rule. 
They want to be in control. 

360
00:19:25,360 --> 00:19:29,200
No, Jesus will rule. 
When Jesus sent the Spirit of 

361
00:19:29,200 --> 00:19:32,280
Pentecost and the Spirit and 
dwelt the disciples, they got 

362
00:19:32,280 --> 00:19:34,640
it. 
Then they understood. 

363
00:19:35,080 --> 00:19:39,400
Then it clicked. 
Jesus had risen from the dead, 

364
00:19:39,400 --> 00:19:42,600
not just to give us a nice, 
convenient, happy life on earth.

365
00:19:42,840 --> 00:19:44,280
Oh, that may happen or may not 
happen. 

366
00:19:44,280 --> 00:19:46,400
We don't know that it may. 
We don't know. 

367
00:19:46,640 --> 00:19:49,480
Some people live very wealthy, 
comfortable, convenient lives. 

368
00:19:49,480 --> 00:19:50,880
Others just struggle and 
struggle. 

369
00:19:52,000 --> 00:19:53,840
That was not the purpose of the 
resurrection. 

370
00:19:53,840 --> 00:19:56,880
To fix that. 
The purpose of the resurrection 

371
00:19:57,240 --> 00:19:59,800
was to bring them into 
relationship with God. 

372
00:20:00,360 --> 00:20:02,280
Easy life for hard life doesn't 
matter. 

373
00:20:04,240 --> 00:20:06,960
Jesus will reign over all 
creation. 

374
00:20:07,440 --> 00:20:11,840
Every ruler, every power, every 
government, he will destroy 

375
00:20:11,920 --> 00:20:16,160
every form of it. 
But of course, our world power 

376
00:20:16,160 --> 00:20:19,560
study don't believe this, at 
least not in their time, so to 

377
00:20:19,560 --> 00:20:21,480
speak. 
It may happen that something 

378
00:20:21,480 --> 00:20:23,040
will go wrong. 
Their country will not be any 

379
00:20:23,040 --> 00:20:24,520
more. 
But hey, in our time, we're 

380
00:20:24,520 --> 00:20:27,520
going to fight. 
We're going to make sure that 

381
00:20:27,520 --> 00:20:28,960
we're in control. 
Harry tried it. 

382
00:20:31,160 --> 00:20:33,600
Then following the destruction 
of all earthly rule, Jesus will 

383
00:20:33,600 --> 00:20:35,400
then hand the Kingdom to his 
Father. 

384
00:20:37,600 --> 00:20:41,160
And Paul is teaching is that all
begins with God, it all exists 

385
00:20:41,160 --> 00:20:43,320
with God and everything and 
everyone again will be in 

386
00:20:43,320 --> 00:20:47,920
submission and surrender to God.
This is a real reality that many

387
00:20:47,920 --> 00:20:49,800
people do not like to think 
about. 

388
00:20:51,200 --> 00:20:53,120
Many people would have no 
problem with Jesus, Jesus 

389
00:20:53,120 --> 00:20:55,560
rescuing them from pain, you 
know, from hell and a lot of 

390
00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:58,400
other things in this world. 
But just the idea I'm going to 

391
00:20:58,400 --> 00:21:03,240
have to submit, surrender. 
No, the question is not if. 

392
00:21:03,440 --> 00:21:08,760
The question is, when we don't 
get to decide that, the only 

393
00:21:08,760 --> 00:21:12,480
thing you and I, we can decide 
is this, how will we respond to 

394
00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:15,160
the call? 
We can decide to surrender. 

395
00:21:15,280 --> 00:21:18,520
We can decide to submit 
voluntarily and allow Him to 

396
00:21:18,520 --> 00:21:21,040
cleanse us, to purify us and 
sanctify us and make us His 

397
00:21:21,200 --> 00:21:22,640
children. 
We can do that. 

398
00:21:23,240 --> 00:21:25,240
He gives us opportunity. 
He draws us, and we can do that.

399
00:21:26,560 --> 00:21:30,360
Or we can say, no, I'm going to 
rule myself. 

400
00:21:31,360 --> 00:21:34,640
I'm my own person. 
The question is on which side of

401
00:21:34,640 --> 00:21:38,280
this will we end up? 
God wants us with him. 

402
00:21:39,200 --> 00:21:43,520
The world wants us with evil. 
The world's always had problems 

403
00:21:43,520 --> 00:21:45,640
with God. 
The world will have problems 

404
00:21:45,640 --> 00:21:46,840
with God to the very end of 
time. 

405
00:21:46,840 --> 00:21:49,600
Read Revelation. 
You see it started that way. 

406
00:21:49,600 --> 00:21:53,200
Adam and Eve were perfect, 
decided to disobey God and got 

407
00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:54,760
removed from the guard and got 
kicked out. 

408
00:21:55,360 --> 00:21:57,280
Cain killed his brother. 
Abel introduced murder into the 

409
00:21:57,280 --> 00:22:00,080
world. 
God destroyed the first world 

410
00:22:00,080 --> 00:22:02,400
through a flood because of all 
the sin. 

411
00:22:03,080 --> 00:22:05,800
God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah
for their life of debauchery. 

412
00:22:06,800 --> 00:22:08,720
God destroyed Pharaoh because of
his sin. 

413
00:22:09,600 --> 00:22:11,360
God destroyed the nations of 
Canaan because of their 

414
00:22:11,360 --> 00:22:14,080
continually idolatrous life. 
It went on and on through 

415
00:22:14,080 --> 00:22:16,680
scripture continues to this day,
but it will end. 

416
00:22:17,840 --> 00:22:20,320
The world always wants to make 
God into someone, something that

417
00:22:20,320 --> 00:22:23,520
fits their own desires, someone 
that can tame and and makes 

418
00:22:23,520 --> 00:22:26,440
submissive to them. 
And Jesus not open to that, He 

419
00:22:26,440 --> 00:22:29,160
will destroy it. 
Jesus now reigns in the hearts 

420
00:22:29,160 --> 00:22:32,000
of his people, his children, the
church. 

421
00:22:33,560 --> 00:22:34,760
One day he'll reign over 
everything. 

422
00:22:36,360 --> 00:22:39,920
These are often spoken parables 
to people trying to convey these

423
00:22:39,920 --> 00:22:41,960
realities, these truths of what 
was coming. 

424
00:22:42,600 --> 00:22:45,440
And they know most of the time 
didn't get it. 

425
00:22:45,440 --> 00:22:47,840
And there's one. 
And then Matthew 21, verse 33 to

426
00:22:47,840 --> 00:22:50,480
41, I want to read that. 
And I want us to think, do we 

427
00:22:50,480 --> 00:22:53,280
get it? 
He says this here, another 

428
00:22:53,280 --> 00:22:55,360
parable. 
There was a master of a house 

429
00:22:55,480 --> 00:22:58,160
who planted a vineyard and put a
fence around it and dug a wine 

430
00:22:58,160 --> 00:23:00,720
press in it and built a tower, 
and at least the tenants and 

431
00:23:00,720 --> 00:23:03,000
went to another country. 
When the season of fruit drew 

432
00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:05,520
near, he sent his servants to 
the tenants to get his fruit. 

433
00:23:06,800 --> 00:23:09,400
And the tenants took his 
servants and beat one, killed 

434
00:23:09,400 --> 00:23:11,840
another and stoned another. 
And Guinea sent other servants 

435
00:23:11,840 --> 00:23:14,040
more than the first, and they 
did the same to them. 

436
00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:18,120
Finally he sent the son to them,
saying, they will respect my 

437
00:23:18,120 --> 00:23:20,040
son. 
But when the tenants saw the 

438
00:23:20,040 --> 00:23:22,400
son, they said to themselves, 
this is the heir, come, let's 

439
00:23:22,400 --> 00:23:23,840
kill him and have his 
inheritance. 

440
00:23:24,120 --> 00:23:26,440
And they took him and threw him 
out of the vineyard and killed 

441
00:23:26,440 --> 00:23:28,800
him. 
When the when therefore the 

442
00:23:28,800 --> 00:23:31,160
owner of the vineyard comes, 
what will he do to those 

443
00:23:31,160 --> 00:23:33,400
tenants? 
They said to him, the audience, 

444
00:23:33,880 --> 00:23:36,680
he will put those wretches to a 
miserable death and let out the 

445
00:23:36,680 --> 00:23:39,960
vineyard to other tenants who 
will put give him the fruits in 

446
00:23:39,960 --> 00:23:44,000
their seasons. 
We read of Jesus as a meek and 

447
00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:47,000
mild gentle savor. 
And he is that he truly is. 

448
00:23:47,280 --> 00:23:52,320
But he's also a conquering king.
He's also a judge, He's a ruler,

449
00:23:53,720 --> 00:23:56,680
and that aspect is just as 
important and vital to remember 

450
00:23:56,680 --> 00:24:02,000
and hold an intention with the 
other part, back to First 

451
00:24:02,000 --> 00:24:07,960
Corinthians chapter 1528, Paul 
says when all things are 

452
00:24:07,960 --> 00:24:10,800
subjected to him, then the Son 
himself will also be subjected 

453
00:24:10,800 --> 00:24:14,240
to the Father, to him who put 
all things in subjection to him,

454
00:24:14,240 --> 00:24:17,560
that God may be All in all. 
And so that's the last point. 

455
00:24:17,960 --> 00:24:22,320
The resurrection means complete 
unity and perfection restored. 

456
00:24:23,120 --> 00:24:24,880
That's another effect of the 
resurrection. 

457
00:24:25,880 --> 00:24:29,000
We live in a very incomplete and
a very fragmented world. 

458
00:24:29,000 --> 00:24:32,320
We all know that. 
But as long as you and I, as we 

459
00:24:32,320 --> 00:24:37,320
look to this world for meaning 
and purpose and fulfillment and 

460
00:24:37,320 --> 00:24:42,200
direction, we are going to fail.
It is only when we put our hope 

461
00:24:42,560 --> 00:24:45,240
and our trust in the finished 
work of Jesus and surrender 

462
00:24:45,240 --> 00:24:47,560
ourselves to Him that what He 
has promised will come. 

463
00:24:47,720 --> 00:24:50,720
Then we can live in the joy of 
His resurrection. 

464
00:24:51,920 --> 00:24:54,920
Christ's resurrection is our 
point of reference and how we 

465
00:24:54,960 --> 00:24:57,720
function in in this world, how 
we relate to each other. 

466
00:24:59,040 --> 00:25:04,200
Whatever we do in our day-to-day
lives, how we live and interact 

467
00:25:04,200 --> 00:25:09,480
with people will reveal what our
reference points is. 

468
00:25:09,920 --> 00:25:14,880
So do you and I, do we live in 
that light and that mind frame, 

469
00:25:14,920 --> 00:25:17,080
frame frame setup? 
Do we live in that? 

470
00:25:17,360 --> 00:25:20,920
Are we living in joy or are we 
living in a way? 

471
00:25:21,160 --> 00:25:23,680
No, The world is still what we 
make our decisions by. 

472
00:25:23,920 --> 00:25:26,320
The world is still what we go by
when we plan ahead. 

473
00:25:29,680 --> 00:25:32,480
If we're not living in joy, then
we're not living up to the 

474
00:25:32,480 --> 00:25:34,480
potential of what belongs to us 
in Christ. 

475
00:25:34,840 --> 00:25:36,920
Because of Christ's 
resurrection, what it means for 

476
00:25:36,920 --> 00:25:39,520
us, we have peace and in peace 
look forward to spending 

477
00:25:39,520 --> 00:25:42,160
eternity with Christ. 
And this current life leads up 

478
00:25:42,160 --> 00:25:44,840
to it. 
The current temporary trials and

479
00:25:44,840 --> 00:25:47,800
struggles we face, they're small
compared to what God has 

480
00:25:47,800 --> 00:25:51,400
prepared for us. 
The Bible talks about fearing 

481
00:25:51,400 --> 00:25:56,240
God and it's true Proverbs many 
passages, but not as in being 

482
00:25:56,240 --> 00:26:00,960
terrified him as a hard ruler in
the sense that he's out to get 

483
00:26:00,960 --> 00:26:03,320
us. 
He's a holy God, a just got a 

484
00:26:03,520 --> 00:26:05,640
God, but also love and truth and
grace. 

485
00:26:06,640 --> 00:26:14,320
These two things are both true. 
We must remember to choose to 

486
00:26:14,320 --> 00:26:17,080
love Jesus puts us in a 
relationship with God. 

487
00:26:17,080 --> 00:26:19,720
When he offers us salvation, we 
receive it and we love and live 

488
00:26:19,720 --> 00:26:21,920
with Him. 
To reject Him puts us under His 

489
00:26:21,920 --> 00:26:26,680
judgement. 
Our lives are so much more than 

490
00:26:26,680 --> 00:26:29,200
the gist, the here and now. 
We live our physical lives 

491
00:26:29,200 --> 00:26:30,840
knowing we will one day die and 
we'll be buried. 

492
00:26:30,920 --> 00:26:33,640
But it's not the end. 
It's a transition from one life 

493
00:26:33,680 --> 00:26:36,880
to the next. 
Paul goes on in, in his his 

494
00:26:36,880 --> 00:26:41,240
attempts to try to, to bring 
this to, to, to, to a close or 

495
00:26:41,240 --> 00:26:43,840
to, to give emphasis to this. 
He says verse 29. 

496
00:26:43,840 --> 00:26:46,480
Otherwise, why do people, what 
do people mean by being baptized

497
00:26:46,480 --> 00:26:48,040
on behalf of the dead? 
If the dead are not raised at 

498
00:26:48,040 --> 00:26:49,800
all, why are people baptized on 
their behalf? 

499
00:26:50,600 --> 00:26:52,680
This is one of those verses 
where you just don't know what 

500
00:26:52,680 --> 00:26:57,560
exactly Paul is getting at. 
Again, I want to refer to 

501
00:26:57,920 --> 00:26:59,960
commentator David Guzik on this 
passage. 

502
00:26:59,960 --> 00:27:03,160
He says the plain meaning of the
original language is the same, 

503
00:27:03,280 --> 00:27:05,440
that some people are being 
baptized on behalf of those 

504
00:27:05,440 --> 00:27:07,800
who've died. 
Paul's point is, if there if 

505
00:27:07,800 --> 00:27:10,240
there's no resurrection, why is 
this happening? 

506
00:27:10,240 --> 00:27:14,120
Why are they doing it? 
And he goes on to explain this a

507
00:27:14,120 --> 00:27:16,920
bit and I'll use a few make a 
few comments on what he says 

508
00:27:16,920 --> 00:27:18,920
about this, but doesn't mean 
that I understand it nor that 

509
00:27:18,920 --> 00:27:22,160
he's right either. 
He says there's about 30 

510
00:27:22,160 --> 00:27:24,400
different applications or 
interpretations that are given 

511
00:27:24,400 --> 00:27:28,400
to this passage. 
Some say it's it's it has to do 

512
00:27:28,400 --> 00:27:31,880
with that was a common practice.
Baptisms happened everywhere. 

513
00:27:32,280 --> 00:27:36,240
Baptism was common and it wasn't
just Christians who believed in 

514
00:27:36,240 --> 00:27:40,200
the afterlife. 
And Paul does not say why do 

515
00:27:40,200 --> 00:27:43,080
they, why do we baptize? 
He says why do they or why do 

516
00:27:43,080 --> 00:27:44,840
people? 
That's the phrase he uses. 

517
00:27:44,840 --> 00:27:49,600
So, but Paul closed that portion
with remind that our life is 

518
00:27:49,600 --> 00:27:52,240
based on the resurrection and 
the resurrection is not an an 

519
00:27:52,240 --> 00:27:56,360
isolated idea. 
And So what does Paul exactly 

520
00:27:56,360 --> 00:27:58,760
mean with this verse? 
I do believe the Corinthians 

521
00:27:58,760 --> 00:28:02,880
knew we probably don't. 
At least I would use that as my 

522
00:28:02,880 --> 00:28:05,040
own stand. 
I don't claim to explain it, but

523
00:28:05,040 --> 00:28:08,360
what I do tell people is don't 
create a theology out of out of 

524
00:28:08,360 --> 00:28:10,400
a verse or short passage. 
That's unclear. 

525
00:28:10,520 --> 00:28:11,760
And so that's where I'll leave 
it at that. 

526
00:28:13,920 --> 00:28:17,720
Paul points his own hardships 
and and this conference, he says

527
00:28:17,720 --> 00:28:19,600
in verse 30, why are we in 
danger every hour? 

528
00:28:20,840 --> 00:28:25,000
He believed this, he lived this,
he pursued this to his own 

529
00:28:25,000 --> 00:28:27,560
physical detriment. 
And in the end, as, as far as we

530
00:28:27,560 --> 00:28:28,760
know, Paul was killed for his 
faith. 

531
00:28:29,200 --> 00:28:32,080
He says in verse 31, I protest, 
brothers, by my pride in you, 

532
00:28:32,280 --> 00:28:34,800
which I have in Christ Jesus our
Lord, I die every day. 

533
00:28:36,720 --> 00:28:38,800
What do I gain if humanly 
speaking, fought with beasts of 

534
00:28:38,800 --> 00:28:41,640
Ephesus, if the dead are not 
raised, let's eat and drink and 

535
00:28:41,640 --> 00:28:44,200
for tomorrow we die. 
If this is not real, he goes 

536
00:28:44,200 --> 00:28:46,440
back to what we hear earlier in 
the 15th chapter. 

537
00:28:46,440 --> 00:28:48,680
If this is not real, then 
there's no meaning, no purpose, 

538
00:28:48,680 --> 00:28:53,480
no destiny, nothing. 
But he's not doubting that. 

539
00:28:53,960 --> 00:28:56,360
He's not questioning that. 
But for those who do, he says, 

540
00:28:56,440 --> 00:28:58,280
what's the logic? 
What's the rationale? 

541
00:29:01,600 --> 00:29:05,240
And if this life is the only 
life we have, if this life is 

542
00:29:05,240 --> 00:29:09,120
all there is, then there's no 
answer to the deepest emotional 

543
00:29:09,120 --> 00:29:10,520
desires and longings of the 
spirit. 

544
00:29:10,640 --> 00:29:12,800
And there are literally people 
who literally say they believe 

545
00:29:12,800 --> 00:29:14,120
that there's nothing beyond 
this. 

546
00:29:15,560 --> 00:29:17,720
Some writers have put it this 
way, and I agree with them. 

547
00:29:19,080 --> 00:29:22,240
For instance, one writer put it 
this way, he says just as water 

548
00:29:22,240 --> 00:29:25,840
is there to quench physical 
thirst as food is there to 

549
00:29:25,840 --> 00:29:30,680
quench physical hunger, as rest 
is there to to satisfy physical 

550
00:29:30,680 --> 00:29:34,520
for, to for physical fatigue, as
there's love to satisfy 

551
00:29:34,520 --> 00:29:39,920
emotional desire. 
There's an answer to the 

552
00:29:39,920 --> 00:29:44,360
spiritual longing in our souls 
to the counterpart that meets 

553
00:29:44,360 --> 00:29:47,600
its needs. 
That's not just an idea that 

554
00:29:47,600 --> 00:29:49,120
happened when Jesus rose from 
the dead. 

555
00:29:51,280 --> 00:29:54,560
It's important that we keep this
in in context that we focus on 

556
00:29:54,560 --> 00:29:56,760
this, not allow us to be 
influenced and drawn away. 

557
00:29:56,760 --> 00:29:58,880
He says in verse 33, do not be 
deceived. 

558
00:29:58,880 --> 00:30:01,520
Bad company ruins good morals. 
Where do you get your 

559
00:30:01,520 --> 00:30:03,520
information from? 
What's your point of reference? 

560
00:30:04,280 --> 00:30:05,920
Don't look to the wrong, the 
wrong direction. 

561
00:30:06,680 --> 00:30:09,080
The direction we go in life is 
where life will take us. 

562
00:30:10,040 --> 00:30:15,080
What we become is evident by 
what we follow the church in 

563
00:30:15,080 --> 00:30:18,200
Corinth had heard a lot from 
Paul in this letter by now, but 

564
00:30:18,200 --> 00:30:21,000
here he's telling keep focused 
on God and also fix it on the 

565
00:30:21,000 --> 00:30:22,960
world. 
Paul called him to live for 

566
00:30:22,960 --> 00:30:26,560
Christ not to become people that
look very much like the world. 

567
00:30:26,560 --> 00:30:29,640
He challenges them Verse 34 wake
up from your drunken stupor as 

568
00:30:29,640 --> 00:30:32,040
is right and do not go on 
sinning for some of no knowledge

569
00:30:32,040 --> 00:30:35,040
of God and would be one thing if
you ended it here, but it 

570
00:30:35,040 --> 00:30:37,320
doesn't. 
He says I say this to your 

571
00:30:37,320 --> 00:30:41,720
shame. 
Does our life look like a 

572
00:30:41,720 --> 00:30:44,640
resurrected life? 
Has the resurrection impacted 

573
00:30:44,640 --> 00:30:46,440
me? 
Has it impacted me? 

574
00:30:46,440 --> 00:30:50,320
Has it made a difference? 
A person who does not know God, 

575
00:30:50,320 --> 00:30:53,360
does not believe in God, does 
not live for God versus a person

576
00:30:53,360 --> 00:30:55,840
who says, oh, I live for Jesus. 
I became baptized. 

577
00:30:55,840 --> 00:30:57,680
I'm a member of the church. 
I go to church, I teach Sunday 

578
00:30:57,680 --> 00:30:58,840
school. 
I serve in this committee and 

579
00:30:58,840 --> 00:31:01,840
that committee. 
How different are those lives? 

580
00:31:02,360 --> 00:31:04,440
Does one live a resurrected life
and one not? 

581
00:31:05,640 --> 00:31:08,320
A lot of people call themselves 
Christians, but they're not 

582
00:31:08,320 --> 00:31:11,680
real. 
It's anybody in especially North

583
00:31:11,680 --> 00:31:14,600
America, anybody can say I'm a 
born again believer who's to 

584
00:31:14,600 --> 00:31:18,360
prove otherwise. 
But in persecuted countries 

585
00:31:18,360 --> 00:31:21,240
where you're told you'll be 
killed for your faith, that's a 

586
00:31:21,240 --> 00:31:24,960
totally different story. 
Just heard a little story this 

587
00:31:24,960 --> 00:31:27,680
last week of a woman. 
She shared how she stood before 

588
00:31:27,680 --> 00:31:31,200
the judge before in a court and 
there was the prosecutor and 

589
00:31:31,320 --> 00:31:33,760
there was people there in the 
court and they said to her, if 

590
00:31:33,760 --> 00:31:36,480
you tell us that you're a 
Christian, you'll be raped and 

591
00:31:36,480 --> 00:31:41,080
imprisoned and killed. 
If you tell us you're a Muslim, 

592
00:31:41,320 --> 00:31:45,240
you'll go free out those doors. 
But we want your testimony. 

593
00:31:45,240 --> 00:31:47,000
What do you, what do you have to
say for yourself? 

594
00:31:47,520 --> 00:31:51,960
She shared her story. 
She believed in Christ, the 

595
00:31:51,960 --> 00:31:54,640
resurrected Christ. 
She staked everything on him. 

596
00:31:56,920 --> 00:31:59,720
When she was done sharing her 
story, the same man who said 

597
00:31:59,720 --> 00:32:01,320
that to her begged her for a 
Bible. 

598
00:32:02,480 --> 00:32:05,120
She was willing to risk it all 
because she believed. 

599
00:32:07,560 --> 00:32:09,320
The question is, how much do we 
believe? 

600
00:32:09,480 --> 00:32:13,280
Is it real to us? 
Are we serious about this? 

601
00:32:13,920 --> 00:32:17,920
The victory of Jesus over death 
is a victory over everything our

602
00:32:17,920 --> 00:32:20,480
own lives to. 
He died to pay for this. 

603
00:32:22,080 --> 00:32:26,200
He rose. 
It no longer has power and we 

604
00:32:26,200 --> 00:32:30,520
can face anything and everything
this world may throw at us as we

605
00:32:30,520 --> 00:32:33,080
walk in faithfulness and 
obedience. 

606
00:32:34,120 --> 00:32:37,520
We have a path to God, to 
eternity with him. 

607
00:32:38,400 --> 00:32:42,920
Let's pray. 
Lord, we know you died on a 

608
00:32:42,920 --> 00:32:44,720
cross. 
You suffered and died so we 

609
00:32:44,720 --> 00:32:48,040
could be freed from sin and the 
freedom that you brought, you 

610
00:32:48,040 --> 00:32:49,400
brought when you rose from the 
grave. 

611
00:32:49,440 --> 00:32:52,800
Today, Lord, we know the story. 
Even though it's an old story, 

612
00:32:52,800 --> 00:32:55,000
it's new. 
We know it is just as powerful 

613
00:32:55,000 --> 00:32:56,800
today. 
That was the one that happened 

614
00:32:56,800 --> 00:32:59,880
and it's ongoing today. 
We ask Lord that the gospel 

615
00:32:59,880 --> 00:33:02,720
would not be in vain for us, 
something that we hear but makes

616
00:33:02,720 --> 00:33:04,720
no difference. 
No, instead we pray that the 

617
00:33:04,720 --> 00:33:07,200
gospel will be for us a living 
word, changing our hearts and 

618
00:33:07,200 --> 00:33:08,840
minds, turning our hearts to 
You. 

619
00:33:09,440 --> 00:33:12,200
May we be faithful, Lord, as we 
seek to worship You, live our 

620
00:33:12,200 --> 00:33:14,720
lives as a light and a witness 
to Your resurrection.