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We are continuing this kind of 
short series after Easter, 

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thinking about the difference 
that the resurrection of Jesus 

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makes to our lives here and now.
And so I want to begin our time 

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by with two quotations from one 
of my favorite films. 

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So I want you to listen to each 
short quotation. 

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If you recognise the film, 
please shout out. 

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Here we go. 
So first quotation, hope is a 

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dangerous thing, hope can drive 
a man insane straight away in 

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there where people of a certain 
age in the mid 90s this golden 

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age. 
The second quote from the same 

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film, hope was a dangerous 
thing, hope can drive a man 

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insane, hope is a good thing, 
maybe the best of things and no 

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good thing ever dies. 
So straight out the gate, 

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Shawshank Redemption is the film
from 1994, these two views of 

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Hope. 
It's set in a brutal prison in 

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the United States between the 
40s and 60s, focuses on the 

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friendship between the two men 
on the screen, Andy played by 

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Tim Robbins and Red, played by 
Morgan Freeman. 

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On a good day, I try and channel
Morgan Freeman's voice because 

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it's it's just great. 
And in the in the film, Red has 

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been imprisoned much longer than
Andy and the two friends have 

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opposing views on Hope. 
So Red is the one who says that.

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First quote I read. 
Hope is a dangerous thing. 

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Hope can drive a man insane. 
Andy, Hope is a good thing, 

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maybe the best of things, and no
good thing ever dies. 

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And as the film unravels 
unfolds, we're busy asked which 

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view of hope is the right one? 
Which view of hope is true? 

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Because Red's view of hope that 
it's a dangerous thing that can 

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drive someone insane. 
Well, that's correct if hope is 

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just a vague sense of optimism, 
if hope isn't based on anything 

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real, if hope's about shutting 
your eyes and pretending the bad

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things aren't there, if that's 
what hope is, then red's right. 

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Hope's a dangerous thing. 
But equally, if Andy's view of 

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hope that it's a good thing is 
correct, well, well, that could 

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be right. 
If hope is based on something 

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solid and real, if you know 
something about the future that 

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makes the present more livable, 
if what you're hoping in really 

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will come about and you really 
can depend on it. 

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And this morning, as we're 
looking at One Corinthians 

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chapter 15, this is the apostle 
Paul's most detailed exploration

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of the resurrection of Jesus. 
I want us all to see this 

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morning that if we are followers
of Jesus, hope is a good thing. 

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In fact, according to Paul, it's
our future hope that gives us 

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the strength we need to live for
Jesus today in a fallen world as

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fallen people when life is often
hard and unpredictable. 

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No one could. 
It's 15. 

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You saw it. 
It's a very long passage. 

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We had just had three excerpts 
from it. 

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We're just going to get sort of 
edited highlights this morning. 

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But. 
But by the end of the chapter, 

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Paul lands on an amazing 
destination. 

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If you want to summarize the 
message of this, this bit of 

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Scripture, it's that your life 
here and I, if you're a follower

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of Jesus, has meaning and 
purpose and hope. 

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Because Christ is risen, we will
be raised with Christ, and 

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therefore nothing we do for 
Jesus in this world is ever lost

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or wasted. 
That's what Paul is declaring to

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the Corinthians. 
Christ is risen, we'll be raised

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with him. 
Therefore, nothing we do for him

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in this world is ever lost or 
wasted. 

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And we're talking about hope a 
lot, the different views of it 

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in that film. 
A few weeks ago on Easter 

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Sunday, we sort of tried to come
up with a loose definition of 

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hope. 
Sort of things may be difficult 

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now, but we know the future is 
going to be so much better. 

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The future waiting for us makes 
the hard things now worthwhile. 

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And the stumbling block in that 
definition is like Red in 

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Shawshank Redemption. 
Well, how can anyone know for 

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certain that the future is going
to be better? 

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Gunn Red would say that sort of 
thinking could drive you insane.

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What if you're wrong? 
What of the future isn't going 

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to be great? 
What will you do then? 

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But again, a few weeks ago on 
Easter Sunday and this morning, 

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and one could. 
It's 15. 

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We learn where Christian hope 
comes from. 

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Our hope rests on something 
solid, more accurately, on 

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someone solid. 
Our hope rests on the crucified 

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and risen Jesus. 
That's why the Apostle Paul ends

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this chapter the way he does 
verse 58. 

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Therefore, my dear brothers and 
sisters, stand firm. 

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Let nothing move. 
You always give yourselves fully

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to the work of the Lord, because
you know that your labour in the

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Lord is not in vain. 
I want to be honest with you. 

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This is a verse that I've just 
kept coming back to you again 

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and again in my life. 
It reminds me of just precious 

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truths. 
A life lived for Jesus has 

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meaning because Jesus is Lord. 
He's the Son of God who loved me

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and gave himself for me. 
I'm precious to him. 

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But a life live for Jesus also 
has purpose, that there is work 

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to be done. 
We are his witnesses in this 

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world. 
We've got things to do in this 

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world as followers of Jesus. 
But overarching all that a life 

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live for Jesus has hope because 
we will be raised with Jesus in 

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a glorious new creation. 
The last word does not belong to

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suffering and death. 
The last word belongs to Jesus. 

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So let's look at this passage 
together, just unedited 

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highlights this morning. 
And the first thing Paul wanted 

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to see is a truth that stands at
the heart of the gospel. 

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Christ is risen. 
Put it another way, the 

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resurrection of Jesus really 
happens again. 

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We learn from this chapter that 
in the 1st century, just as in 

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the 21st century, there have 
always been people who've denied

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that the resurrection of Jesus 
actually happened. 

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There've been people who've 
said, well, it's a hoax or it's 

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a lie, or maybe more positively 
say, well, it's a beautiful 

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story, but there's no basis in 
historical facts because we know

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dead people don't rise again. 
But in response to those people,

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Paul wants his readers to see 
the resurrection of Jesus really

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happened in time and space, in 
the real world we all live in. 

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And as a result, Jesus really 
has defeated sin and death. 

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Jesus really has one hope for us
and look at how Paul opens the 

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chapter verse one and two. 
Now brothers and sisters, I want

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to remind you of the gospel I 
preached to you, which you 

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received, on which you have 
taken your stand. 

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By this gospel you are saved if 
you hold firmly to the word I 

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preached to you, otherwise you 
believed in vain. 

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So according to Paul, the 
gospel, the good news of Jesus, 

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it is solid ground on which we 
can stand. 

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And in these verses, Paul makes 
it clear he didn't invent the 

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gospel. 
He didn't come up with on his 

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own. 
Though the gospel is something 

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that Paul received from the 
eyewitnesses, that is Jesus 

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original disciples, and that he 
then passed on to the 

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Corinthians. 
And now in one Corinthians he's 

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passing it on to us. 
Paul wants us to know the truth 

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of the gospel. 
What I received, I passed on to 

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you. 
These verses, Paul seems to be 

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saying they're not his own words
even. 

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It's something Paul received. 
Antony's passed on. 

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This is this record in verses 1 
to to 8. 

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It's like an early Christian 
creed. 

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And what's a creed? 
It's it's a summary of what 

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Christians believe, and they've 
been used since the earliest 

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days of the church. 
And what is this early creed? 

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We're told here that Christ died
for our sins according to the 

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Scriptures, that He was buried, 
that He was raised on the third 

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day according to the Scriptures,
that he appeared to Cephas, and 

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then to the 12th. 
This is the essence of the 

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Christian faith. 
Christ died for our sins. 

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He was buried, He was raised, 
and He was seen. 

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It seems to be from the earliest
days of the church. 

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There are hints here. 
Paul is writing right about AD 

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54, but he's saying he received 
this already, probably from the 

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church in Jerusalem. 
The way Peter is referred to 

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here as Cephas, that is his 
Aramaic name. 

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This is an early name for Peter.
This could have been as early as

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the mid 30s after Paul came to 
faith and he went to Jerusalem. 

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He may have heard this creed and
now he is passing it on to the 

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Corinthians. 
Well, this shows us that the 

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earliest Christians were 
celebrating Jesus death for our 

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sins and rising again from the 
very earliest days of the 

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church. 
And why does that matter? 

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Well, actually there are always 
are many people who would say 

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maybe the Apostle Paul, he's the
one who came up with the 

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resurrection of Jesus. 
That's where many years after 

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the event, people like Paul took
this great human teacher Jesus 

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and they invented lots of things
around him, said actually he 

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wasn't just a teacher, he was 
the son of God and he didn't die

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heroes again, as if that's like 
years after the events. 

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Many sceptics point to that. 
Now many Muslim people will say 

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the apostle Paul, he's the one 
who invented the resurrection. 

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But the fact that Paul here says
he's quoting a summary that he 

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received and then passed on 
shows us from the very earliest 

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days of the church, the earliest
disciples worshipped Jesus as 

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the crucified and risen Lord. 
They rejoiced in his death for 

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their sin, and they rejoiced in 
the victory he had won over sin 

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and death in their place. 
Christ died for our sins. 

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Christ was buried. 
Christ was raised. 

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That is, these are truths that 
Christians have recited for 

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centuries, from the very 
earliest days of the church. 

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And notice also that Paul is 
keen to record the actual names 

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of people who saw the risen 
Jesus. 

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Here he mentioned Cephas, the 
Aramaic name for Peter. 

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This is verse 5. 
Then the 12. 

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Then to more than 500 of the 
brothers and sisters at the same

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time. 
Then to James, that's Jesus 

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brother, who at that point did 
not believe in him. 

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Then to the apostles. 
That's possibly a wider group 

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than the 12 or just the 12 
again. 

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And finally to Paul himself some
years later on the road to 

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Damascus. 
Now, it's not an exhaustive 

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list. 
Not everyone who saw Jesus is on

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this. 
For instance, there's no mention

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of the women who saw Jesus first
on Easter Sunday. 

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All four Gospels tell us that. 
But this early creed emphasizes 

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that the same Jesus who died on 
the cross and was buried was 

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seen by real life people who 
know actually encountered him 

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and saw he has won the victory 
over sin and death. 

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We're even told that once he 
appeared to over 500 people at 

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the same time. 
At the same time saying this 

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wasn't just a hallucination, 
wasn't just one person having a 

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strange vision or a bit of 
cheese and then having a weird 

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dream. 
No, this was shared by 500 

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brothers and sisters, most of 
whom Paul says at this point are

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still living. 
Those some have fallen asleep. 

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Again, this is writing in the 
mid 50s AD. 

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It's as if Paul's inviting the 
Corinthians. 

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Actually don't just take my word
for it. 

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You could actually talk to some 
of those 500 people. 

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Now you go and ask them, what 
did you see when you saw the 

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risen Jesus? 
Go and talk to them yourself. 

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It's like Paul is so confident 
of the truth of what he's 

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saying, he invites the 
Corinthians to follow up. 

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Now, of course, that's not an 
option for us today, nearly 2000

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years later, but we need to see 
Paul's confidence here. 

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The resurrection of Jesus really
happened. 

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It is an historical event, it is
true, and it's something we can 

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build our lives upon. 
And why does that matter to Paul

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so much? 
We'll look down at verse 17. 

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He puts a really starkly if 
Christ has not been raised, your

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faith is futile. 
You're still in your sins or 

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verse 19, if only for this life.
We have hope in Christ. 

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We are of all people most to be 
pitied. 

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Paul saying if the resurrection 
didn't happen, I'm not. 

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That's not just a small thing. 
That's just well, I'll opt out 

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of the resurrection. 
I like the other stuff about 

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Jesus. 
I'm going to opt out of 

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believing he's risen now. 
He says it's because Christ has 

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risen, but we can know that 
Jesus is who he says he is, that

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death is a defeated enemy. 
Sin is a defeated enemy, and our

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lives now have meaning and 
purpose. 

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This is the basis for Christian 
hope. 

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And hope is a good thing for 
Christians because it rests on 

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the crucified and risen Jesus. 
And it's our hope that stands at

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the heart of our message for the
world. 

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Again, one of the witnesses 
named by Paul here Cephas or 

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Peter writing to a group of 
Christians scattered across Asia

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Minor a few years after the 
events of the resurrection said 

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this always be prepared to give 
an answer to everybody asks you 

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to give the reason for the hope 
that you have, but do this with 

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gentleness and respect. 
That's there's so much there 

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about what it means to live as a
witness for Jesus. 

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Be prepared to give an answer. 
Expect people to ask you 

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questions. 
Do this with gentleness and 

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respect. 
But the heart of it I want us to

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see here is what is the reason 
for the hope that Christians 

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have? 
Well, the reason is Jesus. 

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The reason is what he has done 
in our place in dying and rising

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again. 
He is our message for the world.

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The reason for the hope we have 
is the crucified and risen 

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Jesus. 
That's where Paul begins. 

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He wants his readers to know 
Christ is risen, the 

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resurrection really happened, 
and then he wants to lift their 

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eyes to their future and the 
future of everyone who trusts in

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Jesus. 
We will be raised with Christ, 

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says Paul. 
Now this is the bit we're going 

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to absolutely skim. 
I will, I give apologies now, 

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there's so much in here. 
I'd encourage you to read it 

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yourself later. 
We just have time for some of 

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the headlines. 
Verse 20, Jesus, Paul says is 

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the first fruits of the 
resurrection. 

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Christ has indeed been raised 
from the dead. 

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Verse 20, the first fruits of 
those who have fallen asleep, 

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Those who have fallen asleep, 
that's a reference to those who 

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have died and what? 
What does it mean? 

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Jesus the first fruits look in. 
Anyone who does any gardening or

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has seen gardening on telly will
know the first signs of a 

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harvest to come. 
It's like the first ripe tomato 

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on your tomato plants. 
Everything else might be green. 

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Nothing else is edible. 
But that right tomato reminds 

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you the harvest is on its way. 
It's not here yet, but the proof

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is. 
I can see the first fruits and 

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the resurrection of Jesus on the
first Easter Sunday is the proof

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that the resurrection is coming.
Just as God raised Jesus from 

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the dead, so God will raise 
everyone who trusts in Jesus 

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from the dead. 
We're told Jesus is the second 

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Adam. 
Verse 21. 

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For since death came through a 
man, the resurrection of the 

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dead comes also through a man. 
For is an Adam all die, so in 

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Christ all will be made alive. 
Paul's referring back to the 

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events in Genesis when the first
Adam rejected God. 

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In his ways, sin and death 
entered the world, and all 

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humanity is under the sentence 
of death. 

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In Adam, all die, says Paul. 
It's the ultimate statistic. 

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One in one people born will die.
But the resurrection of Jesus 

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has happened and the future is 
going to be different, says 

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Paul. 
By rising again, Jesus is a 

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fresh start to a new humanity, 
one that is now free from sin 

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and death. 
In Christ, all will be made 

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alive. 
Everyone who trusts in Jesus now

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shares in his victory over death
and sin. 

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Death will not have the final 
word for any believer. 

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We're now headed for 
resurrection life thanks to 

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Jesus Jesus, if you like, is the
trailer for the Resurrection to 

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Come, verse 51. 
Listen, I tell you a mystery. 

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We'll not all sleep, but we will
all be changed in a flash, in 

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the twinkling of an eye at the 
last trumpet. 

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00:16:15,320 --> 00:16:17,800
For the trumpet will signed, the
dead will be raised 

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imperishable, and we will be 
changed. 

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We will be like Jesus again. 
We saw that on Easter Sunday a 

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few weeks ago. 
When we look at the risen Jesus 

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and the Gospels, we are getting 
a glimpse of the future 

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resurrection life. 
He is 1 for everyone who trusts 

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in him. 
You look at the risen Jesus and 

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00:16:38,160 --> 00:16:41,040
the Gospels. 
He can be touched, He can eat 

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and enjoy food. 
He spends time with his 

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00:16:44,400 --> 00:16:46,320
disciples. 
And in the same way, in the new 

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creation we will be physical, we
will be able to eat and enjoy 

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00:16:50,200 --> 00:16:52,000
food. 
We will be able to worship God 

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together in the community of his
people. 

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00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:59,520
That is our future hope. 
And it is a good thing, says 

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Paul. 
Because here and now, our bodies

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fade away. 
Some of us maybe feel that more 

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00:17:06,680 --> 00:17:09,240
than others. 
The wrinkles keep coming. 

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00:17:10,160 --> 00:17:14,079
Hair goes where you want it, and
it comes where you don't. 

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00:17:14,920 --> 00:17:17,960
Your energy levels decrease. 
And the older you get, you 

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00:17:17,960 --> 00:17:20,760
realize, actually, I can't do 
everything that I'd like to do. 

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I want to eat a huge amount of 
cheese at 10:00 PM. 

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But my body rejects that. 
Our bodies let us dine and they 

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will do more and more. 
But Wanquin is 15. 

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Come the new creation won for us
by Jesus, we will have 

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resurrection bodies. 
It's mind blowing but but 

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00:17:40,640 --> 00:17:44,920
basically the summary is that 
you will be strong and whole and

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00:17:44,920 --> 00:17:48,600
healthy and satisfied for the 
first time ever. 

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Your body will work perfectly. 
Your mind will think clearly, 

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00:17:53,760 --> 00:17:57,080
your heart will be full of love 
for God and full of love for 

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people. 
And that is not our experience 

318
00:17:58,960 --> 00:18:01,040
here and now. 
But Paul says it will be our 

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00:18:01,040 --> 00:18:04,520
experience when Christ returns 
because of what Jesus has done 

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00:18:04,520 --> 00:18:08,080
for us. 
Hope is a good thing for the 

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00:18:08,080 --> 00:18:13,240
Christian, says Paul. 
Of course, here and now death is

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00:18:13,240 --> 00:18:16,440
still an enemy. 
Verse 26 Death is still a 

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00:18:16,440 --> 00:18:20,600
reality for followers of Jesus, 
but it's a defeated enemy. 

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Death can still hurt us. 
It still disrupts relationships.

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00:18:25,560 --> 00:18:28,000
We still grieve in the face of 
it. 

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But actually see where Paul 
lands in verses 54 to 57. 

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He says the saying that is 
written will come true. 

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00:18:35,040 --> 00:18:37,440
Death has been swallowed up in 
victory. 

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Where O death is your victory? 
Where O death is your sting? 

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The sting of death is sin. 
The power of sin is the law. 

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But thanks be to God, he gives 
us the victory over. 

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He gives us the victory story 
through our Lord Jesus Christ. 

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Thanks to the death and 
resurrection of Jesus in our 

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00:18:55,680 --> 00:19:00,520
place, death is now a defeated 
enemy for every Christian. 

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00:19:01,200 --> 00:19:05,840
And one day when Jesus returns, 
death itself will die. 

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Jesus took the sting of death, 
the pain of death on himself, so

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that we will not face that sting
of death and sin that is the 

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00:19:16,920 --> 00:19:20,680
basis for our future hope that 
Jesus died. 

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00:19:21,560 --> 00:19:25,720
Jesus rose from the dead and we 
will raise with him. 

340
00:19:27,800 --> 00:19:31,360
Christ has died. 
Christ has risen, will be raised

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00:19:31,640 --> 00:19:35,080
with Christ, and therefore Paul 
finishes. 

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00:19:35,480 --> 00:19:41,760
Nothing we do for Jesus in this 
world is ever lost or wasted. 

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Verse 58. 
Therefore, my dear brothers and 

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00:19:45,640 --> 00:19:49,280
sisters, stand firm, let nothing
move. 

345
00:19:49,280 --> 00:19:52,480
You always give yourselves fully
to the work of the Lord because 

346
00:19:52,480 --> 00:19:56,800
you know that your labor in the 
Lord is not in vain. 

347
00:19:59,880 --> 00:20:03,440
I referred to midlife crises a 
few minutes ago. 

348
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I guess the older you get, the 
more you're linked to things 

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00:20:07,280 --> 00:20:11,680
that didn't quite work out. 
Disappointments, griefs, hard 

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00:20:11,680 --> 00:20:16,120
things. 
You look at verse 58 and it 

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00:20:16,120 --> 00:20:21,040
reminds us nothing we do for 
Jesus is ever lost or wasted. 

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00:20:22,080 --> 00:20:25,320
It's not in vain. 
That doesn't mean everything we 

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00:20:25,320 --> 00:20:26,680
want. 
We'll go according to plan. 

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00:20:27,720 --> 00:20:30,040
That doesn't mean we're we're 
kept safe from the hard things 

355
00:20:30,040 --> 00:20:33,280
in a fallen world, Not at all. 
We still sin, we still get sick,

356
00:20:33,280 --> 00:20:35,520
we still hurt other people. 
Other people still hurt us. 

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00:20:35,520 --> 00:20:37,640
We still die. 
That's why we need the 

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00:20:37,640 --> 00:20:42,480
encouragement of verse 58. 
My dear brothers and sisters, I 

359
00:20:42,480 --> 00:20:45,160
love Paul's love for the 
Corinthians. 

360
00:20:45,160 --> 00:20:51,120
Here they are family to him. 
Stand firm, let nothing move you

361
00:20:51,120 --> 00:20:53,120
in light of Jesus death and 
resurrection. 

362
00:20:53,360 --> 00:20:57,440
Don't give up on following 
Jesus, don't give in to despair,

363
00:20:57,560 --> 00:21:00,680
don't change what you believe to
make life a little bit easier. 

364
00:21:01,480 --> 00:21:05,920
Stand firm on the truths of the 
gospel, on the crucified and 

365
00:21:05,920 --> 00:21:11,400
risen Jesus and give yourselves 
fully to the work of the Lord. 

366
00:21:12,800 --> 00:21:15,800
Paul knows we all the temptation
to become half hearted in our 

367
00:21:15,800 --> 00:21:19,120
love and our worship. 
He says instead give everything 

368
00:21:19,120 --> 00:21:25,480
you are to the God who has given
everything for you because it'll

369
00:21:25,480 --> 00:21:28,680
be worth it in the end. 
Your labor is not in vain. 

370
00:21:28,920 --> 00:21:33,320
Nothing you do for Jesus is ever
lost or wasted. 

371
00:21:35,440 --> 00:21:38,680
I want to see one can his 15 has
such a glorious message for 

372
00:21:38,680 --> 00:21:45,360
everyone who follows Jesus. 
Your life has meaning because 

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00:21:45,360 --> 00:21:50,240
Jesus is Lord and He loves you 
and He wants you in this world 

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00:21:50,640 --> 00:21:54,080
and he suffered and died and 
rose again for you. 

375
00:21:55,160 --> 00:21:57,920
Your life has purpose because 
now He wants you to live as His 

376
00:21:57,920 --> 00:22:02,320
witness in this world. 
God has people in your life He 

377
00:22:02,320 --> 00:22:05,040
wants you to love. 
God has work in your life he 

378
00:22:05,040 --> 00:22:08,080
wants you to do. 
God has a gospel that He wants 

379
00:22:08,080 --> 00:22:10,680
us to proclaim through our lives
and through our words. 

380
00:22:11,960 --> 00:22:15,880
And ultimately your life has 
hope as you will be raised with 

381
00:22:15,880 --> 00:22:19,880
Christ one day and nothing can 
stop that, nothing get in the 

382
00:22:19,880 --> 00:22:23,040
way of that. 
Because Jesus has won the 

383
00:22:23,040 --> 00:22:29,200
victory one can, as 15 is good 
news for weary people and weak 

384
00:22:29,200 --> 00:22:33,800
people and discouraged people. 
Because we are following the 

385
00:22:33,880 --> 00:22:35,720
Jesus who suffered and died for 
us. 

386
00:22:37,040 --> 00:22:39,400
Because we're following a 
suffering Jesus, it will involve

387
00:22:39,400 --> 00:22:44,960
suffering at times, but we know 
the victory is secure because 

388
00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:52,560
Jesus has secured it. 
Hope can be a dangerous thing if

389
00:22:52,560 --> 00:22:57,320
it's based on nothing. 
Hope is a good thing when it's 

390
00:22:57,320 --> 00:23:03,480
based and rooted on the living, 
risen, glorious, and returning 

391
00:23:03,960 --> 00:23:07,200
Jesus. 
Let's pray together. 

392
00:23:07,200 --> 00:23:16,480
Let's pray. 
Therefore, my dear brothers and 

393
00:23:16,480 --> 00:23:22,160
sisters, stand firm. 
Let nothing move you always give

394
00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:26,360
yourselves fully to the work of 
the Lord, because you know that 

395
00:23:26,360 --> 00:23:29,960
your labor in the Lord is not in
vain. 

396
00:23:31,880 --> 00:23:34,920
Christ has died. 
Christ is risen. 

397
00:23:35,160 --> 00:23:40,160
Christ will come again. 
We will be raised with Christ. 

398
00:23:42,160 --> 00:23:45,400
Lord, thank you neither. 
In this world, here and now, 

399
00:23:45,760 --> 00:23:49,600
nothing we do for you is ever 
lost or wasted. 

400
00:23:50,680 --> 00:23:54,800
You are present with us, You 
will bring us home, and You will

401
00:23:54,800 --> 00:23:56,760
be near to us every step of the 
journey. 

402
00:23:57,720 --> 00:24:01,760
We thank you for that meaning, 
for the purpose you give us and 

403
00:24:01,760 --> 00:24:06,520
the hope you have won for us. 
Help us hold onto and rest in 

404
00:24:06,520 --> 00:24:10,600
that hope in the days ahead. 
For your glory we ask it, Lord 

405
00:24:10,600 --> 00:24:12,480
Jesus, Amen.