1 00:00:01,160 --> 00:00:04,720 Turn in your Bible to Matthew 28. 2 00:00:07,840 --> 00:00:14,640 It was August 2023 when I said turn in your Bible to Matthew 3 00:00:14,640 --> 00:00:22,320 chapter 1. This is part 109, and we will 4 00:00:22,320 --> 00:00:27,760 finish our series in the book of Matthew next week with part 110. 5 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:36,560 Pretty cool, right? Yeah, Check in the box. 6 00:00:36,560 --> 00:00:39,200 Check in the box. Very satisfying. 7 00:00:44,640 --> 00:00:49,640 And like I said, it's Resurrection Day, Matthew 28, 8 00:00:50,840 --> 00:00:55,120 verse one. Now after the Sabbath, toward 9 00:00:55,120 --> 00:00:59,200 the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the 10 00:00:59,200 --> 00:01:03,040 other Mary went to see the tomb, and behold, there was a great 11 00:01:03,040 --> 00:01:05,000 earthquake. For an Angel of the Lord 12 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:09,240 descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone and 13 00:01:09,240 --> 00:01:11,640 sat on it. His appearance was like 14 00:01:11,640 --> 00:01:14,680 lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 15 00:01:15,400 --> 00:01:18,360 And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead 16 00:01:18,360 --> 00:01:20,640 men. But the Angel said to the women, 17 00:01:21,240 --> 00:01:24,960 Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus, who was 18 00:01:24,960 --> 00:01:28,680 crucified. He is not here, for He is risen, 19 00:01:29,400 --> 00:01:32,480 as He said. Come, see the place where He 20 00:01:32,480 --> 00:01:34,920 lay. Then go quickly and tell His 21 00:01:34,920 --> 00:01:36,680 disciples that He has risen from the dead. 22 00:01:36,880 --> 00:01:39,920 And behold, He is going before you to Galilee. 23 00:01:40,200 --> 00:01:42,880 There you will see him. See, I have told you. 24 00:01:43,440 --> 00:01:47,040 So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great 25 00:01:47,040 --> 00:01:49,800 joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 26 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:54,760 And behold, Jesus met them and said greetings, and they came up 27 00:01:54,800 --> 00:01:56,920 and took hold of his feet and worshipped him. 28 00:01:57,640 --> 00:02:01,400 Then Jesus said to them, Do not be afraid, go and tell my 29 00:02:01,400 --> 00:02:04,800 brothers to go to Galilee, and they will, and there they will 30 00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:08,320 see me. While they were going, behold, 31 00:02:08,320 --> 00:02:11,840 some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests 32 00:02:11,840 --> 00:02:14,920 all that had taken place. And when they had assembled with 33 00:02:14,920 --> 00:02:19,360 the elders and taken counsel, they gave sufficient sum of 34 00:02:19,360 --> 00:02:22,080 money to the soldiers, and said, Tell people. 35 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:25,920 His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were 36 00:02:25,920 --> 00:02:28,520 asleep. And if this comes to the 37 00:02:28,520 --> 00:02:31,880 governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble. 38 00:02:32,560 --> 00:02:35,120 So they took the money and did as they were directed. 39 00:02:35,480 --> 00:02:39,240 And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day. 40 00:02:40,920 --> 00:02:45,600 God, thank you so much for the passage of all passages, the one 41 00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:49,160 that makes everything else true, the one that confirms all of 42 00:02:49,160 --> 00:02:52,680 your word, the one that secures our past, present and future. 43 00:02:53,120 --> 00:02:56,840 Jesus Christ, our risen King, the one who defeated death, the 44 00:02:56,840 --> 00:03:00,240 one who was raised to reign forever, the one who we still 45 00:03:00,240 --> 00:03:08,280 worship, not as a as a as a dead tradition, not as a dead 46 00:03:08,280 --> 00:03:13,280 example, but as a living King. Jesus, be glorified today 47 00:03:13,280 --> 00:03:18,280 through the preaching of Your Word and open up ears and hearts 48 00:03:18,280 --> 00:03:22,320 and minds so that the application of Your Word would 49 00:03:22,320 --> 00:03:26,160 be accurate, that it would be sharp, that it would divide 50 00:03:26,160 --> 00:03:29,360 between the soul and spirit, that it would tear down the 51 00:03:29,360 --> 00:03:32,200 works of the devil, and that it would build and plant Your 52 00:03:32,200 --> 00:03:37,840 Kingdom in all of our hearts. I pray that You would save 53 00:03:37,840 --> 00:03:40,440 sinners today. Those who are near the Kingdom, 54 00:03:40,960 --> 00:03:44,880 bring them fully into it. Help them to recognize Your 55 00:03:44,880 --> 00:03:49,800 love, help them to recognize Your judgment and help them to 56 00:03:49,800 --> 00:03:53,320 enjoy Your restoration and resurrection for Saints God, I 57 00:03:53,320 --> 00:03:57,200 pray that they would be stirred even more to carry the message 58 00:03:57,200 --> 00:04:01,520 of the Kingdom, that they would be moved, that they would be 59 00:04:01,520 --> 00:04:06,680 matured and that they would be empowered as your missionaries 60 00:04:06,680 --> 00:04:17,540 in Jesus name, Amen. We have multiple ladies coming 61 00:04:17,540 --> 00:04:20,140 to the tomb here. Matthew points out two in 62 00:04:20,140 --> 00:04:23,480 particular, but between all the gospel writers, we have a 63 00:04:23,480 --> 00:04:26,560 picture of at least four women who have come to the tomb 64 00:04:26,560 --> 00:04:29,240 together this morning to prepare the body of Jesus. 65 00:04:29,400 --> 00:04:31,080 So we know it was Mary Magdalene. 66 00:04:31,080 --> 00:04:34,240 We know Mary the mother of James Salome were there. 67 00:04:34,400 --> 00:04:38,120 Luke includes Joanna and he says that there were other women. 68 00:04:38,120 --> 00:04:41,240 So we know that we've got 4 named women for sure, which 69 00:04:41,240 --> 00:04:43,160 makes sense. This would have been a women for 70 00:04:43,160 --> 00:04:45,840 job to do at this time to come and care for the body. 71 00:04:46,040 --> 00:04:50,000 They may have run out of time on Friday night and then they 72 00:04:50,000 --> 00:04:52,240 haven't come back. That they don't realize that the 73 00:04:52,240 --> 00:04:55,120 tomb has been sealed by the Roman seal. 74 00:04:55,120 --> 00:04:56,360 So the women didn't know that yet. 75 00:04:56,360 --> 00:04:58,600 They've come in this, they're going to find that out. 76 00:04:58,760 --> 00:05:00,840 They know there's a stone, but they don't know about the Roman 77 00:05:00,840 --> 00:05:03,160 seal, which would have been illegal for them to break. 78 00:05:03,720 --> 00:05:06,280 These women are not going to the tomb because they expect a 79 00:05:06,280 --> 00:05:09,240 resurrection. Unfortunately, they're going to 80 00:05:09,240 --> 00:05:12,680 the tomb to prepare a dead body. Still, they said, we still want 81 00:05:12,680 --> 00:05:14,720 to finish preparing the Lord's body. 82 00:05:14,720 --> 00:05:17,080 We still want to honor the Lord's body, but they're not 83 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:18,520 going. They didn't make Welcome Back 84 00:05:18,520 --> 00:05:21,240 Jesus posters, and they weren't going to wait outside and go, 85 00:05:21,240 --> 00:05:24,320 hey, we knew this was going to happen just like you said it 86 00:05:24,320 --> 00:05:28,080 would over and over and over. Instead, they're going. 87 00:05:28,080 --> 00:05:31,160 We're sad, we're mourning, we're grieving, and we're doing our 88 00:05:31,160 --> 00:05:33,720 job. But they're going because they 89 00:05:33,720 --> 00:05:36,600 love Jesus, so they're bringing spices. 90 00:05:36,600 --> 00:05:39,960 They want to honor his body. They're moving toward Jesus, 91 00:05:40,160 --> 00:05:42,400 which is more than we can say for the apostles. 92 00:05:43,080 --> 00:05:46,000 It's more than we can say for the leaders of the New Testament 93 00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:49,720 church. The disciples are behind locked 94 00:05:49,720 --> 00:05:52,840 doors. Meanwhile, the women are walking 95 00:05:52,840 --> 00:05:55,080 towards the tomb. The disciples are afraid of the 96 00:05:55,080 --> 00:05:57,880 authorities. The apostles are afraid of the 97 00:05:57,880 --> 00:06:00,280 authorities. And the women are going to serve 98 00:06:00,560 --> 00:06:04,960 the crucified Lord. The women are not full of 99 00:06:04,960 --> 00:06:09,320 perfect theology in this moment. They're not full of great faith 100 00:06:09,320 --> 00:06:11,760 in this moment, but they are still walking out a more 101 00:06:11,760 --> 00:06:14,840 faithful obedience and devotional love than the 102 00:06:14,840 --> 00:06:21,360 apostles are. They're not seeking anything 103 00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:25,480 except to care for Jesus. They're full of devotion. 104 00:06:25,640 --> 00:06:27,720 They're not seeking influence or power. 105 00:06:27,840 --> 00:06:30,600 They're seeking the Lord right away. 106 00:06:30,600 --> 00:06:32,680 We can make a few points of application from this. 107 00:06:33,480 --> 00:06:36,280 We can identify with different people in this passage and in 108 00:06:36,280 --> 00:06:38,840 this scene. Some of you are disengaged like 109 00:06:38,840 --> 00:06:46,480 the apostles, hiding, passive, afraid, withdrawn, or checked 110 00:06:46,480 --> 00:06:49,520 out. You know enough truth to obey, 111 00:06:49,520 --> 00:06:52,880 but perhaps fear or self-interest has made you live 112 00:06:52,880 --> 00:06:57,960 too small. Others might be more obedient, 113 00:06:57,960 --> 00:07:00,680 like the women, but you're weak in faith. 114 00:07:01,160 --> 00:07:03,200 You're moving in the right direction, but you're still 115 00:07:03,360 --> 00:07:05,960 expecting death. Where Jesus has promised life, 116 00:07:05,960 --> 00:07:09,160 you're still serving him, but not still fully believing in the 117 00:07:09,160 --> 00:07:13,480 full promises of God. God calls you to full obedience 118 00:07:13,720 --> 00:07:16,080 grounded in faith in the risen Christ. 119 00:07:17,320 --> 00:07:20,200 Another point we can draw from this is that you should not 120 00:07:20,200 --> 00:07:23,480 build your faith on anyone except the Lord Jesus. 121 00:07:24,200 --> 00:07:26,920 Aren't you so glad that the women didn't sit back and say, 122 00:07:27,160 --> 00:07:28,720 well, the men aren't pursuing the Lord? 123 00:07:29,200 --> 00:07:30,760 The men aren't going to go to his tomb. 124 00:07:31,200 --> 00:07:34,160 They're hiding in secrecy. I guess we'll do what they do. 125 00:07:35,200 --> 00:07:37,520 Aren't you thankful that they didn't follow church leadership 126 00:07:37,840 --> 00:07:40,680 in this moment? What's your point, Pastor? 127 00:07:40,920 --> 00:07:45,000 My point is that you should not rest your hope on anyone except 128 00:07:45,000 --> 00:07:48,320 Jesus himself. You actually have to know 129 00:07:48,320 --> 00:07:51,440 Christ, actually know him for yourself. 130 00:07:52,240 --> 00:07:54,160 You actually have to love Him for yourself. 131 00:07:55,120 --> 00:07:58,240 You should not rest your hope on anyone in the body of Christ. 132 00:07:58,400 --> 00:08:01,640 You should not rest your hope on me or on your favorite minister. 133 00:08:01,960 --> 00:08:05,960 That way, if all of us were to turn away from the Lord Jesus, 134 00:08:06,160 --> 00:08:08,040 you would still be secure with your Saviour. 135 00:08:08,880 --> 00:08:11,240 Well, I follow the Lord because everybody else follows the Lord. 136 00:08:11,880 --> 00:08:15,040 Well then that's a dangerous place to be, because if everyone 137 00:08:15,040 --> 00:08:16,880 stopped following the Lord, where would that leave you? 138 00:08:17,640 --> 00:08:20,560 So we don't want to become prideful like Peter was at the 139 00:08:20,560 --> 00:08:23,240 Last Supper. Lord, even if all fall away, I 140 00:08:23,240 --> 00:08:25,160 still will. Well, that's not true at all 141 00:08:25,320 --> 00:08:26,960 because Peter was trusting in himself. 142 00:08:27,400 --> 00:08:30,440 But you've got to have the kind of devotion I used to when I was 143 00:08:30,440 --> 00:08:32,360 a youth pastor. I would tell the teenagers, I 144 00:08:32,360 --> 00:08:34,440 would say, I want you to have a Pakistan faith. 145 00:08:35,080 --> 00:08:38,200 Meaning I want to make sure that you love the Lord so much that 146 00:08:38,200 --> 00:08:41,960 if we dropped you in Pakistan, which is a hostile environment, 147 00:08:42,200 --> 00:08:45,520 generally speaking, nations ending in Stan are not the best 148 00:08:45,520 --> 00:08:47,960 places for for Christians historically. 149 00:08:49,000 --> 00:08:50,880 But I wanted them to have this understanding. 150 00:08:50,880 --> 00:08:53,760 It's not because you go to a strong church or your parents 151 00:08:53,760 --> 00:08:56,840 are strong believers or all these other blessed advantages 152 00:08:56,840 --> 00:08:59,680 that you have. Praise God and thank Him for all 153 00:08:59,680 --> 00:09:01,800 of those. But what if we took all those 154 00:09:01,800 --> 00:09:04,760 things away from you? Well, then I'll do whatever 155 00:09:04,760 --> 00:09:07,440 everyone else is doing. Well then I wonder, do you even 156 00:09:07,440 --> 00:09:10,240 have Christ now? Because if you wouldn't have 157 00:09:10,240 --> 00:09:13,120 Christ, then I really wonder, do you have him now? 158 00:09:13,920 --> 00:09:15,800 And that's the thing that every believer should be able to 159 00:09:15,800 --> 00:09:17,640 identify. Do you have Christ? 160 00:09:17,920 --> 00:09:20,880 Do you know Christ? And I don't intend to put any 161 00:09:20,880 --> 00:09:26,200 insecurity on the secure, but the secure are secure and the 162 00:09:26,200 --> 00:09:28,000 secure can go. I know Him. 163 00:09:28,280 --> 00:09:32,000 I don't know about him. I haven't heard of him. 164 00:09:32,480 --> 00:09:38,000 I know Christ. It's so often we see ministers 165 00:09:38,000 --> 00:09:41,360 fall and then we've seen people fall away because of it. 166 00:09:41,800 --> 00:09:44,960 Don't you know somebody who, if you were to ask them why they're 167 00:09:44,960 --> 00:09:48,080 no longer following Christ, they would say it's because of all 168 00:09:48,080 --> 00:09:49,680 the corruption they've seen in the church. 169 00:09:51,400 --> 00:09:53,120 They've revealed who they were following. 170 00:09:53,360 --> 00:09:54,560 They're like, I've tried all that. 171 00:09:54,560 --> 00:09:56,640 I've been there, done that, Got the T-shirt, my friend. 172 00:09:56,640 --> 00:09:59,400 Actually, no, you didn't. You were actually following a 173 00:09:59,400 --> 00:10:02,320 cult of personality. You were following a minister, 174 00:10:02,520 --> 00:10:04,280 but you weren't fault. You were following an under 175 00:10:04,280 --> 00:10:06,320 shepherd, but you weren't following the chief shepherd. 176 00:10:06,480 --> 00:10:09,160 If you were, you'd still be following him because he's 177 00:10:09,160 --> 00:10:11,680 constant and he hasn't changed and He's done no wrong. 178 00:10:12,720 --> 00:10:15,160 And if you were with him, you would have had compassion even 179 00:10:15,160 --> 00:10:16,640 when your favorite minister fell. 180 00:10:17,440 --> 00:10:20,360 But mature believers who have been walking with the Lord, you 181 00:10:20,360 --> 00:10:22,880 hear about a minister who falls and what do you feel? 182 00:10:23,560 --> 00:10:27,440 It breaks your heart, but in no and for not, not one second do 183 00:10:27,440 --> 00:10:32,520 you think, Oh no, my whole faith, my whole foundation, I 184 00:10:32,520 --> 00:10:35,240 better sit down. I can't tell you how many times 185 00:10:35,240 --> 00:10:37,640 I've opened up an e-mail or a news article. 186 00:10:37,640 --> 00:10:40,960 I've seen on social media a man that I loved and admired and had 187 00:10:40,960 --> 00:10:45,320 made a legitimate impact in the Kingdom of God had fallen due to 188 00:10:45,320 --> 00:10:48,240 adultery. Most of the time, adultery is 189 00:10:48,240 --> 00:10:52,880 the main thing that I see. And I go, I grieve for him. 190 00:10:53,120 --> 00:10:56,080 I grieve for his family. And then I pray for me because 191 00:10:56,080 --> 00:11:00,000 I'm selfish like that. And I say, God keep me safe, God 192 00:11:00,000 --> 00:11:02,400 protect me. God, please protect me. 193 00:11:02,480 --> 00:11:04,600 I don't go. I could never. 194 00:11:05,480 --> 00:11:07,480 You mean I could never? Of course I could. 195 00:11:08,160 --> 00:11:11,600 Anyone could sin. Anyone on earth is capable of 196 00:11:11,600 --> 00:11:15,040 committing any other sin that anyone else has ever committed 197 00:11:16,320 --> 00:11:18,400 but for the grace of God, there go I. 198 00:11:19,280 --> 00:11:21,920 So this fills us with compassion and it fills us with the fear of 199 00:11:21,920 --> 00:11:24,440 God. But this is what it looks like 200 00:11:24,440 --> 00:11:26,240 to build on Christ. Aren't you thankful that the 201 00:11:26,240 --> 00:11:28,760 women didn't build on the apostles, but they actually 202 00:11:28,760 --> 00:11:30,480 built on Christ? They said we're going to follow 203 00:11:31,000 --> 00:11:33,280 Jesus. We're going to serve Jesus even 204 00:11:33,280 --> 00:11:36,520 if others don't. That is a great example for all 205 00:11:36,520 --> 00:11:40,040 of us. Now, after the Sabbath, toward 206 00:11:40,040 --> 00:11:43,240 the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the 207 00:11:43,240 --> 00:11:47,440 other Mary went to see the tomb. So remember, Friday night at 208 00:11:47,440 --> 00:11:50,640 sunset, the Sabbath begins. We've got Nicodemus. 209 00:11:50,880 --> 00:11:53,720 We've got others who are helping there at the tomb. 210 00:11:54,040 --> 00:11:56,680 We've got Joseph of Arimathea. He gives up his tomb. 211 00:11:56,680 --> 00:11:58,840 These are Pharisees. They are fully turning their 212 00:11:58,840 --> 00:12:01,520 back on the Sanhedrin, on all the Jewish leadership. 213 00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:03,680 Even in Jesus's death, they're going. 214 00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:08,680 I'm all in on Jesus, which is like the worst time to get on 215 00:12:08,680 --> 00:12:11,680 Team Jesus, You would think. You would think the best time 216 00:12:11,680 --> 00:12:14,360 would be at the triumphal entry. Yeah, I'm with Jesus, too. 217 00:12:14,560 --> 00:12:15,800 Oh, is that what the crowd likes? 218 00:12:15,880 --> 00:12:19,200 We're done with Jesus. Yes, blessed is he who comes in 219 00:12:19,200 --> 00:12:22,520 the name of the Lord, but they did it after he died. 220 00:12:23,200 --> 00:12:25,200 That's when they said, now I'm going to be most loyal. 221 00:12:25,560 --> 00:12:27,160 Now I'm going to be most faithful to him. 222 00:12:32,400 --> 00:12:34,800 So on Friday night the Lord was set in the tomb. 223 00:12:35,840 --> 00:12:38,640 On Saturday is when the Jewish leadership goes to Pilate and 224 00:12:38,640 --> 00:12:42,040 they said, hey, we're worried because his disciples said that 225 00:12:42,120 --> 00:12:43,800 or Jesus said that he would be raised from the dead. 226 00:12:43,800 --> 00:12:45,640 But here's what we're worried. We're worried his disciples are 227 00:12:45,640 --> 00:12:48,320 going to steal the body. So can you please take a Roman 228 00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:49,680 guard? Pilot said you can have it. 229 00:12:50,000 --> 00:12:52,120 So that's established. So the Roman guard shows up on 230 00:12:52,120 --> 00:12:54,720 Saturday. They seal the tomb with clay, 231 00:12:54,720 --> 00:12:56,360 with rope. They do all kinds of stuff to 232 00:12:56,360 --> 00:12:58,720 seal the tomb. I mean, now it's Jesus is in big 233 00:12:58,720 --> 00:13:00,800 trouble, right? Clay and rope and Roman guards. 234 00:13:00,920 --> 00:13:04,320 Oh, no, what's next? How will, how will we ever break 235 00:13:04,320 --> 00:13:06,880 free? So, of course, all this nonsense 236 00:13:06,880 --> 00:13:09,920 has taken place. And now Sunday morning comes. 237 00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:11,640 The women come on the first day of the week. 238 00:13:11,640 --> 00:13:14,680 This is the third day in the way that we're keeping time. 239 00:13:14,920 --> 00:13:17,640 Friday he died. Saturday he was in the tomb. 240 00:13:17,640 --> 00:13:20,880 Sunday is the third day. Sunday is the day of his 241 00:13:20,880 --> 00:13:24,000 resurrection. Rome sealed the tomb. 242 00:13:24,880 --> 00:13:29,040 The guards stood watch, and behold, there was a great 243 00:13:29,040 --> 00:13:32,640 earthquake, for an Angel of the Lord descended from heaven and 244 00:13:32,640 --> 00:13:35,440 came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 245 00:13:37,240 --> 00:13:40,040 The enemies of Jesus thought they had secured this situation, 246 00:13:40,600 --> 00:13:43,920 but heaven was not nervous. 1 Angel comes down from heaven, 247 00:13:44,160 --> 00:13:46,520 rolls the stone away and sits on it. 248 00:13:47,000 --> 00:13:49,680 No big struggle, no mighty contest. 249 00:13:50,440 --> 00:13:52,920 And I want to clarify, the stone was not rolled away so that 250 00:13:53,000 --> 00:13:56,480 Jesus could get out. Jesus could get out of the tomb. 251 00:13:56,880 --> 00:14:00,520 No, no matter what, Jesus had already exited the tomb at his 252 00:14:00,520 --> 00:14:03,400 resurrection. How He can walk through stuff. 253 00:14:04,160 --> 00:14:07,560 He has a glorified body and he walked through the wall when his 254 00:14:07,560 --> 00:14:09,360 disciples are hiding locked away. 255 00:14:09,360 --> 00:14:12,160 Later in the day, He could walk through stone. 256 00:14:12,840 --> 00:14:14,480 He's the creator of all the things. 257 00:14:14,480 --> 00:14:17,000 This is not complex or difficult for him. 258 00:14:17,760 --> 00:14:19,960 It's funny to me how sometimes the things that people get 259 00:14:19,960 --> 00:14:23,640 stumped on, they're like, you think a guy was swallowed by a 260 00:14:23,640 --> 00:14:27,280 big fish and lived in it for three days and I'm like, you're 261 00:14:27,280 --> 00:14:30,560 forgetting something. I believe that there is a God. 262 00:14:31,200 --> 00:14:35,280 And because of that truth, everything else becomes super 263 00:14:35,280 --> 00:14:37,800 easy. Like everything. 264 00:14:37,960 --> 00:14:40,720 You really think that the sea was parted? 265 00:14:40,760 --> 00:14:42,560 You're forgetting something, my friend. 266 00:14:42,840 --> 00:14:46,320 I believe that there is a God. You really believe Jesus died 267 00:14:46,320 --> 00:14:48,360 and was raised from the dead, My friend. 268 00:14:49,160 --> 00:14:53,400 This is easy stuff for me. Simple stuff because I know the 269 00:14:53,400 --> 00:14:57,720 God who does it all. The humanist has a hard time 270 00:14:57,720 --> 00:15:00,040 with these things, but the believer doesn't. 271 00:15:00,040 --> 00:15:01,080 Why? Because we believe. 272 00:15:01,400 --> 00:15:06,320 That's what believers do. The stone was rolled away so 273 00:15:06,320 --> 00:15:09,520 that witnesses could look in. The stone was rolled away for 274 00:15:09,520 --> 00:15:12,720 us. Jesus did not need help escaping 275 00:15:12,720 --> 00:15:15,000 death. Death needed to be exposed as 276 00:15:15,000 --> 00:15:17,760 defeated. That's why the the Father 277 00:15:17,760 --> 00:15:20,360 commanded for the stone to be rolled away. 278 00:15:20,600 --> 00:15:22,960 What a privilege for this Angel and the couple of angels that 279 00:15:22,960 --> 00:15:25,440 actually came down The the other Gospel accounts give us the full 280 00:15:25,440 --> 00:15:28,320 story and you know, they're giving us different moments of 281 00:15:28,320 --> 00:15:29,440 the story. The women woke up. 282 00:15:29,440 --> 00:15:32,200 They see one Angel sitting on top of the stone and then 283 00:15:32,200 --> 00:15:34,440 there's the other Angel was probably already in the tomb 284 00:15:34,440 --> 00:15:37,080 because there's another passage that says they said come see 285 00:15:37,080 --> 00:15:39,640 where he was laying. And then it says 1 was sitting 286 00:15:39,640 --> 00:15:41,240 at his head. One was sitting where his feet 287 00:15:41,240 --> 00:15:43,160 were. So again, as you read your 288 00:15:43,160 --> 00:15:45,240 gospels, there's no contradictions. 289 00:15:45,240 --> 00:15:47,560 There's just different parts of the story being told in 290 00:15:47,560 --> 00:15:49,440 different ways. Some of the gospel authors, the 291 00:15:49,440 --> 00:15:52,600 Holy Spirit had them become much more detailed and chronological. 292 00:15:52,920 --> 00:15:54,240 Others were hitting other themes. 293 00:15:54,520 --> 00:15:57,480 Matthew's hitting particular themes because Matthew's writing 294 00:15:57,480 --> 00:16:01,040 to Jews and he wants to show them the the realities fulfilled 295 00:16:01,440 --> 00:16:04,480 of the over and over and over. But think about the angels that 296 00:16:04,480 --> 00:16:08,920 get sent, the angels who have been in the presence of God ever 297 00:16:08,920 --> 00:16:10,920 since the angels were created, which we don't know when the 298 00:16:10,920 --> 00:16:14,280 Lord created any of the angels, but they've been with him for a 299 00:16:14,280 --> 00:16:18,120 long time. And the angels heard about this 300 00:16:18,320 --> 00:16:22,440 great redemptive plan of God and they could not believe what they 301 00:16:22,440 --> 00:16:26,200 were experiencing when the word of God went to earth and became 302 00:16:26,200 --> 00:16:29,400 flesh. And the message is carried to 303 00:16:29,400 --> 00:16:34,040 Mary to say, the Holy Spirit is going to over shadow you and you 304 00:16:34,040 --> 00:16:37,720 are going to conceive a child miraculously as a virgin. 305 00:16:38,440 --> 00:16:41,400 And the angels are going, this is wild because they understand 306 00:16:41,400 --> 00:16:45,120 that God has just come inside the human flesh and they watch 307 00:16:45,120 --> 00:16:47,760 his birth and they proclaim it and they preach it in the hills 308 00:16:47,760 --> 00:16:50,240 to the shepherds. And they have watched the the 309 00:16:50,240 --> 00:16:54,440 perfect life of Jesus and they watch the death of Jesus. 310 00:16:55,120 --> 00:16:57,080 And they still, this is their master. 311 00:16:57,520 --> 00:16:58,960 They know this is everybody's king. 312 00:16:59,320 --> 00:17:01,680 They can't believe the way he's treated as he walks on the 313 00:17:01,680 --> 00:17:04,200 earth. And they're going, Oh my 314 00:17:04,200 --> 00:17:07,280 goodness, this is wild. And they're sitting there and 315 00:17:07,280 --> 00:17:10,839 they watch him crucified. They comfort him in the garden 316 00:17:11,359 --> 00:17:14,200 the night before he's crucified. They minister to him there. 317 00:17:14,359 --> 00:17:17,599 They watch him crucified. And now they're waiting for the 318 00:17:17,599 --> 00:17:20,720 resurrection. And the father turns to somebody 319 00:17:21,319 --> 00:17:25,240 says, guess what? Guess what you get to do today? 320 00:17:26,720 --> 00:17:28,760 And these angels are sent. They descend from heaven. 321 00:17:28,760 --> 00:17:31,160 Does it say they just instantly appear? 322 00:17:31,520 --> 00:17:33,080 It says they descend from heaven. 323 00:17:33,240 --> 00:17:36,040 I think the text even implies that this is the cause for the 324 00:17:36,040 --> 00:17:38,320 earthquake. We had a great earthquake at His 325 00:17:38,320 --> 00:17:40,640 crucifixion. Now we have a great earthquake 326 00:17:40,920 --> 00:17:43,480 at His resurrection. The Lord is showing that the 327 00:17:43,480 --> 00:17:45,920 natural is preaching about the supernatural. 328 00:17:46,200 --> 00:17:52,680 There's something mighty and magnificent happening here and 329 00:17:52,680 --> 00:17:56,960 now the Angel gets to show up in all the glory of heaven. 330 00:17:56,960 --> 00:17:58,760 Verse 3. His appearance was like 331 00:17:58,760 --> 00:18:01,400 lightning, his clothing white as snow. 332 00:18:02,920 --> 00:18:05,680 The closest I've ever seen a lightning flash is probably 333 00:18:05,680 --> 00:18:09,760 about 50 yards away. Cloud to ground lightning that 334 00:18:09,760 --> 00:18:14,880 feels real, real, real close. You know, 50 yards is 50 yards 335 00:18:14,880 --> 00:18:19,280 close. For throwing baseball, No, for 336 00:18:19,280 --> 00:18:22,760 lightning, yes. That's like I was almost hit, is 337 00:18:22,760 --> 00:18:25,800 the way you tell that story. Like I was hit by lightning 338 00:18:25,800 --> 00:18:31,880 practically. So what's the closest you've 339 00:18:31,880 --> 00:18:34,160 ever seen lightning? Too close, right? 340 00:18:34,880 --> 00:18:36,640 Any closeness of lightning was too close. 341 00:18:36,680 --> 00:18:38,520 Whoa, That was too close. And I saw it. 342 00:18:39,040 --> 00:18:42,560 His appearance is like lightning Consistently, constantly. 343 00:18:43,120 --> 00:18:46,640 This is a powerful being. This is a terrifying heavenly 344 00:18:46,640 --> 00:18:49,320 messenger. He comes with the brightness and 345 00:18:49,320 --> 00:18:51,960 glory of heaven. Verse 4. 346 00:18:52,320 --> 00:18:55,760 And for fear of him, the guards trembled and became like dead 347 00:18:55,760 --> 00:18:58,680 men. So this Angel sitting on top of 348 00:18:58,680 --> 00:19:02,040 the stone, I got to imagine he's enjoying his job. 349 00:19:02,640 --> 00:19:04,880 I got to imagine that he's delighting in this moment 350 00:19:05,080 --> 00:19:09,560 because here we have all the might of Rome, the mightiest 351 00:19:09,560 --> 00:19:12,680 army in the world, and they're there to make sure stuff is 352 00:19:12,680 --> 00:19:15,280 secure. And the Angel comes down 353 00:19:15,480 --> 00:19:17,280 flashing like lightning before them. 354 00:19:17,760 --> 00:19:19,520 They fall on the ground like dead men. 355 00:19:19,520 --> 00:19:22,240 And now he just sits. Imagine he's kicking his feet 356 00:19:24,040 --> 00:19:26,080 and every now and then he just glares at him again. 357 00:19:26,080 --> 00:19:30,800 In case they dare to move. They pretend to be dead men as 358 00:19:30,800 --> 00:19:34,040 they tremble in fear, too afraid to move. 359 00:19:35,240 --> 00:19:37,280 This is not the Angel from a greeting card. 360 00:19:40,600 --> 00:19:42,600 Look at the contrast of what's taking place here. 361 00:19:43,040 --> 00:19:47,080 Living soldiers become like corpses, the crucified Christ is 362 00:19:47,080 --> 00:19:50,440 alive forevermore, the government is shaking, the Angel 363 00:19:50,440 --> 00:19:52,920 is sitting, and the enemies of God are helpless. 364 00:19:54,240 --> 00:20:00,720 Sounds like Psalm 2, doesn't it? I'm going to turn there. 365 00:20:00,760 --> 00:20:07,920 You can join me. Psalm 2 fulfilled over and over 366 00:20:07,920 --> 00:20:10,000 throughout this past week of Jesus's life. 367 00:20:10,280 --> 00:20:14,160 Why do the Nation's rage and the People's plot in vain? 368 00:20:14,640 --> 00:20:18,000 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take 369 00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:22,880 counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed. 370 00:20:23,200 --> 00:20:26,960 That's Jesus saying, let us burst their bonds apart and 371 00:20:26,960 --> 00:20:30,800 castaway their cords from us. This is just like the the man 372 00:20:30,800 --> 00:20:33,560 who had who plants the vineyard. He puts tenants in it. 373 00:20:33,760 --> 00:20:36,480 He sends his son go collect from the vineyard, and they said, 374 00:20:36,480 --> 00:20:39,120 we'll kill the son and take his inheritance. 375 00:20:39,440 --> 00:20:42,680 Oh, how wrong you are. He who sits in the heavens 376 00:20:42,680 --> 00:20:45,560 laughs. The Lord holds them in derision. 377 00:20:45,920 --> 00:20:48,320 He will speak to them in his wrath and terrify them in his 378 00:20:48,320 --> 00:20:53,760 fury, saying, As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy 379 00:20:53,760 --> 00:20:55,560 hill. I will tell of the decree. 380 00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:58,680 The Lord said to me, You are my Son today I have begotten you. 381 00:20:58,840 --> 00:21:02,400 Ask of me, I will make the nation's your heritage and the 382 00:21:02,400 --> 00:21:03,720 ends of the earth your possession. 383 00:21:04,600 --> 00:21:07,960 You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces 384 00:21:08,160 --> 00:21:10,760 like a Potter's vessel. That's what Jesus is going to do 385 00:21:10,760 --> 00:21:14,160 to the nations who disobey Him. That hasn't happened yet. 386 00:21:14,560 --> 00:21:17,560 Part of this passage has been fulfilled, part is not. 387 00:21:18,680 --> 00:21:21,720 He is coming back. You shall break them with a rod 388 00:21:21,720 --> 00:21:24,640 of iron, and dash them in pieces like a Potter's vessel. 389 00:21:25,840 --> 00:21:28,160 Now, therefore, O kings, be wise. 390 00:21:28,800 --> 00:21:32,040 Be warned, O rulers of the earth, serve the Lord with fear, 391 00:21:32,320 --> 00:21:37,640 and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the sun, lest he be angry, 392 00:21:37,640 --> 00:21:40,600 and you perish in the way, For His wrath is quickly kindled. 393 00:21:41,720 --> 00:21:43,480 The blessed are all who take refuge in him. 394 00:21:46,880 --> 00:21:48,280 He who sits in the heavens laughs. 395 00:21:48,280 --> 00:21:49,960 I imagine that's what's happening in the scene. 396 00:21:50,600 --> 00:21:52,720 The Father is laughing. The plan is fulfilled, 397 00:21:52,720 --> 00:21:57,800 everything is forever settled. Rome posted their guards, the 398 00:21:57,800 --> 00:22:01,320 priest plotted, Pilate washed his hands, the rulers raged. 399 00:22:01,480 --> 00:22:05,880 Satan spent everything that he had, and heaven sends 2 angels. 400 00:22:06,960 --> 00:22:09,680 And of course, nothing gets not the resurrection power of Jesus. 401 00:22:10,880 --> 00:22:14,600 So this is the fear and the terror that the Angel is putting 402 00:22:14,600 --> 00:22:17,000 into this Roman guard. But notice the transition when 403 00:22:17,000 --> 00:22:19,440 the women arrive. But the Angel said to the women, 404 00:22:19,800 --> 00:22:23,520 do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who is 405 00:22:23,520 --> 00:22:26,080 crucified. Notice the transition. 406 00:22:26,080 --> 00:22:29,280 I imagine him scowling at the Romans, terrifying them on the 407 00:22:29,280 --> 00:22:31,600 ground. And then the women woke up and 408 00:22:31,600 --> 00:22:36,000 he goes, don't be afraid because he's a bit terrifying to look 409 00:22:36,000 --> 00:22:38,600 at. The whole scene is a bit 410 00:22:38,960 --> 00:22:41,480 horrific for them and traumatizing for them, but he's 411 00:22:41,480 --> 00:22:45,800 encouraged them don't be afraid, don't be afraid. 412 00:22:48,000 --> 00:22:50,600 I know that you seek Jesus who is crucified. 413 00:22:51,240 --> 00:22:53,120 The guards are terrified and intimidated. 414 00:22:53,120 --> 00:22:56,640 No comfort is given to them. The women are afraid and heaven 415 00:22:56,640 --> 00:23:00,960 instead says do not be afraid. This is what righteous power 416 00:23:00,960 --> 00:23:03,800 looks like. This is this is if you will 417 00:23:03,800 --> 00:23:06,440 synthesize your whole Bible. This is why you have to read 418 00:23:06,440 --> 00:23:09,160 your whole Bible and not just say, I love this verse. 419 00:23:09,280 --> 00:23:11,120 I'm glad you love that verse. You should love that verse. 420 00:23:11,120 --> 00:23:14,480 Whichever verse it is, you should love it and also know 421 00:23:14,480 --> 00:23:16,720 there are other verses that paint the full picture. 422 00:23:17,360 --> 00:23:19,720 It's the opposite of what the news media does. 423 00:23:20,120 --> 00:23:23,440 They give you this clip and then they want you to come to 424 00:23:23,440 --> 00:23:26,520 conclusions and they want you to be outraged by it, and they want 425 00:23:26,520 --> 00:23:29,040 you to build beliefs and thinking around it and 426 00:23:29,040 --> 00:23:32,080 philosophies and perspectives. But actually, this was the whole 427 00:23:32,080 --> 00:23:34,560 thing. This was the whole context, the 428 00:23:34,560 --> 00:23:37,120 word of God. We've got to take all of 429 00:23:37,120 --> 00:23:39,160 Scripture and we let the Bible interpret the Bible. 430 00:23:39,560 --> 00:23:41,680 So This is why there's no conflict between the fear of the 431 00:23:41,680 --> 00:23:43,840 Lord and simultaneously rejoicing. 432 00:23:45,720 --> 00:23:47,400 But this is what righteous power looks like. 433 00:23:47,400 --> 00:23:50,760 Righteous power punishes the wicked and it rewards the 434 00:23:50,760 --> 00:23:54,280 righteous. By the way, this is what a godly 435 00:23:54,280 --> 00:23:58,160 man looks like. A godly man is powerful, a godly 436 00:23:58,160 --> 00:24:02,840 man is controlled, A godly man is dangerous, and a godly man is 437 00:24:02,840 --> 00:24:05,480 kind. Well, who's he dangerous to? 438 00:24:05,840 --> 00:24:09,640 CS Lewis put it brilliantly in his book called The Lion, the 439 00:24:09,640 --> 00:24:12,480 Witch and the Wardrobe. One of the characters. 440 00:24:12,520 --> 00:24:16,160 I've quoted this to you before. It's a little girl and she's 441 00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:18,920 talking to Mr. Beaver, so it's animals and critters and all 442 00:24:18,920 --> 00:24:21,920 kinds of stuff. And Aslan is the lion who 443 00:24:21,920 --> 00:24:25,080 represents Jesus in the story, and she has not yet met Aslan. 444 00:24:25,080 --> 00:24:26,400 She's heard about Aslan the king. 445 00:24:26,400 --> 00:24:28,640 She's heard about Aslan the king, but she thought he was a 446 00:24:28,640 --> 00:24:34,840 man. Aslan is a lion, the lion, the 447 00:24:34,840 --> 00:24:37,680 great lion. Oh, said Susan. 448 00:24:38,320 --> 00:24:41,960 I thought he was a man. Is he quite safe? 449 00:24:42,880 --> 00:24:45,080 I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion. 450 00:24:45,840 --> 00:24:49,440 Safe, said Mr. Beaver. Who said anything about safe? 451 00:24:49,440 --> 00:24:51,920 Of course he isn't safe, but he's good. 452 00:24:52,400 --> 00:24:56,080 He's the king, I tell you. This is what righteous power 453 00:24:56,080 --> 00:24:58,440 looks like. Should I be afraid of God? 454 00:24:58,680 --> 00:25:00,360 Yes. What kind of fear? 455 00:25:00,360 --> 00:25:03,160 Well, that depends. That depends. 456 00:25:03,320 --> 00:25:05,240 Are you in submission and obedience to him? 457 00:25:05,520 --> 00:25:08,680 Then you have a reverential fear that leads you to deeper 458 00:25:08,680 --> 00:25:13,120 devotion, deeper obedience and rejoicing simultaneously because 459 00:25:13,120 --> 00:25:16,320 you know, my Father is good. Is he safe? 460 00:25:16,840 --> 00:25:19,560 Well, what do little children think about their father? 461 00:25:20,040 --> 00:25:23,160 Is he safe? Well, not for bad guys, but is 462 00:25:23,160 --> 00:25:26,400 he safe for the little children? Yeah, he's safe for us. 463 00:25:29,760 --> 00:25:32,600 There's a fearful terror that bring that belongs to the 464 00:25:32,600 --> 00:25:35,320 enemies of God. But for those who seek Jesus, 465 00:25:35,800 --> 00:25:39,080 the word from heaven is comfort, even as we still walk in a 466 00:25:39,080 --> 00:25:41,520 reverential fear, not a terror of punishment. 467 00:25:42,000 --> 00:25:45,520 But we have an all and we walk in a submissive honor. 468 00:25:46,560 --> 00:25:49,280 This is why throughout the Scriptures, you see, don't be 469 00:25:49,280 --> 00:25:51,080 afraid. And then you have commands to 470 00:25:51,080 --> 00:25:54,400 say you should fear the Lord. Which is it? 471 00:25:54,400 --> 00:25:56,840 Well, you have to understand what kind of fear we're talking 472 00:25:56,840 --> 00:25:58,840 about. Some people want to minimize it 473 00:25:58,840 --> 00:26:00,840 because they're uncomfortable. They I would never fear the 474 00:26:00,840 --> 00:26:02,800 Lord. That's a dumb thing to say. 475 00:26:03,480 --> 00:26:06,040 That's really stupid. It just reveals your biblical 476 00:26:06,040 --> 00:26:08,240 ignorance. The Bible teaches that you 477 00:26:08,240 --> 00:26:10,800 should fear the Lord. The question is, what does that 478 00:26:10,800 --> 00:26:12,560 mean? What does that look like? 479 00:26:13,160 --> 00:26:15,280 It looks like a submissive honor. 480 00:26:15,680 --> 00:26:18,840 Submissive honor? I know who he is. 481 00:26:19,080 --> 00:26:21,840 I know God does have wrath. Not my God. 482 00:26:21,840 --> 00:26:23,840 My God only has grace. Well then you don't have the God 483 00:26:23,840 --> 00:26:27,360 of the Bible, because the God of the Bible is the whole picture. 484 00:26:27,680 --> 00:26:30,760 He has the multifaceted diamond. Every way you turn him, you can 485 00:26:30,760 --> 00:26:34,200 see a different part of Him. And yes, God is also love. 486 00:26:35,040 --> 00:26:37,320 So we see all this at work here in this moment. 487 00:26:37,560 --> 00:26:41,120 His goodness, His kindness, His gentleness, His wrath. 488 00:26:42,960 --> 00:26:44,960 The Angel said to the women, do not be afraid. 489 00:26:45,120 --> 00:26:47,640 I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 490 00:26:48,160 --> 00:26:51,640 He is not here, for he is risen as he said. 491 00:26:51,960 --> 00:26:57,840 Come see the place where he lay. And now we have it, one of the 492 00:26:57,840 --> 00:27:00,440 greatest sentences ever spoken. The tomb is not full. 493 00:27:00,640 --> 00:27:02,960 Death did not win. Sin did not hold him. 494 00:27:03,200 --> 00:27:06,400 The grave could not keep him. Hell did not conquer him. 495 00:27:06,520 --> 00:27:11,200 Jesus has risen as He said. That's the point that the 496 00:27:11,200 --> 00:27:14,120 angel's emphasizing as well. Jesus told them this would 497 00:27:14,120 --> 00:27:17,560 happen multiple times over and over. 498 00:27:18,440 --> 00:27:20,160 Jesus was not surprised by the cross. 499 00:27:20,200 --> 00:27:21,760 Jesus was not defeated by the grave. 500 00:27:21,920 --> 00:27:25,160 He was not rescued on this day from a plan that failed. 501 00:27:26,760 --> 00:27:29,640 He was accomplishing exactly what He always said He would 502 00:27:29,640 --> 00:27:32,640 accomplish. The resurrection is not just an 503 00:27:32,640 --> 00:27:35,120 inspiring addition to Christianity. 504 00:27:35,360 --> 00:27:37,920 The resurrection is necessary and essential. 505 00:27:38,440 --> 00:27:40,640 If you don't believe in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus 506 00:27:40,640 --> 00:27:44,760 Christ, the bodily resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, 507 00:27:44,760 --> 00:27:46,960 because cults and false religions will say, I think 508 00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:51,160 Jesus rose. Like spiritually, that's a 509 00:27:51,160 --> 00:27:54,800 heresy. And that's a damnable heresy. 510 00:27:54,800 --> 00:27:57,560 We would say it's completely Antichrist. 511 00:27:59,120 --> 00:28:03,440 First Corinthians 15 makes it very plain as Paul lays out the 512 00:28:03,440 --> 00:28:06,400 whole argument. If Christ has not been raised, 513 00:28:06,720 --> 00:28:11,360 your faith is futile. If Jesus is not raised, we are 514 00:28:11,360 --> 00:28:14,160 still in our sins. If Jesus is not raised, 515 00:28:14,360 --> 00:28:17,080 preaching is worthless. If Jesus is not raised, faith is 516 00:28:17,080 --> 00:28:19,360 empty. If Jesus is not raised, the dead 517 00:28:19,360 --> 00:28:21,240 are not raised. If Jesus is not raised, 518 00:28:21,480 --> 00:28:25,920 Christians are of all people to be most pitied, poor things, 519 00:28:26,520 --> 00:28:30,920 foolish, foolish Christians. But then Paul finishes and says, 520 00:28:31,680 --> 00:28:36,760 but Christ has been raised. Paul met the living Christ not 521 00:28:36,760 --> 00:28:40,200 on the day of the resurrection, but years later when Jesus 522 00:28:40,200 --> 00:28:43,680 mercifully rescued Paul and knocked him off of his high 523 00:28:43,680 --> 00:28:47,120 horse. Jesus's resurrection proves his 524 00:28:47,120 --> 00:28:50,720 victory over sin and death. Jesus's resurrection confirms 525 00:28:50,720 --> 00:28:52,760 that the Father accepted his sacrifice. 526 00:28:53,200 --> 00:28:56,000 Anybody can die. Jesus died. 527 00:28:56,800 --> 00:29:00,080 I hope it took, I hope it landed, I hope it worked. 528 00:29:00,480 --> 00:29:04,520 The resurrection also reveals and guarantees our future 529 00:29:04,520 --> 00:29:06,240 resurrection. His resurrection means that 530 00:29:06,240 --> 00:29:09,160 death does not get the final word over the people of God. 531 00:29:09,760 --> 00:29:13,000 He died for our sins and He rose to reign forever. 532 00:29:14,480 --> 00:29:16,720 Verse 7. Then go quickly and tell His 533 00:29:16,720 --> 00:29:19,720 disciples that He has risen from the dead, and behold, He is 534 00:29:19,720 --> 00:29:23,440 going before you to Galilee. There you will see Him as I have 535 00:29:23,440 --> 00:29:26,160 told you. So the women came to serve a 536 00:29:26,160 --> 00:29:29,360 dead body, and they leave as the first messengers of the 537 00:29:29,360 --> 00:29:32,640 resurrection. They came morning and they leave 538 00:29:32,640 --> 00:29:34,960 rejoicing. That's what the Lord does. 539 00:29:35,400 --> 00:29:37,520 That's what happens when you see the principle of resurrection in 540 00:29:37,520 --> 00:29:41,080 your life. Whenever something is is broken, 541 00:29:41,080 --> 00:29:43,640 whenever something is devastated, it's just not over 542 00:29:43,640 --> 00:29:45,720 yet. Christians have come to believe 543 00:29:45,720 --> 00:29:48,360 that when something's broken, when something's awful in your 544 00:29:48,360 --> 00:29:51,560 life, no matter how bad, no matter how dark, no matter how 545 00:29:51,560 --> 00:29:55,160 difficult, no matter how painful, the Christian knows 546 00:29:55,400 --> 00:29:59,560 it's not over because God's story is never in this way. 547 00:30:00,120 --> 00:30:05,200 So this is devastating, this is tragic, this is unexpected, but 548 00:30:05,200 --> 00:30:07,680 the Christian says, but it's not over. 549 00:30:07,960 --> 00:30:12,120 This moment hurts. The crucifixion is painful, but 550 00:30:12,120 --> 00:30:17,200 the story of God isn't finished. All is well that ends well and 551 00:30:17,200 --> 00:30:25,000 God's story always ends well. The Angel says, see, I have told 552 00:30:25,000 --> 00:30:29,320 you. He's emphasizing here my work is 553 00:30:29,320 --> 00:30:31,280 done. I've accomplished what I needed 554 00:30:31,280 --> 00:30:33,960 to accomplish. The rest is on you. 555 00:30:34,720 --> 00:30:36,920 You have a job to do. I was faithful. 556 00:30:37,320 --> 00:30:39,800 I was sent on a mission. I was accountable to it. 557 00:30:39,800 --> 00:30:45,040 And he says, see, I've told you like I can't do your job for 558 00:30:45,040 --> 00:30:47,560 you. Angels don't have the 559 00:30:47,560 --> 00:30:50,440 responsibility of preaching the gospel and making disciples of 560 00:30:50,440 --> 00:30:52,720 all nations. That's not how the Lord chose to 561 00:30:52,720 --> 00:30:55,640 do it. The Lord didn't choose to do it 562 00:30:55,640 --> 00:30:57,320 himself. He said I'm going to go to 563 00:30:57,320 --> 00:30:59,160 heaven. I'm going to send the Holy 564 00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:02,360 Spirit. He is just like me. 565 00:31:02,960 --> 00:31:05,880 He will empower you. He will fill you, and then we 566 00:31:05,880 --> 00:31:08,480 will send you and you will preach. 567 00:31:08,920 --> 00:31:11,880 You will tell everybody everywhere about me. 568 00:31:12,680 --> 00:31:15,280 That was God's plan. There is no Plan B. 569 00:31:16,000 --> 00:31:18,440 It's the church. The church is the hope of the 570 00:31:18,440 --> 00:31:20,960 world because Jesus is the hope of the world. 571 00:31:21,600 --> 00:31:24,640 And if the church fails, then the mission fails. 572 00:31:25,480 --> 00:31:27,760 This is why, you hear me pray the way I do, that we would not 573 00:31:27,760 --> 00:31:30,720 be a Church of consumers, but a Church of producers. 574 00:31:32,080 --> 00:31:38,040 In the West, I, and we are very consumeristic, more so than we 575 00:31:38,040 --> 00:31:41,400 realize, more so than I know. I get glimpses of it at times 576 00:31:41,400 --> 00:31:44,480 and I'm disgusted with myself. And then I return to my consumer 577 00:31:44,480 --> 00:31:49,040 ways and the church. We don't have that luxury. 578 00:31:49,680 --> 00:31:51,520 We cannot continue to fall to that temptation. 579 00:31:52,160 --> 00:31:54,600 Do you know that other nations are now sending missionaries to 580 00:31:54,600 --> 00:31:57,920 the United States of America? And they've been doing it for a 581 00:31:57,920 --> 00:32:00,320 while. There are other nations who say, 582 00:32:00,320 --> 00:32:03,880 God help those poor people, and they come over here and I've met 583 00:32:03,880 --> 00:32:05,720 missionaries and like, yeah, the Lord sent us over here, my 584 00:32:07,000 --> 00:32:13,200 brother, we got this. Do you do you show me the fruit 585 00:32:13,560 --> 00:32:16,480 of of the church in the United States. 586 00:32:17,120 --> 00:32:19,000 Show us all the good fruit. Where's all the good fruit? 587 00:32:19,000 --> 00:32:22,360 Where's all the transformation? Where is just the entirely 588 00:32:22,360 --> 00:32:26,320 Christianized culture that has been built by an entirely 589 00:32:26,320 --> 00:32:32,720 Christian people? You are God's plan to reach your 590 00:32:32,720 --> 00:32:35,120 neighbor. You are God's plan to reach your 591 00:32:35,120 --> 00:32:36,680 friend. You are God's plan to reach your 592 00:32:36,680 --> 00:32:38,960 Co worker. You are God's plan to reach your 593 00:32:38,960 --> 00:32:41,600 family member. It's a lot of pressure. 594 00:32:41,600 --> 00:32:43,920 Well, you're, you're not responsible to change their 595 00:32:43,920 --> 00:32:45,960 heart. You're responsible to tell them 596 00:32:45,960 --> 00:32:48,600 the truth. So don't don't confuse your 597 00:32:48,600 --> 00:32:51,320 assignment. Your assignment is obedience. 598 00:32:51,320 --> 00:32:53,280 The Lord's assignment, the Lord's assignment. 599 00:32:53,280 --> 00:32:54,880 He's the one who grants them repentance. 600 00:32:54,880 --> 00:32:56,840 You don't have to change anybody's heart. 601 00:32:56,840 --> 00:32:58,120 You don't have to change anybody's mind. 602 00:32:58,480 --> 00:33:01,040 You have to be faithful though. You have to be a faithful 603 00:33:01,040 --> 00:33:02,560 witness. The women were faithful 604 00:33:02,560 --> 00:33:04,400 witnesses. They went and told the 605 00:33:04,400 --> 00:33:07,200 disciples. And the disciples didn't say we 606 00:33:07,200 --> 00:33:11,200 believe you, did they? Some of the disciples said, I 607 00:33:11,200 --> 00:33:12,960 don't believe you. Some of the disciples said, I'll 608 00:33:12,960 --> 00:33:15,640 have to go see it for myself. That's not the women's problem. 609 00:33:16,360 --> 00:33:19,400 Their responsibility was to obey, and they obeyed their 610 00:33:19,400 --> 00:33:21,360 assignment. And then people can settle it 611 00:33:21,360 --> 00:33:23,080 for themselves. People can seek the Lord. 612 00:33:23,280 --> 00:33:25,960 People can turn from the Lord. People can make demands of the 613 00:33:25,960 --> 00:33:27,360 Lord. Maybe he'll meet their demands. 614 00:33:27,360 --> 00:33:32,040 Maybe he won't like Thomas. I won't believe until I see it. 615 00:33:32,040 --> 00:33:33,880 Jesus walks in and goes, how about now, Thomas? 616 00:33:33,880 --> 00:33:38,720 Thomas goes, Whoa, my Lord and my God, now you believe, Thomas. 617 00:33:41,960 --> 00:33:45,280 It's through your preaching. It's through your telling about 618 00:33:45,280 --> 00:33:48,120 what Jesus has done for you that God is going to change the 619 00:33:48,120 --> 00:33:50,000 world. It's how he did it then. 620 00:33:50,240 --> 00:33:53,960 It's how he does it now. See, I have told you the tomb is 621 00:33:53,960 --> 00:33:55,280 empty. The evidence has been given. 622 00:33:55,520 --> 00:33:58,440 Now you must obey. You hear the good news, and then 623 00:33:58,440 --> 00:34:00,000 you're responsible with what you do with it. 624 00:34:01,880 --> 00:34:05,400 You're responsible with what you do with the gospel, not just for 625 00:34:05,400 --> 00:34:08,360 yourself. Oh, yeah, I've already accepted 626 00:34:08,360 --> 00:34:09,000 it. Right. 627 00:34:09,360 --> 00:34:12,400 That's step one. That's spiritual infancy, which 628 00:34:12,440 --> 00:34:15,520 we all have to start at. It's not a flaw, it's a feature. 629 00:34:16,040 --> 00:34:20,800 But then we have to grow past that and go, wow, now I want to 630 00:34:20,800 --> 00:34:24,040 tell somebody else, now that I've tasted and seen, I want to 631 00:34:24,040 --> 00:34:27,360 pass this along. You either believe in, you obey, 632 00:34:27,600 --> 00:34:30,199 or you suppress the truth in disobedience. 633 00:34:31,840 --> 00:34:34,480 Verse 8. So they departed quickly from 634 00:34:34,480 --> 00:34:40,159 the tomb with fear and great joy and ran to tell his disciples, 635 00:34:40,679 --> 00:34:44,440 fear and joy existing together. It's not an unbelieving fear 636 00:34:44,960 --> 00:34:47,040 like the guards back at the tomb. 637 00:34:48,320 --> 00:34:50,960 This is a reverent, all mixed with resurrection joy. 638 00:34:51,239 --> 00:34:53,080 They're overwhelmed and they're trembling. 639 00:34:53,199 --> 00:34:55,440 They're rejoicing and they're obeying quickly. 640 00:34:56,120 --> 00:34:57,960 That is a good picture of Christian obedience. 641 00:34:58,120 --> 00:35:02,040 Not perfect emotional neatness, not perfect theological 642 00:35:02,040 --> 00:35:05,720 understanding, not having every feeling or emotion sorted out, 643 00:35:05,960 --> 00:35:07,640 but hearing the word of the Lord and moving. 644 00:35:08,320 --> 00:35:10,520 The Lord is commanded, and now you obey. 645 00:35:11,280 --> 00:35:13,720 Well, I wish an Angel would tell me what to do. 646 00:35:13,920 --> 00:35:16,080 You have more than an Angel telling you what to do. 647 00:35:16,520 --> 00:35:18,480 You have the Lord Jesus telling you what to do. 648 00:35:18,880 --> 00:35:21,480 You can read ahead if you'd like this week and finish the 649 00:35:21,480 --> 00:35:24,000 chapter. Spoiler alert, he already told 650 00:35:24,000 --> 00:35:28,160 you what to do. This is the purpose of the 651 00:35:28,160 --> 00:35:29,320 church. This is the purpose of every 652 00:35:29,320 --> 00:35:32,360 church. Churches can have personality. 653 00:35:32,520 --> 00:35:35,360 Churches can have certain strengths in different 654 00:35:35,360 --> 00:35:38,680 congregations, but all churches have the same mission. 655 00:35:39,960 --> 00:35:44,280 All churches have the same purpose, to make disciples of 656 00:35:44,280 --> 00:35:47,360 all nations. That is the mission of the 657 00:35:47,360 --> 00:35:49,760 Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. We don't get to define that as 658 00:35:49,760 --> 00:35:52,440 local churches and go, oh, we're going to be a this kind of 659 00:35:52,440 --> 00:35:55,000 church or that kind of church. Well, we're going to have a 660 00:35:55,000 --> 00:35:56,600 personality that's built around who's here. 661 00:35:56,600 --> 00:35:59,960 We're going to have a personality that's built on the 662 00:35:59,960 --> 00:36:02,400 strengths and the calling in particular of us and the 663 00:36:02,400 --> 00:36:04,120 leadership. And that'll look like something. 664 00:36:04,320 --> 00:36:06,880 Each family looks like something, but every Christian 665 00:36:06,880 --> 00:36:10,960 household also has the priority of glorifying Jesus, and every 666 00:36:10,960 --> 00:36:13,480 church has the priority of making disciples. 667 00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:18,680 Verse 9. And behold, Jesus met them and 668 00:36:18,680 --> 00:36:21,920 said greetings. So they obey. 669 00:36:22,440 --> 00:36:24,000 And then Jesus met them on the way. 670 00:36:24,440 --> 00:36:27,080 You want Jesus to meet with you? Walk in obedience. 671 00:36:28,240 --> 00:36:31,040 I just wish the Lord would like show up for me. 672 00:36:31,560 --> 00:36:32,640 When does he show up for the women? 673 00:36:32,640 --> 00:36:34,240 He finds them. They didn't go find him. 674 00:36:34,640 --> 00:36:36,640 They went on their job. They went on their mission. 675 00:36:36,960 --> 00:36:39,280 They're running to obey what they've been told. 676 00:36:39,280 --> 00:36:42,560 And Jesus goes, this is going to be sweet. 677 00:36:42,760 --> 00:36:45,040 They're going to love this. Greetings. 678 00:36:45,440 --> 00:36:47,280 And what do they do? They fall down at his feet. 679 00:36:49,160 --> 00:36:50,520 They probably hadn't done this before. 680 00:36:51,480 --> 00:36:54,400 They met him, they loved Him, they followed him, they honored 681 00:36:54,400 --> 00:36:59,480 him, but in this moment, the full revelation, if any, if they 682 00:36:59,480 --> 00:37:02,800 had any other doubts, those are being erased. 683 00:37:03,480 --> 00:37:06,440 Greetings. And they came up and took hold 684 00:37:06,440 --> 00:37:11,640 of his feet and worshipped him. They meet Jesus as they go. 685 00:37:13,440 --> 00:37:16,120 That's when often times you'll find the presence of Jesus the 686 00:37:16,120 --> 00:37:19,560 sweetest in your life and the fellowship is most near in your 687 00:37:19,560 --> 00:37:23,400 obedience. You want to see more of the 688 00:37:23,400 --> 00:37:26,000 presence of God in your life? Pursue more obedience. 689 00:37:27,000 --> 00:37:30,360 Don't confuse it to think it's a formula and something that 690 00:37:30,360 --> 00:37:32,760 you'll earn. I obeyed and therefore I earn 691 00:37:32,760 --> 00:37:33,840 more of the presence of the Lord. 692 00:37:33,840 --> 00:37:38,000 That would be a massive mistake. But what you will find happen is 693 00:37:38,320 --> 00:37:41,200 as you're pursuing the Lord and His will, you're in deeper 694 00:37:41,200 --> 00:37:44,240 fellowship with the Lord. That's what happens. 695 00:37:46,000 --> 00:37:48,000 They see Him and then they worship Him. 696 00:37:48,000 --> 00:37:52,080 They take hold of His feet. This is the bottle, the bodily 697 00:37:52,080 --> 00:37:55,280 resurrection of the Lord Jesus, not just some sort of spiritual 698 00:37:55,280 --> 00:37:57,560 idea that took place. This is not a symbol. 699 00:37:57,840 --> 00:37:59,640 This is the risen Christ in a real body. 700 00:37:59,840 --> 00:38:02,360 The feet that were pierced are now standing. 701 00:38:02,520 --> 00:38:05,880 The body that was buried is now alive, and they worship Him. 702 00:38:07,640 --> 00:38:11,920 Verse 10. Then Jesus said to them, do not 703 00:38:11,920 --> 00:38:14,480 be afraid. So don't have any fear, don't 704 00:38:14,480 --> 00:38:17,240 have any terror. Aren't they supposed to fear the 705 00:38:17,240 --> 00:38:19,760 Lord? They do, and they will continue 706 00:38:19,760 --> 00:38:22,080 to, as the New Testament will continue to teach. 707 00:38:23,000 --> 00:38:25,800 Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to 708 00:38:25,800 --> 00:38:27,840 Galilee, and there they will see me. 709 00:38:29,280 --> 00:38:32,760 Jesus calls his disciples here something unique, something 710 00:38:32,760 --> 00:38:37,440 profound. He calls them my brothers, which 711 00:38:37,440 --> 00:38:41,920 is a very gracious thing for him to say about the men who 712 00:38:41,920 --> 00:38:44,600 deserted him and about the men who left him. 713 00:38:44,960 --> 00:38:48,080 This is Jesus offering grace and forgiveness. 714 00:38:48,480 --> 00:38:51,200 These are men who are hiding Peter who denied they all failed 715 00:38:51,200 --> 00:38:53,000 him. And the risen Christ says, go 716 00:38:53,000 --> 00:38:57,560 tell my brothers this is mercy. And to call someone brother is 717 00:38:57,560 --> 00:38:59,760 to say that you're sharing the inheritance with them. 718 00:39:00,920 --> 00:39:03,680 So Jesus is also extending the inheritance to his church. 719 00:39:04,280 --> 00:39:07,120 And by the way, we're all brothers in that sense of 720 00:39:07,120 --> 00:39:10,200 Christ. Even if you're a woman, the 721 00:39:10,440 --> 00:39:13,000 promise is still for all the sons of God. 722 00:39:13,000 --> 00:39:14,440 So you might say, I don't want to be a son of God. 723 00:39:14,440 --> 00:39:17,120 Well, us guys didn't want to be a bride of Christ and yet here 724 00:39:17,120 --> 00:39:20,040 we are. So it's not, it's not gendered 725 00:39:20,040 --> 00:39:23,240 in that sense. So to be you do want to be a son 726 00:39:23,240 --> 00:39:24,800 of God, women, you're sons of God. 727 00:39:24,800 --> 00:39:27,520 That means you get the inheritance because throughout 728 00:39:27,520 --> 00:39:30,000 history and throughout the Scriptures, daughters don't get 729 00:39:30,000 --> 00:39:32,720 the inheritance. The son gets the inheritance. 730 00:39:33,080 --> 00:39:36,080 So This is why you want to be, yes, I am a son of God and yes, 731 00:39:36,080 --> 00:39:38,480 I'm also the bride of Christ. So it's fair. 732 00:39:38,880 --> 00:39:42,720 It goes both ways. And yes you do. 733 00:39:42,720 --> 00:39:45,960 Gentlemen, brothers, you do want to be the bride of Christ. 734 00:39:47,200 --> 00:39:51,080 And sisters, of course, we want to be also the sons of God, but 735 00:39:51,080 --> 00:39:55,560 Jesus calls them my brothers. Jesus sharing his inheritance 736 00:39:55,560 --> 00:39:57,520 with his brothers. Disciples don't have an 737 00:39:57,520 --> 00:39:59,280 inheritance. Servants don't have an 738 00:39:59,280 --> 00:40:01,120 inheritance. Slaves don't have an 739 00:40:01,120 --> 00:40:04,120 inheritance, but brothers do. And the first born from among 740 00:40:04,120 --> 00:40:06,840 all the dead, the Lord Jesus blesses us all with what he 741 00:40:06,840 --> 00:40:08,400 accomplished and what he earned for us. 742 00:40:10,200 --> 00:40:12,680 Verse 11 while they were still while they were going. 743 00:40:13,360 --> 00:40:16,280 Behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief 744 00:40:16,280 --> 00:40:20,160 priests what had taken place. So the women finally left. 745 00:40:20,560 --> 00:40:24,280 And now eventually the Angel departs and the guards are 746 00:40:24,280 --> 00:40:25,920 horrified. They've never experienced 747 00:40:25,920 --> 00:40:28,000 anything like this. These are pagans. 748 00:40:28,000 --> 00:40:29,200 And they're going, wait a second. 749 00:40:29,640 --> 00:40:32,400 This whole Jewish thing, this whole Jewish Jesus, this whole 750 00:40:32,400 --> 00:40:36,080 rabbi, The Jews hate him, but he's actually who he said he 751 00:40:36,080 --> 00:40:38,640 was. Everybody knows who Jesus is at 752 00:40:38,640 --> 00:40:40,160 this point. They're not just guarding some 753 00:40:40,160 --> 00:40:41,560 random though. I think it's some Jewish 754 00:40:41,560 --> 00:40:43,040 Carpenter that no one's ever heard. 755 00:40:43,040 --> 00:40:45,840 Everybody knows who he is. Everyone knows what's happened. 756 00:40:47,160 --> 00:40:49,080 So they run into the city and they don't know. 757 00:40:49,080 --> 00:40:50,200 They don't know. They don't want to go tell 758 00:40:50,200 --> 00:40:54,240 Pilate, hey, bad news because they could be killed for what 759 00:40:54,240 --> 00:40:56,880 has just taken place. So instead they go to the Jews. 760 00:40:56,880 --> 00:41:00,920 Would you guys please help us? Please help us solve this. 761 00:41:01,080 --> 00:41:04,920 Help us figure out what to do. This is the other response. 762 00:41:04,920 --> 00:41:06,040 This is the opposite of the women. 763 00:41:06,040 --> 00:41:07,440 The women hear the truth and obey. 764 00:41:07,680 --> 00:41:09,880 The guard seized this power and they go report it. 765 00:41:10,360 --> 00:41:12,800 The priests hear the report and they suppress it. 766 00:41:13,000 --> 00:41:14,640 They don't investigate it with humble hearts. 767 00:41:14,800 --> 00:41:17,080 They do not repent, they do not fall on their faces. 768 00:41:17,720 --> 00:41:20,760 They bribe the soldiers and they spread a lie. 769 00:41:21,920 --> 00:41:28,080 This is what hard hearts do. People heard God speak during 770 00:41:28,080 --> 00:41:29,920 the ministry of Jesus and you know what they said? 771 00:41:30,120 --> 00:41:33,000 They heard the voice of the Father and people said it 772 00:41:33,000 --> 00:41:35,800 thundered. That happened. 773 00:41:36,640 --> 00:41:40,600 God spoke and everyone heard it. And then some people said that 774 00:41:40,600 --> 00:41:43,720 was Thunder. Why? 775 00:41:44,520 --> 00:41:47,120 Because their own hard hearts, because their own lack of desire 776 00:41:47,120 --> 00:41:51,720 to obey God instead of because when you believe that there is a 777 00:41:51,720 --> 00:41:54,280 God, you are now accountable to that God. 778 00:41:54,680 --> 00:41:57,520 This is a very simple logical argument that you need to 779 00:41:57,520 --> 00:42:00,160 understand. This is why so many people don't 780 00:42:00,160 --> 00:42:04,080 believe in God. Yes they do, but if they were to 781 00:42:04,080 --> 00:42:07,400 fully acknowledge that reality to themselves, then they would 782 00:42:07,400 --> 00:42:09,600 also have to reconcile with that reality. 783 00:42:10,160 --> 00:42:11,680 I don't know if I believe that anymore. 784 00:42:11,840 --> 00:42:17,600 I'm deconstructing my faith. I, I, I don't know. 785 00:42:17,600 --> 00:42:21,880 I'm I'm more enlightened now. That is a person who loves their 786 00:42:21,880 --> 00:42:25,000 sin, and if they come face to face with Christ, they know they 787 00:42:25,000 --> 00:42:27,240 don't get to keep their sin and Christ. 788 00:42:27,320 --> 00:42:30,840 So they say, I think Jesus was a good moral teacher and I think 789 00:42:30,840 --> 00:42:34,000 he was a great man, and I think that I can't deny Christ. 790 00:42:34,000 --> 00:42:36,160 Literally no religion in the world denies Christ. 791 00:42:36,160 --> 00:42:38,480 Did you know that they all have to handle Christ? 792 00:42:38,720 --> 00:42:41,200 Every false cult deals with the Lord Jesus. 793 00:42:41,400 --> 00:42:43,400 Every false religion has to deal with the Lord Jesus. 794 00:42:43,400 --> 00:42:45,160 Why? Because he's King of kings and 795 00:42:45,160 --> 00:42:47,560 Lord of Lords. Now, they still lie about him, 796 00:42:47,560 --> 00:42:50,600 just like the Jews did then, just like Jews do to this day. 797 00:42:51,240 --> 00:42:54,160 Every world religion, everything still lies about Christ. 798 00:42:54,360 --> 00:42:57,320 But they don't say like Jesus didn't exist because you'd be an 799 00:42:57,320 --> 00:43:01,920 idiot to say that. There's more evidence that Jesus 800 00:43:01,920 --> 00:43:05,760 existed than Shakespeare. So, you know, if you're that 801 00:43:05,760 --> 00:43:07,600 much of A moron, then you're free to be. 802 00:43:07,600 --> 00:43:09,480 But my point is, people aren't stupid. 803 00:43:10,080 --> 00:43:12,280 I don't intend to insult them. My point is to help you 804 00:43:12,280 --> 00:43:14,360 understand the issue is hard hearts. 805 00:43:14,840 --> 00:43:18,560 The Pharisees crucify the Lord of glory, The Roman guards 806 00:43:18,560 --> 00:43:21,560 crucified the Lord of glory, and when they saw him raised from 807 00:43:21,560 --> 00:43:25,840 the dead, they still would not believe because they didn't want 808 00:43:25,920 --> 00:43:27,560 to. That's it. 809 00:43:28,600 --> 00:43:32,320 The pressure's off of you. Now go tell the truth with love 810 00:43:32,320 --> 00:43:33,960 and with joy and with enthusiasm. 811 00:43:33,960 --> 00:43:39,320 When people go, uh huh, you go, so sad for you, on to the next 812 00:43:39,320 --> 00:43:41,600 one. Because Jesus said, and if you 813 00:43:41,600 --> 00:43:44,680 believe your Master, the harvest is ready, but the laborers are 814 00:43:44,680 --> 00:43:48,200 few and you get stuck on one grain of wheat and you go, it's 815 00:43:48,200 --> 00:43:51,240 not harvesting, it's not harvesting, it's not harvesting. 816 00:43:52,320 --> 00:43:54,240 Keep moving. There are other grains in the 817 00:43:54,240 --> 00:43:58,400 field that are ready right now and they need you and they're 818 00:43:58,400 --> 00:44:03,880 open and the Lord is sending you to them and you are responsible 819 00:44:03,880 --> 00:44:05,920 for them. And you will also answer for 820 00:44:05,920 --> 00:44:15,130 your obedience or disobedience. They bribe the soldiers. 821 00:44:15,130 --> 00:44:19,120 They spread the lie. People heard God, people say it 822 00:44:19,120 --> 00:44:21,160 thundered. Have you ever shared a 823 00:44:21,160 --> 00:44:23,280 testimony, a miracle story of something the Lord has done in 824 00:44:23,280 --> 00:44:25,720 your life? And then the cynic is there and 825 00:44:25,720 --> 00:44:29,720 they go, well, that's just because this, the cynical 826 00:44:29,720 --> 00:44:32,280 explanation, the naturalist explanation for everything. 827 00:44:32,640 --> 00:44:34,360 Oh well, that only happened because of this. 828 00:44:34,760 --> 00:44:38,400 Oh, that's only because of this. There will always be cynics. 829 00:44:38,640 --> 00:44:40,720 Make sure you're not one of them. 830 00:44:40,720 --> 00:44:44,800 That's right, that's right. They see enough truth to be 831 00:44:44,800 --> 00:44:47,400 responsible. They know enough to repent, but 832 00:44:47,400 --> 00:44:51,000 they love their position or their sin or their control or 833 00:44:51,000 --> 00:44:53,800 their own Kingdom or their own circumstances more than they 834 00:44:53,800 --> 00:44:55,480 love God. And that's the warning. 835 00:44:56,240 --> 00:45:03,520 It's not always vile. The rich young ruler, he seems 836 00:45:03,520 --> 00:45:07,640 interested, He seems curious. And Jesus says, go sell 837 00:45:07,640 --> 00:45:09,280 everything you have and then come follow me. 838 00:45:09,280 --> 00:45:12,400 And he goes, oof, that is too much to ask. 839 00:45:12,920 --> 00:45:19,200 I don't love you that much. And he went away sad because he 840 00:45:19,200 --> 00:45:22,440 had so much stuff. He had ordered so much off 841 00:45:22,440 --> 00:45:25,640 Amazon. And he took so many nice trips 842 00:45:25,840 --> 00:45:29,760 and he had so many beach houses and he had so many girlfriends 843 00:45:30,000 --> 00:45:31,440 and he had. So just whatever. 844 00:45:31,840 --> 00:45:34,560 He was just, he was a cool young guy and he was rich. 845 00:45:34,880 --> 00:45:38,360 Give all that up for Jesus. Yeah. 846 00:45:39,240 --> 00:45:43,280 Such a tough trade. Spoken like someone who doesn't 847 00:45:43,280 --> 00:45:47,160 really know Jesus, but Jesus loved him. 848 00:45:47,160 --> 00:45:48,320 But you know what Jesus didn't do? 849 00:45:48,680 --> 00:45:52,440 Please, please, please please please please please please, 850 00:45:52,680 --> 00:45:57,880 please, please. He didn't chase him. 851 00:45:58,400 --> 00:46:01,080 We'd get no report of how he sent other apostles on an 852 00:46:01,080 --> 00:46:03,760 ongoing mission for this guy. We didn't. 853 00:46:03,760 --> 00:46:05,840 We don't get told about prayer meetings that were set up for 854 00:46:05,840 --> 00:46:08,440 this guy. Jesus says I know what I'm 855 00:46:08,440 --> 00:46:10,640 worth. The mission carries on. 856 00:46:11,880 --> 00:46:15,880 Do you know what Jesus is worth? Your life is Your life is 857 00:46:16,200 --> 00:46:18,400 telling that whether or not your mouth would say it. 858 00:46:18,760 --> 00:46:20,960 Your life tells whether or not you know what Jesus is worth. 859 00:46:23,440 --> 00:46:26,920 Your life casts your vote. We don't vote on a paper ballot. 860 00:46:27,000 --> 00:46:38,710 We vote every day we're closing. This is a warning, of course. 861 00:46:39,470 --> 00:46:42,630 Do not reject the truth because it threatens your self-interest. 862 00:46:43,880 --> 00:46:46,840 Do not suppress conviction because obedience would cost 863 00:46:46,840 --> 00:46:49,040 you. Do not love your sins so much 864 00:46:49,040 --> 00:46:51,760 that you would rather defend a lie than bound to the risen 865 00:46:51,760 --> 00:46:56,400 Christ. Pastor Kim, my pastor, he says 866 00:46:56,680 --> 00:46:59,520 he has a very he's, he's got his doctorate, so he's much smarter 867 00:46:59,520 --> 00:47:02,680 than me. And he has a very elaborate 868 00:47:02,680 --> 00:47:04,560 theological explanation for this. 869 00:47:05,200 --> 00:47:08,120 And he says sin makes you stupid. 870 00:47:09,800 --> 00:47:13,400 And I thought, man, when you get a doctorate, you get that kind 871 00:47:13,400 --> 00:47:16,840 of wisdom to to consolidate things, to just make it that 872 00:47:16,840 --> 00:47:18,640 simple. Because when you see things in 873 00:47:18,640 --> 00:47:21,000 your life or in other people's lives, you're like, what? 874 00:47:21,760 --> 00:47:24,520 Sin makes you stupid? Fair enough. 875 00:47:25,400 --> 00:47:30,800 It makes sense. God, protect me, make me wise. 876 00:47:32,560 --> 00:47:38,800 What's the beginning of wisdom? The fear of the Lord, the real 877 00:47:38,800 --> 00:47:42,160 Jesus, divides people. The resurrection divides people, 878 00:47:43,960 --> 00:47:46,400 the divided people that day. The resurrection still divides 879 00:47:46,400 --> 00:47:49,120 people today. It's wild to me as somebody who 880 00:47:49,120 --> 00:47:52,240 loves Jesus and knows Christ, it's wild to me. 881 00:47:52,480 --> 00:47:55,680 It's still wild to me to share the gospel with somebody and 882 00:47:55,680 --> 00:47:58,560 it's just like nobody's home. It's still wild to me. 883 00:47:58,560 --> 00:48:02,760 I still have not gotten over the fact that people can be unamazed 884 00:48:02,760 --> 00:48:06,400 by it. It still blows me away and I 885 00:48:06,400 --> 00:48:10,920 still take it like personally every time, like they must not 886 00:48:10,920 --> 00:48:13,840 have heard me. Let me try it again. 887 00:48:14,080 --> 00:48:16,400 Let me say it a different way. Let me take more time with them. 888 00:48:16,680 --> 00:48:19,400 And then eventually, if I just continue to see that thing, you 889 00:48:19,400 --> 00:48:21,520 know, sometimes the Lord will lead me to pray in a certain way 890 00:48:21,520 --> 00:48:24,120 and there's just, I see the enemy just stealing the seed 891 00:48:24,120 --> 00:48:26,800 right away. I've seen that before. 892 00:48:27,040 --> 00:48:28,680 You ever, do you ever minister to somebody that way? 893 00:48:28,680 --> 00:48:30,440 You're sharing the good news of Christ with them. 894 00:48:30,840 --> 00:48:34,600 And I mean, it's instant. I'm talking instantaneous. 895 00:48:34,600 --> 00:48:38,480 I'm like, I'm talking and they can't even Satan is blinding 896 00:48:38,480 --> 00:48:42,040 their minds. They are oppressed and they are 897 00:48:42,040 --> 00:48:45,800 just diarrhea of the mouth with every stupid thing they've ever 898 00:48:45,800 --> 00:48:49,200 heard or thought about the Bible or Christianity or any in it. 899 00:48:49,200 --> 00:48:51,160 What is happening? That is the thief who has come 900 00:48:51,160 --> 00:48:53,120 to steal, kill and destroy that person's life. 901 00:48:53,600 --> 00:48:56,680 They're not your opponent. You're not wrestling with flesh 902 00:48:56,680 --> 00:48:58,640 and blood. There's a supernatural 903 00:48:58,640 --> 00:49:01,360 manifestation where you are putting out the seed and Satan 904 00:49:01,360 --> 00:49:05,040 says, Nope, this one's mine. And you keep putting it out and 905 00:49:05,040 --> 00:49:07,240 you keep putting in. You're like, I just need to 906 00:49:07,240 --> 00:49:10,200 throw a seed faster. No, you need to pray that the 907 00:49:10,200 --> 00:49:12,600 blinders would fall off and that the Lord in his mercy would 908 00:49:12,600 --> 00:49:16,160 grant them repentance and destroy this demonic stronghold 909 00:49:16,160 --> 00:49:19,680 in this person's life so that they would actually be able to 910 00:49:20,000 --> 00:49:23,040 see clearly. Because it's, it's not even 911 00:49:23,040 --> 00:49:26,000 making it in. And we know the gospel makes it 912 00:49:26,000 --> 00:49:27,360 in. We know the gospel makes it 913 00:49:27,360 --> 00:49:29,640 deep. So I'm not telling you not to 914 00:49:29,640 --> 00:49:31,440 pray for people. I'm telling you to pray for 915 00:49:31,440 --> 00:49:33,360 people. But I want you to understand and 916 00:49:33,360 --> 00:49:35,320 just remember the gospel divides. 917 00:49:35,600 --> 00:49:38,560 Jesus is divisive. The real Jesus is divisive. 918 00:49:39,200 --> 00:49:41,880 The modern American Jesus is no Jesus at all. 919 00:49:42,520 --> 00:49:44,640 He's a fake Jesus. And if they put a statue up to 920 00:49:44,640 --> 00:49:46,200 him, I would tear it down myself. 921 00:49:47,640 --> 00:49:51,480 But the real Jesus is divisive. And he said he would be. 922 00:49:51,920 --> 00:49:54,080 He said I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 923 00:49:54,640 --> 00:49:57,080 I came to divide. I came to make enemies in their 924 00:49:57,080 --> 00:50:00,600 own households. Parents against children, 925 00:50:01,800 --> 00:50:06,760 children against parents in laws, against sons in laws and 926 00:50:06,760 --> 00:50:08,200 daughters in laws. I'm like, well, that one's kind 927 00:50:08,200 --> 00:50:11,200 of easy. You don't get to take all the 928 00:50:11,200 --> 00:50:17,040 credit for that one. Is his motive to divide? 929 00:50:17,040 --> 00:50:19,800 No, his motive is to clarify. Which is why every time a 930 00:50:19,800 --> 00:50:22,880 massive crowd gathered around him, he would do something to 931 00:50:22,880 --> 00:50:27,040 divide the audience. Big crowd today. 932 00:50:27,920 --> 00:50:29,720 Yeah. Jesus, now's the time. 933 00:50:30,200 --> 00:50:32,320 Now's the time to capitalize. We're ready to launch the social 934 00:50:32,320 --> 00:50:34,240 media. We're ready to start, you know, 935 00:50:34,240 --> 00:50:37,160 ramping up the podcast. We got to capture the momentum. 936 00:50:37,640 --> 00:50:39,000 Jesus. And Jesus goes. 937 00:50:39,000 --> 00:50:40,400 You think so, boys? Yeah, Jesus. 938 00:50:40,560 --> 00:50:42,640 Judas was super excited. Like, we're going to start 939 00:50:42,640 --> 00:50:44,160 building the army. Maybe we're going to start, 940 00:50:44,160 --> 00:50:46,680 like, forging some weapons so we can overthrow Rome. 941 00:50:46,680 --> 00:50:50,360 And Jesus says, I got it, guys, Trust me, You have to eat my 942 00:50:50,360 --> 00:50:56,880 flesh and drink my blood. We got to give Jesus public 943 00:50:56,880 --> 00:50:59,920 speaking lessons like he doesn't know how to win a crowd. 944 00:51:01,360 --> 00:51:05,240 If you don't take up your cross and follow me, you're not worthy 945 00:51:05,240 --> 00:51:09,320 to be my disciple. Jesus saved. 946 00:51:09,600 --> 00:51:14,240 Can I talk to you? I love, I love the whole EU 947 00:51:14,240 --> 00:51:18,880 message, super cool and the whole crucify yourself thing. 948 00:51:19,160 --> 00:51:22,960 And I'm sure there's something to it, but can I coach you? 949 00:51:24,760 --> 00:51:27,360 He's divisive, He always has been. 950 00:51:28,320 --> 00:51:31,840 Don't be deceived. But the resurrection is good 951 00:51:31,840 --> 00:51:35,720 news, and we still rejoice in it today, on this Lord's Day, and 952 00:51:35,720 --> 00:51:40,280 on Monday and Tuesday, because every day is the Lord's Day, and 953 00:51:40,280 --> 00:51:42,760 Jesus is really coming back, and he's really coming back soon. 954 00:51:43,400 --> 00:51:45,040 He promised it, He guaranteed it. 955 00:51:45,200 --> 00:51:49,120 It's actually going to happen. He's going to open up the sky 956 00:51:49,120 --> 00:51:51,920 and eventually it says he's going to roll this whole thing 957 00:51:51,920 --> 00:51:55,520 up like a scroll, but we're going to be secure with him 958 00:51:55,520 --> 00:51:59,200 forever in his eternal Kingdom. That was the plan from day one. 959 00:51:59,640 --> 00:52:01,440 That's the plan at the end of the book. 960 00:52:01,800 --> 00:52:04,720 We are in this gorgeous, beautiful detour in the moment. 961 00:52:05,400 --> 00:52:07,080 He's going to get everything back on track. 962 00:52:07,600 --> 00:52:12,680 The snake will be crushed forever and it says that the the 963 00:52:12,680 --> 00:52:16,240 smoke of the enemies of God will will burn forever. 964 00:52:19,600 --> 00:52:21,240 What do we have here? We have the love of God and we 965 00:52:21,240 --> 00:52:25,120 have the fear of God should not have one without the other, and 966 00:52:25,120 --> 00:52:26,800 the resurrection should fill us with all of it. 967 00:52:28,600 --> 00:52:32,520 So what are you supposed to do? What will you do? 968 00:52:32,960 --> 00:52:35,280 Run and tell the good news. That's what I have prayed. 969 00:52:36,440 --> 00:52:39,000 The tomb is empty, Jesus is alive, the King is conquered. 970 00:52:39,000 --> 00:52:40,600 Death. I have prayed for you that you 971 00:52:40,600 --> 00:52:43,400 would rejoice, that you would seek the Lord, that you would 972 00:52:43,400 --> 00:52:46,280 worship him, and that you would go and tell the good news. 973 00:52:46,920 --> 00:52:50,560 Heavenly Father, fill your church with boldness right now 974 00:52:50,560 --> 00:52:53,920 in the name of Jesus. Holy Spirit, fall upon the 975 00:52:53,920 --> 00:52:59,080 humble and the hungry. Those who are seeking, those who 976 00:52:59,080 --> 00:53:03,800 are asking, those who are knocking, help them to find 977 00:53:03,800 --> 00:53:06,800 right now. Open the door to them right now. 978 00:53:08,960 --> 00:53:12,720 Reveal yourself right now. Holy Spirit, fill us again. 979 00:53:13,040 --> 00:53:16,760 We need more boldness. We need more boldness to carry 980 00:53:16,760 --> 00:53:22,320 the good message of our King as you equip us for ministry and 981 00:53:22,320 --> 00:53:25,080 give us opportunities. We commit to obedience even now, 982 00:53:25,400 --> 00:53:27,440 and we look forward to the deeper fellowship that we will 983 00:53:27,440 --> 00:53:30,280 enjoy. God give us sweet and humble 984 00:53:30,280 --> 00:53:31,680 hearts. Like the women who came to the 985 00:53:31,680 --> 00:53:35,160 tomb, we don't always understand what we're doing. 986 00:53:39,240 --> 00:53:43,760 We might not be always maximum full of faith or perfectly clear 987 00:53:43,760 --> 00:53:46,680 in our theology, but we can still seek you, Jesus. 988 00:53:48,080 --> 00:53:52,840 And when we seek you, we will find you, reveal yourself to us 989 00:53:53,360 --> 00:53:56,160 and empower us in the work in Jesus name. 990 00:53:57,120 --> 00:53:59,200 And now the Lord bless you and keep you. 991 00:53:59,920 --> 00:54:03,520 The Lord make his face Shinedown upon you and be gracious to you. 992 00:54:04,200 --> 00:54:07,280 The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you great 993 00:54:07,280 --> 00:54:10,400 peace in Jesus name, Amen.