1 00:00:08,600 --> 00:00:12,920 Lord Jesus, I want to thank you so much that you are here in 2 00:00:12,920 --> 00:00:15,880 this place. Lord Jesus, that that you have 3 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:19,080 met with us as we've, we've been chatting, as we've sung your 4 00:00:19,080 --> 00:00:22,040 praises, Lord God. And I pray, Lord God, that as, 5 00:00:22,240 --> 00:00:25,400 as we talk through this Easter story, Lord God, as we talk 6 00:00:25,400 --> 00:00:28,520 through the amazing events that happened that first Easter 7 00:00:28,520 --> 00:00:32,360 morning, as you appeared to Mary and then to the disciples, Lord 8 00:00:32,360 --> 00:00:35,160 Jesus, I pray, Lord God, that you would speak to us, that you 9 00:00:35,160 --> 00:00:37,080 challenge us. Lord God, I pray for, for the 10 00:00:37,080 --> 00:00:39,960 kids out there as they're, as they're playing games, as 11 00:00:39,960 --> 00:00:42,680 they're reading scriptures, Lord Jesus, I pray, Lord God, that 12 00:00:42,680 --> 00:00:46,160 you would speak to them as well. Lord Jesus, Lord God, I ask you, 13 00:00:46,160 --> 00:00:48,480 Lord God, we invite you in this place. 14 00:00:48,520 --> 00:00:50,560 Amen. Amen. 15 00:00:51,160 --> 00:00:55,240 Right. So I'm going to read from John's 16 00:00:55,240 --> 00:00:59,240 Gospel chapter 20 to read the first few lines it'll come up 17 00:00:59,240 --> 00:01:01,440 with up on there. But if you want to follow along 18 00:01:01,440 --> 00:01:03,400 in your own Bibles, you're more than welcome to. 19 00:01:03,840 --> 00:01:08,440 Otherwise, I'm just going to read So it says early. 20 00:01:08,440 --> 00:01:12,360 On the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary 21 00:01:12,360 --> 00:01:15,640 Madeleine went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been 22 00:01:15,640 --> 00:01:20,120 removed from the entrance. So she ran to Simon Peter and 23 00:01:20,120 --> 00:01:22,440 the other disciple, the one Jesus loved. 24 00:01:22,600 --> 00:01:25,840 She said they have taken the Lord out of the tomb. 25 00:01:25,920 --> 00:01:27,640 We don't know where they have put him. 26 00:01:27,640 --> 00:01:29,080 I'm just going to pause it there. 27 00:01:30,560 --> 00:01:34,840 And so it says early, early on the first day of the week that 28 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:36,680 for you and I that's Sunday morning. 29 00:01:36,800 --> 00:01:38,280 Sunday was their first day of the week. 30 00:01:38,280 --> 00:01:42,200 And it says that that Mary, before the sun has even risen, 31 00:01:42,560 --> 00:01:45,680 she is on her way to the tomb of Jesus Christ. 32 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:49,080 See, the last few days for Mary have a been a complete 33 00:01:49,120 --> 00:01:51,800 whirlwind. She's been in complete turmoil. 34 00:01:51,800 --> 00:01:53,880 It's been been a complete roller coaster. 35 00:01:54,040 --> 00:01:57,760 See, Thursday night they were celebrating, They were 36 00:01:57,760 --> 00:02:01,320 celebrating one of the biggest holidays in the Jewish calendar. 37 00:02:01,640 --> 00:02:03,240 They were having fun, they were laughing. 38 00:02:03,240 --> 00:02:06,280 And then all of a sudden, Jesus betrayed. 39 00:02:07,040 --> 00:02:09,440 Not just not betrayed by just anyone, but by one of his 40 00:02:09,440 --> 00:02:11,720 friends. And they've come. 41 00:02:11,720 --> 00:02:14,040 The Jewish priests, they come, they take him. 42 00:02:14,520 --> 00:02:16,480 They they, they take him, they question him. 43 00:02:16,720 --> 00:02:19,920 And surely Mary throughout this time is thinking, surely it'll 44 00:02:19,920 --> 00:02:22,240 end. Surely the Romans will step in. 45 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:24,280 Surely they'll find that there's nothing wrong with him. 46 00:02:24,640 --> 00:02:27,120 But but it doesn't. He gets passed to the Roman 47 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:30,040 authorities, the Romans. Surely the Romans will see 48 00:02:30,040 --> 00:02:31,960 sense. Surely the Romans won't do 49 00:02:31,960 --> 00:02:35,440 anything horrendous to him. And then all of a sudden, see, 50 00:02:35,440 --> 00:02:38,480 Pilot, he says, I'm washing my hands of this person. 51 00:02:38,720 --> 00:02:40,400 But what? Don't wash your hands. 52 00:02:40,640 --> 00:02:43,520 Free him, let him out. Pilate brings says. 53 00:02:43,520 --> 00:02:45,840 It's the festival, it's a holiday, so therefore I'll 54 00:02:45,840 --> 00:02:48,840 release 11 prisoner. Surely everyone wants Jesus to 55 00:02:48,840 --> 00:02:50,080 be released. No? 56 00:02:50,240 --> 00:02:54,040 They pick Barabbas. And then she sees in disbelief 57 00:02:54,520 --> 00:02:59,040 as he is, as he is beaten, as he is mocked, as he is forced to 58 00:02:59,160 --> 00:03:03,440 wear this piece of wood on his back and take it up a hill where 59 00:03:03,440 --> 00:03:07,200 he is then nailed hands and feet to a cross and lifted up. 60 00:03:07,640 --> 00:03:12,080 She's watching in complete disbelief as as as the one who 61 00:03:12,080 --> 00:03:14,400 she's followed for the last few years. 62 00:03:14,600 --> 00:03:19,440 Her Lord, her saviour is there breathing his last as life 63 00:03:19,440 --> 00:03:23,120 drains out from his body, all the while thinking surely 64 00:03:23,120 --> 00:03:25,440 someone's got to step in and stop this. 65 00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:30,760 This cannot be happening until he breathes his very last. 66 00:03:31,720 --> 00:03:35,560 She sees that spear thrust into his sight. 67 00:03:36,600 --> 00:03:42,320 She sees as lifeless body pulled down upon the cross, wrapped in 68 00:03:42,320 --> 00:03:46,120 linen and then taken to this very tomb. 69 00:03:47,880 --> 00:03:50,600 She's watching her Lord, her teacher, her friend, her 70 00:03:50,600 --> 00:03:54,280 Saviour, He. He has saved others, but no one 71 00:03:54,280 --> 00:03:59,240 dared stepped in to save Him. When she was around Jesus, 72 00:03:59,240 --> 00:04:02,600 everything seemed possible. There was nothing impossible for 73 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:07,160 Jesus, but even he didn't seem to be able to stop his own 74 00:04:07,160 --> 00:04:11,480 execution. I wonder if you've ever been in 75 00:04:11,480 --> 00:04:16,920 that situation where you've been watching your life unravel 76 00:04:16,920 --> 00:04:20,000 before you. You've watched the unthinkable 77 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:23,680 happen all the time, thinking, praying, hoping, longing, just 78 00:04:23,680 --> 00:04:26,960 just something happen, something changed this. 79 00:04:27,400 --> 00:04:29,360 Maybe it's the it's the loss of a dream. 80 00:04:29,360 --> 00:04:30,920 Maybe it's a relationship that dies. 81 00:04:30,920 --> 00:04:34,120 Maybe it's a, it's a friend who who you lose. 82 00:04:35,560 --> 00:04:38,200 Maybe you get passed over for promotion again and again. 83 00:04:38,200 --> 00:04:40,520 You just realise this job isn't going to work. 84 00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:46,240 You see, Mary, she doesn't know what to do with herself. 85 00:04:47,320 --> 00:04:51,040 She, she's broken. There's a void that's in her now 86 00:04:51,440 --> 00:04:54,080 that nothing seems to be able to ever fill. 87 00:04:54,840 --> 00:05:00,440 And so she, she, she leaves that that tomb that Friday night and 88 00:05:00,440 --> 00:05:03,680 she heads home. She probably doesn't sleep. 89 00:05:04,160 --> 00:05:06,960 Saturday is a public holiday. Everyone in the city is 90 00:05:06,960 --> 00:05:09,400 celebrating. There's, there's chat, there's 91 00:05:09,600 --> 00:05:13,480 cheers, there's, there's eating. But not for Mary. 92 00:05:14,200 --> 00:05:18,240 She's probably just curled up in her bed, tears streaming down 93 00:05:18,240 --> 00:05:20,800 her face. I can't imagine that she 94 00:05:20,800 --> 00:05:22,440 probably slept much in that time. 95 00:05:23,520 --> 00:05:27,000 Maybe if she did drift off to sleep, she would have awoke with 96 00:05:27,000 --> 00:05:29,520 that horrible feeling. Surely it was just a dream. 97 00:05:30,120 --> 00:05:35,240 I just imagined that it didn't really happen, only to be hit by 98 00:05:35,240 --> 00:05:40,640 the reality that everything she remembered really did happen. 99 00:05:42,480 --> 00:05:45,680 You see. So as she, as she walks, that 100 00:05:45,680 --> 00:05:50,560 first Sunday morning, as she goes to the tomb and it's dark, 101 00:05:50,960 --> 00:05:53,800 it's not just dark outside because the sun hasn't risen 102 00:05:53,800 --> 00:05:56,160 yet. It's dark in her life. 103 00:05:56,440 --> 00:06:01,080 Her life feels dark. It feels black, and all she 104 00:06:01,080 --> 00:06:05,600 wants to do is be near Jesus. She knows he's dead because dead 105 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:08,080 people stay dead. That's what they do. 106 00:06:08,800 --> 00:06:11,320 So, so she decides it. The only way to feel the 107 00:06:11,320 --> 00:06:15,640 brokenness, the only way to to to to find some sort of healing 108 00:06:15,640 --> 00:06:19,480 in her life is to be at the place where she last saw her 109 00:06:19,480 --> 00:06:22,240 Lord and Saviour. So she heads over to the tomb. 110 00:06:23,480 --> 00:06:26,720 But as she gets nearer and nearer, she realises there's no 111 00:06:26,720 --> 00:06:29,600 guards there. I remember there were guards 112 00:06:29,600 --> 00:06:34,640 here when Jesus was laid to rest the the tomb, it was sealed by a 113 00:06:34,640 --> 00:06:37,240 stone. That stone has been removed. 114 00:06:37,240 --> 00:06:42,800 And then she gets to the the entrance and she looks in and 115 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:47,600 horror upon horrors, the tomb is empty. 116 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:53,840 At this point she breaks, she is hysterical, she runs back to her 117 00:06:53,840 --> 00:06:55,880 friends, she goes and tells the other. 118 00:06:55,880 --> 00:06:59,160 She goes and tells Peter and John he's gone, he's gone, 119 00:06:59,200 --> 00:07:01,480 they've taken him. How could they do that? 120 00:07:01,480 --> 00:07:03,320 All I wanted to do is be near him. 121 00:07:03,320 --> 00:07:07,200 And then we read on. What happens? 122 00:07:07,600 --> 00:07:11,920 It says so Peter and the other disciple that's John started for 123 00:07:11,920 --> 00:07:15,000 the tomb. Both were running, but the other 124 00:07:15,000 --> 00:07:19,000 disciples disciple outrun ran Peter and reached the tomb 125 00:07:19,000 --> 00:07:21,920 first. He bent over and looked in at 126 00:07:21,920 --> 00:07:24,600 the strips of linen lying there, but did not go in. 127 00:07:24,800 --> 00:07:29,480 Then Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. 128 00:07:29,960 --> 00:07:34,480 He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that 129 00:07:34,480 --> 00:07:36,320 had been wrapped around Jesus heads. 130 00:07:36,360 --> 00:07:40,600 The cloth was still lying in its place, separated from the linen. 131 00:07:40,600 --> 00:07:44,640 Finally, the other disciple who had reached the tomb first also 132 00:07:44,800 --> 00:07:47,560 went inside. He saw and believed. 133 00:07:47,680 --> 00:07:50,360 They still did not understand from the scriptures that Jesus 134 00:07:50,360 --> 00:07:52,000 had to raise, rise from the dead. 135 00:07:52,880 --> 00:07:56,520 Then the disciples went back to where they were staying. 136 00:07:57,360 --> 00:08:00,240 So Mary comes back, she's hysterical. 137 00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:03,360 Peter and John, they, they, they don't know what to believe. 138 00:08:03,600 --> 00:08:05,720 So they decide they're going to run to the tomb. 139 00:08:05,720 --> 00:08:07,800 And I love this, right? I love this. 140 00:08:08,000 --> 00:08:11,360 This shows you that, that real people wrote scripture. 141 00:08:11,520 --> 00:08:14,640 Because I can imagine, OK, John's Gospel, we know that from 142 00:08:14,640 --> 00:08:16,480 history. John's Gospel was the last of 143 00:08:16,480 --> 00:08:20,400 the four gospels to be written. And I can imagine John, right? 144 00:08:20,680 --> 00:08:23,400 He's there. He, he's received the letter 145 00:08:23,400 --> 00:08:25,760 that Matthew has written and he reads through it. 146 00:08:26,240 --> 00:08:28,880 He he, he likes it, but it's missing something. 147 00:08:29,800 --> 00:08:32,240 Then he gets Mark's gospel and he reads that. 148 00:08:32,600 --> 00:08:35,880 He likes that too. He's a bit shorter puncture, but 149 00:08:35,880 --> 00:08:38,679 it's missing something as well. Then he reads Luke. 150 00:08:38,679 --> 00:08:41,240 Now Luke was the guy. He wasn't an eyewitness, but he 151 00:08:41,240 --> 00:08:43,480 went round and talked to everyone who was there and did 152 00:08:43,559 --> 00:08:45,040 and got an account from everyone. 153 00:08:45,240 --> 00:08:48,040 So Luke must have put in the really important stuff that 154 00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:51,440 John's looking for. So John reads through Luke's and 155 00:08:51,440 --> 00:08:54,720 Luke doesn't have it in there either, you see. 156 00:08:54,840 --> 00:08:59,320 So therefore, John, this isn't true, by the way, but I like to 157 00:08:59,320 --> 00:09:00,560 imagine this. This is the way I think of 158 00:09:00,560 --> 00:09:04,440 Scripture that John, he then he then starts read, then he's 159 00:09:04,440 --> 00:09:06,200 decides, right, I'm going to write my own gospel. 160 00:09:06,480 --> 00:09:11,000 And in my gospel I'm going to make sure I include, yes, that 161 00:09:11,000 --> 00:09:14,640 Jesus is the risen Lord and Saviour, but also I need to make 162 00:09:14,640 --> 00:09:18,240 sure the whole world knows that I am faster than Peter. 163 00:09:20,960 --> 00:09:23,520 I'm sure he doesn't. He says, I mean, writes that 164 00:09:23,920 --> 00:09:25,880 just just just just putting it in there. 165 00:09:26,000 --> 00:09:29,160 On the day Jesus was resurrected from the grave, I was faster 166 00:09:29,160 --> 00:09:31,360 than Peter. I mean, if Peter was to respond 167 00:09:31,360 --> 00:09:33,440 to that, he probably would have written something along the 168 00:09:33,440 --> 00:09:35,200 lines of, yeah, but you're an absolute coward. 169 00:09:35,360 --> 00:09:37,320 You wouldn't go into the tomb before I did. 170 00:09:37,320 --> 00:09:38,800 But he gets this as he gets there. 171 00:09:38,800 --> 00:09:43,200 He waits, but you know, it's it's he, he runs the tomb. 172 00:09:43,200 --> 00:09:45,320 They run. And I, I love that about it. 173 00:09:45,520 --> 00:09:48,920 And and and then it says that Mary, we're going to read that 174 00:09:48,920 --> 00:09:52,040 Mary. She goes the tomb and she is so 175 00:09:52,040 --> 00:09:56,200 struck by guilt as struck by sorrow, she just lies there and 176 00:09:56,200 --> 00:10:00,360 stays there in the tomb and it says it says. 177 00:10:00,360 --> 00:10:05,320 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. 178 00:10:05,680 --> 00:10:08,920 As she wept she bent over to look into the tomb. 179 00:10:08,960 --> 00:10:13,640 She saw 2 angels in white sealed where seated where Jesus body 180 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:16,320 had been, one at the head and one at the foot. 181 00:10:17,560 --> 00:10:20,080 They asked her woman, why are you crying? 182 00:10:20,560 --> 00:10:24,080 They have taken my Lord, she said, and I don't know where 183 00:10:24,080 --> 00:10:28,240 they have put him. See, Mary, she obviously, I 184 00:10:28,240 --> 00:10:30,560 mean, John didn't write this, but obviously Mary arrives there 185 00:10:30,560 --> 00:10:33,560 afterwards. But she, she's there and she's, 186 00:10:33,640 --> 00:10:36,920 she's hysterical, she's weeping. She's so full of grief. 187 00:10:36,920 --> 00:10:38,920 I don't know whether you've ever been there where you've been so, 188 00:10:39,280 --> 00:10:42,800 so down, so full of sorrow, so full of grief that you don't 189 00:10:42,800 --> 00:10:44,960 really recognise what's going on around you. 190 00:10:45,720 --> 00:10:48,200 I mean, it says that she is there weeping. 191 00:10:48,320 --> 00:10:52,000 And then 2 angels of the pier. Now every other time we read in 192 00:10:52,000 --> 00:10:55,360 scripture that angels appear, angels are messengers from God 193 00:10:55,680 --> 00:10:58,760 and what what basically met, they come with a message to tell 194 00:10:58,760 --> 00:11:01,800 someone. But every time in scripture, 195 00:11:01,840 --> 00:11:04,600 before they can tell someone their message, they need to go. 196 00:11:04,720 --> 00:11:07,160 Don't be scared. They need to let you get the 197 00:11:07,160 --> 00:11:10,040 impression that they have to pick this person who this, this, 198 00:11:10,040 --> 00:11:12,920 this Angel who's kind of mighty, who's, who's glowing, who's 199 00:11:13,000 --> 00:11:16,680 who's very intimidating figure. They arrive on the scene and 200 00:11:16,760 --> 00:11:19,280 then before they can tell someone what the message is, 201 00:11:19,280 --> 00:11:21,840 that person's kind of collapsed on the floor, is shaking. 202 00:11:21,840 --> 00:11:23,240 And they're like, don't be scared. 203 00:11:23,360 --> 00:11:25,000 They kind of kind of work them up. 204 00:11:25,000 --> 00:11:26,280 They pick them up off the ground. 205 00:11:26,360 --> 00:11:28,040 This is you're all right. I'm not going to hurt you. 206 00:11:28,480 --> 00:11:32,160 Right, OK, now I'm going to tell you what Jesus has to say to 207 00:11:32,160 --> 00:11:34,560 you. So how it goes, They're here, 2 208 00:11:34,560 --> 00:11:37,080 Angel, 2 angels, not just one, two angels appear. 209 00:11:37,360 --> 00:11:39,760 And Mary's just like she just doesn't care. 210 00:11:40,040 --> 00:11:42,920 She doesn't break stride. She just continues to cry. 211 00:11:42,920 --> 00:11:45,200 And she's just like, where is Jesus? 212 00:11:45,240 --> 00:11:51,320 Where have you put him? And it continues and it says at 213 00:11:51,320 --> 00:12:00,360 this, at this she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, 214 00:12:00,880 --> 00:12:03,840 but she did not realise that it was Jesus. 215 00:12:04,400 --> 00:12:07,040 He asked her woman, why are you crying? 216 00:12:07,720 --> 00:12:12,160 Who is it you are looking for? Thinking he was the gardener, 217 00:12:12,160 --> 00:12:15,880 she said, Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where 218 00:12:15,880 --> 00:12:18,240 you have put him and I will get him. 219 00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:19,880 See. So she's there. 220 00:12:19,880 --> 00:12:22,640 The 2 angels are in the tomb. She's unfazed by that. 221 00:12:22,640 --> 00:12:24,880 And then out the corner of her eyes she sees someone else. 222 00:12:25,920 --> 00:12:30,280 So she looks to them and she goes, she goes, she goes have do 223 00:12:30,280 --> 00:12:33,200 you know where Jesus is? Do you know where he is? 224 00:12:34,960 --> 00:12:38,120 You see, it says here that she didn't know yet that it was 225 00:12:38,200 --> 00:12:39,800 Jesus. And you can think, how can she 226 00:12:39,800 --> 00:12:42,320 not know it was Jesus? Jesus. 227 00:12:42,320 --> 00:12:44,600 Jesus is standing right in front of her. 228 00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:46,200 How could she not know what it says? 229 00:12:46,200 --> 00:12:51,120 Actually, she doesn't even look. But also, why would she think it 230 00:12:51,120 --> 00:12:54,920 was Jesus? Dead people stay dead. 231 00:12:55,960 --> 00:12:59,320 Why would she imagine that it was possible for Jesus to be 232 00:12:59,320 --> 00:13:01,800 standing in front of her, talking to her? 233 00:13:02,720 --> 00:13:05,040 Is it? And that might be somewhere some 234 00:13:05,040 --> 00:13:08,800 of you are at today. You may have come here today. 235 00:13:09,440 --> 00:13:11,560 You may have heard people talk about Jesus. 236 00:13:11,560 --> 00:13:14,400 You may have heard people say about going to church. 237 00:13:14,600 --> 00:13:17,920 And your impression of that is that's nice for them. 238 00:13:18,520 --> 00:13:21,160 But honestly, it's a dead religion. 239 00:13:21,680 --> 00:13:24,320 People are worshipping a dead God. 240 00:13:25,160 --> 00:13:28,560 So therefore when when we come and you see people singing and 241 00:13:28,560 --> 00:13:32,240 people singing as if he's really alive, that colour takes you 242 00:13:32,240 --> 00:13:37,160 back a bit because you weren't expecting that because Jesus 243 00:13:37,280 --> 00:13:39,080 isn't dead. Sorry. 244 00:13:39,120 --> 00:13:40,560 Jesus isn't alive. He's dead. 245 00:13:40,560 --> 00:13:42,360 He died. We know he died. 246 00:13:42,360 --> 00:13:46,520 And if that's where you're at, if that's where you're, you 247 00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:50,840 don't expect today to meet with Jesus because, well, he's dead. 248 00:13:52,040 --> 00:13:56,760 Well there's a gardener in this story that has two questions. 2 249 00:13:56,760 --> 00:13:59,200 questions he'd love you to be able to answer. 250 00:14:00,160 --> 00:14:03,040 The first one is he says, he says to Mary. 251 00:14:03,040 --> 00:14:08,160 He says why are you crying? Why are you crying? 252 00:14:09,920 --> 00:14:12,920 Is he? He doesn't say stop crying. 253 00:14:13,680 --> 00:14:17,320 He says why are you crying? He, he validates the fact that 254 00:14:17,320 --> 00:14:21,800 she is in pain, that she is hurting, that she is broken. 255 00:14:23,600 --> 00:14:25,640 And maybe you can identify with that. 256 00:14:25,960 --> 00:14:28,760 You, you know that, that you feel pain. 257 00:14:28,760 --> 00:14:31,480 You know that deep down that you are broken. 258 00:14:34,560 --> 00:14:39,480 And the good news of the gospel, the good news about Easter is 259 00:14:39,480 --> 00:14:42,680 that the gospel meets us in our brokenness. 260 00:14:43,080 --> 00:14:46,160 It meets you in our, in your brokenness. 261 00:14:47,480 --> 00:14:49,160 So what is the source of your pain? 262 00:14:50,840 --> 00:14:55,520 What's causing you pain? Let's be honest, even if you're 263 00:14:55,520 --> 00:14:59,320 at this moment thinking life's pretty good, I don't have much 264 00:14:59,320 --> 00:15:02,960 to complain about, there is something. 265 00:15:03,640 --> 00:15:08,560 There is something in your life reminding you that this world is 266 00:15:08,560 --> 00:15:11,480 broken. Things that people have done to 267 00:15:11,480 --> 00:15:13,880 you, people think. Things people have said to you. 268 00:15:14,480 --> 00:15:17,200 Things that people should have done for you but they didn't. 269 00:15:18,320 --> 00:15:23,280 All a sign that this world is broken, that we live in a broken 270 00:15:23,280 --> 00:15:29,920 nation, in a broken world. And you can blame all sorts of 271 00:15:29,920 --> 00:15:31,960 things. You can blame the government, 272 00:15:31,960 --> 00:15:34,320 you can blame the past government, you can blame the 273 00:15:34,320 --> 00:15:36,960 last generation, you can blame blame the next generation, you 274 00:15:36,960 --> 00:15:42,080 can blame the system. But honestly we are all broken 275 00:15:42,080 --> 00:15:46,080 people making broken choices every single day. 276 00:15:48,640 --> 00:15:53,520 And now when you get to a certain age you start to 277 00:15:53,520 --> 00:15:56,880 remember things slightly differently and some of you may 278 00:15:56,880 --> 00:15:59,560 start harking back to the good old days. 279 00:15:59,880 --> 00:16:03,640 OK the world is broken today, but let me take you back a few 280 00:16:03,640 --> 00:16:05,000 years. And it was good. 281 00:16:06,240 --> 00:16:09,800 The reality is it wasn't. You just look through the you 282 00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:11,880 just looking through rose tinted glasses. 283 00:16:12,080 --> 00:16:15,080 It doesn't matter how far you go back, however old you are, at 284 00:16:15,080 --> 00:16:20,360 whatever era you want to pick, it was not the good old days. 285 00:16:20,560 --> 00:16:24,560 There is only actually one time that we had the good old days, 286 00:16:24,920 --> 00:16:28,800 and you need to go a lot further back than any of us were ever 287 00:16:28,800 --> 00:16:31,160 alive. You have to actually go right 288 00:16:31,160 --> 00:16:33,040 back to the beginning of humanity. 289 00:16:34,560 --> 00:16:39,320 You see, right at the beginning of humanity, a long time ago, 290 00:16:40,760 --> 00:16:45,960 after this gardener had just finished creating all things 291 00:16:46,960 --> 00:16:50,000 because he is a gardener, he planted a garden. 292 00:16:50,000 --> 00:16:59,200 And it says in Scripture, this garden was a perfect place, a 293 00:16:59,200 --> 00:17:02,120 place where there's No Fear, no guilt, no shame, there was no 294 00:17:02,120 --> 00:17:05,960 suffering, no one was causing anyone any pain. 295 00:17:07,319 --> 00:17:10,440 It was perfect. In fact, actually, people and 296 00:17:10,440 --> 00:17:15,760 God lived together in perfect harmony, enjoying one another's 297 00:17:15,760 --> 00:17:19,800 presence. But that didn't last too long. 298 00:17:21,119 --> 00:17:23,400 Actually, we read in Scripture that this thing called sin 299 00:17:23,400 --> 00:17:28,520 enters the world, basically an action born out of a belief that 300 00:17:28,520 --> 00:17:32,400 we don't need God, that God isn't king on the throne, that 301 00:17:32,400 --> 00:17:34,560 he's not real, that we don't need him. 302 00:17:37,600 --> 00:17:42,920 And from that moment, death enters into the world. 303 00:17:45,520 --> 00:17:50,000 And we all know this. We all have a limited amount of 304 00:17:50,000 --> 00:17:54,880 time on this earth. We all are broken. 305 00:17:55,000 --> 00:17:58,600 We live in a broken world and we have a limited amount of time 306 00:17:58,600 --> 00:18:02,160 upon it. And honestly, we're all trying 307 00:18:02,160 --> 00:18:05,840 to do the best, trying to make the best of our time in the 308 00:18:05,840 --> 00:18:08,800 broken world that we live in with the limited time that we've 309 00:18:08,800 --> 00:18:14,560 been given. So that being true, what are you 310 00:18:14,560 --> 00:18:20,440 looking for to make your life a bit more bearable, to give your 311 00:18:20,440 --> 00:18:23,200 life joy? What are you placing your hope 312 00:18:23,200 --> 00:18:25,640 in? To give yourself peace, to give 313 00:18:25,640 --> 00:18:28,480 yourself meaning. Maybe you believe that there's 314 00:18:28,600 --> 00:18:30,520 there really is a God and there's an afterlife. 315 00:18:30,520 --> 00:18:33,040 So what are you putting your hope in that you're going to go 316 00:18:33,040 --> 00:18:35,360 to the good place and not the bad place when you die? 317 00:18:36,840 --> 00:18:41,360 What are you looking for? And that's where the next 318 00:18:41,360 --> 00:18:46,000 question comes in, because the gardener, actually, he doesn't 319 00:18:46,000 --> 00:18:49,920 say what he says. Who are you looking for? 320 00:18:51,480 --> 00:18:55,000 You see, Mary, she arrives that Easter morning looking for a 321 00:18:55,000 --> 00:18:57,360 what? She looks for an object of her 322 00:18:57,360 --> 00:18:59,440 grief. She looks for something that is 323 00:18:59,440 --> 00:19:02,680 going to be able to fill the void inside, something that is 324 00:19:02,680 --> 00:19:05,560 going to help mend the brokenness that she feels. 325 00:19:07,280 --> 00:19:09,560 What are you placing your hope in? 326 00:19:09,840 --> 00:19:12,120 What are you looking to satisfy you? 327 00:19:12,280 --> 00:19:14,680 What are you looking to give meaning to your life, to give 328 00:19:14,680 --> 00:19:17,560 you hope, to give you peace, to give you joy? 329 00:19:19,520 --> 00:19:24,800 So the gardener says it's not about what, it's about who. 330 00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:31,080 Because ultimately there is nothing in this world that you 331 00:19:31,080 --> 00:19:33,000 can receive. There is nothing that you can 332 00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:34,320 get. There's nothing that is of this 333 00:19:34,320 --> 00:19:37,880 world that can give you what your soul needs. 334 00:19:37,960 --> 00:19:40,680 There is nothing that can fill the void inside you, that can 335 00:19:40,680 --> 00:19:43,760 feel that deep longing, that can mend the brokenness that we all 336 00:19:43,760 --> 00:19:46,320 feel. There is no act of charity, no 337 00:19:46,320 --> 00:19:49,560 good deed that you can do that can work your way into God's 338 00:19:49,560 --> 00:19:51,920 good books. So you deserve to go to the good 339 00:19:51,920 --> 00:19:55,960 place when you die. See the answer to your problems, 340 00:19:55,960 --> 00:19:59,000 the answer to the world's problems, to your my brokenness, 341 00:19:59,400 --> 00:20:03,880 the void that we feel. It's not about trying harder, 342 00:20:04,400 --> 00:20:11,840 it's not about being better. The answer is Jesus Christ, John 343 00:20:11,840 --> 00:20:15,640 316 says. For God so loved the world that 344 00:20:15,640 --> 00:20:19,200 he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him 345 00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:22,920 shall not perish. That have eternal life. 346 00:20:23,040 --> 00:20:25,960 You see, the reason why we are broken, the reason why we feel 347 00:20:26,040 --> 00:20:29,480 broken is that we were designed to have a relationship, to find 348 00:20:29,480 --> 00:20:33,240 fulfilment, to find the mending of that void inside us. 349 00:20:33,240 --> 00:20:35,680 We meant to find that through relationship with God. 350 00:20:35,920 --> 00:20:39,360 But through our sin, through our disobedience, through US living 351 00:20:39,480 --> 00:20:42,400 as if God wasn't the most important thing in the universe, 352 00:20:42,960 --> 00:20:46,200 we've broken that. We've broken that relationship 353 00:20:47,280 --> 00:20:51,200 and there's nothing that we can do to fix that, and that's why 354 00:20:51,400 --> 00:20:55,480 Jesus Christ came. Jesus Christ came so that all 355 00:20:55,480 --> 00:21:00,320 who believe in him, not all who do really good, all who believe 356 00:21:00,320 --> 00:21:04,600 in Him will have that relationship fixed and be able 357 00:21:04,600 --> 00:21:08,640 to come to the Father. John 1010 says I have come that 358 00:21:08,640 --> 00:21:11,520 you may have life and have it to the full sea. 359 00:21:11,680 --> 00:21:15,000 Life with Christ isn't boring, It isn't dull. 360 00:21:15,320 --> 00:21:18,240 It isn't isn't it isn't something even that starts when 361 00:21:18,240 --> 00:21:20,440 you die. It is something that starts the 362 00:21:20,440 --> 00:21:24,480 moment that you put your faith in Jesus Christ that you get 363 00:21:24,480 --> 00:21:26,800 life with him. You get life to the full. 364 00:21:26,800 --> 00:21:29,520 You get peace. You get yet security, You get 365 00:21:29,520 --> 00:21:32,280 that void filled beyond any understanding. 366 00:21:32,280 --> 00:21:34,640 That doesn't mean that bad things don't happen to you. 367 00:21:35,720 --> 00:21:38,480 It means even through sickness, even through illness, even 368 00:21:38,480 --> 00:21:42,240 through trials. Placing your faith in Christ 369 00:21:42,240 --> 00:21:47,360 Jesus gives you something that no one else has unless they have 370 00:21:47,360 --> 00:21:52,480 Him. John 14 Jesus said I am the way 371 00:21:52,640 --> 00:21:56,480 the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father 372 00:21:56,480 --> 00:22:00,480 except through me. You see believing when Jesus 373 00:22:00,480 --> 00:22:04,400 says believe in me, he's not talking about just believe. 374 00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:07,760 Do you believe that Jesus was a real person who lived 2000 years 375 00:22:07,760 --> 00:22:10,600 ago, was from Nazareth and died on the Roman cross? 376 00:22:10,600 --> 00:22:12,040 That's not what he's talking about. 377 00:22:12,280 --> 00:22:15,040 Actually, that takes no faith whatsoever. 378 00:22:15,080 --> 00:22:18,800 We know from history that the fact that Jesus died and he 379 00:22:18,800 --> 00:22:22,360 sorry, the fact that Jesus lived and he died of 2000 years ago 380 00:22:22,360 --> 00:22:24,120 was from Nazareth, Diamond Roman cross. 381 00:22:24,200 --> 00:22:26,800 We know that to be proven. That is true. 382 00:22:26,800 --> 00:22:30,040 Actually, we have more evidence of the life and works of Jesus 383 00:22:30,040 --> 00:22:34,160 Christ than we do of of such historical figures like 384 00:22:34,160 --> 00:22:37,480 Hannibal, Budoka, Homer, Socrates, Caesar, and there's a 385 00:22:37,560 --> 00:22:40,560 massive list longer than that, but I haven't got all day to 386 00:22:40,560 --> 00:22:43,520 read it. He, he, we have more evidence 387 00:22:43,520 --> 00:22:46,360 than any of those people in anything that they did. 388 00:22:47,320 --> 00:22:51,280 And you see, all roads do not lead to happiness. 389 00:22:51,520 --> 00:22:55,360 All roads do not lead to heaven, all roads do not lead to 390 00:22:55,360 --> 00:22:58,920 fulfilment. There is one road and one Rd 391 00:22:59,080 --> 00:23:02,160 only and that road goes through Christ Jesus. 392 00:23:03,160 --> 00:23:07,560 He is the one who satisfies. He is the one who mends the 393 00:23:07,560 --> 00:23:10,600 void. He is the one who mends our 394 00:23:10,600 --> 00:23:16,560 brokenness and church. He is calling your name. 395 00:23:17,840 --> 00:23:22,880 He is calling you. You see, Mary, she is in the 396 00:23:22,880 --> 00:23:25,360 garden. She's bawling her eyes out. 397 00:23:25,400 --> 00:23:27,840 She needs healing. She needs her brokenness 398 00:23:27,840 --> 00:23:32,000 mending. She she's talking to this guy 399 00:23:32,000 --> 00:23:37,120 who she's not even looked at. And then all of a sudden after 400 00:23:37,120 --> 00:23:44,440 the questions, one word changes everything, Jesus said to her, 401 00:23:45,120 --> 00:23:50,760 Mary, she turned towards him and cried out an Aramaic Rabboni, 402 00:23:51,320 --> 00:23:55,480 which means teacher. Jesus said, do not hold on to 403 00:23:55,480 --> 00:24:00,560 me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father, and go instead to 404 00:24:00,560 --> 00:24:04,480 my brothers and tell them, I'm ascending to my Father and your 405 00:24:04,480 --> 00:24:08,960 father to my God and your God. Mary Magdalene went to the 406 00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:12,520 disciples with the news. I have seen the Lord, she said. 407 00:24:13,360 --> 00:24:18,680 She I've seen the Lord, and she told them that he had said these 408 00:24:18,680 --> 00:24:23,480 things to her. So the gardener, he responds as 409 00:24:23,480 --> 00:24:26,480 she's crying, as she's saying, I just want to see Jesus. 410 00:24:26,520 --> 00:24:30,160 Where's his body? The gardener responds. 411 00:24:31,160 --> 00:24:38,960 Mary and that gentle sound of his voice at her name being 412 00:24:38,960 --> 00:24:42,680 called. The scales fall from her eyes, 413 00:24:44,400 --> 00:24:46,600 and she sees who is speaking to her. 414 00:24:47,800 --> 00:24:51,480 It's the one who spoke all things into being. 415 00:24:52,600 --> 00:24:54,960 It is the one who spoke all creation. 416 00:24:55,000 --> 00:24:58,920 It is the voice that the wind, the sky, the seas of Bay. 417 00:24:59,240 --> 00:25:03,400 It was the one who had commanded with His very voice to lame to 418 00:25:03,400 --> 00:25:08,080 be healed, told demons to go, who spoke blind eyes to see, who 419 00:25:08,080 --> 00:25:11,280 opened the ears with a word and fed the multitudes. 420 00:25:11,920 --> 00:25:16,200 It was the voice that many years before had called her name out 421 00:25:16,200 --> 00:25:19,880 of darkness, had told her to follow Him. 422 00:25:21,160 --> 00:25:28,720 It was the voice of Jesus, not dead, but the risen King and at 423 00:25:28,720 --> 00:25:34,960 his voice calling her name, her tears of pain, her tears of 424 00:25:34,960 --> 00:25:41,680 sorrow, her tears of brokenness instantly turn to tears of joy 425 00:25:41,680 --> 00:25:45,000 as she wraps her arms around him so tightly. 426 00:25:45,000 --> 00:25:47,360 Jesus like Mary, you're going to have to let me breathe. 427 00:25:47,360 --> 00:25:50,800 You know you need to go on, you know, be almost says, you know, 428 00:25:51,520 --> 00:25:53,520 Mary, if you keep holding onto me, I'm not going to be able to 429 00:25:53,520 --> 00:25:55,880 float up to heaven. You're holding me so tightly. 430 00:25:56,680 --> 00:26:01,880 He's he, he, she wraps her arms around him so tightly and and 431 00:26:02,160 --> 00:26:07,720 because she he called her name. And for the last 2000 plus 432 00:26:07,720 --> 00:26:14,520 years, Jesus has been calling names as we have been running 433 00:26:14,520 --> 00:26:18,040 away from him, as we've been living our own life. 434 00:26:18,560 --> 00:26:24,960 Jesus had been saying, come follow me, come follow me. 435 00:26:25,480 --> 00:26:28,160 He has called many of your names in here. 436 00:26:28,840 --> 00:26:35,200 And he says if we listen, if we respond to him, then we are 437 00:26:35,200 --> 00:26:38,520 free. Then we are free. 438 00:26:39,320 --> 00:26:42,480 He says, for those who are looking to find satisfaction, 439 00:26:42,600 --> 00:26:46,960 Jesus says I am the answer, come. 440 00:26:47,560 --> 00:26:53,280 And he says your name, follow me and you will find what will 441 00:26:53,280 --> 00:26:56,760 fills you. He says For those who are 442 00:26:56,760 --> 00:27:01,880 broken, he says, Jesus says, he answers. 443 00:27:02,480 --> 00:27:09,280 He says come follow me. He says your name, follow me and 444 00:27:09,280 --> 00:27:13,120 I will make you whole. For those who are looking for 445 00:27:13,120 --> 00:27:16,080 purpose, for meaning in their life, Jesus says, I am the 446 00:27:16,080 --> 00:27:20,040 answer, Come follow me and I will give you life and life to 447 00:27:20,040 --> 00:27:22,720 the full that never ever, ever ends. 448 00:27:23,760 --> 00:27:25,840 You see, you may be sitting there and thinking I don't need 449 00:27:25,840 --> 00:27:28,440 Jesus. Or maybe you're even sitting 450 00:27:28,440 --> 00:27:31,880 there and thinking, oh Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, too good for me. 451 00:27:32,720 --> 00:27:35,520 He'd never accept me if he knew what I did. 452 00:27:36,880 --> 00:27:42,200 The truth is that no one is good enough for Christ, not a single 453 00:27:42,280 --> 00:27:46,000 one of us. But we all need him. 454 00:27:46,480 --> 00:27:50,080 And the good news is that no one is too far gone for him. 455 00:27:52,080 --> 00:27:57,240 So that's why Jesus came not to tell us a load of rules and how 456 00:27:57,240 --> 00:28:00,560 to live. He came to live the perfect life 457 00:28:01,160 --> 00:28:04,280 and die the death that we should have died. 458 00:28:04,880 --> 00:28:09,200 He took the consequences of our sin upon Himself, so that in 459 00:28:09,200 --> 00:28:13,800 faith, if we believe in Him, our dross, our sin, our disobedience 460 00:28:13,880 --> 00:28:17,480 is placed on Christ at the cross and His perfect life is placed 461 00:28:17,480 --> 00:28:20,280 upon us. So we get to have a relationship 462 00:28:20,280 --> 00:28:22,520 with the Father. So our brokenness gets to be 463 00:28:22,520 --> 00:28:25,160 mended so that void gets to be filled. 464 00:28:26,160 --> 00:28:30,760 I see we can all come to Christ through faith in Him. 465 00:28:31,840 --> 00:28:33,600 I see Jesus. He walked this earth. 466 00:28:33,600 --> 00:28:36,760 That's just a fact. He did many miraculous signs and 467 00:28:36,760 --> 00:28:38,640 wonders. He healed many people. 468 00:28:38,720 --> 00:28:42,360 He said he he he feared thousands upon thousands of 469 00:28:42,360 --> 00:28:47,200 people. But all of that was useless and 470 00:28:47,200 --> 00:28:52,080 pointless if after being crucified, he stayed dead. 471 00:28:54,720 --> 00:28:57,640 But he didn't. He didn't. 472 00:28:58,440 --> 00:29:02,080 He rose again, first appearing to Mary. 473 00:29:02,480 --> 00:29:06,880 He called Mary's name and she she didn't believe it because 474 00:29:06,880 --> 00:29:08,720 dead people don't rise from the dead. 475 00:29:08,720 --> 00:29:12,120 Dead people stay dead. So she didn't believe it. 476 00:29:12,120 --> 00:29:15,560 She didn't see it. But in a call of her name, she 477 00:29:15,560 --> 00:29:18,920 looked and she saw and she believed, and her life was 478 00:29:18,920 --> 00:29:22,000 changed forever. She runs back to the disciples. 479 00:29:22,000 --> 00:29:24,240 She runs back to Peter, James, John and the others. 480 00:29:24,280 --> 00:29:26,360 She tells them they don't believe her. 481 00:29:27,240 --> 00:29:29,400 I don't believe her because dead people stay dead. 482 00:29:29,480 --> 00:29:31,560 She's just a crazy woman in their eyes. 483 00:29:32,280 --> 00:29:35,360 Until Jesus appears to them and says their names. 484 00:29:36,000 --> 00:29:39,800 And they looked and they saw and they followed. 485 00:29:40,920 --> 00:29:43,680 Thomas wasn't there. You read on Thomas wasn't there. 486 00:29:44,120 --> 00:29:46,600 They're all of them. There's there's Mary, there's, 487 00:29:46,600 --> 00:29:48,000 there's the other other disciples. 488 00:29:48,000 --> 00:29:50,280 There's there's two others who've just met Jesus on the 489 00:29:50,280 --> 00:29:52,360 road to Emmaus. They're all they're saying Jesus 490 00:29:52,360 --> 00:29:55,560 is alive, he's risen and Thomas is going not a chance. 491 00:29:55,560 --> 00:30:00,480 You're all crazy. Dead people stay dead until 492 00:30:00,640 --> 00:30:06,560 Jesus appears to Thomas and he says Thomas, Thomas. 493 00:30:07,640 --> 00:30:12,440 And Thomas looks, he sees, he puts his fingers in the hands 494 00:30:12,640 --> 00:30:17,760 and the side and he bows down. He says, my Lord, my God, my 495 00:30:17,760 --> 00:30:21,560 Saviour. And he follows Jesus for the 496 00:30:21,560 --> 00:30:24,800 rest of his life. All of them, all of them. 497 00:30:25,200 --> 00:30:28,200 They give up everything to follow Jesus because he really 498 00:30:28,200 --> 00:30:32,400 did raise from the deads. They go around the local city 499 00:30:32,520 --> 00:30:34,920 and the surrounding towns starting telling people about 500 00:30:34,920 --> 00:30:38,800 Jesus, that he was once dead. But he rose again, so much so 501 00:30:38,800 --> 00:30:42,040 that all the Jewish people, they start getting all angry because 502 00:30:42,040 --> 00:30:44,760 dead people stay dead. And if you keep telling people 503 00:30:44,840 --> 00:30:47,080 that dead people raise from the dead, the Romans are going to 504 00:30:47,080 --> 00:30:50,040 think we're crazy. And so one guy called Saul of 505 00:30:50,040 --> 00:30:52,800 Tarshish, who we know is Paul, he decides he's going to kill 506 00:30:52,800 --> 00:30:55,640 anyone who says that Jesus is a alive. 507 00:30:56,120 --> 00:30:59,160 And so he goes around, he starts imprisoning people, killing 508 00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:02,480 people until Jesus speaks his name. 509 00:31:03,520 --> 00:31:12,200 So so he turns, he sees the risen Lord Jesus, and he 510 00:31:12,200 --> 00:31:16,680 follows. He gives his life for Jesus. 511 00:31:17,400 --> 00:31:21,760 All of them gave their life for Jesus because he did not stay 512 00:31:21,760 --> 00:31:24,120 dead. But he is risen. 513 00:31:25,120 --> 00:31:27,480 He has risen. And the fact that Jesus has 514 00:31:27,480 --> 00:31:30,400 risen changes everything. The fact that Jesus said nice 515 00:31:30,400 --> 00:31:33,720 things doesn't change anything. The fact that Jesus chose to 516 00:31:33,720 --> 00:31:36,720 heal a few people, that doesn't change anything for you and I, 517 00:31:36,880 --> 00:31:40,760 the fact that Jesus rose from the dead changes everything. 518 00:31:41,200 --> 00:31:45,840 It changes everything. And guys, every single one of 519 00:31:45,840 --> 00:31:53,480 you, He is calling your name. He is saying your name because 520 00:31:53,480 --> 00:31:57,160 He wants you. He loves you. 521 00:31:58,760 --> 00:32:03,720 He is for you. Stop telling yourself no. 522 00:32:03,720 --> 00:32:06,480 But if he knew, he does. He's God, He knows everything. 523 00:32:07,520 --> 00:32:11,240 He loves you, He wants you. He is calling you. 524 00:32:11,640 --> 00:32:17,520 Can you hear him call you? Can you feel him saying, I love 525 00:32:17,520 --> 00:32:26,720 you and I want to, I want to end and by just praying for us and 526 00:32:26,960 --> 00:32:30,520 what we're going to do is we're going to pray and I want to pray 527 00:32:30,520 --> 00:32:32,960 for a few of you. If you want to for the first 528 00:32:33,040 --> 00:32:36,280 time, say Jesus, I want to follow you. 529 00:32:38,160 --> 00:32:40,640 I want to pray. I want to pray for you. 530 00:32:40,640 --> 00:32:45,320 Maybe you did many years ago. You said Jesus, I want to follow 531 00:32:45,320 --> 00:32:48,080 you. But you know really you've not 532 00:32:48,080 --> 00:32:50,960 lived for him. You've been ignoring his voice. 533 00:32:52,160 --> 00:32:56,400 I want to pray. It's Easter, new start, the Rep, 534 00:32:56,680 --> 00:32:59,800 the past is gone. He wants to start again with you 535 00:32:59,800 --> 00:33:02,200 today. If you want to recommit 536 00:33:02,200 --> 00:33:07,680 yourself, I want to pray. And then as we say Amen, as you 537 00:33:07,680 --> 00:33:11,760 feel ready, I'm going to ask everyone who feels comfortable. 538 00:33:11,760 --> 00:33:14,640 We're going to come forward and we're going to take bread and 539 00:33:14,640 --> 00:33:17,840 wine together. And bread and wine is a symbol 540 00:33:18,280 --> 00:33:23,000 of the fact that Jesus blood and his body wasn't just broken on a 541 00:33:23,000 --> 00:33:26,040 cross. It was broken for you. 542 00:33:27,320 --> 00:33:32,600 It was broken for us so that we can have a relationship with 543 00:33:32,880 --> 00:33:37,200 him. So I want you to bow your heads 544 00:33:37,200 --> 00:33:43,560 and I want you to not just let my words wash over you, but pray 545 00:33:43,560 --> 00:33:45,680 them along. And like I said, if this is for 546 00:33:45,680 --> 00:33:48,840 the first time, that's amazing. Maybe you've prayed to God 547 00:33:48,840 --> 00:33:52,480 before, but you've never prayed that he would save you, that you 548 00:33:52,480 --> 00:33:54,640 would follow him. And we're going to do that right 549 00:33:54,640 --> 00:33:58,640 now. So Lord Jesus, God, I thank you 550 00:33:58,640 --> 00:34:04,520 that you are here in this place. Jesus, I want to thank you that 551 00:34:04,520 --> 00:34:08,280 you didn't stay in heaven, but you came, you were born as a 552 00:34:08,280 --> 00:34:12,199 baby, you lived, you grew, you were perfect. 553 00:34:13,080 --> 00:34:16,639 Lord Jesus, you're the only perfect 1 Lord God. 554 00:34:16,639 --> 00:34:21,159 And you died on a Roman cross for the for my sin, for 555 00:34:21,159 --> 00:34:25,400 everyone's sin, so that all who would believe in you, all that 556 00:34:25,400 --> 00:34:29,040 would follow, you would find forgiveness, would find 557 00:34:29,040 --> 00:34:31,880 satisfaction, would find wholeness. 558 00:34:32,960 --> 00:34:37,719 Lord Jesus, I just want to pray for those in here who don't know 559 00:34:37,719 --> 00:34:41,280 you, Lord Jesus. And then if that's you, maybe 560 00:34:41,280 --> 00:34:42,960 you want to just pray along with me now. 561 00:34:43,120 --> 00:34:47,639 So Lord Jesus, I am I'm sorry for living a life without you. 562 00:34:49,280 --> 00:34:54,920 Lord Jesus, sin, I thank you that you forgive me because of 563 00:34:54,920 --> 00:34:58,480 your death on the cross. You forgive me, Lord Jesus, and 564 00:34:58,480 --> 00:35:01,040 I want to follow you from this day on. 565 00:35:02,120 --> 00:35:06,560 Lord Jesus, I hear you calling my name and I want to give the 566 00:35:06,560 --> 00:35:11,920 rest of my life for you. Lord Jesus, for those who have 567 00:35:11,920 --> 00:35:16,080 gone away and want to start again, I thank you that you 568 00:35:16,080 --> 00:35:18,920 offer a fresh start. And so, Lord Jesus, I just want 569 00:35:18,920 --> 00:35:21,680 to thank you. I thank you, God, that for, for, 570 00:35:21,680 --> 00:35:23,640 for those who have have turned away. 571 00:35:23,640 --> 00:35:26,320 Lord Jesus, there is always a second chance. 572 00:35:26,320 --> 00:35:31,720 Lord God, Lord Jesus, I pray come fill us right now. 573 00:35:32,280 --> 00:35:35,240 Fill us with your presence. Amen. 574 00:35:36,240 --> 00:35:39,480 Amen. We read, read in this passage 575 00:35:40,240 --> 00:35:44,880 that for those of us who Jesus has saved, who have said I'm 576 00:35:44,880 --> 00:35:48,160 following him, what does Mary do? 577 00:35:49,240 --> 00:35:51,040 She goes and tells people about him. 578 00:35:52,040 --> 00:35:56,720 So my encouragement to you is if you have prayed, if you have 579 00:35:56,720 --> 00:35:59,120 said Jesus, I want to follow you. 580 00:36:00,200 --> 00:36:05,720 Tell someone, tell someone, tell someone here, and then go and 581 00:36:05,720 --> 00:36:06,760 tell people out there.