Podcasts about suddenly jesus

Suddenly Jesus speaks, and says, “behold, I now choose to come quickly. Blessed is he who is now keeping the words of the prophecy of this book.” He wants us to contemplate the suddenness of all that will come to be so we can choose to be prepared always, dressed in white, dressed in wedding garments, like a bride prepared for her husband.Blessed is the one observing the logos, the expansive breath of all that has been said in the Revelation summed up as: The Source Matters, the Source is Everything because Only God is Good!But John is still beholden to the Woman who rides the Beast and he bows once again at the feet of an angel to worship. He is told to worship only God. The angels are in the fight with us to endure, they are ministering spirits.Download Transcript

Jesus Has Risen28 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.”8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

Teacher: Adam Barnett He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.   - Isaiah 53:3-5 Mark 15:25 - It was nine in the morning when they crucified him. After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”  - Matthew 28:1-10 “The resurrection completes the inauguration of God's kingdom… it is the decisive event demonstrating that God's kingdom really has been launched on earth as it is in heaven. The message of Easter is that God's new world has been unveiled in Jesus Christ and that you're now invited to belong to it.” – N.T. Wright For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.  - John 3:16-17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! - 2 Corinthians 5:17 Jesus, I believe in you. I believe you died on the cross for me. I believe you resurrected from the dead. I give my life to you. I am sorry for my sins. Please forgive me. I welcome you to live in my heart and to fill me with your Holy Spirit. I want to live this life, and the life to come, with you. Through the name of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, I pray. Amen!

Message by Rev. Tim Barton, recorded live February 16, 2025 at First Presbyterian Church of Bellingham. Tim is part of our congregation, and a long time pastor from the Portland area. He is also currently participating as a Spiritual Director in Rhythms of Grace. Today's scripture is read by Brad Day.Matthew 26:14-16 (Judas betrays Jesus) – Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver. 16 From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.Matthew 26:36-40 (the disciples slept) – Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn't you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. Matthew 26:55-56 (The disciples fled) – In that hour Jesus said to the crowd, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I sat in the temple courts teaching, and you did not arrest me. But this has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.Matthew 26:73-75 (Peter's denial) – After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter and said, “Surely you are one of them; your accent gives you away.” Then he began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don't know the man!” Immediately a rooster crowed. 75 Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly. Matthew 27:50, 55 (the women watched Jesus) – And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of Zebedee's sons.Matthew 28:1, 5-8 (the women proclaimed Jesus) – After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

“Then Jesus told him, ‘You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.’” (John 20:29 NLT) Jesus’ followers had seen Him turn water to wine. They’d seen Him heal the sick, the deaf, the blind, the disabled, and the demon possessed. They’d seen Him feed 5,000 people with five small loaves of bread and two fish. They’d seen Him calm a storm at sea. They’d seen Him raise Lazarus from the dead. They’d heard Him explain countless times that He had to die but that He would return. Yet it doesn’t seem to have occurred to any of them that He would rise from the dead. Mary Magdalene visited Jesus’ tomb very early on the Sunday morning after the Sabbath. Her plan was to anoint Jesus’ corpse with more spices. When she saw that the heavy stone in front of the tomb had been rolled away, she suspected that His body had been moved. She found Simon Peter and John and told them. The two disciples ran to the tomb. John, the younger one, got there first but stopped outside. Simon Peter, the bolder one, ran inside. The two of them saw Jesus’ grave clothes—but not His body. Suddenly the truth dawned on John. “He saw and believed—for until then they still hadn’t understood the Scriptures that said Jesus must rise from the dead” (verses 8b–9). The two disciples returned home without telling Mary Magdalene what they had seen. She stayed at the tomb, crying. But when she looked inside, she saw two angels sitting where Jesus’ body had been. And when she turned around, she saw what she thought was a gardener. She asked him where they had taken Jesus’ body. “Mary!” the man said in verse 16. That one word was all she needed to recognize Jesus’ voice. That evening, all but one of Jesus’ disciples met together. Only Thomas was missing. Apparently, they sensed the targets on their backs because they met behind locked doors. Suddenly the risen Jesus appeared to them. He showed them His wounds to prove that He had, in fact, died. Naturally, the disciples were overjoyed to be in His presence again. But Thomas wasn’t overjoyed when they told him about it later. For him, the news was too good to be true. “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side” (verse 25). Eight days later, the disciples met again behind locked doors. This time, Thomas was with them. Suddenly Jesus appeared again. “Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!’” (verse 27). He gave Thomas the evidence he needed to believe. Thomas and the other disciples had an essential ministry ahead of them. They would tell the world what they’d seen Jesus do and what they’d heard Him say so that others, who hadn’t seen or heard Him, might believe. Jesus ensured that His followers had what they needed to carry out their assignment. — Listen to the Greg Laurie Podcast Become a Harvest PartnerSupport the show: https://harvest.org/supportSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last time we saw Mary receive the miracle of a supernatural conception. She became pregnant with the Son of God. Suddenly Jesus was living inside her, and the effect that His presence had on her and the circumstances surrounding her is a dramatic illustration of what all Christians can expect. After all, when a person believes in Jesus Christ, He also comes to live inside of him/her (Jn. 14:20, 23; Gal. 4:19; Col. 1:27). We carry Christ inside us in a different way, but like Mary our lives will be deeply impacted by this reality. Unfortunately, there is an unbalanced teaching prevalent today that once a person becomes a Christian everything in life should go smoothly. Along with that is the teaching that when a person is truly in the will of God everything should proceed without hardship. Though this teaching has no real Biblical support it creates false expectations in people which, when unmet, leave them disappointed and alienated from God. There is no event in history which is more surely in the will of God than the incarnation and birth of His Son. It is the essential first step toward the salvation of believing humans. So, one would expect that God would arrange circumstances for Mary so that she faced little suffering as she fulfilled her appointed service. But that was not the case. In actuality, Mary faced an appalling list of heart-breaking events. It seemed that the presence of Christ in her ignited opposition everywhere she went. And yet God was always faithful to guide and provide for her as she needed it.   To purchase Pastor Steve's new book Understanding Acts: Life-Changing Lessons from the Early Church, visit Amazon.  Also check out our website at lifelessonspublishing.com for additional resources for pastors and leaders. We have free recorded classes and other materials offered at no charge.  And check us out on Instagram as well!    

Years ago I was flying like a gazillion miles a year it seemed like. And they gave me this coupon along the way. It entitled me to an upgrade to a first class seat on a future flight. Now that was a privilege that was really appreciated, especially when you've got major work to get done. They even let me board before any other passengers. I got a lot of dirty looks, but it was nice. And that meant I could get right to work on the plane instead of standing in line. Now you could be saying, "Well, aren't you special?" Well listen, there's nothing special about me that gets me these special privileges, except that when you're a frequent flier on this airline, they give this kind of reward to anyone who flies a lot and does it consistently with them. See, the airlines want to train us to think one simple thought, customer loyalty pays off! I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Through the Darkness With Jesus." The benefits belong to those who keep traveling with the same people. And long before there were airlines, some Jewish women discovered that as they followed Jesus. Our word for today from the Word of God is from Matthew 27 - we're beginning with verse 55. The scene: the crucifixion of Jesus, where most of those who had been with Jesus had taken off. But the Bible says, "Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for His needs. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Jesus." They'd followed Jesus loyally through all those journeys, all those miracles, all those life-changing lessons, and the glory of Palm Sunday only five days earlier. And now, when it looks as if all is lost and there is no reason to hang on, there they are at the cross. Jesus has died now; it is over. Even though Jesus is buried in a borrowed tomb, the Bible says, "Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb." Still loyal, when all hope seems to be gone. Then, of course, on that incredible Resurrection Day, "Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb." Because of their tenacious loyalty to Jesus, these women (not any of Jesus' 12 disciples) are the first to see the empty tomb. And then the greatest joy of all, "The women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell His disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them." What may be the greatest thrill, the greatest privilege in all of human history, to be the first ones to ever see Jesus alive again! Those who have been His loyal followers through it all - they get that honor, they get the privilege! Like a passenger loyal to one airline, they enjoy benefits that only the loyal experience. Because they've stuck with Jesus when there seemed to be no reason to, they get to see Him as no others have seen Him, and they experience the unspeakable joy that is reserved for those who were faithful when it was totally dark. And you know, that is still the experience of those who will stay with Jesus through the valley, the victories, the pain, the unanswered questions, the as yet unanswered prayers. When you do, you get to see Jesus in all His power and all of His glory. But maybe for you, the resurrection day hasn't come yet. You're still in the time of the cross right now, or the time of the tomb, the time where there seems to be no hope, no reason. Maybe you're suffering from faithfulness fatigue. You've hung on, but it's getting harder to keep hanging on. And the Lord knows how hard it is right now. So He has sent you this reminder that the greatest benefits go to those who stay with Jesus, no matter what. He has some wonderful blessings, some unspeakable joy, and some tremendous rewards for you if you'll stay faithful for a few more miles. In the words of Galatians 6:9, "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." The best rewards Jesus has to give are for those who fly faithfully with Him through it all.

Rev. Doug Floyd Easter 2, 2024Rev. Doug FloydActs 3:12, 13-15,17-26; John 20:19-31 The disciples are huddled behind a locked door for fear of the Jews. Suddenly Jesus stands in their midst, saying “Peace be with you.” He tells these frail and fearful disciples that He is sending them out. They are His witnesses. Jump ahead seven weeks and these same frail and…

/> ### MESSAGE NOTES"Resurrection" | Easter Sunday | March 31, 2024Teacher: Adam Barnett  /> HEAVEN JUST STARTED COUNTING TO THREE. /> Matthew 28:1-10-1 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.”8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him.10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” /> 1)    Salvation. Romans 6:23 –For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. /> 2)    Status. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.– John 1:12/> 3)    Security.  /> Romans 8:1 –Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus./> Jesus, I believe in you. You are the resurrection and the life. I believe you died on the cross for me. I believe in your resurrection. Will you make me a new creation today? I am sorry for my sins. Please forgive me. I ask you to live in my heart and to fill me with your Holy Spirit. I want to live this life, and the life to come, with you. Through the name of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, I pray … Amen! 

Message by Pastor Doug, recorded March 31, 2024 at First Presbyterian Church of Bellingham. Scripture read by Pastor Kerrie. He is risen, and the worst news is now the best. Worship the risen Lord. What does it mean that the women see the tomb stone rolled away? What do they make of the angel's words? What does fear and joy feel like? What do you notice about this encounter with a risen Jesus? What does Jesus mean by brothers? How do we interpret this? Matthew 28:1-15 The Resurrection of Jesus 1 After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning and his clothing white as snow. 4 For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here, for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you.” 8 So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers and sisters to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” The Report of the Guard 11 While they were going, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 After the priests had assembled with the elders, they devised a plan to give a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13 telling them, “You must say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.' 14 If this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story is still told among the Judeans to this day.

The Sabbath was over, and it was almost daybreak on Sunday when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 Suddenly a strong earthquake struck, and the Lord's angel came down from heaven. He rolled away the stone and sat on it. The angel looked as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards shook from fear and fell down, as though they were dead. The angel said to the women, “Don't be afraid! I know you are looking for Jesus, who was nailed to a cross. He isn't here! God has raised him to life, just as Jesus said he would. Come, see the place where his body was lying. Now hurry! Tell his disciples he has been raised to life and is on his way to Galilee. Go there, and you will see him. This is what I came to tell you.” The women were frightened and yet very happy, as they hurried from the tomb and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and greeted them. They went near him, held on to his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said, “Don't be afraid! Tell my followers to go to Galilee. They will see me there.” Scripture: Matthew 28:1-10 Pastor: Andy Nixon

The Sabbath was over, and it was almost daybreak on Sunday when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 Suddenly a strong earthquake struck, and the Lord's angel came down from heaven. He rolled away the stone and sat on it. The angel looked as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards shook from fear and fell down, as though they were dead. The angel said to the women, “Don't be afraid! I know you are looking for Jesus, who was nailed to a cross. He isn't here! God has raised him to life, just as Jesus said he would. Come, see the place where his body was lying. Now hurry! Tell his disciples he has been raised to life and is on his way to Galilee. Go there, and you will see him. This is what I came to tell you.” The women were frightened and yet very happy, as they hurried from the tomb and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and greeted them. They went near him, held on to his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said, “Don't be afraid! Tell my followers to go to Galilee. They will see me there.” Scripture: Matthew 28:1-10 Pastor: Rev. Sean McDonald

Matthew 28:1-10After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.”8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

The Sabbath was over, and it was almost daybreak on Sunday when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 Suddenly a strong earthquake struck, and the Lord's angel came down from heaven. He rolled away the stone and sat on it. The angel looked as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards shook from fear and fell down, as though they were dead. The angel said to the women, “Don't be afraid! I know you are looking for Jesus, who was nailed to a cross. He isn't here! God has raised him to life, just as Jesus said he would. Come, see the place where his body was lying. Now hurry! Tell his disciples he has been raised to life and is on his way to Galilee. Go there, and you will see him. This is what I came to tell you.” The women were frightened and yet very happy, as they hurried from the tomb and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and greeted them. They went near him, held on to his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said, “Don't be afraid! Tell my followers to go to Galilee. They will see me there.” Scripture: Matthew 28:1-10 Pastor: Rev. Sean McDonald

The Sabbath was over, and it was almost daybreak on Sunday when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 Suddenly a strong earthquake struck, and the Lord's angel came down from heaven. He rolled away the stone and sat on it. The angel looked as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards shook from fear and fell down, as though they were dead. The angel said to the women, “Don't be afraid! I know you are looking for Jesus, who was nailed to a cross. He isn't here! God has raised him to life, just as Jesus said he would. Come, see the place where his body was lying. Now hurry! Tell his disciples he has been raised to life and is on his way to Galilee. Go there, and you will see him. This is what I came to tell you.” The women were frightened and yet very happy, as they hurried from the tomb and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and greeted them. They went near him, held on to his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said, “Don't be afraid! Tell my followers to go to Galilee. They will see me there.” Scripture: Matthew 28:1-10 Pastor: Andy Nixon

Join us as we celebrate Easter. Summary This Easter sermon by Jonathan focuses on the message of hope and new beginnings found in the story of Jesus' resurrection. Key Points: Peter's Denial and Despair: Jonathan uses the story of Peter denying Jesus three times to illustrate how we can all fail and feel like failures. (John 18:25-27) The Power of Resurrection: The sermon emphasizes that Jesus' resurrection offers forgiveness and a chance to start anew, regardless of past mistakes. (John 20:1-18) The Call to Follow Jesus: Following Jesus is a call to a new life, leaving behind the baggage of the past. (John 21:1-17) Finding Peace and Overcoming Doubt: The sermon highlights that Jesus offers peace in times of fear and doubt. (John 20:19-23) Baptism as a Symbol of New Life: Baptism is presented as a public declaration of following Jesus and leaving behind the old way of life. (Romans 6:4) Jonathan's Easter sermon uses the story of Peter's denial and Jesus' resurrection to deliver a powerful message of hope and new beginnings. Here's a closer look at the key points: From Denial to Despair: We start with Peter, a close follower of Jesus, who denies him three times on the night of his arrest. This relatable story shows that even the most devoted can make mistakes. Pastor Jonathan acknowledges that we all experience moments of failure, leading to feelings of despair and questioning our worth. Resurrection: A Beacon of Hope: The sermon doesn't dwell on Peter's despair. It shifts to the transformative power of Easter. Jesus' resurrection isn't just a historical event; it's a symbol of God's victory over death and sin. This offers immense hope - no matter how badly we've messed up, forgiveness and a fresh start are possible through Jesus. (John 20:1-18) A Call to a New Life: Following Jesus isn't about maintaining the status quo. Pastor Jonathan highlights Jesus' encounter with Peter by the Sea of Galilee (John 21:1-17). Peter, burdened by his past actions, returns to fishing, his old life. Jesus, however, calls him again, and the miraculous catch of fish reminds Peter of his calling. This act signifies that our past failures don't define us. When we follow Jesus, we embrace a new purpose and direction. Facing Fear and Doubt: The sermon acknowledges that following a new path can be daunting. Fear and doubt are natural responses. Jonathan reminds us that Jesus' appearances to his disciples after the resurrection brought them peace (John 20:19-23). Jesus can calm our anxieties and guide us through uncertainty. Baptism: A Public Declaration: Jonathan concludes by drawing a connection between the message of Easter and baptism. Choosing baptism is a public declaration of our decision to follow Jesus and leave behind our old life. It signifies a new beginning, washed clean by God's grace. (Romans 6:4) Overall, Jonathan's sermon uses the Easter story to deliver a message of hope and encouragement. It reminds us that regardless of our past mistakes, through Jesus, we can find forgiveness, purpose, and a new way of living. Bible References: John 18:25-27 - Peter Denying Jesus John 20:1-18 - The Empty Tomb and Jesus' Appearances John 21:1-17 - Jesus Reinstates Peter John 20:19-23 - Jesus Appears to the Disciples Romans 6:4 - Buried with Christ in Baptism Transcript Easter is an exciting time for us as Christians. We're the other side of the story. We even know the truth that Jesus didn't just die on a cross and that was the end, but he rose again to life. And we've seen the power of that and the life of that in this place. Matt, look around you. If you've never been to the church before, this is alive. And it's alive with faith. It's alive with an experience that people have met Jesus. And he makes the difference in everyone's life. Amen. But for Peter, all those years back, Easter was really the low point of his life. Things could not have gone any worse for him. It all started on the last meal that Jesus and his friends had together, where Jesus was explaining to them that actually he was going to die and that they would all run away and leave him alone. Peter was absolutely emphatic in Adam and look, even if the rest of them, because they're a bit lightweight, even if the rest of them all leave, can't keep up. I'll go with you to prison. I'll go with you to death. I will never deny you. And he had his bubble burst immediately by Jesus who said to him, look, mate, I think Jesus would have called him, mate. We call it friend because we're religious, but makes good, isn't it? Look, mate, before this evening finishes, before a rooster crows, you're going to deny me three times on how Peter felt. I wonder if he felt steel to say, I'm going to show you Jesus. That's not going to happen. You wait for it. Whatever we know is Jesus took a sword. Peter took a sword rather with him as they went off to the Garden of Gethsemane because he was going to fight. He was ready for a fight. If anything was going to happen, he was there. Something did happen, of course. A group of people with guards came to arrest Jesus. And Peter drew his sword and didn't go for one of the guards. Think of one of the soldiers. Big man Peter went for a servant, didn't he? And he attacked him. In anger, frustration, he lashed out with a sword. Now, Peter was a fisherman. He wasn't a soldier. He didn't know how to handle a sword. Whether that was good or bad, we don't know. All we know is that this guy had his ear chopped off. That means to me that Peter was going for his neck. He was that cross. He wanted to kill somebody for the sake of Jesus. Wow. Well, what happened next was that Jesus took control. He said, look, guys, you're after me. This is the person you've come for. He healed the person's ear. And Peter, in response and Thanksgiving with the rest of them, all ran off. They ran off into the night and left Jesus. The first thing Peter must have been thinking was, what have I done? But there's a curiosity in Peter that's always there. And this curiosity led him to go to the high priest's house. Big mansion with a big courtyard. See what was actually going to happen to Jesus after he'd been arrested. And he's there around a fire with some of the other people. And suddenly he's recognized. Hey, you're a Northern, aren't you? They said it with a Southern accent. He was a guy. You're a Northern. It's too, aren't you? You've been with him. I've seen you with him. And suddenly Jesus, Peter's, you know, on the back foot, he's not prepared to stand up for his convictions or his faith or what he believed. He said, I know, no, no, no, you've got to be mistaken, mate. Not me, another mate. You know, he's a Northern. You've got to be mistaken that I don't know him at all. In fact, these questions of Peter got more and more, three times he was asked. Surely you were with him. I've seen you with him. Peter goes, look, on my very life, I swear to you, I don't know him. I'm swearing to him. He starts cursing and swearing. Suddenly Jesus appears walking across the courtyard and he fixes his eyes on him. And if the whole ground could have opened up for Peter at that moment, his whole world is crashing that he would have loved to have been swallowed up. He'd have loved to have been anywhere else but there when Jesus looked at him as he's denying him. And all Peter can do is rush out of that courtyard and uncontrollably break down in tears. He's sobbing his eyes at because he knows he's messed up big time. He knows he's failed. He knows actually that he's done the very thing that Jesus said he would do and the very thing that he said he wouldn't do. And it seemed like it was game over for Peter as we know Jesus is condemned to death and dies a criminal's death on a cross. And that seemed to be that. Each the morning would have started just like any other day in Jerusalem. Sun would have rose, people would have got up, they'd be making their breakfast, getting ready to go to work. But it wouldn't be known to all but a very few people on that day, a history-making life-changing event had taken place. Someone that still takes some believing today. But even for those who were there who knew Jesus best, they struggled with it at the time. Jesus didn't just have men following him, he had women too. And in fact in many ways the women were there when the men had run away. They were there at the cross. They'd seen where he was put in a tomb, a borrowed tomb. And they wanted to do what was right for a body. In those days it put spices and ointments on the body to preserve it. It was a way of honouring and respecting the dead. They went to respect the corpse of Jesus early in the morning. They'd had to have a day off because in Jewish religion Sabbath you didn't do anything like this. So they had a day off the Saturday, the Sunday morning they went there. And so they're shocked and surprised. They wondered if somebody had nicked the body. The body had been moved because this massive stone had been rolled away and the tomb was empty. And they wondered what had happened. Well we'd all be amazed, wouldn't we really? And then they met these guys, actually angels, with this great message. It's the message of Easter morning. Why are you looking for the living among the dead? Jesus isn't here. He's alive. He's risen from the dead. And they told them to look, look for yourself. Nobody's here. Go and have a look in, see the tomb? Nothing to say, apart from some of this empty. And they were amazed by this story. And the angel said, look, go back and tell the rest of the followers. Tell the guys what's happened. But particularly they said, tell Peter. Peter the one who'd messed up big time. Peter the one who had failed to stand up for Jesus. Peter the one who'd lost his nerve and his temper, who'd assaulted somebody with a sword, who denied jeez with curses. The angel said, God wants Peter to know, it's not game over for you. It's not the end of the story. So the women went to see the disciples and told them what had happened. And if you read the Bible, sorry, they couldn't believe it. They said it seemed like nonsense to them. That Jesus has risen from the dead. How can we believe that? I mean, we've been following him. We've seen him raise other people from the dead. We've seen miracles he's done. But somehow we can't possibly believe this could have happened. But two of them went to the tomb just to check it out for themselves. One called John and the other one, Peter. Peter's off again. And we read that when John saw the empty tomb, he believed the message straight away. But we read that Peter went in, saw the cloth and he wondered still what this was all about. He still wasn't sure what this might mean and what this might mean to him. By the evening, these guys, the followers of Jesus, all gathered in this big room again, probably the same room that had that last meal with him. And they were frightened, bewildered, confused. They'd heard the story that the ladies had said. They'd seen the empty tomb. They'd heard the reports, but they weren't quite sure. And they were still scared, stiff, for what might happen to them. They thought the Jewish authorities would come and get them next and they would be the next ones for the chop. So they'd lock the doors. And suddenly, Jesus on that first Easter evening came to them. No lock can keep Jesus out of lives. He's more powerful than the locks we try to put on, you know? And there he was among them. And into their fears, he spoke peace. See, Jesus wants to speak peace in our fears too. And he reminded them that they really had a calling that was beyond being tied in this upper room or this room. They had a calling to take this message around the world. And he breathed life into them, the living spirit of God. There was a sense where Jesus brings peace into this place of confusion and bewilderment and fear. The presence of God can do that for anyone in this room today. It was a week later when they saw Jesus again, because some of them hadn't been there that night. Thomas in particular hadn't been there. One of the disciples, one of the 12 people, the special people that Jesus had picked. And he said, look, I can't believe this has happened. What more do you need, Thomas? Do you think they're all lying to you? Do you think they've not, you know, they would tell you, but he wanted to find out for himself. I won't believe it. I've saved himself. So I've touched him for myself. And so I know it for myself. And you know, we eat later. Jesus appears again. And he meets Thomas in his doubts. Jesus will lead us in our doubts. We may not understand everything about this Christian faith. We may not understand everything about resurrection and about the life that Jesus brings and about the hope that he brings. But Jesus, the living Jesus, this morning, can meet us in our fears and it can meet us in our doubts. There was a third time that Jesus met these disciples. And this was the most pertinent for Peter. By this time they'd left Jerusalem and they'd gone home. They'd gone back to Galilee in the north. And Peter had gone back to his job fishing. Because for Peter, whilst he knew that Jesus was alive and well, the thought of what that meant for him, he still wasn't sure. He felt disqualified. He felt he failed. He felt his life was so messed up with the things he'd done wrong. He'd been a follower of Jesus, but he messed up big time. He denied Jesus. He'd lost his rag. He'd done so many things that were wrong. He thought there's no way that Jesus couldn't use me again. And that day Jesus kind of reenacts what happened on the day that he originally called Peter and the others to follow him as fishermen. Do you know what? Peter went back to his old life and what did he catch? Nothing. Because there was nothing back there for him. I want to say to you who become Christians in this room, there's nothing back there for us. Nothing. That's dead to us. There's nothing there. It's not worth going back to. And Jesus had been fishing all night caught. Nothing. And then Jesus says, well, put your nets on the other side. As he had done those three years before, they did so. And this miraculous catch of fish was brought in. And Peter immediately knew it was the Lord. It's the Lord he says. And this is the third time Peter had met Jesus as a resurrection life. And he gets out the boat and he swims to shore. And Jesus makes Peter and reminds him that his past did not determine his future and said that whatever has happened in the past is gone. This is about you now. I've called you to feed my sheep, to feed my lambs. And the word that Jesus uses, one of the last words we have recorded that he says to Peter, the little discourse afterwards, but one of the men think he says to Peter is, follow me. There's nothing worth going back to Peter. I've called you to follow me. Today, baptism is a public decoration that we're following Jesus. In baptism, we identify, which is why it's so great to know Easter, that Jesus died for our sins. And he rose again to new life. It's a declaration that the way we live before is finished. There's nothing to go back to. It's over. That actually, whatever the pain we feel about that, how we're embarrassed or ashamed we might feel about that, how we're guilty about what's happened in the past, there is a new life for us to live in Jesus. Hallelujah. That we no longer need to struggle with guilt and shame and a feeling of being unworthy to be his follower. If Jesus could recommission Peter to follow him, don't you dare think that anything you've done in your life is too great for Jesus to forgive and to deal with. He wants to set you free from the guilt of the past. It's a new day. You can rise up into a new day, a new dawn. And just as with those first followers at Easter, Jesus wants to breathe his life into our spirits. He wants us to know his peace instead of living in fear. He wants us to learn to trust and know faith where we have struggled with doubts. And he wants us to know there's nothing to go back to in this world. But our past failures do not stop us from achieving all he has for us. Why? Because he is risen and he has power over sin and death and hell. He is Lord. Hallelujah.

You can grab the free workbook at www.catholicmomcalm.com/lent2024 Full text of St. Faustina's Diary. Reflection question: Serving others is a good thing but an ungodly attachment to others or what they think of us keeps us from being fully attached to the Lord. Whose attention do you seek presently that is keeping your attention from being on God? Excerpt from St. Faustina's Diary for today (55): I was sent for treatment to our house in Plock, and there I had the privilege of decorating the chapel with flowers. That was at Biala. 36 Sister Thecla did not always have time for this, so I often decorated the chapel by myself. One day, I had picked the prettiest roses to decorate the room of a certain person. When I was approaching the porch, I saw Jesus standing there. In a kindly way He asked me, My daughter, to whom are you taking these flowers? My silence was my reply to the Lord, because I recognized immediately that I had a very subtle attachment to this person, 37 which I had not noticed before. Suddenly Jesus disappeared. At the same moment I threw the flowers on the ground and went before the Blessed Sacrament, my heart filled with gratitude for the grace of knowing myself. O Divine Sun, in Your rays the soul sees the tiniest specks of dust which displease You.

Creationtide II - Rivers 1st Lesson: A Reading from the Book of Genesis (Genesis 8:20-22; 9:12) Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And when the LORD smelled the pleasing odor, the LORD said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of humans, for the inclination of the human heart is evil from youth; nor will I ever again destroy every living creature as I have done. As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall not cease.” God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh, and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.” 2nd Lesson: A Reading from the Book of Revelation (Revelation 22:1-5 ) Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month, and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. Nothing accursed will be found there anymore. But the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. The Gospel Reading: Matthew 28:1-10 After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you.” So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers and sisters to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

John 14:12 When the disciples heard Jesus say these words, they were doubtless in a state of shock. They had just learnt that their master and friend was going to be leaving them. Given that they had abandoned their previous ways of life to follow Jesus, this was going to mean a colossal challenge. Surely everything, from now onwards, was going to be much worse. But Jesus had a surprise for them. He told them that, in fact, much more was going to happen after he left them. And it would be good. Jesus spoke along the same lines again in John 16. There, he explained it was to the disciples' advantage that he went away because, “the Holy Spirit cannot come to help you until I leave” (John 16:7, CEV). Jesus wasn't saying that more powerful miracles would happen after he left, but simply that there would be more of them when the Holy Spirit was poured out. During Jesus' ministry he accepted the limitations of being human. He could only be in one place at one time. But with the release of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the whole script changed. Suddenly Jesus' followers were fanned out all over the world. More miracles took place than were ever achieved in the years of Jesus' own earthly ministry. From time to time, we probably all reflect on how amazing it would have been to have known and walked with Jesus when he was alive. But the truth is that we live in days when even more miracles are happening. Let's praise God today for the miracles that will be taking place all over the world in the name of Jesus. QUESTION How do you think the disciples would have reacted to the news that it was to their advantage that Jesus left them? PRAYER Lord Jesus, we praise you for all the miracles that will be happening around the world today as people worship and serve you. Amen

Mary and the other Mary went to the tomb to see Jesus. He wasn't there. At first, they were confused. But then they encountered an angel who helped them understand what happened and told them what to do next.   They hurried off. On the way, they encountered the resurrected Jesus. Can you imagine?   They fell at his feet, clinging to him. They loved him dearly. He told them, “Don't be afraid. Go tell the others.”   You've probably read this account before. But there is something in it for you today. As you meditate ask the Lord to help you notice what he wants you to notice.   Once you've listened to this Scripture Experience podcast, don't miss the next episode with professor and author Nijay Gupta (Releases 5/10/23)   We discuss the surprising roles women played in the early church. As we do, Nijay points out something from this passage that I had never seen before. Make sure you listen in – it will bless you.   You can find Jodie at http://www.jodieniznik.com/ Instagram @creatingspaceforgod Facebook @JodieGNiznik Download free sample chapters from my Bible studies here. Download your free Lectio Divina Journal here.   The full meditation text is: Matthew 28:5-10 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Matthew 28:1-1028 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.”8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him.10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” Luke 24:30-3530 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. 32 They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” 33 They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together 34 and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” 35 Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread  Easter Experience      Crucifixion      Burial      Resurrection Encountering the Risen Lord 

John 20:1-18 1. Daring Discipleship A. Cross Dangerous Love - loyalty Mary M - Luke 8.1-3 Only women in all four accounts Mary mother of Jesus Did not believe - came to faith “When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”” (Mark 3:21 NIV11) “Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day's walk from the city. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.” (Acts 1:12–14 NIV11) “Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”” (Luke 2:34–35 NIV11) “But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.” (John 19:33–34 NIV11) B. Burial Joseph and Nicodemus. Joseph only man in all four accounts.  ‘marginal' disciples, like the ‘marginal' women. C. Resurrection  Afraid  “After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”” (Matthew 28:1–10 NIV11) A non-sensical message, an unexpected event attested to by invalid witnesses. Point: The courage to be a loyal disciple is available to all people, no matter your status. You can be a ‘marginalised' person, but a wonderful witness. You can be the most vulnerable person, but the most loving and loyal. At all three locations, they were there at a location of ‘failure'. But that did not diminish their loyalty and love for him.  2. Gentle Jesus A. Questions B. Personal ‘Mary' He cared, she felt special. He treated women in a way they were not used to. C. Mission ‘Go tell…' She was the first ‘apostle' Infectious bravery - Apostles become brave Conclusion Parallels with Eden. New Adam; Garden - abundant life; Reverse the curse; Woman brings fruit of death, now the fruit of life God emphasising the value of the ‘marginalised' - especially women We can be this brave Please add your comments on this week's topic. We learn best when we learn in community.  Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here's the email: [malcolm@malcolmcox.org](mailto:malcolm@malcolmcox.org).  If you'd like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://[www.malcolmcox.org](http://www.malcolmcox.org/).  Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review.  “Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” (Psalms 100:2 NIV11)  God bless, Malcolm

John 20:1-18 QUESTION: Tell me something you have witnessed that no one else here has seen. Something you would like other people to know, or wished that they had witnessed with you. 1. Daring Discipleship A. Cross Dangerous Love - loyalty Mary M - Luke 8.1-3 Only women in all four accounts Mary mother of Jesus Did not believe - came to faith “When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”” (Mark 3:21 NIV11) “Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day's walk from the city. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.” (Acts 1:12–14 NIV11) “Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”” (Luke 2:34–35 NIV11) “But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.” (John 19:33–34 NIV11) B. Burial Joseph and Nicodemus Joseph only man in all four accounts ‘marginal' disciples Like the ‘marginal' women C. Resurrection  Afraid - human! “After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”” (Matthew 28:1–10 NIV11) Non-sensical message Unexpected event Invalid witnesses Point: The courage to be a loyal disciple is available to all people, no matter your status. You can be a ‘marginalised' person, but a wonderful witness. You can be the most vulnerable person, but the most loving and loyal. At all three locations, they were there at a location of ‘failure'. But that did not diminish their loyalty and love for him.  2. Gentle Jesus A. Questions Why? Who? B. Personal ‘Mary' He cared Felt special He treated women in a way they were not used to C. Mission ‘Go tell…' First ‘apostle' Infectious bravery - Apostles become brave Acts 2 - unstoppable church Conclusion Parallels with Eden. New Adam; Garden - abundant life; Reverse the curse; Woman brings fruit of death, now the fruit of life God emphasising the value of the ‘marginalised' - especially women We can be this brave Please add your comments on this week's topic. We learn best when we learn in community.  Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here's the email: [malcolm@malcolmcox.org](mailto:malcolm@malcolmcox.org).  If you'd like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://[www.malcolmcox.org](http://www.malcolmcox.org/).  Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review.  “Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” (Psalms 100:2 NIV11)  God bless, Malcolm

Morning MeditationsMatthew 28The Resurrection of JesusMorning Meditations take the time to stop for a moment and embrace inspirational words that refuel us for the day. These moments of inspiration are taken from the Bible and special inspirational readings. Hopefully this time will inspire you as the listener to start your week with hope, joy, love, and peace.Enjoy a moment of meditation today.Scripture Meditation: " But the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay."(Matthew 28:5-6)The Resurrection of JesusAfter the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.  And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it.  His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men.  But the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, “He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.” This is my message for you.'  So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples.  Suddenly Jesus met them and said, ‘Greetings!' And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshipped him.  Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.... (Continue to read Matthew 28)*This scripture reading is taken from the New International Version (NIV) and New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible. Text from Biblegateway.com.Keep Listening at www.bhm365.comContact us at info@bhm365.comMusic: "Am I Dreaming", Moments - Soundstripe.comVoiceover Artist: Jo ScaifePicture Art: Scripture Image

Matthew 28:1 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” 11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, 13 telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.' 14 If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.______________________________________Portions of our service are from Christian Worship, Christian Worship Supplement (NPH Electronic Ed.), and  Luther's Catechism (Revised) and are reprinted under One-License.net License #A-723544 and CCLI Copyright License #20992728 & Streaming License #20992735. All Scripture references taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ® Copyright © 2011 by International Bible Society._____________________________Digital Worship Folder and Friendship Register: http://azriveroflife.com/worship-folderTo support our ministry work, please visit: http://azriveroflife.com/give

Matthew 28:1-10   After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you.” So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

Matthew 28:1-10   After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you.” So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

EASTER Living the Resurrection 4.9.23 Resurrection does not have to do exclusively with what happens after we are buried or cremated. It does have to do with that, but first of all, it has to do with the way we live right now. But as Karl Barth, reminds us: “Only where graves are is there resurrection.” We practice our death by giving up our will to live on our own terms. Only in that relinquishment or renunciation are we able to practice resurrection. – Eugene Peterson Matthew 28:1-10 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” Holy week gives us a pattern for our lives: Palm Sunday – hope, expectation, excitement Good Friday – death, suffering, disappointment Saturday – doubts, disillusionment, unmet expectations Sunday – resurrection, joy, hope Two key questions about the resurrection: Do I believe in the resurrection of Christ from the dead and his victory over sin and death? Will I live in the power of the resurrected Christ? Every time we experience death we can stay in the grave or we can experience resurrection and an empty tomb. May we leave behind us a string of empty tombs Romans 8:18-25 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. 22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. Living the Resurrection (a reflection on Romans 8:18-25) Does an empty tomb change our reality? To the mom in Syria mourning the death of her 4-year-old son. To the 19-year-old girl in St. Petersburg working the streets just to survive. To the couple living in a suburb of Chicago who just discovered they are unable to have children. To the hungry 8-year-old boy in Congo running through traffic trying to sell what he could find. Does an empty tomb change his reality? To the 78-year-old man in Japan waiting out his days after a terminal cancer report. To the young man in the bustling streets of Mumbai whose mother passed away the night before. To the mentally diseased woman who sits on a Los Angeles street corner asking for money. What does an empty tomb mean for them? Does it change their reality? Does it speak to their time and place? Does it redeem their brokenness, their life, and their situation? All of creation looks up and turns its head in eager anticipation. Creation is on its tiptoes. Waiting. Leaning in. All of creation; the entire cosmos, longing for redemption. Does my life matter? Does my suffering have meaning? Does anyone see me? Will anyone remember me? We wait. We groan. We hope. All of us. All of creation. Everywhere. Father, make it right. Make it new.

Hello, welcome to the Will Preach for Food podcast. I'm Doug, a pastor here at Faith Lutheran Church, based out of Shelton, Washington, a congregation of the ELCA. You can learn more about Faith at our website, www.faithshelton.org. This podcast is being recorded for Easter Sunday, April 9, 2023. Christ is risen, we declare every Easter morning. He is risen indeed, Alleluia, which is simply another way to say: “Praise the Lord!”So let's start by reading the Easter story from the gospel of Matthew, chapter 28, verses 1-15. What happened on Easter? What REALLY happened? And what does it mean for us today? My Big Idea for today is that Easter Sunday vindicates Jesus—the empty tomb shows that he really is who he says he is. Easter Sunday also underscores the good news that it's all about God's grace, and nothing, not even death, can prevent God from accomplishing God's good purpose for your life. And I'll leave you with three takeaways: first, that you find hope and joy in the Easter story; second, that you go looking for Jesus “out there” in the neighborhood, and not just at church; and third, that you, like the first disciples, have the courage and love to tell the Easter story in your own life. Again, and again, and again.Matthew 28:1-15After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.”8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, 13 telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.' 14 If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.Support the show

He has RisenEaster Sunday • April 9, 2023Teacher: Adam Barnett--Matthew 28:1-4 NIVAfter the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.Matthew 28:5-10 NIVThe angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” 1)  We have been given the gift of salvation.Romans 6:23 NIVFor the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. 2)  We are not condemned.Romans 8:1 NIVTherefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 3)  We are expected to participate in mission.Acts 1:8 NIV“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”  Jesus, I believe in you. You are the resurrection and the life. I believe you died on the cross for me. I believe in your resurrection. Will you make me a new creation today? I am sorry for my sins. Please forgive me. I ask you to live in my heart and to fill me with your Holy Spirit. I want to live this life, and the life to come, with you. Through the name of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, I pray … Amen!

THE LITURGY OF THE LIGHT Easter Readings: Gen 2: 4-9 [God creates Adam – in Jesus we are a new creation] Gen 3: 1-19 [Humanity sins against the Creator – redemption comes through a descendant of a woman] Gen 22: 1-3, 9-13, 15-18 Exodus 14: 15- 15: 1a {Escaping Exodus, God leads he people safely through the Red Sea – a foreshadow of deliverance in Baptism] Exodus 24: 3-8 [at Sinai God covenants with Israel – in the Lamb's blood a new covenant is sealed] Ezekiel 36: 22-28 [God seeks to renew and purify the heart and spirit of the people to make them God's own – so that the world may know God] GOSPEL according to Matthew 28: 1-10 1 After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples, 'He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you." 8 So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them and said, "Greetings!" And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me." THE BLESSING Go now, glad and rejoicing, for this is the day that the Lord has made, and Christ is risen, that all may be made alive in him. Put your hope in the risen Christ, and testify that he is the one ordained by God to be Lord of all. In his name, preach peach, do good, and proclaim the forgiveness of sins without partiality.

Introduction In preparing material for Easter Sunday, I've been inspired by the conspicuous courage of the women at the cross and the empty tomb. Why did they remain in place at the cross when others fled? Why did they go to the grave when others stayed away? What does this tell us about Jesus and discipleship? The Texts "Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene." (John 19:25 NIV11) "After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you." So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshipped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”” (Matthew 28:1–10 NIV11) Comment What inspired the bravery of the women to remain near the cross and the courage to proclaim the resurrection? The location of the cross was dangerous, and the message of the resurrection was madness. Yet, they ignored the dangers and the potential insults. Why? Perhaps for two reasons. The loving, transformational power of Jesus. The loving, reassuring presence of Jesus. How much bravery did it take to stand close to the cross? Indeed, an extraordinary level of courage was needed. It seems to me it can only have been love which motivated such bravery. Jesus loved his followers and his family, and they, in turn, loved him. He transformed their lives, and they could not stay away. Take Mary Magdalene, for example. Her story is short on detail but long on meaning.  "After this, Jesus travelled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out;" (Luke 8:1–2 NIV11)  The loving, transformational power of Jesus inspired devoted loyalty in those who followed him. The loving, reassuring presence of Jesus inspired bold proclamation of his resurrection. His company in the garden sealed the deal, giving the women the courage to talk to the apostles about what they had heard and seen. Applications Stick with Jesus when things look bleak. Remind yourself of how much he has loved you and changed you. Hold on through the toughest times, be loyal to Jesus, and you will see Easter morning. When fearful of other people, rest in the presence of Jesus until his reassurance fills you with the courage you need to speak of him. Conclusion The courage of the women at the cross and the empty tomb is an object lesson to us. It tells us what discipleship looks like. It is sticking close to Jesus when things are bleak, make no sense, and place us in danger. And it means putting ourselves in the right position to be in the presence of Jesus so that he can fill us with the courage we need to live loyal to him and speak well of him. Please add your comments on this week's topic. We learn best when we learn in community.  Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, or practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here's the email: [malcolm@malcolmcox.org](mailto:malcolm@malcolmcox.org).  If you'd like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, "How God grows His people", sign up at my website: http://[www.malcolmcox.org](http://www.malcolmcox.org/).  Please pass the link on, subscribe, and leave a review.  "Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs." (Psalms 100:2 NIV11)  God bless, Malcolm

The two Marys watched who they believed to be the Messiah, die. Saviors aren't supposed to die. As you'll hear Dr. Chris Croghan teach Adam, Kiri, and Mason in our Easter episode, Easter is crazy. We watched our sins kill Jesus. Yet an apocalyptic event happened that ended the world as we know it. Jesus is raised and death does not have the final word over us. No matter how many times you've heard the gospel, it's an incredible story. Christ has risen, alleluia!SING TO THE LORDListen to Luther House of Study's newest podcast: Sing to the Lord!Martin Luther said, "Next to the word of God, the art of music is the greatest treasure in the world."To understand the importance of hymnody in the Lutheran church, Lars Olson and Mason Van Essen sit down with Zachary Brockhoff each week to discuss the lectionary's hymns, their meaning and history, and how the music preaches the Gospel. We hope you enjoy this new venture! 

The Pharisees have done all they can to get rid of Jesus and they thought that they had finally won. That is, until the 3rd day, the Sunday, when an angel rolled the stone of the tomb away. The Pharisees made up a story, but the story we celebrate on Easter Sunday is the one we heard from the disciples and the women about Jesus coming alive again. But which story do you believe? Tune in to hear the story of the risen Jesus from the Pharisees' perspective!To hear another episode about Jesus' resurrection and more of his appearances after he died, click here.For the full list of Easter themed episodes, click here.For all other episodes and more, check out our website at thewordonthestreetpodcast.com Follow Anna on her Facebook Page hereJoin The Word On The Street Podcast conversation on our Facebook group hereHere are the bible verses quoted in today's episode:Bible Passage: Matthew 23:27-28You Pharisees and teachers are in for trouble! You're nothing but show-offs. You're like tombs that have been whitewashed.On the outside they are beautiful, but inside they are full of bones and filth. That's what you are like. Outside you look good, but inside you are evil and only pretend to be good.Bible Passage: Matthew 28:1-15The Sabbath was over, and it was almost daybreak on Sunday when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 Suddenly a strong earthquake struck, and the Lord's angel came down from heaven. He rolled away the stone and sat on it. 3 The angel looked as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards shook from fear and fell down, as though they were dead.5 The angel said to the women, “Don't be afraid! I know you are looking for Jesus, who was nailed to a cross. 6 He isn't here! God has raised him to life, just as Jesus said he would. Come, see the place where his body was lying. 7 Now hurry! Tell his disciples he has been raised to life and is on his way to Galilee. Go there, and you will see him. This is what I came to tell you.”8 The women were frightened and yet very happy, as they hurried from the tomb and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them and greeted them. They went near him, held on to his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said, “Don't be afraid! Tell my followers to go to Galilee. They will see me there.”11 While the women were on their way, some soldiers who had been guarding the tomb went into the city. They told the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 So the chief priests met with the leaders and decided to bribe the soldiers with a lot of money. 13 They said to the soldiers, “Tell everyone that Jesus' disciples came during the night and stole his body while you were asleep. 14 If the governor[a] hears about this, we will talk to him. You won't have anything to worry about.” 15 The soldiers took the money and did what they were told. The people of Judea still tell each other this story.Today's Questions: How do you work out whether what you hear is true or lies? How can this story be a comfort to you when you think about death and how might this story bring you sorrow when you think about death? Scientists might say that coming alive again after dying 3 days later is impossible. What might you say to them?

This past week was a challenging one for some of us.  The incident at Okemos High School this past Tuesday created some real trauma within our community.  So, I am ready for some good news!  But, as I read today's gospel, we receive words that do not appear to present us with the good news we seek.  I don't know about you, but today I don't really like to hear Jesus' words. Jesus is on a tirade, and he seems to be having an outburst of some kind.  Jesus is not messing around and, quite frankly, he seems to have done an about face.  He is still preaching his Sermon on the Mount which began with the Beatitudes – those beautiful words of promise and blessing.  Then, last week he told us we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world.  And now we get this diatribe of seeming vitriol.  What has happened?  Why the dramatic change?  One could almost think he is having some sort of meltdown as he quickly jumped from telling us that we are salt and light, to this message we hear today.  Suddenly Jesus hits us with this eruption of words regarding judgement, murder, prison, divorce, lust, tearing out eyes, chopping off body parts, and being thrown into hellfire of the burning garbage dump outside the city!  Frankly, I have to ask, “Jesus, why do you pronounce blessings and then proceed to let loose with this rant?  Why are you getting so intense with us when we just want to sit at your feet and learn?  After all, we are so hungry for some good news!” Well, today, Jesus seems to be giving us a heavy-duty dose of the law.  He does this by delivering a new interpretation of the law as he addresses some of the more contentious issues of his day.  And, as we take an initial look at both the Old Testament reading from Deuteronomy and Jesus' words in the gospel of Matthew, it seems that we are given a hefty prescription of the law including some heavy penalties for disobeying the law.  Yet, if we take a closer look, I think we can gain not only a helpful understanding of the law but also a clearer picture of the God we worship.  Martin Luther stressed that the law, specifically the Ten Commandments, is the precious gift of an adoring parent given to beloved children, urging them to treat each other well.  The commandments are all about teaching us how to live together as God's beloved community.  That was Jesus' understanding of the law, and he begins this segment of his sermon by referencing the Ten Commandments.  In doing so, he takes these laws to a new level by broadening them and expanding on their meaning.  And he gets intense as he delivers his expanded interpretations.  He does this because the God of Scripture is all about relationships – our relationship with God, our relationships with each other and our relationship with our very selves.  God cares deeply and passionately about how we treat each other because God loves each one of us so much.  Jesus knows that to live together as the community of God's people and confess that our relationships matter to God means expanding our understanding of the nature and purpose of God's commands.  So, as Professor David Lose writes, Jesus doesn't simply heighten the force of the law, he broadens it as he says: It's not enough just to refrain from murder. We should also treat each other with respect and that means not speaking hateful words.  The reality is words matter. It is not enough to avoid physically committing adultery. We should also not objectify other persons by seeing them as a means to satisfy our physical desires by lusting after them. It is not enough to follow the letter of the law regarding divorce. We should not treat people as disposable, and we should make sure that the most vulnerable are provided for.  And, in the culture of that time as well as in places in our world today, the most vulnerable usually were and are women and children. It is not enough to keep ourselves from swearing falsely or lying to others. We should speak and act truthfully in all our dealings so that we don't need to make pledges at all. As Jesus preaches to us today about the law and its meaning, he makes use of hyperbole.  His use of exaggerated language regarding cutting off body parts and burning in hell serve to magnify just how important our relationships are to God.  God deeply cares!  Now, such an understanding of a God who cares about our very relationships probably runs contrary to most people's perception of God.  Quite honestly, for most people I would bet that if we asked them to describe what God, the lawgiver, is like they would probably have an image of God as one sitting some place up there with a perpetual finger raised in warning and perhaps accusation.  As Pastor David Lose says, people tend to have a picture of God “captured by a familiar line of that great American folk hymn: ‘He knows when you are sleeping; he knows when you're awake.  He knows when you've been bad or good, so be good for goodness' sake!'  While that may seem funny, many folks do picture God as some stern Santa Claus, always ready to judge us for breaking God's laws.” Jesus' words in this passage are very challenging.  And his hyperbolic language can reinforce the stern law giver image of God.  But the reality is that God is not so interested in us keeping the law for the law's sake, but for our sake.  God is like that loving parent who establishes rules when they tell their child things like don't play in the street, or treat each other well, or don't talk meanly to each other.  You see, God is interested in our hearts and in our relationships with one another.  As Jesus speaks to the disciples and to each one of us, he wants us to really look at the heart of our actions and look at the root cause of those things we do that are not life-giving.  Those are things that break relationships and those are the very places where we need this God of love to be present.  Quite frankly, it is our hearts God wants more than anything.  God wants to transform our hearts and make us new, and God wants to do this regardless of any mistakes we make or have made.   Jesus wants us to look at our hearts and look at the root of our actions, whatever they are, because that is where we need God.  Our God is a relational God.  God is all about relationship and mutuality.  That is the very point of the Ten Commandments.  They are given as gift to help us live together in relationship.  And, quite frankly, it is sin that causes us to break our relationships and become separated from each other.  It is sin that manifests itself as separation from God, from each other and from our very selves.  I like the way Franciscan priest, Richard Rohr, describes this aspect of sin.  He writes: True evil and true sin must be very well disguised to survive.  Separation will normally not look like sin, but will often resemble propriety and even appropriate boundary-keeping.  “I have a right to be upset!” the righteous soul says.  Well, today, Jesus is again calling us to turn from separation to a life of living in healthy, mutual relationship with God and with each other.  That turning is what we call repentance.  And God is always ready and willing to bathe us in forgiveness and love.  As Richard Rohr talks about this relational way of living, he writes, “Every time God forgives us, God is saying that God's own rules do not matter as much as the relationship that God wants to create with us.”  Jesus is not really on a tirade today.  He uses hyperbole and goes to great lengths to take us to a new understanding and show us the gift we have been given in the law.  He is giving us a deeper understanding of a God who is all about relationships and love, and a God who deeply desires for us to live together as God's beloved community.  Some students once asked Martin Luther, “What is your picture of God?”  Luther replied, “When I think of God, I think of a man hanging on a tree.”  Luther responded with those words because in the cross of Christ we see God's love poured out for the whole world and we are reminded that God will go to any and all lengths to communicate just how much God loves us so that we, in turn, may better love one another.  So, go, be reconciled to God, to one another and to your very selves.  Go, and live into love, the love that God showers upon each one of us. This news today IS truly good news!

Peter, James, and John were the three disciples whom Jesus chose to accompany him at decisive points in his ministry and this day was one of those special and unique times. Jesus had them come with him up on the mountain to pray. Suddenly Jesus' appearance changed and he became brighter than the noonday sun. If this were not astonishing enough, two of the most prominent figures from the Old Testament, Moses and Elijah, appeared, talking to Jesus. The subject of their conversation was his coming -exodus- or departure at Jerusalem - in other words, the redemptive work of the cross. Then a cloud enveloped them all and a voice was heard, -This is my Son, my Chosen One- listen to him--' -What was happening on the mountain was that the Old Testament predictions from the Law -Moses- and the Prophets -represented by Elijah- regarding the coming Messiah were being fulfilled in Jesus - he was the One they were pointing to. -What the three disciples saw that day was not only a revelation that Jesus was the promised Messiah but his innate, divine glory, what had been hidden by his humanity, shown through before them and they got a glimpse of what all his people will see when he returns on the clouds of glory at the end of this age.

Peter, James, and John were the three disciples whom Jesus chose to accompany him at decisive points in his ministry and this day was one of those special and unique times. Jesus had them come with him up on the mountain to pray. Suddenly Jesus' appearance changed and he became brighter than the noonday sun.  If this were not astonishing enough, two of the most prominent figures from the Old Testament, Moses and Elijah, appeared, talking to Jesus. The subject of their conversation was his coming "exodus" or departure at Jerusalem - in other words, the redemptive work of the cross.  Then a cloud enveloped them all and a voice was heard, "This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!"' What was happening on the mountain was that the  Old Testament predictions from the Law (Moses) and the Prophets (represented by Elijah) regarding the coming Messiah were being fulfilled in Jesus - he was the One they were pointing to. What  the three disciples saw that day was not only a revelation that Jesus was the promised Messiah but his innate, divine glory, what had been hidden by his humanity, shown through before them and they got a glimpse of what all his people will see when he returns on the clouds of glory at the end of this age. Bible Insights with Wayne ConradContact: 8441 Hunnicut Rd Dallas, Texas 75228email: Att. Bible Insights Wayne Conradgsccdallas@gmail.com (Good Shepherd Church) Donationhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJTZX6qasIrPmC1wQpben9ghttps://www.facebook.com/waconrad or gscchttps://www.sermonaudio.com/gsccSpirit, Truth and Grace MinistriesPhone # 214-324-9915 leave message with number for call backPsalms 119:105 Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.

----more----Suddenly Jesus' followers were in the middle of a fishing boat in the middle of the water in the middle of Hurricane Hezekiah. They spiraled from a relaxing, moonlit cruise to rowing for their lives in a matter of seconds. Enjoy this week's episode to hear that story.   Purchase my newest book Ten Words: a Practical Look at the Ten Commandments at https://pentecostalpublishing.com/products/ten-words Listen to Ten Words: a Practical Look at the Ten Commandments on Audible at Ten Words on Audible Purchase the devotional Simplify—which launched the podcast— at https://pentecostalpublishing.com/search?q=simplify   Join me on another podcast called God's Word for Life to help us better learn and live out God's Word for Life. Listen on Podbean Listen on Google Podcasts   Join me on another another podcast called The Preacher and the Policeman, where Lt. Andy Burns and I mix in current events with the gospel and do our best to add a heaping helping of humor.  Listen on Podbean Listen on Google Podcasts   Music provided by: Positive Happy by PeriTune https://soundcloud.com/sei_peridot Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/TutcA4JPa7Q

Have you noticed how social media has opened the floodgates on judging others? It seems that we are constantly judging or being judged. How many likes did I get? What do others think about me? This is nothing new. In Jesus’ time, people judged and were judged, but not online. Their method was to bring the accused before the teachers of the Law. One day, at dawn, people gathered around Jesus in the Temple courts to listen to His teaching. Suddenly Jesus was interrupted. The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and pushed her in front of Jesus. They wanted to stone her to death, but they had an ulterior motive too (v. 5). They wanted to trap Jesus with their questions. The Romans did not allow the Jews to carry out death sentences, so if Jesus approved her stoning, He would conflict with the Romans. If he said not to stone her, He could have been accused of not supporting the Law. When Jesus bent down to write in the sand, they kept questioning Him. After His response in verse seven, He bent down again and wrote something else. After a long pause, everyone walked away, leaving just Jesus and the woman. He told her, since they did not condemn her, He wouldn’t either (v. 11). He gave her a second chance, saying, “Go now and leave your life of sin” (v. 11). Jesus did not judge or excuse the woman, He offered something better: forgiveness. He offers that to you and me today. >> Too often we are quick to judge and condemn others. When we are tempted to find fault and declare someone’s worth, particularly in public shaming, Jesus shows us another way. We, too, have sinned. We all need forgiveness. He has also given us a second chance. Make sure you are giving others a second chance as well.

To Fear or Fear Not Matthew 28:1-10 · Does your fear ever keep you from the miracle of the resurrection? · Matthew 28:1-4 - After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. · How devoted are you to Jesus? · Our first reaction to losing control is to be afraid. · The message of the resurrection cannot be heard where there is fear. – Dale Bruner. · God will not force faith on you · 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” · 1 John 4:18 - There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. · When the resurrection power of Jesus touches your life, a mission comes with it: Go tell · 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. · 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” · Let the joy of resurrection trample your fear. · The resurrection means fear doesn't have to rule your life · Their failures had not changed the relationship; his death and resurrection has. · The disciples need to know they are still followers after their failures. · Heavenly Father, I give my fear to you. Let me experience the miracle of the resurrection.

After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” Matthew 28:1-10

GOSPEL POWER I APRIL 18, 2022 Monday within the Octave of Easter Gospel: Mt 28:8-15 8 The women left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. 10Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” 11While they were going, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests everything that had happened. 12After the priests had assembled with the elders, they devised a plan to give a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13telling them, “You must say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.' 14If this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story is still told among the Jews to this day. The Bible is God's communication using human words. Like anything human, those words are time-conditioned and limited in form. The historical context of their writing could color the portrayal of certain characters and events. Today's Gospel episode from Matthew is an example. The evangelist has projected back to the story of Jesus, especially of the paschal events, the hostilities that his Christian community later experienced from the authorities of the synagogue. While the episode conveys the truth that no one can put an obstacle to the fulfillment of God's plan, we have also to recognize in the dark portrayal of the chief priests as bribing the soldiers to silence the truth and to publicize a fake story, a reflection of the antagonisms and prejudices of the evangelist's time. The portrayal is a generalization that goes beyond historical incidents and must not be allowed to influence our sentiment toward the Jewish people today. Lord Jesus, send your Spirit to enlighten and guide us in reading the Gospel today. Amen. Monday within the Octave of Easter

Matthew 28:1-10 NIV - After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/mildred-kingsley-okonkwo0/message

SUNDAY After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” Matthew 28:1-10 (NIV) WHY DOES SUNDAY MATTER? WE CAN HAVE HOPE We know that God, who raised the Lord Jesus, will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself together with you. All of this is for your benefit. And as God's grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory. 2 Corinthians 4:14–15 (NLT) WE CAN CHANGE He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. Colossians 2:14 (NLT) He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification. Romans 4:25 (NIV) The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. Romans 8:11 (NLT) Accept it or Reject it: The Resurrection changes everything.

Matthew 28:1-10Jesus Has Risen28 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/yourdailybible)

The ResurrectionEaster Sunday • April 17, 2022Teacher: Adam Barnett--[Sunday] [Monday][Tuesday] [Wednesday] [Thursday] [Friday] [Easter!]SUNDAY IS HERE! HE IS RISEN! DEATH IS DEFEATED! JESUS IS ALIVE!Matthew 28:1-4 NIV"After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men."Matthew 28:5-7 NIV"The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.”Matthew 28:8-10 NIV"So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”1 Corinthians 15:14 NIV"And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith."10 Jesus predicted His resurrection9 People prepared His lifeless body for burial8 The Jewish authorities made a plan to falsify this story7 Jesus appeared to many in bodily form6 Saul of Tarsus became one of the Christian faith's greatest missionaries, theologians, and apologists5 Paul's earliest epistles were written about 20 years after the resurrection4 Many of Christ's disciples were martyred3 **The emergence, growth, resiliency, and existence of the Church**2 No tomb has been established and revered as the place where Jesus' body rests.1 Our testimonies!Jesus, I believe you are who you say you are. You are the resurrection and the life. I believe you died on the cross for me and that you rose from the dead. With that same power, make me a new creation. I am sorry for my sins. Please forgive me. I ask you to live in my heart and to fill me with your Holy Spirit. Through the name of Jesus, my Lord, I pray. Amen.Text the name JESUS to (918) 376-3438Images used for today's message were:Sunday: SuperStock/Getty ImagesMonday: Painting by Carl Bloch: "Casting Out the Money Changers". Getty ImagesTuesday: O Jerusalem by Greg OlsonWednesday: Tomb of Lazarus, Bethany (c. 1900), Apic/Getty ImagesThursday: Leemage/UIG via Getty ImagesFriday: Close-up of "Crucifixion" by Bramantino/Getty ImagesEaster: https://riverheadlocal.com/2020/04/12/easter-sunday-the-divine-reset/

Dear God I'm Grateful That Jesus Has Risen.“He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.” - Luke‬ ‭24:6-7‬ ‭NIV‬‬.It is because of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection that we have been given eternal life. Has he not rose, we would still be bound to death by our sins! Today I'm grateful that Jesus has risen, and that he is now seated at the right hand of our Heavenly Father. .“After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. .His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. .Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. .Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”” - Matthew‬ ‭28:1-10‬ ‭NIV‬‬...#Linkinbio #DearGodImGrateful #IronWifey #DGIG #beprepared #preparation #JesusChrist #blessed #faith #grateful #gratitude #gratitudechallenge #Jesus #Ironwifeymagazine #God #ironwifeypodcastnetwork #christianpodcast #podcastersofinstagram #podcast .STAY UP-TO-DATE WITH ALL THINGS IRONWIFEY:Instagram: @deargodimgrateful | @ironwifey_ | @ironwifeymagazineTwitter: @ironwifey_Facebook: IronWifeyIronWifey Magazine & Podcasts: https://www.ironwifeymagazine.com.Please Rate & Review, Like , Comment, & Subscribe!.FEATURED MUSIC: Track: SkyHigh — Enine [Audio Library Release]Music provided by Audio Library PlusWatch: https://youtu.be/q-lf6x9cVXwFree Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/skyhigh

Vibes: Surprise Frame It Why do I feel this way? James 4:13-14 Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Funnel It Where should I direct it? Luke 1:26-38 In the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob's descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” 34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. 37 For no word from God will ever fail.” 38 “I am the Lord's servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her. Funnel it into serving. Luke 2 4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. 8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” 15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. Funnel it into spreading the word. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. Funnel it into pondering. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. Funnel it into praise. Filter It What does the gospel say to it? Matthew 26:3-4 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people assembled in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, 4 and they schemed to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him. Matthew 28:1-10 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

THE OTHER SIDE Jesus had been with his disciples caring for the multitudes and had just miraculously fed five thousand people with the five loaves and the fishes. It had been a tiring day and so instead of going back to Capernaum with His disciples in the boat, he told them to go ahead (Mark 6:42) while he went up on a mountain to pray. John 6:15 … Jesus went up to the mountain alone by Himself, and when it began to get dark, the disciples went down to the sea and began to row their boat toward Capernaum, but soon a gale swept down upon them as they rowed, and the sea grew very rough and it was now dark. They were three or four miles out when suddenly they saw Jesus walking toward the boat! They were terrified, but he called out to them and said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the other side.  This story describes some of the faith principles of how we work together in partnership with Jesus as the disciples did. They had faithfully done their part in the miracle of the multiplication of the food, in handing out the loaves and fishes and they had trusted Jesus to do his supernatural part.  Jesus had been teaching the multitudes and his disciples had been feeding and caring for them and having completed that day's work there was more work for them to do the next day across the sea of Galilee where another crowd would be waiting for Jesus. They would usually travel together across the water to Capernaum, but this particular time Jesus told them to row across without him so that he could rest and pray to his Father. They would never have guessed that the experience of rowing across the Sea of Galilee would work out the amazing way that it did. They were seasoned rowers but rowing is tough work and involves the uncertainty of rowing forward in one direction while you are actually looking backwards in another direction. It would have been particularly tough for those disciples because there was a raging storm and darkness and they were fearful that Jesus was not with them, but the disciples kept on rowing. Suddenly Jesus came to them in a supernatural way walking on the water, and they thought he was a ghost, but when he told them it was he, they willingly let him into the boat and the boat was miraculously transported to the other side. When we think about it, that's the way we move forward in life anyway, rowing forward in one direction while we are actually looking backwards in another direction. We can only go ahead in life with the things that belong in the package of our past, the good and the bad, the successes and the failures and the lessons learned and the faith gained. We can't guess the future but we can have a goal – and that is the ‘other side' which contains the uncertainties and the challenge and the effort. Our real faith is the reality of knowing that trusting God that in our obedient rowing forward while also looking backwards will be met with Jesus supernaturally coming into the boat. He gets us to the ‘other side' in every situation if we are truly living by faith. Our times are in his hands.  We have the same natural uncertainty as those disciples about how things will work out as we try to move forward in times of storms of darkness and difficulty, and that is when we call upon the faith that is being considered in this story. Faith means we are never certain about the future but we are certain that God has it all in hand and is acting supernaturally for good on our behalf. We do the natural and God does the supernatural and it is beyond our understanding how the working together with God plays out, other than we have faith that he alone knows the end from the beginning and always shows up and is never late. That is how faith works – we remain faithful to yield obediently to what Holy Spirit prompts us to do then we trust Jesus to complete his perfect work. That is our obedience of faith (Romans 16:26). The Bible tells us that he wants to help us be willing do what is the good thing to do, and he helps us in the doing; Philippians 2:12 … you must be even more careful to do the good things that result from being saved, obeying God with deep reverence, shrinking back from all that might displease him. For God is at work within you, helping your willingness to obey him, and then helping you do what is his desire for you. Often because of our limited understanding of what God wants us to do, the doing can become problematic because we might try too hard to do things in our own strength and feel we can push through, and it may not be what God wants but we do it anyway and we find out later that we got it wrong. We did what we thought was a good thing but it was not a ‘God' thing. On the other hand, we may not try enough, and fail to do the responsible good thing out of ignorance or carelessness or apprehension - but God sees the heart and can override our human failure, and we learn to trust in his mercy and we get to learn of his ways. Staying with the metaphor of rowing across a lake, we can ask the question ‘Why wasn't the journey of the disciples on a placid lake with a moonlit sky and no wind, and all having a singalong? Well, day to day to life is not very often like that, and that day wasn't like that for them. They were hardy rowers but on that night things were scary and they were full of apprehension, as it is so often with us, but they kept rowing And as we obediently keep rowing forward, I believe that we do not always have to be looking backwards, but rather we can be looking upwards, knowing that Jesus is on the mountain, praying and cheering us on from Heaven, and he will come to us as we seek Him in the midst of storms and darkness, and get us to the other side.  Philippians 3:13 But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward Heavenly call (invitation, welcome) of God in Christ Jesus. And God is going to get us there. I believe we are currently in critical times of being taken forward in the purposes of God, and we are deeply aware that we are going through storms and sometimes darkness, and many are wondering when Jesus will come to them. He is actually always with us, but he wants to open our eyes of faith and show us that he is in the boat and replaces our rowing with his supernatural completion of the journey.  Jesus has a special here and now journey for every one of us in our current circumstances. He has destined us to get to 'the other side', to the place where we are meant to be going, that is, the spiritual and circumstantial goal he has for us in any particular season in our lives. He is watching over us. He is not complaining about how badly we may be rowing even if we are, so we keep on rowing, because if we stop rowing, we drift. There are many ‘Other sides' in our day to day experience that God wants to get us to and they all involve us faithfully doing our part while he supernaturally works his part. The other side of the challenge of what is required of us that faces us today in our circumstances. The other side of something that has been delayed or put off because it is difficult. The other side of our management of a tiring physical struggle of illness or recovery from illness. The other side of this current global pandemic that faces us all. He is cheering us on. Some of those disciples had made mistakes in the past and would make more into the future but He loved them dearly and was committed to working with them and helping them – ‘gracing' them. Jesus is not just working with us but he is working within us by his Spirit. On your particular journey at this present time all you may seem to be doing is rowing your lungs out, but he is up on the mountain praying. He is praying for our faith and watching, and he is willing to come to you in a supernatural way, and when he does, 'immediately you are on the other side' - to where he wants you to be. When the connection happens, you become a different person and your world changes.  

by Pastor Chuck Ryan Meet With Jesus Text: Matthew 28:1-10 Thesis: In our prayer times we must learn to talk with Jesus instead of just talking at Jesus.   The Angel shares the message of God. God wants the ladies to seek Jesus! “He has risen from the dead and is going into Galilee, ‘There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” (vs 7c) There may be a need for you to restructure your prayer time. There are morning prayer times, evening prayer times, prayer times when you pray with others, but do you have a time when you meet with Jesus alone for a conversational prayer time. And early in the morning, while it was still dark, He arose and went out and departed to a lonely place and was praying there. ( Mark 1:35) And immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side to Bethsaida, while He Himself was sending the multitude away. And after bidding them farewell, he departed to the mountain to pray. ( Mark 6:45-46) And when day came, He departed to a lonely place; and the multitudes were searching for Him, and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from going away from them. ( Luke 4:42) But He Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray. ( Luke 5:16) And it was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God. ( Luke 6:12)  The Ladies sought Jesus out with all their hearts. (read vs7-8) “Suddenly Jesus met them.” (vs9a) Scripture is consistent throughout the Bible that if we want to experience God we must seek Him with all our heart. “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:11-13) “Ask and you shall receive, Seek and you shall find and knock, and the door shall be open.” (Matthew 7:7) Meeting with Jesus will produce richness in your relationship! 1stSecurity- because you will know Jesus exists and he saves you now! 2ndWisdom-because you will learn how best to go about your day, how to address your problems, how to deal with a difficult person or steps to accomplish a task. 3rdJoy-because there is an excitement to encountering the living God.  

Happy Wednesday! This morning Jon is taking a look back to Sunday's Easter Sermon. Spoiler alert...ITS EPIC! Todays Text: Matthew 28:1-15 Jesus Has Risen 28 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid,for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee.There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” The Guards' Report 11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money,13 telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.' 14 If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.

Easter recognizes that time when through his death, resurrection and ascension to heaven that Jesus broke the oppressive power that sin and death held over all people and began the restoration of his kingdom. Jesus Has Risen 28 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” The Guards’ Report 11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, 13 telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day. The Great Commission 16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Discussion Questions 1. What does the story of the Resurrection of Jesus mean to you? 2. Why do you think that the leaders tried to cover up the story of Jesus Resurrection? 3. Why do you think that Jesus last instructions to his followers was to spread the Good News of Salvation?

Morning Worship Sermon with Pastor Cameron Davis. Scripture ref. Matthew 27:62-28:10 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.” “Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard. After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

GOSPEL POWER - APRIL 5, 2021 - EASTER MONDAY Gospel: Mt 28:8-15 The women left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” While they were going, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests everything that had happened. After the priests had assembled with the elders, they devised a plan to give a large sum of money to the soldiers, telling them, “You must say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.' If this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story is still told among the Jews to this day. REFLECTION The greatest mystery of the Christian faith — the resurrection of Jesus Christ — became the object of fake news too on the very day that the event broke into human history. The conspiracy to suppress the truth did not end with the crucifixion and burial of Jesus. Even in death, he continued to be a threat to those who rejected him as the ultimate revelation of God. Confronted by the testimony of the Roman soldiers who were eyewitnesses to the extraordinary happenings of Easter morning, the conspirators resorted to fabricating fake news and had it circulated through a huge bribe. But the empty tomb that was the basis of this fake news was not the definitive proof of the resurrection. The touchstone of the resurrection was the transformation of the weak and cowardly band of disciples into bold witnesses ready to lay down their lives for the truth of the Gospel. For Easter is the in suppressible realization of God's intention to renew the face of the earth. PRAYER Lord Jesus, the good news of your resurrection assures us that although fake news makes a lot of noise, it can never withstand the splendor of the truth. Amen.

Scripture Matthew 27:62-28:15 (NIV) 27:62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 Sir, they said, we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, After three days I will rise again. 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first. 65 Take a guard, Pilate answered. Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how. 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard. 28:1 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him. Now I have told you. 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. Greetings, he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me. 11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, 13 telling them, You are to say, His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep. 14 If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble. 15 So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day. --- Main Idea The resurrection changes everything, and that change demands our everything. --- Going Deeper Questions from this weeks Sermon What insight, principle or observation from this weeks message did you find to be most helpful, eye opening or troubling? Please explain What evidence for the resurrection have you heard or can you think of? The entire Christian faith hangs on the resurrection. Erase the resurrection and you erase Christianity. Interact with that statement. How does that make you feel, what does it make you think about the Christian faith? What implications are there if this statement is indeed true? We often think that our beliefs and doubts are just tied to facts/information. Read Matthew 27:62-28:15. How does this story show it is bigger than just information or facts? Everyone in this story was doubters, what seems to keep the religious leaders from faith? What was different about the women? Read Matthew 28:9. The resurrection demands something, according to this verse what did it demand? What does it still demand today? The religious leaders were not willing to accept the resurrection and what it would demand of them (worship, surrender, everything), I dont think we are much different today. Interact with this statement. If the resurrection demands our worship, surrender, our everything, what are you finding difficult right now to put under the authority of Jesus and worship him? --- Summary Points There is one thing that affects everything for everyone and that is the Resurrection The Resurrection assumes that there are miracles. If miracles happen, or at the very least did happen, the improbability of the resurrection is not an impossibility. It could have happened. And if it did, it changes everything Belief and doubts rest on differences of information or facts. All the believers, were doubters like us. Something made them believers, and although the facts were a big part of that, they were not the deciding factor, because not all the doubters became believers even though they had the same facts. As we look at the resurrection through the eyes of doubters we see that what separates believers and doubters is our response to change, not change in general, but our response to the change. Because when Jesus was raised from the dead it changed everything for everyone. He went from Rabbi, to Lord, from a good teacher to Divine, from miracle worker to God Himself The only reaction when one accepts the resurrection of Jesus is submission and worship. The outcome of the resurrection leads to one of two things; Acceptance or rejection of the facts. The resurrection changes everything, and that change demands our everything. When it comes to the resurrection, I think the battle is not over the facts, as much as it is over what we want the facts to be. Because the reality is, if Jesus is alive and we accept, our lives are no longer ours. I think this easter season we must all wrestle with, not merely what is true, but what we want to be true. Are we willing to accept, that which God has done. Receive what God has done in Jesus and receive it through the hands of faith and be made a child of God, given new, eternal life. Jesus wants you to lay it down and worship him. He is alive, and that means He wants all of you! Jesus is Risen! He is risen indeed! --- Call to Action If you are not a believer yet, the wrestle for you is: will you put yourself aside and accept the person of Jesus, both as your Saviour from sin, and Lord of your life. If you are a follower of Christ evaluate and ask yourself: What are you still holding onto? Jesus is risen, He is Lord, will you accept him as the Risen Lord and allow him full rule of your life?

PSALM 118: 14-24 14. The Lord is my strength, and my song : and is become my salvation. 15. The voice of joy and health is in the dwellings of the righteous : the right hand of the Lord bringeth mighty things to pass. 16. The right hand of the Lord hath the pre-eminence : the right hand of the Lord bringeth mighty things to pass. 17. I shall not die, but live : and declare the works of the Lord. 18. The Lord hath chastened and corrected me : but he hath not given me over unto death. 19. Open me the gates of righteousness : that I may go into them, and give thanks unto the Lord. 20. This is the gate of the Lord : the righteous shall enter into it. 21. I will thank thee, for thou hast heard me : and art become my salvation. 22. The same stone which the builders refused : is become the head-stone in the corner. 23. This is the Lord's doing : and it is marvellous in our eyes. 24. This is the day which the Lord hath made : we will rejoice and be glad in it. Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. FIRST READING Acts 10.34–43 A reading from the Acts of the Apostles. Peter began to speak to those assembled in the house of Cornelius. ‘I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ – he is Lord of all. That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.' Here ends the first reading. SECOND READING Matthew 28:1–10 A reading from the gospel according to Matthew. After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, “He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.” This is my message for you.' So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, ‘Greetings!' And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshipped him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.' Here ends the second reading.

John hadn't seen Jesus in more than 50 years. Suddenly Jesus appears and reveals an incredible message to the beloved apostle. It's a startling awakening to the church. Get ready for what God is about to do.

April 12, 2020 Easter Sunday "He is Risen" Matthew 28:1-10 The Rev. Cole Altizer 28 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

This is the Easter 2020 sermon and scripture reading by the Rev. Peter Moore for the people of Greenfield Presbyterian Church in Berkley, MI. The scripture is Matthew 28:1-10 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) The Resurrection of Jesus 28 After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he[a] lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead,[b] and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ This is my message for you.” 8 So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” Footnotes: [a] Matthew 28:6 Other ancient authorities read the Lord [b] Matthew 28:7 Other ancient authorities lack from the dead

MATTHEW 28:1-10After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

Matthew 28:1-10 New International Version (NIV) Jesus Has Risen 28 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

April 12, 2020 Easter Sunday "Do Not Be Afraid" Matthew 28. 1-10 Acts 10. 34-43 The Rev. Dr. Randolph (Randy) Harry 28 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” 34 Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35 but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. 36 You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 37 You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached— 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him. 39 “We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a cross, 40 but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. 41 He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. 43 All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

Matthew 28:1-11 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” 11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. Download Message Notes

Easter 2020 - God is Love  Day 25. – Jesus Is Alive!   1 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: “He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.” Now I have told you.’ 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. ‘Greetings,’ he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshipped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.’ Matthew 28:1-10 Let us first look at the sequence of events over the period of time after Jesus death till He ascended. Now remember, the Gospels are documents which have recorded historical events. All four Gospels, Matthew, Mark Luke and John, tell us that Jesus was crucified, died and was buried in a tomb. What do these four Gospels say about the Jesus’ resurrection or rising from the dead? The tomb is empty Two Marys watch the burial: (Matthew 27:61, Mark 15:47, Luke 23:54-55) Roman soldiers guard the tomb and place an official Roman seal upon it: (Matthew 27:62-66) Women prepare burial spices then rest: (Luke 23:56) An angel rolls the stone away: (Matthew 28:2-4) Women arrive at dawn with spices: (Matthew 28:1, Mark 16:1-4, Luke 24:1-3, John 20:1) Angels appear to women: (Matthew 28:5-7, Mark 16:5-7, Luke 24:4-8) The women dart back to tell disciples: (Matthew 28:8, Mark 16:8, Luke 24:9-11, John 20:2) Peter and John investigate the empty tomb: (Luke 24:12, John 20:3-9) Peter and John go home: (Luke 24:12, John 20:10) Mary Magdalene weeps by the tomb: (John 20:11) Mary sees two angels: (John 20:12-13) Jesus’ appearances Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene: (Mark 16:9, John 20:14-17) Jesus appears to the other women: (Matthew 28:9-10) Women report to the disciples: (Mark 16:10-11, John 20:18) Guards testify to the priests: (Matthew 28:11-15) Jesus meets two people on the Emmaus Road: (Mark 16:12-13, Luke 24:13-32) Jesus appears to Simon Peter: (1 Corinthians 15:5, Luke 24:34) Two men on the Emmaus Road report to disciples in Jerusalem: (Luke 24:33-35) Jesus appears to the Disciples less Thomas: (Luke 24:36-43, John 20:19-24) Disciples report to Thomas: (John 20:25) Jesus appears to the Disciples and Thomas: (Mark 16:14, John 20:26-29) Jesus appears to seven people: (John 21:1-14) Jesus questions Peter 3 times: (John 21:15-23) Jesus appears to 500 people: (1 Corinthians 15:6) Jesus appears to James: (1 Corinthians 15:7) Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!

Matthew 28:1-10 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)The Resurrection of Jesus28 After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he[a] lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead,[b] and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ This is my message for you.” 8 So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

Matthew 28:1-10  (note: this recording was extracted from the live stream)    After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ This is my message for you.” So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

The sermon was on Matthew 28:1-15. Matthew 28:1-15 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” 11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, 13 telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.

Matthew 28:1-10 (note: this recording was extracted from the live stream)    After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, 'He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you." So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, "Greetings!" And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."

In a period of widespread uncertainty and fear not known for several generations, we may be experiencing an Easter unlike any we've known but more like that first Easter too. But even now, he is not dead, he is Alive. READING Matthew 28:1-10 After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, `He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you." So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, "Greetings!" And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."   MUSIC Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring, Lee Rosevere Love’s Redeeming Work Is Done, High Street Hymns Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee, Reawaken Music Christ the Lord Is Risen Today (He is Alive), NCC Worship

Day 20. Victory in Christ! The darkness of Good Friday ends with a flame of light on Easter Sunday. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Matthew 28.1-10; 16-20 (TEV): After the Sabbath, as Sunday morning was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. Suddenly there was a violent earthquake; an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled the stone away, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid that they trembled and became like dead men. The angel spoke to the women. “You must not be afraid,” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has been raised, just as he said. Come here and see the place where he was lying. Go quickly now, and tell his disciples, “He has been raised from death, and now he is going to Galilee ahead of you; there you will see him!’ Remember what I have told you.” So they left the tomb in a hurry, afraid and yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Peace be with you.” They came up to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. “Do not be afraid,” Jesus said to them. ... The eleven disciples went to the hill in Galilee where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him, even though some of them doubted. Jesus drew near and said to them, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Go, then, to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples: baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And I will be with you always, to the end of the age.” Ezekiel 36.24-28 (NRSV): I will take you from the nations, and gather you from all the countries, and bring you into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you; and I will remove from your body the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will put my spirit within you, and make you follow my statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances. Then you shall live in the land that I gave to your ancestors; and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. prayers for the resurrection: Rejoice now, heavenly hosts and choirs of angels, and let your trumpets shout salvation for the victory of our mighty King! Rejoice and sing now, all the round earth, bright with a glorious splendor, for darkness has been vanquished by our eternal King. Rejoice and be glad now, Oh Church, and in radiant light, resound with the praises of your people. It is truly right and good, always and everywhere, with our whole heart and mind to praise You, the invisible, almighty, and eternal God, and Your only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ our Lord; for He is the true Lamb, who at the feast of the Passover paid for us the debt of Adam’s sin, and by His blood delivered Your faithful people. This is the night, when all who believe in Christ are delivered from the gloom of sin, and are restored to grace and holiness of life. This is the night, when Christ broke the bonds of death and hell, and rose victorious from the grave. How wonderful and beyond our knowing, O God, is your mercy and loving-kindness to us, that to redeem a slave, You gave a Son. How holy is this night, when wickedness is put to flight, and sin is washed away. It restores innocence to the fallen, and joy to those who mourn. It casts out pride and hatred, and brings peace and concord. How blessed is this day, when earth and heaven are joined and humankind is reconciled to God! May the light of Jesus shine continually to drive away all darkness. May Christ, the Morning Star who knows no setting, find His light ever burning in our hearts—He who gives His light to all creation, and who lives and reigns for ever and ever. • Has this season of prayer and fasting strengthened your relationship with Christ? How? • Please take the time to write a letter to Jesus about your love for Him and any new revelations He has revealed to you. Also include new commitments you are making. • How will you live more passionately for Him because of His ultimate sacrifice? • Commitments might include acts of regular prayer, service to others, and personal disciplines in spending more time with Him. • Put your letter in an envelope with two dates: today’s date and six months from now. Place the envelope in your Bible and open it in six months.

Day 20. Victory in Christ! The darkness of Good Friday ends with a flame of light on Easter Sunday. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Matthew 28.1-10; 16-20 (TEV): After the Sabbath, as Sunday morning was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. Suddenly there was a violent earthquake; an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled the stone away, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid that they trembled and became like dead men. The angel spoke to the women. “You must not be afraid,” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has been raised, just as he said. Come here and see the place where he was lying. Go quickly now, and tell his disciples, “He has been raised from death, and now he is going to Galilee ahead of you; there you will see him!’ Remember what I have told you.” So they left the tomb in a hurry, afraid and yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Peace be with you.” They came up to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. “Do not be afraid,” Jesus said to them. ... The eleven disciples went to the hill in Galilee where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him, even though some of them doubted. Jesus drew near and said to them, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Go, then, to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples: baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And I will be with you always, to the end of the age.” Ezekiel 36.24-28 (NRSV): I will take you from the nations, and gather you from all the countries, and bring you into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you; and I will remove from your body the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will put my spirit within you, and make you follow my statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances. Then you shall live in the land that I gave to your ancestors; and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. prayers for the resurrection: Rejoice now, heavenly hosts and choirs of angels, and let your trumpets shout salvation for the victory of our mighty King! Rejoice and sing now, all the round earth, bright with a glorious splendor, for darkness has been vanquished by our eternal King. Rejoice and be glad now, Oh Church, and in radiant light, resound with the praises of your people. It is truly right and good, always and everywhere, with our whole heart and mind to praise You, the invisible, almighty, and eternal God, and Your only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ our Lord; for He is the true Lamb, who at the feast of the Passover paid for us the debt of Adam’s sin, and by His blood delivered Your faithful people. This is the night, when all who believe in Christ are delivered from the gloom of sin, and are restored to grace and holiness of life. This is the night, when Christ broke the bonds of death and hell, and rose victorious from the grave. How wonderful and beyond our knowing, O God, is your mercy and loving-kindness to us, that to redeem a slave, You gave a Son. How holy is this night, when wickedness is put to flight, and sin is washed away. It restores innocence to the fallen, and joy to those who mourn. It casts out pride and hatred, and brings peace and concord. How blessed is this day, when earth and heaven are joined and humankind is reconciled to God! May the light of Jesus shine continually to drive away all darkness. May Christ, the Morning Star who knows no setting, find His light ever burning in our hearts—He who gives His light to all creation, and who lives and reigns for ever and ever. • Has this season of prayer and fasting strengthened your relationship with Christ? How? • Please take the time to write a letter to Jesus about your love for Him and any new revelations He has revealed to you. Also include new commitments you are making. • How will you live more passionately for Him because of His ultimate sacrifice? • Commitments might include acts of regular prayer, service to others, and personal disciplines in spending more time with Him. • Put your letter in an envelope with two dates: today’s date and six months from now. Place the envelope in your Bible and open it in six months.

Matthew 28:1-10 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.” So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

Corey Nelson 4/21/19 9:00am

28After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

Matthew 27:59‒60 Late in the afternoon a wealthy man from Arimathea, a disciple of Jesus, arrived. His name was Joseph. He went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. Pilate granted his request. Joseph took the body and wrapped it in clean linens, put it in his own tomb, a new tomb only recently cut into the rock, and rolled a large stone across the entrance. (msg) Isaiah 53:9‒11 He was assigned a grave…with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer…the Lord makes his life an offering for sin…After he has suffered, he will see the light of life. Matthew 27:62‒66 The chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.” “Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard. Matthew 28:1‒4 After the Sabbath, as the first light of the new week dawned, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to keep vigil at the tomb. Suddenly the earth reeled and rocked under their feet as God’s angel came down from heaven, came right up to where they were standing. He rolled back the stone and then sat on it. Shafts of lightning blazed from him. His garments shimmered snow-white. The guards at the tomb were scared to death. They were so frightened, they couldn’t move. Matthew 28:5‒10 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead’…So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid.”  1 Corinthians 15:55, 57 “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. John 11:25‒26 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

Curtis & Boet discuss ant genocide, Infinity War, and the sudden appearance of Jesus in films. The post Episode 318 – Suddenly Jesus appeared first on Clinically Inane.

48 hours after Jesus' death, a room full of Jesus followers were feeling the brokenness of their lives and the world. Suddenly Jesus appeared, and what he said, and did, that evening changed everything for them. And it can do the same for us.

Easter 2017. A sermon on truth in a "post-truth" America. What does it mean to be a witness to the resurrection, to give testimony to what has taken place? Sometimes you gotta go see for yourself.  Readings: From the Gospel according to John Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes. But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her. From the Gospel according to Matthew After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ This is my message for you.” So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

"28 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you." 8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."" (Matthew 28:1-10)

This is Matthew/Levi's testimony from Mark 2:13-22. He reflects on the revolution that is Jesus and how being called by Jesus changes everything. Suddenly Jesus becomes the priority in your life, you start to share his values and follow him wherever he goes. Matthew urges us not to slip back into self-driven religiosity, but instead to get really close to Jesus and go where He goes - to the messy, needy, irreligious folks that Jesus so loves to befriend.

sermon transcript Introduction Christ has risen. Now, it's not Easter, I know, but Christ has risen. Amen. Amen. I was thinking about that. I get to preach today on the happiest day in history, the happiest thing that's ever happened, the most joy-producing, the most joyful event that's ever happened in history. This is the great answer to the problem of sin and death, and law and condemnation. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the consummation of everything. Now, as I was driving in, I had this thought. I'd never had this thought before. And I haven't worked it all out, so I'm a little nervous, but I'm gonna run with it here. This is the closest I'll ever get to base jumping right here, right now. I'm gonna run and jump. And we'll see what happens, but it has to do with this one concept and I'm working it through, and it's very, actually, very powerful and very pastoral, if you think about it. It has to do with something that you hear frequently connected with a joke, and it goes like this: stop me if you've heard this one. Stop me if you've heard this one. Alright, stop me If you've heard this one: Christ has risen from the dead. And I thought, that's not right. No, encourage me if you've heard this one so I can preach the resurrection. The issue here is why is it that grand glorious news like the empty tomb loses its impact on us, so that we're not as joyful now as we were earlier in the resurrection of Christ? What happens to us because we've heard this one already, what new things can I say to you about the empty tomb that you haven't heard before? And if they're really new, they're almost certainly heretical, so I'll try not to say them. I'm not trying to say anything radically new here. What happens to us? It's a deep question actually. It's a deep question. Ecclesiastes 1:8 may have an answer. I looked that up right before I came in here. “All things are wearisome, more than one can say.” That's life under the sun in the book of Ecclesiastes, it's that vanity of vanities. All things are vanity, vain, in this world, we feel that acutely. But It was this past week putting this thing together like a puzzle. It was like, wait a minute. Isn't that the last word in 1 Corinthians 15, the resurrection chapter? “Be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not,” what? “In vain.” The resurrection is the answer to the book of Ecclesiastes. And the emptiness and weariness that this life pushes on us. And I don't minimize it, I know you're going through trials, I know, I've looked in your faces over the last couple of weeks, I've sat with you, I know what you're going through, I'm not minimizing it. Death and sickness and cancer and treatments, and broken relationships and hurt and pain, and I know therefore that “Christ has risen” doesn't have the same impact every day that it does at other times, but it ought to. For I consider that our present sufferings aren't even worth comparing with the glory that Christ is gonna give us through His resurrection, it's not even worth comparing with it. It does not matter what you're going through. The resurrection trumps every card in a million decks. So, it's my privilege through the Holy Spirit to try to re-kindle in your hearts again whatever greatest joy you ever had in the resurrection, and then go beyond it. I don't think I've ever heard of any joy in the resurrection, perhaps in history that I've heard in the history of missions, as in that video EE-Taow, which talks about the Zooks as they ministered in Irian Jaya, and they've been patiently unfolding redemptive history, they got to the life of Christ patiently unfolding, they did solid work for months with these folks, then Jesus was crucified and the people were shocked, this stone-age tribe, they couldn't believe that he would die. And then they preached the resurrection and they just went nuts. At last, they could see everything, their redemption, their own forgiveness, their own eternity in heaven, and they celebrated, they cut loose for three hours. They were throwing the Zooks up in the air, up and down and up and down. Finally like, “Okay, put us down over here.” And they went on and the celebration went on. I wonder if that tribe is still celebrating at that same level. Probably not, but they ought to be. They ought to be. They could through the Spirit. Amen. I'm not minimizing the trials we go through, but didn't the Apostle Paul say sorrowful. Perhaps maybe we could say, “sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.” Like a compass needle returns to its true north, we return to joy in the resurrection, that's what you have. And so Daniel just sang, “There is a fountain filled with blood.” I would say, and I know he'd agree, there is a fountain filled with joy there too. And every time we go to the cross and the empty tomb, we can realize our sins are forgiven, God has adopted us, we have eternal life, we're going to heaven when we die, and God is gonna see us through all of our trials, it doesn't matter what we're facing, he who gave his only begotten Son and raised him up from the dead, he will get you through this life and he will bring you on into eternity. So that's the stuff I hadn't prepared. Alright, but as I was thinking about it, I just said, that's the burden. But the joy of preaching the resurrection, there's nothing new to say. But there's so much to say. The Resurrection: The Climax of Redemptive History The History of Death So today, I get to preach on the historical, one of the historical accounts of the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. I get to preach on the answer to the problem of death. This is the problem that entered into the world, and it causes grief all over the world, there's not a nation exempt, there's not a community exempt, there's not a family or individual exempt from this curse of death. The wicked tyrant Joseph Stalin said this, “A single death is a tragedy, a million deaths is a statistic.” Well, that's the way he thought. No, a million deaths is a million tragedies. Death itself is a tragedy. Death itself is a curse from God on the human race because of Adam's sin, and that's the theology. It may be something we struggle with, we try to understand, but how it is that we are held accountable. But in the wisdom of God, Adam was our representative. And it says in Romans 5:12, “Sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin.” And in this way, death came to all men because all sinned. We all sinned in Adam. We all die in Adam. He represented us. And since that time, there's been an indissoluble link between sin and death. The wages of sin is death. Ezekiel 18:4 says, “The soul who sins will die.” And we also sinned not only in Adam positionally as being human beings, but we also sinned actually as soon as we understood the law. As soon as the law came, sin sprang to life. And we died, we sinned and died. But in Jesus Christ, the death penalty has been paid, and we are clear of it forever. Now, we will die physically if the Lord doesn't return in our lifetime, but we will not die eternally, the second death, the death penalty has been paid. And that's the significance of the resurrection, by Christ's resurrection, it says in Romans 4, we have been justified. Satan: The One Who Held the Power of Death… Now Defeated We've been vindicated, we will live forever, and Satan, the one who held the power of death has been destroyed. He has been defeated at the cross and by his resurrection. He could not stop the resurrection of Christ, and therefore we have freedom from fear of death, it says in Hebrews chapter 2. Ancient History Looked Forward to This: The Defeat of Death Predicted Again and Again in the Old Testament Now, this was predicted, this was prophesied, that there would come a death-conqueror. In the garden, the serpent was told, “I'll put enmity between you and the woman, between your seed and hers. He will crush your head. You will bruise his heel.” So by his death, by Jesus' death he crushed Satan and sin and death. And God promised it again and again in his scriptures, I love Isaiah 25:7-8, there it says, “On this mountain, he the Lord, will destroy the shroud that unfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; he will swallow up death forever. The sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces, he will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The Lord has spoken.” Jesus Christ is the One Born of Woman, Who Came to Save Us from Sin and Death How powerful is that? He's going to destroy death. Well, now for us, he has destroyed it. Christ Jesus, the one born of woman, the seed of woman, has been born at the right time in the fullness of time, he lived a sinless life under the law of God, fulfilling all of its precepts and its commands on our behalf. He was obedient for us, so that he could win for us a perfect righteousness, a perfect obedience to the law of God, and transfer it to us through our union with him by faith; and our guilt transferred to him, our substitute. He dies in our place, and we stand righteous and uncondemned by that union we have with Christ. All Church History Looks Back to This Event: The Centerpiece of the Gospel is the Resurrection Now, all of church history looks back at this event. It's been 2000 years. 2000 years, the good news of the empty tomb has been proclaimed in nations around the world, almost every tribe and language and people and nation has been told. The message of 1 Corinthians 15, “What I received, I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and after that, he appeared to many eyewitnesses.” And this is our hope. “If you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and if you believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Praise God. A Loving Errand and a Supernatural Interruption (vs. 1-3) So that's just the intro. Let's look at the text and look at what it says in these marvelous 10 verses, we begin in verse 1-3 with a loving errand and a supernatural interruption. Now, just as we do this, this points again to the historicity of our faith, the historical roots of our faith. This is a historical account of some women who went to the tomb and the things that happened to them. We believe that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is a historical event. It really happened. We do not look at the resurrection as a myth or a fable, or an inspirational story, or certainly not a lie; it is history. It actually happened in space and time, and this account, these 10 verses is part of the historical record. Look at verse 1, “After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.” In Mark 16, we have this parallel account, it says, “When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James and Salome brought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body. Very early on the first day of the week just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb.” Luke 23 and 24 gives us this, “The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee, followed Joseph of Arimathea, saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. Then they went home and then prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.” Then in Luke 24:1, it says, “On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb.” A Loving Errand… But Some Measure of Unbelief So that's a fuller picture of what is going on with these women, what's happening. It's a loving errand that they have, but there is mingled with it a measure of unbelief. It's a loving errand, they love Jesus, but there is mingled here a measure of unbelief. The Sabbath is over now, they're free now to resume work, they were interrupted by the Sabbath, and the women wanted to finish what they started doing, which is burying Jesus, they wanted to finish with the spices, they wanted to finish wrapping up his body. Now, there's no doubt about the love and the loyalty these women have for Jesus, and that's based on faith, they believed in the things he said, they believed in what he did, I'm sure they were confused by his death, deeply grieved by it, but they just wanted to finish the work they had started, and the Sabbath had interrupted it, so they're hurrying there early. Now, as they come, they're bringing these spices, and the spices are there to mask the stench of corruption, to mask the stench of decay, that's why they're done. They're not going to have an encounter with the living God, they're not going there to have an encounter with Jesus, resurrected from the dead. They're going to care for a corpse. They're not expecting a resurrection. None of them were. And all of this, despite the fact that Jesus had repeatedly told them that he was going to be raised on the third day. Again and again, they don't have to go to Isaiah 25. Jesus himself told them what was going to happen to him. So he said in Matthew 12:40, “As Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the son of man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” And then Matthew 16:21, “From that time on, Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day, be raised to life.” And then again, Matthew 20:17 -19. “Now, as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, ‘We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man is going to be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death, and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life.’” He has been very clear about this, and frankly, the text gives us indication from that time on, he began saying to them, so he's saying it again and again. Key Issue: They Did Not Understand the Scripture Clearly, they did not understand from the Scriptures that Jesus had to rise from the dead. This is the very point that John makes in John 20:9, is the very point that Jesus makes with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. “How foolish you are,” he said, “And how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken.” Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter into his glory? And then beginning with Moses and the prophets in the Psalms, he explained all things that were written about himself.” It was there, they didn't understand these things from scripture, and they didn't understand these things from Jesus' plain statements about himself. Christ Does Not Despise The Women’s Mixture of Faith/Love with a Measure of Unbelief And so they come with their mixture of love and loyalty and unbelief. Some faith. Some unbelief. Isn't that us? Isn't it? Aren't we able to say like the father of that demon-possessed boy, “I do believe. Lord, Help my unbelief!” We're all like that. We have a mingling, that's why the resurrection is not as exciting today as whatever is the number one most exciting time you've ever had with the resurrection. It's because we're mingled, we don't have a pure faith, it's a mingled experience. And yet, isn't it marvelous how Jesus loves us anyway? And he cares for us and protects us and he's loyal to us Anyway? “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.” He's gonna take the smoldering wick of your faith and he's gonna kindle it into a flame, and that's his love for us. Who Moved the Stone? God Did! Through An Angel And so there they are, they walk to the tomb, it seems in the darkness, and as they approach the tomb, one thought dominates their mind: who's gonna move the stone? There's this huge, just huge boulder that had been rolled in front of the entrance to the tomb weighing thousands of pounds, I'm sure. And these women have, they just have no idea: how are they gonna move the stone? And so that's a big problem, they wanna go there, but they don't know how they're gonna get to the corpse, so they have a problem. Well, God took care of the problem at every level. No need to move the stone, no need for the spices and no corpse. Amen. Hallelujah. The whole mission's changed. Everything is changed, radically changed. So who moved the stone? In the famous words of Frank Morison, the apologetic writer, “Who moved the stone?” Well, God did through an angel. God moved that stone. We're gonna talk more about Morison and other apologetic writers next week. I wanna do a lot on apologetics next week, not this week, about how to take these truths and speak them to an unbelieving world that needs to hear about these things. But this one I just wanna work through just the historicity of the text, and Morison was a guy who set out to debunk the accounts of the resurrection and ends up being converted. How many times has that happened? Again and again, people read these accounts and say, “This is the truth. There's no way I can wrestle with this, I can't turn my back on it, Christ has risen.” But it's very clear, the answer to the question, who moved the stone? Look at verse 2 and 3, “Behold, there was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, and going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were as white as snow.” Now, the gospel accounts are powerful and clear, especially John about what happened to the stone. John is very clear in the Greek that the stone was lifted up and removed from the entrance. It was just entirely removed, not just rolled up in its little trough and propped up. It was just lifted and moved, you don't wanna mess with an angel. Let me tell you something. They can do awesome things. And so this angel just picks it up and tosses it aside and then sits on it, it's this awesome picture here, so he lifts it up and moves it. What is the significance of the moving of the stone? Well, let me say plainly it wasn't to let Jesus out. Amen. I mean, picture that, how terrible would that be. I'm waiting, waiting. Or he's knocking from the inside. Jesus is gone! He's been raised from the dead. Jesus could have moved the stone himself, he didn't need any angelic help in that assistance, but he didn’t need the stone moved. He didn't need it moved. He came up out of those sticky linen grave clothes anyway, moves out of that, moves right through the stone wall. And he's gone. How can that be? How do we understand that, it's not easy to understand. What is a resurrection body? What is it? What is involved in that? The best chapter on that, as I've said, is 1 Corinthians 15, and there the Apostle Paul, verse 42 and following, says, “The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable. It is sown in dishonor, it's raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.” And this is the key phrase, “It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.” Which is somewhat of a contradiction in terms, but it just shows the mysteries around the resurrection itself, it is a spiritual body, continuing. “So it is written, ‘the first man, Adam, became a living being’; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural after that, the spiritual. The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man was from heaven. As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. and just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so we shall bear the likeness of the man from heaven. I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God.” So there's enough information in there to say, we're talking about a glorious, powerful, spiritual body that is not flesh and blood in that sense, but still it's not a ghost or a spirit. So he can say in Luke, “Touch me and see; a ghost or a spirit doesn't have flesh and bones as you see I have.” And he's able to eat boiled fish, so he says, Jesus says, “I am not a spirit,” but Paul calls him “a life-giving spirit.” Spiritual body, that's the best I can make of it. And you're saying, “Pastor, you're just confusing us.” Well, that's as far as I can go. This resurrection body could do some astonishing things. It could just go through walls, it seems. Jesus frequently didn't look like his normal self, he had to reveal himself to people who knew him well. He's sitting there with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, he's sitting there breaking bread with them. Their eyes are open, they realize who he is, and he disappears. Bodies don't do that, normal bodies, but Jesus has this resurrection body. And Jesus in John 20, though the doors are locked for fear of the Jews that day and a week later, he comes and stands among them and says, “Peace be with you.” Now, Wayne Grudem in his excellent systematic theology is at pains to be sure, we're not dualists, thinking, spirit, good, body, bad, Jesus had a real physical body, so he says there's no evidence that Jesus passed through walls. I just wanna know how he got out of the tomb? Not the upper room, I'm saying the tomb. Was he waiting for the angel to let him out? How'd he get out of the sticky grave clothes? So I appreciate what brother Grudem is saying about the dualism. He had a real body, it's just a mysterious body and can do amazing things. And so there it is. So why then was the stone moved? Not to let Jesus out, but to let us in, come and see the place where he lay, that's why it was moved. Come and see the evidence, come and see the place where he lay. And based on that evidence, the first generation, the apostles believed. John 20:8, John says, “He saw and believed.” So his faith in the resurrection was based on the grave clothes, the head covering folded off by itself the stone removed the missing body, no corpse. He saw the physical evidence and believed, but the next statement is more important. “They still did not understand from scripture that he had to rise from the dead.” That's what we get. We don't get to touch the grave clothes, we don't get to see the moving stone, we get scripture. And that's all you'll ever get, but that's enough, isn't it? It's enough. We read the scripture and we believe in the resurrection, amen. But the physical evidence was there for the eyewitnesses, for those that saw his glory and preached. 1 John, what they saw with their eyes, what they touched with their hands, what they experienced. Thomas could have, I don't know that he did, put his finger in the nail holes, it was physical and there were eyewitnesses to the resurrection. Christ is risen. Now, we go into all this history because it's very plain that if Christ has not been raised, our faith is worthless, there is no Christianity. So history matters, and so we go into these details. The Earthquake and the Angel So what happened? Well, there was an earthquake and there was an angel. A violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. Behold, I like the “behold,” NIV tends to leave “beholds” out, I put them back in. Sometimes I even write them in. Behold, the angel suddenly comes and the earth shakes. And isn't that awesome? That's the second earthquake, great earthquake, in connection with Jesus' death and resurrection, the first happened after he died. The earth shook and rocks split, it says, and now we have this other earthquake. This is an earth-shattering experience. The earth is moving under our feet here with the crucifixion and the resurrection. And it's pointing to, as I mentioned a few weeks ago, to the new heavens and the new earth, when everything will be transformed. I like to use the word resurrected, when the earth will be resurrected, similar to Jesus, and we will be given a new heaven and a new earth. The removal of all the things that can be shaken, they'll be removed, all of them removed, and eternal things will be set up that will never be shaken. And we're receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken. So let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably. And so there's such a joy in this, and so the angel does it, and this angel is mighty. He caused the earthquake. The text implies that, “there was an earthquake, for an angel came down from heaven.” So the angel is shaking the earth, these are mighty beings. What was the touch-down? I always think they're like Apollo 11, the eagle has landed. So the angel comes down and touches down somewhere away from the tomb and moves over to it, so he lands, earthquake, and he moves over, picks up the stone mightily and moves it aside, and then, this my favorite part: sits on it. Like with angelic legs dangling. I just get that picture of complete ease. He's in the presence of Roman warriors, not intimidated at all by them, they're very intimidated by him. He's just sitting there comfortable, joyful and saying, “This is a happy day, this is the happy day.” And he's just waiting to talk to the women, don't need to worry about the stone, don't need to worry about the corpse, he is risen. And so there he is, and look at his appearance, blinding light, this radiant glory from heaven, God the Father, giving some of his glory to the angel, and the angel radiating this blinding light from heaven. Just as Jesus' birth when he was born, and the shepherd saw the angel and he descended in the glory of the Lord, shone around and they were terrified. And so also these Roman soldiers, terrified at his glory. Angels are there ministering, angels are there at his birth, angels are there in his temptation, when he was in the desert and angels came and strengthened him. Angels were there in Gethsemane when he was sweating great drops of blood, and an angel was sent to strengthen him, and angels are there now at his resurrection, and they'll be there at his second coming, Amen. When the son of man comes in his Father's glory and all the angels with him, they'll all come for the second coming glory. And so he is glorious, he is powerful. Here in this account, there's just one angel, but putting all the accounts together, there's definitely more than one angel, there's a good number of angels that are involved here. In Luke, it says, “Suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them, and in their fright, the women bowed down with their faces to the ground but the men said to them, ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead?’” In John's Gospel, they're inside the tomb, sitting one at the head, one at the foot. And Mary looked in and saw them sitting there where Jesus' body had been, one at the head, one at the foot. Terror and Assurance (vs. 4-6) Now, in verse 4-6, we have terror and assurance. First the terror, In verse four, “The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you're looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, he has risen, just as he said, come and see the place where he lay.’” So we have terror first, and then the assurance that the angel gives. The Reaction of the Guards Look at the reaction of the guards, these are Roman soldiers who had conquered the world in the name of Caesar, fearless warriors, and they are utterly paralyzed at one angel, utterly paralyzed. And frankly, they had every reason to be, every reason to be. They are terrified of him, and they're trembling, the Greek word for “shook” is the same as what happened to the earth, the angel made the earth shake and he made these men shake, and they're terrified and they end up paralyzed. They can't move. The Reassurance of the Women The glory of this angel, and they can do nothing, and the angel just disregards them, doesn't say anything to them at all, his mission is for the women and for the believers. And so he speaks a word of reassurance to the women, calming their hearts, and he said, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you're looking for Jesus who was crucified.” In other words, “You have nothing to fear from me because you're in a right relationship with him.” Right? You have nothing to fear. If you are in a right relationship with Jesus, you have nothing to fear from Jesus. But if you're not, you have every reason to be terrified. He is an incredible friend. What a friend we have in Jesus, but he's a terrifying enemy. And he's the Lord of host, he's the Lord of armies, and so this is one of the soldiers in his army, this heavenly warrior. So he just ignores the Roman soldiers and he says to the women, he says, “Do not be afraid. Fear not, for I know that you're looking for Jesus and why you're here, and I understand your relationship with him. I'm here for you. So don't be afraid.” And then he says, “He is not here, he has risen, just as he said.” Now, in Luke's gospel, I think it's clear that there's a little bit of a stronger rebuke for them, actually. You get a little bit of it here, “He has risen just as he said.” But it's clear, in Luke, listen to this, “In their fright,” it said, “The women bowed down with their face to the ground, but the men said to them, ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead?’” Why are you acting like he's a corpse? He's not a corpse, he is not here, he has risen. And then he's even clear, “Remember how he told you while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered in the hands of sinful man, be crucified, and on the third day be raised again.’ Then they remembered Jesus' words.” So it's a bit of a mild rebuke, read the scriptures, believe the scriptures, it’s all laid out. Feed on God's word. Strengthen your faith in God's word. And I think that's a link to the very beginning of this sermon, if your joy isn't what it should be, get back in the word and strengthen your faith, and your faith will lead quickly to your emotions and to your joy. Remember what he said. They should have known. The angels say the same thing in John toward Mary Magdalene. Remember, she's weeping, weeping, weeping. I just love it, weeping on the happiest day in history. It's the same thing with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. I preached an Easter sermon entitled, “Downcast Walking with the Risen Lord.” Depressed and with the resurrected Jesus, how can that be? And he rebuked them for it. Why are you so downcast and discouraged? Read the scriptures. And so the angel says in John 20:13, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away and I don't know where they have put him.” He's not being put anywhere, he's going where he wants. Alright, just so you know. He's not put anywhere. And so he's risen. So why are you weeping? Same thing Jesus said to her when he began talking to her, “Why are you weeping?” The Basis of their Joy: The Empty Tomb And what should be the basis of their joy? The empty tomb. Look what the angel says, “He is not here, he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.” Now, you can only do that by faith, in your mind's eye, but go ahead and do it. Come now by faith and see the empty tomb. Come and see the place where he lay, and let your faith be strengthened by that, come by faith in the word and see. He is not here, he has risen. And so that's it. Just the body is gone. Now, as I said in John's gospel, there are angels where the body was, and you have the grave clothes described, and you have the angel at the head and at the foot, I love that. As one commentator put it so beautifully, it represents the cherubim who were on the mercy seat on the Ark of the Covenant in the Old Testament. That's where the Lord said he would meet with Israel and in a glory cloud above the Ark. In the mercy seat between the cherubim, there in the glory cloud, he spoke to Israel. And that's where the atoning blood was poured on the day of atonement, there on the mercy seat between the wings of the cherubim, and so I think the position of the angels, one at the head, one at the foot and John's gospel tells us, this is the new mercy seat. This is where God will speak to you. The empty tomb, the crucifixion and resurrection, is where God will speak his final word to the human race. That's where the blood was poured for the atonement of our sins. It's all been fulfilled. The Joyful Mission Begins (vs. 7-8) This is the Beginning of the Spread of the News! Christ is Risen! Well, then their joyful ministry begins, verses 7 and 8, “Go quickly and tell his disciples, he has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.” And I like this part. “Now, I have told you,” meaning, I have nothing more to say, get going. It's like that Jewish way of expression, it's in the Old Testament a lot. “Have I not told you?” In other words, there's nothing more to say, you have your orders. And so they're given a very, very clear ministry, a mission to go and tell the disciples, he has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee and there you will see him. And so they began running away, they're running, they're hurrying, they're afraid still, but filled with joy. Again, that mingling. That's just who we are. Afraid, what are they afraid of? Just look at it, is there anything to be afraid of at this moment? I tell you, no, there's nothing to be afraid of. If God is for us, who can be against us? Who cares? But they're still that mingling in our hearts, but still they are filled with joy, and so they go to tell the disciples that Christ has risen. The Fact That It Was Entrusted to these Women Shows the Honor The Lord Held Them In And isn't it marvelous how God chose to do it? Back then in the culture that they had back then, a woman's testimony wouldn't be accepted in the court of law. This is part of the evidence of why scholars in the 21st century, 20th century think this rings true. Because if you're gonna concoct or craft a fable, you wouldn't do it this way. So many elements of the Bible are that way, you just wouldn't show the sins of David and Peter. You wouldn't be so open, you'd try to cover that up. The Bible doesn't cover anything up and here the Lord willed that these women should go and tell the apostles concerning the resurrection, and it's a marvelous thing. And so they hurry away from the tomb, afraid and yet filled with joy. Now, we know from John's Gospel, Peter and John went and saw for themselves as well, based on what they had heard from the women. I never found out, we'll never know, I guess, until we get to heaven what happened with the spices? I think they were probably left in there, like the Samaritan woman left her water pitcher. Doesn't matter, I don't need the spices anymore, we don't need a water pitcher, and they're running filled with joy to go like the Samaritan woman to tell the whole village, “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did, could this be the Christ?” The Highest Evidence: A Personal Encounter with the Risen Lord (vs. 9-10) The Highest Evidence: Personal Encounter with the Risen Lord And these women running to tell the disciples that Christ is risen, but they have one more beautiful perfect surprise that morning, one more. Better evidence than an angel, better evidence than the empty tomb, better evidence than the grave clothes. How about a personal encounter with the resurrected Christ? And that's where our account ends, the highest evidence, verse 9 and 10, “Suddenly Jesus met them.” That's what you can do in a resurrection body. Suddenly there he is, and he just appears and he's there. And he says, and I love this, “Greetings.” That's a kin to, “Morning.” It's so understated. It's so ordinary. “Hi. Here I am.” And again, there's, behold out of nowhere, he comes and their reaction is beautiful, it's priceless, frankly, it's the point of everything. It really is. It's the point of the crucifixion, and it's the point of the resurrection. Their Reaction: Pure Worship… Falling at His Feet!! They fall down at his feet and they worship him. As John Piper put it very plainly, in Let the Nations Be Glad, “Missions exist because worship doesn't.” That's the purpose of all of this, so that we would fall on our faces and worship the Lord, that we would worship the resurrected Christ. That at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Just Like in John’s Gospel… Jesus’ Message is Exactly the Same as that of the Angels I think there's a little more to it though, because they're holding on tightly, and Jesus has to say, “Stop holding on to me.” Alright, in another account. “Stop holding,” so I think they're saying, “Look, we let you go before and look what happened, we're not doing that again. We're gonna hold on.” And Jesus says, “You can't hold on to me. I'm here for just a short time, 40 days, I'm gonna get the apostles ready to do their ministry and then I'm going to ascend to heaven. So don't hold on to me because I have to ascend to my Father and your Father and to my God and your God.” But it's so beautiful, how Jesus calls them brothers, “Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee and there they will see me.” And so that's that beautiful, beautiful thing. It's the most surprising, the most spectacular aspect of the whole Gospel, J.I. Packer summed up the gospel in three words, “Adoption through propitiation.” Let me say it very plainly, we are adopted as the sons and daughters of living God, because Jesus shed his blood in our place for our sins. That sums it all up. Adoption through propitiation. We are brothers and sisters of the resurrected Jesus Christ, and he's not ashamed to call us that, he's not ashamed. We're sometimes ashamed of him, though we should never be, but he's never ashamed of us. And he is not ashamed to call us brothers. And so he says, “Go tell my brothers that they will see me.” Applications Christians: Know the Certainty of What You Believe So what applications can we take from that? Oh my. How long do we have? Not long, 'cause we have the Lord's supper, we have the Lord's supper. But be certain of your faith, be rock solid, certain that Christ has risen from the dead. Be certain about the scriptures, testimony, Old testament and New to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Be certain about these things. The word of God is perfectly true and reliable, and Jesus of Nazareth really is the Son of God and the Savior of the world. He is completely vindicated, and his blood shed on the cross is sufficient for your sins and for mine. And if we repent and believe in him, we will have eternal life. So repent and believe in him and trust in him. And if you have already done that years ago, continue to repent and believe and to trust and to stay close to him, because he is the vine and you are the branches. Be Encouraged Even in the Face of Death And if I can just say, allow your joy to be rekindled, rejoice and be happy, in the Lord, rejoice even in the midst of your suffering. In Acts 9:39, some women were standing around Peter weeping and showing him some articles of clothing that a woman named Dorcas, Tabitha, had made for them, and they're weeping, they're crying, why? 'Cause she's dead. And Peter sent them all out of the room, knelt down and prayed, and then raised her from the dead. Was it inappropriate for them to be weeping? No, no, you know why? Because she was gone now, there was no certainty she would be immediately raised from the dead, and life's hard and Dorcas made life easier and better, and so it's right for us to grieve. But not as those who have no hope. And so that's why I say sorrowful, yet always rejoicing. Sometimes we have to be sorrowful, but this message, the truth behind this message is an eternal fountain of joy for all of us. Close with me in prayer. Father, we thank you for the time that we've had in the word, and as we prepare our hearts now, O Lord, to receive the Lord's Supper, I pray that you would send forth again in fresh affusions, the Holy Spirit, to take these bear emblems, to take this experience here of the Lord's Supper, and to make it very powerful. Thank you for what we've just heard in the word, and we ask, O Lord, that you would use it and multiply it. I pray for any that are here that walked in in an unregenerate state, that they are lost, they're apart from Christ, that they would even now, repent and trust in Jesus. I pray these things in your name. Amen.

Today's host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Chris O'Connor Today's guest(s): Joshua Phelps, Associate Director of the Office of Pastoral Planning for the Archdiocese of Boston Today's topics: Cardinal Seán on “The Eucharist: The Center of Catholic Life” Summary of today's show: In a speech that goes from Papua New Guinea to Flannery O'Connor, Cardinal Seán O'Malley says we have a crisis of absenteeism from Sunday Mass and calls for a renewed vigor from disciples to invite Catholics to return to the Eucharist. Scot Landry, Fr. Chris O'Connor, and Joshua Phelps consider the Cardinal's recent speech at Boston College and unpack its implications for the Church today as we face this crisis. 1st segment: Scot welcomed Fr. Chris back to the show. He also welcomed Joshua Phelps back to the show. Two weeks ago, Cardinal Seán gave an address called “The Eucharist: The Center of Catholic Life” to members of the Boston College community as part of their Church in the 21st Century program. The Cardinal begins by telling a story, which he often does in talks and homilies. When I was in the seminary, our Provincial, Fr. Victor, wrote a letter to Rome in which he said that our mission in Puerto Rico was flourishing and that our Province was prepared to take on a second mission. He said that he wanted the most difficult mission in the world. The response was lightening quick saying that we should open a mission in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea. The guardian, Fr. Fermin Schmidt, from the Capuchin College in Washington was named the first Bishop and friars were sent. Three of my classmates went. It was reported back to us that when the friars landed in a field, the natives who had never seen Europeans or an airplane were quite curious. They asked if the plane was a male or a female. They said if it was a female they wanted an egg. Many years later a young friar I ordained who was working in Papua New Guinea came to see me on his home visit. He had glorious pictures of smiling natives, with bones in their noses, feathers in their hair and little else in the way of clothing. He announced proudly, “This is my parish council.” I was particularly intrigued because one of my own pastors had just told me that his parishioners were not ready for a parish council. In the same vein, at World Youth Day in Cologne, Pope Benedict addressed the Bishops of Germany at the seminary. He referred to his native country, Germany “as a mission land.” This is true for so many places in the Western World including our own beloved country, where secularism and de-Christianization are gaining ground. The Holy Father said, “So many people do not know God. They do know Christ. There is a new form of paganism, and it is not enough for us to strive to preserve the existing flock.” We need to find new ways of bringing the Gospel to the contemporary world, of proclaiming Christ anew and of implanting the faith. As Pope Benedict said, we are not here just for “the existing flock.” We must be a missionary Church. Fr. Chris said it's a reminder to everyone that every single member of the church is called to be a missionary by virtue of their baptism. The cardinal sets up a contrast between Papua New Guinea and the United States. It's a reminder to us that there needs to be a missionary spirit in all of us and a return to radically proclaiming the Gospel. The fact that Pope Benedict this past year opened a new Holy See office for the New Evangelization, which means not simply evangelization to far-reaching missionary lands, but to Europe and the United States where Christianity is almost taken for granted. Scot said it's to re-evangelize those who have been baptized Catholics. Scot said you don't think of Boston as a place where a new form of paganism is gaining ground. Most people would think of Boston as very Catholic. Josh said Boston is very culturally Catholic. He said people often think of the new evangelization as new methods, it's really about a new target of evangelization. While people may have heard the name of Jesus, they may not have heard the message of Christ in a while. Scot said the when the Holy Father talks about the New Evangelization, he says the content of our effort is not a bunch of information about theChurch, it's the person of Christ. If you're not receiving Christ in the Eucharist every Sunday, you're not in deep relationship with him. Fr. Chris said the Cardinal will mention being part of the family, part of the vine. He said Pope Benedict uses the image of stained glass windows: from the outside you can't experience their beauty. You must come into the Church to see the beauty. Similarly, in order to know and love Christ, you have to be part of his body, which is the Church. Josh said the image of the Papua New Guinea parish council, it is a picture of zeal for building up the kingdom of God in our communities. It's no surprise that people who get Jesus, get the Church. Our task is to turn consumers into disciples and disciple-makers. We need to prepare men and women who witness to the faith and to not send people into the witness protection program. As the U.S. Bishops wrote in : “Every Catholic can be a minister of welcome, reconciliation, and understanding to those who have stopped practicing the faith. In the new millennium, business as usual is not enough. We must be a team of missionaries, moving from a maintenance mode to a missionary one. Scot said we talk a lot in the Church about moving from maintenance to mission. Fr. Chris said we can get comfortable with the status quo, forgetting that our churches should be overflowing with people. During Mass, when he sees out the open doors of the church and sees car driving past, he often wonders if they know what is happening in the church. He prays for greater recognition of the importance of the Eucharist to the world. The cardinal often tells priests and seminarians that they are called to be fishers of men, not keepers of the aquarium, seeking out disciples. Josh said the new paganism is shorthand for many of the things people are placing as foremost in their lives, including consumerism and materialism. We see how popular holidays become for the trappings, not for the meaning they have. The Church is not offering entertainment, but an encounter with the divine. Scot said he thinks the consumers as “what do I get?” where the disciple asks “How do I give? How do I respond to what I have received?” True disciples seek to give away what they have received. We must ask ourselves, what does it mean to live in a culture of unbelief - a culture which does not even know it does not believe because it still lives on the residue of Christian civilization? As has expressed it so well: “the church exists today as resident aliens, an adventurous colony in a society of unbelief. As a society of unbelief, Western culture is devoid of the sense of journey, of adventure, because it lacks belief in much more than the cultivation of an ever shrinking horizon of self-preservation and self expression.” Scot said the message is that the Church used to be the primary culture in which Massachusetts once operated, where most people were Catholic and if not Catholic, at least faithful religious believers. Now we are aliens in this culture. Fr. Chris said the Christian is the salmon swimming upstream against the currents of secularism. He's reminded how some people recently tried to organize a public rosary on public property in Upton, the town's initial response was to deny that right. As Catholics we can't be abrasive about our faith, but we need a confidence about our faith, that what we believe is true. Scot quoted Archbishop Timothy Dolan that Catholic belief is proposed, not imposed. Too often militant secularists take the solitary example of the angry or extreme Catholic and say that's how all Catholics are. The way we present our faith as an invitation than if it's imposed. Josh said there's a reason why the Church talks about the family as the domestic church. It's virtually impossible to be a parent without being generous. you see how much you receive in being generous to your children. How said it is to think that there is a Western society that loses sight of life as a journey. The Eucharist is where you get the food for that journey. Scot said there is a growing hedonism in society, which seeks pleasure as the greatest good and pain as the greatest evil. Raising kids isn't easy and difficult, even though there is much love. Hedonists only want pleasure without pain. They view others for what they can give, not because they have inherent value. 2nd segment: Scot picked up where he left off in the Cardinal's talk: To be a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ in the Catholic Church is much more than a head trip. It is a way of life together, the whole person is engaged in the process. Education for this journey must therefore be experiential, personal, engaging and life-giving. We learn discipleship the way we learn a language, by being part of a community that speaks that language. Our young Catholics must be mentored in the faith by others, either peers or older Catholics who are walking the walk. Scot said he'd never heard that way to pick up faith is like the way we pick up language. Fr. Chris said Christ called us to love the Lord with all our heart, mind, and soul. You don't learn a language by yourself. It takes a community. Similarly, it takes a community to raise us in faith. It takes apostles, priests, religious educators, parents, and neighbors. Confirmation sponsors are often those in their lives who witnessed to them in the faith and became good examples. Blessed John XXIII has a great quote: “Lord, let me live my life in such a way that when people see me they say, if this is the servant, how much greater must the master be?” The Holy Father describes the university's privileged task to unite the two orders of reality that too frequently tend to be placed in opposition as though they were antithetical: “the search for truth, and the certainty of already knowing the font of truth.” The Catholic community needs our institutions of higher learning to be venues of evangelization and faith formation. In the past there is often been the presumption that young people come to our universities fully catechized and initiated into the life of the Catholic community; and therefore, the best way to serve them was to expose them to a highly speculative theology and to present the Church's Magisterium as simply another option. Today I hope it is obvious to all of us that young Catholics often lack a sound catechetical formation. I am comforted that when I meet with the six presidents of Catholic colleges in the archdiocese, they all assure me that although there is much religious illiteracy, they have never experienced a generation more open to the faith. Therefore I urge all of our Catholic colleges and universities to provide our Catholic students with the opportunity to learn about their faith and to receive a sound catechetical formation, that presents the church's teachings and traditions enthusiastically and accurately. Nothing is sadder than when in our own institutions, those who have the responsibility of teaching the rich theology of our church present the Magisterium in a dismissive and condescending way and fail to recognize the profound philosophical and theological traditions that are part of the treasury of Catholicism. Josh said he was someone who came to college lukewarm in his faith and graduated with a greater zeal, so it is possible to go through the university and come to a greater experience of Christ. His conversion came in a class that walked him through an explanation of the Catechism of the Church and it was the farthest thing from a dry experience. Scot asked Fr. Chris to explain what the Magisterium is: The Pope and the bishops who share the teaching, governing, and sanctifying role in the Church as handed down from the apostles. Scot said we trust that the Holy Spirit preserves the teaching of the Church in the areas of faith and morals, so we know who to follow when there is a dispute over what is true. Fr. Chris reminds the academic community that true theology is revealing to people in new ways the same truth that has been with us as a received from Christ. The Cardinal makes it clear that the search for the Truth and the knowledge that Christ is the Truth is not a contradiction or opposed. He said the bishops are conservators of the faith, to protect the flock from any error that will lead us astray in our faith and keep the faith conserved. The Church doesn't change with the times because what Christ gave us will always remain the same, even if we express it differently at times. As your pastor I wish to share with you the deep concern expressed so often by our priests, deacons, religious and lay leaders; namely, the crisis of absenteeism at the Sunday Eucharist. This needs to be one of the focal points of pastoral concern for all who love our church. Our Catholic colleges have the unique opportunity and I daresay a responsibility to address this problem. The Pew Study has indicated that it is in the late teens and early 20s that young Catholics will make those commitments and decisions that will affect their practice of the faith for the rest of their lives. That is precisely the demographic which is in our universities and in the military service. As an archdiocese we have tried to dedicate as many resources as possible to this demographic. We probably send more priests to be chaplains in the armed services than any other diocese in the United States - and we have sent very fine priests. I am told that there could be almost a half-million university students within the Archdiocese of Boston with a large percentage of them are Catholic. The last two years we have brought the “F.O.C.U.S. Ministry” to work in two of the universities, and our university chaplains are working very hard to make the church present on the campuses. As I am sure is the case here at BC. Scot said the Cardinal describes this as a crisis of absenteeism. Josh said in his work in pastoral planning they are discovering that people who graduate from Catholic colleges with ministry degrees aren't going to work in parishes because they have received the personal formation during their college years to live their faith actively. Scot has always viewed people not going to Mass as an active choice. Fr. Chris said absenteeism is an active choice, not being present at some place where you should be present. This idea of absenteeism shows us that we have brothers and sisters who are absent from Mass. It is partly the responsibility of those who are present to be the missionary inviting others to come back and show them how essential Mass is. Josh said a friend who regularly skipped Mass was told that he was actively hurting the community by being absent. We build up the body of Christ by our presence. The Cardinal then shares stories of people who say why they come to Mass. When I was a seminarian, I remember reading an article in the newspaper, an interview with Flannery O'Connor, about what it was like to grow up Catholic in the South. Obviously there were very very few Catholics in those days and many prejudices against them. In this interview Flannery O'Connor talks about her best friend who was a little Baptist girl. Flannery often invited her to accompany her to mass. Finally the little girl got permission from her mom to go to Mass with Flannery one Sunday. Flannery could not wait for the Mass to be over so she could ask her little friend: “did you like it, did you like it?” The little girl said: “WOW. You Catholics really have something special. The sermon was so boring, the music was lousy, the priest mumbled the prayers in a language nobody could understand, and all those people were there!” Obviously they were not there to be entertained. I'm sure that most of them were probably there because they couldn't live without the Sunday Mass.” Fr. Chris said , the Vietnamese cardinal who was imprisoned by the Communists for many years and was tortured, regularly celebrated Mass from memory with a little scrap of bread and a little drop of wine in his hand. He said, “The Eucharist is our energy. Lights can't work without electricity. Cars don't run without gasoline. Why then should the Catholic without receiving the Eucharist expect to be able to function and live the way Christ is calling him.” He added another quote from Flannery O'Connor in a letter to an agnostic friend: “If the Eucharist ain't the Body and Blood of Christ, to hell with it.” The truth is that the Catholic Church sprang up around the Eucharist. Christ commanded us, “do this in memory of me.” Ever since, we have been doing this: celebrating his Eucharist, changing bread and wine into his body and blood so that the good Shepherd can continue to feed his flock. I was pleased that this year on World Mission Sunday by chance the Gospel was the great commandment of love. I fear that often when we think of Christian charity we think only of feeding the hungry, caring for the sick and elderly, providing for the homeless and the poor. But if we truly love our neighbor we will likewise be very concerned that many people are spiritually homeless, spiritually hungry, spiritually imprisoned and spiritually sick. The church exists to evangelize, to announce the good news of God's love and his desire that we follow him as part of his people. Discipleship is never a solo flight, but rather an adventure we live together. And at the heart of that adventure is the Eucharistic banquet where Calvary and the Last Supper become present in our lives and history. Scot said the Cardinal has often said we do a good job in Boston with the corporal works of mercy, but from a spiritual standpoint do we pray as much as we should and invite others to partake of the Eucharist, or are we too shy to say something as simple, “Would you like to come to Mass with me Sunday?” Josh said the statistics said Catholics are more generous with their money than non-Catholics in Boston, but from a spiritual viewpoint, participation in Mass is declining at about 3% per year. Scot said there are so many activities that Catholics do that connect them with Christ, but there's only one he said to do in memory of him: The Mass. He thinks of all the people who are “spiritual, but not religious”, which means they want to pray in their own way, not the way Jesus asked us to pray. Fr. Chris said when one member of the Body of Christ is absent, the whole body suffers so it is essential that all come to the Eucharist. Typically we think of the Eucharist as that which sends us out to do the corporal works of mercy, but the Cardinal reminds us that it's not enough to feed the hungry and clothe the naked, but we have to have a personal relationship with Christ. How can you give what you do not have? 3rd segment: In a society that is so highly individualistic, described in Professor Putnam's Bowling Alone, where each successive generation of Americans spends more time alone, eating alone, living alone, spending hours alone before television or computer screen, we must communicate that discipleship means being part of Jesus' family, part of the community. In a culture that is addicted to entertainment some Christian churches have turned themselves into entertainment centers. In the Eucharist we have something much more important than entertainment, we have love taken to the extreme. Our God has made a gift of himself to us as he invites us to wash each other's feet and to make a gift of our lives to God and to others. Love taken to the extreme is the Eucharist. The Mass unites Calvary, heaven, and all of us taken together. Josh said as a parent he sometimes think of what he would do for his children and we too are children of God. Scot said the fact that the Christian life is a family adventure. Too many people are depriving themselves of so many graces that come from being part of this family and this sacrament. Fr. Chris said the typical parish church shows the richness and diversity of our faith in all the different kinds of people and what brings us together is nothing but the love of Jesus Christ himself. In talking about the washing of feet, the Cardinal is referring to Holy thursday where he washed the feet of the apostles, reminding us to serve our neighbor. We have to be connected with one another in order to be connected to God. It also shows that connection between charity and the Eucharist. Today people speak much about diversity. I don't think there is another organization in the world that is as diverse as the Catholic Church. As some pundit once said about the church, “here comes everybody”. In reality we are over 1 billion Catholics in the world today and we come in all sizes shapes and colors, and we're all the Church. In the archdiocese, and here at BC, more and more are arriving from all over the globe. Many of them are Catholics and we want them to feel a part of our home despite the differences of language or custom. At the Eucharist all the barriers and frontiers that divide us melt away and we're forged into a new solidarity, a new identity in the Body of Christ. Josh said we experience that melting away of barriers every day in Boston. The Catholic community in Brockton is a great example of this, where people come from various backgrounds to worship together. For us, each Sunday is the day of the Resurrection. On that first Easter, Jesus appeared to two disciples on the road to Emmaus. The disciples were confused, hurt, full of fear and doubts. They were trying to determine what to make of Jesus death and the empty tomb. They discuss these developments with Jesus whom they did not recognize. When they reached the village they asked Jesus to stay with them. St. Luke says when they arrived at Emmaus, Jesus made as if he were going to continue on his journey. It was only the insistent invitation of the two disciples that brought Jesus to their table. I think that's a very important detail of this Gospel. The Lord does not force himself on us, he likes to be invited into our lives. When they sat down for the evening meal, Jesus took the bread, blessed it, broke it and began to give it to them. At that point, the disciples recognize Jesus. Suddenly Jesus vanished but the bread remains. Then the disciples immediately return to Jerusalem to tell the apostles that Jesus had truly risen and appeared to them. We too live in times where many people are confused hurt and full of fear. Jesus wants to meet us in the same way he met the disciples on the road to Emmaus. Like them, we will recognize Jesus and encounter him most profoundly in the breaking of the bread at Mass. The Eucharist is the fulfillment of Jesus promise' to be with us until the end of time. I pray that our love for the Mass and our Eucharistic amazement will increase so that our hearts will be burning within us when we hear the Sacred Scriptures proclaimed and observe the breaking of the bread. Let us do what those two disciples on the road to Emmaus did. Let us rush to tell the world that Christ is alive and that our family must gather at the Lord's Table to experience God love, to learn our own identity and to fill our mission together. Let us say to the world: we have seen the Lord and we have recognized Him in the breaking of the bread. Scot said he loves the Emmaus story. We empathize with the disciples who were left despondent. Fr. Chris said he loves there's a little bit of sarcasm in the man who says to Jesus, you must be the only one in Jerusalem who hasn't heard the news. It's in the breaking of the bread, the offering of the Eucharist, that they recognize Christ. We have to stop on our road to recognize him in the breaking of the bread and then to go out to evangelize others. Scot said it's important for us to express to those around us that Jesus Christ is real. Josh said the disciples were dejected, they thought it was all over. It wasn't a rational process that convinced them otherwise, but the power of the Eucharist. Scot emphasized that this wasn't a parable, but a historical event. Jesus chose to make himself known in the breaking of the bread so we would know the best way to encounter to him. The Cardinal gave this address as a precursor to a pastoral letter he will be issuing within the next few weeks on the topic of attendance at Sunday Mass.

Matthew 28:1-10After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, `He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you." So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said,"Greetings!" And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."

Good morning. Happy Easter to you. Thank you for coming with us today. Were honored that youre here. We have started a mini-series called, The Rebel. Thats not a name or title that youd normally associate with Jesus, is it? I mean the average person on the street would echo the words of Sean Penns character when he said, Holy man. Did well. In Heaven. Turn the other cheek. Love your enemy. Not very dangerous-yet He was. He was a rebel. He came into a world where there was a religious system that was oppressing the poor, that was corrupt, that was full of hypocrisy, and He exposed it. He went looking for a fight as weve seen. They didnt have to come and find Him. He found them. He taught as no man had ever taught. One time, this mild-mannered man made a whip and drove the money-changers out of the temple and overturned their tables in righteous anger. He was not afraid of them. He was not afraid of their power. He was not intimidated by them. He would stand up for righteousness, compassion, justice, and to the powerful. He would take away their power by drawing away from them the multitudes of people that were following them. He rebelled against their man-made rules, their man-made authority, to establish a new Kingdom based upon spiritual truths-the Kingdom of God. Thats what were going to conclude this morning when we talk about The Rebel. This morning I want to ask you a few questions of mass confession here. How many of you have ever stood up for yourself even when you knew you were wrong or have been in an argument and though the person was right, you got angry when they pointed out your flaws? Let me see your hands. Look at that. How many of you here today received good advice from somebody, a sound counsel, but because of the source it came from-because maybe you didnt like or respect the individual or didnt want to give that individual the benefit of being right-you chose to ignore that counsel even if it meant it was to your detriment? What were looking at are some stubborn folks this morning. How many of you are stubborn? Let me see your hands. Do you know what Im worried about? Im worried about the ones who didnt raise their hands because I know what theyre thinking. Theyre out there going, You arent going to tell me when to raise my hand. Ill raise my hand when I want to raise my hand. Ill wait till youre halfway through the sermon. Im just going to raise my hand for no reason. Youre not telling me what to do! We have some stubborn folks out here! Well, just like they are stubborn today, they were stubborn back then as well. I want us to turn in our Bibles to Matthew 27. Look at the aftermath of the cross. Were going to begin reading with Verse 62 of that Gospel (page 989 of pew Bibles). It says, The next day, the one after preparation day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate… By the way, this is the Sabbath. Now, what are you supposed to be doing on the Sabbath? Resting, right? You can only walk so far as a stones throw. These men are all bent out of shape because Jesus worked on the Sabbath and violated their laws on the Sabbath. Now, what are they doing? Theyre breaking their own rules. Sir, they said, we remember that while He was still alive that deceiver said, After three days I will rise again. So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, His Disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that He has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first. What was the first deception? The first deception was that He was the Messiah. The first deception was that He was the fulfillment of Biblical prophecy, calling Himself the Son of Man and calling Himself the Son of God. That was a deception. No matter how many miracles Jesus performed, no matter how great the miracles-causing the eyes of the blind to see, the lame to walk, feeding thousands with a few fish and a few loaves of bread, or even raising a dead man, Lazarus-no matter how miraculous [of a thing] that He did or how incredible [of a statement] He said, they refused to believe. Its [almost as if] Jesus almost said, What do I have to do? What do I have to say? Youve seen the miracles. They were similar to the expression, A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still. A man came home one day, and he said to his wife, Honey, I have some bad news for you. Im dead. She said, What? He said, Yeah, I died last night in my sleep. Its bad news. I feel bad for you and the kids. Youre a widow, and the kids dont have a dad. She said, Well, I dont agree that youre dead, but I tell you what-you sure need help, so she made an appointment with a psychiatrist. He went in to see the doctor. He said, Doc, Im a dead man. He said, I see. Well, this is an unusual case. Heres what I need you to do. He handed him a stack of books and medical journals. He said, I want you to go home and study, and I want you to answer this question when you come back to my office next week, Do dead men bleed? He said, Okay. Ill do that. He went home, and the dead guy studied the books. He looked up the fact that when you die, your heart stops pumping, the plasma separates from the blood, and then you dont bleed anymore. That's it. It's done. So he went back to the doctor, and he said, Did you study the manuals? He said, I did. He said, So whats the answer? He said, My conclusion is that dead men do not bleed. He said, Very well, I agree. He opened his drawer, pulled out a needle, and said, Give me your finger. The man reached out his finger, and the doctor pricked it. Instantly the man started to bleed. He looked down at his finger in shock, and he said, I dont believe it! The doctor smiled, knowingly, and he said, Dead men DO bleed. Wow! These journals are wrong! That was the mindset of these guys. What does Jesus have to do? What does He have to say in order for you to believe? Because to believe is to admit theyre wrong. Because to believe means theyre going to lose their power. Theyre going to lose their way of life. Well talk more about that in a little bit. So Pilate is going to do what they say. If the tomb is unguarded, if nobody is there-even though this stone weighed tons-if enough guys showed up, if they work hard enough and have the right kind of leverage and pulleys, they could probably move the stone; so Heres what well do. Well do two things, Pilate says. Take a guard, Pilate answered. Go make the tomb as secure as you know how. So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard. It was probably a sting which had an official seal of the emperor on it saying, This is the property of Rome. Do not tamper. If you tampered with that seal, it meant the possibility of facing death. For the guards to fail at their post-four guards that would have gone in shifts, so there was no chance of them being tired-there wasnt just one guy. Its not some guy named Elmer standing out there by himself. There were four professional soldiers who are at attention and on the alert at all times. If they fell asleep on the job or somebody overtook them and the prisoner-or in this case, the dead person-is taken, then they would die as well. That was the consequence of failing at their post. Now they were very confident the tomb was secure. Chapter 28, After the Sabbath at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from Heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. You know how it is when youre frightened, right? You know what kind of emotions and what kind of physical reactions your body goes through. Weve never seen anything like this, so you can imagine how pale they became and how shook up they were. The angel said to the women, Do not be afraid… Easy for you to say, they probably said. …for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen; just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His Disciples that He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see Him. Now I have told you. So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy… Quite a combination of emotions-fear and joy at the same time. For the soldiers leaving the tomb, it was only fear-not joy. Suddenly Jesus met them, Greetings, He said. They came to Him, clasped His feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see Me. Now while they are doing that, the guards were reporting back to their bosses what had happened. While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. They know theyre in trouble. They know that on their watch, the grave was now empty. What they had been assigned to protect is no longer in the tomb. Theyre afraid for their lives. They are also emotional and physical basket cases. When they arrive, they are trembling. Their voices are shaking. Their palms are sweaty. Their complexion is pale. There is a look of fear and anxiety about them as they tell the whole story. They talk about the shaking of the earth. They talk about the angel, the voice, and the message of the empty tomb-giving incredible evidence of the resurrection of Jesus. What do the chief priests do? It says that then the chief priests met and said, We have made a terrible mistake. We have crucified the Son of God. May God have mercy on our souls. We now believe that Jesus is the Christ because of the overwhelming evidence of the Resurrection. No, no, no. A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still. The Messiah doesnt bleed. This could not have happened. They met together and devised a plan, and its not that great of one, as were going to see. They gave the soldiers a large sum of money, telling them, You are to say, His Disciples came during the night and stole Him away while you were asleep. By the way, think about this for a second. The Disciples came and took Him away while you were asleep. How do you know what happened while you were asleep? Right? Think about that for a second. Yeah, while we were asleep, the Disciples… How would you know? You were asleep! How do you know what happened? How do you know who took Him? Then they make a promise that they cant keep. They say, If this report gets to the governor… Youre in big trouble. …we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble. They cant make that promise, and if they are going to make that promise, they better come up with a better excuse than this one. Is that going to get them out of trouble? Yes, Pilate, we want you to know that the only reason the Disciples came and took the body of Jesus that they were supposed to guard was because they fell asleep, so its okay. Thats not a good excuse! If you have something important on your desk that your boss has put you in charge of and its gone-somebody has taken it-and your co-worker says, Hey, Ive got your back. Im just going to tell the boss you fell asleep on the job. Everythings going to be fine. Thats not going to work! But you know what? These guys thought their lives were going to be on the line, and now they have a big wad of cash, so they were like, Okay. So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day. Were going to talk this morning about why people reject Jesus. Because the reasons they rejected Jesus are the same reasons why people reject Jesus today. The number one reason is emotional. It has to do with our emotions. They so hated Jesus because He contradicted their teaching. He exposed their hypocrisy. Every time they tried to trap Him, He made them look silly and embarrassed them. Every time they tried to trip Him up through an action or a teaching, He had just the right words to say, just the right actions to display, that caused them to look foolish. Just the mere mention of Jesus name caused an extreme response of hate. They hated Him. They hated Him so bad they plotted to kill Him, and they carried out their plan. Thats hate. When you premeditate on the murder of an innocent person, plot it out, put that much thought and effort in to it, and then carry out your plan, that is hate. There is no way in the world that theyre going to say that this man is right. Theres no way in the world theyre going to say the Messiah did bleed. Hes not the Messiah. Hes not our Messiah. We reject Him. Dont make your decisions on emotion. What about Judas? We talked about this on Good Friday, but in case you werent here, why did Judas betray Christ when he did? Do you know why? Right before the Last Supper-near that time-there was a big party in Bethany. Mary was there, Martha was there, and Lazarus was there. Mary was so grateful that her brother had been raised from the dead, she took a jar of perfume that was worth a years wage, broke it, and poured it on His head and His feet. Judas was thinking about all the money that was lost, and he said, This could have been sold and given to the poor, and he embarrasses Mary. He yells at Mary. He lectures Mary for the waste of putting that perfume on Jesus. Jesus rebukes him in front of everybody and says, What she has done is good. The poor you will always have with Me…Me, you will not always have. She did this to prepare me for my burial, and from now on wherever the Gospel is preached, this story will be told. Judas was upset. He was embarrassed. He lost face. In his anger, he went to the chief priests, and he said, Im going to help you get your guy. Anger, in his anger, he rejected Jesus. So sometimes our responses are based on emotion. The soldiers response was based on emotion. There was elation. They had all this money! This was going to change their lives! They would be able to pay their debts. They would be able to buy things they wanted to buy-maybe that new chariot that they saw in the window. This is going to change them-maybe buy some new sandals. Boy, Im telling you. There are some slick-looking sandals now. Maybe [they would buy] a nice tunic. Im going to be living large. This changes everything. As they hold that wad of cash, they suppress the truth to hold on to those riches. Some people will reject Christ because they say, Oh, if I become a Christian, I cant do this. I cant do that. I cant say this. I cant go there because its going to change my lifestyle. They refuse to come to Jesus because emotionally they dont want to make that change. They think their life is fine the way it is. Coming to Christ would ruin their life, they say, because they want to keep that which is giving them pleasure. For others, the rejection is based on intellect. Its an intellectual response. They simply would say to you that, as the man said in the skit, Dead men dont rise from the dead. What this boils down to is who is Jesus? If Jesus is the divine Son of God, if He is God incarnate, then it is not a miracle that He would rise from the dead. The biggest miracle would be that He would die in the first place if He is divine, not that He would rise again. If He is just a man, if He is just a good teacher, then I would agree that resurrection is impossible; but if He is the divine Son of God- which He demonstrated through His teachings and through His miracles-the greatest miracle would be that death could hold Him. Jesus taught as no man ever taught. I will tell you here is the common ground: the enemies of Christ and the followers of Christ all agree on four things. Number one, Jesus died. He was crucified, number one. Number two, He died. Number three, He was buried. Number four, the tomb was empty. Remember the Creed that we recited at the beginning of the service with Jessie? Those four important aspects of Scripture and doctrine, they would agree with. They would salute and say, Yes, thats true. He died on the cross. He was buried, and the tomb is empty. The big question is why is it empty? Why was it empty? Did the enemies of Christ come and take Him? Thats the last thing they wanted to do. They would parade His corpse through the street if they could and say, Heres your risen Savior, but they could not. The Disciples are going to overcome the Roman guards? These same Disciples who scattered and hid for their lives are now going to overcome Centurions with swords and spears? No. Well, it was a hallucination. He didnt really rise from the dead. There was a hallucination. The Bible says He appeared to over 500 men at the same time. Paul writes, Most of whom are alive today. So 500 men plus the Disciples had the same hallucination over the same 40 day period. What happened that day? What caused that tomb to be empty? What changed those men? People will die for something that they believe is true but is not. Terrorists will die because they blow themselves up thinking theyre becoming a martyr and going to Heaven. Its a lie, but they believe its true. But will you willingly die for something you know is a lie? Would these men perpetrate this hoax and then go to their death knowing its a lie, knowing He didnt really rise from the dead? But they are going to [willingly] put their head on the chopping block? Peter is going to allow himself to be crucified upside down? James is going to allow himself to be run through with a sword-all for something they know for a fact is a lie? What changed these men from men who were cowering and hiding and afraid for their lives to men who would stand up and say to anyone who would listen, Beat us, imprison us, kill us-we cannot stop talking about what we have seen or heard. You have to decide-you have to weigh the evidence, and I encourage you to do that-why the reason was that the tomb was empty. The third reason is an external reason. Youve heard people say this many times, Well, you know, theres scandal in the church. There is corruption in the church. Were confronted in our newspapers almost every week about the scandal with the Roman Catholic Church. They hear about the priests going from parish to parish and all the children that were hurt. Ill tell you what-Protestants, Catholics or non-church people-we all agree that that is terrible! Those priests need to be brought to justice. That corruption needs to be weeded out of the church. They should not be assigned to other parishes but be convicted and sent to prison. We all agree with that, right? You know who feels really strongly about hurting kids? Jesus does. Do you know what He said in Matthew 18 about people who harm children, who cause children to stumble? He talks about a millstone. When you ground grain, there was a big stone and a smaller stone. Youd put the grain in there, and youd turn the smaller stone. Jesus uses the big stone, the big stone that takes a mule to pull. He says, Somebody who harms children… Now, Im not saying that you cant get forgiveness and restoration. You can. Were talking about a person who prays on children with no repentance and no remorse. He goes to another place and repeats it. He says, Somebody who has one of the millstones, tie it around their neck, and is thrown into the deepest part of the sea is having a better day than that guy will when I get a hold of him. Im paraphrasing, but thats what He says in Matthew. It would be better for that guy to have a millstone tied around his neck and be thrown in the depths of the sea than harm one of these little ones of Mine. So you think, Well, Im going to reject Jesus because of the actions of His church… Why would you reject Jesus when these people are doing things that He condemned? Theyre doing things that Jesus Himself finds an atrocity? It would be one thing if the followers were doing what Jesus said to do and saying what Jesus said to say. Then you could say, Well, if thats what it means to follow Jesus, Im going to reject Him. But when theyre doing the exact opposite of what Jesus says and does, theyre not truly followers of Christ, are they? So why would you reject Jesus because of what they had done? There is a lot of corruption in the church, a lot of hypocrisy and scandal, and what did Jesus do with it? He exposed it. He exposed it. He sought to rid the church of that. In no other walk of life do we apply that logic. Ive heard so many people say, Oh, the church is full of hypocrites. Religion is no good. I want nothing to do with Jesus or Christianity. Okay, so there are corrupt police officers. They take money to get you out of a ticket, so does that mean all law enforcement is corrupt, and we need to get away from law enforcement? There are judges who take bribes. Does that mean all judges are corrupt, and we need to abandon our legal system, get rid of due process, and have the Wild West out there? There are medical doctors who prescribe medications that are not legal to prescribe to junkies and drug addicts, so does that mean all doctors are bad and we need to get rid of the medical profession? Im not going to go to doctors anymore. I want nothing to do with medicine or doctors. We dont apply that logic anywhere else. Are there bad eggs in the church? You bet there are. Evangelists went off and stole this money or did that or whatever it is, what does that have to do with Jesus? Please, tell me. They say, Well, I just didnt want to be a part of that organized religion stuff, that man-made religion! I want no part of that! Neither did Jesus want a part of that. What do you think He was coming up against? What do you think this rebel was opposed to? Their man-made structure, their man-made rules. They were binding people down, holding people back, and oppressing the poor. That is what He was opposing. You have something in common with Jesus if thats how you feel! Why would you reject somebody who is in agreement with you on that very point? You see, weve talked about reasons why we reject Jesus, but lets talk about accepting Him. When you accept Him, it is personal. Youre not accepting an institution. Youre not accepting an organization. Youre not accepting a denomination. Youre not accepting a creed. You are accepting a person. Jesus says in Matthew 11, Come unto Me. He says, You come to Me. All ye who are weary and are heavy laden. My yoke is easy; My burden is light. You will find rest for your souls. He says, You come to Me. Matthew 23 is one of two laments that Jesus spoke of Jerusalem. He just got through reading the riot act to the Pharisees, just giving them the what for, telling them like it is, and then He turns to the city of Jerusalem and He says, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the Prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. What is that a picture of, that word picture? Intimacy. The hen gathering the chicks is intimacy-unconditional love. He says, How many times Ive longed to do this, how often. So repeatedly I have reached out, and repeatedly you have spurned My love. In Luke 19 at the triumphal entry, Jesus looks at Jerusalem-the Bible says He weeps. It is the strongest Greek word that Luke could come up with. It doesnt mean a tear rolling down His cheek. It says, He wept over Jerusalem. He says, I sent you Prophets. I sent you Godly men, and what do you do? You stoned them and you killed them. He says, Now youve rejected the time of your visitation, and He wept. Ive cried many times in my life. I have wept very few. When you weep, its just gut-wrenching heaves. I wept when my parents passed away. There have been times in my life when I have wept and been broken. Jesus wept over the condition of mankind, so its personal. Its personal. Were not asking you today to join a church or denomination. Were asking you to receive a person who loves you, who died for you, and its eternal. Jesus says, You will find rest for your souls. That part of you that survives death, youve been made it the image of God. Youve been made with divine purpose and design. He breathed into man the breath of life, and man became a living soul, and God is jealous for that soul. He wants that soul to belong to Him, so He invites you to come. He invites you to surrender your heart and life to Him. Make that decision today. I encourage you. Would you bow with me in prayer? Lord, some here today have fought You on the basis of emotion. Maybe somebody they dont like is a Christian, and because they dont like that person, they reject what that person stands for. They reject Christianity, but its not You theyre rejecting. Theyre rejecting on the basis of their feelings. I pray that You would help them, Lord, to respond to You for who You are-not because of what somebody else did, said, didnt do or didnt say. Lord, I pray that they would see that You are who You said You were, that You did what You said You did, that the tomb is empty, that Your resurrection has made eternal life and salvation possible. Father, help them as they grapple with the empty tomb, as they ask questions, as they seek truth. Help them to come to that realization that You are alive. Lord, for those who reject You because of the failings of man and those men who proclaim to represent You or claim to stand for the church, help them to know that You share those same feelings, that You too are against corruption and hypocrisy in the highest places to the lowest places, that You fought against that oppression. You fought against that sin. I pray Lord that they would not be a rebel, but they would bow their knee and surrender to the Lordship of Christ and receive You into their lives. Lord, as the chicks are received by that mother hen, Lord, might we allow You to put Your arms around us. Receive us unto Yourself. In Jesus name, we pray. Amen.