Let us pray. Heavenly Father, Lord, we bless your name this morning. We honor you once again in the name of your son, Jesus Christ, and thanking you for him and what he has done for us, who are sinners, to save us from our sins, save us from your judgment. And Lord, we are thankful for that testimony. And many are still not aware of these wonderful truths of salvation. And we just pray that you come and exalt yourself, exalt your son, exalt his work by the teaching that you've given me. And Lord, we thank you for all these whom we have gathered this morning. Lord, may you show them the things of Christ. We pray and thank you in his precious name. Amen. John 20 verses 1 to 10 John says, Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. Then she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him. Peter therefore went out, and the other disciple, and we are going to the tomb. So they both ran together, and the other disciple outran Peter and came to the tomb first. And he, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying there, yet he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb, and he saw the linen clothes lying there. and the handkerchief that had been around his head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself. Then the other disciples who came to the tomb first went in also, and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not know the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead. Then the disciples went away again to their own homes. And that's the word of the Lord. And for our title, we have two titles that are related. Number one title is, The stone had been rolled away. The stone had been rolled away. And then the second title is going to come from the testimony of Mary Magdalene according to Mark. We are going to go to Mark sometime as we go into our teaching. But Mary comes and says, who shall roll this thorn away for us? And that's our second title. Who shall roll this thorn away for us? So the Lord has been put on the cross and has died. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus have come and buried him just before the beginning of the first day of unleavened bread, which always began as a Sabbath. You had a Passover today. The next day was always the unleavened bread feast. And that day always began as a Sabbath. So the Lord has been buried on the Passover day and immediately that day is followed by a Sabbath. to signify that once the Passover lamb has been given over to death, then rest has to immediately follow. The Sabbath has to follow. For there's no way where the death of the Passover lamb happens and not be followed by freedom. Freedom from bondage, freedom from the law, In Egypt where the Passover was instituted, in the night of judgment, in the 10th plague, death had happened. And it was the death of the firstborn and now the firstborn son of God has showed up He has come to fulfill the Passover for it all pointed to Him according to John the Baptist. In John 1 he said, Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Look at Him, that's Him. In Egypt He had died in a picture. Jesus died in a picture. In all the sacrifices of the Old Testament, it was Christ who was being offered in a picture. So in Egypt, Christ Jesus had died in a picture, and he had set his people free also in a picture, but the substance was in him. That's Paul saying all the types and shadows were completed in Christ. The substance of them was to be found in Christ Jesus. So on the Passover day, Passover night, death and judgment happened. See the things that happened? Death and judgment happened. But there was also freedom and an escape. from death. Escape happened because of the death of the substitute and that means the death of another. Israel was set free from death and from the hand of Pharaoh because of the death, because of the blood of the Passover lamb that had been put on the lentils of the door. And on this Passover day, freedom has also happened to Barabbas. Don't forget that Jesus is dying on the Passover day. So as what happened in Egypt, where death happened and there was release, there was freedom. So on this Passover day, if Christ Jesus, the Passover lamb, is given over to death, then someone has to be set free. So freedom has happened to Barabbas. The freedom bell rang for Barabbas. Barabbas, remember, was in chains. Barabbas was in bondage to the law. Barabbas was facing death. But Barabbas found help in the time of need. Barabbas was not looking for salvation, but Barabbas was set free. Because that is what salvation by grace means. Barabbas not looking for salvation. Barabbas being set free when he wasn't looking to be set free. Barabbas not looking for Jesus. Jesus looking for Barabbas. God giving Barabbas a substitute in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ to say I have found someone who is going to die for you, someone who is going to give you the blood that I see. The throne of grace has arrived for Barabbas in the person of Jesus. Jesus has brought the blood that speaks better things than that of righteous able. Jesus brought a more righteous blood. The blood that God sees in the darkness of sin and judgment had arrived for Barabbas. And this blood was not delayed along the way. It came right on time for Barabbas. Because if Jesus had delayed another month, Barabbas would have been gone. So Barabbas had to be set free because that is what happens on Passover day. That testimony has to be understood. So God preached this testimony this way through the Jews. The Jews come and say, Not this man, when Pilate asked, who shall I set free for you? And they all unanimously said, not this man. Not this man called Jesus. Give us Barabbas. Not this Jesus crucified. This man called Jesus. We do not want this Jesus. But give us Barabbas. Set Barabbas free. Set Barabbas free because he is not fit to die for his own sins, let alone the sins of others. Suppose that's the issue. That's what God means by it. Set Barabbas free because we also are Barabbas. Give us Jesus, the Lamb of God, that takes away the sin of the world, that we may put him to death in the place of Barabbas. this lamb which Abraham said to Isaac, my son, God will provide himself a lamb or a lamb for himself. Either way, it's God who is coming and becoming that provision. So this lamb that is standing for Barabbas is God himself in the person of Christ. And when God shows up, to stand for you, then salvation has happened. You can come and try it with smart and qualify it with steps 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. No, you're just playing gimmicks. When God has shown up, what happens is salvation. You have to be set free, and so Barabbas was set free. So the Lord had been crucified and had been buried, but He had to rise again on the third day according to the sign of Jonah as He had many times talked about. Hear this in Matthew 12 verses 38-42. Matthew 12, 38-42 Matthew records and says, Then some of the scribes and pharisees answered, saying, Teacher, we want to see a sign from you. But he answered and said to them, An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and indeed a greater than Jonah is here. The Queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. The Lord was saying, if you are understanding your Old Testament scriptures, they were testifying of me. Jonah was a type of Christ, as he preached the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ in a type, as Solomon also in his glory and majesty was a type of the resurrected Christ in his glory and majesty. Solomon is known for his wisdom and riches. Solomon, the one who took over the throne from his father David. David, Christ before he died. Solomon, the exalted Christ. And that is why Solomon had more women than his father David, because that's the testament of the church. And that is why most of the women that Solomon had were concubines, sinners. So the Lord said the resurrection is the only sign that was to be given. And so we are going to explore why the resurrection was the sign and what it means in the context of salvation and why it is so important. You see, people do not want to understand what God is doing in salvation or is teaching in salvation because if they understand what's going on, they may just be left with nothing to do, with nothing to add to His perfect work in Christ. So God is laying a case for Christ alone, even in the resurrection. God is laying a case for the sufficiency of Christ and the fact that Christ actually accomplished all our salvation. But people are not interested in knowing the importance of the resurrection because it may upset their traditions. when they realize that it means salvation was actually completely done and God accepted the payment. And like little kids of our time and day, they do not want to get bored. So they will advance a works gospel, get busy on the PlayStation of works. Give me something to do. Okay, give me some we so that I can work on my own salvation on the we. Remember the Lord Jesus went on the cross as a condemned criminal and blasphemer. We have to understand what's going on in this setting, in this drama of salvation. All the pieces are connected. The Lord Jesus went on the cross as a condemned criminal, as a sinner. Not because He was one, but because of the imputation of our sins. Christ Jesus went on the cross guilty because of our sins. Our sins had been imputed to Him and that means Christ Jesus was now liable for our sins as if He Himself had committed them. And what that means is if Christ is made liable for our sins then you are not liable for them anymore. And that means on the cross Jesus was bearing the guilt of the transgressions that were caused by His people. So the issue here as we go on the cross is payment. Payment. Where there has been sin, there has to be a debt incurred against God. And debt needs to be paid. It needs to be settled. Christ Jesus is going on the cross to make payment. He is being accursed by God so that he may make payment for your sins and mine. God has given Christ in our place. Christ has given himself in our place as the payment, as the ransom payment for our freedom. His death, his agony, being the redemption prize that God had set for our freedom, for us to be set free from prison. Prison of death, sin, law, condemnation, because prison is a situation that you can't escape. You and I could never escape from what the law was demanding, could never escape by ourselves from sin, never escape from condemnation. So that's the present situation that we were in spiritually. So Christ Jesus has appeared that he may make the payment that is required for us to be set free. So we hear him say this in Luke 12. Luke 12, 57 to 59. Our interest is 58 and 59. The Lord said, speaking to the Jews, yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right? When you go with your adversary to the magistrate, make every effort along the way to settle with him, lest he drag you to the judge. The judge deliver you to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. When you go with your adversary, make every effort to make peace with them. See the pattern. The law says you have an adversary who takes you to the magistrate because you wronged them, you owe them, and now they have to take you to court. And that means to the law. and the judge will deliver you to the officer, and the officer will throw you into prison. Because when you have a court session, you always see a police officer there with his gun, at least two of them, depending on the nature of the trial. That is the process of the law. The law will deliver you to prison, and if necessary, to death. And then what will happen Lord, verse 59, I tell you. You shall not depart from there till you have paid the very last mite. The last penny. That's the mite. The Lord said, you shall not depart from prison till you have paid the last mite, the last cent, the last penny, until you have fully paid your debt. Why? Because that is what the Lord demands of a sinner. The Lord demands that if you break it, you have to pay everything that you owe. You can't pay just what you are able to pay like a lot of people are saying. Their best effort is salvation. It's not going to work according to the words of Jesus. But you have to pay to the last mite, the last penny. And that is very clear teaching of what the law is saying. When it comes to the law, 99% payment is not good enough. It still requires you to make good on the one penny. They will send you a letter that they paid 60 cents that they may collect a penny on you. They do that. They'll pay 60 cents in postage that they may collect on a penny. And that's not new if God's still giving testament of the gospel. So if you sin, you have to pay for everything that you owe. And this verse is not a peccatory text as Roman Catholics use it. It's one of their peccatory texts. Rather it is speaking to the principle of the law of God and what God means when he says, the soul that sins must die. Now you and I are the ones who have been sent to prison because of sin. We are condemned or we were condemned and had no ability to pay. And yet God the judge comes and says, you shall not come out until you pay the last penny. Now, the question is, do you know how much you owe God? Do you owe him 85 cents? Do you owe him 15 cents? Is it something that you can pay back? No, it is impossible to pay God what you owe. Therefore, you will not come out. You will never come out. You will never come out of hell because you shall not be able to meet the payment that God requires for your freedom by yourself. The Lord Jesus said, you shall not depart. He's going to see to it that you shall not depart until it is all paid, which will never happen. The Lord Jesus then came, in the context of that understanding, to enter into our place of judgment because He knew exactly how much needed to be paid. And He had the ability to make the payment. He alone. He came into the place of judgment, into our place of judgment, that He may assume all that we could not pay. We had not even started paying anything. We were not even thinking that we needed to pay anything. We were not even aware that we were in a prison situation and that we owed God that much. We were oblivious to that fact. So the issue of salvation then is, have you paid the last penny? And how do you know that you have paid the last penny? How do you know that you have paid the last penny? Because Jesus said you not come out. You are not going to come out. Also, the other question to ask is, who has paid the last penny for you? Who has paid the last penny for your release from death and condemnation given these words of the Lord in Matthew 16, 25 and 26? Hear what the Lord said in Matthew 16, 25 and 26. The Lord said, for whoever desires to serve his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. Whoever seeks to make the payment for themselves will lose their life. Whoever is going to look in the, what do you call it, where you put a lot of pennies, piggy bank. Get a few pennies from your piggy bank, thinking that you're going to make it good on what you owe God. Jesus says, no, it's not going to work. Why? Because it's too costly to pay. The ransom price of salvation is too high. The penny that God requires is a costly penny. It is a costly penny. It is a special, a precious penny, a penny that is only found in Christ Jesus. And Jesus says, one has to stop trying to pay for themselves that they may have life. You have to, for the sake of Christ, Stop trying to make a payment for yourself. That's what Jesus is saying. You have to quit all your attempts to make the payment for yourself. If you do that, you're going to lose your life. Verse 26, for what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? What then shall a sinner give in exchange for their soul? That's what Jesus is saying. What shall you give? If you try to work for your salvation, Jesus says you're gonna lose it. Okay, so what am I gonna do? Jesus says, so what are you gonna do? What are you gonna give in exchange for your life? And what's the assumption? In exchange for your soul, he's saying your soul does not belong to you. Your soul, your life has already been taken by something else. Your life, your soul has been taken by sin, death and condemnation and you need someone to come and make the payment on your behalf. And the law says the whole world is not enough to make payment for the last penny. The whole world, the value of the whole world is not enough to make payment for the last penny that God requires for salvation. For the last penny. But the Lord Jesus on the cross came and said, it is finished. And that was to say the payment, even the last penny of our salvation had been made and the prisoners had been set free. So the resurrection of Christ was to this very end. It was the testimony of the payment of the last penny. What did the Lord say in Luke 12 59? I tell you, you shall not depart from there till you have paid the very last mite. So the resurrection of Christ was God's declaration that Christ Jesus had met the payment and that the accounts of our sin had been cleared of any debt. We now own nothing. We have to be set free. We have to be set free as Barabbas. who was set to die, was set free on account of Jesus taking his place of death and being crucified. Barabbas had nothing to give. What could Barabbas give for his life? Zero. But God gave him someone to come and make the payment for Barabbas. Christ Jesus, Romans 4, 22-25. And therefore, it was accounted to him for righteousness and Paul is giving a teaching on the doctrine of justification and how Abraham was declared to be righteous before God. To say, Abraham was not made righteous because of anything that he did. No, Abraham was made righteous freely. God declared him to be righteous through faith, by just believing. And Paul was arguing that God was already teaching this doctrine right from Abraham. Abraham being such an important figure in the history of the Jews and even the nations, and God coming and saying, no, Abraham was not righteous in his person. Remember, he was worshipping idols when God called him. Abraham was not singing amazing grace when God came for him. He was offering animals to idols and worshipping idols. And so, he could only be righteous by grace, righteousness freely imputed to him. And so Paul says in verse 23, Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our offenses and was raised because of our justifications. Christ Jesus was delivered to death because of our offenses as our substitute and was raised, you see, now he's telling us of why the resurrection and was raised because of our justification. There's no justification before God. where the last penny has not yet been paid according to the words of Jesus earlier. The gospel that people are believing and preaching is not the gospel of Jesus Christ as much as it leaves the sinner with three more pennies to pay for their salvation. If we add steps 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 to salvation, what are we saying? We are saying that Christ Jesus did not make the last payment of the last penny of our salvation. That's exactly what we are saying. And yet we are told by Paul that Christ was raised because of our justification. Justification never happens where there's still some debt owed. Never happens. This is the true testament of the gospel. Romans 8 verses 1 to 4. There's therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. No condemnation for those who are in Christ Why Paul? For the law of the spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. You see the language of freedom being set free. The law of the spirit of life has set you free. That is the law of the gospel. That's the principle of the gospel. That is grace setting you free. That is the true reality of the believer. You are free, but people come and say, no, you are not free until you do the things that I approve of you as a Christian. Until you pay the last penny to me, then I'll say you're free in Christ. If you are set free, what does that imply? What does it say about where you used to be? It means you used to be in a captivity situation. You used to be in a hostage situation, a prison situation that you could not pay your way out. And you had no ability, no ability to set your suffering. The law of sin and death is the covenant of the law, the very moral law that people say they are doing, is what condemned sinners. Why? Because it came and asked you, as a sinner, to do what you could not do. Because you are the fallen in Adam, the law came and said, oh, Jeannie, you have to be so good. And Gina's like, okay, I'll try. The law came and said, do this and you shall live. If not, you are cursed. Because the man who does the law shall live by it. Give me my penny or else you are not coming out of jail. That's what the law says. Hear this to support my understanding. Verse 3 of Romans 8, For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. You see, for God has done what the law, and verse 3 follows after verse 2, therefore the law of sin and death is the law. I've heard a lot of people trying to do gymnastics to say the law of sin and death here is not speaking to the law. It's something else. And I say no, because Paul continues his thought immediately and tells us what the law that he's talking about is. For God has done what the law, not the ceremonial law, but the whole law as a covenant and system of salvation. Why? Because the law is indivisible. It is a unit. You can't break the law into different parts. It comes as a unit. Weakened by the flesh could not do. God has done what the law could not do for you. God has done. It's done. God has done. It's an accomplished fact. God has done for you what the law could not do for you. The law by The sinful flesh could never produce salvation for you because of your weakness. And when is the last time that you had a preacher, especially reformed preachers, and believers say the law could not save and that they can't do the law. They're always lying and saying they're doing the law. I know they're lying. I know they're lying. The law could never serve or help a sinner because of the weakness of the flesh. And that means sin. And that means as long as you and I are still in the flesh, as long as you and I are not glorified, you can't talk about your own law keeping. You can try to do, but you can't say you're keeping. But people come and lie about how they're keeping the law, and yet we know we need it to be delivered from it for the purpose that we may be married to another, married to Christ, that we may bear fruit unto God. Because according to Paul in Romans 7, the law could only bear fruit unto death. And so the gospel is a superior ministry, is a better ministry. The Holy Spirit is a better way of serving God than trying to go the Moses way. So what was God's solution in Romans 8 verse 3? By sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin he condemned sin in the flesh. Christ Jesus was sent of God to make the propitiation for our sins. Christ condemned the sin that we may be justified. Christ condemned sin by His death on the cross. He condemned sin to die. The death of Christ was the condemnation of sin itself, but it also was our justification. To be justified means to be set free from the demands of the law by way of fulfillment. To be justified is to be pronounced as righteous. When someone is righteous, it means they have fulfilled everything that the law has demanded of them. And every believer of Christ is a justified person. God declares them or has declared them as righteous. The law has no more demands on them because God looks at the record of Christ. And that record is what He gives you by grace and says, it's yours. So at any point in time, God is not looking at your own performance for justification. He's looking to the record of another, the Lord Jesus Christ. And thank God, the record of Jesus was perfect. And so before the law, we are perfect. Therefore we are justified. But to what end? Verse 4 of Romans 8, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the spirit. Christ died on the cross that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, not in himself, for he was not a sinner. He was doing it for you. Death was the righteous requirement of the law for us in the context of what Paul is saying. By His death, Christ Jesus made the full payment and there is nothing for you to add to that to make it complete. It is completely settled in the courts of heaven. Our salvation is a completely settled matter in the courts of heaven. and that takes us to after the cross so that was introduction okay and that takes us to after the cross to the testament of christ after the cross that we may glean some more understanding of the gospel so god john 20 verses 1 and will be skipping and expounding through the verses. John 20 verse 1-10 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. Mark records and says this in Mark 16 verses 1-4 Mark says, now when the Sabbath was passed, Mary Magdalene married the mother of James, and Salome bought spices that they might come and anoint him. Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. So Mary Magdalene did not go alone, but was in the company of other women. They came together with their spies to anoint the Lord on the first day of the week, which was Sunday, a day after the Saturday Sabbath. And what did they see? They were shocked to see that the stone that had been put on the tomb of the Lord had been taken away. It had been removed. And so what did Mary Magdalene do? Verse 2, Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciples whom Jesus loved, and said to them, They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him. So she ran to Simon Peter and John the Apostle, the disciple whom Jesus loved, and said, things are not looking good. What happened, Mary? They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him. Peter therefore went out, verse 3, and the other disciples, and were going to the tomb. So they both ran together and the other disciple outran Peter and came to the tomb first. John had some fast legs and he outran Peter thinking Peter may have been some chubby cherub too. So the anxiety was running high. This was not looking good. The Lord's body had been stolen, so they thought. stooping down and looking in, saw the linen cloth lying there, yet he did not go in. John gives us an eyewitness account and says he was there. He looked and saw the empty tomb. He saw the linen cloth that Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea had used to wrap the Lord for his burial. But John did not go into the tomb himself. So this was a tomb that was such that one could actually go in and out. But John continues and says verse 6 to 8 of John 20 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb, and he saw the linen clothes lying there. and the handkerchief that had been around his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but folded together in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also, and he saw and believed. So Peter was the first one to enter the tomb, then followed by John. And they both saw the linen clothes lying there with no one in them. and the handkerchief that was around the Lord's head was there too, but folded in a place by itself. John then followed after Peter. He went in and saw the same thing, another eyewitness account, conclusion that the Lord was not there. So what now John 9 and 10? For as yet they did not know the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead. Then the disciples went away again to their own homes. John says they did not know the scripture that the Lord should rise, must rise again from the dead. They did not understand what the Lord had repeatedly taught them before. The Lord had taught them and said in Luke 9 verses 43 to 45, and this was after the Lord had healed a boy who had an unclean spirit. Luke 9 verses 43 to 45. Luke says, And all were astonished at the majesty of God. But while they were all marveling at everything He was doing, Jesus said to His disciples, Let these words sink into your ears, The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men, but they did not understand this saying, and it was concealed from them so that they might not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask Him about this saying. So their disciples heard the Lord say this over and over, but they did not understand what He was saying. It was concealed from them. who concealed it from them. It is God. So that they might not perceive it. That is why Peter kept thinking that he was going to prevent the death of Jesus. They were not ready for a Messiah that dies. And surely not one who resurrects. So they were not ready for what they saw when they came to the empty tomb. They were not ready for that either. But hear what Matthew says in Matthew 27, 59 to 66. Matthew 27, 59 to 66. Hear what the Pharisees and the chief priests had done just after the burial of the Lord. Matthew 6 When Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and laid it in his new tomb, which he had hewn out of the rock. And he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb and departed. And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary sitting opposite the tomb. On the next day, which followed the day of preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees gathered together to Pilate. You see, Pilate had an open-door policy. He had Joseph of Arimathea come and ask for permission to get the body of Jesus. And he said, OK, that's fine. You take him. And the enemies of Christ come back to Pilate. They also are seeking permission. And he says, OK, that's fine. He's a politician. Pilate would do well in the White House. saying, Sir, we remember while he was still alive, how that deceiver said, after three days I will rise. They called the Lord a deceiver. And that is to say a sinner. So what was their solution to make sure they would prove Jesus indeed was a sinner who should not rise from the dead. If Jesus is a sinner in his person, then Jesus does not rise from the dead. If Jesus does not make the payment, Jesus does not rise from the dead. Verse 64, therefore, command that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night and steal him away and say to the people, he has risen from the dead, so the last deception will be worse than the first. The Pharisees and the chief priests wanted the tomb of the Lord to be secured so that no one would come and steal the body of Jesus and then claim that he had risen. They thought the resurrection of Christ was impossible, that Jesus was just a dreamer and a fabled storyteller. And so God sovereignly drove them to secure the tomb that he may prove the veracity of the resurrection of Christ. He said, OK, I'm going to have you actually guide it yourself. I'm gonna send you to Pilate and get all the permission and everything that you need to seal the tomb. Verse 65 and 66 of Matthew 27. Pilate said to them, you have a God, go your way, make it as secure as you know how. So they went and made the tomb secure, sealing the stone and setting the God. They had some caulking. Went to Home Depot, got some caulk. I'm telling you, I like it. Just getting some pictures. Some dude with a caulking gun around the tomb of Christ, just making sure that it won't escape through the sides. So the chief priest and Pharisees went and secured the tomb and sealed the stone. and set some guards to make sure that Jesus would not come out. And no one would come and steal his body. And that unfortunately is the Jesus that is being preached in the majority of the church world. A Jesus who can be stolen. A Jesus who can be invited and be made Lord and Savior is a Jesus who can be stolen. A Jesus who can be stolen is a useless Jesus. Ma'am or brother, what are you crying for? Because they stole my Lord. They stole my Jesus. They stole my Savior. If your Savior is stolen, who's going to save you? It is like Laban and his idols. Remember Laban, the father-in-law of Jacob, the father of Leah and Rachel. Genesis 31. Laban's Jesus was also stolen by his daughters. Genesis 31. Moses says, now I understand that you have gone away because you longed desperately for your father's house. This is Laban speaking to Jacob. Jacob has made a disappearance act and has taken his livestock and his family and is on his way out of Laban's place. Yet Laban had a single issue. Why did you steal my gods? Why did you steal my gods? I left secretly because I was afraid, Jacob replied to Laban. I thought you might take your daughters away from me by force. Whoever has taken your gods will be put to death. in the presence of our relatives, identify whatever is yours and take it. Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them. So Laban entered Jacob's tent and Leah's tent and the tent of the two female servants, but he did not find the idols. Then he left Leah's tent and entered Rachel's. Now Rachel had taken the idols, and put them inside a camel saddle and sat on them. Laban searched the whole tent but did not find them. Rachel said to her father, Don't be angry, my lord. I cannot stand up in your presence because I am under the manner of women. So he searched thoroughly but did not find the idols. The Jesus that can be stolen is a Jesus that can be set on and cannot be found. A gospel that loses anyone that Jesus died to save was accomplished by a Jesus who can be stolen. A sippy cup carrying Jesus is a Jesus whose body ends up getting stolen and getting lost. You can't have a vulnerable Jesus like that. But hear this from Matthew 28, this is wonderful. Matthew 28, this is wonderful. Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as stone. And for fear of him, the gods trembled and became like dead men. When Mary Magdalene and company came to the tomb they found the gods still there. The gods were still there. And guess what? Jesus was not there. They still had their quarking guns and Jesus was not there. Jesus had gotten out of the tomb when it was sealed right in the presence of the gods and they did not see him. And that is to say, Jesus could not be kept in the grave by anything or by anyone. It was impossible for God's Holy One to see corruption. But what was happening here in the context of the gospel? What is happening is God's testimony of the work of Christ. And we need to explore the law to understand what is going on. When the Lord was buried by Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea, we were told that Joseph rode a great stone across the entrance of the tomb and went away. And that is the testament of the law. The law is it that condemned Christ, saying, Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree. So when one is buried, the stone is what is rowed on their grave to say they have died under the condemnation of the law. You have to understand this because it's beautiful. They've died because of the stone. They've died because of the tablets of stone containing the letter that kills. The ministry of the law was written on the tablets of stone as the ministry of death. It was not the ministry of life. It was the ministry of condemnation. Christ Jesus has died under the ministry of death and condemnation. So the stone that was rolled over his tomb was the testimony of the law against Christ. 2 Corinthians 3 6-11 Paul says, for the letter kills but the spirit gives life. That's the contrast. Now if the ministry of death carved in letters on stone, written in letters on stone, came with such glory, such that the Israelites could not gaze at Moses' face because of his glory. If you go to Exodus, it's talking about the giving of the law, the ten. That's what Paul is talking about here. For people who try to play gymnastics with the law, Paul here is talking about the ten as the ministry of death. And we know when he came back, Moses' face was shining because he had been in the presence of God. So Paul says the face of Moses was shining because the law had glory. But it was glory which was being brought to an end. It was coming to an end. It's clear. It's clear. It's clear. Reformed people and all these people. It was coming to an end. 8. Will not the ministry of the Spirit have even more glory? For if there was glory in the ministry of condemnation, the ministry of righteousness must far exceed it in glory. The ministry of the gospel exceeds the ministry of the law. That's clear teaching. Indeed, in this case, what once had glory has come to have no glory at all because of the glory that surpasses it. The law, when it's compared to Christ, has no glory. Christ is just more glorious. He is! For if what was being brought to an end came with glory, much more will what is permanent have glory. It's clear teaching. I don't know why people stumble over this. So the stone that was roared onto the grave of Christ was the law that was making a judgment of Christ. And if Christ still had any sin or any debt that He did not pay for, Then the instruction was to seal the tomb, to secure it, and to put guards, even soldiers, so that he would not escape until he had made the last penny, made the final payment of the mite. That is the power of the law on everyone who has died under it. To say you shall not come out until you have made full payment. The law seals and makes sure it keeps you sealed in your condemnation until you pay everything that you owe. That is what is happening here. The law is going to seal your condemnation until you pay. See that the request to seal the tomb came from the Pharisees and the chief priests who are the mediators of the law. It did not come from Pilate. It is the law that is still after Christ Jesus. Even in his death they still wanted him to remain dead. Let us work this testimony from the testimony of Mary Magdalene when she came to the tomb where the Lord had been buried. Mark 16. It's called Mark 16 verses 1-4. Mark recording says, now when the Sabbath was passed, shall I rebuke it? The devil is a liar. Now when the Sabbath was passed, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome bought spices that they might come and anoint him. Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. And they said among themselves, so this is a conversation that they were having as they were headed towards the tomb. Who shall roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us? And I'm thinking, Holy Spirit, these women said a lot of things. Why is this their question? who shall roll away the stone, who shall roll away the law for us? That is not an ordinary question at all. That is a gospel question that every person, every sinner has to ask themselves, to say, who shall roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for me? For me, who shall roll it away? Who shall roll away the condemnation for me? Who shall answer that for you? You ask people. and say, who is going to roll the stone out for you that you may live? And they're going to say, what stone? What do you mean? I'm confused. They think saying I'm confused somehow is righteousness. Oh, I'm confused. If they get confused by the question, rephrase it and say, are you doing the law? If they say yes, and by their own obedience, know that they still have not found someone to roll the stone away from their own tomb. And that is to say that they are still dead. 2 Corinthians 3, 12-16 Paul continues his testimony and says, Therefore, having such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech, and are not like Moses who used to put a veil over his face so that the sons of Israel would not look intently at the end of what was fading away. But their minds were hardened. For until this very day, every reading of the Old Covenant, every reading of the law, every time we tell people, you are not under the law, the same veil remains unlifted because it is removed in Christ. But to this day, to this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart. But whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. That's the contrast between the believer of the gospel and one who is still not born again. What did Paul say of those who claim to keep the law? Paul said the veil remains unlifted. The veil lies over their heart to say the stone is yet to be rolled away. It is yet to be removed from them by Christ because it is Christ alone who removes the stone of the law to a sinner and gives them the testimony that it has been rolled away from them. The stone has been rolled away. So anyone who still goes back to Moses is saying they are yet to find someone to roll the stone away from them. They are still unbelievers of the gospel. Lord have mercy. The text continues and says Mark 16 Mark 16 Mark 16 verse 4 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away, for it was very large. The stone was large and they could not roll it away to say the law is the stone and its weight is so heavy that you have to acknowledge your inability to roll it away by yourself. If you're looking at the stone of the law correctly, you have to see your inability to do the law. That's what is being said. You should see that the law is a very big stone that you can't move and yet hear what people are saying today. They are saying they are moving the stone by themselves. Liar, liar, liar, liar. What is this great weight of the stone? Galatians 3.10. What is this great weight of the stone? Paul says, for as many as are of the works of the law are under acres. Well, it is written. Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things. Cursed is everyone, not some people, everyone who does not continue. You have to continue doing all things written in the book of the law to perform them, to say the law is a unit. You can't divide it into parts that are convenient for you to do. You take one thing of the law, you have to take the whole thing. And so the law curses everyone that does not continue to do it perfectly. And if people would understand this, they will see indeed that this is a very great stone, that they can't move it. You can't move this great stone. And that means also that salvation is impossible by the efforts of man. It can't be done. The stone has to be rolled away from the top, from heaven. It can't be rolled away from us. It is unreachable by the hands of man. Salvation is unreachable by the hands of man. We therefore need someone to roll it away for us. And of Lazarus, in John 11 we know this stone had also been rolled over his tomb. And there was no way that Lazarus was going to be able to roll it away for himself as long as he continued lying in that tomb. Why? Because he was dead. He was powerless. And dead men and women do not roll away their own stones so as to come out of their spiritual graves of sin, death, and condemnation. There's no sinner who can roll away their own tombstone. The law is the large stone that seals the fate of all sinners. The stone of the law can only be rolled away by one who is alive. not the dead. All sinners are born dead and condemned and unable to roll their own stones from their own tombs. If the sisters of Lazarus, Mary and Martha had rolled away the stone for him without Jesus, he would have remained stinking dead and they would have put it back within five minutes or so. they would have put the stone back because the stone cannot be removed by anyone who does not have life in himself. So the stone of death is only rolled away by life. And guess who showed up for Lazarus to come out? It was the stone roller. The Lord Jesus Christ, the resurrection and the life who showed up and said, Lazarus, if it's boring, do you want to come out now? Come out, we're having a party for you. We have some cheesecakes. Come, Lazarus. Come, come, come. We're having a party. Do you think it's a good idea to come? Jesus did not ask for Lazarus' permission to come out. He just came and said, Lazarus, come forth. And that was the command. That's the command of creation. Let there be light. And there was light. Lazarus, come forth. Let there be life in Lazarus. And Lazarus came out. The stone roller head showed up. So it took only he who was alive, the Lord Jesus, to command for the stone to be rolled away from Lazarus. To say Christ Jesus had power over law and death. Sin is what kept Lazarus dead. The law is what kept Lazarus dead. Until the resurrection, until the life, the Lord Jesus showed up, the stone remained on Lazarus and would have remained on Lazarus forever and evermore. So what happened with the Lord Jesus? What happened with the Lord Jesus in the context of all that? Who removed the stone for Him? No one. Not the angels. not the gods. The angels rode the stone away from Mary Magdalene so that they could see that the tomb was empty but not to let Jesus out. The stone had no more power over Christ. God had raised Jesus. The Lord had raised himself. And the Holy Spirit had raised Christ from the dead. So the resurrection of Christ was the work of the triune God. The New Testament scriptures teach us clearly that God the Father raised Christ from the dead. And Jesus said, I will raise myself. And the scriptures say the Holy Spirit raised Christ from the dead. So Christ Jesus resurrected. and went through the storm and the storm could not hold him back. And that was the Lord saying to sin, death and condemnation, you have no power over me. You have no power over me. What else was this saying about the storm being rolled away? Joshua 5, 8 and 9. Joshua 5, 8 and 9. Now when they had finished circumcising all the nation, they remained in their places in the camp until they were healed. Then the Lord said to Joshua, Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you. So the name of that place is called Gilgal to this day. God had instructed Joshua to circumcise the children of Israel who had been born in the wilderness for they had not been circumcised. So who circumcised them? It was Joshua. Joshua himself is he who circumcised every one of them. It was Christ Jesus himself, Joshua, who circumcised the church by the circumcision of his spirit, not the circumcision made by hands. Joshua, before the children of Israel could go into the promised land, had to pass through the bloodied hands of Joshua. And so there's no one who goes into the new covenant without passing through the blooded hands of Christ Jesus. Because on the cross, those hands dripping in blood was the blood of our circumcision by Christ. And what did God come and say to Joshua after he was done with the work of circumcision? God said, today, today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you. Today, this day that you have accomplished this work is the day that I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you. And what was the reproach of Egypt? The reproach of Egypt was bondage. slavery to Pharaoh, the shame, the decrees of Pharaoh that were impossible to make bricks without the straw, the hard labor. God comes and says, I have rolled away all that from you because of the circumcision of Joshua. circumcision that has happened on the hill of Forskins. This was at the hill of the Forskins. This is where Joshua did the circumcision. As Christ accomplished our circumcision by his own hands on the hill of Forskins Mount Calvary. And Christ Jesus shows up and what happens when Christ shows up After the circumcision, what does God bring as testimony? the stone had been rolled away. To say the reproach that was on his people had been rolled away, the stone, the law that was keeping his people in the grave rolled away. Death that was oppressing his people, even with fear, rolled away. Condemnation rolled away. If there's no one to be found, in the empty tomb of Christ, the tomb that was sealed, then it means all reproach was rolled away. No condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. The empty tomb is speaking to the victory of Christ over death. And you and I went with Him into that grave. in union with him into his death. Remember, the grave belonged to Joseph of Arimathea, who was a sinner, elect of Christ. Christ went into the grave on behalf of his people. He did not need a grave. He went into the grave of one of his elect. on behalf of his people, on behalf of Joseph of Arimathea, and conquered death for him. And he came out alive. As David went into the cave of Adullam with all his people, and he came out with them in the grave with the king. So we were buried in the grave of Christ with the king. And when the king came out, we also came out with him. So the stone that was rolled away speaks of the full satisfaction of sin. It was saying every last penny had been paid. Remember the text again from Luke 12. From Luke 12 59, Jesus said, I tell you, you shall not depart from there. You shall not depart from the tomb till you have paid the very last mite. You shall not depart from condemnation till you have paid the last mite." The Lord said, no one who has been put in prison shall depart from there until they've done their full time. So at the last time it is finished is speaking to that testimony that is God's stamp on one who has been set free because they've done their time. They've done their complete time. They owe the law nothing. The law has no more claim on their freedom. That's what it's finished means. That's what Tetelestai means. Remember the Lord Jesus had been taken into prison and judgment also. And so he could not escape until the last mite of our sin had been paid, Isaiah 53 verse 8. Isaiah 53 verse 8. Isaiah says, He was taken from prison and from judgment. And who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living for the transgressions of My people. He was stricken. So the empty tomb and the stone that was rolled away were saying He had completely paid it all. He had completely paid it all. It's finished. And there are theological implications that come out of this. And the implication is that one, knowing all this, cannot condition salvation. on anything else than what Christ accomplished. You can't say there's still one, two, three, four things to do to be served when God has given the testimony that Christ did it all. We have to reformulate the way that we communicate the truth of Christ. The preaching of the gospel is a discovering of those for whom Christ paid their sins for. We are not serving anyone. We are just calling to Christ or Christ is calling to himself those that he died for. So to place conditions on the sinner is to fail to understand the work of Christ. It is to say, it is to imply that Jesus somehow cheated his way out of the grave. He bribed the gods. without having made full payment for our salvation. Like, okay, you guys, I'm gonna catch some tilapia for you, okay? I'm gonna get some tilapia for you, and I'm gonna make you... Remember, Jesus got some, they caught some fish, and they had money in the fish, in the mouth of the fish, right? To pay tax. And Jesus could have done that. Just come out of the grave, bribe the gods, and say, oh, come on, guys, open this thing, I'll pay you good. No, that's not the Jesus of the Bible. So the gospel understanding then is, the gospel is a declaration. is a heralding of the good news and of the fact that the stone that was on us, the stone of the law, sin, death, condemnation, rode away completely. Because Christ made full payment, even to the last penny. He made satisfaction. The resurrection of Christ Jesus was also saying this. Remember Jesus according to Galatians 4 verses 3, 4, 5. Christ was born of a woman born under the law. Christ was born under the weight of the stone. So his resurrection was testimony that he was not under the law anymore. He had fulfilled every jot and tittle of the law and thus his coming out of the grave without anyone removing the stone for him, was confirmation that the covenant of the law had been removed, had no more power over him. It had been abrogated and replaced by a better covenant, the covenant of grace, the New Testament, in his own blood. And this transition God also preached immediately as the children of Israel were entering the promised land after the circumcision by Joshua at Gilgal. Joshua 5. Go back to Joshua 5 verses 10 to 12. We're almost done. This was immediately after the circumcision by Joshua. Joshua says, While the sons of Israel camped at Gilgal, they observed the Passover on the evening of the fourteenth day of the month on the desert plains of Jericho. At Gilgal they observed the Passover which means they observed the death of Christ. Verse 11 On the day after the Passover, the next day. On that very day they ate some of the produce of the land, and leavened cakes and parched grain. The manna ceased on the day after they had eaten some of the produce of the land, so that the sons of Israel no longer had manna, but they ate some of the yield of the land of Canaan during that year. On the very next day after the Passover, which would have been the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the children of Israel began to eat food that they had not worked for. They did not bring this food. This was produce of the land that they were entering. A type of the New Covenant where we eat the produce of the land which is what Christ produced by his blood, the unleavened cake. See that it's unleavened cake. It's talking about the body of Christ. It's talking about the provision of Christ. See also that on the very next day after the Passover had been eaten, after Christ had died, manna seized. Manna was the daily provision of the law. And once Christ has come and died and has established the new covenant in his blood, then the law has to cease. The law has to come to an end. It has to end. People, Christ Jesus, the end of the law for righteousness, the end. of the law for life to everyone who believes. That's Romans 10. But many people are still mourning for Moses. Many people are still getting up early in the morning, getting up every morning with their minor buckets, going around looking to pick up some minor outside, claiming to do the law. to collect manna when God has said no more manna all your provision now is in Christ Jesus Christ is enough for you there's enough produce in the land that you have entered that's clear teaching now we have the last testimony from today about what the resurrection of Christ means in our salvation. The resurrection of Christ is a testimony of the priesthood of Christ and the completion of His work. The priesthood of Christ and the completion of His work. John 20 verse 5 John 20 verse 5 to 7, And he, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen cloths lying there, yet he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came following him, and went into the tomb, and he saw the linen cloths lying there, and the handkerchief that had been around his head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself. But Simon Peter and John the Apostle saw the linen cloths and the handkerchief. To say what? Numbers 19 verses 1 to 10. Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron saying, This is the ordinance of the law, which the Lord has commanded, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring you a red heifer without blemish, in which there is no defect, and on which a yoke has never come. The red heifer, a young female cow that has not borne a calf. See the qualifications of the red heifer. Never had a calf. Without blemish. No defect. and on which no yoke has never come." Never been yoked with sin. And that is to say Christ Jesus is He who was in the picture of the red heifer. But why was it red before we continue with Numbers 19. I may just want to read Isaiah 1.18. You can go there or may not. Just one verse. Why was the heifer red? God says, Isaiah 1.18, come now and let us reason together, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow, though they are red like crimson, they shall be as woe. This red heifer, though blameless, no defect on it was red. a type of sin. Christ Jesus, both righteous and guilty, righteous in himself, but sinful by the imputation of our guilt. The red heifer never yoked, no defect, no blemish, and yet it was red. Oh, God is amazing. But going back to Numbers 19, God continues and says, You shall give it to Eliezer the priest, that is the red heifer, that he may take it outside the camp and it shall be slaughtered before him. You see, what you do with the red heifer, it's not for meat. You are supposed to slaughter it. Christ Jesus crucified outside the camp, outside the city of Jerusalem as the Red Heifer. Verses 4 and 5, And Eliazat the priest shall take some of his blood with his finger and sprinkle some of his blood seven times directly in front of the tabernacle of meeting. We see the high priest doing that also on the day of atonement. Then the heifer shall be burned in his sight, its hide, its flesh, its blood, and its offal shall be burned. The red heifer completely consumed as a sacrifice, nothing left over, just as we see in the Passover lamb, that it was to all be eaten, and whatever was left over was to be burned. Nothing could be left over. 6.6 And the priest shall take cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet, and cast them into the mist of the fire burning the heifer. The priest was to take the cedar wood, hyssop, and scarlet, that is our sins, and cast them into the mist of the fire that was burning the heifer. our sins being consumed in the sacrifice of Christ. And now this is what had to happen after the work had been done, after the offering of the Red Heifer had been accomplished. You have to follow those arguments. There was work to be done with the slaughtering and the burning of the red heifer. But what happened afterwards? Verses 7-10 Then the priest shall wash his clothes, he shall bathe in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp. The priest shall be unclean until evening. And the one who burns it shall wash his clothes in water, bathe in water, and shall be unclean until evening. Then a man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and store them outside the camp in a clean place, and they shall be kept for the congregation of the children of Israel for the water of purification. It is for purifying from sin. and the one who gathers the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes and be clean until evening. It shall be a statute forever to the children of Israel and to the stranger who dwells among them. The high priest Eliezer was a type of Christ. He had to wash his clothes after the work of sacrifice. The one who had banned the sacrifice had to wash his own clothes The man who gathered up the ashes had washed his clothes. And these ashes, we are told, were for the water of purification, for purifying from sin. The ashes. The clean man who gathered the ashes, I believe, was a type of the Holy Spirit who makes the water of purification. It is He who applies the bad ashes of the finished work of Christ for the purification of sin to God's people because they were to be kept and then be used, be applied for the forgiveness of sins of the people. And who does that? It has to be the clean man. It has to be the Holy Spirit. So what is happening? When the work of Christ had been done, the red heifer completely consumed in the fire to make the ashes for the purification of sin, the high priest and everyone involved had to wash their clothes and that means they had to change their clothes. They had to change their clothes. For he could not wash them. and remain naked and wait for them to dry for two hours or three hours. They did not have dryers. They were not living in 21st century America. They did not have a Samsung dryer. So the high priest had to change his clothes. And so the Lord Jesus, the high priest of our salvation, the one who offered himself, died as the red heifer had to leave his clothes in the tomb to say he had changed his clothes. He, too, as the high priest of our salvation, had changed his clothes. The red heifer had been completely consumed. The work of salvation had been completed. So the ashes of purification were now available for the purification of sin. Once you see a change of clause, it means the work has been done. Once the priest changes clause, it means the work of sacrifice has been done, the ashes speaking to the complete satisfaction of sin. As I've taught before, that ashes cannot burn. It doesn't matter how much gasoline you put, ashes are not going to burn. Why? Because the wrath of God was completely consumed in the sacrifice that is Christ Jesus. So our gospel, to be true, has to have the Jesus who accomplished salvation. It has to have a Jesus who did not carry his grave clothes with him. A Jesus who changed his clothes. And that to say the guilt of our sin removed and left behind. But the gospel that people are believing does not have a Jesus who was burnt to ashes, does not have a sacrifice that was completely consumed. It does not have a Jesus who changed his clothes because changing clothes was also to say. Christ Jesus went on the cross in the legal state of condemnation. He was wearing different kinds of clothes. condemned because of us. Now he has left those garments behind. He is now justified. Justified that he was not a sinner. Justified that he justified us. Christ Jesus was justified that he justified us by his complete satisfaction of God's justice and wrath. Okay. So what did Mary Magdalene say? Okay. We're almost done here. What did Mary Magdalene say? Mark 16, going back to Mark 16, 3 and 4. Woe shall roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us. Stone from the door of the tomb for us. And Paul asks the same question in Romans 7, 24 and 25 and says, O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from this body of death? And Paul gives an answer and says, I thank God through Jesus Christ alone. O wretched woman that I am, who shall roll away the stone from the door of the tomb, for me that I may see Jesus? See that it's who, not what. Woo because you need a woo person to roll away the stone for you that you may live, that you may see Christ Jesus. If people would understand the gospel, they would rejoice only in Christ Jesus, the stone roller, the stone remover, the one who alone fulfilled the law and overcame death. What did Paul say in Romans 7, 25? I thank God for Jesus Christ. I thank God for the stone roller. My friends, the stone from the tomb shall only be rolled away when the payment has been made to the last mite, to the last penny, to the last cent. Otherwise, you are not coming out to life. You are not coming out of condemnation. Christ Jesus by his death made the payment. Christ Jesus rode away the stone therefore there's now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Christ Jesus overcame the stone, Christ Jesus overcame death. And in 1 Corinthians 15, 54 to 57, Paul says, death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your sting? O hate, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ Jesus, the victory over sin, death, and law. Sister Mary Magdalene says, But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away, for it was very large. When they looked up, they saw the stone had been rolled away, for it was a very large stone. And my friends, the stone of the law is a very large stone. You can't do it, you can't roll it, for it brings reproach. But when we look up to Christ, when they looked up, it's only when they looked up that they saw that this very large stone had been rolled away. If we look to ourselves, we shall see that it is a very large stone and immovable. But Barabbas was set free because he had found one who was able to remove the stone that had condemned him to die. And that is the gospel according to Mary Magdalene. And we thank God for Jesus Christ, our stone roller, because that stone is indeed a great stone. And no man or woman in their right mind should not dare try to roll it by themselves. It can be done. Christ alone did it. So we praise God. That's our gospel. Amen. We are done. Unless if you want me to continue. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, Lord, we thank you again for this gospel testimony according to Mary Magdalene and the testimony of the law, the testimony of the great stone. And we pray, Lord, that you would get your people to understand how big the weight of the stone is that we have to remove for us to live. And Lord, we thank you for Christ Jesus who rode the stone away from us. no condemnation for us who are in Christ. Christ Jesus overcame death by His resurrection. Christ Jesus fulfilling the law by His life and death. Christ Jesus, sinless. Thank you for the Christ who overcame Thank you for the true testimony that Christ was resurrected by God. He did not get help from anyone. Even the gods tried to get in the way of his resurrection, the Pharisees even, and the scribes standing for the law. And yet the Lord had to come through because he had paid for our sins right to the last mite, right to the last penny. And let that be the joy of your people that everything that was required of them was paid by Christ Jesus. And our testimony is now, is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. We thank you Lord for this testimony and we pray in Jesus name. Amen.