Good morning to everyone. I'm glad that we can be together around the word of the Lord. Let us read from Mark. I'm busy with Mark, but I've just jumped a few chapters to be also in the time that we are in that we can linger about the resurrection. So it's Mark chapter Mark chapter 16, verse 1. When the Sabbath was passed, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome, brought spices so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. And they were saying to one another, who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb? And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back. It was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side with a white robe. And they were alarmed. And he said to them, Do not be alarmed. You see Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen. He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them. And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. This is the word of God. May His word be blessed by our hearts. There are many immovable things in this life. If the power is going out and you're not lucky with the generator, you can do nothing. You can light a light, a candle or a lamp, but it's as if it's immovable, this darkness. Or it can be, you know, if you are sitting in a big traffic jam, like there was yesterday a big traffic jam, It's as if you are helpless. You sit there, your car is in perfect order, but you're not moving. It's immovable. Or it can be, you know, the Hebrew that you must do. It seems as if it's immovable, this Hebrew that's just coming and coming and coming. Hey, it's immovable. And so we can continue. Mountains are immovable. Trees, I mean, it's so difficult to move them. And therefore, it touched me when I read this passage that there are immovable things, but God moved the immovable things. And that's, I just want to have a few thoughts with you on this, on this, that God moved the immovable. And the first thing that we see here now, we know this is now Mark's vision, version of the resurrection. And we must know also that not one of the Gospels is giving us a review of the actual resurrection. It actually just gives us that they discover the resurrection. They discover it has happened. The first immovable thing is the stone. It's the stone. Now, it was the Sabbath. This one is saying the Sabbath was passed, and the three ladies, they bought the spices. Now, in the Jewish time, It is that Sabbath ends on the Saturday, let us say 6 o'clock. It ends. And then it is now the next day. So after the Sabbath, they bought all the spices that they need, so that they might go and anoint them. So, they bought the spices, and then verse 2, early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. So early in the morning, they went to the tomb on the first day of the week. So Mark makes it clear, because that was important. The church was celebrating now the day of the Lord on the first day, the Sunday, because it's the Resurrection Day. That's why he's emphasizing it here. And he's saying also clearly, the sun had risen. So it was not dark. It was light. It was light. And they went to the grave now to anoint the body, to anoint Christ. Now, we must know that the Jewish corpses were not embalmed as in Egypt. In Egypt, it was a long process that you can read in Genesis chapter 50 how they did it for Joseph. It was a very long process. But it was not like that with the Jews. For them, it was a mark of respect that they would put this perfume on the body and to keep the stench away for as long as possible, to keep the body as long as possible fresh. Out of respect, out of love, that's what they did. On the Friday when Jesus died, remember now the Sabbath starts at six o'clock, Jesus died and Joseph asked the body, but there was not much time to do all the proper things for the burial, and they just bury him. John's gospel is saying it a little bit different, as if Joseph did put some anointing on, but it was hastily done. And the woman said, no, we must do it properly. But they could not do it on the Sabbath, because there was no work allowed on the Sabbath. And they would then go on the Sunday, and that's why they bought the perfume and everything, the spices, to go on the Sunday morning. Now, it's interesting. Remember now, they are on their way They are expecting to find the dead person. That's what they are going to do. And remember now, it's a hot area. It's not as cold as here. It's hot. So the body quickly decomposed. And after, let us say, a day and a half now in such hot climate, the expectation was that it was already decomposed in a sense. and the smell would be overwhelming. But because of their love, because of their commitment to the Lord Jesus, they said, no, we must do it. It's also, although Jesus said, I will die, they will kill me, I will die. He also said, I will rise, I will stand up on the third day. But they did not believe that. Because they are going there on the third day to put the spices on the dead corpse. So they did not believe it. The expectation was not that Jesus would be alive. The expectation was that they would find the dead person. So they were now on their way there to the grave, and just to say, it's not graves like us. We are digging a hole in the ground, and we are putting soil on top of it. For them, there was like a hill, and then they would dig in and make like a chamber. And in that chamber, there would be different benches where they could put their beloved. And after a year or so, they would gather the big bones and put it under. And before, in front of the cave, there would be a big stone, a big one. They say it can weigh up to one ton. And this round stone was running in a trench so they could roll it away and go in and roll it back to keep the stench in, to keep it as good as possible also for the wild animals. Now they were on their way there. It was light already. They could see. And they were on their way to now Can you remember that lady that broke the jar on Jesus and they all complained that it is a waste of money? Then Jesus said, no, she did it for my burial. Because he knew that there will not be an opportunity for this lady to really put the spices because he was alive. Now, verse three is saying, And they were saying to one another, who will roll away for us the stone from the entrance to the tomb? They made all the preparations, but they forgot about this. They did not ask Joseph perhaps to send one of his servants with them to roll away the stone. Perhaps they did just not think of it. in their sorrow and what they've experienced. They don't think of it. They just think, no, we must go and we must anoint the body. But nowadays, now they realize, what about that big stone? That big stone is too heavy for three ladies to move. So what do we do? The immovable, the immovable obstacle to reach their goal was that stone. They would not do it. But then the wonder is that verse four, and looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back. It was very large. It had been rolled back. For the Greek scholars, it's a passive. It had been rolled back. They're not telling us who. They don't tell us when. But when they looked up, they saw that here the immovable thing has been moved. I think they were amazed already. But perhaps they had not realized yet 100% what is happening. But they realize, OK, it's open. We can do what we came to do. The stone is open. Unexplained. No one is explaining how it happened. It's just opened. It has been moved. A superhuman agency has moved the rock. God moved the rock. God rolled it away. God opening the way for them to see. The immovable rock, God moved it. But the second immovable thing is death. Now, death is a serious thing. If you have experienced death, it is an immovable thing. It is irreversible. That person is dead. You can see that person, you know that person, but that person is dead. It is immovable. It cannot be changed. It's impossible to change it. It's an impossibility. And these women, they are now on their way there because they did not even expect or think or believe that Jesus has risen. And just looking for the body. And when they enter the tomb, they saw the man sitting there with white dress in white robe. Verse five. Entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. So they went in. They expect the body. Perhaps they've expected to keep their noses closed. But here, nothing of that. Here they see a young man is sitting. Now, white is the color of celebration. for something to be white, to appear white. It must have been shining. It must have been brilliant. It must have been something like the transfiguration on the mountain when the Lord Jesus, when the clothes, everything changed into this shining light. So it must have been a bright light. It's not just white. For them to see it so clearly. So they realize because they looked up and they saw the young man and they were alarmed. They were afraid. Here is something not right. Something is not as it must be. It is also the young man was sitting. Now, sitting in those days was the position that a rabbi would take when he was teaching. This man, young man, as it's indicated here, this young man was sitting there in a position of authority. He had a message for them. He's sitting there to give them an important message. But their reaction was to fear. They were fearful. They just want to run away. They just want to get away. But this young man is giving them a message. Remember, they were looking for the immovable. They were looking for the dead body. They've seen on the cross how he died. They've seen how Joseph put it in the grave, the tortured body of Christ. And they were there to show their last respects to this immovable thing, death. That's why they were there. But here they find this young man. The young man is sitting there and he's giving them a message, a short message. He's speaking with authority. He's not their equal. And he said to them, verse 6, do not be alarmed. That's the first thing he's saying to them. Do not be alarmed. Do not be afraid. That's normally what happens if you read in the Old Testament when God or an angel appear, It's always what the angel is saying, do not be afraid. Do not be afraid, don't be alarmed. You're not finding what you came for. You're not finding a dead body here. Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth who was crucified. So he's saying, I know what you're doing here. You're seeking the dead body of Jesus who was crucified. And then the short message, he has risen. He has risen. He has risen. Short message. The immovable has been moved. The irreversible has been reversed. He has been saved. He is not here again. It's a passive forgiveness. He has been made alive by God. The immovable has been changed. And it is not here that he is saying, it's a passive removal. I mean, that word is so clear. It's not a passive removal. It's not that someone took the body and moved it to another place. And that's why it's not here. He has risen. And you know, that's the basis for our salvation. That's the basis for our faith, that Jesus died and that He has risen. That's the foundation of our faith. He has died and He has risen. And if you don't believe in the resurrection, Paul is saying in chapter 15 of Corinthians, has been turned around. Death has been turned around. And you know, there's a great implication in this for us. Death for us has also been turned around by this death of Christ that has been turned around. He has risen and therefore we that are in Christ will also rise from the dead. And if we bury a loved one, we know it's not the end. Because death, the immovable, has been moved. Even the death that I see will be changed. It will be reversed. And that loved one will live again. And even for us that is standing still on this side, It has been moved for us. We don't need to fear it anymore. If we are in Christ, it has been moved. And I see many of you are praying now. Well, I hope that you pray and say thank you to the Lord. He has turned. He has moved the world. that He has changed death, that we don't need to fear death, but that we can go and live, yes, not that we must long for death, but that we can live to Him, to His glory, because we know death, that we will all meet, except if Christ is coming. We will all meet death. We will all die one time or another. But it's not something to fear, because the immovable has been moved. Christ is alive. And that is the wonderful thing that we must hold on to, that death, the immovable, has been moved. But there's a third. and guilt, sin and guilt. He said, verse seven, the young man, go and tell his disciples and Peter that he's going before them to Galilee. There you will see him just as he told you. You know, here is this young man sitting there. Death has been conquered. But remember the disciples, they all ran away. And especially, can you see, Peter is mentioning here on his own. He's saying, go and tell the disciples and Peter. Because we remember what Peter did the day or two before. Peter, when that little maid was confronting him, do you know Jesus? He said, no, I don't know him. And he cursed, he put a curse on himself. He said, I don't know that man. But when Jesus was looking at him, he remembered the words of Jesus and he went out and cried bitterly. Peter, he denounced the Lord. He denied that he knew him. He sinned. Now Peter is with that guilt. Peter is with that sin. Peter is going with this immovable thing upon him. Sin, guilt. And this angel is bringing the message from the Lord. He said, go and tell the disciples, the disciples that left me, the disciples that ran away, Peter denounced me, Peter that sinned against me, go and tell them I am going before them to Galilee. It implies an assurance of forgiveness. It implies a restoration of Peter and the disciples, especially Peter. That's why he's mentioned on his own. Go and tell him the immovable thing that he did. I can move it. I've died for it. I've died for it. I will restore him. Go and tell him. Give him this message. Our sin is also immovable. You can try. You can try to get rid of it by good works, by paying some money, by sitting here and praying in the service. You can do whatever you want. You can't remove it. It's immovable. We've said it. And now I'm not just talking about a few things that we can remember. Oh, yeah, there I was angry. Oh, yeah, there I did this. You know, sometimes we think we are so good because we can't scarcely remember anything that I did wrong. You see, it was only that sinful like that. You know, we must realize our sinfulness. that we are just sin, that our inclinations, our desires are so wrong, we are totally depraved, totally. Do we realize that? Do we realize how immovable it is? It's immovable, our sin. Go and tell them, I want to meet them. I want to restore them. I want to forgive them. I want to set them again to be my disciples. And that's the message for each one of us. The immovable sin and guilt in our lives, Christ has paid for it. Christ has died for it. That we can live. That that immovable sinfulness can be exchanged for His righteousness. That we can live in His righteousness. Your immovable sin, have you been removed by Christ? Have you been removed by His blood? Or are you still sitting with the guilt and with the sin? Are you still trying to do it yourself? As he is saying here to Peter and the disciples, meet me there. I want to restore you. It's not just a few wrongs. We are sinful. But there's a fourth immovable thing here. It is saying in verse 8, and they went out and fled from the tombs. for trembling and astonishment, and seized them. And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. To witness about this wonder that they've seen, that they've experienced, they said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid. The immovable thing of silent witnesses. Now, you know, this is the end that many manuscripts are saying for the Gospel of Mark. Many are saying that later verses is later added. So here we mark ends. Now they say, oh, debate. We can debate it tomorrow. We can debate it now. We can debate. or when the ending is going on. It's debatable. But if we say it ends here, that's on the note that Mark ends. If we now choose for that option, Mark ends here, and he ends on the immovable thing of the witnesses that is not witnessing. They are telling nothing because they were afraid. Mute witnesses. But you know, even this immovable thing, the Lord changed it. In the other Gospels we read that they did went and tell. And here we are sitting, we've heard the message. We've heard the message of the resurrection of Jesus. So God even moved that immovable thing of people that's not willing How is it in your life? Perhaps that's what Mark wants us to understand here, an open ending. An open ending of people that are not willing to witness. They are not willing to tell because of fear. They are not willing to tell of the miracle. That's perhaps where Mark ends, that we can think, what are we doing? Or are we afraid to perhaps meet an opportunity where we can testify about what we believe? Are we also mute witnesses? Well, there we have the proof. God will even move that immovable. God will use someone else, or God will give you and the strength to witness. God will open it to you that you can be willing to witness. God can give you the words to do it. The immovable of fear that gripped you to testify, He can even change that. He did it. Here, God changed the immovable. They were not willing Are you silent? Run to the Lord, that He can even change that immovable thing in you, not willing to testify. Just to summarize, the stone, it was immovable. Yes, with some help it could be moved. Death! Only God could do that. Let me move on. Sin and guilt. We cannot get rid of our sin and guilt with a do-it-yourself project. It's only in Christ. It's only in Christ that our sin can be changed, can be removed. And we don't need to carry the burden. He moved it. Come to Christ. The fourth one was the silent witness. God didn't change that. God changed. Lord, thank you for your word. Thank you that you are the Lord, the God, the Father that is moving the immovable. Lord, you've moved that stone. You've moved death. You reversed death, the final thing in this world. You've moved it, Lord. And you are alive. And thank you that we know that even us, when we die, we will live. Thank you for our sin. Thank You for that, Lord. Thank You even that You've changed us and that You will change us. From mute witnesses to speaking witnesses, that Your Word can continue to go out. Please, Lord, be with each one of us, that we will serve You and love You as we must. Thank You, Lord, that we may trust You. Use this today.