to each of us personally. Father, I thank you for this dear fellowship. I thank you for this dear group of people, each whom you have called, Father, and I pray that each is responding as you have chosen. Father, I pray that you would remind us this morning that we serve a risen Savior. We do not serve a philosophy. We do not serve a theology that is made up by man. We do not follow cleverly invented schemes. We do not follow any human thinking or any human. But we serve a risen Savior who has granted us His Word and the testimony of His saints, the testimony of His Spirit that is inscribed for us in these pages. Father, we thank You for this eternal truth. We thank you that we know we have a home in heaven, eternal. We thank you, Lord Jesus, that you have purchased this for us. We thank you for being the army of one. We thank you, Father, for sending your Son, the only one who could have rescued us. O Lord, forgive the rails against you, the mockery, the scoffing at the Lord Jesus Christ, not knowing who he was. Father, your own son prayed, forgive them, because they don't know what they're doing. Father, give us that same compassion. Father, give us that love for each other as Christians, as was read an entire chapter today in John, that we might love one another, that the world might know that we belong to you, that we're of your family. Lord, I thank you for this group. I pray a blessing on them this today. In Jesus' name, that name that is above every name, we thank you. Amen. Am I on? Yeah, thanks. It's a special privilege to be with you. I want to congratulate again the young Beilers and their new journey that they're undertaking today. We're going to be in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, commonly known as the resurrection chapter. I had cataract surgery in November, both eyes. And it's amazing how much better you all look today. And it's amazing when I look in the mirror how much I've aged. But the little hindrance that it brings is that I see very well at this distance. and anything up to just beyond this pulpit, but I do need my dollar store readers. And so I don't know quite how I'm going to do this. I'm going to probably be doing this throughout the service, so just see it as a nervous twitch as I read. I'm going to be reading out of the New International Version. I know that's not the text for many of you, but you might be gratified to know that this is the old NIB. This is not the new NIV. This was the 1973 edition. So one tends to use best the things that he reads most often. I've memorized so many verses in this translation that I would be tripping over myself if I tried to use another translation. And so we become accustomed to the translations we read. I thank the Lord for them. And so if it doesn't quite match the way your translation might read, whatever it is you have, I pray that we'll get the gist. The word is eternal and true. This passage, Paul is dealing with the Corinthians and the book is almost over. There are 16 chapters in 1 Corinthians and he's dealt with a series of problems and he's made a series of corrections, a series of teachings. They had all kinds of issues, divisions in the church, licensed sin in a way, theological issues regarding the Lord's Supper, the gifts, the roles of men and women. But now, and that's how he begins this chapter in my translation, is now. It's almost like he's getting to the subject that he just wants to wrap this all up with. Paul is a man of the gospel. Every book you read, he's about the gospel. He loves the gospel and he preaches it. It's a major theme of his life. that Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures and was buried and was raised again on the third day. That's Paul's first love. He loves telling everybody about it. And so he turns to them now, after he's dealt with all these issues that are important and inspired by the word of God to respond to them, he says, now though, I want to remind you I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. I spent a lot of time in this book over the last week and I discovered something I never saw before, that the word stand is in the first and last verses. You might look at that. First verse, it says, this gospel is the one upon which you have taken your stand. And the very last verse of the chapter says, therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord because you know that your labor is not in vain. And so they serve as kind of bookends to this chapter. Standing, we stand upon the gospel, and the gospel, the meat between the bread, so to speak, is what he wants to talk about. And he goes on to say in verse two, by this gospel you are saved. So how important is this? You know, I was thinking, spending so much time in it, my wife and I saw an encouraging documentary, that long version that PBS put out on the Roosevelts. I don't know if you ever saw it, but it's very good. And it leaves you with the impression that there are There is in the human spirit nobility, courage, facing fears that overwhelm us at times, in the human spirit, that God built into the imago Dei, the image of God, And people can be commended, even non-Christians, for demonstrating that reflection of courage and nobility. Each of the three Roosevelt's that they talked about, Theodore Roosevelt, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Franklin Roosevelt, I'm not particularly in agreement with all of their politics, but I was inspired by their story. Each of them overcame a great hindrance. Theodore Roosevelt was told by his doctor that he wouldn't live much beyond his 20s, so he says, Get ready for a sedentary life, and if you know anything about Theodore Roosevelt, he did anything but live a sedentary life. He had asthma as a child, a bad heart, but he went on to accomplish courageous things. Eleanor was told by her mother that she was an ugly child and disappeared out of her life very quickly before she was even 10. Her father was an alcoholic, but she loved him and adored him. He died before, by the time she was the age of nine. She went through life having a very, a struggle with who she was, but she went on to accomplish many great things and became a great defendant of the downcast and the poor. Franklin Roosevelt was an aspiring young politician. No childhood ailments, but in his 30s he struck down with polio and is paralyzed from the waist down. And everybody told him, and he thought himself initially, that his political career was over because this was even before he became president. I think maybe perhaps even before he was governor of New York, I'm not sure. But he faced the challenge and it was just inspiring to watch that he went on to serve three full terms and just began a fourth term, took the country through the Second World War and brought about many social change that did better the position of the common person. And so if the human spirit can accomplish that, how much more? can the Christian face their challenges? The human spirit will say, I got myself through this. I pulled myself up by my bootstraps. But the Christian, in the midst of their suffering, will say, by the grace of God, by the grace of God, I got through this. And we rely, like the last verse says, you know, you know. that you can have confidence. Why? Because of what we're celebrating here today. We serve a risen Savior. We don't serve someone who is just some historically past figure that has since died and whose accomplishments are over. What accounts for the change in your life? A living Savior. We didn't change ourselves, did we? Most of us who were older and became Christians later in life, can certainly attest to the fact that we are different than what we were. And all because of what Jesus Christ accomplished at the cross. But we greatly, I think, diminish the cosmic victory that was won here. You know, I'm struck that, I know young people, because I go to prison a lot, those, they don't have a little gaming system anymore, but they'll talk about how they were gamers, they were so into it, they spent hours, night after night after night, they had personas, they took on the personas of characters and they fought other people who had, I don't know if you know this world, I don't know it, but I was just amazed how deeply entrenched they are. And they're fantastic battles that they fight. Our movies today, because of our graphic abilities, can create scenarios of wonder and awe and color and I even saw the trailer for the Lion King, and the animals this time around look like real creatures. We can accomplish great things through the abilities that God has given men. But my concern is that the unbeliever, the person of the world who doesn't know this king, this rescuer, kind of meshes it all up with all the other superheroes. And I think it's an attack of the enemy to make the cosmic battle something that Hollywood produces or writers produce. But you know what our real consensus of their best efforts can be in describing cosmic battles? Amateurs. Cardboard. Pathetic in terms of the reality. God. Created the heavens and the earth God knows what the galaxy knows how many billions of stars are in the billions of galaxies and we haven't even finished Discovering galaxies. I like how the astronomers keep readjusting their numbers Oh, we thought there were so many billion galaxies, but now we realize there's about 150 more galaxies because they're so wise what they're talking about galaxies as though they're peanuts and There's a billion stars, billions of stars in each galaxy, and there's billions of galaxies, and that God sent his only son into this planet, in this particular galaxy, to rescue us. What is man that he is mindful of us in such a way? My thoughts are not your thoughts, says the Lord, and my ways are not your ways. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my thoughts than your thoughts, and my ways than your ways. What is man? that God should pay attention. More than that, that the great triune God who needs nothing and no one, all sufficient and himself, for how long? Since eternity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have loved one another with a divine love that you and I cannot comprehend. And because of this creation, because of you and I and his love for us that he knew before he even made us. He knew the second person of the Trinity was gonna step out of that role, empty himself. The incredible truth of Philippians chapter two, he emptied himself, took on the form of a servant, took on the form of a human being that could be crucified to a cross 2,000 years ago in our history. And that rescue, what do you compare that rescue to? You know, the Bible tells us, it never gets into the description of the spiritual battle. We know there's a spiritual battle going on. How about when you read Revelation and you read that line, and there was war in heaven? Does that ever boggle you? Don't you kind of want to go, what does a war in heaven look like? We can't, we can't even, we don't have nothing to even pin our description upon. That's why the battle doesn't, the Bible doesn't tell us. There was war in heaven and Satan and his followers were thrown out and cast to the earth. And this one who came into the earth said, I saw him fall like lightning out of heaven. That's who Jesus Christ was, son of God, saw the battle in heaven. And that one came into this earth as a baby. walked around as fully human as you and I. That one was fighting a cosmic battle. He was rescuing us. We talked about loving one another. The Bible is inclusive of the Church of God, but always personal. Each of you matter to God. Each of you. There is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ that you and I have. There is no one more significant in your life right now than the one who's looking out through your eyeballs. Am I right? We are the most important person to ourselves, aren't we? You're not governing my life. But Christianity enables us to lay down our interest for the interest of others. It's only available in Jesus Christ. So let's pick this chapter apart a little bit. How much time do I have? Wow, I love this place. You may not love it so much after this, but no, I'm kidding. I think I've shared that with you before, I'll bore you again, but when I first started in prison ministry, I asked the same question to a group of guys, and I realized we're all on a schedule, and I asked the guys, how much time do we have? And some guy in the back of the room says, life, keep preaching. I said, I think I'm gonna like this ministry. So by this gospel, you know that word saved can be translated rescued, delivered. I want us to think of it as the cosmic rescue. This is indescribable. By this gospel, you have been rescued. Colossians 1, verse 13 says that God sent his son to rescue you, to deliver you from the dominion of darkness and bring you into the kingdom. the realm of the son that he loves. You and I have been rescued. Boy, if you never thought you were worth something before that year, you gotta be thinking about this. I wish we had words to describe what Jesus Christ did when he left wherever heaven is, the reality of the spiritual dimension, take on physical form and come into this world. Angels were perplexed. Angels couldn't figure this out. They longed to understand. Satan was fooled and he had been an angel. He was fooled at the cross that God, the one before whom the angels bow constantly day and night saying, holy, holy, holy, this one came into the earth to suffer for your sins and mine. Mind boggling. I wish we could see the cosmic dimension. Someday you will. The Bible says, In Isaiah chapter 17 verse 33, your eyes will behold the beauty of the king and view a land that stretches afar. Imagine that. Your eyes will see the beauty of the king, but not in this age, not face to face. Right now we are in the age that says he is the God before whom no man can see and live except his representation, the son of God when he became man. And so he says, this gospel that saves you, if you hold on firmly to the word I preach to you, otherwise you have believed in vain. You know, that doesn't mean that Christians are not saved for good if they are truly Christians. But this is such an important thing to know in this age. that God our Father sprinkles throughout his scriptures warnings to examine ourselves. Are we really in the faith? What is the evidence of our salvation? Because nothing could be more important. If we are talking eternal things, where you and I will spend eternity, then God the Father, as any good father would, wants to make sure you get it. Hold firmly to the end. Perseverance is a wonderful doctrine of the Christian faith. Perseverance doesn't save you, but it is the evidence that you have been saved. I can look out at most of you and say, I'm reasonably sure you know the Lord. But when will I say it for sure? What can we say about Michael? He died loving the Lord. He persevered. We can say Michael is with the Lord. He evidenced his faith all the way to the end. I've known people over the years who were with us for a while and then flaked out. They didn't look any different than you or I. And so I can say to you, and I am reasonably sure that you know the Lord for many of you that I, and I'm convinced of. But what will be the final evidence? When will I say absolutely? He knew the Lord. When he, on his dying day, he was loving Jesus Christ and serving him. Hold on firmly till the end. Verse three, what I received, I pass on to you as of first importance. Three and four is the gospel. Listen to this. Now there are important things in the Bible throughout, but there are some things that are more important than others. And Paul puts this in the top tier. I delivered unto you what I also received. And where did Paul get his information, do you remember? Jesus himself, the risen Jesus. Paul the apostle was taught by Jesus Christ after his ascension, him personally. You're getting information directly from Jesus Christ to the one who's writing this gospel. And so I pass on to you what I also received, and it's top tier importance, that Christ died for our sins, according to what? According to the scriptures. And he was buried, and he rose again on the third day, according to what? Brothers and sisters, as I've said many times before, the battle will always be around this book. No matter what people say about Jesus Christ or Christians or you, the battle will always be around this book. The first four words out of the devil's mouth was, yea, hath God said. Did God really say? It is the same game plan today. You will be challenged in your faith by the word. They will discredit the word of God in some way. I had that happen to me just this last Wednesday. I was doing a Bible study on, the Bible study I do at Chester County on Wednesdays is up on the block. These guys aren't allowed to come down to chapel, so we have to hold a service for them. So you're on the block where they live, and then they hold, push the bell on, the light on their doors, and there's two men to each cell, two tiers, and they come out and they sit down at the little round tables where they have their meals. And not everyone comes out, but about a group of about, 35 men that are on that tier, 17 of them came out. Oh, that our churches were filled with half the population of any area that we're in. And what was the best news is all the others can hear you anyway. And when I get to the really good parts, I raised my voice. I delivered on to you as of first importance that Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures. He was buried and he was risen again three days later. And so I was asking them, we talked about this passage, and I said, there are some important things, and I gave a list of what might be important and what might be of secondary importance. And a lot of the things that Paul talked about through this was of secondary importance, but this was primary importance. But I laid one example out. I said, is baptism important? And a lot of these guys are believers at this stage. A lot of these guys love the Lord. There's a whole group of them that don't speak a lick of English. They're from various South American countries. And well, can I say it? Shane was my interpreter. And so he can verify it, and he was a blessing to us. And here he is in the midst of you, brothers and sisters. He knew Jesus then, he knows Jesus now, and I trust that he will know him on the day that he dies. But there are men there, right, who don't speak a lick of English. And Bob wasn't with me on Wednesday. So, I asked the question, in my broken Spanish and English, some might say my English is broken. I'm from New England, so you might pick that up once in a while. I asked, is baptism important? They all raised their hand. I said, is the way you're baptized as important? Good group. They said, no. They said, it's less important whether you're sprinkled or immersed or however else one might do it as the condition of the heart in desiring to be identified with Jesus Christ. Would you agree with that? We have our traditions. I would rather dunk them completely. But that's my tradition. But then I asked this question. Would you say that Jesus being God is essential? All the hands went up. except one, the so-called religious intellectual on the tier. And I always knew that there was something adverse in his posture towards me. Friendly, big guy on the, wasn't there when you were there, so it's, but he's the intellectual on the tier. And I saw that he didn't raise his hand and I said, He used his name and I said, you don't believe that Jesus is God? No, I don't believe Jesus is God, he's the son of God, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. How can he be the father? You're saying he talked to himself? He was using terms that I've heard many times before. And so I gave four, possibly five irrefutable passages that clearly speak that Jesus is God. He fumbled his way through every one of them. The point was, is he was resisting no matter what was being told him. So I don't see going any further with him. Because at that point, I feel like I'm beginning to take the precious things of God and just watching him trample them. But I said to them, you say you believe in Jesus. He said, yeah, Jesus is right. Yeah, Jesus is right. I've read the Bible, and he's read other books. That's the problem. He's read other books. And I says, well, unfortunately, if you don't believe that Jesus is God, you don't know the Jesus of the Bible. And that's one of the three elements here in Paul's statement. Christ died for our sins. If Christ died for our sins, how important is it that we know who this Christ is? Would you say that's important? So we preach Christ. And who is he? He's the eternal son of God in human flesh here. And he's exalted to the right hand of God in his resurrection body now. And he intercedes for us moment by moment. That Christ is the Christ of the gospel. The almighty son of God, meaning God the son. The second person of the Trinity. That person died on the cross for our sins. Not some historical Jesus that some intellectual made up. If that person died on the cross for your sins, you're still in your sins. Jesus said in John 8, 24, unless you believe that I am, you shall die in your sins. We must believe who he is. We preach Christ as God the Son in human flesh, scoffed at by men, but, oh, loved dearly by Christians. Isn't that true? Do we not love this Christ, Jesus' friend of sinners? Man of sorrows, familiar with suffering, this Jesus, this God in flesh loved you and died for you. No wonder we sing. When really am I supposed to be done? Okay, pretend you didn't hear that. And he goes on to say, he had witnesses to his resurrection that he appeared to Peter then to the 12 and then he increases it to 500 and then to Paul who was last born out of time. That verse is a word that can be translated a miscarriage or even an abortion. Paul says I'm not worthy to be considered with the rank and file of the apostles but By the grace of God, he said, I am what I am. Did you notice that? Look where he says that. Verse 9 and 10. I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God, I am what I am. And his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them. Brothers and sisters. I can't speak for you, but I can speak for me. There are things I've done in the past that I truly regret. Things that I did as a non-Christian, even some things that I've done as a Christian that I truly regret. I cannot change that. But because of the grace of God, I am what I am. People drive by prisons, and I think I've told you this before, and they say, there but for the grace of God go I. Do you know what the prisoners say who have come to know the Lord? Here, because of the grace of God, I am. I can't tell you how many dear souls I've met that were Christians, claimed to be Christians even before they went. And we'll admit to you today that God used prison in a way that they could not have done for themselves. That God turned them around and put them back on the right track, dressed them, and today they're in their right mind. Praise God for the grace that sent them to jail. And their testimonies will tell you that themselves. And there were some who were running crazy, didn't know the Lord Jesus Christ until they came. And their testimony today rings with the name of the institution that they were once in. Isn't that not true? By the grace of God, we are what we are. There's none of us can take credit for this. All we can do is credit the one who loved me and gave himself for me. But it was attested to by witnesses. 500 who were still alive at the time the Apostle Paul wrote this. Where's the internal evidence on that? Do you see it? Paul is declaring that Jesus is alive to a crowd that certainly includes some of those 500 people. And if they had not seen it themselves, that would have been the time for them to say, that's not true, Paul, I was there, he wasn't raised from the dead. 500 witness who were still alive when he wrote this saw him. So there is internal evidence. I said, this means something. I was using this passage with the guys on that block on Wednesdays. And I said, think about this. 500 witnesses. Wouldn't you love to see 500 witnesses show up at your court? Wouldn't you love it if 500 witnesses could testify that you were in Hawaii as the crime was being committed in New York? You would bless every one of those 500 witnesses. Now, if you did do it, you wouldn't want to see one of those witnesses in court. But think about this, 500 witnesses, Peter, Paul, James, all the apostles, and Paul himself. They testify to you that Jesus is risen from the dead. Is that our belief today? Is Jesus alive? Is Jesus alive? Yes. Who do you think Michael is standing beside today? To be absent from the body, the Bible says, is to be present with the Lord. Our prayers go for those who are left behind. They are not gone, says the old Puritans. They are only gone before. For we shall all join them that know the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul goes on to say that. He says in verse 11, whether it was I or they, the other apostles, this is what we preach and this is what you believe. You know, the early church, when you read the book of Acts, what was the message they went out and preached? That Jesus Christ has risen from the dead. The Lord you crucified is risen from the dead. That was their message over and over and over again. Sometimes I think the resurrection is, and I may be totally, this might be totally my impression, but sometimes I think the resurrection is diminished in the gospel. Much about the cross, and rightly so, because the cross is one of the three major elements of the gospel. Christ, the cross, and that he is risen are the essentials of the gospel. We hear much about the cross, but when do we talk about the resurrection? Easter Sunday. What it says, essential to the gospel. If Christ be not raised, his death on the cross was meaningless. Had he not died, we would still be in our sins. Had he not been raised, we would still be in our sins. Christ, the Son of God, meaning God the Son who became man, died on the cross, was buried and raised again on the third day. Do you believe that? With all your hearts? then you know that you have a building in heaven, eternal, not made by human hands. Well, let's move along a little bit. He now has from verses 12 to 19, we won't spend a lot of time here, he argues various defenses from the negative for the reason of the cross. He says, if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? So now he's addressing another problem that existed in Corinth. Some were preaching that there is no resurrection. And so he attacks that and grabs it by the throat. He said, if there is no resurrection of the dead, verse 13, then not even Christ has been raised. Why? Because he was fully man and he truly died. But if there is no resurrection, then not even Christ has been raised. if you want to look at it negatively. More than that, verse 15, we're found to be false witnesses. For we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead, but if he did not raise him, then the dead are not raised. And if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. So they are false witnesses, and Christ has not been raised. Verse 17, and if Christ has not been raised, what else is true? Two things. This thing that we're doing here this morning, you might as well be out playing cards or going to the beach. It's futile. Your faith is futile if Christ is still in the grave. We are all, of all of us, should be most pitied. You're inside a building on a beautiful day like today, on a day that you don't have to work, you ought to be pitied if Christ is still in the grave. But oh, Bless you for being here to honor him because he is indeed raised from the dead. And then he says, if Christ is still in the grave, you are still in your sins. And then he hits home a little bit, verse 18. If Christ has not been raised, then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. All those people you hope to see, all those people who taught you about this, who have gone on before. They're lost, they're nowhere, if Christ has not been raised. Can that make us rejoice? If Christ is alive, those who trusted him in life, you shall see again. Thank God, forever and ever. In this age, you had discouragements. This is the rescue that occurs in this age. This is the age we are in, the age of the rescue. In this age, Christ the Son is still mediating for you and I. He is still in his, I don't know if mediatorial is a word, but he is still in that role in this age. But he says the age is coming when he shall turn all things over to his Father. That will be the end of this age and the beginning of the new age. You know, the Bible talks about ages often. At the end of the age, the angels will come and gather the wheat into the barn of God, the Christians, but the weeds shall be burned up. We have philosophers of this age. We have people of this age. We had rulers of this age who, had they known who he was, they wouldn't have crucified the Lord of glory. We have a God of this age who blinds the minds of the unbelievers even today. and forbids them from seeing the light of the gospel and the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. We have an enemy, and that enemy has not been defeated yet. He was defeated at the cross. His reign is terminal, but he still roars like a lion, because he knows he's lost believers. He was defeated at the cross, and in eternity, he is defeated. And he shall be in hell. along with his demons. And the Bible, hate to give us this news, but the Bible says, in hell with the angel, the demons and the devil will be all those who rejected Jesus Christ. We're talking about a cosmic reality that is truer than anything any human can imagine. Jesus rescued us from the dominion of darkness and has delivered us into the kingdom of the sun that he loves. You've been rescued. This is real what we're talking about here. This is not Hollywood. This is cosmic reality. God has intervened in human history to rescue his beloved. And those that he has rescued, he has seated in heavenly places. You have been raised with Christ. And he goes on to point that out. Look what he goes to next. But Christ has indeed That word indeed means really, actually, truly. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead. The firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. What are the firstfruits? What does that mean? Some of you agriculturalists can help us here. What are the firstfruits? The best of the harvest and the first on the tree. That's why they're called firstfruits but they are the best. The first fruits that appear on the tree mean what? That the rest of the fruit is on its way. Guess who that is? Fruits. We're on our way because the first fruit has risen from the dead. It's already happened. That's the good news. The dead are raised. Jesus is alive. And as the first fruits, all of us who are united in him, through faith, are on the tree and getting ready to go. Michael is there. All those that you know and love, who put their faith in him, their trust in him, are going as well. Look where he takes us. For since death, verse 21, comes through a man, the resurrection of the dead also comes through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. I wish we had time to go through Romans 5 and 6 here. Romans 5, 12. Just as sin entered the world through one man, and so death came to all men because all have sinned. That's why we've got a problem. There was a real Adam, and you're all his descendants. And he passed on. the sinful nature to each of us. In Adam, you and I have all died. When did we get the sentence of death? On the day they disobeyed God. You and I are born to die. But all those who are in Christ now share in his reality. Romans 6 says, through baptism we've identified with his death, and it goes on to say that if you have been united with Christ in his death, you will, listen to this, certainly also be united with him in what? His resurrection. Because if you are identified with Christ, all that is true of Christ now is true of you, except that you are not God. But his experience on man's behalf has won the victory for you. If you're a believer in Jesus Christ, you share his nature. You share his victory. You were there at the cross in his death, it counts for you. He suffered. We didn't. The chastisement that brings us peace, was laid on him. And by his stripes, you and I were healed. And although the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see the light of life and be glad. The resurrection was prophesied in the Old Testament. That was Isaiah 53. Psalm 16, David speaking for the Messiah says, you will not let your holy one see decay. Jesus Christ fulfilled all the prophecy of the Old Testament. I wrote a quick list, and I'll be quick about reading it. I just wrote a quick list of things the resurrection accomplished for you. Listen to this. The resurrection fulfills prophecy. The resurrection proves that Jesus is the son of God. Romans begins by saying, Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel that he loves. which he promised, God promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures regarding his son who was a descendant of David according to the flesh, but who through the spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the son of God by his resurrection from the dead. The resurrection of Jesus Christ declares that the one who was risen was God, the son of God. The resurrection validates everything he said before he died. This last week I was looking at going through First Kings. Do you remember that encounter in First Kings where Elijah, in the midst of the famine, is told to go to a town called Zarephath where a widow will supply him with food? She didn't even know it, but it was interesting that God in the sovereignty says, I have commanded a widow to feed you. Isn't that a beautiful story? She didn't know it. He comes. He says, would you give me a drink? She was going to give him a drink. He says, and a little bit of bread? She says, we have no bread. She was out picking up sticks to start a fire so that she and her son could have the last meal. And the prophet says, the flower shall not run out and the oil shall not run out until rain comes on the land. And so she got fed supernaturally, her son and Elijah and her household, until the rain came. She saw a miracle daily. Now we know there was no rain for three years, so I don't know how much of that three years, maybe two. She saw that miracle daily. But do you know when she declared that he was a man of God? When her son got sick and died, And she raised him from the dead. Elijah raised him from the dead. And do you know what the woman then said? Now I know that you are a man of God and that every word that comes out of your mouth is from God, the truth. She had a miracle daily, and I'm sure she had faith and was encouraged by the miracle. But when was it that she truly realized that he was of God? When the dead are raised through that man. Cannot all Christians say about the Son of God? Now we know that you are the son of God, and that every word that comes out of your mouth is the truth spoken from God. Cannot every Christian say that? His resurrection validates everything he said before he died. He said things like, no man comes to the Father but by me. In this life you shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I've overcome the world. No man who has given up fields or things for me will not reap as much in this world and in the next. Everything he's promised you is true, validated by his resurrection. A resurrection proves that the sacrifice has been accepted. Romans 4.25 says he was delivered to death for our sins and raised to life for our justification. Justification means made right with God. It is a resurrection that validates that we are truly forgiven. Oh, this wonderful truth. The resurrection brings transformation. Colossians 127, for God has made known unto us, the Gentiles, the mystery of the gospel, which is what? Christ in you. That's why you're transformed, Christ in you. Peter was transformed from a frightened person to a victor in the faith. Paul was transformed from being a blasphemer and a persecutor of the church to being the proclaimer of truth and a powerhouse for the gospel. You and I have been changed. You're not leaving here just the people that we look like. You will leave looking the same, but you and I are filled with Christ. And in him dwells the body, the deity bodily. Richard Sibbes, the English Puritan of the 17th century, once wrote that the victory lies not with us but with Christ who has taken on him both to conquer for us and to conquer in us. You have the victory. You have the wherewithal in you. It's not your human spirit that is accomplishing the victory. It is Christ in you, the hope. of glory, the Holy Spirit, the deposit guaranteeing your inheritance. And the resurrection assures that you will rise too. For if we've been united with him like then in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. Jesus said in John 14, because I live, you also will live. Ephesians 2, but because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ, even when we were dead in our trespasses. It is by grace you have been saved, and God raised us up with Christ, and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages, what does God look forward to? That he might display the surpassing riches of his grace. demonstrated by his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. God is looking for that day too. God has planned something better for all of us, even with those who have gone, so that only together with us will any of them be made perfect. Souls are immediately in the presence of God, but there is a day coming, the last day, when the dead in Christ shall rise. And we who are left and still alive will rise to meet them in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. And then begins the new era. And then Jesus Christ will turn everything back over to the Father, that God, triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit may be all in all in the coming age. And you and I will see Him face to face. He will be our God, and we will be His people, and we will dwell with Him. That has been the promise throughout Scripture. That is what his God is looking for. That is what he sent his son. That is what Jesus saw as he headed for the cross. For the joy set before him, he endured its shame, scorning it for you and I. He knew us and loved us, and he prayed in John 17 to his father, I want them to be with me where I am, that they might see my glory. Jesus wants us with him, and we're gonna see his glory. And as beautiful as this day is, there's a day coming when that little flock of stones out back will be a sight to behold. There are people back there who love the Lord, and we will not precede them. We will get to see them rise up out of the ground in their resurrection body to be with the Lord. And we will meet them with the Lord. That will be in that generation that's still alive when he comes, will be changed in the twinkling of an eye. That's what Paul goes on to say. And then the end will come. Verse 24. Verse 23 says that there's an order to resurrection. And we just discussed that. But each in his own turn. Christ the firstfruits, he rose first. And then when he comes, those who belong to him, and if we've read 1 Thessalonians 4, Paul even breaks it down further. The dead in Christ shall rise first, and then us. But there's another group that will come. Jesus says the day is coming. When the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and come out of their graves. Those who have done good will rise to live. Those who have done evil will rise to be condemned. The wicked are going to rise on that day. And the Bible says, let the vile continue to be vile. Let the righteous continue to be righteous. We've talked to people, haven't we, you and I? People who have rejected this. One of the saddest things that my wife and I never saw. It was way back when we first became Christians. We got on the church's visitation team, visiting people who either visited the church or people that people in the church wanted you to go visit. And we went to visit. Remember the man who was terminal? And we sat at his kitchen table, Gwen and I, and shared again the gospel with him. And you know what he said? He was like weeks away, maybe a week or two from his death. He had some terminal situation. And we were sent to share the gospel with them and people had tried before. And you know what he said? And this is one of the saddest events in all the sorrows that I have heard from men and women in prison. That kitchen table outside the prison in someone's home, that man looked at us and said, I'll never believe that stuff. I was like a spear through my heart. I was talking to a dead man. This man was going to exit the world in two weeks and he is, I'll never believe that stuff, he is shutting the door on the only avenue that he has for eternal life. I'll tell you, that still grips me. That was one of the saddest things I ever heard come out of someone's mouth. I'll never believe that stuff and they were a couple of weeks away from death. Oh, brothers and sisters, this is a cosmic battle for the souls of men and women. And you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life. God looks down and he sees his people like lights in the world, and they're holding out the word of truth. He who believes in the Son has eternal life. He who rejects the Son will not see life. for the wrath of God remains on him. The Bible says it's a terrible thing for a man to have heard the way of truth and to reject it. If we deliberately keep on sinning, if we keep on going our own way after we've received the knowledge of the truth, then no sacrifice for sins is left. Where are they going to go now? But only a fearful expectation of raging fire and judgment that will consume the enemies of God. People died without mercy just breaking the law of Moses. How much more severely, listen to this, how much more severely do you think a man ought to be punished if he has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? Brothers, you don't wanna be in their shoes. That's why that man's declaration is still one of the most poignantly tragic things I have ever heard. He is in that condition. And the Bible goes on to say, it is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God who surrendered his son to this earth to die a brutal death as the only thing God could do to save us and have it rejected. Can you imagine? We can't even imagine it as parents, giving up our son for someone who would despise it? Oh, this is a cosmic battle, and that's why all the counterfeits drag the truth down. They worship and serve created things rather than the creator, who loved them and gave himself for them. And then the beautiful passage Verse 24, 25. And then the end will come when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. And the last enemy to be defeated is death. Let me read to you. the account of that victory. Revelation chapter 20. You don't have to turn there, let me just read it, it's quick. And then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence. You know, people think they're gonna stand before God. Did you ever consider what are you gonna be standing on? You will be you and God. Not even a floor to stand on. And we will be judged. Jesus said, by every careless word we've spoken, who will be guiltless? And then he says, earth and sky fled from his presence and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that was in it. Death and hay, that is the grave, gave up the dead that were in them. And each person was judged according to what he had done. And then death and the grave, Hades, were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. That records the end of death, the death of death. There will be no more death. You and I, brothers and sisters, were rescued. rescued, just like Noah and his family. Eight people in all saved from the flood that destroyed the earth. And that water symbolizes baptism, which saves you also. Not the washing of dirt from the body, not the physical water, but the pledge of a good conscience towards God. And it saves you through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, Peter goes on to say. And then it says, verse 27, for he has put everything under his feet. Now, when it says that everything has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. Jesus declared to us that this is the age where all authority in heaven and earth has been given unto him. And through that authority, he has told us to go and make disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. And what? He is with us till the end of the age. This is the record of the end of the age. And when he has done this, verse 28, then the Son himself will be made subject to him. Second person of the Trinity will be made subject to him who put everything under him, God the Father. Toward what end? So that God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit may be all in all. This is a beautiful moment in God's economy. Oh, when the end comes, you think you and I will be glad? God himself. will be rejoicing. This was the climax, the point to which all his sacrifice was moving. And it will include you and I. God did it that you and I might get there. Praise God. You know, when we sin, brothers and sisters, what is the first word you ought to think of? The Bible says death. The wages of sin is death. But for Christians, we too ought to think of death when we sin. Whose death? Jesus's, because there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. What death do I think of? The death at the cross on Good Friday. What resurrection do I think of? Jesus coming out of the tomb on Sunday. Because if we have been united with him in his death, if that sacrifice counted for you and I, and it has by faith, even with the smallest bit of faith you believe, you are in him. That's what the Bible teaches. And if you have been united with him in his death, you will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. And look at how this book ends. Let's scoot down to verse 55. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is a law that we could never keep. But thanks be to God. Thanks be to God. This is the same way he ended Romans 7. Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God. It's been done through Jesus Christ our Lord. He's the rescuer. He's the Savior. He's the one that is exalted. It is His name we proclaim. It is He who rose out of the grave on Easter morning. It is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, victorious forever over death, never to die again. Dominion no longer has mastery over Him, and that's why you and I shall live eternally with Him, because we are united with Him, and death shall never have mastery over us again, and sin will never have mastery over us again. You shall live forever, pure, holy, and spotless. Blessed are the pure, said Jesus on the Sermon on the Mount, because they will see God. Oh, what a glorious, glorious truth. Therefore, verse 58, therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. No heartache, no challenge, no discouragement, no disappointment, no hardship, no trial, no hatred from others. Let nothing disappoint you. Let nothing move you. Always give yourself fully to the work of the Lord. Why? Because you know. because you know Jesus has won the victory, because you know that your labor is not in vain. I think I shared with you once an African American prisoner in Florida State Prison when I used to go in there. I used to go to cell to cell in the blocks where men never never got out of their cells or their units. They never got into the yard. They could never get sunshine. The people that were on the blocks that never even got the sun through the window were gray in their pallor. And there were blocks that were put where the hard cases were. And I don't know how this dear old man, and he was an older man at the time. He must be home with the Lord now. He was an old black man on a tier that contained racist white men. His life was miserable on that unit. And every time I came to him, his name was Tyress. Tyress West. Never forget him. Always met me with a big grin. And I'd say, Tyress, how do you keep that joy on this unit? He stuttered. He had a speech impediment. And out of his mouth, imperfectly, because he couldn't speak well, came 2 Corinthians 5.1. Because I know when this earthly tent is destroyed, I have a building from God, a house in the heavens, not made with human hands. He said that so often that the chaplain sent me a letter telling me he had been moved on to a medium unit and would soon be released. You know how he addressed him? I thought you should know that Tyress 2 Corinthians 5, 1 West is being moved to another unit. Why? Because he knew. Because he knew. And I don't know what was planned for us, but when we sang, Because He Lived, it said this. I can face tomorrow because he lives. All fear is gone. Now catch this. Because I know. Because I know he holds the future. And life is worth the living just because he lives. He is risen. Amen. That would be a good song to end with.