Lessons From The Resurrection

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Transcript

Opening Worship And Scripture Reading

SPEAKER_01 0:00

At the cross with my savior die Downwell from cleansing from sand across it to my heart was a blood I am so honestly from said it's a sweetness with resurrection lessons from the resurrection.

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Some men know that the Lord Jesus Christ did live an extraordinary life. And when they put him in the grave, when they pierced him, when they beat him up on the Friday, they thought that they were done. But him being an extraordinary God and this day, he rose from the grave. And that's why we're able to gather here to celebrate. And so I want to read a few scriptures here, and then we're going to pick a few lessons from there on lessons from the resurrection. I pray that it shall encourage us in our faith, in our work with God, and our desire to pursue an extraordinary life. In 2 Timothy chapter 4, verses 7 to 8, Paul declares, I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. That is Paul declaring in 2 Timothy chapter 4, verses 7 to 8. He said, He has kept the faith, and he says, Now there is in store for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award me on that day. And he says, Not only me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. Brothers and sisters, it's a crown of righteousness that the Lord has kept for us, those all of us who long, who long for his appearing. And then in Matthew chapter 27, we're reading Matthew chapter 27, 63 to 66. After they crucified Jesus, they came to Pilate and said, Sir, we remember that while he was still alive, that deceiver said, After three days I'll rise again. So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first. Take a guard, Pilate answered. So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting a guard. And then in Matthew chapter 28, verses 2 to 4, it says, There was a violent earthquake. For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, and going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The gods were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. Say amen, amen to that as we pick it up from there this morning. Today is a wonderful day. And it's a wonderful day because the whole world uh will stop to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus who is alive forevermore. But you know, we do this every Sunday when we gather around the Lord's table. Every time we take bread and drink the cup, uh, we proclaim we know that Jesus lived uh on earth, and I know that you know you will stand before him. We know that he's the one that gives life, he has power in his hands, and he is resurrected. And that's something that we do every every single Sunday that we meet. But today the whole world is gathered to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. And you know, that's also the only thing that distinguishes us Christians from all other religions. Every other religion worships a man that died, and there's a grave for them. That's why the Muslims uh, you know, make a pilgrimage to Mecca, they go to the place where Muhammad was buried. He's still in that tomb where they believe he was buried, he's still there. There's no written record of um of Muhammad uh you know coming out of the grave. You go to the Buddhists, you go to all other religions. These they they talk about uh um uh this they have a God who or someone that they worship that never rose. The only difference between Christianity and all other religions is that Jesus Christ, who we follow, is not dead but is risen. And today, the whole world is gathering to celebrate Easter. It's a Sunday, the day that the Lord Jesus Christ rose. So there are several lessons that we can pick um, you know, from there as we just pause to reflect uh on this very important day that I pray it shall encourage us, even as we fellowship here this

Lesson One We Serve A Risen Savior

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morning. So, number one, we serve a risen savior. We are serving a risen savior. We are not serving some dead guy uh who was here, was famous, some rock star guy, um, some celebrity who then, you know, people followed him and then he died, and that was it. No, we serve a risen Savior. And not only that, we also look forward to that day when we shall stand with him in a glorious, heavenly welcome uh home which he has prepared for all who have loved and served him. So today, as we gather, as we celebrate, as we go to church this morning and lift our hands in worship, may we be encouraged that number one, we serve a reason Savior. Maybe sometimes you forget that we can be going through so much pain, so much trouble. Uh so many things just happen to us. And we can forget that the Lord that we serve is reason. And because of that, we look forward to that day when we shall stand with him in a glorious heavenly home which he has prepared for all who have loved and served him. And that's why we treasure the words of the apostle Paul when he says, I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. And he says, Now there is in store the crown of righteousness, which the Lord righteous judge will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. Brethren, this morning, as we reflect on our work with God, let us know that we serve a recent Savior, and we should look forward to that day when we shall stand with him in a glorious heavenly home which he has prepared for all who love and who serve him. So, brethren, with this, we can be encouraged. We may be going through a lot of pain, a lot of trouble, a lot of challenges may come our way. Some we can explain, some we may not be able to explain, but we serve a savior that's risen. And we need to look forward every day. We need to look forward. We're going to stand before him. That glorious in this glorious home that he says he has gone to prepare for us. And that's why Paul's saying, for the fight, finish the race, I've kept the faith. And so this morning, my sisters and brothers, let's continue fighting. And all that was one of the messages we preached here a few weeks ago was keep fighting. Let's fight, fight in the mountains, fight in the bush, in the valleys, everywhere. Let's keep fighting, let's finish the race and let us keep the faith. Why? We are serving a reason Savior. And soon, and um, you know, we're going to stand before him on this glorious heavenly home, which he has prepared for all who love him. And so, with that, you can withstand pain, you can withstand hardship, you can withstand you know difficult things, even those that you cannot understand. You know, it's you're not difficult to go through something that you understand. You know, sometimes we we you know we we make mistakes, and you know, our mistakes land us in trouble. But there are some times when things just happen, and you can't explain why. Why would this happen? Why should we I have to go through this? Why do I have to go through this pain? Why do I have to live through this? And why we ask why, why, why, why? Brethren, this morning, let us be encouraged, even when we have got no answer. Let us know that soon we are serving a master who is alive, and when it's all done here on earth, or at least on timing, we're going to stand before him on this glorious heavenly home which he has prepared for us. He says, I've gone to prepare a place for you. And if it were not so, I would have told you. So there's a place that the Lord has gone to prepare for us. So let's be there, let's end you, let's let's uh um let's let's keep fighting, let's finish the race, keep the faith. Whatever happens, my sister, keep the faith. Whatever pain, whatever trouble, whatever mishaps, keep the faith. Even when life doesn't go the way you thought it would go, keep the faith. You know, keep the faith, keep the faith. Even when you have those ups and downs and you can't look back and say, How did I end up? Yeah, how did I see this coming? You know what? Keep the fight, finish the race. Let's keep the faith because we are serving the Lord Jesus Christ, who is alive and he has gone to prepare for us. So today, on this resurrection Sunday, one thing that reminds us very well is that we serve our recent Savior. He's our right, he's alive. The song that we sing there is alive, he's alive forevermore. He is alive. That's the Lord that we are serving, and so we can be encouraged this morning. Life is great, life is great. Let us love it, let us love it. We have to remember that one day shall all be over for good, and we shall see him and be with him and with all those people of God who have gone on before, uh, before us. So, as we journey through life, because sometimes we can be so preoccupied with life that we think it is forever. You know, life is great. So let's love it, let's live it to the full, but let's remember that one day it shall be all over for good, and we shall see him, we shall not, we shall see him, we shall be with him, and not only that, with all those people of God who have gone on before. And we should look forward to that. Those of us who have loved, who have lost loved ones and who have gone ahead of us, um, we need to be encouraged. We'll see your family members, those that have gone ahead of you. You see your father, your mom, you see those brothers and sisters who have gone ahead uh and ahead of us. And so we we need we we we we know we we want we look forward uh to seeing those Christians, you know, those Christians, you know, there are people who helped you, people who helped me as I came through the Lord Savior, who preached to me, people that encouraged me, who have gone to be with the Lord, um, brothers, dear brothers and sisters, who are so you know, so good to us, they've gone ahead of us. And one day we shall stand before him and wish in this glorious home that he has prepared uh for us. So we should not therefore look at uh you know, whenever we whenever we we you know death happens, um you know you know, and it happens a lot sometimes. We should not look at it with fear, but with anticipation. We know we're not saying that one desire to die, no, no, no, but we know that the best thing is to be ready because when it's all done and it's finished, we're going to stand before the Lord, say Jesus Christ, and in that glorious home that he has prepared for us. So, what we need to do, we need to be prepared. And that's why we sing that song. Have you been? Have you been to Jesus for the cleansing power? Say, are you washed in the blood? Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb? Are you fully trusting in His grace this hour? Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb? Then they say, Are you washed in the blood, in the soul, cleansing blood of the Lamb? Are you garments? Spotless are the wipes as not are you washed in the blood of the lamb? Say, have you been to Jesus for that cleansing how are you washed in the blood of the lamb? Are you fully trusting in his grace? This hour are you washed in the blood of the lamb. So the point is let us be washed by the blood of the lamb. Let us be ready, let us um, let us be ready because Jesus Christ is risen and we serve our risen Savior, and we are looking forward to the day when we shall stand with him. And the path to standing with him is being washed in the blood of the lamp. And that's why we are doing what we do. We are preaching Christ. We are doing everything we can to get as many people as possible washed by the blood of the Lamb. So that on that day we can be able to stand before him and celebrate on that glorious home that he has gone to prepare for us. We'll meet those that have gone ahead of us, those dear brothers, dear sisters, your dear relatives who have gone ahead of us in the Lord, we shall see them again when we get reunited with our Lord, Savior Jesus Christ. So today that must be a core reminder for us, brethren. We serve a risen Savior. We serve a risen Savior, and we look forward to that day when we shall stand before him. So every morning, as painful as sometimes things may be, but as we encourage ourselves that you know what, one day we shall stand before him in this glorious home which he has gone to prepare for you and for me, my sister. And so, because of that, we endeavor to serve him, live for him, to live in his will, to do what we must do, to advance his uh you know his agenda here on earth when we are strong, because we know we shall stand before him on that glorious home uh that he has prepared for us. So that's lesson number one.

Lesson Two You Cannot Stop God

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The number two, uh brethren, that's something also that reminds us today, is that you cannot stop the plan of God. You cannot stop the plan of God. When you look at the events um that we have, we know, that that surrounded the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, you can see that you know, clearly you cannot stop the plan of God. Um, you know, one of the things that is great, those of us who have raised children, um, you know, if you have raised up children and um the and and man of us here too, you know, there's no better time than when your children are small. And, you know, I would remember when I would come home, my you know, my sons, my children, we are between three to five years old. And then you will come home and uh, you know, from work, and you know, they will hear the car, you know, the engine of the car downstairs when I'm coming to park, and you know, they will come out, you know, running from home, because they have been waiting for dad to come home, and and then they would come and they would rush, you know, and they would jump and I would pick them up, and uh, it would be so good to be to come home to be received by your um by your children when they are in that age. Um, and those are special moments. And and many times you would wish that that time could stand still. That you could you, you know, we would it would be nice if if if that continued like that. If we could it could be exactly as it was, we'll always be happy, we'll enjoy each other just as it's. But but but we know that of course that didn't happen. The children have grown up, um, they are way you know, in far away from home, and they're busy doing their things, and and and I I don't come home anymore, and and my my my son or something, they are coming to greet me in the car. Not at all. Things have moved, have changed, life has moved on, they are now running their own life, they are busy with their own things. But you know, I wish that moment could have could have stayed, could have stayed. Where you know, you come home and your children are there, you know, they are with you everywhere, you you know, they hang around them, you are over them. Is that these are special parental moments? And those uh of us who still have young children, you better enjoy that moment. Um, you better enjoy that moment, not last forever. If you know, when your children are small, that's the time to just lavish that time, pamper them, do whatever you can for them. Uh, they are very, very special uh moments. Um, but as much as I would have wished for that to um to continue, uh the reality is that you cannot stop the inevitable. Children grow up. You also want them to grow up. If they remain children like that, you'll be concerned. Um, so you want your children to grow up. You know, you can't stop basically what is inevitable. And there are many nice and not so nice things we wish could stay or not stay. Because it's either way. There are some nice things, um, and there are also some not-so nice things, um that you you know, you and you can you can reflect on the nice things um you know that you wish could, you know, could have stayed on when um maybe when you are maybe it could be your wedding day, or maybe it was your courtship day, or it was your honeymoon, or it was when you are it was just you and your um and your husband alone in the house, or maybe it was during your youth when you had absolutely no responsibility. You could sleep anywhere, uh you could come home, not come home, you could cook, not cook, nobody cared. Why? Because you are absolutely nothing to be responsible for. Um and you could wish those moments could stand still. Maybe there were nice moments, you know, those moments when you did something, and you know, like but the truth is you cannot stop the inevitable, uh, whether they are nice things or they are wrong things. And the the truth is that after they had crucified Jesus, the chief priests and the Pharisees found exactly that. You cannot stop the inevitable. You know, they came, they said uh, you know, they they thought that they could uh take a guard, they could um secure the grave, um, they could protect the grave so that Jesus does not resurrect. Um but it's the reality is that you cannot stop the plan of God. And I think the faster we know that uh, you know, you know, the better. Can you imagine um, you know, God, um the God, the creator of the universe, um, you know, the God of the hosts, the one who created the heavens and the earth, and is there in heaven, watching the priests and the Pharisees issuing orders and telling soldiers, those soldiers grinding and straining to roll the stone and put that stone in place, putting the seal of Rome on it, and then standing guard to make sure that nothing ever. Can you imagine the God who put the sun into space, um, you know, being thwarted by a stone in front of a tomb? Can you imagine the God who created the power of the universe, the atoms, uh being stopped by a few Roman soldiers armed with swords and spears? Tell him that that's that's what they found now. Um, and but in Matthew 28, it says 2 to 4, it says, There was a violent earthquake. There was a violent earthquake. For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was lightning, like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. And the gods were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. Can you imagine what a scene? Um, you know, God speaks, the angels come down, the earth shakes, the stone rolls away, and the soldiers are paralyzed with fear. Um, and remember the stone was only was not rolled, uh was not rolled away so that Jesus could come out. Jesus was no longer there, he had resurrected. It was the stone was rolled so that those coming could see in, could see inside. It's not that you know the stone was being rolled so that Jesus could come out. No. Um, but the chief priest, the chief priest, the Pharisees, we were trying to seal up the Son of God. But there was no way they could have succeeded. And sometimes it almost seems as if life is like that. Sometimes we feel like we are trying to seal to seal up Jesus. They were trying to seal up the tomb and keep Jesus in the corner somewhere and hope that he's not risen. And you know, sometimes we can feel like that. Where we feel uh we don't want to change. Um you know, we we feel like we want to put Jesus in a little corner. Uh we put him in a little corner of our life and say, Lord, you are welcome to stay, but please, you know, don't don't change the way I think, don't change the way I act. Just stay in your corner, everything will be fine. And that's all the that the these Pharisees we are trying to do, sealing up Jesus' tomb. Um, but you know, we we we we forget that you cannot stop the plan of God. And so this morning, let's not try to uh to seal Jesus and put him in a particular corner, let's allow him to change us. You know, if we have believed this Lord Jesus Christ, let's allow him to change, to interfere, allow him to interfere with your thinking, allow him to interfere with your life, with your habits, with your character, allow him to change you, allow him to uh to give you a heavenly perspective, and because we forget that this life is a preparation for eternity, an eternity in which will be among the saved or the lost forever. His life is a preparation for eternity, an eternity in which we'll be among the saved or the lost forever. Brethren, this is another lesson we can learn in this beautiful day here that you cannot stop the plan of God. You cannot stop the plan of God. You can put stones around it, you can post Roman guards on it, you can do whatever you want to do, but you can never ever stop the plan of God. And that's another very important reminder today. We cannot stop the plan of God, you cannot stop the will of God, and we need just to be comfortable, uh, you know, to be comfortable with that. And let's allow the Lord Jesus Christ to reign in every area of our lives. Let's not conduct Him into some place. Let us be radically born again, let us be radically born again. Let everybody know our stand. You know, let everybody know where we stand on issues, you know, where we stand on our salvation. We we're not there to just play nice. Uh uh when it comes to faith, matters of the faith, let us let people know where you stand on issues. I'm not saying go around um, you know, shouting at everybody. No, no, no. But we we we do not want to be silent Christians. Where we allow Jesus on the corner, just somewhere in the corner. No, let's allow him to interfere with everything, interfere with our businesses, interfere with our finances, interfere with anything in our life so that you can be God and God alone. Say amen to that.

Lesson Three Surrender To The Living God

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Number three, another lesson that we can learn today on this resurrection Sunday, we serve a God who is alive and who is all powerful. Sometimes we forget, we go through a lot of challenges, sometimes pains down, loss, and you know, we can forget that actually the God we serve is alive and all powerful. And because you know what we have is for example, when we serve when we suffer loss, when we suffer pain, you can wonder, oh, is God really there? How come he didn't intervene for me? How come he has not helped me on this one? You know, the fact that he has not come through for me, or the fact that I'm going through pain or a downtime, does not mean that God is not vowed, is not powerful. We serve a God who is powerful. And the message of today, Easter Sunday, you know, the soldiers and they came there with seals, with stones. They could never stop the plan of God. God marches on, and his plan will be accomplished because he's a powerful God. And we declare that every morning. We serve a God that's mighty, a God that is powerful. And so don't fight, don't delay the plan of God in your life. Don't fight and don't delay the plan of God. You know, sometimes we can delay the plan of God. Um, we can delay the plan, and you know, we can fight or delay the plan of God in our lives, but you can never stop Him. You know, there are people who have delayed serving God. You know, God has called them, He has called us to serve, He's putting something in your heart that you need to do, but you keep delaying. You, you know, He's been telling you do that, do that, but you keep laying. Sometimes you keep fighting. Oh, that cannot be the voice of God. We fight, we fight, we take corners, He's trying to take you somewhere. You, you know, you are you're not understanding, you're not getting it. You're not you're not getting it. Um, God is powerful. We cannot stop, or we you can we should not fight or delay the plan of God. So in our lives, we can say, are we fully surrendered? Um, what areas of your life are yet to be surrendered? Um, because that's the key thing. You know, it's one thing to become a Christian. See, salvation is a is an is an instant thing. You put your faith in Christ Jesus Christ, in his faith in Jesus, you get born again. But after that, you now need to live, you need to surrender, you need to bring your total mind, your body, your everything into absolute surrender to God. Uh, and and sometimes we have areas that we are not surrendered. Um, you know, and we need to surrender. There's no need fighting the God who created you. Um, true joy and happiness is only found when you begin to live in total surrender to his will and his purpose. John realized that. He gets sent to go to uh preach, and then he enters into the boat and he begins to run away from God. And you know, this the fish swallows him and brings him back to where he was. Sometimes we can fight, we can fight God. And one thing I've realized, brothers, uh it's good to reach to a point of surrender. You know, when you reach that point of surrender, you tell God, you know, whatever you lead me, whatever you send me, wherever you whatever you speak, I'm ready, I'm willing, you know, I want to live for you. The moment you become a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, surrendering should become your number one priority. And that's why we are singing that song that says, Are you walking daily by the Savior's side? Are you walking daily by the savior's side? Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb? Do you rise each moment crucified? Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb? Are you walking daily? You know, the work of faith is a daily work, is that it requires a daily surrender into the Lord Jesus Christ. And there's nothing great than a surrendered heart. There's nothing greater than a surrendered heart. Um a team of people that are full of men and women that have surrendered to God will do amazing things. Because it's one thing to be uh become a Christian, it's another thing to become a surrendered uh Christian. We believe that because the tomb is empty, Jesus Christ is alive. Um, you know, and we could we you know, I can say I wasn't there. Um sometimes you can say, but were you there? And do you believe that the tomb is empty? Yeah, I wasn't there. I didn't see what happened, but I believe in the resurrection with all my heart. And you can always say, you can say, but why are you there and do you really believe? Do you believe this story that actually is resurrected? And uh the same question we keep asking is that you know, here for for us here in Kenya, uh, we we we were not there. Most of us here, I don't think there's anyone who was here. Um, in 1963, uh, when the British handed over independence to us in in Kenya, none of us was there on that day, you know, to witness that day. I don't think we are who are there on that day. But but we believe it, right? We believe it happened. We were we are told, but those who were there, we were told how it happened, how the flag of the British was lowered and the Kenyan flag went up. How you know the the uh Kenyan hero went to the Mount Kenya and planted that flag there. We are told we are not there, but we we are told. We are told about the state of emergency that was declared in 1952. When um when people were rounded up uh from homes and sent into you know detention camps, um we are told we are not there. We are told, and because we are told by those who were there, we believe. Um we are told about Germans, um, this you know, they surrender in the World War II. None of us was there, but we are told that they surrender. And why? We believe all these things happened uh first because we've had the testimony of those who were there. Uh the those that fought battles, they won the victory, they passed the good news. And each year we meet to celebrate Madaraka Day, we meet to celebrate Jamhori Day, um, you know, we celebrate the end of the world, you know, world war. We see uh soldiers marching in to remember that. Why? Because we were not there, but that we are we were we are told um by those who were there. And so it's the same thing this morning. I wasn't there when Jesus rose from the dead, but I believe it with all my heart. Uh, because um one there are eyewitnesses who told it in in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verses 3 to 8, the apostle Paul writes, he says, For what I received, I passed on to you, that Christ died for our sins, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the twelve. After that, he appeared to more than 500 of the brothers at the same time. Then he appeared to James, then to the apostles to all the apostles, and last of all, he appeared to me also. See, this is what Paul writes about the resurrection, you know, because there were eyewitnesses that told us that it is true. And this morning we celebrate the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ because we are there, but there were eyewitnesses who actually were there, they saw it up in the same way today. You celebrate your birthday. They tell you, oh, you are born on this day. We are not there to know which day you are born, but you believe it because your mother told you this is the day you are born. Same thing. We celebrate Jammuri Day, we celebrate many, many events. Why? We have eyewitnesses who were there who saw it happen. Your mother saw you being born, and on that basis, you celebrate your birthday every year. There were apostles, there were there were eyewitnesses that saw it. Um, the apostle in 1 John chapter 1 to 2, um apostle John writes, that which was from the beginning, which we have had, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at, and our hands have touched, this we proclaim. In other words, the apostle John is saying, I want to tell you what we saw, what we felt, what we experienced. I want to tell you about Jesus. And this morning I believe that Jesus rose from the dead because reliable people who saw that, who saw what happened, passed it on to us. And that's why we have got that faith. So this morning, brothers and sisters, we serve a God who is alive and who is all powerful. They could not put him on the grave, the soldiers could do nothing. When the angels came down, there was an earthquake, they rolled that stone, he left the, you know, and and Jesus and the tomb was opened so that people could see that Jesus was not in that grave. We serve a God who is alive and who is powerful. And why do we do that? Because there were eyewitnesses that told us it is true. We believe it with all our hearts. And today, as you go to celebrate Holy Communion, wherever you shall be, if you're at all, or when we do it every Sunday, we know we know we believe it because reliable people give us that information. What a what what what a powerful thing um you know that we have this morning, um, but also we believe it because our world is greatly different because Jesus is alive, our world is greatly different. In 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verses 14, Paul writes, if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless, and so is your faith. If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless, and so is your faith. You see, one of the things that the world cannot deal with is your own personal testimony of what Christ has done in your life. You know, people may have the arguments around the Lord Jesus Christ, but when you get to know the Lord, what when you know who the Lord is and you know what he has done to your life, nobody can nobody can fight with that. Um, 2000 years later, God's people are still gathering, you know, and even if another 2,000 years, God's people will still be meeting to remember because Jesus is alive. And in the lives of those who belong to him, sin and death have been conquered and victory has been won. Our world is different because Jesus is alive. Imagine today of the world without Christians. Imagine a world without Christians. And and just imagine how it will be. We've seen just a test of being, you know, when you are led by an godly people. Um now imagine a world today where there's no Christ, a world without Jesus. Just imagine that world. But for me, it is more of how my life, my own life has changed since 1991. I I I look back and I say, you know, you may hug you about anything else, but I know what Christ has done in my life. I know who I was, I know who I was, I know my life. I have seen him every single day of my life. I've seen him come through, I've seen him fight for me, I've seen him hear, I've seen him answer prayer, I've seen him speak to me, I've seen him guide me. Even in the darkest of darkest of the darkest of times, I've seen God's hand. And so there is no way you can persuade me out of the Lord Jesus Christ. Why? Because my life has been absolutely transformed. Not so I'm not a Christian because of what people say. I'm a Christian first, because what I've seen the Lord do in my life, and that cannot be taken away by anybody, you know. So I believe it because our world is greatly different, because Jesus is alive. But I have seen, I've seen who I used to be, I've seen my friends, and the difference between who I was and you know, and and where I am and where I am today. And I'm sure it is it will be the same, same testimony uh that you have um this morning. We are Christians because of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done in our own personal lives. Personal testimony is what keeps us going. Where your faith is not built, um, you know, it's not built on people. Your faith is not built on your pastor, on the preaching of your pastor on Sunday. Your faith is built on nothing else but on Christ. The rock. That's why we say na iladamu. So sina wema. You know, it is it's powerful. On Christ, the solid rock, I stand. Our faith has to be built on you, on your own, what Christ is doing in your own life, not on the circumstances, not on people. But those maybe go pastors can fall and backslide and go away. We've seen great leaders that have fallen back behind. But when your faith is built on what Christ is doing in your life, you can withstand seasons in Jesus' name. Amen.

Lesson Four Hope Beyond The Grave

SPEAKER_00 38:49

And then number four, the resurrection gives us eternal hope beyond the grave. The resurrection gives us eternal hope beyond the grave. The resurrection changes the way we look at life and death. Uh, in you know, going back to 1 Corinthians chapter 15, the apostle Paul writes, Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. That's 1 Corinthians 15, uh 20. The empty tomb assures us that our earthly lives are not the end, but rather the beginning of an eternity spent in the presence of God. And you see, this reality then offers us hope uh to the wary. Um, you know, so if today you are feeling wary, you are beaten, life has beaten you, and take heart, my brothers and sisters. You know, our earthly lives can only go this far. But, you know, wherever is going to end, it's gonna be the beginning of an eternity spent in the presence of God. Maybe you are you are grieving this morning. We have people that have lost loved ones and um who have gone through difficult points, and you know, and we are you are in grief. Um, you know, let this be an encouragement to us all that our other lives are not the end, but rather the beginning of an eternity spent in the presence of God and also assurance to the uncertain. So through the resurrection of Christ, we are reminded that our hope is not confined to this temporal world, but extends into the boundless expanse of eternity. This is not our home. This is not our home, brother and sister. For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. That's 2 Corinthians chapter 5, verses 1. He's saying, even when this earthly tent that we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. So, whatever brothers and sisters you are going through today, no matter what it is, I can assure you that's not the end of the story. The worst that can happen is that you die, you leave this world, but it says absence in the body, present in the spirit. Your suffering and pain are not lost on God. He sees every deer, he hears every prayer. And whatever we go through, whatever pain we are going through, you know, this we need to be reminded that this is not our home. This is not our home we are passing by. Every Easter Sunday, like we have this morning as we go to our house of worship, is a reminder that God keeps his promises. You'll come through in the end, and that the sting of death has been defeated. Every time we gather on Easter Sunday, it is a reminder that the sting of death has been defeated. And this is the hope that we have. This is the hope that we have, brothers and sisters, that beyond everything, beyond the jobs, beyond all these things, we have a hope in Christ. In fact, Apostle Peter says, Praise be to the God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, in his great mercy, he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. There's an inheritance, brothers and sisters, that can never perish, that can never spoil, and can never fade. And that's good news, friends. You not find a better promise at this side of heaven. You cannot find a better promise than that. We have a Christ, we have an inheritance that can never perish, that never spoils or fades. That is that should give us uh encouragement. And when God talks about, um, you know, you know, when when when God talks about death in the scripture, He uses different words than we normally use. And so we can be encouraged this morning that um beyond this world, beyond the we have eternal hope, beyond the grave. And I guess one thing that we must always have as Christians, we know where we are going, we know why we are here, we have hope beyond a grave. Why? Because today in Resurrection Sunday, we are reminded that we have hope beyond the grave. And Jesus talked about death uh a lot, you know. He is it's talked about it as being um you know, as being a wedding, you know. Um he talked about death as being like a wedding. You know, we've seen most of you have been to weddings, and I can assure you, you never see anywhere any any any you never see an ugly bride in any wedding. The the bride is you know, white, dressed in white, they are the coming through the aisle. Um, you know, and and that's how the Lord Jesus Christ uh described it. And so for us as a church, the church is like a bride waiting for the coming of the bridegroom in that glorious moment when she will be with him uh forever and forever. And so, brothers and sisters, um, he also says death is like going home at the end of a big Day it is wonderful to say I'm going home. It's wonderful to be able to go home and relax to feel the warmth, the love of home, and know that you have a share in all that happens there. When you go, you know, you after a daring day, you run home. Home is a place of safety, home is a place um where you feel you know you the warmth and everything. And you know what for us, death is like going home. And so today uh we can we can be encouraged that we you know that we have a hope um that Jesus Christ, uh today as a resurrection Sunday, gives us eternal hope beyond the grave, that we have a home uh beyond this life that we are leading, we that we are that we are living

Prayer Response And Closing Songs

SPEAKER_00 44:43

now. And so as I um as I finish so that we can spend a few moments in prayer, I want to encourage us this morning to uh understand that we have a hope beyond the grave, that today Resurrection Sunday reminds us about so many things. That's why uh events like this are important. Uh, you know, uh when you have a birthday and you're you're celebrating your brother, it's a place to pause and say, realize, oh my god, uh one more year is gone. Um, one more year is gone. When you celebrate your wedding anniversary, it's another, it tells you, hey, we have been married now for 20 years. And today, when we resurrect uh on on resurrection Sunday, it's a reminder of all those things. This world is not our home. Jesus conquered death, he's a powerful God. Now you cannot stop the plan of you cannot stop the plan of God, brothers and sisters. And as we pause today, may all these things become a reality in our lives. And so let's be and let's be encouraged, brothers and sisters. Let's continue fighting, um, let's continue uh serving God, and um, you know, and that's why I love the song that says, Down at the cross, down at the cross, down at the cross, we are my savior, I down we are for cleansing from sin. I cry there to my heart was the blood apply, oh glory to his name, and then there's another says, Oh, precious fountain that saves from sin. I'm so glad I've entered in. There, Jesus saves me and keeps me clean and says, Glory, glory to his name. Oh precious fountain that saves from sin. I'm so glad I've entered in. There's Jesus saves me and keeps me clean. Glory to his name. Let us unmute, brothers and sisters, and let's respond to that word in the 10 minutes that we have left behind, and then our brother and Dola will come and wrap it up for us. And respond to that Scott's word. Maybe you are feeling down, you have gone through pain, through hardships. May the resurrection Sunday resurrect every dream, resurrect everything in your life that was beginning to fade. Maybe you've grown wary of serving God. Maybe things have happened, you know, things haven't gone the way you thought they would go. Brothers, be encouraged. Um, this world is not our home. We'll, you know, we have a place God has prepared for us. Let's fight, let's keep it, let's keep going. Uh let's keep the you know, keep the faith, let's keep running the race. Um, Christ is coming soon. This is not our home, brothers and sisters. Uh, there's a place he has gone to prepare for us. And today is a time to pause and reflect, and let's allow all things to come in so you can energize us to serve him, get our proudness right, and to go out there and do what we must do in Jesus' mighty name. Let's pray. Let's read, let's let's just get together in prayer this morning. Glory to his name.

SPEAKER_01 47:50

There to my heart was a blood of life, glory to his name. Oh, precious fountain and same fountain. I am so glad I have entered it. Glory to his name. Glory to his name, there to my life.