SPEAKER_02: Good morning, church.
SPEAKER_02: Isn't it good to sing praises like that?
SPEAKER_02: Man, he deserves all the glory and all the praise.
SPEAKER_02: Amen.
SPEAKER_02: I hope you have a Bible.
SPEAKER_02: If you do, open it up to Luke chapter 23.
SPEAKER_02: If you don't, there are Bibles right there in front of you.
SPEAKER_02: And if you'd like to take one home as a gift from us, we'd be happy to give that to you.
SPEAKER_02: We replace those Bibles all the time.
SPEAKER_02: And so please take one and have your own copy of God's Word.
SPEAKER_02: You know, today's Easter.
SPEAKER_02: It's such a great celebration.
SPEAKER_02: We sing about it, we pray, we enjoy this fellowship together.
SPEAKER_02: We remember the victory that we have in Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: I mean, I believe that because Jesus died and because he rose from the grave, it changes everything.
SPEAKER_02: It changes everything in human history.
SPEAKER_02: In fact, I would say that it is the climax of human history, right?
SPEAKER_02: The most important thing happened right there at Calvary and three days later in the empty tomb.
SPEAKER_02: Then when Jesus comes back, he's just gonna finish what he started.
SPEAKER_02: Amen.
SPEAKER_02: So we say he is risen and he's seated at the right hand of the Father.
SPEAKER_02: We need to remember these things.
SPEAKER_02: I don't know if this is gonna age the room, but almost every person in the room has one of these in their pocket.
SPEAKER_02: We asked our kids to wait until they were in junior high, and then they got one without a number, and then when they get to high school, they get one with a number.
SPEAKER_02: But pretty much in our culture, most people have one of these in their pocket.
SPEAKER_02: You know what that means?
SPEAKER_02: We don't remember things very well anymore.
SPEAKER_02: Uh the average person before smartphones had at least a dozen numbers memorized.
SPEAKER_02: Now, if you're good at memorizing things, you might have had two or three dozen numbers memorized.
SPEAKER_02: So here you go.
SPEAKER_02: If you have two or three dozen numbers memorized just by show of hands, I want to see how many old school, we got it, oh, we got all here we got them.
SPEAKER_02: We got them in the room.
SPEAKER_02: Now, if I would have asked that 20, 25 years ago, maybe 30 years ago, most of the room would raise their hand.
SPEAKER_02: Now, the ones we have memorized are the most important ones.
SPEAKER_02: I got to say this in our first gathering.
SPEAKER_02: The number I've got memorized is my wife's.
SPEAKER_02: I can access my wife.
SPEAKER_02: She's usually sitting right there.
SPEAKER_02: I can access my wife, whether I have my smartphone or not.
SPEAKER_02: I can borrow someone's phone in an emergency.
SPEAKER_02: I can call her because I have it memorized.
SPEAKER_02: You know why?
SPEAKER_02: Because that's the most important one.
SPEAKER_02: Amen.
SPEAKER_02: My kids, we try to teach them to memorize mom and dad's number.
SPEAKER_02: So even if they get in a tight spot, or if they're in the nurse's office at school, or something happens, they need to call us and they don't have their phone, they can call our number because we think that's very important for them to call.
SPEAKER_02: Well, I will tell you this morning as we celebrate Easter, the most important thing to remember is that Jesus didn't stay dead.
SPEAKER_02: He rose.
SPEAKER_02: Amen.
SPEAKER_02: That's the most important thing.
SPEAKER_02: We have to remember that.
SPEAKER_02: And so as we approach the scripture this morning, I'm going to read, starting in chapter 23, but let me pray before I do that.
SPEAKER_02: Let's ask the Lord to just focus our attention and our affection on him.
SPEAKER_02: I'm also praying for a pastor down the road.
SPEAKER_02: I love to pray for pastors before I preach.
SPEAKER_02: And so today we're praying for Pastor Jose Abaroa.
SPEAKER_02: He leads Cypress Creek Church right down the road.
SPEAKER_02: There are many services.
SPEAKER_02: Here's his special prayer request.
SPEAKER_02: We talked this week as I'm praying for you this week.
SPEAKER_02: And he said, please pray that people's lives will be transformed by the gospel.
SPEAKER_02: So we're going to pray that and we'll jump right into the text.
SPEAKER_02: Lord, thank you so much for an opportunity to stand right here on this platform and proclaim Jesus and the victory we have in Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: Thank you for the gathered church.
SPEAKER_02: Thank you for just a sense of joy and celebration, excitement, the hope that we have on a day like today.
SPEAKER_02: I pray, God, that you would focus my mind, that I would step aside, that preparation and notes, those things would not matter near as much as what the Holy Spirit wants to communicate.
SPEAKER_02: When the scripture and the spirit come together, we can be changed forever.
SPEAKER_02: And so, God, I ask that you do a mighty work in me today.
SPEAKER_02: I thank you for my brother and friend, Pastor Jose.
SPEAKER_02: And I just ask that you would use him, all the other ministry leaders and lay leaders in that place.
SPEAKER_02: It takes a lot of people volunteering and serving to pull off these services.
SPEAKER_02: I just ask God that the most important thing people walk away from at CCC today is that lives can be transformed by the power of the gospel.
SPEAKER_02: I pray for all the churches preaching Jesus in our area, in this community, in our state, nation, the ends of the earth, that we would remember lives can be transformed by the power of the gospel.
SPEAKER_02: So help us to do that.
SPEAKER_02: We want to be your kingdom people.
SPEAKER_02: I pray that in Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_02: Amen.
SPEAKER_02: Well, read along with me if you got the scriptures.
SPEAKER_02: I'm in chapter 23, starting in verse 50, and I'll read all the way through 24, verse 12.
SPEAKER_02: It says this.
SPEAKER_02: Now, there was a man named Joseph from the Jewish town of Arimathea.
SPEAKER_02: He was a member of the council, a good and righteous man, who had not consented to their decision and action.
SPEAKER_02: And he was looking for the kingdom of God.
SPEAKER_02: This man went to Pilate, asked for the body of Jesus, then he took it down, he wrapped it in a linen shroud, and laid him in a tomb cut in stone, where no one had ever been laid.
SPEAKER_02: It was the day of preparation, and the Sabbath was beginning.
SPEAKER_02: The women who had come with him from Galilee followed and saw the tomb and how his body was laid.
SPEAKER_02: Then they returned and prepared spices and ointments.
SPEAKER_02: On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.
SPEAKER_02: Chapter 24.
SPEAKER_02: But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared, and they found the stone rolled away from the tomb.
SPEAKER_02: But when they went in, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling white apparel.
SPEAKER_02: And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, Why do you seek the living among the dead?
SPEAKER_02: He is not here, but has risen.
SPEAKER_02: Remember how he told you while he was still in Galilee that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and on the third day rise.
SPEAKER_02: And they remembered his words.
SPEAKER_02: And returning from the tomb, they told all these things to the eleven, to all the rest.
SPEAKER_02: Now it was Mary, Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary, the mother of James, and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles.
SPEAKER_02: But these words seemed to them as an idle tale.
SPEAKER_02: And they did not believe them.
SPEAKER_02: But Peter rose and ran to the tomb, stooping and looking in.
SPEAKER_02: He saw the linen cloth by themselves, and he went home, marveling at what had happened.
SPEAKER_02: I just want to bring a couple observations before we jump into the meat here.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus rose on the third day, empty tomb, right here as we finish chapter 23.
SPEAKER_02: Two things, two quick observations about Joseph of Arimathea.
SPEAKER_02: First of all, the reason that he has to bury Jesus' body is because Jesus was really dead.
SPEAKER_02: I don't believe that Jesus was in some kind of coma.
SPEAKER_02: I don't believe that he was resuscitated or had a spark given back to him.
SPEAKER_02: I believe he was really dead.
SPEAKER_02: Otherwise, Joseph would not have asked to bury his body.
SPEAKER_02: You see, these women were preparing spices and ointments because they wanted to give him a proper burial.
SPEAKER_02: They followed Joseph and said, Oh, he didn't put any spices or ointments, and the Sabbath's coming, and we we got to rest on the day of rest, the seventh day of the week, but we're gonna get it all ready on the day of preparation, and we're running to that tomb.
SPEAKER_02: We want to make sure Jesus gets buried correctly.
SPEAKER_02: Why are they so concerned about burying him?
SPEAKER_02: Because he is really dead.
SPEAKER_02: Why does that matter?
SPEAKER_02: Because if he wasn't really dead, then he didn't really raise from the grave.
SPEAKER_02: Amen?
SPEAKER_02: He was really dead.
SPEAKER_02: Number two, Joseph.
SPEAKER_02: I love what it says here in chapter 23, verse 51.
SPEAKER_02: Joseph was looking for the kingdom of God.
SPEAKER_02: He was a Jewish leader, he's on this council, he was a part of the group that said, crucify, he needs to be punished.
SPEAKER_02: He's a revolutionary, he's not the Messiah we've been waiting for.
SPEAKER_02: He's part of that group, but it says he didn't agree with them.
SPEAKER_02: He didn't agree with his peers.
SPEAKER_02: I don't think he would have counted himself a follower of Christ.
SPEAKER_02: He didn't go around following Jesus the three years of his ministry, but he was seeking something.
SPEAKER_02: He was looking for the kingdom of God.
SPEAKER_02: That's an important detail.
SPEAKER_02: I wonder if there's anyone that came to church today that, like Joseph, is looking for the kingdom of God.
SPEAKER_02: I've been skeptical before.
SPEAKER_02: I haven't really put my faith in Christ before, but but I'm curious.
SPEAKER_02: I'm looking.
SPEAKER_02: And I want to let you know if that's you, you're in the right place.
SPEAKER_02: This is a great place to learn about Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: This is a great place to meet other Christians that can help teach you and train you and tell you these things, these truths and promises we have in the scripture.
SPEAKER_02: You are in the right place if you are looking for the kingdom.
SPEAKER_02: I hope many of you that are here are looking for the kingdom of God.
SPEAKER_02: So as we transition into the meat of chapter 24, I want to tell you, it's odd that I would start in the middle, but I want to start in the middle to go to the front and then go to the end.
SPEAKER_02: The reason I want to start in the middle is because the most important thing happens right here in verses four and seven.
SPEAKER_02: We need to remember that Christ has already foretold us about his victory.
SPEAKER_02: The most important thing is that we actually remember what Jesus has said.
SPEAKER_02: So these women go to the tomb and they're ready to anoint Jesus' body.
SPEAKER_02: They meet two angels.
SPEAKER_02: How do I know that the two men in dazzling clothes are angels?
SPEAKER_02: Because in verse 23 of chapter 24, it says that they're angels.
SPEAKER_02: And these angels have a message.
SPEAKER_02: He is not here.
SPEAKER_02: He's risen.
SPEAKER_02: Happy Easter, by the way.
SPEAKER_02: He is risen.
SPEAKER_02: He's not here because he's risen.
SPEAKER_02: And they tell them, Don't you remember he said he was going to do this?
SPEAKER_02: And I'll tell you the three times in the Gospel of Luke that Jesus said he was going to die and then rise.
SPEAKER_02: I don't want to be redundant, but I do want to read them all.
SPEAKER_02: I think they're important for us to actually remember.
SPEAKER_02: The first was in Luke chapter 9.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus said, The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed.
SPEAKER_02: And on the third day be raised.
SPEAKER_02: The second reference is later in Luke chapter 9, verse 44.
SPEAKER_02: It says, Let these words sink into your ears.
SPEAKER_02: The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.
SPEAKER_02: But they did not understand the saying.
SPEAKER_02: And it was concealed from them so that they might not perceive it.
SPEAKER_02: And they were afraid to ask him about this saying.
SPEAKER_02: And the third time is in Luke chapter 18, it says this.
SPEAKER_02: Taking the twelve, he said to them, See, we're going up to Jerusalem, and everything that was written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.
SPEAKER_02: He will be delivered over to the Gentiles, and he will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon, and after flogging him they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise.
SPEAKER_02: So these angels are just telling the ladies here, don't you remember?
SPEAKER_02: He already said he was going to do these things.
SPEAKER_02: It's important for followers of Christ to remember the victory that we have in Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: My question for you is how are you remembering the cross and resurrection?
SPEAKER_02: I've waited all week to tell this story.
SPEAKER_02: I was so proud of my son.
SPEAKER_02: And we have the opportunity to pray up here in our worship gathering.
SPEAKER_02: We were praying with our family and some friends, and we were prepping for the Easter week, prepping for Good Friday, prepping for Easter.
SPEAKER_02: And he just prayed at his heart's desire.
SPEAKER_02: He said, God, help us remember that Friday is only good because Sunday's coming.
SPEAKER_02: And we sang that song.
SPEAKER_02: Friday's only good because Sunday's coming.
SPEAKER_02: And I remember my heart was spurred on because my son is helping me remember the victory that we have in Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: What needs to change in your life this week, this month, 2026, where you can better remember that there's victory in Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: I would argue this morning that you can have either a positive or a negative reaction.
SPEAKER_02: If you remember, there's a positive response in the life of a Christian.
SPEAKER_02: If you start to forget or you're not actively disciplined by remembering and being diligent to say, I want to put Christ in front of me, then there's actually a negative trend that can happen in your life.
SPEAKER_02: Here's the negative failing to remember leads to subtle doubt.
SPEAKER_02: And I'll remind you to look back at verse 1 through 4 in chapter 24.
SPEAKER_02: But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb taking the spices they had prepared.
SPEAKER_02: I love that these women are faithful.
SPEAKER_02: Man, first chance.
SPEAKER_02: They can't go on the Sabbath because you got to rest on the seventh day, but on that first day of the week, we're gonna go make sure that Jesus gets a proper burial.
SPEAKER_02: I love that faithfulness that they have.
SPEAKER_02: But I'll just remind you that there's something subtle about the fact that they spent all the time and resources and effort to prepare spices and ointments for burial.
SPEAKER_02: It must mean that they didn't think he was coming back to life.
SPEAKER_02: It must mean that they just wanted to make sure he was buried in a way that honored and respected his body.
SPEAKER_02: They weren't remembering.
SPEAKER_02: And so by failing to remember, it leads to a subtle doubt.
SPEAKER_02: They weren't expecting Jesus to be raised on the third day.
SPEAKER_02: Consider a couple weeks ago, we we talked about the crucifixion.
SPEAKER_02: And we talked about this being the darkest day in history that that the whole earth was dark, darkness covered the land.
SPEAKER_02: That was heaven grieving over the weight because Jesus had bore the sin of the world.
SPEAKER_02: There's something heavy and weighty about that.
SPEAKER_02: The women looking on were beating their chest and screaming, crying out bloody murder.
SPEAKER_02: Not my Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: Well, when I remember that, then I could be a little gracious and say, I can understand why they weren't remembering that he was supposed to raise on the third day.
SPEAKER_02: If you look at John chapter 20, the disciples, after Jesus was crucified, went and hid out in a house and locked the door.
SPEAKER_02: Why did they lock the door?
SPEAKER_02: Because they're scared.
SPEAKER_02: Because they're fearful.
SPEAKER_02: Because they're not remembering that Jesus actually is gonna claim his victory on the third day.
SPEAKER_02: Maybe you can relate being scared or fearful.
SPEAKER_02: Maybe you turn on the news in these recent weeks and think, oh, my goodness.
SPEAKER_02: Is World War III about to break out?
SPEAKER_02: Literally.
SPEAKER_02: Oh my goodness.
SPEAKER_02: Maybe you can understand just circumstances of our world and say, gosh, there's a lot to be fearful of and anxious about.
SPEAKER_02: And I get it.
SPEAKER_02: But can I tell you, as a preacher of the gospel, remember Christ crucified and Christ raised, and all of a sudden your perspective seems to change a little bit.
SPEAKER_02: It doesn't lead you to doubt or fear or anxious thoughts.
SPEAKER_02: It leads you to remember that this world is not all that it is, and this life is not all that it is, that we are created in the image of God with eternal souls, and we long for eternity, and we long to be face to face with Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: Why?
SPEAKER_02: Why can we long for that?
SPEAKER_02: Because our victory is in Him and Him alone.
SPEAKER_02: So remember, because if we fail to remember, it can lead to a subtle doubt.
SPEAKER_02: No matter what our circumstances might be, remember the victory that Jesus had and celebrate rather than walking in any kind of fear or doubt or anxiety.
SPEAKER_02: And let me tell you the positive.
SPEAKER_02: The negative is what might happen when we fail to remember, but let me tell you the positive.
SPEAKER_02: Remembering leads us to go and tell.
SPEAKER_02: I love the message from the angels here.
SPEAKER_02: Verse 6.
SPEAKER_02: He's not here, he's risen.
SPEAKER_02: Amen.
SPEAKER_02: Remember how he told you?
SPEAKER_02: Did you catch that word?
SPEAKER_02: They're saying, ladies, don't you remember what he taught you?
SPEAKER_02: And then did you see the shift?
SPEAKER_02: Did you see the heart change in verse 8?
SPEAKER_02: And they remembered his words.
SPEAKER_02: And returning from the tomb, they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.
SPEAKER_02: See, because of remembering, it leads us to go and tell.
SPEAKER_02: These ladies were ready to bury Jesus forever.
SPEAKER_02: Spices and ointment, not thinking about the resurrection.
SPEAKER_02: They meet these angels and they don't you remember?
SPEAKER_02: And then what happens?
SPEAKER_02: They actually remember, and all of a sudden the doubt or the fear or the anxiousness goes away.
SPEAKER_02: And then they go and run and tell the other disciples.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus rose just like he said he was going to.
SPEAKER_02: Come see the empty grave.
SPEAKER_02: I love that everything changes when we remember the cross and resurrection.
SPEAKER_02: I imagine that they run in and say, He's faithful, he's true.
SPEAKER_02: Hurry, come see what's going on.
SPEAKER_02: There's another story in the Gospel of John.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus meets a woman by the well in John chapter 4.
SPEAKER_02: And the woman by the well is living a sinful lifestyle.
SPEAKER_02: And in fact, it's pretty shocking that a Jew would talk to a Samaritan.
SPEAKER_02: It's pretty shocking that a man would talk to a woman without her husband there.
SPEAKER_02: But Jesus loves people.
SPEAKER_02: And he's engaging in conversation with this woman at the well.
SPEAKER_02: He says, Don't you know that Messiah is coming?
SPEAKER_02: She says, Yeah, I know he's coming.
SPEAKER_02: My forefathers have told us he's gonna come.
SPEAKER_02: And when he comes, he's gonna rescue us and we're gonna worship in spirit and truth.
SPEAKER_02: And Jesus says, Hey, I'm the one you've been waiting for.
SPEAKER_02: And if you would follow me, I would give you living water and you would never have to thirst again.
SPEAKER_02: And he says, What are you thirsting after these days?
SPEAKER_02: And she talks about her lifestyle and her promiscuity, and she's had multiple husbands, and he says, Let me tell you something better than all that.
SPEAKER_02: I got living water for you if you would come and follow me.
SPEAKER_02: And in the course of that exchange, I believe that she actually had faith that Jesus was Messiah.
SPEAKER_02: And her reaction is quoted in John 4, verse 28.
SPEAKER_02: It says, So the woman left her water jar and went away into the town and said to the people, Come see a man who told me all that I ever did.
SPEAKER_02: Can this be the Christ?
SPEAKER_02: Come and meet Jesus, right?
SPEAKER_02: When you remember that Jesus really is King, that He really did die and He really did raise from the grave.
SPEAKER_02: When we remember that, it leads us to go and tell.
SPEAKER_02: So who are you gonna go and tell this Easter?
SPEAKER_02: Who will you go and tell?
SPEAKER_02: Just this week, I was eating at a restaurant and I ran into someone and they had one of these bracelets on.
SPEAKER_02: I'll show you.
SPEAKER_02: These bracelets are coming back.
SPEAKER_02: Man, it's been 30 years since you had What Would Jesus do?
SPEAKER_02: But they're coming back.
SPEAKER_02: And people are wearing them.
SPEAKER_02: People are wearing a new one.
SPEAKER_02: I've said this before.
SPEAKER_02: I'm just so proud of my middle daughter.
SPEAKER_02: She had a presentation.
SPEAKER_02: It wasn't even, it was like a math presentation.
SPEAKER_02: She had to put something together.
SPEAKER_02: And instead of talking about math, she talked about Jesus and bought these for her classmates.
SPEAKER_02: Said, You don't have to take one, but I'd love to give it to you if you'd like to wear it.
SPEAKER_02: It's that reminder that what would Jesus do?
SPEAKER_02: And here on the top, HWLF, here's an answer.
SPEAKER_02: He would love.
SPEAKER_02: So are we showing the love of Christ?
SPEAKER_02: Are we standing on truth?
SPEAKER_02: Are we talking about his forgiveness and mercy?
SPEAKER_02: Are we talking about what it is to have joy in Jesus if you would turn from sin and trust in him?
SPEAKER_02: I would argue that if you remember, like the angels told the women to remember, then it would lead us to go and tell.
SPEAKER_02: It would lead us to go and tell.
SPEAKER_02: So now we see the response to the resurrection.
SPEAKER_02: And you see the disciples versus Peter.
SPEAKER_02: Let me give you two responses to the resurrection.
SPEAKER_02: It's interesting.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus fulfilled his promise.
SPEAKER_02: He rose from the grave.
SPEAKER_02: And that either leads to genuine belief or ardent atheism.
SPEAKER_02: That either leads to skepticism or surrender.
SPEAKER_02: Let me show you the skepticism.
SPEAKER_02: Verse 11.
SPEAKER_02: These women run, say, come and see the tomb is empty.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus rose from the grave.
SPEAKER_02: And the 11 disciples say, Yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02: That's just an idle tell.
SPEAKER_02: I wasn't in the room, but I imagine there was probably some sarcasm there.
SPEAKER_02: Probably demeaning language.
SPEAKER_02: Ladies, you don't know what you're talking about.
SPEAKER_02: They were failing to remember the promise of Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: And so they were skeptical.
SPEAKER_02: They show this skepticism.
SPEAKER_02: They're not waiting for his victory.
SPEAKER_02: They just tell these women that's an idle tell.
SPEAKER_02: It's crazy to me to think that these men would have been with Jesus day in and day out, saw signs and wonders, saw healing, preached, the kingdom is coming, repent and believe.
SPEAKER_02: They were used as instruments of God to see great things happen.
SPEAKER_02: And then finally Jesus keeps his word.
SPEAKER_02: They're skeptical.
SPEAKER_02: Ladies, I don't actually think that really happened.
SPEAKER_02: I don't really think that happened.
SPEAKER_02: You might be skeptical today.
SPEAKER_02: You might think, I don't, did Jesus really raise from the grave?
SPEAKER_02: And I just offered two quick apologetics.
SPEAKER_02: I don't think I'm gonna argue you into the kingdom.
SPEAKER_02: Can I give you just two things to think about?
SPEAKER_02: Number one, if this story was made up in the first century, they would have never used women to be the first eyewitnesses of the resurrection.
SPEAKER_02: Now, what I love about that is God is actually valuing women to make them the first witnesses of the empty tomb.
SPEAKER_02: But if the first century church is making up this story when a woman couldn't be a witness in the court of law, they would not have said, I think we should say it's the women that saw him first.
SPEAKER_02: If they made it up, they would have said, probably one of these guys, Peter.
SPEAKER_02: He saw it first.
SPEAKER_02: That's not what happens here.
SPEAKER_02: I think that gives credibility to the scriptures.
SPEAKER_02: By the way, the same thing when you read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, and you read about the disciples being foolish or not remembering or not having enough faith.
SPEAKER_02: Oh, you have little faith.
SPEAKER_02: If they made the whole thing up, why would they like self-deprecate and like tell on themselves and talk about the bad things they did?
SPEAKER_02: If I'm making up a story, I'm gonna be the hero of that story.
SPEAKER_02: I'm not gonna like air all my dirty laundry.
SPEAKER_02: What about this other apologetic?
SPEAKER_02: The linen cloth.
SPEAKER_02: You know, people that don't believe in the resurrection can't deny that Jesus was actually crucified.
SPEAKER_02: And so in some other face, they say it was a replacement, it was an actor, it wasn't really Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: They say Jesus really wasn't king.
SPEAKER_02: We know someone died because this historian talks about the crucifixion.
SPEAKER_02: We know that it actually happened, but but we don't believe in the resurrection.
SPEAKER_02: So let's let's figure out what might be if if he didn't really raise from the grave.
SPEAKER_02: Maybe they were grave robbers, maybe they came in and they wanted to rob the grave.
SPEAKER_02: What's interesting about that is why would they leave this linen?
SPEAKER_02: If they're grave robbers, why would they leave this expensive linen cloth, right?
SPEAKER_02: Joseph had to wrap him up in linen because a soldier stripped him and gambled over his clothes.
SPEAKER_02: He's buried naked, and so Joseph is trying to give him honor and bury him in this linen.
SPEAKER_02: If grave robbers came, they would have taken that cloth too.
SPEAKER_02: They didn't.
SPEAKER_02: That's an apologetic to say it actually wasn't grave robbers.
SPEAKER_02: Some other people will say Ethereum is ravenous dogs, wild dogs got into the tomb and took his body and ate it.
SPEAKER_02: Well, if that would have happened, why would this linen cloth be sitting there in the empty tomb?
SPEAKER_02: There was actually that crazy, violent scene of these ravenous dogs.
SPEAKER_02: I guarantee you that in two places it would not have said they looked in and saw the linen cloth.
SPEAKER_02: And then Peter looks in, he stoops in, all he sees is the linen cloth.
SPEAKER_02: Just a helpful apologetic.
SPEAKER_02: Just say, look, consider Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: Are you looking for the kingdom of God?
SPEAKER_02: And because there's that emphasis on linen this week, I did a deep dive on the shroud of Turin.
SPEAKER_02: Have anyone know about the shroud of Turin?
SPEAKER_02: Because I didn't know much about it until this past week.
SPEAKER_02: I had heard some things.
SPEAKER_02: I think it's likely.
SPEAKER_02: I actually think it's a possibility, and it's likely that God has preserved the linen cloth that Jesus was buried in over 2,000 years ago.
SPEAKER_02: Now, those that believe it really was the linen cloth, they go and they see it.
SPEAKER_02: It's in Italy, it's in a church, and there's, I mean, all kinds of crazy experiences that people have when they see this thing.
SPEAKER_02: But if you've never seen it, let me show you a couple images.
SPEAKER_02: There's one here.
SPEAKER_02: What you're looking at, just imagine.
SPEAKER_02: It's a 14-foot-long cloth.
SPEAKER_02: It was laid under the body of Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: He was laid on it, and then it covered his head, right?
SPEAKER_02: So the portion you're seeing here on the right side, I don't know if you can see an image of a face, and down on the left side, you would see two hands crossed.
SPEAKER_02: Isn't that pretty amazing?
SPEAKER_02: And people debate is this authentic?
SPEAKER_02: Is it not?
SPEAKER_02: They've done DNA testing, they've done blood testing.
SPEAKER_02: Hundreds of other shrouds have been found around the first century Jerusalem, and none of them have images like this.
SPEAKER_02: And so if it's true that this was the cloth Jesus was buried in, there's some kind of like energy or or flash of light, or not even something that physics could explain at the moment that Jesus was raised from the grave, made a physical impression on this cloth that was covering the body of Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: Let me show you the reverse image.
SPEAKER_02: It's this next one.
SPEAKER_02: So the the left one would be like an actual image of the cloth with some blood stain.
SPEAKER_02: If you reverse the light and make it dark and the dark and make it light, do you see this face on the right?
SPEAKER_02: That's amazing.
SPEAKER_02: And again, I'm not here to say it's 100% accurate.
SPEAKER_02: I think it's possible and I think it's very likely, to be honest.
SPEAKER_02: And so because many other people think it's so likely, there are efforts to make museums.
SPEAKER_02: One's in Washington, D.C., the Museum of the Bible has an exhibit with a replica of the Shroud of Turin.
SPEAKER_02: There's one in California.
SPEAKER_02: Uh, there's others all over the world.
SPEAKER_02: There's people that are trying to make a hundred of these museums.
SPEAKER_02: So just for one minute, read here or listen here about one of these places that's trying to make this museum so people can hear more about the shroud.
SPEAKER_00: Athonia is the word from the Gospel of John that describes what was found in the empty tomb.
SPEAKER_00: When Peter and John came to the tomb on that first Easter morning, they went in and they saw the linen claws lying.
SPEAKER_00: And so the word that John used in his gospel is Athonia.
SPEAKER_00: And so that's the name of our organization.
SPEAKER_00: It was founded in 2005 by a legionary priest.
SPEAKER_00: His name was Father Hector Gera.
SPEAKER_00: And Father Gera had a dream that there would be a hundred exhibits around the world so that people from around the world could come and learn about the shroud in their own language and in their own environment.
SPEAKER_00: I became interested in the shroud when I was a teenager growing up in Colorado when one of the members of my church was a part of the 1978 Shroud of Turin research project team.
SPEAKER_00: And so when he came back from Turin and started sharing about his experience studying the Shroud as a physicist, I was a high school student.
SPEAKER_00: I was very interested in it.
SPEAKER_00: So every talk he would give, I would go and listen.
SPEAKER_01: When I look at the blood evidence in relation to the image, and I see what I believe is our Lord who suffered, you know, these kinds of things, and terrible indeed they were, but did it as an ultimate self-sacrificial act of love to redeem us, to redeem the world, to protect us from evil, I look at that and I go, wow, you know, I don't need a relic to substantiate my faith.
SPEAKER_01: I don't think many other Christians or Catholics do either, but nevertheless, it doesn't hurt.
SPEAKER_02: Don't you like what he says there at the end?
SPEAKER_02: I I actually don't need a physical piece of evidence.
SPEAKER_02: I can my faith can stand on its own.
SPEAKER_02: But if it's true that that was the burial cloth of Jesus, it doesn't hurt to have that little piece of history.
SPEAKER_02: It doesn't hurt.
SPEAKER_02: I I did a deep dive on that this week.
SPEAKER_02: If that's an encouragement to you, I would encourage you to Google it, do a deep dive, watch some videos.
SPEAKER_02: But then if you're so inclined, would you do a deep dive right here into one of the gospels?
SPEAKER_02: Matthew, Mark, or Luke or John.
SPEAKER_02: Do a deep dive and say, Jesus, I want to see.
SPEAKER_02: Are you real?
SPEAKER_02: And maybe you go from a place of skepticism to marvel.
SPEAKER_02: Now, I don't actually think that you can argue apologetics and just convince someone, right?
SPEAKER_02: I think that there needs to be something happening where the Holy Spirit's giving new eyes and new heart, but it's good to study apologetics.
SPEAKER_02: And rather than trying to argue with people, my job as a preacher is just to plea with people to put their faith in Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: And so I will boldly say, I just plead with you.
SPEAKER_02: Would you consider that my sin separates me from my creator and your sin separates you?
SPEAKER_02: But Jesus fulfilled all the promises of God, and the rescue plan is that he died in place of me and in place of everyone else that puts their faith in him.
SPEAKER_02: That if you would turn from sin and trust in him, you can't have new life.
SPEAKER_02: I mean, that's what that's what Paul does here.
SPEAKER_02: Paul hated Christians.
SPEAKER_02: He was a Pharisee, he was a part of Stephen Stoning.
SPEAKER_02: He said he would drag people out of their homes because they believed in the way.
SPEAKER_02: And here, towards the end of his life, he's pleading with King Agrippa, sharing his testimony, saying, Would you just trust in Jesus?
SPEAKER_02: I want to read it for you.
SPEAKER_02: It's right before he goes to Rome and pleads in front of Caesar.
SPEAKER_02: He's pleading in front of King Agrippa.
SPEAKER_02: It says in Acts chapter 26, I'm going to start in verse 16.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus is speaking to him after he had a face-to-face encounter with him.
SPEAKER_02: It says, But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to whom I am sending you, to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness into light, and from the power of Satan to God, and that they might receive forgiveness of sins, and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.
SPEAKER_02: Listen, I don't want to try to argue into belief, but I will plead with you.
SPEAKER_02: Would you go from a place of skepticism to surrender?
SPEAKER_02: Would you go from a place of darkness to light?
SPEAKER_02: And would you go from a place of being gripped and captive of Satan to a place of total surrender to Jesus because he can wash away all your sin?
SPEAKER_02: That's a beautiful hope that we have in the gospel.
SPEAKER_02: In John 10 10, it says, The thief only comes to steal and kill and destroy, but Jesus came that we might have life and have it abundantly.
SPEAKER_02: In Romans 5, it says God shows or demonstrates his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
SPEAKER_02: Would you surrender to him today?
SPEAKER_02: So one response might be skepticism.
SPEAKER_02: Here's the other, and I love it.
SPEAKER_02: It's Peter.
SPEAKER_02: We'll close with this.
SPEAKER_02: Peter's response is marvel.
SPEAKER_02: Right, so the other disciples are like, Yeah, whatever, ladies, I don't really think that's true.
SPEAKER_02: We don't we don't believe you.
SPEAKER_02: You're just telling an idle tale.
SPEAKER_02: Yet, Peter in verse 12, in a complete contrast, and when you see this word but and you're reading the scripture and you see but Peter, that should clue you in.
SPEAKER_02: Peter does the opposite.
SPEAKER_02: There's a contrast, there's a good example to follow and a bad example to follow.
SPEAKER_02: I want to follow Peter's.
SPEAKER_02: But Peter rose and ran to the tomb, stooping in, looking.
SPEAKER_02: He saw the linen cloths by themselves, and he went home marveling at what had happened.
SPEAKER_02: It's true.
SPEAKER_02: He's the Christ.
SPEAKER_02: He said he would rise.
SPEAKER_02: He did.
SPEAKER_02: It's true.
SPEAKER_02: Every promise that Jesus gave us is true.
SPEAKER_02: He's marveling.
SPEAKER_02: Now just imagine.
SPEAKER_02: You might remember Peter's story.
SPEAKER_02: He denied Jesus three times.
SPEAKER_02: He said, I will never deny you, Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: I'll die for you.
SPEAKER_02: And then sure enough, Jesus is arrested and he goes, I don't know the man.
SPEAKER_02: I don't even, I don't who are you talking about?
SPEAKER_02: I don't know him.
SPEAKER_02: And the rooster crows three times, and Peter looks at Jesus across the courtyard.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus looks him right in the eye, and Peter weeps in repentance and sorrow.
SPEAKER_02: I failed my king.
SPEAKER_02: So imagine when these ladies come, Mary and Mary and Joanna, and they say, We really think that he rose from the grave, the tomb is empty.
SPEAKER_02: And all the other disciples kind of laugh at them and say it's just a tale.
SPEAKER_02: Peter, something rises up in him, this hope to say, I know how I failed my king.
SPEAKER_02: I know the weight of my sin and rebellion.
SPEAKER_02: But if it's true, I'm running to that tomb.
SPEAKER_02: I'm running.
SPEAKER_02: I gotta see, is this thing true?
SPEAKER_02: I just wonder if you can relate to Peter at all today and say, if I stand before a holy God, I know that I deserve nothing.
SPEAKER_02: But if it's true, that Jesus has kept every promise he made.
SPEAKER_02: If it's true, he can wash away my sin.
SPEAKER_02: If it's true, he can give me eternal life.
SPEAKER_02: Man, I want to run in full surrender and just marvel.
SPEAKER_02: Just stand in awe.
SPEAKER_02: God, I just stand in awe of you.
SPEAKER_02: Maybe you're like me.
SPEAKER_02: I love sunsets.
SPEAKER_02: I see sunsets, I just stand in awe of them.
SPEAKER_02: Like, God, you're so cool.
SPEAKER_02: Recently, my family was on spring break, and we got to take this picture of this sunset.
SPEAKER_02: It's so beautiful.
SPEAKER_02: I could just sit and watch a sunset for hours.
SPEAKER_02: I love watching sunsets.
SPEAKER_02: It reminds me of how big and awesome our God is.
SPEAKER_02: Maybe you came today and you're singing about the cross and the resurrection, and you just stand in awe of him and say, God, you're so good.
SPEAKER_02: Maybe you're reading through the Bible this next week and you have a moment where you just feel like it sits on you, and you remember all the promises of Jesus and you stand in awe of him.
SPEAKER_02: My encouragement to you is we see the resurrection, we can either be skeptics or we can marvel.
SPEAKER_02: I hope that you marvel.
SPEAKER_02: I don't know if you've failed to remember and it's been leading you to doubt or frustration or anxiety.
SPEAKER_02: Let that change today and come and respond and say, I just want to remember better.
SPEAKER_02: It's the most important phone number in my whole directory up here.
SPEAKER_02: Jesus, you died in rows.
SPEAKER_02: Make that the most important thing in my life.
SPEAKER_02: I don't know if you just need to find a better way to marvel and stand in awe.
SPEAKER_02: Either you're skeptical or you're celebrating the hope that you have in Jesus, and that makes you go and tell others.
SPEAKER_02: I don't know which person you want to be, but I know which one I want to be.
SPEAKER_02: Let's pray.
SPEAKER_02: Lord, thank you so much for the hope of the gospel.
SPEAKER_02: And we thank you, God, that we come to a place like this and we celebrate.
SPEAKER_02: We celebrate all that we have in Christ.
SPEAKER_02: And I just ask, God, that it wouldn't end in this moment.
SPEAKER_02: It would it would take us to a place of wanting to go and tell.
SPEAKER_02: It would take us to a place of remembering more.
SPEAKER_02: We would grow in our walk with you and have opportunity to experience that joy of full life in Jesus.
SPEAKER_02: And so I just pray, God, during our response time, if people need to come and speak to a pastor or minister, God, give them the courage and the boldness to do that.
SPEAKER_02: They just want to come at these steps and kneel down in a sign of surrender and say, Jesus, I want you to have my whole life.
SPEAKER_02: Maybe you're dealing with them in a specific area and they just need to go outside.
SPEAKER_02: These two songs we're gonna sing, they just go outside and walk and have a little conversation with you, some honesty with you.
SPEAKER_02: Help us in this moment, God.
SPEAKER_02: Help us respond in a way that honors you.
SPEAKER_02: We pray that in Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_02: Amen.