Resurrection: The Grand Finale Pt. 2
Jesus really died for us, for our sin. And Jesus really jumped back to life again, just like He predicted (Jesus refers to Himself as ‘the Son of Man’ in the following passage):
“He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that He must be killed and after three days rise again.” (Mark 8:31)
Not surprisingly, NO RELIGIOUS LEADER in the history of the world has ever sought to prove his claims to be from God on the basis that if you kill him, he will return from the grave – none except Jesus that is! It’s a pretty decisive method.
Talk about significant and substantial! The resurrection of Jesus is God’s great marker in history that declares that Jesus will have the LAST WORD in history. Acts 17:31 says,
“For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice
by the man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to
all men by raising Him from the dead.”
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IV. THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD – IT DID NOT END WITH A LIE (Continued)
Please look at Matthew 28:11-28 for a moment…a MOST REMARKABLE PASSAGE. It is JUST AFTER THE RESURRECTION has taken place…and there IS a lie concocted about the resurrection. Let’s LOOK at it,
“Now while they were on their way, behold, some of the guard came into
the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened.”
(Now this is the TEMPLE guard, not the ROMAN guard).
“And when they had assembled with the elders and counseled together,
they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers,”
“and said, ‘You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him
away while we were asleep.’”
“‘And if this should come to the governor’s ears, we will win him over
and keep you out of trouble.’”
“And they took the money and did as they had been instructed; and this
story was widely spread among the Jews, and is to this day.”
“But the 11 disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus
had designated.”
“And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful.”
“And Jesus came up and spoke to them saying, ‘All authority has been
given to Me in heaven and on earth.’”
“‘Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,’”
“‘teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with
you always, even to the end of the age.’”
A. There WAS a LIE spread about the resurrection – there HAD to be, it is how the Father of Lies works. He tries to falsify everything about Jesus Christ and Christianity. Masking lies as truth is his MASTERPIECE.
-Satan will lie His brains out to everyone, including God. When Ananias and Sapphira lied about the sum of the offering they gave to the church, it was Satan who was lying through them. We read in Acts 5:3,
“…that it was Satan who filled their hearts to lie
to the Holy Spirit.”
-Absolutely incredible! Satan will lie about everything that pertains to truth and godliness, not the least, LIE ABOUT THE EMPTY TOMB OF JESUS. All those who do not believe in the RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST have believed SATAN’S LIE.
-The devil and his demons are at work in the world constantly to undermine any beginning foundation of faith that might be taking shape in the hearts of men. He tampers with and lies to their thoughts before they are even aware that he is near.
-In short, SATAN HAS BEEN AND IS LYING TO THE WHOLE WORLD ABOUT THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST.
-In fact, it is all that that LYING DEVIL has going for him, and sad to say, it has been and still is going quite well, FOR HIS STOCK AND TRADE IS FALSEHOOD, AND HE IS REALLY QUITE GOOD AT IT. He is a WELL-PRACTICED LIAR AND THE FATHER OF ALL LIES.
B. But listen:
“YOU CAN NEVER COVER REALITY WITH A LIE,
IT CAN NEVER STAND THE TEST OF TIME.”
As a matter of FACT, the resurrection of Jesus Christ was so REAL that it REQUIRED A LIE to cover it up. Had it not been REAL, it wouldn’t have required a lie at all.
ILLUSTRATION
If you saw your 4 year old child with a hand in the cookie jar, and before you could SAY anything at all, the child said, “I’m not getting a cookie,” how many of you think that you might have a problem with his credibility? And what GAVE IT AWAY? The fact that YOU didn’t put the lie in his mind, it was ALREADY IN his MIND in the first place, right?
Do you understand that NOBODY had PROCLAIMED a RESURRECTION? The disciples were SCATTERED ALL OVER AND totally CONVINCED of JESUS’ DEATH, and yet the chief priests are trying to “beat them to the punch” by paying soldiers to LIE and to go around and tell everybody that there IS NO RESURRECTION.
Here is the point:
“THE RESURRECTION WAS SUCH AN UNDENIABLE REALITY, THAT THE PEOPLE
WHO REJECTED IT HAD TO FIND A LIE, A LIE MORE PREPOSTEROUS
AND RIDICULOUS IN THE LIGHT OF THE MOUNTING EVIDENCE
THAT TIME PRODUCED.”
***
The RESURRECTION WAS SO REAL that it removed the GREAT STONE:
a. It was so real that it sent AMAZED WOMEN RUNNING to tell AMAZED DISCIPLES. While the women and the disciples were amazed, Satan was not amused. What could he do but do what he does best – tell a lie?! The report of Christ risen from the dead was Satan’s death sentence. Somehow he must flatten the tires and remove the battery from this Eastermobile. This otherwise will ruin him! Satan could not lie it away, and the Eastermobile rolled over his head.
b. It was so real that DISILLUSIONED DISCIPLES who were scattered to EVERY POINT ON THE MAP of Israel, miles and miles away, retreated to the edge of nowhere. They no doubt were asking themselves what role they could play in society now. For sure the devil was doing his worst to break up the disciple pack! But they dramatically WERE REGATHERED IN POWER AND STRENGTH, and they saw the SCARS IN HIS SIDE, AND IN HIS FEET, AND IN HIS HANDS.
c. It was so real that 120 of His FAITHFUL DISCIPLES waited for days for the PROMISE that only A RISEN LORD COULD HAVE SENT. It was far more than an interesting tale that had brought them under conviction. They now had been consumed with the certainty of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. They didn’t need photos to remember Him by! They saw Him face to face, and there is nothing so reliable and complete as hard fact. They were now instead pacing the nursery waiting for the Holy Spirit-filled church to be delivered.
d. It was so real that when they RECEIVED THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE UPPER ROOM, it sent them ALL OVER THE WORLD TO PREACH THE GOSPEL:
-that Jesus had not only risen from the dead,
-but had sat down at the right hand of the Father where He would remain,
-continuing His priesthood until He prevailed over all of His enemies.
e. It was so real that for the first time, these UNLEARNED MEN and WOMEN SPOKE IN TONGUES/LANGUAGES that they had never learned as they were FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. And they were understood and interpreted by others AS MAGNIFYING AND PRAISING GOD and declaring THE GOSPEL OF THE RESURRECTION.
f. It was so real that, as they declared that Gospel on the Day of Pentecost, there were 300 CONVERTS ON THE FIRST DAY. You do not preach a lie with that kind of confidence AND FERVOR. It was the Holy Spirit of God working through the 120 that revealed the risen Christ to the new believers sight unseen. Today we have hi-tech audio and video to do the convincing, but entertainment and amusement can never replace the power of the Holy Spirit. Entertainment can never replace empowerment by the Spirit of God.
g. It was so real that when they believed and preached it, thousands of others believed it with them. It was sreading out of control, and there is now much more than a tinge of desperation on Satan’s face. The sounds of Easter celebration are filling and replacing Friday’s dead air everwhere. Satan’s poorly conceived lie is being shredded, and now he realizes that unless he can reverse Easter, there really is no sense in telling other lies. But then again, he can’t help himself, for the consummate liar is addicted to falsehood. It is really all he has to work with.
h. It was so real that it mustered the courage in their hearts to STAND BEFORE THE SANHEDRIN who were the very murderers of Christ, and declare to them THAT JESUS WAS INDEED RISEN FROM THE DEAD. Think about it! They CONFESSED THE RISEN CHRIST in the face of tyranny and torment and imminent death. But they knew THAT BECAUSE OF THE RISEN CHRIST, there was no fear of death. Hear me:
“IF THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST WAS UNCERTAIN TO THE DISCIPLES,
THERE WOULD HAVE NEVER BEEN THEN OR NOW BOLD AND
COURAGEOUS MARTYRDOM.”
i. It was so real that THE SANHEDRIN WHO KILLED JESUS stood there MUTE, and they could not bring ONE PIECE OF EVIDENCE to refute anything that they were saying. The EVIDENCE THAT THEY BORE by their witness and in their hearts, stood before the SUPREME COURT OF THEIR SOCIETY and declared UNASHAMED:
“JESUS CHRIST, WHOM YOU CRUCIFIED, IS RAISED AGAIN, AND NOW IS
AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD.”
j. It was so real that the Sanhedrin stood MUTE because they KNEW that they could not produce ONE SHRED OF EVIDENCE that Jesus Christ was NOT alive. They had to SIT there, CONDEMNED by their own UNBELIEF and by the message that was being PREACHED to them.
k. It was so real that THAT THEIR OWN EMISSARY, their NUMBER ONE FAIR-HAIRED BOY, Saul of Tarsus, who was sent to PERSECUTE the Christians, was struck down by a light brighter than the noonday sun, and now he too was declaring that HE BELIEVED in the RESURRECTED CHRIST also.
l. Paul, along with others, was so CONVINCED that Jesus had been RAISED FROM THE DEAD, that he preached the message in DIRECT OPPOSITION to the convictions that he had PREVIOUSLY HELD so deeply. And Paul, the GREAT DESTROYER of the Christian message, began to carry it ALL OVER THE WORLD, planting churches and writing the Word of God.
-This is stunning! Saul had been on a PERSECUTING FIT and RAGE, and it was all pointed at JESUS CHRIST.
-In fact, to persecute and kill Christians appeared to Saul of Tarsus both good and necessary, as we read in Acts 26:9,
“I verily thought with myself that I ought to do many
things contrary to the NAME OF JESUS.”
-Do you think that this demonized scoundrel and hater of Christ would become Christ’s greatest missionary if he was not a THOUSAND PERCENT SURE THAT JESUS WAS RAISED FROM THE DEAD? Come now!
-Listen:
“A MAN DRUNKEN WITH RAGE AGAINST JESUS CAN ONLY BE SOBERED WITH
ABSOLUTE PROOF ABOUT THE RISEN JESUS.”
-Hear it:
“ONLY THAT WHICH PERFECTLY CONVINCES SUCH A SAULINE MIND AND
WILL COULD OVERPOWER HIM.”
m. The resurrection was so real that PONTIUS PILATE could not subdue the uprising of Jews protesting against the Christians. Nor could ROME deal with the Christians and this resurrection testimony.
n. It was so real that the Roman governor of Judea, or even the EMPEROR OF ROME, could not produce a CORPUS DELICTI, a body, or one shred of EVIDENCE that Jesus had not raised from the dead. Those uprisings eventually brought Titus and his armies in 70 A. D., and cost Pilate DEARLY – both HIS POSTION AND, TRADITION TELLS US, HIS SANITY.
o. But that’s NOT ALL, the resurrection OF JESUS CHRIST was so REAL that millions of ordinary men and women gained an extraordinary COURAGE TO DIE rather than to bow to evil because they KNEW that the SAME JESUS who rose from the dead would RAISE THEM UP also again.
p. It was so real that it not only opened a grave, but it opened a door of HOPE TO NATIONS, to MILLIONS from every race and tribe who have poured through the same door of HOPE THAT JESUS WALKED THROUGH – TO IMMORTALITY.
***
-Do you understand that there was more evidence for the resurrection of Jesus than there is evidence to prove that Annas or Caiaphas or Pilate ever even LIVED?
-And every time that you write a DATE ON A CHECK, you TESTIFY to the fact that we live “ANNO DOMINI”…”A.D.,” and that 2000 years ago, the promise of God was GOOD.
-And where did it END? The Gospel and God’s promises didn’t end with the GRAVE:
A. It didn’t end with a FEW.
B. It didn’t end with a LIE.
C. And it will NEVER END, praise God!
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V. THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD – IT DIDN’T END BY THE CHOICE OF MEN (I Corinthians 15:3-4)
1. It didn’t end by the CHOICE OF MEN.
-Men DON’T CHOOSE when ETERNAL things will END.
-The resurrection is the greatest statement that’s ever been made to that fact.
-What you or I like or DON’T like that God does, CANNOT BE ENDED by what we like or don’t like,
-It cannot be ENDED no matter how many people we gather around our point in AGREEMENT with us.
-Even if ALL MEN should stand and testify that the Word of God is NOT TRUE,
a. The END is not in the hand of MAN,
b. It’s in the hand of GOD. Acts 13:37,
“But He Whom God raised did not undergo decay.”
2. The Word says that if you’ve been tried and accused and found guilty, there’s YET HOPE FOR YOU if you’ll trust in God.
-If you’ll learn to TRUST GOD, even in your DARKNESS, the Lord is the GREAT VINDICATOR,
-He’s the GREAT REDEEMER,
-He has the LAST WORD
-The last word hasn’t been said until GOD ALMIGHTY says it.
3. I once passed a church sign that read: “God said it. We believe it. That settles it.” Do you know how many people, even church people, get a sour taste in their mouth from such words? It can’t be that simple, now can it?
-Oh yes it can! Simple and yet eternally profound! God’s Word is and will be THE FINAL WORD ON EVERTHING. No matter how deep the anti-God and anti-Christ forces have buried it, the WORD OF GOD will have the final say in the great resurrection of all men to either HEAVEN OR HELL.
ILLUSTRATION
In April 2009, Cory Swearingen wrote a letter, stuffed it inside of a bottle and threw it from the shores of Florida into the Atlantic Ocean. After 16 months, the bottle was discovered by a father and son on the shores of Ireland.
In a similar story, another message in a bottle traveled 1,735 miles from Seattle, Wash. to the shores of Alaska and wasn’t discovered until 21 years later.
Stories like these make headlines because they fill us with a sense of wonder. We’re wowed by the infinitesimal odds; and yet, the Bible’s orchestrated journey through history makes a bottle’s arbitrary trek across the Atlantic look like a walk in the park.
The Scriptures have endured a journey spanning millennia and survived countless attempts to snuff out their existence. Persecution inundates the history of the Church. The Scriptures were often outlawed and burned, but believers continued to make copies of the Bible and committed its content to memory, even though the penalty was often martyrdom.
Over the centuries, through the resolve of believers in the face of oppression, and through the painstaking and arduous work of transcribing manuscripts, the Bible has persevered. Knowing the story of the Bible, and not simply the stories in the Bible, will serve to make believers better communicators of the faith.
If it wasn’t for the RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST, which fills the Bible from cover to cover, the Bible would have dried up and blown away centuries ago. At best, it would have become merely a collection of FAIRY TALES right there with ‘”Jack And The Beanstalk” and “Snow White And the Seven Dwarfs,” considering that the Bible too is filled with miracles and the number seven.
But because JESUS IS ALIVE, the Bible is indeed the FINAL WORD. In fact:
“THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST IS THE FINAL WORD, FOR DEATH
AND HELL HAVE BEEN SWALLOWED UP IN VICTORY.”
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VI. THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD – IT DIDN’T END WITH HISTORY
A. And HISTORY doesn’t “close its books” on Jesus at the cross either.
-They kept TRYING to “close the books” on Jesus, they said, “We’ve got to FINISH THIS CHAPTER!”
-And when He hung there NAKED ON THE CROSS, gave up the ghost and said, “It is finished.”
-A LOT of people “closed the books” then.
-But GOD didn’t “close the books.”
-The “books haven’t been closed” on Jesus YET because NOBODY is going to “close the books” on Jesus.
-JESUS is going to “close the books” on TIME and on the WORLD, the “books” are in HIS HANDS, hallelujah!
B. I Corinthians 15: 25 says,
“He (the risen Christ) must reign until He has put ALL HIS
ENEMIES UNDER HIS FEET.”
1. He is “Alpha and Omega,” the beginning and the end.
2. He was here a long time before THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES EVER ROSE TO CHALLENGE YOU.
3. And He will be here a long time AFTER YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES EVER have been DEFEATED BY HIS PRESENCE.
4. We don’t hold the “BOOKS OF HISTORY.”
5. Denominations don’t hold the “BOOK ON THE CHURCH.”
6. You don’t hold the “BOOK ON YOUR LIFE,” or the “BOOK ON YOUR FAMILY,” or the “BOOK ON YOUR JOB.”
7. I want to TELL you something:
-Jesus Christ has all the “BOOKS” in HIS HANDS.
-And the “BOOKS” are OPEN.
-They are not closed until HE closes them.
-And according to Scripture, He hasn’t “CLOSED THE BOOKS” yet.
8. And FOR SURE, the WORLD hasn’t “CLSOED THE BOOKS” on Jesus.
9. Pilate didn’t “CLSOE THE BOOK” on Jesus.
10. Herod thought that he’d “CLOSED THE BOOK” on Jesus, but he DIDN’T,
11. Caiaphas and Annas tried to “CLOSE THE BOOK” on Jesus, but they DIDN’T,
12. Caesar didn’t “CLOSE THE BOOK” on Jesus. And neither did Marx or Lenin or Stalin or Hitler, they didn’t “CLOSE THE BOOK” on Jesus.
13. The LIBERALS haven’t “CLOSED THE BOOK” on Jesus.
14. The HUMANISTS, the NEW AGE GURUS, they’ll not “CLOSE THE BOOK” on Jesus.
15. Neither will Islam or the ACLU or Barack Obama, or the antichrist “CLOSE THE BOOKS” on Jesus.
16. JESUS has “ALL THE BOOKS,” and He’s ALIVE, and the power of GOD is going through the world.
***
C. The CRUCIFIXION WAS DARK, but God had a DAWN FOR JESUS.
-The crucifixion was UNJUST, but God had a vindication for Jesus.
-The crucifixion was a TRAGEDY, but God had a TRIUMPH for Jesus.
-The crucifixion was a SCATTERING, but God had a GATHERING for Jesus.
Hear it:
“MAN PROPOSES, BUT GOD DISPOSES; THE LAST WORD IS ALWAYS IN THE
MOUTH OF GOD AND GOD ALONE.”
D. He’s not just the “ALPHA, He’s the “OMEGA.”
-He’s not just the “FIRST WORD,” but He’s the “LAST WORD.”
-And one day:
“JESUS WILL CLOSE UP TIME, FOLD IT LIKE A GARMENT,
AND PUT IT AWAY FOREVER.”
-But until that’s done:
“THE PURPOSES OF GOD WILL GET HOTTER AND HOTTER IN THE HALLS OF
HISTORY, THEY WILL GET BRIGHTER AND BRIGHTER UNTIL THE
DAY THAT SHINES MORE GLORIOUS THAN THE NOONDAY SUN.”
-Yes indeed:
“ALL GLORY AND PRAISE BE TO HIM AND HIM ALONE.”
-Even if I stopped believing it, it will STILL HAPPEN!
-Even if we ALL DIE, it will STILL HAPPEN!
-Because it’s in GOD’S HANDS, the hands of the Almighty, Living, “LAST WORD.”
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VII. THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD – IT DIDN’T END WITHOUT A VICTORY
A. Well, then when DOES the purpose of God end?
-It didn’t end at the GRAVE.
-It didn’t end with the CHOSEN FEW.
-It didn’t end with the LIE or by the CHOICE OF MEN.
-It didn’t even end with HISTORY.
-And I’ll tell you something else, it didn’t end without a VICTORY.
-In I Corinthians 15:24-26, it tells us that it won’t happen until the victory is COMPLETE.
–Verse 24 says that He’s going to finish the victory over ALL RULE AND AUTHORITY AND POWER,
–Verse 25 says that He must reign until He has put ALL HIS ENEMIES UNDER HIS FEET.
–Verse26 says that The LAST ENEMY that will be ABOLISHED is DEATH.
B. Now here is one of those times when I’m preaching BEYOND WHAT I’VE SEEN:
-beyond what I know or understand,
-beyond my capacity to comprehend.
-because I’m preaching the WORD OF GOD.
C. The resurrection tells me today that Jesus won’t stop marching:
-on the mission that began from that grave.
-until He has marched over EVERY RULE, EVERY AUTHORITY,
-EVERY DOMINION that has ever exalted itself against the knowledge of God.
D. Jesus wasn’t satisfied with simply coming out of a grave:
-He WON’T BE SATSIFIED until He puts down EVERY LIE THAT DESTROYS the minds of men and women.
-He won’t be SATISFIED until every exalted DOMINION, every SWELLING POWER, and every ARROGANT FORCE has been smashed forever.
-He will not stop His ongoing purpose or be SATISFIED to stop His INTERCESSORY ROLE.
-He won’t quit PRAYING AND PLANNING AND POURING OUT His HOLY SPIRIT until all has been put down UNDER HIS FEET – EVERY BIT OF IT.
-He is not interested in MAKING A TRUCE, and he is not interested in PEACE AT ANY PRICE.
-He is only interested in FINISHING WHAT HE STARTED on resurrection morning.
-IT IS ALL GOING TO END IN A COMPLETE VICTORY FOR THE KING OF KINGS AND THE LORD OF LORDS.
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VIII. THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD – IT DIDN’T END WITH HIS ENEMIES (I Corinthians 15:27))
A. And aren’t you thankful that it didn’t end with His ENEMIES?
-It says that He’ll “Abolish All RULE.”
-In Verse 27 it says,
“For He has put ALL THINGS in subjection under His feet.”
-That means that it didn’t end with the DEVIL.
-It didn’t end with the ADVERSARY and his DEMONS.
-It didn’t end with the VIOLATORS and the ENEMIES OF GOD.
ILLUSTRATION
-There’s coming a day when people who shout OBSCENITIES at God, and who put down Jesus Christ and the church, when their words will be SILENCED FOREVER.
-There’s coming a time when EVERY ENEMY OF THE GOSPEL, be they IN religion or OUT of it, will stand in the HOLY FEAR of an AWESOME GOD.
-In fact, there’s coming a day when DEATH HIMSELF is going to be OUT-OF-BUSINESS, for DEATH SHALL BE CONQUERED.
B. Paul said in Verse 14,
“If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is VAIN….”
-He said in Verse 17 that your faith is ABSOLUTELY WORTHLESS and we’re STILL IN OUR SIN if there is no resurrection.
-But he goes ON to say so DOGMATICALLY in Verse 20,
“But Christ IS RISEN.”
-Say that with me: “He is RISEN!”
C. Religion without a resurrection is WORTHLESS, it is an ABSOLUTE WASTE OF TIME.
-You are better off to go FISHING or PLAY GOLF, for at least you would have FUN while you live.
-If you’re ensnared in some repetitious form of religiosity that has no resurrection, then you might as well go to SLEEP and get some rest, because it won’t do ANYTHING but DULL YOUR SOUL. It might even DESTROY it by lulling you to a FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY.
D. But when you come to the end of your days:
-They’ll stand beside your grave and cry hot salty tears.
-And you’ll be NOTHING BUT A MEMORY.
-When the END COMES, we need MORE THAN A MEMORY, we need a BLESSED HOPE.
ILLUSTRATION
Several years ago, our 36 year old daughter-in-law MaShelle, the wife of our son Mark, went to be with the Lord.
-How does a family cope with that kind of loss?
-How do we DEAL with the answers to all the questions?
-Why God touched her so and gave her 3 years of extended time after the doctors had “given her up.”
-And yet not to HEAL her and deliver her completely from the cancer in her body.
-Even the CHURCH FAMILY AND FRIENDS who Mark and MaShelle pastored, and who LOVED them so much, struggled and ached through those times.
-And yet, when God took MaShelle home, there was a TEAR-FILLED HOLY PEACE that came over that household as the family of God stood beside them.
-Again and again they heard her say that she was looking forward to HEAVEN.
-And they were at her side as she slipped into the arms of Jesus.
You say, “What victory is there in the premature death of such a young but courageous woman, and how can we all COPE with such a loss?”
-And I’ll TELL you how we all cope, and tell you what gave MaShelle her COURAGE.
a. They knew, we knew, and SHE knew that she would be in the arms of Jesus, that her life wouldn’t “flicker its last and then be extinguished.”
b. In fact, her life wouldn’t even be “snuffed out to be re-ignited somewhere else.”
c. NOT ONE MOMENT, NOT ONE SPLIT FRACTION OF A SECOND would MaShelle cease to live.
-But she would be promoted from a life of struggle and temptation and pain into a life of GLORIOUS LIBERTY – eternally with JESUS CHRIST.
-And we don’t have to CRY tears of hollowness that we will never see again that loved one.
-But, one day, those who are IN JESUS CHRIST are to be REUNITED around the THRONE, not just IN SPIRIT, for death will have to give up even the LAST VESTIGE of its spoils.
-For the trump is going to sound, and the dead in Christ are going to rise, and these old bodies are going to be quickened with the power of the Holy Ghost that brought Jesus out of the tomb, to be reunited with our souls.
-And we will ever be with the Lord. Amen!
