The Day that Changed the World | Easter

You are listening to a new beginning with Greg Laurie, a podcast supported by harvest partners for more ways to deepen and challenge your spiritual walk and roll and pastor breaks free online courses sign@harvest.org the resurrection of Jesus assures me that I want to go coming up today on a new beginning and a special Easter mission pastor Greg Laurie has been showing in our standing. We need to lay to rest once and for all life all following God's God's people because of what Jesus right about liberty's popularity is the resurrection word is when you're writing about the resurrection of Christ. So significant was that event in the context of history is that Christians worldwide that even secular writing expert that respect today on a new beginning. Laurie helps us appreciate all Jesus resurrection. Everybody is cool I like that you guys are sounding good.

Alright, so the title of my message today is the day that changed the world course Easter is a celebration of the day that Jesus cries rose from the dead. This singular event changed everything. It was literally the day that changed the world.

But before there was a resurrection. There was a crucifixion and I've told you before about the horrific whipping that what happened to Jesus said they probably use the Roman cat of nine tails which would rip into the skin and the skeletal tissue even exposing vital organs.

In many cases people did not survive the scourging and Jesus took 39 lashes on his back was described as the Way crucifixion. So now Jesus is sent to the cross and busy kings. There he makes seven profound statements. Every statement is significant.

Even the order of the statements is significant statement number one from the cross was father forgive them for they know not what they do.

Statement number two in response to the words of a thief crucified next to him who said, Lord, remember me when you come in your kingdom.

Christ said, verily, verily, are truly, truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise then seen his mother at the foot of the cross, Jesus said woman behold your son and seen John standing next door. He said son behold your mother presumably all the sin of the world was placed upon Christ at this moment if it wasn't at this moment it happened. At some point where he bore the sins of the world, causing him to cry out, Eli, Eli Lama suboptimally which means my God, my God, why have you forsaken me.

Then his fifth statement was I thirst.

His sick statement was. It is finished. And finally, statement number seven to the father, into your hands I commit my spirit. So Jesus dies on the cross so Mary Peter and John come to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus. John and Peter raced to the tomb and John points out that he won the race that's called a perk of writing your own gospel yeah I beat the old dude yeah I got there first.

They come they see the empty tomb, but Mary Magdalene went seven demons cast out of her remains.

She was only there to anoint the body of Jesus to pay her respects. If you will, but then we read in Matthew 28 verse eight they went to tell the disciples, and behold, Jesus met them saying read Joyce.

They came and held him by the feet and worshiped him so in the middle of this, these disciples run up and they run into Jesus and I find really interesting because it says Jesus said, rejoice in the war that he uses. Therefore rejoice, is a simple greeting, sort of like a hello cravings. How are you I would've expected him to say Todd know it's almost like a common greeting you would just give the summer like in the South.

They say hey how y'all doing. If you're from Hawaii. The house it or Loja if you're from New York to say what are you looking at me. You know inside the pencil you're from right just a common greeting sort of picking up where he last left off, but Mary remains at the tomb and this is what happened. John 20 very familiar passage powerful passage verse 11, Mary stood outside of the tomb, weeping as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb and she saw two angels in white sitting. One of the head, the other at the feet where the body of Jesus had lain. They said door woman, why are you weeping, she said while they taken away my Lord and I don't know where they laid him down when she said this, he turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know it was Jesus. Jesus said door woman, why are you weeping whom are you seeking she's thinking it was a gardener symbol search. If you carry them away, tell me what you believe him that I will take him away and Jesus said Mary, she turned to him and said bro boli which means teacher Jesus said do not cling to me frog not yet ascended to my father and your father would go to your brothers and Sam ascending to my father and your father to my God and to your God. What a moment she recognizes his voice. Jesus said her name in a way that no one else said it did not our Lord. See my sheep or my voice know my voice.

She suddenly realizes it's Jesus risen from the dead, and he says don't cling to me know that interesting because we just read that the disciples took hold of him. He didn't stop them, but to Mary he says don't cling to me. I think she probably had it.

Death grip on Jesus, sort of like when you're with your kids and your crossing the street and you're holding onto them tightly like you're not going anywhere right that she say Laura Luster was but now I'm hitting on you forever your my own personal Jesus know it's going to take you from me. He's like I would've using how like no probably not. I think really what he was saying this Mary listen. Things have changed.

I'm not going to be there for you physically anymore for you to reach out and touch with Mary it's going to be better because I'm going to come and live inside of your heart, you'll never be separated from me again because I'm going to my God and your God, to my father and your father wake, father in the Old Testament, he would never trust God as father.

He was the awesome Almighty holy untouchable God, but now Jesus is saying he's my father is your father.

We take that for granted because were raised on the Lord's prayer been taught to pray our father who art in heaven, but for a first century Jew to be told they could address God as father. That's life altering. He was going to come and live inside of her. Now remember I was driving with two of my grandkids Allie and Christopher and so Allie was. I don't know she might've been around four years old at this point and Christopher just a little guide she's giving him a little lesson on theology in the backseat. She says Christopher Jesus is God and God is Jesus. I thought that's very good, and she says, and if you pray you'll come and live in your heart and then she said, but then you'll come and live in your stomach to go. The work on that a little but there's no Jesus coming into our stomach part but I love this. So Jesus had risen from the dead. Let me close now with four practical truth of how the resurrection of Jesus affects you. Number one if you're taking notes the resurrection of Jesus assures me that I am accepted by God and assures me I'm accepted by God. Romans 425 says he was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification, we need to lay to rest once and for all.

This idea that if I live a good life. All fine gods approval.

Listen, you have God's approval because of what Jesus did for you. You don't have to earn it. Even among some Christians, there is a believe sometimes that if I live a good life will get to Kevin because heaven is for good people don't have the sovereign good people And is for forgiven people through the shock there's going to be some good people up with that."

It will end up in hell there's going to be a lot of bad people that will end up in heaven because those bad people turn from their sin. Like the thief on the cross and believe in their allowed their welcomed even into heaven and those so-called good people who thought they did not need God will end up separated from him for all eternity. And so I made right by God, I am accepted by God because there's no forgiveness from balancing records, but from canceling records. Jesus canceled the charges that were against you at the cross. Your great glory will have the second half of his message in just a moment, you know, there's nothing lying here in the word of God and worshiping the Lord together. I will encourage you to join us for something we call Harvest at Home every Saturday and Sunday harvest out or join Christians literally from around the world as we worship and we study the word of God together. So join us for Harvest at Home and harvest will today we are learning with the Lord's resurrection accomplishes on our behalf. Today's message is called the day that change the world.

Number two, the resurrection of Jesus assures me I have all the power I need to live the Christian life. I have all the power I need to live the Christian life. Romans 811 says the spirit of God there raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you and just as he raised Christ from the dead to give life to your mortal body by that same spirit living inside of you know, dear Christian friends, you have no obligation whatsoever to do with your sinful nature urges you to do. Sometimes he said I couldn't control myself. The devil made me do it now, even he may have tempted you, but you had to yield to his temptation God even promises to the Christian that there is no temptation taken you but such as is common to man, but God was faithful will not allow you to be tempted above your capacity to resist but what with the temptation make a way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. Let me loosely paraphrase that there's always a way out of every temptation quite full, new view of government tempted. This imagery how many of you have ever given into the temptation to send you mineral. Put your hands up, climbs up, we have have a way but there is no sin that needs to control me. I don't have to be an addict.

I don't have to be under the power of alcohol. I don't have to be under the power of any pies or any sin whatsoever because Jesus is God and risen again in the spirit of God lives inside of me to say what I've tried to live this Christian life and it's hard. Let me correct you. It's not hard it's impossible, it's impossible to live as a Christian without the help and power of the holy spirit. Jesus said in John 15 without me you can do nothing. But then the apostle Paul said I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me that all happened because of the resurrection of Jesus.

Point number three. The resurrection of Jesus assures me that I will live forever in heaven.

It assures me that I will live forever in heaven. Christ died in Christ rose again from the dead, and thus death died when Christ rose because Jesus rose, I too will rise, because Jesus died. I will never die is a Greg you're delusional. You're going to die. Will I know in one sense, I will unless the rapture comes in my lifetime which I would really like to happen. Actually, that's up to the Lord, when Jesus died on the cross he conquered sin when he rose from the dead. He conquered death in first Corinthians 15 says are perishable earthly bodies will be transformed in the heavenly bodies I will never die in the Scriptures will come true.

Death is swallowed up in victory. Oh death where is your victory over death, where is your sting, your sting, I was walking on the beach a while back with my wife and for some reason there were bees everywhere in the beach and what's is all about bees with some Bailey what were they doing is laying around all over the sent. Kathy said Greg be careful you don't step in the be is that I'm not going to step on it and I stepped on the beat and I scream like a little girl. But here's something that be heads down its last person in the same way Jesus took the stinger out of death for Ozzie took the sting you see.

So the tomb is on an entrance to death, but the life in the moment we take our last breath on earth.

We take our next breath in heaven when we close our eyes on earth. We will open them in heaven. That's all because of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ had tried one more point, the resurrection of Jesus assures me that I will receive a new body just like his is not great, especially as this body is beginning to wear out right this telltale signs you're getting old you know you're getting old when you drop something and when you reach down to pick it up. You wonder what else can I do when when it while I'm down here since it's a lot of work really want to come back here again I don't have to. You know you're getting old when there's so many candles on your birthday cake. The youth group shows up on forms a circle around you, and sings Kumbaya right so things are breaking down, things are working like they used to.

You of all kinds of view, aches and pains in the Bible promises will of a new body and what will our new body be like will will be like the risen Lord's body because the Bible says in Colossians 34 when Christ was all I feel it appears we will be like him. So Jesus was risen, it was the physical body was unlike some fans from in one of the first things he did was give me some fruit become a piece of fish and he eats it so we know in our new body were going to eat still, there's going to be food in heaven. People. CMS is in the Bible number the wedding supper of the Lamb will sit down and will eat with these great men and women of God and love ones in the preceding view, it will be a great reunion. Some of you're going to family gatherings. After church I can be good or bad depending on your family but in general it's great to get together with family and have fun together and eat together.

You want to have a meal with someone you don't really know.

Especially you don't have a meal someone you don't really get along with. They give you indigestion you want to eat with people who you're comfortable with my thesis because I'm a slob.

What I eat so you know I'm comfortable with you.

Yorty know I'm a slob and get food everywhere. Anyway, the point of all this is that in our new bodies will still be us will just be a radically upgraded version of us that says over in the book of Job in my flesh I will see God. I myself will see him with my own eyes I and not another. Yes, these are all the promises given to us because of the death and resurrection of Jesus. But let me close with this. These promises are for the Christian and the Christian, only that I asked you in closing, do you know Jesus number of years ago I went to mental institution, not as a patient is a visitor was of the friend of mine they might know this is back in the early 70s, so I had long hair. I had here start with that had air. I long hair was parted in the middle past my shoulders long beard sunset. I sort of look like Jesus. So we walking with his mental institution of my friend Mike walks up to one of the patients and says have you ever met Jesus Christ personally without skipping a beat. This guy turned to me takes 20 minutes is Jesus. It's good to meet you.

I'm not Jesus, I'm Greg. But we can need Jesus personally to come and live in our heart, not a nurse, tapped out the correction within our hearts as our Savior and Lord. Again, he said I going to my God and your God, to my father and your father you can know God as a father.

Maybe some of you didn't have a father growing up I didn't. Maybe some of you had mean fathers even abuse of fathers Harstad but you have a father in heaven who loves you unconditionally and accepts you because of the death of his son in your place and you can begin a relationship with God right now you know possible to know all about God but don't know God, you know, people follow different people on social media may feel like they know them. You don't know them.

You see what they post. You think you know them. The fact is you know a little bit about them and you probably know as much about them as they want to to know, but knowing God is not just knowing about God is knowing God, and I ask you today. Do you know God in a personal way is Christ living inside of you. You say will I think so listen up Jesus lives inside of you. You're going to know illustration of someone moved into your house in the middle of the night. You think you would know you smell something being cooked in the kitchen hear the shower what's going on. Yeah, you'd be aware and of God Almighty has taken residence in your heart you're going to know it and if you don't know it. Maybe he's not there. The guy would suggest he's not there you'll know if God is living inside of you. You'll know if Christ is living in your heart if you want to become a living your heart will do it right here right now. He came out of that empty tomb to fill your empty heart will come in right here right now and you can walk out of here is someone who knows God in a personal way.

Someone was forgiven of their sins as someone who knows the day will go to heaven when they die, and someone who will be ready for the Lord's return, which can happen at any moment.

So if you want Christ to come into your life if you want him to forgive you of your sin if you want to go to heaven one day if you want to be ready for his return.

Pray this prayer after me right here right now were ever you are, you could print out loud.

You could pray it quietly in your heart.

But Dupree this prayer if you want Jesus in your life for these words. Lord Jesus, I know that I'm a sinner but I know that you're the Savior who died on the cross for my sin and rose again from the dead.

Jesus come into my life now I choose to follow you from this moment forward. Thank you for hearing this prayer in answering this prayer in Jesus name I name Pastor Greg Laurie and if you just pray that prayer and meant it.

Sincerely we want to welcome you into God's family and we want to follow up with you by sending some resource materials we call our new believers growth packet is free of charge if you prayed along with Pastor Greg today. Just ask for the new believers growth packet when you call 1-800-821-3300 call any time. 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest.org and click on the words know God will are so grateful to have Lee Strobel with us today, best-selling author, former legal editor for the Chicago Tribune and is just finished a book on the afterlife and eye-opening book called the case for heaven and that pastor Greg you made the point before that after your son went to heaven so unexpectedly it peaked your interest in heaven doesn't run it did I wouldn't say I'm an expert on heaven, but I would say I'm a student of heaven always believed in it.

Obviously I've always taught on it when my son went to be with the Lord.

I just really started digging in like never before into the topic of heaven, wanting to know more details of a better sense of it. Something I can almost imagine it's very hard to imagine but try to wrap my mind around it a little bit more and and so I'm always interested in talking about the subject. Learning about the subject. That's why I'm so excited that my friend Lee Strobel is written about the case for heaven and the cool thing about Lee is generally I think it's true to say that there still is skepticism and you and addicted to be a healthy skepticism. Yeah, you know it's been said skepticism is not necessarily a sign that a man is wrong and may be assigned. He's thinking, yeah, and Christians can be gullible and just believe what anybody says all someone says I want to have an inside X, Y, and Z and I wrote a book about it and they may just believe it but no wheat.

We need a reliable source where I of course is the Scripture right but you go with the degree of skepticism. Looking at these things and you do research to well, sort of like you're in a court room and it's a case and tell us about how your brain works when you come to a subject, and specifically the topic of heaven. Yeah, I mean, I spent a lot of time trying to determine who the best experts in the world and talk to because you know I can't be an expert on everything, but as a journalist you seek out people who have spent a lifetime investigating these issues and so I have interviews in this book with Dr. Sharon Dierks who is a neuroscientist with a PhD from Cambridge University talk about the existence of a soul that we do possess a soul that continues after the demise of our physical body binary John Berkley say he studied a thousand near-death experiences and is written up around book about him. I interviewed Clay Jones, a professor who wrote a book called immortal, which deals with how people try to cope with her fear of death, I interviewed by the most profound interview I want to interview someone who was headed for heaven soon and so I sat down and had the last interview before he died, with Luis Palau, who was one of the great evangelist of our generation shared his faith with a billion people around the world.

He knew he was dying innocent had stage IV cancer and I sat down with him just to say we are what's it like knowing that you can be going to heaven like any time now, and he had already exceeded the lifespan that they had expected him to have an and so we had a profound conversation and that is in the book and I think that'll encourage a lot of people because even Luis Palau said you know in these last days.

Satan whispers in your years at OU you've pointed millions of people toward heaven, but you're not going. You know you been disqualified. You don't, you never had.

For heaven's men and Luis said you know he had come against it with the word of God says just not true. And so he gives some great insights into what it's like to be on the precipice of entering into heaven beautiful.

That's all. And please do book the keys for heaven brand-new and will send it to you for your gift of any size this month. Yeah, that's right, and will take that gift that investments and reach out on your behalf. We are all about teaching believers and reaching unbelievers effect since March 2020 we seen 220,000 professions of faith through harvest ministries.

That's what your investment helps accomplish so we hope you will send a generous donation today and ask for Lee's new book, the case for heaven. You can call us anytime 24 seven, 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest God or will Pastor Greg offers an important insight on the Lord's prayer now and not the one we usually think of one that starts our father who art in heaven will consider the prayer Jesus prayed on our behalf join us here on a new beginning pastor Bible Greg Moore bank to a new beginning. Greg Laurie podcast made possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God sign up for daily devotions and learn how to become a harvest partner harvest.org