Jesus Died...but God - Part B

Jesus was put on the cross and left for dead. But God raised him. They put Jesus in it too. But God got him out. They walked away and thought it was all over, but God made sure it was just the beginning.

But God goes to, they can be part of your story.

I hope they are part of your story, the words but God could be the two most important words in history throughout the Bible God work in his people's lives turning hard times to critical turning points today on connect with Skip Heitzigs, Skip shares how the blood God moments you experience, bring hope and renewal into your life right now. Want to tell you about a special resource that sheds light on what the Bible says about God's nature and character, including his plans and purpose for your life the best biographies making like you personally intimately know the person you've read about Mozart's and Mother Teresa Sojourner Truth to Steve Jobs. It's exciting to learn the details of influential people, but one biography stands out above the rest. Biography of God hears the author skip. I think there's nothing more elevating to mankind than the study of God himself discovered the omnipotence paradox is an mystery central to God's being and remove the limits you may have placed on who God is.

I've noticed that almost every problem that a person has in their life stems from an inadequate God gives new book is our thanks when you give $35 or more today to help keep this ministry on the air, call 800-922-1888, or get online securely connectwithskip.com/offer now acts chapter 13 as we get into the message with Skip Heitzigs. The heavens declare the glory of God. When you see a beautiful sunrise or sunset when you see something in nature. That should grab your attention. That is God reminding you of his glory, the heavens declare the glory of God. God is spoken generally. But then God is also spoken specifically, he sent prophets spokespeople to proclaim his messages. The writer of Hebrews.

Put it this way long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets, you know that means means that God the Creator is interested in his creation. He so interested in his creation. He doesn't want to just leave them alone. Floundering, he wants to communicate to them.

He has something to say to them know we have a problem as human beings we are inside a natural box and the walls about box are time and space we can crawl out of that box were sort of stuck outside our box of humanity is the supernatural realm. We all know it's true. All of us born suspect that there something beyond us, but someone comes along and says I gotta get outside this box, we gotta get into the supernatural world and every time somebody comes along and makes an attempt to get out of this natural box and make contact with the supernatural world religion is born. That's what religion is man's attempt to reach God is man's attempt to escape the natural and get to the supernatural is the problem we can do it. We cannot transcend our own existence. We can't reach outside the box someone outside the box must reach into our box and that's what God did and he did it in many ways he spoke in many ways he spoke in a burning bush to Moses. He spoke in a lightning storm at Mount Sinai. He spoke in a still small voice to the prophet Elijah. He sent prophets to his people. He spoke truth through those profits. Truth is, values his desires, his longings for those people. Why did God speak why did God send his messages because God loves people.

God loves the creation he created. He did not want people living on this earth without purpose without meaning. He wanted us to have hope. Even when people messed up. God spoke, listen carefully, especially when people messed up.

God spoke, especially when they messed up your life, you may feel is a mess today.

You say my life is a mess. I say God has a message that will speak to your mess. God wants to speak to you. He has a message for you. And here it is in a nutshell, he cares for you. He loves you he loves you. Passionately he has a message of love for you. There was a mother who went to a doctor.

She had three children, and the doctor asked her a question sort of off-the-cuff. The doctor said hey of your three children. Which do you love the most about caught her off guard. She didn't expect that question doing what you mean which one of my children do I love most. I love them all the same, and the doctor said well it's psychologically impossible to extend the same kind of a love to three different humans. She says he said that's impossible.

She started crying when he said that she said you're right you're right. When one is sick. I love that one more when one is in pain. I love that one more when one is doing something bad.

I love that one more, but apart from that I love all three exactly the same. St. Augustine said God loves each of us as if there was only one of us to love God has that message for you today.

He is spoken. Paul said his word of salvation.

Throughout history, is God been speaking to you lately.

Has he been trying to get your attention. Now you don't have to do that dramatically. So I don't think God's getting my attention. I haven't had an speak audibly to me. I haven't had a dream in the middle of the night, or a vision that doesn't matter. Something deep in your heart. God may be trying to get up and you been feeling that even sensing that he's been knocking at the door of your heart sing.

I want you to make room for me. Maybe it's through a friend.

Maybe a friend invited you today invited you to church you think.

Why should I get up early and go to the stadium and sit outside but God could be trying to get a hold of you and speaking directly to you.

You're not here by accident friend here nearby appointment so God is a message for us is the second truth.

Not only does God have a message for us. God sent a messenger to us. Paul continues for those who dwell in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not know him, nor even the voices of the prophets which are read every Sabbath have fulfilled them in condemning him. The notice of apologist did Paul just moved from speaking about and it to speaking about a him. He says God has had a message for people for years and they crucified him, but messenger so he goes from a message to a messenger and here's why God's ultimate message to humanity is not a sermon. It's not a prophecy is not a set of instructions or a law it's a person God's ultimate message to humanity is in the person of Jesus Christ. All those messages in the Old Testament. All those prophets that spoke were all pointing forward to a messenger. The Jews called Messiah, recalling Jesus Messiah mean somebody specifically prepared and selected by God to save the world, including you, so God spoke to the ages. But his final message before judgment as his hand of love extended to people saying I love you. Here's my son my messenger I'm sending to you to pay for your sins.

The writer of Hebrews, I just quoted him. I didn't finish the verse though it's as long ago God spoke at many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets, but now in these final days he has spoken to us through his son to think about of the Old Testament was God's story and unfolded very gradually and progressively Genesis get some truth Exodus gives more truth. The prophets give more truth. The Psalms give a few more, and it just progressed a little bit more completely, but it was never totally completed.

We never really get the whole picture until we open the pages of the New Testament and suddenly it's all clear.

That's why Jesus said do not think that I have come to destroy the prophets. I didn't come to destroy them.

I came to complete them to fulfill them. The picture is now complete all those messages in the Old Testament were still a bit fuzzy until the messenger showed up. Then it's like I see it clearly.

Listen to how John introduces Jesus in the beginning was the word that's God's message and the Word was with God and the Word was God and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, so go back to that box analogy.

Mankind is trapped in a natural box with the walls of time and space. We cannot get out of our box. We can't reach out and connect with the supernatural, so God's plan was to send his son to crawl inside the box get in the box for God to become a man and come to our earth and show us all the truth is of God. This is the difference between Christianity and every other world religion. Many people say doesn't matter what religion you belong to as long as you're sincere, that's wrong. It does matter makes all the difference. Religion is man's attempt to reach and discover God.

Christianity is God bursting into our world crawling inside our box. When Jesus came he showed people what God is like one of his disciples. Philip said Jesus show us the father that's enough you. I guess it would be. Jesus said Philip if you've seen me, you have seen the father. If you see Jesus you see God you see the father when I was a kid, I remember looking up at my mom. She was so huge tall massive.

Now here's the truth.

She was 5 feet tall but subtle. She was using very little thin lady 5 feet. I'm 65 and when I grab it's like, really. I should think you are warped like really a giant but you know from a kids perspective somebody 5 feet. That's pretty tall. I have grandkids are sitting right up there in the front. I consume something Katie yesterday. We are plan out here on this field just getting ready. Her eyes actually were watching everybody else get ready for this event and we were playing out here and so you know whenever I flexed my arms in a come at them like him to get in the tower but when I get down to their level something changes.

Now, I'm approachable. Now I am gettable I am Russell a bowl I'm jumbo ball and they'll tackle me to the ground.

Why because I've come down to their level and when you come down to their level.

The relationship changes and when God came down to our level. The relationship changes. He showed us what God is like. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him would not perish but have everlasting life. So God has a message for you and the message for you is his messenger for you and that is Jesus Christ. Christianity is not a creed. Christianity is not a ritual. Christianity is not an institution.

Christianity is Christ personally so I received the rituals of Christianity have you received Christ personally so God is a message for us.

God sent a messenger to us. There's 1/3 truth. God knows the mischief in us where we have a problem. God knows the mischief in us. Paul said, and though they found no cause for death in him. They asked Pilate that he should be put to death when they fulfilled what was written concerning him, they took him down from the tree. That is the cross and they laid him in a tomb. This messenger from God. This Messiah was innocent. He lived a perfect life. The very people he was sent to. However, executed him, condemned him as a criminal.

People didn't want to hear God's message and people didn't want to have God's messenger so they killed him. John said he came into his own his own received him not.

That is his own people, his own nation. Jesus came to his own world. Jesus came to his own land. Jesus came to his own city. Jesus came to his own temple. The Jews and waited for the Messiah. For centuries he shows up. John said we beheld his glory as of the only begotten of the father, but the crowd shouted, crucifying him. They executed him, and put a minute to the Old Testament gave those slick rings of light those hints of light and the more you read in and it gets a little bit brighter and a little bit brighter and then you get to the New Testament, and it's as if the sun comes out of the sky and lands right on the earth.

The brightest light ever. Jesus said I am the light of the world, but it was so bright you notice I can. Somebody shines a bright light on you what you do you put on the sunglass like some of you have on right now. Are you cover your eyes. If the sun shining righted if the sun was behind the clouds now, but if the clouds left them shining right on you.

I guarantee you that your hand over your face is just a little too bright so the light of truth came to this world and the Bible says, but men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil and they hated the light and so the very hands that God created Jesus his own hands and stapled them to across the fullest form of execution.

The Romans had was crucifixion because it delayed the death of the victim for days. So they got rid of them.

I discovered something if there's one thing this world consistently gets wrong over and over again. It's the identity of Jesus Christ. There's so many ideas out there and who Jesus Christ is and they get that wrong all the time. The Gospels are filled with various ideas and concepts of who Jesus was. For example, in John chapter 7, some in the crowd said he was a good man. Some said he was a deceiver and Matthew 16. Some said that he was John the Baptist others that he was Elijah others said he was Jeremiah or one of the prophets in John chapter 6 after Jesus gave a free lunch to a large crowd. They thought he would be their king and they try to take him by force in making came in Luke chapter 23 they call them attacks evade or and one who subverted the government in John chapter 10. They said he had a demon, even his own family wanted to get rid of them. Did you know that on one occasion, they came and tried to take him away because they said he's crazy to his own brothers and sisters, so the world consistently gets wrong. The identity of who Jesus Christ is, you know every year at Easter time, especially its sad but almost humorous to notice all the television specials that come out and they say here's the remove Jesus we just found out who he really was, so everybody tunes in to find out what we've never known before and have the craziest ideas of who Jesus was. Some say he was magician who practice hypnosis and illusion.

Others column is solid, others a Guru others column in Avatar. One theory is that he was the husband of Mary Magdalene and they were going to procreate a secret lineage to rule the world on here's the best one. The concept that the name of Jesus Christ was a codeword for a hallucinogenic mushroom and the disciples would take the mushroom and get really high and they would see all these crazy visions of what Jesus did and they made a religion out of it.

So it's like they were the first hippies.

I guess what about you, who is Jesus to you. What have you done personally with Jesus Christ, that he rejected them.

So no, I've never rejected them. I've never rejected Christ.

I'm just not a fanatic like some of these people around me hands racing and really loud – is where really I like to see you in a football game and the stated, I picture a fanatic or just a fanatic about the wrong thing. Perhaps the best thing to be a fanatic about is the living God who can change lives. God bless all you fanatics. You say you haven't rejected Christ.

He said if you are not for me here against me.

If you don't follow me, you scatter so you ask yourself that question who is Jesus to you and who are you in relation to him. I want to close with a final point not only got is a message for us not only God sent a messenger to us. Not only does God know the mischief in us, but here's the best part God works a marble despite us despite us.

That's verse 30 but God raised him from the dead.

He was seen for many days by those who came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who were witnesses to the people I love this verse, the chief priest didn't have the last word. Pontius Pilate didn't have the last word that fickle crowd didn't have the last word God had the last word. But God raised him from the dead. There's those two words.

But God, Jesus was put on the cross and left for dead.

But God raised him up.

They put Jesus in the tomb, but God got him out. They walked away and thought it was all over, but God made sure it was just the beginning. But God those two little words of hope they can be part of your story. I hope they are part of your story. I hope that what I'm about to read right now is your story you tell me if it is in Ephesians 2 Paul said once you were dead doomed forever because of your many sins you used to live just like the rest of this world full of sin, obeying Satan. We were born with an evil nature and we were under God's anger just like everyone else. That's quite a statement. Pausing apart from Jesus Christ. People are spiritual zombies by walking dead there dead and they don't even know they're dead but it's is this.

We were under God's anger like everyone else but God, but God who is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so very much, even while we were dead because of our sin, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. I hope that your story I hope that your testimony every Christian has this basic testimony I was going my own way but God changed my life and I'm going a different direction. Once you were dead in sin, unable to find peace. But God showed up. Once you are running from God but God hunted you down once you are deceived blind and hopeless. But God opened your eyes as the hymn writer saying I once was lost but now I'm found was blind but now I see now, you may be sitting here this morning and you you may be thinking something like well you know I've lived a hard life. I've got a lot of baggage. I've got a lot of stuff that I've done that.

I'm not too happy about. I have too many sins to overcome. I have too much to be forgiven for. You need to insert those two words, but God could listen if God can raise up a dead corpse from the dead he can change your life today guaranteed. But God the world says no but God says yes, the world says can't.

But God says can the world says defeat.

But God says victory. The world says death. But God says life. The world says impossible.

But God says possible. The world says hopeless. But God says that include Skip Heitzigs message from the series but God here. Scripture tell you how due can help keep these messages coming your way as you help connect others to Scripture, God's Word has the power to change lives a great truth that's why we work to take these Bible teachings to more people seep, we want to see lives changed around the world.

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You can also get online and connectwithskip.com/donate that's connected with skip.com/don't. As always, thank you for your partnership come back tomorrow. Skip looks at the lives of two people who had to deal with haters reminding God has a plan for when others work against don't want to cancel Skip presentation of connection communications changing through ever-changing time