April 23rd, 2000, Easter Sunday Morning

"The Doctrine of the Resurrection"
The True Meaning of Easter Sunday

OPENING: 1 Corinthians 15:20, KJV

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• Today, the meaning of Easter Sunday follows the paganistic ritual of egg hunting; The Easter Bunny, more specifically
  
  
• Romans 10:9: One of two steps to being saved is to believe that "God hath raised him [Jesus] from the dead."
  
  
• CONSIDER THESE THREE QUESTIONS:
  
  
  • #1: DO YOU BELIEVE CHRIST ROSE FROM THE DEAD? CONSIDER THIS...
    
    
    • 1 Corinthians 15:12: Paul is asking why one wouldn't believe Christ rose from the dead if Christ said he did. It is a fair question to ask because every day, the number of resurrectionists--as I have just coined the term--is dropping in number. STATISTIC: today, 50% of Baptist preachers don't believe in the Resurrection!
      
      
    • 1 Corinthians 15:5-7: This is documented proof of not only that Christ rose from the dead but where we went after his resurrection.
      
      
    • Matthew 27:62-66: If the resurrection was a dismissed belief, why did the chief priests and Pharisees as Pilate for place guards in front of the above-ground tomb where Jesus' body was placed?
      
      
    • Matthew 28:11-15: When a guard loses a prisoner, especially in that day, he is put to death (i.e. Peter's escape from Herod's prison in Acts 12:3-8,18-19). However, when it reported to the Pharisees that Jesus was not in his tomb the next morning the soldiers were placed to keep guard, the Pharisees did not have them put to death. Why? Instead, the Pharisees pay the guards money for the guards to lie and say Jesus escaped. Otherwise, the guards would have been put to death with no explanation for why Jesus' body wasn't there and then the people would submit that He was risen.
      
      
    • STILL DON'T BELIEVE? SEEK THE FOLLOWING WITH YOUR KING JAMES VERSION BIBLE!
      
      
      • Acts 3:15
      • Acts 26:8
      • Luke 20:37
      • Acts 4:10
      • Acts 13:30
      • Romans 7:4
      • 1 Corinthians 15:15
    
    
  • #2: HOW ARE THE DEAD RAISED UP?
    
    
    • 1 Corinthians 6:14: By God's own power. It's that simple.
    
    
  • #3: IF THE DEAD ARE RAISED, IN WHAT BODY WILL THEY LIVE IN NEXT?
    
    
    • 1 Corinthians 15:35,39-41: Read this verse. "Terrestrial" means our earthly body. "Celestial" means a heavenly body.
      
      
    • 1 Corinthians 15:42-44: This verse foretells of the traits that the old body has before it dies and of the new body when it is resurrected.
  
  
• Revelation 20:4-6: The future being foretold in that some of us will experience resurrection.
  
  
• Romans 10:16: Regardless of all the proof in the world, however, many will still reject the Resurrection. This is a growing problem, today.
  
  
• 1 Corinthians 15:13-19: So then what is point of living if Christ did not rise from the dead? What if he didn't die for our sins? Life would not be worth living.
  
  
• 1 Peter 3:18: But that is not the case. Christ died to bring us closer to God.
  
  
  • What does it mean to be closer to God than before? Before Christ's death, who could talk and pray to God? Only the high priest enclosed in a holy room who spoke on behalf of the people. Once Christ died, the veil of the temple split down the middle (Matthew 27:51). The veil splitting is symbolic of the praying room being opened to all the people of the world, now, and not just the high priest. This, in effect, was the most we drew closer to God because now we pray to him wherever and whenever we want. We can communicate with him directly!
  
  
  CLOSER

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• Isaiah 53:2-10: A description of the Son of Man who had to be resurrected for how he paid for our sins
  
  
• Romans 4:25: Read this verse. I believe you know the answer to it, now...