[0:00] This morning I want to speak to you on resurrection courage.! Resurrection courage. Let's first look at what the definition of courage is.
[0:11] ! Courage is broadly defined as the ability or quality that enables a person to confront fear,! danger, pain, difficulty, or uncertainty, even when feeling afraid or anxious.
[0:23] It is often associated with bravery, valor, and fearlessness, but does not require the absence of fear. Rather, it involves acting in spite of it. Okay? So that's the definition of courage.
[0:36] And every form of courage has its source, right? Strength is the strong man's courage, right? A strong man feels courageous because, hey, I'm strong and I'm stronger than other people, right?
[0:50] Athletic ability is the athlete's courage. If an athlete believes they're better than other athletes, then he is more apt to do more courageous things on the sports field or sports court.
[1:03] Training is the soldier's courage, right? If a soldier is well-trained and has better training than other people, whether it's shooting or other kinds of things, they feel a confidence, a courage on the battlefield because they've been trained well.
[1:17] Knowledge or intellect is the debater's courage. Okay? When debating someone else, if someone feels like they have superior knowledge or superior intellect, they have this courage and boldness in their debating.
[1:29] Moral conviction is the protester's courage, right? Those who protest confidently and boldly tend to have some kind of moral superiority, moral high ground that they have.
[1:39] And so it makes them courageous. And lastly, alcohol is the drunk man's courage or liquid courage as they would call it. So, right? And I don't really know what that's all about, but just they think that they're better than they are in that moment and they feel courageous, right?
[1:55] But it begs the question, what is the Christian's courage? What is the Christian's courage? Christians are to be courageous. That great verse on that, when spoken to Joshua, right?
[2:08] Be strong and courageous. And all throughout the Bible, we see this phrase. I believe it's actually there 365 times, which is perfect. You could read one for every day. Do not fear.
[2:20] It's one of the most reiterated commands in the whole Bible. Do not fear. But be courageous. Be brave. Okay? Well, what is the Christian's courage?
[2:31] Let's look at Peter and John's courage, right? In the book of Acts, there was some religious leaders who noticed something different about Peter and John. That Peter and John had courage and it was an unusual amount of courage.
[2:45] So my question to you this morning is, what was their courage? What is the Christian's courage? Let's look at Acts chapter 4. A little context before this. They had just walked into a city and at the gate was a man who was born lame.
[3:00] And he was asking for money and he said, silver and gold I don't have, but this I give to you. And he said, rise up and walk. And the lame man walks. Okay? So that's the context for this. Fast forward to Acts chapter 4, starting in verse 1.
[3:14] It says, and as they were speaking to the people, they being Peter and John, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them.
[3:25] Now, if you ever wonder, you know, what's the difference between the Pharisees and Sadducees? Sadducees, the Sadducees are the ones who didn't believe in the resurrection, which is why they're sad. You see? So you got that.
[3:41] So you have the Sadducees. That's an important context. They don't believe in the resurrection. Right? And that's who they're actually speaking to or who's coming around when they're speaking. As they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them.
[3:57] Greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. So that's why the Sadducees are annoyed. They don't believe in the resurrection of the dead. And these guys have the audacity to preach this.
[4:10] So right away, they're annoyed because they're proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. Verse 3. And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.
[4:22] But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about 5,000. Remember earlier, 3,000 were saved in a day. Now it says there's 5,000 men.
[4:33] So you include women. That could have been close to 10,000. A lot of people are getting saved. Could be possibly from like 3,000 to 10,000 people. A lot of people are believing.
[4:45] On the next day, their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas, and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high priestly family.
[4:58] And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, By what power or by what name do you do this? So in other words, like, who do you guys think you are? Like, who, who, who, who, where do you, where do you get your authority from?
[5:10] Who, who, who, who, who said that you could do this? Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, rulers of the people and the elders. Now, note, this is rulers.
[5:21] These are people with power, right? Specifically, they have the power to throw people in jail. Clearly, they just threw Peter and John in jail. So, you know, we typically don't get afraid of people who don't have any power.
[5:34] But if someone actually does have power, especially the power to throw you in jail, you tend to have understandable concern or fear of what they might do, right?
[5:46] And so, you may be a little more timid in how you speak to them, or a little more nuanced, or maybe you don't want to even speak to them at all because you don't want to say anything that might cause them to be upset and throw you in jail, right?
[5:58] Or keep you in jail in this case. And so, Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, says to them, rulers of the people and elders. If we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, uh-oh, easy there, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by him this man is standing before you well.
[6:31] So, he doubles down on the whole resurrection thing, says Jesus rose from the dead, he then points the finger at them for crucifying the one who rose from the dead, so you'd think, okay, he might be maybe annoying them even more.
[6:45] If they were annoyed before, maybe they're even more annoyed now, right? By him this man is standing before you well. Verse 11, This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.
[6:57] And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven, given among men, by which we must be saved. Now, this is the important verse in the context of courage, right?
[7:14] Verse 13, Now, when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, or some versions say courage of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated common men, they were astonished, and they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
[7:31] Okay? So, clearly, Peter and John, the fact that he's not dialing it back because they're in jail, but actually dialing it up, says, oh, this, you know, they were probably, it says they were astonished, right?
[7:47] Is that what it says? Yes. It says they were astonished. Well, why were they astonished? Because they're not used to that kind of response. Typically, the people of power, who have the power to throw people in jail, who threw people in jail, these people, they tend to, you know, start getting what they want.
[8:01] You know, kiss up to us, pander, because we have the power to keep you in jail. And, it's not like Peter and John were lawyers, who, you know, who had gone to school to speak to the rulers and authorities.
[8:15] These are unschooled ordinary men. Okay? Fishermen. And so, they were astonished. And they took note. They recognized that they had been with Jesus.
[8:28] So, that, that, I think we're starting to get maybe an answer to our question, but not the full answer to our question. My question was, what is the Christian's courage? Well, it looks like here, they're, they're, they're pointing out that, well, they had, took note that they had been with Jesus.
[8:45] They were courageous because they had been with Jesus. But, another, it begs another question. Why does that embolden them? It can't just be, because they had been with Jesus.
[8:56] because, because, because, because, they had been with Jesus before, like, earlier in the story, and they weren't courageous. They weren't bold then.
[9:07] So, that, even though that's what they took note, it has to be something specifically about Jesus. Not just that they had been with him, because they were, they were with him before, right? You follow me on this? Before they were with him.
[9:19] And, Matthew 26, 56, when they're the Garden of Gethsemane, how does that story end? It says, then all the disciples left him and fled. Sounds like a little different picture.
[9:32] This is including Peter and John. They all left and fled. Even though they had been with Jesus, they're still not courageous. So, it must be something specifically about Jesus.
[9:44] Even, you see, Peter's denial in Matthew 26. It says, now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a servant girl came up to him and said, you also were with Jesus the Galilean. But he denied it before them, saying, I do not know what you mean.
[9:59] Now, this is a similar situation, right? He's, he, he follows Jesus into the courtyard, and, people are talking to him and said, hey, weren't you, you were with Jesus too.
[10:12] And, it's the same consequence. They could throw him in jail. Same Peter, same scenario, same consequence. And yet, in this picture of Peter, he says, hey, I do not know what you mean.
[10:28] And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, this man was with Jesus of Nazareth. And again, he denied it with an oath. I do not know the man.
[10:39] I swear. You know, basically, he did it with an oath. I swear, I don't know the man. After a little while, the bystanders came up and said to Peter, certainly you two are one of them, for your accent betrays you. Then he began to invoke a curse on himself, and to swear, I do not know the man.
[10:55] Okay, so, you know, you picture he's getting really upset about it, swearing about it, and, I do not know the man. And immediately, the rooster crowed, and Peter remembered, saying of Jesus, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.
[11:09] And he went out and wept bitterly. Same Peter, same circumstances. One, he's courageous, one, he's not. Okay, so, even though he had been with Jesus, so much so that Jesus told him ahead of time, hey, you're actually going to deny me three times.
[11:23] When Peter explicitly said, oh, I will never deny you. Like, I'll go to you to the death, Jesus. So, he had the bravado, and the language of this bravado, but, didn't carry through.
[11:37] But then in Acts 4, we see a different picture of Peter, and all of a sudden, now he is courageous. So, what is it from? It's not just Jesus, it's something else.
[11:48] Is it that the whole resurrection was a hoax? You know, that's what started getting spread around. this conspiracy theory in Matthew 28, verse 11.
[12:01] It says, while they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city, and told the chief priests, all that had taken place, basically of the resurrection of Jesus. And when they had assembled with the elders, and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money, to the soldiers, and said, tell people, his disciples came by night, and stole them away, while we were asleep.
[12:21] And if this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him, and keep you out of trouble. So, they took the money, and did as they were directed, and this story has been spread among the Jews, to this day. At the time of the writing of the book of Matthew, this conspiracy had been perpetrated.
[12:35] This hoax, basically saying, really, Jesus didn't raise from the dead, he, he stole their body. Okay? And if it didn't really, and still, honestly, crazily enough, still to this day, people say that.
[12:52] Thousands of years later, people say, the disciples, stole his body. But, would people be so bold, as to give up their life, which all the disciples, eventually did, except for John, like, would you do that for a hoax?
[13:11] Would you die, for a lie? Hey, let's just tell everybody, that we stole the body. I mean, let's just tell everybody, that he rose from the dead, but really, we stole the body, and made it look that way.
[13:24] And then finally, it comes down to, they're going to kill you. And you say, okay, okay, okay, it wasn't true, it wasn't true. You would typically do that, right? Like, you wouldn't die for a hoax, or for a lie, especially if you knew it was.
[13:37] So, that wouldn't make any sense. Okay, they weren't emboldened, because they just had a good story. It had to be more. Well, maybe it was because they heard about Jesus.
[13:49] Maybe it was, was it courage from hearsay? Luke 24, Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary, the mother of James, the other one with them, they had seen Jesus, after death, resurrected.
[14:03] They saw him. And so, what'd they do? They went and told the apostles. So, was that it? Was that what gave them boldness? No. Verse 11 in Luke 24 says, these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them.
[14:19] Okay? So, after these women had seen Jesus, the disciples still aren't buying it. So, that wasn't it. Then in John 20, Thomas, poor guy, we always call him Doubting Thomas.
[14:35] Geez, the guy had one bad day, and he gets the name Doubting Thomas. We could all be called Doubting Josh, you know, whatever. Like, that would be really easy. We've had our days. But this guy Thomas, man, he just gets a bad rap.
[14:49] Now, Thomas, one of the twelve, called the twins, was not with them when Jesus came. So, the other disciples told him, we have seen the Lord. Again, hearsay. What does he say? Was that good enough for him?
[14:59] No. But he said to them, unless I see in his hands, the marks of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I'll never believe. Okay?
[15:11] So, still no boldness there. He's got to see it with his own eyes. Which brings me to, I think, is the real answer to the question, what is the Christian's courage?
[15:24] And it's that real, real eyewitnesses saw Jesus risen from the dead. And not just saw him, but a few more details. Let's look at it.
[15:35] John chapter 20, one through nine. Well, we don't need to read all this, but basically, Mary Magdalene finds out, they tell Peter and John, and so Peter and John, we're back to Peter and John again, they start, they start running, right?
[15:50] they get, they're, they're sprinting over there. The guy who's writing this book lets us know this little detail that he got there first, that he was faster than Peter. So, I kind of like that little part right there.
[16:03] Oh, just so you know, just, you know, I mean, the disciple got there before Peter. Then the other disciple, who had reached the term first? He just put that little phrase in there.
[16:14] Also went in, and he saw, and believed. For as yet, they didn't understand the scripture that he must rise from the dead. So John, he didn't even see Jesus, but the fact that he saw the empty tomb, John believed.
[16:28] Okay? John believed. But then the rest of them, Luke 24, 36, as they were talking about these things, the disciples all together, they're talking about everything, and then Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, peace to you.
[16:43] They were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. And that's an understandable thing. It'd be one thing to say, okay, maybe this is a vision, or we're just seeing like his spirit, or like a ghost or something, but it's not really his, he's not really rose from the dead.
[17:01] He just has come from the afterlife and appeared to us, but he's not a real, he's not actually alive again. We're just seeing a vision or seeing a spirit, you know.
[17:12] That's understandable. You would, you would think that would maybe, you would doubt at first, and then maybe like you, if you even see it, so they see with their own eyes, but even then, they're still doubting and thinking, well, they thought they were seeing a spirit, a ghost.
[17:27] And he said to them, why are you troubled, and why do you doubt, why do doubts arise in your hearts? So even seeing that still cause doubts in their hearts. And so, what does Jesus say? He says, see my hands and my feet, that it is I myself.
[17:41] Touch me and see. Okay, you can't touch a spirit or a ghost, but they touched him. They saw with their own eyes, for a spirit is not of flesh and bones, as you see that I have.
[17:53] Okay, and when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet, and while they still, but they're still disbelieving. They're still not believing. So, if you ever want to convince someone that you're not a ghost, here's the thing you do, right?
[18:07] And while they still disbelieve for joy and were marveling, he said to them, have you anything here to eat? Because ghosts don't eat, right? Everybody knows that. And so he says, they gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate before them.
[18:24] Okay? Finally, it's like, okay, we touched you, we saw you, and you ate, we ate and drank with you. All right? This essentially is, is the thing.
[18:37] And you know, but Thomas wasn't there, or doubting Thomas. And then he comes again in John 20, and he says to Thomas, put your finger in here, see my hands, put out your hand, and place it in my side.
[18:51] Do not disbelieve, but believe. And then Thomas says, my Lord and my God. He believes as well. So, fast forward again to Acts chapter 10, and this gives us more of an answer to, what is it that gives the Christian courage?
[19:06] In Acts chapter 10, we see Peter preaching here, and he says, we are witnesses of all that he did, both in the country of the Jews, and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him on the third day, and made him to appear.
[19:22] Not to all people, but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him, after he rose from the dead. So he points this out now, post-resurrection, post this time that they're eating fish to them.
[19:35] Says, hey, listen, Jesus rose from the dead. We know because we ate and drank with him. Right? Which they also did on the beach after, you know, when they, when Jesus appeared on the beach, he was making breakfast.
[19:48] What a sweet little picture that is, right? Jesus making a little campfire, and cooking up some shore lunch. I mean, that's a great picture right there. So it says, to all the people, those who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him, after he rose from the dead, and then it says, and he commanded us, who's us?
[20:10] Us is those who he chose as his witnesses, those who actually saw, touched, and ate and drank with him. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judged of the living and the dead.
[20:25] To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name. So, the guy who rose from the dead, the guy who made it really clear, he proved it, he let you touch him, he saw him, he actually ate and drank with you, that guy, because no one had seen this happen before where someone did this on their own accord, where they actually rose from the dead.
[20:49] They had seen people raised from the dead because the guy who did raise from the dead told them to get up and rose them from the dead, but they never seen anyone do it on their own. And here we see Jesus, who was risen from the dead himself, and that guy says, he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judging of the living and the dead, which is kind of a big deal because the guy who raises from the dead gets to say whatever he wants.
[21:15] Right? He's been charged. He defeated the one, you know, I said, you know, one of the, another way to say that a military's courage is from all the wins that they have.
[21:30] Right? Typically in past history, the military armies or military generals that were the most courageous were the ones who had the most W's, right?
[21:41] They had won the most battles and had defeated the hardest enemies. They have the greatest courage because basically like, they look back at their track record and say, hey, listen, we, we won.
[21:54] So there's no reason we're not going to keep winning. And who more than anybody has authority and to say something than the one who defeated the one enemy that nobody could beat, the one enemy that takes everybody, the one enemy that takes everybody all the time, death.
[22:12] death. Jesus defeated death. He overcame death. The one thing that no one can beat, we can, maybe we can beat age and look younger. Maybe we can beat dying young and be healthy and live long.
[22:26] Or maybe we can defeat, you know, all kinds of other things in our life. But you can't defeat death. You eventually, it's appointed to all of us to die. And Jesus beats that.
[22:38] And then he commands us to tell everyone that he is the one who's appointed by God to be judged of living and dead. Which is what they did. In Acts 17, you see them, there's preaching again and it says, God commands all people everywhere to repent because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed.
[22:58] And of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead. Okay? The resurrection is everything. If Jesus didn't raise, it doesn't make any sense.
[23:10] In fact, I was even thinking one of the questions we should ask unbelievers often is, do you believe Jesus rose from the dead? Because end of discussion in one sense if they have it.
[23:21] Like, not end of discussion we want to keep discussing, but end of discussion in the fact that you're not a Christian. They might say, oh yeah, I'm a Christian or I'm a, you know, this, that, or the other. Do you believe Jesus rose from the dead?
[23:32] Well, I mean, that's a little far-fetched, don't you think? It's like, whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on, time out. If that ain't true, then all of, then none of this other stuff matters.
[23:42] In fact, there's no point in doing all the Christian stuff if he didn't raise from the dead. That's what gives all this meaning and authority. In fact, in 1 Corinthians 15, 12 to 22, it says, now if Christ is proclaimed his race from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
[24:00] But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We were found to be misrepresenting God because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did, who he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised.
[24:20] For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you're still in your sins. Okay, that's why this is such a big deal.
[24:30] Your faith doesn't make any sense. I was thinking about when we were singing these songs. Think of how stupid and foolish it would be to sing to God if he's still dead. It would be so dumb.
[24:45] It would be like, what are we doing? You guys are a bunch of fools. If he was just a good man, some people are like, oh yeah, I believe Jesus was a prophet.
[24:55] I believe he's a good man. Okay, but then you're going to gather for him and do things for him and throw up, write songs about him that we put lyrics on the screen and we're all going to sing about him and worship him, but he's dead?
[25:12] Like, he's just like everybody else then. He was conquered by death as well. That would be so dumb. It would be so foolish. Which is why he says, if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile, pointless, and you're still in your sins.
[25:27] Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitying. But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead and the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
[25:42] For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. So, if in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.
[25:57] And a lot of times people have this thought that, you know, even if Christ really didn't raise from the dead, it would still be better to be a Christian. That is one of the dumbest things in the world.
[26:08] That doesn't make any sense. That doesn't make any sense. It would be real, like you just, just think that thought through. That means you don't get the benefits of the afterlife, you don't get the benefits of a real living relationship with a living God, and you don't get any of the, you don't get the pleasures of sin either.
[26:28] You're basically, you don't get anything. You're just forfeiting pleasure your whole life. And if it's not true, you would be the most to be pitied.
[26:40] There's nothing good about that. That's why Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15, 30 to 32, why are we in danger every hour? Paul is voluntarily putting himself in danger every hour.
[26:51] He says, I protest, brothers, by my priding you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day. What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus if the dead are not raised?
[27:04] Then let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die. His whole point is, what would be the point of me dying every day, like giving up my life every day?
[27:15] What would be the point of me suffering and facing all this hardship if Christ is not raised? If Christ is not raised, then we might as well eat, drink, and be married for tomorrow we die.
[27:27] That's why Christianity doesn't make sense in that way. And I think for some of us, sometimes we have a hard time dying to ourself because we really don't haven't gotten this true conviction that Jesus rose from the dead.
[27:42] If Jesus rose from the dead, like literally rose from the dead and people saw him and ate with him and a man who was dead is now alive, that man is God. That man will now, when he says he's going to resurrect us from the dead unto eternal life, we can believe him.
[27:59] Anybody that's, if I said to you, hey, when you die, don't worry, I got you. I'm going to raise you up and you're going to live with me for eternity. You'd be like, you're loony tunes, bro.
[28:11] Like, what are you talking about? You're dead. You can't, you're going to die too. No, no, no. You would never believe me in that unless I died and then rose from the dead and ate with you.
[28:24] Now you'd start to think, oh, wait a second. Everything this guy said is a big deal, even more than a big deal than I thought before. I thought before he was a prophet. I thought, wow, he said some really profound things, you know, seemed to have a good grasp on things.
[28:38] But the fact that he rose from the dead, that changes everything. Jesus rising from the dead is the end all be all of all things. It changes everything.
[28:50] like we are the people who profess that Jesus rose from the dead. We believe that death is not the final word. That is our message. We believe that one day, and so the one who gets risen from the dead, he can tell everybody, hey, I want you to preach to the people and testify that Jesus is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead.
[29:12] And that's what we should tell people. Because he rose from the dead. That just means I can lose my life, my entire life here knowing I'm going to rise from the dead too, because the one who rose from the dead said that it's going to happen and he's going to raise me.
[29:27] But if he doesn't, then what am I doing denying myself? What am I doing? Why would we fast and pray? Like, really? No way.
[29:38] Why would I abstain from things? Why would I give my life and suffer for other people? What would be the point? There wouldn't be a point. Unless, of course, he really rose from the dead. Did he rise from the dead?
[29:50] If he did, then it changes everything. So I said, 2 Corinthians 5, 14 to 15, speaks of this resurrection courage. For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this, that one has died for all, therefore all died, and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves, but for him, but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
[30:18] The love of Christ controls us. We now live for him who for their sake died and was raised. That's our compulsion. That's what compels us. That's what motivates us. He's risen from the dead, and so that changes everything.
[30:32] I don't count my life as my own anymore. I die daily because he died for me, and I know one day he's going to raise us up, and we'll live together with him forever, in paradise, forever and ever and ever.
[30:43] The fact that he rose from the dead changes everything. 1 Peter 1, 3-5, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is the same Peter.
[30:56] This is the same Peter who was afraid, and then all of a sudden he's saying, you killed the author of life. He's so bold, even though he's speaking to the people just through him in jail. This same Peter writes, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
[31:11] Exclamation point. According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
[31:32] This is resurrection courage. You have boldness because you know, the one I follow, he can't lose. Death could not hold him. It couldn't keep him.
[31:44] Couldn't keep him down. I have boldness because that's my guy. That's the one I follow. That's the one I worship. This is my God.
[31:55] Why would I be afraid of anything? What you might think of me when I preach the gospel to you, when the one I ascribe to, the one I worship, the one I proclaim, that he has caused me to be born again to a living hope.
[32:09] Not a dead hope, a living hope. A hope that's alive. My hope is living. It's not based on some ancient writings and that's it. It's based on ancient writings that proved that he rose from the dead and that he's still alive today.
[32:24] And so I have a living hope. This God who I worship is not a relic from the past. It's not some idol. It's not something made with human hands. It's a real person who still lives.
[32:36] Jesus, the risen one. So I'm born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance that is imperishable. My inheritance in Christ is the same as Christ.
[32:51] It doesn't perish. His body didn't decay and just go away. It was resurrected. And because he has the power to keep his body from decay, he has the power to keep my inheritance from decay.
[33:08] Because his body wasn't defiled with sin or death because he rose from the dead, my inheritance is also undefiled. Because Jesus didn't just fade away and was no more, but is still today, the same yesterday, tamed forever, and lives, my inheritance is unfading.
[33:28] It's kept in heaven. It's not kept in heaven randomly. It's not kept in heaven in some circumstantial weird, like, hoping for hope itself. It's kept in heaven by the one who rose from the dead.
[33:40] It's kept in heaven by the one who's still alive. If someone said, hey, I'm going to keep this for you, and then they died, you'd say, yeah, I don't think they can really keep this for me anymore. They're dead.
[33:52] Jesus is still alive, so he can still keep the inheritance in heaven for us, and he can use God's power to guard us through faith until that day. Therefore, I have boldness.
[34:04] I have courage, because all the other religions, they all talk about a dead guy who stayed dead. Muhammad died. He's still dead. Buddha died.
[34:15] He's still dead. All the Hindu gods, they're all dead. They all died. All these gods, they're all dead. Every god that everybody's professed has died and did not raise again, except for ours.
[34:27] It changes everything. It's our resurrection courage. This is why we're bold. This is why we talk to people at work. We say, listen, do you understand? This isn't just another religion.
[34:40] We're either the most psychotic, crazy people on the earth, or Jesus wrote from the dead. Like, it's either one or the other.
[34:51] It doesn't make any sense. Christianity, it's not like, oh, that's cool, that's good for you. No, it's not good for you. If Jesus didn't rise from the dead, that's not good for you or anybody in society.
[35:02] You're a psycho. You're a psycho. You're claiming that someone rose from the dead and you sing songs to him every Sunday and do all these things for him, but he's dead?
[35:13] You're weird. You're literally crazy. You can see why people wanted to eradicate Christians. Christians because they don't believe Jesus rose from the dead. The only way it makes sense is that Jesus rose from the dead.
[35:27] That Jesus rose from the dead, that unschooled ordinary men speak to authorities with boldness and tell them, you crucified the Lord of life and until you repent, you will suffer the consequences.
[35:40] No fear. Or even in the spite of fear, they have courage. They just press right through. resurrection courage is the greatest courage of all because there's nothing like it.
[35:51] If Jesus didn't raise from the dead, we were a bunch of psychotic fools. And so, just know that if you don't act like Jesus is risen, you don't talk like Jesus is risen, if your Christianity is a form of godliness but denies the power of the resurrected Lord, you look like the wrong kind of fool.
[36:11] fool. The fool you should look like is the one who is vehemently committed and convicted that Jesus rose from the dead. And yes, that will look foolish to people, but it makes sense if God is raised.
[36:26] Don't have your life not make sense if Jesus is raised, where you look just as foolish as someone who would believe when someone would think Jesus wasn't raised. Those of us who believe that Jesus is raised should have a courage that is unlike anybody else's courage.
[36:41] They should have a boldness like unlike anybody else who's ever had boldness before. It should be different because the fact that people saw Jesus touch Jesus, that he appeared to over 500 witnesses, that they ate and drank with him, that means it really happened.
[36:55] And if it really happened, all of human history has changed. All of human history has changed. Game changer, the game changer of all game changers. And so our life should look differently, should look drastically differently.
[37:10] And if it doesn't, we kind of look like the people who don't believe that Jesus rose from the dead, we got a problem. We should look crazy to them. They should look at us and either be really curious or think we're psychos.
[37:24] That is the message of the resurrection. It's resurrection boldness. It's resurrection courage. Amen? Amen. Amen. We're going to close with a song on this Easter Sunday.
[37:39] Okay.