The Resurrection - Christ Our Forerunner

[0:00] Welcome. Thank you for choosing to listen to another faith-building message by Pastor David Entry. Faith comes by hearing and by hearing the Word of God.

[0:13] May your knowledge of Jesus Christ increase as you listen. Be blessed. 1 Corinthians chapter 15, I'm reading from verse 1 all the way to 8.

[0:25] It says that, moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preach unto you, which also ye have received and wherein ye stand, by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain.

[0:46] For I delivered unto you, first of all, that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve.

[1:07] After that, he was seen of above 500 brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep.

[1:21] After that, he was seen of James, then of all the apostles. And last of all, he was seen of me also as one born out of due season.

[1:36] Here ends the reading of God's Holy Word. Amen. Let's get into God's Word. Now, resurrection, the meaning of the resurrection, the implication of the resurrection.

[1:48] I've talked about the, last year I spoke about, I think, the implication, the significance, or the implication of the resurrection. Today, I really want to try and focus more on the Christ, our forerunner.

[2:03] The Christ, our forerunner is connected to the resurrection. All right. So I'll give you why the resurrection, and I'll explain that. But a few points to note, that the resurrection is central to Christianity.

[2:16] All right. There are people who say that it didn't matter whether Jesus died or he didn't die. All right. So you can believe the teachings of Jesus, but it doesn't mean anything. It doesn't really mean anything to your eternal salvation, unless you believe in the fact that he was raised from the dead, and you confess that.

[2:35] So in Romans 10, verse 9, it says that you confess first. What are we confessing and what you believe? It said you have to confess Jesus Christ as Lord. So if thou confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus Christ, that he is most, he is Lord.

[2:50] And not just that. And shall believe in thine heart. What do you believe? That God has raised him from the dead. You'll be saved. All right. So it doesn't matter what you don't know.

[3:01] If you can believe this, if you can know that and believe it. So he said, after believing, you confess. So if it starts with what you are saying, you confess that Jesus is Lord, and you believe in your heart that God, watch this, this is very important, that God raised him from the dead.

[3:17] So there cannot be salvation without a belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Hallelujah. And it's, at this point, it's very important to bring to your attention that people have had all kinds of objections when it comes to the resurrection.

[3:32] One of the objections is that Jesus really didn't die. That doesn't save. And that is not Bible. That is not true. Others also believe that he actually didn't die first.

[3:43] Some people believe that he did not die. He just was unconscious because of the things he went through. And so the disciples carried him. And when he was buried, after three days, he came back to life.

[3:54] And that's how he came back. That's really preposterous because the tomb was sealed with a two-toned stone. Two-toned. Two-toned stone.

[4:05] The stone was heavy. It takes 20 strong men to push the stone. So how could a wicked Jesus, who hasn't eaten, he hasn't eaten all this while, and was in the tomb, walk out and come out of the tomb.

[4:16] And guess what? It was also sealed. And then besides the ceiling, they put armed soldiers there to guard their tomb to make sure that he's not coming out. So you can't say that such a weak man came out after the soldiers have killed him and the soldiers didn't see that.

[4:33] All right. So it's just ridiculous and preposterous to believe that. Others also believe that those witnesses who said they saw an empty tomb went to their wrong tomb. So they were looking at their wrong tomb, thinking it was the tomb of Jesus.

[4:46] Oh, come on. It was a private tomb. And so that place, it was only one tomb that was there, private tomb. And so when they went, they didn't go to the wrong tomb. They went to the tomb of Jesus Christ.

[4:56] Others also believe that it was a hallucination. They thought they had seen Jesus, but it was hallucination. So they saw some things thinking it was Jesus.

[5:07] Interesting how hallucination or hallucination can eat bread, can break bread, can have conversation with you. Come on. So there are all kinds of objections to the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

[5:26] And others also believe that his disciples stole the body. They went and stole the body. How did they roll away the stone? And they stole away the stone. And so I'm so just regarding, no, that cannot, that cannot be so.

[5:38] So, so what did God do? When you read Matthew, Matthew chapter 28, I think we should, I will read it. Matthew chapter 28, reading from verse two.

[5:49] All right. Matthew chapter 28. The verse two says that, and behold, there was a great earthquake for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back.

[6:00] See, who rolled away the stone? It was the angel of heaven. It was the angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the stone from the door and sat on it.

[6:11] And then the angel had actually come down.

[6:38] Behold, an angel has come to roll away the stone. Verse three. His countenance was like lightning. Verse four. And fear fell. And, yeah, and fear, verse four says, and for the fear of him, the keepers did shake and became as dead.

[6:54] That's the soldiers. The soldiers were so afraid. They became as dead men because when you see an angel, you forget about your gun or you forget about your, your, uh, uh, uh, armor or your sword or anything.

[7:08] Verse five. Verse five says that, and the angel answered and said to the women, fear not, for I know that ye seek Jesus who was crucified. Please remember, if you have a Bible, it's good to underline was crucified.

[7:22] Okay. Jesus is still, is no longer on the cross. Jesus is no longer on. He left the cross 2000 years ago, removing from the cross. He's no longer on the cross.

[7:34] He was crucified. The verse six is very important. He is not here for his reason. As he said, come see what, this is very important. Come see the place where he lay.

[7:47] So he said, you are looking for Jesus. He is not here. He's risen. Jesus Christ is risen. And then he invited them to come and see. That is why the stone was rolled away.

[7:59] The stone was rolled away so that his disciples could see inside the tomb. That is an empty tomb. Very important.

[8:09] John chapter 20 from verse two. John chapter 20 from verse two. It says that, um, then she, this Mary, she ran it and come it to Simon Peter.

[8:24] That's when they went to the tomb. I think we also should read from this one. Sorry again. Let's go from verse one. The first day of the week. Um, the first day of the week. Come it Mary Magdalene early.

[8:35] When it was, when it was still dark onto the sepulcher and see it, the stone taken away from the sepulcher. Who took the stone away? The angel of the Lord. The verse two says that.

[8:46] Then he ran it and come it to Simon Peter and, and to the, to the other disciples whom Jesus loved and said unto them, they have taken away the Lord out of the tomb. And we know not where they have laid him.

[8:59] So Simon Peter and the other disciples got up. Peter therefore went forth and the other disciples and came to the sepulcher and the other disciple outran this, Peter and God, the verse, verse five.

[9:11] And, and then he stood down. He didn't enter. He stood there. Saw the linen cloth lying, lying. Yet he didn't go in there. That's John, the other disciple. But Simon Peter comes and Simon Peter goes into the tomb.

[9:23] He went, went into the sepulcher and see the linen cloth. So they saw an empty tomb. Watch this. Jesus gave them the evidence of his resurrection before they physically saw him.

[9:35] He showed them the empty tomb before he appeared to them. He made them see the empty, the tomb is empty. Then he appeared to them. He appeared to Mary. And he said that, Mary, it's me.

[9:49] It's me. So you can touch me and see, it's me. So he wasn't dead. He was, he was alive. They went to the tomb looking for the dead.

[10:01] But you cannot look for the living among the dead. He said, why do you look, look account? He said, chapter 23, sorry, 24.

[10:11] Why do you seek, verse 5 and 6. Why do you seek the living? Why do you seek the living amongst the dead? Why do you seek the living among? He's not here.

[10:22] He's risen. He's not here. He's risen. He's not here. He's risen. We serve, watch this. We serve a crucified but living Savior.

[10:36] He was crucified but he's alive. That's very important. He is alive. He was crucified. Revelation chapter 1, verse 18. He said, I am he that was dead.

[10:49] Tell my friends in the other religion. He was dead. He appeared. He said, I am he who lives. I was dead and behold, I am alive forevermore.

[11:03] Hallelujah. I am alive. I was dead. I wasn't unconscious. I wasn't whisked away by an angel.

[11:18] I was dead. I was crucified. I was dead. He said his own words. He said, I am alive. I am he that was dead. He that was dead.

[11:30] Jesus died on the cross. 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verse 3. He says that I give you what I received. That first of all, that Christ died.

[11:42] He died. Not for himself but for our sins on the cross. He died. He said, I am he that was dead. And behold, I live forevermore.

[11:52] And so we can see clearly from the text that Jesus Christ died. He died. Romans chapter 6, verse 9.

[12:03] Romans chapter 6, verse 9. Hallelujah. Romans 6, 9. Knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, so he was in the region of the dead, dies no more.

[12:15] Death no longer has dominion over him. Well, so as I said, the resurrection is so central, is so key. Is the lifeline, is the life pulse of Christianity or the work of God on earth or what God is doing amongst men.

[12:34] So, but why would people object to it even though they don't have any evidence? It's because when you accept that he's alive, that means that everything he said was true.

[12:47] Everything he said was true. So the implication is if we accept he's alive, then we have to actually live by his standards. We have to do what he said we should do. So it's not an intellectual issue.

[13:01] It's a moral issue. We don't want to accept. Listen, it doesn't matter how much evidence you give to a person who has decided not to believe. He won't believe. So God, guess what? And when he resurrected, God has never given unbelievers evidence.

[13:14] No, God doesn't give. He didn't give evidence to the unbelievers that, look, I am alive. Rather, he appeared to their brethren and he appeared to 5,000 of his people. He didn't appear to Pontius Pilate.

[13:25] He didn't, he is not trying to prove anything to unbelievers. Unbelievers are supposed to come in by faith. Blessed is he who hasn't seen but believe. In John chapter 20, verse 28 or somewhere there.

[13:36] Blessed is he who hasn't seen but believes. So he wants us to come in believing. He wants unbelievers to believe first. And after we have believed, we will begin to experience another, really, he's alive.

[13:48] And so I like the way Peter puts it. First Peter chapter 21 verse 8. He said, whom having not seen yet believeth, having not seen yet ye laugh, though you have not seen him yet believeth.

[13:59] You rejoice with joy is inexpressible, unspeakable, full of glory.

[14:14] Hallelujah. We don't have to see first. Blessed is he who hasn't seen but believe. So the point here is that God is not in the business of proving himself to unbelievers.

[14:24] Okay. If God really exists, then he should do A, B, C. Then I will be, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. He said, he said, Lazarus said, send, sorry, that rich man said, send Lazarus to go and tell my family so they will believe.

[14:39] Abraham said, Father Abraham said, they don't have to, Luke chapter 16, verse 20, 26, 24, 25, 26. He said, they have prophets. They have Moses and the prophet. That means they have the word of God. If they don't believe the word of God, it doesn't matter what evidence you give them, they won't believe.

[14:53] They won't believe. So this, okay, if Jesus can appear to me, I'll believe. This is not necessary. The word is enough. Hallelujah. So people object to the resurrection because their hearts are dark and they don't want to believe.

[15:10] Now, one thing I want to draw to your attention, which is very interesting about the resurrection is that, please remember, when you read the Bible very carefully, you realize that it's only one or two few places where the Bible talks about Jesus rose.

[15:27] Okay. Jesus rose from the dead. He rose from the dead because the Bible is trying to explain something. When the Bible says Jesus rose from the dead, he's drawing attention to Jesus' godness.

[15:40] You can't kill God. All right. So God was, he was physically, he died not as God. All right. But because he was God, even though he died not as God in the body, he was quickened in the spirit.

[15:54] So he rose, he came back. But when you read the Bible very carefully, several places in Acts, in Acts chapter 2, verse 24, in Acts chapter 3, verse 15, in Acts chapter 4, verse 10, in Acts chapter 5, verse 30, in Acts chapter 7, verse 30, and verse 33, and verse 34, and verse 37, in Acts chapter 10, verse 40, in Acts chapter 17, verse 31.

[16:24] When you look through all these scriptures I've quoted, you will see that the Bible talks very clearly that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. He didn't say he rose.

[16:35] He was raised. God himself. See, what happened in the womb of Mary was so supernatural. No science can explain it. And the same way, what happened in the womb was behind closed doors.

[16:47] God was working in the womb. It was a supernatural way. In the same way, what happened in the tomb was so supernatural, no one can tell exactly what. But God came and went and brought him back.

[16:59] He raised him. He was raised. Acts chapter 2, verse 24. Acts chapter 3, verse 6, 15. Acts chapter 4, verse 10. Acts chapter 5, verse 30. Acts chapter 7, verse 30.

[17:11] Verse 33. Verse 34. Verse 37. Acts chapter 10, verse 40. And it goes, the list goes on. Acts chapter 17, verse 31. I like chapter 26, verse 8.

[17:22] He said, why do you consider it an incredible thing that God should raise the dead? Hallelujah! He said, why do you consider this? Why should it be taught incredible by you that God raised?

[17:34] So God raised. It was God who raised him. You crucified him. Acts 2, verse 24. But God raised him. You crucified him, but God raised him. But God raised him. And when you read the original Greek, in Matthew chapter 28, verse 6 and 7.

[17:50] Matthew and Luke chapter 24, verse 6 and 7. In John chapter 20, verse 6. In, not John 26. John 26, the original says that he wrote.

[18:01] But in Mark, it all tells us that Jesus Christ, when you read it, it says that he, Mark chapter 16. Mark chapter 16. When you read it, you begin to see, or Matthew chapter 28, particularly.

[18:15] Yeah. Do not alarm. Jesus, he is risen. Now, that phrase, he is risen. In the original Greek, he has been raised. Okay. He has been raised.

[18:25] So the resurrection was actually a pure act of God. In Romans chapter 8, verse 11. It says that God, if the spirit of him who raised Christ from the dead.

[18:36] So Jesus was raised from the dead. He was raised from the dead. In Romans chapter 10, verse 9. You remember I quoted it earlier on. That if you believe in your heart that God raised him.

[18:47] God has raised him. God raised him. God himself said, okay. Now, this is leading me to a very important point. Why the resurrection? Before I get there, let me just say what more.

[18:58] That God actually worked. He did something and raised him. So the resurrection was purely an act of God. Hallelujah. It was an act of God.

[19:10] So why the resurrection? Why the resurrection? Why did God raise him? What was the point? If he says that he has died for our sins, he's finished. On the cross, John chapter 19, verse 30.

[19:22] He says, that the last time. That's the Hebrew or the Greek, sorry. That the last time is finished. It is finished. That the last time. In the Latin is consummatum est.

[19:37] Consummatum est. It is finished. It is finished. So he said it's finished. If it is finished, what's the point in trying to raise him again? For what? This is important because there are significant implications of the resurrection.

[19:54] In fact, number one, I think I should give you a few points. Before I give you the points, yesterday I mentioned that I'll just try and tell you something about. There's a difference. Watch this.

[20:04] There's a difference between resuscitation and reincarnation and resurrection. Different. They are all different.

[20:15] Three different things. What is resuscitation? Resuscitation is bringing back to life. Or reviving. Or bringing back to consciousness. And in the face of modern science, there are more resuscitation.

[20:30] So like when you give somebody the case of life. You know, I'm talking about when you CPR, you are bringing somebody back to life.

[20:45] Sometimes they use the defibrillator. Someone has stopped. They use the defibrillator to bring the person back. So there are times where people may even be in hospital and they might be brain dead.

[20:55] But their organs are still working. Oxygen is not going to go into the brains. So the brain is gone. Or there are times the other things have stopped, but the brain is still showing signs of life.

[21:07] They are gone. So there are people who really died and they are brought back to life by science and by medical science. It is resuscitation now. A similar example. Even Lazarus.

[21:18] Lazarus was really dead. Everything was gone. Jesus brought Lazarus back to life. So there are people who have been resuscitated, who have been brought back to life. It is not the same as the resurrection of Jesus.

[21:30] I'm going to throw a bit more light on it. It's not the same. Now how about reincarnation? Reincarnation is to cause to be born again in another body or another form.

[21:42] So you are born again, not spiritually, physically. So somebody, you live a certain life and then you die and then you'll be born again. You'll be born again, but this time you are coming in another form or in another body.

[21:56] Okay. So you reappear in another body. You are born again. It's the same you. And sometimes you don't even know you are you. So maybe somebody, they say somebody, you might have been a king in the maybe 19th century.

[22:10] Reincarnation is not a real thing. Okay. And then usually the teaching is that if you come back and you keep doing good and you come back and you do good, you reincarnate and keep doing good, it gets to a time.

[22:23] Now God, now you are taken out of the body. You don't have to come back in the body again. And then you begin to live a glorious, enjoyable time out of the body. Now that's reincarnation. So you come back in another form.

[22:36] That's reincarnation. That's reincarnation. And that is no resurrection. And that is not what this resurrection we are talking about. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is one of its kind. That is why it is called, Bible says that he was the first born out of the dead.

[22:52] He is the first born out of the dead. He, 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verse 20, 22, 21, 22, 23. He, he was the first fruit. He was the first born from the grave.

[23:04] And in Revelation chapter two, Jesus Christ was the first. It's different. In what way is it, is the resurrection of Jesus different? Now, it's different from resuscitation in the sense that resuscitation, you see, when you are resuscitated or you are brought back to life, like Lazarus was, he died again, he will be sick again, he will be tired again, things will go, you know, he died, Lazarus died.

[23:32] So it is, it is not the resurrection we are talking about. When you come back, you live a normal life again, the normal life and you end up being tired, being weary, you grow older, you keep growing older and tired and you lose your teeth and then you die again.

[23:46] No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Come back, that is not the resurrection we are talking about. Hallelujah. How about reincarnation? No, no, no. Reincarnation, if, even if it's so, it's, it's, it's not so, there's nothing like that, okay?

[23:57] But let's assume if that even seems to be so, which is not so. You, in reincarnation, you come as in a different form, but in the resurrection, you come as the same body, the same body, or the same you.

[24:12] So when we see you, if you resurrect, when we see, we know it is you. We don't see a monkey or a donkey or some rat, some rat or cricket and say, oh, that, that is my grandfather.

[24:26] Now don't tell you, maybe he's my grandfather. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. It's not, it's far from the truth, okay? In resurrection, in the resurrection we are talking about, when they saw Jesus Christ, they knew it was Jesus.

[24:39] He showed them his, he said, his, his wounds. He said, that is me, he's the same body. But I want you to know there's something stronger I'm about to say, that Jesus Christ did not resurrect really with the very, very same body.

[24:54] It wasn't the very same body, but he is in the same Jesus, the same form, the same, you know him, he's the same. But this time the body has been changed. So the body that was crucified, even though you see the, the wound nails, the nail wounds, I'm sorry, you see the nail wounds, it's not the same body as it originally was.

[25:17] It's not the same body. Why, Pastor, why are you saying that? Because that body couldn't go through walls. That body couldn't appear and disappear. But this body started appearing and disappearing.

[25:29] How about where did he get his clothes from when he resurrected? Because they crucify him naked and then they wrap. Well, that's why when Lazarus was raised from the dead, when Lazarus came, Jesus said, lose him and let him go.

[25:40] Because they wrap, they wrap a napkin around you. But Jesus resurrected, left the napkin there. And when he had, obviously, he didn't come back naked, the resurrection, he wasn't walking around naked. He appeared the first time to ladies, actually.

[25:51] So he wasn't walking around naked. So where did he get his clothes from? Did you go to the shop to buy or somebody saw him and said, oh, let me get you some clothes from the shop. Where did he get it from? He got it from where he got his body from.

[26:03] God made a new body, a new glorious body. This is very important, brothers and sisters. A new glorious body for him. And he clothed that same glorious body. Clothed it so he was walking around. And he could pass through walls.

[26:14] And that is where we are going. So that's what I'm telling you. He's our forerunner. He's gone there and we're also going to go down. When we get to heaven, when we die and resurrect, I will see you.

[26:25] When I see you, I know it's you. I will know it's you. When you see me, you know it's me. But this time, in the glorified body. Hallelujah! According to, I think, Philippians 3, verse 21, it talks about how in the twinkling of an eye, and we shall all be changed.

[26:41] We shall all be changed. It says that who will transform our lowly bodies that it might be conformed to his glorious body. See, it wasn't the same. This body will be transformed to a certain glorious body.

[26:52] The body that Jesus was living on earth with when he was here, it was the same normal body that we all had. That's why he was hungry. That's why he thirsts. That's why he did. But when he was resurrected, when he resurrected, it was a glorious body.

[27:05] It wasn't the same. In fact, Paul puts it this way. I think, chapter 15, first Corinthians, we've seen, I think, 20, 34, 35, somewhere there. He said, when something is planted, when you plant something, he said, oh fool, does it grow up with the same body that it was planted?

[27:22] When you plant a seed, it is not a said seed. I said, foolish one. What you sow is not made alive until it dies. Look at the next verse. Until it dies. And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grain, perhaps wheat or some other grain.

[27:41] The next verse. But God gives it a body as he pleases, and to each seed its own body. So it is the same seed, but the seed comes out with a certain body that is natural, is physical, but it's not the same body that went to the ground.

[28:01] So when Jesus was erected, he had a glorified body, a glorious body. And watch this. The good news is, hey, the good news is that body does not grow older.

[28:13] That body does not get tired. That body does not age. It doesn't have birthdays. No more birthdays. Listen, when we die and resurrect, we won't have birthdays again. No more birthdays.

[28:25] Because every year you are the same. You are at the age of 33. When you see Jesus, you will see him looking like a 33-year-old man. The same.

[28:35] He hasn't aged. He hasn't changed. He doesn't get tired. He dies. Oh, this is very important. He raised. He rose. He was raised. He rose to die no more.

[28:45] He was raised to die no more. That's a different one. That is a different resurrection. And so when we talk about resurrection, you come back as yourself with a new and an immortal body that will not grow any older or die as God intended from the beginning.

[29:05] In the beginning, that's how God meant us to be. And death came in. This time, the resurrected body does not grow any older. But you come as yourself.

[29:16] You will be the same. That people, we will know it's you. It's not something else. We will know it's you. That's why in heaven, when we resurrect, we will see each other. And the beautiful thing about resurrection is that, watch this, we all go out of this three stages of human existence.

[29:32] Embodied state, disembodied state, and then the re-embodied stage, not reincarnated stage. The embodied stage is what we are all in.

[29:43] That's why I'm able to communicate with you. You can communicate with me. And we communicate with each other in this embodied state. But everyone will go out of the body. We will be disembodied one after the other.

[29:55] One after the other. We all don't get disembodied at the same time. So the living, the dead cannot communicate with the living. The living cannot communicate with the dead. There's no communication gap.

[30:06] But demons are very clever. Sometimes when people die and you want to hear from them, demons can mimic and appear like them. That is why God forbids us. It's only one or two instances where people who have died appeared.

[30:19] That one is the supernatural act, like when Jesus and Moses and Elijah appeared on the Mount of Transfiguration. Okay, so we are now in an embodied state. But everybody is going to be disembodied.

[30:31] And guess what? And re-embodied. We will be re-embodied. But all Christians will be re-embodied depending on what you do in your embodied state. What you do in your embodied state will determine your re-embodied state.

[30:49] How your new body will be like. How you will be like. Hallelujah! We are all going to rise. So we, and then when it comes to the disembodiment, it goes one after the other.

[31:00] But guess what? We are all going to be re-embodied one day. At the same time. At the same time, we are all going to re-embodied. Or even two stages.

[31:10] Those who overcome first and then later on the others will be re-embodied. But it's, so Abraham, Isaac, Moses, Joseph, and all those people, they are still in that state.

[31:22] They are still in the disembodied state. Their spirits have left their body. And their bodies are brought in the ground. But when the time comes, God will bring them and give them the same glorified body.

[31:35] So it's them. You will see it's them. We will see Abraham. We will see him. We will see Noah. We will see him. We will see Peter. We will see Apostle Paul. I can't wait to meet Apostle Paul. I can't wait to meet Apostle Paul. Hallelujah!

[31:45] All right. So we can, that's when we can have some good time there with the, with the, with the fathers of old. Talk about all the fathers, the fathers of old, John Wesley, Charles Wesley, Charles Whitfield, Count Zing Zing Dock.

[32:01] These are great people. Martin Luther. I don't mean Martin Luther King. And he was a Christian too. So he'll be there. Hallelujah. So it's going to be a glorious time, glorious reunion. When someone is dying, he says bye-bye here, but he says good morning there.

[32:13] Hallelujah. He says one day we shall all meet and have a glorious time together. But I want to draw your attention about to something. When the Greeks talk about the Greeks, the Greeks view of life.

[32:25] Okay. Life after death. The Greeks believe that this, your soul has been locked up and has been, is imprisoned in body, in this body.

[32:35] That's the Greeks believe. So when you die, your soul is now free from prison. And now you can go free from the body and this tiredness and it's free. But Jews, the Jewish belief or Jewish philosophical view of life after death is you need the body.

[32:51] So you are not complete without the body. You are not complete without a body. Because God created you to have a body, to be housed in a body. So 2 Corinthians chapter 5 from verse 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.

[33:03] Paul talks about how we will put our, when we are out of this earthly tabernacle. Okay, put it on the screen. He said, for we know that. No, New King James please.

[33:13] Let's keep with New King James. For we know that. For we know that. If our earthly house, this tent that's talking about the body, is destroyed. We have a building from God. A house not made with hands. Eternal, eternal and in heaven.

[33:26] That's what we are going to resurrect with. All believers. Look at the next verse. Verse, verse, verse 2. For in, for in this we groan. This present body. We are going to be endlessly desiring to be clothed with our habitation, which is from heaven.

[33:42] So we are, we suffer. We go through things. Sometimes you'd want to, you know, be clothed with your heavenly body, your glorious body. Verse 3. Look at this. This is very important. If indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked.

[33:55] Because we cannot be with our bodies. So the Jewish philosopher, Paul said, no. If we are going to be out of here and stay naked, no. We have to be clothed. So we look forward to being clothed because it's not good to be naked.

[34:07] It's like something is not complete. You are not complete without a body. And so when we die, a time is coming where we will be resurrected and given new bodies. Our bodies will be changed.

[34:18] It will be transformed. It's you need your body. You need your body. You will need a body. You will need a body. But not this earthly body. Bible talks about how, how mortality shall be swallowed up.

[34:32] Put you on the screen for me. First Corinthians 15. So, so when this corruptible put on in corruption, you see that I think corruption. And this mortar has put on immortality.

[34:45] Then shall be brought to pass. The saying that is written. Death is swallowed up in victory. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. So we are, we are going to, you see, that's what is going to happen to us.

[34:56] One day. Hallelujah. One day. Hallelujah. One day. We will be clothed with glorious bodies. Now we've grown in this body. Now we get tired. Now we are aging.

[35:07] Now we need Mary Kay. Now we need MSC. Now, now we need some makeup. Now we need dentures. Now we need wigs. Now we need some, we need even shoes. And we need things to keep this body.

[35:18] We need medication. We need food, um, um, um, uh, food supplement. Food supplements. Yeah. Yeah. We need some, some vitamins.

[35:29] We need all kinds of things to keep us going. But our time is coming. Hallelujah. Well, we will need all those things because it's a glorified body and we can move anywhere fast and wherever we want to.

[35:41] Jesus had to go to heaven because when you are in a body, you can be at one place at one time. So it is very important to understand just these few things about the resurrected body.

[35:52] Now the resurrection quickly. Why did Jesus have to resurrect? Right. Because it's God was glorifying him and proving that Jesus was who he said he was. They crucified him. What was the charge that he said he was the son of God?

[36:04] God in Romans chapter one, verse four, God raised him to declare him a son. He's actually my son and declared to be the son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by the resurrection.

[36:16] So he was declared, this is my son. You, you crucify him because he said he's my son. He wasn't saying the lie. He wasn't lying. He was speaking the truth. But he chose not to believe. I'm going to vindicate him and prove to you.

[36:28] And they crucified him. The Roman reason for crucifying him was because he said he was the king of the Jews. God raised him. And Bible says that him, God has made both Lord.

[36:39] Acts chapter two from verse 30, 31, 32, and particularly 32. Yeah. Acts 2, 32 and 33. He says, God raised him and God has made him.

[36:52] He says, this Jesus God has raised, raised up of witnesses. Look at the next verse. Verse 33. Therefore, being exalted to the right hand of God and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured upon us, which you see.

[37:09] I think I wrote to, I wanted to go to the verse 30, from verse 30. I need to show this quickly and then we can move on. Therefore, being a prophet, knowing Jesus, David speaking, verse 31. Verse 31 says that, for, it spoke concerning the resurrection of Christ.

[37:23] And 32, and then this, all right. Verse 30, verse 30, verse 36 and 37. And then Jesus says, God has raised both Lord and Christ.

[37:36] God has made, all right, whom you crucify, God, God has made this Jesus, whom you crucify, both Lord, both Lord and Christ. And I think chapter 13, verse 33.

[37:49] But let's leave that. So Jesus, God raised him to prove that what Jesus said is true. So he glorified him when Jesus was about to go to the cross. He said, now the time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

[38:00] He called the cross glorification in John chapter 12, verse 23. He said, now the time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. He calls the cross glorification.

[38:11] Yes, it definitely was for the Son of Man to be glorified. In the book of Acts chapter 3, verse 13, it talks about the God of our fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, raised his servants, glorified his servants.

[38:26] The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servants, who you crucified. The Bible says that, but he raised him. All right, verse 15 says, he raised him.

[38:36] That's how he glorified him. So you killed him, but God raised him from the dead. God glorified him. The resurrection was God putting his endorsement on Jesus that you are indeed my son.

[38:48] I'm glorifying you. The Bible says in Luke chapter 24, verse 26, ought not Jesus to have suffered these things and worseward entered into his glory.

[38:59] So he suffered and then entered the glory. So the resurrection was the beginning of his glory. Ascension was the continuation of his glory. Hallelujah. So number one, that God glorified Jesus who was crucified.

[39:12] Acts chapter 13, as I said, and in Hebrews chapter 2, verse 9, it talks about how we see Jesus glorified.

[39:22] We see Jesus glorified. We see him glorified. But we see Jesus who has been made little, little lower than angels for the suffering of death and for death crowned with glory and honor.

[39:34] Hallelujah. So Jesus suffered and he was glorified. Bible says that he humbled himself and became obedient to death, even death on the cross. Wherefore God has also highly exalted him.

[39:47] Philippians chapter 2, God has highly exalted him and given him a name. So he entered into exaltation. In Ephesians chapter 1, verse 20 to 22, it talks about how God raised him from the dead.

[40:00] God raised him from the dead. All right. And when he raised him from the dead and seated on the right hand of my heart, far above principalities and powers and gave him to be the head of all things to the church.

[40:12] So he entered into his glory. The resurrection was a statement of glory and a statement of vindication. You crucify him because you said he was a criminal. I'm raising and giving him glory to show that I back him.

[40:24] He is my man. Hallelujah. Number two, it was also a proof that judgment is coming. God is going to judge the whole world by Jesus Christ. God resurrected him to prove that he's going to judge the whole world by Jesus Christ.

[40:36] In Acts chapter 17, verse 30, 30 and 31. Yeah. Acts chapter 17, verse 30 said, truly the types of ignorant God wings. Let's go to verse 31.

[40:47] 31 says that, verse 31, because he has appointed a day on which he would judge the whole world in righteousness by the man whom he has ordained.

[40:58] He has given assurance of this to all by raising him from the dead. He's proven it. So in Elisha translation, he has given a proof to all by raising him from the dead.

[41:10] Okay. He has given a proof to all by raising him from the dead. Did you see that? So God raised Jesus from the dead, proving that I'm going to judge. God has set a day to judge, to judge the world with justice.

[41:26] He will judge the world by Christ Jesus. It's a proof. The resurrection means it's a statement that everyone will be judged. The world will be judged. Hallelujah.

[41:36] Number three is that his sacrifice has been accepted. He died on the cross. If he had not resurrected, that means he died in vain. First Corinthians chapter 15, verse 14, he says, if Christ has not resurrected, then our faith would have been in vain.

[41:51] Then our preaching is empty and our faith would have been empty. But our faith is not empty. Listen, my preaching is not empty. Hallelujah. Because there is a resurrection power behind it. Hallelujah. Hey!

[42:02] Kadavashanda haya. And so it's meant that his work on the cross has been accepted. When he said, tetelestai, when he said, it is finished.

[42:14] When he said, consummate to est, God said, yeah, it's finished. And God gave and those men have accepted. The work has been paid in full. The work has been done.

[42:25] In Hebrews, he says that after he had offered himself for sin, once and for Hebrews chapter 10, verse 12, 13, somewhere there, went and sat down. After he had offered sacrifice for sin, once.

[42:37] Okay? But this one, after he had offered one sacrifice for sin, forever, did it forever, sat down. That's why he had to, he resurrected and went and sat down. Look at what he's done. It's finished.

[42:48] It's finished. When you read chapter 9, verse 26. Hebrews chapter 9, verse 26. It's also on 28.

[42:58] It says that he would have, but now, once at the end of ages, he has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. At the end of the once. He has done it once.

[43:09] Once. He did it once because it worked. He did it and it worked. Verse 28. Verse 28 says that, so Christ also offered, was offered once to bear the sins of many.

[43:20] So it was offered once and he's coming back the second time for judgment and salvation. Hallelujah. And so his work on the cross was successful or his sacrifice has been accepted.

[43:32] Number three. Oh, I like number three. Number three is because death has been swallowed up in victory or death has been defeated. Death has been defeated.

[43:43] The resurrection means that somebody has for once overcome death, conquered death. No human figure, no religious figure was able to overcome death. If you say you are somebody, one day death will catch up with you.

[43:55] But Jesus Christ said, come, come, come, come. He entered death himself willingly. Bible says that. He said, I laid down my life and I take it up. John chapter 10, verse 18. He laid down his life and pick it up again.

[44:06] He overcame death. I like the way. So in Acts chapter 2, verse 24, he said, for it was not possible that death could hold him.

[44:18] For it was not possible. It was not because it was not possible that he should be held by death. No. God lose the pains of death because it wasn't possible that death should hold him.

[44:31] Yes. It wasn't possible. He defeated death. Hallelujah. Christ defeated death. He overcame death. He overcame death. He overcame death. He overcame death.

[44:42] He defeated death on our behalf. And I see you getting there. In 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verse 54, the Bible says that death has been swallowed up in.

[44:55] Hallelujah. Hallelujah. 1 Corinthians 15. So when corruptible shall put on incorruptible and the mortality shall put on. The Bible says that death is swallowed up in victory.

[45:08] In Isaiah chapter 25, verse 8, that's what it quotes. It says that I will swallow up death forever. That's what Jesus did. And the Lord will wipe away tears.

[45:18] This is what my scripture for this evening. God will wipe away tears from all your faith. I will swallow up death in the book of Isaiah chapter 13, verse 14.

[45:31] Isaiah 13, 14. It says, death has been defeated. I will ransom them from the power of the grave. I will redeem them from death. Oh, death, I will be your plague.

[45:42] I will be your plagues. Oh, grave, I will be your destruction. Pity is hidden from my eyes. So he came and paralyzed and destroyed death.

[45:54] So when you are a Christian, death does not have the final say. Because death is the greatest enemy of man. The greatest enemy. But it says, the last enemy of man, which is the 1 Corinthians 15, verse 55 and 56.

[46:08] Yeah. It said, death being the last enemy. It said, oh, death, where is your sting? Where is your power? It said, oh, death, where is your sting? Oh, Hades, where is your victory?

[46:20] Yes. Death has been conquered for you and I. So when he resurrected from the dead, it's a sign that he has conquered death. Now, listen to the point. I'm coming to give you a very important point. Hebrews chapter 7, verse 16.

[46:34] Very powerful scripture. Bible says that all those former high priests, former priests, they were made priests according to the law of fleshly commandment. But Jesus, he was made priests according to the power of an endless life.

[46:47] Kayabash! Hey! Endless life. You can't end the life. Now, he has an endless life, which is different. Watch this. Which is different from resuscitation. Resuscitation cannot give you an endless life.

[47:00] There's no human being who ever has an endless life. But Jesus is the first to have an endless life. And he's our forerunner. Hallelujah. He's our forerunner. He has done it, and so we are also. There is hope for you, my brother.

[47:12] There is hope for you, my sister. If you are in Christ, there is hope for you. Shout hallelujah! Hallelujah! Thanks be to God. So, an endless, endless life.

[47:24] In Hebrews chapter 7, verse 23, sorry, 24 and 25. 25 says that he is also able to save to the uttermost. Jesus lives forever. He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through him.

[47:38] How? Since he always, hey, he always lives. He always lives. He always lives. He always, someone say, he always lives. He always lives.

[47:49] Revelation chapter 1, verse 18. He says that I am he who was dead. He who lives. I was dead. And behold, I am alive forevermore.

[48:00] He always lives. John chapter 14, verse 19. He says, because I live, you will live. Because I live, you will live. He lives. So, that is why he said, why are you looking for the living amongst the dead?

[48:13] Why seek ye the living amongst the dead? He is not here. He is risen. He is alive. He is alive. He is alive. And this life he has is the resurrection life.

[48:25] That resurrection life is a death-defying, death-swallowing resurrection. Hallelujah. He is a death-습니다. He is a death-swallowing resurrection. His resurrection life is a death-swallowing resurrection.

[48:40] His death was as devil-destroying death. His resurrection was a death-swallowing resurrection. His death on the cross was a devil-destroying death.

[48:52] He is the one who had the devil-destroying death and the death-swallowing resurrection. direction. Hallelujah! I feel like preaching. Hallelujah! So he lives. Bible says he ever liveth. But all the other priests, death prevented them from continuing. Hebrews chapter 7, verse 23, 24. Also, there were many priests. Why? Because they were prevented by death from continuing. Death will not allow them. But look at the next verse. But he, Jesus, because he continues how long? How long? How long? You see the power of the resurrection?

[49:32] He couldn't have stayed in the grave. He couldn't have stayed in the grave. He continues forever. He has an unchangeable priesthood. He doesn't have a predecessor and he doesn't have a successor.

[49:44] Hallelujah! Praise the Lord. All right, let me just quickly try and bring around this thing up quickly. And so, death has been defeated. He has an indissoluble life. The life cannot be dissolved.

[50:05] Indissoluble life. He has an indestructible life. Yeah. He has permanently damaged death. And that's where we are also going. Yeah. So see, see, if you are not resurrected, I'll show you the next point.

[50:19] If you are not resurrected, it's not good news for us. Brother, it's not good news for us. Who is your role model? What is your hope ahead? But thank God we have a living hope. Hallelujah! Praise the Lord.

[50:33] So, and then number five, he produced many sons. Through his death, he produced many sons, except a grain of which falls to the ground and dies. He abides the lumbar when he dies.

[50:44] John chapter 12, verse 24. And then in the book of Hebrews, Hebrews chapter 2, verse 10, Bible says that in bringing many sons to glory, in bringing many sons is fitting for God. That's for him, for God. For whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of our salvation perfect through suffering. He had to go through the death so that he'll bring us into glory.

[51:13] But he had to resurrect, right? He resurrected and bringing us many sons so that he'll be, look at the next verse. Next, for both he who sanctify and those who are sanctified, of one, for which reason he's not ashamed to call us his brethren. Amen.

[51:33] So, he's in bringing, go back to verse 10. Let me show you something. Hebrews chapter 2, verse 10. For it is fitting for him, for whom are all things, to make the captain of our salvation. He's the captain.

[51:46] Now, that is a very important word. I'll come back to that, so don't forget it, so I don't have to quote it again. The captain, he's the captain. He's the forerunner. He's the forerunner. The Greek word is achegos.

[51:57] Achegos. Ach, agos. Two words, ach and ago. Ago is lead, to lead, to lead somebody. And ach is chief.

[52:08] That's why you have achangel, ach bishop, monach. Monach. Monach. Monach. All right. Monarchy. So, ach is, ach bishop is the senior of all bishops, all the bishops.

[52:25] So, in this way, when we say that ach, ach, ach, ach ego, or achago, means that the, the, the one who leads all the others. He's the forerunner. Aha. He's the prince. Other translations use it. The prince of life.

[52:41] In Acts chapter, chapter 3, verse 15, he says that you crucified the prince of life. That same achego, of life. He's the prince of life. In Hebrews chapter 12, verse 1 and 2, he says, looking unto Jesus, the author, the pioneer.

[52:55] Okay. So, he's called the author of life, the pioneer. So, it's the same word, author, pioneer. You crucified him, you crucified. You crucified the pioneer of life, the author of life. He's our pioneer. He's our captain. He's our leader.

[53:09] He's our chief, chief, the one who goes ahead of us. He's the chief. He's our chief leader. He's our prince. He's our leader. He's our captain. He's the originator.

[53:22] He's our inaugurator. Anything we can enjoy in life and after here, he's the inaugurator. So, he had to watch this. This is, he had to go ahead and prepare a place.

[53:32] Go ahead and get ready for us to come. We have a forerunner. It's like, normally a forerunner is like a scout. He goes there to check or do some reconnaissance mission or reconnaissance activity, check everything.

[53:44] But Jesus is not just going for reconnaissance. He's entering so we can follow. I'm going to show you. That's why he had to resurrect. But quickly, so he brings many sons to glory. Point number six, he's, okay, let me just go there before.

[53:59] But God will, this is very important. The reason why he had to resurrect is because God is the God of the living, not the God of the dead.

[54:11] Matthew 22, verse 32. He says that the Gentry read that God in the Bibles, that God is, I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.

[54:23] God is not the God of the dead. He's the God of the living. Jesus cannot be dead. He cannot stay dead. Hallelujah. But all the others who have died, God is their God because they are living in a place and they will now, their bodies will be reunited.

[54:39] The God will give them bodies. But Jesus is the first one to lead the way. A time is coming when we are all going to be re-embodied once, at once. But Jesus has led the way.

[54:50] So nobody has experienced that but Jesus for the meantime. And the others we are also going to follow. Hallelujah. And so God is, when he resurrected, it's a sign that God is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living.

[55:02] And then finally, this is what I've been trying to. He had to resurrect because he's our forerunner. Jesus, our forerunner. He's our forerunner. He's our forerunner. I've said a lot of things to back the points I'm making here already.

[55:16] He's our forerunner. What does it mean to be our forerunner? Hebrews chapter 6, verse 20. He said, we're in a forerunner. Where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become a high priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.

[55:36] He's a special type of high priest. After the order of Melchizedek, he has entered the place for us. Now, when you read verse 19, Luke chapter 19, it talks about our hope. This hope, we have this hope.

[55:47] This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both steadfast and sure, and which enters into the presence behind the veil. There's a place no human being can go.

[55:59] Jesus has entered there for us. He has entered in the realms of glory. He's our forerunner. He's gone there. We will join him. But now our hope is hinged there. That's why in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verse 17, he says that if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.

[56:19] The next verse, please. Then also, those who are falling asleep in Christ have perished. This is a serious thing. Look at the next verse. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most pitiable.

[56:35] King James said most miserable. It's a miserable life not to have hope for the life after here in spite of all you go through as a Christian on earth. We pay a price to be Christians because there is hope and our hope goes beyond the veil into the place where no human being has entered.

[56:53] Nobody has entered where Jesus, our forerunner, has gone. So he's our forerunner. He's showing us that the kind of body he has got, the state he's in, we are also going to be there with our bodies.

[57:05] We are going to... Oh, hallelujah! There is hope for your future. There is hope for your future. There is hope. Jesus, our forerunner. Jesus, our captain.

[57:16] Jesus, the inaugurator. Jesus, the originator. Jesus, the pioneer. Jesus, the author. He's our forerunner. He has entered for us. He is there waiting for us.

[57:28] A forerunner means that someone who goes ahead for the others to come. Hallelujah! That's the resurrection. Because if he had not resurrected, there's no hope for us.

[57:40] But now that he has resurrected, if in this life alone, if your hope is all about your job, your hope is all about your money, your hope is all about your marriage, your hope is all about your education, your hope is all about your material position.

[57:53] Hey, hey, hey. He said, if that's a Christian, we can't hinge our worship on these things. Our worship is... Our worship, our Christianity, the strength and the weight of our Christianity goes beyond the veil.

[58:07] Goes beyond the veil. Where? Which beyond where? Where our forerunner has entered. He has to resurrect. He has to come back to life and enter that place for us because that is where we are going.

[58:19] That is where. And so even though we live a life on earth, even though we enjoy good marriage, even good marriages, even though we enjoy good health, even though we might suffer some difficulties, even though we might suffer persecution, even though we might have some money, even though we might not have some money, even though we will look down on us, even though we will be honored.

[58:39] Don't be honored. Don't pursue greatness above our hope that goes beyond the veil. We have a hope. We have an anchor that keeps the soul steadfast and sure while the billows roll.

[58:51] This hope we have as an anchor of the soul. Doesn't matter what happens to us, we won't backslide. Hey! Kabadabababa! Doesn't matter what happens, we won't backslide because it goes...

[59:02] Our hope goes beyond the veil. It goes behind the veil. It goes behind. No human being can enter there. But we have a pioneer. We have a forerunner.

[59:13] We have... Watch this. This Jesus God made... Acts chapter 5 verse 31. Look at this. It's very important.

[59:24] Acts 5 verse 31. Him, talking about Jesus, God has exalted to his right hand to be... Watch this.

[59:34] Watch this. To be prince. You see that word? You see? Akego. Akego. To be prince and savior. So he's not only... He didn't only die to save us, but he resurrected to go ahead of us.

[59:50] Hallelujah! God made both prince and savior. Prince and savior. So the point here is that we have a savior who died, shed his blood to save us from our sins, to save us from the wrath of God.

[60:06] But guess what? He also resurrected and went ahead of us and is interceding on our behalf. He said he liveth forever. He is there. He has an indestructible life.

[60:16] He has an indissoluble life. He has an endless life. He is a priest according... Based on the power of an endless... A life that cannot end. That is after the order of Melchizedek.

[60:28] After the order of Melchizedek. Jesus, our forerunner. He has gone ahead of us. After the order. And he's there. After the... Acting as a priest on our behalf.

[60:38] After the order of Melchizedek. So that we can also go and join him. We are on our way somewhere. We are on our way. Why? Because he's there. And he said... John 14, 19. Because I live, you shall live.

[60:50] Because I live, you shall live. Because I live, you shall live. The resurrection is a game changer. And it's the life pulse of Christianity.

[61:03] It's not resuscitation. It is not reincarnation. But it's resurrection. This resurrection is unique. God gives us a new body.

[61:13] That will not grow older. It will not be sick. It will not be tired. A body that will not be weak. A body that will not age.

[61:24] It will not be frail. It's a perfect body. It will not be limited by material. It can go through walls. When Jesus was erected. He appeared and disappeared.

[61:35] He appeared. Do you know what he did? They will be there. And then he just appears. And then he begins to talk about what Thomas was talking about. That means he was around. He didn't go. He just disappeared from sight.

[61:47] He was trying to teach them how they will be used to his presence without seeing him. Oh, my goodness. He had to teach them how they will be used to.

[61:57] So he will appear and then he will disappear. He will appear and then he will straining them how they will be used to his absence. His physical absence. But he is still present with them.

[62:09] But they will see him. That's why he kept doing that. Our Lord is a forerunner. Jesus is a forerunner. I pray that this message has been a blessing to somebody.

[62:20] If it's you, say amen. Thank you for listening. To hear more from David Entry, follow him on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn. Why don't you subscribe to our YouTube channel at Karish Church and subscribe to our podcast so you are always up to date.

[62:39] Be blessed. Bye. Bye. Bye.

[62:49] Bye.