WEBVTT 00:00:00.980 --> 00:00:03.520 He is not here. He is risen. 00:00:05.040 --> 00:00:09.040 I'd like to welcome you to Watermark Community Church if this is your first time here. 00:00:10.120 --> 00:00:14.099 It is normally this chaotic, but at this time we let the kids go, 00:00:14.220 --> 00:00:20.600 but this time we are not letting the kids go because we have a special treat planned for the kids right after this service. 00:00:21.539 --> 00:00:25.940 And so we thought we would do a shorter version of this service, involve the kids, 00:00:25.940 --> 00:00:34.039 and then afterwards there's about 2,000 Easter eggs and candy that the kids are going to go and they're going to take part in. 00:00:34.120 --> 00:00:38.160 So hopefully the kids are really patient and quiet for 10 minutes. 00:00:38.600 --> 00:00:42.760 Then they get to get all that candy and Easter eggs and all those things. 00:00:43.939 --> 00:00:47.719 My name is Tobin, and I'm the teaching pastor here at Watermark, 00:00:47.780 --> 00:00:52.960 and I have been given the task to preach on hope in 10 minutes. 00:00:52.960 --> 00:00:58.060 I don't think I can do an illustration normally in 10 minutes. 00:00:58.100 --> 00:01:02.420 If you've been here for a long time, you know that my illustrations are longer than 10 minutes. 00:01:03.140 --> 00:01:10.519 But, you know, I think that there is probably no greater topic or subject that we need to talk on in the world today. 00:01:11.540 --> 00:01:16.340 As I look around and I see people, I read books, historians, sociologists, 00:01:16.340 --> 00:01:20.359 just most of them would say that today we live in the age of skepticism, 00:01:21.520 --> 00:01:26.260 that we live in the age of crisis, we live in the age of meaningless, 00:01:27.200 --> 00:01:31.180 and that most of the people around the world, even in Hong Kong, 00:01:32.100 --> 00:01:34.840 have a hard time finding hope in their daily lives. 00:01:35.760 --> 00:01:41.820 In fact, many people would say that they would say that the world, history has lost its story, 00:01:41.819 --> 00:01:46.139 history has lost its meaning, that there's no purpose in life, 00:01:46.239 --> 00:01:52.079 and it seems like they just go day to day to day to try to get by and try to figure out what's going on. 00:01:52.759 --> 00:01:57.059 One of my favorite historians and philosophers said it this way as he struggled with hope. 00:01:57.500 --> 00:01:59.500 He looked at his life, he looked at the world around him, 00:01:59.759 --> 00:02:02.099 and this is the illustration he gave for us today. 00:02:02.959 --> 00:02:03.560 He said, 00:02:03.560 --> 00:02:32.280 I don't know if you feel like that, but I know that often we feel like that in our world is out of control, 00:02:32.280 --> 00:02:33.919 and we feel like we're on this long march, 00:02:34.219 --> 00:02:36.120 and we're getting hit by all different types of foes, 00:02:36.159 --> 00:02:37.960 and all kinds of things are trying to drag us down, 00:02:38.099 --> 00:02:41.360 and we wonder if we're ever going to get to the destination we want to get to. 00:02:42.020 --> 00:02:45.219 We wonder if we're ever going to become that principal or that teacher. 00:02:45.620 --> 00:02:47.340 We wonder if we're ever going to be that professor. 00:02:47.460 --> 00:02:49.139 We wonder if we're ever going to be that managing director. 00:02:49.560 --> 00:02:51.719 We wonder if we're ever going to get there, 00:02:51.759 --> 00:02:53.939 and we keep hoping towards that direction. 00:02:54.960 --> 00:02:56.879 And the question we have to ask ourselves is, 00:02:56.960 --> 00:02:59.819 will we get there, and what does it look like? 00:02:59.819 --> 00:03:04.039 Another one of my favorite readers and philosophers and historians, 00:03:04.439 --> 00:03:06.359 as he looked at the world around him today, 00:03:06.799 --> 00:03:09.159 he tried to compare and try to figure out what was going on, 00:03:09.439 --> 00:03:11.699 and his philosophy of life came down to this. 00:03:12.039 --> 00:03:12.560 He said, 00:03:13.400 --> 00:03:14.599 we came from nothingness, 00:03:15.519 --> 00:03:17.840 we're going to nothingness, 00:03:18.579 --> 00:03:21.699 and our life right now is nothingness. 00:03:22.639 --> 00:03:23.719 He looked at the world, 00:03:23.780 --> 00:03:25.159 and he realized there was no hope. 00:03:25.259 --> 00:03:26.639 There was nothing that he could cling to. 00:03:26.639 --> 00:03:28.859 If he was really honest with himself and his heart, 00:03:29.039 --> 00:03:30.559 all the things that he was gathering for, 00:03:30.639 --> 00:03:31.799 all those things he was going for, 00:03:32.439 --> 00:03:33.359 as he got to them, 00:03:33.419 --> 00:03:34.899 he felt dissatisfied, 00:03:35.679 --> 00:03:37.039 and he felt empty. 00:03:37.979 --> 00:03:41.279 So the question I have to ask us today in eight minutes 00:03:41.279 --> 00:03:44.859 is, where do you find your hope? 00:03:46.799 --> 00:03:48.639 Because you can't live in the emptiness. 00:03:50.379 --> 00:03:51.919 I mean, you can't live in the darkness. 00:03:52.019 --> 00:03:53.359 If you live in the darkness and the emptiness, 00:03:53.360 --> 00:03:54.580 you just go crazy, 00:03:55.060 --> 00:03:57.620 and you become crazy people. 00:03:58.740 --> 00:04:00.600 So where do you find your hope? 00:04:01.820 --> 00:04:04.040 Where do you find that thing that you cling to? 00:04:04.840 --> 00:04:06.600 Where do you find that thing that you depend on 00:04:06.600 --> 00:04:08.400 when things get really difficult and really hard? 00:04:09.440 --> 00:04:10.820 What is it that you're hoping in? 00:04:11.740 --> 00:04:12.960 And when I use the word hope, 00:04:13.000 --> 00:04:14.160 I'm not saying like in English, 00:04:14.280 --> 00:04:17.120 because I think English words have been kind of changed 00:04:17.120 --> 00:04:18.240 and diluted. 00:04:19.060 --> 00:04:20.079 But when you think of English, 00:04:20.160 --> 00:04:20.980 we say, I hope. 00:04:21.040 --> 00:04:22.420 It means maybe, probability, 00:04:22.600 --> 00:04:23.379 maybe this will happen. 00:04:23.680 --> 00:04:25.160 I don't know, but it could happen. 00:04:25.199 --> 00:04:25.740 It's uncertain. 00:04:26.360 --> 00:04:27.439 But when I talk about hope, 00:04:27.519 --> 00:04:28.259 what I mean is, 00:04:28.600 --> 00:04:31.040 like the Greek and the Hebrew authors would say, 00:04:32.319 --> 00:04:34.639 in Hebrew, the word is tekvah. 00:04:35.120 --> 00:04:36.560 I usually don't like to use words 00:04:36.560 --> 00:04:37.560 because I don't want to show off, 00:04:37.800 --> 00:04:39.579 but I don't try not to show off, 00:04:39.620 --> 00:04:40.900 but I think it's an important word. 00:04:42.240 --> 00:04:42.639 Tekvah. 00:04:43.579 --> 00:04:43.960 Hope. 00:04:44.639 --> 00:04:45.879 It means something solid, 00:04:46.739 --> 00:04:48.099 something strong, 00:04:48.639 --> 00:04:49.639 something certain, 00:04:50.079 --> 00:04:51.599 something you know is going to happen. 00:04:51.699 --> 00:04:52.579 It's not something you doubt. 00:04:52.819 --> 00:04:53.979 It's something that you're holding onto. 00:04:54.239 --> 00:04:55.399 You're grasping onto it. 00:04:55.599 --> 00:04:57.120 You depend on it for your whole life. 00:04:58.019 --> 00:05:00.560 And actually, the word in Hebrew means rope, 00:05:01.439 --> 00:05:02.459 a strong rope. 00:05:03.199 --> 00:05:04.240 And so the imagery is this. 00:05:04.299 --> 00:05:05.560 Your life is like this carabiner, 00:05:05.899 --> 00:05:07.099 and you're walking through life, 00:05:07.099 --> 00:05:08.719 and you're hooking onto something. 00:05:09.759 --> 00:05:10.979 And this strong rope, 00:05:11.120 --> 00:05:11.819 this tekvah, 00:05:11.899 --> 00:05:13.099 is going to hold onto you. 00:05:13.520 --> 00:05:14.580 It's going to support you. 00:05:14.820 --> 00:05:16.320 It's going to take you through the difficult times. 00:05:16.379 --> 00:05:17.660 It's going to take you through the simple times. 00:05:17.939 --> 00:05:19.180 It's going to take you through the happy times. 00:05:19.379 --> 00:05:21.060 It's never going to let you down. 00:05:21.860 --> 00:05:23.400 It's never going to disappoint you. 00:05:25.560 --> 00:05:27.760 What is the tekvah that you grasp onto? 00:05:29.020 --> 00:05:30.060 What is the tekvah, 00:05:30.140 --> 00:05:32.040 the rope that you hook onto your life and say, 00:05:32.320 --> 00:05:33.879 I'm going to put my life on this. 00:05:34.060 --> 00:05:35.160 I'm going to depend on this. 00:05:35.160 --> 00:05:36.360 And no matter what happens, 00:05:36.400 --> 00:05:37.340 it's not going to let me down. 00:05:38.540 --> 00:05:40.520 You can answer that question for yourself. 00:05:40.519 --> 00:05:43.019 And my prayer for everybody in here, 00:05:43.079 --> 00:05:43.899 I just prayed one thing. 00:05:43.979 --> 00:05:46.319 I prayed that in our prayer time, 00:05:46.379 --> 00:05:46.639 I said, 00:05:46.959 --> 00:05:48.299 I hope in these 10 minutes, 00:05:48.439 --> 00:05:49.259 in seven minutes, 00:05:49.620 --> 00:05:50.879 I hope in these seven minutes 00:05:50.879 --> 00:05:52.539 that all of us would have a chance 00:05:52.539 --> 00:05:54.299 to look at our life honestly 00:05:54.299 --> 00:05:55.740 for five minutes and say, 00:05:56.079 --> 00:05:57.519 what is it that we really hope in? 00:05:59.680 --> 00:06:01.319 What is really my tekvah? 00:06:01.579 --> 00:06:03.899 What is the thing that I'm clapping my life onto, 00:06:04.039 --> 00:06:04.560 and I'm going to say, 00:06:04.799 --> 00:06:05.839 this is going to support me. 00:06:05.959 --> 00:06:07.079 This is going to keep me alive. 00:06:07.579 --> 00:06:08.659 This will never fail me. 00:06:10.359 --> 00:06:12.139 You can find that out for yourself 00:06:12.139 --> 00:06:13.079 by answering this question. 00:06:13.179 --> 00:06:13.599 You just say, 00:06:13.719 --> 00:06:15.699 blank will never fail me. 00:06:17.039 --> 00:06:17.939 Fill in the blank. 00:06:18.939 --> 00:06:22.000 My work will never fail me. 00:06:22.879 --> 00:06:23.339 Tekvah. 00:06:24.579 --> 00:06:26.779 My friends will never fail me. 00:06:28.379 --> 00:06:30.459 My family will never fail me. 00:06:30.459 --> 00:06:34.779 My spouse will never fail me. 00:06:36.060 --> 00:06:37.739 My mind will never fail me. 00:06:37.799 --> 00:06:38.959 My body will never fail me. 00:06:39.019 --> 00:06:40.180 My fortune will never fail me. 00:06:40.259 --> 00:06:41.439 My MPF will never fail me. 00:06:41.699 --> 00:06:42.939 My boss will never fail me. 00:06:43.240 --> 00:06:44.740 Whatever you stick in that sentence, 00:06:45.079 --> 00:06:46.479 that is what your tekvah is. 00:06:47.379 --> 00:06:48.419 That's what you're clinging to. 00:06:48.479 --> 00:06:49.120 That's what you're saying. 00:06:49.199 --> 00:06:49.839 This is where hope, 00:06:49.919 --> 00:06:51.019 this is where I'm going to find hope. 00:06:52.699 --> 00:06:54.240 I realize in this group, 00:06:54.740 --> 00:06:56.579 we're all trying to find hope 00:06:56.579 --> 00:06:58.719 because we are deeply hope-oriented people 00:06:58.719 --> 00:06:59.539 in Hong Kong, aren't we? 00:07:00.779 --> 00:07:02.000 I mean, what we hope is going to happen 00:07:02.000 --> 00:07:03.299 in the future determines 00:07:03.299 --> 00:07:04.599 how we act right now. 00:07:05.539 --> 00:07:06.579 I mean, if you have no chance 00:07:06.579 --> 00:07:07.519 of becoming managing director, 00:07:07.599 --> 00:07:08.639 you're going to get out of that job. 00:07:09.560 --> 00:07:10.159 If you don't have a chance 00:07:10.159 --> 00:07:10.819 of getting that raise, 00:07:10.879 --> 00:07:11.859 you're going to find another job. 00:07:12.479 --> 00:07:13.159 If you don't have a chance 00:07:13.159 --> 00:07:13.879 of finding happiness 00:07:13.879 --> 00:07:14.699 and true contentment, 00:07:14.740 --> 00:07:16.139 you're going to divorce that spouse. 00:07:16.879 --> 00:07:17.979 If your friends are jerks, 00:07:18.000 --> 00:07:19.199 you're going to get rid of those friends 00:07:19.199 --> 00:07:20.039 and get new friends 00:07:20.039 --> 00:07:21.759 because you're looking towards the hope 00:07:21.759 --> 00:07:22.199 and you're wondering, 00:07:22.539 --> 00:07:23.759 if I can hope in this, 00:07:23.979 --> 00:07:24.919 then I'm going to stay here 00:07:24.919 --> 00:07:26.620 because the hope is going to be worth it. 00:07:26.620 --> 00:07:30.660 And I realize that all of us in this room 00:07:30.660 --> 00:07:32.160 try to find hope in different ways. 00:07:33.120 --> 00:07:34.399 Some of us try to find hope 00:07:34.399 --> 00:07:35.519 in just gathering stuff. 00:07:36.160 --> 00:07:37.300 We want to gather life. 00:07:37.399 --> 00:07:38.079 We want to gather money. 00:07:38.199 --> 00:07:38.920 We want to gather people. 00:07:39.019 --> 00:07:39.840 We want to gather titles. 00:07:39.939 --> 00:07:40.819 We want to gather positions. 00:07:40.980 --> 00:07:41.840 We want to gather cars, 00:07:42.519 --> 00:07:43.699 spouses, friends. 00:07:44.060 --> 00:07:45.819 And our hope is that we gather enough, 00:07:45.879 --> 00:07:46.860 if we get enough stuff, 00:07:47.240 --> 00:07:49.060 if we get the right type of things, 00:07:49.060 --> 00:07:50.019 then we will have hope 00:07:50.019 --> 00:07:51.019 and our life will be satisfied 00:07:51.019 --> 00:07:51.939 and we can go click 00:07:51.939 --> 00:07:53.399 and everything's going to be okay. 00:07:54.419 --> 00:07:56.039 Now hopefully you're only thinking that way 00:07:56.039 --> 00:07:56.560 if you're young 00:07:56.560 --> 00:07:59.399 because if you've been older, 00:07:59.819 --> 00:08:01.599 you've had some years put on you, 00:08:02.359 --> 00:08:03.240 you've been fired, 00:08:03.519 --> 00:08:04.579 you've lost a job, 00:08:04.699 --> 00:08:06.500 you've lost a spouse 00:08:06.500 --> 00:08:08.039 or a good friend who's left you, 00:08:08.959 --> 00:08:10.479 or you've had a heart attack, 00:08:11.699 --> 00:08:12.959 and your health has failed you, 00:08:13.879 --> 00:08:15.839 then you start looking for another tech ball. 00:08:15.899 --> 00:08:17.199 You look for something else to cling on to 00:08:17.199 --> 00:08:17.939 because those things, 00:08:18.019 --> 00:08:18.919 you realize really quickly, 00:08:19.240 --> 00:08:20.459 they don't satisfy you. 00:08:21.019 --> 00:08:22.379 Now there might be some of us in here 00:08:22.379 --> 00:08:22.899 who say, 00:08:23.259 --> 00:08:24.359 yeah, but I'm going to do it differently. 00:08:25.680 --> 00:08:26.639 I'm going to have it all. 00:08:27.719 --> 00:08:28.779 I'm going to make it all. 00:08:29.319 --> 00:08:30.620 I'm going to experience it all. 00:08:31.039 --> 00:08:32.019 I'm going to have it all. 00:08:32.399 --> 00:08:33.519 Everybody else before me has failed, 00:08:33.579 --> 00:08:34.379 but I'm going to do it right. 00:08:34.480 --> 00:08:35.360 My life's going to be perfect. 00:08:35.500 --> 00:08:36.139 I'm going to have all the money. 00:08:36.220 --> 00:08:36.740 I'm going to have the job. 00:08:36.799 --> 00:08:37.319 I'm going to have the experience. 00:08:37.399 --> 00:08:37.899 I'm going to have the spouse. 00:08:37.980 --> 00:08:38.419 I'm going to have the kids. 00:08:38.960 --> 00:08:39.240 Everything. 00:08:39.340 --> 00:08:39.919 I'm going to do it right. 00:08:42.059 --> 00:08:43.539 Einstein called those crazy people. 00:08:46.079 --> 00:08:46.579 Einstein said, 00:08:46.639 --> 00:08:47.240 that's crazy. 00:08:48.159 --> 00:08:48.699 Einstein said, 00:08:48.819 --> 00:08:50.579 craziness is when you do the same experiment 00:08:50.580 --> 00:08:53.420 over and over and over, and you expect the same result. 00:08:54.759 --> 00:08:56.600 And some of us are doing the same experiment 00:08:56.600 --> 00:08:59.420 over and over and over, and we expect the same result, 00:08:59.520 --> 00:09:00.879 and Einstein says, that's crazy. 00:09:02.120 --> 00:09:03.160 It's not going to work. 00:09:03.960 --> 00:09:05.400 It doesn't work in the life. 00:09:05.840 --> 00:09:06.940 It doesn't work in the lab. 00:09:07.540 --> 00:09:08.840 It won't cling on to you. 00:09:10.220 --> 00:09:11.180 Now, there's some of us in here, 00:09:11.259 --> 00:09:14.320 we're trying to find our tech ba in being good, 00:09:15.520 --> 00:09:18.340 being perfect, being dutiful, 00:09:18.940 --> 00:09:20.080 doing all the right things, 00:09:20.080 --> 00:09:21.820 doing and saying all the right things. 00:09:22.120 --> 00:09:23.540 Those of you who are in families, 00:09:23.639 --> 00:09:25.220 and you're trying to be the perfect son and daughter, 00:09:25.620 --> 00:09:27.780 you know who I'm talking to, 00:09:28.460 --> 00:09:30.220 and what I'm talking about. 00:09:31.400 --> 00:09:32.900 Some of us try to find that hope 00:09:32.900 --> 00:09:34.800 in doing all the right things, being the right things, 00:09:35.020 --> 00:09:35.879 but you know, after a while, 00:09:36.080 --> 00:09:38.300 that becomes really, really tiring, doesn't it? 00:09:39.600 --> 00:09:40.720 I mean, we get tired. 00:09:42.000 --> 00:09:44.000 We get tired because we do the right thing 00:09:44.000 --> 00:09:45.080 over and over and over, 00:09:45.320 --> 00:09:47.420 but we never get the result that we expect. 00:09:47.419 --> 00:09:49.500 And after a while, we go, 00:09:49.620 --> 00:09:50.759 why am I doing this? 00:09:50.939 --> 00:09:51.979 This is craziness, 00:09:52.159 --> 00:09:53.579 because I try to be the good son, 00:09:53.699 --> 00:09:54.799 good daughter, good employer, 00:09:54.939 --> 00:09:56.699 good employee, good whatever, 00:09:57.039 --> 00:09:58.620 and no matter how hard I try, 00:09:58.879 --> 00:10:00.459 I always get let down, 00:10:00.740 --> 00:10:02.120 and my tech ba fails me. 00:10:03.379 --> 00:10:04.899 And I go back to the nothingness, 00:10:04.939 --> 00:10:05.860 I go back to the emptiness, 00:10:06.019 --> 00:10:07.559 and I try to reinvent myself. 00:10:09.759 --> 00:10:12.199 The passage today is the third type of tech ba. 00:10:12.200 --> 00:10:15.759 It's the gospel passage. 00:10:16.120 --> 00:10:17.080 It's the Easter passage. 00:10:18.160 --> 00:10:19.300 When you look in the passage, 00:10:19.420 --> 00:10:20.860 you realize something really quickly. 00:10:22.180 --> 00:10:24.080 None of Jesus' disciples expected him 00:10:24.080 --> 00:10:24.860 to raise from the dead. 00:10:26.460 --> 00:10:27.800 There's no one at the tomb. 00:10:29.160 --> 00:10:30.160 I mean, just think about it. 00:10:30.160 --> 00:10:31.620 Jesus had been, 00:10:31.879 --> 00:10:32.940 he'd been betrayed, 00:10:33.460 --> 00:10:34.460 he'd been tortured, 00:10:34.980 --> 00:10:35.800 he'd been captured, 00:10:36.320 --> 00:10:37.379 he'd been sentenced, 00:10:37.680 --> 00:10:38.520 he'd been crucified, 00:10:38.759 --> 00:10:40.400 he'd been buried all in record time. 00:10:40.699 --> 00:10:41.639 All of it was illegal, 00:10:41.799 --> 00:10:42.600 according to Roman law. 00:10:42.679 --> 00:10:43.559 It was all illegal. 00:10:43.720 --> 00:10:44.899 It should never have happened that way. 00:10:45.379 --> 00:10:46.519 And all of his disciples, 00:10:46.759 --> 00:10:47.620 they just scattered. 00:10:47.740 --> 00:10:48.439 They ran away, 00:10:48.559 --> 00:10:49.340 and they just started thinking, 00:10:49.579 --> 00:10:50.220 hey, I'm next. 00:10:50.299 --> 00:10:50.919 I'm going to be the one 00:10:50.919 --> 00:10:51.819 who gets killed next. 00:10:53.079 --> 00:10:54.319 And historians tell us 00:10:54.319 --> 00:10:56.519 that in that time, 00:10:56.600 --> 00:10:57.059 there were at least 00:10:57.059 --> 00:10:58.559 two dozen other messiahs. 00:10:59.399 --> 00:11:00.000 Did you know that? 00:11:00.959 --> 00:11:02.720 There were two dozen other messiahs 00:11:02.720 --> 00:11:03.559 that came on the scene. 00:11:04.279 --> 00:11:04.879 And they said, 00:11:04.960 --> 00:11:05.579 I'm the messiah, 00:11:05.699 --> 00:11:06.460 I'm the anointed one, 00:11:06.500 --> 00:11:07.059 I'm ready to come. 00:11:07.360 --> 00:11:08.539 And the same thing happened to them 00:11:08.539 --> 00:11:09.319 that happened to Jesus. 00:11:09.320 --> 00:11:10.920 The Romans grabbed him, 00:11:11.280 --> 00:11:12.200 they tortured him, 00:11:12.460 --> 00:11:13.420 they crucified him, 00:11:13.540 --> 00:11:14.260 and immediately after 00:11:14.260 --> 00:11:14.920 they were crucified, 00:11:15.600 --> 00:11:16.920 the movement stopped. 00:11:18.320 --> 00:11:19.540 The movement stopped. 00:11:21.500 --> 00:11:22.840 But something different happened 00:11:22.840 --> 00:11:23.680 with Jesus' followers. 00:11:25.200 --> 00:11:26.420 Because we're told in the passage 00:11:26.420 --> 00:11:27.940 that no one was waiting, 00:11:28.360 --> 00:11:29.080 it was the Sabbath, 00:11:29.240 --> 00:11:30.360 so Friday evening ended, 00:11:30.700 --> 00:11:31.500 so the Sabbath ends 00:11:31.500 --> 00:11:32.379 on Saturday evening, 00:11:32.600 --> 00:11:33.760 so they didn't even go to the grave 00:11:33.760 --> 00:11:34.560 until Sunday morning, 00:11:34.620 --> 00:11:35.680 so it's 12 hours later, 00:11:35.880 --> 00:11:36.840 because no one expected 00:11:36.840 --> 00:11:37.740 anything to happen. 00:11:37.740 --> 00:11:40.240 And these ladies go to the grave, 00:11:40.560 --> 00:11:41.360 and the first thing they see 00:11:41.360 --> 00:11:43.200 on the cover of your bulletin 00:11:43.200 --> 00:11:44.480 is the stone, 00:11:44.580 --> 00:11:46.440 this huge stone is rolled away. 00:11:47.320 --> 00:11:48.299 It's massive stone, 00:11:48.379 --> 00:11:49.379 you couldn't do it by yourself. 00:11:49.620 --> 00:11:50.399 And they walk in, 00:11:50.440 --> 00:11:51.320 and there's no one there, 00:11:51.680 --> 00:11:52.560 and all of a sudden 00:11:52.560 --> 00:11:53.580 these two men appear. 00:11:54.820 --> 00:11:55.980 And the scripture's really clear, 00:11:56.039 --> 00:11:57.379 it says that they had 00:11:57.379 --> 00:11:59.480 lightning for clothes. 00:12:01.600 --> 00:12:02.240 Right away, 00:12:02.320 --> 00:12:03.019 the women knew 00:12:03.019 --> 00:12:04.080 that they were angels, 00:12:04.200 --> 00:12:05.240 they were special visitors. 00:12:05.240 --> 00:12:07.799 And these men said the word, 00:12:07.960 --> 00:12:08.960 the tekvah, 00:12:09.360 --> 00:12:10.799 the third option 00:12:10.799 --> 00:12:11.960 that we have in our life 00:12:11.960 --> 00:12:13.299 that changed history, 00:12:13.379 --> 00:12:14.180 and they said this, 00:12:14.700 --> 00:12:15.940 why do you look for the living 00:12:15.940 --> 00:12:16.620 among the dead? 00:12:17.899 --> 00:12:19.120 You know he's not here. 00:12:20.060 --> 00:12:20.759 He's risen. 00:12:22.440 --> 00:12:23.919 And those words 00:12:23.919 --> 00:12:26.779 have been the tekvah 00:12:26.779 --> 00:12:29.759 that Christians have held on to 00:12:29.759 --> 00:12:31.440 for 2,000 years, 00:12:31.440 --> 00:12:33.760 because those words 00:12:33.760 --> 00:12:35.560 have changed everything. 00:12:37.040 --> 00:12:37.980 Think about it. 00:12:39.240 --> 00:12:40.420 An empty tomb 00:12:40.420 --> 00:12:41.620 and Jesus walking around 00:12:41.620 --> 00:12:43.320 means that death did not win, 00:12:44.520 --> 00:12:45.920 that death is not the end, 00:12:47.240 --> 00:12:48.260 that maybe we were made 00:12:48.260 --> 00:12:49.240 for something else. 00:12:50.460 --> 00:12:51.360 An empty tomb 00:12:51.360 --> 00:12:52.660 and Jesus walking around 00:12:52.660 --> 00:12:54.380 meant that Jesus' words were true, 00:12:55.080 --> 00:12:56.620 that we could trust him, 00:12:57.440 --> 00:12:58.740 that we never had the doubt 00:12:58.740 --> 00:12:59.520 about our future, 00:12:59.519 --> 00:13:01.279 we never had the doubt 00:13:01.279 --> 00:13:02.159 about our past, 00:13:02.519 --> 00:13:03.340 we never had a doubt 00:13:03.340 --> 00:13:04.120 about our sins, 00:13:04.220 --> 00:13:04.759 we never had a doubt 00:13:04.759 --> 00:13:05.460 about our brokenness, 00:13:05.579 --> 00:13:06.639 because he said he came 00:13:06.639 --> 00:13:07.659 to heal all those things, 00:13:07.899 --> 00:13:09.279 and the fact that he rose again 00:13:09.279 --> 00:13:09.899 meant that God 00:13:09.899 --> 00:13:10.799 was pleased with him, 00:13:11.799 --> 00:13:13.079 and that he was a tekvah 00:13:13.079 --> 00:13:13.919 that we could cling to. 00:13:15.519 --> 00:13:16.679 An empty tomb 00:13:16.679 --> 00:13:18.279 and a savior walking around 00:13:18.279 --> 00:13:19.659 meant that you and I 00:13:19.659 --> 00:13:20.559 have something greater 00:13:20.559 --> 00:13:21.460 than we can hope for, 00:13:22.519 --> 00:13:23.579 something that is not 00:13:23.579 --> 00:13:24.259 of this world. 00:13:24.500 --> 00:13:25.340 One of my favorite books 00:13:25.340 --> 00:13:26.419 I was reading at C.S. Lewis, 00:13:26.559 --> 00:13:27.679 it's called Mere Christianity, 00:13:27.679 --> 00:13:30.099 and in chapter 10 on hope, 00:13:30.179 --> 00:13:30.759 he says something 00:13:30.759 --> 00:13:31.359 very interesting, 00:13:31.439 --> 00:13:31.779 he says, 00:13:32.279 --> 00:13:33.519 the reason that we go 00:13:33.519 --> 00:13:34.120 through life 00:13:34.120 --> 00:13:35.000 and we grab things 00:13:35.000 --> 00:13:35.679 and we collect things, 00:13:35.739 --> 00:13:36.279 we get a wife, 00:13:36.359 --> 00:13:36.959 we get kids, 00:13:37.039 --> 00:13:37.659 we get a job, 00:13:37.919 --> 00:13:39.739 we experience a new car, 00:13:40.079 --> 00:13:40.879 and the minute we get 00:13:40.879 --> 00:13:41.239 these things, 00:13:41.279 --> 00:13:41.819 we're really excited, 00:13:41.899 --> 00:13:42.319 but all of a sudden 00:13:42.319 --> 00:13:43.079 we just become, 00:13:43.859 --> 00:13:44.139 huh. 00:13:45.799 --> 00:13:46.439 He says there's something 00:13:46.439 --> 00:13:47.399 that's missing there, 00:13:48.159 --> 00:13:49.259 that the thing that we wanted to, 00:13:49.319 --> 00:13:50.099 the hope that we wanted 00:13:50.099 --> 00:13:50.739 to get into it, 00:13:50.779 --> 00:13:51.620 the minute we got it, 00:13:52.099 --> 00:13:53.459 it dissipated somehow. 00:13:54.979 --> 00:13:56.259 And Lewis says this, 00:13:56.259 --> 00:13:58.360 he says if we are having 00:13:58.360 --> 00:13:59.639 or experiencing a need 00:13:59.639 --> 00:14:00.240 for hope, 00:14:01.700 --> 00:14:03.039 and we can't get that 00:14:03.039 --> 00:14:04.279 satisfied completely 00:14:04.279 --> 00:14:05.840 and wholly in this world, 00:14:07.740 --> 00:14:08.580 then maybe it means 00:14:08.580 --> 00:14:09.379 that you and I 00:14:09.379 --> 00:14:11.899 were made for another world. 00:14:13.240 --> 00:14:14.059 Maybe it means 00:14:14.059 --> 00:14:14.899 that you and I 00:14:14.899 --> 00:14:16.700 were made for another world. 00:14:17.840 --> 00:14:18.740 So the question 00:14:18.740 --> 00:14:19.659 I have for you today, 00:14:21.240 --> 00:14:22.279 one minute, 00:14:22.279 --> 00:14:27.000 what is your tech bot? 00:14:29.699 --> 00:14:30.759 What are you hoping in? 00:14:32.539 --> 00:14:33.220 What is the thing 00:14:33.220 --> 00:14:33.679 in your life 00:14:33.679 --> 00:14:34.059 that you say 00:14:34.059 --> 00:14:35.100 this will never fail me? 00:14:36.179 --> 00:14:37.039 This is going to take me 00:14:37.039 --> 00:14:37.980 all the way to the end. 00:14:38.699 --> 00:14:39.539 This is going to take me 00:14:39.539 --> 00:14:40.139 through cancer. 00:14:40.980 --> 00:14:41.579 This is going to take me 00:14:41.579 --> 00:14:42.100 through my kids 00:14:42.100 --> 00:14:42.980 not getting into Harvard 00:14:42.980 --> 00:14:43.399 or Yale. 00:14:44.439 --> 00:14:45.039 That's a joke. 00:14:45.439 --> 00:14:46.259 This is going to take me 00:14:46.259 --> 00:14:48.000 through losing my job. 00:14:48.299 --> 00:14:49.039 This is going to take me 00:14:49.039 --> 00:14:49.620 through not getting 00:14:49.620 --> 00:14:50.639 my 12-month bonus. 00:14:50.639 --> 00:14:51.960 This is going to take me 00:14:51.960 --> 00:14:53.100 through Hong Kong 00:14:53.100 --> 00:14:54.120 to my next destination. 00:14:54.580 --> 00:14:55.199 What is it 00:14:55.199 --> 00:14:56.019 that you cling to? 00:14:57.779 --> 00:14:58.939 And the passage today 00:14:58.939 --> 00:15:00.000 says that the only thing 00:15:00.000 --> 00:15:01.379 that we can cling to, 00:15:02.559 --> 00:15:03.620 the only thing 00:15:03.620 --> 00:15:04.279 that is sure, 00:15:05.340 --> 00:15:06.059 the only thing 00:15:06.059 --> 00:15:06.740 that is true 00:15:06.740 --> 00:15:08.980 is Jesus Christ. 00:15:10.240 --> 00:15:11.360 And the question is, 00:15:12.480 --> 00:15:13.819 will we allow Him 00:15:13.819 --> 00:15:15.860 to be our rope 00:15:15.860 --> 00:15:17.700 that we hang on to? 00:15:17.700 --> 00:15:20.940 Will we allow Him 00:15:20.940 --> 00:15:21.680 to be the rope 00:15:21.680 --> 00:15:23.300 that brings us home? 00:15:24.560 --> 00:15:25.620 Will we allow Him 00:15:25.620 --> 00:15:26.120 to be the rope 00:15:26.120 --> 00:15:26.940 that helps us scale 00:15:26.940 --> 00:15:27.680 this journey 00:15:27.680 --> 00:15:28.440 which is crazy 00:15:28.440 --> 00:15:29.120 called life? 00:15:33.440 --> 00:15:34.280 Or will we try 00:15:34.280 --> 00:15:34.840 something else? 00:15:39.440 --> 00:15:40.160 What's your hope? 00:15:40.159 --> 00:15:43.399 the empty tomb 00:15:43.399 --> 00:15:44.799 and Jesus walking around 00:15:44.799 --> 00:15:45.939 and everybody sees Him 00:15:45.939 --> 00:15:48.179 says that God loves you. 00:15:49.079 --> 00:15:50.579 He came to set you free. 00:15:51.360 --> 00:15:52.199 He came to give you 00:15:52.199 --> 00:15:52.799 a new hope. 00:15:53.839 --> 00:15:54.699 And the question is, 00:15:54.779 --> 00:15:55.559 will we trust Him? 00:15:56.719 --> 00:15:58.039 And we accept that 00:15:58.039 --> 00:15:58.740 for ourselves. 00:15:59.959 --> 00:16:00.639 Let's pray. 00:16:01.139 --> 00:16:01.839 Father, we thank You 00:16:01.839 --> 00:16:02.339 for this day. 00:16:02.419 --> 00:16:02.779 We thank You 00:16:02.779 --> 00:16:03.319 for Your goodness 00:16:03.319 --> 00:16:04.059 and Your mercy 00:16:04.059 --> 00:16:04.659 in our life. 00:16:04.720 --> 00:16:05.199 We thank You 00:16:05.199 --> 00:16:06.220 that You are 00:16:06.220 --> 00:16:07.000 the true hope 00:16:07.000 --> 00:16:08.000 that we never have to 00:16:08.000 --> 00:16:09.360 worry about. 00:16:09.480 --> 00:16:10.379 You are the true hope 00:16:10.379 --> 00:16:11.460 that we never have to doubt. 00:16:11.960 --> 00:16:12.919 You are the rope. 00:16:13.600 --> 00:16:14.460 You are the certainty. 00:16:15.340 --> 00:16:16.600 You are the strong 00:16:16.600 --> 00:16:18.620 anchor 00:16:18.620 --> 00:16:20.159 that we can cling to 00:16:20.159 --> 00:16:21.360 and that we know 00:16:21.360 --> 00:16:21.940 that wherever 00:16:21.940 --> 00:16:22.820 or whatever 00:16:22.820 --> 00:16:23.779 and whoever 00:16:23.779 --> 00:16:25.559 comes through our life 00:16:25.559 --> 00:16:26.279 and blows in 00:16:26.279 --> 00:16:27.000 as a storm 00:16:27.000 --> 00:16:28.980 that we have a rope 00:16:28.980 --> 00:16:29.759 that is strong 00:16:29.759 --> 00:16:32.120 and has finished everything 00:16:32.120 --> 00:16:34.019 and we can trust You. 00:16:34.860 --> 00:16:35.899 Father, I pray for some of us 00:16:35.899 --> 00:16:36.559 in here right now 00:16:36.559 --> 00:16:38.179 who have never accepted 00:16:38.179 --> 00:16:39.099 that truth 00:16:39.099 --> 00:16:39.759 who doubt 00:16:39.759 --> 00:16:40.519 and they're skeptical 00:16:40.519 --> 00:16:41.359 and they're still clinging 00:16:41.359 --> 00:16:42.219 on to other things. 00:16:42.679 --> 00:16:43.799 I pray just in this moment 00:16:43.799 --> 00:16:44.659 that they would at least 00:16:44.659 --> 00:16:46.539 look at what they cling to 00:16:46.539 --> 00:16:48.939 and they would ask themselves, 00:16:49.259 --> 00:16:50.559 is this really what 00:16:50.559 --> 00:16:51.559 I want to hope in 00:16:51.559 --> 00:16:53.739 for the rest of my life? 00:16:54.899 --> 00:16:56.619 Has this really been secure 00:16:56.619 --> 00:16:58.179 for me up until this point? 00:16:59.039 --> 00:17:00.419 Or I'm like Einstein 00:17:00.419 --> 00:17:01.859 trying to do the same experiment 00:17:01.859 --> 00:17:02.759 over and over and over 00:17:02.759 --> 00:17:04.099 but expecting different results. 00:17:04.099 --> 00:17:06.779 Lord, I pray that in that moment 00:17:06.779 --> 00:17:07.980 those friends of ours 00:17:07.980 --> 00:17:08.779 who are here today, 00:17:08.859 --> 00:17:10.219 they would just ask themselves 00:17:10.219 --> 00:17:11.459 what is it that they hope in? 00:17:13.319 --> 00:17:14.719 And Father, I pray for the rest of us 00:17:14.719 --> 00:17:16.019 who've hoped in You 00:17:16.019 --> 00:17:18.439 but sometimes we forget. 00:17:20.339 --> 00:17:21.179 Sometimes we go on 00:17:21.179 --> 00:17:22.119 the busyness of journey 00:17:22.119 --> 00:17:23.439 and the craziness of life 00:17:23.439 --> 00:17:24.719 and we forget 00:17:24.719 --> 00:17:25.759 what we're hoping in 00:17:25.759 --> 00:17:27.839 and we start to hope in 00:17:27.839 --> 00:17:28.619 other kava 00:17:28.619 --> 00:17:30.500 that we used to 00:17:30.500 --> 00:17:32.519 and all of a sudden 00:17:32.519 --> 00:17:33.759 we find our lives slipping 00:17:33.759 --> 00:17:36.460 and we find the rope breaking 00:17:36.460 --> 00:17:38.720 and we find our life in chaos 00:17:38.720 --> 00:17:39.119 and we wonder 00:17:39.119 --> 00:17:40.440 what the heck is going on. 00:17:41.680 --> 00:17:42.759 Father, we just come to You 00:17:42.759 --> 00:17:43.839 and we just ask Your forgiveness. 00:17:45.359 --> 00:17:46.059 And on this Easter 00:17:46.059 --> 00:17:47.700 we realize over and over again 00:17:47.700 --> 00:17:48.420 that You are the God 00:17:48.420 --> 00:17:49.240 of second chances 00:17:49.240 --> 00:17:51.359 and that You've come 00:17:51.359 --> 00:17:52.220 to give us an ultimate 00:17:52.220 --> 00:17:53.000 and true hope. 00:17:53.779 --> 00:17:55.059 A hope that we can cling to 00:17:55.059 --> 00:17:55.660 forever 00:17:55.660 --> 00:17:57.519 and into eternity. 00:17:57.519 --> 00:17:59.420 We pray these things 00:17:59.420 --> 00:18:00.420 in Your Son Jesus' name. 00:18:00.759 --> 00:18:01.019 Amen.