1
00:00:00,320 --> 00:00:06,560
Speaker 1: You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand. Today

2
00:00:06,640 --> 00:00:13,560
Speaker 1: is Resurrection Sunday, perfect time to look at the most

3
00:00:13,640 --> 00:00:19,320
Speaker 1: important instance of pain and trial in the Christian Faith,

4
00:00:21,880 --> 00:00:28,520
Speaker 1: the Crucifixion. The entirety of the Christian Faith rises and

5
00:00:28,600 --> 00:00:33,080
Speaker 1: falls on the events that took place around two thousand

6
00:00:33,120 --> 00:00:39,040
Speaker 1: years ago and that are being celebrated this very weekend

7
00:00:41,479 --> 00:00:48,000
Speaker 1: in the shadow of so many things going on, not

8
00:00:48,040 --> 00:00:53,600
Speaker 1: only in the United States but worldwide. When you look

9
00:00:54,520 --> 00:01:00,680
Speaker 1: towards a holy day, a holiday that is often referred

10
00:01:00,720 --> 00:01:09,040
Speaker 1: to as Easter, it's importance of coming together has great value.

11
00:01:09,319 --> 00:01:12,600
Speaker 1: Don't get me wrong. Being able to connect and to

12
00:01:12,640 --> 00:01:17,880
Speaker 1: see friends and family as imperative. Scripture even says to

13
00:01:17,920 --> 00:01:21,679
Speaker 1: not forsake the gathering of the brethren, that it is

14
00:01:22,319 --> 00:01:26,679
Speaker 1: important to be with one another. It's also very easy

15
00:01:26,680 --> 00:01:32,080
Speaker 1: to lose sight of the importance of what you're celebrating

16
00:01:32,120 --> 00:01:37,360
Speaker 1: this weekend, and the two do tie together. Dealing with

17
00:01:37,400 --> 00:01:43,839
Speaker 1: this pain, dealing with the intensity of what took place.

18
00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:48,920
Speaker 1: I realized that Christmas, because of gift giving and the

19
00:01:49,040 --> 00:01:55,640
Speaker 1: secularization of it, many people look towards that differently than

20
00:01:55,680 --> 00:02:00,840
Speaker 1: they do Easter. You look at the resurrection and and

21
00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:04,800
Speaker 1: the day is mostly thought of as candy and ham

22
00:02:04,840 --> 00:02:06,880
Speaker 1: and these types of things, and nothing wrong with that,

23
00:02:08,720 --> 00:02:13,200
Speaker 1: but you can lose sight of many things, one of

24
00:02:13,240 --> 00:02:25,919
Speaker 1: which that if this didn't happen, there is no Christian faith. Likewise,

25
00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:33,720
Speaker 1: if you look at this story alone, everything falls into place.

26
00:02:36,200 --> 00:02:39,799
Speaker 1: Every part of your belief, your faith, your understanding, every

27
00:02:39,919 --> 00:02:44,400
Speaker 1: trial you've ever been through, every trial you're still in,

28
00:02:46,919 --> 00:02:50,760
Speaker 1: is described in one way or another, and you're given

29
00:02:50,880 --> 00:02:58,680
Speaker 1: a map, a map to understand how God works in

30
00:02:58,720 --> 00:03:05,680
Speaker 1: times of pain. Many stories surrounding the crucifixion, but there

31
00:03:05,680 --> 00:03:12,520
Speaker 1: are three main locations and pieces of this story that

32
00:03:12,600 --> 00:03:17,120
Speaker 1: I want you to focus on, because this morning, I

33
00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:22,720
Speaker 1: want you to see that God is a god of beginning, middle,

34
00:03:24,360 --> 00:03:35,880
Speaker 1: and end. God doesn't leave you in the middle. God

35
00:03:35,920 --> 00:03:39,680
Speaker 1: brings you through the entirety of the process if you

36
00:03:39,840 --> 00:03:44,120
Speaker 1: allow God to do that. If you look towards the

37
00:03:44,160 --> 00:03:47,080
Speaker 1: will of God rather than the will of your own,

38
00:03:49,120 --> 00:03:54,400
Speaker 1: God will bring you through. And it's very hard. In

39
00:03:54,480 --> 00:03:59,320
Speaker 1: times of trial. People get very myopic, you get very

40
00:04:00,280 --> 00:04:04,160
Speaker 1: reductionistic to the pain that you're dealing with in that moment,

41
00:04:07,120 --> 00:04:13,839
Speaker 1: and it's hard to see that big picture. Imagine if

42
00:04:13,840 --> 00:04:20,400
Speaker 1: someone were to poke you with a hat pin, first,

43
00:04:20,400 --> 00:04:22,960
Speaker 1: I'd suggest probably not hanging out with that person. However,

44
00:04:23,120 --> 00:04:26,240
Speaker 1: for the sake of the analogy, somebody pokes you with

45
00:04:26,279 --> 00:04:37,880
Speaker 1: a hat pin. You are made up of countless nerve endings, pathways, blood, vessels, muscles, bones,

46
00:04:40,400 --> 00:04:48,240
Speaker 1: countless somebody pokes you with a hat pin. Everything in

47
00:04:48,279 --> 00:04:55,760
Speaker 1: your body focuses on that tiny little point in life

48
00:04:56,440 --> 00:05:00,679
Speaker 1: when something is weighing heavy on you, or there's pain.

49
00:05:02,800 --> 00:05:09,560
Speaker 1: It's hard to see everything outside of your pain. So

50
00:05:09,680 --> 00:05:18,440
Speaker 1: let's look at the story of the resurrection and the

51
00:05:18,520 --> 00:05:26,839
Speaker 1: crucifixion and the pain endured as a map how God

52
00:05:26,920 --> 00:05:33,120
Speaker 1: brings you through, Starting first at guesthsemone. The three places

53
00:05:33,160 --> 00:05:40,680
Speaker 1: we're going to look at guthsemone, cavalry and the empty

54
00:05:40,720 --> 00:05:54,960
Speaker 1: tomb guesthsemone, and Hebrew got shema nime. This means oil press. Now,

55
00:05:55,000 --> 00:06:00,839
Speaker 1: this location is a garden. It's across the Kidron Valley

56
00:06:01,720 --> 00:06:05,840
Speaker 1: on the Mount of Olives, something that comes up quite

57
00:06:05,880 --> 00:06:10,880
Speaker 1: a bit in what Christians refer to as the New Testament. Now,

58
00:06:10,920 --> 00:06:16,560
Speaker 1: the common belief is this grove of olive trees, which

59
00:06:16,560 --> 00:06:21,520
Speaker 1: are still there today, used to be located next to

60
00:06:22,480 --> 00:06:25,479
Speaker 1: an oil press. And the oil press obviously would be

61
00:06:25,520 --> 00:06:32,520
Speaker 1: there to retrieve and extract olive oil from the olive trees,

62
00:06:33,320 --> 00:06:41,520
Speaker 1: and that gives way to the name Gethsemine. This location

63
00:06:43,560 --> 00:06:48,320
Speaker 1: is incredibly important to the balance and understanding of a beginning, middle,

64
00:06:48,360 --> 00:06:51,599
Speaker 1: and end. This being the beginning, We're going to focus

65
00:06:51,640 --> 00:06:54,400
Speaker 1: on the fact that Scripture says this was a place

66
00:06:54,440 --> 00:06:58,400
Speaker 1: that I often went to pray, connect with the Father,

67
00:06:58,600 --> 00:07:10,240
Speaker 1: to relax, to take time away from the ministry on

68
00:07:10,280 --> 00:07:14,800
Speaker 1: its outward showing of connecting with others, to connect with God.

69
00:07:17,520 --> 00:07:22,680
Speaker 1: And when you go through and think that even I

70
00:07:22,840 --> 00:07:26,200
Speaker 1: took time downtime, even I came to a place where

71
00:07:26,920 --> 00:07:32,840
Speaker 1: I needed to reconnect, focus to pray, that you understand

72
00:07:32,920 --> 00:07:38,320
Speaker 1: that a place like this became more than just a

73
00:07:38,400 --> 00:07:42,760
Speaker 1: shade tree or a place to lean up against a tree,

74
00:07:43,800 --> 00:07:49,920
Speaker 1: and really took on a powerful place of rejuvenation, of

75
00:07:49,960 --> 00:07:56,840
Speaker 1: connection and recentering on the word of God. God is

76
00:07:56,880 --> 00:08:04,080
Speaker 1: a god of beginning, middle and ending. Gathsemone cavalry and

77
00:08:04,120 --> 00:08:10,880
Speaker 1: the empty tomb. This location, this garden about a mile

78
00:08:11,000 --> 00:08:18,840
Speaker 1: long stretching the Kidron Valley, referred to as the Mount

79
00:08:18,880 --> 00:08:25,120
Speaker 1: of Olives, is a very important place. Scripture talks about

80
00:08:25,160 --> 00:08:29,200
Speaker 1: it being a place that I would go to connect

81
00:08:29,640 --> 00:08:36,080
Speaker 1: with the Father, says in scripture. Then Jesus came with

82
00:08:36,160 --> 00:08:42,119
Speaker 1: them to a place called Gathsemone and said to his disciples,

83
00:08:42,160 --> 00:08:46,280
Speaker 1: sit here while I go over there and pray. He

84
00:08:46,320 --> 00:08:51,720
Speaker 1: took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebede.

85
00:08:51,840 --> 00:08:53,880
Speaker 1: I don't know if you're not familiar. Zebede shows up

86
00:08:53,880 --> 00:08:57,240
Speaker 1: a couple of times in scripture. He was a fisherman

87
00:08:58,520 --> 00:09:01,199
Speaker 1: and the father of James and John. On the disciples,

88
00:09:04,840 --> 00:09:09,679
Speaker 1: I went, and I began to grieve. I was distressed,

89
00:09:13,280 --> 00:09:16,320
Speaker 1: and he said to them, my soul is deeply grieved

90
00:09:16,480 --> 00:09:19,880
Speaker 1: to the point of death. Remain here and keep watch

91
00:09:19,960 --> 00:09:26,160
Speaker 1: with me. And he went a little beyond them, fell

92
00:09:26,200 --> 00:09:32,600
Speaker 1: on his face and prayed, saying, my father, if it

93
00:09:32,640 --> 00:09:35,720
Speaker 1: is possible, let this cup pass from me. Yet not

94
00:09:35,920 --> 00:09:41,040
Speaker 1: as I will, but as you will. He came to

95
00:09:41,080 --> 00:09:44,160
Speaker 1: the disciples, found them sleeping, and said to Peter, so

96
00:09:44,240 --> 00:09:47,200
Speaker 1: you men could not keep watch over me for one hour,

97
00:09:50,000 --> 00:09:53,559
Speaker 1: keeping watch and praying that you may not enter into temptation.

98
00:09:54,200 --> 00:09:59,599
Speaker 1: The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. He

99
00:09:59,640 --> 00:10:04,800
Speaker 1: went way the second time and prayed, saying, my father,

100
00:10:05,480 --> 00:10:09,640
Speaker 1: if this cannot pass away unless I drink it. Your

101
00:10:09,720 --> 00:10:13,160
Speaker 1: will be done. And he came and found them sleeping,

102
00:10:13,960 --> 00:10:17,280
Speaker 1: for their eyes were heavy. And he left them again

103
00:10:18,000 --> 00:10:21,560
Speaker 1: and went away and prayed a third time, saying the

104
00:10:21,600 --> 00:10:25,680
Speaker 1: same thing once more. And he came to the disciples

105
00:10:25,720 --> 00:10:29,200
Speaker 1: and said to them, are you still sleeping and resting? Behold?

106
00:10:29,200 --> 00:10:32,120
Speaker 1: The hour is at hand, and the son of man

107
00:10:32,480 --> 00:10:37,360
Speaker 1: is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. Get up,

108
00:10:38,480 --> 00:10:41,520
Speaker 1: let us be going. Behold, the one who betrays me

109
00:10:41,720 --> 00:10:50,320
Speaker 1: is at hand. The part of this this first place. Remember,

110
00:10:50,400 --> 00:10:52,960
Speaker 1: God is a god of beginning, middle, and ending. This

111
00:10:53,040 --> 00:11:00,720
Speaker 1: is the beginning. It is an intense time of and

112
00:11:00,840 --> 00:11:07,720
Speaker 1: pain and frustration. If you look that, even I was

113
00:11:07,760 --> 00:11:12,120
Speaker 1: looking for comfort from people, from others, from friends, from

114
00:11:12,120 --> 00:11:18,320
Speaker 1: people I was connected with, and didn't get it. Oftentimes,

115
00:11:18,320 --> 00:11:20,920
Speaker 1: when you're in that first point of pain, you will

116
00:11:20,920 --> 00:11:26,200
Speaker 1: find that there won't be people with you, but God

117
00:11:26,240 --> 00:11:34,960
Speaker 1: always is with you. Today is Easter. The weight of

118
00:11:35,080 --> 00:11:40,600
Speaker 1: so many things are on the shoulder of humanity. And

119
00:11:40,679 --> 00:11:45,320
Speaker 1: what a what an appropriate time to look back and

120
00:11:45,440 --> 00:11:51,199
Speaker 1: see the three main locations of this story that you

121
00:11:51,400 --> 00:11:57,320
Speaker 1: celebrate on this weekend. Guessemone Calvary and the Empty tomb,

122
00:11:57,679 --> 00:12:02,719
Speaker 1: the beginning, middle, and end of the story from the

123
00:12:02,760 --> 00:12:08,480
Speaker 1: oil press of Guestsemone. The image of a being extra

124
00:12:09,120 --> 00:12:13,080
Speaker 1: being pressed by a trial, the beginning of this trial,

125
00:12:13,520 --> 00:12:20,280
Speaker 1: the point of pain in the garden of Guessemone asking

126
00:12:20,480 --> 00:12:24,480
Speaker 1: for people to sit and pray with me, and not

127
00:12:24,559 --> 00:12:28,000
Speaker 1: even getting that feeling. The weight of the pain of

128
00:12:28,080 --> 00:12:37,800
Speaker 1: this trial is the beginning. The second important location is

129
00:12:39,280 --> 00:12:44,360
Speaker 1: Golgatha or cavalry, first being in Aramaic, the second being

130
00:12:44,360 --> 00:12:53,160
Speaker 1: in Latin. Both mean skull. All four Gospels, the Synoptic Gospels,

131
00:12:53,880 --> 00:12:59,160
Speaker 1: and John refer to me being crucified on a skull

132
00:12:59,440 --> 00:13:12,200
Speaker 1: shaped hill in ancient Jerusalem Scripture in Matthew says, and

133
00:13:12,240 --> 00:13:18,920
Speaker 1: when they came to a place called Golgatha Golgatha, which

134
00:13:18,960 --> 00:13:21,959
Speaker 1: means place of the skull, they gave him wine to drink,

135
00:13:22,080 --> 00:13:26,840
Speaker 1: mixed with gall and after tasting it he was unwilling

136
00:13:26,840 --> 00:13:35,920
Speaker 1: to drink. And when they had crucified him, they divided

137
00:13:36,000 --> 00:13:41,760
Speaker 1: up his garments among themselves by casting lots, and sitting down,

138
00:13:42,000 --> 00:13:45,000
Speaker 1: they began to keep watch over him there, and above

139
00:13:45,040 --> 00:13:48,760
Speaker 1: his head they put up the charge against him, which read,

140
00:13:49,360 --> 00:13:55,280
Speaker 1: this is Jesus, the King of the Jews. At that time,

141
00:13:55,360 --> 00:13:58,160
Speaker 1: two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right

142
00:13:58,200 --> 00:14:02,280
Speaker 1: and one on the left. When those passing by were

143
00:14:02,360 --> 00:14:07,840
Speaker 1: hurling abuse at him, wagging their heads and saying, you

144
00:14:08,120 --> 00:14:10,960
Speaker 1: who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it

145
00:14:11,000 --> 00:14:15,400
Speaker 1: in three days, save yourself if you are the son

146
00:14:15,440 --> 00:14:21,160
Speaker 1: of God, come down from the cross. In the same way,

147
00:14:21,240 --> 00:14:24,440
Speaker 1: the chief priests also along with the scribes and the elders,

148
00:14:24,800 --> 00:14:29,840
Speaker 1: were mocking him, saying he saved others, he can't even

149
00:14:29,840 --> 00:14:35,760
Speaker 1: save himself. He is the king of Israel. Let him

150
00:14:35,840 --> 00:14:39,920
Speaker 1: now come down from the cross, and we will believe him.

151
00:14:41,840 --> 00:14:46,040
Speaker 1: He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if

152
00:14:46,080 --> 00:14:50,160
Speaker 1: he delights in him, For he said, I am the

153
00:14:50,200 --> 00:14:53,960
Speaker 1: son of God. The robbers who had been crucified with

154
00:14:54,040 --> 00:15:00,800
Speaker 1: him were also insulting him with similar words. Now from

155
00:15:00,800 --> 00:15:06,520
Speaker 1: the sixth hour of darkness that fell upon all the

156
00:15:06,600 --> 00:15:13,520
Speaker 1: land until that ninth hour. About the ninth hour, Jesus

157
00:15:13,520 --> 00:15:18,360
Speaker 1: cried out with a loud voice, saying, iloiloi la ma schabacani,

158
00:15:21,360 --> 00:15:26,280
Speaker 1: which means, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

159
00:15:30,600 --> 00:15:37,880
Speaker 1: When you look at the second location Golgatha or cavalry,

160
00:15:39,840 --> 00:15:44,440
Speaker 1: the place of the skull, the image that you see

161
00:15:44,480 --> 00:15:48,520
Speaker 1: of the three crosses, and there were more than three,

162
00:15:48,760 --> 00:15:54,400
Speaker 1: and there were different shapes and sizes. Romans used crucifixion

163
00:15:57,280 --> 00:16:02,480
Speaker 1: not just with me. I assure you as a powerful

164
00:16:02,520 --> 00:16:05,200
Speaker 1: tool to show others the agony and the pain of

165
00:16:05,240 --> 00:16:08,840
Speaker 1: those that broke the laws of the rules in which

166
00:16:08,880 --> 00:16:16,600
Speaker 1: they were enforcing. High on that hill, looking down in pain,

167
00:16:16,720 --> 00:16:22,400
Speaker 1: you come across this second location, the place of the skull.

168
00:16:22,680 --> 00:16:29,040
Speaker 1: It starts from the oil press and the extraction and squeezing,

169
00:16:32,240 --> 00:16:38,840
Speaker 1: and that point of pain to that second point, the middle,

170
00:16:39,560 --> 00:16:43,840
Speaker 1: the peak of the pain, the peak of the shame

171
00:16:44,040 --> 00:16:55,440
Speaker 1: and embarrassment and intensity, people turning on you, adding to

172
00:16:55,480 --> 00:17:04,359
Speaker 1: the pain, pushing more and more of this ugliness on

173
00:17:04,480 --> 00:17:12,919
Speaker 1: top of my head, looking for reason to join in

174
00:17:13,040 --> 00:17:16,040
Speaker 1: the ugliness. Does any of this sound familiar when you

175
00:17:16,080 --> 00:17:23,600
Speaker 1: go through a trial, the beginning of that pain that

176
00:17:23,720 --> 00:17:30,520
Speaker 1: starts with loneliness and separation, the peak of the pain,

177
00:17:31,480 --> 00:17:36,639
Speaker 1: which comes with others kicking you when you're down, separating

178
00:17:36,680 --> 00:17:41,280
Speaker 1: them themselves from your pain in a different way, now

179
00:17:41,359 --> 00:17:51,879
Speaker 1: heaping it on with judgment and ugliness. And then to

180
00:17:51,920 --> 00:18:01,840
Speaker 1: the third place, night approaches a rich man from Arimathea.

181
00:18:02,280 --> 00:18:08,280
Speaker 1: His name was Joseph. He had become one of my

182
00:18:08,359 --> 00:18:15,840
Speaker 1: dearest disciples. He went to Pilot. He asked for my body.

183
00:18:16,119 --> 00:18:20,600
Speaker 1: Pilot ordered that it was given to him. Joseph took

184
00:18:20,640 --> 00:18:26,280
Speaker 1: my body, it was lifeless, wrapped it in clean linen cloth,

185
00:18:26,440 --> 00:18:30,320
Speaker 1: and placed it in his own new tomb that he

186
00:18:30,359 --> 00:18:35,280
Speaker 1: had cut out of rock. He rolled a big stone

187
00:18:35,280 --> 00:18:37,600
Speaker 1: in front of the entrance of the tomb and went away.

188
00:18:39,840 --> 00:18:43,360
Speaker 1: The next day, the chief priests and the pharisees went

189
00:18:43,480 --> 00:18:48,000
Speaker 1: to Pilot with great concern Sir, They said, we remember

190
00:18:48,119 --> 00:18:52,439
Speaker 1: that while he was still alive, that deceiver said, after

191
00:18:52,520 --> 00:18:57,640
Speaker 1: three days I will rise again. So give the order

192
00:18:57,640 --> 00:19:00,120
Speaker 1: for the tomb to be made secure into the third

193
00:19:00,280 --> 00:19:04,359
Speaker 1: otherwise his disciples may come steal the body and tell

194
00:19:04,400 --> 00:19:07,840
Speaker 1: people that he has been raised from the dead. This

195
00:19:08,000 --> 00:19:13,600
Speaker 1: last deception will be worse than the first. Take a guard.

196
00:19:14,240 --> 00:19:18,440
Speaker 1: Pi then answered, go make the tomb as secure as

197
00:19:18,480 --> 00:19:21,679
Speaker 1: you know. How so they went, and they made the

198
00:19:21,720 --> 00:19:24,879
Speaker 1: tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and

199
00:19:25,040 --> 00:19:29,320
Speaker 1: posting guard. This seal was not just a generic seal,

200
00:19:31,119 --> 00:19:35,640
Speaker 1: It was a Roman seal that if it was broken

201
00:19:35,800 --> 00:19:41,600
Speaker 1: by anyone, they would surely be killed. If the guards

202
00:19:41,640 --> 00:19:44,520
Speaker 1: could not keep it from being broken or tampered with,

203
00:19:45,080 --> 00:19:52,720
Speaker 1: they too would be killed. After the Sabbath, at dawn

204
00:19:53,320 --> 00:19:55,439
Speaker 1: on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and

205
00:19:55,680 --> 00:20:01,960
Speaker 1: the other Mary went to look at the tube. There

206
00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:05,280
Speaker 1: was a violent earthquake. An angel of the Lord came

207
00:20:05,320 --> 00:20:08,560
Speaker 1: down from heaven, and going to the tomb, rolled back

208
00:20:08,600 --> 00:20:13,400
Speaker 1: the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning,

209
00:20:13,440 --> 00:20:16,840
Speaker 1: and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were

210
00:20:16,880 --> 00:20:23,240
Speaker 1: so afraid they shook and became like dead men. In

211
00:20:23,280 --> 00:20:26,439
Speaker 1: an instant, the angel said to the women, do not

212
00:20:26,560 --> 00:20:30,600
Speaker 1: be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus,

213
00:20:30,640 --> 00:20:36,399
Speaker 1: who was crucified. He is not here. He has risen,

214
00:20:37,080 --> 00:20:39,720
Speaker 1: just as he said. Come and see the place where

215
00:20:39,720 --> 00:20:43,600
Speaker 1: he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples. Jesus

216
00:20:43,680 --> 00:20:53,359
Speaker 1: has risen from the dead. Romans won four through five,

217
00:20:53,800 --> 00:20:56,080
Speaker 1: and it was declared to be the Son of God

218
00:20:56,160 --> 00:20:59,239
Speaker 1: in power according to the spirit of Holiness, by his

219
00:20:59,400 --> 00:21:03,960
Speaker 1: resurrection and from the dead Jesus Christ, our Lord, through

220
00:21:04,000 --> 00:21:08,639
Speaker 1: whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about

221
00:21:08,800 --> 00:21:11,840
Speaker 1: the obedience of faith for the sake of his name.

222
00:21:12,680 --> 00:21:18,359
Speaker 1: Among all nations one Peter one three. Praise be to

223
00:21:18,440 --> 00:21:22,399
Speaker 1: the God and Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ. In

224
00:21:22,480 --> 00:21:26,040
Speaker 1: his great mercy, He has given us new birth into

225
00:21:26,080 --> 00:21:29,959
Speaker 1: a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from

226
00:21:30,040 --> 00:21:35,520
Speaker 1: the dead. So when you look at the story of Easter,

227
00:21:37,760 --> 00:21:44,480
Speaker 1: look beyond the eggs, the bunnies, the chocolate, and you'll

228
00:21:44,520 --> 00:21:52,120
Speaker 1: find what really took place. And that is the greatest

229
00:21:52,160 --> 00:21:54,720
Speaker 1: story of a beginning, middle, and end, and how God

230
00:21:54,800 --> 00:22:01,080
Speaker 1: works in your lives. Ever, God will bring from Gessemine

231
00:22:03,040 --> 00:22:09,640
Speaker 1: to Calvary on into the empty tomb. If you walk

232
00:22:09,680 --> 00:22:11,720
Speaker 1: out in the middle of a movie, you never get

233
00:22:11,720 --> 00:22:18,000
Speaker 1: the happy ending, you never see the empty tomb, the resurrection.

234
00:22:18,480 --> 00:22:22,040
Speaker 1: You will be in pain. There will be pandemics, there

235
00:22:22,080 --> 00:22:29,399
Speaker 1: will be civil unrest, and there will be people in

236
00:22:29,520 --> 00:22:33,760
Speaker 1: government in your day to day that will try and

237
00:22:33,880 --> 00:22:37,440
Speaker 1: wind their way around to get what they want, stepping

238
00:22:37,480 --> 00:22:43,000
Speaker 1: on you in the process. And the middle may seem

239
00:22:43,040 --> 00:22:47,520
Speaker 1: like it goes on forever. But seeking the righteousness of God,

240
00:22:47,920 --> 00:22:53,520
Speaker 1: he will bring you through. It's when you try to

241
00:22:53,560 --> 00:22:58,400
Speaker 1: push your way and the path that you want God

242
00:22:58,440 --> 00:23:05,280
Speaker 1: to take is when causes problems. The very reason Judas

243
00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:13,359
Speaker 1: betrayed me. Was because Judas felt the Massikh the Messiah,

244
00:23:13,960 --> 00:23:18,880
Speaker 1: was going to be a militant to take over the

245
00:23:18,960 --> 00:23:24,600
Speaker 1: rule of Rome and give it to the Jews, so

246
00:23:24,720 --> 00:23:31,679
Speaker 1: much so he kept trying to force it. God had

247
00:23:31,720 --> 00:23:35,040
Speaker 1: a different plan, and God has a different plan for

248
00:23:35,160 --> 00:23:39,680
Speaker 1: your beginning, your middle, and your ending. Never lose sight

249
00:23:39,720 --> 00:23:46,399
Speaker 1: of that, Never lose sight of the empty Tomb. The

250
00:23:46,480 --> 00:23:53,600
Speaker 1: story of what is often called Easter the Resurrection is

251
00:23:53,640 --> 00:23:58,880
Speaker 1: a powerful one, not only because it is pivotal into

252
00:23:58,880 --> 00:24:06,800
Speaker 1: your faith as a Christian. Christianity doesn't exist without the

253
00:24:06,800 --> 00:24:11,920
Speaker 1: Crucifixion and the Resurrection. But when you look at those

254
00:24:12,040 --> 00:24:18,160
Speaker 1: three special markers, the beginning, the middle and the end

255
00:24:18,480 --> 00:24:24,240
Speaker 1: Gathsemone Calvary and the empty Tomb, you can see how

256
00:24:24,280 --> 00:24:31,840
Speaker 1: God works through pain and seemingly ugliness. It will, most

257
00:24:31,880 --> 00:24:39,560
Speaker 1: assuredly never be in your time. Even I in the

258
00:24:39,600 --> 00:24:45,520
Speaker 1: Garden of Guesthsemite asked, Hey, if it's possible, let this

259
00:24:45,640 --> 00:24:49,920
Speaker 1: cup pass from me. I'm not asking about my will,

260
00:24:51,440 --> 00:24:56,200
Speaker 1: but your will. There's a powerful thing happening there that question,

261
00:24:56,520 --> 00:25:03,480
Speaker 1: that question is filled with so much that's less for

262
00:25:03,600 --> 00:25:10,840
Speaker 1: me than it is for you to read. I knew

263
00:25:10,840 --> 00:25:14,720
Speaker 1: it was God's will, but you needed to know if

264
00:25:14,760 --> 00:25:19,159
Speaker 1: there was any other way to get to heaven, if

265
00:25:19,200 --> 00:25:23,959
Speaker 1: there was any other way to connect with God, that

266
00:25:24,000 --> 00:25:30,200
Speaker 1: would have been the time. And God, not through words

267
00:25:30,240 --> 00:25:36,760
Speaker 1: but through action, responded, my beloved, There's no other way,

268
00:25:39,920 --> 00:25:43,680
Speaker 1: and God will tell you that as well. You will

269
00:25:43,760 --> 00:25:47,400
Speaker 1: raise your eyes and maybe sometimes your fist to the heavens,

270
00:25:47,440 --> 00:25:51,000
Speaker 1: and you will say, why why am I in the

271
00:25:51,000 --> 00:26:00,240
Speaker 1: middle of this? You can ask these things and God

272
00:26:00,280 --> 00:26:09,400
Speaker 1: will respond You are in the middle, but I will

273
00:26:09,400 --> 00:26:17,960
Speaker 1: pull you through. There will be that empty tomb. And

274
00:26:18,000 --> 00:26:25,280
Speaker 1: it's not like I walked quietly to the cross. It

275
00:26:25,320 --> 00:26:30,679
Speaker 1: says in scripture that I dealt with the pain for

276
00:26:30,760 --> 00:26:34,280
Speaker 1: the hope of what was going to take place, for

277
00:26:34,359 --> 00:26:37,600
Speaker 1: the importance of what was going to take place. But

278
00:26:37,640 --> 00:26:41,800
Speaker 1: I still had pain. I still quoted scripture. I still

279
00:26:41,840 --> 00:26:47,639
Speaker 1: asked the Father. But through all of that, most importantly

280
00:26:48,640 --> 00:26:53,640
Speaker 1: I trusted God. KFI A six on demand