Have Faith Ministries

 

Our Living Hope He's alive, He lives, The Lord has risen!" Try to grasp the excitement of the disciples as they realized that Jesus was alive. They had seen Him brutally beaten and then Crucified on the Cross. Then on the third day, Jesus is resurrected - He's alive! The disciples were dramatically changed. There Hope in the Savor, Jesus Christ, was ALIVE. We have a Living Hope! Does the knowledge of Christ resurrection Thrill you? Has it changed your life? We sing the song "BECAUSE HE LIVES" "Because He lives, I can face tomorrow, because He lives all fear is gone, because I know He holds the future, And life is worth the living just because He lives." Are you Rejoicing - because of the Resurrection? The apostle Peter certainly did... 1Pet. 1:3, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 8 whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith--the salvation of your souls. We have a living hope in the Resurrection. We have Salvation provided through God1s Mercy and Grace. We have a reserved Inheritance in Heaven. Does this THRILL YOUR SOUL? Is your joy overflowing, Is your joy inexpressible, full of glory? It's great to remember the Resurrection this Easter Day, but it should bring joy to the Christians' heart EVERY DAY OF YOUR LIFE. The hope of FUTURE LIFE should change the way you live NOW. For the Unbeliever, the hope of the Resurrection CAN be yours. Hope of everlasting life. But that hope is only made possible through faith in the Risen Jesus Christ. Believing in His works on the Cross and not your own. Today, I want to tell you about the Importance of the Resurrection, The Hope of the Resurrection and The Joy of the Resurrection. The Importance of the Resurrection Our Faith is grounded in the Resurrection: 1Cor. 15: 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, The apostles said... "This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses." No resurrection , NO hope... 1Cor. 15:14 And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. 1Cor. 15:17 And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! If no life after death... We have No hope No heaven No future But that's not true "We Serve a Risen Savor." If the Resurrection was not real, then Christianity would have stopped dead in it's tracks on the third day! Think of The Change in the disciples... Despair, Sadness & Fear turn to Joy & Boldness Luke. 24:13, Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him. And He (Jesus) said to them, "What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?" Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, "Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?" 20 "and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. 21 "But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. What were these two disciples saying? We're sad, because we have not seen Him. We're sad because we have no hope. They thought "He has not risen" Then - Jesus tells them who He is and Hope is Lifted. The Two disciples tell others," The Lord is risen indeed!" Jesus Appeared to the 10 disciples Luke 24:36, Now as they ( the 2 disciples ) said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, "Peace to you." But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit. And He said to them, "Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts? "Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have." When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, Jesus said to them, "Have you any food here?" So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. What happened? Unbelief becomes Belief! The disciples that had been hiding for fear of the Jews. They were Sad because their Master was dead. They were Without hope because they had not seen Him. But then they find out "HE'S ALIVE!" Then Jesus appears to others. 1Cor. 15:4 , Paul said "He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Peter, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time." What happened to Saul (Paul) who was persecuting the church? Why the Sudden change? Why would the disciples come out of hiding and boldly proclaim the resurrection - IF Jesus was dead? The disciples struggled to serve Jesus when He was alive before He was Crucified. Why would they serve Him with zeal if He was not alive? Without a Living Savor, the message of the Gospel would not have reached us today. But friends, we serve a Risen Savor! Now let's look at the - The Hope of the Resurrection. What is hope? Hope is the confident expectation of obtaining something. We do this through FAITH! In the same way that we have living hope, we have living faith. Faith in God is a way of Life. Live it! Faith in Christ1s resurrection changes our life. I've never seen the resurrected Christ. Yet by faith, I believe God's word, 1Peter, 1:8 whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy." We have a Living Hope - in the Resurrection, Not a dead hope, which is No hope at all. A dead Savor cannot save anyone.... Rom. 4:25 Muhammad, Buddha and other religious Leaders all have something in Common. They All died and remained in the grave. They offer No Hope! They offer a Wrong hope, Job 31:24 "If I have made gold my hope, Or said to fine gold, 'You are my confidence'"; They offer a Fleeting Hope, Pr 11:7 When a wicked man dies, his expectation will perish, And the hope of the unjust perishes. They offer No Hope, 1Th 4:13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have died, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. (Christians have a REAL hope!) Our hope - The Christian's hope: Titus 1:2 in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began, What a promise from God who CANNOT LIE! Well now that we know our hope is sure in Christ's resurrection, let's look at... The Joy of the Resurrection. 1Peter 1:6, In this you greatly rejoice. "greatly rejoice" emphasizes the demonstration of joy. Peter's meaning: Bottled up joy, Peter pulls the cork out and pours out his joy. Same word in v. 8, "whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice, with joy inexpressible and full of glory" How joyful should we be? ... unspeakable joy, overflowing joy Not a silly joy, but rather a deep inner joy based on the knowledge that Christ has been raised and we will to, so no matter what happens to us on earth - Hey, we have the Resurrection to look forward to! Think of the Reasons we have to rejoice: Your own resurrection, Hope during this present life No matter how bad things get, no matter what happens to me, any problem any Affliction fades away in the light of the Resurrection. Too many Christians spend their days moping around with sad faces. This certainly does not reveal an "OVER FLOWING JOY"! Living according to all the Spiritual realities in your life. Live according to our Living Hope! 1Cor. 15:54, Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory? Conclusion: Do you see the importance of the Resurrection? The Gospel we preach is based on the Resurrection. Our faith hopes in the resurrection. Your life should be changed because of that living hope. Do you have this Living Hope in Christ? To the Unbeliever - Believe in Jesus Christ! That He Died for your sins, was Raised from the dead, to give you hope of eternal life. Christian! Does the Resurrection Thrill your soul? Then have Great Joy. Joy pouring out. Joy demonstrated in everyday life. When you proclaim the Gospel to your friends, let them see the Joy you have, long before you tell them the Good News. Your inner Joy about your future in Christ will eventually bubble over. This is the kind of Joy that makes unbelievers Thirsty for what you have. Be Sincere, and Be Joyful!

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