Easter

Pastor Mike speaking on Easter. He will be in John 14

when Jesus comes it’ll be too late so now’s the time and today’s the day of salvation for all of us and he lives so that you can live and so I invite you to come to Christ today to come and receive him in to your heart today Happy Easter what an amazing day this is Resurrection Sunday this is the day that we celebrate the rising of our Savior from the dead he is not a dead God he is a living God and he is bringing life to all who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ today we’re going to be back in the Gospel of John chapter 14 and we’re going to be learning about Easter and celebrating Easter and I hope you’ll join me as we study God’s Word together today in John chapter 14 let’s begin our study you have your Bibles this morning I want you to join me in the Gospel of John John chapter 14 and I want to really look at two verses this morning verse 18 and 19 the Bible says this these are the words of our Savior Jesus said I will not leave you no more but you see me because I live you shall live also I want you to underscore that in your Bible that last phrase because I live you shall live also when we think about Easter it’s always a wonderful time every year we celebrate our Easter service and we have of a lot of activities,

a lot of things going on. You’re probably gonna get together with family, friends this afternoon, and you’re gonna enjoy this time of celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. But in a real sense, for those of us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, Easter is really every week.

It is the real reason why the church gathers on Sunday. The church gathers on Sunday to celebrate that we have a living Savior, a Savior who not only died for our sins, but a Savior who has come out of that tomb and is living today.

And so we celebrate, and our presence celebrates that. And that’s why the Bible tells us that we should not forsake the assembling of ourselves together as the manner of some is. But we should come together as believers and followers of Christ, very devoted, very committed to the cause of Jesus Christ.

But as we come, we celebrate what Christ has done for us. And Jesus said, because I live, you shall live also. Because he lives this morning, I want you to know that we have healing. When I talk about healing, I’m talking about spiritual healing.

Jesus said, I live. And I want you to note that Jesus Christ is the essence of life. He is not only the essence of physical life, but he is the essence of spiritual life. The Bible teaches us that each and every one of us, when we come into this world, we are spiritually dead.

It does not mean that you’re physically dead, but we are spiritually dead. Meaning that we don’t have a natural inclination to draw towards God. We don’t naturally seek God. We don’t naturally desire God in our hearts.

But what we need is a resurrection in our life. We need a spiritual resurrection. We need Jesus Christ to come into our life and to give us new life in Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us in the gospel of John chapter one, verse four, that in him was life and the life was the light of men.

When Jesus Christ said that I live, because I live, you shall live also. He was also speaking to the point of our spiritual life. Because he is alive, each and every one of us has the opportunity this morning to have spiritual life.

That is that we could be resurrected in our spirit. We could be resurrected in our soul. That we could experience a new life in Jesus Christ. Because spiritual life is only to be found in Jesus Christ.

There is no spiritual life in religion. There is no spiritual life. in the rituals that churches might go through. There is no spiritual life in the things of this world. Spiritual life only comes from a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Bible says this, He that hath the Son hath life, and He that hath not the Son of God hath not life. The Bible is teaching us that if you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you have spiritual life.

But if you do not know Him, then you do not have spiritual life. You say, I’m a member of a church, pastor. It doesn’t matter. Spiritual life does not come in church membership. You say, well I was baptized as a baby.

Spiritual life does not come through baptism. People say, well I did all these wonderful things, pastor. My friends, spiritual life does not come. through good works for by grace are you saved through life for by grace are you saved through grace that not of yourselves it is a gift of god not of works lest any man should boast the new life the spiritual life that i have is the direct result of jesus christ who was raised from the dead and because he lives he can heal my heart he can heal my sin he can heal my sorrow he can heal my brokenness in my life i read about a russian thief his name was sasha and he attempted to break into a russian orthodox church and according to the outreach to the nation’s publications he fell from the dome and he broke both of his legs while sasha was falling his whole life flashed before his eyes as he laid on the ground waiting for someone to find him with two broken legs he began to study the biblically themed paintings and artworks that adorned the church walls he saw the stained glass that spoke of christ and his resurrection shortly afterwards sasha would give his life to the lord jesus christ then another miracle occurred sasha’s crime which usually would bring about 10 to 15 years became his case became bogged down in bureaucracy and by the time the officials were ready to prosecute a year later they looked at sasha’s life and saw that he had changed so dramatically that they dismissed the case and now sasha in russia he runs a russian bible school this is what god can do in your life he can dramatically change you He can take you from being a person who is a thief to a person who is now Teaching Bible at a Bible school.

This is the power of the gospel This is why Jesus said that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have Have eternal life Today you may feel like Sasha Wrong direction you that may have many hurts in your heart But I want you to know that because Christ is alive That he can bring healing to each and every one of our hearts He can bring healing to your life and he can bring healing to your current circumstances because he lives You can live also listen to the words of Jesus in John 3 36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life,

and he that believeth not on the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him.” The fact that Jesus Christ lives is a pledge to each and every one of us this morning, that if we believe in Jesus Christ, we can have eternal life, spiritual life, and he has the power to forgive us of our sins and to raise us spiritually from the dead.

Because he lives, we have hope. The Bible tells us that we have a living hope, and that hope is rooted in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now when you study the Gospel of John, the Gospel of John presents Jesus Christ in a unique manner in every chapter.

For example, we see him, Jesus, as the eternal Son of God in chapter one. We see Jesus as the miracle worker in chapter two. We see Jesus as the divine teacher in chapter three. We see Jesus as the soul winner in chapter four.

We see Jesus as the merciful healer in chapter five. And when we come to chapter 14, we see that Jesus is the royal comforter. And verses 18 and 19 remind us that Jesus offers to us a message of hope.

It is a hope that he will not abandon us. Some translations put it in verse 18. Jesus said, I will not leave you as an orphan or orphanless, meaning that Jesus will not abandon your life, but he is going to send a comforter.

the Holy Spirit into your life. Jesus Christ is going to bring hope to every heart that believes in Him. Jesus said, because I live, you will live also. We do not have to fear death. We do not have to fear sin.

We do not have to fear this world. We do not have to fear our circumstances because He lives, we, each and every one of us, that believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, we shall live also. One of the most popular gospel songs is based upon today’s text in John chapter 14.

It was written by Bill and Gloria Gaither. And it says, because He lives, I can face tomorrow. In the late 1960s, America was in turmoil. with a bloody war in Vietnam. And there were many riots in the homeland.

And at the same time, Bill Gaither had contracted mononucleosis, which left him exhausted and overwhelmed. Then all of a sudden, he discovered that him and his wife were expecting another baby. Bill and Gloria asked themself, if this world is like this now, what will it be 15 and 20 years from now for our baby?

What will our child face? While grappling with this question in their heart, God reminded them of the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He reminded them that because Christ lives, that they have hope for tomorrow, no matter what their circumstances are.

Therefore, they penned the beautiful words that we sing so much, because he lives, I can face tomorrow. Each and every one of us needs to know that there is hope worth having in Jesus Christ, and that this hope is available to all who reach out and call upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Because he lives, we have holiness. The Bible teaches us that we can live and be all that God wants us to be. Many times, people will say to me, pastor, I could never be a Christian. I could never make those kind of changes in my life.

I could never live up to what the expectations are. Well, when we come to the Gospel of John, chapter 14, there are literally five supernatural blessings that John teaches us in this chapter. Don’t worry.

we’re not gonna cover them all today. But let me tell you about two of them. One is we are promised a supernatural helper and that helper is the Holy Spirit of God. The Bible teaches us that when we believe in Jesus Christ, that the Holy Spirit lives within every believer and by the power of the Spirit of God, you and I are able to live and to be what God wants us to be.

But we also have a supernatural life. I told you earlier that you and I are resurrected. Just as our savior is resurrected, we are resurrected. Spiritually, God raises us from the dead and blesses us with a supernatural life.

The Bible tells us in Romans 4, verse 25, that Christ was delivered for our offenses. and was raised again for our justification.” Meaning simply this, that Christ was offered on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins, our past, our present, our future sins, all paid for by the Lord Jesus Christ.

The wrath of God poured upon Jesus instead of being poured upon you and me. And instead of you and I paying the penalty for our sins. For the Bible says the wages of sin is what? It is death, but not just physical death, spiritual death, my friend.

To be separated from God forever and ever in a place that is called hell. A place that was not created for you, but created for the fallen angels out of heaven. But a place that we dwell in if we do not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.

But my friends, there is hope and there is help in Jesus Christ. The blood of Jesus and the power of his resurrection provides the necessary ingredients for our salvation. We are made holy in God’s sight through Jesus Christ.

And when we place our faith in him, he does not see our failures. He does not see our flaws. He does not see our sins. He does not see every area that we have messed up in, but he sees the righteousness of our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ.

Can God’s people say amen? Because he lives, I have happiness. Not the happiness of the world. The happiness of the world is a happiness that’s based upon circumstances. It’s up one day, it’s down the next.

The happiness of the world is based upon how people treat them. And one day people treat them nice and the next day they treat them bad. God, the happiness of the world is based upon whether they have money in the bank or not.

My friends, the happiness that is found in Jesus Christ is solely based upon our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. If you have your Bibles this morning, just turn one page to chapter 16. I wanna read these incredible verses to you about the joy and the happiness that we have in Jesus Christ in John chapter 16 and verse 19.

The Bible says, now Jesus knew that they were desirous to ask him and said unto them, do you inquire among yourselves of that I said, a little while and you shall not see me? And again, a little while you shall see me?

Verily, verily, I say unto you that you shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice. And you shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into what church? Your sorrow shall be turned into joy.

Look at verse 22. And you now therefore have sorrow, but I will see you again and your heart shall what? Rejoice and your joy no man taketh from you. There’s a lot packed in those verses, but we cannot unpack them all, but simply note this, that the world rejoiced when Christ was crucified.

The world rejoiced as Christ was suspended between heaven and earth, and all the sins of mankind were placed upon our living Savior. As he endured the wrath and punishment and penalty of sin upon him.

And why did he do it? Because he loves you. Because he cares. And he’s calling you to eternal life. The world rejoiced and the disciples were sorrowful. But Jesus said, when you see me again, you will rejoice.

And the world can’t take that joy away from you. I’m telling you because we have a living Savior, that each and every one of us has joy. And we have joy in our hearts. Now a lot of Christians don’t tap into this joy.

And it is the very reason that they are powerless or anemic in their spiritual life. But the scriptures teach us that the joy of the Lord is your what? It is your strength. The joy of the Lord is my strength.

The joy of the Lord is not rooted in my circumstances. It’s not rooted in how people treat me. It’s not rooted in how the stock market did today or tomorrow. But it is solely rooted in my relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

Christ you know I want to tell you another bus story do you guys like bus stories and so I write drive that bus and those little kids get on and I give them high fives and I tell them how awesome God is and let’s give God the glory those kids get on and they just are miserable now the little kids they’re all excited they’re glad to give Pastor Mike a high five and they’re excited and I start telling them and teaching them about songs but all the teenagers they just grunt at me I tell the teenagers don’t worry I survived three of them I can handle you they don’t talk to me they think I’m crazy and they think I’m weird but what I want every one of the children to know that I have joy and that whether it’s seven o ‘clock in the morning,

or it’s seven o ‘clock at night, I still have joy in Jesus Christ, and that every day is a blessing, and every day is a gift from God, and every day is an opportunity to maximize the moment for the Lord Jesus Christ.

I never know when my last day will be as a believer. I never know when God says your task and work is done, Mike. I’m not gonna sit around and have pity parties, and I’m not gonna sit around and bemoan my circumstances.

I’m not gonna sit around and blame the world for all my problems. I’m going to embrace my relationship with Jesus Christ, and I’m gonna walk in the joy of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. I just want you to know this, church.

Jesus said no man can take that joy away from you, and so you, it’s left up to you whether you’re gonna tap into that joy. Somebody said, Pastor Mike, are you having a good day? I said, yes, I choose to.

I choose to rejoice in the Lord. I choose to rejoice in the Lord, for this is the day that he has made, and so church, I challenge you that because he lives, that I want you to start exhibiting that you have life in you.

It is the life of God, and I want you to show the joy of Jesus Christ. Because he lives, I have heaven. Let me simply say, in chapter 14, verses one through three, Jesus promises us that we have a place.

Jesus said I’d go to prepare a place for you. I was talking to an unbeliever the other day, inviting them to come to our Easter service. Don’t know if they came or not, but I said to them, I was talking about someone being promoted to heaven.

And they said, promoted? I never heard that before. And I said, yes, for as believers, when we leave this world, we are promoted to a place that God has prepared for us. The Bible says, precious in the sight of the Lord are the death of his saints.

Most of us fear death, most of us are afraid, and we act like death is the worst thing to ever happen. But for the cause he lives, because his resurrection is my resurrection, and therefore one day I’m going to rise again.

Now did you know your body’s not fit for heaven? You thought you had a good looking body, and you’ve been running hard, and you’ve been working out hard, and you’ve been trying to do those push -ups because you’ve got a good looking body, but your body’s not good enough to go to heaven.

And so one day you gotta lay this body down so you can get the best body, the immortal body, the incorruptible body, the body that will never die again, the body that will never know sorrow, the body that will never know sin, the body that will never know disease, the body that never has to have a knee replacement.

How about that? Some of you are worried about your shoulders, you’re worried about your hips and your knees, but you really need to be worried about your heart. And what you need is a new heart in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Man can replace different parts of the body, but man cannot replace the spiritual soul. And so only Christ can resurrect that soul. My final thought to you this morning, church, because he lives, we have him.

We have Jesus. Jesus said in verse 18, I will come to you. The most important thing about Easter is that we have him. Jesus will not leave us as orphans. He will not leave us comfortless. Easter tells us that we have a risen Savior and he’s in the world today.

And he walks with me and he talks with me along life’s narrow way. Because Christ lives, we will live also and we can enjoy his presence in our life and we can embrace his promises in our life. We have him and we have him not only through his resurrection, we have him through the filling of the Spirit.

The Holy Spirit lives in us and Jesus’ departure meant that the Spirit would come and dwell in every heart that believes in Christ. and we have him for he promises one day he will return church he will return acts 111 says you men of Galilee why stand you gazing up into heaven this same Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go in to heaven this same Jesus that came to this earth and lived a sinless life and offered himself up as a sinless sacrifice to a holy God and a righteous God and paid sins debt for you and me this same Jesus who was laid in a tomb and three days later he walked out of that tomb this same Jesus who walked among men for 40 days and appeared to over 500 people after his resurrection this same Jesus who ascended into heaven is coming back for you and for me and i can’t wait amen and i’m like john i’m praying god i pray that jesus would come quickly come quickly because we lived in a messed up world but friends when jesus comes it’ll be too late so now’s the time and today’s the day of salvation for all of us and he lives so that you can live and so i invite you to come to christ today to come and receive him in to your heart today jesus used his miracles as evidence to support the claim that he was the savior that was sent by the savior there was no greater miracle that john recorded that all the gospel writers recorded than the resurrection of jesus christ the resurrection of christ reminds us that there is hope even in death and that each of us has strength and life even as we deal with great tragedies and sufferings in our life and so we come today celebrating easter and we celebrate the resurrection because god gives hope to those who struggle and he has not forgotten every person who is hurting today may the resurrection of jesus christ infuse within you a greater desire to be faithful to god and an inspiration to rise from the ashes of your despair and to find the joy that is found in Easter,

the resurrection of our Savior. I hope today that as you celebrate Easter that you remember what it’s all about and it’s about the hope and peace that we have in the Lord Jesus Christ and that you will never ever walk away from that.

God is the one who helps us and He is the one that affirms us and so we rejoice that Jesus is the one who raises the dead and one day He will raise us up who believe in Him and the dead in Christ shall rise and we which remain will be caught up together with Him in the air.

It’s gonna be a great reunion and we’re gonna have a grand time. Well this is Pastor Mike Sanders and I just want to encourage you to have a great Easter and remind you that in Christ there is hope worth having.