(#076) 1 Corinthians 15 - No Joke! Christ is Raised from the Dead!

Class Outline:

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I am coming again and will take you to Myself.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome To 

BARAH MINISTRIES

a Christian Church

 

Rory Clark

Pastor-Teacher

 

Good Morning!  

 

Welcome to Barah Ministries…an intimate, local Christian Church with worldwide impact.  My name is Pastor Rory Clark.  Welcome to this Bible lesson!  Who is Jesus Christ?  At Barah Ministries we know this truth…that Jesus Christ is God.  John, Chapter 1, Verses 1 to 3 introduce Him…

 

JOHN 1:1

In the beginning (not really a beginning) was the Word (in Greek, ho logos…a reference to the Lord…God the Son)…and the Word (the Lord…God the Son) was with God the Father…and the Word was God (co-equal…co-infinite…co-eternal…the same in essence as God the Father).

 

JOHN 1:2

He (the Lord…God the Son) existed in the beginning with God the Father.

 

JOHN 1:3 

All things came into being through Him (the Lord…God the Son)…and apart from Him (as the Creator)…nothing came into being that has come into being.

 

John, Chapter 1, Verse 14 describes what makes Him different…

 

JOHN 1:14

And the Word (the Lord…God the Son) became flesh (taking on the form of a human being as Jesus…the Christ)…and He lived among us (for 33 years)…and we saw His glory…glory as of the only begotten One from the source of God Father…full of grace and full of truth.

 

Because Jesus lives, we can have a relationship with Him…the most important relationship of our lives.

 

Why does Barah Ministries exist?  At Barah Ministries, we make a 

difference by introducing people to the Lord by teaching the Word of God verse-by-verse…from the Lord’s perspective and not from man’s perspective.  Barah Ministries exists for the benefit of Christians…those of us who want a deep, intimate, and personal relationship with the Lord through the study of His Word.  Why do we study the Word of God?  Hebrews, Chapter 4, Verse 12 tells us it's because…

 

HEBREWS 4:12

…the Word of God is alive and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword…the Word of God piercing…dividing the soul and spirit…dividing the joints and the marrow…and the Word of God is a critic of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

 

The Bible is described by the world as fiction…simply a rehash of other similar stories through the ages.  Here’s an excerpt from the lies of the world concerning our Lord and His Word…

 

THE BIBLE IS FICTION:  A Collection of Evidence

 

The story of Jesus Christ is not even remotely original. It is nothing more than a collection of bits and pieces from dozens of other stories that came long before he did. In addition, the Bible is taken largely and blatantly from previous stories that existed before Jesus Christ existed, and its contradictions are so massive that they defy belief.

 

Why do stories like this exist?  It’s because God has an enemy…and the enemy traffics slander against God to create doubt with believable, counterfeit assertions.  Don’t believe them.  Jesus Christ is God…He is not a story, and the Bible is His exact thinking, not fiction.  If you don’t know this truth, you will be unable to spot these counterfeits.  We implore you to always compare what you learn, both at Barah Ministries and in the world, with what the Bible says.  That’s not just an invitation, it’s a responsibility!

 

God indeed has an enemy…Satan…whom God made ‘the ruler of this world.’  First John, Chapter 5, Verse 19…

FIRST JOHN 5:19

We believers in Christ know that we are of possessions of God the Father… and we also know that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one (Satan). 

 

Satan has no power over you but the power you give him.  Satan targets your WILL.  He sets the traps…he serves up the temptations…yet you have to use your volition…your ability to choose…to obey him.  When you sin, you choose to give your will to his deceitful and injurious schemes.  The funny thing about Satan is that you not only get credit for the sin, but also you get a bill for what you have done, and you get left lying in the gutter to ponder, with guilt and shame, the choices you have made.  He instigates the temptation, but you get the blame.  Sickening.

 

TODAY'S BIBLE LESSON

No Joke!  Christ is Raised from the Dead!

 

LESSON INTRODUCTION

 

What is resurrection?  It’s the established and irrevocable fact that the body we live in now…our human body…which we know is destined to become fertilizer for daffodils…will live beyond death in a transformed state.  Spoiler alert!  First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verses 54 and 55…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:54

…when this perishable (our human body) will have put on the imperishable (a resurrection body)…and this mortal (the human life) will have put on immortality (eternal life)…then will come about the saying that is written, “Death is swallowed up in victory.”

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:55

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”    

 

For some, the idea of resurrection from the dead is a joke.  For Christians, it is central to everything the Lord is teaching us in the Bible, both for the Old Testament and the New Testament saints.  In today’s lesson, Paul affirms that the resurrection from the dead is no laughing matter!  And, as we do every month, today we'll celebrate The Lord's Supper.

 

SONG INTRODUCTION

 

Happy Mother’s Day!  God is impressed with children who honor their parents.  What is honor?

 

HONOR

A high amount of respect for the worth of something.

 

God thinks our parents are worthy of praise, even if we don't.  No parents are perfect…but they are your parents….and they did play a role in bringing you here.  So the Lord says in Ephesians, Chapter 6, Verses 1 to 3…

 

EPHESIANS 6:1

Children…obey your parents (which is pleasing) in the Lord(’s sight)…for this is the right (thing to do).

 

EPHESIANS 6:2 

Honor your father and mother (which is a primary command with a promise attached to it)…

 

EPHESIANS 6:3 

…so that it may be well with you…and so that you may live long (and prosperous life) on the earth.

 

How would you be treating your parents if you loved them unconditionally?

I was blessed with one of the most amazing women in the world whom I called Mama…a woman others called Dorothy…here’s a SONG FOR MAMA from Boys2Men…to honor my Mama and for yo Mama!

 

MUSIC AND REFLECTION

Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ

Enjoy the Singing of His Praises

 

A SONG FOR MAMA

Boys2Men

 

 

 

MUSIC AND REFLECTION

Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ

Enjoy the Singing of His Praises

 

A SONG FOR MAMA

Boys2Men

 

OPENING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

We’re grateful, Heavenly Father, for the privilege of studying Your absolute truth...the Word of God…

 

Father, thank you for the faithful few that You have gathered in this place called Barah Ministries…thank you even more for the few among the few that You have called to lead this ministry…thank you for how You are using us to have an impact on others…

 

…Father, help us to rid ourselves of the thoughts that our success in this ministry and in our lives is based on the things we are doing…remind us that we can do all things through You because You are the One who keeps on strengthening us…remind us that You are the One who keeps on working everything together for our good…help us to honor You as the ultimate parent…help us to take in Your Word’s precious wisdom as food to our souls…help us to make it a habit to pray so that our lives are guided by supernatural power and not by human power…

 

…we ask this through the power of God the Holy Spirit…in Christ's

name...Amen.

 

TODAY'S BIBLE LESSON

No Joke!  Christ is Raised from the Dead!

 

We continue our study of First Corinthians, Chapter 15 with an introduction to section three of the chapter…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15

Is the Resurrection is Real?

 

         SECTION 3          Verses 20 to 28

 

…we’ll study this section next week but I wanted you to have a chance to look at it.

 

In Chapter 15, Paul focuses on a central tenet of Biblical Christianity…the resurrection of the dead. The members of the first-century Corinthian church believed the gospel message…they are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ…but they are pelted with questions from the philosophers of the society in which they exist…the Greek philosopher society…people who obsess with provocative questions as intellectual exercises…people who seek answers outside of the wisdom of the Bible.  Is there a resurrection from the dead? Yeah, but…what if there is no resurrection from the dead?  

 

Last week we saw the domino effect of what we would have to believe if we rejected the resurrection from the dead.  If there is not resurrection from the dead, then Christ is not raised from the dead…and we just have another human martyr on our hands.  If there is no resurrection from the dead, Christianity is a hoax…a practical joke being played on the public.  If there is no resurrection from the dead, your Pastor and God the Father are liars… because we both have reported to you that Christ is raised from the dead.  If there is no resurrection from the dead, you waste your time coming here every week…in fact, you have wasted your entire life thinking about God.  Lucky for us the hoax is on anyone who thinks there is no resurrection from the dead…THEY are the practical joke!

 

In First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verses 20 to 28 Paul says this…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:20 

But now Christ HAS been raised from the dead…the Christ (the Messiah) is the first fruits of those who are asleep.

 

If there are first fruits in a harvest…there will be other crops following shortly!

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:21 

For since by a man came spiritual death…by a man also came the resurrection (the Greek word anastasis) of the dead (spiritual birth).

 

What does Paul mean? 

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:22 

For in union with Adam all die spiritually…in union with the Christ, all will be made alive (spiritually…the resurrection life…we are born again ones).

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:23 

But each (of us on the Shepherd-sheep team…believers in Christ…will be resurrected from the dead) in his own order…the Christ as the first fruits… then after that those who are Christ’s at His coming (the Rapture…the exit resurrection (exanastasis) of Church Age believers)…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:24 

…then comes the end…when the Christ hands over the kingdom to God the Father…when He has abolished all rule and all authority and all power.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:25 

For Jesus must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:26 

The last enemy that will be abolished is (the destroyer of the body)…death.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:27 

For the Christ has put all things in subjection under His feet. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him.

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:28 

When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God the Father may be all in all.

 

We look forward to seeing the perspective of what all these things mean next week.  When we return from the break, we’ll take the offering and then we’ll celebrate the Lord’s Supper!

 

FIVE MINUTE BREAK

NOBODY

Casting Crowns

TODAY'S BIBLE LESSON

No Joke!  Christ is Raised from the Dead!

 

King David asks an interesting question in Psalm 116, Verse 12…

 

PSALM 116:12

What shall I give to the Lord in repayment for all His goodness toward me?

 

What can we, mere men, give to the Almighty, All-Powerful, All-Sufficient God?  The Lord wants us to give of those things with which He has gifted us…our time…our talent…and our treasure.  The offering is the treasure part…it’s your chance to redirect the funds God has given to you for the benefit of others.  We give with confidence knowing that what we give, God will multiply.  Isaiah, Chapter 55, Verse 11…

 

ISAIAH 55:11

So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth…it will not return to Me empty…without accomplishing what I desire…and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

 

We give with confidence knowing that what we give, God will replace.  We give with confidence knowing that God ALWAYS multiplies…and He ALWAYS replaces…not equally…but in abundance…in your favor.  So, as believers in Christ, we do not have a scarcity mentality when we give, because that does not reflect our Lord’s mind.  We have an abundance mentality.  

 

Let’s welcome up Deacon Denny Goodall with one of His always inspiring offering messages.

 

THE OFFERING

Deacon Denny Goodall

 

OFFERING VERSE

 

SECOND CORINTHIANS 13:14

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ…and the unconditional love of God the Father…and the fellowship of God the Holy Spirit…be with you all. 

 

OFFERING SONG

THERE IS NONE LIKE YOU

Don Moen

 

THE LORD’S SUPPER CELEBRATION

At the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ Taught Us What is Acceptable to Him

 

Welcome to The Lord’s Supper Celebration!  It’s a time when believers in Christ set aside time to reflect on the deep, imitate and personal relationship we have with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As we reflect, we look back to the Cross…an intimate moment in divine history… and we remember the Lord’s words in John, Chapter 15, Verse 13…

 

JOHN 15:13

Greater love has no one than this…that one lay down his life for his friends.

 

The Lord laid down His life for us at the Cross…He was buried…and on the third day, He was resurrected from the dead to prove that He is who He says He is…the Sovereign God of the Universe who holds all things together by the Word of His power.

 

Every month we obey the Lord’s command in First Corinthians, Chapter 11, Verse 26…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 11:26a

…as often as you eat this bread (representing His body)…and as often as you drink this cup (representing His blood)…as part of The Lord’s Supper Celebration…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 11:26b

…you proclaim as a reality and you announce the significance of the Lord Jesus Christ’s death on the Cross…and His resurrection from the dead… until He comes again at the second coming.

 

In this sacred celebration, we commune with the Lord.  We enjoy the elements…the bread and the wine…and as we do, we remember our dependence on the Lord Jesus Christ, both for our physical sustenance and for our spiritual sustenance.

As we celebrate The Lord's Supper, we ask ourselves in reflection, "What did the Lord Jesus Christ do for us at the Cross?"   This month we acknowledge that at the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ taught us what is acceptable to Him.

 

As an imperfect human being, are you acceptable to God?  

 

The answer to the question is YES or NO.  But before you answer, consider that the Bible calls your acceptance by God into question.  Romans, Chapter 3, Verse 23 says…

 

ROMANS 3:23

…all creatures have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…

 

Romans, Chapter 3, Verse 10…

 

ROMANS 3:10

…it is written, “There is no creature who is righteous, not even one…”

 

First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verse 22 says…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:22a

…all in union with Adam at physical birth (and that is every human being) are set to die the second death in the Lake of Fire…

 

Ouch!

 

In fact, there is only one human being that has ever been acceptable to God…Jesus…the Christ…the Jewish Messiah.  First John, Chapter 2, Verses 1 and 2 say this…

 

FIRST JOHN 2:1

My little children (you divinely loved, born again ones)…I (John) am writing these things to you…(the things here in the Bible)…so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, and of course we do, we have an Advocate (one who speaks in our defense) with God the Father…Jesus…the Christ…the ONLY righteous One…

 

 

FIRST JOHN 2:2 

…and Jesus…the Christ…Himself is the propitiation (the satisfier of God the Father’s righteousness demands) for our sins (as believers in Christ) … and not for our sins only…but also for those sins of the whole world (all mankind…including unbelievers).

 

So I ask again…as an imperfect human being, are you acceptable to God?  To be acceptable to God you must be perfect?  Are you perfect?  The answer to the question is YES or NO.  

 

Jesus…the Christ…is acceptable to God because He is perfect.  Hebrews, Chapter 4, Verse 15…

 

HEBREWS 4:15

For we do not have a High Priest (in Jesus Christ) who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses (as human beings)…but we have a High Priest who has been tempted in all things just as we are…yet He is without sin.

 

Jesus…the Christ…NEVER responded in a wrong way to temptation.  If He had responded in a wrong way to temptation JUST ONCE, you could not be saved!  An imperfect God could not save you!  Jesus had zero room for mistakes…yet He endured maximum temptation.

 

So I ask a final time…as an imperfect human being, are you acceptable to God?  The answer is YES.  Why?  For one and only one reason…the Lord MADE you acceptable to God the Father through what He did for you at the Cross.  Look at Ephesians, Chapter 2, Verses 8 and 9…

 

EPHESIANS 2:8a

For by (the agency of) God’s GRACE…YOU (believers in Christ)…have been SAVED (your “so great” salvation…done in the past with the result that you are saved both now and forevermore)…

 

EPHESIANS 2:8b

…through FAITH in Christ for salvation (placing your confidence in the object of your faith…the Christ)…and that GRACE and that FAITH and that SALVATION are not from the source of yourselves…it is the gift of God….

 

 

EPHESIANS 2:9 

…so being saved is not as a result of your works (deeds you have done in self-righteousness)…so that no one may boast (about saving himself or contributing IN ANY WAY to his own salvation).

 

As an imperfect human being, you are acceptable to God because you have accepted what God has done for you.  Romans, Chapter 3, Verse 21…

 

ROMANS 3:21 

But now…apart from law…another principle entirely…THE RIGHTEOUSNESS FROM GOD…which has been made clearly visible, being witnessed to by the Mosaic Law in the sacrificial offerings and being witnessed to by the Old Testament Prophets in direct statements…

 

God gives believers in Christ the gift of His righteousness once and for all time at the moment of salvation…though the Cross…and righteousness… His perfection…makes us totally acceptable to God the Father.  But after salvation, we keep on sinning.  Satan, the enemy of God steps in and tells us that because we keep on sinning, we need to redeem ourselves…somehow, we need to make it up to God.  We need to feel sorry…we need to feel guilty…we need to feel shame…we need to feel undeserving…we need to feel unworthy…we need to add something to the finished work of our Lord at the Cross…the place where He PAID IN FULL for our sins and for the opportunity for our "so great" salvation. 

 

Imagine this…the Lord Jesus Christ creates a cake called Manna cake.  It has one ingredient, and the cake is absolutely perfect.  He brings in three human beings to the Divine Bakery to taste this perfect cake.  Every one of these human begins would suggest that something needs to be added to the cake… you know…to change it up…to make it a little better!

 

The Manna cake is an analogy for your salvation.  It has one ingredient…. what Christ did at the Cross.  His single sacrifice was good for all time.  Hebrews, Chapter 10, Verses 11 to 13…

 

HEBREWS 10:11

Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins…

 

HEBREWS 10:12 

…but Jesus, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time (at the Cross)…sat down at the right hand of God the Father…

 

HEBREWS 10:13 

…waiting from that time onward until His enemies be made a footstool for His feet.

 

As humans, in our own power, there are no good works we can ever do to add to what the Lord has done at the Cross.  But in the deep recesses of our darkened minds, we genuinely believe that one day we're going to be able to do something that makes us more acceptable to God.  We refuse to accept that we already are acceptable...and that even if we think we are only 99.9% acceptable…the .01% that we add to God's plan negates everything the Lord did at the Cross.  You add anything to the Manna cake and it is no longer perfect.

 

There is grace…and there are human works…and human works pervert, kill and reject everything that Christ does on our behalf.  No thanks!  I’ll count on God to make me acceptable.

 

When we genuinely let this established fact, this absolute reality sink in, we can stop striving and start living.  Thanks be to God the Father, who makes us acceptable through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  And thank the Lord for the Cross, His all-sufficient sacrifice that makes us totally acceptable.

 

THE LORD'S SUPPER CELEBRATION

Enjoying the Lord's Supper Elements

 

Bread and wine.  The Lord gave us these things to remember Him.  We will enjoy the elements together in a few moments as we listen to The Lord’s Supper Song.

 

Obeying our Lord's command, we keep on celebrating Christ regularly…we eat bread to remember who He is as a PERSON...the One and ONLY Sovereign God of the Universe…we drink wine to remember His WORK on the Cross…the voluntary sacrifice He made to deliver us from sovereignty to sin.  We remember with gratitude what God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ have done to save us.  Luke, Chapter 22, Verses 14 to 16…  

LUKE 22:14

When the hour came (and His crucifixion was set for the next day)…Jesus reclined at the table…and the apostles reclined with Him.

 

RECLINING AT THE TABLE SLIDE

 

LUKE 22:15-16

And Jesus said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer…for I say to you, I shall not eat it again until all that it means is fulfilled in the kingdom of God." 

 

Luke, Chapter 22, Verses 19 and 20…  

 

LUKE 22:19 

And when Jesus had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body, which is being broken for you… keep on doing this in remembrance of Me."

 

LUKE 22:20 

And in the same way, Jesus took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This

cup, which is poured out for you, is the new covenant in My blood."

 

Let's keep on eating this bread…let's keep on drinking this cup…and let's do both to REMEMBER the Lord.  Let this celebration encourage our hearts and our minds, filling us with awe and reverence and gratitude.  Let's keep on being transformed by the Lord's life…His death…His burial…His resurrection from the dead…His ascension to God the Father…His seating at the Majesty's right hand…and by the nourishment we get from His Word, which feeds our souls.  

 

SONG INTRODUCTION

 

Everything God does is sufficient.  Everything God does is enough.  God has you right where He wants you.  Second Corinthians, Chapter 12, Verse 9 reminds us when we are powerful as Christians…

 

SECOND CORINTHIANS 12:9

And the Lord has said to me (Paul), “My grace is sufficient for you…for divine power is perfected in human weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

 

Christians are powerful beyond words because of Christ’s power indwelling us.  Here’s Jeremy Camp to remind us with His song…SAME POWER. 

 

LORD’S SUPPER SONG

SAME POWER

Jeremy Camp

 

GOD WANTS YOU!

Make the Most Important Decision of Your Life

 

How would it be for you to know that there is someone who loves you so much that their love for you is almost unspeakable, yet you don’t know who they are and you haven’t met them?  Actually, that is your situation if you don’t have a relationship with God.  

 

The Creator of the universe created you…John, Chapter 1, Verse 3 says…

 

JOHN 1:3

All things came into being through the Lord, God the Son…and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being (including you).

 

You can have a relationship with your Creator because you are lost if you don't have a relationship with Him…but the good news is that He is looking for you!  Luke, Chapter 15, Verses 4 to 7…

 

LUKE 15:4

“What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine sheep in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?”

 

LUKE 15: 5 

“When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.”

LUKE 15:6 

“And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’”

 

LUKE 15:7 

“I (the Lord Jesus Christ) tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner (an unbeliever) who repents (changes his mind about having a relationship with Christ) than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”

 

But there is bad news for sinners…unbelievers who don't have a relationship with Christ…you were born in a state of unrighteousness.  All of us were.  We are born physically alive and spiritually dead as ungodly, unrighteous, unbelievers.  It’s not our fault, but it is our circumstance.  In First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verse 22, the bible says…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:22a

…tehall in union with Adam at physical birth (and that is every human who comes to earth) are set to die the second death in the Lake of Fire…

 

But in the face of this bad news, there’s good news!  The Sovereign God of the Universe…the Lord Jesus Christ…the Creator…provides a way for you to be saved!  The good news is preached in what Christians call the gospel message.  Let’s see what happened when the gospel message was preached in a prison in first-century Rome in Acts, Chapter 16, Verses 25 to 34…

 

ACTS 16:25

…about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God from their jail cells, and the other prisoners were listening to them…

 

ACTS 16:26

…and suddenly there came a great earthquake…so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken…and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened.

 

ACTS 16:27 

When the jailer…a prison guard…awoke and saw the prison doors opened… he drew his sword and was about to kill himself…supposing that the prisoners had escaped.

 

In first-century Rome, allowing prisoners to escape carried a penalty of instant execution for prison guards!

ACTS 16:28 

But Paul cried out with a loud voice, saying to the guard, “Do not harm yourself…for we are all here!”

 

ACTS 16:29 

And the jailer called for the lights to be turned on and he rushed in…and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas…

 

ACTS 16:30 

…and after the prison guard brought Paul and Silas out, he said, “Sirs… what must I do to be saved?”

 

Evidently, the guard had been listening to the spiritual songs Paul and Silas were singing!

 

ACTS 16:31 

And Paul and Silas said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved…you and everyone in your household who also believes.”

 

There are no works of any kind necessary to be saved…it is simply faith, expressed in the Lord Jesus Christ alone, that is the ticket to eternal life. 

 

How did our jailer friend get saved?  In a crisis, he recognized He needed a Savior.  He asked someone who knew what it took to be saved.  Believers in Christ presented the accurate gospel message.  The jailer did what was suggested.  It’s that simple.  But you don’t have to wait for a crisis to be saved!  Do it now!

 

Who is this God who saves you?  The apostle Paul describes the Lord Jesus Christ…in First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verses 3 and 4… 

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:3

For I (Paul) delivered to you as of first importance the gospel message I also received directly from God…that it was Jesus Christ who died for our sins according to the Old Testament Scriptures…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:4 

…and that He was buried…and that He was raised from the dead on the third day…according to the Old Testament Scriptures…

It’s worse news if you choose not to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ for your salvation.  Romans, Chapter 1, Verses 18 to 20 say this…

 

ROMANS 1:18

For the wrath of God the Father is revealed from heaven against all

ungodliness and against the unrighteousness of unbelievers who

suppress the truth by their unrighteousness…

 

ROMANS 1:19 

…because that which is known about God the Father is evident inside of them…for God the Father made it evident to them from inside of them. 

 

ROMANS 1:20 

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible attributes…God’s eternal power…and God’s divine nature (His Deity) … have been clearly seen by all mankind… being understood even through what has been made (in nature… God’s creative work) … so that all mankind is without excuse before God.

 

God makes Himself clearly visible to human beings in ways that make sense to human beings…both from the inside of them and from the outside of them.  Remember what Paul and Silas said to the jail guard, in Acts, Chapter 16, Verse 31…

 

ACTS 16:31 

“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and everyone in your household who also believes.”

 

ACTS 16:32 

And Paul and Silas spoke the Word of the Lord (the gospel message…the good news) to the jailer together with all the people who were in his house.

 

ACTS 16:33 

And the jailer took Paul and Silas that very hour of the night and washed their wounds…and immediately the jailer was baptized (by God the Holy Spirit)…he and all (those in) his household (who also believed…and they all did).

 

ACTS 16:34 

And the jailer brought Paul and Silas into his house and set food before

them, and rejoiced greatly, having believed in THE God (the Lord Jesus Christ) with his whole household.

 

So accept the invitation and heed the warning in John, Chapter 3, Verse 36…

 

JOHN 3:36

“He who believes in the Son has the resurrection life right at that moment… but he who does not obey the command to believe in the Son will not see the resurrection life…instead the wrath of God (the Lake of Fire) abides on him.”

 

Wouldn’t you like to spend all eternity in heaven?  Don’t miss your opportunity…take advantage of the good news of the gospel message RIGHT NOW!

 

SONG INTRODUCTION

 

First Corinthians, Chapter 1, Verse 18…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 1:18

For the Word of God…especially the Word of the Cross…is foolishness to those who are perishing (unbelievers)…but to us…believers in Christ who are being saved…the Word of the Cross is the power of God the Father (divine omnipotence in action).

 

Because of our relationship with the Lord, there are many things we can count on, and one of those things is that the power of the Cross can’t be undone.  Here’s June Murphy to sing YOU CAN'T UNDO THE CROSS.

 

CLOSING SONG

YOU CAN'T UNDO THE CROSS

June Murphy

 

 

MUSIC AND REFLECTION

Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ

Enjoy the Singing of His Praises

YOU CAN'T UNDO THE CROSS

June Murphy

 

CLOSING VERSES

 

         A Doxology of Praise to Our God

 

We close each week with a doxology.  What is a doxology?

 

Let’s close with words of worship for our Almighty God.  

 

ROMANS 15:5 

Now may the God who gives endurance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another (to think the exact same way…operating in harmony) according to your union with Christ Jesus…

 

ROMANS 15:6 

…so that with one accord you believers in Christ may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

ROMANS 15:7 

Therefore, keep on accepting one another…and keep on receiving one another…just as Christ also keeps on accepting us all (in unconditional love)…to the glory of God the Father.

 

CLOSING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

Thanks for coming!

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Thanks for listening!

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