Sunday – April 8, 2012

April 8, 2012 – Read the Word on Worship

He’s Alive! Resurrection Sunday 2012 from Sunrise Community Church on Vimeo.

The end of the Gospel of Mark is not a favorite passage for Easter services. It raises many questions among believers. So is the case to ignore the resurrection account in Mark air tight? I don’t think so. Mark may not have the ending you expected, but there is much for us to consider. Join our Resurrection Sunday service in Mark 16.


Word On Worship – April 8, 2012 Download / Print

John 20:17-18
Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to My brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God.'” Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that He had said these things to her
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The resurrection is the testimony of when the impossible meets the God of the universe to whom all things are possible. It looked impossible to be able to secure the body from the Roman government to prepare it for burial. It looked impossible to find a burial place for Jesus before the sun went down. And once the body of our Lord was discovered missing, there seemed to be no possible way to recover it. For John, there was only one unavoidable conclusion — God raised Jesus from the dead. Every detail was orchestrated by God, at just the right time, and in just the right way, so that the Scriptures would be fulfilled.

This was not a conclusion based on the Lord’s prophecies, which John and the other disciples had forgotten. John believed in the resurrection of Jesus because there was no other explanation. The disciples believed because the evidence was compelling, and that is the way God wanted it to be. The open and empty tomb was compelling evidence. No longer was there a large stone sealing the tomb, gone was the Roman seal upon the stone and the Roman guard at the tomb scattered in fear at the sight of angels. The vacant tomb was proof that the claim of our Lord to be the Messiah, the King of the Jews was true.

The resurrection is the foundation of Christianity. If Jesus was not raised from the dead then we are deceived beyond everyone else. Saving faith is resurrection faith. As Christians, we do not believe in the resurrection because we feel obligated to do so. We believe in the resurrection because it is true, and there is no other reasonable explanation for the events which we find described in the Gospels or in the rest of the Bible. This event turned the disciples sorrow to joy, their weakness to strength, and the fears into boldness and courage. That is the power of the resurrection.

The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ saves us from our sins and the penalty of death. Have you trusted in Him, in His death on the cross of Calvary for your sins, and His resurrection from the dead, so that you may have eternal life? Let me invite you to do so this very minute. May the truth of the resurrection be a turning point in your life, to His glory and your eternal gain!

2 thoughts on “Sunday – April 8, 2012

    • Getting the message uploaded right now. We miss you heaps! We prayed for you today, and we have corporate prayer tonight and will continue to lift up your safety and for your son too. Thanks for posting! It makes my day see your posts!

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