Seeing and Believing

Over all of this, I just say God has a plan.

He didn't get up, he was raised up.

Jesus didn't get up out of the grave, he was raised up by God.

This podcast is the Ministry of Red Hartway Baptist Church, helping people know.

Enjoy and by God.

For more information about Red Parkway, it's redparkway.org.

Yeah, let's pray together.

Lord, when we sing what a foretaste of deliverance, uh, we understand that just in the resurrection is a little sampling, a little preview of things to come.

Like the people at Costco and Sam's, they give you a little free sample because they want you to buy the stuff.

You don't want us to buy it.

You give us a sample because you want us to long for what we're created for, because you're the God that gives it to us.

You gave your son to us.

And Romans tells us in chapter 8 that he who spared not his own son, but freely offered him up for us all.

How will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?

You're a generous God today.

And so, God, as we open up the Bible, shine the light of illumination on it, make it make sense.

It's more than words in a book or words on a page, it's life-altering, freedom-giving truth today.

And so, Holy Spirit, do a work in our head and in our heart that finds expression in our hands this week.

This is our prayer.

We pray in Jesus' name, and everyone said, Amen.

Amen.

You could have a seat.

If you got a Bible, I invite you to take it and open it up to John chapter 20.

John 20 · chapter mention

If you don't have a Bible, don't sweat it.

The verses will come up on the screen.

If you'd like to follow along, but you didn't bring a Bible, there's one on your row.

Looks like a little black hardback book.

And you just take it.

I'm on page 906.

I want to talk to you on this Easter about seeing and believing.

Seeing and believing.

You say, well, what do you mean seeing and believing?

Because this is what Easter involves.

It involves seeing and then believing based on what you've seen.

And I want to uh I want you to see something, and then I want you to believe a few things, okay?

I'm gonna read the first 10 verses of John chapter 20.

John 20 · chapter mention

The Bible says this.

Uh, now on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.

So she ran and went to meet Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved.

And let me stop right here.

When he says the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, John, the man that recorded the gospel of John under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he's like Ricky Henderson.

He likes to talk about himself in third person.

So he's talking about himself here when he says the disciple that Jesus loved, he's talking about himself.

So pick back up the story.

The one whom Jesus loved and said to them, They've taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they've laid him.

So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb, both of them running together, but the other disciple outran Peter, and he reached the tomb first, and stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloth lying there, but he did not go in.

Then Simon Peter came following him, and he went into the tomb.

He saw the linen cloth lying there, and the face cloth which uh which had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded up in a place by itself.

Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in.

He saw and believed.

For as yet they did not understand the scripture that he must rise from the dead.

Then the disciples went back to their homes.

Now keep your Bible open if you've got it open.

We'll pick up the story here in just a little bit.

Now I said this is about seeing and believing.

I want you to see one thing, and I want you to believe a few other things.

Here's the one thing I want you to see today that Jesus died.

That Jesus died.

Now, if you're a woman, you're thinking right now, I got up and shaved my legs for you to tell me that.

Dude, I could have stayed home and knew that, okay?

Give me a break.

What do you mean Jesus died?

I know it sounds like it's no big deal.

It sounds really simple, but actually, it's one of the most consequential things that you'll ever believe because it sets into motion this series of related, validating truths that will change your life.

And let me say that again.

It's very consequential because it sets into motion this series of validating truths that have the capacity to change your life.

As I'll show you in a minute in the Bible.

Here's why I say it's consequential.

Jesus died.

You're like, no, duh, dude, it's Easter.

That's why we're here.

So if he died, that means he had to live.

True or false?

True?

That's pathetic.

You gotta do better than that, people.

True or false.

If he died, he had to live.

There you go.

People in the fellowship, Paul, playing along in the overflow, play along.

So he dies because he lives.

And if he lived, that means he had to exist.

Now here's the thing I want to tell you.

Jesus has always existed.

It's not like God looked down in the Old Testament and said, This is getting off the rails.

I better come up with a plan B.

No, if you look in the very first book of the Bible, Genesis chapter 1, when God said, Let us create, he speaks in the plural.

Genesis 1 · chapter mention

He says, Come, let us make man in our image.

Jesus is pre-existent.

He's the agent of creation.

It's God the Father, God the Son, the Holy Spirit, three in one, the triumph, God, the Trinity.

And so Jesus has always existed.

Here's why I tell you that.

Then you've got to ask yourself, why did he leave the perfection of heaven and come to earth?

And bring it into focus.

The other day I'm coming down, I'm coming from over on Highway 6 to my house, which is right over here.

And I thought, oh, I'll get on 59 and I just zip down 59 south and then I'll cut down the Grand Parkway.

It was about 515.

Ain't no cutting and ain't no zipping going on then.

I'd forgotten about it because I always come down Highway 6, cut to the neighborhoods.

I got just oh, just by lows, it was backed up forever.

And we're just sitting still.

And I started to lose my mind, okay?

I'm like, because I'm I'm rolling down the window and looking and seeing what the problem is.

And as far as I can see, it's just a sea of taillights.

And I'm like, what is the problem?

I'm thinking somebody died up there.

No, no.

You get about Williams away and it just opens up and you drive 90 miles an hour all the way to Mexico.

One of you people right now, stop listening, flip over a napkin and come up with a plan for fixing that.

Because here's what I thought sitting there, my truck heating up.

I'm like, Jesus, why'd you come to this?

Because in that moment, I'm thinking about today, and Jesus' like, hey, by the way, I came, I came to redeem all these people too.

You're a better man than me.

Not just a man, Neil, I'm God.

Don't forget that I got it.

But see, Jesus dies.

Why?

Because he lived.

And he lived, he existed.

And so he existed.

He didn't exist always here.

He in heaven.

He leaves the perfection of heaven, comes to the imperfection of earth.

Why?

One reason.

We'll get to that in a minute.

Now, why do I say this?

I want you to say this one thing that Jesus died.

Look at verse 8.

Verse 8 says this.

This is John.

Then the other disciple, John, talking about himself, who had reached the tomb first, also went in.

He saw and he believed, for as yet they did not understand the scripture.

Now pay attention to that.

He saw and he believed.

I love what my friend Steve said about his son Andrew.

He said, Andrew started asking questions.

He was about eight.

And finally, when he's about 10, he was ready to give his life to Christ to become a Christian.

I thought, man, Andrew, that's great, my man.

John hung around Jesus three and a half years and he didn't believe.

This is John's conversion.

When he says right here in verse 8, it says that, hey, he saw and he believed.

For he did not understand the scripture.

This man hung out with Jesus, ate with Jesus, camped out with Jesus, heard Jesus burp, saw Jesus do incredible things.

But all along in their mind they kind of thought, I don't know if this is what I want to.

I don't know.

I don't know.

I don't know.

But what?

Here's why you got to see the fact that Jesus died.

Because he gets to the empty tomb and that's his moment.

He looks in, he sees, and then he's able to believe.

He's like, oh my gosh, what remains for God to prove to me?

Ask yourself this question today.

What do you need to see in order to believe in God?

Not just believe that God exists, but to believe that that's the life you were created for.

See, you say Jesus died, a lot of people are like, yeah, everyone dies.

But you got to ask this question: why did Jesus die?

Here's what separates Jesus from everybody else.

Everybody in this room, I can tell you why you're gonna die.

We all die because of sin.

We die because of sin.

Now it may say on your death certificate, heart attack, uh, overdose, car accident, myocardial infarction.

That just sounds bad, doesn't it?

That's heart attack.

Uh I gotta use big words so you know I've been to school.

Uh I remember when I learned that in college, I said it all the time.

Man, we got some myocardial infarction going on here, my friends are like, it's a traffic jam.

Well, that's what it's like, a heart attack.

Uh but whatever it, whatever it is, the reason you die, the cause of death is sin.

We die because of sin.

You're like, I don't get it.

What do you mean?

Stay with me, stay with me.

We die because of sin.

The most unnatural thing a person does is die because you were created by God to live forever.

You die, sin entered into the world when Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the garden.

Sin entered in, and with sin came death.

You say, How do you know?

You'll prove it for me.

If I was to ask you, what does the Bible say when it says the wages of sin is death?

The Bible also says the soul that sins will surely die.

See, we die.

Jesus died, okay, big deal.

Why did he die?

We die because of sin.

Here's what separates Jesus from everybody else.

Look at me.

He dies for sin.

He dies for sin.

I don't understand.

That's why he left heaven.

It wasn't love.

The Bible says that the reason the Son of God appeared was to take away sin.

Two things you and I should know about sin today.

Number one, it's consistent.

Number two, it's consequential.

What I mean when I say it's consistent, everybody in this room is sin.

We were born in sin.

We choose to sin the first chance we get.

My wife and I have two daughters.

They're sweet, godly young ladies.

I said to them last night, it's Easter, it's gonna be packed.

Why don't y'all come to that 7 o'clock service?

And that way there'll be plenty of room.

They're like, we ain't getting up for that.

We'll see 11:30, Dad.

I'm like, wicked sinners.

Anyway, uh, but when they were little, they would be standing there and I would look my kids in the face and say, Stop hitting your sister.

And she'd be like, Yeah, I'm not hitting her.

She just I'm hitting her because she hit me.

And so finally, one day the oldest one comes to me and says, Dad, why is she always hitting me?

And I've been trying to be sweet, you know, because she wants your affection and blah, blah, blah, blah.

And I just thought, I'm gonna tell you the truth.

I said, She hits you because she's a sinner.

And my sweet daughter went, it's kind of like you've given me a silver bullet now, I can aim it at her.

And I said, By the way, you hit her back because you're a sinner too.

What you're talking about, Willis?

I said, Absolutely.

Stop trying to modify your kids' behavior and parent to their heart.

And I said, You both want your way.

That's just that's what you do.

You both want your way and you hit each other because you're not getting your way.

And by the way, last night they stood in our kitchen and did the same thing.

I'm like, you're 21 and 16, stop.

You're not sinners anymore.

You've been set free from sin.

Whatever, Dad, she's touching me.

Like, oh, for the love, give me a break.

Sin is consistent.

Secondly, it's consequential.

It's consequential.

What does that mean?

The most tangible proof of this statement is the reality of death.

If sin is not consequential, then how do you explain death?

Because, like I said, you weren't created to die.

That's not God's original plan.

You were created to live forever.

But because sin entered into the world when Adam and Eve sinned, then the consequences of that, as you said yourself, the wages, the paycheck for that is death.

This is how in counseling I help people try to understand the destructive nature of sin.

Sometimes it's helpful, sometimes it's not.

But they'll be talking about, well, I like to blaze up every once in a while, spark a little reefer.

I've heard every phrase, and then I get this lecture about 20 states have legalized marijuana, and Texas is going to any day now, so I'm just ahead of the curve.

I'm kind of a reformer, I'm kind of a progressive thinker.

No, you're a pothead.

And that's what I say in love.

Call whatever you want.

How often you smoke weed every day?

Yeah, you're a pothead.

That's what we called them in 1981 when I was a pothead.

Happy Easter.

One guy the other day, he stood up and he just spun around.

He goes, Did you just say, oh yeah, oh yeah.

I had the three-quarter sleeve concert t-shirts, Kiss, Arosmith, Van Halen before David Leroff lost his mind.

Back when they were a rock band, didn't sing cheesy songs like Panama.

And he's like, dude, are you gonna get in trouble for saying that?

What you think God's up there watching us with a lightning bolt?

He's like, just get out of line.

I said, if God's all powerful, who restrains him?

Well, back to the spark, back to the part about you think I'm a pothead.

I don't think you're a pothead.

You're addicted, my man.

And here's the thing you want to argue about the legalization of marijuana, and I'm just telling you, explain to me the existence of death.

If this is not wrong, if there's no wrong, have you noticed no one's wrong anymore?

You're just misunderstood.

And if I listen to you talk long enough, I'll agree with you.

No, I won't.

And so I just I was like, dude, I love you.

I've been seeing you for like a year for counseling.

I love you, dude.

You're addicted to them left-handed democratic cigarettes, all right?

Just get over it.

He's like, man, you need you need to just get over it.

You need to lighten up and blaze up.

Whatever.

And I just asked the question if there's no such thing as sin, let's take you out of it.

Is anything wrong?

Oh man, live and let live, and love and let love.

What are we, Woodstock?

What are you doing here?

Dude's 27.

By the way, we're headed to a mental health crisis in America.

I ain't hating on all you pot smokers.

Some of you in here blaze up.

I can tell by looking at you, you're like, did my mom call you?

No, your mom didn't call me.

Look at me.

I'm being serious.

We're headed to a mental health nightmare in America because we got people that smoke weed consistently for years, and now what we're seeing is it leads to schizophrenia.

And everybody's like, oh man, it's not a gateway drug, it's a gateway to mental illness.

So if you want job security, go into mental health.

Because there's a generation of people that are like, oh man, you know, I just like to, okay.

I'm I'm just saying, but again, my man, leave a message.

My man cannot, we've all done it before.

You've been somewhere, your phone rings, and you're kind of like trying to discreetly reach for your purse.

Just full-fledged grab it and turn it off, okay?

Uh so I just said, if nothing's wrong, think about it.

If nothing's wrong, there's no such thing as sin, that's an unsexy word, then why do people die?

Because for to have death, you have to have sin because the Bible says the wages, the consequence of sin is death.

People that cannot properly define sin have no explanation for death.

And if you have no explanation for death, then you have no hope behind the grave.

This is why I want you to see just one simple thing that Jesus really died.

Now, here's a few things I want you to believe because of this.

Number one, that God has a plan for the renewal of all things.

God has a plan for the renewal of all things.

What do you mean?

You ever look around and just think, what's wrong with the world?

It is messed up, jacked up, it's coarse, it's vulgar, it's borderline perverted.

Everything has got some kind of sexual innuendo to it.

It's like, oh, uh, if you're funny, you don't have to be perverted.

That's free, by the way.

It's just everything is just perverted.

It's like, come on, man, what happened to us?

Let me let me just describe three steps that are happening.

Keep in mind, God has a plan for the renewal of all things.

Here's the first step: you turn away from design to preference.

We turn away from design to preference.

What do you mean?

God has a way that he designed the world to be and you and I to function.

Most popular one nowadays is the Bible says this.

It says, uh, when he's creating humanity, it says in his image he created them, male and female, he created them.

Now everyone's like, Prince Harry and Megan are gonna raise their kid genderless.

You don't get to make that decision.

God made that when he created that kid, knitted the kid in his mother's womb.

I know it's not politically correct, and some of you are like, dude, you need to get with it.

No, no, you have turned from the design to preference, okay?

This is just a simple, and it's everywhere.

You're like, yeah, get after the transgender.

No, it's about our morality of the heterosexual, too.

Most people who I want, man.

That's just the way it is, you know.

Holler at a player.

When I see one, I will.

What happens?

We turn from design to preference, and what happens is we have no authority.

We live in a culture with no authority.

The family doesn't have authority, the church doesn't have authority, and by the way, some of that is a church's fault.

You got people that lead churches that have done horrible things.

If I was God, we'd hunt those people, but I'm not, so they had to go to prison.

But anyway, you got the family has no authority, the church has no authority, uh, government has no authority, police have no authority, a cop pulls somebody over, they got their cell phone rolled.

Uh-huh.

I'm gonna sue you for this.

Say something to me.

And here's the problem: when you live in a culture that doesn't have authority, you don't need law.

Here's you're smart people, just think for me.

I know it's Easter, you're fantasizing about that ham you're gonna have.

Are you bothered by the fact that you celebrate the resurrection of your Jewish Messiah by eating ham?

I'm just asking.

I mean, just curious.

He might take that personally, but shh, back here.

Think just for a second.

As my second grade teacher, Mrs.

Forster, used to say, put on your thinking cap.

Uh and here's the deal we have no authority.

And when you have no authority, you do not need law.

Here's why.

No one has the capacity, the authority to enforce the law.

And so we live in a country that's lost the law.

It's just, hey, that's step one.

Step two, it leads to when you lose authority, what you have is autonomy.

Autonomy is the state of being self-governed, which is why we have so much rebellion and anarchy and progressives, and all these people like to demonstrate and burn things down.

We all for free speech, unless you come to Cal Berkeley and tell us we're wrong, then we're gonna beat you with baseball bats and burn the building down.

Really?

See, this is autonomy.

When you when you remove authority from the culture, autonomy settles in like the morning dew.

People are self-governed.

Sounds great, but here's the problem.

When you get in bed at night, you autonomous individual that was taught, you have your truth.

Johnny has his truth, everyone has their own truth, so just celebrate your diverse truth.

That's great until you're stupidly wrong.

And you get up and say, Well, this is what I want to do today, and this is my truth.

There's nobody in your world that has the capacity to disagree with you.

That's a hate crime.

Disagreement is a hate crime in America.

It's a here's what happened.

Don't go there.

I'm not going there, okay?

Here's where I'm going.

When you get in bed at night and you lay in bed in the dark because you have bit the lie, you you swallow hook, line, and sinker.

No authority, autonomy.

You lay in bed in the dark and you cry those tears of God into your hair because you're the only person you know to depend on.

And all of a sudden you got to self-medicate.

Because, see, here's the third step.

Autonomy leads to isolation.

And isolation produces this uh deep sense of anxiety.

Because isolation, because you're self-governed, all you have is self.

And here's what you know better than I do you are not enough for all that you're gonna face in this life.

I am not enough for all I'm gonna face in this life.

Okay, and so autonomy leads to isolation, isolation creates anxiety, which is why we cannot manufacture enough drugs fast enough to deal with the epidemic of anxiety that is crippling our country.

And so you say, What do you mean?

Cosmic in scope, personal in experience.

What are you talking about?

One day the disciples, Jesus was talking to a guy who's kind of like, I got it all together, Jesus.

I went to private school, then I went to a nice East Coast, uh, prestigious college, then I went to Yale Law School, Magna Cum Laudi.

I'm an expert in the Bible.

He asked Jesus this question What must I do to inherit eternal life?

Jesus said, You know the commands?

Don't murder, don't kill, honor your father, mother, love your neighbor as you love yourself.

Jesus, like, oh man.

I the guy said to him, I've kept all since I was a kid.

And Jesus said, Great.

You love your neighbor as much as you love yourself?

You're you're a progressive socialist?

Then give your neighbor all your stuff.

Uh oh, it's like finding out Bernie Sanders is really a millionaire.

What?

Writing a book about socialism.

Only in America.

Only in America.

And hey, uh-uh, uh-uh.

You hear that?

Some of y'all like, I love Bernie, shut up.

I'm not hating on Bernie.

I'm choking on hypocrisy.

It's crazy that way.

Yeah, where's the guy in the suit that just gives me three points in a point and lets me go?

We fired him last year.

But the guy, stay with me.

This guy looks at Jesus and Jesus and said, Oh, you're the guy that said, Oh, I love my neighbor as much as I love myself.

Jesus said, Okay, I'll tell you what you do.

Go give all your stuff to the poor and then come follow me.

Jesus, and the and the rich young ruler's like, Oh, see, uh, well, well, see, uh, whoo! And then he walks away.

The disciples freak out.

They're like, What a minute, if that guy who's so smart and moral and keeps all the rules, can't make it, what's gonna happen to us?

And Jesus says this Matthew chapter 19, verse 28.

Matthew 19:28

Truly, truly I say to you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sets on his glorious throne, hear that again.

I I tell you the truth.

Jesus says, I'm not I'm not yanking your chain.

I'm telling you the truth.

At the renewal of all things, what do you mean, the renewal of all things?

God has a plan that is cosmic in scope and it's personal in nature and expression.

The resurrection is simply a demonstration of God's power to renew.

He says that the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sets on his glorious throne, you know what that part means?

That God, Jesus, the resurrected Jesus, is going to rule over a renewed creation.

You should ask yourself if you're going to be a part of that.

Here's the second thing I want you to believe today.

All your sins have been paid for on the cross.

All of your sins have been paid for on the cross.

Just one little fragment of a sentence from a verse in the Bible, Romans chapter 4, verse 25, says it like this of Jesus.

Romans 4:25

He says, Who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification?

He was delivered up for our trespasses, that's the cross.

He was raised, resurrected for our justification.

Justification means this, just as if I never sinned.

And so God has the power to be delivered over for your sin.

It's payment.

And then raised for your justification.

This is why I say all your sin was paid for on the cross.

A guy smarter than me, I named Robert Waffop, he said this in the death of Jesus we see justification accomplished.

In the resurrection of Jesus, we see justification accepted.

You say, Well, what does that mean?

Think of the resurrection as a receipt.

It confirms the sufficiency of the cross.

It was enough.

Otherwise, God would have left Jesus in the grave, but he didn't.

He raised him out of the grave so you could know that the payment is being paid for.

Now, when you think about payment and receipt, let me give you two sources to think about.

The first one is CVS.

You been to CVS lately?

Because they print out a receipt about that long.

I was at the CVS right here three days ago.

And the lady she started, I mean, I put my credit card in and she goes, okay.

And it starts spitting out, and I said, Is that thing malfunctioning?

She said, No, all this is yours.

No, it's not.

I don't want a receipt.

I hate receipts.

I don't want them in my pocket.

I don't want them on the floorboard of my truck.

And she said, Oh, hang on a second.

And she starts folding it up.

And I'm like, there's an environmentalist somewhere who is stroking out right now.

And she quick and hands it to me like a pinata.

And I'm like, I don't want that.

The guy behind me is howling.

He said, How much did you buy?

I bought one thing.

I walk out.

You can't make me take that receipt.

And then there's a store called Costco that I'm a member of.

Costco is the bright, clean, shiny first cousin of Sam's.

I used to love Sam's and I went to Costco and I was like, I don't go to Sam's anymore.

It's kind of like Bucky's and Loves.

I used to go to Loves.

I don't go to Loves, and then I went to Bucky's.

Loves, I'm like, I need a tetan shot to go in there now.

Because I've been in the clean Bucky's.

I can't go back anymore.

My kids are like, oh, Dad, Buckeys, because the first one I discovered is in Ludling right there on ITM.

There's a Bucky's on the right right before you get to I mean, I mean a loves or rather.

My kids like, Ned, there's no one at loves.

Let's go there.

Everybody's at Bucky's.

There's a reason.

There's a reason.

That's all I'm saying.

So I like Costco.

Cleaner, brighter, a little bit nicer stuff.

I'm in Costco.

I got about 48 things.

There's a reason I know that.

It's mounded up, little things.

I mean, just it's like Christmas.

And I get up there, there's a line, I'm checking my phone.

I folded the receipt up, put in my bill fold, put it in my pocket and button.

See that button right there?

Button to my pocket.

I ain't got time for this.

And I'm, I know you're not this way, but sometimes I think just things like that shouldn't apply to me.

I know you don't think that.

Not because I'm a preacher, not because I'm a Christian.

It's just, come on, man.

And so I got up there and I'm like, yeah.

The guy looked at me and I said, Yeah.

And he goes, You got your receipt?

And I said, Do you think I shoplifted all this?

And he said, You'd be surprised if people still.

He said, A guy came in the other day, stuck a brisket down his sweatpants and tried to get out of the way.

Don't ever tell me that again.

And then he says, Hey man, I can't let you.

Now you watch if you go to Costco.

There's two people.

They say it was a man here and a woman there.

And all they got is a clipboard and a pen.

And the woman standing on the side, all of a sudden, she steps in front of the door like Batman, like.

And it just like a shooting star went through my mind.

Wouldn't it be funny if I fought both of them right here?

One of you walked by and said, Well, your girlfriend said, Oh, that's my pastor getting beat up with a clipboard.

Come on.

Oh, he's occupied.

Come on, they got a good mind slick.

Let's go.

I looked at the guy and I said, Man, come on, really?

I mean, and he goes, I can't check out my receipt.

And Rambette over here, she's like, Yeah, we need to see your receipt.

I got a couple of shut up here.

You thirsty?

She's like, she laughed and I said, This is the January, February conversation.

March your way out of it.

I thought that was funny, but let her know I got a pistol in my purse.

You don't want this.

She grabbed the edge of my cart.

I was like, for the love.

And then I thought, I'm swinging for the fence.

I'm going for the jugular prison rules.

I said, they don't do this at Sam's.

You can take the boy out of the trailer, but you can't take the trailer out of the boy.

And she smiled.

I thought that was good.

And then she ducked, rotated her hips, and bam, she said, it's over on Highway 6.

I don't clap for that.

So I inconvenienced myself, had to unbutton a whole button and pull it out.

And I learned something that day.

The reason I have to look at your receipt is on the bottom, it says, number of items sold.

I didn't know that.

And they're counting your card to make sure that number matches this number.

Jesus walks out of the grave.

The resurrection is a receipt because all your sins got paid for.

And it's not the bottom of the receipt.

So that's why I say I want you to believe that all your sins were paid for on the cross.

Here's the third thing I want you to believe: that there's life after death.

There's life after death.

Now I know some of you may be thinking, ah, whatever, dude, I don't believe that.

I'm a rocket scientist.

We live, we die, we're carbon matter, we go in the ground and we just decompose.

It's the cycle of life.

Cue the Lion King song.

I'm here to say to you.

And by the way, I got people in my family that don't believe that.

I got a brother that's saying I'm gonna do my best.

I'm gonna have fun.

I'm gonna go on the ground.

And you Christians can, this is what he said to me one time.

He said, you Christians can go to that playground in the sky where you live forever.

To which I said, I told him one time, I said, You're bringing Kool-Aid to a gin party, my man.

What does that mean?

I said, You're arguing, you you can't build a prima facie case.

See, you think Christians are the only people that live forever.

Well, I know what you believe.

I said, Ah, I believe that everyone lives forever.

It's just a matter of where.

People that have faith in God go to heaven.

People that have faith in themselves, like you, go to hell for forever.

And all of a sudden, he's like, well, see, well, uh, oh, so you might want to get back on the internet and search for your little chat rooms and see what they say.

Because remember, I told you, I loved you enough to tell you you weren't created to die.

God created you to live forever.

So you're gonna live forever in one or two places.

See, there's life after death.

Let me just read to you from the Bible.

I don't want you to think, oh, you're just saying that.

Listen how authentic and thought-provoking and self-aware the Bible is.

This is 1 Corinthians 15.

Now, if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there's no resurrection of the dead?

But if there's no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.

And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain.

See, he pulls out the consequences.

It's one thing to say you believe something, it's another thing to be willing to live with the ramifications of what you say you believe.

And Paul begins to spool it out, and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain.

Your faith is in vain.

We've been found to be misrepresenting God because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise.

If it is true that the dead are not raised, for if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised, and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you're still in your sins.

Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.

If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

And then he pivots.

Or if you're a friends fan, he pivot, he's trying to get the couch up the stairs, he pivots and he says this.

But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead.

See, the Bible's not afraid of doubt.

The Bible is skepticism, people don't believe it just says, Hey, let me spool out for you the ramp the consequences of you not believing this.

But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead.

The first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

For as by man came death, by man has come also the resurrection of the dead.

For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

That's not universalism.

That's the people, the only way you're gonna be made alive.

Your only hope is through a relationship with Christ.

But each in his own order.

Christ, the first fruits, then in his coming those who belong to Christ.

Then comes the end when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and authority and power.

And the Bible doesn't just talk about it, it gives us a little preview.

Like when you go to the movies, you like to get there early, see the previews, you can decide, hey, I'm gonna see that, and I can pass on that.

It's in Matthew 27.

Jesus has just died on the cross.

This happens.

Hear this, verse 51.

Behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth shook, and the rocks were split.

The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints, saints, Christians, believers, uh, who had fallen asleep were raised, they died.

They were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.

Now the Bible says they appeared to many, so this can be validated or it can be discredited.

The Bible also says that something is established on the testimony of two or three witnesses.

So anytime in the Bible God did something really out of the ordinary, he did it in the presence of a lot of people, so they couldn't say, Oh man, that's just you and Billy Bob making that up.

No, in the presence of many witnesses.

So get this.

This happens.

A man's been dead for 10 years, Jesus is raised from the dead, and it's just a little foretaste of our deliverance.

God opens up some of the graves, and these people walk into the town.

Can you imagine?

A man's been dead 10 years, walks back into his town, he's like, Yeah, I remember I live on the street here.

Goes and opens a door, walked in, he's like, You married my brother?

And his wife's eating his hand was like, sorry, you died.

What are you doing here?

I don't know.

All of a sudden the tomb opened up, and man, we shot out of there.

The Bible just doesn't just talk about it, it demonstrates it.

Why is that?

What's the Bible telling us?

It's telling us that there's life after death.

Now, it doesn't do this.

Now, now, now I said, think of this as a preview for the movie.

It's not letting you know what's coming so you can see it, but hear me, so you can experience it.

Here's the last thing I want you to consider believing this morning.

It's simply this.

You can experience this for yourself.

This happens when you believe in and you believe on Jesus.

Believing in means you believe in the existence of.

He existed, he really was real, Jesus was.

Believing on means you have faith in.

Let me uh show you what I'm talking about from the Bible.

Look at the same chapter, chapter 20, skip down to verse 24.

Now, Thomas, one of the twelve, called the twin, he's also referred to.

There's a word we put in front of Thomas, he's called doubting Thomas.

Okay, I don't like that because Thomas was just like, hey man, I'm not following some stuff that I can't see.

Verse 24, Thomas, one of the 12, called the twin, was not with them when Jesus came.

So the other disciples told him, We've seen the Lord.

But he said to them, Unless I see his hands, the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.

Can you ever say something to God or about God and you forget about it?

He doesn't.

Now that's not that's not because he's ominous and threatening, it's because he wants to come to you in your unbelief.

Look at what he does to Thomas.

Eight days later, his disciples, can you remember what you said eight days ago?

I bet you couldn't.

You I know I talked to so-and-so, and I don't.

Eight days later, his disciples were inside again.

Thomas was with them.

Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you.

Of all the things he could have said, he could have walked in and said, Hey, how about me now?

Huh?

He could have busted in some Toby Keith.

How do you like me now?

Now that I'm on my way.

He could have said, Hey, you ungrateful little weasel.

Who you think you are?

Not believing me.

But he doesn't.

The door was locked, the Bible says.

Don't miss that part.

The door's locked, Jesus came and stood among them.

If the door was locked, how'd he get in?

He just walked through the door.

The laws of physics do not apply to a resurrected Jesus.

If I'm in that room, I'm just boom, passed out.

And Jesus is like, hey, chill, man.

It's good.

It's good.

Peace be with you.

Then he called Thomas.

Remember what Thomas said?

Watch how detailed Jesus is.

Put your finger here.

See my hands.

Put out your hand and place it in my side.

Do not disbelieve, but believe.

And Thomas answered him, My Lord and my God.

And Jesus said to him, Have you believed because you've seen me?

That was to Thomas.

This is to us.

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

You say, I never seen him.

I've never seen him in person either, but I believe.

And there's a blessing that can be had by you and for you today, if you if you believe.

When I say you can experience this, experience this for yourself, I'm not just talking about the existence of a God.

I mean to believe.

Oh, I think Jesus existed.

It's like to entrust yourself to.

Has that ever happened to you?

Here's why I ask you that.

Because look at the last two verses and we'll be done this morning.

Look at verse 30.

He says, now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in the book.

So, no, the Bible doesn't describe everything Jesus did.

In another gospel, he says, if we did that, we'd fill libraries.

But look at this.

He did many things that are not written in this book, but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Hear that again.

These are written.

This is sufficient, and it's written so that three things can happen.

Number one, you can believe that Jesus is the Christ.

That's the Messiah.

It's a question of integrity.

Is he really the Son of God?

And if he is, then God has acted personally to do something about our sin.

The Son of God, it's a question of authority.

You may believe Jesus is the Christ.

Secondly, the Son of God, question of authority.

Thirdly, that by believing you may have life in his name.

It's a question of opportunity.

Life in his name.

You say, What do you mean?

Let me give you one example, let me demonstrate what I'm talking about.

We'll be done.

Okay.

Years ago, I met a guy, and I have friends that belong to nice golf courses, not country clubs, private clubs, or whatever.

It's great.

You go there.

I didn't realize this when I first went, but you can't pay for stuff.

You just sign for stuff because they put it on their account.

And at first I was kind of embarrassed, like, here I got$5 for a diet coke.

They go, sir, we don't take cash.

We'll just charge it to the member.

Oh, on that account, uh no.

It's like, oh, then you're really humbled.

Well, that's great.

I got people that are like, hey, let's go.

They feel sorry for me.

Bring your two golf balls and your 1977 golf clubs, and we'll show you a real golf course.

And I'm like, hey, let's go.

And then I met a man who didn't belong to a club.

He owned the club.

He didn't tell me that.

He just said, I'd like you to show me my, I'd like to, you have time before you leave?

I'd like to show you my golf course.

We're in the middle of nowhere in Alabama.

I'm thinking it's some hootie-tootie nine-hole pasture pool.

You got some post hole diggers, a bunch of rednecks with wife beaters on, denim, hey, let's go.

We, first of all, I go over and he says, get in my car.

It's a white Lexus with white leather.

I got in that thing.

I feel like I was sitting in a warm bath.

I was like, well, I'll get used to this.

We rig it out there in the country, and all of a sudden we turn a corner and it goes from woods to manicured, sculptured.

I mean, and it's like, and he says, Yeah, we moved this entrance over here.

It costs$400,000 extra, but it was worth it because I wanted the entrance to be curved so people have to slow down and take in the ambiance.

When I heard we spent an extra$400,000, so people that's a phrase that has never come out of my mouth.

And all of a sudden, that bath was feeling real good.

We eased in there, they got cottages, they got clay pigeons, they got high-low skeet shooting, they got trophy bass tanks, they're not lakes, they're not ponds.

It's just they're about as big as this room.

The fish that can't go anywhere all the time.

You're guaranteed to catch them.

And they got a beautifully immaculate golf course.

I walk in, so he shows me all these.

He goes, Anytime you would be my guest.

Six months later, I worked up the curse and said, Hey, I'd like to come.

How much is it?

I told you you're my guest.

I said, Can I bring friends?

He said, Bring three friends and I'll give you, you guys can plan for some.

So we get there, my friends, one of them from Tennessee.

He's just a hill billy, he can't help himself.

Um, we get there and I walk in.

I said, Hi, my name is Neil, and he said, Yes.

And I'll call the man John Smith.

That's not his name.

Now, somebody asked me in the last earlier, go, Why don't you tell us his name?

Because I don't want you calling him, asking for my treatment.

I know how you are.

Well you call yours over there right now.

Just say their name.

What are you, Beyoncé?

Say my name, say my name.

No, no.

So I walked in and I said, Hi, my name is Neil.

And he said, We know who you are, Mr.

McClendon.

We're expecting you.

You are going to be the guest of Mr.

Smith.

And so everything at the club is gratis.

And I was like, they speak Spanish up in here.

Gratis.

All right, whatever.

And so he said, if you guys like to go out and hit some balls, and the driving range was nicer than any golf course I've ever played in my life.

I was like, and they had nice, they're called Tilus Pro V1 golf balls.

And they said, practice on them.

I was like, I just put them in my golf bag.

I hear a voice behind, not many, just a couple that they I'm gonna lose them.

I'm gonna give them back to them by losing them on the course.

It ain't stealing.

I hear a voice behind me, oh sir, don't take those.

I was like, ah, he goes, let me get you some new ones from the Pro Shop.

Comes out with two dozen.

They about$64 a dozen.

And I was like, hey man, I, you know, I just gonna for a water bottle.

Sir, you can have anything you want here.

At the turn, after nine holes, I said, you know, lunch is, we have lunch for you.

Usually, most clubs, it's like a hot dog and a bag of Fritos, rice pilaf, Julianne steamed vegetables, a twice-baked potato.

And you're like, uh, and they said, There's plenty.

Just tell us what you want, we'll bring you more.

We'll go, we played 36 holes.

After 27, we're making the turn the second time.

A man shows up with a golf cart with a cooler on the back of it, and in there these rolled up white towels that have been soaking in mango scented water.

And they said, Guys, if you'd like to sit down, take your golf shoes off, and they wrap your feet in these towels.

And I was like, I can get used to beer.

I actually I said, This happens all the time.

My wife does this every time I play golf.

They said, We don't want to make you uncomfortable, but if you'll if you'll sit back, we'd like to refresh you.

I'm like, what is this, Chick-fil-A?

You're gonna refresh my beverage?

They they wipe your legs off with these mango scented towels and wrap it, and you just sit there.

There's no one coming.

They got these big whiskey bear-looking things, they're coolers full of Granny Smith apples that are on ice.

Here it's just like after they they washed our feet, my friend Greg Keck, he'll build it from Tennessee, didn't put his golf shoes back on.

Played the last nine holes barefooted.

This is this is spongy like my living room.

Act like you've been out of Tennessee, Keck.

I was embarrassed.

Come on, man.

Because by this time, I was acting like it was my club.

Got up there, we got ready to leave.

After three days, we got ready to leave.

He says, Come in the pro shop, and now you're gonna drop the tab on us.

You know, here's your part.

He said, Take anything you want.

I was like, Oh man, no, I'm good, I'm good, I'm good.

Because I had looked at one of the shirts the first day,$97.

I ain't got a shirt in my closet cost$97.

I take$97, go to Marshall's, get nine shirts.

He said, There you go, there you go.

He just starts grabbing shirts, hand them to me.

I said, Man, yeah.

He's my place.

What do you mean, that one?

He just handed me stuff, and I'm like, oh, this is you want anything else?

And I kind of peeked over.

They had golf clubs, too.

I got in the car and I was like, because look at me, look at me, you know what I mean?

When you're poor, you grow poor, you're kind of prideful.

I made it by myself, I don't need anybody.

I got in the car and I was like, and this little voice said, This is what life is like in somebody else's name.

And I thought about John 20, verse 31.

John 20:31

These things have I written unto you that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and by believing, you can have life in Jesus' name.

You have life in his name.

Rolled out of there.

I looked over my friend Keck.

He's like, tear it up.

He's like, what are you doing?

That's awesome.

Who does that?

Look at me.

Christianity is not about more, it's not prosperity.

That's not what I'm saying.

It's better and different.

Because it's life in Jesus' name.

Have you ever experienced that?

And if not, why not today?

Why not in just a second when we pray?

Why don't you just say, God, I believe in you.

I believe the tomb is empty because you rose, and you rose because you died, and you died because you left heaven to come to earth to do something about.

I don't have to keep trying to figure it out.

Look at me.

I'm done.

You can receive it for free.

Let's pray together.

Just take a moment.

Think about what you've heard.

And just ask yourself what you what you do with that this morning.

If you're a guest, we don't believe in manipulation or guilt or not.

We just we teach the Bible and we give you some space to think about it.

So just take some space right now and just ask God, what had your name on it this morning?

God, we're mindful today that you come to us in ways we understand and you speak a language that we comprehend.

So you don't come to be heavy-handed and overwhelm us.

You do come to remind us.

You're not created to live in isolation.

It's not all dependent on you to figure it out, come up with a business plan or a next step or whatever.

Life in Jesus' name means that we're not in isolation and we're not a prisoner to anxiety.

What you said to Thomas, you say to us today, peace be to you.

Peace is the byproduct of life in Jesus' name, not mine.

I pray for all those today who need that, that they would accept that today and out themselves sometime in the future.

Pray this in Jesus' name.

When everyone said, Amen.

Amen.

I appreciate your presence today.

Look at me.

Uh, this service went a little long because my friend Andrew got baptized, but we always make room for that.

There's a lot of stuff going on in the life of our church.

If if you live here in the area and you don't have a church, you're not meaningfully connected to any church, this doesn't have to be the only Sunday you come.

This is what we do every Sunday, okay?

Uh, we'd love for you to come.

You may be like John, my friend Andrew, like, hey, I gotta come for a couple years and kick a few tires and slam a few doors.

That's okay.

Come, drink the coffee, you be yourself, ask all the questions you got, okay?

Because we don't want to just want to be your church.

I want to be your pastor.

I want to be the guy when you see me at Costco fighting people with clip goes, you go, Yeah, that's my pastor.

Yeah, that's him.

Uh, there's lots of things going on, opportunities to be involved here in the life of our church.

I want to make you aware of those by way of our video announcements.

It'll take about two minutes.

Let's watch this together.

Here's a look at what's happening at Grand Parkway Baptist Church.

Secret Church is almost here.

The cost is$10, and this covers your study guide and dinner.

We will meet on April 26th at 5 30 p.m.

in the warehouse to dive into what the Bible says about prayer, fasting, and the pursuit of God.

The registration deadline is this Wednesday, so register on our website today.

Camp registration is now open for kids, bridge, and students.org slash events.

We are excited to announce that Rosaria Butterfield, author of The Gospel Comes with the Housekeep, will be with us June 14th and 15th.

Check out our website for more details or register in the lobby.

If you have questions about anything you've heard today, or you would like someone to pray with you, some of our pastors and elders will be available at the front of the stage at the conclusion of our service.

And I had no idea what he's talking about.

I said, What?

He said, I do I have to pay.

Do I give no, no, no, no, no.

And I looked at him and I said, This is gratis.

Which I later learned, gratis means free.

And so look at me.

When you come to this church, you don't have to give money.

If you want to, that's great.

You don't have to.

Okay?

It's not about that.

It's about you experiencing the life that you were created to live.

If you got any questions about that, we'll be available down front.

We like to close our service with a blessing.

Stand to your feet.

Hold your hands out.

Jesus left the perfection of heaven for the imperfection of earth because he knew that's where he would find you.

So let him find you and unwind you.

It's gross.

It's free.

And it's good.

It's called life in Jesus' name.

Depart now and live this life in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Bless you.