From Darkness to Light: The Significance of Easter Morning

Hello and welcome to the Middletown Baptist Church Podcast, where we are proclaiming the truth to the world.

My name is Pastor Josh, and I want to thank you for listening to this podcast.

I hope that this podcast can be a blessing to you and strengthen you in the word of God.

Now come along, let's look into the Bible and see what God has for us here today.

Every Sunday that we come to church is a day of celebration.

But we are reminded once a year of that wonderful day in which the disciples of Jesus found the empty tomb.

And the empty tomb means so much for us here as Christians.

It means that we have hope.

It means that we have confidence.

It means that we have the victory.

It means that we have everlasting life.

So I'd like to start here with a scripture reading from Luke chapter 24, and we're going to read the first 12 verses here in Luke chapter 24.

Obviously, the resurrection account is given in all the Gospels.

We're going to be looking at Luke and his account here.

And then what we're going to be doing later on is looking at Matthew's account.

So In Luke chapter 24, it says, now upon the first day of the week, that's today, very early in the morning.

For many of us, this is very early in the morning.

And there should be the sun cracking up right over the hill there.

There's a little bit of a cloud cover there.

But we know that as the sun was coming up there in Jerusalem around 2000 years ago is the same sun that's coming up today.

And my son had a question for me yesterday.

He says, dad, how do we know we're facing the right direction?

I said, well, the sun comes up right over that hill over there.

And he goes, what if it doesn't?

I said, if it's not coming up over the hill?

I said, we've got other problems because it's been coming up the same way since the very beginning.

And so we have an opportunity this morning to be in the same setting.

It says they came unto the sepulcher bringing the spices which they had prepared and certain others with them.

And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulcher.

And they entered in found not the body of the Lord Jesus.

And it came to pass as they were much perplexed there about.

Behold, two men stood by them in shining garments.

And as they were afraid and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, why seek ye the living among the dead?

He is not here, but is risen.

Remember how he spake unto you.

When he was in yet in Galilee, saying, the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and the third day rise again.

And they remembered his words and returned from the sepulcher and told all these things unto the eleven and to all the rest.

It was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary, the mother of James and other women that were with them which told these things unto the apostles.

And there were seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not.

Then arose Peter and ran unto the sepulcher, and stooping down, he beheld the linen cloths laid by themselves and departed, wondering in Himself at that which was come to pass.

May God bless the reading of his word.

Let's go ahead and open up with a word of prayer.

And then after that we're going to have a time where we can sing our praises to our risen Savior here today.

Lord, we do thank you for the empty tomb.

We thank you for the fact that you came to this earth and, and, and we know that without you we would not have victory.

But through Jesus we have the victory.

We know that Jesus lived that perfect life.

We know that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, but we know that he didn't stay on that cross.

We.

We know that shortly after that he was placed in a tomb.

And we also know that he's not in that tomb.

We know that he conquered death through the resurrection.

And we thank youk for the hope that we can have in him, the victory that we can have in him, the celebration that we have in him.

Lord, I thank you for the opportunity today for us to serve you, for us to be a part of this wonderful day in which we can point folks to you.

So, Lord, I pray that through this service this morning and through the other elements of Resurrection Sunday, that we can grow closer to you and understand you more and realize your love in our lives.

And so, Lord, we give you all the honor and glory.

We honor you for who you are and what you have done.

We thank you for this morning.

Jesus name Amen.

He is worthy and he is worthy of our worship.

He is worthy of our praise.

And we have an opportunity this morning to praise him for who he is and what he has done for us.

I like to sometimes put myself in the shoes of the individuals that were worshiping Jesus 2,000 years ago.

And, you know, there was a lot of hope leading up to the end of Jesus's life.

There are a lot of expectations that Jesus would be the political Messiah, the one that would free them from the bondage of Rome.

And then when Jesus did not fulfill what they were expecting, there was some hopelessness, right?

The people had turned on him.

And then even his closest inner circle, when Jesus was nailed to a cross and beaten and bruised and taken down and put in a tomb, there was in some ways even more people that had lost hope at that point.

But that morning, when the followers of Jesus realized that that tomb was empty, that Jesus kept his word, that Jesus is who he said he is, I believe that that hope began to grow in their hearts.

And that same hope that they had that morning is the same hope that we have here in Middletown, Delaware, so far across the world, many years later.

But the same hope that lied within the hope of the empty tomb is the same hope that we have today.

And I don't know what you're dealing with in your life, but the truth of the matter is this.

The hope that is the hope that's going to give you satisfaction, the hope that's going to give you confidence, the hope that's going to give you peace, the hope that's going to give you ultimately everlasting life is the hope in Jesus Christ.

I know that all of you woke up this morning to come here because this day matters to you.

This day is different.

This day is special.

And the truth is, the only reason that this day is special is because of who Jesus is and what he has done for us.

This day isn't special because we get together with family.

We could do that any day.

This day isn't special because we get to get candy and we get to have different elements of worship that are a little bit different.

The reason why this day is different is because Jesus made it different.

And so we're going to look at that here this morning in Matthew, chapter 28.

If you have your Bibles, you can turn there.

If not, on the back of your bulletin this morning, we have a few notes here.

And the truth is, is that the.

The passage of scripture here that we're going to be reading, I believe, speaks to three elements of God, probably more.

But these are the three that I was able to see here this week as I was studying this passage of scripture.

And we know that it says here in verse one, in the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week.

Again, that's why we meet here on a sunrise service, because it was early in the morning on the first day of the week came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulcher and remember they're coming here to the tomb expecting Jesus to be in the tomb.

Why do we know that?

Because they were bringing the spices to prepare the body.

They didn't even get a chance to prepare Jesus's body the way that they felt like they should prepare it.

And so they were coming to finish the preparation.

And, and what?

I.

I would not go into all of that here this morning.

But one of the elements of that preparation would be preservation, trying to preserve the grave clothes so that there, there would be some respect there.

That would be the tradition, the culture.

So they were coming there with expectation of Jesus being in the tomb.

Most likely, they were filled with hopelessness.

And then we see verse two.

And behold, there was a great earthquake.

For the angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door and sat upon it.

His countenance was like lightning and his raiment white as snow.

And for fear of him, the keepers did shake and became his dead men.

We know that there were Roman soldiers there at the tomb.

The Jewish leaders, the Jewish religious leaders set up individuals there so that Jesus's disciples could not steal the body.

That's what they expected to happen because they knew that Jesus said he would resurrect from the dead.

And so we see that these keepers of the tomb became as dead men.

And it says in verse five, and the angel answered and said unto the women, fear not ye, for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.

He is not here, for he is risen.

As he said, come see the place where the Lord lay.

I want to stop there and I want to notice the first element of this passage of scripture is the power of God, the power of the resurrection.

The Bible says that the same power that rose Jesus from the dead is the same power that lives within us.

And I think that there's some elements in our life that sometimes we think that are too great or are too burdensome or are too painful.

The Bible says the power of God can conquer any issue in our life.

The power of God can conquer any fear.

The power of God can conquer any doubt.

And what we can see here in this case is that the power of God had the power to send this great earthquake to resurrect Jesus from the dead.

And we see the transformative power of God in our lives.

The Bible says that we are new creations in Christ.

And the truth is, is that the only reason that we're able to change, the only reason that we're able to be different, the only reason that we have everlasting life is because of the power of God.

I want you to think about the great power of God here this morning.

The power of God was enough to take Jesus out of the grave.

The power of God was the same power that changed the disciples life.

You think about the rest of the story.

Think about the rest of the story.

Think about these individuals.

Peter, James, John, the rest of the apostles that had an opportunity to see the risen Christ.

What did that mean for them?

That meant that they were dedicated to a cause that was bigger than themselves.

But, but they were willing to go to their deaths for the truth that they saw there that empty tomb.

This is not a lie.

There's, there's a lot of different theories about the resurrection.

Some people believe that, that Jesus's body was stolen.

I don't believe that the apostles would go to their death.

All of them would go to their death because they knew that they stole the body and they knew that it was a lie.

They wouldn't do that.

Some people believe that, that Jesus something called the swoon theory, that Jesus really didn't die, he just passed out on the cross and then eventually he woke back up and got out of there.

But the Bible speaks of the way that they processed him before the tomb.

And if you understand what would happen is the Roman soldiers would come by and make sure that the individuals were deceased on the cross.

And what they did with Jesus is they put a spear into his side and the Roman soldiers would have known death.

I mean they would have been the ones who were the executioners.

So the truth is, is that Jesus did die.

Jesus did get placed in a tomb.

But ultimately Jesus conquered death through the resurrection.

And so the power of God.

Rely on the power of God in your life for the big things, for the little things, for your family, for your struggles.

Those Bible says the power of God is enough to overcome everything in our lives.

God is all powerful.

There's nothing in this world that's too big for him.

There's nothing in this world that overcomes him, that surprises him.

I'm going to tell you what a lot of times we think.

You know what, My actions today are really going to surprise the Lord.

Folks, your actions do not surprise the Lord.

There are some things that you might do that, that surprise me.

There might be some things that you do that might confuse me and say I don't know how to deal with that.

But God is never baffled by our actions.

God is all powerful.

He knows every answer and he can conquer our struggles, he can conquer our sin.

He can conquer our death.

Then we go on to see this.

The reaction of these individuals was fear.

We see a lot of fear mentioned.

In verse four, we see fear.

Verse five, we see that these individuals that came to the tomb were fearful.

And the angel said unto them, fear not ye.

Why?

What's the remedy to their fear?

Here.

Everything's going to be okay.

You guys are good people.

You know, the weather is nice outside, no?

What does it say here in verse five?

And it says, fear not ye.

Why?

For I know that ye see Jesus, which was crucified.

He is not here.

Jesus's resurrection conquers our fear.

It demonstrates God's power, but it demonstrates more than that.

It demonstrates the fact that we have no reason to fear.

The Bible says in 2nd Timothy, chapter 1, verse 7, For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

The truth is, is that there are a lot of reasons for us to fear this world, to fear even ourselves, to fear what's around us.

But the Bible says the reason why we have the confidence to no longer fear is because Jesus is risen.

He kept his word.

If you study the Gospels, Jesus told his disciples what was going to happen.

He says, hey, guys, this is.

This is something that has to happen.

I have to go to Jerusalem.

I.

I have to be persecuted.

I have to be placed on a cross.

I have to be put in the tomb.

And then I will resurrect to prove the power of God.

And.

And the power of God brings, as we see here, the peace of God.

The power of God brings the peace of God.

We know that there is no longer a reason to fear.

The Bible says in Philippians, chapter four, it's the peace of God which passeth all understanding.

That is what rules our minds and our hearts.

And it says there in Philippians 4, in Christ Jesus, the reason why we can have peace is because of the Prince of Peace.

The reason why we can know confidence, we can have that tranquility, so to speak, in our life is because of who Jesus is and what he has done for us.

He is not here, for he is risen.

As he said.

God keeps his word in every way.

But where do we find God's Word in our life?

We find God's word right here.

Okay?

We find God's Word in the Scriptures.

And everything that God says, He means.

Everything that God says he will do, he will do.

And everything that God promises in your life, he keeps his promise.

There's going to be times in my life where I Want to keep a promise, but I'm not able to keep that promise because of my lack of power, my lack of knowledge, my inadequacies, my.

But when God keeps all powerful, when God keeps His promise, he is all knowing.

When God keeps His promise, he's all present.

And therefore, what does that mean?

That means when God keeps His word, he keeps it in the way that we as Christians can trust in and we can put our faith in.

There's a lot of people that have faith in all of the wrong things in this world.

Faith in finances, faith in their health, faith in government, faith in their house, faith in whatever it is.

But all of those objects of faith will fail.

My health will fail.

My finances will fail.

My government might fail.

My car might fail.

It will fail.

And the reality is this.

The only thing that will not fail you is Jesus Christ.

The only element of our life that will not fail is a relationship with Jesus Christ.

The Bible says that everything else, moth and rust, will corrupt.

The only thing that someone cannot steal from you, the only thing that will not wear away is your relationship with Jesus Christ.

And that brings us the peace of God, which passeth all understanding.

And so the object of faith, the only valid object of faith is Jesus Christ.

He is the reason why we can trust.

He is the reason why we can rely on the power of God.

And Brother Michael sang about it this morning.

Is he worthy?

The answer is yes.

The answer is yes.

He is worthy of everything.

He is worthy of your Sunday morning.

He's worthy of your bank account.

He's worthy of your family.

He's worthy of your service.

He's worthy of your life.

Everything that we do in our life should be for Him.

And so that brings us the peace of God.

So the power of God brings.

Brings us the peace of God.

But then we see that the power of God and the peace of God brings about the plan of God.

God has a plan for you.

God has a plan for his church.

God has a plan for this world.

Verse 7 says this, and go quickly.

The challenge is this, okay?

God has demonstrated his power to you in the resurrection.

God has given you the peace that God only can give through his power.

But the peace of God should drive then the plan of God in our lives.

And so verse seven.

And go quickly and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead.

And behold, he goeth before you into Galilee.

There shall ye see him.

And lo, I have told you.

And they departed quickly from the sepulcher with fear and great joy.

The Bible says here that they had a job.

What was God's plan for them?

Well, God's plan for them was to tell other people about Jesus, to tell other people about the truth of God, to tell other people about the resurrection.

Basically this, let's summarize it in a way that we could understand.

To tell people the gospel.

That was the plan for these followers.

And it says, and they did, they did bring it to the disciples.

They did run to bring his disciples word.

So they leave in a way, they leave in a way with, as it says here, fear.

And this would be that healthy fear of God that we all should have.

So, so we should go with the gospel with fear.

Now what does that mean?

I thought, Pastor, I just thought you said we should not leave with fear.

I thought you said that God has not given us the spirit of fear.

Well, there's two different elements of fear.

There's the one fear that grips us.

That's the human fleshly element of fear.

I'm scared because I don't think God can handle this.

That's an unhealthy fear that God calls us not to have.

But there is a healthy fear of God.

That's the fear of God in the respect of him and the awe of him.

It's awe inspiring fear.

So, so now that God has changed my life, I'm in fear of him because of what he can do and what he does in my life.

And that's the respect and the honor.

So they leave with the gospel with fear.

And it says there with great joy, we have joy in the plan of God.

The joy of the plan of God is this.

I get to be a part of his work.

And so we see that their excitement.

What does it say here?

It says, and they did run to bring his disciples word.

There was an excitement to bringing the message of the resurrection.

I can tell you what, there's not a lot that gets me excited in this world other than a few different things.

I can tell you that I have.

You know, watching sports is a really exciting thing.

I can, sometimes I act like I'm not interested in it, but when, when the game starts going, I'm getting excited, right?

There's some other elements of my life that I can get excited about.

But the thing that gives me the most excitement is the fact that I get to be a beneficiary of God's grace, that I get to tell other people about this good news.

And so they're excited.

They run to the disciples to give them word verse nine.

And as they went to tell his Disciples, behold, Jesus met them.

So in the process of them going to tell the message of the gospel, in the process of obedience, God meets them.

Jesus meets them.

And I'm going to tell you, every time we take a step in obedience for God, he will meet us.

He will comfort us.

He will confirm that that plan is the right way to go, that the will of God is the best way to go.

And it says, and as they went to tell the disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, all hail.

And they came and held him by the feet and worshiped him.

I believe that this is a microcosm of how the Christian life should look.

Right?

We are revealed to the power of God through the resurrection, the gospel.

Then that gospel brings us peace.

And that that gospel brings us comfort.

And therefore we are then beneficiaries of that grace.

We are.

We are the ones who can experience the goodness of salvation.

But then we are called to share that gospel message.

And as we are called to share the gospel message, Jesus meets us and we have that fellowship with him.

And what's the natural reaction?

What's the proper reaction?

To fall at his feet and worship him.

And so, in the process of our life, God's plan is for us to, number one, come to the truth.

The Bible says that he is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

And so it is God's will that you come to him in salvation.

But the next step would be that we go and tell others about him, right?

That would be the next step.

That's evangelism.

That's sharing the gospel.

That's being witnesses.

That's being the salt and the light.

But then in the process of that, the Bible tells us that we are to fall at his feet and worship him.

And we have so many reasons to worship him.

Again, Michael saying that this morning, is he worthy?

He's worthy of all those things.

Those are all the reasons why we worship him.

We worship him because he conquered death.

We worship him because he loves us.

We worship him because he equips us, because he allows us to be a part of his work.

And so the power of God brings the peace of God, which brings the plan of God.

The plan of God is this.

That we trust in him, that we follow him, that we obey him, that we share him.

And then that we worship him.

Verse 10.

Then said Jesus unto them, be not afraid.

Again, another reminder of the peace of God, the confidence of God.

Go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me again.

Another challenge for them to go to share that is the plan of God.

It's not to keep it to ourselves.

That's the initial element of it.

That's the baby stage.

When, when Silas was born, he, he, when he was hungry, Silas didn't explain to us that he was hungry.

Silas just started screaming, right?

He started screaming.

And we know that that's he's hungry.

You know, it took me to my third child to realize that when a baby is crying, they need something.

I used to think babies just cried to cry.

And I started realizing that, hey, you know what?

They need something.

So Silas is hungry.

He wants to eat.

Silas isn't concerned as of now.

He's getting better at this.

But he wasn't as concerned about his brothers and sisters, right?

It was all about him.

It was all about getting the milk that he needed right then.

He wasn't concerned about his brother's meal, he wasn't concerned about his parents meal.

And sometimes that's how we are as baby Christians.

It's all about us.

It's all about how God can bless us.

It's all about what God gives me.

But at the time that Silas grows up, maybe he gets to Micah's age, he's 9, 10 years old.

We're going to teach our children that, hey, you should have some concern for others around you.

It's not all about you.

It's about how you can bless others, how you can share with others.

That's what it means for a Christian to mature.

For a Christian to mature is to understand more that it's not just all about me.

I get a great blessing.

The Bible says even the animals cry out to God and worship him.

And so the geese are worshiping the Lord this morning.

But, but the truth is, is that we have an opportunity here today to understand that it's not all about us.

It's now a time for us to turn around and show people what it means to love Jesus and to trust in him.

So Jesus says, go.

And then further on In Matthew chapter 28, some of you know this passage of scripture.

It's becoming more and more my favorite passage of Scripture, verse 18.

And Jesus came and spake unto them.

Some time has passed.

We know that Jesus resurrected.

He revealed himself to his disciples multiple times.

The Bible even says in First Corinthians, chapter 15 that he revealed himself to more than 500 people at this point in time.

But as that time frame was coming to an end, Jesus is about to give his disciples his last marching orders.

As he was here on this earth.

And it says in verse number 18.

And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, all power is given unto me in heaven and in earth, again, reminding us of the power of God.

Jesus reminded his disciples of his power.

And so today he's reminding us of his power.

Then he says, go ye, therefore go.

Right?

He says, go, don't stay.

Don't stay and keep it to yourself.

But go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever.

I've commanded you.

And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world.

Jesus tells them to go.

It literally means in the Greek to make disciples, teaching them how to obey, teaching them how to serve, teaching them what it means to know him in a personal way.

They understood the power of God.

They understood the peace of God.

They understood the plan of God.

And the next step was for them to share that with other people.

Jesus, at the very end here in verse number 20 reminds them of his presence.

And so it's the presence of our Lord that brings us the understanding of God's power.

It's the presence of our Lord that gives us the understanding of the peace of God.

It's the presence of our Lord that gives us the understanding of the plan of God in our lives.

And I want you to think about that this morning.

Is Jesus present in your life?

Do you think about him?

Oh, I think about him.

Once a year around Easter, we watch a movie and we're reminded.

The power of God.

No, no, no.

I'm talking about does Jesus rule and reign in your life?

It is.

Is it his power that you're relying on?

Think about that power to.

To conquer death.

Can any of us do that?

No.

None of us have the power to conquer death.

Jesus has the power to conquer death.

The Bible says that the power of God is the power that can change our lives.

The power of God is the power that can conquer every fear in our life.

And so the power of God, the peace of God.

Are you allowing Jesus's presence to give you peace?

Or are you looking for something you peace?

Here on Resurrection Sunday, we're reminded.

Monday morning.

What about Wednesday morning?

What about Friday morning?

What about in six weeks from now, six months from now?

Are we going to be willing to say it's Jesus who's ruling and reigning my life to give me my peace?

Where are you seeking your peace?

Well, I'm seeking my peace from just getting all my situations figured out.

In my life.

I've been trying to figure out all my situations in my life for a long time.

And just when I get one situation figured out, the other situation comes up.

So I'm going to tell you, the circumstances of life are not going to give you peace.

Well.

Well, you know what?

I just need to get into my happy place.

The truth is, the happy place is always going to fail you.

I mean, I'm all for having a happy place and having that peace in this earth, but the truth is, is that we can run and we can try to find that.

But at the end of the day, the only thing that's going to give you satisfaction and peace is the prince of peace, Jesus Christ.

And so it is the presence of Jesus who brings us that peace.

And then lastly, here.

Are you allowing Jesus and the presence of Jesus in your life to give you your plan, to give you your purpose, to give you your direction?

Or is it my plans?

Is.

Is it my agenda?

Well, Jesus has a plan for you.

And I can tell you very simply, I don't have to know every element of your life.

I don't have to know your spiritual gifts.

I don't have to know your background.

I don't have to know where you work.

All I have to know is this.

If you are a believer in Jesus Christ today, okay, I know God's will for you.

You say, how can you do that?

The word of God tells us, number one, it is his plan that we love him and that we serve him.

Love the Lord thy God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.

It is God's plan for you.

And I can firmly say this according to scripture, that it is God's plan for you to love him and to serve Him.

Number two, I do know that it is the plan of God for you to understand your purpose and his will to serve him, to share him, to be able to demonstrate the love of Christ.

The Bible says, be salt and light.

Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven?

We have an opportunity to show other people the goodness of God.

And so that is God's plan for you.

Are you trusting in the presence of Jesus, the presence of your Lord, to give you the plan for your life?

All of us should have a plan.

What do they say?

They say, you know, have a plan or I don't know how it goes, but basically, if you're not playing, it's failure.

Okay?

And the idea for me this morning is, hey, we all have to have a plan.

We can't just be drifting through this world hoping that it's all going to come together.

The fact of the matter is, is that we have to be intentional about our following of Christ.

We have to be intentional about our worship of Christ just as those individuals, as they began to go.

And sometimes that's how that goes.

When we take that first step of obedience to the Lord, that's when he reveals Himself to us.

And that's when we're able to worship him freely and worship him authentically.

I don't know if some of you have ever been to a church service and you saw some people getting excited for the Lord.

You saw some people praising the Lord and you say, what are they so excited about?

Well, I can't speak for them, but I know that when I'm worshiping my Savior, when a song really gets me in the heart, it's not about the notes, it's not about how beautiful it sounds.

The reason why I get excited in worship, the reason why I shed a tear is, is because of what Jesus Christ did for me.

When someone else talks about something in their life, I don't think, well, I wish I say, you know what?

I'm glad that I have what Jesus has given me.

And I hope that you are glad about the salvation that God has extended to you.

It's not about works of righteousness, which we have done, but it's according to his mercy that he saved us by the washing of regeneration and the renewal.

Come on.

Bible tells us that we have an opportunity to know him and to love him and to rest in his power.

To rest in the peace of God and to rest in the plan of God.

So we have a risen Savior.

He's in the world today.

I know that he is living.

No matter what men may say, the Bible says, we know that he's living because he told us in His Word that He is alive.

He demonstrates to us in this world that he is alive.

And you know what?

You know what the proof of the resurrection is today in this world?

Will you say the Bible?

Yes.

But you know, the proof of the resurrection is the fact that you are all here and that God has changed you and that God has given you hope.

And that we as a church can come together on a Sunday morning at 6:30 and then we can worship that.

That is proof that God is real.

That is proof that God has changed us and that there's power in salvation, that there's transformation in salvation.

And so I want to thank you for Being here today, we want to thank our Savior, most importantly for the opportunity to know him and to grow and to love and to.

And to sacrifice and to serve him.

And so are you willing to, number one, rest in the power of God today?

Are you willing to rest in the peace of God today?

And ultimately, are you willing to serve in the plan of God today?

I hope that you are.

And I hope that you see this as an opportunity to drive you forward to the cause of the gospel.

Well, what we're going to do today is, is we're going to take of the elements here.

One of the things that Jesus told us to do to remember him is to observe what we would call the Lord's table or the Lord's Supper, or some folks call it communion.

And I think that this is an important thing to do because sometimes in our life we are tempted to forget the goodness of God.

We're tempted to forget the power of God.

We're tempted to forget what Jesus Christ did for us.

And so what I would encourage you to do here this morning is as we take of these elements that you contemplate the sacrifice of Jesus.

You contemplate his perfection, you contemplate his power over death and the resurrection.

And so what we're going to do here this morning is we're going to go through and we're going to take of these elements.

If you are a member of Middletown Baptist Church, you know what we're about to do.

If you're maybe a member of another church or you've been associated with other churches, you might have a basic understanding of what we're going to do.

Maybe you've never been to church, and this is something that's totally new for you.

What we do here is that we take of the bread and we take of the cup.

Understanding that there's nothing magical or supernatural about these elements themselves.

All we do is we believe that this is a symbolic remembrance of what Jesus Christ did for us.

His body, the bread, his blood, the cup.

And what we understand here this morning is that if you are a born again believer, you are qualified to take of this.

You would say, what do you mean qualified?

It just means this.

There is no reason for you to take of the elements if you are not a believer in Jesus Christ.

The Bible says that we are to take of the bread, we are to take of the cup in identifying with him.

That's the picture.

The picture is identifying with him.

And so what I would encourage you to do is think about the identification of Jesus Christ in your Life, the question might be, who are you?

And for some of the men, we might answer, what we do for a living, right?

We'll see.

If someone asks me, who are you?

I say, well, I'm Josh Massaro.

I'm pastor of Middletown Baptist Church.

But that's not truly my identity.

So some.

Some of you ladies, they might ask you, who are you?

You might say, well, I'm so and so mother of these people, right?

Because a lot of times our identity is wrapped up in what we value the most.

But at the end of the day, your identity is not in what you do for a living.

Your identity is not in and who your family is.

Your identity is who you place your faith and trust in.

Is your identity in yourself, or is your identity in Jesus Christ?

If your identity is in Jesus Christ this morning, if someone asks you, who are you?

Say, I'm a child of the king, sinner, saved by grace.

And so that's what we're going to be thinking about here this morning.

Actually, I need.

Does anyone have a spare elephant here?

The.

The cup.

All right, very good.

I was about to get started here, and I didn't have that.

So what we're going to do, the Bible says that on the same night in which Jesus was betrayed.

So.

So go back a few days before the resurrection, Jesus is.

Jesus is sitting around with his disciples, and he's having what we normally call the Last Supper.

And really what he talks to them about is this.

He says, you know, you've had a certain way of doing things for a long time, but there's going to be a difference.

There's going to be a New Testament.

He basically says, I am the New Testament.

And.

And so he institutes this way of doing things, and he says, hey, to remember this New Testament.

This is what you were supposed to do.

And so before he took of the elements, before he explained this, he says that he gives thanks.

And so in the.

In the Bible here in First Corinthians, chapter 11, it says that the Lord Jesus, the same night in which he was betrayed, took bread.

Before we take of the bread, I would like us to think about what this symbolizes.

The.

The b.

The Bible says that Jesus's the bread of life.

When we take of the bread of life, we no longer have a need for anything else.

Nothing else satisfies.

And the Bible also says that Jesus gave his life for us.

And he says that this is his body which was broken for you.

And so we're going to give thanks for the bread, and then we will Take of this element here this morning.

Lord, we just give you thanks for your sacrifice for us.

We know that your only begotten son came to this earth and live the perfect life and knew no sin.

But we know that he loved us enough to sacrifice himself for us.

And we know that he is the bread of life.

And we believe that as we take of the bread of life that we no longer need anything else in this world to satisfy.

Lord, you ultimately satisfy.

You are our hope, you are our confidence, you are our everything, our salvation.

And so Lord, we thank you and we love you for who you are and what you have done for us.

And so as we do this this morning, as we observe these elements, Lord, I pray that we can focus on you and you alone, no distractions.

Ultimately we can come to know you in a personal way, even in a more loving way through this service.

And so we just thank you and we love you in Jesus name, Amen.

So the Bible says after he gave thanks, he break the bread and said, take, eat.

This is my body which is broken for you.

This do in remembrance of me and remembrance of him, we take of the bread.

It says in the next verse that in the same manner he also took the cup.

So we're going to go ahead and give thanks for the cup.

But as we are reminded, the significance of the cup is that Jesus's blood is the perfect sacrifice for us.

And the Bible says without the shade of blood there is no remission or forgiveness of sins.

And so therefore as Christians, it's not our sacrifice, it's not our bloodshed that matters.

The only bloodshed that matters is the blood of Jesus Christ, the perfect lamb, the Passover lamb.

John, his cousin John the Baptist said this.

Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world.

Jesus is that once for all sacrifice that was needed for our salvation.

So let's give thanks for the cup.

Lord, we thank you for the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

We thank you for the forgiveness that we can find in that.

We thank you for the opportunity for us to realize that it's beyond us.

Lord, we are not enough, but in you we are enough in the concept of our identity.

And so I pray that our identity in Christ changes us, equips us, comforts us.

And Lord, I pray that you give us understanding in that and motivation in that.

So Lord, I thank you for all that you do.

I thank you for your sacrifice for us.

And we thank you for the empty tomb and the victory that we have in Jesus.

And we ask all these things In Jesus name.

Amen.

So Jesus said, this cup is the new Testament in my blood.

This do ye exact as you drink it.

In remembrance of me, in remembrance of Jesus, we take of the cup.

Amen.

Amen.

I always have to read the next verse.

It says, wherefore, whosoever shall eat this bread and drink this cup of the Lord, for as often as eat this bread and drink this cup, you to show the Lord's death till he come.

And so it's an opportunity for us now, as we just mentioned.

What's the plan of God?

The plan of God is for us to know him, to grow in him, and to show him around the world.

Here in Middletown, Delaware, and around the world.

So you.

You can't show him to the world unless you know him.

You.

You can't show him to the world unless you're growing in Him.

But.

But as you know him and as you grow in him, it's an opportunity to go and to show the world the truth of Jesus Christ.

You have an opportunity to do that today.

You have an opportunity to do that in your community.

You have an opportunity to do that in your family.

You have an opportunity to do that here in this world.

And so let's do that now as we are called to do.

So as that sun is peeking through, it's an awesome opportunity to remember that the same power.

Think about this.

The same power that rose Jesus from the dead 2000 years ago is the same power that lives within you.

And, and, and so what we think about this this morning is, is a lot of times people think of Easter and the empty tomb as kind of like a myth, kind of just like this vague thing that happened that we somewhat celebrate.

Folks, there is a real place in Jerusalem, right?

There were real people that breathe real air, that flesh and blood that saw Jesus after he died.

And that's a fact.

And if you go to Israel today, there are.

There.

There are still.

There's still the Palm Sunday road, there's still the empty tomb, there's still Golgotha, there's still the Mount of Olives.

This is all real.

And that same sun up there that you're looking at is the same sun that was up there again 2000 years ago.

And so think about the reality of it.

Think about the.

The impact of it.

Think about how that changed the world.

Think about.

At one point in time, there was just a small.

Less than.

Right here.

Less.

Less than the people that are sitting in this parking lot that knew about Jesus and his resurrection, that knew the true Gospel, that short amount of time there, it was just Jesus in his inner circle.

But think about how that has spread to not just thousands, but millions and millions of people over the years that have trusted in him.

And think about how that multiplication happened in the early church and then in the.

In the centuries that follow and the.

And how people have grown and served.

And think about how much multiplication that we can have that.

That we as a church.

I don't know how many people are here.

This morning we had 60 chairs, but I think we had more.

Think about how much we can see happen in the power of God and the peace of God and the plan of God.

If we all took it upon ourselves to say, you know what, just as the resurrection was real to Peter, James, John, Mary Magdalene, just as it changed their life, so that same resurrection, that same empty tomb can challenge us to make it real for us, that we can multiply the followers of Jesus Christ.

And it's not our power.

It's the power God.

Remember, Jesus said, it's the power in me that's going to send you to go.

And so it's not about presenting a good version of you, a better version of you.

It's just about presenting Jesus.

Jesus changed me, and he can change you.

And that's the beautiful message that we can take with us.

So I'm going to go ahead and close with a word of prayer here, but before I do that, I do want to just invite you over.

We have a few refreshments under the portico over there.

I encourage you to fellowship, okay?

Part of having faith in Jesus Christ is having the commonality with other people.

And so grab some coffee, grab some juice, grab some water, and fellowship.

I know that many of you have plans today, but if you have a few moments, just fellowship with your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

And what I would say is this too, what would help us out greatly and I would greatly appreciate this, is that if you could take the chair that you are sitting in, okay.

And move that over, we're going to have some fellows bring that chair rack over.

And if you could just set your chair on that chair rack, that would be fantastic.

Many hands make light work.

And if everyone takes their chair that they're in the way that I did the math, we pretty much should have all the chairs up.

And so I appreciate you doing that.

So let's go ahead and pray and then we'll be dismissed.

Lord, I thank you for this time that you've given us.

I thank you for this hour, this morning that we can come here and celebrate the empty tomb and celebrate our risen Savior.

Lord, we know that we're calling it a sunrise service S u n service, but really it's the sun S O n rise service.

Lord, we're thankful for our risen Savior.

Lord, help us to allow that to change our lives.

Help us to allow the power of God to rule and reign in our lives.

Help us to help have the peace of God rule and reign in our lives.

Lord, help us to have the plan of God rule and reign in our lives.

I pray that you encourage the hearts of the folks that are here this morning.

I thank you for the opportunity to be here and worship together with my church family.

Lord, I also pray for our service later on today at 10:30 as we know that there will be more people, maybe folks that don't understand the goodness of God, the power of God, the peace of God, the plan of God.

And I pray that even today that even just one could come to know you as personal Savior.

That we can see a life changed, pulled away from the path to hell, but then set aside into the new plan, the new direction towards everlasting life.

And so Lord, I thank you for this time.

I pray that you bless the food to our bodies and I pray that you bless the fellowship and I pray that you be with us as we serve you today.

We ask all these things in Jesus name.

Amen.

Amen.

He is risen and we are thankful for the wonderful gift of salvation.

God bless you.

Thank you again for listening to the Middletown Baptist Church Podcast.

I hope that this sermon has been a blessing for you.

You would like to find out more information about our church or this sermon, you can find us at middletownbaptistchurch.org or find us on Facebook or YouTube.

You can also email me directly at Josh Massaroiddletownbaptistchurch dot com if you've enjoyed this podcast, please subscribe and follow along for future podcast and updates.

Thank you so much.

God Bless.

Have a wonderful day.