Certain Hope
Series: EASTER DAY 2021
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 3rd April 2021
Passage: John 20:1-31
00:00:00 --> 00:00:02 Good morning, everyone.
00:00:02 --> 00:00:04 If I've met you before, my name is Steve.
00:00:05 --> 00:00:06 I'm the senior pastor here at St. Paul's.
00:00:08 --> 00:00:09 And I just want to say as I kick off,
00:00:09 --> 00:00:13 really grateful for those who do the translation work for me in advance,
00:00:14 --> 00:00:17 submit a sermon in advance so that they can do the translation
00:00:17 --> 00:00:21 so that those who are not as sharp with English
00:00:21 --> 00:00:23 or can't follow my English
00:00:23 --> 00:00:24 have got something in their own language.
00:00:26 --> 00:00:29 And so thank you, John, for this last week.
00:00:29 --> 00:00:32 Let me just say I've actually changed it since then,
00:00:33 --> 00:00:36 particularly the introduction bit mainly,
00:00:36 --> 00:00:38 mainly because I read something this morning
00:00:38 --> 00:00:40 which prompted my attention
00:00:40 --> 00:00:43 and I thought would be particularly useful for us this morning.
00:00:43 --> 00:00:46 So if you've got John chapter 20 open in front of you,
00:00:46 --> 00:00:47 that would be awesome.
00:00:48 --> 00:00:50 Also, there's St. Paul's app.
00:00:50 --> 00:00:53 You can download that and I've got an outline there for us.
00:00:54 --> 00:00:55 So here it is.
00:00:55 --> 00:00:57 Read this this morning in the Australian newspaper.
00:00:59 --> 00:01:03 Immortality has become the great question mark.
00:01:03 --> 00:01:06 The answer used to be provided at Easter
00:01:06 --> 00:01:10 with the Christian climax in the death by crucifixion
00:01:10 --> 00:01:11 followed by resurrection.
00:01:12 --> 00:01:14 The Jesus story wrestled with death,
00:01:15 --> 00:01:17 not being merely death.
00:01:18 --> 00:01:19 Today, however,
00:01:19 --> 00:01:24 the sacred meaning of Easter is little more than a dusty relic.
00:01:24 --> 00:01:26 For the secular modern age,
00:01:27 --> 00:01:31 belief in any form of life after death is in doubt.
00:01:32 --> 00:01:36 Most no longer believe in any form of supernatural being.
00:01:36 --> 00:01:40 God has become a figment of the archaic imagination.
00:01:40 --> 00:01:44 Gods of any type are mere alien superstitions
00:01:44 --> 00:01:49 held once upon a time by naive and even primitive ancestors.
00:01:50 --> 00:01:51 All in all,
00:01:51 --> 00:01:56 human consciousness has narrowed down to focus on mortal life.
00:01:56 --> 00:01:57 Here,
00:01:57 --> 00:01:58 now,
00:01:59 --> 00:02:01 and on this worldly plane.
00:02:02 --> 00:02:05 A finite span bound by death,
00:02:05 --> 00:02:07 by birth and death,
00:02:07 --> 00:02:11 and governed by everyday pleasures and pains.
00:02:12 --> 00:02:13 Well,
00:02:13 --> 00:02:15 it's Easter Day 2021
00:02:15 --> 00:02:17 in modern Australia,
00:02:17 --> 00:02:17 so,
00:02:18 --> 00:02:19 frankly,
00:02:19 --> 00:02:20 why are we here?
00:02:20 --> 00:02:23 If that article's true,
00:02:23 --> 00:02:24 why are you here?
00:02:25 --> 00:02:26 Why even bother?
00:02:26 --> 00:02:28 Why not just eat the chocolate,
00:02:28 --> 00:02:29 go out for breakfast,
00:02:29 --> 00:02:31 and get ready to head to the beach?
00:02:32 --> 00:02:33 Why bother even turning up?
00:02:34 --> 00:02:35 This article,
00:02:35 --> 00:02:36 and many like it,
00:02:36 --> 00:02:37 raises two big questions
00:02:37 --> 00:02:39 about Easter,
00:02:39 --> 00:02:40 and not just about Easter,
00:02:40 --> 00:02:41 but about the truth of Christianity.
00:02:42 --> 00:02:43 It's central,
00:02:43 --> 00:02:44 and the essential event
00:02:44 --> 00:02:46 of the death and resurrection of Jesus.
00:02:46 --> 00:02:47 The first question is,
00:02:48 --> 00:02:49 the truth question.
00:02:49 --> 00:02:50 The second question is,
00:02:50 --> 00:02:50 the meaning question.
00:02:51 --> 00:02:54 Whenever we talk about the resurrection of Jesus,
00:02:54 --> 00:02:56 the truth question and the meaning question
00:02:56 --> 00:02:57 are intertwined.
00:02:57 --> 00:02:59 They are deeply connected.
00:02:59 --> 00:03:00 The truth question,
00:03:00 --> 00:03:02 did it actually happen?
00:03:02 --> 00:03:03 The meaning question,
00:03:04 --> 00:03:06 who cares that it happened or not happened?
00:03:09 --> 00:03:11 Humanity rejects Easter,
00:03:11 --> 00:03:12 Christianity,
00:03:12 --> 00:03:14 the lordship of Jesus Christ,
00:03:14 --> 00:03:16 on both of those accounts.
00:03:17 --> 00:03:17 See,
00:03:17 --> 00:03:18 about 50 years ago,
00:03:19 --> 00:03:20 an article like that
00:03:20 --> 00:03:21 would not have appeared
00:03:21 --> 00:03:23 in an Australian newspaper.
00:03:23 --> 00:03:24 50 years ago,
00:03:24 --> 00:03:26 people lived with the assumption
00:03:26 --> 00:03:28 that there are universal laws
00:03:28 --> 00:03:29 that govern the universe.
00:03:30 --> 00:03:32 Resurrection was rejected
00:03:32 --> 00:03:33 on the basis
00:03:33 --> 00:03:35 of it not fitting
00:03:35 --> 00:03:37 into the common person's
00:03:38 --> 00:03:39 observable laws.
00:03:41 --> 00:03:42 That's now changed.
00:03:42 --> 00:03:44 Today,
00:03:44 --> 00:03:48 the assumption is that there is a personal law
00:03:48 --> 00:03:49 inside of me.
00:03:50 --> 00:03:51 Not a universal law,
00:03:51 --> 00:03:52 a personal law.
00:03:52 --> 00:03:54 It's called individualism.
00:03:55 --> 00:03:57 And one form of individualism
00:03:57 --> 00:03:59 is the personal law that says,
00:03:59 --> 00:04:03 I don't have to adapt my life
00:04:03 --> 00:04:05 to anything that I don't find
00:04:05 --> 00:04:07 personally helpful for me.
00:04:09 --> 00:04:10 Truth for me
00:04:10 --> 00:04:13 is what I find acceptable,
00:04:14 --> 00:04:14 helpful,
00:04:15 --> 00:04:15 useful,
00:04:16 --> 00:04:17 and affirming of me
00:04:17 --> 00:04:18 and my worldview.
00:04:18 --> 00:04:19 That's truth.
00:04:21 --> 00:04:22 So both questions.
00:04:24 --> 00:04:25 The truth question
00:04:25 --> 00:04:27 and the so what question
00:04:27 --> 00:04:29 are important to address
00:04:29 --> 00:04:31 at the same time
00:04:31 --> 00:04:32 and no more important
00:04:32 --> 00:04:33 than now
00:04:33 --> 00:04:35 on Easter Day.
00:04:35 --> 00:04:36 And so the next little while
00:04:36 --> 00:04:38 I'm going to briefly tackle
00:04:38 --> 00:04:39 those two questions
00:04:39 --> 00:04:42 and land with a third point.
00:04:42 --> 00:04:44 So I've got the truth question,
00:04:44 --> 00:04:45 the who cares question,
00:04:45 --> 00:04:47 and what it means for us
00:04:47 --> 00:04:47 on Easter Day
00:04:47 --> 00:04:49 to discover some certainty,
00:04:50 --> 00:04:51 certain hope.
00:04:51 --> 00:04:52 So the truth question.
00:04:53 --> 00:04:54 The great C.S. Lewis
00:04:54 --> 00:04:56 once wrote
00:04:56 --> 00:04:56 that in a world
00:04:56 --> 00:04:57 that was making
00:04:57 --> 00:04:58 rapid advancement
00:04:58 --> 00:05:00 in scientific understanding,
00:05:00 --> 00:05:01 he said,
00:05:01 --> 00:05:02 there's a great danger for us
00:05:02 --> 00:05:03 in our modern age
00:05:03 --> 00:05:04 of what he called
00:05:04 --> 00:05:06 a chronological snobbery.
00:05:07 --> 00:05:08 It's the assumption
00:05:08 --> 00:05:09 that any conclusion
00:05:09 --> 00:05:10 that's made
00:05:10 --> 00:05:11 from previous generations
00:05:11 --> 00:05:14 is fundamentally based
00:05:14 --> 00:05:14 on ignorance.
00:05:15 --> 00:05:16 for instance,
00:05:16 --> 00:05:18 chronological snobbery
00:05:18 --> 00:05:19 might lead
00:05:19 --> 00:05:20 some to conclude
00:05:20 --> 00:05:21 that the people
00:05:21 --> 00:05:23 around Jesus' time
00:05:23 --> 00:05:25 were just gullible,
00:05:25 --> 00:05:27 simple peasants
00:05:27 --> 00:05:28 who were just
00:05:28 --> 00:05:29 ignorant of reality
00:05:29 --> 00:05:31 and just believed anything.
00:05:32 --> 00:05:33 And yet that's not
00:05:33 --> 00:05:34 the picture we get
00:05:34 --> 00:05:34 when we look at
00:05:34 --> 00:05:35 John chapter 20.
00:05:35 --> 00:05:36 If you've got
00:05:36 --> 00:05:36 John chapter 20,
00:05:36 --> 00:05:38 open it up for me again.
00:05:39 --> 00:05:40 Look at the very first
00:05:40 --> 00:05:41 two verses there.
00:05:42 --> 00:05:43 Early on the first day
00:05:43 --> 00:05:44 of the week,
00:05:44 --> 00:05:45 while it was still dark,
00:05:45 --> 00:05:46 Mary Magdalene
00:05:46 --> 00:05:47 went to the tomb
00:05:47 --> 00:05:48 and saw that the stone
00:05:48 --> 00:05:49 had been removed
00:05:49 --> 00:05:50 from the entrance.
00:05:52 --> 00:05:52 And so she came
00:05:52 --> 00:05:54 running to Simon Peter
00:05:54 --> 00:05:56 and the other disciple,
00:05:56 --> 00:05:57 the one whom Jesus loved,
00:05:58 --> 00:05:58 and said,
00:05:59 --> 00:06:00 and notice what she says,
00:06:01 --> 00:06:03 they've taken the Lord
00:06:03 --> 00:06:04 out of the tomb
00:06:04 --> 00:06:05 and we don't know
00:06:05 --> 00:06:06 where they put him.
00:06:06 --> 00:06:09 Now you see,
00:06:09 --> 00:06:10 Jesus,
00:06:10 --> 00:06:11 a number of times
00:06:11 --> 00:06:14 before his execution,
00:06:15 --> 00:06:16 he said,
00:06:16 --> 00:06:17 I'm going to come back
00:06:17 --> 00:06:19 to life after they kill me.
00:06:20 --> 00:06:21 And yet,
00:06:21 --> 00:06:22 in this moment,
00:06:22 --> 00:06:23 this is not what Mary's expecting.
00:06:25 --> 00:06:27 One of his keenest followers
00:06:27 --> 00:06:28 doesn't come to the conclusion,
00:06:28 --> 00:06:32 he said he was going to rise.
00:06:35 --> 00:06:36 The first assumption here,
00:06:37 --> 00:06:38 somebody,
00:06:38 --> 00:06:39 whoever they is,
00:06:39 --> 00:06:41 somebody has taken
00:06:41 --> 00:06:42 the body,
00:06:43 --> 00:06:44 moved it.
00:06:45 --> 00:06:46 It's the same in verse 13.
00:06:47 --> 00:06:48 She was working on the assumption
00:06:48 --> 00:06:49 that most likely
00:06:49 --> 00:06:50 the Jewish leaders
00:06:50 --> 00:06:51 or the Romans
00:06:51 --> 00:06:51 or someone
00:06:51 --> 00:06:53 have taken the body
00:06:53 --> 00:06:54 and dumped it
00:06:54 --> 00:06:55 outside the city limits.
00:06:55 --> 00:06:56 That is,
00:06:57 --> 00:06:58 Mary,
00:06:59 --> 00:06:59 first century,
00:07:00 --> 00:07:01 gullible peasant,
00:07:01 --> 00:07:03 doesn't jump to the conclusion
00:07:03 --> 00:07:05 that Jesus is resurrected.
00:07:07 --> 00:07:08 Even Peter and John,
00:07:08 --> 00:07:10 two of the key followers of Jesus,
00:07:10 --> 00:07:12 didn't automatically
00:07:12 --> 00:07:13 jump to the conclusion
00:07:13 --> 00:07:14 that Jesus had been resurrected.
00:07:14 --> 00:07:15 Have a look at verse 8.
00:07:17 --> 00:07:17 Finally,
00:07:18 --> 00:07:18 the other disciple
00:07:18 --> 00:07:20 who had reached the tomb first
00:07:20 --> 00:07:22 also went inside.
00:07:23 --> 00:07:24 He saw
00:07:24 --> 00:07:25 and believed.
00:07:26 --> 00:07:27 But verse 9,
00:07:27 --> 00:07:28 they did not understand
00:07:28 --> 00:07:29 from scripture
00:07:29 --> 00:07:30 that Jesus had to rise
00:07:30 --> 00:07:31 from the dead.
00:07:31 --> 00:07:31 That is,
00:07:31 --> 00:07:33 they believed the testimony
00:07:33 --> 00:07:35 of what Mary had said,
00:07:35 --> 00:07:36 the tomb's empty.
00:07:36 --> 00:07:37 And so they believed that,
00:07:37 --> 00:07:38 but they had not yet
00:07:38 --> 00:07:39 come to the conclusion
00:07:39 --> 00:07:41 that Jesus had resurrected.
00:07:42 --> 00:07:43 This tells me
00:07:43 --> 00:07:44 that these early followers
00:07:44 --> 00:07:44 of Jesus
00:07:44 --> 00:07:46 were not gullible people.
00:07:46 --> 00:07:48 Jesus told them repeatedly
00:07:48 --> 00:07:49 that he would come back to life.
00:07:50 --> 00:07:51 But they weren't looking for it.
00:07:51 --> 00:07:54 And yet,
00:07:54 --> 00:07:56 what they were confronted with
00:07:56 --> 00:07:57 on that morning
00:07:57 --> 00:08:01 was a bodiless tomb.
00:08:03 --> 00:08:04 All the evidence
00:08:04 --> 00:08:06 pointed to a bodiless tomb.
00:08:06 --> 00:08:08 There was no body
00:08:08 --> 00:08:08 in the tomb.
00:08:09 --> 00:08:09 In fact,
00:08:09 --> 00:08:11 one of the great
00:08:11 --> 00:08:13 historical evidences
00:08:13 --> 00:08:14 of the resurrection
00:08:14 --> 00:08:17 is that to this day,
00:08:17 --> 00:08:19 no one can explain
00:08:19 --> 00:08:21 why the tomb was empty
00:08:21 --> 00:08:22 apart from a resurrection.
00:08:23 --> 00:08:24 To this day,
00:08:26 --> 00:08:27 historical evidence
00:08:27 --> 00:08:28 that tomb was empty
00:08:28 --> 00:08:30 and it still cannot be explained
00:08:30 --> 00:08:32 except for a resurrection.
00:08:33 --> 00:08:35 And even the enemies of Jesus
00:08:35 --> 00:08:37 could not produce the body.
00:08:37 --> 00:08:38 And if they could have,
00:08:38 --> 00:08:39 they would have ended
00:08:39 --> 00:08:42 this whole Christian movement thing
00:08:42 --> 00:08:43 within a day.
00:08:44 --> 00:08:44 Done.
00:08:45 --> 00:08:45 Finished.
00:08:46 --> 00:08:47 There's your Messiah.
00:08:48 --> 00:08:49 Right there.
00:08:53 --> 00:08:55 So what are some of the more
00:08:55 --> 00:08:57 modern explanations
00:08:57 --> 00:08:59 of an empty tomb?
00:08:59 --> 00:08:59 What are the ones
00:08:59 --> 00:09:01 people that have come up with
00:09:01 --> 00:09:02 more recently?
00:09:03 --> 00:09:04 Some have suggested,
00:09:04 --> 00:09:05 well, in actual fact,
00:09:05 --> 00:09:06 Jesus didn't really die.
00:09:06 --> 00:09:07 He was revived.
00:09:08 --> 00:09:08 You know,
00:09:08 --> 00:09:09 put in the coolness,
00:09:09 --> 00:09:10 of the,
00:09:10 --> 00:09:11 you know,
00:09:11 --> 00:09:11 tomb.
00:09:12 --> 00:09:13 He revived,
00:09:13 --> 00:09:14 moved the stone himself
00:09:14 --> 00:09:16 and disappeared
00:09:16 --> 00:09:18 in history somewhere.
00:09:21 --> 00:09:22 Of course,
00:09:22 --> 00:09:23 that doesn't come to grips
00:09:23 --> 00:09:24 with the actual
00:09:24 --> 00:09:25 horrible realities
00:09:25 --> 00:09:26 of crucifixion.
00:09:28 --> 00:09:29 The rigorous steps
00:09:29 --> 00:09:31 that Pilate
00:09:31 --> 00:09:32 and the leaders
00:09:32 --> 00:09:32 demanded
00:09:32 --> 00:09:33 to make sure
00:09:33 --> 00:09:34 that he was,
00:09:34 --> 00:09:34 in fact,
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 dead
00:09:35 --> 00:09:36 on the death,
00:09:36 --> 00:09:37 on the cross
00:09:37 --> 00:09:37 before they took
00:09:37 --> 00:09:38 his body down.
00:09:38 --> 00:09:39 And the steps
00:09:39 --> 00:09:41 that were also taken
00:09:41 --> 00:09:42 to make sure
00:09:42 --> 00:09:43 that no one
00:09:43 --> 00:09:44 got in
00:09:44 --> 00:09:44 or out
00:09:44 --> 00:09:45 of that tomb.
00:09:47 --> 00:09:48 Of course,
00:09:48 --> 00:09:49 that was never
00:09:49 --> 00:09:49 an argument
00:09:49 --> 00:09:50 that neither Jews
00:09:50 --> 00:09:51 or the Romans
00:09:51 --> 00:09:52 came up with.
00:09:53 --> 00:09:54 Neither of them
00:09:54 --> 00:09:55 came up.
00:09:55 --> 00:09:56 The actual people
00:09:56 --> 00:09:56 there at the time
00:09:56 --> 00:09:57 never came up
00:09:57 --> 00:09:58 with that as an argument.
00:10:00 --> 00:10:01 Some have suggested
00:10:01 --> 00:10:02 that the disciples
00:10:02 --> 00:10:03 of Jesus
00:10:03 --> 00:10:04 stole the body.
00:10:04 --> 00:10:06 if they did,
00:10:07 --> 00:10:08 then these guys
00:10:08 --> 00:10:09 began to risk
00:10:09 --> 00:10:09 their lives
00:10:09 --> 00:10:10 and, in fact,
00:10:10 --> 00:10:11 give their lives up
00:10:11 --> 00:10:12 for what they knew
00:10:12 --> 00:10:13 to be nothing more
00:10:13 --> 00:10:14 than an April Fool's joke.
00:10:16 --> 00:10:17 The fact is,
00:10:18 --> 00:10:19 these disciples
00:10:19 --> 00:10:20 were utterly
00:10:20 --> 00:10:21 dejected.
00:10:21 --> 00:10:22 They were terrified
00:10:22 --> 00:10:24 after the crucifixion
00:10:24 --> 00:10:25 of Jesus.
00:10:25 --> 00:10:26 They were scared
00:10:26 --> 00:10:27 that they were
00:10:27 --> 00:10:28 going to be treated
00:10:28 --> 00:10:29 in exactly the same
00:10:29 --> 00:10:30 way as Jesus.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:32 They feared
00:10:32 --> 00:10:33 for their lives.
00:10:33 --> 00:10:34 They did not have
00:10:34 --> 00:10:36 hope of a resurrection
00:10:36 --> 00:10:37 and they were ready
00:10:37 --> 00:10:38 to go back
00:10:38 --> 00:10:39 to fishing.
00:10:40 --> 00:10:41 They were hiding
00:10:41 --> 00:10:42 in a secluded room
00:10:42 --> 00:10:44 unwilling
00:10:44 --> 00:10:45 to believe
00:10:45 --> 00:10:46 the first reports
00:10:46 --> 00:10:48 of Jesus' appearance
00:10:48 --> 00:10:49 three days
00:10:49 --> 00:10:50 after he was executed.
00:10:51 --> 00:10:51 And yet,
00:10:52 --> 00:10:52 that bunch
00:10:52 --> 00:10:54 of cowards
00:10:54 --> 00:10:55 who deserted him
00:10:55 --> 00:10:56 with a matter
00:10:56 --> 00:10:57 of weeks,
00:10:57 --> 00:10:58 these same men
00:10:58 --> 00:10:59 were overflowing
00:10:59 --> 00:10:59 with joy
00:10:59 --> 00:11:00 and courage
00:11:00 --> 00:11:02 and they were
00:11:02 --> 00:11:02 not only just
00:11:02 --> 00:11:03 ready to die
00:11:03 --> 00:11:04 for Jesus
00:11:04 --> 00:11:04 but most of them
00:11:04 --> 00:11:05 did.
00:11:06 --> 00:11:08 This little band
00:11:08 --> 00:11:10 of ordinary believers
00:11:10 --> 00:11:12 changed the course
00:11:12 --> 00:11:13 of human history.
00:11:15 --> 00:11:15 They and those
00:11:15 --> 00:11:17 who came to believe
00:11:17 --> 00:11:17 through them
00:11:17 --> 00:11:19 loved and served
00:11:19 --> 00:11:20 their enemies
00:11:20 --> 00:11:22 and gave their lives
00:11:22 --> 00:11:22 to their enemies
00:11:22 --> 00:11:24 across the entire
00:11:24 --> 00:11:25 Roman Empire
00:11:25 --> 00:11:26 in such a way
00:11:26 --> 00:11:27 that the world
00:11:27 --> 00:11:28 was changed
00:11:28 --> 00:11:29 within three centuries.
00:11:30 --> 00:11:32 How?
00:11:33 --> 00:11:34 What happened?
00:11:35 --> 00:11:36 Their own
00:11:36 --> 00:11:38 explanation
00:11:38 --> 00:11:41 was that they
00:11:41 --> 00:11:42 saw Jesus
00:11:42 --> 00:11:43 alive
00:11:43 --> 00:11:44 after he was
00:11:44 --> 00:11:44 dead
00:11:44 --> 00:11:47 as Jesus
00:11:47 --> 00:11:48 had promised.
00:11:49 --> 00:11:49 Now there is
00:11:49 --> 00:11:50 far more
00:11:50 --> 00:11:51 historical
00:11:51 --> 00:11:52 and rational
00:11:52 --> 00:11:53 evidence
00:11:53 --> 00:11:54 than just that
00:11:54 --> 00:11:54 but
00:11:54 --> 00:11:56 much more
00:11:56 --> 00:11:57 that could be said
00:11:57 --> 00:11:59 except to say
00:11:59 --> 00:12:00 that doubting
00:12:00 --> 00:12:00 the resurrection
00:12:00 --> 00:12:01 of Jesus
00:12:01 --> 00:12:03 is a normal
00:12:03 --> 00:12:04 starting point
00:12:04 --> 00:12:05 and if that's
00:12:05 --> 00:12:06 you
00:12:06 --> 00:12:07 just out there
00:12:07 --> 00:12:07 on the table
00:12:07 --> 00:12:08 out in the atrium
00:12:08 --> 00:12:09 there is a book
00:12:09 --> 00:12:10 here called
00:12:10 --> 00:12:11 The Case for Easter
00:12:11 --> 00:12:13 there is a few
00:12:13 --> 00:12:13 copies out there
00:12:13 --> 00:12:14 if that's you
00:12:14 --> 00:12:15 and you are really
00:12:15 --> 00:12:15 wrestling with this
00:12:15 --> 00:12:17 take it as a gift
00:12:17 --> 00:12:17 and go
00:12:17 --> 00:12:18 read it
00:12:18 --> 00:12:18 please
00:12:18 --> 00:12:19 or come and speak
00:12:19 --> 00:12:20 to one of us
00:12:20 --> 00:12:20 we would love
00:12:20 --> 00:12:21 to have a chat
00:12:21 --> 00:12:22 with you about that.
00:12:22 --> 00:12:24 Strangely however
00:12:24 --> 00:12:26 in John 20
00:12:26 --> 00:12:27 the first person
00:12:27 --> 00:12:28 to doubt the
00:12:28 --> 00:12:28 resurrection
00:12:28 --> 00:12:29 verbally
00:12:29 --> 00:12:31 was not a person
00:12:31 --> 00:12:31 who was opposed
00:12:31 --> 00:12:32 to Christianity
00:12:32 --> 00:12:33 it's one of Jesus
00:12:33 --> 00:12:34 closest supporters
00:12:34 --> 00:12:35 a man named
00:12:35 --> 00:12:35 Thomas
00:12:35 --> 00:12:37 and Thomas
00:12:37 --> 00:12:38 is the most famous
00:12:38 --> 00:12:39 of all doubters
00:12:39 --> 00:12:40 in fact we have a saying
00:12:40 --> 00:12:41 in our culture
00:12:41 --> 00:12:42 to this day
00:12:42 --> 00:12:43 for the skeptic
00:12:43 --> 00:12:44 of any news
00:12:44 --> 00:12:45 ah you're just
00:12:45 --> 00:12:45 a doubting Thomas
00:12:45 --> 00:12:49 so for those of us
00:12:49 --> 00:12:50 who are struggling
00:12:50 --> 00:12:50 to understand
00:12:50 --> 00:12:51 or accept the
00:12:51 --> 00:12:52 resurrection
00:12:52 --> 00:12:54 you've got to
00:12:54 --> 00:12:54 ask yourself
00:12:54 --> 00:12:55 right now
00:12:55 --> 00:12:56 can Thomas
00:12:56 --> 00:12:56 help me
00:12:56 --> 00:12:59 if this is me
00:12:59 --> 00:12:59 now
00:12:59 --> 00:13:00 can Thomas
00:13:00 --> 00:13:00 help me here
00:13:00 --> 00:13:04 now we're told
00:13:04 --> 00:13:05 that Thomas
00:13:05 --> 00:13:06 was not there
00:13:06 --> 00:13:07 when Jesus
00:13:07 --> 00:13:08 first appeared
00:13:08 --> 00:13:08 to his disciples
00:13:08 --> 00:13:09 soon after
00:13:09 --> 00:13:10 he rose from the dead
00:13:10 --> 00:13:11 so have a look
00:13:11 --> 00:13:11 there
00:13:11 --> 00:13:12 verse 24
00:13:12 --> 00:13:13 so the other
00:13:13 --> 00:13:14 disciples told him
00:13:14 --> 00:13:15 we have seen
00:13:15 --> 00:13:16 the Lord
00:13:16 --> 00:13:17 but he said
00:13:17 --> 00:13:18 to them
00:13:18 --> 00:13:19 unless I see
00:13:19 --> 00:13:20 the nail marks
00:13:20 --> 00:13:21 in his hands
00:13:21 --> 00:13:22 and put my
00:13:22 --> 00:13:23 finger
00:13:23 --> 00:13:23 where the nails
00:13:23 --> 00:13:24 were
00:13:24 --> 00:13:25 and put my
00:13:25 --> 00:13:25 hand into
00:13:25 --> 00:13:26 his side
00:13:26 --> 00:13:28 I will
00:13:28 --> 00:13:29 not believe
00:13:29 --> 00:13:29 it
00:13:29 --> 00:13:32 in other words
00:13:32 --> 00:13:33 I will believe
00:13:33 --> 00:13:35 in Jesus
00:13:35 --> 00:13:36 if he
00:13:36 --> 00:13:37 shows himself
00:13:37 --> 00:13:38 to me
00:13:38 --> 00:13:40 his response
00:13:40 --> 00:13:41 to the news
00:13:41 --> 00:13:41 is absolute
00:13:41 --> 00:13:42 he makes
00:13:42 --> 00:13:43 his terms
00:13:43 --> 00:13:44 his demands
00:13:44 --> 00:13:45 in absolute
00:13:45 --> 00:13:45 terms
00:13:45 --> 00:13:47 unless I see
00:13:47 --> 00:13:47 I place
00:13:47 --> 00:13:48 my hands
00:13:48 --> 00:13:49 I will
00:13:49 --> 00:13:49 not believe
00:13:49 --> 00:13:52 he demands
00:13:52 --> 00:13:52 here in this
00:13:52 --> 00:13:53 moment
00:13:53 --> 00:13:54 exhaustive
00:13:54 --> 00:13:55 proof
00:13:55 --> 00:13:56 rather than
00:13:56 --> 00:13:58 sufficient
00:13:58 --> 00:13:58 evidence
00:13:58 --> 00:14:01 belief in
00:14:01 --> 00:14:01 Jesus
00:14:01 --> 00:14:02 belief in the
00:14:02 --> 00:14:02 resurrection
00:14:02 --> 00:14:03 comes down
00:14:03 --> 00:14:04 in the end
00:14:04 --> 00:14:05 as we see
00:14:05 --> 00:14:05 here with
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 Thomas
00:14:06 --> 00:14:07 not just
00:14:07 --> 00:14:08 to a matter
00:14:08 --> 00:14:09 of evidence
00:14:09 --> 00:14:10 but a battle
00:14:10 --> 00:14:11 of the will
00:14:11 --> 00:14:14 Thomas
00:14:14 --> 00:14:15 rejects
00:14:15 --> 00:14:16 the witness
00:14:16 --> 00:14:17 of 10
00:14:17 --> 00:14:18 of
00:14:18 --> 00:14:19 and more
00:14:19 --> 00:14:20 in fact
00:14:20 --> 00:14:20 more than
00:14:20 --> 00:14:20 10 of
00:14:20 --> 00:14:21 his trusted
00:14:21 --> 00:14:22 friends
00:14:22 --> 00:14:23 and he
00:14:23 --> 00:14:24 dictates
00:14:24 --> 00:14:24 in absolute
00:14:24 --> 00:14:25 terms
00:14:25 --> 00:14:26 to God
00:14:26 --> 00:14:27 about what's
00:14:27 --> 00:14:27 required
00:14:27 --> 00:14:27 for him
00:14:27 --> 00:14:28 to believe
00:14:28 --> 00:14:30 now we
00:14:30 --> 00:14:31 aren't told
00:14:31 --> 00:14:31 specifically
00:14:31 --> 00:14:33 in John
00:14:33 --> 00:14:34 20
00:14:34 --> 00:14:35 why Thomas
00:14:35 --> 00:14:36 was so
00:14:36 --> 00:14:36 skeptical
00:14:36 --> 00:14:38 so anything
00:14:38 --> 00:14:39 I say
00:14:39 --> 00:14:41 is speculation
00:14:41 --> 00:14:42 but I'm
00:14:42 --> 00:14:43 going to
00:14:43 --> 00:14:43 speculate
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 anyway
00:14:44 --> 00:14:46 because it
00:14:46 --> 00:14:46 might be
00:14:46 --> 00:14:46 helpful
00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 for us
00:14:47 --> 00:14:49 so let
00:14:49 --> 00:14:49 me
00:14:49 --> 00:14:49 speculate
00:14:49 --> 00:14:52 maybe it
00:14:52 --> 00:14:53 was his
00:14:53 --> 00:14:54 personality
00:14:54 --> 00:14:55 that's
00:14:55 --> 00:14:55 maybe why
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 he's doubting
00:14:56 --> 00:14:56 he's a
00:14:56 --> 00:14:57 personality
00:14:57 --> 00:14:57 thing
00:14:57 --> 00:14:58 maybe he
00:14:58 --> 00:14:59 was well
00:14:59 --> 00:14:59 you know
00:14:59 --> 00:14:59 one of
00:14:59 --> 00:14:59 those
00:14:59 --> 00:15:00 what the
00:15:00 --> 00:15:00 personality
00:15:00 --> 00:15:01 tests
00:15:01 --> 00:15:01 call a
00:15:01 --> 00:15:02 sensing
00:15:02 --> 00:15:02 person
00:15:02 --> 00:15:03 sensing
00:15:03 --> 00:15:04 people
00:15:04 --> 00:15:04 paying
00:15:04 --> 00:15:04 more
00:15:04 --> 00:15:05 attention
00:15:05 --> 00:15:05 to
00:15:05 --> 00:15:05 physical
00:15:05 --> 00:15:06 reality
00:15:06 --> 00:15:06 to
00:15:06 --> 00:15:07 facts
00:15:07 --> 00:15:07 to
00:15:07 --> 00:15:07 hard
00:15:07 --> 00:15:08 evidence
00:15:08 --> 00:15:08 the
00:15:08 --> 00:15:09 opposite
00:15:09 --> 00:15:09 is the
00:15:09 --> 00:15:10 intuitive
00:15:10 --> 00:15:10 person
00:15:10 --> 00:15:11 who
00:15:11 --> 00:15:11 goes
00:15:11 --> 00:15:12 on
00:15:12 --> 00:15:13 perceptions
00:15:13 --> 00:15:13 gut
00:15:13 --> 00:15:13 feel
00:15:13 --> 00:15:14 instincts
00:15:14 --> 00:15:16 that
00:15:16 --> 00:15:16 may be
00:15:16 --> 00:15:17 a
00:15:17 --> 00:15:17 personality
00:15:17 --> 00:15:18 thing
00:15:18 --> 00:15:20 another
00:15:20 --> 00:15:20 alternative
00:15:20 --> 00:15:21 is that
00:15:21 --> 00:15:21 he was
00:15:21 --> 00:15:22 skeptical
00:15:22 --> 00:15:24 about
00:15:24 --> 00:15:24 the
00:15:24 --> 00:15:25 supernatural
00:15:25 --> 00:15:26 unlikely
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 but
00:15:27 --> 00:15:27 possible
00:15:27 --> 00:15:29 you know
00:15:29 --> 00:15:29 dead people
00:15:29 --> 00:15:30 don't come
00:15:30 --> 00:15:30 back to
00:15:30 --> 00:15:30 life and
00:15:30 --> 00:15:31 that's
00:15:31 --> 00:15:31 it
00:15:31 --> 00:15:32 it's a
00:15:32 --> 00:15:32 common
00:15:32 --> 00:15:33 western
00:15:33 --> 00:15:33 view
00:15:33 --> 00:15:35 in fact
00:15:35 --> 00:15:35 it's
00:15:35 --> 00:15:36 primarily
00:15:36 --> 00:15:36 just a
00:15:36 --> 00:15:37 western
00:15:37 --> 00:15:37 view
00:15:37 --> 00:15:37 a very
00:15:37 --> 00:15:37 small
00:15:37 --> 00:15:38 minority
00:15:38 --> 00:15:38 of our
00:15:38 --> 00:15:39 world
00:15:39 --> 00:15:39 have
00:15:39 --> 00:15:39 that
00:15:39 --> 00:15:39 view
00:15:39 --> 00:15:42 and
00:15:42 --> 00:15:42 Thomas
00:15:42 --> 00:15:43 wasn't
00:15:43 --> 00:15:43 a
00:15:43 --> 00:15:44 westerner
00:15:44 --> 00:15:44 so it's
00:15:44 --> 00:15:45 unlikely
00:15:45 --> 00:15:47 what we
00:15:47 --> 00:15:47 tend to
00:15:47 --> 00:15:48 think when
00:15:48 --> 00:15:48 we come
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 to this
00:15:49 --> 00:15:49 text
00:15:49 --> 00:15:50 as
00:15:50 --> 00:15:51 westerners
00:15:51 --> 00:15:52 we assume
00:15:52 --> 00:15:53 that
00:15:53 --> 00:15:54 Thomas's
00:15:54 --> 00:15:55 doubting
00:15:55 --> 00:15:56 here is
00:15:56 --> 00:15:56 an
00:15:56 --> 00:15:56 intellectual
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 one
00:15:57 --> 00:16:00 but
00:16:00 --> 00:16:01 skepticism
00:16:01 --> 00:16:01 is
00:16:01 --> 00:16:02 not
00:16:02 --> 00:16:02 simply
00:16:02 --> 00:16:03 intellectual
00:16:03 --> 00:16:07 so let
00:16:07 --> 00:16:07 me
00:16:07 --> 00:16:07 speculate
00:16:07 --> 00:16:10 imagine
00:16:10 --> 00:16:11 for
00:16:11 --> 00:16:11 instance
00:16:11 --> 00:16:12 that
00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 someone
00:16:13 --> 00:16:13 very
00:16:13 --> 00:16:13 close
00:16:13 --> 00:16:14 to
00:16:14 --> 00:16:14 you
00:16:14 --> 00:16:14 is
00:16:14 --> 00:16:14 dying
00:16:14 --> 00:16:16 in fact
00:16:16 --> 00:16:16 some
00:16:16 --> 00:16:16 of you
00:16:16 --> 00:16:16 may
00:16:16 --> 00:16:17 not
00:16:17 --> 00:16:17 even
00:16:17 --> 00:16:18 need
00:16:18 --> 00:16:18 to
00:16:18 --> 00:16:18 imagine
00:16:18 --> 00:16:19 much
00:16:19 --> 00:16:21 and you
00:16:21 --> 00:16:22 finally
00:16:22 --> 00:16:22 accepted
00:16:22 --> 00:16:23 that
00:16:23 --> 00:16:23 all
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 hope
00:16:24 --> 00:16:24 of
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 recovery
00:16:25 --> 00:16:26 is
00:16:26 --> 00:16:26 lost
00:16:26 --> 00:16:27 and
00:16:27 --> 00:16:27 your
00:16:27 --> 00:16:28 loved
00:16:28 --> 00:16:28 one
00:16:28 --> 00:16:28 is
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 going
00:16:29 --> 00:16:29 to
00:16:29 --> 00:16:29 die
00:16:29 --> 00:16:33 it's
00:16:33 --> 00:16:33 shocking
00:16:33 --> 00:16:34 news
00:16:34 --> 00:16:36 and
00:16:36 --> 00:16:36 then
00:16:36 --> 00:16:36 all
00:16:36 --> 00:16:36 of
00:16:36 --> 00:16:36 a
00:16:36 --> 00:16:37 sudden
00:16:37 --> 00:16:37 someone
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 says
00:16:38 --> 00:16:40 comes
00:16:40 --> 00:16:40 in
00:16:40 --> 00:16:40 with
00:16:40 --> 00:16:40 some
00:16:40 --> 00:16:41 new
00:16:41 --> 00:16:41 news
00:16:41 --> 00:16:43 there's
00:16:43 --> 00:16:43 a
00:16:43 --> 00:16:43 possible
00:16:43 --> 00:16:44 cure
00:16:44 --> 00:16:44 in
00:16:44 --> 00:16:44 a
00:16:44 --> 00:16:44 clinic
00:16:44 --> 00:16:45 on
00:16:45 --> 00:16:45 the
00:16:45 --> 00:16:45 other
00:16:45 --> 00:16:45 side
00:16:45 --> 00:16:45 of
00:16:45 --> 00:16:45 the
00:16:45 --> 00:16:46 world
00:16:46 --> 00:16:48 and
00:16:48 --> 00:16:48 you
00:16:48 --> 00:16:48 had
00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 there
00:16:49 --> 00:16:49 a
00:16:49 --> 00:16:49 hope
00:16:49 --> 00:16:49 of
00:16:49 --> 00:16:50 recovery
00:16:50 --> 00:16:52 there's
00:16:52 --> 00:16:53 a
00:16:53 --> 00:16:53 hope
00:16:53 --> 00:16:53 of
00:16:53 --> 00:16:53 recovery
00:16:53 --> 00:16:54 here
00:16:54 --> 00:16:57 then
00:16:57 --> 00:16:57 your
00:16:57 --> 00:16:57 hopes
00:16:57 --> 00:16:58 are
00:16:58 --> 00:16:58 dashed
00:16:58 --> 00:16:59 when
00:16:59 --> 00:17:00 you
00:17:00 --> 00:17:00 realize
00:17:00 --> 00:17:00 that
00:17:00 --> 00:17:00 you're
00:17:00 --> 00:17:00 going
00:17:00 --> 00:17:01 to
00:17:01 --> 00:17:01 die
00:17:01 --> 00:17:05 and
00:17:05 --> 00:17:05 with
00:17:05 --> 00:17:05 the
00:17:05 --> 00:17:05 news
00:17:05 --> 00:17:05 of
00:17:05 --> 00:17:06 a
00:17:06 --> 00:17:06 possible
00:17:06 --> 00:17:07 cure
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 most
00:17:08 --> 00:17:08 people
00:17:08 --> 00:17:09 in
00:17:09 --> 00:17:09 that
00:17:09 --> 00:17:09 moment
00:17:09 --> 00:17:10 don't
00:17:10 --> 00:17:10 go
00:17:10 --> 00:17:12 fantastic
00:17:12 --> 00:17:15 you've
00:17:15 --> 00:17:15 gotten
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 used to
00:17:16 --> 00:17:16 the fact
00:17:16 --> 00:17:16 that you're
00:17:16 --> 00:17:16 going to
00:17:16 --> 00:17:16 die
00:17:16 --> 00:17:17 most
00:17:17 --> 00:17:17 people
00:17:17 --> 00:17:17 do
00:17:17 --> 00:17:17 not
00:17:17 --> 00:17:17 go
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 fantastic
00:17:18 --> 00:17:19 news
00:17:19 --> 00:17:20 most
00:17:20 --> 00:17:20 people
00:17:20 --> 00:17:21 cannot
00:17:21 --> 00:17:22 bear
00:17:22 --> 00:17:22 the
00:17:22 --> 00:17:23 concept
00:17:23 --> 00:17:24 of
00:17:24 --> 00:17:24 their
00:17:24 --> 00:17:24 hopes
00:17:24 --> 00:17:25 being
00:17:25 --> 00:17:25 raised
00:17:25 --> 00:17:26 only
00:17:26 --> 00:17:26 to be
00:17:26 --> 00:17:27 dashed
00:17:27 --> 00:17:27 again
00:17:27 --> 00:17:30 most
00:17:30 --> 00:17:30 people
00:17:30 --> 00:17:30 do
00:17:30 --> 00:17:30 not
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 step
00:17:31 --> 00:17:31 out
00:17:31 --> 00:17:31 in
00:17:31 --> 00:17:31 hope
00:17:31 --> 00:17:33 for
00:17:33 --> 00:17:33 fear
00:17:33 --> 00:17:33 of
00:17:33 --> 00:17:34 losing
00:17:34 --> 00:17:35 again
00:17:35 --> 00:17:39 and
00:17:39 --> 00:17:39 maybe
00:17:39 --> 00:17:40 this
00:17:40 --> 00:17:40 is
00:17:40 --> 00:17:40 what's
00:17:40 --> 00:17:40 happening
00:17:40 --> 00:17:40 with
00:17:40 --> 00:17:41 Thomas
00:17:41 --> 00:17:44 there
00:17:44 --> 00:17:44 is
00:17:44 --> 00:17:44 no
00:17:44 --> 00:17:45 indication
00:17:45 --> 00:17:46 in
00:17:46 --> 00:17:46 the
00:17:46 --> 00:17:46 New
00:17:46 --> 00:17:46 Testament
00:17:46 --> 00:17:47 at
00:17:47 --> 00:17:47 all
00:17:47 --> 00:17:48 up
00:17:48 --> 00:17:48 until
00:17:48 --> 00:17:48 this
00:17:48 --> 00:17:49 point
00:17:49 --> 00:17:49 that
00:17:49 --> 00:17:50 Thomas
00:17:50 --> 00:17:50 did
00:17:50 --> 00:17:51 not
00:17:51 --> 00:17:51 love
00:17:51 --> 00:17:51 Jesus
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 as
00:17:52 --> 00:17:52 much
00:17:52 --> 00:17:52 as
00:17:52 --> 00:17:52 the
00:17:52 --> 00:17:52 other
00:17:52 --> 00:17:53 disciples
00:17:53 --> 00:17:56 no
00:17:56 --> 00:17:56 reason
00:17:56 --> 00:17:56 to
00:17:56 --> 00:17:57 believe
00:17:57 --> 00:17:57 that
00:17:57 --> 00:17:57 he
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 wasn't
00:17:58 --> 00:17:58 as
00:17:58 --> 00:17:59 devastated
00:17:59 --> 00:17:59 as
00:17:59 --> 00:17:59 the
00:17:59 --> 00:18:00 other
00:18:00 --> 00:18:00 disciples
00:18:00 --> 00:18:01 at
00:18:01 --> 00:18:01 the
00:18:01 --> 00:18:01 execution
00:18:01 --> 00:18:02 of
00:18:02 --> 00:18:02 Jesus
00:18:02 --> 00:18:04 and
00:18:04 --> 00:18:04 now
00:18:04 --> 00:18:05 they
00:18:05 --> 00:18:05 come
00:18:05 --> 00:18:05 along
00:18:05 --> 00:18:05 and
00:18:05 --> 00:18:06 say
00:18:06 --> 00:18:06 hey
00:18:06 --> 00:18:06 Thomas
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 in
00:18:07 --> 00:18:08 his
00:18:08 --> 00:18:08 grief
00:18:08 --> 00:18:09 hey
00:18:09 --> 00:18:10 Thomas
00:18:10 --> 00:18:11 good
00:18:11 --> 00:18:11 news
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 he's
00:18:12 --> 00:18:13 alive
00:18:13 --> 00:18:18 and
00:18:18 --> 00:18:18 so
00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 maybe
00:18:19 --> 00:18:19 Thomas
00:18:19 --> 00:18:19 in
00:18:19 --> 00:18:19 this
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 moment
00:18:20 --> 00:18:20 in
00:18:20 --> 00:18:20 the
00:18:20 --> 00:18:20 upper
00:18:20 --> 00:18:20 room
00:18:20 --> 00:18:20 is
00:18:20 --> 00:18:21 don't
00:18:21 --> 00:18:21 you
00:18:21 --> 00:18:22 dare
00:18:22 --> 00:18:22 get
00:18:22 --> 00:18:22 my
00:18:22 --> 00:18:22 hopes
00:18:22 --> 00:18:23 up
00:18:23 --> 00:18:24 don't
00:18:24 --> 00:18:24 you
00:18:24 --> 00:18:25 dare
00:18:25 --> 00:18:25 get
00:18:25 --> 00:18:25 my
00:18:25 --> 00:18:25 hopes
00:18:25 --> 00:18:26 up
00:18:26 --> 00:18:27 I'm
00:18:27 --> 00:18:27 just
00:18:27 --> 00:18:27 coming
00:18:27 --> 00:18:28 to
00:18:28 --> 00:18:28 terms
00:18:28 --> 00:18:28 with
00:18:28 --> 00:18:28 the
00:18:28 --> 00:18:29 fact
00:18:29 --> 00:18:29 he's
00:18:29 --> 00:18:29 dead
00:18:29 --> 00:18:32 maybe
00:18:32 --> 00:18:32 he
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 was
00:18:33 --> 00:18:33 afraid
00:18:33 --> 00:18:34 to
00:18:34 --> 00:18:34 hope
00:18:34 --> 00:18:36 in
00:18:36 --> 00:18:36 the
00:18:36 --> 00:18:36 same
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 way
00:18:37 --> 00:18:37 that
00:18:37 --> 00:18:37 many
00:18:37 --> 00:18:37 in
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 our
00:18:38 --> 00:18:38 world
00:18:38 --> 00:18:38 are
00:18:38 --> 00:18:38 afraid
00:18:38 --> 00:18:39 to
00:18:39 --> 00:18:39 hope
00:18:39 --> 00:18:41 it
00:18:41 --> 00:18:41 may
00:18:41 --> 00:18:42 be
00:18:42 --> 00:18:42 our
00:18:42 --> 00:18:43 narrow
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 secular
00:18:44 --> 00:18:44 western
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 worldview
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 that
00:18:46 --> 00:18:47 says
00:18:47 --> 00:18:47 it
00:18:47 --> 00:18:48 cannot
00:18:48 --> 00:18:48 happen
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 I
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 have
00:18:50 --> 00:18:50 no
00:18:50 --> 00:18:50 hope
00:18:50 --> 00:18:52 it
00:18:52 --> 00:18:52 might
00:18:52 --> 00:18:52 be
00:18:52 --> 00:18:52 a
00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 personality
00:18:53 --> 00:18:53 thing
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00:28:23 --> 00:28:23 how
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00:28:24 --> 00:28:24 that
00:28:24 --> 00:28:24 you
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 believe
00:28:25 --> 00:28:25 actually
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 happened
00:28:26 --> 00:28:26 in
00:28:26 --> 00:28:26 world
00:28:26 --> 00:28:27 history
00:28:27 --> 00:28:28 that
00:28:28 --> 00:28:28 you
00:28:28 --> 00:28:28 actually
00:28:28 --> 00:28:28 didn't
00:28:28 --> 00:28:29 see
00:28:29 --> 00:28:31 how
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00:28:32 --> 00:28:32 of
00:28:32 --> 00:28:32 it
00:28:32 --> 00:28:36 all
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00:28:36 --> 00:28:37 it
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00:28:39 --> 00:28:39 of
00:28:39 --> 00:28:39 it
00:28:39 --> 00:28:44 we
00:28:44 --> 00:28:44 actually
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 believe
00:28:45 --> 00:28:46 eyewitness
00:28:46 --> 00:28:46 testimony
00:28:46 --> 00:28:47 that has
00:28:47 --> 00:28:47 been
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 written
00:28:48 --> 00:28:48 down
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00:28:48 --> 00:28:49 historically
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 reliable
00:28:50 --> 00:28:50 authors
00:28:50 --> 00:28:51 and so
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 why
00:28:52 --> 00:28:52 is it
00:28:52 --> 00:28:53 that we
00:28:53 --> 00:28:53 don't
00:28:53 --> 00:28:53 do it
00:28:53 --> 00:28:53 with
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 Jesus
00:28:54 --> 00:28:57 why
00:28:57 --> 00:28:58 because
00:28:58 --> 00:28:58 it's not
00:28:58 --> 00:28:58 about
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 historical
00:28:59 --> 00:28:59 evidence
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 it's about
00:29:00 --> 00:29:00 a battle
00:29:00 --> 00:29:00 of the
00:29:00 --> 00:29:00 will
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 and who's
00:29:01 --> 00:29:01 in
00:29:01 --> 00:29:01 control
00:29:01 --> 00:29:01 of
00:29:01 --> 00:29:01 my
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 life
00:29:02 --> 00:29:05 we
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 don't
00:29:06 --> 00:29:06 need
00:29:06 --> 00:29:06 to know
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 anything
00:29:07 --> 00:29:07 more
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 than
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 what
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 is
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 written
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 in
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 John's
00:29:09 --> 00:29:09 gospel
00:29:09 --> 00:29:09 or
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 any
00:29:10 --> 00:29:10 of
00:29:10 --> 00:29:10 the
00:29:10 --> 00:29:10 other
00:29:10 --> 00:29:11 biographies
00:29:11 --> 00:29:11 of
00:29:11 --> 00:29:11 Jesus
00:29:11 --> 00:29:11 to
00:29:11 --> 00:29:12 see
00:29:12 --> 00:29:12 and
00:29:12 --> 00:29:12 believe
00:29:12 --> 00:29:13 and so
00:29:13 --> 00:29:13 give
00:29:13 --> 00:29:14 it
00:29:14 --> 00:29:14 a
00:29:14 --> 00:29:14 read
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 get
00:29:15 --> 00:29:18 yourself
00:29:18 --> 00:29:18 immersed
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 in it
00:29:19 --> 00:29:19 and
00:29:19 --> 00:29:20 see
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 read
00:29:21 --> 00:29:21 them
00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 as
00:29:22 --> 00:29:22 eyewitness
00:29:22 --> 00:29:23 accounts
00:29:23 --> 00:29:23 and
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 think
00:29:24 --> 00:29:27 the
00:29:27 --> 00:29:27 second
00:29:27 --> 00:29:28 thing
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 that we
00:29:29 --> 00:29:29 need to
00:29:29 --> 00:29:29 do
00:29:29 --> 00:29:30 to
00:29:30 --> 00:29:30 move
00:29:30 --> 00:29:30 from
00:29:30 --> 00:29:31 doubt
00:29:31 --> 00:29:31 into
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00:29:32 --> 00:29:32 of
00:29:32 --> 00:29:33 certain
00:29:33 --> 00:29:33 hope
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00:29:34 --> 00:29:34 to
00:29:34 --> 00:29:35 drop
00:29:35 --> 00:29:35 our
00:29:35 --> 00:29:36 conditions
00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 every
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 single
00:29:38 --> 00:29:38 one
00:29:38 --> 00:29:38 of
00:29:38 --> 00:29:39 us
00:29:39 --> 00:29:39 moves
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 towards
00:29:40 --> 00:29:40 Jesus
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 with
00:29:41 --> 00:29:41 a
00:29:41 --> 00:29:41 set
00:29:41 --> 00:29:41 of
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00:29:42 --> 00:29:43 no
00:29:43 --> 00:29:44 one
00:29:44 --> 00:29:44 ever
00:29:44 --> 00:29:45 goes
00:29:45 --> 00:29:45 to
00:29:45 --> 00:29:45 Jesus
00:29:45 --> 00:29:45 just
00:29:45 --> 00:29:46 because
00:29:46 --> 00:29:46 he
00:29:46 --> 00:29:46 is
00:29:46 --> 00:29:47 awesome
00:29:47 --> 00:29:47 and
00:29:47 --> 00:29:47 he's
00:29:47 --> 00:29:47 great
00:29:47 --> 00:29:48 and
00:29:48 --> 00:29:48 he's
00:29:48 --> 00:29:48 the
00:29:48 --> 00:29:48 saver
00:29:48 --> 00:29:48 of
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 humanity
00:29:49 --> 00:29:49 just
00:29:49 --> 00:29:50 purely
00:29:50 --> 00:29:50 on
00:29:50 --> 00:29:50 those
00:29:50 --> 00:29:50 terms
00:29:50 --> 00:29:52 no
00:29:52 --> 00:29:52 one
00:29:52 --> 00:29:53 goes
00:29:53 --> 00:29:53 to him
00:29:53 --> 00:29:53 purely
00:29:53 --> 00:29:53 on
00:29:53 --> 00:29:53 his
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 sake
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 we
00:29:55 --> 00:29:55 always
00:29:55 --> 00:29:56 move
00:29:56 --> 00:29:56 towards
00:29:56 --> 00:29:56 him
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 because
00:29:57 --> 00:29:57 we
00:29:57 --> 00:29:57 want
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 something
00:29:58 --> 00:29:58 which
00:29:58 --> 00:29:58 means
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 we
00:29:59 --> 00:29:59 have
00:29:59 --> 00:29:59 conditions
00:29:59 --> 00:30:00 I've
00:30:00 --> 00:30:00 known
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 people
00:30:01 --> 00:30:01 who
00:30:01 --> 00:30:01 have
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 refused
00:30:02 --> 00:30:02 to
00:30:02 --> 00:30:02 make
00:30:02 --> 00:30:02 any
00:30:02 --> 00:30:03 move
00:30:03 --> 00:30:03 towards
00:30:03 --> 00:30:04 Jesus
00:30:04 --> 00:30:04 because
00:30:04 --> 00:30:04 it
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 would
00:30:05 --> 00:30:05 mean
00:30:05 --> 00:30:05 that
00:30:05 --> 00:30:06 they
00:30:06 --> 00:30:06 would
00:30:06 --> 00:30:06 need
00:30:06 --> 00:30:06 to
00:30:06 --> 00:30:06 repair
00:30:06 --> 00:30:07 a
00:30:07 --> 00:30:07 relationship
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 that's
00:30:08 --> 00:30:08 gone
00:30:08 --> 00:30:08 wrong
00:30:08 --> 00:30:08 and
00:30:08 --> 00:30:08 they
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 don't
00:30:09 --> 00:30:09 want
00:30:09 --> 00:30:09 to
00:30:09 --> 00:30:09 repair
00:30:09 --> 00:30:09 it
00:30:09 --> 00:30:10 it
00:30:10 --> 00:30:10 would
00:30:10 --> 00:30:10 mean
00:30:10 --> 00:30:10 they
00:30:10 --> 00:30:10 have
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 to
00:30:11 --> 00:30:11 change
00:30:11 --> 00:30:11 a
00:30:11 --> 00:30:11 habit
00:30:11 --> 00:30:11 and
00:30:11 --> 00:30:12 they
00:30:12 --> 00:30:12 don't
00:30:12 --> 00:30:12 want
00:30:12 --> 00:30:12 to
00:30:12 --> 00:30:12 change
00:30:12 --> 00:30:12 that
00:30:12 --> 00:30:13 habit
00:30:13 --> 00:30:13 it
00:30:13 --> 00:30:13 means
00:30:13 --> 00:30:13 to
00:30:13 --> 00:30:14 confess
00:30:14 --> 00:30:15 sin
00:30:15 --> 00:30:15 and
00:30:15 --> 00:30:15 they
00:30:15 --> 00:30:16 love
00:30:16 --> 00:30:16 it
00:30:16 --> 00:30:18 and
00:30:18 --> 00:30:18 that's
00:30:18 --> 00:30:18 all
00:30:18 --> 00:30:19 of
00:30:19 --> 00:30:19 us
00:30:19 --> 00:30:21 we
00:30:21 --> 00:30:22 all
00:30:22 --> 00:30:22 come
00:30:22 --> 00:30:22 with
00:30:22 --> 00:30:22 yeah
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 Jesus
00:30:23 --> 00:30:23 I
00:30:23 --> 00:30:23 know
00:30:23 --> 00:30:23 you're
00:30:23 --> 00:30:24 offering
00:30:24 --> 00:30:24 me
00:30:24 --> 00:30:24 eternal
00:30:24 --> 00:30:25 life
00:30:25 --> 00:30:25 it
00:30:25 --> 00:30:25 sounds
00:30:25 --> 00:30:26 fantastic
00:30:26 --> 00:30:26 but
00:30:26 --> 00:30:26 frankly
00:30:26 --> 00:30:27 I
00:30:27 --> 00:30:27 don't
00:30:27 --> 00:30:27 want
00:30:27 --> 00:30:27 it
00:30:27 --> 00:30:27 to
00:30:27 --> 00:30:28 disrupt
00:30:28 --> 00:30:28 my
00:30:28 --> 00:30:28 family
00:30:28 --> 00:30:29 I
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 don't
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 want
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 it
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 to
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 hurt
00:30:29 --> 00:30:30 my
00:30:30 --> 00:30:30 career
00:30:30 --> 00:30:30 and
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 I
00:30:31 --> 00:30:31 don't
00:30:31 --> 00:30:31 want
00:30:31 --> 00:30:31 it
00:30:31 --> 00:30:31 to
00:30:31 --> 00:30:31 interrupt
00:30:31 --> 00:30:32 my
00:30:32 --> 00:30:32 long
00:30:32 --> 00:30:32 weekends
00:30:32 --> 00:30:38 we
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 need
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 to
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 drop
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 our
00:30:38 --> 00:30:39 conditions
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 because
00:30:40 --> 00:30:40 every
00:30:40 --> 00:30:41 condition
00:30:41 --> 00:30:41 says
00:30:41 --> 00:30:41 I
00:30:41 --> 00:30:41 will
00:30:41 --> 00:30:42 love
00:30:42 --> 00:30:42 you
00:30:42 --> 00:30:42 Jesus
00:30:42 --> 00:30:43 if
00:30:43 --> 00:30:44 and
00:30:44 --> 00:30:44 that
00:30:44 --> 00:30:45 if
00:30:45 --> 00:30:46 is
00:30:46 --> 00:30:46 life
00:30:46 --> 00:30:47 changing
00:30:47 --> 00:30:51 Jesus
00:30:51 --> 00:30:52 did
00:30:52 --> 00:30:52 not
00:30:52 --> 00:30:52 do
00:30:52 --> 00:30:52 that
00:30:52 --> 00:30:52 for
00:30:52 --> 00:30:53 us
00:30:53 --> 00:30:53 he
00:30:53 --> 00:30:53 loved
00:30:53 --> 00:30:54 us
00:30:54 --> 00:30:55 unconditionally
00:30:55 --> 00:30:55 the
00:30:55 --> 00:30:55 death
00:30:55 --> 00:30:55 of
00:30:55 --> 00:30:55 Jesus
00:30:55 --> 00:30:56 was
00:30:56 --> 00:30:56 no
00:30:56 --> 00:30:56 accident
00:30:56 --> 00:30:57 of
00:30:57 --> 00:30:57 history
00:30:57 --> 00:30:58 Jesus
00:30:58 --> 00:30:58 died
00:30:58 --> 00:30:58 he
00:30:58 --> 00:30:59 rose
00:30:59 --> 00:30:59 to
00:30:59 --> 00:30:59 redeem
00:30:59 --> 00:30:59 us
00:30:59 --> 00:31:00 and
00:31:00 --> 00:31:00 to
00:31:00 --> 00:31:00 reclaim
00:31:00 --> 00:31:00 us
00:31:00 --> 00:31:00 to
00:31:00 --> 00:31:01 our
00:31:01 --> 00:31:01 creator
00:31:01 --> 00:31:01 God
00:31:01 --> 00:31:02 it
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 was
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 all
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 of
00:31:02 --> 00:31:03 God's
00:31:03 --> 00:31:03 plan
00:31:03 --> 00:31:03 it
00:31:03 --> 00:31:04 is
00:31:04 --> 00:31:04 a
00:31:04 --> 00:31:04 plan
00:31:04 --> 00:31:04 that
00:31:04 --> 00:31:04 is
00:31:04 --> 00:31:05 historically
00:31:05 --> 00:31:06 reliable
00:31:06 --> 00:31:07 and
00:31:07 --> 00:31:08 experientially
00:31:08 --> 00:31:09 satisfying
00:31:09 --> 00:31:10 as we
00:31:10 --> 00:31:10 navigate
00:31:10 --> 00:31:11 life
00:31:11 --> 00:31:12 historically
00:31:12 --> 00:31:13 reliable
00:31:13 --> 00:31:13 and
00:31:13 --> 00:31:14 experientially
00:31:14 --> 00:31:14 satisfying
00:31:14 --> 00:31:15 as we
00:31:15 --> 00:31:16 navigate
00:31:16 --> 00:31:16 life
00:31:16 --> 00:31:17 God
00:31:17 --> 00:31:18 has
00:31:18 --> 00:31:18 brought
00:31:18 --> 00:31:18 you
00:31:18 --> 00:31:18 here
00:31:18 --> 00:31:19 this
00:31:19 --> 00:31:20 Easter
00:31:20 --> 00:31:20 make
00:31:20 --> 00:31:21 no
00:31:21 --> 00:31:21 mistake
00:31:21 --> 00:31:22 God
00:31:22 --> 00:31:22 has
00:31:22 --> 00:31:22 brought
00:31:22 --> 00:31:23 you
00:31:23 --> 00:31:23 here
00:31:23 --> 00:31:23 this
00:31:23 --> 00:31:24 Easter
00:31:24 --> 00:31:24 for
00:31:24 --> 00:31:25 this
00:31:25 --> 00:31:25 message
00:31:25 --> 00:31:26 for
00:31:26 --> 00:31:26 this
00:31:26 --> 00:31:27 bit
00:31:27 --> 00:31:27 of
00:31:27 --> 00:31:27 the
00:31:27 --> 00:31:27 Bible
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 for
00:31:28 --> 00:31:28 this
00:31:28 --> 00:31:28 story
00:31:28 --> 00:31:29 of
00:31:29 --> 00:31:29 the
00:31:29 --> 00:31:29 resurrection
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 of
00:31:30 --> 00:31:30 Jesus
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 for
00:31:31 --> 00:31:31 this
00:31:31 --> 00:31:31 eyewitness
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 account
00:31:32 --> 00:31:33 so that
00:31:33 --> 00:31:33 you might
00:31:33 --> 00:31:33 believe
00:31:33 --> 00:31:34 in
00:31:34 --> 00:31:34 Jesus
00:31:34 --> 00:31:35 and have
00:31:35 --> 00:31:35 certain
00:31:35 --> 00:31:35 life
00:31:35 --> 00:31:36 of
00:31:36 --> 00:31:37 immortality
00:31:37 --> 00:31:39 life
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 forever
00:31:40 --> 00:31:40 with joy
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 as Jesus
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 himself
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 is alive
00:31:43 --> 00:31:43 forever
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 in joy
00:31:44 --> 00:31:55 in a moment