[00:09] Speaker 1: (organ playing)

[05:50] Speaker 2: (instrumental music)

[06:09] Speaker 3: (music)

[09:35] Speaker 3: This joyful, this joyful Eastertide away with sin and sorrow. My love, my crucified has sprung to life this morrow. And Christ that once was slain, slain, slain in prison, our faith had been in vain. But now has Christ arisen. Arisen. Arisen. Arisen. Arisen. But now has Christ arisen. (music) Praise God's name forever and ever, praise his name all ye peoples rise, standing mighty, suffering dying on the cross for sin we'll rise. Here creating, life partaking, crowned with glory, his people taking. God's love to us he gave, how great his love, his love for me. He died, he lives, he loves me. He died, he lives, he loves me. He died, he lives, he loves me. For God so loved the world, that who could not see by reason's clear that to him who loves us, he gave his only son. And whosoever shall call upon his name, thus saving his own shall be saved. And saved, yes, and saved through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (applause) Christ alone, Christ alone, God of grace is all our righteousness.

[12:27] Speaker 3: Be our Savior, as forever, set us free from our distress. Through His merit we inherit life and peace and happiness. Sin's dark scandal, clearly delivered, Christ has crushed the serpent's head. Death no longer is the stronger, hell itself is trampled dead. Christ has risen from death's prison, for the soul He died has said. Glory be His Name, oh praise forever, unto God the highest King. Praise the Savior, praise Him ever, Son of God and Man and King. Praise the Spirit, through Christ's prayer, be the voice salvation brings. Amen.

[15:01] Speaker 4: The one who receives our praise both now and forever is here in this place and He greets you with these words, "Grace, mercy, and peace be unto you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, through the mighty and transforming work of the Holy Spirits." Friends, Christ is risen.

[15:23] Speaker 5: He is risen indeed. Hallelujah.

[15:34] Speaker 4: We welcome all of you to worship here this morning, on this Sunday morning. Whether you are here in the sanctuary or whether you're watching online, we're glad that you've joined us in worship, and we extend, especially, a welcome to anyone who is visiting among us. We extend a welcome as well to our guest preacher this morning who is no stranger to us, David Bass. Welcome back to the pulpit. Dave is the former president of Words of Hope and also one of our former interim ministers, so we're- we're glad to have you back again today. And we also draw your attention to the events happening following the service during the 10:00 hour, there's a page for that in the Bolton, and we invite you to check that out and to see if you can plug into one of those opportunities. We have given God praise and honor and glory already. We realize how great and wonderful He is, and when we think about that and compare that with ourselves, we realize that we don't measure up to that standard.

[16:39] Speaker 4: We hear those words from First John that call us into a time of confession this morning. There, from First John One, we read these words, "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just, and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." With that beautiful promise before us, let us go to God in a time of confession. We'll pray this responsibly as you find it in the bulletin. Almighty God, You raised Jesus from the grave and crowned Him Lord of all.

[17:26] Speaker 5: We confess that we have not bowed before Him or acknowledged His rule in our lives. We have gone along with the way of the world and failed to give Him glory.

[17:41] Speaker 4: Forgive us, oh God, and raise us from our sin that we may be people who acknowledge You as Lord of our lives. (clears throat)

[18:19] Speaker 3: He is Lord, He is Lord. He is risen from the dead, He is Lord. Great things He hath taught us to remember, so let us not forget. His wondrous love in His word, so let us not desert. For He is our God, our strength and song, therefore we will be still. He is Lord, He is Lord. He is risen from the dead, He is Lord. Great things He hath taught us to remember, so let us not desert. For He is our God, our strength and song, therefore we will be still.

[18:29] Speaker 6: ... Christ is rose.

[18:37] Speaker 4: Hear this good news also from First John that reminds us that having confessed our sins we are also forgiven of our sins. "This is how God showed His love among us. He sent His one and only son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love. Not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." Thanks be to God.

[19:11] Speaker 6: (cheerful music) Christ the Lord is risen again. Christ has broken every chain. Hark, angelic voices cry. Singing ever more alive. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. He who gave for us His life. Who for us endured the strife. His own pass'ning now to die. We too sing for joy on Babel's high. He who o'er all pain and loss. Conquered death upon the cross. His glory now unbind. Lives for us and hears our cry. He who slumbered in the grave. Is exalted now to save. Now the Christendom it craves. Let all that is hear the sound. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. (trumpet music) Lo, the paschal lamb appear. Christ, our ransomed people feed. Take my sins and guilt away. Let us sing by night and day. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.

[22:06] Speaker 4: I wanna invite the children to come forward for the children's message. I have some things to share with you. Come on forward. Have a seat up front. Come on down. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Got some more coming up the side. Good morning. Here they come. Good morning. Come join us. All right. Well, I have some things here in my bag that I wanna show you this morning, and let's see what they are. I have... I've got some silk lilies. Okay? Silk lilies. (smacks lips) I have an egg and this egg is yellow and it says hope on it. And I have a blue egg, that one says joy on it. And I have a green egg, and the green egg says faith on it. And I got one more thing. I've got a cross in here and the cross says, when I turn it sideways, it says, "He is risen." He is risen. Now, here's my question for you. Who can raise their hand and tell me what holiday are all these decorations for? What are they for? They're for Easter. Exactly. Now, I have another question for you.

[24:07] Speaker 4: Who can raise their hand and tell me when was Easter? When was Easter? Keisha?

[24:14] Speaker 3: Um, last Sunday.

[24:16] Speaker 4: Perfect. Easter was last Sunday. So some people might say to me, "Chad, you should take your Easter decorations and put them away. Easter was last Sunday."However, in the church, we celebrate Easter for several Sundays. That's why the colors are still white up here and the banners, with all their sparkles up there, that's why they're still up there. The cross is still up here with its white 'cause we celebrate Easter for several Sundays. And that makes sense, because when the angel saw the women at the tomb, the angel said, "Jesus is not here. He is risen, just as he said." He said, "Go se- tell the disciples." It's such good news that he had to go, they wanted the women to go tell them. Now, let's count how many Sundays we celebrate Easter in the church. Get your hands. Can you count with me on your hands? If you get your hand, okay? All right. Let's count. All right? Okay, here goes. Ready? One, that's last Sunday, when it was Easter. Okay? All right. Two, that's today. All right?

[25:23] Speaker 4: Three.

[25:24] Speaker 7: One, two, three.

[25:25] Speaker 4: Four.

[25:26] Speaker 7: Three, four.

[25:26] Speaker 4: Yep, that's two Sundays from now. Five.

[25:30] Speaker 7: One, two.

[25:30] Speaker 4: That's five Sundays of Easter. And six.

[25:33] Speaker 7: Six.

[25:33] Speaker 4: We don't celebrate Easter for one Sunday, we celebrate it for ...

[25:38] Speaker 7: Six.

[25:38] Speaker 4: Six Sundays, 'cause it's such good news. Okay? We celebrate it for six Sundays because it's such good news. And because it's such good news, you can do what the women were told to do too. They were told to go tell people that Jesus is risen. You can tell people that too, 'cause we can celebrate Easter for six Sundays in church. Okay? For six Sundays. All right. We're gonna do God's blessing for you today but there's no children's worship so you're gonna go back to your seats. I know that might be kind of a bummer. All right? Back to sit with your parents. But before you go, before you go, we gotta do God's blessing. All right? Okay. Congregation, what is our prayer for these children?

[26:17] Speaker 7: The Lord be with you.

[26:18] Speaker 4: Also-

[26:19] Speaker 7: And also with you.

[26:19] Speaker 4: All right. Back to your seats. Before we go to God in prayer this morning, one additional announcement that's not in the, the prayer requests in the bulletin, and that is that our, um, Mexico City team who went on the mission trip pass, past week has returned home. They came home at 1:00 this morning, made it to Grand Rapids at 1:00 AM. I haven't seen any of them yet. I'm not surprised by that. Um, but they had a great week. God was faithful to them, keeping them safe and allowing them to minister at a VBS and to visit ministry sites and to pray with them. God blessed them richly. And in three weeks, on May 2, during the 10:00 hour, we will have the opportunity to hear more about their work. So we invite you to join us during the 10:00 hour on May 2. Our prayer this morning will be prayed in three parts. Prayers for our world, prayers for our community, and then prayers for our church.

[27:46] Speaker 4: And we will sing words from Psalm 17 at the conclusion of each of those sections, but we'll also begin our time of prayer in song.

[27:57] Speaker 3: (piano music plays) I call on you, my God. To you I make my plea. Incline your ear and hear my prayer. For you will answer me.

[28:44] Speaker 4: Father, we come to you this morning, thankful that as we call to you, you turn your ear towards us and that you hear our prayers. We are amazed at your omnipresence, that as you hear our prayers, you also hear the prayers from others all over the world at the very same time. And so we lift before you the needs of the worldwide Church Father, including those who are persecuted for their faith, those who are in prison, those worshiping in underground churches, those whose lives are at risk simply because they name Jesus as Lord. Father of mercies, help these brothers and sisters in Christ to walk so closely in step with you that their persecutors will wonder what's different about them, what brings them unwavering hope, the hope that is grounded in Jesus' resurrection over the grave. We also pray, O Lord, for peace in our world, peace that will last and peace that will offer freedom for all.

[29:56] Speaker 4: We pray for an end to the conflicts in the Middle East, in Ukraine, in Sudan, and in other places around the world. Grant wisdom and humility, O God, to the leaders in all the countries who in, who are involved in these conflicts. By your Spirit, bend their hearts to your will and to your ways. Father, we also lift before you Steve and Kristin Zahnen, our missionaries who oversee Resonite's Europe team. Father, equip them in the work they do, especially as they seek to support Kelsey, a new missionary in France.And Father, we lift before You our Mexico City mission team. Father, thank You for keeping them safe. Thank You for a wonderful week. Thank You for the seeds that they planted with the people they interacted with as well as the seeds that were planted in their home- own work, in their own hearts. Father, continue to use them as they have returned now and to continue to do Your kingdom work. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

[31:05] Speaker 3: My God, You I love. To You, I bring my need. Incline Your ear and hear my prayer. For You will answer me.

[31:39] Speaker 4: Gracious God, we also lift before You the Church of Jesus Christ in our community and in our neighborhood. We give You thanks for ministries that seek to show the wonders of Your great love to our neighbors. Pour out Your blessing, oh God, on Dégagé, Guiding Lights, Mel Trotter, and God's Kitchen. We praise You for needs that are met, for hope that is renewed, and for lives that are transformed by the Gospel through these ministries. We also ask for wisdom as we continue to work on partnerships with the Estay Building next door. Father of compassion, we also give You thanks for the partnership we have with the Downtown Food Pantry at Westminster. Use that ministry in mighty ways, oh God, not only to provide for physical needs but also to show the love of Jesus Christ to all who pass through its doors. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

[32:39] Speaker 3: My God, You I love. To You, I bring my need. Incline Your ear and hear my prayer. For You will answer me.

[33:13] Speaker 4: Holy Father, we also lift before You needs in our own church family. We think of Ellen Decker and Bill Stroh, both who face surgeries tomorrow. Go before them and provide success, Father, for the healing that is needed. We pray for Jack VanSledwight. We pray for healing for- from the blood clots and for wisdom for doctors going forward. Father, we pray that You would hide them all in the shadow of Your wings. And Father of mercies, we also lift before You those who have continuing needs. You know exactly what those needs are even at this very moment. And so we lift before You Jodelle Balutis, Sandy Beutter, Chloe Ann Danford, Sander Distrempas, Sandy Gronsmann, and Carol Hoffman. We pray for Sip Hutton, Larry Kirkstra, Harris Kiecover, Dorothy Undersma, and Steve Palazzolo. And we remember Richard and Mawani Postma, Caleb Van Den Berg, Millie Vriend, and Joyce Zwiers. Father, be a refuge from whatever foe they may be facing this day.

[34:25] Speaker 4: And Father, as we think of the names that are in the fishbowl in our library, those who don't know Christ, those who are wandering from the faith, those who have left the faith, Father, show them each the wonders of Your great love. And for all of us individually and for us as a congregation, we pray that You would send a fresh outpouring of Your Holy Spirit to renew our hearts and our minds, that we would hunger and thirst for You, the only one who truly satisfies. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.

[35:04] Speaker 3: My God, You I love. To You, I bring my need. Incline Your ear and hear my prayer. For You will answer me.

[36:44] Speaker 8: (music)

[42:09] Speaker 9: Friends, the Lord be with you.

[42:13] Speaker 3: And also with you.

[42:14] Speaker 9: Ah, (clears throat) you know, I don't disagree with Chad. I, I would never disagree with Chad.

[42:20] Speaker 3: (laughs)

[42:21] Speaker 9: And he's right. Eastertide is six Sundays through the 50 days from Easter to Pentecost. But it, it's also true that we celebrate Easter for 52 Sundays a year. In fact, the reason we're here today on the Lord's Day instead of gathering yesterday on the Sabbath is because Christ rose from the dead. So here we are and, uh-I've been thinking a little bit this morning about a conversation I had, I'm gonna guess about 53 years ago, with one of my professors at Hope College, a wonderful guy, faithful Christian, a Calvin grad, CRC, uh, who said to me one day, we were chatting in his office, and he said to me one day, "You know, does it really matter whether or not Christ rose from the dead? I mean, literally rose from the dead? It is kinda hard to believe, um, certainly unique (laughs) if it did happen.

[43:39] Speaker 9: Isn't it enough that he died for us, you know, and that his memory lives on and it influences us?" I don't know how I responded, I don't remember that part, uh, way back then as a 20 or 21-year-old, but this is how Paul responds to that idea. Does it really matter? So our scripture today, uh, comes from First Corinthians chapter 15, the great resurrection chapter, uh, beginning at verse 12. Would you pray with me? Lord, we're listening now. We ask you to speak. Please use my words. If there's anything not good about them, let them be forgotten. Help me to be a faithful and true witness, and help us all to listen, uh, with open hearts and to respond in obedience and faith. We pray it in Jesus' name. Amen.

[44:49] Speaker 3: Amen.

[44:51] Speaker 9: Just o- one word of introduction. So if you're familiar with First Corinthians, you know this was a church with a lot of problems. They had moral issues, they had social, uh, discord, uh, and they also had some theological problems, chief of which was, uh, ideas surrounding the resurrection of the body, and there were some in the congregation who simply didn't believe that. We don't know exactly why, we don't have their side of the story. It may have been, uh, that they were materialists. Such people existed in the ancient world, people who believed, like moderns, that there's nothing other than this world and its material reality, and that when you're dead, you're dead. Uh, they may have been Greek dualists, body-soul types, also very common. I mean, it's the American way basically. When you die, your soul goes up to heaven. Everybody's soul goes up to heaven, more or less. Uh, that's grandpa up there when the ballplayer crosses home plate and points up, you know?

[46:01] Speaker 9: And your body falls away because your body doesn't matter. But whatever they were, some of them denied the resurrection, and this is how Paul responds to them. Very logical. Y- you're gonna have to think a little bit this morning and follow along. So he begins in verse 12. "But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead," the apostolic message, "how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there's no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that He raised Christ from the dead, but He did not raise Him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile. You are still in your sins.

[47:18] Speaker 9: Then those also who've fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep." This is the word of the Lord.

[47:43] Speaker 3: Thanks be to God.

[47:47] Speaker 9: So let's begin by being clear on one important thing. Christianity is not a philosophy. It's not a religion per se. It's not a set of beliefs and behaviors for worshiping God. It's not a moral code. It may involve any or all of those things, but it is first and foremost a claim that something happened. Something happened. Th- There's a wonderful, uh, pair of verses in Paul's letter to Titus where he uses the word epiphany two times, once in chapter two, once in chapter three, and the word epiphany, that's a season of the church year too, you recognize that, but it literally means appeared. Something appeared. So in, in Titus 2, Paul says, "The grace of God appeared, teaching us to say no to ungodliness." And in chapter three, "When the loving kindness and goodness of God appeared, He saved us."What does he mean by that? Abstractions like goodness and kindness and grace don't appear. People appear.

[49:07] Speaker 9: What he means is that Jesus came, and when Jesus came into the world, it was God taking on human flesh to rescue us from sin. Something happened. So here in First Corinthians 15, Paul opens the chapter in verse three by repeating the basic apostolic creed: Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, he was buried, he rose again on the third day according to the scriptures. Those are historic claims. And Paul joins with the other apo- "I delivered to you what I also received." Uh, the word in Latin that translates that Greek word for delivered is traditio, "I handed onto you what was handed to me." There's no such thing as a non-traditional Christian. We are all traditional Christians. We've received something and we pass it on. And that something is the basic fact that Jesus died and rose bodily on the third day. So Paul, um, does this wonderful thing here in trying to help the Corinthians realize the importance of this. How can some of you deny the resurrection?

[50:47] Speaker 9: If you den- think about this, if you deny the resurrection, then even Christ can't have been raised, and if Christ hasn't been raised, what does that do? What difference does that make to us? Uh, a lot of years ago now, I picked up a book that intrigued me. The title of it was What If, and what it was, was a collection of essays by historians, uh, engaging in, w- apparently historians have free time on their hands and they don't have a lot of other hobbies, so they, they engage in writing little essays on counter factual history. That's what, what they call it. Y- you know, what if some great event had turned out differently, would tha- what difference would that have made to the course of human events? Like, what if the Confederates had won the Battle of Gettysburg and ended up gaining their independence? You know, that sort of thing. And that's exactly the rhetorical device that Paul uses here. What if Christ has not been raised? Then what?

[52:01] Speaker 9: How would that change the course of our Christian faith and Christian life? And he goes on to list in rapid succession six things, six points, folks, six. Like hammer blows, one after another, after another, after another. Number one, verse 14, if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless, or futile, or empty. The word he uses there, uh, means, um, w- with no substance, nothing to it, it's like a shell with no nut inside, because the apostles, uh, Paul supremely did not come proclaiming some idea. Uh, they were not teachers, they were preachers, they were heralds announcing good news of a great thing that happened. "I did not come to you," Paul said, uh, earlier in, in this very letter, uh, w- with this, that, or the other thing, "I determined to know nothing among you but Jesus Christ and him crucified." That is the gospel. Oh, you foolish Galatians, before whom Christ was p- was proclaimed as crucified, crucified, dead, buried, and risen again.

[53:41] Speaker 9: That's the apostolic message. And if it isn't true, then all their preaching was just hot air. (laughs) There was nothing to it. Number two, still in verse 14, if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. Your faith is no more good to you than our preaching if our message isn't true. Later on in verse 17, he'll say it's futile. Your faith is futile. Here's the thing about faith, (laughs) and again, if you stop and think about it for just a minute, you'll see that this is true, we're not saved by our faith, we're saved by the object of our faith. We're saved by what our faith is in, or rather, whom our faith is in. And if our faith is faith in something that isn't true, it's of no use whatsoever. In fact, it, it can do more harm than good.You go to the doctor, the doctor makes a diagnosis, he gives you a prescription. He tells you you need to go get this medication and that medication, then you need to do this and that, and you faithfully follow it.

[55:21] Speaker 9: You do exactly as the doctor says, and you don't get any better, because he missed the diagnosis. None of it was true. So, you can believe as hard as you want, but if you're putting your faith in a mistake or an illusion, it's not gonna work. Number three, verse 15. "More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that He raised Christ from the dead, but He did not raise Him if in fact the dead are not raised." I mean, how many times can Paul say this, right? But there's a big one, don't trust the New Testament, because the New Testament is essentially the record of the apostolic witness from beginning to end. Every single book in it comes from either the pen of an apostle like Paul or the circle of an apostle and his disciples and followers preserving their eyewitness accounts. And if it's not true, well, that's a serious thing, because then they're not simply wrong, they have been, as one translation puts it, misrepresenting God.

[57:06] Speaker 9: They have borne false testimony. They are false witnesses. And that's literally the word Paul uses here, pseudomartyres. Martyr, of course, the Greek word for witness. Pseudomartyres. That's the very word in Matthew 26 used of the people who came forward and falsely accused Jesus of doing this or that crime so that He could be condemned to death. And Paul compares himself to them. I mean, you can't believe anything they said. You can't take any of it as true. They're like a phony research scientist who cooks up data in order to support (laughs) the, uh, the project he's working on. You gotta throw it all out. One of the things that never fails to get my goat is people who say, "Well, I don't believe, you know, the Christian faith, but I like Jesus. I like..." Which is to say they reject Matthew 28 and its account of the resurrection, but they like Matthew 5 through 7, The Sermon on the Mount. They like the teaching of Jesus.

[58:25] Speaker 9: And I wanna say to them, "Well, how c- how c- how can you believe that's the tea- teaching of Jesus?" It's a testimony of a false witness. If they made up the resurrection, they must've made this up too. I- I- I love the story (laughs) that I read. I- I laugh because Betty Jo always rolls her eyes at me when I tell this. She doesn't think it's that great, but I do. It's the story of the curate's egg. It's English. You know what a curate is? It's a junior, very junior minister. So the story is that a new curate came into the diocese, was assigned to a church, and the bishop invited him for breakfast in order to get to know him. So he went to the bishop's pa- palace and sat down at the breakfast table, and they're having breakfast, and the bishop's wife, to her horror, realizes that the soft-oiled boiled egg she served him has gone bad.

[59:29] Speaker 9: (laughs) And she apologizes frantically, and the young curate, stammering, replies, "No, no, I assure you, madam, parts of it were quite good."

[59:41] Speaker 10: (laughs)

[59:42] Speaker 9: Yeah, the curate's egg. Uh, uh, that's like the New Testament. Parts of it are quite good. No, no. It's either all good or it's all bad. Either we accept it as the testimony of Jesus' chosen eyewitnesses, uniquely endowed by the Holy Spirit with the authority to tell of His words and deeds, and their meaning, and we accept that, and like the early church, we devote ourselves to the apostles' teaching. Or we throw the whole thing out. If Christ has not been raised, we are false witnesses. Paul gives it to us straight. So there it is, if Christ hasn't been raised, the first three, their preaching is useless, your faith and my faith are useless, because faith is only as good as the, that in which it's placed, and the New Testament is useless. We have no faith. We have nothing to believe. And then Paul goes on, number four.Verse 17. "If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile," worthless, "and you are still in your sins." There's no forgiveness.

[01:01:23] Speaker 9: (laughs) The only reason we know that Christ's death has atoning significance is because God raised him from the dead. The resurrection is the Father's stamp of approval on the Son's declaration, "It is finished." And if Jesus is dead in a ditch somewhere, we have no reason to believe his death is anything more than another of the enumerable instances of Roman injustice and brutality. The only reason we have for claiming the blood of Christ as a covering for our sins and his righteousness as the garment in which by faith we are clad in the eyes of God is because the Father raised the Son to glory and said "yes" to the Son's obedient sacrifice. And if that didn't happen, folks, the guilt is an insoluble problem. There's no way to deal with the guilt you feel. You can confess your sins all day, all you want, they won't do any good, because they are inescapable, and we are bound in them and dragged down by them. I mean, try therapy. Uh, that's about it. Or ignore it somehow.

[01:03:03] Speaker 9: Just stay online and play more games, try not to think about it. Number five. Verse 18. This is the hardest of all, I think. "Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost." The word Paul uses is perished. They've perished. They're just gone, and there's nothing more to be said. You know, Chad and I were chatting before the service, and he mentioned that there were 44 funerals in this congregation last year, and Chad led most of them, the people that he had called on, uh, gotten to know, prayed with, wept with, shared hope with. And if Christ hasn't been raised, there is no hope. I'm sorry. I mean, Paul's a pretty straight shooter. Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang. No faith, nothing to believe in, nothing to trust, nothing to follow, nothing to hope for. Number six. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. Because we've given our lives then to a delusion, and we really have no mission (laughs) to the world.

[01:05:03] Speaker 9: I mean, what a mistake to try to convince someone to believe this if it isn't true, if it never happened, if somehow the apostles were sitting around, or the disciples, on Holy Saturday night, and one of 'em says, "Hey, I got an idea. Let's steal Jesus' body and then pretend we saw him, and then go out and tell the whole world, try to get them to believe it." Really? (laughs) Seriously? No, we are of all people most to be pitied. The great Presbyterian theologian B.B. Warfield said, "If, if this isn't true, then the great commission is a crime against humanity, and it's marked by the needless suffering and bloodshed of the martyrs down through the ages." But, I love this. It's one of Paul's great flip-the-script verses, starting with the word "but." (laughs) We were dead in trespasses and sins, but God made you alive in Christ. By grace you have been saved.

[01:06:23] Speaker 9: We were speechless before the judgment of God, but now a, a different righteousness has been made available by God through faith in Christ. The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life. So here it comes. "But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who've fallen asleep." So there's our hope. He's the first fruits. He's the first apple in the bushel basket. There's many more to come. This glorious harvest of the saints will come when he returns. And the dead haven't perished. They're with him now.They're with the Lord, (laughs) Paul says, and Christ will bring them with him on the day of his return. Then we have forgiveness, our sins have been atoned for, guilt forever done away with, then we have a reliable Bible and we have a message to believe, and our faith isn't empty and useless, our faith unites us with Christ so that he is in us and we are in him.

[01:07:47] Speaker 9: So last Sunday, I didn't get to sing Christ the Lord is Risen Today, which bummed me out, but we were in Portland visiting our daughter and her family, uh, and we love them dearly, and we love their church, it's, you know, Contempo, uh-

[01:08:04] Speaker 3: (laughs)

[01:08:05] Speaker 9: ... so I asked Chad when he was planning the service, "Could we please sing Christ the Lord is Risen Today?" It's too good to just sing once, once a year. But something did happen that put me in an Easter mood. We were on our way to church last Sunday morning, and, um, we passed one of those guys standing on the corner with a cardboard sign. Portland has a lot of them, by the way. Did I mention we were in Portland, Oregon? I'd never seen a sign like this before, though. Didn't say, "Anything helps," "God bless you," "Hungry?" "Homeless?" No, this guy's holding a sign on which he had written, "I need a miracle." And I turned to the rest of us in the car and said, "Did you see that? I need a miracle?" And then I, "As do we all." (laughs) And nine-year-old Teddy piped up from the backseat, "But we got a miracle, and we're gonna get another one." Amen to that.

[01:09:15] Speaker 3: Amen.

[01:09:16] Speaker 9: Christ is risen.

[01:09:17] Speaker 3: Christ is risen indeed, hallelujah.

[01:09:22] Speaker 9: Lord Jesus, we worship you, risen, glorified, at the right hand of the Father, indeed interceding for us. We pray your blessing on us and those whom we love, we pray that we may be faithful witnesses, and we ask this to the glory of your name. Amen. (organ music)

[01:09:56] Speaker 3: (organ music) Christ the Lord is risin today, Alleluia! All creation joins to say, Alleluia! Praise

[01:12:55] Speaker 3: the voice and join the sky, Alleluia! Sing, oh heavens, and earth reply, Alleluia! Once redeemed, now the earth His son, Alleluia! Born the fight, the battle won, Alleluia! Death in vain for Him survives, Alleluia! Christ has opened Paradise, Alleluia! Praise again, oh glorious King, Alleluia! Where, oh, death, is now your sting? Alleluia! Soar we now where light's hast led, Alleluia!

[01:13:20] Speaker 9: Alma mater playing ] Friends, let us say what we believe using the words of The Apostles Creed. I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord. Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to hell. On the third day, He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty. From there, He will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. Now, may the Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His favor shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord turn His countenance toward you and give you peace. And may the grace of our Lord, Jesus, be with us all.

[01:15:12] Speaker 9: Amen Alma mater

[01:15:39] Speaker 9: playing

[01:19:33] Speaker 11: (organ music)