As we behold the celebration of what has been called ‘Easter Sunday’ (More accurately “The Last / True Passover”) which is the commemoration of what has been known as the ‘resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead’; let us enjoy and rejoice about Jesus Who has provided for each one who has believed in Him, a new spectacular relationship with God His Father, which is PERFECT, totally because of the work of Jesus ALONE! Let us make the connection with this fact to our ongoing theme of the year, which is about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ according to Jesus Himself as He stated to His first disciples in John 13:35, which is our annual theme of “Learning to love like Jesus”. “By this shall all men know that you are My disciples if ye have love one to another” Last week’s message prepares for today’s topic which we have called: “Power Over Death Provided For You”
Old Testament Scripture Reading: Hosea 13:9 – 14 (KJV)
Hos 13:9 O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help.
Hos 13:10 I will be thy king: where is any other that may save thee in all thy cities? and thy judges of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and princes?
Hos 13:11 I gave thee a king in mine anger, and took him away in my wrath.
Hos 13:12 The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is hid.
Hos 13:13 The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: he is an unwise son; for he should not stay long in the place of the breaking forth of children.
Hos 13:14 I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.
New Testament Scripture Reading: 1Corinthians 15:51 – 58 (KJV)
1Co 15:51 Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
1Co 15:54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
1Co 15:55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
1Co 15:56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
1Co 15:57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
1Co 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.
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Transforming Power Statements:
1) This is the season in which we take a deep look at the masterful plan of Almighty God Who boasts about the powerful miracle of His tremendous victory over our most devastating and fearful enemy, which is death, which also is the most heartbreaking thing we must endure during this life, and it is the thing we hate the very most!
2) Without having faith in God’s power and ability to conquer this most oppressive and ruthless cruel perpetrator, who was given authority to steal and retain the soul of everyone who sins against God, we as human beings are left with an emptiness of the soul and torture of the soul that is truly overwhelming and nearly impossible to cope with!
3) However, Jesus the Only-begotten Son of God is the one and only one Who has come into this life legally for the exact purpose of fulfilling every word that was promised by God from eternity past, and especially to publicly demonstrate for all men of all of time that Death has been DEFEATED BECAUSE HE LIVES! And so shall we if WE BELIEVE IN HIM!