Hymn of Heaven

In 1922 Egyptologist Howard Carter was given a one-year ultimatum. For 30 years he had been searching for tombs among the pyramids in ancient Egypt. However, on November 4, 1922, Carter’s waterboy stumbled upon dust-covered steps which indeed led to the tomb of the boy king of Egypt.

Here’s the account of the moment he entered the tomb: Carter’s hands were trembling when he exposed the tomb. He said, “At first I could see nothing, the hot air escaping from the chamber causing the candle flame to flicker,” Carter later wrote, “but presently, as my eyes grew accustomed to the light, details of the room within emerged slowly from the mist, strange animals, statues, and gold — everywhere the glint of gold.” Carter was dumbstruck with amazement, prompting the impatient Lord Carnarvon to ask, “Can you see anything?” The gaping archaeologist eventually composed himself enough to reply, “Yes, wonderful things!”

Can you imagine? They celebrated a full tomb! But, ladies and gentlemen, we are here today to celebrate the empty tomb of the Lord Jesus Christ! As the video portrays this morning, HE IS STILL RISEN!

I am here today to espouse my belief in Jesus Christ.

….testimony…

but not all believe that Jesus Christ is Lord and King.

Question is: Do you believe?

1 Tim. 3:16: a 1st Century Hymn-

Ephesians 2:14-16; Philippians 2:6-11; Colossians 1:15-20; 1 Timothy 3:16, and 1 Peter 3:18-22..

hymns-

-from 1st Century witnesses

-predate their inclusion in Scripture

-reveal 1st C belief in Jessu

This hymn has been called Paul’s “How Great Thou Art” and is the high point of this letter. He’s saying that how you behave (15) is connected to what you believe (16).

Verse 1- the revelation of Jesus

manifest in flesh

justified in Spirit

verse 2- the proclamation of Jesus

seen of angels

preached unto the Gentiles

verse 3- the reception of Jesus

believed on in the world

received up into Glory

versse one- revelation of Jesus Christ

JESUS CHRIST CAME IN THE FLESH

We know that Jesus actually lived:

39 sources outside of the Bible prove that Jesus actually lived…in other words, for 2,000 years it has been proven that He lived…

Flavius Josephus- Now, there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works-a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ; (64) and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day.

Pliny- Roman governor Pliny the Younger wrote to Emperor Trajan that early Christians would “sing hymns to Christ as to a god.”

Ignatius- pupil of John; lived 70 years after crucifixion- “He was condemned: He was crucified in reality, not just in appearance, not in imagination, not in deceit. He really died and was buried, and rose from the dead.”

Not only that, His early followers truly believed in him…

the disciples made it up However, a deception on this scale is impossible.

these disciples ended up dying for Jesus and the claims of His resurrection

people do not knowingly die for a lie

these were not naturally bold and courageous people (hid from Jesus as His crucifixion); Thomas doubted

after the coming of the Holy Spirit, their whole lives changed— NOT TO PROPAGATE A LIE BUT TO PREACH THE TRUTH

Lee Strobel: “The disciples ­didn’t merely believe in the resurrection; they knew whether it was fact or fiction. Had they known it was a lie, they would never have been willing to sacrifice their lives for it.”

JESUS CHRIST VALIDATED HIMSELF THROUGH RESURRECTION

Claimed…

to be God

Philippians 2:5–8 “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

to forgive sin

Mark 2:10–11 “But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (he saith to the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house.”

to be able to die and rise again

John 2:19 “Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

to be the Savior of the world

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” DO YOU KNOW WHO SAID THAT? JESUS SAID THAT!

Romans 1:3–4 “Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:”

Jesus Christ was fully vindicated to be who He claimed to be.

verse 2- the proclamation of Jesus Christ

JESUS CHRIST WAS ANNOUNCED BY THE ANGELS

Angels

witnessed His birth

witnessed His life

witnessed His resurrection

witnessed His ascension

1 Peter 1:10–12 “Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.”

What’s amazing is that Jesus God’s Son did that for sinful men and that He was believed on in the world!

David Macleod said: “One can well imagine the tremendous interest with which these angelic potentates followed the steps of Christ’s humiliation from the throne of awesome majesty to the cross of agonizing shame. And as the infernal plot against Jesus thickened, they must have witnessed in amazement the nonintervention of God the Father on His behalf. Far more than twelve legions of angels (Matt. 26:53) must have waited breathlessly for a signal to flash across the sky for them to snatch the Son of God from the “power of the dog” (Ps. 22:20). They must have stood in stunned silence as God the Father allowed His Son to be nailed to a stake. Surely, therefore, the angelic host shouted for joy at the sight of one of their number rolling away the stone to reveal an empty tomb (Matt. 28:2) and when, squadrons of angels escorted “the Lord of glory” (1 Cor. 2:8) back to His heavenly home” (p. 343-44).

JESUS CHRIST  HAS BEEN PREACHED THROUGHOUT THE WORLD

How did this small, sectarian carpenter— this man of but 12 men get to the ends of the earth?

-ROMAN ROADS, LANGUAGE, PAX ROMANA, PLACE OF JERUSALEM IN THE WORLD…

We know that Jesus actually lived:

39 sources outside of the Bible prove that Jesus actually lived…in other words, for 2,000 years it has been proven that He lived…

Flavius Josephus- Now, there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works-a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ; (64) and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day.

Pliny- Roman governor Pliny the Younger wrote to Emperor Trajan that early Christians would “sing hymns to Christ as to a god.”

Ignatius- pupil of John; lived 70 years after crucifixion- “He was condemned: He was crucified in reality, not just in appearance, not in imagination, not in deceit. He really died and was buried, and rose from the dead.”

Not only that, His early followers truly believed in him…

the disciples made it up However, a deception on this scale is impossible.

these disciples ended up dying for Jesus and the claims of His resurrection

people do not knowingly die for a lie

these were not naturally bold and courageous people (hid from Jesus as His crucifixion); Thomas doubted

after the coming of the Holy Spirit, their whole lives changed— NOT TO PROPAGATE A LIE BUT TO PREACH THE TRUTH

Lee Strobel: “The disciples ­didn’t merely believe in the resurrection; they knew whether it was fact or fiction. Had they known it was a lie, they would never have been willing to sacrifice their lives for it.”

verse THREE

JESUS CHRIST WAS BELIEVED ON THROUGHOUT THE WORLD

He was believed on in the world!

BIBLE

The approximate number of Bibles sold, given away or distributed in the United States every day is 168,000, according to statistics from Wycliffe International, Gideons International, and the International Bible Society.

The bestselling and fastest-growing translation of the Bible in the United States is the King James Version.

92% of Americans own at least one Bible, whether as a gift or a purchase, but only 12% read it daily.

The Bible is excluded from bestselling book lists because it would always rank the highest, with the average American owning 9 Bibles.

YouVersion, for example, a top-downloaded app for mobile services, has received over 100 million downloads and counting. It’s been amongst the top-100 free iTunes apps for 3 consecutive years.

Furthermore, over 60,000 people have been recorded to be using a Bible app at any given moment, with three people every second sharing some form of Biblical quote or verse to their social media outlets. Isaiah 41:10 is one of the most popular Biblical verses online, according to YouVersion.

Colossians 1:23 “If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;”

JESUS CHRIST WENT BACK TO HEAVEN AND IS COMING AGAIN

Acts 1:11 “Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.”

Someone said that…

the manger is empty— He outgrew it!

the cross is empty- He endured it!

the tomb is empty— He overcame it!

but the throne— NEVER EMPTY…AND NEVER WILL BE. Jesus Christ reigns and reigns forever.

THERE IS A HISTORICAL PRECEDENT FOR THIS JESUS. HE IS!

Do you believe?

The First Hymn…