Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Have you ever had thoughts like, “What if it’s not true?”

What if Jesus didn’t rise from the dead and this is all a big money making sham?

What if we just all needed some kind of hope so we have created this whole religious system just to make ourselves feel better about the crappy world we live in?

If you are here today and your not a follower of Christ, I would imagine you have those kinds of thoughts all the time.

If you are a follower of Christ, I would imagine you hate the fact that you have thought like this.

Doubting the very resurrection that has brought you salvation.

Imagine with me for a moment a world without the resurrection.

Just like the writer of a movie, visualize with me a world without the lasting impression of Christ.

If Christ had not raised from the dead.

He would not have forged a world religion practiced by 2.3 Billion people world wide today.

31.2% of the population from the most current censes.

There would be no Roman Calendar of A.D. which is Latin for “In the year of our Lord.”

Life would not have evolved as we know it.

I read in article by Ron Boehme entitled, “Twelve ways Jesus Changed the World.”

Christianity

Many of the freedoms we enjoy as Americans would be lost without the influence of Christianity through the resurrection and the teaching of Christ.

Documents like the Magna Carta, British common law, and the declaration of independence where all framed through the teaching of Christ and the Bible, giving us republican governments, democratic principles, and human rights.

Women were first considered as equals from the teaching of Christianity.

We would not have the benefits of education the way we do now.

Time Magazine was quoted in saying, “the printing of the Gutenberg Bible…is the most important event of the past five hundred years because it made truth and knowledge easily available to the masses.”

“Faith in him (Christ) has led his followers through the centuries to care for the poor; minister to the sick; start hospitals and schools; share the Good News around the world; apply Christian principles to government, economics, and social issues; and to influence every other engine of progress.”

The world without the resurrection is a dark place.

Can you see it?

The world we live in is shaped by the Resurrection of Christ.

It is a place with no hope for the future.

No since of brotherly love.

No value of life either now or for eternity.

There are still places like this in the world today.

Places without the influence and protection of God.

Billions of hopeless people having no idea why they exist.

Having no relationship with God or his Son Jesus Christ.

We call these places “third world,” or “underdeveloped” countries that simply have not had the influence of the hope of the resurrection of Christ.

But for the grace of God, we would be just like they are.

The only difference in us and them is the influence of the resurrection of Christ and the teachings of Christianity that have pulled us out of the dark ages and given us hope in this life and the life to come.

Today we have come together to celebrate the resurrection of Christ.

But the celebration is much more than just a memorial of April 10, 30 A.D. when Jesus walked out of the grave.

But a celebration of life that the resurrection has influenced from that day to this one.

I realize that many don’t celebrate this great day or the freedoms it has produced any longer.

Many are full of doubt about if the resurrection is even real.

Let’s look at what Paul has to say about this in :

1 Cor 15:12

The 500 eye-witness to the resurrection would have all been in Jerusalem 40 years before this letter was written.

To everyone else it was a matter of faith just as it is for us today.

The Resurrection of Christ is the foundation of all the hope and well being in our lives.

Think about how much America revolves around the holiday.

If there is no resurrection then Christmas is just about Santa Clause and Easter is just about bunnies and and hard boiled eggs.

Our preaching is in vain.

No wait, There would be no Santa Clause because St. Nicholas, born on March 15, 270 A.D., was a Christian Bishop that went around helping the needy.

So take that joy out of the world.

(Pic of Santa with Christmas Tree then he disappears).

Our preaching is in vain.

Our faith is in vain.

We have misrepresented God.

1 Cor 15:16-17

Without the resurrection there is no forgiveness of sins.

We are all lost and without hope of being with God.

But the power of the resurrection destroys sin and death and gives us hope for salvation.

1 Cor 15:

If there is no resurrection there is no hope for those we have lost.

The resurrection gives us purpose in living.

1 Cor 15:

Without the resurrection life has no eternal value.

Grab all the gusto cause you only go around once.

Christ’s Resurrection has become our Resurrection.

1 Cor 15:

The fact of the resurrection can be seen all around us.

The fact of the resurrection should change our purpose in life.

Romans 6:

The resurrection has freed us from sin.

Today is resurrection day.

Time to wake up.

Sober Up Man.

Quit Sinning.

People need to know God.

We are falling down on the job.

The Resurrection is Closer than You Think!

Our change is coming.

1 Corinthians 15:51

Those that belong to Christ Jesus is coming back to get.

The trumpet of God will sound and we shall be changed.

Our salvation will be complete

Those that don’t belong to Christ must suffer through the wrath of God.

We don’t know when that moment will be.

There is no hope without the resurrection.

Closing thoughts:

The resurrection of Christ is all around us.

We see it in every aspect of our lives.

It’s time to start living in it.

It is the life that sustains us.

It gives us purpose and meaning for today.

Maybe you have had your doubts in the past.

Is it real?

What if it’s not true?

The evidence is all around you.

It’s there when you turn on the news.

It’s there when you sit down to eat.

It’s there when you share holidays with your family.

It’s there when you go to a funeral of a loved one.

The resurrection is undeniable.