Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

This morning I say welcome to you and your families, it is a blessing to be here with you all today.

I was thinking and praying the other morning asking the Lord for direction about today and the message I kept receiving was “encourage one another.”

It is a sad time, we have lost a member of our family, a son. a brother, a husband and a spiritual brother in Christ.

He left this world at a time when we think it perhaps He is far to young.

It seems out of season when a parent loses a child .....

But when I think about death, I am reminded that Jesus tells us that death is not the end, in truth it is the beginning of the fullest stage of our life.

And of course, I think of Paul who tells us that we should not grieve the same way as those who have no hope, as those who do not know Jesus.

We have hope!

We have hope because we have Jesus!

This morning I want us to encourage one another, we have hope because of Jesus.

So this morning I want us to look at several passages of Scripture.

, and .

Now lets take a little time and lets consider some thoughts the Scriptures share that will encourage us.

1.

Because He Lives .....

We Live.....

The truth of our encouragement is anchored in Jesus and His resurrection.

Now consider this thought with me, the first Adam, and all that followed him were meant to live forever, they were meant to be eternal, both spiritually and physically.

They were made in the image of God and had their life and purpose in Him.

But this is before the fall of man.

Now the Bible tells us that Adam and Eve where in a garden, .

Now here is a truth...

You see there were two great trees in the garden, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, this tree they were to stay away from, they were to avoid it and not to eat.

That was the command God gave to them....

But Adam and Eve were deceived by Satan, and their disobedience brought sin and death into this world.…

and suddenly there is a great problem.

Death would reign....

Now consider this thought....

But there was a second tree, there in the garden was a tree, a tree of life.

This world, which was perfect, was suddenly under a curse, it was touched by sin.

So

But there was a tree of life as well.

God did not want man to be eternal physically under the ravages of sin… so God put mankind (Adam and Eve) out of the garden.

So suddenly here is a man who cannot live forever, because sin has ruined man’s relationship with God.

This problem is why Jesus came… Jesus came and died to redeem all mankind from their sin…

But redemption is just a part of what God was doing in and through His son.

Jesus bleed and died, and gave up His life for us, for humanity ....

He was buried in a new tomb and on the third day Jesus rose from the dead.

Now if you look at ; Paul tells us plainly that Jesus is the first born from the dead, the first fruits of the resurrection as the KJV says....

What does that mean? - first born from the dead or the first fruits of the resurrection.

3 days after the crucifixion, Jesus is raised.

He comes out of the tomb alive.

God raised Jesus from the dead, Jesus is the only person God has raised from the the dead that is still alive today!

His resurrection guarantees our resurrection

First fruits speaks to a first but many to follow in the future.

Listen to Paul’s words to the believers at Corinth....

Jesus was “First fruits” of what would follow in the days to come.... all those who believe would follow and be the second set of fruits if you will....

Because Jesus is alive, He has risen from the dead and so shall we...

Encourage each other with those truths my friends....

Why is all of this possible my friends?

It is possible because death is done my friends, it has no power over us..

2. Death is done.....

2. Death is done.....

Now think about this statement for a minute, when I say death is done, I don’t mean of course that we will not see death anymore...

I mean this : Death has no power for the people of God.

Death has no power for the people of God.

The truth of life is this, we are born, we come into this world, and sadly this world is touched by sin, and humanity is touched by sin as well.

So by birth we come into the world and then we grow, we change and at some point in the future… death come to us.

We just do not know how long we have from point A (Birth) and point B (death).

But there is a great blessing for humanity, there is a Savior who loved us, still loves and and has given himself as the sacrifice for sin.

Jesus died that we might have life.

Consider Lazarus in John chapter 11.

Lazarus, this man who loved Jesus.

He was a fried to Jesus fell ill and died… Point A (birth) and Point B (death) were seen in His life...

And as Jesus approached his sisters, Martha came out to Him grieving, sorrowful and she says to Jesus....

If you had been here he would not have died....

See I believe with all my heart they understood Jesus to be Life....

Now the glorious news we see in this chapter are the words Jesus speaks to her/

listen to

This beautiful passage Jesus says He is life, no matter the state of man… and those who believe, they will have life as well!

Death has no power over these people.

How do I know for certain....

I Cor 15

Let me share a passage with you…

I love what Paul says here, death is swallowed up in victory.... Consider this word “swallow’ in the Greek it is Katapino, it means to be taken over to destruction… It is done away with… there will be no more death...

Christ has forever put away death and given life to all who are his....

Death may visit, you see Jesus hasn’t returned yet… so death will still visit homes, but it has not power.... to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord Paul tells us and then here in almost a taunting voice.... death where is your power?

Where is your sting....

Stings, bring discomfort, swelling, and can bring death....

But the sting is powerless to those who are with Christ

Yes, death does mean separation for a while…

But take heart my friends, Morning is coming.......

When morning comes my friends, Jesus will bring our soul/spirit back with Him on that morning and these bodies will be changes…

Remember Paul says the perishable must put on the imperishable, mortality will be immortality ....

And death is done......

Take heart my friends Jesus is coming again ......

And this leads to my last thought ....

3. Jesus is Coming Again....

Jesus is coming again and with Him the resurrection of all those sweet people who are His… and those who remain, well they will experience the fastest wardrobe change in the history of the world… in the twinkling of an eye.

Now jump over to just one last passage :13-18

When death comes, yes we will grieve, there will be tears and sadness, oh yes… we hurt but Paul says my friends I do not want you to grieve like the world that has no hope.

When death comes, yes we will grieve, there will be tears and sadness, oh yes… we hurt but Paul says my friends I do not want you to grieve like the world that has no hope.

We have a hope friends, a living Hope and His name is Jesus.....

And I love what Paul says… He reminds us..

Jesus is coming again!!!

The angels said that the one who went away would return in like manner… and verse 16 says the Lord himself, Jesus will descend from heaven with a shout of the archangel and the trumpet call of God

And here is the promise....

The dead in Christ will rise!

Those who remain will be changed

And we will meet the Lord in the air!