Empty Victory

Intro:

Wortham as I end this thought of empty. I just want to remind you that in order for God to do something or give you something new you must empty some things out first. As the Lord first put this thought and series in my mind, I could not help but take personal inventory of my own self. Often times when God speaks to us we begin to look at others and try to judge on what they need to get rid of or what they need to renew, but if you look in the mirror you will realize that you need to empty some things out too. I truly hope and pray that many of us will take time and reflect on some things we need to empty out of our lives in order to receive the Victory that God has for us. A friend of mine just returned from Israel. He went on a tour of the Holy Land seeing all of the sites that we have read about in our Bibles all of our lives. He began to tell me all about the wonderful sites. The buildings and the ruins of memoirs dedicated to old and new testament scriptures. As he was telling me about all of the sights, he began to get emotional about how real the stories in the bible became to him after he visited each sight. He talked about how long and how far the walked. He talked about how rugged and rough the terrain was. He described the landscape of the area and how difficult it was to travel in some areas. All of this made Jesus’s travel with his disciples mean more, because he could see how difficult it was especially on foot. He said that he remembered the tour guide telling them to empty their minds out of what they had alway thought of when reading the scriptures, because it would make it hard for them to receive what their eyes would behold on this tour. Then he said as the tour was nearing to close, he said many cried and experienced spiritual and emotional things while on this trip. Some were baptized in the Jordan. Some experienced transformation as they visited the mount of Olives, but a powerful place for him was when they visited the place where they laid Jesus in the Joseph’s tomb. Which brings us to our text today! Although they were visiting an old place it was still brand new to him. Sometimes church God will show you what he has done in order for you to get ready for what he’s going to do!

Prepared

As we look at the text we see here the women were prepared. They got up early to do what they knew to do, and that was to put burial spices on the dead for preserve the body. The only issue is that you need a dead body in order to preserve it. See church sometimes God will allow you to make a plan and get prepared as you best know how, but what do you do when your preparation and your plan does not fit what God is doing? In those cases normal is no longer normal, and what seemed right no longer works. But I will say at least the women were prepared. At least they had a plan, because I want to inform someone here today just because your plan didn’t work doesn’t mean God won’t bless you for your journey! Somebody should have shouted right there. We all have made good plans. We all have prepared as best as we know how only for God to take our plans and our preparations and throw them in the garbage! The reason God doesn’t care about our plans and our preparation sometimes is because what he has for us is greater than anything we could even imagine! They were prepared to find a dead Jesus, but God blessed them to witness an empty tomb! Not only did their preparation lead them to an empty tomb, but their preparations and their plans led them there first. See some of you will get there first because you was ready! Don’t get mad it the prepared folks who have been fasting, praying, and studying God’s word. Those who have been worshipping at home, praising at home, and get ready before they get to church. You may plan on one thing, but what God is about to do is greater than anything you could imagine.

Confusion

The Bible says that the women were greatly perplexed. Which simply means they were very confused. I can here them saying to themselves. I know this is the place where they laid him. I know I saw him die on that cross. I know this was the stone that they rolled in front of the tomb. Sometimes church the things that God is doing in our lives, ours families, and in our churches will confuse us. Some things perplex us as we search for Jesus. Some things you just cannot seem to understand, because when God does something new your feeble mind cannot comprehend what God has done. What would seem normal and natural may not be what God is going to do. I am so glad church that God won’t leave us confused long, because the text says that while they were perplexed they looked and saw two angles in shining garments who cleared things up for them. That’s what God does. He will send messengers to help you understand what God has done. The Angles said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, 7 saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’ ” 8 And they remembered His words. Sometimes God will have to give us a supernatural reminder of what he said to us in order for us to get to the place where God has for us! So even when you are dealing with confusion don’t get discouraged, because is about to answer every question you have if you will receive the words of His messenger! Sometimes God will have you looking like the I don’t know emoji, because when God does something it’s so wonderful it will confuse you!

The Bible says that the women were greatly perplexed. Which simply means they were very confused. I can here them saying to themselves. I know this is the place where they laid him. I know I saw him die on that cross. I know this was the stone that they rolled in front of the tomb. Sometimes church the things that God is doing in our lives, ours families, and in our churches will confuse us. Some things perplex us as we search for Jesus. Some things you just cannot seem to understand, because when God does something new your feeble mind cannot comprehend what God has done. What would seem normal and natural may not be what God is going to do. I am so glad church that God won’t leave us confused long, because the text says that while they were perplexed they looked and saw two angles in shining garments who cleared things up for them. That’s what God does. He will send messengers to help you understand what God has done. The Angles said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, 7 saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’ ” 8 And they remembered His words. Sometimes God will have to give us a supernatural reminder of what he said to us in order for us to get to the place where God has for us! So even when you are dealing with confusion don’t get discouraged, because is about to answer every question you have if you will receive the words of His messenger! Sometimes God will have you looking like the I don’t know emoji, because when God does something it’s so wonderful it will confuse you!

Close Doubt and Still Empty

they said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, 7 saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’ ”

8 And they remembered His words.

The tough part of this text is what a lot of people experience in church, and that is doubt. When someone has had a supernatural experience with God folks will doubt you. After this great experience the Women who were prepared and perplexed were also blessed, because they were the first witnesses of the Gospel promise! They went back and told the disciples what they saw and what they experienced and the disciples doubted their words. Sometimes church folks cannot understand what they have not experienced. That’s why religious folks have a hard time praising. It’s because they cannot understand your praise, because they have not experienced your Hell. The disciples said amongst themselves whatever! Like they were lying because they didn’t remember what Jesus told them. Sometimes church you will deal with doubt and disappointment, but that does not change your destiny. If God says it then it’s already settled whether people believe you or not. This brings me back to the story I was telling you at the beginning. When they got the place where they buried Jesus. There is a temple there now called the temple of the sepulcher. The group had communion there and all of the people experienced the power of Jesus in that communion. When they got back on the bus there was talk amongst the group that there was another tomb in which historians argued that was the real tomb of Jesus. So one of the ladies was Jewish on the bus and she said sir I have a question. He said ok. She said this is where I struggle with Christianity. All of the Gospels tell a different story. One says one thing the other says something else. He said ok. She then said they can’t even agree on which tomb was actually the tomb where Jesus supposedly laid. He looked at the woman and said yeah you’re right. It is a little confusing on the different accounts. It is a little perplexing on the supposed different tombs. He looked at the woman and said although these things are complicated there is one thing that is common. All of the tombs are empty!!! We know we have the victory because He got up!!! You don’t just have to see the emptiness of the grave just ask Moses if the slavery chambers of Egypt were empty, Ask the cave that David was hiding in it is empty, ask the fish that swallowed Jonah it’s empty, ask the jail cell that was built for me it’s empty, ask the hospital bed that was meant for me it’s empty, ask the grave that was dug for me years ago it’s empty, because when Jesus Got Up Out of that grave the emptiness of the Grave was the fullness of our VICTORY!!!!

The New King James Version. (1982). (). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.