Just as He said!
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Scripture Reading
Scripture Reading
1 Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave. 2 And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it. 3 And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. 4 The guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men. 5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. 6 “He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying. 7 “Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you.” 8 And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples. 9 And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.”
Introduction - Hindsight is 2020
Introduction - Hindsight is 2020
Have you ever heard the phrase “Hindsight is 2020?”
It conveys the point that though we are unable to clearly see and predict events that may happen in the future, we can look back into our decisions and moments in our past and see clearly what we did wrong, what we did right, and how we could have made better decisions.
I think all of us can look back in hindsight on our lives and know that if we could do things over again knowing what we know now, that we would make better decisions that would lead to better outcomes.
Maybe we would choose to stay home instead of going out on that disaster of a date.
Perhaps we would study a little harder for that biology test, or pay more attention in Spanish class.
And I think we all know of some point in our lives that we would have taken the time to pick up the phone, or make that last visit to a loved one to say one last time what we wish we would have said before they passed from this life.
We all likely made a choice in our past that we wish we could change with the benefit of hindsight, but you know, the thing about the past is that it is unchangeable. We can’t go back and change things based upon what we now know.
But what if we were somehow able to obtain knowledge about the future? We have all watched movies that portray this idea right? Someone comes into possession of a bit of knowledge from the future and it seems that they always use that information in ways that benefits themselves. Maybe they use that information to get insanely rich, or to rise to political power, or to get the man or woman of their dreams. No one that I know of in our fictionalized world of movies and books has ever taken the knowledge of the future and had the power to change it and chosen to suffer.
I want to talk to you today about a man who did just that. A man who was more than a man, who has the ability to speak things into existence, who knows the future, and yet still chose some 2000 years ago to go through unimaginable pain and suffering for you and for me.
That man of course is Jesus.
Today is the day that many people around the world pause to celebrate what has become known as Easter Sunday, the day when Jesus Christ proclaimed victory over sin and death by being raised from the dead.
And as I studied the gospels this week in preparation for today there was a phrase spoken by the angel as he sat upon the open tomb that kept coming to the forefront of my mind. You see, when we come to Matthew chapter 28 we find the disciples of Jesus are scattered and frightened. After all, their leader, the Christ, the son of the living God lies bloody and beaten and dead in the tomb. They had devoted years of their lives to this man, and for what? How will there be a kingdom with a dead king? What hope is there in this bleak and dark time?
But in Matthew 28 hope is injected back into their lives with the words of an angel as he sits upon the stone that has been rolled away and proclaims the words that we find in v. 6
6 “He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.
Did you catch that? The angel proclaimed that not only had he raised from the dead, but that it had happened “just as he said!”
With these words the Angel reminds the women who had gone there early that first day of the week, that Jesus had told them exactly how all of this would play out, and that what he had told them had come to pass exactly the way He knew that it would.
And it’s that fact that I want to talk to you about today. The incredible fact that everything from the history of creation, to His story, to your story has happened and will happen, Just as He said it would happen.
History - Just as He Said
History - Just as He Said
You know the story of the of mankind is really a story about whether or not we are going to listen to God.
Whether or not we are going to believe Him when he speaks to us.
Which is crazy when you think of it, because the God we serve, is the God who created us and everything we see around us.
SLIDE CHANGE
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.
Genesis tells us that the Godhead created the world and everything in it in six days, and that he spoke it into existence.
He said “Let there be light” and there was light.
He said “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.”
He Said Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.”
He Said “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.”
He said “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.”
He said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” and “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.”
He Said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
And you know what, it all happened just as He said. Because when he speaks, he creates. He either creates physical things, or the physical things obey the truth that he has created by speaking.
Oh what heartache we would save ourselves if we would only learn that fundamental truth!
I’ve heard stories about myself when I was a child, about how I was difficult to discipline and it seemed I always had to learn my lessons the hard way. As a father I see that truth in my own kids from time to time, when they seem to not believe me when I tell them that I expect them to do something or there will be consequences. For whatever reason, we as people seem bent on disobedience.
Perhaps you recall the story of Adam and eve. How God created them and put them in a paradise, a Garden without worry or care, a place where they had everything they needed and also walked at peace with God.
But God had said something to them. He had told them
SLIDE
16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
Perhaps you’ve seen the bumper sticker that reads, “God said it, I believe it, and that settles it!” Well the truth is if God said it, it matters not one bit whether you believe it or not, it is settled.
You see at it’s core, every temptation that Satan brings our way is his attempt to get us to doubt what God has said.
That’s exaclty what he did to Adam and Eve was it not?
SLIDE
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” 4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
So they doubted God, they ate of the fruit, and they were cast out and did die. Should we be surprised? No, it happened just as he said.
The scriptures record for us a history that is full of this truth, yet we still doubt it don’t we?
Abraham fell on his face and laughed when God said to him that he would have a son through Sarah. He said:
English Standard Version Chapter 17
Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?”
Yet it happened just as He said.
And how many other accounts can we refer to where the impossible became reality because God said it would? We could spend all morning talking about them, but we must move on this morning from history, to HIS STORY.
His Story - Just as He said
His Story - Just as He said
You see, I have heard arguments that claimed that Jesus came to set up a wordly kingdom, that he came here to earth to establish an earthly reign over the Jews but that his plan failed when the people rejected him and had him crucified.
That may have very well been what many people thought 2,000 years ago, many, including some of Jesus’ own disciples had misunderstandings regarding the true nature of the kingdom Jesus would establish. So no wonder with that misunderstanding in mind that they would have felt abandoned, hopeless, frightened and alone.
But a closer look at the scriptures reveals that everything from the birth of Jesus to his life, to his death and resurrection were all exactly just as He said.
Yet what they should have realized is that everything they had seen and heard did not happen without Jesus knowing about it, in fact, He knew exactly what was going to happen, and went through with it anyway.
Now you and I, as I mentioned in my introduction, if we knew the future and we had the power to change it, we would most certainly change it. No one chooses pain and suffering, agony and death, but Jesus did. Why? because of his great love for us.
Can you imagine knowing that you are going to be falsely accused, that you are going to be spit upon and cursed at, that you will endure scourging, a kind of torture where your flesh is peeled away from your bones with leather whips braided with bits of hooks, sharpened stones, and steel? Can you imagine knowing that, having the power to speak that reality away, and yet going through it anyway?
Because that is exactly what Jesus did.
SLIDE
31 And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 And he said this plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”
Can you imagine knowing ahead of time every strike of the whip against your flesh? Can you imagine knowing each and every thorn that will pierce your skin as they smash down that crown of thorns on his head? Can you imagine knowing the precise amount of strikes of the hammer as they nail your hands and feet to the cross? Knowing the count of each and every difficult breath you are going to have to take on that cross as the sun scorches your flesh and the very people you came to save mock you?
No wonder in the garden he was troubled, no wonder he prayed
SLIDE
39 And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
But ultimately, he stated “Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
BUT WHY?
Because of our hardness of hearts, and our unwillingness to believe what he said.
You see, every time we lie, we cheat, we steal, we covet, we harm our neighbors and we break God’s laws, we sin against God. And that sin separates us from him and condemns us to death.
SLIDE
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
We have all sinned and deserve death. You don’t have to believe it, God has said it and so it will happen just as He said.
But the death of Jesus was not all that he said would happen. He had told them, that on the third day he would rise again.
And you know what, nearly 2,000 years ago on this day, He conquered sin and death and left the tomb empty Just as He said.
But don’t believe for a second that the story is over. It doesn’t end there.
Because History and His Story intersect right here and right now with Your story.
Your Story - Just as He Said
Your Story - Just as He Said
“What I say, goes!” What he says, goes!” - Illustration
Supporting Scriptures:
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
6 And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.”
9 And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so.
14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years,
20 And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.”
15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
14 The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. 15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
15 And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16 I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.”
31 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. 33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
31 And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.
25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” 24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. 28 Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
20 He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken.
1 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
