March 6-7, 2004 HIS PASSION INTO MY PASSION! Selected

DOUBLE CROSS!

THE CROSS DOUBLES IN SIGNIFICANCE WITH THE RESURRECTION!

*** 1 Cor. 15:14-15, 17-19 “If Christ has not been raised from death, then we have nothing to preach and you have nothing to believe. And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is a delusion and you are still lost in your sins. It would also mean that the believers in Christ who have died are lost. If our hope in Christ is good for this life only and no more, then we deserve more pity than anyone else in all the world.” [Today’s English Version]

THE PASSION OF CHRIST SHOWS US:

1. THE POWER OF THE CROSS OVER SIN!

*** 1 John 1:8 “If we say that we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth.” [Living Bible]

*** Isaiah 59:2 “But the trouble is that your sins have cut you off from God. Because of sin he has turned his face away from you….” [LB]

*** Hebrews 9:22 “In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” [New International Version]

*** Col. 1:19-22 “For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and by him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of his blood on the cross. This includes you who were once so far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions, yet now he has brought you back as his friends. He has done this through his death on the cross in his own human body. As a result, he has brought you into the very presence of God, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.” [New Living Translation]

*** 1 John 2:2 “He is the sacrifice for our sins. He takes away not only our sins but the sins of all the world.” [NLT]

*** Col. 2:13-14 “When you were stuck in your old sin-dead life, you were incapable of responding to God. God brought you alive—right along with Christ! Think of it! All sins forgiven, the slate wiped clean, that old arrest warrant canceled and nailed to Christ's Cross.” [The Message]

2. THE PROMISE OF THE TOMB OVER DEATH!

*** 1 Cor. 15:3-4 “I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me—that Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, as the Scriptures said.” [NLT]

A. THE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE!

*** 1 Thes. 4:14 “We believe that Jesus died and that he rose again.” [New Century Version]

B. THE HISTORICAL EVIDENCE!

C. THE CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE!

1. THE EMPTY TOMB!

2. THE 12 APOSTLES DIED FOR THEIR BELIEF!

3. SKEPTICS BECAME CONVERTS!

*** Acts 6:7 “So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, & a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.” [NIV]

4. COMMUNION, BAPTISM & SUNDAY WORSHIP!

5. MULTIPLE EYEWITNESSES!

*** 1 Cor. 15:6-8 “After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me….” [NIV]

*** 2 Tim. 1:10 “And now he has made all of this plain to us by the coming of Christ Jesus, our Savior, who broke the power of death and showed us the way to everlasting life through the Good News.” [NLT]

*** 1 Peter 1:3 “God is so good, and by raising Jesus from death, he has given us new life and a hope that lives on.” [Contemporary English Version]

3. THE PRIVILEGE OF THE BELIEVER OVER LIFE!

BECAUSE OF THE DEATH AND RESURRECTION OF CHRIST:

A. MY PAST IS PARDONED!

*** Romans 4:25 “He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised from the dead to make us right with God.” [NLT]

B. MY PANIC CAN BE REPLACED WITH PEACE!

˜ John 20:19 ˜ John 20:21 ˜ John 20:26

C. MY PROBLEMS BECOME POSSIBILITIES!

*** 2 Corinthians 4:8,14 “In every way we're troubled, but we aren't crushed by our troubles. We're frustrated, but we don't give up. We know that the one who brought the Lord Jesus back to life will also bring us back to life through Jesus….” [God’s Word to the Nations]

D. MY POSITION CAN BECOME PERFECT WITH GOD!

*** Hebrews 10:14 “With one sacrifice, then, he has made perfect forever those who are purified from sin.” [TEV]

*** John 11:25-26 "I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die like everyone else, will live again. They are given eternal life for believing in me and will never perish. Do you believe this….?" [NLT]

£ I DON’T BELIEVE IT!

£ I BELIEVE IT BUT I REFUSE TO CHANGE!

£ I SURRENDER ALL!