Jesus

Well, thank you very much, choir, and all of our special music this morning. It's truly wonderful, as I said earlier, that we have the blessing of being able to praise God by studying Him and worshiping Him. And part of the way we do that is through music and through either presenting it or just simply enjoying it. And I think we certainly have had a wonderful, wonderful blessing of being able to have special music and all of the presentations that we've enjoyed throughout the week.

I know that we have our service this morning, and I will just mention we do have a service this afternoon. We'd love to see most of you. If you're able to be here this afternoon, that service this afternoon will be at 2.15. We would hope to be done around 4 or a little after. But I certainly am grateful, brethren, for your involvement, your assistance, your service, your growing that is being done throughout our lives. But maybe it's focused a little more whenever we come to God's Holy Day services. As all of you know, with this annual Sabbath, we're often going to be focusing on the big picture. We want to focus on the trunk of the tree. That's what so many of us have been told over so many decades. And this eighth day of the festival, if we call it the eighth day, which is clearly written in the Old Testament, or if we call it the last great day as we have, is a great day of hope. A great day of hope in God's plan. Hope for all men who have ever lived.

And I want us to consider, you know, why is it so hopeful? Actually, I think we will find, as we go through this sermon this morning, that the hope that we have now, the hope really that the whole world has, whether they understand that or not, that hope is in the incredible power of the resurrection. See, we know that this particular day is about the resurrection. It's about even more than one resurrection, as of course the Bible teaches. It teaches several resurrections, three specifically that we teach and understand. And yet we should think about the connection between the resurrection and how incredible to rise from the dead. How incredible that is. How much hope that gives for those of us today. You see, I know, again, as I mentioned earlier, that there are some who are struggling. And perhaps we could say we know of some who are struggling, and yet many of us struggle with different difficulties in our lifetime and throughout our lives, even now. And even though we have the help of God, sometimes we're asking God for help. Other times we have to just ask God for strength. Strength to endure. Strength to be encouraged. But I want to focus on the type of hope that we have through the resurrection of the dead. And I want to begin in James chapter 5, or excuse me, not James, but John chapter 5. In John chapter 5, you see Jesus making a direct statement. Of course, John 5 is an incredible, wonderful chapter, but it tells us specifically beginning in verse 25. Jesus said in John 5, verse 25, he says, "...verily I tell you, the hour is coming, and now is when the dead will hear the voice of God." They'll hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. See, this is clearly talking about a resurrection. And just as the Father has life in Himself, He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and He has given authority. Given Him, the Son, authority to execute judgment because He is the Son of Man.

And so in verse 28, Jesus tells us, don't be astonished by the fact that the resurrection is going to occur, but He says, "...the hour is coming, when all who are in their graves will hear His voice and will come out. Now, those who have done good to a resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to a resurrection of condemnation or judgment." Now, the word that is used there for condemnation or judgment, it doesn't specify which of those two. And even though we see only two resurrections identified here, we see three clearly described in the book of Revelation. And so Jesus is talking about a resurrection to life, to eternal life, but He also is mentioning the other resurrections. And we can go to that here in Revelation chapter 20.

Revelation 20 is an amazing chapter. It's an amazing chapter that John was given from Jesus Christ. He was given a vision that describes, in order, three resurrections. And we need to keep these in mind. I know this is basic information, but it's information all of us need to be aware of. As we study, we're going to study one chapter, ultimately, that will focus on the power of the resurrection. Here in Revelation 20, you see the first resurrection mentioned starting in verse 6.

I saw thrones, and those seated on them were given authority to judge. I also saw souls of those who have been beheaded for their testimony to Jesus and for the Word of God, and they have not worshiped the beast or its image. They had not received its mark in their forehead or on their hand, but they came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. We understand that to be the resurrection to eternal life that God holds out before all of us who understand His plan.

In the latter part of chapter 5, it says, this is the first resurrection, and blessed and holy are those who share in this first resurrection. And over these, and so hopefully over all of us, the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with Him a thousand years. See, that's incredible that the first resurrection, as it's described here in verse 5, that it involves us and it's a resurrection to eternal life. The second resurrection is actually mentioned in verse 5 in parentheses, I think in most of our Bibles, that says, the rest of the dead live not again until the thousand years were finished. See, that of course points out a second resurrection. And if we read in verse 11, I saw a great white throne and one who sat on it and the earth and the heavens fled from his presence and no place was found. And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before the throne. This is a unique resurrection. It's actually a resurrection to physical life.

It goes on to say in verse 12, as they stood before the throne, the books were opened. This would be the books of the Bible. See, brethren, all of us have had those books. See, it's incredible to think about the Bible, the 66 books that we are familiar with in the old and in the New Testament that God put together to reveal His divine plan, to reveal how He is going to work with individuals. As we had in our sermonette, God is truly a merciful God. He is truly a dependable God, but He's very merciful. He's very loving. And He certainly is not discarding people who, for whatever reason, were not aware of the truth of God during this time. But here it says the books of the Bible were opened. They were given understanding. Even Jesus told His disciples, I need to open your understanding. In Luke 24, we won't go to that, but in Luke 24 it says Jesus opened the understanding of the Scriptures. In verse 44 and verse 45, He wanted His disciples to understand. But then finally here, it says another book was opened in verse 12. This is back in Revelation 20 again. Another book was opened, and that is the book of life. These individuals that are rising in this resurrection, that is a physical resurrection, are living a period of judgment, a period of time where they can come to understand the knowledge of the truth from the books of the Bible, and where they will understand a calling, where they will understand a definition of sin, the need to turn from sin, the need to repent, the need to be baptized, the need to receive the gift, the gift from God, the Holy Spirit. That's not something that everyone enjoys today as we realize. It's a tremendous blessing, brethren, for us to be a recipient of the Holy Spirit, to receive a power that is greater than each one of us. We don't have a lot of power ourselves. We're pretty weak. We're pretty limited. We feel... We get tired, you know, about third or fourth day of the feast here during this past week. I was tired. I would imagine some of you were tired too. But of course, we're here. We're committed to God.

And yet we've been given a spirit of power that is incredible. And yet that's going to be available to people who will rise in this second resurrection. They're going to be given an understanding of the truth. And of course then they're going to have to choose as they live a life of... that is a life of judgment. See, judgment is upon the house of God today, and so we have to we have to be motivated by that. And yet judgment at this time, at the end of the millennium, and on those rising in this second resurrection, judgment will be upon them at that time.

The final resurrection is described here in verse 13. Well, I guess I should read the remainder of chapter... or verse 12, the dead were judged according to their works as recorded in the books. See, we're going to be judged according to what the Word of God says, how we came to understand it, how we came to live it, how we comprehended how important it is to live by every word of God, but to allow Jesus Christ to live in us. That's what we are in the process of doing. That actually is the tremendous strength that we have to allow Christ to live in us. A final resurrection is mentioned here because it's described in verse 14 as the second death. The sea in verse 13 gave up the dead that were in it, death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them. All were judged according to what they had done. And death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life, those who refused, the truth of God who refused to repent, would be thrown into a lake of fire. So we see a description there, as I've only quickly gone through these, of one resurrection to eternal life, one resurrection to physical life, and finally one resurrection simply to the second death, to eternal death. I want us to go back in the Old Testament now in Exodus chapter 37, because in Exodus 37, you see the description of this physical resurrection. This is actually an account, and it's directed to the people of Israel. And actually, these people, Ezekiel 37, verse 11, he said to me, mortal, you know, these bones are the whole house of Israel. So we know, you know, what this is talking about when it's describing a valley of dry bones, and how it is, you know, that those dry bones would actually come to life. And yet they say, in verse 11, they say, our bones are dried up and our hope is lost. We're cut off completely. So these are people who have lived and died in the past, who have not been dealt with God by offering the Holy Spirit. See, that Holy Spirit is what enables us to commune with God. It enables us to have a close and intimate, a loving, wonderful relationship with God that is really extraordinary. It's not only extraordinary, it's incredible that God would offer that for us to be able to take on His nature and be a part of His divine family. But I want to back up as we read through this. I know all of you surely have read this in the past, but here in Ezekiel 37, he's brought to the valley of dry bones. And in verse 4, he said to me, prophesy to these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones, I'm going to cause breath to enter you and you shall live. I will lay sin you on you, and you that will cause flesh to come upon you and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I'm the Lord.

See, now he continues to describe a putting back together of bones that were dead, that were dry, and that were beginning to come back together. He talks in verse 7 and 8 about breath being breathed into them. In verse 10, I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath came into them, and they lived, and they stood on their feet a vast multitude. And in verse 11, the bones, being the house of Israel, they said, our bones are dried up, our hope is lost. Therefore, in verse 12, the prophesy I say to them, that says the Lord, I'm going to open your graves, and I'm going to bring you up from those graves, O my people, and I will bring you back to the land of Israel, and you shall know that I'm the Lord when I open your graves, and bring you up from those graves. Verse 14 gives us an additional understanding of what we read in Revelation 20. So we only have a small verse describing a physical resurrection where people will come to know the words of God, they'll come to know the Bible, they'll come to know the truth, they'll come to know the plan that God is working out for them, and how He wants them to repent, and how He wants them to be a part of His. This is actually an expansion of the family of God. But He says in verse 14, I'm going to put My Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil, and you shall know that I the Lord have spoken, and I will act.

See, this description of Israel's future resurrection and offer of eternal life is described, it's talked about by Jesus actually adding even many of the other nations. He said that would rise at the same time of many of the Israelites who even lived during the time of Jesus. He talked about that. So I truly want us to consider, whenever we think about the hope that is made available by God, I want us to consider the power that God has, but specifically as we read John chapter 11, specifically the power that Jesus had as the Son of God. See, whenever we can read descriptions of the resurrection, but do we really understand the incredible power that Jesus has as the Son of God?

We heard the other day when we were going through John chapter 9, the incredible power that Jesus has as the Creator. He is able to restore sight to someone who never saw. He's not only the Creator, he's the author of life. And we're going to see that as we take a look at John chapter 11.

I think most of us would be familiar with this chapter. We know what the outcome is. We know what's going to happen. Whenever we read the study of Lazarus, it's an amazing example of the power that Jesus had. John chapter 11, here we see an encounter between Jesus and Mary and Martha. We had them mentioned earlier, and I'm not going to cover anything about them in particular, except what we find here in Revelation chapter 11.

Or excuse me, not Revelation, but John. I'm going to have to get in the right book here. John chapter 11, verse 1, a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and his sister Martha. And Mary was the one who had anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair, and her brother Lazarus was ill. And so the sisters in verse 3, they sent a message to Jesus saying, Lord, your friend, the one you love, our brother, Lazarus, is sick. He's ill. In verse 4, when Jesus heard about it, he said, this illness does not lead to death. Rather, it is for the glory of God. It is God's glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it. See, as we study this account, you see Jesus teaching a number of things. You certainly see him pointing out the power that he had and that the Father would clearly give him, even as he would be ultimately restoring Lazarus to a physical life. Many people have a misunderstanding of a resurrection, and thankfully, God has given us an understanding of different resurrections and one of those being the physical life. And clearly, the power of God was extended through Jesus as the Son of God. In this case, when Jesus heard about it, of course, he said that this death was simply for the glory of God. In verse 5, accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister Mary and Lazarus, after having hearing that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.

Now, that might seem unusual. You would think if he was concerned about Lazarus that he would get right over there, but of course, you know that wasn't the case. You would think, as we see, he's staying two days longer whenever the sisters sent someone to find Jesus and ask him to come and help Lazarus. Probably took him a day to get where he was. He was actually close by, I think. And yet he waited two more days, and then the next day he came back. So there was going to be about a four-day period of time involved in Jesus waiting in order to make a point. In verse 7, after this, he said to the disciples, let's go to Judea again. And the disciples said, Rabbi, why? The Jews just tried to stone you. You're going to go back. And of course, Jesus said, are there not 12 hours of daylight? And those who walk during the day do not stumble because they see the light of this world. So he was pointing out the difference between light and dark, but he was also pointing to the fact that he was the light of the world. In verse 11, after saying this, he told them, our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I'm going there to awaken him. This gives us a clear understanding of what it is to die, of how it is that the dead are simply in their graves. It's like a sleep. That's the way Jesus describes it. And the disciples say to him, Lord, well, if he's just sleeping, then he'll be all right. And Jesus, however, has been speaking about his death, but they thought he was referring merely to sleep. And so clearly, there was a misunderstanding on the part of the disciples. They didn't comprehend what Jesus was going to teach them. And so he made it more clear in verse 14. He told them plainly, Lazarus is dead. And so it wasn't something he wanted them to misunderstand. He wanted them to comprehend that he had actually been delaying on purpose.

He had been delaying, for in verse 15, for your sake, I'm glad that I wasn't there. So that you may believe, but let us go to him. See, what Jesus was pointing out to them is that I'm really wanting to teach you my people. I want to teach you my disciples. I want you to understand the need to believe in the fact that I'm the Son of God. Now, they had reference to that. They knew, or at least had been told that. But how well they understood that, how well they comprehended it, how well they recognized that the Son of God was who they were following. It seems, even as they went up to the time of his death, that they had a hard time fully comprehending that.

But here, Jesus wanted to show something about the Son of God. He says, I'm glad I wasn't there, so that you may come to believe. He wanted to strengthen their faith. He wanted for them to be strengthened and to be guided by a close relationship with God. Now, in verse 17, it says Jesus said, we're going to go to him. In verse 17, it says Jesus arrived when he did. He found Lazarus already in the tomb four days. So that was a couple of days of delay, a couple of days of trying to get Jesus and trying to get back there. But Bethany was near Jerusalem. But Bethany was near Jerusalem. It tells us it was about two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. And when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him. And Mary stayed at the house, but Martha said, Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn't have died. See, in a sense, it almost sounds like Martha was chewing out Jesus for not getting there fast enough. Her thought, I would assume, was that, well, if you had gotten here before, then you could have saved him. You could have restored him. You could have healed him. But of course, we see something about Martha here. She sharply pointed out to Jesus that, well, you're too late, but I know that God is with you. She goes on in verse 22, even though I know that God will give you whatever you ask, Jesus clearly proclaimed, Your brother will rise again. Now, He wasn't directly talking about a resurrection that would occur in the future, as Martha thought. He says, I'm going to raise your brother from the dead. I'm going to restore him to physical life.

But of course, Martha didn't really understand that at the time.

Your brother is going to rise again. And Martha said, I know that he'll rise again in the resurrection of the last day. So she had that understanding. She recognized, and the Jews at the time, did have an understanding of some type of a future resurrection. And yeah, Jesus said, and this is, of course, a point that you often read, and certainly we all want to understand, I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in Me, even though they die, they're going to live. And everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?

See, Jesus was pointing out, and you actually find many statements here in the New Testament about Jesus. And we find him described in John 14 as that I'm the way, and I'm the truth, and I'm the life. Here he says I'm the resurrection, and I'm the life. In other places, he's called the vine. He's called the source of living water. He's called the bread of life. He's called the good shepherd. There are many different descriptions of Jesus. But here he points out that I'm the author of life, and I have the power of the resurrection at my disposal. The Father has given me that power, and he is able to raise the dead. And even to raise him to physical life, as we know the future beyond the thousand years of the millennium, a resurrection will occur that's going to be just incredible. And as was mentioned earlier in our sermonette, many people, many of our relatives, even some of you having lost parents or relatives recently, you know, you look forward to that time, you know that there is hope because there is power in the Son of God. And there's power in the resurrection. And when he says, I'm the resurrection of the life, he was implying how incredibly powerful he is, how incredibly powerful God is in their plan for dealing with all of humanity. When we read the verse regarding the fact that God doesn't want anyone to perish, this is a part of how he's going to bring that about. Of course, Martha said to him in verse 27, Yes, Lord, I believe that you're the Messiah. I believe you're the Son of God, the one coming into the world. See, she had a concept. She had an idea of who Jesus was, but he was going to show her the power that the Son of Man had.

And of course, I mention this because all of us, all of us have the blessing of being able to understand that power, understand that that's a power that we can rely on. And even as I mentioned, as we struggle with strain and difficulties and limitations, even as we grow older, all of us, as we've grown older, we see more and more our limitations.

But see, there's no limitation to the power of God. There's no limitation to Jesus Christ and the communion that we have with Him, the closeness that we have with Him. That's to sustain us. We often ask Him to heal us. But as I mentioned, I think we should also ask Him to strengthen us, to give us the endurance that we so desperately need. In verse 28, I guess I might back up here in verse 27.

Martha is saying to Jesus, I believe that you're the Messiah, the Son of God. See, sometimes, even though we know that the Bible not only is true, but it is expressing to us an understanding of God's purpose for our lives and His plan for us. Do we sometimes limit the power that Jesus has to act even in the present? Do we limit that by not believing or by not having a trust or a faith that I think God wants us to have?

In verse 28, when she had said this, she went back, this is talking about Martha, she went back and called her sister Mary and told Mary that the teacher wants to see you. He's calling for you. Now, if we recall the earlier incident that we had between the sisters, Mary was focused on listening to what Jesus had to say. She was excited about Him coming to their home, and Martha was distracted. That was an excellent instruction for the very beginning of the feast, to be focused, to not be distracted as Martha had been on simply the physical things that undoubtedly, even as we had here in our building, didn't have water at least part of the day one time.

And I know some of the others of you in different parts of the city, in different hotels that you're staying in, and you didn't have water a day or two. That's truly a distraction. That's a discouragement because it makes it difficult for us to function. And yet, in this case, Martha, she called Mary and you see a little different response whenever Mary comes to see Jesus. It's a response that we certainly need to follow, one that we want to cultivate.

I think that's the only way I can describe it. It's something you can know and still not benefit from. It's something that we have to cultivate and nurture in appreciation for what Jesus, the Son of God, is able to provide. The strength, the encouragement, and the comfort that He gives us. So when Martha told Mary, the teacher wants to see you, Mary heard it in verse 29. She quickly went out and the Jews who were watching her wondered if she was going to the tomb.

Verse 31, they were with her at the house, consoling her. They saw Mary going out quickly. They followed her. They thought she was going to the tomb to weep. In verse 32, when Mary came where Jesus was and saw Him, she knelt at His feet and said to Him, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. Actually, you see Martha and Mary saying basically the same thing. It just looks like there's quite a bit of different tone.

Martha's tone seemed to be somewhat sharp. Mary's tone was some, you know, I just don't believe it. If you were here, I know you would have changed this. And yet, of course, even the posture that's described in verse 32, when Jesus and Mary came together, she knelt at His feet. And when Jesus, in verse 33, saw her weeping, when He saw the Jews who were with her weeping, He looked upon humanity, the people that He interacted with. When He saw them, He was disturbed, greatly disturbed in spirit. He was deeply moved.

Now, whenever we read a description of that, too many times we just read past it. And too many times, and I certainly know I'm guilty of this, if I see others that might be suffering, I'll have to say my wife is far more sensitive to the suffering of other people than I tend to be. It's not that I don't want to be, but I must not be enough like Jesus yet. But I have a desire.

To try to follow what Jesus displayed here, and like I said, whenever my wife and I have been not only talking to some of you who suffer, but even when we see others for in Walmart or for in Price Chopper, you see people who are struggling, you see people who maybe don't have vision. You see others that are suffering. And yet, clearly, in this case, Jesus was disturbed in spirit. He was deeply moved. And he says, well, where have they laid him? And they said, well, come and see. And in verse 35, in King James, it says simply two words. Jesus, well, again, whenever we see suffering, whenever we see others in need, whenever we see others in need of hope, in need of encouragement, are we like Jesus? We like Jesus. In this case, clearly, Jesus was moved. He was moved to the point of wanting to get on over there and do what he came for, because it was clear that he knew what he was going to do all along. So the Jews said, well, see how he loved him? Or he loved him, and some of them said, well, could not he you open the eyes of the blind, have kept this man from dying? And of course, the answer of that was, sure, he could have, but Jesus was going to show his power over life and death. He was going to show the power of the resurrection. He was going to show why we have hope, because the resurrection, you know, you can read in the Bible how that it's appointed unto men once to die. But see, it's just as appointed that the resurrection will occur, the resurrection, whether it's to eternal life, whether it's to physical life, or even if we refuse God's calling and his involvement in our lives, to eternal death. That resurrection is absolutely sure. In verse 38, he came to the tomb, and again, he was greatly disturbed. It was a cave, it was a stone lying against it, and Jesus said, take away the stone. Marked the sister of the dead man, said, Lord, already there's a stench, because he's been dead for four days. See, they were dealing with physical factors. They were dealing with the fact that they saw this man, who was sick and who continued to decline and who died, and who then was buried and had now been in the tomb for four days. He must have died immediately after they sent to go get Jesus. Jesus reminded her again, didn't I tell you that if you believed, if you grow in the belief in the Son of God, if you grow in believing God is involved in your life, and that you will develop spiritually and mature spiritually, then you will have a trust, you will have a trust, you will have an assurance, you will have a security, that nothing can take that security away from you.

He says, I tell you, if you believed, you could see the glory of God.

So they took away the stone, and of course, Jesus looked upward and said, and this is an amazing prayer that Jesus prayed. It appeared that he prayed this just out loud. He prayed to his heavenly Father. He was extremely close to his Father because he was here doing the will of God.

He was putting aside his will. He was putting aside his needs. He was putting aside his desires in order to be in submission, in order to be in subjection to the Father. And that, of course, is the example for all of us. If we're going to live a life that is pleasing to God, then we're going to have to put aside things that seem convenient or seem desires that we have if they're in conflict with the will of God. But he said, Father, I thank you for having heard me. He was really saying, Father, I'm thankful that you always hear me. You always. See, sometimes our prayers may seem like that. Sometimes they may seem somewhat rote. I know many times I pray, it seems to me the same thing over and over again. And yet I want to try to vary that. I want to try to relate to the Father in a way that has real connection, real meaning, because that's exactly what Jesus displayed.

Father, I thank you that you hear me. And I know that you always hear me. But he said, I'm going to say this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.

So here he describes even the reason why he was saying what he did. He came there for a purpose. He came there as the author of life. He came there as a ruler over life and death and with the power of the resurrection. He says, I want this crowd to understand and I want them to believe that I came from you. See, many people have an awareness of Jesus today. They have an awareness of that word or that name, but they don't fully understand that he's eternally existed. That he has inhabits eternity just like his father. That he is the word described in John chapter 1.

And that's what Jesus was saying, you sent me and it's important for people to believe that you sent me.

And when he said this, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth! See, I'm sure it was pretty dramatic about that, far more than I would be able to do. But of course, the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, his face wrapping the cloth, and Jesus said, unbind him and let him go. And amazingly, in verse 45, many of the Jews, therefore, who had come with Mary and who had seen what Jesus did, they believed in him. At least they believed who he was, or they believed that he was a special individual.

But see, it's not good enough for us to believe he's a special individual. We believe him to be the Son of God. We believed to be God in the flesh. And we believe him to be the one who has the power over the resurrection, even to restore people to physical life.

And of course, you see in chapter 12, if you read on down, that Lazarus was eating with them in a dinner. I'm not going to go through that section, but he was the one that Jesus had raised from the dead. Well, in verse 1, I guess, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, chapter 12, verse 1, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. See, here he was, a physical human being. See, it's really not so far-fetched to believe that God can resurrect people to a physical existence, and he can extend a calling. He can extend an understanding of the words of the Bible, of the truth of God, and he can expect people to live a period of judgment. And then, potentially be written in the book of life. Potentially have eternal life in the divine family of God. That is what God holds out before us in a description of his plan.

See, do we truly recognize the power that Jesus has? You look in Acts chapter 4, you see a description here, because this is not directly dealing with raising anyone from the dead, but this is dealing with simply healing. Providing healing, Acts chapter 4, in chapter 3, Peter and John were involved in a healing of an individual. In Acts chapter 4, they're again talking to the people. Verse 1, the priest and the captain of the temple, the Sadducees, came to him annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming Acts 4, that in Jesus there is the resurrection of the dead. See, in Jesus, there is a resurrection of the dead, so they arrested him and put them in prison, and many of them who heard the word believed, and they numbered about 5,000.

See, actually, as people came to recognize the power that Jesus had, the power over life and death, the power of the resurrection. In verse 7, they asked by what power or by what name did you do this healing? And of course, in verse 8, it says, Peter filled with the Holy Spirit.

If you question how those who are sick are healed, let it be known to you in verse 10, let it be known to you, all of you, and to all the people of Israel, that this man is standing before you in good health by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead. And this Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders. It has become a chief cornerstone. And he says in verse 12, there is salvation in no one else. There is no other name under heaven, given among mortals by which we must be saved.

See, this shows us or tells us that the only way we're going to have eternal life is through and because of our belief in and our trust in, our dependence on, our reliance upon not only the Father, but also His Son. Because ultimately, every knee is going to bend, and every head is going to bow before the King of Kings. And as we look forward to the world tomorrow, as we look forward to the millennial rule of Christ, even beyond that, others are going to rise in a physical resurrection. They're going to be taught the truth. And if they respond to that, then they can be written in the Book of Life as well. That's what we read when we go back to Revelation chapter 20. Maybe we should go back there as we begin to conclude here.

Revelation chapter 20, I think when we read this, we should connect what we find there in John 11, because the power that Jesus has, that He had to raise Lazarus, is the same power He's going to use to raise the bulk of humanity. In verse 11, or in verse 5, as we read, the rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. And in verse 11, the great white throne, verse 12, the dead, small and great, standing before the throne, the books were opened, being the books of the Bible, and another book was opened, the Book of Life. God making available an understanding of eternal life. But see, that eternal life is only going to be available to us and to others through our appreciation, through our gratitude, of what the Son of God has done for us, how it is. You know, that He lived, how He died, so that our sins could be forgiven, and so that we could be a part of the divine family. A family that's going to expand during the millennium, but a family that will expand even more in the white throne judgment, described here in verse 11. He says, the dead were judged according to their works. Through a period of time, a period of time that they would be judged, then they need to live. As we are living today, they need to live in subjection to the Word of God. They need to appreciate, you know, the truth of God, and certainly have come to appreciate the plan of salvation. That's what is so missing today in the world today, is that most people don't realize that God is working out a great plan. And yet that plan is one that really involves coming to a knowledge of the truth.

And of course, Jesus described Himself as the truth in John 14.

I want to go, I hope that this helps to go over a description of the power that Jesus had when He was here on earth, but the power that He has today at the right hand of the Father. Because all of us, as we keep our eyes on the big picture, as we are reminded of God's plan, we're also reminded of the great mystery that is revealed in Colossians chapter 1. Colossians 1 is that description here of what it is? What it is that is really hidden?

What is it that's hidden? Here in Colossians chapter 1, Paul says, Paul says, I became, chapter 1 verse 25, I became its servant.

Talking about the work that Christ had commissioned Him to do, I became its servant according to God's commission that was given to me for you to make the Word of God fully known. The mystery that has been hidden throughout the ages and generations that have now come and been revealed to His saints. To them that God chose, to them that God chose to give understanding, that God chose to grant a recognition of His power and of how much it is that we should be trusting Him.

But it says to them, God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles, how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. See, whenever we read that, brethren, again it can be a very simple statement. It's a statement that we have repeated many, many times in the past and that is still very true today. But whenever we allow Christ to live in us, whenever we allow that through the power of the Holy Spirit, then we have a great deal of hope. We have hope of glory.

And see, others are going to learn to have that same type of hope. Rising in a physical resurrection wouldn't be too encouraging if you didn't have hope beyond that. But see, all of us, for all of us today, we have hope of those who have lived and died without a knowledge of the truth. We know that God's plan is going to include them. We know they are going to be brought to a recognition of their need for Jesus Christ to live in their lives, even as we think about how it is that Christ lives in our lives today. See, if that is an actual fact for all of us, Jesus Christ is going to live in us, then we're going to, as you have been doing so well, during this festival, we are going to serve one another, or serve as Jesus served. We're going to come to love one another as Jesus loved others. We're going to come to have the mind that Jesus had, and we're truly going to have Christ living in us when we submit ourselves to God, and when we then are growing in our relationship with Him and with our Father. He's our high priest. He's at the right hand of God. He wants to glorify us. He wants us to be glorified, as it says, the hope of glory here in verse 27. We have that desire. We have that hope. Others are going to be given that hope, and I hope that we'll reflect back on John 11, reflect back on the incredible power that Jesus had as the Son of God, and how that He is the one who offers hope. He's the one who gives not only hope and encouragement, but He gives eternal life, and it is through Him that we can always be very thankful. So the plan of salvation will allow all men to come to the knowledge of the truth, and God offers hope for all of mankind to truly know Him and to share eternal life with Him as a part of His divine family. I hope that all of us will more strongly believe and see and know the power not only of our Heavenly Father, but of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.