A New Beginning presents a fascinating book about heaven from Pastor Greg Laurie. I began an extensive study of the topic of heaven. What is it like? What will we do there? Will we see our loved ones again?
Short answer yes, if they're Christians. But I've written about this in detail in a book called As It Is in Heaven.
So if you've had questions about heaven, and I think we all do, I think you ought to order a copy of this book, As It Is in Heaven. Get your copy at harvest.org.
So, welcome everybody to church. Why don't we open with a word of prayer? Father, we are glad to be here on this Resurrection Sunday of 2026. We thank you that you are here with us answering our prayers. First of all, Lord, we want to thank you for that second airman that has been found and rescued.
We give you the glory. We ask you to protect our troops right now at this time of war. And we pray now that as we come to open your word, that you will speak to our hearts. And I pray specifically for any person who has joined us, either in person or is watching, who doesn't yet know you, let this be the day where the light goes on. And they see their need for Jesus Christ.
And so we commit this time of Bible study to you now. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. All right. Let's grab our Bibles and turn to John chapter 21.
And the title of my message is A Second Chance. at Easter. Heard about a husband, a wife that went on a trip to the Holy Land, to Israel. And they took Her mother, his mother-in-law, who was known to occasionally nag, that's not a criticism of all mothers-in-law, but she did do this. And tragically, while touring Israel, The mother-in-law died.
So the man went to a local undertaker and said, How much would it cost to ship? my mother-in-law back to the United States and will give her a proper burial there. The undertaker said, Sir, it will cost you $15,000. It's a lot of money. He said, but I want to tell you something that will amaze you.
You can bury her here in the Holy Land for $1,000. Imagine having your mother buried here in the Holy Land. The man thought about it for a moment and says, Yeah, I'll go ahead and ship her back to the States. And the undertaker said, Sir, I don't understand. It's such a good deal.
Why would you spend all of that extra money? Why not bury her here in the Holy Land? And the man said, Because 2,000 years ago, they buried a man here. And he rose again from the dead. And I can't take that chance.
How many of you have heard that joke before? How many of you have never heard it before? How many of you who have heard it before enjoyed hearing it again? How many of you are tired of raising your hand?
Okay.
Well, what a great day to celebrate what Christ did for us. When he rose again from the dead. And this story about Easter has a lot to do with each and every one of us. There's three things about Easter I want to talk about today. Number one, Easter is personal.
Number two, Easter is practical. And thirdly, Easter is powerful. And when I say Easter, I'm really saying the resurrection of Christ from the dead. His resurrection is personal, it's practical, and it is powerful.
Now, I know some of you haven't been to church for a while. We often call you CEO Christians. Christmas and Easter only. But I'm not seeing that critically. Because I'm really glad you're here, frankly.
Okay, so welcome. the church. Welcome home to your spiritual home. Minds you have a story I heard about a man and wife who were getting ready to go to church on Sunday morning, and she was about ready to walk out the door and noticed he hadn't lifted a finger to get himself ready. She said, Honey, why aren't you getting ready for church?
He says, I don't want to go. What do you mean you don't want to go? I don't want to go. She said, Why don't you want to go? He says, I'll give you three reasons why I don't want to go.
Number one, the congregation is cold. Number two, no one likes me. Thirdly, I just don't want to go. She said, well, I'll give you three reasons you should go. Number one, the congregation is warm.
Number two, some people like you. And thirdly, you're the pastor, so get dressed. How many of you have heard that before, Reason? How many of you are glad you heard it again?
Okay.
And sadly. This happened in our home this morning. I was at Batnal. That's the furthest from the truth that could be. But I want to talk to you today about how We can find this second chance at Easter.
Because we're going to look at a familiar story in the Bible about a man who crashed and burned spiritually. And of course, this man fell because he was filled with pride. He didn't plan on falling, but he fell and he fell big. Have you ever fallen when you weren't really ready for it? One day at home, I was running up the stairs.
I had a metal cup filled with ice and water. And I was taking, I don't know if I was taking the stairs two at a time, but I wasn't paying attention. And somehow I caught my shoe on one of the stairs and went airborne. I don't even think I could replicate this again if I tried. I was at the top of my stairs.
I went airborne and did a face plant in a cabinet literally like six feet away. It's crazy. I hit it. I may have gone unconscious for a moment. I opened my eyes.
I looked on the floor and there's blood on the floor. I thought, this is not good.
So I said, Kathy, she came up and found her husband. And the whole time I was falling, I was trying to keep the ice water from spilling. Like I will die for this ice water. I ended up having to go to the hospital. My tooth went through my lip.
She had to sew up the back of my lip. Nothing but fun that day. But uh my point is, I didn't plan on falling, but I fell. And sometimes that happens to us. We don't plan on crashing and burning spiritually, but it can happen.
And it happened to Peter.
Sometimes we call him Saint Peter, don't we? There's a million and one jokes about people going to the pearly gates of heaven and meeting Saint Peter, right? Like the story of the guy that went up to the Pearly Gates, and St. Peter says to him, You have to do one good deed to get into heaven. By the way, this is not true, but it's a joke, okay?
You have to do one good deed, says St. Peter, to get into heaven. And the man said, Well, wait, I just thought of a good deed I did.
Okay, go ahead, Peter. I mean, go ahead, sir. And he said to Peter, well, there was a motorcycle gang harassing this sweet little old woman. And so I stepped in and I stood up for her and I knocked down the motorcycle leader's motorcycle. Wow, that's impressive.
Peter said, when did this happen? The guy said, like five minutes ago, so that. See, that's why he was in heaven so quickly. Wait one sec. Excuse me.
Don't use that joke. It was a complete fail.
Okay, got it. But you know we think of Peter St. Peter Well All of us are saints. Satan is just another word. for a believer.
You don't have to call me St. Gregory if you don't want to. But I am a saint. You are a saint. We're all true believers in Jesus Christ.
And Peter was a saint, like you and I are a saint. And he was a flawed man who made mistakes. He was far from perfect. You think of all the occasions in the Bible when he spoke up when he should have been silent. One of our recent messages, we saw him there at the Mount Transfiguration.
There is Jesus shining like the sun. On one side of him is Moses, on the other side is Elijah. And that would have been a nice moment to just take it all in. But no, Peter felt he should say something, and it's funny because the gospel says this he said because he did not know what to say. And he pours out, it's good we are here.
Let's build three little booths: one for Moses, one for Jesus, one for Elijah. And God the Father audibly spoke from heaven and said, This is my beloved Son. Listen to him. Peter was always speaking up when he should have been quiet. Often saying the wrong thing, but worst of all, was when Jesus was in the upper room.
And he said, one of you is going to betray me. And Peter thought that would be a good opportunity to boast of his commitment to Christ, maybe a commitment that was even stronger than the others. And he said, though all deny you, I will never deny you. And Jesus said, Peter, I say to you, before the rooster has crowed twice, you will deny me three times. Peter says, never, I'll never deny you.
Scene number two, Jesus has been arrested. Peter is warming himself by the fire outside of the courtyard or in the courtyard of the high priest Caiaphas, who Jesus was being tried before. And the first thing I would have said is, Are there any roosters around here? Because I just Jesus said something about roosters. Of course, you know the story: the rooster crowed.
He denied Jesus. The rooster crows again. He denies Jesus again. And then finally, after his third denial, we read that Jesus was led out from the The court are out of the room of Caiaphas by Peter, and they made brief eye contact. Can you imagine that moment?
What kind of look did Jesus give to Peter? Did he roll his eyes? Did he Just close his eyes. I think it was a look of love. He had predicted it.
He told Peter what was about to happen. And then, of course, Christ is crucified, beaten, whipped, murdered in cold blood, and nailed to a cross. It was the greatest act of injustice in human history. The Bible tells us his body was so traumatized you couldn't even tell he was a man. And there he died.
for the sin of the world. Nicodemus came. Joseph of Armathea, who had a tomb, came and they took his body and laid it there. And then human history changed, and Christ rose again from the dead. Nobody thought this was going to happen, no one had paid attention when he spoke repeatedly about the fact that he would be betrayed, he would be crucified, he would rise again from the dead.
He even told them when it would happen in three days, but it came as a shock to everyone. And so, imagine the excitement. of the disciples when they come to the tomb. The women were there first, of course. By the way, Women were the last at the cross and the first at the tomb.
You go, girl. Way to go, ladies. Shown us up again. And Mary Magdalene. who had seven demons cast out of her by Jesus.
was the first at the tomb. just wanting to anoint his dead body. And she ends up seeing Jesus face to face. And the message goes out, and I love this: go tell the disciples and Peter, he goes before you into Galilee. Isn't that interesting?
Go tell the disciples and Peter, not go tell the disciples and Peter, James, and John, who are often grouped together. Or go tell the disciples and Matthew, or go tell the disciples, and Thomas. No, go tell the disciples and Peter. Jesus singled out one man who failed the most publicly. Not to shame him, but to restore him.
And you could put your name here. You ever see those billboards that say they say your name here or your business here? You could put your name here. Because Easter, point number one, is personal. It's personal.
The resurrection of Jesus is personal. Paul said, He loved me and he gave himself for me. Yes, it's true. For God so loved the world, he gave his only begotten son, and whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. But it is also true that God loves you.
And that's why he sent his only begotten son, Christ died on the cross for you. Again, when Jesus rose, he says, Mary, it was personal. And this is personal for you. Jeremiah 29, 11, God says, I know the thoughts that I think toward you, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. This is personal.
God did this for you. God chose you. And he chose Peter, and he knew Peter would fail. There was a funny episode of The Simpsons years ago. which I watch every week.
No, I don't, but I watch this one episode. And it was a story of Valentine's Day and And you may remember when you were at school, you had to give Valentine's to everyone in the class. though you may have been in love with one particular girl or boy, you have to give them to everyone.
So Lisa gives Valentines to each of the children and she chooses one for the rather nerdy boy Ralph. And it was a little train engine, a little choo-choo train, which simply said, I choo, choo, choo choo.
Well, Ralph took it literally. And he thought Lisa was literally choosing him, and he fell in love for her, love with her, and pursued her for the rest of the episode. But she never meant it that way. But I want you to know that God. Choo, Chu chooses you.
He chose you. Here's an updated version. We put Ben Born again and Yellow Dog in there. God chewed you, chooses you. No, it's an amazing thing that He chose you.
Knowing you would fail, he chose you despite your shortcomings. He chose Peter, knowing full well that he would openly deny him three times. It was the great British preacher, C.H. Spurgeon, who said. It's a good thing God chose me before I was born because if he would have waited until afterwards, he would have changed his mind.
But that's not true. God knew exactly who you would be, the mistakes you would make, but He chose you. Easter is personal. Number two, Easter is practical. So after Christ is risen, And Peter has heard that.
He is alive. He just goes back to what he was doing when Jesus called him. Not fishing for men. but fishing for fish. And he fished all night and he caught nothing.
And then Jesus appears to him from the shore. Making breakfast for the disciples. But this is just a picture of life to me. You know how. We try in our own efforts to make life work.
If I just check all of these boxes, I'm going to be a happy person. If I get my education and I get my career going and I get married and I have children and maybe even some grandchildren, and then this will happen and that, but you find in emptiness, an entire generation, my generation, the baby boomers. thought that the answer was in drug sex and rock and roll. And when we found out how empty all of that is, millions tried it and it ended in futility and even death. Our icons, our heroes like Jimmy Hendricks and Janice Joplin and Jim Morrison all died before their 28th birthdays.
It began as a generation chasing freedom and it became a half century epidemic of addiction, overdose, and despair.
So some of you say, Yeah, okay, boomer, but listen. We have a whole new generation chasing other things. We've gone from Woodstock to what, Wi-Fi? Instead of LSD, what do we have now? TikTok?
We carry the world in our pockets, and we've never been more alone. They're just substitutes, all of these things for what we really are looking for in life, which is Jesus Christ Himself. That's what it is. The answer is true for every generation.
So, when are we going to come to our senses and realize that? What we're looking for is God. And we can go out and try in our own efforts to Reach all of our goals and fulfill all of our dreams, and we can fish all night and catch nothing. Your life was given to you by God. The breath you are drawing in your lungs right now is a gift to you from God Almighty.
The beat of your heart. is a gift also from heaven. Don't take it for granted. He loves you and He has a plan for your life. reminds me of a story of a woman who went to an airport and she bought a bag of cookies.
and she sat down to eat them. And there was a man, it was one of those communal tables. There was a man seated across from her. And she was kind of shocked when he reached into her bag and took one of her cookies. She thought, what unearth.
And so she Reached in the bag and took another cookie. He reached back in her bag. He too took another cookie. She took another, he took another, and finally there was only one cookie left. And he reached down into the bag, took the cookie, broke it in half.
and gave her half and he ate the other half. She was so mad. She got up from that table, walked away in a huff. and then opened her purse. and found her bag of cookies.
You see, He wasn't eating her cookie. She was eating his. And he was kind enough to share the last cookie with her. And that's us in life. Oh, it's my life, and it's my future, and it's my plans, and all of that.
But it's been given to you by God Himself. Easter is personal. Easter is practical. We need to discover God's plan for our life.
Now we have people chasing after artificial intelligence, AI. A 2025 survey found 75% of U.S. teens have used AI companions. Nearly one in five adults are interconnected romantically with AI. What on earth?
You're going out on a date with your Roomba. What is happening here? All of this, again, a search for God, and God is searching for you. Jesus talked about a shepherd who had a hundred sheep. And one went astray.
And he went and searched for it and found it. And return, and God is searching for you. Jesus said, the Son of Man is coming to seek and save that which was lost.
So here's Jesus. from the shore. He sees his disciples fishing and catching nothing. He calls out to them from the shore, boys. Have you caught anything?
I wonder if one of them thought, who's he calling boys? We're adult men. What do you mean boys? Have you caught anything? No, they said reluctantly.
Well, throw your net on the other side of the boat. They did so and hauled in so many fish they could not contain it. And then it's John the Apostle, the perceptive one. Who often saw things before the other saw them, who said, It is the Lord. And we come now to John 21, verse 9.
And when they got there, they're coming to the shore now, they got there. They found breakfast waiting for them. Fish cooking over a charcoal fire. and some bread. Jesus said, Bring some of the fish you've just caught.
So Simon Peter went aboard and dragged the net to the shore. There were 153 large fish. And yet the net hadn't torn. Jesus said, now come and have breakfast. King James version says come and dine which i like But New King James says, come and have breakfast, which I also like.
None of the disciples dared to ask him, Who are you? They knew it was the Lord. And then Jesus served them the bread and the fish. And this was the third time Jesus had appeared to his disciples since he had been raised from the dead. We'll stop there.
What an amazing story this is. Is this not an inviting scene? Jesus Christ personally making breakfast. I love it when my wife says, breakfast is ready. Breakfast is my favorite meal.
Second only to lunch and dinner. But no. I love breakfast and I like bacon and eggs. I don't think they were having bacon and eggs. I'm sure of it.
That wasn't very kosher. They were having fish and eggs, which by the way, can be quite good if it's done right. Over in Hawaii, they'll often take mahi. And serve it with eggs. And when I'm there, a Maui, I always have mahi and eggs.
It's even blacken it a little bit.
So it's fish, no eggs, but fish and bread served to them by Jesus. And what amazes me is he prepared it.
Now, you would think he would just speak it into existence. Breakfast. There it is. No, he made it. He took the fish they caught and he prepared it and put it there on the fire and served it to them.
He made the bread. These are the nail-pierced hands of Christ, who has just died for the sin of the world and risen again from the dead, doing something.
So mundane as preparing breakfast. And as they're sitting there at the fire, I think for Peter it was a little bit of a flashback. As Yogi Bera once said, it was like deja vu all over again. He goes, wait a second. Where have I seen Jesus?
By the glow of a fire. Oh, yeah.
Now I remember. when I denied him. when we made eye contact. And I'm sure that no one knew what to say. I mean, what do you say in a moment like this?
Oh, Jesus. What have you been doing? Or hey, can I get the recipe for this fish? It's killer. No, no.
They probably sat in stunned silence. And then Jesus speaks to Peter in John 21, verse 15. After breakfast, Jesus asks Simon, Peter, Simon.
Son of John Do you love me more than these? Notice more than these. Not just do you love me, do you love me more than these? Why did he ask that? And by the way.
Jesus asked the same question three times. How many times did Peter deny him? Three times.
Okay, let's really make sure here. What we're doing. Do you love me more than these?
Now, the old Peter would have said, though I'll deny you, I will never deny you. Of course, I love you more than these. But the new repentant Humbled, Peter simply responded by saying, Lord, you know that I love you. And then just Jesus said to him in verse 16, feed my lambs. You know what that meant?
That meant that they were back in business again. No lecturing, no browbeating, no rehashing of what Peter had done. Jesus knew that Peter knew. The enormity of what he had done, Jesus was giving to Peter a second chance. And Jesus is offering a second chance.
to each and every one of us this Easter of 2026. God loves to give second chances. God gave a second chance to Adam and Eve. They were living in literal paradise. But they ate of the forbidden fruit, and sin entered into the world.
But God made a promise to them that a Messiah would come and deliver them on what we call the first messianic passage in all of the Bible, King David. was given a second chance. after committing both the sins of adultery and even murder. When he was confronted by the prophet Nathan, he repented and he went on to live the most effective years of his life. Samson Known for his supernatural strength and long hair, he was given the second chance, even though he sinned against the Lord.
And fell to to the enticements of a woman named Delilah. who cut all of his hair off and he lost all of his strength. And it looked like all hope was gone. But there in his story, we read these words: Judges 8 to 16:22. The hair of his head began to grow again.
And by the way, people ask me, Greg, what is your life verse? That's it. The hair of his head began to grow again. I say, Lord, let it be unto me even now. Hmm.
God gave him a second chance. God gave a second chance to Jonah the prophet. He was called to go preach to the city of Nineveh, and he refused. God said, go. Jonas said, no.
God said, oh. We all know he was swallowed by a whale, or probably a great fish, a sea creature. It was like sushi eating in reverse. Wrapped in seaweed. Jonas stubbornly refused to repent, and finally, after three days in the belly of that beast.
He called on God. And God gave him a second chance. That creature. Regurgitated Jonah on the shores of Nineveh. And we read in Jonah 2:10, the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, Go to Nineveh, the great city, and preach to them.
God gives second chances, and he'll give you one as well, just like he did for Peter. They'll just summarize. Easter is personal. Ether is practical.
Now for my final point. Easter is powerful. Again, not Easter itself. But the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Because Easter is about hope.
Because Jesus died and rose again, we can have hope. He died.
So we would live forever in heaven, yes, but also knowing that one day heaven and earth will become one and God will establish his kingdom and we'll be a part of it. And we live in a super scary world right now. We're at war in the Middle East. We have ongoing friction with China and with Russia in conflict with North Korea. Google searches for World War three have hit the highest peak ever.
We live in an uncertain world. With so much fake news and bad news and scary news, but I have some good news for you today. Christ is risen. You don't have to be afraid. The message from the angels.
To those who came to the empty tomb was simply, don't be afraid, don't be alarmed. From the original Greek, it could be translated. Don't panic, it's organic. No, that's not true.
Okay.
So Easter is personal. Easter is practical. And Easter is powerful. Because Jesus rose from the dead. That means that death does not have the final word because, as I've said before, Death died when Christ rose.
Some years ago, I was walking down the beach with my wife, Kathy. And there were bees everywhere. I don't know why there were so many bees on the beach. And she said, Greg, be careful of the bees. We're walking barefoot.
I said, I'm not going to step on it, and I stepped on a bee. And I cried like a little girl. No, it hurt. I didn't cry like a little girl. It did hurt.
and my foot swelled up a little bit. And that reminds me of another story of a of a father and son who were driving in the car. And the little boy was deathly allergic. to the bee sting. In fact, if the little guy got stung by a bee, he literally could die.
And a bee somehow got into the car and was buzzing around. The little guy was screaming. He was so afraid. And his father said, son, don't be afraid. And he reached out and he grabbed the bee in his hand and held it.
And the boy was still screaming, and then the father opened his hand and the bee flew out. And the boy began to scream again. He said, Son, don't be afraid. But, daddy, why? What if he stings me?
He says, He can't, because he stung me. You see, his stinger is gone. When Christ died on the cross, he took the sting out of death. You see, that's what happened. 1 Corinthians 15, 55 says, Death is swallowed up in victory.
Oh death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory? Oh yes. Christians die. We die like anybody else.
But death is not the end. For us, because of the empty tomb, we go from death to life. The moment we take our last breath on earth, we take our first breath. in heaven. And this is the great hope that we have because of what Jesus did on the cross and in the empty tomb.
So maybe today you come here. needing a second chance. You know, sometimes in life, Things have not gone well for us, and it's not even our fault. Maybe you just had a rough upbringing or some tragedy befell you or Someone you love was taken from you, or something happened that's been a big event of your life, and you don't know if you can ever recover from it. You know, sometimes we just have to.
react. We can't c control these things, but we control how we react. I had a crazy upbringing as a little boy. with my mom being married and divorced seven times and She was a raging alcoholic and it's not a life I would wish on anyone. And she married a lot of Guys that seem to almost be the same kind of guy, the kind of guy that hangs around on the bar.
and has his shirt unbuttoned too many buttons, you know, just... It's too many. And then a gold chain. No, no. Button the shirt up.
We don't want to see your gold chain. Anyway. These kind of boozy bar fly dudes. And somehow, I don't know how it happened, she married this. straight lace, buttoned down, conservative.
man from New Jersey who was an attorney. His name was Oscar Laurie. And he was the only man of all the men my mother married who actually cheated me. as a father should treat a son, and he even adopted me. And to this day, I call him my dad because he functioned as my dad.
I never knew my biological father.
So Oscar Laurie was my dad. And it was so hard one day when I came out of school and my mom said, we're leaving. And the car was packed up with our suitcases. And I said, where are we going? She said, Hawaii.
And I was so excited. But dad wasn't coming. I said, where's dad? She said, he's not coming. I didn't see him for the rest of my childhood.
But I became a young adult, then I came to Christ. And I became a pastor, and I was in New York, and I wondered if he was still alive. And I managed to track him down. This was before Google. But I knew somebody who worked for the Bar Association, and she found my father who was still practicing law in Red Bank, New Jersey.
So I called up his office and I said, Hello, is Oscar Lorry there? And his secretary said, I'm sorry, he's out to lunch. Can I ask who's calling? I said, Yes, this is Greg Lorry. She said, How do you spell your last name?
I said the same way he spells his. This is his son, L-A-U-R-I-E. And she said, oh, I'll tell him. And he called me back quickly. Greg, it's so good to hear your voice.
And I said, you know, I'm going to be in New York. I'm a pastor. It's a long story, but I'd like to see you again. Maybe we could have lunch. Oh, come to my home.
He had remarried, had two sons with his new wife, Barbara. Come and see me. Oh, no, I wouldn't want to impose. No, come and see me, he said.
So I went, I spoke, and our oldest son, Christopher, was with us. And we went to visit him, and the moment I saw him, I started calling him dad before I knew it. And we spent that night catching up and he told me how he had tried to get custody of me because he heard of how my life was going with my mom, but she fought him tooth and nail, which he never understood. But I think it was all part of God's plan. for me to see my need for Christ and come to him where I came to him.
But anyway. Uh That night we had dinner. And his wife Barbara said, Greg, tell me your story. How did you become a Christian? And then how did you become a pastor?
So I told the whole story of my conversion. She was very responsive. And my dad was sitting at the other end of the table just listening analytically. No expression. He had his hands up to his face like this.
I thought, I'm in a courtroom, he's the judge, and I'm doing really badly. And then afterwards He said to me, Greg, will you walk with me in the morning? One thing I left out was. He had had a heart attack and blacked out behind the steering wheel of his car and drove into a telephone pole. And almost died.
So now he is on a new diet and he had to walk every day. Will you walk with me in the morning? He asked. I said, Sure, Dad, I will.
So he knocks on the door of my room. Six o'clock in the morning New Jersey time, three o'clock California time. I'm not awake. And we're walking along. He says, Greg, I listen very carefully to what you told me last night.
Yes.
Okay, good. He said, and I want to become a Christian right now. I said, wait, what? Um Let me go over it one more time, Dad. Then went over the story again, and he said, Yes, I understand.
A very intelligent man, very well-read man. I do want to accept Jesus Christ right now. Wow, okay, well, let's, well, he says, what do I need to do? I said, well, we should pray. He drops to his knees.
We're in a park at this point. He's on his knees. I wasn't gonna get on my knees, but since he was down there, I got down there on my knees. And I led him in this prayer to accept Christ. As soon as we were done, he said, pray for my heart.
Pray God heals my heart.
Okay, let's pray. We prayed for God to heal his heart. He says, I know Christ has come into my life, and my doctor's office is not far from here. Let's go see him. I want to tell him God has healed my heart.
Whoa, hold on here. We don't. This is on an emotional man. And so we go to his doctor's office, a nice Jewish gentleman. My father walks in and says, Hey, Doc, this is my son, Craig.
He's a pastor from California. I just asked Jesus to come into my heart, and he healed my heart as well. I'm going, oeve, I don't know. I don't know how the doctor's gonna react to this. The doctor said, Now, Oscar, we need to run tests on you first.
We don't know.
So they ran the tests on him, and sure enough, God had healed his heart, and he lived 15 more years. But one thing I left out. Is when I was getting reacquainted with my father. He told me about my family roots. The family had been adopted into, the Laurie family, which is from Scotland.
And we have uh a coat of arms. And then our coat of arms, our family crest. It's a tree that has been cut down. and a little sprout is coming out. And uh Motto is Rapulalat, which means it buds afresh.
That was a picture of my childhood. Yeah, I was cut down. But it came back to life when I came to Christ, and it was even able to go back. and lead my father who adopted me to the Lord. And maybe your life has been cut down.
Maybe something bad has happened to you. But God restored my life, but fast forward many years, And in 2008, my life was cut down again when my son Christopher died in a tragic automobile accident on the 91 freeway. on his way to work here at this church. where he led our graphic design department. It was the worst day of my life.
I didn't think I would recover from it. But God has been gracious to us. And the result of it was his younger brother Jonathan made a commitment to Christ. that he talked about this morning. In the sunrise service, and we've seen God work through it in so many powerful ways, and our heart is healed.
So maybe you've been cut down, but life can bud afresh for you. And because of the death and resurrection of Jesus, I know I will see my Son again. That is our hope as Christians. The non-believer does not have this hope. You may think you do.
Oh, you know what, God will let me into heaven up at the pearly gates. That whole mythology of Pearly Gates and St. Peter greeting you, that's not the way it's going to happen. You decide in this life where you will spend the afterlife. You make your choice now.
And then the result of it happens later. And if you choose Jesus Christ and believe in him, you will be welcomed into heaven, not on the basis of what you have done, but solely on the basis of what he did for you when he hung on the cross and shed his blood and died in your place. That's what it's all about. And he said, it is finished. He accomplished it.
He paid for it. He purchased it. for each and every one of us. And it's only this hope. that we can have.
that will guarantee that we will see Christ. in the afterlife. I heard about a father who was dying. and he gathered his three sons to his bedside. To his two sons who were believers, he said, Goodbye, my sons, and I will see you in the morning.
The third son was alarmed. Why did he say that to them and not say that to me? He said, Father, why didn't you say that to me? He said, son, because you're not a believer. You've not put your faith in Christ as your brothers have.
I will see them in the morning, but I will never see you again.
So I simply say to you, I love you, son, and goodbye. The son said, but Father, I want to see you again. I want to see you in heaven as well. What do I need to do? He said, son, you need to put your faith in Jesus Christ like I've done and like your brothers have done.
And so the boy prayed and asked Christ to come into his life. And then the father said, Goodbye, son. I'll see you too in the morning. That's the hope of the Christian. That's the hope of our future.
This is what Christ offers to us. And we can have that hope if we put our faith in Him. You say, Well, what do I need to do? I don't understand what it means to give my life to Jesus Christ. Number one, you need to admit you're a sinner.
Peter had to admit his shortcomings. Have you caught anything? How's it gone for you? No, we haven't. We fished all night and caught nothing.
Peter had to repent and admit he was a sinner. And the Bible says all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. You say, well, I live a good life. Maybe you do. Probably not as good as you think.
But it's not good enough. No one's good enough to get to heaven. We've all sinned. And the Bible even says if you offend in one point of the law, you're guilty of all of it.
So you have to admit you're a sinner. Number two, realize Christ died on the cross for you. That was not an accident. That was part of the plan. As Peter said on the day of Pentecost, it was a part of God's well-thought-out plan.
Going back to the Garden of Eden. when our first parents sinned. God had to send a solution. And he said there was coming one. who would redeem them.
And he said to the devil who had deceived him, there's coming one who will crush your head. But you will bruise this heel. And the Bible says Christ was bruised for our sins. Yes, he died on the cross for our sin because there was no other way to satisfy the righteous demands of God.
So, number one, you have to admit you're a sinner. Number two, realize Christ died on the cross for you. Thirdly, you need to repent of your sin. The Bible says God has commanded people everywhere to repent. It's a military term that means to hang a u-turn, to go in the opposite direction.
So instead of running from God, You run to God. I mentioned my son Jonathan. Only a week before Christopher was called home unexpectedly to heaven, He said to his younger brother, Jonathan, what's it going to take? And what it took was something traumatic to get his attention. I'm not saying my son died so my other son would come to faith.
I'm saying, despite the fact that the Lord called our oldest son to heaven, he worked in the life. of his younger brother. Because all things work together for good to those that love God. But I ask you, what's it going to take? What's it going to take to wake you up?
What if this were your last Easter? A friend of mine Texted me and said, preach as though it's your last resurrection Sunday. I thought, wow, that's depressing. And I thought, no, actually, it's not depressing at all. What if it was?
What if this was my last Sunday to preach in an Easter service? Fine. That means next Easter, I'll be in heaven. I'll be better off than you, I can tell you that. I don't know.
Maybe I have 20 more, 30 more. I don't know. Probably not 30 more. Let's just say have some more hopefully. We'll see what the Lord does there, but To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.
You know, George Whitfield, there's a great movie out about him right now called A Great Awakening in Theaters. You ought to go see it. But one thing that George Whitfield said was: preach as a dying man to dying men. That's what I'm doing right now. I'm a dying man.
talking to dying men and women. We're all going to have to face it. But if we put our trust in Christ, we don't have to be afraid because Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life. And he that believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever lives and believes in me shall never die.
That's the hope we all have.
So you repent of your sin, then you need to receive Christ into your life. And I ask you as I close now: have you done that? Your parents can't do it for you. Your friends can't do it for you. Your spouse can't do it for you.
You have to say, I'm a sinner. I need Jesus. Lord, come into my life. Have you done that yet? You have to make your own decision.
And then you You need to do it publicly. Peter denied Jesus publicly. Of course, later he had confessed him publicly in many ways and many occasions. But you need to make a public stand. Jesus says, if you will confess me before people, I'll confess you before my Father in heaven.
But if you deny me before people, I will deny you before my Father and the angels in heaven.
So we're going to pray. And I'm going to extend an invitation this Easter of 2026. And I'm going to give you an opportunity to ask Christ to come into your life. An opportunity to be forgiven of all of your sin. An opportunity to have a second chance in life.
An opportunity to know with certainty that when you die, you will go to heaven.
So if you have not asked Christ into your life yet, if you need to make this commitment or recommitment, Because there might be some here that walk with the Lord, but you've drifted away. You can come back to him today. But only you can make this decision. The words that caught my attention is this 17-year-old kid. 10 years ago.
That was a joke. That's a That means I'm 27.
Okay.
And I heard that many years ago. The words that got my attention. is when the preacher said, Jesus said, you're for me or against me. I realize it was. Yes or no?
Where do you stand? Before him today, you'll never regret it. Let's pray. Father. Speak to the heart of every person here.
And for those that do not yet know you, Let this be the moment they believe. Let this be the moment. They find forgiveness. Let this be the moment they find a second chance in life.
Now when our heads are bowed, And her eyes are closed. And we're praying together. Maybe today You're thinking, I'm not sure if I'm right with God. I don't have the certainty that I will go to heaven one day, but I want it. Or maybe you've messed up in life and you've...
Walked away from your faith, and you're thinking it's too late for me. I can't come back again. Actually, you can. And actually, you must. The Bible says today is the day of salvation.
You may never have another opportunity like this again. Don't let it slip by. If you want Jesus Christ to come into your life. If you want him to forgive you of your sin. If you want to know that when you die, you will go to heaven.
Wherever you are, would you just lift up your hand? And let me pray for you right now. Raise your hand up high, I can see it. God bless you. God bless you.
Anybody else? Raise your hand up saying, I need Jesus today. Pray for me. God bless you in you. All over the room, hands are going up.
I hope yours is one of them. God bless you. Maybe you're in the overflow area watching the screen. You should raise your hand as well. Maybe you're at Harvest Orange County, Harvest Maui.
Maybe even watching online. Take this little step and say, I need Jesus right now. Raise your hand up. God bless each one of you.
Now, I'm going to ask every one of you that has raised your hand, if you would, please. I want you to stand to your feet and I'm going to lead you in a prayer. Stand up if you raise your hand, even if you did not, but you want Jesus Christ to come into your life. You want him to forgive you of your sin. You want to go to heaven when you die.
You want a second chance in life. Stand up and I'm going to lead you in a prayer. Wherever you are, stand up. Even if you did not raise your hand, stand up now. Let me pray with you.
God bless you. God bless all of you. Anybody else? God bless you. I'll wait another moment or two.
You may never have this opportunity again. Again, what if this were your last Easter? How sad it would be. that you let this opportunity slip by. He's ready to come into your life.
Stand up and let me pray with you. Anybody else stand up now? God bless all of you. You that are standing, I want you to pray this prayer out loud after me. Again, as I pray, pray this out loud after me.
Pray these words: Lord Jesus. I know that I'm a sinner. But I know that you're the Savior. Who died on the cross for my sin. and rose again from the dead.
Jesus come into my life. Be my Savior. Be my Lord. Be my God. Be my friend.
I choose to follow you. From this moment forward. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. Let's welcome these folks.
God bless all of you. God bless you. Amen. I'm blessed.
