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Coming to you live from Independence, Ohio. We change our life for the better in many different ways. Heard around the world every Monday through Friday. Pastor Sanders is always years ahead of the rest of the media telling you exactly what they're covering up.

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Thank you. This is What's Right, What's Left with Pastor Ernie Smith. Good evening and welcome on this Blessed Resurrection Sunday, and I hope you all had a Blessed Resurrection Sunday out there. This is the voice of the Christian resistance, and I'm Pastor Sanders. And tonight I have on this day, unusual, but a few times in the past I've had guests with me on my Sunday night message. And tonight we have Pastor Hal.

Are you there, Hal? Yes, sir. Well, today was a great, we had just a blessed service today, didn't we?

Yes, sure did. So, here tonight the title of the message is, well, the greatest story ever told. And then, gosh, verified and proven to be true. So, we're going to start. But first, as we get started tonight, people ask me, why don't you use the term Easter? Why don't you use the term Easter? And others will say, well, Easter means Astroth, or Easter means this and that.

Well, it doesn't. The word Easter actually means Paschal, or Passover. But we don't use that term, Easter. Why don't we use that term, Easter, Pastor Hal? We don't use that word Easter because it refers to Astroth, the very wicked pagan female deity. Well, it doesn't refer, actually. The word Easter actually means Passover.

But it's associated. Today, if you ask people, you ask people today, what is Easter all about, the mass majority? Well, it's a time to get together and it's a time to, well, if you go in all the stores, what did you find in all the stores out there? Easter baskets, big chocolate rabbits, Easter eggs. They even sell little baby chicks at Easter time. I even go by and I see Easter chicks here where they've got all these little chicks.

You take them home and sometimes they dye them, maybe different colors, pink or blue or whatever. But when you do that, where does this rabbit and the eggs and all of that, it goes back to a woman named Samaramus. And she was the wife of Nimrod. And they worshiped who? Astroth, didn't they?

Right. And so she, they had a ritual. And guess what the ritual was? It was a fertility ritual.

And it was a horrible thing. They would start it with the oak tree as a sign of fertility. And then you would have, what they would do is they would place eggs, which are eggs are a sign of fertility. And then they would take and they would have a female rabbit and they would remove her sex organs, sign of fertility. And then later they actually went into, they actually believed that if you drank the blood of a person, that however many years that that person would have lived, you'll get those years.

You'll have those years. And so they wanted to find the most innocent people they could find in this ritual. And they would actually find a pregnant woman and cut the baby out of her belly and cut its throat and drink its blood.

This is how wicked this was. So when you talk to people today, they associate Easter with Easter baskets, rabbits, eggs, and that's got nothing to do with Resurrection Sunday, does it? No. And rabbits don't make eggs anyway. Yeah. Rabbits can't make eggs. You're right about that.

I remember when we first told the liberals that and they were astonished. But anyhow, so now you'll find that it's used one time. Read Acts 12.4. Acts 12.4 says, And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison and delivered him to four quatarians of soldiers to keep him, intending after Easter to bring him forth unto the people. They didn't want to do it during Passover week, did they? And during that fact, you also had the Feast where you had the Holy Days. There were several that week.

The Unleavened Bread was another. And so if you turn over to 1 Samuel 31 and read verses 9 and 10, 1 Samuel 31. And they cut off his head and stripped him of his armor and sent unto the land of the Philistines round about to publish in the house of their idols and among the people. And they put his armor in the house of Asheroth and they fastened his body to the wall of Bethsham. Now that, of course, was King Saul that they did that to. And so now here, again, the Philistines worshiped Asheroth and one of their gods. So again, these people have fertility rights. They would sacrifice their children.

It was a terrible thing. But that name today is associated with all of these fertility rights. And that's why we don't use that. We use Resurrection Sunday. They can't attach all of that to Resurrection Sunday, can they? No.

Okay. So now the other thing, too, is you often hear people say, you know, Pastor, in those four Gospels, they all say something different now. They all say something different. So there's contradictions in the four Gospels when it comes to many things, especially Resurrection Sunday. But are there any contradictions? No, there's absolutely no contradictions.

There's just four people given an overall view of what things happened from beginning to end in the life of Christ. And some people bring out certain points and some don't. But that don't mean there's contradictions. There's just some bring out points that are really important to them and some don't. But it's all according to how God wanted them to present things. So, you know, from my perspective, if you will, when I hear people say that there's contradictions in the account of the Resurrections in the four Gospels, I always answer them by telling them. And at any time that there's a major event that takes place, they, well, you know, prosecutors and defense attorneys, they love to have eyewitnesses in most cases, especially if there's a lot of eyewitnesses, a lot of different eyewitnesses.

And what's the reason for that? Well, it's a pretty simple reason that they could cast doubt on what the other side says, as if it was a contradiction when it's really not. It's just like you preached a sermon this morning and somebody could ask me what you preached on. And I'm not going to give a whole hour's worth of details on what you preached on, but what stands out the most to me is what I'm going to tell them. Somebody could ask somebody else what you preached on that heard you preach, and something you said, something else, you know, that stood out to them, they're going to say what you preached on.

And neither one of us is, you know, saying the exact thing, but it's not a contradiction. So why the prosecutors and even the defense attorneys trying to prove a case, why they like a lot of eyewitnesses, because when an event happens, say there's a robbery or something, right? And so you've got Mr. Jones, and they get him, he's a witness, and he gets him on the stand, and he sees two guys running out of the bank and going to the car, and as they jump in, and the car takes off, and he's following the car, looking down with his back to the bank. And then, meanwhile, two more guys come out of the bank, and they go in the opposite direction, so Smith over there, he sees those two, because he's around the corner. So when the prosecutors gets Smith or Jones on the stand, or the defense attorney, and they ask Jones, well, first of all, you were an eyewitness, you saw this, how many people did you see come out? He said, well, two people. And they said, well, Mr. Smith, how many did you see?

Well, yeah, I saw two people come out. But which way did they go? Well, one went north and one went south.

Or two of them went north, and then, no, no, no, the two went south. See, they both saw two people. Then they asked Jones, did you see Smith there? Because Smith says he was an eyewitness. And Jones says, no, I didn't see Smith. And then Smith says, no, Jones wasn't there either, yet they were both there.

So this is what they like to play these games. So this is kind of like it is with the Gospel here, because you're right, they highlight, each person highlights something different. So let's start out and read in Matthew chapter 28. Go to Matthew chapter 28 and read me starting with verse 1 all the way through verse 10. Okay, Matthew 28, turn to it now. Matthew 28, verse 1 through 10. In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulcher. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door and set upon it. His confidence was like lightning and his raiment white as snow. And the fear of him and for the fear of him, the keeper shook, shake, shake, shake.

I'm sorry, I got this new pair of glasses in there. They're kind of really, really messing things up and became his dead men. And the angel answered and said unto him and said, fear not, for I know that ye seek Jesus, for he, I know that you seek Jesus, which was crucified, and he is not here, for he has risen. And he said, come, see the place where the Lord lay and go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead. And behold, he goes before you into Galilee. There shall you see him.

Lo, I have told you. And they departed quickly from the sepulcher with fear and great joy and did run to bring his disciples word. You know, they say the greatest news the world ever heard came from a graveyard when the angel said he is not here, for he has risen. Well, yeah, so here all hell and they came and held him by the feet and worshiped him and then said Jesus unto them, be not afraid, go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee and there they shall see me. So now, remember here when he had told them, in fact, if we just jump back to Mark 14, just jump over for a minute, Mark 14, 27-31. Can you go there, Mark 14, 37-21? Right, doing that now, Mark 14, verse 27?

27-31, uh huh. Okay, Mark 14, verse 27. And Jesus said unto them, all ye should be offended because of me this night, for it is written, I will smite the shepherd and the sheep shall be scattered. But after that I am risen, I will go before you into Galilee.

But Peter said unto him, although all shall be offended, yet will not I. And Jesus said unto him, verily I say unto thee that this day, even in this night before the clock grow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. But he spake the more vehemently, okay, he spoke the more vehemently, if I should die with thee, I will not deny thee in any wise, likewise also said they all.

Okay, so here, let's look at that. The Lord has told them way ahead of time that after I'm resurrected, first of all, he told them three times, right, that he was going to be crucified. And he was going to be buried and rise again in three days.

He told them all that, okay, but they didn't, it was like they didn't hear it. So now, he also had told them that once I'm resurrected, then go to Galilee and I'll meet you there in Galilee. And I was there at the Sea of Galilee and I preached right from the book of Luke. I was out there in the sea on that boat where many think that was the place where, it's not a very big sea at all, you can see from shore to shore. And so, and I preached a message as we got out there, the captain of the boat came over, not a ship, but like a large boat, like a tourist boat, and asked me if I would preach the message. Right out there they dropped anchor and I did.

It was really kind of a wonderful feeling. Here I am, all these years later, preaching out here where our Lord Jesus was. And so here now, when we see that, when he talks about here, Mary Magdalene and Mary, he says here, as it began to down toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to the sepulcher. And there's a, that Mary there was the wife of Cleophas. And so there's actually here four Marys, four mothers, four Marys mentioned. So there was Mary Magdalene was mentioned, there was Mary the wife of Cleophas was mentioned, and then there was Mary the mother of James and John, but she was also the mother of Jesus, huh?

And so it's mentioned, I mean actually there's three Marys, but they're mentioned four times in here, because I would guess Mary was a pretty common name in those days, huh? And so here now, so he leaves them, he tells them four things, he tells them one, the first thing he says, do not be frightened, two, he is not, here he is risen, three, come and see, and four, go quickly and tell. Now, let me ask you this, because here, when it says, and behold there was a great earthquake for the angel of the Lord, the angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door and set upon it. Okay, so here now they're referring, this is what Matthew is highlighting, he's here, the angel of the Lord, now his countenance was like lightning and his raiment white as snow, and for fear of him the keepers did shake and become as dead men. Well, so the guards that were put up on the tomb, basically what they did, they basically passed out, didn't they?

Right, they were in shock. Now, there are those that say, many believe this is a Christophany, because it's referred to as the angel of the Lord, and people say, well how could it be, because he's saying that he is not here. Is the Lord omnipresent? Yes. So, that could have very well been, because he appeared as different persons, didn't he?

Right. And so, that very well may have been Christophany, the Lord Jesus himself there, because here, like you said, the guards, his countenance was like lightning, and the angel answered and said unto the women, fear you not, for I know that Jesus you seek was crucified, he is not here, for he is risen, and said, come to see the place where the Lord lay. And so, go quickly and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead, and behold, he goeth before you into Galilee. So, here, he again announces, go into Galilee. Well, let's pick it up, pick it up in verse 11.

If you're having a problem reading, I can read it. Okay, verse 11 of Mark 27, Mark 14? No, Mark 28. No, Matthew 28. Matthew, Matthew. Okay, yeah. I'm having a problem. Okay, Matthew 28, verse 11.

Okay, I've got right here. He says, Now when they were going, behold, some of the watch came into the city and showed unto the chief priests all the things that were done. And when they were assembled with the elders and had taken counsel, they gave large money unto the soldiers, saying, Say ye, his disciples came by night and stole him away while he slept, while we slept.

And if this comes to the governor's ears, we will persuade him and secure you. So they took the money and did as they were taught, and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews unto this day. So let me ask you, did those Roman guards, did they take a real chance? I mean, here, they stuck their neck out because to fall asleep on guard duty and let a prisoner escape, you know, in that case, the prisoner would have been Jesus, there was a pretty terrible, terrible punishment for the Roman soldiers that did that, huh?

Yeah, letting a dead man escape is even more humiliating. Yeah, and so now, but if he was dead, he wouldn't have escaped. Now, he rolled the stone away not to get out. He wasn't in that tomb. He rolled the stone away so that they could get in, huh?

Right. And so here, pick it up in verse 16. Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.

Oh, wait, you know what? No, we'll do that later. Okay, I meant pick it up in verse 11. We read there, so pick it up in verse 11.

Okay, now when they were going, behold, some of the watch came into the city and showed unto the chief priests all the things that were done. Okay, there. Oh, that's okay, you can stop right there.

Yeah, I'm looking at getting ahead of myself on here. So now, we're going to go back and pick it up later during the week over, starting with verse 16. But let's go now over to Mark chapter 16. Okay, Mark chapter 16.

Okay. Now, read from verses, Mark chapter 16, verses 1 through 8. And when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Salome had bought sweet spices that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning, the first day of the week, they came into the sepulcher at the rising of the sun. And they said among themselves, who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulcher?

And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away, for it was very great. And entering into the sepulcher, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment, and they were affrighted. And he said unto them, Be not affrighted, ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified. He is risen, he is not here. Behold the place where they had laid him. But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee. There shall you see him as he said unto you. And they went out quickly and looked and fled from the sepulcher, for they trembled and were amazed.

Neither said they anything to anyone, for they were afraid. So here now, again, the angels now, what we just read before over there in Matthew, we saw the angel sitting on the stone that he rolled away. But now here they entered in and there's an angel, they saw a young man sitting at the right side, clothed in a long white garment, and they were affrighted. They said unto him, Be not affrighted. So now this is, how do you, as we take a look at this, so in Matthew chose to highlight the, if you will, the Christophany or the angel on the stone. Here now, in Mark, they highlight the angel sitting inside the sepulcher on the right side. And he said again, go before you go into Galilee. Again, he reminds them again one more time that the Lord had instructed them to go into Galilee, doesn't he?

Great. And I personally believe that that was another angel. In other words, it doesn't have to be the same angel. One angel could have been the one that rolled away the stone and frightened the soldiers after death. But by the time Mary, the two Marys got there, you know, and went inside, I believe they saw another angel sitting there that gave them basically the same information that he's not here. Well, yeah, as we go through the Gospels, you'll see in the next one, you'll see in the next two Gospels, there's two angels.

So now here, so what happened? The women now, now remember Jerusalem, this is the Passover week, Jerusalem is filled with people. And these women are rushing through the crowd, making their way. They've got to go find the apostles. They want to go tell them that Jesus has risen. And so here, now when Jesus was risen early in the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene. She's the first one that he appeared to out of whom he had cast seven devils. And he went and told them that he had been with him, that he went and told them that had been with him as they mourned and wept. And they, when they had heard that he was alive and had been seen of her, believed not, believed not.

Now, it's an amazing thing. You know who it was that believed that he was going to rise again? It was the Sanhedrin, the Sadducees, the Pharisees. That's why they demanded that there be a guard put on and the tomb sealed up and Caesar's seal and everything put on it.

Because they were afraid, they didn't want him to, if he arose, they didn't want him coming out, did they? No. And then they wouldn't bribe the guards to lie about it. It wasn't very smart of them, was it?

No, that's for sure. And so, but now, yeah. What's amazing is that, you know, you have people saying that the Jews knew for 4,000 years that, you know, that they were saved by looking forward to the cross and all this other stuff. But the fact is, his own disciples didn't know a thing about it. They were with him. After three and a half years, they still were blank as far as that he was going to die on the cross and suffer at the hands of wicked people and raise again.

It's like they were completely blank about the whole thing. That was his own disciples right up to the time it happened, which, you know, it kind of casts doubt on what people were saying about all the Old Testament people being saved by looking forward to the cross. When the cross didn't even exist until the Roman soldiers brought it along. And his own disciples were completely ignorant of the whole thing, you know. Well, you know, that was those, the Jewish people were raised on the Old Testament. They had the Old Testament and they were raised and that was a part of their life. And so they could tell you, most of those, they could quote the Old Testament to you.

In other words, boy, if you couldn't do that, you weren't very highly thought of. Now here, he goes on, and Jesus, when later on, on the road to Emmaus, he lets them know. And that they should have recognized who he was right away.

Now, here, let's pick it up now. When Jesus was, okay, let's go here. Jesus appears to two believers traveling on the road after he appeared in another form under two of them as they walked. And he went into the country and they went and told it into the residue and neither they believed them.

So now, here, these two, and that was Cleophas and his wife, Mary. They were walking in the wrong direction, weren't they? I mean, they were going to Emmaus instead. They were supposed to be looking there to be with the fellowship and eventually they found them.

Or they should have stayed with them. But down here, where did Jesus tell the apostles to meet him after he rose? In Galilee. So here, where are they? They're behind locked doors for fear of the Jews in Jerusalem.

Right. And so here now. If I could say, one of the most comical things in the whole Bible, I think, is when they were, those two were walking along. And Jesus came and joined them and they didn't have a clue who he was. And he asked them, what are you guys talking about? And I think it was Cleophas that basically, are you the only one that don't know what's going on? And, you know, I mean, here he is talking to God himself, but not even realizing it. And he's asking them, are you the only one that don't know what's going on around here?

What's happened? And when you stop to think about it, it's, boy, you know, it's actually comical that somebody would ask God that. You know, are you the only one that don't know what's going on? But, yeah, that's what that guy did, you know. Well, yeah. And so here now, we're going to get to that.

We're here, but let's go here. So then, gee, afterwards he appeared unto the eleven, and they said unto me, and upbraided them with their unbelief and a hardness of their heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen. Now, as far as Cleophas and Mary go, it says that he appeared to them in another form. He often did that in Scripture. Remember when he was preaching repentance and that, and he got up, and the Jews wanted to stone him in the beginning, and there was a crowd that gathered, and he walked right through the midst of them.

They didn't recognize him, didn't see him. And so here now, he appeared in another form, looking like somebody else. And so here now, he appears, afterwards he appeared unto the eleven, and they said unto me, and upbraided them. That means he rebuked them, he rebuked to them for their unbelief and their hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen. And so here now, then he goes on to say, Go into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature, he that believeth and is baptized, he shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned. These signs shall follow them that believe. In my name they shall cast out devils, and they shall speak with new tongues, and they shall take up servants and drink the deadly thing, it shall not harm them.

They shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. So, he's telling you all of these things here. And so for now, let's just jump over to Luke 24. To Luke chapter 24. Because we're seeing different accounts of the very same event, huh?

Right. And the whole event is all about the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. So, start with verse 1 in Luke 24.

And go to where? Read over until verse 12. Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulcher, bringing the spices which they prepared, and certain others with them. And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulcher, and they entered in and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed, about these glasses again, behold, two men stood by them in shining raiment, and as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?

He is not here, but is risen. Remember how He spake unto you when He was yet in Galilee, saying, The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again? And they remembered His words, and returned from the sepulcher, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest. And it was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary, the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which said these things, and told these things unto the apostles. And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they, believe them not, then arose Peter, and ran to the sepulcher, and stooping down, he beheld the linen clothes, laid by themselves, and departed, wondering in himself at that which was come to pass. Now, the Lord Jesus, before He was crucified, had told the apostles three times, three times He told the apostles, He mentioned His death, how He was going to be crucified, and He would rise again on the third day. He told them, Remember once Peter said, No, we won't let that happen to you.

What did He say, Get thee behind me Satan? Okay, so here now, three times He told them, and here now they don't believe that He's risen. But again, like I said, the opposition did.

And, you know, things haven't changed. A whole lot of people that are supposed to be professing Christians and churches out there, when they took these polls, asking them, Do you believe that the Bible is the inerrant word of God? Many of them didn't believe that Jesus even arose from the dead. I mean, if you don't believe that, then you're lost, aren't you?

I mean, there's nothing. Many people today, they have no respect for the Bible anyway. That's why they're going after these counterfeit versions of the Bible.

Anything that sounds good, they follow. So here, when He says here, Then rose Peter and ran unto the sepulcher, stooping down, and beheld the linen clothes laid by them, and departed wondering in himself which was come to pass down. Luke emphasizes Luke. Remember, he was the physician.

Actually, he wrote basically to the Greeks. But here, he emphasizes Peter. And Peter did run, just exactly like Luke said. But he wasn't alone. Peter wasn't alone. And as we get into the Gospel of John, we'll see what John had to say. And behold, two of them went on the same day to the village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about three-score furlongs.

So that was about seven miles, about seven miles. And they talked together. And all of these things which had happened, and it came to pass that while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. Now, again, like I say, most theologians believe this was Cleopas and his wife. Well, we know it was Cleopas, but many believe that it was his wife Mary, because the conversation, too, would seem like you kind of get the feeling that this is a husband and wife thing.

But their eyes were holding, and they should not know Him. So Jesus, He appeared to them in a different form, looking like somebody else. And He said unto them, What manner of communications are these, that you have one to another, as you walk and are sad? And one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered and said unto him, Art thou only a stranger, Jerusalem, and has not known the things which are to come to pass there in these days? And when He said unto them, What things? And they said unto Him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet, mighty indeed, and word before God, and all the people, and how the chief priests and the rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and have crucified Him. But we trusted that it had been Him which should have redeemed Israel. What did He mean by redeeming Israel? What was the redemption? We're looking for the Messiah to come in power, you know, just wipe out the Roman Empire and all their enemies and everything, and set up the Kingdom of Heaven right then and there on earth. So they were looking for a Messiah to deliver them from the bondage of Rome, but Jesus came to deliver them from the bondage of sin.

Amen. And so here now, did He, I mean, how clear could He possibly have been all through these Gospels when He was teaching this here? And because He taught about sin, and the very first message He preached was about repentance, right? What do you repent of? You repent of your sin, right?

That's right. So, and He said unto them, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet. Okay, well, anyhow, He says, But we trusted that He had been He which should have redeemed Israel, and beside all this, today is the third day since these things were done.

Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early in the sepulcher, and when they had found not His body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said He was alive, and certain of them which were with us went to the sepulcher and found it even so, as the women had said, but Him they saw not. Here, by this time, you had all these little flock of women running through Jerusalem, all excited, and by this time, everybody was, What is going on? You know, you had a big stir in Jerusalem at this time. Then said He unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe, all that the prophets have spoken, ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory. Now, here, when you go back, and just a handful of the prophecies about the Lord that they should have known, starting in the very first mention of Messiah would have been in Genesis chapter 3, starting with verses 13, 14, and 15, right? The evangelium, the seed of the woman. So that would have been one of the first ones. Then in Deuteronomy 18 and 15, His role as the prophet, the prophet and Messiah was spoken of in Deuteronomy 18 and 15, and then His suffering, I mean, Psalm 2, you couldn't get any clearer in Psalm 2, describing the crucifixion of Christ.

Then, of course, in Isaiah 53, His suffering, the suffering Messiah, and then His resurrection was predicted in Psalm 16, 9 through 11, and also, what, in Isaiah 53, 10 and 11. So, they had this, I mean, they had this information. And so, are you there, Hal? Yeah. Oh, I'm hearing some strange noises. Anyhow... I was just turning the pages over to Psalm 22, where He said, My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?

So right there is kind of prophecy about the suffering of the Messiah also. Okay. You know what? You know this strange thing's been happening with you and my phone?

Yeah. Well, right now, I'm listening to you. You're coming off my phone here.

I'm going to try to... I don't know why it didn't hang up, okay? I'm going to shut it down. It was sitting over here, and all of a sudden, your volume dropped. Now, are you still hooked into the radio?

Okay. Hal must have dropped. Hal, if you can hear me out there, apparently, your call has dropped. Give a call. Craig, keep your eyes open for Hal to call back in.

This is weird. Anyhow, haven't done a program like this one before, folks. So I'm going to pick it up where we left off.

And in the beginning... Okay, Hal, are you there? Yes, sir. Okay, yeah, you dropped off the radio.

Okay, yeah. Yeah, what happened was when you dropped off the radio, my cell phone was sitting about three feet from me. It came on, and you were there. And I got it turned off. This was, you know, this phone, as we've talked about in the past, is weird things happening.

But anyhow, every time you call me, it says that you're trying to text me, Hal Larson is trying to text me when you call me. But anyhow, let's go back to where in Luke 24, I'm picking it up in verse 27, And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in the scriptures the things concerning himself. And they drew nine to the village, whether they went, and he made as though he would have gone further.

But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them, and it came to pass as he sat at meat with them. He took the bread, and he blessed it, and break it, and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew him, and he vanished out of their sight.

You know what's interesting about that, Pastor? He was in the home of Cleopas, and it was the host of the house who would normally be the one that broke the bread. Instead, a stranger took the bread, sitting in the house of Cleopas, and broke the bread, which was very unusual, and then all of a sudden they realized it was Jesus breaking the bread. Yeah, their eyes were opened, and they looked, and that had to be a rude awakening, huh?

They were with the Lord and didn't even recognize him. But all of a sudden, and so they said to one another, Did not our hearts burn within us while we talked with us by the way? And while he opened to us the Scriptures, and they rose up the same hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with him, saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon.

So he had appeared to Simon first, and then we're running a little short up on time, but we'll shoot over. Well, let's pick it up here in verse 35. And when they told what things were done in the way, and how Jesus was known of them in breaking of bread, and as they spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them and said unto them, Peace be to you. But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen the Spirit. And he said unto them, Why are you troubled?

Why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Handle me and see, for the Spirit hath not flesh and bones as you see me have. And when he had spoken, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they yet believed, not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have you any meat?

And they gave him a piece of broiled fish and of honeycomb, and he took it and did eat before them. And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you while I was yet with you. All these things must be fulfilled which are written in the law of Moses and the prophets, and in the psalms concerning me. Then opened he up to their understanding that they might not understand, for Scripture said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoveth Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day. And that repentance and that remission of sins must be preached in his name, among all nations beginning at Jerusalem, and you are witnesses of these things. And behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you, but tarry you in the city of Jerusalem until you be endowed with the power from on high. So here they were huddled together, hiding for fear of the Jews. And so, well I'm going to tell you, the Lord is tolerant, long suffering, and of course he's omniscient, so he chastised and rebuked them for their lack of faith time and time again, didn't he?

Yes, he did. So I'm going to pick it up in John chapter 20 now, in verse 19. Thus the same day and evening began the first day of the week. When the doors were shut and the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst of them until the peace and said, Peace be unto you. And when he said this, he showed unto them the hands and the side. So here it's said differently, but the same thing is being said in all of the gospels and all four. It's just worded differently, isn't it? Right.

Okay, and so, now listen to this. And when he had said, let me go back then, said Jesus unto them, Peace be unto you as my Father has sent me even to send you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said unto them, Rejoice ye, or receive you, the Holy Ghost, whose saviors whosoever sins you remit, they are remitted unto them, and whosoever sins you retain, they are retained. Where do we see for the first time where God had breathed the Holy Spirit into a person, his spirit into him? Well, when he sent out to 70 to preach the gospel, he did, I believe. Now the first time, that was with Adam, remember?

When he created Adam, then he breathed life into him. Now here, when he says, Whosoever sins you remit, they are remitted unto them, and whosoever sins you retain, they are retained. Is he telling them they have the power to forgive sins? No, they don't have the power to forgive sins, only Jesus does. But it's going to be recorded what the people's response to their preaching is. Well, you see, when he's talking about this, he says, Jesus gave them the privilege of telling new believers that their sins have been forgiven because they have accepted Christ. And so, what he was telling them is that you have that power, you witness to them, and their sins, if they repent, their sins are forgiven, but if they refuse, their sins are not forgiven, right? Right, that's what we tell people when we go sowing in now today.

Okay. We warn them that if they reject Jesus, they're in big trouble. All right, let's go, you know, Jesus appeared to the disciples.

Let's take a look. But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them, and when Jesus came, the other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord, but he said unto them, Except I shall see his hands in the print of the nails, and put my finger in the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. And after eight days, his disciples were within, and Thomas with them. Then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then said he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands, and reach hither by hand, and thrust it into my side, and be not faithless, but believing. That was kind of a rebuke, wasn't it?

It was. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord, my God. And Jesus said unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed. Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet they believe. And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book.

But these are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of God, and that believe you might have life through him. We see here that he appears in this order. He appeared first to Mary Magdalene.

She was the first one. Then he appeared to the other two women at the tomb. Okay, so, Mark 16, 9 through 11, Mary Magdalene. Matthew 28, we read, 8 through 10, he appeared to the other two women. He appeared to Peter in Jerusalem, Luke 24, 34, and also that's repeated in 1 Corinthians 15, 5.

Now, there were two travelers on the road. That was Cleopas and Mary, his wife. And then he, 10 of the disciples behind closed doors, and that was in Mark 16. And then he appeared to all of the disciples with Thomas, but there was one that wasn't there. And that was, who wasn't there? Well, actually, there were two of the disciples that weren't there at this time. Obviously, we know one was the Apostle Paul, but who was the other one we know for sure wasn't there?

Who was the guy that kept the money bag? Oh, Judas Iscariot. Yeah, Judas wasn't there. And so here, then he appeared to seven disciples while they were fishing, and 11 disciples on the mountain. Then he appeared to a crowd of 500 in 1 Corinthians 15, 6, and then his brother James in 1 Corinthians 15, 7.

So here, there was about a 40-day period between the time he was resurrected and the time he went home to be with heaven. And then I'm going to jump ahead and read, well, he goes on to say here with Peter, three times he mentions Peter, do you love me? And Peter said, yes. Excuse me, too much.

I got a tickle in my throat. But anyhow, three times he said to Peter, do you love me? And Peter says, yes, I do, Lord, you know I love you. And how many times did Peter deny him? Three times.

Three times. So here, yeah. And then he told Peter, in the manner of which he was going to be, he would die, he would be crucified. And legend has it that Peter was crucified upside down because he didn't feel worthy to die the same kind of a death as his Lord.

And then here, I'm going to pick it up in verse 24. This is the disciple which testifies of these things, and this is John, and wrote these things. And we know that his testimony is true. And there are also many other things which Jesus did which, if they should be written, everyone, I suppose, even the world itself, could not contain the books that should be written. Amen. And so, do you believe that?

Oh, definitely. And you know, I want to throw in, too, that Thomas said to Jesus, my Lord and my God, and Jesus accepted that praise. He didn't say, no I'm not, and everything else like that, which shows that it's this confirmation that Jesus was God in the flesh. And there's no doubt about it, by this time his apostles knew it, and they're telling the whole world right here in the Bible that Jesus is God. Well, we also find out that somebody else with a lot more authority referred to Jesus as God, and that was God the Father over in Hebrews, chapter 1, huh? Yeah, chapter 1, verse 8. When he says what? My Lord and my God, right?

Right. Thy throne is forever and ever, a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. That's what God the Father said to Jesus. He said, thy throne, O God. This is God the Father talking to Jesus, and he said, quote, thy throne, O God. So you've got God the Father calling Jesus God. Boy, that kind of messes up the teaching of some of the Seventh-day Adventists, and Jehovah's Witnesses and that, where they don't believe in the deity of Christ. They believe he is a son of God, but not God the Son, huh?

Right. In 1 Timothy 3.16, it says that Jesus was God. It says, without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness, God was manifested in the flesh. That was Jesus. Amen.

In Revelation 1.8, Jesus said, I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is to come, the Almighty. Al, we're out of time. I know you had a good Resurrection Sunday. I did, too. I hope everyone out there did. And so, until tomorrow, we say good night, God bless, and always, always be ready. Let's do it. Keep fighting the fight! The preceding program is sponsored by What's Right, What's Left Ministries, and is responsible for its content.