JOY COMETH IN THE MORNING
AN EASTER MESSAGE
(Psalm 30:5)
(Matthew 28: 1-10)
(Luke 24:13-16----30-34-----44-53)
(Preached at Pinecrest Christian Church, Easter Sunday, April 16, 2006 a. m. service)
THE PSALMIST WROTE IN PSALM 30:5 THESE WORDS:
"FOR HIS ANGER ENDURETH BUT A MOMENT; IN HIS FAVOUR IS
LIFE:
WEEPING MAY ENDURE FOR A NIGHT, BUT JOY COMETH IN THE MORN-
ING."
THE PSALMIST HERE IS SINGING PRAISE TO THE HOLINESS OF GOD. THAT IS WHAT
THIS PSALM IS ABOUT; BUT THAT WAS PROBABLY THE FARTHEST THING FROM THE
MINDS OF MANY IN JERUSALEM AFTER THE CRUCIFIXION OF JESUS CHRIST OUR
LORD AND SAVIOUR.
CAIPHAS THE HIGH PRIEST, PROBABLY WENT TO BED WITH THE THOUGHT ON HIS
MIND;
"WELL THAT TAKES CARE OF HIM."
PONTIUS PILATE PROBABLY WENT TO BED WITH THE THOUGHT ON HIS MIND:
"WHAT A HORRIBLE MOB THAT BUNCH WAS! LITERALLY WANTING ME TO CRUCIFY A MAN WHO, AS FAR AS I COULD TELL, HAD DONE NOTHING TO DESERVE IT: THOSE JEWS ARE A VENGEFUL BUNCH! JUST LAST WEEK THEY WELCOMED THIS MAN TO JERUSALEM, AND A FEW DAYS LATER, THEY WANT TO KILL HIM! I DON'T UNDERSTAND THEM. ANYWAY, I WASHED MY HANDS OF THE SITUATION. HIS BLOOD IS ON THEIR HANDS, NOT MINE: I'M JUST GLAD IT'S OVER."
PETER PROBABLY WENT TO BED AND LAY AWAKE ALL NIGHT THINKING SOMETHING
LIKE THIS:
"HOW ON EARTH COULD I HAVE DENYED MY LORD? NOT ONCE! NOT
TWICE:
BUT THREE TIMES. HOW COULD I DO IT? AND WHAT IS MORE, HOW DID
HE
KNOW THAT I WOULD DO IT? WAS I AFRAID? HAD I BEEN AFRAID, WHY
DID
I DRAW OUT MY SWORD AND CUT OFF THAT MAN'S EAR WHEN THEY CAME
AND ARRESTED HIM? IT DOESN'T MAKE MUCH SENSE. GOD FORGIVE ME.
THE REST OF JESUS' DECIPLES PROBABLY LAY AWAKE AS WELL AND WONDERED:
"WHAT CAN WE DO NOW? THE LORD IS GONE, AND WHO WILL LEAD
US?
ONLY HE HAD THE WORDS OF LIFE! WHAT WILL WE DO?
OH, WHAT A SAD AND MELANCHOLY TIME THAT MUST HAVE BEEN FOR JESUS'
FRIENDS, FAMILY, AND FOLLOWERS: THE ONE PERSON ON THIS EARTH THAT THEY
REALLY HAD PUT THEIR TRUST IN, WAS DEAD. THEY SAW HIM DIE! SOME WITNESSED
IT CLOSE UP; WHILE OTHERS WERE AT A DISTANCE, BUT THEY SAW IT HAPPEN. IT
HAD BEEN AN ORDEAL THAT THEY WOULD NEVER FORGET! OUR LORD'S ENEMIES
HAD GONE TO BED WITH THE IDEA THAT JESUS WOULD TROUBLE THEM NO MORE.
THEY WERE'NT "WEEPING" AS THE PSALMIST SAID: BUT THEY WOULD BE WEEPING
ON THEIR BEHALF IN DAYS AHEAD: AND FOR THOSE THAT DID WEEP, THERE WAS
THE LATTER PART OF THAT VERSE:
"JOY COMETH IN THE MORNING!"
THE CRUCIFIXION HAD TAKEN PLACE ON A FRIDAY: JOSEPH OF ARAMATHEA AND
THE PHARASEE NICODEMUS (MENTIONED ONLY IN THE GOSPEL OF JOHN) CAME AND
BESOUGHT PILATE TO GIVE THEM THE BODY FOR BURIAL: THIS WAS DONE, AND HE
WAS LAID IN A BORROWED TOMB! HE WAS CRUCIFIED BETWEEN TWO THIEVES, AND
HE WAS BURIED IN A RICH MAN'S TOMB. THIS FULFILLED THE PROPHECY IN ISAIAH
53: 9
"AND HE MADE HIS GRAVE WITH THE WICKED, AND WITH THE RICH
IN
HIS DEATH, BECAUSE HE HAD DONE NO VIOLENCE, NEITHER WAS ANY DECEIPT
IN HIS MOUTH."
YOU KNOW; I'M THANKFUL THAT THEY LAID HIM IN A "BORROWED" TOMB!!! YOU
SEE, WHEN YOU BORROW SOMETHING, YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO GIVE IT BACK. OUR
LORD GAVE IT BACK. I WONDER WHAT OLE JOSEPH OF ARAMATHEA WOULD HAVE
SAID IF OUR LORD HAD GONE TO HIM AHEAD OF TIME AND SAID:
"JOSEPH, COULD I BORROW YOUR TOMB FOR A FEW DAYS? I'LL
NOT
KEEP IT LONG. I'LL GIVE IT BACK TO YOU IN THREE DAYS!"
OF COURSE JESUS DIDN'T SAY THAT; BUT HE COULD HAVE! IT WOULD BE INTEREST-
ING WHAT JOSEPH WOULD HAVE SAID! I AM SURE HE WOULD HAVE AGREED TO IT.
BUT JESUS GAVE EVERYONE FAIR WARNING OF WHAT WOULD HAPPEN! WHEN HE
SAID THAT
"IF THEY WOULD DESTROY THIS TEMPLE, AND HE WOULD REBUILD IT IN THREE DAYS." (PARAPHRASED HERE)
THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE FOGGIEST NOTION OF WHAT HE WAS TALKING ABOUT. THEY
THOUGHT HE WAS TALKING ABOUT THE TEMPLE IN JERUSALEM. BUT HE WAS TALK-
ING ABOUT HIS BODY: JESUS KNEW ALL ALONG WHAT LAY AHEAD OF HIM. HE KNEW
THE PAIN AND THE SUFFERING THAT WAS BEFORE HIM. AND HE KNEW THAT THERE
WOULD BE A "NIGHT OF WEEPING," BUT HE ALSO KNEW, THAT "JOY COMETH IN THE
MORNING.
THE CITY OF JERUSALEM WAS PROBABLY IN A STATE OF "QUIETNESS" THAT WAS
"DEAFENING." SIMON AND GARFUNKEL RECORDED A SONG ONCE ABOUT "THE
SOUND OF SILENCE:" THERE WAS PROBABLY AN EERIE QUIETNESS THAT DEFIED
DESCRIPTION. THE JEWS WHO FEARED JESUS PROBABLY KEPT A PRETTY LOW
PROFILE FOR A FEW DAYS. THEY WERE NO DOUBT WORRIED ABOUT WHAT THE
PUBLIC WOULD DO IF THEY FOUND OUT THAT MANY OF THEIR WITNESSES LIED IN
RELATION TO JESUS AND THE THINGS HE SAID AND DID. THEY HAD GOTTEN WHAT
THEY WANTED. JESUS WAS DEAD, AND AFTER ALL, THE "DEAD TELL NO TALES,"
AS SOMEONE ONCE SAID; SO, THEY WERE HAPPY AND RELIEVED.
OTHERS HOWEVER, WERE NOT THAT WAY. I THINK OF JESUS' POOR OLD MOTHER.
STANDING THERE WATCHING THE LIFE'S BLOOD RUN OUT OF HER SON. HE HAD
BEEN A GOOD BOY. HE HAD NEVER GIVEN HER ONE MOMENTS WORRY AS A CHILD.
OF COURSE THERE WAS THAT TIME THAT HE GOT SEPERATED FROM THEM ON A TRIP
TO JERUSALEM WHEN HE WAS TWELVE YEARS OLD. THAT GAVE THEM QUITE A BIT
OF WORRY; BUT THEY FOUND HIM, OF ALL PLACES, IN THE TEMPLE. SHE PROBABLY
RECALLED HIM SAYING THAT HE HAD TO BE
"ABOUT HIS FATHER'S BUSINESS."
SHE KNEW HE DIDN'T REFER TO JOSEPH IN THIS CONNECTION. JOSEPH WAS A
CARPENTER AND HE DIDN'T SEND JESUS TO THE TEMPLE ON BUSINESS FOR HIM.
SHE KNEW THAT. SHE KNEW HE WAS REFERRING TO HIS "HEAVENLY" FATHER.
NOW, SHE IS STAYING IN A DIFFERENT HOUSE WITH A DIFFERENT FAMILY, AS THE
GOOD DESCIPLE JOHN HAD GIVEN HER A HOME. EVEN ON THAT OLD CROSS, HER
SON WAS LOOKING OUT FOR HER. HE HAD GIVEN HER A "NEW SON" TO REPLACE
THE ONE THAT WAS ABOUT TO DIE: HE WAS SUCH A GOOD SON TO LOOK OUT FOR
HIS MOTHER AT A TIME LIKE THAT.
THE SABBATH DAY CAME AND WENT: THERE WAS PROBABLY VERY LITTLE STIR-
RING IN THE CITY OF JERUSALEM THAT DAY. IT WAS ALWAYS A DAY OF REST, BUT
PERHAPS EVEN MORE SO ON THIS OCCASION. NO DOUBT, MANY WERE JUST SIT-
TING AROUND THEIR PLACES OF ABODE WONDERING WHAT HAD ACTUALLY HAP-
PENED THE DAY BEFORE; JUST PONDERING OVER IN THEIR MINDS THE TERRIBLE
EVENTS OF THE CRUCIFIXION!
WHILE THE JEWS WERE REFLECTING ON THE CURRENT EVENTS, THE ROMANS WERE
GOING TO SEE THAT NO FURTHER TROUBLE FROM THIS "ITENERATE CARPENTER
TURNED RABBI" WOULD COME ABOUT. THE BEST WAY TO DO THAT, AND KEEP THE
PEACE AND HARMONY, WOULD BE TO SEAL THE TOMB AND POST A GUARD TO SEE
THAT IT WASN'T DESTURBED. NO DOUBT THE GUARDS WHO WERE PICKED FOR THIS
JOB THOUGHT THAT THEY HAD "A COUPLE OF DAYS OFF" IN A MANNER OF SPEAKING
IN GUARDING A TOMB. COULDN'T BE "TOO EXCITING," COULD IT?
THEN THERE WAS THE GROUP OF LADIES THAT HAD MADE UP THEIR MINDS TO GO
AND PREPARE THE BODY. THEY WENT TO BED EARLY, PROBABLY, TO REST FOR THE
JOB OF THE COMING MORNING: THEY PROBABLY DIDN'T SLEEP A WINK! THEY HAD
LOST A GOOD FRIEND AND TEACHER. THEY PROBABLY LAY IN THE SILENCE OF THE
MOONLIGHT THINKING ABOUT THE GRUESOME TASK AHEAD. THEY HAD SEEN THE
BODY WHEN IT WAS REMOVED FROM THE CROSS. HAD THEY NOT BEEN THERE AND
SEEN HIM CRUCIFIED IN PERSON, THEY WOULDN'T HAVE RECOGNIZED THE BODY FOR
ALL OF THE FACIAL INJURIES THAT HE SUFFERED: IT WAS HORRIBLE! IT WAS A
SIGHT THEY WOULD NEVER FORGET!
THERE WAS NO DOUBT THAT MANY PEOPLE LAY AWAKE THAT SATURDAY NIGHT IN
UTTER AMAZEMENT AND DISBELIEF OVER THE THINGS THAT HAPPENED. THERE WAS
NO DOUBT MANY "WET PILLOWS" THAT NIGHT FROM THE WEEPING OF THOSE THAT
LOVED JESUS, BUT ONCE AGAIN, REMEMBER; THE PSALMIST SAID THAT
"JOY COMETH IN THE MORNING."
TURN OVER TO THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW: CHAPTER 28: VERSES 1-10:
THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE PASSAGES IN THE BIBLE; ESPECIALLY CONCERNING
THE RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD: THE WOMEN GOT UP "BEFORE THE CRACK OF
DAWN," AND LEFT OUT ON THAT WALK TO THE TOMB FOR THE TASK THAT LAY BE-
FORE THEM: DAYLIGHT IS JUST BREAKING AS THEY APPROACH THE TOMB. IT IS
QUITE LIKELY THAT NOT MUCH HAS BEEN SAID BETWEEN THEM ON THIS SOLEMN
OCCASION, BUT THEY PERHAPS DID WONDER WHO WOULD ROLL THE STONE AWAY?
THAT QUESTION NO DOUBT WEIGHED HEAVILY ON THEIR MINDS. BUT NOTICE IF YOU
WILL WHAT ACTUALLY TRANSPIRED ON THAT DIMLIT MORNING AT THE TOMB:
READ TEXT
PRAISE GOD!
"JOY COMETH IN THE MORNING!!!!"
FROM OUT OF THIS NIGHT OF GLOOM AND DESPAIR, JOY HAS BEEN BORN IN THE
HEARTS OF MEN. "HE IS NOT DEAD! HE IS RISEN!"
THESE SAME WOMEN WHO "CAME TO ANNOINT A DEAD BODY" WENT TO "ANNOUNCE
A LIVING SAVIOUR." JESUS IS ALIVE! JESUS HAS CONQUERED DEATH!
"ALL HAIL THE POWER OF JESUS' NAME,
LET ANGELS PROSTRATE FALL!
BRING FORTH THE ROYAL DIADEM,
AND CROWN HIM LORD OF ALL!"
FROM OUT OF THE DARKNESS OF THE EVENTS OF THE DAY, AND THE GRIEF OF THE
NIGHT;
"JOY HAS COME IN THE MORNING!"
TURN OVER TO THE GOSPEL OF LUKE. WE SEE ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF OTHERS WHO
HAD WITNESSED THE EVENTS OF THE PREVIOUS DAYS, AND WERE IN A SAD STATE
OF MIND. TURN TO THE 24TH CHAPTER AND LET US READ VERSES 13 THRU 16:
READ TEXT
HERE WE SEE TWO FOLLOWERS OF JESUS WHO HAVE WALKED DOWN THE ROAD
FROM JERUSALEM TO EMMAEUS: ALL THAT THEY CAN FIND TO TALK ABOUT IS THE
EVENTS OF THE CRUCIFIXION: YOU REMEMBER HOW IT WAS JUST AFTER 9-11-01?
ALL WE TALKED ABOUT WAS THE TRAGEDY OF THAT OCCASION. WELL, IT WAS THE
SAME WAY IN JERUSALEM. THE TOPIC OF THE DAY WAS THE CRUCIFIXION. NOW, IT
WASN'T THAT CRUCIFIXIONS WERE SO "UNCOMMON." NOT IN THE LEAST! BUT TO
FIND A MAN WHO WAS WELCOMED AS A CONQUERING HERO JUST A WEEK BEFORE,
AND WAS CRUCIFIED A WEEK LATER; NOW THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN JUST EVERY DAY
OF THE WEEK: IT WAS A UNIQUE OCCURANCE!
THERE WOULD BE MANY THAT WOULD STAND IN THE CROWD AND HOLLAR "CRUCIFY
HIM, CRUCIFY HIM," THAT HAD HOLLARED "HOSANNA," THE WEEK BEFORE! NEVER
TRUST PUBLIC OPINION! IT CAN CHANGE OVERNIGHT! IT DID HERE!
ANYWAY, THIS "TWOSOME" BECOMES A "THREESOME," AND THEY CONTINUE ON
THEIR WAY TO EMMAEUS. WHEN JESUS, WHO IS "UNKNOWN" IN HIS APPEARANCE,
ASKS THEM IN THE NEXT VERSE WHAT HAS TRANSPIRED AND WHY ARE THEY SO
SAD, THEY LOOK AT HIM AND SAY SOMETHING TO THE EFFECT:
"YOU SURELY AIN'T FROM AROUND HERE!"
(THAT IS WHAT WE USUALLY SAY WHEN A STRANGER ASKS US A RATHER "STUPID
QUESTION," IN OUR OWN EYES.) THEY PROBABLY FELT LIKE THAT THIS FELLOW IS
JUST GETTING IN THE AREA. HE IS "NEW IN TOWN, IF HE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT ALL
HAPPENED THIS PAST FRIDAY." I MEAN LIKE, "EVERYBODY KNOWS WHAT HAPPENED
LAST FRIDAY."
THEY WENT ON IN THE FOLLOWING VERSES TO TELL JESUS JUST WHAT HAPPENED.
THEY WENT ON TO SAY THAT HE WAS A
"PROPHET MIGHTY IN DEED AND WORD BEFORE GOD AND ALL THE PEOPLE."
THEY WENT ON TO TELL HIM OF THE CRUCIFIXION AND HOW THE RULERS HAD DELIV-
ERED HIM TO THE ROMANS TO BE CRUCIFIED, AND THAT HE WAS DEAD AND BURIED,
AND THEY WENT ON TO SPEAK OF THE WOMEN WHO HAD FOUND THE TOMB EMPTY
AND WHO HAD BEEN INFORMED BY ANGELS THAT HE WAS RISEN. YET WE SEE THAT
THEY DIDN'T PUT A LOT OF TRUST IN WHAT THEY HAD HEARD.
"THEY WERE RIGHT IN THE FACTS, BUT WRONG IN THE CONCLUSION!"
THEY HAD THEIR FACTS STREIGHT, BUT THEY HAD COME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT
JESUS WAS DEAD, AND THAT THE WOMEN WERE MISTAKEN. BUT REALLY, WHEN YOU
THINK ABOUT IT, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IF SOMEONE TOLD YOU THAT THEY HAD
SEEN AND TALKED WITH ANGELS?
LET US GO DOWN TO VERSE 30, AND READ THROUGH VERSE 34:
READ TEXT
FOR WHATEVER REASON, GOD HAD "CLOSED THEIR EYES," TO HIS IDENTITY, AND
THEY ATE WITH HIM, AND CONVERSED WITH HIM, AND WHEN THE TIME WAS RIGHT,
THEIR EYES WERE OPENED. AND THEY SAW THE LORD, AND HE "DISAPPEARED."
THEN, THEY REASONED AMONG THEMSELVES AND SAID TO EACH OTHER IN VERSE
32:
"DID NOT OUR HEART BURN WITHIN US. WHILE HE TALKED WITH US
BY
THE WAY AND WHILE HE OPENED TO US THE SCRIPTURES."
JESUS HAD A WAY OF EXPOUNDING ON THE WORD OF GOD THAT MADE A LASTING
IMPRESSION ON HIS HEARERS. THAT WAS BECAUSE HE WAS THE WORD OF GOD!
THAT IS WHAT THE APOSTLE JOHN SAYS IN THE OPENING VERSES OF HIS GOSPEL.
WHEN YOU GOT THE WORD FROM JESUS CHRIST, YOU GOT IT AS THE OLD TIMERS
USED TO SAY: "STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSE'S MOUTH.
CAN YOU IMAGINE WHAT IT MUST HAVE BEEN LIKE TO HEAR JESUS HIMSELF TEACH
THE MULTITUDES?
MOST ALL OF YOU KNOW THAT I PLAY THE MANDOLIN, AND BLUEGRASS MUSIC.
ONCE DOYLE LAWSON AND MYSELF WAS SITTING IN THE LIVING ROOM WHERE WE
USED TO LIVE, AND I SAID TO HIM ABOUT BILL MONROE. "THERE ARE MANY MAN-
DOLIN PLAYERS THAT I LIKE BETTER THAN BILL MONROE, BUT THERE IS NO ONE
THAT SENDS THE CHILL OVER ME LIKE BILL MONROE DOES." DOYLE AGREED WITH
ME. THE REASON WAS, THAT WHETHER YOU LIKED BILL MONROE OR NOT, HE WAS
THE DADDY OF THE WHOLE THING OF BLUEGRASS MUSIC. IT WAS THE EQUIVALENT
OF WATCHING BEETHOVEN CONDUCT AN ORCHESTRA. OR LISTENING TO JOHANN
BACH PLAY THE ORGAN! THAT SORT OF THING:
WHEN JESUS TAUGHT SCRIPTURE, YOU WERE GETTING EDUCATED BY GOD HIMSELF!
AND WHAT IS MORE, WHEN YOU READ THE SCRIPTURE FOR YOURSELF, YOU ARE
STILL GETTING EDUCATED BY GOD HIMSELF IN HIS WORD! MAN DIDN'T WRITE THIS
OLD BOOK! GOD DID. HE MAY HAVE TRANSCRIBED IT, AS GOD GAVE HIM INSPIRA-
TION, BUT EVERY WORD, EVERY JOT AND TITTLE OF THIS BOOK IS INSPIRED BY THE
CREATOR OF HEAVEN AND EARTH; THE ONLY THING THAT MAN DID WAS TO SERVE
AS "HUMAN TYPEWRITERS," TO PUT IT ON PAPER!
THE LAST PART OF THE TEXT THIS MORNING COMES FROM VERSES 44-53:
READ TEXT
I LOVE HOW THIS GOSPEL COMES TO AN END. DOCTOR LUKE IS METICULOUS IN HIS
DETAILS. AND AFTER JESUS ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN, THE "WEEPING WAS OVER,"
AND THE "REAPING WOULD BEGIN." THESE DECIPLES WOULD RETURN TO JERUSA-
LEM WITH GREAT JOY AND THEY CONTINUED IN THE TEMPLE PRAISING AND BLESS-
ING GOD. WHAT A MAGNIFICENT ENDING TO A TREMENDOUS EVENT.
MAYBE YOU ARE HERE THIS MORNING, AND THERE IS MUCH SORROW IN YOUR LIFE
OVER WHATEVER TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS YOU MAY BE EXPERIENCING. IT MAY
LOOK HOPELESS, EVEN, BUT WHATEVER YOU ARE GOING THROUGH, COULD NOT
COMPARE TO WHAT JESUS WENT THROUGH ON OUR BEHALF. MAYBE YOU HAVE
SPEND THE LONG NIGHT OF WEEPING, BUT THANK GOD;
"JOY COMETH IN THE MORNING."
TODAY IS THE SUNDAY THAT WE CELEBRATE THE RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD!
THERE IS NO WAY TO DESCRIBE IN DETAIL WHAT THAT MEANS TO MANKIND, AND TO
CHRISTIANS ESPECIALLY. WHERE WOULD WE BE WERE IT NOT FOR THE RESURREC-
TED LORD? WE WOULD BE LOST, AND WITHOUT HOPE IN THIS WORLD, OR THE NEXT!
WE WOULD BE DOOMED TO A DEVIL'S HELL FOR ALL ETERNITY, FOR AN ETERNAL
NIGHT OF WEEPING, WAILING, AND GNASHING OF TEETH. BUT THROUGH THE EVENT
OF THAT RESURRECTION MORNING, WE CAN HAVE JOY ETERNAL AND FOREVER IN
JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD. THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT YOU HAVE AS A CHILD OF GOD.
AND WHEN THAT GREAT DAY COMES THAT WE LEAVE THIS WORLD, IT COULD BE A
SUDDEN THING, OR IT COULD BE A LONG DRAWN OUT PAINFUL THING. WHATEVER IT
IS, THERE WILL BE A "JOYFUL MORNING FOR YOU IF YOU ARE IN CHRIST." IF NOT,
YOU WILL BE FACING THAT ETERNAL NIGHT OF WEEPING.
ARE YOU A CHRISTIAN THIS MORNING? HAVE YOU BEEN CLEANSED BY THE BLOOD
OF THE LAMB OF GOD? YOU CAN DO THAT TODAY! HERE IS WHAT YOU MUST DO:
YOU MUST:
REPENT OF THE SIN THAT IS IN YOUR LIFE. I DON'T CARE HOW GOOD A
PERSON YOU ARE, YOU ARE STILL A SINNER AND LOST ETERNALLY WITHOUT GOD.
YOU MUST:
CONFESS BEFORE MEN THAT JESUS IS THE CHRIST, THE SON OF THE LIVING
GOD, AND YOU MUST TAKE HIM TO BE YOUR SAVIOUR AS WELL AS YOUR LORD, AND
YOU MUST:
BE BAPTIZED FOR THE REMISSION OF SINS AND TO RECEIVE THE GIFT OF THE
HOLY SPIRIT. JESUS SAID IN THE GREAT COMISSION TO
"GO YE INTO ALL THE WORLD AND PREACH THE GOSPEL TO EVERY CREAT- URE, HE THAT BELIEVETH AND IS BAPTIZED SHALL BE SAVED, HE THAT BELIEVETH NOT SHALL BE DAMNED."
AND THEN YOU WILL
RISE AND WALK IN THE NEWNESS OF LIFE! JUST AS OUR LORD ROSE FROM
THE DEAD PHYSICALLY, WE AS CHRISTIANS WILL RISE FROM THE DEAD SPIRITUALLY.
THAT IS THE BEAUTY OF CHRISTIANITY. AS SINNERS, WE ARE WOVEN INTO THE FAB-
RIC OF THAT ENDLESS NIGHT OF WEEPING. AS SINNERS, YOU MAY NOT WEEP NOW,
BUT IT IS COMING, UNLESS YOU ALLOW JESUS CHRIST TO CUT THE FABRIC OF SIN
AND SORROW. THEN YOU WILL EXPERIENCE THAT "PEACE THAT PASSETH UNDER-
STANDING."
MAYBE YOU WOULD LIKE TO BECOME A MEMBER OF THIS LITTLE CONGREGATION.
WE LOVE THE LORD HERE AT PINECREST, AND WHAT'S MORE, WE LOVE EACH
OTHER. WE ARE A PART OF THE FAMILY OF GOD. YOU CAN BECOME A PART OF US
AS WELL.
OR, MAYBE YOU NEED TO REDEDICATE YOUR LIFE TO CHRISTIAN SERVICE. MAYBE
YOU HAVE NOT WALKED AS CLOSE TO THE LORD AS YOU WOULD HAVE LIKED TO:
TODAY WOULD BE A WONDERFUL TIME TO GET BACK "IN STEP WITH JESUS."
WOULD YOU COME AND EXPERIENCE THIS MORNING THE WONDER AND THE EXCITE-
MENT THAT CAN ONLY COME FROM THE RESURRECTED LORD, FOR TRULY,
"JOY COMETH IN THE MORNING!"
LET US PRAY!
HYMN OF INVITATION WILL BE NO.________.