"Road to Joy" - How To Live Life The Way It Was Meant To Be Lived - Pastor Greg Kritz -April 16, 2017

How to live the life God designed for you…

I. Place Your Faith in the

   FACTS of EASTER

Many have Claimed to God, but only Jesus proved it

Jesus predicted his execution…

Matthew 17:22-23 (NLT)

22 After they gathered again in Galilee, Jesus told them, “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of his enemies. 23 He will be killed, but on the third day He will be raised from the dead.” 

Jesus uses a metaphor

John 2:19-20 (NLT)

19 “All right,” Jesus replied. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20 “What!” they exclaimed. “It has taken forty-six years to build this Temple, and You can rebuild it in three days?”

Matthew 12:40 (NLT)

… but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.

Details Jesus provided about his own death & resurrection

Matthew 20:17-19 (NLT)

17 As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, He took the twelve disciples aside privately and told them what was going to happen to Him. 18 “Listen,” He said, “we’re going up to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be betrayed to the leading priests and the teachers of religious law. They will sentence Him to die. 19 Then they will hand Him over to the Romans to be mocked, flogged with a whip, and crucified. But on the third day He will be raised from the dead.”

1 Corinthians 15:3-8 (NLT)

   3 I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 4 He was buried, in a tomb that was sealed and guards posted

Matthew 27:62-64

The Eyewitness Account

1 Corinthians 15:4-8 (NLT)

and He was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said.

And exactly how do we know that’s true?

 

5 He was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve.6 After that, He was seen by more than 500 of His followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. 7 Then He was seen by James and later by all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw Him.

Jesus Appeared after His death for 40 Days

II.  I receive the Future Promise when I put my faith in the Facts of Easter

The promise is for a life after this one…

John 11:25 (NLT)

25 Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in Me will live, even after dying.

Easter promises you a life far better than the one you have today.

1 Corinthians 6:14 (NLT)

14 And God will raise us from the dead by His power, just as He raised our Lord from the dead.

I have a treasure stored and waiting for me that no one can touch

1 Peter 1:3b-6 (NLT)

…Now we live with great expectation, 4 and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.

I can endure trials because of the joy ahead

1 Peter 1:3b-6 (NLT) [cont…]

5 And through your faith, God is protecting you by His power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see. 6 So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while.

When I embrace the Facts of Easter by Faith, I receive the Future Promise which allows me to then… 

III. Plug into the Force of God’s Power that will transform my life forever 

The power of the resurrection is the power to start over.

I can do more with God’s power than with my willpower

Ephesians 3:19-20 (NLT)

19 May