For all of us, here’s the bad news: You can’t avoid death. Everyone eventually dies, and there’s nothing anyone can do about it. But Easter changes everything. Easter is the remedy for death. Below is an outline summary of the sermon for your further study and deeper reflection.

EASTER 2024
TEXT: 1 Corinthians 15:20-26
TITLE: The Ultimate Hope of Easter
PREACHER: Derek Overstreet
BIG IDEA: Because death is our greatest enemy, Easter is our greatest hope.

POINTS:
1. The Resurrection of Jesus Guarantees Our Resurrection
2. The Resurrection of Jesus Guarantees the Renewal of All Things

SERMON EXCERPTS:
All quotes are taken from the pastor’s notes.
”I read a study titled—What We Fear More Than Death. Does anyone think they know the answer? 75% of people polled answered public speaking. That means most of you would rather die than get up here and speak. If that’s you, here’s the good news: You can avoid public speaking. For all of us, here’s the bad news: You can’t avoid death. Everyone eventually dies, and there’s nothing anyone can do about it. But Easter changes everything. Easter is the remedy for death.”

“Easter is our greatest hope because the resurrection of Jesus guarantees our resurrection and the renewal of all things.”

“Paul is correcting bad theology in 1 Corinthians. But in that, he is giving the Corinthians hope. There is safety and hope in sound doctrine.”

“In Corinth, there were some in the church rejecting a bodily resurrection. There is no hope in that perspective. If there is no resurrection, then not even Jesus is resurrected. And if Jesus has not been raised from the dead, if the tomb is not empty on Sunday, then all that happened on Good Friday doesn’t matter. We are still in our sins. The Christian faith is meaningless, even blasphemous. This life is all we have, so we are to be pitied above all. Why? Because if the tomb is not empty, the gospel unravels.”

“What are first fruits? The first fruits were the first crops the farmer gathered from their harvest. They would take the first fruits of their crops and give them to the Lord as an offering of gratitude for His provision. The first fruits also gave the farmer hope because they acted as a promise for a good harvest. The first fruits were a sign of good things to come. In the analogy, Paul says Jesus’ resurrection was the first fruit, the first spiritual harvest that will lead to many resurrections. Christ’s empty tomb guarantees a bountiful crop of resurrections to follow.”

“Paul says you have believed the gospel, which is of first importance. You believe that Jesus died for your sins on the cross, and after three days in the grave, he was raised from the dead and was seen alive by over 500 people, including ME. Now, if Jesus is the first fruit, the necessary implication of your faith is that his resurrection, which you believe in, guarantees your resurrection. Be hopeful!”

“Because Adam was the first man, he was the representative of mankind. The way he goes, we all go. Adam’s sin affected and infected us all. Because Adam sinned, we are sinners. We are sinners because we inherited Adam’s sinful nature. This is called Original Sin. You can read more about it in Romans 5. In Adam, we have all sinned, making physical and spiritual death the inescapable reality for us all.”

“We know sin—Anger, lust, greed, gossip, dishonesty, bitterness. We know pride, selfishness, judgementalism, coarse talk, sexual sin. We have been freshly reminded by the Book of Judges just how well we know idolatry, which is simply finding our purpose and joy in anything other than God. Why? We were born on Team Adam. But our text tells us there is another team.”

“This text tells us there is another representative whose actions affect us. In Adam, all die, but those IN CHRIST live! Isn’t God merciful and gracious? We deserve death—He gives us life.”

“The Hope of Easter is not that if you clean up your life, God will accept you. The Hope of Easter is not a personal commitment to diversity, equity, or inclusion. The Hope of Easter is not a disciplined approach to tradition or ceremony. The Hope of Easter is not found in politicians. The Hope of Easter is that all who believe in Jesus will live forever in his glorious presence. To be IN CHRIST is to have CHRIST IN YOU, and CHRIST IN YOU is the hope of glory! Such is the profound nature of the gospel and the guarantee of the resurrection.”

“In the resurrection of Jesus, God has the final word over sin and death. Jesus paid the price for our sins at the cross, crying—It is finished. Through the empty tomb, God makes the cosmic proclamation—It is sufficient! And on that glorious day when the trumpet will sound, and Jesus returns in all his glory, we will finally, fully, and forever realize our Easter Hope.”

ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE:
Romans 3:23
Romans 6:23
Colossians 1:27

QUOTES:
David Garland - “Graveyards remind us of the brevity of life. Jesus’ resurrection reminds us of the brevity of death.”

APPLICATION:
If you have never placed your faith in Jesus, you are still on Team Adam. Eternal death and judgment await you. But today, you can believe in Jesus and live. You may say—Pastor, I am living. I’m good. You’re not living. The Bible says because of your sin, you are a dead person walking. You may be alive physically, but you are dead spiritually, and that’s what matters eternally. But Jesus is not dead—He has risen! That means if you believe in him today, you lean all your trust on him for salvation, you will be raised to life and truly live, not only today but forever. Will you come to Jesus this morning?

For the believer, Paul tells us exactly how we should respond to our Easter Hope—read 58. Our Easter hope is that one day, we will rise from the dead and reign with Jesus. But that resurrection promise, in a sense, is ours now. It’s in part, but we live the resurrection life today. 

In this topsy-turvy world, what is testing your faith today? The resurrection spurs you on to gospel steadfastness, knowing the best is yet to come. Are you becoming fearful of trying to live the Christian life in your country? You can stand immovable in the face of increasing hostility because what can man do to us—IN CHRIST, death is the door to life!

Are you growing weary of doing gospel good in an unresponsive community? You can throw ourselves into our gospel mission because Jesus is not dead; he is alive and advancing His kingdom purposes through us from the throne of God. As Christians, we aren’t living our best lives now, but we live now knowing that our best lives are yet to come.

We know about the birth of Jesus at Christmas. We know about his crucifixion on Good Friday. We know about Christ’s resurrection on Easter. But how much thought do we give to Christ’s ascension? It’s a worthwhile question because Jesus’ ministry didn’t stop at the resurrection. Below is an outline summary of the sermon for your further study and deeper reflection.

EASTER SERIES 2023
TEXT: Acts 1:9-11
TITLE: The Ascention
PREACHER: Derek Overstreet
BIG IDEA: Where Jesus is now matters to where you are today.

POINTS:
1. Jesus Ascended Into Heaven
2. Jesus Ascended To God’s Right Hand
3. Jesus’ Ascension Matters Right Now

SERMON EXCERPTS:
”Jesus may no longer be with us in person, but he continues to work through his church, by His Spirit, for his Father’s glory. As a result, Christ’s ascension, which marks the end of his earthly ministry and the beginning of his heavenly ministry, has significant doctrinal importance for our faith and lives.”

“There’s much we don’t know about heaven. One thing Scripture does teach us is that heaven is an actual place. It is beyond our scope today, but I encourage you to read chapter 57 in Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology for a good study of heaven (and Randy Alcorn).”

“As it relates to the ascension, we can be sure of this—Jesus is in heaven. It’s important to remember that Jesus physically rose from the dead. He spent his final 40 days on earth, not as a spirit, but as a man. He ascended into heaven, not as a spirit, but as a man. He will return, not as a spirit, but as a man. That means he is a man right now in a physical place, and that place is heaven.”

“Like his miraculous birth, atoning death, and victorious resurrection, His ascension was according to the Scriptures.”

“The exaltation of Jesus is the result of and reward for his work of salvation. Jesus now sits at the right hand of God in full glory and honor, all authority and power in a way he did not before his life, death, resurrection, and ascension. The angels now praise Jesus in the heavens as the infinitely worthy Lamb that was slain. He is the King of Glory! The Author and Perfecter of our faith! Our Propitiation! The Head over all things! The Chief Cornerstone! The Bridegroom!  The Victorious One!”

“…from the right hand of God, your ascended Savior is busy praying for you!” 

“Jesus knows the mind of God perfectly. He knows what you need perfectly. More than mere supplication, Christ’s prayers are a divine intervention.”

ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE:
John 14:2-3
Acts 7:55-56
Revelation 4:1
Psalm 110:1
Ephesians 1:19-23
Philippians 2:9-10
Revelation 5:11-12
Hebrews 1:3
Hebrews 7:25
Romans 8:34

QUOTES:
R.C Sproul- “We know that when Jesus died on the cross, at the end of that experience, He cried out, “It is finished.” But that work on the cross did not end Christ’s redemptive work. He had other work to perform after the cross. He was raised for our justification. And when we talk about the work of Christ, we talk not only about His death, but we also talk about His resurrection. And when we speak of the work of Christ, it doesn’t end with the resurrection. We talk about His ascension into heaven where He is seated at the right hand of God, and there He works as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords”

R.C. Sproul - “One of the chief accents of the New Testament in terms of His present work for His people is His work of intercession. Every day in the presence of the Father, Christ intercedes for His people.”

APPLICATION:
Jesus’ ascension matters because it Gives Us a Glimpse Of Our Future  - Over and over in Scripture, Jesus promises we will return for us, and we will live in his presence eternally—it’s called heaven.

Jesus’ ascension matters because it Gives Us Confidence For The Present - On Easter, the question was—What will you do with the empty tomb? Today, the question is—Where is your confidence in life? 

• When you don’t know how to pray—Where’s your confidence?

• When you don’t understand what’s happening—Where’s your confidence? 

• When your faith is weak, and doubt is strong—Where’s your confidence?

• When sin is crouching at your door—Where’s your confidence?

• When Satan is tempting you to despair—Where’s your confidence?  

What are you doing with the empty tomb? You have to do something. Below is an outline summary of the sermon for your further study and deeper reflection.

EASTER SERIES 2023
TEXT: Mark 16:1-8
TITLE: The Resurrection
PREACHER: Derek Overstreet

SERMON EXCERPTS:
”Mark wrote his gospel to show us who Jesus is and force us to make a decision based on that reality. Christian faith is not blind. It is experiential but the experience is built on empirical, historical, undeniable evidence.”

“If the resurrection is true, how can you not believe in Jesus? If Jesus is alive, then doesn’t it take greater faith to be an atheist or an agnostic than it does to be a Christian? Jesus is an undisputed historical figure. His birth, his life, and his death are every bit a part of world history, as King Tut, Julius Caesar, and George Washington. What do we do with an empty tomb?”

“People try to explain it away:
Jesus’ enemies stole his body - There’s no evidence of this; frankly, it doesn’t make sense. Acts teaches us that Christianity exploded after Jesus’ resurrection. All it would have taken to crush the Church was to provide the body. They didn’t because they couldn’t.
Jesus’ disciples stole his body - This conspiracy theory of all conspiracy theories still exists today, BUT In the first century, you would never build a case for anything, let alone a resurrection from the dead with three women as your star witnesses. AND the authority, conviction, and personal sacrifice with which the disciples preached and pursued Jesus would have never lasted if they knew they were frauds.
Jesus never actually died - On numerous fronts, this explanation is so outrageous even Jesus' enemies didn’t push it.”

“There can only be one conclusion - God raised Jesus from the dead. The resurrection is what the OT Scriptures predicted centuries before would happen. It’s what Jesus repeatedly taught would happen. It’s what the authorities feared would happen. It’s what these three women and the disciples said happened. It’s what over 500 people in the following days personally witnessed happening.”

“These women are to be commended for their courageous expression of devotion to Jesus. But even in their devotion, their unbelief was revealed.”

“The resurrection reminds us Christianity is real. Our faith is not in vain. We are not to be pitied. Our lives are not a house of cards because Jesus is alive. That means my sins are COMPLETELY forgiven. The power of death is TRULY broken. The penalty of sin is FULLY paid. God’s love is ETERNALLY mine, and one day I WILL live in Christ’s glorious presence.”

ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE:
Matthew 28:11-15
1 Corinthians 15:3-8
2 Corinthians 5:21
Romans 10:8-13
1 Corinthians 15:54-48

QUOTES:
Thomas Arnold - The evidence for our Lord’s life and death and resurrection may be and often has been shown to be satisfactory. It is good according to the common rules for distinguishing good evidence from bad. Thousands and tens of thousands of persons have gone through it piece by piece as carefully as every judge summing up a most important cause. I have myself done it many times over, not to persuade others but to satisfy myself. I have been used for many years to study the histories of other times and to examine and weigh the evidence of those who have written about them, and I know of no one fact in the history of mankind which is proved by better and fuller evidence than the great sign which God hath given us, that Christ died and rose again from the dead.”

J.C. Ryle - We need not wonder that so much importance is attached to our Lord’s resurrection. It is the seal and headstone of the great work of redemption, which He came to do. It is the crowning proof that He has paid the debt which He undertook to pay on our behalf, won the battle which He fought to deliver us from hell, and is accepted as our Surety and our Substitute by our Father in heaven. Had He never come forth from the prison of the grave, how could we ever have been sure that our ransom had been fully paid? Had He never risen from His conflict with the last enemy, how could we have felt confident, that He has overcome death, and him that had the power of death, that is the devil? But thanks be unto God, we are not left in doubt. The Lord Jesus really “rose again for our justification.” True Christians are “begotten again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” They may boldly say with Paul, “Who is he that condemns – it is Christ that died, yes rather that is risen again.”

APPLICATION:
What is the hardest thing going in your life right now?—If God can raise Jesus from the dead, he can handle your circumstance!

• The empty tomb ensures me He is there! He is Faithful! He is sufficient! 

• The empty tomb ensures God’s promises are Yes and Amen! 

• The empty tomb ensures His throne is approachable as the place of unfailing mercy and all-sufficient grace! 

• The empty tomb ensures my forgiveness and justification before God is full, final, and forever!

• The empty tomb ensures me there is a better life—the resurrection life with Jesus NOW and YET to come!

Mark 11 begins the most significant week in the history of the world. Life and death, joy and misery, hope and despair, heaven and hell lie in the balance of what happens over this next week. Below is an outline summary of the sermon for your further study and deeper reflection.

EASTER SERIES 2023
TEXT: Mark 11:1-11
TITLE: The Triumphal Entry
PREACHER: Derek Overstreet

POINTS:
1. The Deliberate Details
2.The Royal Reception
3. The Unexpected Ending

SERMON EXCERPTS:
”The triumphal entry is an amazing public celebration of Jesus. The praises of the crowd were theologically spot on. The prophets of old pointed to this moment. Yet, they missed Jesus. By the end of our story, the crowds have disappeared and Jesus stands alone. They missed Jesus. The world has been missing Jesus ever since.”

“Whether we perceive it or not, we have much in common with them. Even as Christians, it’s easy to miss Jesus amid the allure of the world, the utter evil of society, or the tyranny of the ordinary, we are prone to miss Jesus as the point and purpose in life.”

“For those who don’t know Jesus, your eternity is at stake. For the Christian in the room, your joy in this life and God’s glory through your life is at stake.”

“Mark is not big on details in his gospel. His MO is to move quickly from one scene to another. Mark uses the word immediately 36 times. Thirty-two of those are in the first ten chapters. But in chapter 11, Mark begins to slow down. The first ten chapters cover three years. The last six chapters cover one week. …When Mark slows down, we need to listen up!”

“In 5 days, Jesus will be dead. But he does not ride into the city a victim.  Jesus will be betrayed as a victim. Jesus will not be arrested as a victim. Jesus will not be beaten within inches of his life as a victim. Jesus will not be murdered on the cross as a victim. His deliberate preparation reveals he is in total control of the situation, even his death on the cross.”

“Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. That means he is in complete control of your life today. Whatever is happening in your life today—you are not a victim. To the contrary, you are under the personal care of your loving and sovereign Shepherd.”

“Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem captures the humility of our Savior. It also captures his greatness as the Promised One. The imagery screams—See Me! I am the fulfillment of OT messianic prophecies. SEE ME! I am your King. SEE ME! I am your Messiah.”

“On the cross, in darkness, silence, and loneliness, Jesus will do his kingly work, liberating God’s people, not from Rome, but from Satan, sin, and this world. Jesus will deliver God’s people on the cross, not with a sword, but with his blood. From the cross, Jesus will save sinners, not from oppression but from God’s wrath.”

“It seems the party is over. They celebrated Jesus. They were emotional and enthusiastic about Jesus. They had a mountain-top experience with Jesus. They made him king, but only for a day.”

ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE:
Zechariah 9:9
Psalm 118:25-26
Malachi 3:1

QUOTES:
James Edwards - “The whole scene comes to nothing. The crowd disperses as mysteriously as it assembled. Jesus is not confessed in pomp and circumstance but only at the cross.”

APPLICATION:
Just as promised, Jesus came to them. But they missed Jesus—Have you?

PERSON #1: You like church. It feels good to be here. You enjoy your Christian friends. They are good people. It’s a good life you see them living. But you don’t have what they have—Jesus in your heart. You have missed him. That means whatever you believe you have, you have nothing. Don’t miss Jesus—See him today by crying out in repentance and faith—Hosannah, Save me now! Your eternity depends on it.

PERSON #2: You love the Lord. And it shows…on Sundays. If you’re honest, Mon-Sat you are the king of your life. The picture of Jesus standing alone in the temple reminds you he alone must stand as the Lord of your life. Don’t miss Jesus—See him today by asking him to graciously reorder the priorities of your life.

PERSON #3: Like person #2, you genuinely love the Lord. You are grateful for His blessings in your life. But when life seems more like a curse than a blessing, when hardships appear, when suffering surfaces, your praises vanish like the crowds in Jerusalem. Don’t miss Jesus—He is worthy of your praises in good AND bad times. See Jesus today by bringing your burden TO him and finding your joy IN him so that at all times and in all things your heart can say—Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! He will not fail you!

A risen Jesus is a trustworthy Jesus. Below is an outline summary of the sermon for your further study and deeper reflection.

TEXT: Luke 24:1-12
TITLE: Easter and the Art of Remembering
PREACHER: Derek Overstreet
BIG IDEA: REMEMBERING is a key part of REDEMPTIVE LIVING!

POINTS:
1. God is in Control
2. Jesus can be Trusted

SERMON EXCERPTS:
”This morning is about REMEMBERING, not merely for the sake of remembering, but for joyful, faith-filled, to the praise of God’s glory living.”

“From the Garden to Golgotha, nothing Jesus experienced was an accident—It was the eternal plan of the sovereign God. Sovereign meaning God was in control. He acted in the place of authority. Nothing about the cross happened apart from God’s ordained purposes.”

“The empty tomb is God’s way of standing before the universe applauding His Son and declaring—What has been finished by my Son has been fully accepted by Me, all according to My plan, for the praise of My glory!”

“Jesus was crucified, buried, and RAISED to life on the third day—Just as he said. A risen Jesus is a trustworthy Jesus.”

“Most importantly, because the tomb is empty, we can believe that Christ’s work on the cross is sufficient and sufficiently binds us in an unbreakable union with Christ that we will share together for eternity in the loving and glorious presence of a gracious and merciful God.”

QUOTES:
Martyn Lloyd-Jones - “The death of Christ on the cross was not an accident, ultimately it was not even something achieved by men; it was part of the plan and purpose of God…It was God who contrived the cross. The cruel hands of men actually knocked in the nails, but it was by the predetermined counsel and foreknowledge of God”

Paul Beasley-Murray - “The powers of evil did their worst, but they did not, and never will, have the last word.”

C.S. Lewis - “He would have been deceived or a deceiver. But His most amazing promise has come true, so how can we not depend on and live by all the rest of His promises?”

Phillip Ryken - “We are to believe in the resurrection on the basis of what Jesus said (Bible). The empty tomb is not self-explanatory. There is a word that explains the deed, and this word is the gospel message that Jesus not only died, but also rose again with a glorious and everlasting body that would never die again”

ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE:
Acts 2:23-24
1 Corinthians 15:14-21
Matthew 11:28-30

APPLICATION:
Go from here, REMEMBERING what Jesus has told you. Tell it to yourself and tell it others knowing the God who raises the dead to life is in control and the Jesus who said I will dies and yet live is trustworthy.

Whether this is the first time you’ve ever read this passage, or you have encountered Christ in the garden many times, our task is to consider what our Savior embraced the night before His death. To go into Friday and Sunday marveling at the wonders of the garden. Below is an outline summary of the sermon for your further study and deeper reflection.

TEXT: Luke 22:39-46
TITLE: Christ’s Agony in the Garden
PREACHER: Brett Overstreet
BIG IDEA: In the garden, Christ embraces our cup so that we might drink of a new cup.

POINTS:
1. An Unfamiliar Scene
2. An Unimaginable Cup

SERMON EXCERPTS:
”Jesus is not simply heading into the other room to pray. What we are about to see unfold is pulling Him away, even bringing Him to the precipice of death – according to His own words.”

“There is a rare medical condition where extreme anguish and physical stress can cause your capillary blood vessels to burst and mix with sweat. There are some accounts recorded in history of this happening to men on the battlefield. But whether you think it is literal or metaphorical, the point that Luke is making cannot be denied: Jesus’ inner struggle, His agony was so great that manifests itself in great physical trauma.”

“Jesus is using the image of a cup in His prayer because this was a familiar image used throughout the Old Testament. It essentially referred to someone’s portion, whether positive or negative but it most commonly referred to the judgement of God.”

“The undeniable reality is that this cup that Jesus stares into is our cup. This cup is reserved for sinners like you and I. Every single drop in this cup of horror and desolation is the just and righteous response of a Holy God to my sin, to your sin.” 

“And over course of the next 24 hours Jesus would be stripped naked, mocked, spit upon, laughed at – he would be denied by Peter, put on trial and falsely accused, beaten nearly to the point of death and then hung on a criminals cross in the most humiliating, painful death we could imagine. And yet, none of the physical suffering would compare to what experienced when He would drink our cup on the cross.” 

”Do you live in the goodness of this reality? Do you live aware, grateful, amazed that the cup you drink is full of God’s love and blessing. Ephesians 1 tells us God has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. Do you live each day, not just aware, but grateful and satisfied in the reality that the cup you deserve to drink is a cup of God’s unmitigated wrath, yet the cup you drink is full of His eternal favor. When we talk about preaching the Gospel to yourself or rehearsing the Gospel… this is what we mean.”

QUOTES:
CJ Mahaney- “When we look at Jesus in the pages of the unfolding Gospels - allowing ourselves to walk closely alongside Him through those three exciting years of ministry - words like authoritative, assured and fearless truly describe Him. He’s unfailingly steady and controlled. But there comes a moment, as we follow Him into “a place called Gethsemane,” when all is radically changed. Suddenly we encounter a Savior we’re unfamiliar with. What we observe is foreign and frightening.”

Charles Spurgeon - “Since it would not be possible for any believer, however experienced, to know for himself all that our Lord endured in… mental suffering and hellish malice, it is clearly far beyond the preacher’s capacity to set it forth to you. Jesus Himself must give you access to the wonders of Gethsemane: as for me, I can but invite you to enter the garden.”

Jonathan Edwards - “[Agony] implies no common degree of sorrow, but such extreme distress that His nature had a most violent conflict with it, as a man that wrestles with all his might with a strong man.”

John Calvin - “…because He had before His eyes the dreadful tribunal of God, and the Judge Himself armed with inconceivable vengeance; it was our sins, the burden of which He had assumed, that pressed Him down with their enormous mass… and tormented Him grievously with fear and anguish.”

Donald Macleod - “The wonder of the love of Christ for His people is not that for their sake He faced death without fear, but that for their sake He faced it, terrified. Terrified by what He knew, and terrified by what He did not know, he took damnation lovingly.”

ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE:
Hebrews 2:17
Isaiah 51:17
Psalm 75:8
Psalm 11:6
Ezekiel 23:33-34
2 Corinthians 5:21
John 3:36

APPLICATION:
As we head into this weekend where we will celebrate Good Friday and Easter Sunday - Consider the Garden. Consider what Christ embraced for you. Consider the unimaginable He drank. Consider the undeserved cup you now drink.