What does the Bible say about Easter?

What does the Bible say about Easter_ Matt: [00:00:00] [00:01:00] [00:02:00] Well, [00:03:00] good afternoon, Crowd Church. Welcome, uh, everyone who has joined us on today's live stream. It's great that you are here. Great that you could join us. For those of you who don't name me, my name is Matt and I'm part of the fab team here at Crowd Church. Uh, and it's great to be with you on this Easter Sunday because, uh, Christians all over the world today are celebrating the Risen, uh, Lord Jesus. And we're gonna get into why that matters a whole lot more. Today. We have, uh, just to let you know what's coming up, really. We have got a great talk, uh, with Pete Farrington. He's gonna be talking about what does the Bible say about Easter. We're gonna have, uh, a little bit of worship. Uh, we're gonna pray for the Ukraine, and then we're gonna get into Conversation Street, which is where we look at your questions, your thoughts, your comments. Uh, that you put down during the service and stuff that's come in maybe during the week. And we're gonna get into that. I am, uh, flying solo today. So if you are, uh, if you are, uh, familiar with Crowd, let's just put it that way. You'll know there's normally two people hosting. [00:04:00] Today I am flying solo, so I'm definitely gonna need your comments, uh, and your responses, uh, in Conversation Street, that's for sure. So, uh, it is great that you could join us. Now again, if you are familiar with Crowd, uh, you'll recognize that the background for me, well, it's a little bit different, let's just put it that way. Uh, I'm not at home in my little, uh, studio, as I like to call it, all the man cave. Um, I'm actually, uh, in Kansas City, Missouri right now. And this is the beauty, isn't it, of online church. Online church can be done from anywhere. Uh, as long as you've got an internet connection, life is good. Um, I'm currently in the midst of a sort of two week traveling around the states. Uh, with my daughter, mixture of holiday and fun. Uh, and we started off on the West coast. We're in la we did San Francisco. Saw some great friends and stuff over there. We were in Dallas, uh, just a few short days ago. Amazing time. We're in Kansas and [00:05:00] then we fly off to the East coast. So we really are doing a coast to coast tour. So thank you for everybody, for all your kind messages, uh, and prayers as we travel. It's very kind of you, but I just love you. I love the fact that I can join you from Kansas City, Missouri. There's a beautiful thing about online church. I, I just, it just breaks my head, but it works. And so, uh, I'm not one to understand the technology. I'm one just to enjoy it. So, welcome to Crowd Church. I'm just gonna scan down the comments here. Uh, we've got people on both Facebook and YouTube. Great to see you. Christine, John, Matt, uh, Sharon, of course, my beautiful wife in the comments as well. Uh, so yeah, come and say hi. Great to see you. Happy Easter. Easter is such a wonderful day in the Christian calendar because it is all about the resurrection of Christ. And there's this amazing verse in the Bible in one Corinthians 15. Uh, there's this chap there called Paul, the Apostle Paul, Saint Paul, uh, who wrote quite a lot of the New [00:06:00] Testament. He was a man. Well, he wasn't, he didn't start off life as a Christian. In fact, he started off life really hating Christians, persecuting Christians, thought they were nuts, thought they were crazy, thought they were just totally out there, uh, and was involved in quite a few things. And one day he actually meets the risen Christ and his life has totally changed and totally transformed. Um, and you know what? In an instant, things change better, don't they? For, for Paul. But one of the things that he says, talking about his faith in the New Testament, he said, listen, if there's no resurrection, if your faith is useless, and everything that I've been preaching is useless, which is a pretty bold statement to make, but if you, if you think about it, there's probably no truer statement that actually without the resurrection, the Christian faith doesn't make any sense at all. And so if you are investigating the [00:07:00] Christian faith, if you are new to the Christian faith, uh, or if you've like me and been around church for a fair while, then actually getting your head around this is really, really important and understanding it and the evidence of it and all that sort of stuff. So all of that said, let's get straight into the talk from Pete. What does the Bible say about Easter? Um, I like to say after that I will be back, uh, after that to help guide the conversation, uh, in Conversation Street after a brief time of worship. Like I say, do say hi in the comments. We're gonna be live streaming, uh, until, um, about one o'clock my time, about 7:00 PM in the uk. Uh, so about another 50 minutes or so, uh, is what you can expect. But yeah, let's crack on because it's Easter and Easter is a great day. Here's Pete Frankton.[00:08:00] Pete: Hello Crowd Church. It is wonderful to be with you all today. Uh, my name [00:09:00] is Peter, and some of you may have seen me, uh, on here before. Um, it's on here some time ago and I, I guess it can't have been too bad, um, because you've asked me to come back, which is good. Um, so, uh, the title for today's talk is what does the Bible say about Easter? So, I'd like to begin with a verse that I think encapsulates in one sentence what Easter is all about. In one Corinthians 15 verses three to four, the Apostle Paul Saidfor I delivered to you as of first importance, what I also received, that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures. This is of first importance, whether you are indifferent to Jesus, whether you hate him, whether you have known Jesus for five days, or whether you've been a Christian for 50 years. This is of first [00:10:00] importance and it always will be. Um, I'd like to tell a story, um, from a few years ago. Um, I was sitting probably about, uh, four years ago. I was sitting on the banks of the Arno River in Florence, Italy, where I was living at the ti at the time. And, uh, it was an absolutely gorgeous day. Um, and I was wearing a tank top, which revealed, um, self-inflicted scars on my bear or per arm. A friend of mine, uh, was sitting with me at the time and saw those scars for the first time that day, and after hearing me tell the story of my struggle with self-harm, uh, drawing my late teens. My friend turned to me and said, you know, Peter, it's funny because those scars actually point to something true. That blood had to be spilled and the penny dropped for me in that moment. I'd been a Christian for a long time, but in [00:11:00] some ways it felt like I was born again. Again in that moment. 'cause every problem finds its answer in the cross, an empty tomb of Jesus Christ. Now, we'll talk a little bit more about that moment a bit later on, but my friend was right. A debt was owed, a payment had to be made, and the Bible says as much in Hebrews 9 22. It says that without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins. Now, for most of my life, I've had a, a profound sense deep inside that I am not enough. I've sought after and lived on the approval of others. And no matter how much I've tried to please others, uh, and no matter how much I have pleased, pleased others, I've still always been left feeling like I, like there's something that I need to make up for. And this, uh, self-loathing really that I felt was [00:12:00] not merely a problem with self-esteem or something that you could remedy with lots of self affirmation. And I, I really think we all struggle with, with this nagging feeling of not being enough. It might not man manifest itself in, in your life, like, uh, in the same way that it has in mind. Um, it might look like, um, masking that feeling with ambition or relationships or sex or career. We all try and fill up what we know deep down it's lacking in us. And you can work your fingers to the bone, but it will never be enough. You can, you can just try to love yourself more, but that won't work either. The world will tell you that you just need, uh, more bubble baths. You just need more, more me time. Uh, and you just need to find your authentic, true self and that you can love yourself into wholeness. But that is flawed reasoning. [00:13:00] Um, I think something that Ali Beth Stuckey has said is, uh, really powerful. She said, if our problem is that we are insecure or unfulfilled, we are not going to be able to find the antidote to these things in the same place. Our insecurities and fear are coming from you cannot love yourself into wholeness. We need outside help. Um, now when describing mankind's state without Jesus, we sometimes use language like you are broken and just need fixing. But the Bible goes much, much further than that. Because you are not just broken. I'm not just broken. We are dead without Jesus. Numerous times in the Bible, it speaks to us being dead in our sins. And in fact, in Ephesians, it even says that without Jesus, we are children of wrath. What does that mean? Well, in Romans one, verse 25, it [00:14:00] says that they, we have, uh, exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the creator. Our sin is an offense to a holy and uh, righteous and perfect God. And so that feeling that I spoke of about not being enough is only one part of the problem. The biggest issue that we face is that our sin, our disobedience, and rebellion against God. Puts us under the wrath of God. We are children of wrath. The Bible talks about, uh, sin being, um, like a wall of hostility between us and God. We are, we are enemies to God in our sin. And God being a just judge is right to punish sin. He would be wrong not to. [00:15:00] In, uh, Naam one three, it says, the Lord will by no means clear the guilty. And in Romans 6 23, it says, the wages of sin is death. So if I am guilty and the wages of sin is death and there is no forgiveness without the shedding of blood, what hope can I possibly have? Well, let's look at something that Jesus said about why he came into the world. In, in Luke nine, verse 22. Uh, Jesus is actually speaking about himself. Um. And, um, and, and, and tells us about his, his purpose of coming into the world. He says the son of man, he's talking about himself here, the son of man. Jesus must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and on the third day be raised. [00:16:00] That's an interesting word. Must you see God? The Father had a definite rescue plan. We were his enemies. But God had a plan to save those very same people who had rejected him. And this is something that we could never do. We cannot save ourselves. Uh, no matter how, uh, no matter how many, uh, chances we have, we could never, um, we could never work, work our way up to, to God's level. Someone, someone had to die in our place. And Jesus, in his, uh, in his willing submission to the Father, um, followed through on that plan all the way to the cross. In, in one Timothy two verses five to six, it says, for there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men. [00:17:00] Remember that that wall of hostility that I spoke of, there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. I love something that, that Timothy Keller, uh, a pastor in America said, he said, the gospel is this. We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe. Yet at the very same time, we are more loved and accepted in Christ Jesus than we ever did hope. So let's just go back to, uh, the Peter drinking an espresso in the sun a few years ago. I suddenly realized, I think on that day, um, a little bit of what Timothy Keller, um, talks about in that quote that I, I had tried my best for most of my life to believe that I was actually better [00:18:00] than I was in reality. Like, sure, I just, I just needed a helping hand, but I wasn't too bad off without Jesus. Like I could, um, uh, I could, I could find, I could, yeah, I could work my way to God. Um, but I was still left wondering if there were things about myself. Things I've done, which the blood of Christ couldn't and didn't cover. And so as a result of, um, as a result of almost subconsciously believing this, um, I had to take matters into my own hands, right? I had to, um, I had to complete, complete the work that Jesus started, but Christ paid the debt in full. He took all of God's wrath against us, upon himself, all of our sin and shame. [00:19:00] Jesus', final words on the cross just before he died were incredible. He said in John 19, verse 20, it is finished. Uh, we, we see, uh, an echo of this in Colossians two verses 13 to 15, and you who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh. God made alive together with him having forgiven us all our trespasses by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame by triumphing over them in him. It is finished. There is no amount outstanding. The record of debt has been cleared from your account. [00:20:00] If you repent and call on Jesus' name, you walk free. And if that were all, it would still be unfathomably. Good news. But we are not morally neutral before God's eyes. Thanks to what Jesus has done for us, God does not merely tolerate us. We have been welcomed into his family. We now call him Father. We were once his enemies no different from the very, from the very soldiers who nailed him to the cross. It was our sin. It was your sin. It was my sin that put him there. But he now calls us sons and daughters. Jesus'. Blood has brought us peace and we now have access to God and not the kind of access that, um, that an employee or a servant has. This is the, the kind of access that a child has to a father. [00:21:00] In two Corinthians five, verse 21, it says, for our sake, he made him to be sin. Who knew no sin. So that's, uh, for our sake, God made him Jesus to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him, in Jesus, we might become the righteousness of God. So Jesus' perfect record is transferred to our account. In, uh, in one John four verses nine to 10, it says in this, the love of God was made manifest among us that God sent his only son into the world, that we might live through him in. This is love, not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins. You might be sitting here thinking, I don't see, I don't see how Jesus could possibly be present in my life. I don't see [00:22:00] any evidence of God in, in, in my, in my days. Um. But God, the love of God was made manifest among, among us that he sent his only son into the world. He has displayed his love for you on the cross, and there may be things that you have done, which, which, uh, you play over in your mind at night. Fears that keep you awake and haunt you when you are alone in your thoughts. Um, regrets that eat you up inside, but you can the complete and total forgiveness in Jesus. In Psalm 103 of verse 12, it says, as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us? The scars on my arm now serve to tell of how good my God is and how deep his love is. [00:23:00] Uh, and as we read earlier, he has disarmed the enemy and put him to open shame. In his resurrection, Jesus declared victory over sin, death, and the devil. You can be totally forgiven and you can be totally free. One Peter, one verse three to four, uh, amazing verse says, according to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading unfading kept in heaven for you. Um, that phrase, a, a living hope is, uh, something which, uh, I think I've really experienced over the last year. Um, just over a year ago, my, my wife and I had a baby boy and, [00:24:00] um, our, our, our little boy's health, uh, deteriorated. Very rapidly, really During the first, um, during the first few hours after, after birth, and within 24 hours, he was whisked off to the NICU and diagnosed with meningitis and had to be resuscitated. Um, and for about 48 hours, my wife and I were faced with a very real possibility that our boy might not make it. And it was, it was total agony and just a, yeah, living nightmare. Um, the, the panic and the terror of what, what could happen was, was unbearable. Um, but I remember that during the months leading up to his birth, I'd been reflecting a lot on a passage in, um, Romans five, which I'd just like to read. So this is Romans five, verses six to seven. For a [00:25:00] while we were still weak at the right time. Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person, though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die. But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since therefore, we have now been justified by his blood much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God for if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his son, much more now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation in those, uh, 48 hours. Where, where we just, we just didn't know if, if our little boy was gonna make it. [00:26:00] Um, amidst, amidst the panic and the terror. I, I had a, um, although I couldn't articulate it at the time, um, I had a, a calm, deep, deep inside. Um, because I, I knew that I did not need God to save my son for him, uh, to prove his goodness to me. I knew that God's love for me and being convinced of it was not contingent on whether or not he saved my son. And I knew he could save him, and I knew he might, but I knew that after, after, um, feasting on those verses in Romans, in the months leading up to, um, my boy's birth, I knew that I could look to the cross regardless of the [00:27:00] circumstance that I found myself in. I could look to the cross and be. Utterly convinced of his love and his goodness. Um, and praise God, my son is, um, is healthy. He's an absolute delight. Um, he pulled through and um, yeah, he's a total, total joy. Um, but Jesus never promised an easy life. Um, in fact, he promised that there would be, there will be difficulty, there'll be trials and, um, but whatever you are walking through today, you can be totally convinced of God's love for you. He has manifested, he's displayed, he's demonstrated his love for you on the cross. And, um. There's a, uh, there was an, an old school, um, theologian called Jonathan Edwards, who, uh, [00:28:00] I think quite early on in his life, uh, wrote a whole bunch of resolutions, um, for himself. And, uh, one of them, um, I, I come back to from time to time, and he said, this resolved to examine carefully and constantly what that one thing in me is, which causes me in the least to doubt the love of God and to direct all my forces against it. Um, the question is how do we do that? How do we, how do we direct all our forces against anything that causes us to doubt God's love? We do that by looking at the cross. There are a thousand ways in which God demonstrates his love for us every single day. Most of them, we, we are oblivious to. We don't even, um, we don't even. Notice, but there's none more so than the cross. Whether you've [00:29:00] been a Christian for five minutes or whether, whether you, uh, whether you've been a Christian since, since you were a child, there is nothing more important today or on any other day than to look at the cross, an empty tomb of Christ. So I plead with you today to turn from your sin, look to Jesus and put your trust in him and in what he's accomplished out of his great love for you. Um, I'm just gonna, uh, finish with a verse from Ephesians. This is Ephesians two, verses four to five. But God being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ by grace. You have been saved. Video: Thank you very much. Matt: Wow. What a great, uh, [00:30:00] talk from Pete there. Uh, and we're gonna get into that in Conversation Street. There are some things which we're gonna explain a little bit more. Um, and if you've got any questions, any thoughts, any comments, do put them, uh, in the comments below, whether you're watching on Facebook or YouTube, they all come up on my screen so I get to see them all. Regardless of what platform you're on, do you, um, let us know your thoughts, your questions, your comments, um, and just share your, your own story. I mean, Pete's story about his son and about the scars on his arm. Both were quite extraordinary, weren't they? And I dunno what you thought about those, and I dunno what you, um, what your response was to that. But we've all got our own stories. And so, um, if you are a Christian, if you are a believer, maybe share what's your story? What's your resurrection story? What's your Easter Sunday story, uh, in the comments. We're gonna come to those, uh, in Conversation Street. So not too far from, uh, now. First though, we're gonna take a little bit of time, um, at this stage to do [00:31:00] what we call worship and reflection. And we're also gonna pray for the Ukraine. Over the past few weeks, we've been reading a Prayer together, written by a chap called Pete Greg from Prayer 24 7. Um, and we're gonna pray that together, the words will be on the screen. Um, whether you, uh, pray quietly, whether you pray out loud is entirely up to you. Just, uh, join in with a Prayer. 'cause I think it's, it's so important that we keep praying into this whole situation. Um, Prayer changes, things Prayer, so important for us. And so. Yes. Uh, do join in with the Prayer. After the Prayer is finished, we're gonna have a time of worship. There's a song coming on called When I Survey, which is a bit of an old time hymn. Uh, but the words are so powerful and so true and so appropriate for today being Easter Sunday. Uh, and again, join in as little as you like or as much as you like. And if it's safe to do so, sing along. Uh, the words again will appear on the screen after the Prayer, after the worship, I'll be back to go through Conversation [00:32:00] Street. Uh, so let's, well, let's jump in, shall we? Let's get started here. Is, uh, the Prayer for Ukraine. Father God, king of all nations, we cry out to you. Now, for the people of Ukraine, we ask you to rescue those who are vulnerable from the hands of their enemies, that they may live life without fear before you all of their days. Lord have mercy, Lord of lords and prince of peace. Our politicians are predicting the biggest war in Europe since 1945, and we simply cry out to you urgently to write another story in our time For the dark machinations of evil men [00:33:00] give wisdom beyond human wisdom to peacemakers seek in an equitable and less violent way. May politicians exercise the wisdom from above, which is peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, and full of mercy. Lord have mercy. Holy spirit, we pray for the church in Ukraine, a nation in which 70% of the population call themselves Christian. Give our many brothers and sisters in that nation courage in this crisis that they may proclaim the good news of your kingdom. Bind up. Broken hearts and bring comfort to all who mourn. Lord have mercy. You Lord, make war cease to the end of the earth. You break bows, shatter spears, and burn shields with fire. And so we ask you now to save the lives of many people in Ukraine. Make a peace that is strong and not weak. [00:34:00] Deescalate this crisis. We hear of wars and rumors of wars, but you Lord are our rock, our fortress, and our deliverer. Our hope is in you. And so we address the nations now in the name of Jesus. We say, be still and know God. He is exalted among the nations. He shall be exalted in the earth. Lord have mercy. Video: When I, the [00:35:00] one on which the of Glory died. And all my.[00:36:00] Of Christ, my God. Down to his blood. See from his head,[00:37:00] his hands is down. I thank you for.[00:38:00] Smile. I thank you for the cross. I thank you the cross. I thank you the. Of nature. So divine.[00:39:00] I thank you for the cross. I thank you the cross. I thank you. I thank you for the cross. Thank you for the cross. Thank you for the cross. I love you for the love you for the I love [00:40:00] you for the I love you for the I love you for the, I love you for the. Matt: Well, there we go. Thank you John and Anna Grace for the worship and also, uh, for the, well, they didn't do do the Ukraine Prayer today, but anyway, thank you John and Anna Grace for doing the Worship was a great Estella has put there on uh, YouTube. Hey, Estella, uh, beautiful rendition, happy Resurrection Sunday, and it was a beautiful rendition of that song. You will be pleased to know or [00:41:00] maybe not pleased to know entirely on your own personal preference. Uh, we have put all of this tracks, all the worship songs that we, uh, do here on Crowd are also on YouTube, and you can access that playlist if you head over to youtube.com/ Crowd Church, just go to the worship playlist and you'll find all the tracks there, which you can listen to, to your hearts content. Yes, you can. So. Let's jump into this whole Easter thing. What did you think about Resurrection Sunday? Uh, what does the Bible say about Easter? That whole talk from Pete, the whole idea about Easter. Let's get into that conversation. As I said, you can get busy writing in the comments because I'd love to hear what you actually think. Uh, and if you've joined us since the start, uh, just to say if you are familiar with Crowd, you'll notice that my background is different. I'm in fact, um, doing digital church from Kansas City, Missouri. Uh, I won't bore you with a d the reasons why I'm in [00:42:00] Kansas City rather than the UK today, but I am in fact in Kansas City. But that's the beauty of online church is that we can do it from anywhere in the world, which is just, that's just fantastic. Love it, love it, love it, love it. So, uh, hopefully, uh, you are, I'm coming through loud and clear wherever you are in the world, wherever you're watching this, um, it's, uh, it's amazing to me when you look at the stats, and these aren't things that we normally put on Crowd Joes to be fair. But when you look at the stats and we look at who, who's watching and where they're watching from, and we know, um, many more watch, uh, once the live stream is finished. Um, so you know, who watch on Catchup or who read the blog posts on the website. Um, and it always amazes me. How diverse the population is or how diverse the nationalities are. That watch Crowd Church, not just English people. We have obviously the states, Australia, we have the big English speaking countries. We have a lot of people in Europe, but we have people from India, from Pakistan, from the Philippines. Um, [00:43:00] a lot of countries in the Middle East just watching what we're doing, which is great. Uh, so nice hoodie, froggy mc, froggy face. Thanks Matt. Uh, just reading Matt's comment to me, the Crowd hoodie supporting Crowd here in the States. Um, so let's get into the talk. Uh, let's. Talk about what Pete said. One of the things that came through, uh, on Pete's talk, and there's a couple of things that I wanna draw out of it, um, was right at the start he said, this is a first importance and it always will be. Uh, and he was talking about the resurrection of Christ, the resurrection being of first importance, and it always will be. Why did Pete say that? You know, what was his, why is it a first importance? And I'm, I, I said at the start of the live stream that Paul in one Corinthians 15 said that if there is no resurrection, then your faith is in vain. Um, it's quite a strong phrase that he uses. It's a waste of time. It's utter [00:44:00] nonsense. You know, some of the phrases we might use today, it's an absolute joke, you know. So how do you, how does a Christian faith become an absolute joke? Well, you disprove the resurrection. You, you, you affirm the fact that there was no resurrection, that Christ didn't. In fact raised from the dead. And we know that Jesus lived on the earth, right? And we know that Jesus was around and we know therefore that Jesus died. So the question is not whether Jesus was here and whether he lived or whether he died. The question is, did he raise from the dead? And this is what Easter is all about. And like Pete said, this is the first importance, and it always will be because without resurrection, there is no Christian faith. The, your whole Christian faith is foolish. It's a waste of time. It's utter nonsense. And in the last 2000 years, no one has been able to disprove the resurrection. Um, and in fact, well, I would argue, uh, when that actually there's a lot of evidence for the resurrection. Uh, and we have livestream. Sharon did [00:45:00] one. Um, uh, which again, you can get on the website. Uh, if you just head to Crowd Church, just put in the word resurrection. Uh, some of the talks that we've done on the resurrection evidence for the resurrection will come up and you can look at those and study those because I think it's such a critical part of our Christian faith that if there, if we don't, if we don't get our heads around the resurrection, if we don't understand the resurrection, if we don't take our time to, to sort of look at the evidence and go, actually, yes, I believe Christ is risen from the dead. And you know, many people on Instagram have been writing today, Easter. He has risen. He has risen indeed. It's quite a common thing in the church. You say to everybody, Christ has risen. He has risen indeed. Um. Yeah, because I, you know, we, I can't, I can't stress again the importance of the resurrection. If you get rid of the resurrection, there is no Christian faith. If you wanna destroy Christianity, you destroy the resurrection. And I would argue that actually that's not possible. And actually, um, when you [00:46:00] look at the evidence, actually the resurrection seems very likely. And then you can look at people's lives. So one of the things that Pete was talking about, um, and we said to you guys, you know, writing the comments to your stories, um, well, 'cause the story that Pete talked about with a scar on his arm, um, and talking to his friend, I love the detail in the story whilst drinking an espresso in Italy. 'cause why would you leave that out? Right. Um, so he's, uh, he's talking about the story about the scar on his arm from when he used to, um, self harm. Uh, and that came out of a deep sense of worthlessness. Well, that transformation in his life came because of the resurrection because. Of resurrection power, as Christians would call it, that actually if Christ rise from the dead and he's indeed risen. And the Bible says that is true. And then the Bible talks about how we have been risen with him, that that transformational power, which transforms us from where we [00:47:00] were, which Pete so beautifully articulated, you know, that we were without God, um, to a place where not only have we been forgiven, but we have access to God, that we are called children of God, that in fact, life has completely and utterly transformed and changed. That's pretty awesome right there. And so you can see in Pete's life the resurrection of Christ at work. And I I I love that. I love that massively. Um, and so how does a resurrection of Christ affect your life? What's your story now, just to give you a bit of heads up. Um, uh, and in about a month or two's time, I'm not entirely sure when the date's gonna be yet, but fairly soon we're gonna launch a podcast called What's the Story? And in Effect, uh, the podcast is all about Christian stories. So it's a, um, uh, [00:48:00] it's me basically interviewing people about their story. And so we've recorded one, for example, with Anna Keto, where she talks about miscarriage. Um, and the idea is trying to understand where does. Where does resurrection come into this? What transformation has taken place in in life, you know, in dealing with difficult things and facing hardship? How did the resurrection help? And Anna tells her story. Super, super well. We've recorded one with Sharon, um, talking about her story as well, and we've got loads more coming. So do stay tuned for that. And if you are not connected with us, if you've not subscribed to the newsletter or if you're not connected with us via social media, can I encourage you to do that? Just head on ever? No, no. That side. Uh, up there, up, up there, there it is. Kind of point to it. No, I can't. It's very difficult when it's back. One point to the web address there, Matthew, uh, Crowd Church. Go to www dot Crowd Church, you'll find all our social media stuff there, and you'll be able to connect via email and we will let you know when the podcast [00:49:00] is coming out, as well as all the other stuff that is happening here at Crowd. And you'll also note it. This, the website is slightly different. Yes. Brand new website. Check it out. The guys have worked really, really hard on that website, so that's why it's of real importance. We need this sort of resurrection power. Then Pete said this, and I have the quote written down 'cause it's, it's a beautiful quote. I put it in the comments and I loved it. The world will tell you right, when things aren't going well, the world will tell you that you just need to have more bubble baths, which I just thought was hysterical. Uh, you need more me time, that you just need to find your authentic, true self and that you can love yourself into wholeness. But that is flawed reasoning and he talks about why it's flawed reasoning by quoting. Um, Ali Beth Stuckey. I think I've got her name right. If our problem is that we're insecure or unfulfilled, we're not gonna be able to find the antidote to those things in [00:50:00] the same place where our insecurities and fear is coming from. What a great quote. Right? And I find this is fascinating. In the modern world and in modern culture, this whole idea of, um, you've gotta find your own truth. You've gotta find, um, you know who you are, your identity is in yourself. Just discover it. Don't let anybody tell you different. And in fact, be intolerant, although we don't use this word in culture, but be intolerant of anybody that tells you, you are not who you are, right? Um, shoot them down, shout 'em down. They're, they're your enemies. You know, they're, they're worse than scum on the bottom of your shoot. Don't have a conversation with them. No, no, no, no, no. Just to shout them down, right? But this whole idea of finding your own truth, I think is. It is fundamentally flawed because if we're broken people, and let's just be frank, right, the human race has got some really [00:51:00] good points about it, but it's got some really evil, nasty points about it as well. At the, you know, on one hand we can create art and poetry. On the other hand, we can launch missiles across on one of our neighbors, right? On one hand, um, we can be kind and generous. On the other hand, we can walk past a stranger who is struggling on the street and not even care about them. You know, human humanity is, it's not the solution, is it? It it's not, it's not perfect, let's just put it that way. But there are good elements to it, and I feel that that is because humans are created in the image of God. And we have this, um, we have this sort of residue, if you like, of his kindness and his goodness in us, but it's not always there apparent. And so to go searching for our identity in those things. It was fundamentally flawed because there are problems and there are errors, and there are destructions and there are fears, and there are anxieties in that whole area, whereas the Christian faith [00:52:00] well. It's not about self-love, it's about receiving god's love because that is pure, that is holy, that is just, that is perfect. That is all it needs to be, and you can receive that from God, which I, I really love. So, uh, yes, we put the new website. Uh, John's put the new website domain in the comments there. Matt Crew says he's struggling to find any issues with the website. Gutted. For those of you who don't know Matt Crew and you're watching this, Matt is a regular Crowd, probably our most faithful viewer. Um, and, uh, Matt is brilliant at finding, uh, things that I've done wrong, uh, either on the web or we've done wrong on the website or in video's. Website is usually a word which we spell wrong, for example. So Matt's a brilliant editor. Um, and so yes, that's, that sort of explains that. So yeah, this whole idea that Pete said that actually it's not about me time, it's a, it's not about having more bubble [00:53:00] baths. The truth of the matter is your identity, who you are, that that fulfillment of self can only come from one place, and that is from the God who made us. And the only way you can experience the God who made us. Is through the resurrection of Jesus. And that's the Christian message. That's the Christian gospel in a nutshell. So I hope that all makes sense. Uh, a few other questions that have come up, lemme just deal with those real quick. Um, is Easter a Pagan holiday? Which is a great question, isn't it? Um, and often one that comes up, well, Easter's just a pagan holiday. Hence the reason we have Easter eggs and bunny rabbits, which have absolutely nothing to do in some respects to the Christian message. And I would say that actually Easter is not a pagan holiday. Easter for Christians is all about, as we've been talking about, the death, the burial, and the resurrection of Christ, and what that [00:54:00] means for us, um, the new life, the new, you know, the, the, the fact that we can come to God, uh, in a way that we never able to do before. That's what Easter's all about. Now, the reason people ask is Easter a Pagan holiday. I think it's tied into the fact that actually maybe the word Easter is derived from a pagan god or goddess. I, I dunno how much evidence there is for that, but you know, it's possible. Um, there are obviously some pagan festivals that happen around this time of year, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Christians Easter service is a Pagan festival anymore than if I was, I don't know, born on Halloween that I, that my birth on Halloween somehow reflects my approval or disapproval of Halloweens. Just coincidence. They happen to be at the same time. So, is Easter a Pagan holiday? Uh, I would say no. Uh, Easter is all about the death, burial, and resurrection of [00:55:00] Christ. Now, there may be some things that we bring into it, which, um, don't necessarily make sense, but is don't necessarily make sense to me. But I mean, I. I quite like the chocolate thing. I'm, I'm, I'm not gonna lie. Uh, but it's definitely not, you know, if it didn't, it exist, it wouldn't change the beauty of Easter for me. Uh, that's for sure. Um. Easter is not mentioned in the Bible. Uh, why is that? Is another question. And it isn't the word Easter is not mentioned in the Bible. It's a fairly new word, which we've used to describe this time of celebration. You know this for sort of festival, uh, festival's the wrong word, but Do you know what I mean? This sort of time of celebration for Christians to get together and, and remember, you know, the, the, the resurrection of Christ and to celebrate that. Uh, so Easter itself is not mentioned in the Bible as a word, but the Bible talks a lot. I mean a lot about the resurrection of Jesus for reasons which we've already talked about, that actually without resurrection, there is no Christian faith. So it talks a lot about the [00:56:00] resurrection and the power of the resurrection. Paul talks about it. Peter talks about it. Jesus talks about it. I mean, it's mentioned everywhere in scripture. So it's talked about a lot. Let's just, let's just go with that. Um, what is the biblical reason for Easter? Well, again, uh, that comes down to what is a biblical reason for Easter. I, again, it comes down to this whole thing of, without the resurrection, there is no Christian faith. Um, and actually to experience. Transformation ourselves. We have to experience that resurrection power. You know, Matt's been talking about how, in the comments, how, um, you know, God has been helping him overcome depression, resurrection power at work. Right. Uh, for me, I mean, you talk about anxiety and fear, let's not get into that. But yeah. You know, I, I feel like there's resurrection power in that and God has redeemed me from a whole bunch of stuff, that's for sure. Uh, so [00:57:00] let's see. Let's look at the time. Oh, we're nearing the end of the live stream. Sorry. Rambled on a little bit there. Let's end Conversation Street there. Just love talking about the resurrection, just the way it's, so next week, what have we got coming up? Hopefully John has told me yes, he has, uh, what does the Bible say about education with Dr. Will? So, with, um, which I'm actually really looking forward to listening to. I'm not gonna lie, I just love Will, will is just one of those guys that when he talks. It's just so profound and so wise and just so amazing. And you're like, I just, I just want to hear what he's gotta say about quite a fascinating topic of education. 'cause I think, what does the Bible say about it? We spend 18 years of our life, at least in an education system. And I suppose in one sense we're always learning, aren't we? So what does the Bible have to say about that? Does it have anything to say about schooling, for example? What about homeschooling, private schools, all that sort of stuff. We'll get into that all of next week. So what does the Bible [00:58:00] say about education with Dr. Will? So with next week, do join us for that. Like I say, if you haven't yet subscribed to anything that's going on, uh, you can do it on our website, which is there, did it first time. Who. Um, Crowd Church, which are the links are in the comments below. Uh, make sure you subscribe, like on Facebook and we'll send you notifications of when, uh, the talk is live. And Will's gonna talk on education, uh, and we've got some fascinating topics coming up. What does the Bible say about education? What does the Bible say about sex? Thanks. Got that one coming up soon with John and Kirsten Harden, which is gonna be fantastic. Uh, so do, like I say like, and subscribe with everything that's going on. What's gonna happen now is we're gonna close the livestream with one more worship song. Um, and this song is called Reckless Love, and it talks about the reckless love of God, which is the story of Easter. And uh, again, join in with it as much or as little as you like. Uh, you are more than [00:59:00] welcome to stick around, say hi in the comments, chat to people, um, while the song is going on. When the song has finished, the live stream will end automatically. Uh, and that'll be that. And next week I'll be hosting Crowd again. I think I'm hosting John, correct me if I'm wrong, um, but I'll be back in the UK probably with jet lag. Uh, but you know, I'm looking forward to it. Love Crowd, love doing this from, uh, Kansas. Thank you for, for joining us. I love online church. Such an amazing thing. So anyway, have a fantastic week. Wherever you are in the world, wherever you're watching this, whatever time you're watching this, whether you're watching this live, uh, or on may you experience the resurrection power of Christ in your life because he is risen. He is risen indeed. Thank you so much for joining me. God bless you. Have a fantastic week. Bye for now.[01:00:00] Video: Before I spoke a word you were singing over. You have been so, so good to me. Before I took a breath, you breathed your life in me. You have been so, so kind to me[01:01:00] of God. Oh, it chases me down. Fight still, I'm found leaves the 99. I couldn't earn it. I don't deserve it. Steal you. Give your self away. Overwhelming, reckless love of God. When I was your folk steal, your love fought for [01:02:00] me. You have been so, so good to me. When I felt no worth, you paid it all for me. You have been so, so kind to me. Love of. I couldn't it. I don't deserve it. Still you.[01:03:00] There's no shadow. You won't light up mountain. You won't climb up coming after me. There's no wall you won't kick down. Lie you won't tear down coming after me. There's no shadow. You won't light up. Mountain. You won't climb up [01:04:00] coming after me. There's no you won't down lie. You won't. The snow shadow, you won't light up. Mountain. You won't climb up. Coming me the snow. You won't kick down. You won't tear coming after me. No shadow. You won't light up mountain. You won't climb up coming after me. The snow you won't kick down. Lie you won't tear down coming after me. Overwhelming, reckless [01:05:00] love of God. Its me down. 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