~ Open in Prayer ~

Icebreaker
•Have you been enjoying the Heavenly Chaos series?
•What is your favorite bible story?
•What does “spending time with God” time look for you?

Message Review
Pastor shares the differences between growing up in church and serving over 25 years in the bible belt of the South and when he and Pastor Hope embarked on their journey to California. With as many contrasts they saw from both sides of the country, he came to this very conclusion for today’s message. Easter just needs to be Easter and he will share the story today……

Let’s Talk About It!
Read Romans 1:1-4
Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God 2 which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who [a]was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.

He’s from the seed of David as a man but He has been declared to be the Son of God. I need more proof Who is this Jesus that I can state eternity? That I can go to the grave and know that I’m kept? Who is this Jesus that I can pillow my head in my most desperate hour? Who is this Jesus? Son of God? Let’s go a little deeper…
The essence of the gospel of Jesus is that God is love. In the Bible God declares two things about Himself, He says He’s a Spirit and His worshippers must worship Him in spirit and truth. He does not have flesh. And He is love, not the capacity of love, HE is LOVE. The very nature of love is you must have something to express that love to. God wanted something to love, and He created someone in His image. Love cannot be forced but it can be chosen. When love is true it is chosen and does not have to be forced. God gave Adam the choice and he chose poorly. When he chose rebellion, he received separation from God and heaven. Adam released evil into the earth and man is now lost because sin has been allowed to enter the earth. God had to save man but had to become man and sent His only begotten Son Jesus.
Share your story of how you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior

Read John 20:11-15
But Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept, she stooped down and looked into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. 13 Then they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.” 14 Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, “Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”

Mary sees that her Lord is gone and does not know where He is. She then did not realize the “man” who spoke to her was her Lord. There is a spirit realm that God works in that is invisible to people. Mary was crying because she only sees what is in front of her. The angels and Jesus are not crying. They see what is going on in the spirit that Mary is not aware of. Jesus died on the cross and His spirit went back to be with God and His body was in the tomb. His soul went into Hades, and He preached to all the souls before Noah. He went back to preach His own gospel and gave the people before the flood a chance to accept Him as Lord and Savior. The resurrection is the soul, body and spirit coming back to life!! Glory to God! Ask the Lord to give you the eyes to see what is happening in the spirit and not just in the natural. Pray for one another in the group.

God placed Adam and then Eve into the garden of Eden. It was a perfect paradise. It was protected by cherubim with flaming swords. Adam spoke and whatever he called it that is what it was. He did not have to work he just spoke, and God and heaven would back up what he said. He had streams glistening over rocks. You saw the lion resting with the lamb and Adam lived there because God provided it for him. When he sinned, they were banned from the garden. God taking them out of the garden was not punishment but mercy. There would have to be a man and there would have to be shedding of blood to redeem what Adam did. They prophets spoke that He would be from the bloodline of David. How would the son of God make his entrance? Well, he was born in a manger in Bethlehem. There was no room for him in the inn, born to a teenager trying to explain to the world she was pregnant by a spirit. Jesus came to change the world! Not to be served but to serve, He grew in wisdom and stature with favor with God and men. He was raised by His father and became a carpenter. There was nothing that may have drawn our attention to Him and He blended in with everyone. Then He turned 30 and was baptized by John the Baptist. He recognized Jesus as the lamb who takes away the sins of the world. The heavens opened and the spirit of God descended on Him in the form of a dove and the Lord spoke “this is my Son whom I am well pleased”. They spoke of Him that he walked on water, and He would speak to wind, and it would stop blowing. Who is this Man and where does He get this authority. He speaks to a fig tree, and it dies. He speaks to a boat and water stays out of it. He multiplies fishes and loaves to feed thousands. Jesus starts his ministry for 3 1/2 years and sees the end coming close for Him. He gathered his disciples at the Last supper, and he had Judas in his circle knowing he would sell him out. Judas made a deal with the Jewish leaders and received 30 pieces of silver to sell the Prince of God out. Sinners did not kill Jesus, religion killed Him. Jesus does not want you to come because of religion, He wants you to come to Him because it’s in your heart. Jesus was taken and beaten on a flogging post. Heaven is watching this in disbelief, legions of angels pressing and waiting for God to give the word. God says, “no He will finish”. As the prophet Isaiah said, “It pleased the Lord to bruise Him”. God knew at the end of all of this it was the only way to redeem a planet back to Him. Jesus was crucified and lay hanging on the cross all alone. The Roman soldiers continued to abuse Him. He cried out again to His Father, “Why has thou forsaken me?” At that moment He releases his spirit into His Father’s hands. Jesus was the only obstacle for Satan to rule and reign on earth. Hell celebrated when Jesus died. Satan knew there was a three-day window. Jesus knocked at the rusty gates of hell and took the keys of death, hell, and the grave.
He is the Alpha and the Omega!
Hallelujah!

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. 26 And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” John 11:25-26

Prayer Focus and Requests
Ask your members if they have any prayer requests or praise reports. Share the gospel of Jesus with someone who never heard it before.

Scripture References
John 20:11-15
Roman’s 1:1-4
John 11:25-26