The Greatest Miracle

Transcript

I’d like to begin the sermon this afternoon with a quote, it's a quote from a doctor, a doctor of religion; his name is David R. Regan.  Now again you'll, the quote won't be out of character, out of kilter for you, I think you'll understand and appreciate where I'm going, at least to begin with, the sermon this afternoon.  Here's this quote says, "The resurrection of Jesus is one of the three greatest miracles of the Bible, one of the three greatest miracles of the Bible."

Now I begin with this quote and I want to begin with some information about the resurrection of Jesus Christ because here we are on the Sabbath during the Days of Unleavened Bread and we know not again the days aren't the same as we know they were at the time of the crucifixion and the resurrection but it was on the Sabbath during the Days of Unleavened Bread that Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead. Most remarkable event where God died and was resurrected.

An event that I don't think any of us can properly appreciate or even understand.  There's no way I can explain to you how that happened.  I can only tell you that scripture says it did happen.  The quote goes on to say, "The resurrection of Jesus is one of the three greatest miracles of the Bible, the other two being the creation and the incarnation." 

There are several books about miracles and you can read any number of them yourself. 

There's actually a website called "Verse List" which actually gives the top ten verses or events in various categories.  In this particular website lists the ten greatest miracles of the Bible. 

And this is the order they place them: #10 Jesus Christ casting the demons into the herd of swine, #9 The ten plagues, #8 Christ walking on the water, #7 Balaam and the talking donkey, #6 crossing the Red Sea, #5 Christ feeding the 5,000 #4 the resurrection of Lazarus and #2 the resurrection of Christ and #1 on this list, Creation. 

In addition to these events, the Bible also records various times of other miracles.  The Bible records eight distinct miracles during the ministry you might say or the time of the prophet Elijah, eight distinct miracles.  Elisha, there were sixteen distinct miracles in his life recorded in scripture.  And, of course, each one of those had within those miracles or that list of miracles a resurrection took place. 

The list of Christ's miracles as recorded in scripture is quite lengthy and includes the resurrection of his friend, Lazarus.  If you take all of this into consideration, the Bible as some explain it, is divided into epocs or period of miracles and in periods of when there were no miracles at least not recorded. 

The Old Testament is divided into three periods of miracles: creation, the exodus and the time of Elijah and Elisha; otherwise it basically is silent as far as miracles occurring. 

The New Testament, you have the time of Christ and the immediate following of that with the apostles and then basically quiet.  But if you have all of the Bible, 66 books to look at, which would you declare to be the greatest miracle of all time?  Which would it be? 

I read you a quote from a Dr. Regan who said it's the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Is that true?  Well, I hope you'll follow me today in the sermon because I do want to talk about the resurrection of Jesus Christ but I hope when I get to the end, I will convince you that there is yet another miracle that's even greater and again, maybe it's incorrect to categorize things as greater than the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  But I want to begin there.  I want to begin with that question, which is greatest miracle of all time? 

Consider this fact, if there'd been no creation, of course, then none of this all matters.  So, you might want to proclaim the creation.  If Christ had not been born, then nothing else would matter either and you could say the same thing if He had not been resurrected.  Would anything else matter? 

So, I'd like to begin the sermon this afternoon by planting that question in your mind and please be prepared that before I finish today I will give you, you may conclude it's my opinion, but I will hope to convince you that there is one other miracle that often gets overlooked and forgotten.  And yet it's tied so closely to the meaning of the Feast of Unleavened Bread that I think you will recognize it immediately and will be able to acknowledge there is something there, there's something there. 

But first let's consider the question: as we sit here today on the Sabbath during the Days of Unleavened Bread, let's consider the question of the resurrection of Jesus Christ; turn with me to 1st Corinthians, chapter 15, 1st Corinthians, chapter15.

For most of us who've been in the church a number of years this chapter is simply called the "resurrection chapter." Over the years I, like most ministers, have done more funerals than you really want to even think about, not very pleasant occasions.  But yet, you do your best to make them a positive in the sense of looking forward beyond the death of the individual.  I once kept track of all the weddings and all the funerals I did and when we were in Houston as Mr. Taylor alluded to, we were there almost 19 years. In that period of time, I had done almost exactly the same number of funerals as weddings.  I had a hundred funerals and approximately a hundred weddings in that period of 19 years.  Now you can do the math, there were 20 years, that's approximately five funerals and five weddings per year.  

So you become very familiar as you do one funeral after another with the words of 1st Corinthians 15.  The apostle Paul is writing to the church at Corinth, the Corinthians were really a case study in focusing on the minor issues only to lose sight of the most important.  They were going to court against one another.  They had a classic or not a classic case but an outlandish case of sin within the congregation that was being tolerated.  They were judgmental of one another.  They were some were getting drunk on Passover night believe it or not.  Amazing congregation it must have been certainly for the apostle Paul. They minored in the major issues and majored in the minor issues.  So Paul puts things in focus.  And Chapter 15 is one of those focus chapters. 

Paul goes to the simplicity; we read the writings of Paul and Peter said he writes things hard to be understood.  But I don't think Peter had in mind 1st Corinthians 15.  The apostle Paul made it as clear as you possibly can the significance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  And how it ties into the gospel. 

Beginning in verse 1.  1Cor15:1-6  he says, "Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you--unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received:"  that Christ died for our sins according to the scripture.  The apostle Paul goes to the very basics of you know Christianity 101.  This is this is as simple as it gets.  Jesus Christ died for our sins; pretty simple, pretty basic, pretty clear.  Verse 4 "He was buried and He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (verse 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,)  Notice how Paul sites scriptural authority for what he says.  Scripture said He died for our sins, scripture says He rose again the third day.  And then He was seen, verse 5 (verse 5 and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.) by Cephas then by the twelve.  (Verse 6) "After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep."   

During the time when the apostle Paul is writing he said if you don't believe me, I have you know 400 plus witnesses, 500 to begin with some are now deceased.  You can go ask them, they saw Jesus Christ walk the earth, resurrected, alive.  This wasn't you know well, I shouldn't say it this way it isn't that it wasn't a difficult matter for people to believe.  It was hard to believe but they had concrete evidence.  They had evidence during the 40 days that Christ walked this earth and they saw Him.  They ate meals with Him. 

The Bible only records a small fraction of what Christ must have done in those 40 days.  We have no record of Him appearing before 500 people.  Isn't recorded, Paul says it happened.  They knew, they knew because they saw it with their own eyes that Jesus Christ died and was resurrected. 

The apostle Paul goes on to say that even he saw the resurrected Christ.  We assume Paul is talking about the time he spent in the wilderness or in the desert of Arabia where he says he was taught directly by Christ.  But he says, verse 9 "For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle" notice this “because I persecuted the church of God."    

Now keep that thought in mind because when I get to the end of the sermon today, I want to talk about something that happened to the apostle Paul.  The apostle Paul was one who persecuted and killed Christians.  He did that, there is no denying and he admits here: "I persecuted the Church of God." 

Verse 10: "But by the grace of God I am what I am,"  He can't change his past, none of us sitting in this room today can look back and say, "I'm going to remove that from my life, I'm going to take that away from my past, I'm going to remove it, erase it from my life."  You can't do that.  The apostle Paul could not erase from his life the people he had harmed and done damage to.  "But, by the grace of God, I am what I am and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." 

The apostle Paul takes no credit for what he did.  Where did that credit come from?  Keep that thought in mind as we go through the sermon.  He says,  "Therefore", verse 11,1Cor15:11 whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed. "  Verse 12  "Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. 14 And if Christ is not risen," here we go " then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty.

Your future, my future, all of our work for 50 years for the Fort Worth area, my family; my mother's certainly goes back 10 years before that, actually more than that 1952; 60 plus years all of that work is for nothing, if Jesus Christ was not resurrected!

Now that kind of leads us to believe well, not that it leads us to believe it's certainly true that that resurrection was a significant event in human history, a significant event.  But, again I ask is it the greatest miracle? 

I want to present the case that it is truly a great miracle.  And that without that miracle, our faith, our future, everything disappears.  We have been flapping our jaws for all of these years for nothing if Christ was not resurrected.  "Yes, and we (found) (are found) false witnesses of God,"  verse 15 because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up--if in fact the dead do not rise. 16 For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. 17 And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; (and) you are still in your sins! 18 Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished." 

What a sobering thought that of all of those funerals that that I've conducted, all of the family members all of those sitting here today who've watched family members die and certainly with the hope of the resurrection, but what if there was no resurrection?  What happens then?  What happens to the dead?  Where do they go?  What occurs?  What is the end result? 

Paul is very plain here in 1st Corinthians 15 "If in this life only" verse 19  " we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable."  We should be pitied.  We are of all people the worst.  There is no resurrection, because we've given our lives for something that does not exist.  Then Paul says in verse 20: "But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep." 

So, Paul declares that Jesus Christ IS the first of the firstfruits.  Verse 26 "The last enemy that will be destroyed is death."   The resurrection of Jesus Christ is a part of the journey that will destroy death and provide the true good news of the gospel.  You know we use the term "gospel" which means, "good news."  What's good about it?  We talk about a world in chaos.  We talk about humanity being inhumane, we talk about destruction, death, trials and difficulties; so what's good?

Well, the good news, of course, is that Christ was resurrected; that Christ is alive and that He lives in us through the power of His Holy Spirit.  He lives in us and we have a future, we have a future. 

The good news, the gospel of the Kingdom of God; it won't be found in this world today. Our hope isn't in the government of this world; our hope isn't in the governments of man.  Our hope isn't in people, it's in, of course, the future the Kingdom of God, the resurrection of Jesus Christ; a different way of life, a change in your life and a change in my life. 

Notice that Christ is called: the firstfruit.  Let's go to Leviticus, chapter 23.  Mr. Taylor alluded to the fact of the wave sheaf.  I want to touch on that as well in talking about the resurrection of Jesus Christ because this evening at sunset; this evening at sunset begins the countdown to Pentecost. 

Leviticus 23 records the Holy Days, the festivals.  We often refer to this, I certainly have used it many many times over many many years in sitting in people's homes and walking them through the Holy Days and seeing the light go on their faces, Why I've never heard that before." 

And yet you read in verse 2 that these are the feasts of the Lord and they belong to God, there's no record that God ever gave them to us as far as ownership, He gave them to us to observe, but He never relinquished ownership.  They belonged to Him, they don't belong to you, they don't belong to the church, they're not our Holy Days; they're not our festivals, we're not going to our conference in the fall.  These days belong to God, if you believe in a God; if you believe in the great God the creator of all things, then you must respect what He owns; you must respect His property. 

Whether we're talking about the Sabbath or the Holy Days, they are to be respected.   They're not ours, they belong to Him and to explain that to someone brand new and to see the light go on and to see them recognize, "Well it doesn't say, Jewish Feast, it doesn't say the Feast of Israel."  They're the Feasts of the Lord. 

And then, of course, it begins with the Sabbath in verse 3 then goes to the Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread.  While there may be some controversy or some ambiguity you found in Exodus 12 for some as to when that sacrifice was made in Exodus 12, there's no ambiguity in Leviticus 23.  Passover is the 14th day of the first month in evening and there's only one evening unto every day and it's the beginning; the nighttime, and the beginning of the day.

We observed the Passover this past Sunday in the evening at the beginning of the day that we would call Monday, the Passover day, the 14th day of the first month.  And then it's very clear in verse 6, Lev 23:6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread (to the Lord;)  I've never forgotten Mr. Armstrong's very clear explanation, very simple explanation.

The 14th can only be the 14th, and the 15th can only be the 15th.  The 14th can never be the 15th and the 15th can never be the 14th.  Pretty simple.  Unleavened Bread begins on the 15th not the 14th, not the 16th, begins on the 15th.  It ends seven days later on the 21st unless you're crossing the International Date Line and I don't know what day it ends on then!  But it's the 21st. And there are seven days of Unleavened Bread, there's no ambiguity in Leviticus 23. 

But verse 9 talks of a special ceremony, one that sparked a bit of controversy.  Certainly in the last 50 years of the church I've heard of and dealt with in that sense some questions or controversy on this.  But again, I submit it's fairly simple.  It's not overly complicated and I don't intend to make it that way today.  But to understand the resurrection of Jesus Christ, it helps it helps I wouldn't say that you absolutely have to understand this, but it helps to understand the wave sheaf offering.  It helps to understand what it is. 

First of all the term wave sheaf offering does not appear in the Bible, doesn't appear.  Now I'm not saying it's incorrect, it just doesn't appear.  There are wave offerings and one wave offering was of a sheaf of wheat or barley, barley in this case.  So, it's called the wave offering.  But it's that offering of a sheaf.  So, in the church over the years we've sort of become accustomed to hearing the term wave sheaf.  And that term is used widely but it doesn't appear in scripture. Now again, my point isn't that it's wrong, it's just that we often use terms and then we go check and say well, that's not quite the term that's used.  It is the sheaf of the wave offering.  The sheaf of the wave offering, it's a certain type of wave offering. 

Verse 10.  First of all God is the one who spoke to Moses. Leviticus 23:10  "Speak to the children of Israel," (Verse 10) "and say to them: 'When you come into the land which I give to you, and reap its harvest, then (shall you) you shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest."  I don't know of anyone who knows exactly what a sheaf would have amounted to; the best we could know is it amounted to what you would probably be able to hold in your hand or maybe two hands and it appears that it would have been waved, literally waved.  We have any other way of interpreting that except that. 

So, says, "He shall wave" (verse 11) the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted on your behalf; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it.  Now the controversy comes in is which Sabbath is this: is this the weekly Sabbath or is it the first Holy Day?

 I submit to you that this be read as one document.  Leviticus 23, the only Sabbath referred to, notice the first and last Day of Unleavened Bread in verses 4-8 are not referred to as the Sabbath, I'm not arguing that they aren't Sabbaths, they certainly are.  But the only referenced Sabbath to this point is the weekly Sabbath.

So the church has been confident over the years that it is the weekly Sabbath that occurs during Unleavened Bread, which is today, and it's the day after that the wave sheaf is waved or the sheaf is waved as a wave offering.   Verse 12  "(And) you shall offer on that day, when you wave the sheaf," you also notice this offer "a male lamb of the first year, without blemish, as a burnt offering to the Lord." So there's a sin offering involved.

I submit to you that Jesus Christ fulfilled the wave offering, that sheaf that was waved Jesus Christ fulfilled.  He's also, of course, the sin offering.  Also the sin offering that was offered.  We find that from that point on, from that day, that is the first day of the week, the day after the Sabbath, during the Days of Unleavened Bread. 

Now the Pharisees counted it differently than the Sadducees.  The Pharisees and you must remember that when the temple was destroyed in 70 A.D. that only the Pharisees survived.  The Sadducees disappear from history.  We have no historical record written by the Pharisees, I'm sorry the Sadducees.  The Pharisees became nominative Judaism down through the years.   So current Judaism although it's spread and divided and has different groups; in general Judaism today sprang from the Pharisees.  The Pharisees were the chiefs in the synagogues. 

The Old Testament there were no synagogues, find none.  But between the two testaments, synagogues system developed, the Sanhedrin developed.  Those aren't listed in the Old Testament.  They developed.  The Pharisees gained political control of the synagogues which is where the people were. 

The Sadducees were the priestly group and maintained control of the temple.  So it makes sense that when the temple is destroyed, the Sadducees disappear but the Pharisees who had control of the people in the synagogues survived. 

So, today, the Jews will observe the Feast of Firstfruits on the 6th day of Sivan because they interpret this section of scripture to be applied to or apply it to the first Holy Day the day after being the 16th.  So, they count 50 days from the 16th day of the first month and in reality it makes no sense to tell you to count 50 days because 50 days from the 16th is always going to be the same day.  It will be Sivan six.  The Sadducees had a very different view of that and they controlled the temple. 

So, the Pharisees chaffed under the Sadducees who had control of the temple, control of the Sanhedrin and they always counted for the Feast of Firstfruits from the first day of the week during the Days of Unleavened Bread. 

While there is some dispute in the historical record because the Sadducees have no written record, it is fairly commonly accepted that the Sadducees never strayed from that position and they controlled the temple until its destruction in 70 A.D.  So, here we have the wave sheaf offering. 

Now let's go to, let's first of all draw some analogies.  What is this wave sheaf offering and what does it have to do?  This ceremony took place during the Days of Unleavened Bread.  What connection does it have with Unleavened Bread?  It is the, it marks the beginning of the harvest.  The day of the wave sheaf is not a holy day or a festival.  It is well, again, it is the first day of the week and it marks the first day of work for the harvest.  The harvest begins on this day and it lasts until Pentecost.

Now some have interpreted that to mean, well, then it's over on Pentecost therefore Christ must return.  Well, that's not true.  The period of time for the 50 days marks the time of the harvest.  But the harvest doesn't end on Pentecost cause any grain that's harvested is generally unacceptable, although some may be depending on the lateness of the harvest, some or most of it is not useable yet.  It must be stored in a barn or a place of storage where it will go through a drying and maturation process.  And it may be several days or several weeks beyond the end of the harvest before it is truly capable of being used. 

I don't think it's a stretch to draw the analogy of the church that when God calls the firstfruits today He puts them in a place where they are together.  And where they are to mature and to dry; trials, difficulties, even sometimes problems getting along surely that has never happened in the church.  Well, of course it has and we learn.  You know there are things that we learn by being together at church that we would never learn by ourselves.  We're put in the barn where we're going to mature until Christ returns which is the next holy day, The Feast of Trumpets. 

It's a process, doesn't happen overnight.  You don't cut down a stalk of barley, I mean you can and go and eat it.  That barley or that wheat especially wheat must reach a certain level of dryness before it's actually useable for flour or anything that's going to be good. 

And today they have very particular ways of handling that.  And, they wait until the wheat, they store it in in graineries where they have fans that dry it and they have a whole process of drying it for days and weeks until the maturation or I'm sorry the moisture content reaches a perfect level.  And then they sell it to be used for flour, for whatever else you're going to use it for. 

The analogy works very well with the firstfruits being collected coming into the Church of God being in a place together where you rub elbows together you learn things that you would never learn as a stalk of barley out in the field.  And you become truly the firstfruits as we look ahead to the return of Jesus Christ. 

Jesus Christ is clearly the wave sheaf offering.  Jesus Christ is clearly that wave offering of a sheaf that was waved on that day.  Let's go to Matthew, chapter 12.  How did that happen?   How did Jesus, how did the resurrection of Christ occur?  What are the facts?  What are the details? 

We all know very clearly that we're in the middle and it often happens, I had someone tell me that every year Easter falls during Unleavened Bread.  That's not true.  There are years in which Easter will be a full month outside of Unleavened Bread.  But in a normal year, normal year, Easter Sunday does fall during Unleavened Bread.  And they proclaim that to be the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  It is inconsistent with scripture.  It is incorrect and it's based upon pagan and false tradition.

Always remember that and sometimes the church has been very blunt over the years and I think appropriately so, and maybe sometimes we've been blunt and been embarrassing to ourselves and to others as well.  But I always felt this was the correct headline. 

If you probably remember the old Good News Magazines from the 1950s and 1960s maybe some of you do.  And even the Old Plain Truth Magazines wouldn't have a cover; the first page was the first article.  So, when it came in the mail, it was there, you saw it.  I always remember and I still have a picture of it, of the Good News Magazine.  The headline said very simply, very direct, similar to the apostle Paul, I guess, "Easter Is Pagan."   That's the headline.

And that went out to hundreds well, thousands certainly maybe not hundreds of thousands then households.  Delivered by a postman into your mailbox.  Delivered in the post office with a big headline that Easter Is Pagan, which is true. 

And it occurs often on the Sunday during Unleavened Bread.  As it does this year so we're in the middle of that.  What is true and what is not true about the resurrection of Christ? Look at Matthew chapter 12, verse 38. Matthew 12, verse 38, a central theme and a central position and point when one is discussing the resurrection of Christ.  Mat12:38-40  "Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." 39 But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." Now He didn't say He would be dead three days and three nights but that He would be in the tomb three days and three nights.  Now, again, we're talking about probably only minutes or an hour or so difference from the time He died until the time He was put in the tomb but there is a slight difference. 

We also know that some will argue and say well, but that this is the only place in scripture that it says this and that's true.  Three days and three nights are only mentioned here.  The rest of the scriptures Mark, Luke and John refer to the third day. 

Of course, I submit to you that Christ died on a Wednesday afternoon; He was buried just before sunset that Wednesday.  Thursday was the first day and Saturday was the third day. So, whether you call it the third day for the resurrection or you say three days and three nights, you're saying the same thing.  And the scriptures are saying the same thing they are very consistent that Christ was resurrected the third day.

Matthew 12 after three days and three nights He was resurrected.  But some will jump on the fact that well, it says the third day so Friday, Saturday Sunday, third day.  Well, is that true?  Is that really true?  Let's look at one of the proof-text for a Friday maybe and a Sunday resurrection is found in Luke, chapter 24. 

Luke, chapter 24.  The setting for this particular section of scripture is indeed the first day of the week.  It is the first day of the week.  Very clearly. Verse 1. (Luke 24:1 Now on the first day of the week),Documents that it's the first day of the week which is Sunday. We have no argument with that. 

But notice verse 21. Here's where the argument comes in.  Christ appears to those who were traveling on the Road to Emmaus and He stops them and He asks them what they're talking about, this is clearly later on the first day of the week.  But it's still the first day of the week.

And it says, you know are you a stranger? Verse 18  (Luke 24:18 Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, "Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?")

You know have you been living under a rock somewhere? Do you not know what just happened in Jerusalem?  And then He says in verse 21 "But we were hoping," (that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened) we were hoping that He was real.  We were hoping that He really was the Messiah.  And what were we hoping? " We were hoping He who was going to redeem Israel indeed besides all this today is a Sunday, maybe afternoon, is the third day since these things happened.  Now you could read that and say, "Okay, Friday, Saturday Sunday- there it is Friday, crucifixion, Sunday resurrection. 

First of all is that really what Christ said?  Is that really what they said to Christ?  There's an odd translation issue here in verse 21.  I say odd because it 'seems like such a simple word. And but it creates a problem.  Verse 21, "Today is the third day."  

The word "is" you would think is pretty simple.  This isn't the normal word in the Greek for "is."  In fact the Greek word is ago, a-g-o.  It normally isn't translated is at all.  In fact this is one of the very few places it is.  In fact in most places it's translated leads or goes before or I'm sorry, goes beyond; leads or goes beyond. 

Let me give you an example:  Same author, Luke, chapter 4 verse 1.  The same word "ago" is used here where Christ it says was led, "ago" into the wilderness by the Spirit.  (Luke 4:1 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,)  Led into the wilderness.  So this particular verse, these disciples were actually saying today is beyond the third day.  Today leads the third day; today is outside the third day.  The third day was Saturday.  They're saying we've waited another full day and nothing has happened.  We are deeply discouraged and of course Christ explains who He is. 

It is three days and three nights.  It is Wednesday sunset to Saturday sunset; Jesus Christ is resurrected on the Sabbath during the Days of Unleavened Bread.  John 19 verse 31 identifies that this wasn't a normal Sabbath.  It wasn't a Friday afternoon when these events occurred as some would try to convince you. 

John 19, verse 31.  John19:31 "Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath for that Sabbath was a high day," John identifies it as not being a weekly Sabbath.  It was as we saw in Leviticus 23, the 15th day of the first month.  So, Christ was buried before that High Day.  That year, that day fell on Thursday; Jesus Christ was buried before sunset on Wednesday.  Thursday was the first day, Friday was the second day and Saturday was the third day and Jesus Christ was resurrected.

You know the story that the women appeared before sunrise on the first day of the week and found the tomb empty and the rock was rolled aside.  The verse says, when it's read properly, that there had been an earthquake.  An earthquake didn't happen while they were there, it happened before they came. 

Jesus Christ was resurrected the afternoon before just before sunset.    When He was resurrected, He had yet to become the wave offering, the sheaf that was waved for the firstfruits.  We're told in John, chapter 20 that when Christ first was confronted by the women that He told them: don't touch Me, I have yet to ascend to My Father. (John 20:17 Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father;) 

The wave offering must first be accepted.  The wave offering is an offering of acceptance. The priests had to have a wave offering before they can become a priest signifying they were accepted by God.  Jesus Christ went through that process of being resurrected and not yet having ascended to the Father on the pre-dawn hours of the first day of the week. 

We find in Matthew 28 though that later that same day, it says they came to Christ and they handled Him and touched Him and worshipped Him.   (Mat 28:9 And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, "Rejoice!" So they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him.)

So now we have a time frame that some time before the pre-dawn hours or I should say after the pre-dawn hours, when He was first seen, to later on in that day, when they could touch Him and worship Him, Jesus Christ ascended to heaven to the Father; was accepted as the wave offering, as the sacrifice for all mankind and returned to this earth that same day.  And began to interact with the disciples for 40 days. 

What a remarkable story.  One could say there how could there be a greater story?  How could there be another story that could even match this one?  How could there be anything greater than this miracle?  Is it not the greatest miracle that has ever occurred?  One could say that.  And one, I think would be correct.  I wouldn't say it is wrong, but I'd like to turn now to what I'm calling the greatest miracle that has ever occurred. 

And it's a miracle, It's the greatest miracle because it didn't happen just once; didn't happen just once.  The resurrection of Jesus Christ was a one-time event.  His acceptance by the Father was a one-time event.  We're told in Hebrews He gave Himself as a once and only sacrifice.  He isn't going to repeat it. 

But there is a miracle that has been repeated thousands of times since Jesus Christ was resurrected.  It occurs over and over again.  What is this miracle?  Let me read something to you.  This is from a Rabbi and a scholar from the 13th century. 

His nickname is Ram Ramban. Ramban not Rambang;  but Ramban, and they got the nickname by taking the initials of his various names.  He had all these long name.  So he's called in history Ramban and you'll see him quoted quite often he and Maimonides are the two great scholars of the middle ages. 

Here's what he wrote about miracles says, "What was the greatest of the miracles that we read about in the Torah in regards to Israel leaving Egypt?  What was the greatest miracle", he writes?  Often the writings of these scholars they'll begin by asking a question.  Of course, they're going to give you the answer.  But, they're going to ask the question.  He says, "Was it the supernatural plagues?  Was it the fact that millions of former slaves marched out of a land from which no single slave had ever escaped?  Was it the splitting of the sea, which allowed a pursued people to cross on dry land while the pursuers drowned?  All of these were indeed great miracles. 

But if you wish to identify the greatest miracle of all time, we must turn to the passage in which God informs Moshay I shall strengthen the heart of Pharaoh and he will pursue you.  Ramban makes the case that God had to destroy the Egyptian army or they would have come after Israel sooner or later.  So He hardened Pharaoh's heart to come now so his army could be destroyed in the Red Sea.  It was the only way the Israelites would ever truly be safe. 

The Promised Land was not too far for the Egyptians to reach and they would have regrouped and destroyed Israel physically.  But God effected the heart of Pharaoh.  Ramban claims that this is the greatest miracle that can ever be performed and that is to effect a man's heart or a woman's heart. 

To have something to do with the inner working of a person is the greatest miracle all could ever see.  He gives this conclusion: "There are miracles that are far greater than the parting of the Red Sea, more awesome than making the sun stand still, more earth shattering than the walls of Jericho" and I would add greater even than the resurrection of Christ.  He says, "The greatest miracle is the miracle of human conversion the changing of the human heart by God." 

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ was a one-time event.  Conversion, changing the heart, is an on-going miracle that makes possible our goal in life, salvation and the kingdom of God.  The Resurrection of Jesus Christ provides an avenue, provides an opportunity but it means nothing for any of us unless a change of heart occurs, a change in your life, which we call in the short form, conversion. 

I submit to you the greatest miracle is highlighted during the Days of Unleavened Bread.  The greatest miracle in all human history is the conversion of a human heart and mind to be consistent with that of God.  It is rare when you consider the billions of people who have lived.  But it's still repeated thousands of times in the last 2,000 years.

Notice Psalm 51, I don't know if you've paid much attention during these Days of Unleavened Bread with this particular concept, probably you have.  But Psalm, chapter 51 is the famous Psalm of repentance from David.  Want you to notice how he said it.  I want you to focus on this great miracle or the greatest miracle, I submit, which is changing one's heart.  Verse 9 of Psalm 51. David writes writes: Psalm 51:9 "Hide Your face from my sins, And blot out all my iniquities."  What does he say, verse 10: "Create in me a clean heart, O God,"  

The essence of Christianity the essence of conversion is a change of heart.  I felt it was wonderful that we could send out a booklet entitled, Change Your Life just before the Days of Unleavened Bread.  The Days of Unleavened Bread should mark a change in your life.  Not that it didn't occur before, but it highlights that fact; you change from the inside out. 

You know the Greek word for repent in the New Testament is found in Mark 1,verse 15 which was the central part of the message from Jesus Christ in the gospel message had that as a part of it.  The word repent comes from the Greek word metanoia.  The Greek had this idea that that inside every person there's another person.  And they called it the nous, n-o-u-s or n-o-i-a, as a change of that word. 

So they declared the word for repentance metanoia which means a change from inside.  Doesn't necessarily mean a change in your circumstances. You still have the same job, you still drive the same car, you still live in the same house.  But you're not the same.  Something must happen inside you to create conversion, the greatest miracle that could ever occur for human beings.

I don't I'm not trying to make the case that it's greater than the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  I'm simply saying the resurrection of Christ was a one-time event.  Conversion goes on and on and on.  It's the miracle that keeps on giving.  It's the miracle that never goes away.  It's the miracle that makes possible your entrance into the kingdom of God.

Jesus Christ said it clearly in Matthew, chapter 18 verses 2 and 3; if you do not become converted as a child you will not be in the kingdom of God.  (Mat 18:2-3 Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, 3 and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.)  

If this miracle doesn't occur in your life, you will not be in the kingdom certainly not as a firstfruit.  We know the plan of God has an option and option in the sense that there are there are other things that can happen and someone can be in the second resurrection.  But to be a firstfruit, to be in the kingdom of God you must change your life. 

In thinking about 50 years of the church here I would simply ask how many of you are well, certainly I hope you can remember when you first cam into the church.  Have you changed since then?  Are you still the same person?  And I hope you aren’t!  I hope you aren't.  I hope you have changed and I hope the Feast of Unleavened Bread this year in particular highlights the need to change your life. 

In Acts, chapter 11, the apostle Peter rehearsed a story rehearsed a story of the gentiles coming to repentance and of course receiving God's Holy Spirit.  He rehearses the story for those in Jerusalem.  There's one part of the story, he goes through the whole story and he says, God told him not to call any man common or unclean.  That when someone goes through this change, this metamorphosis, he becomes godlike, no he's not perfect, but he becomes godlike; he takes on the nature of God. 

And, notice Peter says in verse 18 of Acts 11 says, Acts11:18 "When they heard these things they became silent; and they glorified God, saying, 'Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life.'" There's no way to get to eternal life except through this process called conversion.  Either now as a firstfruit or beyond the millennium or maybe during the millennium but beyond the millennium in the second resurrection, it must take place. God will not accept your heart and you as you are.

Now in thinking about this sermon, I thought a lot about over the years the people that I've seen.  And I truly believe and as I've said, I have a lot more good memories of the last 50 years plus than I do bad memories.  You know what some of my greatest memories are?  Meeting a new person.  Sitting down and talking to someone new and then watching them over a period of time begins to change.  Now again they don't move homes, they don't change cars, they don't get new furniture, but they change.  They become different people when conversion begins in their lives. 

I visited people, new people, in some of the most abject circumstances as all ministers have, that you could possibly imagine.  I visited in parts of major cities where I've literally stepped over drug addicts or you know drunks on the side of the street to get to an apartment where a couple lived in the middle of all that.  And when the light bulb goes on, and they begin to see, and begin to change; they still lived in a very bad neighborhood in a big city, but their lives were different now.  They weren't the same people and it begins inside out.  It begins inside out.  It's what's going on there. 

Now I've told this story before but one of the greatest examples I've ever seen of someone before conversion and after conversion, cause you'd have to be around a person.  You know we see each other you know once a week on the Sabbath.  But to see someone day after day and to watch the conversion take place and then, of course, reflecting back on it; it's an incredible experience. 

And I saw that in my father. My father died in February of 1998.  It was very sad but it was also comforting after his death because I saw what happened.  The story goes like this:  My mother came into the church and became affiliated with the church at the age of 22 in 1952.  Began to keep the Sabbath, began to keep the holy days, we did it all at home.  There were no churches.  My Father was vehemently opposed.  He grew up in a very abusive family and had determined that he would not continue that, he would break that cycle.  And he did with his children. 

Only in his later life did he tell what he went through and how terrible it was.  His father, he was one of 15 children, my father was. His brothers and I've told this before as well, some people think I make it up but you know in the south in the post-depression, pre-World War II period of time, when my father was born, they either had no imagination for names or they had great imagination for names, I'm not sure which it was. 

My father was named Other, O-t-h-e-r.  And in his latter years, he changed it to or wanted to be called O B by his initials because he kept getting crank phone calls, people would find his name in the phone book and say is this the other Franks and hang up.  Some people try to be generous and try to put an A in his name so it was Othear but it wasn't Othear, it was Other, O-t-h-e-r, not otheer, Other. 

But he had a brother named Wayfred.  Now Wayfred may be not have been so odd or so strange but Wayfred was a twin and there's an unwritten rule that twins names must rhyme.  So he had a brother named Grayfred.  So it was Wayfred and Grayfred.  And they had another brother named Ebo.  I have no clue, E-b-o was his name.  Ebo.  And they had another brother named JH.  That wasn't James Henry, that was just JH.  Meant nothing, there wasn't I mean I don't know what TSA or the homeland security do when the day you come in and it's, my name's JH, J.H.  That was their name. 

But it was a very difficult family life.  They worked very hard.  My father before he died explained that his father would beat them with an axe handle, all the children.  And they all basically ran away from home early on.  He was determined not to do that 

But he had a violent temper; he hated the Sabbath.  For ten years every Friday night at sunset he drove off in a huff and didn't come back until Saturday night.  He was a - he thought of himself as a somewhat of a musician and he wanted to sing, he wanted to play, he went off and pursued that for ten years every Friday night, every Saturday.

He hated us listening to Mr. Armstrong. He once through a radio against the wall; broke it to pieces so we couldn't listen anymore.  I remember being in a car with my father at the age of four or five and driving down a street, we lived in Michigan City, Indiana. And there was snow on the ground, I remember the sight and my Father's driving slowly and the fella behind him is blowing his horn at him just to beat, you know beat nothing. 

My father stopped his car.  Got out of the car, walked back to the guy, he begins rolling his window down; the next thing I see is my father reach in the window, pull him out by his left hand.  Took him to the side and with one blow of his right hand, the fellow falls on the street, out cold.  I thought he'd killed him.  I got home at four years of age expecting the police to show up at any minute and arrest him; but he had knocked him out.  He was very opposed. 

We also had a difficult time making a living.  We were very poor; we were share- croppers.  My father had to get other work.  So finally he had the bright idea one year that he would open a country store.  And had no money but went into partners with another fella.  We would live in the back of the store, had two rooms, a living room and a bedroom and basically a little kitchen area.  And, that was where we were going to live. 

 

And, my mother was going to run the store while my father worked another job at night.  My mother agreed to that but she said there are two things I won't do.  I will not sell pork and I will not sell cigarettes.  Ah, okay, you're not going to turn people away.  Well, we'll see what happens. 

 

So, he works from seven to seven, gets home at seven in the morning; goes to bed.  The store opens; first customer comes in; lays bacon on the counter, my mother says, oh, just a minute. She goes back into the room rolls my father out of bed and says you got to get dressed, you got to sell this bacon.  So he did.  Goes back to bed.  An hour later, fella puts cigarettes down.  Oh, wait a minute, goes back, rolls my father out of bed.  He has to get dressed, has to come out and sell the cigarettes. 

They did that for a few days until finally he said, "Look, if I prove this crazy Armstrong is wrong, will you give it up?"  She said, "Absolutely" He said,  "Okay, give me some time." 

For six weeks he read the Bible from cover to cover.  He came to my mother and he said,

"Can I go to church with you this Sabbath?"  And, shortly after that became a member of the church.  Remarkable.  Remarkable story that I watched unfold of a change of heart and I've seen it over and over again. 

Look at Acts, chapter 3, verse 19.  Acts chapter 3, verse 19.  Acts 3:19 "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord," Repent and be converted. 

There are so many stories and so many lessons to learn.  One of the central themes of the Days of Unleavened Bread is change and conversion.  Today is a special day; it was the Sabbath during Unleavened Bread that Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead.  That is a great miracle.  It is a miracle that makes possible our entrance into the kingdom of God. 

But without conversion, without a change of heart the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the resurrection of Jesus Christ will have no bearing for you.  But the miracle of conversion the miracle of conversion, the change of heart that occurs is central to being a part of the family of God in the kingdom of God. 

Maybe over the years in the church we've become a bit lax.  We've taken for granted this conversion.  We may be expected more of each other sometimes or maybe we've grown to expect less of each other over the years.  The miracle does occur whether you grew up in the church or whether you came into the church.  That miracle must take place. 

There must be a change of heart.  You must become a different person.  If you're not a different person today, then why not?  What's happened along the way?  Have you taken a detour?  Have you gotten off track?  What things are you going to change in your life this Feast of Unleavened Bread?  What will become different this year than last year?  How much many more Days of Unleavened Bread will there be?  How many more opportunities do you have to change?

 I'd like to leave you with three lessons today about the Feast of Unleavened Bread, very very simple lessons:  We began with the resurrection of Jesus Christ and we're ending with the greatest miracle; I'm submitting to you and that is the miracle of conversion that the two are tied together and the two are integral for the Feast of Unleavened Bread. 

Lesson #1: Let God direct your path, turn your life over to God; you can't do this by yourself.  Conversion is a joint project between God and you.  It can't occur without God, it can't occur without you.  It's a joint project.  But God can change a heart. God effected Pharaoh's heart as Ramdan pointed out.  God can effect your heart.  David said, "Cleanse my heart, make it clean."  Let God direct your path.  Turn your life over to Him.  You can't do this by yourself. 

Lesson #2:  Change your life.  Don't let another feast go by without making changes in your life.  Pray everyday to God Almighty that that day you will be a better person than you were the day before and every single day thereafter.  You won't be perfect, but you will grow.  And, as you grow, you will change.  You won't be the same person. 

And lesson #3:  Rejoice that Jesus Christ died for us and was resurrected so that we can be saved.  What a wonderful festival this is; and what a wonderful Sabbath between the two holy days, so full of meaning.  I submit to you, you should go and enjoy the feast.  But make it mean something.  Make it be a part of your changed life.  Time is short.  The kingdom is coming.  Do it while it is still today.  Change your life.  If you don't, nothing else matters.  There is no greater miracle.