Matthew 27:51-54
Revelation 1:17-18
5 August 2007
U.S. Army Chaplain (MAJ) Ken Harris
Fort Ord Chapel
Seaside, California
&
Community Missionary Baptist Church
Pacific Grove CA
BIG IDEA: PUT YOUR TRUST AND CONFIDENCE in Jesus who has the keys to open and shut the doors of hell and death.
REFERENCES: The Hebrew Name “Eliakim” means to “Whom God will raise up”; Eliakim was a good man (Isa. 22:20; 2 Kings 18:37), and had a splendid and honorable
career – Bible Encyclopedia; Romans 2: 11 (KJV) For there is no respect of persons with God;Revelation 1:17-18 KJV (And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last; I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death); Revelation 3:7 RSV (And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: ’The words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one shall shut, who shuts and no one opens); Isaiah 22:22 RSV (And I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David; he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open); Psalms 24:7 (Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in); Matthews 16:19 (And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.); Matthew 27:51-54 KJV ( And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God);
I. ANNOUNCE THE PERICOPE: Matthew 27:51-54 KJV; Revelation 1:17-18 KJV
II. READ THE PERICOPE: Matthew 27:51-54; Revelation 1:17-18
III. READ THE TEXT: Revelation 1:18 KJV (I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore *, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death ).
IV. PURPOSE: To encourage believers to PLACE ALL OF THEIR TRUST AND CONFIDENCE in Jesus who has the keys to open and shut the doors of hell and death.
V. SERMONIC THEME: “He Has The Keys 2“
VI. Protaganist/Symbols: Door and Keys
INTRODUCTION:
Some time ago, while reading, I came across a story which addressed the necessity of motivation … and how …
with the right type of motivation … we (as human beings) … can be inspired to accomplish … what seemly can’t be done.
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According to the story … there was a certain man who often walked through a cemetery on his way home.
However, one night, though, unaware that a new grave had been dug in his path, he tumbled in the new grave.
For some time, afterwards, he struggled to get out of the 7 Foot deep grave, … until finally he gave up … and settled down … for the night.
An hour later, a RETIREE who was out hunting … for Deer, Coons and Possums … came walking through the cemetery in Monterey…and he too fell into the grave.
The RETIREE started a desperate attempt to get out; unaware that there was anyone else in the grave.
The first man listened to him for a few minutes, … then he reached over in the pitch darkness … and laid a hand on the man’s shoulder saying,
“You can’t get out of here,” … BUT HE DID.
Now … we may laugh … but the events SURROUNDING THE First Day of The Week …
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MOVE 1: …. GIVES US HOPE AND ENCOURAGEMENT TO DO … WHAT SOMETIMES LOOK IMPOSSIBLE!
a. BUT… WITH JESUS …. WE CAN DO ….
b. BECAUSE HE WILL NEVER FORSAKE US … AND THERE IS NO RESPECT OF PERSONS WITH … HIM (Rom. 2:11);
c. … FOR WHAT … HE HAS DONE FOR OTHERS, HE WILL DO FOR US…
d. I DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED; BUT I’VE FOUND OUT ….HUMANKIND (BE IT EMPLOYEE OR EMPLOYER) WILL DISAPPOINT YOU …!
e. It doesn’t matter how CHARMING … or how powerful he or she maybe, …
f. … or what authority HE or SHE may have … the fact of the matter is … man IS … LIMITED.
g. AND he is prone …. to human weaknesses … and sometime SHOWING RESPECT OF PERSONS …
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MOVE 2: For who can ever forget the Rumors of How ELI-A-KIM (showed favoritism towards his relatives) in Isaiah 22?
a. For don’t you remember …. ELIAKIM was a man that ISAIAH … himself …
b. had highly recommended … as GOVENOR of King Hezekiah’s PALACE?
c. In Isaiah’s eyes, Eli-a-kim had a bright future; because he was a man with character; one who would ONLY hire the best QUALIFIED ….
d. For Isaiah had even … prophesied ….
e. … that ELI-A-KIM would be the father of his people, and a MAN … TO BE TRUSTED.
f. In fact, … Isaiah was convinced that he-himself could place all … of his TRUST AND CONFIDENCE in ELI-A-KIM.
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*MOVE 3: For … In Isaiah eyes, ELIAKIM DESERVED TO HAVE THE KEYS OF RANK … AND AUTHORITY UPON HIS SHOULDERS.
a. Because … he was a man of good intentions;
c. A man of dignity and strength. And … a man worthy of … TRUST and CONFIDENCE.
d. Therefore … the Scriptures says in … ISAIAH 22:22:
e. … And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder:
f. … so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.
g. Because … from Isaiah viewpoint, Eliakim could be depended upon to hire …. the right people and NOT SHOW FAVORITISM;
h. but something happened between verses 22 and 24 … that caused Isaiah to lose TRUST & CONFIDENCE in ELI-A-KIM;
i. Some how … INSPITE OF OTHERS IN THE KINGDOM …. BEING MORE QUALIFIED … ELIAKIM … HIRED ONLY MEMBERS OF HIS FAMILY … (nepotism)
j. As a result, verse 25 shows ISAIAH SUPPORT FOR ELIAKIM HAD CEASED from EXISTING …
k. … ELIAKIM … human weakness … of hiring only family members to work in Hezekiah’s Palace … betrayed ISAIAH’S TRUST… AND CONFIDENCE.
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MOVE 4: As a result, … it IS now whispered … in theological circles …
a. … that … it would be easy … today … to address our legislators, judges,
b. … and those who are in power …. on the subject of Eli-a-kim, and the danger of PLACING YOUR
TRUST … AND CONFIDENCE … IN MEN … in high places …
c. For the fact of the matter is …
d. … WE SHOULD PUT OUR TRUST … IN THE ONE .. .WHO HAS THE ULTIMATE RANK AND AUTHORITY ; AND show no respect of persons …
e. … – THE ONE WHO HOLDS THE KEYS TO HELL AND DEATH (JESUS).
*******************TAKE 5 BEATS *******************
MOVE 5: For … Jesus says in The Book of John: I am the door: by me if any man enter in, …
he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
b. Therefore, my brothers and my sisters … If the door is the symbol of the church’s opportunity for Salvation, ….
c. … then … the KEY is the symbol of Christ’s Authority.
d. In the Greek Language … the WORD for keys is pronounced: KLICE.
e. KLICE refers to the keepers of the keys … having the power and the authority … to Open and to Shut.
f. Now, we all know what keys are. They are instruments that are used for locking and unlocking.
g. Through the use of keys we gain entrance to places that might otherwise be off limits to us.
h. And, through the use of keys, we might also lock people out of places … where they are not meant to be.
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MOVE 6: For some keys are very important.
a. A key to a vault where treasures are kept can be a very important key.
b. It can give the person access to things of great value.
c. But, of all the keys in the world … there are none as important as the ones which
have the awesome power … to lock and unlock … HELL AND DEATH.
d. Therefore, in our SCRIPTURE today … we find OUR LORD’S CLOSEST FRIEND (The Apostle John) imprisoned on the Isle of Patmos… decades after the resurrection …
e. And He’s there because of the Words of His Testimony. Jesus is not ONLY LORD but HE’s equal with God.
f. John the Revelator, ...Tells us that he was IN THE SPIRIT ON A SUNDAY … (The Lord’s Day) WHEN CHRIST REVEALED HIMSELF
ONCE AGAIN …
g. This time, Christ designated himself as…. the living one.
h. For He emphasizes that though he was dead, he is NOW alive for evermore.
*********************Take 5 Beats*********************
MOVE 7: My brothers and my sisters … this is an example to us as Christians …. that if we follow Jesus Christ to the death, we too, like our Savior will be alive forever more.
a. For Christ has the keys …. of HELL AND DEATH.
b. What He opens no one can shut, … and what he shuts … no one can open.
c. In fact, through His suffering and death on the cross, Jesus has been given ….the keys of heaven.
d. He, and He alone, has the power to say whether or not a person will be admitted into heaven or eternally excluded from it.
e. For the power to open heaven for sinners …. is found only in the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross.
f. Jesus has proven that He has the keys of both HELL AND DEATH; for He unlocked both …. and ON THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK … HE arose Victor.
g. For He is the Resurrection …. and the life.
*h. Oh death, where is your sting? Oh grave, where is your victory?
i. For the Redeemer of Israel …. and the Savior of the world holds in His
triumphant hand … the keys.
j. HE HAS THE KEYS!
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MOVE 8: Now … MY BROTHERS AND MY SISTERS … Sin is what blocks a BELIEVER’S entrance to heaven …. and it locks US OUT.
a. Just one sin … against our record … would be enough to lock the doors of heaven FOR all eternity.
b. As James, the Brother of Jesus says (in James 2:10), “whoever keeps the
whole law and yet stumbles … at just one point … is guilty of breaking all of it.”
c. Jesus says … to His followers in the Sermon on the Mount, “Be perfect, as your
Father in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:8).
d. That is what is required for you …. and me…. to gain entrance to heaven.
Nothing less …. than perfection will do.
e. But, in ourselves, we have no such perfection. We are sinners. And, “the wages
of sin is death” (Romans 6:23)… Sin has locked the door of heaven to all
sinners.
*f. But, … ON a GOOD FRIDAY EVENING …
g. Jesus took upon Himself … the punishment for our sins … and paid the price for our
forgiveness. ….
h. Matthew says …. that HE went down to HELL …..and took the KEYS
… of death and hades.
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CELEBRATION:
NOW …
NO MAN CAN DIE …UNLESS JESUS …UNLOCKS THE DOOR OF DEATH.
FOR OUR LIFE … AND DEATH … ARE ENTIRELY … IN HIS HANDS.
FOR OUR SAVIOR … HAS DEFEATED DEATH!
HE HAS DEFEATED HELL …
AND … NOW … HE HAS THE KEYS!
For…he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities:
the chastisement of our peace … was upon him; and with his stripes …. we are healed.
