THE RESPONSIBILITIES GIVEN TO US BY THE RESURRECTED CHRIST
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OUTLINE
1. BELEIVE ON CHRIST AND RECEIVE YOUR SALVATION
2. BE BAPTISED IN WATER AND IDENTIFY WITH THE DEATH AND RESURRECTION OF CHRIST
3. BE FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT
4. PREACH THE GOSPEL AND WIN SOULS AND MAKE DISCIPLES FOR CHRIST
5. HEAL THE SICK AND CAST OUT DEVILS AND DEMONSTRATE THE POWER OF THE RESURRECTION
6. OBEY THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD AND LIVE A HOLY LIFE
7. FACE THE CHALLENGES OF LIFE WITH THE HOPE OF THE RESURRECTION
INTRODUCTION
The resurrected Christ was taken up into heaven and sat at the right hand of God as He had finished His part in the plan of salvation. He left the responsibility of fulfilling the purpose of His death and resurrection in the hands of His disciples. Therefore the disciples went everywhere proclaiming the message of the resurrected Christ. We must be diligent in fulfilling our part in the plan of God for the salvation of mankind.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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MARK 16:19-20
After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.
Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.
THE MESSAGE
THE RESPONSIBILITIES GIVEN TO US BY THE RESURRECTED CHRIST
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1. BELEIVE ON CHRIST AND RECEIVE YOUR SALVATION
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Our first responsibility is to beleive on the Lord Jesus Christ and to receive His salvation. We must beleive in our heart in the death and resurrection of Christ and confess Him as Lord in order to be saved.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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ROMANS 10:9-10
That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
MARK 16:16
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
JOHN 20:29-31
Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book.
But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
LUKE 24:46-47
He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day,
and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
2. BE BAPTISED IN WATER AND IDENTIFY WITH THE DEATH AND RESURRECTION OF CHRIST
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We must be baptised in water to obey the commandment of the Lord. We identify ourselves with the sacrificial death and resurrection of Christ when we get baptised. We honour the Lord with our obedience to His command.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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MATTHEW 28:19
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
COLOSSIANS 2:12-14
having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.
When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins,
having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.
ROMANS 6:3-4
Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
3. BE FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT
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We must be filled with the Holy Spirit in order to be empowered to live for God. We are no match in our human strength to face the attacks of the devil or evil persons. We need the baptism of the Holy Spirit to overcome the trials and temptations of this world and to live a victorious life.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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LUKE 24:49
I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high."
JOHN 20:22
And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.
ACTS 1:4-8
On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.
For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?"
He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
JOHN 16:7-15
But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.
When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment:
in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me;
in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer;
and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
"I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.
All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.
JOHN 14: 16-17
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—
the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
4. PREACH THE GOSPEL AND WIN SOULS AND MAKE DISCIPLES FOR CHRIST
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We must preach the Gospel and win souls for Christ. We must share the message of the resurrected Christ with the dying humanity. We should not live selfishly just for ourselves . We must live for Christ who died and rose again for our sake.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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MARK 16:15 , 20
He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.
Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.
MATTHEW 28:19
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
JOHN 21:15-17
When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?" "Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my lambs."
Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me?" He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep."
The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my sheep.
2 CORINTHIANS 5:14-15
For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.
And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
ROMANS 14:7-9
For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone.
If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.
For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.
5. HEAL THE SICK AND CAST OUT DEVILS AND DEMONSTRATE THE POWER OF THE RESURRECTION
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We must demonstrate the power of the resurrected Christ by healing the sick and casting out devils. We must seek God earnestly to empower us to demonstrate the power of the resurrection in and through our lives.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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MARK 16:17-18
And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;
they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
ACTS 4:29-31 , 33
Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness.
Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus."
After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all.
EPHESIANS 1:19-20
and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength,
which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,
PHILIPPIANS 3:10-11
I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
6. OBEY THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD AND LIVE A HOLY LIFE
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We must obey the commandments of God and live a holy life. We must die to fleshly desires and live for righteousness. We should seek after heavenly blessings and spiritual attainments.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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MATTHEW 28:20
and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
1 JOHN 3:2-3
Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears,we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.
ROMANS 8:9-13
You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.
And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation—but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it.
For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live,
COLOSSIANS 3:1-17
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.
You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.
But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.
Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices
and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.
Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.
And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
7. FACE THE CHALLENGES OF LIFE WITH THE HOPE OF THE RESURRECTION
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We must face the trials and tribulations of life with the hope of the resurrection . We must rely on the presence of the resurrected Christ in every crisis that we face . We should not faint or lose heart in the midst of battles. We should be comforted by the hope of the resurrection in the times of sorrow caused by the death of our loved ones.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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MATTHEW 28:20
and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
ACTS 1:9-11
After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them.
"Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."
2 CORINTHIANS 4:8-18
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;
persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.
We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.
For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body.
So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken."With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak,
because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in his presence.
All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
1 PETER 1:3-9 , 21
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you,
who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.
These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
1 THESSALONIANS 4:13-18
Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.
We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.
According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
Therefore encourage each other with these words.
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