Why Seek Ye The Living Among The Dead ?
Pastor Ken Crow
Luke 24:1-5 (King James Version)
Luke 24
1Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.
2And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre.
3And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus.
4And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:
5And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?
It is time for revival to break out in our churches . No doubt the coming of the Lord draws nigh . Tonight I know it is Wed. night and just a few of us are here. But I know also you would not be here on Wed. night unless you were dedicated.
I think back to last week. We had wonderful services over the weekend. But I also came to realize that what went on here Sunday morning and Sunday night started last Wed. night.
Tonight I think God is challenging us. Calling each one of us to a higher calling.
1. It is my personal responsibility as a Christian to be alive spiritually.
1Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.
2And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre.
3And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus.
A. The “they” mentioned in verse one expected to find a corpse.
Many today do not turn to the church to find what they are looking for.
Far to often they have shown up needing to find life but found a lifeless body in decay and decline. No excitement nor enthusiasm. A going through the motions mentality that changes nothing. In fact when one enters into a place like that they often leave with the stench of death. They return to no other church because all they expect to find is another corpse!
Let us be challenged tonight as a church body, the body of Christ to live verse two as a church! Let the ones who enter here find the stone rolled away! Let us reaffirm the mission statement of Jesus found in Luke 4 !
Luke 4:18-19 (King James Version)
18The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
19To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
:Let the ones who come over the thresh hold of that entry way find not death but the Spirit of the Lord in this place!
Before “they” got up and started for the grave of Jesus something super natural had occurred .
Long before Sunday morning if life is to be found in a church something super natural must be going on in the lives of the congregation.
Somebody has to be praying!
Somebody has to be expecting!
Somebody has to be saying Lord , roll away that stone before we even get there this morning!
B., bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.
Just in case they found the body still there they brought spices to anoint the body!
When we all, the church realize we are to be anointers!
Mark 16:1 (King James Version)
Mark 16
1And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him
John 19:38-40 (King James Version)
38And after this Joseph of Arimathaea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, besought Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus: and Pilate gave him leave. He came therefore, and took the body of Jesus.
39And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight.
40Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury.
I say this without reservation. When the church becomes anointers and what I mean by that is conduits of the Holy Spirit and gets away from social club ways and becomes again what we were meant to be in the first place people will be getting to all our churches extremely early to find seats and parking places.
The truth is to many times people come in and find not anointers but dead bodies in need of anointing!
Leviticus 24:2 (King James Version)
2Command the children of Israel, that they bring unto thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamps to burn continually.
3. 4And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:
5And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?
What should people find when they come to this place?
A. 1 Corinthians 13:13 (New King James Version)
13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
B. Luke 19:46 (King James Version)
46Saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer
C. Psalm 34:1 (King James Version)
Psalm 34
1I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Psalm 35:18 (King James Version)
18I will give thee thanks in the great congregation: I will praise thee among much people.
D. Mark 16:16-18 (King James Version)
16He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
17And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
E.Mark 2:1-2 (King James Version)
Mark 2
1And again he entered into Capernaum after some days; and it was noised that he was in the house.
2And straightway many were gathered together, insomuch that there was no room to receive them, no, not so much as about the door: and he preached the word unto them.
Amen and God
