Proverbs 13, verse 12, says, Hope deferred, makeeth the heart sick. But when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life. Bump your neighbor and say, what does that mean? Bump your second choice neighbor and say, what does that mean?
Then apologize for bumping them second. No, don't do that. The message Bible says this, Unrelenting Disappointment leaves you heart sick, but a sudden good break can turn life around. You know, it's interesting that bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad people.
I have done the funeral, funerals for people that I really felt like they went to heaven too early. I felt like it was just an unlawful thing. I didn't agree with it. I didn't like it.
Maybe you're the same way. Maybe you lost your mother or your dad before their time or God help us a sibling or a child. But bad things happen to good people. Good things happen to bad people.
There's a lot of wicked people. When I say wicked, I just mean not born again, not living right, you know, serving the devil, whether they know it or not. Good things will happen to them. It's hard to understand sometimes.
Other than our Bible teaches us clearly that we see through a glass darkly. Meaning when we get to heaven we're going to understand some things that we don't understand now. But it's like we're trying to look through a foggy pain of glass. We can't see and understand everything that happens.
So good things happen to bad people. Bad things happen to good people. But a lot of people spend their time worrying and fretting about what might happen. There are statistics out there that say over 90% of what you fear will never happen to you.
Yet people spend so much of their life worrying about it coming to pass. Even though there's no real statistical evidence, like if I put a picture of a snake up here on the screen about half of you guys will get nervous in your chair. There's a television show on TV called Venom Hunters. They go into Ketsies Big Old Snakes and they get to the venom out of their fangs and my little boy loves it.
We got to watch it on mute because when the snakes try to bite them they use colorful words. Daddy can we just listen to it for a minute? I'm like let's just listen to Hillsong. I wish I could hear what they're saying.
One day, Bubba. One day. But these big old snakes, a snake causes fear in almost everybody. I remember one time at my house when I was about 15 years old my parents had some friends over and they were playing dominoes and those parents had kids that were about our age so we were all playing.
And the parents drove up and the lady she was like white as a sheet and she said, oh my goodness she said there's a dead body in your driveway. Then we're like, no that's just our dog's deer. We lived way out in the country in this dog that we had had found this deer and had drug it up to the house and we tried to get it away from her and she just kept pulling it everywhere she'd go so she ate the whole thing bones and all. Bubba your neighbor's like where's he going with this?
But as she was walking in the house scared because she thought she saw a dead body in our driveway which was just our dog's deer there was a snake and the snake slithered and got in her car it crawled in the wheel well. So she comes in and those boys are sitting there and she goes, there's a body in your driveway. And she said, that's our dog's deer, it's no problem. She says, but I almost stepped on a snake too and we went snake and we went running for her car.
And she says, what's wrong with you? I said there's a snake. I said we have a dog that eats snakes too. So I'm not from the scared of snakes.
Side of town. Most people have fears that will never come to pass. The odds of you stepping on a western diamond back are not very high but if I showed you on whoo-h. I mean I've been to the zoo with people that won't even go in the snake part.
And I'm not saying we should like snakes. I'm equal opportunity when it comes to snakes. I kill the big ones, the little ones, the poisonous, the non-poisonous. I kill them all.
I got children. I ain't messing with it. Well we have all these fears that are roused it up on the inside of us. When in reality the odds of something that you fear happening are no better and might be less than the odds of a sudden good break coming into your life.
We're going to talk in just a moment about good Friday when everything looked dark but good Friday was not the end because there was a better Sunday coming and a sudden good break changed your life, my life, and everybody else will call on his name. A sudden good break in my life. I was a teenager almost 20 years old or so and I was believing God to meet my wife and several things that happened real supernatural and spiritual and I knew where she was going to be and it was this kind of thing. You come to this church and I'll tell the story sometime.
But I never forget when I walked in the house where she was and I met her. She was sitting on a counter swinging her legs, just acting like an 18-19 year old beautiful young lady does. And I walked in and I felt just like Adam did when he met Eve. I said goodness gracious this girl is fine.
So I started strutting. I'm talking rooster style people. I am from East Texas. We know how to strut when we want to.
And I popped my shoulders back and I started flexing muscles on my ears and everywhere else I thought I might have one as an 18 year old 19 year old boy. And I walked over and I said hey there. She did whatever 18-19 year old girl would do. She went hey.
And I'm like did you not see my walk. I'll tell the rest of the story some other time. But in my life that was a sudden good break. Now I have three beautiful children who never embarrass me, who are always kind, who live for God, who love God, they're smart, they're bright.
She gave me those children I have a best friend to live life with. I have a warm bed now. Come on somebody. Sudden good break.
The disciples and everybody that believed on Jesus. On Friday everything was going bad. But what I want us to do, and if you're taking notes number one. Look for sudden good breaks.
Something can happen to you like that. That can shift your life. And you'll never be the same. Matthew chapter number 28 says this.
This is after Jesus was crucified. This is after they had put his body in the ground. In the end of the Sabbath as it began to dawn towards the first day of the week came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulcher. To see the tomb.
Now I find it very interesting right there because in the book of Genesis the Bible says that God made Adam first. And then he made Eve last or second. Which makes perfect sense if you realize everybody starts with a rough draft before they come up with perfect. You know what I'm saying?
But the Bible later says that the last shall be first. And every gospel records it the same way that these two ladies beat everybody else to the tomb. So gentlemen can you please get off your high horse and start listening to your wife. And all the ladies said, We're coming back to this church, Beaufort.
I don't know nothing else. That preacher got it going on. He's on us on there. Glowering.
One gospel says that the girls were concerned about how they were going to move the rock out of the way of the tomb. They were going to put ointments and spices on Jesus body because they didn't have a chance to do that because the Sabbath had started and they weren't able to complete all the burial process. So they were going to complete the things to the dead body. Which is to say this even the people who walked with Jesus who talked with Jesus who followed Jesus who believed on Jesus went to a tomb expecting to see death.
So if there's ever an area of your life where you feel like you miss it or you feel like you have missed it. You have to say give yourself a break. Forgive yourself because God has forgiven you and quit wearing your burden like the devil would have you do as a weight around your neck. Because Jesus said we are to lay us out.
The Bible says we're to lay us out every weight that holds us back. Don't ever get on the side of the accuser. Don't ever get on the side that talks bad about you. Now don't excuse yourself from things.
But you say what God says about you. God says you're more than a conqueror through Christ. God says you're the head only and not the tail. God says you're above and not beneath.
God says you're blessed in the city and blessed in the field. God says you're a new creation. Old things have passed away and all things have become new. God says you're the righteousness of God in Christ.
So they were coming expecting to see death and they were concerned about how they were going to move the rock out of the way of the tomb because the rock was so heavy and it was guarded by two Roman soldiers to try to make sure that nobody was going to steal Jesus' body. And on their way the Bible says there was a great earthquake for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door and sat upon it. How many of you know God knows how to shake things up in your life at the right time. He calls an earthquake to happen and send an angel to do what they thought they couldn't do.
If you're taking notes number two, God will do what you cannot. Some of you are believing God for a family member. You're believing God for an area of your life. You're believing God for an increase.
You're believing God for a sickness to be done. You're believing God for forgiveness to finally break out in your family. Listen to me. Some things you can do but what you cannot do, that is God's business.
In other words, what is impossible with man is not impossible with God for all things are possible. God will do what you cannot do. He will do it in the right season, the right moment, the right time. These ladies were going, they didn't know how they were going to move the rock.
They just knew they had to get to the rock. Sometimes not knowing the end is proving to God that you have faith that he will be there when you get there. Mary, I don't know how we're going to move that rock. Well, what am I going to talk about?
Maybe we can get a stick, maybe we can cry. I don't know. But bless God, we're going to break our arms trying to move that rock. In other words, they were pressing towards the mark for the high calling in Christ.
Your life and my life is filled with opportunities to trust God. But if you can't do it, you don't have to do it. God will do what you cannot do. Verse 3, this is talking about the angel.
His countenance was like lightning and his raiment white as snow. Can we just point out something real quick? Angels are not pansies. Can you say pansies in church?
Let's talk with the censors. We'll vote on it. Angels are not sissies. Like lightning, they come from heaven.
Which means how fast is lightning? Before you have blinked, it is there. Which means in your situation, in your moment. You can say, man, I don't feel anything changing.
I don't witness anything changing. I don't sense anything changing. And like lightning from heaven, God can show up on your behalf. A sudden good break.
There's one part in our Old Testament where one angel killed 185,000 men in one night. I think he can take care of your situation. So they got there and the angel had moved the stone away. His countenance was like lightning, his raiment white as snow.
And for fear of him, for fear of that angel being, for fear of the power of God, the keepers, the guards did shake and became as dead man. I want you to picture God. And when you picture God, I want you to picture somebody you can run and jump in the arms of. I want you to picture God as somebody who cares for you so much that he's numbered the number of hairs on your head.
Some of you just looking. It's easier for him to count than others. I'm looking up because there's some glares. Oh, it's Easter, y'all.
You better pray. This preacher will go all day. He cares for you so much. But when you picture God, you cannot think of somebody with limits.
You cannot think of somebody without power and strength. You cannot think of somebody without resources. When you think of God, you should think of thunder and lightning and mountain shaking at the mission of his name. And when his presence fills a room, if you are not covered in the blood of the lamb, you might not make it out.
This is who he is. He's overwhelmingly strong. He's overwhelmingly powerful. And before Mary and Mary even had to have a conversation with the guard, the power of God had shown up and frozen them like dead men on the ground.
Number three. We'll in two or three. Number three. God will fight your battles.
He will fight the battles that you cannot fight. Some of you guys are believing for somebody who's in another town, in another state, in another city. You can't be there all the time. When you drop your little baby's office school and they go running off and you feel like, oh my gosh, what kind of a world are we living in now?
God will fight your battles where you cannot fight your battles. He will bring protection and restoration. He will move what cannot be moved. And he will stay the hand of the enemy for fear that keepers did shake, become his dead man.
And the angel answered and said unto the women, fear not. Everybody say fear not. That sounds so good on Easter. For I know that you seek Jesus, which was crucified.
So the Bible says the angel came, moved the rock and sat upon it, began to talk with Mary and Mary. He had already made the keepers of the guards shake and become as dead men. And then he speaks to Mary and Mary and says to them, don't be scared. I know you're looking for Jesus.
He was crucified. Now it's very important that the angel points out that Jesus was crucified. Because the crucifixion is where the price was paid. The resurrection is where the authority was granted.
But the crucifixion is where your debt was paid. So where my debt was paid. The Bible says that all have sin and fall in short of the glory of God. The Bible says that the wages, the payment that you owe, the debt that you owe for sin is death.
Which means every person born after Adam's thought, which is why Jesus had to be born to a virgin so that he was not born into sin, unlike all of us. Everyone else has to pay the debt or have your debt paid. For instance, if you owe $20,000 on the car and I came to your house and said, you know what? I just want to be a blessing to you.
I want to pay your car off. Your wife would punch you and say, but you for not telling you that's the best preacher ever heard, let me pay it off. But if I did that and I wanted to do that, it would be completely legal and lawful for me to do so. Now if somebody came and forced my hand and said, you have to pay someone else's debt, now we're unlawful.
I can pay your debt if I want to. You can pay my debt if I want to. But I can't force you to pay my debt and nobody else can force you to pay my debt. Which is to say this, when Jesus was on trial for his life, he was told, I can grant you freedom or I can make sure you're executed.
And Jesus laughed. I can see it. Nobody takes my life. I lay it down.
I could have called 12 legions of angels to wipe this whole thing out. A legion of 6,000 angels, one angel at one point killed 185,000. I'm telling you, Jesus said, I can go nuclear on this thing anytime I want to. You can't take anything from me.
Which makes it lawful because he willingly paid your debt. Now if we're sitting at our kitchen table and I have to check, $20,000, I'm going to pay your car off, glory to God, you can say I refuse. I won't take it. And I can come the next day and I can stand at the door and not.
And you can choose not to let me in and you'll still owe the debt. And I can come the next day. And the next, and the day after that, trying to pay your debt, trying to write your slate, trying to wipe your slate clean. But everybody has to make the decision to allow their debt to be paid to accept the price paid.
You see, the angel, it was important for him to say crucified because without the crucifixion, there's no payment. Without the debt, you still have a debt. But because of the debt, you don't have a debt and because of the resurrection, you now have life. If you have ever been exposed to Islam, and I'm going to be teaching on Islam over the next several years.
If you've ever read the Quran, you'll probably see very clearly some very heinous stuff. It's a very demonic religion. It's a very controlling religion. I can't see on the planet how any lady could ever want to be a Muslim.
It's the worst thing imaginable. You're literally just called a possession at that point. But anyway, if you've never read the Quran, don't. But I've read it because I've committed my life to this and I want to know what people are saying that are convincing other people to not follow Christ.
So they're, they're Quran, they're book. It has a lot of prophets in it, has a lot of different things, some things are even similar to ours. In fact, they believe that Mary had a boy named Jesus and was a virgin when she had him. You can read that in our Bible.
They believe that he was a prophet and did miracles. You can read that in our Bible. They believe that he ascended into heaven just like Acts chapter number one says. And everybody saw him do it.
However, they teach staunchly against and say that you should not deal well with people that believe that Christ was crucified. They say it's a myth. Because the fallacy is a half truth is a whole lie. You can't take half of Jesus.
You can't take the living Jesus without the dead Jesus. We don't have a price pay. Thank God he's not dead. But without his crucifixion, you and I still owe the debt.
So Islam teaches that it didn't happen because if you can get a bunch of people to believe and just say, oh, it's the same Jesus. It's just one little bit. The problem is if you take the death out of us, the death out of our Bible, you still owe? You still owe?
So it's very important that the angel was sitting on the stone who he probably renamed Lazy Boy. Because he's all relaxed on and he's talking to Mary and Mary and he says, hey Mary, I'm sitting on a rock that was covering a hole in a rock where somebody had put a rock in the middle of a rock. And now I know that you're looking for the rock, but here's just a minute I'll climb up with this rock and I'll tell you about the rock of ages that was risen from the dead. And now you don't have to worry.
The Bible says that the building block that was rejected, the rock that was rejected would become the cornerstone for a whole new world. He was crucified. If he wasn't crucified, you still owe a debt. But because he was crucified, your debt is paid.
And because your debt is paid, now you can go bolder before the throne. If you have accepted the payment, if you have accepted the payment, if you, like at your kitchen table, push the check back and say, no, I don't want that payment. I don't want that payment. The Bible says this, nobody knows the day when their soul will be required of them.
Don't wait to live for God. Don't wait to give your heart to Jesus. Don't wait to accept the payment. So for fear, the keepers did shake, the angel answered and said to the women, fear not.
I know that you seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here. He is not here. He is risen.
Come on, give God a hand of praise. He is risen. There is something about living for God that enables you to anticipate and look for a sudden good break. Friday was the darkest day, Saturday, maybe even worse.
But Sunday, a sudden good break came on the scene. Two thousand years we have been talking about it. Number four, don't be afraid. He is alive.
Don't be afraid. He is alive. In any area of your life, you are going to have an option to be scared or not scared. You say, well, what do you mean?
I am telling you, you, whether it is ever felt like it or not, you are in charge of your life. If you start feeling those fear thoughts and anxiety and, oh, I am scared of this, what if this happened? You rise up in your inner person, you rise up in your inner man, your inner woman, and say, God didn't give me a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind. You begin to believe God.
If you don't get anything out of Easter Sunday, you get this. Don't be scared. He is alive. If he hadn't risen from the dead like he said he would according to the angel, if he hadn't risen from the dead, you and me would have a big problem.
But I can go to Jerusalem right now and look at the hole they put him in. There is something about God that urges you and presses you to not be afraid. Every time the angel of the Lord shows up almost without exception in our Bible, his first words fear not. Don't be scared.
Fear not. This year, the rest of 2016, and you do this day by day, step by step, hour by hour sometimes, minute by minute when you are in the middle of something. Just commit that you are not going to be scared anymore. I am not going to give fear one moment of my time.
Well, what if this happens? What if a sudden good break happens? What if God shifts the whole thing in a moment? What if you walk in and there is your little wife sitting there swinging her legs and all of a sudden everything starts to shift on your behalf?
What if you walk over to a tomb thinking you are going to go into a dead body and boom an angel shows up and says don't worry about it. He is not dead. He is alive just like he said. No, there are some suddenly about to break out in your life.
There are some suddenly about to break out in your family. Some of your children are about to serve God with more fervor and vigor. Some of you have been praying for your husband. Your husband is about to have a touch from God.
Your husband is about to have an encounter with God. One sudden good break can change everything. That is why our worship team, that is why our worship, that is why we go so hard after it. If you are over 40, go so hard after it is a good thing.
They have to explain lingo to me now. But we are pursuing the things of God. Because when you walk through those doors, one good break can change your life forever. And if it changes your life, it can change every generation after you, it can change your neighbor, it can change your job.
Come on, you can walk in and the boss will go, what is different about you? You can walk in and the employees will go, where do you go to church? You can walk in and all of a sudden things are just different. A sudden good break.
Now now what is interesting, in Mark's recollection of the story, the angel says to Mary, he says listen, don't tell Peter the rest of the disciples that he has risen. And I can see Mary and Mary getting excited, oh yes, he is alive. They just had an encounter with God, talk to the angel. And I can see them begin to run back to where the disciples were.
They were locked in a room terrified for their life. I can see them begin to run back. Maybe they had to stop every now and then and just cry. Because I am happy they were.
Maybe God gave them supernatural strength like they did the Prophet in the Old Testament and they picked up their skirts and just ran fast. Maybe Mary Magdalene fell and skinned her knee and got up laughing. And Mother Mary said, what are you laughing at? She said, Jesus, they were so excited.
The disciples, potentially 11 of them, were in the room. I can see just Mother Mary swinging the door open and say, hey boys. Because you know she was like the team mom. These are real people in our Bible, real people.
This is not a story, this is not a myth, this is not a fairy tale. There is no pumpkin that goes away at midnight. This really happened. Mary had to have been that to those guys.
Throws the door open. Hey boys, maybe she said this and I can picture of it. Hey my boys, could you imagine the level of respect they gave her? The first commandment with a promise, honor your father and your mother.
Give you a long life. Hey boys, I got something to tell you. I just saw an angel. He told me to let you know that Jesus is in fact alive.
They were all there. If all 11 were left were there. I can sense 10 of them getting excited. But there is one that I can see in the corner sitting in guilt and shame.
Sitting maybe with his head down and he heard the door open and he saw Mary and maybe they were worried because they probably tried to convince her. Mary, you don't need to go to the tomb. If you go to the tomb, they are going to kill you and she said, well let me die. I'm going to find my son.
Mary just don't go. Just don't go. But you don't marry. You can't talk about anything.
And she throws the door open and says, oh thank God, she's alive. She says, guys, guys, guys, Jesus is alive. And Peter probably very happy but probably very ashamed too. Because it was just a few days before that that over dinner Jesus told him you guys are going to all turn your back on me.
And Peter says, not me. I'm the rock. I'm the one. I'm the one.
There's no way I would go to death with you. I would die for you. I would lay my life down. I would take a bullet for you Jesus.
Jesus looks at him and says, before morning or before the rooster crows, you're going to say you didn't know me three times. No way Jesus, not me. I would never. No way.
I would never do that Jesus. Maybe I would never. They come and rest Jesus out of the garden. Peter follows him to where he's on trial and he's watching from afar and somebody comes up and says, hey, here's one that was with Jesus.
And I don't know that guy. Another one comes up and says, I know this guy was with him. He's a fisherman. He's with Jesus.
I don't know him. Lastly, one other person comes up to him. You know him. He said, I don't know him more fervently than the times before.
And when he did our Bible indicates that it was about that time that the eyes of love itself, Jesus Christ, locked eyes with his. I sense love pouring out of him like a river in that moment, trying to encourage his friend, his follower to not quit, to not give up. That even though he did exactly what he told him he was going to do and exactly what Peter said he wouldn't do, he wasn't going to give up on him and he wanted Peter to just stay the course. Sometimes you're in the middle of a situation and all you can do is just hold on.
Our Bible says it like this. When you've done all you can do, stand. At least Peter hadn't run off. And she walks in and she goes, hey boys, hey boys, you're not going to believe this, hey boys, hey boys.
Jesus says alive. Where's Peter? I can see Peter shrink into the shadows. She's going to ask me why I denied him.
I can see Peter worried with the guilt and the shame of sin and of not being true to his word, cowering at what might be said by the mother of God. Mother of God's son. Where's Peter? Where's Pete?
Pete? Pete? Where are you, Rock? Pete?
I'm over here, Mom. Maybe they all called her Mom. There's a lot of kids growing up calling my Mom Mom. I'm over here, Mom.
I'm sorry. I turned my back on your son. I'm sorry I said I didn't know him. I told him I was going to do it and I did it.
I'll do anything you want. I'll mow your yard. I'll do everything. I just, I'm not over here, Mom.
Peter, honey, Peter, baby, Pete, Simon, sweet boy. Mom's not going to talk to people. Sweet Peter. He's not finished with you.
You see all these people in here? He told me to tell everybody, but he specifically mentioned you because he knew how you felt right now. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, Mom, don't play with me. Are you telling me?
Are you telling me he's okay with me? Son, I'm telling you he did it for you. Son, I'm telling you he did it because of you. Son, I'm telling you you were on his mind when they drove the nails.
Son, I'm telling you when he said father forgive them. He wasn't just talking about the Roman soldiers. I'm telling you when he said it's finished. He was talking about your debt.
I'm telling you when he said it to my end of your spirit, I commend my spirit. He was talking about paying your, that was Peter's, sudden, good, break. He went on to write books in our Bible to preach the gospel with fervor, to perform miracles, signs and wonders. He preached the first message of the new gospel in Acts chapter number two and 3000 people were born again.
Stand to your feet, please.