This sermon emphasizes the significance of Good Friday, focusing on the tradition of nailing sins to the cross and the central theme of Christianity being the cross and resurrection. It highlights the power of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, the validation of the message through the empty tomb, and the importance of fixing our eyes on Jesus as the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.

On Friday, we had Good Friday service, which the church has had a tradition of doing that. And after the service, we actually nail our sins to the cross. And it was a beautiful sound for about 25 minutes of people nailing their sins to the cross and acknowledging what God has done in their life. Obviously, all those are missing now, and there's wonderful flowers up there. And they found the post, the cards ended up being burned. But it was just a wonderful time to remember the cross. And that's the point of Good Friday service. And here's why. There's often a shift away from the cross. And many Easter sermons and services will shift away from the cross because it's not very popular. I remember recently, and some of you do as well, when the Los Angeles County, I don't know what they call it, Department of something, decided to remove the cross from the logo. Do you remember that? Many years ago, they decided to move the cross from the logo. Wonder why? Separation of church and state, right? All this bologna. But there has been attempts to put it back. And one federal judge, I believe it was, had the audacity to say something like, we can't put the cross back because that would attribute our prestige and our success and our monetary accomplishments to one religion. Talk about being misled. It goes back to one person. The blessings that we are walking in is simply the reflection on how God has blessed a group of people that have relied on Him. And the cross has been the central, the cross is actually the central theme of Christianity. And that's why it's the pulpit, the Word of God, the cross. And the resurrection, here's what's interesting. The cross paid the debt, but the empty tomb validates the message. If we elevate just the empty tomb, we forget that's wonderful, that's nice, let's rejoice. But it's actually the price of sin was paid on the cross. Jesus said in three days, remember, go tell Herod, go tell that fox that on the third day I will be perfected, teleos in the Greek language, I will be complete. Everything will be finished on the cross. And on the third day I will rise again. I paid the price and I just validated my own message. Wonderful. Is that good? Can I just sit down now and then reflect on that? I like what Charles Spurgeon said, to tell about Jesus without the cross is to betray Him with a kiss. To talk about Jesus without the cross is to betray Him with a kiss. Many say, tell me that Jesus loves me, but leave it at that. Tell me that the tomb is empty, but don't challenge me to empty myself. Tell me that I am forgiven, but please don't mention repentance. Tell me about heaven, but don't shock me with the realities of hell. And I wish I could read a quote from A.W. Tozer, I believe it should be a handout that we gave. I'm not real clear on that, I didn't follow up with that. But he talks about the old cross and the new cross. The old cross would slay men. The old cross would condemn men. The old cross would bring men to their knees. But this new cross is a form of entertainment and amusement. And it loses its power. Because Christianity is not about entertaining necessarily. It's not a game, it's not a gimmick. The realities of the cross are very profound. But let's shift then to a minute on the resurrection. What a powerful name. Sean McDowell, who is the son of Josh McDowell, who many of you I'm sure have read his books. I had the privilege of speaking at Hume Lake with Sean, following me a few days after I spoke. And we've been in correspondence a little bit, and I pulled this quote from him. He said, as my dad put it, the fact that Jesus was killed is as certain as any event recorded in ancient history. You see, here's the thing. Many of you who watch Lee Strobel's movie, The Case for Christ, saw this as well. That any credible historian will say that Jesus lived. I mean, this is profound because this isn't talking about pixie dust and fairy tales that I like to mention, right? This is historians say, yes, this man lived in Palestine in that time period. He was crucified. He did have followers. All that they see. But when you get to the empty tomb, and the claim of who He was, no, no, no, no. That's why I often say, as C.S. Lewis said many years ago, that Jesus is liar, lunatic, or Lord. Those are your three options. Balcony, that's your three options. Lunatic, liar, or Lord. He's not a good teacher. It's not like Gandhi. He's not right up there with Hare Krishna. He is liar, lunatic, or Lord. And as we all know, it's the Lord Jesus Christ because a lunatic would be out of his mind. A liar couldn't say these things and yet walk in the purity and the holiness and the righteousness of God. So remember that, those doubters. Historians say there was a Jesus. So the question you really have to struggle with is not did He exist, but did He die in your place? We have to reject any theory, Sean McDowell goes on to say, that tries to explain the resurrection by saying that Jesus somehow survived His ordeal, appeared to His disciples as a bleeding wreck, and convinced them to tell people He had risen. What event transformed the disciples from defeat, cowering people, and hiding to bold evangelists? Think about that. What, and it's also recorded history that people died because of this. It's recorded history. The martyrs, early church fathers, many of them died because of this. Have you ever heard the phrase, your goose is cooked? That comes from the burning at the stake of John Hus. I think it was in Czechoslovakia, his name, in Czechoslovakia, the last name Hus means goose. And he was burned at the stake because of these things. Early church historians, even secular historians, people were killed, nobody's going to die because of a lie. If they hit a body, they're not going to die for that lie. So it's a fact here. So what would transform these people? The resurrection. Why were they willing to spread the good news despite being beaten, imprisoned, and killed? The good news, the resurrection. What gives us peace and strength today to share the good news? The resurrection. That's how important this is. The cross satisfied God's wrath, the resurrection proves, it validates that He was who He said He was. We have to have both of them. And I would encourage an interesting book for those who like to read, and even those who don't. What if Jesus had never been born? I think it was written around 25 years ago, D. James Kennedy, before he passed away. And I was just, I could not put it down. Because it looks at the enormous value of life, even. Do you realize, I mean, we see it in the abortion industry, we see this, oh, I can't believe what they're doing, but did you realize that was, throughout ancient history, that was commonplace? The Old Testament people, oh, the Old Testament is so brutal, no, the Old Testament is how people really lived. It was brutal. But Christ changed the heart, and when the heart changes, we have this value for life. It was not common, it was not uncommon for unwanted babies to be taken out into the forest or mountainside to be consumed by wild animals or to starve to death. The book talks about also how government was changed, education has changed, freedom has changed, compassion. Can you, after the service, just come up and say, hey, I've got one for you. Name one hospital or compassion outreach that an atheist group has started. Where does that come from? Jesus Christ changes everything. When the heart changes, people change. It's just amazing, what a powerful name, all of history looks to Him. All of history looks to Him, on our calendars, in the year of your Lord. The AD and the BC, and all these things, it looks to Christ, a powerful name. And what we often talk about, Morgan mentioned it too, He defeated hell, death, and the grave. We say that, but I don't know if we know what that means. Let me tell you what that means. He defeated hell. Without Christ, all would be destined to hell. This is the stuff we don't like to talk about, me included. I don't really want to talk about it, but the Holy Spirit inside me compels me to share the truth. Jesus did, the Apostle Paul did, Jude did, James did, Peter did. They told people this, that when Christ came, the reason He came, when He conquered hell, it means that now I'm not necessarily going to hell if I embrace His wonderful gift of salvation. The Bible says that He has the keys of death and hell. Well, whoever has the keys opens the house, right? Whoever has the keys opens the house, so He overcame hell. He overcame death. What does that mean? Well, death is no longer the great fear, but the great doorway. Death was the ultimate fear, and for many people, it still is. And of course, we don't like that, right? I would like to raise my children, I'd like to stay married longer, I'd like to watch the church grow and bless people, but I'm not afraid of death, because now it's the doorway, so it no longer has its sting. Oh, death, where is your victory? Oh, death, where is your sting? The Bible says it's no longer, it doesn't have its sting, its finality. Why? Because my resurrected King has rendered you defeated. That's why we sing that in that worship song. So He overcame hell, death, and the grave. And the grave throughout the Bible is a state of hopelessness. Going down to the grave, a state of hopelessness. He will wipe away every tear from their eye, and death shall be no more. So that's what it means by conquering hell, death, sin, and the grave. But let's read the account really quick. Matthew 28. If you have your Bibles, you can turn to Matthew 28. If not, I will read it for you. Now, after the Sabbath, so we know, now, boy, this could turn into a rabbit trail, but I'm not going to go there. There are some, R.A. Torrey makes a good case. Many people make cases that Jesus was crucified on Thursday. We celebrate Friday, and there is good speculation on both sides. To me, I'll let the theologians argue over the time period. I'm just glad it happened. We know that there was a trial, a mock trial. We know that after the Sabbath, the Sabbath was Saturday. After the Sabbath, as was the first day of the week, began to dawn, Mary, Magdalene, and the other Mary came to see the tomb. So we know it's the first day of the week. It's a Sunday, and it's okay to worship on Sunday. People email me all the time, you can't worship on Sunday. Your church is in error. It's only for Saturday. Only on Saturday. It's the only day you can worship the Lord. Can we worship him every day? And do you know that the early church in China, I mean the early church, the persecuted church in China or North Korea, they'll meet four in the morning on a Thursday. So this thought of Roman Catholicism added it to Sunday. It's of the antichrists, it's of the devil, it's a bunch of hogwash. People get upset, I don't care. I'm tired of being able to not worship God on Sunday, but you can only hold to the Saturday. Now I believe there's a benefit in the Sabbath rest. I take one. It's very beneficial to let your body rest and to seek God specifically on the day and not get tied into work and Facebook and all these things. So that's what happened on the first day. He revealed himself to two Marys. Interesting thought here. If the Bible was written by men trying to make themselves out to be heroes, Jesus would not have appeared to women. That's just how it was in the first century church and Paul's writings, Peter's, they changed that. But women's rights, women's ability to vote or be a witness actually voting, I don't know what I'm talking about, to be a witness, that happened too, didn't it, 150, 200 years ago. But 100, you guys, it's Easter. So they couldn't be a validate, their witness couldn't be validated. So these writers are saying here's the truth, Jesus appeared to two women. I don't care if society says we don't validate their witness, this is the truth. So Jesus appeared to the two women at the tomb, they came to see the tomb, and behold there was a great earthquake for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door and sat on it. If I could see one event in Scripture, one would be Mount Carmel, when fire came down and wiped out an entire altar, consumed even the water, and the parting of the Red Sea of course, that's number one. But this would be very interesting, that this huge stone is rolled away by an angel. Common misconception. He didn't roll it away so Jesus could get out. He's not in there. He rolled it away to verify, to show the women, look, He's not in here. And the practical application for us is far-reaching. That if you search, you will find. If you seek, you will find. If you have legitimate questions from a legitimate heart, from a genuine heart that is truly seeking, you will find Him. And many people say, I'm trying, no you're not. You're looking for all the reasons not to believe. The evidence is right there, you just don't want to see it. So the angel rolls away the stone, and his countenance was like lightning, and his clothing is white as snow, and the guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men. So these guards are going to lose their life if they let a prisoner go, but if they let a dead body be taken, they will lose their life because of this. And even today, depending on where you go in Jerusalem, they'll say that his body was taken from the grave. It's all they can do. They know Jesus lived. They know He died. They know He's placed in the tomb, but now we have a problem. The body's gone. So the only thing we can say is somebody stole the body, and whoever stole the body was willing to die for this lie. It makes no sense. It's convincing argument. It's a convincing argument. So the guards shook with fear, but then the angel answered and said to the women, do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. I know you seek Jesus. So it goes back to what I said earlier. If you seek Him, you will find Him. There's no gray area there. They sought Him. Same with us. If you seek Him, you will find Him. And I'm wondering, are you truly seeking Him today? I mean, because a lot of people, it's Easter, I've got to go to church. I mean, I would make church many times at Easter and Christmas. That was my two, you know, it's like, well, that's what good people do. But that's not seeking God. That's not seeking Christ. That's going through the motions. And I want to challenge you this morning. Going through the motions won't save you. Being religious won't save you. It's seeking God, and you will find Him. He is not here. He is risen. As He said, come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead. And indeed, He is going before you into Galilee. There you will see Him. Behold, I have told you. So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy and ran to bring His disciples' word. See, they experienced Him. So those who experienced Christ, they want to tell others about Christ. One of the reasons why you might not be witnessing is because you haven't met Him. We don't tell people about Jesus if we don't have a relationship with Him. Or the relationship is dead and cold and callous. God's distant, so I don't talk about Him anymore. But those who have this burning flame, this desire that I've experienced God, I want you to as well. We go to the crack addict. We go to the alcoholic. We go to this person lost in this fearful state and anxious. Listen, I've got the solution. Come let me show you. Let me tell you about a man who told me all that I ever knew, who saved me. So witnessing is a byproduct of experiencing Christ. Go quickly. 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. Worshiped Him. Now, what a powerful name who can walk throughout Galilee, Judea, healing people, setting people free. In three days I will rise again, accomplish that, reveal Himself to people, and then now Christianity is on fire. If that was all fake, this wouldn't have got out of day one. This would never have changed so many lives. It wouldn't be the forefront of history if it were not true. When you predict and accomplish your own resurrection, you have a powerful name. Hebrews 12.2, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. Fixing our eyes. Have you ever fixed a brick that's falling out of a wall? Or a paver or glue something? Fix. That's what he's talking about. Fix your eyes on Jesus. Fix your eyes. Because the eyes want to go this way, don't they? Come on, don't leave me hanging. It's not just me. Come on. Our eyes want to go this way, but I have to fix my eyes on the cross. I have to bring my heart back. I have to bring my passion back. I have to fix it and hold that there. Lord, help me. And I fix my eyes. Because there's so many different distractions, aren't there, that pull our gaze away from the cross. Pull it away from Christ. It was interesting this morning, my wife, we were listening to, remember that old song? I forget. Oh, gosh. I knew it. I forget what the name was. Let me think for a minute. On High. Go Rest on High. And Vince Gill singing it with Patti Lovelace, and it was like, oh, it's wonderful. And then I go do something and come back, and it skips to the next song. George Jones is singing, I Stopped Loving Her Today, and it's like, wait a minute. Wait a minute. I'm going from Go Rest on High, and this wonderful worship song, to I Stopped Loving Her Today, and he's drinking. Like, what happened? I've got to fix my eyes. I've got to fix my eyes back on Christ. No, not the old shame. The newness of fix my eyes back on that. Go Rest on High. Tell me about the love of Christ, the compassion of Christ. I don't want to hear about drunken misery that takes my eyes away from Christ. Man, YouTube, you've got to watch that. It'll slip some things in on you. It'll just slip. You'll be worshiping like, what is that commercial? How did they sneak that in there? It's happened. I've been worshiping nothing but the blood of Jesus. And you're just in this worship, and then now you've got this commercial for some ungodly movie that's like, now I'm in Fear Factor mode. How did I switch? Because I took my eyes off Christ. And that happens to us all the time. Fix. Fix your eyes on Jesus. I could preach that the rest of the sermon. Fix your eyes. Hold your eyes, because the mind is the most powerful thing you possess. Do you know who influences you more than anyone else? Do you know who influences you more than anybody else on the planet? You do. That was an eye-opener for me. Shane influences Shane more than anybody else. We influence ourselves, our thoughts, where we fix our eyes, where we fix our gaze, determines a great deal. So fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross. This is hard to comprehend, because if I knew that waited for me, I would not be full of joy. See, it's interesting. We talk about the nails in the wrist, but it's not the nails that kept Him there. You think the nails kept Him there, and Pilate's order to crucify Him kept Him there? The God who created the tree that He's now hung on? The God who holds the breath that these Roman soldiers are breathing? He holds their breath in His hands? Love kept Him on the cross. The joy that was set before Him, He endured the cross. And one of the big perplexities that I would love to ask God someday is, I understand the atonement. I understand that the blood of animals was not going to be sufficient. I see the perfect sacrifice. I can find it in Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. You can find it throughout the entire Bible. The need, but why not take Him somewhere and just execute and be done with? Why the public shame and the humiliation, naked, beaten, spit? I don't understand. He endured the cross, and it was an enduring process. From the moment He got taken in the garden to when He said, it is finished, was a long period of time. And He endured the cross. He endured the pain. He endured the suffering because of the joy set before Him. What was the joy set before Him? That every sin, every sin that was ever committed, everything right then in an instant when He absorbed God's wrath on that cross and said, it is finished. It's done. It's completed. And that's what I was thinking. I brought this from Friday. I just kept hearing this for 25 minutes. People knelling their sins on that cross. What sin is not there? Can you imagine me into the nails, driven into the wrist, and then it's the joy set before me? Are you crazy? The joy? See, that's why we got to get a little passionate. It's okay to worship. It's okay. You don't have to worship like this. Well let's see here. I've been saved. I've been set free. I've been delivered. God has a plan for my life. He's my shelter. He's my protection. He's going to guard me. He's going to keep my family. He's going to save my children. And I'm going to come as if I'm in a cemetery looking over a gravestone. God help us. We should worship Him and the power of the Spirit because He's changed and transformed our life. The joy set before Him, He endured the cross, scorning its shame. There's nothing more shameful than being naked on a cross, which isn't a cursed thing, bare before the whole world. And a story that has been told probably every day since it has happened. The shame of the cross. And then the Bible says He sat down on the right hand of the throne of God. Now, this is, God doesn't have a right hand. We know that God is spirit and those who worship Him in spirit and truth are true worshippers. Spirit and truth. But when Jesus sits down on the right hand, it's a position of authority and finality. He's the judge. He's the advocate. He's all control. All authority has been given to the Son. So He goes to the cross. The joy set before Him. He endures the cross. He's shamefully beaten and mocked by His creation. And then He says, it's done. I sit down at the right hand of the Father. He remained faithful to the end. That's something I picked up on that. I mean, if you could get yourself down from there, would you? Come on, everybody better say yes, because I know it's... He endured. He remained faithful. And that has application today. He will never leave nor forsake you. That's what... See, it's a hard thing sometimes for Christians. Jesus, where are you? God, where are you? You're not hearing my prayers. You're not... He will remain faithful. If He remained faithful to stay on the cross and pay the price, He will remain faithful in your life. But many times that distance draws us to Jesus. I guarantee many, many people who have been coming to this church over the last six years or so have been drawn because they need more of something. They don't know what it is. I need more of God. He's not answering my prayers. I don't know who this God is. And that can drive you to the cross. He will never forsake you. And there are so many Scriptures that came to mind, but when I thought about what a powerful name. Let's revisit a few things that fall underneath this. What a powerful name. Disease and healing. He healed all that came to Him. He healed everybody that came to Him. The Bible says He healed all. He healed all. Now granted, He didn't heal everybody He came in contact with. He healed everybody that He prayed for, and it was part of God's sovereignty. Now this could be a whole other serpent if I'm not careful here, because why doesn't God heal? Well, we know this. Jesus knew the perfect will of God, so when He said, be healed, He knew that was God's will. He was in alignment with the Father. And many times, healing, delayed healing, can actually press us into knowing God more, and drawing us into knowing God more. So either He heals and sets free, or He will walk with you through the trial. He will be there all the way through. That's a powerful name. There's no other name. I know we trust in our spouse, and in our family, and in government, and 401K retirement. Some people, they might not be there for you. There's only one name. There's power in that name. Disease and healing. What about demonic oppression? Demonic oppression. This is a lot more prevalent than people realize. There is a real spiritual battle. There is a spiritual war. It's true. It's genuine. And many people are harassed by demons. Demonic oppression in our homes, in our lives, certain things. But that name is so powerful that if you just mention the name of Jesus, demons flee. They don't want anything to do with worship. That's why I'm not too concerned about Sunday morning. I'm concerned about Sunday night. When we get away from that anointing and that worship. But that name, every name, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess to that name. So the demonic realm has to flee. What about depression and hopelessness? Depression and hopelessness. This is on a huge rise. Do you know now that the San Francisco Bridge, what is that called? The Bay Bridge? The Golden Gate Bridge? They're putting a big steel net 20 feet below the edge. Nobody can figure out the sudden rise in suicides. I think it's something like 80 people a year off that bridge. And I'm thinking, they don't need a steel net, they need a changed heart. The hopelessness and the depression. John 4, 14, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst again. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life. See, there's this water that Jesus gives that you'll never thirst again. So that's the frustrating thing with depression and hopelessness is we have living water. Take of the living water and drink. Who else can drink of living water and be transformed and changed? What a powerful name. What a powerful name. What about anger and rage, jealousy and envy, all these things that are in the human heart. Here's what happens. That name is so powerful that when I bow to that name and I realize I'm not God, He is, and I repent of my sin, and that name, that powerful name changes me. You get a heart of stone and replace it with a heart of flesh. Now, many people obviously still struggle with these things, but I'd rather struggle instead of having it be a lifestyle. I'd rather have anger flare up sometimes than be an angry person all of my life. See, basically this name changes everything. And of course, we've talked about this earlier, what a powerful name that saves. What a powerful name that saves. You know, I'm going to close in a minute because I want an extended worship. But I want you to think about this for a minute. Something is missing in this story. Something is missing. A tomb that should have the taste of death now has a taste of life and victory. It should represent defeat, shouldn't it? This tomb should represent defeat, but now it represents victory. It should have the aroma of death, but now it has the aroma of life. The soldiers trembled. The Pharisees were anxious. Listen, when you read in the Bible that they told the soldiers to say that they took his body, I don't think they were just being casual about it. I think they were very anxious and saying, what in the world has transpired? What is going on? We don't know. What? He said this would happen, and it happened. Are you serious? Roman soldiers, you're going to lose your life if this body is gone. Clearly, they're not lying. Clearly, somebody didn't pay them off. Who's going to pay? What Roman soldier is even going to take $1 million and then be killed next week? It just doesn't happen. So the soldiers trembled. The Pharisees were anxious. And all of Jerusalem was paralyzed. Make no mistake about this. When the sky was darkened, when it shouldn't be dark, and the earth shook, and there was this huge earthquake, all of Jerusalem is paralyzed. Then Jesus rises from the dead, and even the dead came up out of their tombs and walked on the streets of Jerusalem. This part is amazing. People say, well, I believe all the Bible. I don't really believe that part. OK. Jesus can rise from the dead, but we don't believe this part. It's probably a foreshadowing of the first fruits. Jesus was the first fruit of the resurrection, and then others followed. I don't have answers for why it happened other than it did happen. To prove possibly, to prove the resurrection is true, to prove that he is who he said he was. And that's something I've talked about before. I'm going to see if Jason can put the picture up, but this will maybe help give you a little bit of imagery. That was the veil in the temple. I think it was somewhere between 30 cubits. King Herod made the temple even larger to 40, and that could possibly have been 20 yards tall. You'd be like, OK, what does that mean? Let me tell you what that means. People could not have access to God. Did you know that? He'll keep the picture up for a minute, Jason. That's where the priesthood came from in the Old Testament. The priest made atonement for the sins of the people. The high priest, one time of year, would go through that, around, I don't know how, underneath that veil, and he would go into the presence of God and make atonement for the sins of the people, once a year. Nobody goes into Holy Holies. You're done. You're toast. That's one time of year. So the priesthood, the priest as intercessor, Old Testament, correct. But now we get to New Testament. Jesus, the Bible says, Hebrews, I believe it is, that we have a high priest now. We have a high priest who can sympathize with us because he was tempted. He was tested in all points, just as we are. So no longer do you need the priesthood because on the cross, on Calvary, when the resurrection took place, actually, I believe this occurred, if you read, when Jesus said, it is finished. It's once the sin debt was paid in full, when Jesus said, it is finished. It is done. God, I give my spirit to you, that God the Father ripped the veil from the top to the bottom, now gaining access to God. See, this is where religious systems are built. Nope, there's no access to God. You gotta come through us. You gotta come through this confessional. You gotta come through this book. You gotta come through this denomination. No, no, no, it was ripped. It was done. God said, basically, if you believe in my Son, you have access to the Father. Who can do this? That's why it's significant, being ripped from the top to the bottom. And Jerusalem's in shock. What did the Pharisees say to this? See, it's an interesting side note. I believe it was Steve Schell, Pastor Steve Schell, a couple years ago, I wrote it down. I thought it was so interesting that when they were at, when Jesus was at His trial, the Pharisees asked Him, are you the Son of God? He said, I am the Son of God. And they ripped their outer garment and said, blasphemy. And it was almost as if God was saying, blasphemy. You killed my Son. You killed your Messiah. Blasphemy on you. And the whole veil was ripped. I don't know if they rebuilt it. I don't know what they did. But I know now that Jerusalem was destroyed. About 40 years later, in AD 70, a guy by the name of Titus came in and conquered Jerusalem. It was not pretty. Tens of thousands of people. The blood ran in the streets. Infants were killed. And that's why Jesus, right before this happened, right before His crucifixion, He said, oh Jerusalem, Jerusalem, I wanted to just gather you, but you were not willing. Weeping over the city of Jerusalem, seeing what's going to come. He dies on the cross, the veil is torn. Now we have access. The Bible says walk boldly to the throne room of grace. There's fear and there's trembling and there's joy. Thank God, but there is boldness to walk directly to the throne room of grace. So I'll leave you with this thought. Is something missing in your life? You should have life, not death. You can live in victory, not defeat. Is something missing in your life? Are you empty? Wait, think about this. Are you empty and hopeless just like that tomb was? Why, because Jesus was missing. You see the connection? Jesus was missing. So you don't have to be empty and hopeless. You can commit your life to the Lord. The Bible just says confess that Christ is Lord. Believe, be baptized. Believe in Jesus Christ. Now that's probably for a minority here, but the mass majority of us need to be reinforced with this message of grace, reinforced with this message of hope, reinforced what a powerful name it is. There's people dealing with cancer. There's people dealing with divorce. There's people dealing with breakups. There's people watching their children destroy their lives. They're going through hell on earth. But if you look to that powerful name, that's the only name that will save. It's the only name that will set free. It's the only name that will hold you and never let you go. Listen, I'm not just up here acting and trying to get by the service. Well, let me tell them what they want to hear. That's my job. No, it's my conviction because God changed me. I have to preach the Gospel. That's why I understand Paul when he said, woe be to me, woe be to me if I do not preach the Gospel. If I do not preach the good news of Jesus Christ. What a powerful name. What a powerful name.