In this sermon, the speaker emphasizes the importance of remembering the foundations of the Christian faith. He highlights the life and death of Jesus Christ as essential elements for the existence of the church. The speaker discusses different theories about the resurrection and emphasizes the need to stand on the side of the Lord. He also shares a personal story about a man who suffered greatly but found comfort in the presence of God. Overall, the sermon encourages believers to walk in fellowship with Christ and trust in His presence during times of pain and suffering.

At chapter one, please, the verses we've been reading, the former treaties of Imaeus, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began, wrote, stood, and preached, until the day in which he was taken up, after that he had, through the Holy Ghost, given commandment unto the apostles whom he had chosen, to whom also he chose himself as godly, after his passion, by many a palatable proof, he had been of them for days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. May I please remind you a little of that which we have been considering. Before the first day, how the act of the apostles was going to bring before us something that was the foundation of the church, and went up to who did this wonderful, wonderful act of the apostles in the history of the church, he set forth by reminding us of the great fundamentals of the Christian faith. We saw, first of all, how he spoke of the one who, as he moved in the scene, not only went about doing good, but he began both to do and to do, and we saw that the outcome of such a life as this, was his passion. Last evening, I would pray, as I read the scripture, and ponder and pray, like you were, as we spoke, and share with you a little, just a little, of the passion of the Saviour. But now, Dr. Luke, he takes us a step further. See for me, he's daring to say, you can never have a church if you forget the walk of Christ in this scene, if you forget the death of Christ on Calvary Cross, but you can never have a church unless you remember the glory of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. I need to actually remind you that the Lord himself emphasized this tremendously. When on the Isle of Patmos he revealed himself to John, he said, I am he. It always stirs my heart to remember what he didn't say. He didn't say, I am he who puts the crown on the man. I am he who made the blind part of me up to see. I am he who in his only form opens the door. I am he who fed the hungry and cleansed the leper. I will be eternally grateful that Christ did feed the hungry and did make blind part of me up to see and did make the lame man whole and did cleanse the leper. But I am not unmindful that if he'd never done this, there still could have been a church. Each one of us here could have been here redeemed by sacrifice. But if he had never gone to the cross, if he had never risen from the dead, not one of us would have been here. So Jemot did not say, I am he who did these great things. He said, I am he who became dead. And hallelujah, I am alive again forevermore. As Jemot introduces himself, this is just what Dr. Lutz does again. And so this morning, with your permission, and I trust with the Lord's help, we're going to consider just a little of the tremendous statements to whom he showed himself alive after his passing by many infallible proofs. We've been thinking during the past days of the Lord. We ponder at first something of the wonder of his humanity. For this was the one who began both the good and the evil. And we're glad of this. May I please, for the sake of my younger friends again, remind them of the things I've been taught in school and in Bible class. Never let us forget that when we think of the Lord Jesus, we are thinking of the one whom Matthew makes a record, Emmanuel, God with us. Wonder of the love of God in heaven, great wonder that that God ever came here as a man in Lucifer. Never let us forget that when we think of the Lord Jesus, and we think of the wonder of his humanity, that we are thinking of the one who is God with us. I have said so many times, and yet I dare repeat myself, that when I think of the burden of that day of death against him, I remember that I came to the body that the Father prepared, even as I, a body of God, prepared him. I remember I came to the body prepared of the Father, but produced of the Spirit. Well, Matthew dared to tell us he conceived of the Holy Ghost, that body that was prepared of the Father and produced of the Spirit. Never let us forget, Philippians 2, with the death of the palm he put unto himself, the form of a serpent. When I gained that dark Galilean darkness and a manger in a stable, I went to take the shoes of a horse. I bought the trimmings of every tool of my being and remained there. But this is God with us. God with us, can I repeat it? Prepared of the Father, produced of the Spirit, presented unto Emmanuel all the wonder of his humanity. But if we think of the wonder of his humanity, we think of the wonder of his holiness. We pondered something of that, did we not? Remember the tremendous story that was told of Boston Alcott, who came one day to Carlyle and said, you know, Carlyle, I can say I am one with the Father, just as Jesus said it. Carlyle looked at him and said, but the difference is this, my friend, Jesus would yet be able to believe it. Oh, that's it, isn't it? It's all very well to say that I'm God, but can you prove you're God? It's all very well for me to get interrupted, but the tremendous statement of Emmanuel that would be proved, oh, thank God for the wonder of his humanity, thank God for the wonder of his holiness. He moved among men and proved that he was God. And if we think of the wonder of his humanity and the wonder of his holiness, why we rejoice, we praise God for the wonder of his humility. But this was so great, it could be said of him as he moved among men, that he was meek and lowly of heart. You know what this means, don't you? You know what it's like that meekness never takes the pain, and loneliness never gives the pain. I want to say here, brethren, that it is as bad to take a pain as it is to give a pain. Jesus never gave it, but hallelujah, he never took it either. He was meek and lowly of heart. Oh, the wonder of his humility. Then the wonder of his hatefulness. Oh, what was he to say? Did he say, Mr. Preacher, that I hate him? That's what I did. No, I'm not. That's what the Bible's saying, you're mad. How could you have the words that he was mad? Thou hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity. Oh, the wonder of his hatefulness. You know, the tragedy of you and me is that sometimes we have a reserve. We find ourselves loving sins that we shouldn't love, and we know we shouldn't love. But isn't it glorious that we have a Savior? Isn't it tremendous that we have a Savior? We can speak not only of the wonder of his humanity and holiness and humility, but we can speak of the wonder of his hatefulness. That he hated iniquity. Ah, but he loved righteousness. He loved righteousness. Then, of course, there was another wonder in the life of Christ. It was the wonder of his hope. You see, speaking in heathen swords of old divine truth, he knew that the Son of Man had written, Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell. And as we thought of his passion yesterday, as we thought that this world should cry, Like God, why have thou forsaken me? We pondered just a little of that, for which he was willing to ask for humility. But we cried today, and as much as mortal man is permitted to fear for majesty and yet the mercy of the greater good, yet the glory and grace of our God. And surely one of us was moved when we reeled off and went to the cross, and he went there with him. But ever and ever we hoped, Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell. And praise God, here we see that hope fulfilled. And we ponder a little of the fact that God braved him from amongst the dead. I will say one or two very simple bits about the resurrection. I will not be able to deal with it fully now, but I hope that the Lord will help us and permit maybe tomorrow we may continue a little further in the doctrine of the resurrection. But the point I want to make is, I want to say a word first about the indisputable facts of the resurrection. For it is the indisputable fact of history, as it is the indispensable fact of the gospel. I am glad that when I speak of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, I am not speaking of that which cannot be proved, even on the grounds of academic truth. And I want to, this morning, just to ponder a little of that which has been said about the resurrection. For if there is one thing that historians have tried to do, and sometimes I regret to say men that call themselves theologians have tried to do, they have tried to take away the thrill from the hearts of God's people of the fact that Jesus rose from the dead. But you cannot take away that from us. It is the indisputable fact of history. There are, as you know, three theories, and there are many more than three, but there are three major theories concerning the resurrection. First of all, the theory that I would call the stealing theory. Did they not come to the soldiers, those Jewish leaders, and give them money saying, I mean, you tell people while we flex that the title came from Goldhoff. But if there is the stealing theory, there is the swooning theory. You know, the sort of thing they ask us to believe, and sometimes it is put over as a modern thought, although it originated in the 15th century. Nothing foreign about that. But there is the swooning theory, that Christ did not really die, he just fell off. And then if there is the stealing theory and the swooning theory, the next major theory concerning the resurrection is the spirit theory. It is the theory that suggests that Jesus Christ did not rise in bodily form from the dead, but something happened and his body just disintegrated into gases, and somehow through the cracks in that stone doorway he was able to get out. It is so comical, and yet because it has been advanced by such learned men, we must face it. I said last week in speaking to a crowd of students in Cambridge, not concerning this, but concerning the matter of evolution, I said, gentlemen, I would rather believe the miraculous than the ridiculous. It takes more faith to believe some of the things that have been propounded concerning this, than to believe what the word of God says concerning it. Is that quite a way? Well, let's look at them for a moment. First of all, the stealing theory. You remember, that when they found out that the stone had been rolled away, when they found out that the Lord Jesus was no longer in the tomb, those Jews became desperately afraid. And coming to the soldiers, they offered them money, saying, you tell the people that while we slept, this disciple came and stole the body. Now, I cannot think of anything more ridiculous than this, really. As a matter of fact, just this very morning, it's very often that happens, and it's one of those sort of hat games that most of us have. I have it anyway. But as he was standing in line for breakfast, someone asked me if I slept well. Well, it was very simple. Well, I don't know. I didn't share what you see. Well, you see, what I'm trying to emphasize is this. Do you know what happens when you're asleep? While we were asleep, the disciple came and stole the body. How do they know what happens if they were asleep? How ridiculous! What an argument to pitch. I suggest that in the name of common sense, any one of us here can dismiss the stealing theory, or the stealing theory as associated with the fleeing of those hopeless. Let us hope there is not only the stealing theory, but there is the swooning theory. As you know, in effect, for many of you young folks in school have had to face this, I'm sure. In effect, the argument goes like this, that they took the Lord and they nailed Him to Calvary's cross. And so intense was pain, for He not only had been nailed there, but He had been scourged. And it is an interesting fact that many researchers in history have spent much time and much effort in trying to find anyone or the record of anyone who's been scourged who at the end of it was alive. And there has not been a historian, there has not been a researcher in history who has ever yet been able to give any evidence of anyone having been scourged who at the end of it were alive. All the evidence says that at the end of thirty lives, scourged is what that scourge, a person was dead. Jesus was not only alive, but hallelujah, able to carry His cross halfway up a hill. I say, you young men, do you want to hear it? Do you? I've got a Christ who every inch of Him was a man. Now, have a haircut from His face and a bit of scourge from His body, but still man enough to carry a cross. They say it was so intense with the pain of hell that on that cross He fell unconscious. And because the soldiers who came around were not medical men, they didn't realize that death was unconsciousness, they thought it was death. He was taken down from the cross and placed in a tomb. And there was the cult of the tomb. There indeed in that tomb He revived. And somehow He got out of the tomb and went away to the hills for a little bit of resurrection. I don't think anyone needs to give a lot of thought to it and let it be to us or those that throw it to us very lightly. Sufficient to remind ourselves that they take the Lord in the tomb and they found Him graceful. But I want to ask a very simple question. I hope it does not sound out of place when we're dealing with such holy things. But how many of us who in the course of our years walking maybe down a path or carrying over some rubbish we have found ourselves with our foot upon an air. How quickly our feet swell. Many a person that I've seen hobbling about when all they did was to stand on their feet and yet here was one and to his feet were driven nails and to his hands were driven nails and he put on those nails for hours. But tell me, they tell me that having counted round and round and round with faith graceful he suddenly became conscious and with hands that in the ordinary sense of things would have swung beyond you and feet that would have swung that he could not have stood upon them. He not only was able to unwind somehow in the grave clothes but grind them back and place them in perfect order when they saw those grave clothes lying in order. And then he was able somehow without the soldiers knowing to walk indeed to the mouth of the tomb to roll that stone as though a field was upon it to roll it back and then to walk a grave mile and every now and then meet some of his disciples and say Ah! and give them the impression that oh! I can't believe the miraculousness of it. I wonder that men never forget such things but they do and in the campus of academy I think we can dismiss this wounding theory and there are too many questions that cannot be answered. But then of course if there was the feeling theory and the wounding theory there was the spirit theory. And very simply the spirit theory works like this However, the Lord did not rise but as you know there are many groups of people J.W., O.R., the great Vesalvian who say this that what happened is that that body disintegrated into gases and somehow it got out and it was not a physical body it was a spirit body but they never answer the greatest of all questions that when Jesus stood in front of his disciples he offered them in their hands and said have the spirit flesh and bone as you see I have. Jesus answered them and the wonder to my heart is mostly the people that suggest that spirit theory are people who tell us they believe the Bible. You get people saying have the spirit have the spirit flesh and bone as you see I have. All the three major theories concerning the resurrection why I don't think they need a tremendous amount of consideration yet the wonder is their children they are still believed in the circle of Christendom. I want to tell you young people something I'm not going to spend one minute of my life trying to build up something that one day God is going to destroy not me. I want to be finished with Christendom and all that it's been for. I want to take my stand by the side of the lone man of Calvary. I want to walk in fellowship with him. There is one other thing I think that is rather subjective. You know I sometimes when speaking to youngsters in school about the resurrection I sometimes say this I sometimes say to the youngsters now what actually did they do with the pot? And it's not long before the class will say well they placed it in the tomb and then what did they do? And we find out they rolled stones. And then what did they do? Oh, they set a seal. Oh. And then what did they do? They stole a soldier. Now you'll never forget that. We're similar to some beings. A stone, a seal, a soldier. And then I ask the youngsters tell me what kingdom it's from? Oh, they get their way all right. Oh, that's a mental kingdom. And what kingdom was the shield? And with a little help and explanation they find out that this was the vegetable kingdom. And what kingdom was the soldier in? Oh, they've got that. That's the animal kingdom. Isn't it remarkable? Isn't it, by the way, in the light of what we're going to consider the kingdom of Satan and of God isn't it remarkable that old Satan took the three kings, the three kingdoms into which everything falls? Men, all vegetables, all animals. And I'm going to keep the king of kings right in there. But I don't understand. He is the king of kings, isn't he? And whether it be mental or vegetable or animal hallelujah! With a mighty triumph for his purpose. But one of the things which has, for many in that incallible group one of the things which has settled in my heart forever is probably resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. It's not possible. Maybe it won't help you at all. I can only lay a help to me. But you will understand that in my studies I very frequently have to give time to considering the religions, the other religions especially those that appertained in that day. And the remarkable fact is that even in our day, as in that day most religions have associated with them women. And it seems without academic doubt that mainly the women when some of their leaders passed on have been the cause of the erection to their memory of memorials. Have you ever stopped to consider why it was that as far as the Christian faith is concerned 523 years passed before the first memorial was erected to Christ. 500 and more years before the first memorial was erected to Christ it was the women that came to the tomb. So blessed women, glorious women they came to the tomb, they came first. Why is it that they are so different to all other women and all other religions where other women have erected their memorials and not these women? There's only one answer in this. You don't erection a memorial to someone who isn't dead do you? They realized he was alive and they never erected anything to a dead Christ for he was living. It wasn't until women began to lift his head 500 years after that they even started to think about that. I won't say here and now that I have not followed comingly to my faith. The Christian faith to me is not just a matter of emotion. The Christian faith to me is that which can stand the church light of the priesthood thinkers. Yet claim the trust of the humblest saints. I assure you it's not in the first category I would place myself. I only know this that he showed himself by many in Palomar. This is the indisputable fact of history. But then I want to remind our hearts in the light of the building of the church as we see it in Acts that it is not only the indisputable fact of history but it is the indispensable fact of the gospel. Am I not what portion of the word of God who goeth in to preach the gospel? But there is not a man that can turn away saying I have preached the gospel unless he has mentioned the resurrection of Jesus Christ from amongst the dead. He may have not dealt with it as an object. He may just have reminded men and women and people this. But there can be no gospel unless Jesus is raised from the dead. And the apostle who wrote to the church of Corinth he said this is the gospel that Christ died for our sins that he was buried but the first day he rose again. This is the gospel. His grace, he died. His grace, he was buried. His glory, the first day he rose from the dead. This is the gospel. The more you and I think of the gospel the more we realize that unless Jesus lives we have nothing to offer but hallelujah Jesus does live. I don't see it so much as I did see it three or four years ago but three or four years ago I used to find myself many a time on a campus and I would see there on the wall God is dead. I don't see it so much today do you? God is dead. How ridiculous. People don't even think of what they write do they? I mean if they really thought they'd be very frightened wouldn't they? God is dead they write so that means that once he was alive and if once he was alive and he is God how ridiculous people get it. Partly ridiculous. Thank God I believe that that phase is almost part of an excuse to die. I only know this that my God isn't dead. Hallelujah my God is living as ever he was. Of course men that come to him very often are dead in apostatism claims but God is dead. God is alive. And I remember that while Jesus lived there is for you and me all that exists. There is such a difference of faith. You remember the loveless story that tremendous story in the 13th chapter of Acts when the servant of God stands and dares to say but he whom God raised up again will know corruption and be it known therefore. How many times have your Sunday school teachers reminded you that whenever in the bowl you come across the word therefore you need to have a second look at it see what it's there for. And here it is as simple as can be. As simple as can be. Why he says but he whom God raised up again saw no corruption and be it known therefore. Because God raised him from the dead because he saw no corruption because of this be it known therefore unto you men and brethren that who this man is preaching unto you the forgiveness of sins. Oh hallelujah. Didn't I say it was the indescribable act of the doctrine that Jesus rose all of us again. I'm glad today that I can go out and in the name of the perfected Christ offer to men and women the forgiveness of sins. But I remember there is not only forgiveness of sins found in Christ but praise God there is comfort found in Christ. Do you have favorite verses in the Bible? I'm sure you do. I know I do. Of course I don't know if it's a tragedy but it's a fact that my favorite verse mostly changes every day. But nevertheless it is the love of sin to have favorite verses isn't it? The 13th of Hebrews has been a chapter which over the years I have spent very much time in. I've lived in the 13th of Hebrews very much. I believe the 13th of Hebrews has as much to say to us as almost any chapter in the Bible. It brings the whole matter of salvation and separation and sanctification and service sanctified. It brings the whole matter of the war. But in that 13th of Hebrews there's a lovely, lovely thing. This is what it says. This is what it says. I will never leave the limitation. He hath said I will never leave the limitation. That we might fondly say the Lord is my helper. You know what? You would stop at every word, wouldn't you? The Lord You'd stop there and read a sermon on that, wouldn't you? The Lord is. Well that's what we've been doing today. We've been speaking about the fact that the Lord is. Whenever the Lord is and a realization dawns on our soul that the Lord is. Whenever the Lord is, the peace happens. The Lord is my helper. I will not fear what men shall do unto me. You know, I didn't know this morning that most of you, I didn't know until this morning that our dear sister had had this call. You know what I'd love to have done. I'd love just to have whispered to her as I placed her in the ambulance. I will not fear what men shall do unto me. Because Jesus lives. And in every circumstance of life he's promised to be with us. He has not promised to deliver us necessarily from the pain and suffering and sorrow. Of course he hasn't. But he's promised to be with us in it all. And then we hear this girl reclaim that military hushness. Standing by the side of a man who's gone over a landmine. A man who's lost a leg for it had been blown off and both her arms had lately been blown off. Lost beside him in pain. So he was both dumb and blind that I don't know how he lived. But I walked more in that little room that dear matron, the bloodiest Christian almost I've met. Dear matron Morgan said to Miss Anne tell him God loves him. Tell him God loves him. How do you tell a man God loves him when he's lost a leg and both arms and the side of his face and he can't see you or speak to you. I put my hand on the stub of his shoulder and with a great lump on my throat cried a night cry. And said Jimmy you can't see me and you you can't talk to me but I want to tell you this. I've never been called to pass through what you've been called to pass through. But if I had been called to pass through it I'd rather pass through it with Jesus than without him. We don't know what tomorrow brings forth but we know this. He'll be there. Hallelujah he'll be there. The Lord is my helper and I will not fear what men shall do unto me. Oh what a thing. What is it Luke dares to say. He began both to do and to teach and if the Lord means anything hallelujah he's still doing it. He began then and he's doing it now. He began both to do and to teach. Passion pre-went on with the cross but his glorious resurrection pre-lived the day and we can say that this is this indisputable fact of the gospel because Christ died because Christ lived he holds the keys of death and of hell the unglad of that unglad of that he didn't want to be holding the keys of hell you know if you were a Christian you couldn't go to hell if you wanted to. He's got the keys and he holds them for you. Praise God he lives. This indisputable fact of history and this indisputable fact of the gospel is that which God in his mercy wants to correct him. Oh brethren listen don't let your passion live an academic past. This moment of living reality let's remember his name because I live. Hallelujah. We shall live. Oh. And this is life. We may know him the only true God. He lives on. God's right that we may know him. Praise God. Amen. Well just one other little word about these notes just as a you know lots of folks are coming to me and saying I try to get little gospel well I can't help that can I? And they're there. But you won't forget that they were typed on a typewriter that was made in Germany. And I bought it in Australia. And it's English papers that pass it out in America. So you must expect from the States won't you? You won't hold any spelling or typing mistakes against me. Whatever I hope to do. The Lord bless you and brethren let's go from this place to live with you. The Lord bless you.