The Hope for Humanity
Resurrection Sunday Points Us To The Eternal Hope Found In Jesus.
Matt Stokes
Apr 4, 2021 37m
Do you struggle to find hope in your life? This message teaches us that Resurrection Sunday points to the true and eternal hope that can only be found in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The fact that He has overcome death reminds us of the promise that a believer's soul has eternal life. Video recorded at Ocean City, New Jersey.
TranscriptionmessageRegarding Grammar:
This is a transcription of the sermon. People speak differently than they write, and there are common colloquialisms in this transcript that sound good when spoken, and look like bad grammar when written.
This is a transcription of the sermon. People speak differently than they write, and there are common colloquialisms in this transcript that sound good when spoken, and look like bad grammar when written.
Matt Stokes: 00:00 Good morning, everyone happy Resurrection Sunday. Are you excited to be here? Come on. I know that I am to. it's been, you know, Holy week. I mean, last Sunday was just remarkable, 17 people gave their lives to Jesus Christ, right in the midst of that message. Even Good Friday, if you weren't here, like the worship was just electric, and there was one little girl that stood up, one ten-year-old in the midst of like hundreds of adults and gave her life to Christ, it was remarkable also. Yeah, her name was Cecelia, let's hear it for Cecilia, and she was here at the first gathering. And then also at the first gathering, there was a handful of people also that were just giving their life to Christ.
Matt Stokes: 00:53 And the reason I say that is, is what it all comes down to is we're about making disciples, we're about being disciples of Jesus Christ. On this particular Sunday, we lean extra heavy, not into just making disciples, but just giving an invitation of forgiveness, and giving an invitation to receive God's mercy and God's love through his son, Jesus Christ. And the reason that we are empowered and able to give that invitation is because of resurrection. Can you get excited about that?
Matt Stokes: 01:30 So what I want to do is talk to you this morning, in the short time that I have, about this hope of resurrection. And I hope that it will answer a lot of questions for you, especially the ultimate question, as we move through this particular passage regarding the hope of resurrection. And that question is this, where do I spend eternity, and what does that have to do with me, but particularly what does that have to do with Jesus Christ? Does it have to do with my good outweighing my bad? Does it have to do with my church attendance? Does it have to do with my offering envelopes? Does it have to do with my Holy communion? Does it have to do with my confirmation? No, no, no, no, no, it has to do with the love of Jesus Christ for you because no matter how many efforts we ever make towards him, there's nothing, it's all an infinitesimal shadow compared to what he's done for us in sending his son. Jesus Christ came and died among us, and then he rose from the grave to show you when he promised you forgiveness, that it's all true and that's worth getting excited about too. So come on.
Matt Stokes: 02:40 I'm going to get right to this, this chapter probably has the most exhaustive and conclusive address of the history and the reality of the resurrection. The hope of the resurrection for the believer is a listen, resurrection, it's a future event, but it has an infinitely impacting implication for our lives now, not just when we die. Although, resurrection is a hope for when we die, and you'll hear that at any funeral that comes forth in this place. But it also has to do with your hope today, maybe in some ways that you never even asked, thought, or imagined, or dreamed of. In First Corinthians chapter 2 it says that, "No eye has seen, no ear can hear, neither can it enter into the thoughts of any person, the things that God has in store for those who love him." And when you hear that, that just doesn't have to do with eternity, that has to do with right here and it has to do with right now.
Matt Stokes: 03:37 So what I want to do is talk to you about hope, and when I'm talking about hope, I'm talking about the biblical definition of hope. Not I hope it doesn't rain, not I hope I have a really big Easter dinner or what have you. Hope means concrete confidence. I'm talking about the concrete confidence, I'm talking about the blessed assurance that Jesus is mine, and that we can have because of resurrection right now. And then today at the end of this gathering, I want to be upfront and tell you this. At the end of this gathering, we're going to give you an invitation to give your heart to Christ, to give your life to Christ, to surrender your sin to Christ. Because that's what he wants, that's what the cross was all about, was he could absorb your sin and give you the gift of his forgiveness. So as this message continues, and it's short, but I pray that it would be intense and that you would be praying in the midst of listening, if God's calling you to receive this invitation of the hope of heaven, and being forever forgiven, and resurrection today.
Matt Stokes: 04:46 So let's get right to the facts, the resurrection establishes the validity, and the veracity, and the historicity of the message, of the entire gospel. And when I say resurrection, if you're a guest with us today, I'm talking about Jesus Christ rising again on the third day after his crucifixion. This is paramount, this is essential, vital, and critical, to the believer is the concept of his resurrection. Because of Christ didn't rise from the grave, how would we know that he's really who he said he was, he could have said anything, he could have done anything, but when he rose from the grave and proved his power over death, that's how we know he's the Savior. In First Corinthians chapter 15, it says this, I'll read it right for you. It says, "If there is no resurrection, well then Christ isn't risen. And if Christ isn't risen, then there's no good news, and if there's no good news, then all of this is meaningless." And then he goes on to say, "What's the point of being a follower of Christ if there is no resurrection from the dead.", these are the words of St. Paul.
Matt Stokes: 05:50 In other words, he's saying you might as well be a follower of Buddha, Brahman, you could read the Baba Gita or eat Baba ghanoush, none of it matters. And my heart breaks for a world of people who are spiritually misdirected. And maybe you, if you've given your life to Christ, your heartbreaks too. But that's enough, being broken is not enough, being frustrated with this fallen world is not enough, we have to tell the truth. Jesus said, "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free." And you know what? I've heard people all over the world, sinners and saints say that, you'll know the truth and the truth shall set you free. But what's most important is what Jesus said right after that, he said, "And if the son sets you free, you shall be free indeed." Yeah, applaud the words of Jesus, and even more than that, I'm praying, and I hope you're praying that today's the day that some of you are going to be set free by the son.
Matt Stokes: 06:59 The resurrection also establishes the purpose of why the believer endures, why the believer perseveres. In other words, if Christ isn't raised, then our preaching is fruitless, our faith is futile, and we're false witnesses of God. If Christ didn't rise from the dead, then everything that I live for, and everything that every martyr has died for, is nothing more than a pathetic illusion. Jesus Christ, Captain Crunch, Bono, little leprechauns and Dalai Lama, take your pick, they're all worthy of the same worship, they're all worthy of the same adoration, if Christ didn't rise from the dead. But the reason I'm saying that we have in our faith this promise that we can endure, this promise through which we persevere, it's called resurrection because Christ has risen, because Christ is risen. Yeah, go ahead, I like [inaudible] church. So if you want to keep on going, and we go over five minutes, because you took the time to applaud the truth of God's word, then I'll wait. You go ahead. And not only has Christ risen, but he's given us the promise that we too will raise. Jesus said, "As I live, so shall you live."
Matt Stokes: 08:22 He gives us that promise at his coming, so much so that St. Paul, the Apostle Paul, with tens of thousands of others in his day said this, "I am so convinced, I am so confident and assured of Christ, I am so convinced of the power and the promise and the purpose of Christ beyond any doubt, that I am willing to die any day. In fact, even while I'm alive, when it comes to who I am, I'm willing to die every day to myself if that's what it takes to move forward this transforming truth of love, and redemption, and reconciliation, and resurrection, into the hearts and minds of the world, of the people, in which I live, that's what Paul said. Is that what you say? Is that what you want to say? Is that what you long to say? That you would believe something so strongly, that you would long for something so passionately? Well you can.
Matt Stokes: 09:36 Next, the resurrection establishes the ultimate hope for humanity. What? The resurrection establishes the ultimate hope for humanity. Now, this is the one passage in which I want to center down on Resurrection Sunday, First Corinthians chapter 15. I just want you to listen today, this isn't a Bible study. Really, this is just an outreach to those who I'm praying, and so are many of you, would receive this invitation. Listen to this promise of resurrection in the midst of these words, First Corinthians 15:50 says this, this is the Apostle Paul, "What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever. But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scriptures (He's saying the ancient Scripture) will be fulfilled, which says death is swallowed up in victory. Oh, death, where is your victory? Oh, death, where is your sting?" And then he just breaks forth at the end of the passage and says, "But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ." Amen. This is the word of the Lord.
Matt Stokes: 11:30 It says in these final verses that death will be swallowed up in victory. that's why I'm saying that the resurrection is the ultimate hope for humanity, because it swallows up the essence of death. Death is one of the major topics of writers and thinkers throughout all the ages, when it comes philosophers. All the ages are consumed with the thought of death, it's referred to as the ultimate enemy, sometimes they call it the unwelcome guest, the final curtain, Davy Jones' locker, and there's some other expressions as well. First Corinthians chapter 15, right here, tells us that death is the enemy. It says here, the last enemy to be destroyed is death, but death isn't just our enemy, death is the world enemy. In fact, death is God's enemy, Death is an enemy to God's plan. Death was never God's heart for us. Do you realize that? God's heart for us was not to experience death, but sin entered into the world and with sin came death.
Matt Stokes: 12:54 Unfortunately, I've been to more memorials than I'd like to mention, in light of what I do. But I remember, I'll never forget, I remember one paradigm shifting experience I had when I realized it's true. What's true? That when someone dies, like people are weeping, and then people are laughing. And then those people that are laughing, start drinking. And then those people that are drinking start fighting, and then those people that are fighting, they start crying, and then it goes back and forth and back and forth. Why? Because when it comes to death, we weren't made for these emotions. When God created us in perfection, he did not hardwire us for death. We weren't made for this, so when death enters into the life of an individual, because you lost someone that you love, these emotions are beyond our capacity to control, these emotions are beyond our capacity to contain. Which is exactly what the Scripture said happened when mankind had sin enter into its world, our souls are broken. I don't care how nice your suit may be today, although this was dry cleaned and pressed, and I made sure my collar was sharp. And guess what? I'm a sinner. You might have a great, outstanding, family and you can fill the row, and all your kids can have the perfect outfits, and the truth is is that we're all fallen, we're all broken, in our essence we're all fallen. I mean, come on, turn on the TV, open the pages of the newspaper, take a look around the world in which you live. We are all in bondage to, we are all confined to, we are all subject to, the effects of sin on our lives. Unfortunately, we can look inside our own hearts, we don't have to go that far, we can look inside our own hearts and see sin as well. When Jesus saw that woman caught in adultery, he looked at the most religious people in the entire community, and he says, does any of you not have any sin? Go ahead and cast the first stone. It says, then one by one, they dropped their stones and walked away, because all have sinned, we've all fallen short of God's glory,
Matt Stokes: 15:38 But it's against that black backdrop that I'm trying to present for you, that I want to talk about the hope that Christ's resurrection brings. The hope that Christ's resurrection brings. And if you have the strength today to say, I believe, I believe that Christ died on the cross for my sins and in my place. and that Christ's resurrection offers me salvation, then you can also know that his resurrection restores that which is broken, his resurrection restores that which was lost. His resurrection declares, righteous, those who are condemned, his resurrection reveals the plan of all of the scriptures, his resurrection proclaims, the ultimate answers to your origin, to your meaning, to your purpose, to your morality, to your eternal destiny. His resurrection establishes the ultimate hope for humanity, it ensures forgiveness, it defeats death, our greatest enemy. And it reveals our relationship with God, that he longs to have with us for eternity. that's what Christ's resurrection does. That's what Christ's resurrection does, that's what it did, and that's what it will do for you today, if you are one of those who puts your faith and trust in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your own sin, which I hope you know you have.
Matt Stokes: 17:06 If you're here today, and you don't know the reality and the hope of resurrection, I want to give you that opportunity. Along with every one of us here who have been praying for you to come into this place today, enter into this atmosphere, and hear this invitation. Let me say it again, you received this invitation, you don't say I'm good. Yo, I'm good, I went to Easter Sunday, I went to Easter, I went to Christmas. Do you know what we call them? Christer's, have you heard that before? People that just go to Christmas and Easter say, I'm a Christer. Right? Just depends on where you come from, I used to be Catholic, we used to drink a lot. So, you know, there was always a keg like, you know, somewhere, either like at our house or like in the basement of the church. So we called it ourselves kegger Catholics. Did you ever hear that expression? It's just like, it all depends on your culture.
Matt Stokes: 18:04 But what I'm saying is that Christ is going beyond the limits of culture. Christ is not into Christian culture. this doesn't have to do with you looking good, or singing songs, or how many times you've been to church, or again, if you're good outweighs your bad, or if you've prayed so many prayers. No, you simply come to him, you admit that you're a sinner, and that you're in need of a Savior. and he says, come to me, and you will be restored. Come to me. and you will be renewed. Come to me. and you will be recovered from what it was you lost because of the fall man and because of sin. Come to me, and you will be redeemed. And I proclaim to you today that there is nothing that brings more strength and healing to the heart. there is nothing that brings more soothing to the soul in the storms of life, there is nothing that brings more power in prayer and peace in the midst of the pressures of this world, then the hope, then the hope and the concrete confidence, and the reality of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Yeah, get loud.
Matt Stokes: 19:14 Let me ask you this. Do you want God to draw you deeper today? Say yes. Do you want God to pull you closer today? Say yes. Do you want God to take you higher today? Say yes. Because if you do right now in this moment, if you just said yes, then you ask all mighty God, what really happened from that cross in that tomb and out of that grave. If that really is your heart today, and you're really longing to see, and know, and understand, and experience, God, then ask God what really happened when that stone was rolled away. That stone being rolled away, in a word, resurrection. It was the fulfillment of a promise, that stone was rolled away so that you could know, did you hear the passage that I just read for you from First Corinthians? That stone was rolled away so that you could know there would come a day where the finite would put on the infinite, there would come a day where time would put on timelessness, where the bound would put on boundlessness, where the limited would put on limitlessness, where the end would put on endlessness, where those in fear would put on fearlessness. he's talking about resurrection reality that you and I can know today, and have our hope in for every tomorrow.
Matt Stokes: 20:41 So, the final analysis, when it comes down at the end of the proverbial day, the question is this, are you ready? Are you ready? The question today is, are you ready? And if you're here and you're saying, I think I'm ready. You can't just think you're ready, you've got to know you're ready. You can't just think you're saved, you've got to know you're saved. And if you don't know you're ready, when will you, when will you, when will you know that you're ready? When will you be ready? Tomorrow? I was told when I was a little kid, you're not supposed to swear, but I swear, you don't know if you have tomorrow. In a church of a thousand people, and I see our staff out here, we can tell, you don't know if you have tomorrow. You know what you have? Right now, you have this moment. Well, don't I have anything else? You know, you might have a lot, you might have a lot, I don't know what you have. But no matter what you have, no matter where you're from, no one can guarantee your tomorrow. You have this moment right here, and the scripture say there will come a day where God is going to actually reach down and he's going to pull back the veil. And all of this, that just seemed like such a reality, it's going to be like a tale that was once told when it's all rolled up like a scroll. And the true reality, if you have the faith to see it, if you have the sense to see it, if you've got the grace to grasp it, the true reality is going to be resurrection reality, it's going to be kingdom of God reality.
Matt Stokes: 22:49 And I'm saying to you, that eternity hinges and hangs on this question that you're being asked today. What are you asking? I'll tell you again what I'm not asking, I'm not asking you if you've lived a good life, I'm not asking you if you're a really good mom or dad, I'm not asking you if you have been an obedient kid, I'm not asking you if you obey the 10 commandments, I'm not asking you if you know, half the names of the 12 apostles, right? I'm not asking you if you've had confirmation or Holy communion, or if you've been baptized, and blousy, blousy, blousy? And all of those things have their point, I don't mean to minimize them, they have some significance. But the ultimate question in all of time and eternity is this, what will you do with the truth of the Gospel? The truth of the gospel, if I haven't made it clear is this, Christ died on the cross for your sins and in your place, and then he rose again three days later to show you that everything he ever did, and everything he ever said, was true. And when he rose from the dead, that's called resurrection. And that resurrection, if you embrace it, it becomes your salvation. So I'm asking, what will you do with the truth of that Gospel? That all your sins can be washed away by embracing the truth of repenting of your sin, throwing all that sin down at the cross, and picking up the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the truth of it and everything that he blessed you with and pours forth from it, when you put your faith and trust in what he did for you. Is this making sense to you?
Matt Stokes: 24:29 Oh, you don't have to answer, I'm talking to a specific number of people in this room that I'm just saying that I've been praying, and so have many of us, that God's opening your heart to have the grace to grasp this spiritual concept by faith. I don't know where you're from, I see a lot of visitors, we are so glad you're here. You're not visitors, you are our guests, we are glad you're here. I may not have ever met you, I don't know where you're going. Quite honestly, I don't know where you've been, I don't need to. What I do know is this, God's mercy is in the midst. God's mercy is in the midst of this moment right now, his mercy is here for you today. No matter what you've done, no matter where you've gone, no matter who you are, no matter who you were, God's mercy and his grace and his forgiveness are here for you right now.
Matt Stokes: 25:28 A precious verse in the Bible, in Lamentations, this book. Jeremiah writes Lamentations, and he writes in this chapter, chapter 3, he says, the steadfast, the non-stop continual love of the Lord, it never ceases. He has mercy, and this mercy never comes to an end. He says, it's new. How new is it? As he describes it, it's new like each and every morning, God's mercy is new. And then he just writes, he just breaks forth and says, Oh, how great is your faithfulness towards me O God. It doesn't matter what you've done, it's not about you, it's about Jesus Christ being faithful to you. In case you think, well, you know, I think I'm good enough. Hopefully, I cleaned that up for you. And then on the other side, maybe there's some of you that feel like you're not good enough, and it's like, well, did I just make that clear? You're not being good enough is what qualifies you to need the Savior? You provide the sinner, he provides the savior, that's the Gospel.
Matt Stokes: 26:31 And maybe there are some more people in this room right now, there are some more that need to hear this today, that God's mercy and his grace and his forgiveness are here for you right now. Jesus said, "I am the light of the world." Okay, that's a pretty big statement. I am the light of the world, I am the photos of the cosmos. This is like an epic statement that no human being could ever make. I'm the light of the world, he who follows me, the one who actually comes after me, the one who embraces me, will never walk in darkness at all. And the context is spiritual darkness, but that person will have the light of life. That's Jesus. John 11, Jesus said, I am...Are we here for Resurrection Sunday? "Jesus said, I am the resurrection." He didn't say I know about the resurrection, I can talk about the resurrection, I can point you to the resurrection. He said, the resurrection is a person. the resurrection is me, I am the resurrection. "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And those that live, they shall continue to live on."
Matt Stokes: 27:49 Here's the question at this point on resurrection morning, what's keeping you from embracing this stuff? I mean, we're all built for...Like they say today, like the greatest pandemic in the world is loneliness, right? What's keeping you from embracing his, love, his presence in your life, his grace, his mercy, that’s going to wash over and cleanse you from all your sin, if you're humble enough to willingly admit that you have it. What's hindering you from receiving his infinite forgiveness? I'm not talking about forgiveness today, until you take your next sacrament, and then you can get forgiven again. I'm talking about forgiveness once and for all, and then your life just becomes a continual thank you for what it is that Christ did on the cross, and you just live in it, you walk in it. Well, yeah, nothing. Okay, that comes from giving your life to Christ in the way that I'm doing my best to describe it to you.
Matt Stokes: 29:01 If you're here today, and you're listening to what I'm saying, Resurrection Sunday, we're so glad you're with us. Look at this room, I'm so glad you're with us today. If you didn't get anything else that I've said in this time we had together, get this, there is one that can satisfy the last aching abyss in the human heart and soul, and his name is Jesus Christ. If you're here and you don't know Jesus Christ, I'm just going to beg you right now to please think about the price. Think about the price that you've paid in your life, all that you worked for, all that it's cost you to get to the place where you are today. And really, hey, where are you today after all that? Because listen, as I say this to you with all the love in my heart, where you are in this world today, doesn't even matter. If you haven't dealt with the sin in your soul, there's only one person that can deal with the sin in your soul, and that's Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ died on the cross to solve the sin issue, which you can never solve on your own.
Matt Stokes: 30:24 Have you dealt with the sin in your soul? My soul, I don't think too much about my soul. Well, let me talk to you about your soul for a minute, your soul is that immaterial part of you that lives forever? No. Yeah, it is. Nah, no. It lives forever. Your immaterial soul is that immaterial part of you that spends forever somewhere. See, most of us would believe that you have a soul. If you had surgery, you could see my brain, but you can't see my mind. If you cut me open, you could see my heart, but you can't see my emotions, right? I mean, every one of us has a soul, and your soul is going to spend forever somewhere. Do you know where? Because you can be assured of that right now, if you're willing to humble yourself and give your life to Jesus Christ. I might not know you, but I'm asking you as we close this time together, would you allow God's love to change the way you look at you? q Because the real you, you ready for this, the real you is not the way you look at you, the real you is the way that God sees you. Did you just get that? Because that's the truth.
Matt Stokes: 31:43 You might go days without thinking about God. Some of us, let's be honest, some people go weeks and months without thinking of God. But there isn't a moment, not even a moment, where he's not thinking about you. He knows you, he knows you infinitely better than you know yourself. And he's made his decision about you, he's reached his verdict about you. He still loves you, he wants you to receive his love and receive his forgiveness. God is infinite, God is omnipotent, God is ever present, God could live anywhere in the universe, and today, do you know where he chooses to live? In your heart. What? He wants to live within your heart, that's what he chooses. Why? Because he loves you. Is it getting through, like for some of you, it's hard to have that get through because just, you don't love yourself. Now there's others of you here who really love yourself a whole lot, you know, that's a message for another day. But there's some of us here that we find ourselves hard to love, and it's hard to believe that anyone would love us with this kind of love. It's a love that goes beyond this world, it's a love of another kind, it's an unconditional, infinite love. Man, you've got to face the fact that Jesus Christ is madly in love with you. I've said this before, like if Jesus had a wallet, your picture would be in it. Like if Jesus had a refrigerator, like your artwork would be on it.
Matt Stokes: 33:16 Like I've always heard that God can do anything or God can do everything. I remember this song I used to sing when I was a kid in Sunday school. It was like, my God is so big, so strong and so mighty, there's nothing he cannot do. Not true, there are some things that God can't do. Here's one thing God can't do, God can't be surprised, not even once. Think about it, there's no leaf that falls from any tree without his knowledge. There's now one hair that falls from any head that doesn't have a number on it that he knows. What's my point? This is my point, please listen because it's so important, he's never been surprised. That means he's not surprised by you, he's not surprised by your faults, he's not surprised by your failures, he's not surprised by your frailties, he's not surprised by your secret sins, he knows all of them. He knows all your sin, he knows all your pain, he knows all your junk, he knows all your stuff that you've been carrying around for years. Who else is going to love you with all that? Other people may abandon you, divorce you, ignore you, hurt you, leave you, abuse you, and use you, but Christ will always be loving you. Even if the whole world's against you, Romans chapter 8 says, God is still for you.
Matt Stokes: 34:34 In fact, some would say the most powerful verse in all of the gospels is when Christ rose up in John chapter 3, and speaking of himself he said, "That God so loved the world." So, so is a quantitative word. It doesn't say God loved the world, he so loved the world. Oh, so, how much so? "He so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whosoever..." There's the invitation. Whosoever, did you ever get an invitation? You get an invitation, and you're so glad you got that invitation. You're wondering if you were invited, you got invited. Sometimes I get invited to things like there's a wedding, and I get an invitation, I'm like, oh shoot, now there's $200 I've got to pay. When you're married, you've got to pay for both of you. Some of you are like, oh man, I just sent you an invitation, is that how you feel? Some of you are like really, you give $200, can I talk to your assistant? There's an invitation and no one is excluded, no one's excluded, every tongue, and tribe, and nation, and kindred, and people, of the world, everyone's included. "Whosoever should believe in him will not perish, but have everlasting life." God loves you with an unearthly love. Do you know what that means? It means you can't win him by being winsome, and you can't lose him by being a loser, because it doesn't have to do with you, it has everything to do with him and his love, his character, his nature, his essence, and it says in the scriptures that God is love.
Matt Stokes: 36:05 If you're sensing that he's inviting you to come to him today, we want to encourage you, challenge you, I'm willing to just plead with you, don't put it off. In the hearing of these words, you know you need to go public with your faith because you've never done that, you've never made that choice where you've stood before every friend and stranger, angel and devil, everything in the seen and unseen realm, and said, I'm giving my life to Christ, or I have given my life to Christ, or I want to go public with my life for Christ. I thought I had salvation, but it was misguided in another direction that had to do with good works, or religious activity, or Christian culture, I see now that it has to do with the cross of Jesus Christ. He's inviting you to come to him, he's offering you this unique type of invitation where he worked and now you trust, he died and now you live, he invites and now you believe, he initiates and now you respond. So as we close, how do you respond?
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Recorded in Ocean City, New Jersey.
Matt Stokes: 00:53 And the reason I say that is, is what it all comes down to is we're about making disciples, we're about being disciples of Jesus Christ. On this particular Sunday, we lean extra heavy, not into just making disciples, but just giving an invitation of forgiveness, and giving an invitation to receive God's mercy and God's love through his son, Jesus Christ. And the reason that we are empowered and able to give that invitation is because of resurrection. Can you get excited about that?
Matt Stokes: 01:30 So what I want to do is talk to you this morning, in the short time that I have, about this hope of resurrection. And I hope that it will answer a lot of questions for you, especially the ultimate question, as we move through this particular passage regarding the hope of resurrection. And that question is this, where do I spend eternity, and what does that have to do with me, but particularly what does that have to do with Jesus Christ? Does it have to do with my good outweighing my bad? Does it have to do with my church attendance? Does it have to do with my offering envelopes? Does it have to do with my Holy communion? Does it have to do with my confirmation? No, no, no, no, no, it has to do with the love of Jesus Christ for you because no matter how many efforts we ever make towards him, there's nothing, it's all an infinitesimal shadow compared to what he's done for us in sending his son. Jesus Christ came and died among us, and then he rose from the grave to show you when he promised you forgiveness, that it's all true and that's worth getting excited about too. So come on.
Matt Stokes: 02:40 I'm going to get right to this, this chapter probably has the most exhaustive and conclusive address of the history and the reality of the resurrection. The hope of the resurrection for the believer is a listen, resurrection, it's a future event, but it has an infinitely impacting implication for our lives now, not just when we die. Although, resurrection is a hope for when we die, and you'll hear that at any funeral that comes forth in this place. But it also has to do with your hope today, maybe in some ways that you never even asked, thought, or imagined, or dreamed of. In First Corinthians chapter 2 it says that, "No eye has seen, no ear can hear, neither can it enter into the thoughts of any person, the things that God has in store for those who love him." And when you hear that, that just doesn't have to do with eternity, that has to do with right here and it has to do with right now.
Matt Stokes: 03:37 So what I want to do is talk to you about hope, and when I'm talking about hope, I'm talking about the biblical definition of hope. Not I hope it doesn't rain, not I hope I have a really big Easter dinner or what have you. Hope means concrete confidence. I'm talking about the concrete confidence, I'm talking about the blessed assurance that Jesus is mine, and that we can have because of resurrection right now. And then today at the end of this gathering, I want to be upfront and tell you this. At the end of this gathering, we're going to give you an invitation to give your heart to Christ, to give your life to Christ, to surrender your sin to Christ. Because that's what he wants, that's what the cross was all about, was he could absorb your sin and give you the gift of his forgiveness. So as this message continues, and it's short, but I pray that it would be intense and that you would be praying in the midst of listening, if God's calling you to receive this invitation of the hope of heaven, and being forever forgiven, and resurrection today.
Matt Stokes: 04:46 So let's get right to the facts, the resurrection establishes the validity, and the veracity, and the historicity of the message, of the entire gospel. And when I say resurrection, if you're a guest with us today, I'm talking about Jesus Christ rising again on the third day after his crucifixion. This is paramount, this is essential, vital, and critical, to the believer is the concept of his resurrection. Because of Christ didn't rise from the grave, how would we know that he's really who he said he was, he could have said anything, he could have done anything, but when he rose from the grave and proved his power over death, that's how we know he's the Savior. In First Corinthians chapter 15, it says this, I'll read it right for you. It says, "If there is no resurrection, well then Christ isn't risen. And if Christ isn't risen, then there's no good news, and if there's no good news, then all of this is meaningless." And then he goes on to say, "What's the point of being a follower of Christ if there is no resurrection from the dead.", these are the words of St. Paul.
Matt Stokes: 05:50 In other words, he's saying you might as well be a follower of Buddha, Brahman, you could read the Baba Gita or eat Baba ghanoush, none of it matters. And my heart breaks for a world of people who are spiritually misdirected. And maybe you, if you've given your life to Christ, your heartbreaks too. But that's enough, being broken is not enough, being frustrated with this fallen world is not enough, we have to tell the truth. Jesus said, "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free." And you know what? I've heard people all over the world, sinners and saints say that, you'll know the truth and the truth shall set you free. But what's most important is what Jesus said right after that, he said, "And if the son sets you free, you shall be free indeed." Yeah, applaud the words of Jesus, and even more than that, I'm praying, and I hope you're praying that today's the day that some of you are going to be set free by the son.
Matt Stokes: 06:59 The resurrection also establishes the purpose of why the believer endures, why the believer perseveres. In other words, if Christ isn't raised, then our preaching is fruitless, our faith is futile, and we're false witnesses of God. If Christ didn't rise from the dead, then everything that I live for, and everything that every martyr has died for, is nothing more than a pathetic illusion. Jesus Christ, Captain Crunch, Bono, little leprechauns and Dalai Lama, take your pick, they're all worthy of the same worship, they're all worthy of the same adoration, if Christ didn't rise from the dead. But the reason I'm saying that we have in our faith this promise that we can endure, this promise through which we persevere, it's called resurrection because Christ has risen, because Christ is risen. Yeah, go ahead, I like [inaudible] church. So if you want to keep on going, and we go over five minutes, because you took the time to applaud the truth of God's word, then I'll wait. You go ahead. And not only has Christ risen, but he's given us the promise that we too will raise. Jesus said, "As I live, so shall you live."
Matt Stokes: 08:22 He gives us that promise at his coming, so much so that St. Paul, the Apostle Paul, with tens of thousands of others in his day said this, "I am so convinced, I am so confident and assured of Christ, I am so convinced of the power and the promise and the purpose of Christ beyond any doubt, that I am willing to die any day. In fact, even while I'm alive, when it comes to who I am, I'm willing to die every day to myself if that's what it takes to move forward this transforming truth of love, and redemption, and reconciliation, and resurrection, into the hearts and minds of the world, of the people, in which I live, that's what Paul said. Is that what you say? Is that what you want to say? Is that what you long to say? That you would believe something so strongly, that you would long for something so passionately? Well you can.
Matt Stokes: 09:36 Next, the resurrection establishes the ultimate hope for humanity. What? The resurrection establishes the ultimate hope for humanity. Now, this is the one passage in which I want to center down on Resurrection Sunday, First Corinthians chapter 15. I just want you to listen today, this isn't a Bible study. Really, this is just an outreach to those who I'm praying, and so are many of you, would receive this invitation. Listen to this promise of resurrection in the midst of these words, First Corinthians 15:50 says this, this is the Apostle Paul, "What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever. But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scriptures (He's saying the ancient Scripture) will be fulfilled, which says death is swallowed up in victory. Oh, death, where is your victory? Oh, death, where is your sting?" And then he just breaks forth at the end of the passage and says, "But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ." Amen. This is the word of the Lord.
Matt Stokes: 11:30 It says in these final verses that death will be swallowed up in victory. that's why I'm saying that the resurrection is the ultimate hope for humanity, because it swallows up the essence of death. Death is one of the major topics of writers and thinkers throughout all the ages, when it comes philosophers. All the ages are consumed with the thought of death, it's referred to as the ultimate enemy, sometimes they call it the unwelcome guest, the final curtain, Davy Jones' locker, and there's some other expressions as well. First Corinthians chapter 15, right here, tells us that death is the enemy. It says here, the last enemy to be destroyed is death, but death isn't just our enemy, death is the world enemy. In fact, death is God's enemy, Death is an enemy to God's plan. Death was never God's heart for us. Do you realize that? God's heart for us was not to experience death, but sin entered into the world and with sin came death.
Matt Stokes: 12:54 Unfortunately, I've been to more memorials than I'd like to mention, in light of what I do. But I remember, I'll never forget, I remember one paradigm shifting experience I had when I realized it's true. What's true? That when someone dies, like people are weeping, and then people are laughing. And then those people that are laughing, start drinking. And then those people that are drinking start fighting, and then those people that are fighting, they start crying, and then it goes back and forth and back and forth. Why? Because when it comes to death, we weren't made for these emotions. When God created us in perfection, he did not hardwire us for death. We weren't made for this, so when death enters into the life of an individual, because you lost someone that you love, these emotions are beyond our capacity to control, these emotions are beyond our capacity to contain. Which is exactly what the Scripture said happened when mankind had sin enter into its world, our souls are broken. I don't care how nice your suit may be today, although this was dry cleaned and pressed, and I made sure my collar was sharp. And guess what? I'm a sinner. You might have a great, outstanding, family and you can fill the row, and all your kids can have the perfect outfits, and the truth is is that we're all fallen, we're all broken, in our essence we're all fallen. I mean, come on, turn on the TV, open the pages of the newspaper, take a look around the world in which you live. We are all in bondage to, we are all confined to, we are all subject to, the effects of sin on our lives. Unfortunately, we can look inside our own hearts, we don't have to go that far, we can look inside our own hearts and see sin as well. When Jesus saw that woman caught in adultery, he looked at the most religious people in the entire community, and he says, does any of you not have any sin? Go ahead and cast the first stone. It says, then one by one, they dropped their stones and walked away, because all have sinned, we've all fallen short of God's glory,
Matt Stokes: 15:38 But it's against that black backdrop that I'm trying to present for you, that I want to talk about the hope that Christ's resurrection brings. The hope that Christ's resurrection brings. And if you have the strength today to say, I believe, I believe that Christ died on the cross for my sins and in my place. and that Christ's resurrection offers me salvation, then you can also know that his resurrection restores that which is broken, his resurrection restores that which was lost. His resurrection declares, righteous, those who are condemned, his resurrection reveals the plan of all of the scriptures, his resurrection proclaims, the ultimate answers to your origin, to your meaning, to your purpose, to your morality, to your eternal destiny. His resurrection establishes the ultimate hope for humanity, it ensures forgiveness, it defeats death, our greatest enemy. And it reveals our relationship with God, that he longs to have with us for eternity. that's what Christ's resurrection does. That's what Christ's resurrection does, that's what it did, and that's what it will do for you today, if you are one of those who puts your faith and trust in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your own sin, which I hope you know you have.
Matt Stokes: 17:06 If you're here today, and you don't know the reality and the hope of resurrection, I want to give you that opportunity. Along with every one of us here who have been praying for you to come into this place today, enter into this atmosphere, and hear this invitation. Let me say it again, you received this invitation, you don't say I'm good. Yo, I'm good, I went to Easter Sunday, I went to Easter, I went to Christmas. Do you know what we call them? Christer's, have you heard that before? People that just go to Christmas and Easter say, I'm a Christer. Right? Just depends on where you come from, I used to be Catholic, we used to drink a lot. So, you know, there was always a keg like, you know, somewhere, either like at our house or like in the basement of the church. So we called it ourselves kegger Catholics. Did you ever hear that expression? It's just like, it all depends on your culture.
Matt Stokes: 18:04 But what I'm saying is that Christ is going beyond the limits of culture. Christ is not into Christian culture. this doesn't have to do with you looking good, or singing songs, or how many times you've been to church, or again, if you're good outweighs your bad, or if you've prayed so many prayers. No, you simply come to him, you admit that you're a sinner, and that you're in need of a Savior. and he says, come to me, and you will be restored. Come to me. and you will be renewed. Come to me. and you will be recovered from what it was you lost because of the fall man and because of sin. Come to me, and you will be redeemed. And I proclaim to you today that there is nothing that brings more strength and healing to the heart. there is nothing that brings more soothing to the soul in the storms of life, there is nothing that brings more power in prayer and peace in the midst of the pressures of this world, then the hope, then the hope and the concrete confidence, and the reality of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Yeah, get loud.
Matt Stokes: 19:14 Let me ask you this. Do you want God to draw you deeper today? Say yes. Do you want God to pull you closer today? Say yes. Do you want God to take you higher today? Say yes. Because if you do right now in this moment, if you just said yes, then you ask all mighty God, what really happened from that cross in that tomb and out of that grave. If that really is your heart today, and you're really longing to see, and know, and understand, and experience, God, then ask God what really happened when that stone was rolled away. That stone being rolled away, in a word, resurrection. It was the fulfillment of a promise, that stone was rolled away so that you could know, did you hear the passage that I just read for you from First Corinthians? That stone was rolled away so that you could know there would come a day where the finite would put on the infinite, there would come a day where time would put on timelessness, where the bound would put on boundlessness, where the limited would put on limitlessness, where the end would put on endlessness, where those in fear would put on fearlessness. he's talking about resurrection reality that you and I can know today, and have our hope in for every tomorrow.
Matt Stokes: 20:41 So, the final analysis, when it comes down at the end of the proverbial day, the question is this, are you ready? Are you ready? The question today is, are you ready? And if you're here and you're saying, I think I'm ready. You can't just think you're ready, you've got to know you're ready. You can't just think you're saved, you've got to know you're saved. And if you don't know you're ready, when will you, when will you, when will you know that you're ready? When will you be ready? Tomorrow? I was told when I was a little kid, you're not supposed to swear, but I swear, you don't know if you have tomorrow. In a church of a thousand people, and I see our staff out here, we can tell, you don't know if you have tomorrow. You know what you have? Right now, you have this moment. Well, don't I have anything else? You know, you might have a lot, you might have a lot, I don't know what you have. But no matter what you have, no matter where you're from, no one can guarantee your tomorrow. You have this moment right here, and the scripture say there will come a day where God is going to actually reach down and he's going to pull back the veil. And all of this, that just seemed like such a reality, it's going to be like a tale that was once told when it's all rolled up like a scroll. And the true reality, if you have the faith to see it, if you have the sense to see it, if you've got the grace to grasp it, the true reality is going to be resurrection reality, it's going to be kingdom of God reality.
Matt Stokes: 22:49 And I'm saying to you, that eternity hinges and hangs on this question that you're being asked today. What are you asking? I'll tell you again what I'm not asking, I'm not asking you if you've lived a good life, I'm not asking you if you're a really good mom or dad, I'm not asking you if you have been an obedient kid, I'm not asking you if you obey the 10 commandments, I'm not asking you if you know, half the names of the 12 apostles, right? I'm not asking you if you've had confirmation or Holy communion, or if you've been baptized, and blousy, blousy, blousy? And all of those things have their point, I don't mean to minimize them, they have some significance. But the ultimate question in all of time and eternity is this, what will you do with the truth of the Gospel? The truth of the gospel, if I haven't made it clear is this, Christ died on the cross for your sins and in your place, and then he rose again three days later to show you that everything he ever did, and everything he ever said, was true. And when he rose from the dead, that's called resurrection. And that resurrection, if you embrace it, it becomes your salvation. So I'm asking, what will you do with the truth of that Gospel? That all your sins can be washed away by embracing the truth of repenting of your sin, throwing all that sin down at the cross, and picking up the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the truth of it and everything that he blessed you with and pours forth from it, when you put your faith and trust in what he did for you. Is this making sense to you?
Matt Stokes: 24:29 Oh, you don't have to answer, I'm talking to a specific number of people in this room that I'm just saying that I've been praying, and so have many of us, that God's opening your heart to have the grace to grasp this spiritual concept by faith. I don't know where you're from, I see a lot of visitors, we are so glad you're here. You're not visitors, you are our guests, we are glad you're here. I may not have ever met you, I don't know where you're going. Quite honestly, I don't know where you've been, I don't need to. What I do know is this, God's mercy is in the midst. God's mercy is in the midst of this moment right now, his mercy is here for you today. No matter what you've done, no matter where you've gone, no matter who you are, no matter who you were, God's mercy and his grace and his forgiveness are here for you right now.
Matt Stokes: 25:28 A precious verse in the Bible, in Lamentations, this book. Jeremiah writes Lamentations, and he writes in this chapter, chapter 3, he says, the steadfast, the non-stop continual love of the Lord, it never ceases. He has mercy, and this mercy never comes to an end. He says, it's new. How new is it? As he describes it, it's new like each and every morning, God's mercy is new. And then he just writes, he just breaks forth and says, Oh, how great is your faithfulness towards me O God. It doesn't matter what you've done, it's not about you, it's about Jesus Christ being faithful to you. In case you think, well, you know, I think I'm good enough. Hopefully, I cleaned that up for you. And then on the other side, maybe there's some of you that feel like you're not good enough, and it's like, well, did I just make that clear? You're not being good enough is what qualifies you to need the Savior? You provide the sinner, he provides the savior, that's the Gospel.
Matt Stokes: 26:31 And maybe there are some more people in this room right now, there are some more that need to hear this today, that God's mercy and his grace and his forgiveness are here for you right now. Jesus said, "I am the light of the world." Okay, that's a pretty big statement. I am the light of the world, I am the photos of the cosmos. This is like an epic statement that no human being could ever make. I'm the light of the world, he who follows me, the one who actually comes after me, the one who embraces me, will never walk in darkness at all. And the context is spiritual darkness, but that person will have the light of life. That's Jesus. John 11, Jesus said, I am...Are we here for Resurrection Sunday? "Jesus said, I am the resurrection." He didn't say I know about the resurrection, I can talk about the resurrection, I can point you to the resurrection. He said, the resurrection is a person. the resurrection is me, I am the resurrection. "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And those that live, they shall continue to live on."
Matt Stokes: 27:49 Here's the question at this point on resurrection morning, what's keeping you from embracing this stuff? I mean, we're all built for...Like they say today, like the greatest pandemic in the world is loneliness, right? What's keeping you from embracing his, love, his presence in your life, his grace, his mercy, that’s going to wash over and cleanse you from all your sin, if you're humble enough to willingly admit that you have it. What's hindering you from receiving his infinite forgiveness? I'm not talking about forgiveness today, until you take your next sacrament, and then you can get forgiven again. I'm talking about forgiveness once and for all, and then your life just becomes a continual thank you for what it is that Christ did on the cross, and you just live in it, you walk in it. Well, yeah, nothing. Okay, that comes from giving your life to Christ in the way that I'm doing my best to describe it to you.
Matt Stokes: 29:01 If you're here today, and you're listening to what I'm saying, Resurrection Sunday, we're so glad you're with us. Look at this room, I'm so glad you're with us today. If you didn't get anything else that I've said in this time we had together, get this, there is one that can satisfy the last aching abyss in the human heart and soul, and his name is Jesus Christ. If you're here and you don't know Jesus Christ, I'm just going to beg you right now to please think about the price. Think about the price that you've paid in your life, all that you worked for, all that it's cost you to get to the place where you are today. And really, hey, where are you today after all that? Because listen, as I say this to you with all the love in my heart, where you are in this world today, doesn't even matter. If you haven't dealt with the sin in your soul, there's only one person that can deal with the sin in your soul, and that's Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ died on the cross to solve the sin issue, which you can never solve on your own.
Matt Stokes: 30:24 Have you dealt with the sin in your soul? My soul, I don't think too much about my soul. Well, let me talk to you about your soul for a minute, your soul is that immaterial part of you that lives forever? No. Yeah, it is. Nah, no. It lives forever. Your immaterial soul is that immaterial part of you that spends forever somewhere. See, most of us would believe that you have a soul. If you had surgery, you could see my brain, but you can't see my mind. If you cut me open, you could see my heart, but you can't see my emotions, right? I mean, every one of us has a soul, and your soul is going to spend forever somewhere. Do you know where? Because you can be assured of that right now, if you're willing to humble yourself and give your life to Jesus Christ. I might not know you, but I'm asking you as we close this time together, would you allow God's love to change the way you look at you? q Because the real you, you ready for this, the real you is not the way you look at you, the real you is the way that God sees you. Did you just get that? Because that's the truth.
Matt Stokes: 31:43 You might go days without thinking about God. Some of us, let's be honest, some people go weeks and months without thinking of God. But there isn't a moment, not even a moment, where he's not thinking about you. He knows you, he knows you infinitely better than you know yourself. And he's made his decision about you, he's reached his verdict about you. He still loves you, he wants you to receive his love and receive his forgiveness. God is infinite, God is omnipotent, God is ever present, God could live anywhere in the universe, and today, do you know where he chooses to live? In your heart. What? He wants to live within your heart, that's what he chooses. Why? Because he loves you. Is it getting through, like for some of you, it's hard to have that get through because just, you don't love yourself. Now there's others of you here who really love yourself a whole lot, you know, that's a message for another day. But there's some of us here that we find ourselves hard to love, and it's hard to believe that anyone would love us with this kind of love. It's a love that goes beyond this world, it's a love of another kind, it's an unconditional, infinite love. Man, you've got to face the fact that Jesus Christ is madly in love with you. I've said this before, like if Jesus had a wallet, your picture would be in it. Like if Jesus had a refrigerator, like your artwork would be on it.
Matt Stokes: 33:16 Like I've always heard that God can do anything or God can do everything. I remember this song I used to sing when I was a kid in Sunday school. It was like, my God is so big, so strong and so mighty, there's nothing he cannot do. Not true, there are some things that God can't do. Here's one thing God can't do, God can't be surprised, not even once. Think about it, there's no leaf that falls from any tree without his knowledge. There's now one hair that falls from any head that doesn't have a number on it that he knows. What's my point? This is my point, please listen because it's so important, he's never been surprised. That means he's not surprised by you, he's not surprised by your faults, he's not surprised by your failures, he's not surprised by your frailties, he's not surprised by your secret sins, he knows all of them. He knows all your sin, he knows all your pain, he knows all your junk, he knows all your stuff that you've been carrying around for years. Who else is going to love you with all that? Other people may abandon you, divorce you, ignore you, hurt you, leave you, abuse you, and use you, but Christ will always be loving you. Even if the whole world's against you, Romans chapter 8 says, God is still for you.
Matt Stokes: 34:34 In fact, some would say the most powerful verse in all of the gospels is when Christ rose up in John chapter 3, and speaking of himself he said, "That God so loved the world." So, so is a quantitative word. It doesn't say God loved the world, he so loved the world. Oh, so, how much so? "He so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whosoever..." There's the invitation. Whosoever, did you ever get an invitation? You get an invitation, and you're so glad you got that invitation. You're wondering if you were invited, you got invited. Sometimes I get invited to things like there's a wedding, and I get an invitation, I'm like, oh shoot, now there's $200 I've got to pay. When you're married, you've got to pay for both of you. Some of you are like, oh man, I just sent you an invitation, is that how you feel? Some of you are like really, you give $200, can I talk to your assistant? There's an invitation and no one is excluded, no one's excluded, every tongue, and tribe, and nation, and kindred, and people, of the world, everyone's included. "Whosoever should believe in him will not perish, but have everlasting life." God loves you with an unearthly love. Do you know what that means? It means you can't win him by being winsome, and you can't lose him by being a loser, because it doesn't have to do with you, it has everything to do with him and his love, his character, his nature, his essence, and it says in the scriptures that God is love.
Matt Stokes: 36:05 If you're sensing that he's inviting you to come to him today, we want to encourage you, challenge you, I'm willing to just plead with you, don't put it off. In the hearing of these words, you know you need to go public with your faith because you've never done that, you've never made that choice where you've stood before every friend and stranger, angel and devil, everything in the seen and unseen realm, and said, I'm giving my life to Christ, or I have given my life to Christ, or I want to go public with my life for Christ. I thought I had salvation, but it was misguided in another direction that had to do with good works, or religious activity, or Christian culture, I see now that it has to do with the cross of Jesus Christ. He's inviting you to come to him, he's offering you this unique type of invitation where he worked and now you trust, he died and now you live, he invites and now you believe, he initiates and now you respond. So as we close, how do you respond?
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Recorded in Ocean City, New Jersey.
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