Worship

“Extravagant” by Bethel Music featuring Steffany Gretzinger and Amanda Cook

Scripture

“She went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping. When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it.” -Mark 16:10-11, emphasis added

“Then Jesus appeared before the eleven apostles as they were eating a meal. He corrected them for having such hard, unbelieving hearts because they did not believe those who saw him after his resurrection.” -Mark 16:14, TPT, emphasis added

“So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. ‘Greetings,’ he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.’” -Matthew 28:8-10, emphasis added

“Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.” -Matthew 28:16-17

“As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them … .” -Luke 24:15, emphasis added

“While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’ They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. He said to them, ‘Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.’ When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet. And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, ‘Do you have anything here to eat?’” -Luke 24:36-41, emphasis added

“A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’” -John 20:26

“Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, ‘Woman, why are you crying?’ ‘They have taken my Lord away,’ she said, ‘and I don’t know where they have put him.’ At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.” -John 20:11-14, emphasis added

The Human Response to Resurrection

He is risen! He is risen indeed!

But by the looks of it, everyone was a mess! Emotions were running rampant—some were weeping, some were doubting, some were downcast, some were bewildered, others were amazed. All of a sudden, these Christ-followers had their worlds turned upside down. Their Jesus, whom they had loved and followed and learned so much from, was gone. Now what? The disciples were hiding in fear from the Romans, and what they had known with great comfort and safety seemed so fragile at the moment. But the same love that rose Him from that grave kept Him coming back to them to reveal new levels of love to them. He met Mary in her weeping, Thomas in his doubt, Peter in his need for reinstatement—all because of love. These disciples needed another experience of the revelation of love to go from understanding to full, heart-felt comprehension.

Love Without Condemnation

Jesus never condemned them for their doubt or disillusionment. Instead, He went out of His way to meet them in their place of need. Then He made the greatest deposit of security in His disciples when He came to live inside of them and set their hearts ablaze.

Jesus was so loving and patient to pour into His disciples an understanding of the fulfillment of Scripture as to who He was and what His Kingdom was about. He was every promise fulfilled to them. But He also needed them to have a bone-deep revelation of His power and His goodness. This was going to be the reality by which they lived and where the Church would be birthed from. So He showed up in their gatherings and met them in their fear and in their weeping. Before the Church was scattered, He blew on them the Holy Spirit (John 20:22) and commissioned them to take the gospel to the ends of the Earth. Their understanding was beginning to drop from an understanding in their minds to a passion in their hearts.

“The Day of Pentecost was so extraordinary. It had the seed to change all of world history, but that seed had to be tended like all seeds. If they received the life-transforming moment as a gift from God, properly weeded and watered it, that seed would provoke change that would literally shake the course of human history, affecting the course of every nation in the world. But, as glorious and pure as the seed was, without proper tending, even it would die.” -Bill Johnson, “Born for Significance”

The Church’s Growth

It was this deposit of a seed that set this fragile baby church into full acceleration and expansion mode. So much so that just a few years later in Acts 9:31 it says, “Then the church throughout Judea, Gallilee and Samarai enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers. ”Their fear shifted because of the One they believed in lived His extraordinary life through their surrendered lives. They began to see the fruit of their faith.

As I was sitting with Jesus on Easter morning and journaling my time with Him, I penned these words:

I am breathing my resurrection life into my Bride today, and she will awaken and go forth! This will not be conceptual but her truest reality. I don’t want my Bride stuck. This is not who she is. Just like the guys on the road to Emmaus, I will open her heart to really grasp My resurrection power that lives in her. It will change everything for her! Get ready to walk in new levels of My resurrection power! You are entering a time where everything will look different from here on out. Mark this day and this year because My glory and power is coming like a flood!

Beloved, we have learned the Scriptures and have a concept of Father, Jesus, and Holy Spirit. Our minds are full of knowledge, but many of our hearts are awaiting an encounter with the power of Jesus. It’s time for us to live out what we have known and studied and read and come to believe! Our hearts are coming awake in a new way, just like Jesus experienced in the tomb as the resurrection power of God consumed Him. It’s time to awaken to a love we have only begun to scratch the surface on! It’s not about legalistic obedience and fabricated passion; it’s simply about banking our lives on the character and promises of God and watching Him bring forth the harvest of such faith.

Jesus knew exactly what His disciples needed when their worlds were turned upside down. He came to them with compassion and truth!

“In the Gospels we see Jesus weeping over Jerusalem at her upcoming destruction; feeling deep compassion for the large numbers of people who were harassed, distressed, dejected, and helpless; and being moved with pity and sympathy by a leper (see Luke 19:41; Matthew 9:36; Mark 1:40-41). Jesus was in touch with a life lived from his heart. Prostitutes and sinners felt at home with Jesus because He was able to sympathize with their brokenness, treat them with deep love and fervent compassion, and enter their world.” -Rusty Rustenbach, “Listening and Inner-Healing Prayer”

In the same way, there is a world awaiting our understanding of Scripture in such a way that we are compelled with deep love and compassion to run to them. Oh, that this would be the focus of our lives—the increase of His Kingdom here on Earth. Just like Paul stated, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith (Romans 1:16-17).’”

God’s Unstoppable Love

He will stop at nothing to rescue you.

He will stop at nothing to comfort you.

He will stop at nothing to reveal His love to you.

He will stop at nothing to commission you into this adventure of faith.

He will stop at nothing to live His life through your surrendered, laid down life.

“He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?”
-Romans 8:32, emphasis added

Our Response Today

So, will you stop at nothing to share His salvation with those who are drowning in shame?

Will you stop at nothing to bring His compassion to the brokenhearted?

Will you stop at nothing to pray for healing for the sick and dying?

Will you stop at nothing to take the keys of the Kingdom and unlock prison doors?

Will you stop at nothing to co-mission with Jesus in the Earth to see His Kingdom come?

Will you stop at nothing to be a living sacrifice, ready to be consumed by His power and presence?

That was their time; this is our time! We’ve got the same uncertainties. We’ve got persecution of the saints brewing now on a global scale at an epic rate. We all understand fear and sadness and disappointment and doubt. But that’s not the end of the story or the place devoid of God. In fact, it’s in those places He does His most glorious work and sets your feet to dance! Expect Him to show up in proverbial tombs and to come through walls where we think He will never walk. Expect Him to bring you fish on the shores of your re-commissioning. Expect Him to do something so grand that all of Heaven stops to observe as love comes crashing in. It’s WHO He is and WHAT he does!

Prayer

Lord, I pray for those who need You to show up in the places that feel so devoid of Your goodness. I pray that You come crashing in and awaken us to Your resurrection power in a fresh and new way. Will You do something in our hearts that we have never experienced before? Will You open our ears to truth our minds, hearts, and souls have never taken hold of before? Will You pull us close and teach us Your ways, which are so much higher than our ways and will revolutionize everything for us in a moment. I pray that we would indeed awaken to the power that resides inside of us because that is where You live. I pray that You would take us even deeper into your extravagant love for us when life just seems messy and we get flipped upside down. Sort it out, order it, Jesus. Place Your peace on it, and then accelerate us into Your timeline and Your purposes. Let those who read these words come alive this week with greater insight and understanding as to the depth and height and width and breadth of the love of Christ for His Bride! In the mighty name of Jesus, AMEN!

A Few Key Notes

• Please pray for the team that is travelling to Waco this weekend to share the hope of Jesus with others!
• We are still looking for people to join us May 7-8 in Midland, Texas, for Harvest Day. Come be equipped to share the love of Jesus in that city. RSVP by emailing me at [email protected].
• Registration is now open for the Arise spring luncheon on May 13! To register in person, visit www.eastwest.org/ariseluncheon. The cost per person is $10 to attend in person. To attend the event virtually for free, register online.

Date: May 13

Time: 11:30 a.m.

Location: The Hope Center, 2001 W. Plano Parkway, Plano, TX 75075

• We’re also looking for table sponsors for the spring luncheon. If you’re interested in sponsoring, email Stacy Riddick at [email protected] for more information.