“God’s Invitation to Become Fully Alive”
Pastor Doug Heisel – April 9, 2023

John 3:16 — For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:3 — Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.

Romans 6:23 — For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s perfect standard.

Good is not GOOD enough, if you want to be FULLY ALIVE.

John 3:15 — Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in Him.

Isaiah 53:3-5 — He was despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.

Everyone is INVITED. Everyone has a CHOICE.

John 19:38-42 — Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

Matthew 11:28-29 — Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.