Franklin Graham’s Easter Message from Ukraine

‘God loves us, and Easter is about god’s love for mankind’

This story is cross-posted at our consumer site, Grabien News. Watch it there – without audiomarks.

EXCERPT:

GRAHAM: “We’re the ones that deserve to go to the cross. We’re the ones who deserve death. Jesus never sinned, never, not one time. And as a sinless person, he was able to take our sins, and God accepted his death on the cross. His followers thought it was finished, he was buried in a tomb. And maybe you have lost hope this Easter, and here in Lviv, in Ukraine, I’m sure there are many people who have very little hope for the future, wanting to know what to do, where to go. Well, I want to look at the first Easter, and I would like to read out of Matthew, Chapter 28, and it says, 'Now, after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave, they came to the tomb. And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from Heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it. And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. The guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, 'Don't be afraid.' These two women, they came to see the grave. There were Roman soldiers guarding the tomb. Were these Roman soldiers going to abuse them? Were they going to attack these women early in the morning? They didn’t know, but they wanted to go see the tomb. And I think they were coming there to worship. Maybe they were hoping they could put some spices on the body. And so, they come to the tomb. And a big earthquake along the way. An angel had descended from Heaven, and the entire ground shook, and the angel looked like lightning. His clothes were as white as snow, and he rolled this stone away. The guards, these Roman soldiers, they fell over like dead men. They were so afraid, they just — they were out of it. They fainted. And the angel sat on the stone, and when the woman came, the angel said, 'Don’t be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who has been crucified. He is not here. He has risen, just as He said.' 'He is not here. He has risen.' This is the greatest news that has ever been proclaimed, that Jesus Christ is alive. The tomb is empty. He’s not here. He’s alive. He has risen, as he said he would. If we repent and turn from our sins and put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ, God will forgive our sins, and we can have that hope that we will be saved and forgiven and be with God for eternity in Heaven. Jesus said, 'I’m the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father but by me.' How do we have eternal life? It’s not by works, but it’s by God’s grace, and it’s through faith in his son, Jesus Christ. Jesus said, 'I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he is dead, yet shall he live.' This is Easter. It’s about a risen savior. It’s about an empty tomb."

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