We confess that He died and was buried. He was not just wounded. He was not just asleep. It was not a hoax. He was dead and suffered the pain of dying and the humiliation of death.

Death and dying is a fearful end for man. Death has ruled over man since the day of Adam. Death is most often painful. Sometimes it can be excruciating. We all die. Some will die suddenly. Some will die slowly over a period of years. Some will be unable able to recognize their own family before they pass from this world. Lord, dying puts fear into all of us. It is appointed for man once to die and then the judgment. Even after death, there is the fear of the unknown. There is the fear of standing before a Holy God with all of our sins before us.

Yet, Lord, we do not celebrate death. We celebrate life. While the world would refuse to believe in the resurrection of Christ, we believe with all of our hearts that He came forth from the dead. It is not the evidence that makes us believe. It is not the testimony of mere man that causes us to believe. By the witness of the Holy Spirit as we read the word of God, we believe.

In the resurrection, O Lord, You did demonstrate Your power. Who can raise a man from the dead? Who has seen the dead walking? Who has died, descended into the grave and come back to tell the story? O Lord, Jesus did. Because He came up from the grave, our faith was sealed. The truth of His word was sealed. He was vindicated in all that He said. The last laugh was on His enemies. The suffering servant was now the living God. The humble poor man was now the rich man with all the powers of God. The servant was now the Master.

Lord, we confess that Jesus ascended to the throne of Heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father from which He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

He now rules the earth from the seat of His Kingdom. We pray that that Thy Kingdom come and that Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. We pray that the gospel will capture all the nations and that men shall bow the knee to Christ from both the east and the west, and from the north and from the south. We pray that not only will the poor man turn to Christ, but that the rich man will find Him too. We pray that Kings and Lords will come to know Him. We pray that His Kingdom shall know no end. We pray that the knowledge of the glory of God will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea.

May the murderer find forgiveness in Him. May the adulterer be made pure by His blood. May the thief return what he stole and come and bow down before the throne of Christ. May the hypocrite turn from His deceptive ways. May the rebellious child become compliant. May the wayward husband find his way back home. Indeed, sin is the sting of death. It is because of sin that we die. It is because of sin that we live in guilt and misery. Lord, we are all screwed up. Lord, fix us.

Lead us not into temptation. We are so easily tempted. We are so selfish. We are the center of our world. Lord, guard us like the watchman who stays awake all night. Protect us like the soldier who is always ready to stand against the enemy. Change us for we are undone. Our lips speak forth things they ought not to speak. We are unclean and we dwell in the midst of an unclean people. We boast too much. We sing too little. We complain too much. We praise too little. We speak too much. We do not speak enough. We love too much. We do not love enough. Lord, who shall deliver us from this body of death?