Dear Christian friends:

Last Thursday, April 12, 1963 the bad news came to us that one of our new atomic submarines was lost at sea and with it one-hundred-twenty-nine men. On this Easter morning there is a strong lesson in that event for us. So easily we put our trust and hope in modern machines and wonderful inventions very easily become our god. We do not know how many new and wonderful instruments and gadgets were in the atomic submarine, Thresher, but we can guess that there were many.

It could fire sixteen missiles with atomic war-heads and destroy great cities. But with all those wonderful machines and gadgets and power it now lies broken and helpless at the bottom of the sea and one-hundred-twenty-nine men who ran her and trusted in her are dead!

That ought to be a strong warning for all of us not to put our trust and hope in modern man and in the wonderful things he invents and makes for us. Don't establish your hope and joy on General Motors and all the fine machines it makes for you. If you do, one day you will face bitter disappointment. Your machines will fail and you with them. We must die!

We must establish our hope and joy in God who died and rose again. In our text Paul urges us to place our hope in Christ who died and rose again. So let us today with our text consider

The one thing we need in our dying world is hope that will not fail or disappoint. Paul here shows on what such a wonderful hope is established - the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

He says, "If Christ be not raised your faith is in vain; ye are yet in your sins." They also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If Jesus did not rise from the grave our faith and hope has no basis or support.

Our sins are not forgiven they still blame and condemn us from God. We have no life with God now and after we die if Christ did not rise.

But with great joy and exaltation Paul says, "Now is Christ risen from the dead." Now - this wonderful happy Easter morning we have heard the good news from God's own angel: "Fear not, ye seek Jesus who was crucified He is not here; He is risen as He said; come see the place where the Lord lay!"

His grave is empty He is alive and arisen! The stone is pushed from the mouth of the cave for the whole world to see both His friends and His enemies. The great Roman soldiers lie on the ground like dead men while God's angel sits upon the stone in bright and shinning glory! Hallelujah! Jesus lives! He lives! He lives who once was dead! Now is Christ risen! Now is God's triumph!

That is the basis, the wonderful strong support of our Easter hope. And what is our Easter hope? Paul says, "Now is Christ risen from the dead, and is become the firstfruits of them that slept." He is the firstfruit of the cross. The first one to rise without sin and shame. The first one to rise with a new and glorious body to live with God in glory now and forever. Lazarus arose with the same body and died again.

Jesus is the first - who will be second, third, and fourth? You and I and all who confess our sins and trust in His cross for forgiveness, we shall follow Him through death to a new and better life and glory without end. Our Easter hope is to live with God in glory forever and ever!

This wonderful Easter hope gives us comfort and courage while we travel through this sick and dying world. When we must face disappointment, sorrow and death as the one-hundred-twenty-nine men on the Thresher and their loved ones at home, we can be happy and full of courage. Yes, we can even laugh and mock death and the grave as Paul does in this chapter when he says, "O death, where is your sting?" Its gone! "O grave, where is your victory?" You failed, oh death and grave - our Jesus has conquered and won! When we stand at the grave of a loved one we can say with joy in our hearts through our tears: "Thanks be to God which gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!"

This is the wonderful Easter hope. So I say to you today give up your vain hopes in earthly machines and gadgets. Don't be deceived by the false promises of money, pleasures and this vain dying world. Establish your faith and hope in Jesus Christ who died for you and rose again. Hope in Jesus - live for Jesus and you will never be disappointed or fail. You will see that the best is yet to come! Death and the grave is the door to a new and better life with God!

Amen!