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THE STONE CANT STOP YOU Mark 16:1-4 1 And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him. 2 And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun. 3 And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre? 4 And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great. Tomb, You shall not hold Him longer, Death is strong, but life is stronger Stronger than the dark, the light; Stronger than the wrong, the right; Faith and hope triumphant say; Christ will rise on Easter Day. While the patient earth lies waiting Till the morning shall be breaking Shuddering beneath the burden dread Of her Master, cold and dead, Hark! she hears the angels say; Christ will rise on Easter Day. And when sunrise smites the mountains Pouring light from heavenly fountains Then the earth blooms out to greet Once again the blessed feet; And her countless voices say; Christ has risen on Easter Day The Bible tells us that a man by the name of Joseph who hailed from a place called Aramithea, asked the Roman governor, Pilot, if he could take the body of our Lord Jesus and put it in a tomb that

he had reserved for his own burial. After receiving permission, the body of Jesus was removed from the cross and placed into that borrowed tomb. But how many of you know this morning that the enemy is never secure in his victory over you. The enemy is never comfortable in his feeling that he has defeated you. The enemy never knows whether to believe that youve been defeated or whether to think that youre going to rise back up in spite of his oppressing you. Thats why he keeps coming back to attack you over and over again. But tell your neighbor, Neighbor, thats another sermon; youll have to come back to catch that one. The bible tells us that Jewish leaders went to Pilot and requested that a huge stone and armed guards be placed in front of the tomb so that no one would be able to steal the body and claim that Christ was alive. And under these orders, the Roman army ensured that a huge stone was rolled in front of the tomb in such a manner that it sealed its entrance, that no one could enter or exit. They used a huge stone, an enormous boulder, a great big rock to seal the tomb of Jesus, the Christ. this stone is just one of many stones that appear in the Bible, and as we exegete this passage we must understand that the stone of itself represents a burden. the stone is a burden that can not be easily moved. The Romans used a huge stone because they knew that there were not enough people who could move it without causing a lot of commotion and being noticed. Have I got a witness? And right now in here today, there are some of us that are weighed

down by the stone that has been cast upon us. Some of us are bearing the stone of financial difficulty. Some of us are bearing the stone of depression. Some of us are bearing the stone of guilt. Some of us are bearing the stone of a broken heart. Some of us are bearing the stone of ill health. Some of us are bearing the stone of a broken marriage, a broken family, or just being spiritually, morally, mentally, and physically BROKE. Being broke is a heavy burden. Can I get a witness? Proverb 27:3 tells us that a stone is heavy. And this stone thats weighing down on us is huge; its enormous, and if its ever removed from us everybody would take notice, because there would be a significant change in us. Because with this heavy stone on our back, we can sometimes be unbearable to deal with. As a matter of fact, sometimes life, even for us who are rooted in the Word, seems like its just too much for us to even bear. And thats just how the enemy wants you to feel. But tell your neighbor: DONT LET THE STONE STOP YOU. Isaiah 8:14 says that a stone can be a stone of stumbling. In other words, a stone can trip you up. You may think youre doing okay. You may think that youve got it going on. You may think that youre walking the straight and the narrow. You may even think that you are so close to Christ that nothing can get next you. But then, all of a sudden, you trip because the devil has put a well placed stone of stumbling in your path. But I want you to know that if you trip, dont fret, just try to catch your balance and keep on keeping on. If you trip, dont give up on what you set out to accomplish. And even if you stumble and fall, get back up on your feet, dust yourself off, straighten out your clothes and your walk, BUT DONT LET THE STONE STOP YOU. Zechariah 12:3 tells us that stones are burdensome. They are not meant to be easy. They are not meant to accommodate your lifestyle. They are not meant to fit into YOUR scheme of things.

They are not meant to bring efficiency to your life. But they are meant to alter the way you do things. They are meant to alter the way you see things. They are meant to get in your way, to hinder you, and even stop you from accomplishing anything that GOD wants you to do. They are burdensome. Have I got a witness? And yet, God gives us a way out of no way. Because I can hear the Psalmist say in Psalm 55:22, to Cast thy burden upon the Lord and He shall sustain thee. If theres anybody hear today who knows that GOD can, and that GOD will sustain you, you ought to tell your neighbor GIVE your burdens to the LORD and DONT LET THE STONE STOP YOU. Stones are immovable and capable of breaking most substances. Matthew 21:44 goes as far as saying that whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken. Thats because stones are hard and difficult to overcome. They can hurt and may even kill you if you are hit by one. Thats why stoning was the most common form of carrying out a sentence on someone who had been condemned to death. Stones can kill you. If you dont believe me, just ask a little shepherd boy named David. Mary the mother of jesus and mary Magdalene were coming to the tomb on the 1st day of the week to anoint the body of jesus My brothers and sisters, on this Resurrection Sunday morning, I want to encourage you to be more like these women of faith. They knew that this stone was blocking their destination, and yet, they would not let the stone stop them. Have I got a witness? When you find yourselves climbing up the rough side of the mountain - bills are many, but dollars are few dont let the stone stop you!

When your name is scandalized and dragged through the miry clay dont let the stone stop you! When you come across someone who knows not the LORD, and their heart is cold, stony, and impenetrable, keep on giving them LOVE anyhow, and dont let the stone stop you. When your health is failing you and youre lying on your bed of affliction, you ought to look up to the hills from whence cometh your help, and dont let the stone stop you. When you dont know how youre going to finish your education because you dont have the necessary funds, dont let the stone stop you. You see the devil wants the stone to stop you today. v The devil wants the stone to stop your marriage from working. v The devil wants the stone to stop your financial blessing. v The devil wants the stone to stop you from knowing Gods plan for your life, that can be found in His Word. v The devil wants your family to fail. v The devil wants you job to be a burden to you. v The devil wants to stop you from getting your education. v The devil wants to stop you from being a success, that way, you cant help nobody else. v The devil wants to stop you from worshipping and praising GOD.