We recently got a cat.
I know. I know…this sounds like a confessional.
But, it’s true. After 33 years of claiming that I would never own a cat, I caved, and I did.
 
And it’s been fun.
She enjoys keeping us safe from any fuzz balls and dust balls that she sees.
She loves to go hunting for leaves.
She even enjoys a playful, piercing bite to my front toe.

But the other day, my wife told me that she had done something crazy. Julianna texted me that we needed to close the windows so that the cat couldn’t climb the screen.

I said, “Yeah. How could she do that?”
Julianna said, “I see holes in the screen right now.”
I said, “Those are probably from bugs or some severe storm.”
She said, “I’m pretty positive it’s from the cat.”
I said, “Oh yeah. Prove it. How do you know?”
My wife texted me a photo of the cat climbing the screen.

Oh.

Eyewitnesses are important. They are verbal proclaims of the visual truth. They are the difference between…
Fiction and non-fiction.
A fairy tale and history.
A lie and truth.

Over the next couple of weeks, we will be starting our sermon series called EYEWITNESS. It’s all about the eyewitnesses to the resurrection of Jesus. I think we need to do this because the resurrection of Jesus is too big a deal to rely on hearsay, to trust maybes and to listen to theories.

Our goal today is to look at a real eyewitness accounts…
Of real people…
Who had real interactions…
With the really risen Jesus…
As real proof of your real salvation.

Before we begin, a prayer:  Lord, strengthen us by the truth; your Word is truth. Open our eyes to see what you want us to see; our ears to hear what you want us to hear and our hearts to believe what you would have us believe. Amen.
 
I. Mary’s Background
 
The first eyewitness account that we are going to look at comes from a woman named Mary Magdalene. What interesting about Mary is that she doesn’t play a big part in Jesus’ three years of ministry on earth. In fact, there’s very little that is written about her except for this:

Mary Magdalene, out of whom Jesus had driven out seven demons. (Mark 16:9)
 
It’s not even a full sentence. Just a passing adjective comment.
But…one that’s pretty heavy.

She had been possessed by 7 demons. Evil spirits. Fallen angels. Powerful. They had taken hold of her mind. Something that Bible theorists will suggest happens from dabbling in the demonic activity (the occult, psychics, blood sacrifices) and excessive drug use.

Regardless how it happened to Mary, we know it was terrible.
She had no control of her personality.
She was a prisoner in her own mind.
In a state of deep depression.
With a helplessness that doesn’t go away.

Except, it did.
Mary was possessed.
Jesus healed her.

I don’t know exactly how, but if it is anything like Jesus’ other miracles, then it was probably as simple as Jesus lifting his hand and saying:
“Be healed.”

Which…Can you imagine?

If you’ve ever had a counselor help you with a breakthrough.
Or a pastor help you grasp God’s forgiveness.
Or a fatal diagnosis that a doctor diagnosed, prescribed medicine and helped you defeat.

You know the kind of deep connection that Mary had with Jesus.
That’s why she had become a follower of his:

She had been trapped, Jesus freed her.
She had been guilty, Jesus brought her forgiveness.
She had been depressed, Jesus brought her joy.
She had been lonely, Jesus brought her family.
She had been hopeless, Jesus made her hopeful.
 
Until…
Jesus died.

He was violently, publicly, cruelly crucified on a cross.

And all of her hope?
Went away.

All of her joy?
Evaporated.

All of her sanity…
Started to slip away….
 
She could feel the devil’s grip tightening on her again.
 
II. The Eyewitness Account

That’s why she got up so early Sunday morning.
You see -- Jesus had been killed Friday evening. They buried him. She would have gone to his grave to mourn, but they have this Sabbath rule where you can’t go to visit the dead on a Saturday.

But Saturday was over.
Like…just over.
So…5am.
It was still dark.
It’s not like she was sleeping anyways.

She threw on her sandals.
Fastened on her cloak.
And walked off to her friend’s house.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!


“What do you want?”
“It’s Sunday. We were going to go to his grave. We were going to go to Jesus’ grave so that we can honor him.”

“But Mary. It’s not even light out yet. It’s still night time. It’s…just gonna take me a second while I get ready.”
 
As they walked through the slowly evaporating darkness, it was mostly quiet.
Whenever her friends tried to make small talk, Mary quieted them. “We’ve just gotta get to Jesus’ grave.”


As they approached the garden, Mary worked into a sprint walk.
She began opening up the bottle of perfume she had brought to pour on his grave and anoint his body.

“Mary, did you think about how we were going to get into the grave? There is that giant stone that the soldiers put there to make sure that no one could get in. I saw some of those guys. They’re built like models. It took about 5 of them to move it, I don’t see how we…”

She stopped talking.
Off in the distance was Jesus’ grave.
And…
The giant stone?

It was moved.
 
Immediately, Mary burst into tears:
“What did they do? What have they done? They couldn’t just leave him alone. Those jerks! Those losers! How could they do this? How could they leave us like this? Without even a chance…to heal.”

She broke down.
Her friends tried to console her.
But Mary shrugged them off.

She turned around and sprinted back towards town.
She could barely see where she was going with tears clouding her vision.
She made her way to where some of the twelve disciples were staying.
She pounded at the door.
She screamed at the door.
She made a commotion till their let her in:
“They took his body. They took his body. They book his body…the tomb is empty!”

Two of the disciples rushed out.
They sprinted to see what she was saying.
And Mary tried to follow, but she grew too tired.
Her legs got wobbly.
She slammed her back against tree trunk.
And fell to the floor.
A mess.
 
After sobbing for a good 15 minutes, She stood up.
She didn’t have any tears left.
She had to get to the bottom of this.
She had to get back to the tomb and find some kind of a clue…a witness…a footprint that would lead her to Jesus’ body.

She went back to the tomb.
Her friends were gone.
The disciples were gone.
The stone…was still gone.

This time…she took a deep breath…and approached the tomb.

Inside the tomb, she found some men.
Dressed in white.
A gleaming, blinding white light.
Radiating from their clothes.
Radiating from their faces.
Both sitting on the bier where Jesus’ body had been.
Between them? Grave clothes. Folded ever so nicely, ever so gently, as if they were no longer necessary.

“Woman, why are you crying?” they asked.
“They have taken my Lord away! And I don’t know where they have put them!”
 
Mary turned around. The men were nice. And it was strange that they were glowing, but…she didn’t have time. She needed to find his body.

Outside the tomb, someone else.
Hard to tell who – with the tears blurring her vision.
It was probably the gardener.

“Woman, why are you crying?”
This is the one. He must have taken the body. He must have moved it at the requests of the Pharisees!
“Tell me sir. Tell me…Please…Where did you take his body? Why did you leave the grave….empty?”

“Mary!”

The air was still.
Mary’s breath paused for a moment.
She had heard that voice before.
She had heard that voice teach her about God.
She had heard that voice proclaim forgiveness.
She had heard that voice drive away her own demons!

It was Jesus!

“Teacher!” She cried as she grabbed a hold of him with a hug.
As she hugged, she knew it was real! She felt his shoulders.
She held him by the back.
She felt the warmth of his breath.

Jesus was alive.  


III. Resurrection Truth

This is the eyewitness account of Mary.
It is an eyewitness account that is recorded for us in Scripture.
The guy who wrote it? John – he was one of the disciples that went running to the tomb after Mary told him it was open!
And the book of John? It was written down and passed around at a time when Mary Magdalene would have still been alive.
And she didn’t say “Nah, man. That’s wrong. It didn’t happen this way.”
Nope.
She said, “That’s the truth.”

Which means.
There are three really important divine truths that we need to take home with us today.
 
(1) Jesus Rose from the Dead
 
Granted. You might be skeptical of that truth.
That’s understandable.

Because most people when they are dead? They can’t do much. Their bodies just lie there and slowly decompose.
And even people who are living – they haven’t figured out a way to bring people that are dead back to life either.

But if this is true…
When Jesus was dead, he figured out one thing that no one else could ever figure out while they were alive – conquering death itself!

If you’re skeptical, Mary’s account is for you. Because think about how long it took her recognize that Jesus was alive.

She saw the immovable stoned – moved and her first reaction?
“They took his body.”


She went into the tomb and saw two angels –glowing with divine splendor. Her reaction?
“They took his body!”

She went outside the tomb and saw Jesus – but was so overcome with emotion that she says to Jesus,
“You must have taken his body!”
 
Thing is.
She wasn’t wrong.

It isn’t until Jesus…
Gently…
Calmly…
Calls her name…
 
That she realizes the incredible truth right in front of her!

Friends, you might be dealing with sadness.
You might be dealing with difficulties in your marriage.
With abandonment.
With challenges at work.
With a financial crisis.
With a terrifying diagnosis.
With guilt, shame, and sin.

And sometimes that can all cover our hearts and close our eyes and make us say, “There is no HOPE in this world! This Jesus’ thing can’t be true.”

But…
When that happens…
Hear Jesus’ voice…

He’s calling to you.

“I am alive.”
 
(2) The Work of Salvation is Finished
 
Check out verse 17:
“Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
The reason Jesus came to earth was to win your salvation.
He came to suffer death for your sins.
He came to earn your way to heaven.
He came to pay for eternal life.

If he’s heading up to heaven, guess what?

That work is done.


Granted – that can be hard to believe.

It’s like Easter weekend. Maybe you are planning on having relatives to your house. Maybe you wanted to clean for your relatives  -- so you make a check list: Sweep the floor, dust the counters, disinfect the countertops, clean the bathrooms, do the laundry, make the beds, clean up the toys, etc.

And you go to work.
And you come home and….
Your husband says, “Surprise! I did it already. It’s finished. You don’t have to clean anymore!”

How do you respond?
Probably…by sweeping the floor, dusting the counters, disinfecting the countertops, etc.

When Jesus tells you that it is finished.
It is finished.
Your salvation is won.
Your sins are forgiven.
Eternal life is yours.
Heaven is your home!
“It is finished.”
 
You don’t need to try and earn his love.
You don’t need to complete your salvation.
You don’t need to pay your way into heaven by working hard and becoming perfect.

Nope.

Jesus did it for you.
Believe.
 
And…
 
(3) Go and Tell
 
Because right after Mary realizes that Jesus is standing right in front of her…
Having conquered sin and death…
Renewing her hope again…

She’s overcome with emotion.
She holds onto him.
She doesn’t want to ever go back to guilt and loneliness and despair. Never again!

But Jesus says something interesting:

“Do not hold onto me. Instead, go and tell.” (v.17)

Why?

Because there were others who had lost their hope.
There were others who were in despair.
There were others who were shacked to guilt.

Mary’s eyewitness message – would change that.
She would give them hope.
She would give them joy.
She would give them freedom.

Friends, there are still people like that today.
There are people who don’t know their Savior.
People who don’t know the resurrection story.
People who think Easter is all about sugary yellow marshmallow chicks

They are overcome with guilt.
They are dealing with a lack of joy.
They are struggling with despair.

Can you do me a favor?
Listen to your Savior.

Go and tell.

Later today at your Easter party, turn to the people who didn’t come to worship to celebrate this message and share the story of Easter. Go and Tell.
Later this evening when you are on your phones, take a note or two from this sermon and share on social media. Go and tell.
Tomorrow morning as you head to work – gather around the coffee pot, talk with your coworkers about why you liked Easter and how amazing this message of the risen Savior is. Go and tell.
 
And understand this.
You won’t be just giving them a story.
You won’t be just telling them a fairy tale.
You’ll be giving them true hope.

Absolute.
Real.
True.
Hope. Amen.

We’re picking up right where we left off last week in the book of ACTS. If you remember, last week we heard about a guy named Saul. Saul was the Commander-in-Chief of Destroying the Gospel and murdering any Christian he came across. He hated Jesus. He hated Christians. He persecuted Christians to death.
 
Then, something happened.
 
Jesus appeared to him.
Jesus spoke to him.
Jesus brought him to repentance.
Jesus forgave him.

And Saul came to faith. He was baptized. He learned from other Christians and soon began preaching the very message he had been persecuting.
 
Jesus visibly appeared to Saul.
And empowered Saul to turn his life around.

QUESTION:
Do you ever wish Jesus would do that to you?
Do you ever wish he would appear to you in the flesh, holes in hands, a reassuring pat on the back and a few magic tricks to prove that your faith is the truth?

Today we’re going to follow the Gospel as it makes its way to a few different cities filled with people who didn’t get to personally see Jesus and who hadn’t gotten to witness His miracles. Our goal is to discover, along with those people, that the Gospel is ABSOLUTELY TRUE. It’s powerful. It’s public. It’s proven.
 
 But before we do that, a prayer: Lord, strengthen us by the truth; your Word is truth. Open our eyes to see what you want us to see; our ears to hear what you want us to hear and our hearts to believe what you would have us believe. Amen.
 
I. Two Stories of the Gospel’s Power

The true stories we want to look at start in Acts 9:32. Both these stories center around the Apostle Peter. He is one of the original 12 disciples. He lived with Jesus, worked with Jesus, and learned from Jesus. He saw Jesus die. He saw Jesus rise from the dead. He was personally commissioned by Jesus to “go and preach the good news of forgiveness in Jesus.” 
 
At this point – Peter had done that. He had preached a sermon to over 3000 people at Pentecost. He had stood up for the Gospel in front of the enemies of Jesus. He had taught, commissioned and sent out newer disciples to share the Gospel.
 
Peter is kinda like District President (DP) Don Tollefson.

Who’s Don Tollefson? He’s a pastor. But a Pastor of a lot of people. Pastor Tollefson is the President of the North Atlantic District of our group of Lutheran churches. He encourages all the churches in the district. He helps facilitate ministry ideas. He shares resources. He travels from city to city to city, up and down the North Atlantic Coast uplifting congregations with the Gospel. Over the past couple of weeks, I know he’s been to Harrisburg, PA to help a mission congregation ready to get a pastor; he went up to Orleans, Ontario, Canada to commission a new pastor for our congregation up there; he made his way to Milwaukee, WI to meet with other District Presidents and develop plans for continuing to share the Gospel throughout the U.S In short, district presidents rack up quite the good number of frequent flier miles.

Peter was doing something very similar – without the frequent flier miles. He was travelling about the country. And he went to visit the Lord’s people who lived in Lydda. (v.32) Lydda was 27 miles to the Northwest of Jerusalem. Christians from Jerusalem had fled there during Saul’s persecution in Jerusalem and a tiny congregation had formed. Peter went to that small congregation at Lydda to encourage them.

While he was there, Peter did what pastors sometimes do when they visit other pastors. He went with local leadership into the community. Maybe grabbed some local fare, stopped by the local coffee shop and went by the park. It’s good to get to know the leaders of the local church and their community so that you can offer the proper advice and encouragement.

While Peter was doing this, he found a man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden for 8 years. (v.33)
 
He hasn’t been able to walk.
He lays on the side of the street.
He never leaves the bed-like mat that his friends set up.

And the local congregation leaders must have been like: “Oh him!?! He’s there all the time. It’s a sad story really. He can’t get a job. He doesn’t have a lot of money. Sometimes we stop and give him bits of leftover sandwich from our last potluck, but…he’s kind of a lost cause. Anyways Peter, have you ever tried Potato Rounds before…eh…What are you doing?”

Peter moved away from the other leaders.
Peter moved towards the bedridden man.
Peter said to him:

“Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and roll up your mat.”
And immediately Aeneas got up. (v.34)
 
Let that sink in.
No physical therapy.
No pills.
No medicine.
No injection.
No knee braces.
No robotics.
Not even an Essential Oil treatment.

Just words spoken in the name of Jesus.
And immediate, incredible, complete healing.

Meanwhile – 11 miles Northwest of this miracle – another congregation is having a tough time. In the town of Joppa, a very important member of the congregation had just passed away. Her name is Tabitha. According to Scripture, Tabitha was always doing good and helping the poor. (v.36)

It appears she made clothes for them.
She made food for them.
She delivered food to them.
She helped a lot of people.

But she had gotten sick and died.
When the disciples in Joppa heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!”  (v.37)
 
Because this was a hard one.
Tabitha was such a blessing to the church and the community. Why would God take her? Why would she die?
Her death was confusing, maddening and saddening!

They needed answers. They needed comfort. They needed someone with a connection to Jesus like Peter had to uplift them with Godly words.

And Peter quickly realized this. He hurried up to Lydda. He went to Tabitha’s home.
 
When he arrived, it was filled with people.
Mourning.
In tears.
Holding up shawls and dresses that Tabitha had made for them.
Handing him a piece of cake – in the style of which Tabitha used to make.
Falling to their knees and asking Peter, “Why?”

Eventually, they led him upstairs.
They showed him to the room where there lay Tabitha’s body.
Her cold, dead body.

Peter fought back tears.
If only he had gotten here earlier. He could have asked Jesus to do what he did for Aeneas.
He could have helped her.
He could have healed her just like Jesus had done.

But…
Then again…
There was something else Jesus had done, too…

Peter asked everyone to leave the room.
They obliged because – “Peter probably needs a moment or two to process…”
When he was alone, he fell to his knees.
He prayed.  

Then, he looked up.
He turned to Tabitha’s cold, lifeless body and said:

“Tabitha, get up!”
She opened her eyes and seeing Peter she sat up. (v.40)

Alive.
 
II. Three Truths about the Gospel

There are a lot of interesting themes to explore in these two stories. We could talk about the importance of working for the Lord like Tabitha. We could talk about the value of getting into the community how Peter found Aeneas. We could discuss the value in sending Synod Leadership to encourage congregations in faith.

But the heart of these stories – is the heart of the entire Bible – Jesus.  
And Jesus is directly tied to the Gospel.
 
Here are three truths about the Gospel from these lessons:

(1) Jesus is Powerful
 
Look closely. Peter didn’t do the healing by himself.

Peter said to Aeneas, “Jesus Christ heals you.” (v.34)
Peter got down on his knees and prayed. Then Tabitha was healed. (v.40)

Notice Peter didn’t say: “I heal you,” nor did he get down on his knees and pray: “Dear Me, Please help Me and Heal this lady for me.”
Nope.

Peter turns to God.
Peter turns to his Savior.
Peter turns to Jesus.

Jesus heals Aeneas and Tabitha!

To be fair – we shouldn’t be surprised! Jesus did the same thing while he physically walked the earth. He made the blind to see; the deaf to hear; the lame to walk; the sick to be well; the water to become a walking surface; the storms to become quiet; the bread to multiply; the water to become wine; the dead to come back to life.
 
But – I guess the only incredible caveat with these miracles, is that Jesus does them while he’s not even physically, visibly, tangibly there!

I’ve got some power. Sometimes the Office Supply company we work with delivers boxes of paper. Each box holds about 10 packages of 500 sheets of paper. They’re pretty heavy. About 50 pounds.
 
If I am around, I can lift it and put it away.
If I’m not around, I can’t do squat.
 
Jesus wasn’t even physically around, yet his power was able to:
 
(1) Instantly heal a man who had not been able to walk for the last 8 years.
(2) Bring to life a woman who had died!

Jesus is still Powerful.

He removes all your sins.
He destroys all your guilt.
He busts through the gates of hell itself.
He powerfully penetrates the preventive walls of unbelief and brings believers into his family.
 
(2)  Jesus is Public
 
But you might say:
Yeah, right! Peter is in on it! It’s all a big scam. Aeneas pretended to be unable to walk for 8 years just so that Peter could appear to be the hero with the message of Jesus – even though Peter probably wasn’t even a follower of Jesus when Aeneas began his ruse?
 
And Tabitha pretended to be dead – she held her breath (for days?) and got the hundreds of people mourning at the house to believe that she was dead just so that Jesus would “appear” powerful.
 
Really?

Here’s the deal. Both of these miracles are extremely public.
They aren’t done in private.
 
In regard to Aeneas it says: All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw Aeneas and turned to the Lord. (v.35)
Notice it doesn’t say “All of Aeneas’ friends who were in on the 8-year ruse.” Nope. All the city. Everyone. Even the people who were kind of annoyed with Aeneas being bedridden, asking for money, day after day after day. Peter meets Aeneas. Many are watching. Aeneas stands up. They don’t think: “Faker.” They think: “Savior.”

And with Tabitha it’s just as public. Remember – She died. The people washed her body and cleaned it. They sent for Peter. Peter arrived when they were in the middle of the Ancient version of the “wake.” They are throwing Tabitha’s blankets in Peter’s face and everyone is talking about how she is dead and how sad it is.

No one is saying; “I think she’s faking it, Peter.”

After Jesus raises her through Peter: Peter called for the believers, especially the widows and presented Tabitha to them alive. This became known all over Joppa and many people believed in the Lord.  (v.41-42)
 
Because…She was dead and now. She was alive.
 
This is key for you and me. Because what Luke wrote down for us in Acts; he wrote down only a maximum of 10 years later. And this book of Acts was circulated throughout the churches. The people in Lydda read it and said, “Yep. That’s right. I remember when he healed Aeneas.” And the people in Joppa read it and said, “Yes. They got it right. I remember when Tabitha came back to life.”

The point? This stuff is public. It’s real.

It’s not that way in other religion.

It’s not like…
The Prophet Mohammed who went up on a mountain by himself.
Or Joseph Smith, found of Mormonism, who went into the forest by himself.
Or some scientist who hypothesizes this world must have started this way – even though I wasn’t even there.

Nope.

Jesus’ power is public. Real, visible, viewed by many.

Even at the highlight of his story…
Jesus died before hundreds.
He hung on a cross before hundreds.
He was confirmed dead by hundreds.

Then, he rose.
He appeared before hundreds.
He showed himself before hundreds.
He spoke again with hundreds.

Jesus is public!
 
(3) Jesus is Proven
 
This leads to our third “P” word.
If Jesus is powerful and public. Then, Jesus, is also proven.

Throughout the Gospel, Jesus offers visual proof of invisible truth.
Public visual proof of private invisible truth.
 
Aeneas visibly gets to his feet before hundreds.
Tabitha comes back to life before hundreds.
Jesus visibly dies and visibly is buried and visibly comes back to life.

It’s proof.
Proof that the Jesus is truth.
Proof of the invisible miracles that Jesus claims for us:

Proof that your sins are forgiven.
Proof that you have peace with God.
Proof that Jesus is the Savior.
Proof that by believing in him you will enter eternal life.

If you doubt!?! You’re doubting the power of a Savior that has done countless visible miracles in the face of tens of thousands of witnesses.
If you doubt!?! You’re doubting God. You’re doubting the Holy Spirit. You’re doubting Jesus.
Don’t doubt. Believe.
 
III. What Now? 

1. Turn

I don’t mean do a physical turn right here, right now. This isn’t P90x.  
The Bible tells us to “turn” spiritually.

That’s what the people in Lydda did. They saw the power of Jesus in healing Aeneas. They turned to the Lord. (v.35)
They stopped trusting themselves.
They stopped trusting their own abilities.
They stopped trusting some statue god.

They trusted their Savior.

Do the same. Even if you are a longtime Christian! Turn. Because the devil has a way of getting us to turn to ourselves, to money, to things and stuff and to trust them rather than Jesus.

Examine your heart.
See where you’re wrong.
Turn back to Jesus.

And if you’ve never trusted in Jesus, hear God’s plea:  
 
Stop trusting yourself.
Stop trusting your money.
Stop trusting your abilities.
Stop trusting your own modern fake gods and start trusting the real, only true God, Jesus Christ, who died to save you.
 
And he did so.
Powerfully.
Publicly.
 
2. Kneel

Because when Peter was faced with a dire situation. When he came face to face with death in the face of Tabitha. When he said to himself, there is literally nothing I can do to help – he got on his knees and prayed.

Do the same thing.

Too often when things get out of hand; when things are out of  our control; when things are beyond our control we keep thinking:
I can do this. I can figure this out. I can stand.

Jesus doesn’t want us standing.
He wants us kneeling.
Humbly in prayer before our God.

This isn’t necessarily physically; but a ‘kneeling’ in your heart. Humbly agreeing that you are a sinner and the situation is beyond your control and you need your almighty, all powerful, paralyzed man healing, dead widow raising, out of the grave conquering God.

Turn to your God.
Fall on your knees.
Trust in your powerful, public, and proven Savior.

Amen.​

​Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

Have you ever had one of those moments of sheer terror at being caught? I mean the total anxiety panic of knowing… there is no way out of this. If you know what I mean, it was probably when you were younger? Though maybe not, contrary to what we like to think of ourselves, the youth do not corner the market on stupid decisions.

Whatever it was you were doing or did, I’m sure it was very attractive. The thought of all you could gain from going down that path was irresistible. It was so simple, required so little effort, and the benefits, well, they were pretty amazing. I’m guessing that the thought of being caught or the consequences never actually entered your mind. Maybe you had to think about one or two ways to smartly keep it hidden, but the fact that it was just wrong never really was part of the decision-making process.

At least, until you were caught.

You were… not so clever as you thought. Or you over-reached out of greed and arrogance. And if you’re remembering that moment from your life right now just like I am, you can feel the panic. Feel the fear grip your heart as you face whatever might be coming.

And that might be the worst of it. You don’t know what might be coming. I suppose it depended on what it was, how old you were and the like? Maybe privileges would be taken away. Maybe it would just be the shame of letting someone else down. Maybe it would break a relationship. Maybe it would be legal action. But the fear of knowing you’d been caught and there was no getting out of it, that tightening of your heart… that’s what I’m talking about.

Now why… why would I make you relive something like that this evening? It’s bad enough when those memories haunt us at quiet moments during the day or night. Why drag them up on purpose?

Well because that is exactly the feeling I want you to think of when you picture what it’s like to stand before God almighty and try to justify yourself to him.

To better appreciate this evening, I’d like to walk you through… well it’s a metaphor. This isn’t really how things will happen at the end, not literally. But the truth of it holds. So, imagine with me. Imagine the moment comes. Your earthly life has ended, and you are waiting to see what happens next. You’ve heard that Heaven is the place to be and Hell, well not so much.

Though there is some nervous anticipation, you’re feeling – pretty good about what’s to come. You’re a good person. You were a good son or daughter, a good spouse or a good parent. You did right by the people around you. You worked your job, you went to church, you helped those in need. This should go well.

And the time comes that your name is called. You are escorted from a waiting area into a courtroom. There is no jury, only the judge. And there are no witnesses, only the judge. God. One look from his piercing stare and it all comes crashing down. The intensity of that gaze opens your own eyes and you know. You know, and you remember everything he knows about you.

      We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way;
​
The façade of goodness that you wear becomes as flimsy and fragile as tissue paper. All the selfishness that backed all those “good” deeds. All the times that the cost of doing the right thing was a little too high for you so you just walked by on the other side of the street. The secret thoughts, the greed, the lust, the selfishness, the anger, and more than any of that all the times you just thought you knew better than God.

That’s the panic moment. You’re caught, there’s nowhere to go, and you are utterly guilty. You did all of it, thinking no one was looking, no one would notice, but he saw it. There’s nothing to say in your defense. Anything you could think of in your own mind falls so flat that you can’t even utter the words.
Is there nothing to be done? You survey the crowd. Surely someone could speak up on your behalf and ask for leniency, mercy, or just to ask the judge to let this one go? Someone some authority or power or charisma or money could maybe do something for you…

He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.
Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
​
A man does step forward. Not the one you were looking for. He is not wearing anything fancy. He has no regal bearing about him. You do not recognize him as anyone rich or influential. He instead looks like someone in as much need of help as you are. If you were not simply frozen by the terror of the moment you might motion for him to blend back into the crowd.

Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows,

He draws the judge’s attention. The man speaks.
“I did it.”
“Excuse me?”
“Every charge you are about to read. That was me. I openly confess to every one of those crimes. I did it.”
“You are aware of the punishment?” the judge asks.
“I am. It was me.”

The confession is accepted. The man is bound and led away. What could you do? It might seem dishonorable to let him go in your place, but the terror of what waits at that end is too much to face. You let him go.

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities;

You know what it means for that man. You know what you were expecting. The terror of hell itself. That the mercy and grace of God would be completely cut off from you. Absolutely lost in the outer darkness where there is no light and no hope and nothing but terror and pain forever. Maybe you didn’t grasp it before but you do now. That’s death. To be cut off from the source of life and creation is death.

It should’ve been you, but it wasn’t. What he suffers is of your making, no mistake. You earned and created the hell he is suffering now. You can’t help but stare at the door they led him through. It’s conflicting. You’re haunted by what he suffers in your place but there is still relief that it won’t be you.

the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

As you muse, the judge speaks again.

“The guilty party having confessed and punishment rendered, the accused is declared not guilty. With no outstanding accusations, you are free to enter the Kingdom of God.”

Dumbfounded, you step forward. Heaven? You started with confidence you had no right to. It was quickly crushed and for what seems like an eternity you stood there with no hope, trying to accept the fact that you were going to die. And now so quickly that has changed to heaven? It seems so impossibly unlikely, but it’s happened.

You walk to the exit of the courtroom and the entrance of the kingdom. The reward is not just a perfect kingdom, it’s a perfect you. The last remnants of evil within yourself are stripped away and now you not only live in a place that will never cause you pain – you yourself will not be the cause of your own pain anymore.

This is your end. The eternal, loving, unchangeable God as your perfect king. The one who cares for you perfectly. You, made perfect, and living the life you were meant to live from the beginning. All the things from before that gripped your heart with fear are just… gone. There absolutely cannot be a better end. And this is your end.

And what of that man that so boldly confessed to your crimes? The one that was led away to die in your place?

Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

He lives. He is your king. He is the judge. He is your God. He died. He lives. You live.

Amen.

There was something wrong with the night.

I mean, they knew that, they had been told that, but even so, even if you didn’t know – it just felt… off.

Maybe it was a chill beyond the usual that settled on the desert when the sun dropped beyond the horizon.  Maybe it was the way all the people in the homes around them were also rushing about to make their final preparations, to make sure nothing had been overlooked.  People were just a little more frenzied than usual for the end of the day.  Even if you hadn’t been paying attention, you’d notice – something was wrong.

And something was wrong, after all.  Death was coming that night.  Not that their lives were any picnic either.  Slavery in the desert was all they knew.  Many of them each day were worked to death before night ever fell.  But this was different.  This time, there was a statement from God.  This night, the oldest male of each generation, the firstborn son would be struck dead before dawn.  The threat, the warning of God hung in the air like a fog that refused to move.  And so the Israelites faced down this evening of death on their last night in Egypt.

There is something wrong with your life.

Maybe you know that already, maybe you don’t.  But if you don’t, I doubt hearing that really shocks you.

Even if you don’t know it as head-knowledge, you can probably feel it already, can’t you?  Something about your life just feels… off.

Maybe it’s just a feeling, like something just out of the corner of your eye that you just can’t see.  

Something ominous and looming out there in the shadows – dangerous, but it’s never there when you turn around.  I don’t mean there’s something literally stalking you though, I just mean this sense that there’s something wrong, there’s some danger there just out of perception but you can never quite look at it.  

In fact, maybe you could see it if you tried, if you turned and looked.  But the truth is you’re terrified to.  After all, who knows what it might really be.  No, no better to ignore it, better to stay distracted by what you’re doing than try to figure that out.  Focus on what you’re doing right now, on the job, the wife, the kids, the checkbook.  It’s probably just a trick of your imagination anyway, stop thinking about it and it will go away.  Or at least, if you concentrate hard enough on what you’re doing, you won’t notice it anymore.

But even that doesn’t quite work.  Rolling up your sleeves and plunging in elbow-deep to the work in front of you, it works sometimes, but it really doesn’t.  It’s still wrong.  Something is still wrong!  Why?  All the promises made to you when you were a child never seem to come true.  You work hard, you try your best, you have at least some of the things you were promised would make you complete, right?  A family, a home or a few nice things…  where’s the peace?  Where’s the contentment?  Why does it still feel wrong?  Maybe you’re still missing part of the puzzle.  You search for the one missing thing – each one you think, “this is it, now that I have this, I’ll be good and that feeling will go away.”  A vacation, a nicer house, a new home theater, a stronger relationship, a better paying job with less stress, each time something else and this time it will work.

But it never works.  I told you, there is something wrong with your life.  A statement from God himself hangs over your life like a fog that refuses to move.  Death is coming.  And not just any death.  Not just the end of this life, the end of your life forever.  God has programmed into you this truth; those who do evil will be punished.  Evil, huh?  Well then why am I nervous?  I’m not evil.  Aren’t you?  The world around may lie to you, tell you that’s not you, but the disquiet within you says otherwise.  You would never really ask those closest to you “do you think I’m evil?”, but even if you did they would say “of course not.”  That doesn’t mean they’re right.

But you know things they don’t know.  You know there’s not a perfect record stretching back across your life.  You’ve worked hard, done your best, but it’s not been perfect.  There were moments when you gave in and did what you wanted and maybe the cost for you or someone you cared about was high.  Maybe there didn’t seem to be any cost at all, but you could tell it wasn’t right.  And now you drag the guilt of that behind you.

I invite you to stop shifting your eyes away from it, to stop seeing this just out of the corner of your eye and look square at this; our God describes for us exactly what it is.  It is ugly and it is scary, but we cannot deal with it if we do not know what it is.  There is something wrong with your life; there is a hole running through you, a tear in your very self that we call “sin”.  That doesn’t really tell us enough though.  

What is “sin”?

Sin is what God is not.  Sin is shadow and darkness when God is light.  God is good, God is perfect.  Sin is not.  God operates on one driving principle; selfless love.  God seeks the good of everyone else above his own at all times, regardless of what it costs him.  Sin is the opposite; sin is to grab for yourself regardless of what it costs others.  I hope you see that you do not qualify on your own for holiness.  

Maybe you like to think of yourself as a pretty selfless person; but have you been at all times to everyone?  Don’t lie to yourself, it does no good.  We are all of us, unholy.  Sinful.

Now understand this.  Holiness and sinfulness are not just choices or lifestyles.  In a sense, they are like forces of nature, light and dark, magnetic poles and gravity.  Sin cannot exist in the presence of the Holy.  And that is where the fear comes from.  God is Holy.  You are not.  This life will end, and God tells us that you will either be brought in to be with him or you will be thrown out to spend eternity without him.  

If you are sinful, and if sin cannot exist in the presence of the holy, then which will it be for you?  This is what is wrong with your life.  A sentence of eternal death hangs in the air….and there is nothing you can do about it.

But the Israelites in Egypt were not panicked.  Frenzied, hurried, maybe even a little fearful, sure.  But not panicked.  God told them, warned them what was coming.  But he also told them exactly what was needed to escape the death that came that night.  It would take the blood of a lamb.  A single ewe lamb, one year old, spotless and without defect.  The lamb would die instead, the blood was to be painted on the door frames of their houses.  God would see the blood shed, and spare those inside.

So they did this.  That night, as God promised, an angel of death passed over Egypt as by God’s decree, the firstborn son of each household was struck down in his sleep.  But wherever there was the blood of the lamb, the angel stayed his hand.  The angel saw the household through the blood, and they were spared.  God had given the warning to all of Egypt, and he had given his directions just the same.  Those who ignored the feeling that something was wrong; those who did not listen and did nothing about it – there was death in that house that night.  Those who listened to God, who trusted his words of warning and deliverance were safe.

And so, I am not panicked either, and neither should you.  Yes, there is something wrong with our lives.  

We should feel the weight of how important this is.  Yes, we should maybe even be a little fearful just because of the stakes involved.  But truly afraid?  No.  God has warned us about this hole in our lives, about the holiness we are missing not to terrify us, but so that we pay attention, because of just how important this is.  He shouts that this is life and death to get eyes on him.  Because God tells us exactly what we need to escape the death that’s coming for us.  It will take the blood of a lamb.  A single ewe lamb, spotless and without defect.  The lamb will die instead and his blood will cover you; and death will pass over you.

As a remembrance of what he had done for them, God commanded the Israelites to observe the Passover every year.  At the same time of year, at the same day, at the same hour, each household would again sacrifice a single ewe lamb, one year old, without defect or blemish, to remember how God spared them from death.  Then, over a thousand years after the first Passover, on Friday of that week, the day that the lamb was killed, just before the moment when the sound would resonate from the Temple informing everyone that now was the time to sacrifice the lamb; the following happened:

After this, knowing that everything had now been finished, and to fulfill the Scripture, Jesus said, “I thirst.” A jar full of sour wine was sitting there. So they put a sponge soaked in sour wine on a hyssop branch and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished!” Then, bowing his head, he gave up his spirit.

The time had come, the lamb was to be sacrificed.  But not just any lamb.  The real Lamb.  The one who was intended all along.  Everything that went before it was a show, foreshadowing.  It had no real effect.  
Only an equal sacrifice could count for you.  It had to be another person.  Yet if it was just another person, what good would that do?  Even if that person didn’t need saving themselves, their sacrifice would only save you.  But what if God himself were both a person and God?  How could you ever tip the scale of human life to outweigh that?  You can’t.  The one sacrifice would pay for everyone.  And the Lamb did just that.

You are not holy?  Jesus is.  You committed crimes against God?  Jesus didn’t.  The Lamb had no defect and no blemish.  He is what you are not.  He has what you lack.  God was ready to pour out his justice against all the evil ever committed, all in one fell swoop.  Jesus, his Son, the Lamb, stood up and took your place.  He climbed on the cross and there he took everything that your sin earned.  He became your sin, he became your curse.  And when it was done, he uttered those words.  “It is finished.”

One word really, and I’d like to render it a little differently tonight if you’ll permit me.  “Complete.”  That is what happened on the cross right then.  God’s plan to stand in your place so you would not suffer was completed – he died in your place.  The foreshadowing he’d been showing the world since the first Passover meal was completed – the Lamb was sacrificed so that death would pass over you.  You, missing the holiness God requires to be in his presence forever, you are completed.  At that one moment, everything was made complete, everything was made the way God intended from the beginning.

Look at the cross.  Realize what the sacrifice there has done for you.  There may have been something wrong with your life once, there may have been a hole, something missing, something terrifyingly wrong, but Jesus has filled that with his death.  The blood of the lamb was shed for you and so death holds no power over you.  You are complete with Jesus’ gift of himself.  You are given what you once lacked.  God the Father will gladly welcome you into his kingdom when this is all over.  You are complete in him.  
Tonight, we gather in reverent awe to pay our respects for the tremendous sacrifice our Lord went through on our behalf.  There is sadness, yes, because when I look at him hanging to die I know it is my fault he is there.  When his lifeless body is removed and placed in the grave, it is because of me that this happened.  But we are not here to leave this evening morose and depressed.  We know that God did this willingly, out of love for you, individually.  He knew you.  He knows who you are.  He could’ve spared himself that much more suffering by not including you in his sacrifice, but he didn’t.  He wanted to do it.  And as we close the tomb and walk away tonight we needn’t pretend we don’t know what Sunday will bring.  If Sunday did not bring what it does, then tonight would be meaningless.  We may leave tonight somber and reverent, but we still leave with hope and joy in our hearts.  We know what this night means for us.  Jesus made us complete.  In him, we are what we are meant to be forever.
​
I cannot tell you what will happen in your life in the days between now and the time you are called eternal rest in him.  I can tell you that in Jesus and his sacrifice, it doesn’t matter.  In him, your end is set and will not be changed.  Your life is complete.  In Jesus, your sins are paid for, the gift of holiness is given to you, heaven is yours.  There is nothing else to chase after.  There is nothing else to fear.  There is nothing else wrong with your life.  The Lamb has made you complete.  Amen.

It’s cancer.

There probably aren’t many scarier sentences in the English language. Although: It’s fatal. You’re dying. Or you only have a few months left, may come in as close runner ups.

Maybe you’ve heard words like that.
Maybe you’ve haven’t.
But you’ve probably thought of death.

Today we’re taking a look at Psalm 16. It’s a Psalm for the Dying. It is a Psalm for those with terminal diagnoses and it is a Psalm for those of us in the latter years of our lives, but it is also a Psalm for all of us – because all of us are humans – and all of us are dying. That’s why we need to hear a psalm like this. A Psalm filled with hope.  Before we begin, let’s say a prayer: Lord, strengthen us by the truth, your Word is truth. Open our eyes to see what you want us to see; open our ears to hear what you want us to hear; open our hearts to believe what you would have us believe. Amen.
 
I. The Comfortlessness of “not gods”

Psalm 16 is written by King David. King David was someone that was constantly confronted with death. Whether at the hands of a lion, a bear, a 7 ½ foot warrior, the King of Israel and all of his angry men, or the Philistines, a neighboring country who place King David on their Most Wanted list – David knew what it was like to face death.

He knew where to put his hope and he knew where not to put his hope.  Look at what he wrote:
 
                     1 Keep me safe, my God,
                           For in you I take refuge.
                  2 I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
                           Apart from you I have no good thing.”

                  4 Those who run after other gods
                           Will suffer more and more.
 
Pay close attention to verse 2. Notice it sounds very similar, I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord.” But that’s where the English translation is missing something very important. The first LORD there (it should be in all capital letters in whatever Bible you are using) is the Hebrew word YAHWEH. It means simply, “I am.” It’s the name that God identifies himself as. “I am.”

The second “Lord,” is not in all capital letters. That’s because this Lord simply means “master.” A hint of C.E.O. with a large portion of leader. It’s a name synonymous with God.

Listen to verse 2 again then, “I said to I AM,” specifically, “the God revealed to Old Testament Jews, worshipped by the Old Testament Jews and written about in the Old Testament,” I said to that LORD, “you are my Lord… my God. My Master. My Leader. And apart from you, I have no good thing.”
 
Because what happens if your comfort is not in the Great I Am?
 
The Great I AM is not the only “god” mentioned in the Old Testament. Other nations worshipped other gods. There was a god named Baal. He was a statue made of bronze that looked like a half man/half cow. There was a god named Dagon. He was a statue that looked like a fish man that the Philistines worshipped. There was a god named Ashtoreth. People made poles and had sex in front of them in order to worship them.
 
How do these gods hold up in the comfort department?

“I just got diagnosed with cancer. But…I baked some bread and placed it in front of my Baal statue so…it’s still there, but. I’m sure Ball will help.”
“My wife found out that she has six weeks to live. It’s ok though. I was praying in the Dagon sanctuary all night long. I think it worked too. I think I saw him wink at me!" (That or I’m really, really tired)
“Hey buddy…I heard you’re nervous about what might happen to you when you die. Put your faith in my Asherah pole. It cut it to regulation length and sanded it so that it’s smooth to the touch. If anything can grant you eternal life, it’s this 8-foot piece of dead tree.”

How do these gods hold up in the comfort department? They don’t. And neither do the ‘not-gods’ of today.

There is no comfort in Buddha, that, “you may be going through excruciating pain, but it will be worth it when you come back as a butterfly! Or…maybe a slug.”
There is no comfort in Allah, that, “you go ahead and explode in a fiery way and if Allah is pleased with the fireworks show then, you’ll be eating grapes forever.”
There is no comfort in the Jewish religion version of the Old Testament God that “if you do Jewish things, you’ll get to heaven. But if you accidentally mixed up your milk cooking pot with your meat cooking pot that one time --- you’re eternally cooked.”
There is no comfort in science that “I’ll go into the ground and bugs will eat my body, but hey…at least I did some good…sometimes…when I remember.”

There is no comfort in the most popular “not God” of modern America.
There is no comfort in you.

Have you ever noticed that most funerals people like to mention all the good things that people did, but never mentioned the bad things? They mention the charities, the kindnesses, and the goodness. But have you ever noticed that no one ever mentions the bad things?

The real things?


·        “He was a good husband…except for the times when he yelled at me and I feared for my bodily  welfare.”
·        “She was a great wife. Except for the times when she called me every swear word that she could think of.”
·        “He was a great coworker – when he wasn’t drunk.”
·        “She was a great neighbor -- too much so. She did sleep with about every guy on the block.”

You know why we don’t mention those things? Because they aren’t comforting. Because those are bad things. Because those bad things deserve death.  

Romans 1:32 says, “People know God’s righteous decree that those who do wrong things deserve death.” That’s justice. True Justice. If we are turning to ourselves and our own deeds and our own accomplishments to comfort us in death -- you won’t find comfort. It’s like trying to take a nap on a bed of nails! It’s not comforting at all!

Because when you look at your own accomplishments and your own life for comfort in death, you’re actually looking at the very thing that causes your death in the first place.

Yourself.
 
II. The Comfort of the One God
 
There is no comfort apart from the true God.

That’s what the town of Nain was discovering. A beloved widow – the kind who knew everyone’s name – the kind who baked muffins for your birthday – the kind who always gave you a hug – had just lost her son.

Her only son.

The entire town was out for the funeral procession. There weren’t any rousing speeches. There weren’t any words of comfort. There weren’t any songs of joy.
It was a sad affair. Cries mixed with wailing mixed with murmurs of curses at God.

Enter Jesus.

He was the affair from afar.
He told his disciples to wait.
He walked through the crowd;
He passed right by the widow.
He smiled, reached up and touched the young man’s hand.


“Young man – live.”

Suddenly, Jesus brought a comfort that no one could bring that widow.
Jesus literally brought her son back to life.


This is why David tells us to find comfort in the One True God:


                  9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
                         My body also will rest secure,
                  10 because you will not abandon me o the realm of the dead,
                        Nor will you let your Holy One see decay.
 
Pay very close attention to the phrase in verse 10. You will not let your Holy One see decay. In a certain sense, David was talking about himself. He knew that he would not die. He knew that he would have eternal life because God had made him righteous by faith. For years, I’m sure that was the understanding of that passage.

But…fast forward a couple 800 some years.

Paul, a Christian teacher, is teaching about Jesus. He says, “Do ya’ll remember that passage from Psalm 16:10?  Remember how confident David was that his body would not decay? Do you also remember that David’s body decayed? Literally – let’s go find his grave. Let’s dig it up. We won’t find anything but soil and worms.”

Because David wasn’t talking about himself. David was talking about Jesus.

Jesus who died on a cross.
Jesus who was buried.
Jesus who came back to life.

His body didn’t even decay! Two of his disciples prepared him for burial, wrapped him up and placed him in a tomb and before his body did not begin to rot before the white blood cells were detoxing his body yet again. His lungs didn’t begin to lose their shape, before they filled with air once more. His flesh did not begin to smell, before he was outdoors smelling the rose yet again!


Look at David’s confidence in this same Jesus: 11 You make known to me the path of life!  You went through death. You came out alive. And you’ll lead me to do the same.


I remember once time in college I was short on cash and found an ad on the campus bulletin board for help needed raking leaves. $15 per bag! I was excited. So, my friend and I typed the address into MapQuest (this was before Smartphones – am I dating myself?) and started driving. We got into the countryside and farmland of small town MN, when the directions got very interesting.

Take HWY 17. Ok. Done.
Turn right onto County Road 18. Got it.
Turn left onto Unnamed Road.

Wait…what?

God’s not like that. He doesn’t have some really difficult to follow directions. He won life for us and he made it so easy to attain. John 3:16 says simply this, “God so loved the world that he gave his One and Only Son, that’s Jesus, that whoever believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life.”
 
You know this is true because Jesus is the Great I AM.
Jesus is the God that David was talking about in Psalm 16.
Jesus is the author of Life.
Jesus is your life.

Jesus will not abandon you to the grave.
He won’t let you die in some hospital all alone.
He won’t shut you up in some Assisted Living Home and forget all about you.
He won’t put you on Hospice care and let others deal with you.
He will not abandon you on this side of the grave
Nor the other side.
 
III.        What Now?

1. Stop Pouring Out Libations

 
David said that’s what he was not going to do anymore: “I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods.”

Because back then one way you’d worship those “not gods” is by making a sacrifice, collecting the blood and pouring it out on the altar of a false god. That showed your allegiance to the false god. That showed trust in that false god. That showed you were a follower of that false god.

But if you trust in the true God, why do you need the false gods?

Now there aren’t any false gods that require blood sacrifices in 21st century America. But think about your actions – stop pouring out libations to them.

Do you give financial gifts to an organization that’s helps share the teaching of a false god? Stop it.
Do the Facebook posts you share support false teachings – which is a false view of God? Delete them.
Does your politically correct office talk give the impression that “It’s no big deal. God can be whoever you want him to be. If you want that coffee pot to be your god man, he’ll be your god. Cool. I’m sure you’re saved.” Stop talking in such a way.

Stop pouring out libations to “not gods.”
 
 (2)  Take Refuge in God
 
That’s what David started out with. In you, O LORD, I have taken refuge.

It’s like when a hurricane is coming. You want to find refuge in a good shelter. It’s not a great idea to go set up a tent and go camping. For a powerful hurricane, the more fortified the building the better. You want to be safe from rain, from wind and flying debris.

Finding refuge in ‘not gods’ is like preparing for a hurricane by covering up with a few newspapers.
Finding refuge in the God, Jesus Christ means that you will not die, but live.

And you’ll find hope as you face death. Hopes that lasts forever.

(3) Measure out Your Boundary Line
 
Of course, death can still be intimidating. Death can still be scary. If the doctor has had bad reports for you, then it can certainly leave you scared.

That’s when you need to measure out your boundary line.

I think that’s an interesting phrase in verse 6. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. You might think – that’s easy for David to say. He was King of Israel. He had a gorgeous palace. God expanded his empire while he was king.

Me? I’ve got a 1100 square foot ranch house. Plus, my neighbor and I have been arguing about whether or not that dogwood tree is mine or his for the past 3 years!

But this Psalm isn’t about David’s earthly inheritance.
This Psalm is about David’s eternal inheritance.
His eternal inheritance is the same is yours.

It’s heaven.

Do what David suggest. Take a moment – today, tomorrow – anytime you’re feeling intimidated by death – and gaze at your inheritance.

It’s a nice little bungalow.
There’s no sin there.
The flowers bloom eternally – they never die.
No need for an AC or a furnace because the weather is always perfect.
The area is pretty neat – there are eternal pleasures on every street corner.

Your next-door neighbor? He’s pretty cool.

It’s God himself.

One day – you will live by him. Amen.

I was a Senior Vicar – 24 years old and I had been called to the hospital. I was there to visit a woman named Matilda – someone whom I had enjoyed lightly toasted bread and tea with on numerous occasions. We had gotten together to talk about her family, hummel figurines, and the best episodes of the Lucy show.

But now…now there was no Lucy show. No figurines. No lightly toasted bread.

Matilda had just died. Her breathing had stopped.

And my stomach just felt strange. I had just seen someone die. Now…now how could I help?
 
As I looked at the tear stained eyes of the family members in the room -- I racked my brain. Should I do CPR? Should I run to get a nurse? Should there be some kind of special Pastor trick that I hadn’t learned yet in Pastoral theology that I should be used to return her breath to her...?

I felt helpless. Helpless because…What’s there to do when the breathing stops?

Today we’re finishing up our sermon series called BREATHE and we what Jesus did to prep you for eternal breathing, what he’s currently doing, and what you can do to prep yourself.

I. He’s Preparing Things for You 

Take a look at John 14. This happens 43 days before Jesus’ ascension – 40 days before Ascension is Easter. 3 days before Easter is Maundy Thursday. It’s the night Jesus that Jesus is betrayed; the night he’s arrested; the night before he’s beaten, flogged, convicted, crucified, and killed.

Heavy stuff.

And as Jesus was speaking about it, he’s disciples were getting spooked.

If the Pharisees did that to their leader, what would he do to them?
And If Jesus was dead, how could he protect them? 
And if he couldn’t protect them, wouldn’t they just run out of breath?  

Listen to Jesus’ words of to them:  

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, I would have told you so. I am going there to prepare a place for you.

Now note that when Jesus says, “His Father’s house,” he’s not talking about Joseph. That would have been his step-dad’s house in Nazareth. While a carpenter makes a living, I doubt that the house had enough room for 11 disciples to spread out on the living room floor for a nap. Can you imagine what that would have been like? “Peter & Andrew – you’re brothers so you can sleep in this room together. John, you take the floor. And Philip? There’s an old futon out back that you can curl up on.”

Nope. The Father he was talking about was bigger. 
And the house He was talking about was bigger too. 

In my Father’s house are many rooms.

Ever been to the Biltmore Estate? It has over 250 rooms. 33 bedrooms. 43 bathrooms. 3 kitchens and 65 fireplaces. It’s able to house hundreds of people at the same time. That’s a lot.

Heaven houses a lot more. It has many rooms. Enough rooms for God to fill it with people from every age, every era, every culture, and every race. Scripture talks about thousands upon thousands and ten thousand upon ten thousand. Myriads of people crowding the halls of this divine house, taking up residents in one of its many rooms. 

And one of those rooms? It’s for you. 

Look at what Jesus says next, I am going there to prepare a place for you. That’s a promise he makes to his disciples.  A disciple is a follower of Jesus.  Do you follow Jesus? Do you believe in him? Jesus is talking about you.

Jesus isn’t up in heaven laying on a couch flipping through episodes of Fuller House on Netflix. He’s not in heaven sipping martinis by a heavenly poolside and leaving you down here with all your problems, with all your relationship problems, with all your financial struggles, to slowly go through life working your dead-end job, barely making it until you die. 

He’s busy. He’s preparing a place for you. 
 
Suddenly you get this picture of Jesus sweeping up the floor, turning the Roomba loose on the carpet, putting flowers in a vase by the bedside table, fluffing pillows, lighting some candles, spraying some Febreeze and folding a towel into one of the little duck like creatures that they make at the Holiday Inn. 
 
Is Jesus actually doing such mundane earthly tasks? Probably not. It’s heaven. It’s not earth. But the point is this: Jesus is that excited to have you in heaven. He’s getting a special spot, preserved and prepared just for you.

If one of the angels comes along and says, “Hey Jesus, is anyone using this room? I want to use it for some divine yoga!”

Jesus will respond, “No! That room is for my beloved. It’s for this 21st century Christian, sitting in row 7, seat 2 at Gethsemane church in Raleigh, NC. I’ve been preparing that spot for them for years. I lived perfectly for them. I died for them. I rose triumphantly for them. All so that they might live in that room – down the hall from me – eternally.” 

II. He’s Coming Back to Get you

When your spot is ready – when the time is just right – Jesus is coming back. If I go there and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me. 

Did you know that infants are terrible at peekaboo? Infants lack something called “object permanence.” That means they don’t understand that objects generally don’t disappear out of thin air. So, if you are making an infant smile and then throw a blanket over your face, the infant thinks “Help. He’s gone. Don’t know where to either.” The infant is extra surprised to see you again – because he was expecting that you were gone. 

Don’t we do the same thing with Jesus?  

The way this world is going – things are so awful. Jesus isn’t ever coming back! 
Finances are so hard – I imagine God doesn’t care a bit about me. 
I’m so lonely – Jesus must have forgotten all about me.
My health is deteriorating fast. Jesus must have checked out!

Nope. He remembers.

When he’s done preparing a place for you, he will come back and take you to be with him. 

To a place without the sin and immorality of this world.
To a place without financial burdens.
To a place surrounded by God’s love.
To a place where there is no sickness; no sadness and no pain!

That’s sounds pretty awesome. It would be sad to miss it.

Like Google Calendar. Do you ever use its features? If you ever have a really important event you can set it up shoot off an alarm that way you don’t miss the meeting. Sometimes I have to put a couple of reminders for a really big day – like the Doritos convention – I have reminders 1 week, 3 days, 24 hours, 12 hours, 5 hours, 2 hours, 1 hour & ½ an hour before hand. I don’t want to forget!

Don’t you worry about Jesus. He won’t forget. Don’t think you’ve done too much sin or been too far away for too long that he will forget all about coming to get you.

He will remember you. He will come back for you.

It doesn’t matter where you are:

On the sixth floor of your office surrounded by stacks of paper at work? He will remember you. He will come back for you.
In line to make a rent payment at the fourth apartment you’ve tried out this year? He will remember you. He will come back for you.
On the fourth floor of the sixth building on the gigantic campus of UNC Health Center? He will remember you. He will come back for you.
In the ground, row 18 in the cemetery, plot 37 – He will come back for you.

Lazarus had been buried in a tomb for four days. He had been dead for longer – probably a whole week. His body had begun to deteriorate. The grave had begun to smell like rot. He was dead.

When Jesus got there to see him, his sisters lost it: “You’re too late! You should have been here earlier. You missed him. You could have helped him; you could have saved him; but now he’s dead.”

Jesus? He had them roll the stone away. He peered inside. He called out: “Lazarus!”

Lazarus walked out – alive. 
 
There’s a promise that Jesus made right before doing that to Lazarus. He said, “Whoever believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me; will never die!” (Jn. 11:27)

Do you believe in Jesus? That means you will live.

Have cancer? You will live. 
Getting older? You will live.
Nervous about terrorist? You will live.
You will be in heaven. You will breathe. Even when you’re breathing stops.
 
III. What Now? 
 
1.     Give the Best Gift a Mom Can Give

Here’s the Mother’s Day connection. We are gonna get it in there somehow. If you are a modern mom, there’s a lot of pressure to be a good mom. Our world is of the opinion that if you want to be a good mom you need to enroll your kid in ballet, take him to swimming, karate, clarinet, science club, make sure he has good grades but get him an iPhone, feed him the most expensive organic food available, but save up enough money for college, make sure he’s disciplined, but not be one of those hard-nosed moms either. 

It’s hard. It’s also wrong.

Because if you want to be a good mom, there is one thing needful: Teach your kids about Jesus.
Nothing else is that important. Tell them Bible stories. Read them the Bible. Do family devotions. Bring them to church. Bring them to Sunday School. Have them baptized.

If you want to them in heaven with you, do all you can to teach them about the one, the ONLY ONE, who offers heaven. Jesus!
 
2.     Give the Best Gift a Mom Can Get

Moms – you might be getting a lot of gifts today. A pair of earrings. A flower. A card with “I think it’s a spotted cow” on it. Happy “Mooo—ther’s Day!” Careful how you react! Because if you want to show appreciation for a gift, you take good care of it. You put it in a special spot. You make sure not to throw it away. You keep it for years to come. 

It’s the same way with spiritual gifts.

Maybe you have a Christian mom.
Maybe you had a Christian mom.
Maybe you had a grand mom, an aunt, an uncle, a dad, a somebody who loved Jesus and cared give you the gift of your Savior.

Use that gift. Take care of that gift. Keep your faith in Jesus strong. Exercise your spirit in God’s Word – at church, at home, listening to your iPhone as you drive. Whatever it takes to make sure you’re breathing when your breathing ends.

That’s what Matilda had done. She had read her Bible. She sang her hymns. She had listened to the cassette tapes of sermons that past pastors had brought her. She even listened to the CDs of Sundays service that I brought her (after I explained to her how it all worked).

She listened. She heard about her Savior’s last breath on the cross. She heard about her Savior’s first breath in the tomb.

She believed.

When she took her last breath in that hospital room, immediately, instantly, she segued to her first divine breath.

In her Father’s house.

Amen. 

19 And Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me." 20 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you."

John pulled his tunic over his nose. It was a bit chilly outside the city. No walls to cover the wind and no trees to block its bitterness.

Well…not any living trees. 

Before John stood a tree that had been transformed into a torture device. It was an instrument of execution. A terrifying spectacle that no one in the ancient Roman world wanted anything to do with.

A cross.

On that cross hung someone very dear to John. Someone John looked up to. Someone John learned from. It was his mentor, his teacher, his friend.

It was Jesus. 

John stood there in agony. With Jesus’ own mother, Mary clinging to his side. How awful it must be for her! His Lord was Mary’s Son. The One that she had brought into the world was leaving the world before her very eyes.

And in a cruel way! His body was broken. His skull had been broken open by the thorn. His hands were broken by a nail. His feet were broken by another nail. His lungs were breaking as his strength withered. Soon his heart would break and all that would be left was a broken, defeated, body.
 
And his Blood was poured out. It was pouring out of those holes in his head, pouring out of the holes in his right hand, pouring out of the hole in his left hand, pouring down the back of the cross from the wounds covering the back of Jesus…pouring from his feet and pouring from his mouth as his body began to shut down.

His poor friend. Jesus was broken. Jesus was poured out.

Wait…John had heard that somewhere before.

The night before John had joined the other disciples and Jesus for a traditional Passover meal. They had traditional bitter herbs to remember the bitter herbs of slavery in Egypt that their ancestors endured. They ate traditional unleavened bread as their ancestors had so they were ready to leave Egypt at a moment’s notice. They served traditional lamb as a reminder of the blood of a lamb that caused the angel of death to Passover those Israelites houses that night in Egypt.

It was a traditional meal, until Jesus did something untraditional.

Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” (Lk. 22:19)

Strange. That wasn’t a normal part of the meal. That wasn’t a part of any Passover memory.

Then, Jesus took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” (Lk. 22:20)

Stranger. This definitely wasn’t a part of the meal. Sure, they drank some traditional wine. Sure, the wine had some meaning, but that meaning reached back thousands of years to the Old Testament. The Passover was a remembrance of what happened in the past...not a glimpse ahead into the future?

And how could it be his body? His body was handing him the bread, not in the bread.
And how could it be his blood? Unless he had a blister from the rubbing of his sandals, there wasn’t a drop of blood on him.

This didn’t make any sense.

At least not then. But now…now as John stared at Jesus’ broken body and his dripping blood – the truth could not escape him. Jesus was right. His body was broken. His blood was shed. Jesus was the embodiment of that meal.

Which meant that they had been wrong about the Passover meal for thousands of years. It wasn’t just a link to the past, but for thousands of years it had been a predictor of the future. John the Baptist was right – Jesus was truly True Lamb of God.  

Jesus was right, he had truly given up his body. He had truly shed his blood.

But if Jesus was right about that, maybe he was right about something else he said last night.

“This is my body…given for you. This is my blood….poured out for you.”

For you. For you.

John found it hard to believe; yet he was convinced that he needed it. John’s life had been filled with pride. He had even had the audacity to ask for a position at Jesus’ right hand. And he had been known to be argumentative, a Son of Thunder, selfishly attacking his fellow disciples.

And last night? Last night he had let Jesus get arrested. He had abandoned him. Sure, he had been at the trial. Sure he was there at the cross, but he was also doing nothing of consequence to stop what was happening to his friend.

He had sinned. He knew what the Old Testament sacrifices had taught. Sin deserved death. There was no forgiveness without the shedding of blood.

That truth did not escape him, he deserved sin’s consequence. He deserved to have his body broken. He deserved to have his blood shed. He deserved to die!

But Jesus…Jesus had said…Given for you. Poured out for you.

He had been right about it’s happening. Could he be right about it’s effect?

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Friends, we’ve got the benefit of seeing what happens after his body is broken and laid to rest. We get the benefit of seeing what happens after all his blood is shed.

Jesus returns to life.

It is nothing less than proof that what Jesus said on the first Maundy Thursday was indefinitely, completely, and absolutely true.

Do you have sin just like John? Maybe you’ve got sin that burdens your conscience. Perhaps you’ve got guilt that bothers you to the core. Maybe you’ve got the unshakeable feeling that you can’t be forgiven.

Listen to Jesus’ words: My body broken for you. My blood shed for you.

Those words were recorded.
Those words contain eternal truth.
Those words don’t just talk about John.
They talk about you.

It means you have sin. You deserve death. You need a Savior. 

It means Jesus took your sins. It means Jesus died. It means Jesus is your Savior. 

In a moment, we will receive the Lord’s Supper. When you receive that Lord’s Supper, you will be receiving his body which was broken on the cross for you. You will be receiving his blood which was shed on the cross for you. You will be receiving true and complete forgiveness.

See Jesus. Trust Jesus. Believe Jesus. Amen. 

The knock at the door startled him.

Peter turned inquisitively. The noise was harsh and deliberate as if the person on the other side needed his guidance right this instance.

He opened the door to find two men standing there; each with a look of concern. “Peter, we’re glad to see you. Something awful has happened. Tabitha is dead. Please come at once!” (V.38)

Peter’s face faded. He had heard about Tabitha. She lived in Joppa. Joppa was kind of a rough place. It was well known its history of pirates, the repeated reconstructions from various city wide fires, and being nothing more than a pawn whose people were thrown back and forth between political dynasties. It wasn’t a huge city. A fishing port. A place with plenty of trouble.

Tabitha had tried to fix that. In Joppa she did what she could to help. Scripture says, “She was always doing good and helping the poor." I  imagine that was a host of things – Picking up day old bread from the local bakery to distributed to the poor. Cooking up a pot of soup to deliver to the sick. Taking up a collection to help those who could barely afford to pay rent. Tabitha loved her Lord and she loved the people of Joppa with heart full of love. In fact, her name – Tabitha – and its Greek translation “Dorcas” – both meant “gazelle” -- an excellent description of one who bounding with gazelle like  

Unfortunately Joppa was about 12 miles away from where Peter was staying in Lydda. That’s why the disciples were so frantic. There weren’t any local pastors around yet. They couldn’t just text message for some help. No one could Facebook status Peter updates on how she was doing. Peter wasn’t able to Skype in with a last second devotion before she had passed away.

It was all too late.

But because this woman was so loved, the people needed him. They needed Peter to comfort them. They needed Peter to remind them of their faith. They knew Peter had so many words of Jesus committed to his heart and they wanted to hear those words as they ready for what would be a rather large funeral.

As they traveled to Joppa, I imagine that Peter was a bit nervous. This wasn’t some bit player in the Joppa church. She was very well known. She had had an impact on so many lives. What could he say to comfort them? How could he assure them it was ok? What words of Jesus would he use for his sermon – he didn’t even have the New Testament yet to review what Jesus had said!

They arrived at the house. Tabitha’s body had been already washed and placed in an upstairs room. (37) She was attended to by the widows that she had once herself attended. Her dear friends whom she had helped through rough times. The poor widow who depended on Tabitha to help feed her family. The elderly widow who depended on Tabitha for some kind of social interaction. The now healthy widow whose bed Tabitha spent long hours besides reading Psalms in order to comfort her.

By the way, this is proof that she had really died. The people working with her body hadn’t felt a pulse. They didn’t stop because her lungs were moving. As they put on one of her prettiest dresses, their hands brushed against the cold texture of her skin. As nicely as they did her, ordained her neck with jewels, and put makeup on her face, they couldn’t hide the fact that this life filled woman was now nothing more than a sack of dead bones.

As Peter walked up the stairs, he was by a blur of emotions. There was wailing. Cries of “Why did God let this happen Peter?” Hands from the left and the right were reaching out to receive a hug. Woman after woman shoved blankets in his face – they hysterically rushed through their stories of how Tabitha had helped them, of how they would miss her, of how this was such a terrible thing to have happen.

As Peter took it all in – I imagine his stomach churned. (I know that’s what happened to me the first time I was in the room while someone had died.) And as a Pastor  -- Peter needed to have all the answers and he needed them quick. There wasn’t time for him to heal, he needed to provide words of healing so he could remove the pain that the hearts of all of these women were feeling.

Peter needed a moment. He had the two men clear the widows from the room. He was left alone with the lifeless body of this dear woman. 

What would Jesus do? He always had known what to say. He always had known how to help. In fact – Peter had seen him handle similar situations before. In Jairus’ bedroom – as emotions were even higher of the death of a young girl – Jesus reached out his hand and opened her eyelids. In Nain – hordes of people had gathered to mourn the burial of a young man – Jesus had stopped the procession to give the man his life back. At Mary and Martha’s house, the funeral was already over – and only the bitterness at God was left. 4 days Lazarus had been in the tomb – when Jesus opened the tomb and Lazarus came walking out.

This situation was so similar. Pain. Sadness. Mourning. It was similar and yet – different. 

There was no Jesus. 

...Or was there?

“Surely, Peter, I will be with you always to the very end of the Age.” (Mt. 28:21)

Peter knelt to the ground and prayed.

“O dearest master, my Lord, Jesus. You promised to be with me. I believe it. You have power over death. I have seen it. You are always merciful. I know it. Be with me now. Be powerful now. Be merciful now. Give Tabitha her life back. Amen.”

Slowly Peter blinked. He took a deep breath. He went up to Tabitha’s bed. He looked into her peacefully closed eyelids. 

“Tabitha,” he said, “Get up.” (v.40)

No matter how long it was in actual seconds and minutes, I imagine it seemed like an eternity for Peter. His words hung there like a puff of smoke – slowly dissipating into the air.

Then, Tabitha opened her eyes. She was alive.

Next it says, Seeing Peter she sat up. I imagine it was kind of quickly too. “Hey wait a second, Peter!?! I thought you were still on earth? Where’s Jesus? Where’s the angels? Where’s the glorious heavenly music? I don’t see the streets of gold – this is…this is my bedroom? I’m back on earth. God has given me my life back. God isn’t done with me yet. God has a plan for me to serve him. Oh how thrilling. Here, come and give me a hug now Peter. And reach over and grab my sewing set will you? I want to make you a nice a new tunic for all your trouble – a servant of God can’t do his preaching without a nice tunic, don’t you agree?”

The curve’s of Peter’s smile must have connected with the tears falling from his eyes. God did it. God had raised her from the dead!

Peter took Tabitha downstairs and the gasps between cries turned into gasps of amazement. The tears of sadness turned to tears of joy. The wailing turned to laughter. Jesus had done it again. He had destroyed death. He had brought Tabitha back to life. And many heard these news and many believed in the Lord.
*************************************************************************************************

This story is amazing isn’t it? It takes one of the saddest things that happens on earth and totally turns it around. But here’s the deal: This isn’t Pinocchio where Geppetto’s love miraculously gives Pinocchio life and turns him into a real boy only because the original author thought it’d be a really neat twist--a commentary on how people live forever through memories.

This story is real. This resurrection is real. This resurrection is joyous. There’s two important things for you to remember from it:

1) Posture

What was the first thing that Peter did when he was faced with the terrors of death? He didn’t whip out his travelling medical kit. He didn’t frantically search the room for a defibrillator. He didn’t get out his phone and WebMD a cure for death. He didn’t start crying hysterically because he knew there was nothing he could do. Check out verse 40. He got down on his knees and prayed. He postured himself before his all powerful and merciful Lord.

Our world is scared of death. Thousands of dollars are spent on healthy eating programs, organic foods, exercise programs, and doctor visits. We want to live. We don’t want to die.

Sometimes it gets personal. Someone you love gets sick. A friend gets into a car accident. The news reports a string of murders. You get a bad report from the doctor. Everywhere you go you are reminded of death.

When that happens posture yourself in front of the cross. Bow before your Savior. Get on your hands and knees and pray to your Lord. Pray confidently like you're talking to your old friend – because you are! Surely he is with you always to the very end of the age.

Be confident that he will be able to save you from death. Because he has already destroyed it!

Julianna, my sweet wife, hates spiders. Actually bugs of all kinds, but especially spiders. The other day one of them had made its way into the home. She screamed, but then she gathered her senses, picked up a shoe, and she fought that spider in Mortal Kombat. She smacked him again and again and again and again and again. I think she killed him about sixteen times.

That’s how Jesus killed death. It’s exactly how Jesus killed your sins which would have caused your eternal death. He squashed Death like a bug. He destroyed it.

It’s amazing how that’s not what it looked like would happen. He hung on the cross and breathed his last. His heart stopped beating. His brain stopped shooting nervous throughout his system.

But three days later – his lungs breathed again. His heart beat with a purpose. His brain was on eternal hyperdrive!

Jesus defeated death. He said ENOUGH OF IT! He says the same for you too.

It’s why the Bible says what it does about death. We read it as our verse of the day from 1 Corinthians 15:55-56: "Where O death is your victory? Where O death is your sting? The sting of death is sin  and the power of sin is the law, but thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

Posture yourself at the feet of the cross and you will find comfort. You will find life.

2) Presentation

Does it ever happen to you that the first time you read a story, you totally miss something? Then the second time you see it something jump out at you before that wasn’t there before? Ever seen the movie Inception? I’ve seen it about 5 times and I’m still not sure I totally know what’s going on.

Take a look at our story again. Did you notice that Tabitha wasn’t the only one who came back to life that day? That’s a pretty big miss isn’t it? Look at the story again. Look at verse 42 says that This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. The message that Peter taught – about Jesus Christ, our Savior who died to save us from our sins – was yet against substantiated by a fantastic miracle – and many put their faith in Him. Their spiritually dead souls had come to life!

Have you heard of Isagenix? It’s some kind of meal replacement system that apparently does wonders for your body. Sometimes on Facebook five out of the first ten story updates are nothing but pictures and testimonials from my friends about how this product saved their life. I can understand why they are so excited! Isagenix may cause them to live longer.

But eventually they’ll die.

You have someone way more powerful than Isagenix – someone who has power not just over fat and cholesterol – someone who has power over death itself.

It’s Jesus!

Isn’t that a good enough reason to pass on the message of your Savior? Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the Life. Whoever believes in me will live, even though he dies. Whoever lives and believes in me, will never die.”

How can your friend believe if you don’t tell him? How will your kids know if you don’t teach them? How will your husband know if you don’t insist on bringing him to church?

But they might get annoyed with me!

I’ll tell you what - it’s worth them getting annoyed. “Yes, I’m insisting on you coming to hear the message of Jesus. You getting annoyed at me right now is totally worth having you rejoicing with me in heaven.”

I know that’s what Georg thought.

I’ve told you about Georg before. He was a friend of mine down at a nearby retirement home. He was 98 years old. For three years he came very faithfully to our Friday morning Bible studies. He answered questions. He listened and slept sometimes – but he loved hearing about Jesus. It was what gave him strength. He loved to tell me stories about growing up in Austria. He told me funny anecdotes about immigrating to America. He told me stories of bravery during WWII. He told me tear jerkers about his wife who had passed on.

One weekend, Georg didn’t come to Bible study. I thought he might just be sick, so I didn’t think anything of it. The next week he wasn’t there either so I went to his room to look for him. The third week I asked the director – she passed on the word that Georg had died.

I teared up. But I also smiled. Because as nice as it was for Georg and I to spend time together on earth – now he was spending eternity--eternity together with his wife and Jesus in heaven.

Jesus is "the resurrection and the Life. Whoever believes in me will live, even though he dies. Whoever lives and believes in me, will never die.” Posture yourself before his cross. Present his message to the world. 

Enough Death.

Amen.

I’m sure it seemed like every other, run of the mill crucifixion.

As the Roman soldier adjusted his cincture and wiped his brow after hoisting the heavy cross under the hot Middle Eastern sun, he was prepared for things to go just as they normally did. There would be cries of pain and moan of agony from the convicted. There would be crowds of people gathering to watch, more for the sport of it, than out of compassion. There would be curses hurled at the criminals, blood splattering the dust, and a few tears from the loved ones of the condemned. Slowly, just as always, he would have a front row seat as he watched the life of another human being gradually drift away from him.

At first, it looked like every other crucifixion he had been a part of. But then, it became very different.

It started with the criminal. Usually they were no good, scum of he earth types. They would curse those who were cursing htem. They’d spit and spew forth insults as their dying breath enabled them.

But this guy, this Jesus, remained silent. He didn’t say much. He didn’t sweat. He didn’t insult. In fact, the first time he spoke, he said words of kindness.

“Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”

This Jesus had a sign above his head. It was common  for crimnals to have signs which explained their crimes. But the sign above Jesus didn’t say, “Murderer,” or “Adulterer.” It didn’t say, “Thief,” or even “Tax Evader.”

It said: “King.”

And the crowds. Never before had so many come to watch a crucifixion. The tone of this crowd was violent too. They vehemently hated this man. They despised him. It seemed that they couldn’t get enough of hurling insults at him.

But others…others loved him. As the soldier stood at his post,  he couldn’t help but overhear some of the things they called him, “Savior,” “Redeemer,” “Messiah,”….”Friend.”

Then things got very strange. It was the middle of the day, the hottest part of the day, the part when the sun is the strongest.

That’s when it grew dark. Nighttime dark. Can’t see your hand in front of your face dark.

While the soldier couldn’t see; he could hear. He heard the voice of this JEsus. Strong. Convicting. Careful. Loving. The gentle words of this Jesus penetrated and haunted his brutal, Roman heart.

Then, Jesus cried out. He cried out and shouted, “It is finished.” With finality. With authority. With joy…almost.

Then, he spoke once more, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”

Then, he died.

And as he died, at that exact moment of his death, the One who controls earthquakes, seemed to respond. The earth began to shake. It trembled. It trembled a powerful tremble – and as the soldier braced himself against he foot of the cross – he saw rocks splitting into two.
 
Then, the earth calmed. The soldier thought. He thought about what had happened. He thought about who this Jesus was.

He came to a terrifying conclusion: “Surely this was the Son of God.”

Can you imagine the terror going through his mind? He had just participated in the killing God’s divine Son? He had killed the divine Savior. He had murdered God Himself!

I’m sure his mind began racing. “What have I done? How will I ever be forgiven? I won’t. I killed God’s son. He’ll come after me. The Lord of heaven and earth will come after me, find me, and obliterate me.”

The soldier beat his chest. This was a terrible realization.

But to be fair. This soldier was not alone in killing God’s Son. He wasn’t the reason Jesus had died. Nor was it the fault of the other soldiers, the crowd that chanted “Crucify,” Pontius Pilate who condemned Him, or even the chief priests who plotted this whole death months in advance.

These people didn’t killed Jesus.

You did.

Romans 4:25 says this, “Jesus was delivered over to death, for (or “because of”) our transgressions.”

Do you understand what that is saying? It says that the reason Jesus was up there, the reason Jesus died, The reason he hung on the cross was your sins. He hung as a substitute. He hung to take the brutal punishment that your sins deserved.

It really forces you to rethink sin, doesn’t it? It’s so easy for us to go through life and think of sin as “no big deal.” “I’m not perfect.” “Everybody sins.” “I’m not as bad others.”

But you are bad enough that your sins resulted in Jesus dying on the cross.

I don’t care what kind of sin it was either. Your sins led to this. Whether “big sins” like adultery, murder, or brutal violence – or “smaller sins” greed, a white lie, a little name calling, not really worshipping God with all your heart.

Sin is Sin. Sin caused Jesus to die. Sin killed Jesus. Your Sin killed Jesus. My sin killed Jesus.

Our sins killed God’s Son.

The soldiers was right. Surely this was God’s Son. It’s a terrifying thought.

But we are gathered here today, not because what happened thousands of years ago is terrifying. But because it is good. Good Friday.

Consider Romans 4:25 again, “He was delivered over to death for our sins.” He was the substitute. He took the brunt force of God’s wrath against sin and there is no force of wrath left for you.

It’s true that you deserved to be on that cross 2000 years ago, but it’s also true that Jesus died for you. The punishment that happened – is over. There is no punishment that remains.

How do you know it’s true for you? How do you know that it’s not just true for his followers – his really good followers – the people who haven’t done as much wrong as you?

Remember the words of the soldier: “Surely, this was the Son of God.”

Jesus’ life was no ordinary life. His death was no ordinary death. His blood was no ordinary blood.

Jesus’ death covers your sin. And your sin. And your sin. And your sin. It covers every last one of your sins.

It covers the big sins that haunt your heart. It covers the repeated sins that you struggle against.
It cover the sins that have ruined relationships. It covers the sins that have kept you from God.

The Son of God is powerful. Just as he had done miracles all his life, so he did miracles on that Good Friday. As he had cleansed men from leprosy, so he cleansed you from sin. As he cast out demons, so he cast out the devil. As he made the mute to speak, so he causes us to shout in joy. As he restored the health of the sick, so he restored our spiritual health. As he stopped storms, so he stopped death. As he brought people back to life from the dead, so he brought us back from the dead—he gave us spiritual AND eternal life.

I read the first part of Romans 4:25 earlier, “He was delivered over to death because of our sins.” Now…let me read the second part, “He was raised to life because of our justification.”

Keep this in the back of your mind. Jesus’ substitute worked. The Father looked down at his Son and said, “Well done.” He looked down at the world and said, “Be at peace.”

He looked down at you and said, “You are forgiven.” He said, "You are my child." He said, "One day, by faith in my Son, you will join me in heaven...forever escaped from the very things that made Good Friday so sad."

No more Sin. No more sadness. No more pain. No more sorrow. 

No more death.

And Jesus? Don't worry about him. In fact if you look at the words of the soldier one last time there is reason to rejoice: 

"Surely this is the Son of God."
"Surely death cannot hold him."
"Surely he will rise." 

Please join us for Easter. Amen.