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When COVID-19 is finally over, I think church should have a party.
A non-socially distant party. A party where everyone who enters gets good, old fashioned, human contact. There’ll be… High fives! Hugs Even European cheek kisses? There’ll be Juicy Juices available in the snack area – with two giant straws for you to share with a complete stranger! Out back, we’ll have a giant game of twister… And we’ll end the party by doing one of those things where everyone puts their hands in and then raise them by shouting something encouraging like: “Go Social Near Proximity!” A non-social distance party sounds nice… But… We aren’t there yet. Not at all. And maybe… Some of you wonder. When will that party happen? Or maybe… Will that party EVER happen? Yes. That party will absolutely happen. In fact, the Bible guarantees such a party. Only this party, it doesn’t happen on earth. Today we hear from God’s Word about the ETERNAL VICTORY PARTY awaiting us in heaven. Before we get into it, a prayer: O Lord, strengthen us by the truth. Your Word is the truth. Open our eyes to see what you want us to see; open our ears to hear what you want us to hear; and open our hearts to believe what you would have us believe. Amen. I. A Vision of the Party The lesson comes from the very last book in the Bible. It’s called Revelation. Revelation was written by one of Jesus’ 12 disciples named John. John was very close to Jesus. He had spent three years learning from Jesus, he was at the cross when Jesus died, he saw Jesus risen from the dead, and interacted with his risen Savior on multiple occasions. John was a key part of the early church and spreading the Gospel. Unfortunately, that got John into trouble. He was exiled to an island called Patmos where he finished life by himself. Think of it like his own quarantine. But God didn’t let John’s time go to waste. While on the island of Patmos, God revealed to John some amazing things about the future. God came to John in several vision to reveal truths about the end times. These visions are written down in Revelation. That’s why Revelation is called Apocalyptic Literature. Apocalyptic literature is pretty fantastic. It includes otherworldly creatures, strange metaphors, and complicated similes. It’s like verbal art. Each word is like an artist’s brush stroke. The strokes come together to create a fantastic piece that speaks deep truth about the end times. For us, the challenging part is that the Holy Spirit’s work in Revelation is something like a Picasso – strange, out of place, hard to understand at first glance. That’s important to keep in mind. The temptation might be to take it apart piece by piece. To focus in on singular details. But the Holy Spirit motivated John to write the vision as one continuous piece. There’s value in backing up and looking at it in its entirety. So… Let’s dive into the vision. John was having a normal day. It’s quiet on an exile island. I imagine he woke up at the rays of sunlight. He went and poured his drip coffee, “Patmos Perk Blend.” He grabbed his scrolled copy of the first three chapters of Revelation. Because these were Jesus’ words. He went outside to use them for his morning devotion. As he’s sitting on his patio, with the waves gently crashing in the background, he warms his hands on his mug and takes a deep breath: “What a beautiful sunrise. What a beautiful skyline. Nothing could be more beautiful.” Just then, something happened. After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. (v.1) And John did a double take. It wasn’t as if the clouds parted. It wasn’t as if the sun was shining more brightly. The physical, earthly atmosphere opened to reveal the hidden, metaphysical realm of heaven Then, a loud sound. A trumpet. No, a voice. No, a voice like trumpet. No, a trumpet like voice. The same voice that had spoken to him as he wrote those letters. The same powerful voice that had spoken God’s Word. The voice of Jesus. (Jesus’) Voice…said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” (v.1) No sooner had Jesus’ voice spoken, than John was in the Spirit. (v.2) John was suddenly looking back at his body. His spirit was entering the spirit realm and he was being led by the Spirit… Through the air. Through the sky. Through the clouds. Through the Ozone Layer. Through the metaphysical doorway. Into heaven. Once John got his bearings. He looked around. And there before (him) was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. (v2b) It was hard to make out who that someone was. Because this Being. And this Throne. Were shining. They were gleaming. They were glowing with an otherworldly glow. And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and ruby. Jasper is a beautiful, clear, diamond-like rock. Ruby is a gorgeous, dark red gemstone. John had seen them before as tiny stones worn by the religious leaders back on earth. The high priests wore the stones on his breastplate. They served as a beautiful reminder of the God’s grace and sovereignty. Thus far in John’s life he had only seen these stones worn by someone. Never as someone. Above the One seated on the throne was an emerald-colored shape. (v.3) It encircled the throne. It encircled the jasper & ruby like being. It encircled them like a rainbow. In the Old Testament, the rainbow was given by God as reminder of God’s grace and mercy. Unfortunately, all the rainbows that John had seen…faded. Not this one. This rainbow – endured. Where God’s grace – stayed. It took a couple of minutes. But John noticed that there were others in the room. Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads. (v.4) They looked like princes. All in uniform. All in a holy, divine uniform. John was about to compliment the nearest elder on his golden head gear, when… BOOM! From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. (v.5) It was louder than any storm John had ever heard before. Probably because he was closer to the source of a storm than John had ever been before. This was the throne room of heaven. This is the place where God controlled the weather. This is the place where God told tornadoes where to go… …and hurricanes to develop into category 4s. …and earthquakes to rumble. …and volcanoes to erupt. …and wildfires to burn. Speaking of burning… In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. (v5b) They didn’t seem to be going out. Not at all. They weren’t fading. But burning. Eternally. Also in front of the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal. (v.6) In fact, that water was unlike any water John had ever seen before. Most of the water he had seen was murky. This greenish, brown from algae and mud. Even the shores of the Mediterranean Sea on his island, which were clearer than lake water, weren’t as clear as this divine deluge. This sea and how it got that way? Was surpassing all John’s understanding. In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures. (v.7) And you’ll have to forgive John for the description. Because these creatures were unlike any creatures he had ever seen on earth. For starters, they were covered with eyeballs all down their front and all down their backs. It would be enough to give anyone jitters. But not John. Not beside that peaceful water. Not in the protection of the One on the throne. The first living creature was like a lion, powerful and wild. The second was like an ox, domestic and loyal. The third had a face like a man, wise and beloved. Th fourth was like a flying eagle, soaring and free. Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. (v8) John couldn’t believe what he was seeing. This was incredible. It was awesome. It was worth giving a shout. The living creatures beat him to it: “ ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’ who was, and is, and is to come.” (v.8b) “ ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’ who was, and is, and is to come.” “ ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’ who was, and is, and is to come.” It was a beautiful symphony. But it wasn’t over. Suddenly, the elders got down from their thrones. They turned to face the Seated One. They fell to the ground. They took off their crowns. And joined in the worship of the Seated One. They cried, “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.” (v.8) John smiled. He didn’t need to be afraid. He didn’t need to be worried. He didn’t need to be anything anymore… Other than joyful. He was with God. II. Truths about the Eternal Victory Party This revelation paints a beautiful picture for us of that eternal victory party. There’s a lot to talk about. But I’m going to limit myself to five things that will have value for our lives right now. TRUTH 1: GOD is at the CENTER of the Victory Party. The first things John sees is the One seated on the Throne. (v.2) His eyes are naturally drawn to him. Then, there are these concentric circles going out and around the throne. Verse 3 says the rainbow encircled the throne. Verse 4 says the 24 elders were surrounding the throne. Verse 6 says the 4 living creatures were around the throne. Verse 9 says the elders bow down and praise the One on the throne. In fact, if we read a bit farther in chapter 5:11, it says that 10,000 times 10,000 angels encircled the throne to praise God. The point? God is at the center of this victory party. Since God’s there? This is a good party. This is a DIVINELY good party. It’s not like human parties. Sometimes human parties aren’t very good. The punch isn’t bitter. The taco dip isn’t overrun with too many refried beans. The Enya music in the background isn’t ruining the mood. This isn’t like a human party. This party is good. Sometimes human parties have sin at them. Sin that spoils the party and gives you a bad after taste for days! Like the headache you have because you drank too much. Or the drunken text message you need to explain because you were mad at someone. Or the two of your friends who aren’t speaking together anymore because one got together with the other’s boyfriend. This isn’t a human party. This is a GOD party. It isn’t a sinful party with horrid after-effects. This is a God party. With amazing forever effects. At this party… There’s no sadness. There’s no pain. There’s no fighting. There’s no backstabbing. There’s no gossip. There’s no embarrassment. There’s no sickness. There’s no sin. There’s no COVID-19. There’s no economic downturn. There’s no loss of job. There’s no anxiety. There’s only good. TRUTH 2: The guest list includes ALL BELIEVERS John describes 24 elders in front of the throne. This seems very likely to be a summation of two very important groups from the Bible. One from the Old Testament before Jesus and another group from the New Testament at the time of Jesus. There were 12 tribes of Israel in the Old Testament. (This nation was chosen by God to preserve the promise of the Savior.) There were 12 apostles in the New Testament. (These were chosen by the Savior to work closely with him.) Putting those two together seems to symbolize a complete gathering of the Chosen from the Old and New Testament. In other words: Believers. Do you grasp what this means? If you are a believer in Jesus as your Savior, you will be at this divine party. That’s what happened when the Gospel was preached to you. God wrote up one of those little invitations cards and sent it to you. Of course, he didn’t send it on one of those Pinterest level cuties cards – although if the first way you learned about Jesus was through a Pinterest card with “Jesus Loves You” written on it, I suppose that’s exactly what he did. And if you aren’t a believer, this is your invitation right now! You are invited to the party. A party without any pain, shame, or sadness. If you’d like to be in that party, you’ve got to listen to the instructions on the invitation. What are those instructions? Well… Do you remember how John got to the party? He didn’t use GPS. He didn’t use Google maps. He didn’t ask Alexa. The voice called to him. That voice? It was the voice of Jesus. TRUTH 3: The ONLY way to the eternal victory party is through JESUS. And that’s good news. Cause while these the most impressive party of all time, There isn’t an exclusive list. You don’t have to pay your way in. You don’t have to be invited based on your humanitarian efforts. You won’t be disqualified because you have that one sin in your past. Jesus is your way to the victory party. It’s only through Jesus that you get into the party. He lived for you. He died for you. He rose for you. It’s as simple as trusting Jesus’ invitation. And you’ll be at that party. TRUTH 4: The party is JOYFUL! The living creatures with the eyeballs and the wings. I don’t know exactly what they represent. It seems the safest and easiest choice would be a representation of all living creatures. The lion represents wild animals. The ox represents domesticated animals. The human represents humans. The eagle represents birds. Don’t ask me why there isn’t a slug with a bunch of eyes on it representing mollusks. But did you notice this? These living creatures praise God. So do the angels. So do the elders – aka – the Redeemed. Everyone and everything are joyfully praising God! No one is stopping to complain. No one is stopping to argue. No one is thinking about COVID-19. No one is worried that they need to get home by 9 so they don’t get charged double by the babysitter. They’re just… Joyful. Do you remember the last time you were just joyful? … …Me neither. You will be. When you join the eternal victory party, you will be joyful! But here’s where it gets interesting. Look closely at verse 9 again: Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to the one who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four…worship the one who lives forever and ever…saying: You are worthy, Lord our God! (v.9-10) Did you catch that? It isn’t a one-time occurrence. It isn’t a thing in the future. It’s a “whenever” occurrence. As in, this praise for our God is going on right now. TRUTH 5: You don’t need to WAIT to join the party. Whenever you see a beautiful sunrise and you are amazing at God’s artistry? Praise God! Whenever you see a majestic wild animal on one of those National Geographic shows and you are amazed at God’s power? Praise God! Whenever you look through your kids’ books on animals and you see a photo of one of those weird fish with the light on its head and you think: “That’s so creative.” Praise God! Whenever you wake up to the beautiful face of your bride and think, “How blessed am I?” Praise God! Whenever your family gathers together on the sofa for game night, safe and healthy? Praise God! Whenever you see the gorgeous smile of your child on the screen saver of your cell phone? Praise God. Whenever you wake up and realize you woke up. Praise God! It’s a day worth partying! Whenever you hear about what your Savior did for you on the cross. Praise God! Whenever you are reminded that you are redeemed? Praise God! Whenever you think of the eternal victory party awaiting you? Praise God! Friends, we’ve got all kinds of reasons to celebrate. Join God in the eternal victory party today! Amen.
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I love Peeps.
There’s something about gooey, sugary, artificially dyed animal shapes that really get a person hyped for Easter. I enjoy trying to smoosh them together and see how many I can fit into my mouth at once. And usually…they are the first thing to remind me that Easter is on its way. Suddenly, they appear in a giant display at Food Lion visible as soon as I enter. Not this year. This year when I went to Food Lion? Hand sanitizing stations. Plastic gloves. And plastic barricades. Doesn’t it feel a bit like Easter has been overshadowed? To be fair – this pandemic is still scary. There have been 1,577,360 cases of COVID-19 and 93,637 deaths. 6.6 million Americans filed for Unemployment last week. The stock market continues to volatilely jump up and down. Experts warn that the curve hasn’t slowed down yet. So… When do we get a victory? When do we get a win? Right now. Today we’re going to look at the very first Easter and remember the victory that’s ours Before we begin, a prayer: O Lord, strengthen us by the truth. Your Word is the truth. Open our eyes to see what you want us to see; open our ears to hear what you want us to hear; and open our hearts to believe what you would have us believe. Amen. I. The Sadness of Easter The lesson this morning chronicles a group of a women who were very close to Jesus. Their story doesn’t start on Easter, but on Good Friday: Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last...But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things. They saw the nails pierce his hands. They saw the thorns break his skull. They saw him bleed. They saw the soldiers mock him. They saw the religious leaders mock him. They saw random travelers mock him. They saw him face. They saw him weaken They saw his life slowly slip away… Until… He was no more. Instead of Jesus, there was a cold lifeless body. What ensued next was a bit of a hurried event. It was Friday afternoon. By 6 pm, the Jewish Sabbath would start. It was against religious law to have a dead person exposed and unburied once the holy evening began. (Granted, you might expect it to be against religious law to kill the Son of God, but…who’s keeping track really…) So… The soldiers took his body down. They quickly carried it to Pilate. Pilate gave it to a volunteer, who quickly wrapped up the body. Linens around the head. Linens around the body. Linens around the feet. Skip the ointments. Skip the oils. Skip the perfumes… There wasn’t much time left. Grab some soldiers. Carry the body to a tomb. Put it inside. And roll a giant stone in front. Get home in time for supper. While all of this was going on, the women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment. (v.55-56) And… On that day of rest… I imagine they couldn’t help but think of what they’d seen. Flashes of the horrors that Jesus went through interrupting their daily thoughts. Every door shut triggering the memory of that hammer. Even the red liquid of the tomato soup matching the red of his blood. Every unpleasant smell generating a nausea at what they’d seen. They tried to busy their minds by busying their hands. Crushing some herbs. Mixing some ointments. Heating things to the right temperature. They needed to properly bury his body. To do the things that time had not allowed them to do. To give him the respect he deserved. To get some closure on this death that was hanging over their heads. Hmmm… Death over their heads. On the very first Easter. I can’t help but notice that this year’s Easter and the first Easter have that in common because… Like Easter 2020, the very first Easter began with DEATH hanging over the day. But… On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. (v.1) “Mary, you pour the myrrh on his feet.” “I’ll take some frankincense to his head.” “Other Mary, you put sprinkle some of your special blend near the torso.” “Salome! How are we even going to do this? There’s that giant stone. It must weigh hundreds of pounds. Do you think the Roman soldiers guarding the tomb will even be willing to let us insi-” They stopped. They gasped. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb. (v.3) The women looked at each other. Their question changed from who WILL roll away the stone to who DID roll away the stone. Was it the soldiers? Was it those nasty pharisees? Was it some kind of grave robber? But inside, they found nobody. And no body. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. (v.4) Angels! Messengers of the most high! Divine servants of the All Mighty. Holy. The women fell to the ground with their faces in the dirt. Because… The only things more terrifying than DEATH is facing the one who CONTROLS it. Angels were from God. God hated sin. They had sin. Were they about to be struck down? But the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!” You came here searching for a tomb. A body. Death sealed within. But there’s no death here. There’s no DEATH in Jesus’ tomb. He LIVES. Stop being sad. Start being joyful. Jesus lives. II. Victory Truths Because Jesus lives, the Bible has some important truths for us to consider. (1) When it comes to Death, Your Level of FEAR Depends on whom You’re TRUSTING to Defeat It I remember growing up we had a neighborhood Easter egg hunt. Beforehand, we divided up into teams in order to go and find as many Easter eggs as we could and put them in our basket. My team? We had Jon Lindloff on our team. Jon was the fastest kid on the block. He was the most athletic. He could jump the farthest. Whatever team he was on would end up winning whatever athletic contest he was in because he was that impressive. He was like the 7-year-old, small midwestern town version of Lebron James. So… When we were about to start the egg hunt challenge, we were pretty confident. We weren’t afraid of losing. Because we had Jon Lindloff. As you face COVID-19, where do you find confidence for victory? A latex glove? These can break. Some sanitizer bottle? They only kill 99.99% Social distancing rule? What if someone else doesn’t follow it? Doctors? What if they’re so sleep deprived and tired they can’t give you the best care? The government? What if can’t get along and come to a partisan agreement to help? Scientists? What if they don’t discover a vaccine before it’s too late? Trusting in an EARTHLY things to defeat death leads to High levels of FEAR Because all those things? They’re earthly. Earthly things die. You can’t trust in a thing that dies to defeat the things that causes those earthly things to die. You need to trust in something that doesn’t die. Back in the tomb, as the women were trying to process what the angels were saying about Jesus, the angels were trying to process how the women didn’t expect this resurrection. They said, Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ” Then they remembered his words. (v.6b-8) They remembered about the time Jesus said he was like Jonah. Jonah had been inside the belly of a big old fish for three day, then come out alive. Like how Jesus had been in the belly of the earth for three days, then come out alive. (Matthew 12:40) They remembered about the time Jesus said the Pharisees should go destroy the temple, but he would rebuild it in three days. At the time, they had thought he meant the gigantic stone structure in which they worshiped, but he had really meant his body. (John 2:19) They remembered when Jesus said he was the kind of Shepherd who laid down his life for the sheep. But one who did so confidently, because he had the authority to raise his body back to life again. (John 10) They remembered when Jesus said plainly, “I am going to be betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill him. But three days after he is killed, he will rise.” (Mk. 9:31) The truth is that… Trusting in the HEAVENLY ONE leads to high levels of CONFIDENCE. Jesus trustworthy. He defeated death just as he said. Jesus is trustworthy. He’ll get you through what’s going on. (2) Jesus Holds an UNBLEMISHED Record against Death. This is the reason that the angel says to the women: “Why are you looking for the living among the dead?” Not just because Jesus is living. But Jesus is the LIFE. A paraphrase might be: “You really thought measly old death could defeat Jesus? Ha! Hey, Clarence. Put down your harp. You gotta hear this. It’s a good one.” In fact, Jesus had already proven his power over death. He met a young girl who had died a few hours before he made it to her room. Jesus grabbed her hand and brought her back to life. Jesus stopped a procession for a young man who had died just yesterday. Jesus touched the casket and the brought him back to life. Jesus missed the funeral of a friend of his and approached the tomb where his friend had been buried for over four days. Jesus opened the tomb and brought him back to life. Jesus holds an UNBLEMISHED Record against Death. And to the victor goes the spoils! If you win at the Olympics, you get the gold medal. If you win at the Super Bowl, you get a super bowl ring. If you win a boxing match, you get the winner’s purse. (Which…I always thought was an actual purse. And I wondered why manly boxers carried purses, but…turns out they just meant money…whatever). To the winner goes the spoils. What are the spoils for Jesus’ victory? Forgiveness. Peace with God. Eternal Life. But here’s the thing. Jesus didn’t take these spoils for himself. He gives them to you. Jesus’s VICTORY over death means you receive the SPOILS. You have forgiveness. You have peace with God. You have eternal Life. This means that when it comes to the Corona Virus, you will get the victory. Regardless of how it comes. God keeps you safe and you never get COVID-19. You win. You get sick, but God heals your body. You win. You get sick. You don’t heal. You die. But then you live forever in heaven! YOU WIN! (3) With hope in JESUS, there is ZERO reason to fear Death. There’s a pretty fabulous Bible passage that talks about the victory Jesus had over death. It’s found in Corinthians 15:55, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” There was a dad who was sitting outside with his little girl. They were playing. Enjoying the nice day. When suddenly, a bee flew near them. This was a bigger deal to the girl than to most. She was allergic. Deathly allergic. She began to cry. She began to wail. So… Dad wrapped her up in his big bear arms. He protected her. The bee landed on his bicep and stung him. After the sting, dad let the girl go. The bee was still flying around, but dad wasn’t worried. Why? The bee’s stinger was stuck in him. It couldn’t sting his daughter anymore. 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 Jesus Christ. (v.56-57) Death has lost its sting. IT cannot sting you any longer. It’s no longer separation from God, But an entrance into the joys of heaven. III. What Now? (1) Share the Victory When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. (v.9) There are others who are fearful. There are others who are afraid. There are others who are spending this Easter…with death hanging over their heads. Give them Jesus. It’s what the women were so excited to do. They ran out of the tomb. They left their spices behind. Because suddenly all that mattered was telling others about Jesus’ victory over death. Do the same. Put everything else down. Go to tell a neighbor. Go tell a friend. Go tell a family member. Christ is Victorious! Amen. "Kobe Bryant died."
I was reading that message on my phone Sunday evening and my first reaction was that it was probably a hoax. But I kept seeing reported by CNN, Fox News, NBC, CBS, ABC, and ESPN. NBA Legend Kobe Bryant had been tragically killed in a helicopter accident. There was even live video footage of the helicopter crash. It was real. And it really affected a lot of people. Person after person on social media mourning the death of Kobe Bryant. This is strange. Because… People die every day. People die every hour. People die every minute. Why did Kobe’s death affect so many people? Perhaps it has something to do with his celebrity. Kobe was the best in the business. He was at the top of his game. He was the pinnacle of his craft. He was involved in much charity work. It looked like there wasn’t anything Kobe couldn’t do. There wasn’t anything he couldn’t conquer. But then…death. Maybe it affects us so much because, “If Kobe couldn’t beat death, how can anyone of us?” This morning, we continue our MIRACLE series, by pitting Jesus against death itself. The question: Who is more powerful? Before we begin, a prayer: O 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. Jairus’ Last Hope We’re going to look at an account that is written about by Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Each of them provides some different insight into the miracle, so by looking at them together we get a full picture of the event. When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake. (Mk. 5:21) Then a man named Jairus, a synagogue leader, came and fell at Jesus’ feet, pleading with him to come to his house, because his only daughter, a girl of about twelve, was dying. (Lk. 8:41-42) Jairus was a synagogue leader, that is Jairus oversaw the upkeep and activities of this local place of worship. He was the one who made sure the synagogue was properly decorated for each religious festival. He made sure it was scheduled appropriately and the ladies’ group didn’t book the fellowship area the same night as the men’s group. He made sure that when little Hezekiah spilled cheerios in the back seats that those cheerios were picked up and removed before the next worship service. And since Jairus worked with the synagogue, he also worked closely with the Pharisees. Do you remember those Pharisees? They loved their synagogues. They loved to have people watch them walk into synagogue. They loved to have people watch them walk out of a synagogue. They loved to have people associated them with synagogues. They loved to have Jairus schedule activities for them to go to the synagogue so that they could be seen by others going to the synagogue. And I doubt Jairus minded it. Because if the Pharisees had your back, then you were a made man: Well-liked and well taken care of. That’s important. Because Jairus needed to be taken care of. Because Jairus was also a father. He had a little twelve-year old girl that he loved dearly. Just like any father of a young girl, I’m sure that Jairus loved watching his daughter mature into a young lady. He loved watching her discover her love for art. He loved hearing about her dreams and goals in life. He loved protecting her from all the “stupid” boys in her life. He loved making her laugh funny faces, goofy noises…For some reason, I picture Jairus being a big fan of dad jokes. But…I won’t dogmatic about it, but… “What did the drummer name his two daughters? Anna One! Anna Two!” “Why did the picture go to jail?” “Because it was framed.” “What do you call a bear without any teeth?” “A gummy bear.” Jairus loved his daughter. He loved her laugh. He loved her smile. He loved her twinkle in her eye. Jairus would do anything for his daughter. And that was being put to the test. Recently Jairus’ daughter had been very sick. And I’ll bet he tried all things: Getting her rest. Still sick. Taking her to the doctor. Still sick. Taking her to another doctor. Still sick. Giving her over the counter medication. Still sick. Giving her prescription medications. Still sick. Even giving her Essential Oils like lavender and peppermint. Still sick. He had tried everything. Well…Almost everything… Jairus knew about Jesus. He had heard how Jesus had healed many people. How he had cured disease after disease with just a few words. But, do you remember those Pharisees that Jairus worked with? Remember how they loved the synagogue so much they would take good care of Jairus as long as he did what they asked? Those same Pharisees hated Jesus. If Jairus went to Jesus, he might lose his friendship with the Pharisees. He might lose his “in” with the Pharisees. He might lose his job and his salary and his means of income to take care of his little girl. I wonder if this gave him pause. …made him wait to go to Jesus. …made him think I’ll try everything else until… Until, his daughter was almost dead. Then, things changed. The Pharisees’ approval wasn’t worth risking his daughter’s life. He rushed off from his house, found Jesus, and threw himself at the ground. An impressive, noble of a man, on his knees before Jesus. Pleading… “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.” (Mark 5:23) So Jesus went with him. (Mark 5:24) Jairus must have been excited. The healer was coming with him. Jesus and his miraculous power was going to do a miracle to his daughter. His daughter wouldn’t die, because in Jesus there was hope. But… As they kept walking… And the crowd talked excitedly about other miracles Jesus had done. And Jairus started to strut with confidence that his daughter would be healed. Someone came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” he said. “Don’t bother the teacher anymore.” (Lk. 8:49) Because she’s dead. And so is her creativity. And so is her laughter. And so is her future. Your daughter is dead. TRUTH: Making Jesus your LAST hope may make you too LATE. Jairus must have felt horrible! If only he had come to Jesus sooner. If Jesus would have been his first option way back when he daughter first was diagnosed, then she wouldn’t be dead. Maybe you’ve felt similar. If only I’d sought Jesus’ help with stress first, before I ended up addicted to Methamphetamine. If only I’d sought Jesus’ guidance on my sexuality, not what I read in dark, pornographic chatrooms. If only my spouse and I sought spiritual counseling sooner, before the infidelity, the yelling, and the moving out. If only I’d taught my kids about Jesus first, brought them to worship, taught them about Sunday school, before they became a teen and turned their back on God. If only I’d sought Jesus heart first, before I sought the heart of that guy who used me and abused me. If only I’d gotten to the message of Jesus’ love sooner, before years of depression thinking that God hated me. If only I’d worked through the Gospel to be reconciled with my friend, before…they died. Making Jesus’ your last hope can lead to all kinds of regret. But, even in the midst of Jairus’ like, “I-killed-my-daughter-because-I-didn’t-get-her-to-Jesus-soon-enough” regret…. Jesus offers hope. II. Hope when there isn’t any Back to the scene. Jairus must have been in shock. He’d never seen his daughter’s eye twinkle again. He’d never get another hug. He’d never hear another song. The people were right. He should send Jesus away. His daughter was dead and there wasn’t any hope. But… Before Jairus could muster the strength to dismiss him. Jesus said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid.” “Just believe.” “She will be healed.” (Lk. 8:50) From some hope. To no hope. To Jesus’ hope. TRUTH: Jesus gives HOPE when there isn’t any. When you can’t figure out where the finances are coming from, Jesus gives hope. When the seventeenth job application has been rejected, Jesus gives hope. When your heart hurts from that breakup, Jesus gives hope. When you feel like you’ll never find “the one”, Jesus gives hope. When you lose to that temptation again and again, Jesus gives hope. When the parenting techniques aren’t working like they should, Jesus gives hope. When the doctors tell you that it doesn’t look good, Jesus gives hope. III. The World’s Hope Jesus dismissed the crowd. Probably to spare Jairus’ from the embarrassment of his emotions. Then, Jesus, a few disciples, and Jairus made their way to the home. Upon arriving, they came upon quite a scene. When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly. (Mk. 5:38) At the time of Jesus, it was customary to hire professional mourners when someone died. These people would arrive and instantly develop a sad atmosphere. They’d sob and throw their heads back and make a big scene Matthew notes that there were flute players. (Mt. 8:23) They’d shed some tears, playing a sad song, and hand you a bill for their trouble. It makes you wonder if they ever got together and practiced: “Hold up guys. We are supposed to be professional mourners. Right now? We seem like a bunch of amateurs. Our choreography is all over the place. Bob, when I throw my right arm into the air and start wailing, “that’s your cue to throw yourself onto the ground and start convulsing. And Mary, it would be good if you shook your head back and forth while you screamed! You’ve got long hair and it really gives it that wild effect of wild sadness. And for goodness sake, Elizabeth, could you give us more tears? I’ll stick a cut-up onion in your sash if I have to.” This is the best kind of hope the ancient world had to offer. A distraction – at best. But it doesn’t heal. It doesn’t provide hope. It’s nothing more than a SHOW. TRUTH: The world’s HOPE is nothing more than a SHOW. Think back to the Kobe Bryant Story. Celebrities tweeted out all kinds of support and memories about Kobe. Taylor Swift wrote, “My heart is in pieces hearing the news of this unimaginable tragedy… Sending my prayers, love, and endless condolences.” Shaquille O’Neal said, “My condolences goes out to the Bryant family and the families of the other passengers on board,” he added. “I’M SICK RIGHT NOW!” Khloe Kardashian simply said, “This can’t be true. My heart is broken.” Scottie Pippen said, “I’m stunned. Words can’t even begin to describe how I feel about this tragedy.” Now these people were hurting. They were sad. And offering prayers to others is absolutely a blessing. And it can be cathartic to talk to one another about your feelings. But…Did you notice something? None of these tweets brought Kobe back. None of them promised LIFE. Some of it, is just people going online, checking out the fact that others tweeted, and saying, “I’d better tweet about him – or I won’t look good.” The world’s hope is nothing more than a show. There’s a popular show on Netflix called The Casketeers It’s about a family owned funeral home in Hawaii. Each episode consists of a few funerals that they are planning for. In each episode, they work hard to make the funeral “nice.” They practice ukulele. They put out flower arrangements. They polish the selected coffins. The owner is kind of a clean freak and at least once per episode, he can be caught using a leaf blower to blow away the 4 or 5 leaves that have made their way into the parking lot. The theory is that if they make it nice, it will help the family heal. But… None of this gives ACTUAL HOPE. Not the ukulele. Not the flower arrangements. Not the polished coffin. Not even the leaf blower! The person is still dead. And there is no hope of LIFE. The world’s hope is nothing more than a show…. But…. Jesus is not “of the world.” IV. Jesus’ Hope Jesus had enough of the show. “Go away, for the girl is not dead but is sleeping.” But they laughed at him. (Mt. 8:23-24) “Oh? Does your pulse usually stop when YOU sleep?” “Are you trying to say that you can fix this?” “What a bunch of baloney! Stop giving Jairus false hope.” Jesus did not let anyone go in with him except Peter, John and James, and the child’s father and mother (Lk. 8:51) After he put them all out, he took the child’s father and mother and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was. (Mk 5:40) And there was Jairus’ daughter…. No smile. No laughter. No twinkle in the eye. No life. The pit in Jairus’ stomach was unbearable. He grabbed his wife as she buried her tears into his shoulder. But Jesus approached the girl. He slowly got onto one knee. He grabbed the girl by the palm. He looked her right in the eyes. and said…. “Talitha koum!” (Mk. 5:41) Immediately the girl stood up and began to walk around. (v.42) Jairus was amazed! He watched as she walked to Jesus and gave him a hug. He watched as she walked to his wife and gave her a hug. He watched as she made her way over to him, looked at him with that twinkle in her eye and gave him a hug too. TRUTH: With a WORD, Jesus robs DEATH of its power. He doesn’t do CPR. He doesn’t hook her up to a defibrillator. He doesn’t make her drink some kind of life-giving elixir made from the tears of a mythical Phoenix. He just speaks. This is how Jesus won life for you and me. Because on the cross, Jesus defeated death with one word: TETELESTAI! It’s the Greek word for the last thing that Jesus said on the cross. It means, “It is finished.” As in, “Sin is finished.” “Guilt is finished.” “Death is finished.” I defeated them all and my work of defeated them is finished. And now through faith in me…. You too will life. Death is not the end. You will be with me in heaven. That’s REAL hope. But that’s not even the end of the story. Because as Jairus and wife and child are all celebrating this amazing victory – and people start to flock in to celebrate this miracle, Jesus thinks about the girl. He told them to give her something to eat. (Mk. 5:43) He isn’t showboating. He isn’t flexing his muscles. He isn’t taking a victory lap. Jesus is caring. TRUTH: Despite his ALMIGHTY Power, Jesus still cares TENDERLY. There is no better combination. He isn’t just able to defeat sin, but he tenderly speaks of forgiveness when you need it most. This last week – I was able to visit a brother of ours in hospice. Things didn’t look good when I went in. And… I didn’t bring with me any medication. I didn’t have any cures. I didn’t even have a doctor’s nametag. I simply had this message of forgiveness. This message of God’s love. This message that because Jesus lives, you brother, will live too. Yesterday, we celebrated the fact that because Jesus has power over death, this man lives eternally. And today we celebrate the fact that because Jesus has power over death – One day… You will live eternally too. Amen.  We are continuing our summer sermon series on the Early Church. Last week we heard how God directed the missionaries to the west, across the sea, into a foreign colony, down by a river – all for the sake of one woman named Lydia.
Lydia heard the Gospel, believed, and was baptized. Then, she became a partner in kingdom work. That’s where we pick up. Lydia’s home was now the base of operations for Paul, Silas, and their mission crew. Today we’re going to see how God worked through their mission work in Philippi to proclaim FREEDOM. Before we begin, let’s pray: O 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. Freedom from Evil Acts 16:16 picks up the story some weeks later. The missionaries had gone back to the river where they met Lydia. It was a decent place for them to meet with people, preach sermons, and share the message of Jesus. They even started to get a bit of a following -- just not one they wanted: Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” (Acts 16:16-17) A few notes: This girl was a female slave. Unfortunately, you read that right. It was the 1st century and slavery was very common. Slaves were used to by their owners for housework, for fieldwork, for work down at the local harbor, and for any type of job that could earn the owner some money. This slave worked for her owners by predicting the future. She read people’s palms. She gazed into crystal balls. She flipped over cards and told them about whether their dreamy new boyfriend was going to end up being Mr. Right. She was able to do this because she had a spirit. Understand: This was not a spirit of ambition. It isn’t the type of “spirit” that gets people to work hard and end up on America’s Got Talent. It wasn’t a good spirit. It wasn’t the Holy Spirit. It was an evil spirit. This might be an undesirable truth, but it’s true nonetheless. Evil spirits are real. The Bible says that they are fallen angels. The devil was the first to fall by rebelling against God. But he wasn’t the only one. Others followed. They lost their godliness. They became evil. They became demons. And it’s the truth. Think about it: If Jesus said he would rise from the dead…And he did. Then, we need to believe what Jesus said. And Jesus said that angels were real. And so are demons. One of those demons had possessed this slave girl. While this allowed her to do some amazing things like tell the future, it was a wretched life: She was a prisoner in her own body. She was influenced by demonic forces. She was a slave in her own mind. But not just to the demons! Her owners didn’t care one bit. She made them money! She was their ticket to the fancy new home theater with the 70” HD TV that they wanted. It didn’t matter if she suffered; she made them cash. But now she found herself a second job. She followed the missionaries around shouting to the crowds: “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” She kept this up for many days…Paul became…annoyed. (Acts 16:17-18a) That might seem strange. Because if you look at her words, they are filled with truth! The missionaries were the servant of the God? Truth. That God is the Most High God? Truth. They were telling people the way to be saved? Yes, through Jesus. Why is Paul annoyed at this addition to their missionary team? Imagine for a minute that someone stumbled into church right now. They reeked of booze. They smelled of alcohol and cigarettes. In fact, they’d been on a booze bender ever since the 4th of July. They made their way to the front. And every time I made a point in the sermon, they lifted their bottle of Mad Dog 20/20, took a swig and shouted: “This guy’s speaking the truth about Jesus.” Best case scenario? It’s annoying. Worst case scenario? People leave before they hear the saving Gospel of Jesus. It was the same thing for Paul. People were beginning to think: “If this Paul guy is associated with that demon-possessed slave girl, then they probably just want our money. It’s another hoax. Time to move on.” But what could Paul do? She was possessed by a demon. She was held captive by the evil spirit. She was a prisoner in her own body and mind – terrified and corned by a powerful devil. Paul couldn’t do anything. But… Jesus could. Paul said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her. (v.18b) “At that moment.” Not: “After a long period of time.” Not: “After a struggle.” Not even: “After a while.” “At that moment.” Because “at that moment” Jesus defied Satan. “At that moment” the demon cowered at God’s power. “At that moment” the evil spirit went running at the mention of Jesus’ name. “At that moment” Jesus freed her. Free from demonic influence. Free from her owners’ heavy hand. Free from her life as a sideshow. She was free. Here’s the first truth for this morning: Jesus frees us from the power of evil. We had an ant problem at our house. On top of the front banister there were hundreds of ants crawling around near our front door and making their home out of rotted a piece of wood. So, I went to the store and looked at pest control options. There was a poisonous spray. There was a baited trap. There was a good old fly swatter, if I wanted to spend the next 48 hours waiting and swatting. I came home with a little tube of gunk. (Call it “anti-ant gunk”) The directions state to take the gunk, spread it across the area that the ants will be crawling and wait. What happens is that it smells so sweet to the ants that they can’t help but make their way onto it. But then? It’s so sticky they can’t get away from it. They become trapped. Evil is just like that. It seems nice. Then, it traps you. The fun of a mildly racist joke that leads to racism firmly entrenched in every conversation made throughout the workday. The allure of pornography’s next exciting click leading to click number 178. The pull of greed’s desire for more – even if that greed is standing over me, like a master – forcing me to work more and more and more… The initial high of a drug. The chemical induced desire to give over all your money for just one more taste. The feeling of release from letting your rage on your spouse – a moment you’ll need to defend – by releasing the rage all over again. Evil takes over. Evil takes control. Evil leave us as prisoners. Embarrassed. Ashamed. Helpless. Enter Jesus. Jesus lived perfectly against evil. He died innocently for the evil you have committed. He rose triumphantly after having conquered evil on the cross! Jesus frees from the power of evil. Jesus frees YOU from the power of evil. In fact, Jesus said this: If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. (Jn. 8:36) And Jesus did set you free. And you are free. You are free… Indeed. Whatever evil you’re fighting against. Whatever evil feels like it’s controlling you. It isn’t. Jesus is. He is your leader. He is your Savior. He is your Rescuer. II. Freedom from Fear Unfortunately, not everybody was thrilled with the freedom that this young woman was now experiencing. When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. (Acts 16:19) Because they didn’t care that she was free from the demon that possessed her. They were losing money! It might be like a strip club owner that is losing a dancer. Or a drug dealer that’s losing one of his customers. Or even a boss that’s losing a worker’s availability to make him more money on a Sunday morning. Sometimes when you try to abandon sin, people get upset that you’re doing so. Watch out. That’s what happened to this girl. Her former employers became angry and they had some weight with the city. They got leaders to listen to their side of the story… That Paul and Silas had broken their merchandise. That they had ruined their income. That they had looted their business. And the leadership listened. Paul and Silas were stripped. They were beaten with rods. They were flogged. They were thrown into prison. And as they were thrown into prison, the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. (16:23) So, he put them into the inner cell. The maximum-security part of the prison with extra doors and extra locks. In addition, he fastened their feet in the stocks. (v.24) They couldn’t even stand up to begin investigating an escape route. The jailer brushed his hands together: “That should hold them. I’ve done my job. Nothing can break those bonds.” About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God. And the other prisoners were listening to them. (v.25) “The Lord’s my Shepherd, I’ll not want.” (Psalm 23:1) “Surely it is God who saves me, I will trust in him and not be afraid.” (Isaiah 12:2) “This is the Day the Lord has made. Rejoice! And be so very glad.” (Psalm 118:24) The jailer could hear them in the distance: How could they sound so free when they were so…NOT!?! I wouldn’t be like that. I’d be terrified. I already am. Because if I were to mess this job up, well… I’d rather just go to sleep rather than consider the outcome of that. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. (v.26) And the jailer woke up in a panic! The doors are open! If those prisoners are gone, then I’m as good as dead. I won’t see my family again. I won’t see my kids again. If the Romans don’t kill me, then that angry mob will. The jailer threw himself on the floor. Weeping. He drew his swords and was about to kill himself… “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” (v.28) The jailer stopped. He sniffled back a few tears. He recognized that voice. It was the one that had just been singing to God. He set the sword down and made his way to the jail cells to find the prisoners still there. His job wasn’t in jeopardy. His life wasn’t in jeopardy. A rush of emotion came over the jailer. His eyes were filled with tears of thankfulness as he looked at the men who had a chance to leave the jail cell but remained. He spoke: “Sirs, what must I do to be saved.” (v.29) Because I’ve lived my whole life in fear. I’ve lived my life afraid of death. Afraid of losing everything. Afraid of punishment and eternal hellfire. What must I do to be saved? (v.29) Paul didn’t state it explicitly. But it’s implied. The jailer couldn’t do anything to save himself. But Jesus… He could. “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. (v.31-32) Friends, the same is true for you. Jesus provides freedom from evil’s power. But he also provides freedom of another variety. TRUTH: Jesus brings freedom from fear. If you’re a dog, the 4th of July must be on the scariest holiday. There are strange people attending backyard BBQs, their owners’ hands turning into sparking things, and loud booms, signifying the end of the world…all night long. But if you’re a human, there’s plenty to fear as well. That some terrorist will be part of an Independence Celebration. That war will break in America – ending many lives. That the sickness will end in death. And there’s nothing scarier in the world than our natural spiritual state before God. We are sinners. We are guilt. We deserve death. And it’s coming for each one of us. Enter Jesus. Jesus removed our sins. Jesus removed our guilt. Jesus removed our eternal death sentence. Jesus transformed death from a separation from God and our believing loved ones. Into an eternal reunion together with our Father and them. Praise the Lord! There is no reason to be afraid. Look at the change in the jailer: At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wound. No longer afraid. He had himself and all his household baptized. No longer afraid. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them. No longer afraid. He was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household. No longer afraid of death, because death would not stop him. (v.32-34) You don’t have to be afraid any longer. The worst thing that could happen to you in this life, it’s also the best: Your death means your eternal life. All because of Jesus! Friends, Jesus means freedom. Freedom from sin. Freedom from guilt. Freedom from shame. Be free from fear. Be free from evil. Because FREE is who you are in Jesus. Amen.  Today we are looking at the final sermon in our EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS sermon series. It is based on the final time Jesus appeared to his group of disciples.
Trivia time: Have you counted up the appearances so far? How many are there? Mary Magdalene. The other women. The Emmaus Disciples. The group of disciples on Easter. The group of disciples - plus Thomas – one week later. The group of disciples on the fishing trip. That’s six accounts so far. But that’s not all of them. There’s another time that Jesus saw Peter – one-on-one. (1 Cor. 15:5) There’s a time that Jesus appeared to a guy called James – either the disciple or Jesus’ half-brother. (1 Cor. 15:7) There’s a time where Jesus gives his disciples the Great Commission (Mt. 28:19-21) There’s a time that Jesus appeared to more than 500 disciples all at one time (1 Cor. 15:6) There’s even a time when Jesus appears to a guy named Saul who was hell-bent on destroying Christianity, but Jesus’ appearance transforms his heart into a guy named Paul who goes on 4 missionary journeys, starts 20 churches, and writes 13 books of the Bible (Acts 9). If you were counting – that’s 11 different appearances to over 500 different people. The resurrection is not made up. It is REAL. But if so…maybe you still struggle with this. Because would it be so much easier if you could SEE Jesus? If you could take a trip to the Holy Land and get a selfie with him? If you could check out his Twitter handle for his perspective on any cultural situation? If you could text him every time you had a question on a Bible passage… Why did Jesus leave? Why did he disappear? Today’s EYEWITNESS account is the 12th recorded account in Scripture. It is the last one that occurs before he physically disappears. Today we want to learn (1) where Jesus went (2) why he disappeared (3) and what he wants us to do in the meantime. 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 open our hearts to believe what you would have us believe. Amen. I. The “Disappearance” The lesson we are looking at to begin with comes from Luke 24:50-51: When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. Timeline wise this is the 40th day after Easter. We find that out from Acts 1 – which is an expanded version of this same exact account. Note that this final appearance starts with Jesus leading his disciples. That’s appropriate. He had led his disciples for 3 years. He had led him the last 40 days. He would lead them up until his last day on earth. In fact, that’s literally what disciple means: “follower.” And he led them to Bethany. Bethany is a small town just to the east of Jerusalem. The city is the place where Jesus commandeered the donkey for his entrance into Jerusalem. In this instance, they are just outside of Bethany where a few hills are located. And as they get to the top of the hill… Jesus teaches. He preaches. He disciples his disciples just like he had done so many times before. But then…. Unlike so many times before… His feet go up. They lift off the ground. And his body begins floating. Begins hovering. Begins ascending. And he goes up. And up. And up. Until… A cloud hid him from their sight. Do any of you know who Criss Angel is? He’s like a tattooed, goth version of David Copperfield. He is famous for street magic. One of the tricks that he did was he began to levitate in the air. Mind you – this is on the sidewalk, in the street, apart from a magician’s stage. I thought that was amazing. Until… There’s a YouTube video of him explaining the trick. Essentially, he is wearing a special pair of pants that (1) break away in the front (2) have a mannequin’s foot attached to the back of it. This enables him to plant his real foot on the ground, balance, and go into a squat that makes it look like he is beginning to float parallel to the ground. The rest is misdirection and camera positioning. And voila! Magic. Jesus’ ascension is not a magic trick. He isn’t floating on a false leg. There isn’t camera misdirection. He doesn’t hitch a ride on a hot air balloon, a jet pack or even a drone. He goes all the way up to the sky Without any strings attached. Until he is hidden by a cloud. This is a miracle! This is Jesus’ ascension. TRUTH: Jesus didn’t disappear; he ASCENDED into heaven. This is a really important distinction. Because if Jesus disappeared – we’re left confused and frightened. But Jesus didn’t just disappear. He ascended to heaven. That word is really important. If any of you watched Game of Thrones – and I haven’t – but I think I can reveal this without giving a spoiler. I heard that at the end someone conquers all of the other people and ascended to the throne. He wins the Game of Thrones. He ascended to his position of power. He did it because the struggle was over! Jesus ascended because He conquered sin. Jesus ascended because He conquered guilt. Jesus ascended because He conquered shame. Jesus ascended because He conquered death. TRUTH: Jesus ascended because the work of salvation was completed. That’s so important to remember! Because Jesus’ whole purpose on earth was to defeat all of our spiritual enemies. If he ascended to heaven? That’s because his work is done. Remember that – it’s really easy to think: I’ve got more to do. I’ve got to become the perfect mom. Jesus weakened sin, guilt and shame – but I have to finish them. There’s even churches out there that preach – you’ve got more to do! You’ve gotta get to perfection. You’ve gotta improve. You’ve gotta do some things to complete Jesus’ work for him. Nope. Jesus doesn’t leave tasks unfinished. Jesus always completes. And Jesus completed completely conquering your sin. If he hadn’t, he wouldn’t have left! TRUTH: Jesus ascended where he rules over all. Ephesians says this: “He raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.” (1:20-21) Did you hear that? The one who loves you more than you could ever dream is in control of all things. He’s ruler over cities, counties, and states. He’s ruler over kings, despots, and presidents. He’s ruler over wind, waves, and the hot temperature outside right now! He’s is ruler over all things! Nothing’s more powerful. Nothing can defeat him. And yet… There’s one more place that he would love to rule: Your Heart. I went to McDonald's the other day with a coupon for a free meal that someone had given me. After I ordered Value Meal number seven, I handed them the card and the person said: “Just a second. I can’t authorize this.” She called over her coworker who looked at the card and said: “We need a manager to authorize this.” She called over a shift manager who looked at the card and said: “I’m sorry. I can’t authorize this.” She called over her manager who looked at the card, entered the code and authorized it. It’s the same thing with life. We want peace. We want joy. We want courage. And we try to find it from all the things that don’t have the authority to give it: Things like lust. Things like greed. Things like money, fame, career…a desire to be perfect! “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.” (Colossians 3:15) Because Christ is God. Christ is the one true ruler. Christ offers true peace. And Christ also offers us direction. II. Our Mission Because if the boss leaves and you don’t know what to do, it can be stressful: Should we finish the reports? Should we work on new clients? Should we try to recover old ones? UGH! Maybe we should just drink all of the coffee. Christ didn’t leave us unclear with what to do. Look at what he told his disciples before his ascension: Jesus told his disciples, “This is what is written (that’s a reference to Old Testament prophecy.) The Messiah will suffer (Jesus suffered) and rise from the dead on the third day (Jesus did), and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”(That hadn’t happened yet…) But then look at what Jesus says next: “You are witnesses of these things.” (Lk. 24:46-48) Do you get it? The final part of God’s plan is bringing the message of forgiveness to everyone. And while all the other parts happened through Jesus… This is the part that happens through you: TRUTH: Before being UPLIFTED, Jesus commanded us to UPLIFT. You don’t need to be confused about your task on this earth. You see a coworker who is down? Approach them, listen to them, and share the message of Jesus. Tucking your kids in for the night? Tuck them in, kiss their forehead, and share the message of Jesus. Have a spouse who doesn’t believe? Go home, give them a hug, and share the message of Jesus. Serve in ministry here at school? Do the lesson plans, cut out the art project, and share the message of Jesus. Serve in leadership here at church? Think about funding, consider maintenance, but don’t forget our goal is to SHARE THE MESSAGE OF JESUS! But don’t think you have to do it alone. “I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” More specifically in Acts: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you….” (1:8) Spoiler alert: Ten days later. The disciples are in Jerusalem just like Jesus told them to be. And suddenly… There’s the sound of a hurricane like wind without the wind coming from within the room they are staying. They look around and they see tongues of fire appear on the top of each other’s heads. They are able to speak fluently in languages that they have never even studied. The Holy Spirit was with them. And they immediately find courage. Because they go out that day and do some sidewalk preaching – in the middle of downtown Jerusalem – with the end result that over 3,000 people are baptized and believe. The Holy Spirit was with them. And the Holy Spirit is with you. TRUTH: Jesus left you with the promise of the HOLY SPIRIT. By faith, the Holy Spirit is with you and he does the impossible. He made fire appear on the heads of disciples. He made them speak in language they never learned. He made the sound of a hurricane occur without any hurricane winds. He does the incredible! The miraculous. The seemingly impossible. Including… Working through you. To bring others to faith! But that’s not all. Look at verses 49-50 of Luke 24: When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, Jesus lifted up his hands and blessed them. Throughout Scripture, whenever Jesus’ hands are involved, there are some amazing blessings: In Luke 13 he lays his hands on a woman who had never been able to straighten her back…and instantly she did. In Mark 7, he lays his hands on a man who is deaf and mute and…instantly he hears and speaks. In Mark 8, he lays his hands on a blind man’s eyes and…instantly he sees. In Mark 6, it simply says, “He laid his hands on…sick people and healed them.” (v.5) Talk about blessings. And then, there’s the final blessing that pours from his hands. He heads to a cross. They take his hands and nails them. The right… The left… And then blood flows forth. But not just blood. Blessings: Forgiveness. Peace. Eternal life. TRUTH: Jesus left, but left us with BLESSINGS pouring from his HANDS. Even though you can’t see his hands. Even though you can’t touch them. The truth is no less true. The blessings are no less real. It’s one of the reasons that pastors for centuries have continued this tradition. Using the words of Scripture – God’s Word – they lift up their hands. They communicate God’s blessings on the congregation. They say: “The Lord bless you and keep you.” This is more than just wishful thinking. This is God’s real blessing given to you. III. What Now? I think that if you were a passerby and saw the aftermath of the Ascension, you might have laughed. Because there were 20 some dudes. Eyes lifted upwards. Staring into the cloud. Gazing into the sky. Mouths dropped wide open. And this continued… Until… A tap on the shoulder: “The angel said, ‘Why do you stand there staring up into the sky? This same Jesus who left you…will come back in the same way you saw him go into heaven.’” (Acts 1:10) In other words: Stop stalling. You have a job to do. Stop looking into heaven. And start looking around. Don’t you see…? There are souls who need this message. Souls in your office. Souls at the garage. Souls in your neighborhood. Souls in your kid’s room. Souls in your kitchen. Souls in the easy chair across from you while watching Netflix tonight. Everywhere you look there is work that needs to be done! What a privilege God wants to work through YOU! Stop stalling. Start sharing. Keep your eyes on the task that Jesus has given you Be a WITNESS of the EYEWITNESS truth of your Risen Savior. Amen.  You know, not that long ago I was watching an old TV show and this particular episode opened with the children in Sunday School. And the teacher was telling them about what an awful, horrible place hell was. How no one would ever, ever want to be there. Without being too graphic, she scared them quite a bit, which led to them asking the inevitable question, “Teacher, how do we make sure we don’t go to hell?” “By following the ten commandments!” Maybe for you that’s a facepalm moment. Maybe you know better. But really, out in the world, those who only know Christianity from pop culture… well that is what the answer is, right? Christianity is a system of rules designed to stop you from having any real fun and if you follow them (and just how often or how well you have to follow them is a little fuzzy), but if you follow them – the God rewards you with heaven… right? I probably shouldn’t even ask that as a question. Because how many people who’ve never really looked into God actually think that? Too many. Too many who maybe feel scared for a bit about eternity at night when their mind is a little too quiet, but they calm themselves by saying, “No, I don’t have to worry. If there really is a God, I’m sure he’s a nice guy and I’m a pretty good person – I’m sure God will take me in if he exists.” That’s not just wishful thinking to many people, it’s what they really believe. But… why? Why this perception of God? You and I know this is clearly not the case, God does not trade works for Heaven, at least not in the way we would make him out to do it. So why does this perception even exist? In fact, not just why does it exist…why is it the dominant thought of every person who doesn’t know Jesus for real? Why is it every false religion, even every erring branch of Christianity ends up with this notion that you must do something to be saved? The fact is, it’s simply in our nature. Ever since the first humans betrayed God by reaching for that fruit in the garden. They were told they would be like God if they ate it. They wanted to be like God. They wanted to be in control of their own lives. We have not changed. Every single sin we commit comes back to this one basic principle: I want to be my own god. And that includes, if not saving myself directly, at least doing something to help or show that I’m worthy to be saved. It’s one of our strongest natural inclinations. Can it work that way? Let’s look into history to see. Because there was a time when God made this deal with the people. It was pretty fair, all things considered. In fact, it was exactly the kind of deal that we want to hear. It was a list of rules, a list of conditions in order to remain in God’s good favor. Follow the rules, keep the law, and everything would be fine. God would be with you, he would protect you, and when the time came, he would take you to be with him forever. Considering what God was offering, there shouldn’t have been anything he couldn’t ask of his people, and what God was asking wasn’t all that hard. If he was to be your God, then you had to give him the proper worship and honor as God and as far as relating to each other, it was all the sort of stuff anyone would consider basic human decency. Be nice, thoughtful, and fair. And if you messed up a bit here or there, not all hope was lost, you could make a repayment for your crime that would pay for the guilt of it. You would sacrifice something you had to pay for what you’d done. Something else could go in your place. All fair enough, really. Except the problem was that for as “obvious” and “simple” as anyone would call these rules, nobody was able to keep them. Our society would call them basic human decency, and would say that anyone, properly educated, would be able to follow these rules that basically boil down to thinking about others first. But not one of them was able to do it. Nobody has managed to even go through one day without some selfish action or thought. And anyone who seriously understood how badly they’d failed this covenant would also understand that it was simply impossible to offer enough sacrifices for what they’d done wrong. Day and night they’ve have to be at the temple offering those penalties for breaking the law of God. It couldn’t be done. No one could earn God’s favor. And that has not changed in any group that claims there is something you can do to please God. It can’t be done. The demands can’t be met and the penance is never enough. And that was the point of the old covenant. This idea that something I do can make God happy with me; it comes from the depths of the sinful nature. The idea that God can be happy with what I do on my own is pure egotism. It is that old desire to replace God with the self. I can save myself, it says, I do not need God, I can be my own god. The Israelites and everyone since including you and me need to know and be convinced that I cannot make God happy on my own. God’s demands cannot be satisfied by us. The Old Covenant as this deal was called, the law, was never meant to save anyone, it was meant to teach us that we cannot save ourselves. But that’s only part one of the overall lesson God wants to teach us. Because there is a new covenant, one that teaches us what we really need, what we’re ready for once we’ve learned that we can’t do this ourselves. The author to the Hebrews describes this for us in our reading this evening: 15The Holy Spirit also testifies in Scripture to us, for first he said: 16This is the covenant I will make with them after those days, says the Lord. I will put my laws on their hearts and I will write them on their mind. 17Then he adds: And I will not remember their sins and their lawlessness any longer. 18Now where these sins are forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin. 19Brothers, we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place through the blood of Jesus. 20It is a new and living way he opened for us through the curtain, that is, his flesh. 21We also have a great priest over the house of God. 22So let us approach with a sincere heart, in the full confidence of faith, because our hearts have been sprinkled to take away a bad conscience, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. 23Let us hold on firmly to the confession of our hope without wavering, since he who promised is faithful. 24Let us also consider carefully how to spur each other on to love and good works. 25Let us not neglect meeting together, as some have the habit of doing. Rather, let us encourage each other, and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Here it is. “I will not remember their sins and their lawlessness any longer.” (v17) This is the entire basis of the new covenant. The old covenant was a deal: “Do this, and you will be rewarded. Don’t, and you’ll be punished.” We saw how well that turned out. God came with a new covenant. “I will do everything, and you will be rewarded.” Now this isn’t just arbitrary. God can’t just erase what he’d already set up in the old covenant. The law had to be followed and where it wasn’t followed there had to be sacrifice, in blood. The difference is that now God says, never mind all that. I’ll do it. That is what Jesus is all about. He lived an innocent life completely in line with the law. And he grants you complete and full credit for that life. All the things you are supposed to do, all the things you were supposed to do – as far as God is concerned you’ve done them. And the failures? The crimes? Again, a payment does need to be made. In blood. And that is the foundation of the new covenant, the blood that was poured out to pay for our crimes. Not just any blood this time, though. The blood of God himself. Poured out for us on the cross, just as we celebrate each time we come to the Lord’s table. This blood is the full sacrifice for all sins. The blood of animals didn’t actually accomplish anything, it was just a symbol for what was coming. The blood of God is valuable enough for all. This is the new covenant that we enjoy. As the author says here, “Now where these sins are forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin.” (v18) There is nothing left to do. We cannot contribute anything to this covenant because it has all already been taken care of. And the blessings it provides to us are immediate. It’s not just the promise of a future, better life. Yes, that will come. But it changes things here and now, too. By the blood of Jesus, we have the confidence to be able to enter into the Most Holy Place. That was the place of the temple where God’s presence dwelt. And by the law no one was allowed to approach except the high priest and then only once a year after special preparation. Sin divides us from God. But where sin has been forgiven, then there is nothing that stops us from approaching God. This point was driven home when Jesus poured out his blood to make this happen. We’ll see that tomorrow night as the curtain in the temple that separated the Most Holy Place was torn in two from top to bottom! Nothing separates us from our God now that the payment for sins has been made. We can come before him now with our prayers and petitions, confident that we will be heard. We know that we don’t deserve to have our requests considered, we don’t even deserve to be given a hearing. But our God gives you 100% of his undivided attention whenever you approach him, because this new covenant has made it possible. And this new covenant changes how we live now. As it’s written here, “I will put my laws on their hearts, and I will write them on their mind.” (v16) The law does not work like it used to. Before we had a heart full of sin and the law came to us from the outside, tried to browbeat us into submission out of fear of eternal death, but it never really changed the heart within. Now we have been cleansed from the inside out by our God and we are each a new creation. The new self that is holy at its core. This means the new self naturally does what God required in his law. Not because it is demanded of us, not because there is a threat if we don’t. The new self lives the law just because…that is who it is! So as the author encourages us here, hold on to the hope that this new covenant brings. Don’t let anyone chain you back to the law and convince you that your actions are going to determine your salvation. As we grow individually weak, the fire of the group keeps your faith burning bright. Encourage each other to hold to the hope of Christ and let others be an encouragement for you. Keep up your meeting together to worship your Lord, not “because you always have,” or “because it’s what you’re ‘sposed to do,” but because of the benefits it brings your faith and your hope. And as part of that ongoing building up and strengthening of your faith, celebrate the blood of that covenant that was poured out for you. Treat the supper with reverence, not taking it for granted or as some kind of rote formula you follow, but think about it! Treasure it! Celebrate it! Each time you come forward, let the blessings that God pours out to you through it continually strengthen and encourage you. Let it be another proof and reminder that God has done everything for you. The final day is approaching. Whether it is the last day of this world or the last day you set foot on it, let God prepare you, that your sure hope in eternity is built up and strengthened. This evening as we celebrate the institution of the Lord’s Supper, taste and see that the Lord is good. Rejoice in the new covenant he has made for you. Amen.  No regrets.
Do you know someone rallies around this cry? Or maybe the more modern YOLO – You Only Live Once? Or going way back to classic Latin carpe diem? Seize the day! Whichever one it is, it’s a call to live life to the fullest, to get the most out of it, and never shrink from an opportunity that you might regret missing out on later. Maybe you know that person, maybe you try to do it yourself. Today, as we continue our series on The Kingdom of God is Like, we’re going to look at some people who lived that way. First, a little bit of recap and context. Maybe you’re aware, maybe you’re not, but this is our third week in what we call the End Times season of the church year. It’s a time when we focus on what the end of this world will be like, what we’re looking forward to, and where our ultimate confidence is. Last week was the Sunday of Final Judgment, and appropriately enough we looked at the parable of the net. We saw how the angels would gather up all the people at the end of the age and separate them, good from bad – judging them, as it were. And we heard pretty clearly what would happen to those bad fish. Today, we look more at the outcome for those good fish in the Sunday we call Saints Triumphant. This day celebrates the end that awaits the holy people of God, the triumphant celebration in the kingdom of heaven after this is all over. And our parable today, again appropriately, revolves around a great banquet being held. So, let’s take a look at the start of that story Jesus tells: 15 When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.” 16 Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ 18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’ 19 “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ 20 “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’ ” Let’s pause there. What do we have so far? A man, with apparently significant resources, prepares a grand banquet. Out of the blue, no apparent reason, just to celebrate. And he sends invitations out to all his friends, to all the movers and shakers and well-to-do people of the area. To anyone worth inviting. To this grand feast. Let’s think about that part first. Now, maybe you’re like me and you just love food and good times with friends. The idea of this could appeal to you a lot. But let’s try to put it more into our context. A dinner party today is, hey that’s great, but it’s not the end-all, be-all of our lifestyles. It was perhaps a bigger deal at that time. So maybe translate that into something that really speaks to you. A Caribbean cruise? A wilderness retreat? A Disney vacation package? A massive party in an airplane hangar? Think about it, whatever comes to mind as the best kind of time you can think of having. Think about that grand time and then think about getting a card in the mail inviting you to it. It’s from someone you trust, it’s not a prank or a scam, it’s real. Imagine the excitement of holding that invite in your hand. Someone else is going to the trouble of getting this all set up, taking care of all the arrangements, the travel, the catering, the cost, the guest list, whatever it is. All you have to do is show up. Now imagine… what on earth could possibly stop you from being there at the appointed time? Okay, maybe there’s a few things. A sudden death in the family or severe illness. Natural disaster getting in your way. Some stuff that’s not really in your control. But that’s not what happens here. The call goes out, the banquet is ready. Just show up and enjoy it! And the servant sent to gather the guests gets… excuses. And I mean, it’s not like they’re terrible excuses. They all have something to do that is more important to them than enjoying a nice banquet. One wants to check out a new purchase of land. Another needs to field-test his new oxen. Still another has a wife he needs to take care of. Seems reasonable. But on the other hand, would an evening out of their lives to attend the banquet really have ruined these other things? You could kind of see it going either way, right? See, here’s the problem with the “No Regrets” lifestyle. You can’t do everything. Every day you’re faced with choices of doing one thing over another. And we all value activities differently. Maybe for you living life to its fullest means going out and being social every evening. Maybe for me it means eating a whole bag of Oreos and reading comic books all night. But at every juncture, at every decision point – how do you know which one you won’t regret? You can’t. You just can’t for any earthly activity. But we’re not really talking about earthly activities, are we? Remember a parable is an earthly story that teaches us about the Kingdom of God. So this banquet is not a banquet, it’s God inviting us to best celebration there ever is and ever will be. The triumph of heaven. Last week we talked about the uncomfortable reality that hell is real. But just as real is heaven. It’s better than you or I could imagine. It’s better than the best cruise where you don’t get seasick, better than the best camping trip with no mosquitoes, better than a Disney vacation without any lost luggage or crying children and better than the biggest celebration without the awkward relative who drinks too much. Better than any and all of that put together. It’s utterly peaceful, utterly joyful, completely exciting, and without any pain, ache, or fatigue. It’s a grand celebration that never gets boring or tiresome. It is, quite plainly, the best. Now imagine… what on earth could possibly stop you from being there? So why do we make excuses all the time? Because we think we don’t want to regret missing things that come up here and now. Some of them are utterly mundane and trivial. “I’ll get to God later, for now I need to try out this new Xbox game.” Those should be easy to spot. Some…like the excuses in our parable, well they seem more reasonable. “I’ll get to God later, but right now I have to sort out our finances.” “I’ll get to God soon, but right now I have to get the shopping for Christmas done.” “I’ll get to God, but this new relationship needs attention first.” “I’d like to have time for God, but my family needs me to do so much for them.” We think we’ll regret it if we don’t do these things we “should” or “have to” do. Switch your perspective on regrets. We said before there’s no way to know which earthly activity you might regret missing. Sure. But I can tell you this for a fact: When your end comes, when the banquet is ready, you will regret it if you’re not there. I can also promise you this: when you’re there, you will not regret a single thing you missed here. Think that over a second time. Let it sink in. You will not be in heaven saying to yourself, “You know this sure is a great time, but I’m sorry I didn’t get to see the Grand Canyon before I got here.” How absurd! Replace that with whatever you want. There is nothing you can miss here that will somehow regret in heaven. But whenever we put something ahead of time with God, whenever we cut him out of our lives because we’re afraid of missing out on something else, that’s exactly what we’re doing! Day by day, inch by inch, God gets squeezed out of our lives because we fear missing out on something else here. Now, perhaps I’ve got you thinking, just like I’ve got me thinking, about all the times I’ve turned down God’s invitation in order to do something utterly trivial in comparison. That’s not a great feeling. Might have you feeling a little worthless overall from that behavior. If that’s how I treat his invitation, why should God even bother to invite me? If so, take a look at what happens next. 21 “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ 22 “ ‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ 23 “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. 24 I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’ ” The choice guests don’t come. They all think they have better things to do. But the meal’s prepared, the celebration is ready, it can’t just go to waste! So, the master sends his servant back out. Go and get anyone you can find. Get those that have nothing better in their lives, those that would never turn down such an invitation. I don’t care that they can’t pay me back, if I get no favors or a return invitation someday. Gather everyone who’s worth nothing to anyone. They do. But there’s still room. So, he sends his servant back out. Go even further out. In fact, there’s an interesting connotation in the original language here. The places the servant is sent the second time are places that robbers and highwaymen were known to lurk. In other words, you’ve got all the worthless people in here? Go and gather the criminals as well! I don’t care who they are or what they’ve done – I don’t want a single space to be wasted. My brothers, my sisters, it doesn’t matter that you have nothing good to offer God for a place at the banquet. It doesn’t matter if you’re not worth inviting. None of us are. But Jesus himself has prepared this feast. He is the one who ensured there were more than enough places to go around. And God the Father wants none to be wasted. Here’s the plain facts: Jesus died and rose for all. Because he is God, his death on the cross is valuable enough to pay the price for every person who has ever and will ever live. Heaven can never run out of room. Everyone is invited. You are invited. The only people who will not be there are those that turned away because they had something “better” to do. Anyone who looks to Jesus, who actually shows up is welcome to come in. And it doesn’t matter what you’re worth to God. He’s God. He doesn’t need anything, there was never a chance that you could bring him something he didn’t already have. More than that, even if you’re a criminal, if you’ve fought against him in the past, he still wants you there. He wants everyone to enjoy the banquet prepared by his Son. Being there in the end is all that matters. That banquet celebration in heaven is the only thing you’ll regret missing out on. It is the only important thing in your life. A hundred, a thousand other things will scream for your attention demanding that they be dealt with before the most important one, but don’t mistake urgent for important. Your relationship with God will almost never seem urgent. So, you have to make it the priority. You have to make sure God gets time on your calendar and the best of your gifts first, every time. Make that happen first, because it is the most important, it is the one thing you will regret if you don’t. Then, after you’ve given God your first and best, then you can continue dealing with the other urgent matters in your life. The kingdom of heaven is like the grandest banquet you can think of, it is the best party, the best vacation, the best experience you can imagine multiplied by more than you can imagine. And you’re invited. Jesus bought you a place. Don’t meander towards that end, run towards it. Don’t ever think for a moment you’ll regret spending time with him, in his word, doing his work over something else in this life. Nothing here even comes close. Live with that banquet feast in mind. Live for God. No regrets. Amen.  Today we are continuing our series called The Kingdom of God is Like. It’s a series all about parables. Parables are short earthly stories that teaching about the eternal kingdom of God. So far, we have heard that the kingdom of God is like buried treasure—which, to be fair, seems like a very flattering comparison.
Treasure is valuable Treasure is beautiful. Treasure is worth selling anything and everything to make yours. Treasure seems like a great comparison for God’s kingdom. This week? We compare God’s kingdom to a fishing net. Fishing nets are stinky. Fishing nets are smelly. Fishing nets come with those some of those little algae goobers encrusted on around the edge. It’s not as flattering of a comparison. Why is God’s kingdom like a fishing net? Before we look at this strange comparison which teaches us some very important truths about God’s kingdom, a prayer: O Lord, strengthen us by the truth; your Word is the 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. 1st Century Fishing Jesus’ parable is from the parable-filled Matthew 13. It comes right after the parable of the treasure and stands in stark contrast to it. Remember – each parable emphasizes a different aspect of the Kingdom of God. The parable of the Treasure reveals the value of God’s kingdom; the parable of the net reveals methodology. Look at what the parable says: Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. (v.47-48) Anybody here go fishing? Nowadays fishing consists of packing up a rod and reel, stopping by the local bait shop, picking out a nice, big juicy earthworm (or maybe a wriggly, black leech), then heading out to the local pond, casting, stopping to untangle the line from the tree branch behind you, casting again, watching as your line drifts into the middle of the lake…and then… Waiting. Waiting. And waiting some more. Eventually some fish grabs the hook, line and sinker. You pull him in and… If he’s an acceptable length and weight – you keep him. If not …plop! If it’s a delicious looking salmon, in the basket. If it’s a creepy looking dogfish, not so much. Back at Jesus’ time, the fishing is a bit different. Fishermen would drag their nets to the shore and paddle to the middle of the lake. Then, they’d toss a weighted net overboard. Then, slowly they’d move along with the waves, while their net dragged against the bottom collecting any and every fish that happened to get in the way of the net. When they’re done fishing, they pull up the ropes, cinch the corners and pull the net up. But here’s the thing: Can you tell which fish are bad? Can you tell which fish are good? Can you tell which fish are future 5-star restaurant menu items? And which fish belong on some Discovery Channel documentary on deep sea monsters? No. It’s too much of a jumbled-up mess! So…what do the fishermen do? They take the net back to the shore. They open the net and begin separating: Keeper. Keeper. Too small. Keeper. Keeper. Too big. Keeper. Keeper. Too much like Uncle Joe… Fishing at Jesus’ time required a lot of sorting. But… The fish cannot be sorted from the good from the bad while they are in the net; rather they are sorted when the fishing is finished. II. A Priceless Treasure But remember – this is a parable. Parables are short earthly stories that teach about the kingdom of God. Which means: Things are about to get real. Real and a bit uncomfortable. Look at the meaning of the parable: This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (v.49-50) Hmmm… At first glance, this might seem to be another parable. The parable of the furnace… Please...? But – let’s be clear: The second half of the parable the part about the blazing furnace and the angels, that’s not the illustration part. It’s the explanation. It’s not an illustration, but the reality. In fact, this parable is all about realities. Realities that are quite uncomfortable. (1) Hypocrisy is Real Because… that dragging net represents the kingdom of God at work. And there is no greater representation of the kingdom of God at work than visible local churches. In a church, God’s Word is proclaimed. In a church, people are baptized. In a church, people celebrate the Lord’s Supper. In a church, people pool resources to go and plant the Message of Jesus in the Hearts of North Raleigh. In a church, God’s kingdom is at work. And when God’s kingdom is at work, it’s like a big old net that collects people of all type and varieties. Big and small. Young and old. Black and white. Tarheel fans, Wolfpack fans and Duke fans. But most importantly to this parable… Good. And Bad. People that are a part of God’s kingdom. And people that only look like it. NOW STOP! Immediately. Because what some of you are about to do is quietly, sheepishly raise your finger and slyly point at someone else here. “Pastor, I think it’s him…” NOPE. That’s not the point. In fact, the point is the exact opposite. Because remember – while the net is in use – that is, while the people of God are using God’s Word – it’s impossible to see which are true believers and which are hypocrites. It’s kinda like trying to identify which fish are good and which fish are bad when they’re still in the net. Impossible. You won’t be able to tell who’s a hypocrite and who isn’t in a church simply by looking at them. That is… You won’t be able to tell most hypocrites simply by looking at them. But there is one person in the church… That you should be able to identify as good or bad. Yourself. You know you. You know your heart. You know if your heart is following Jesus or if this is all just some big show. Something you do because your parents told you to do. Something you do so pastor will get off your back. When it comes to facing the reality of hypocrisy, it doesn’t start by looking into the world… Or looking into another Christian church… Or looking at other people in this church… It starts by looking in your heart. (2) The End is Real The second reality has less to do with now and more to do with later. End times. Take a look at Jesus’ words – This is how it will be at the end of the age. (v.49) He then goes on to describe angels, divine, holy messengers of God – no longer invisible – fully and completely perceptible - picking people up like fish and separating them. Good. Bad. Good. Bad. If you are a hypocrite, you need to pay very close attention to this section. Because, truth is, you might be able to fool other Christians. You might be able to fool them with a fish sticker on the back of your car and “Christian” listed on your Facebook profile’s religious preference. You might be able to fool others at church. You might be able to fool me. But… You can’t fool God. And at the end, you will be separated. And placed wherever it is you belong. And can I say something obvious? There’s one place that you don’t want to be your final destiny. (3) Hell is Real Look at the description of where the bad fish go: “The blazing furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (v.50) Notice. The verbs are present tense. Notice. The verbs are continuous. That’s because this is eternal. Eternal hell. Stop – real quick – because the devil is doing everything possible right now to make you say: “Pastor has gone off the deep end. Pastor is talking all mean like. Pastor is saying thing I wish he wouldn’t.” I am because I love you. And I don’t want you to go to this very real and very awful place. But more importantly Jesus loves you. After all, look at whose words about hell these are: Jesus. The same guy who told the blind guy to see…and he did. The same guy who told the deaf guy to hear…and he did. The same guy who told the lame guy to walk…and he did. The same guy who told the storms to stop…and they did. The same guy who told the Pharisees to go ahead and kill him because he would come back to life… And they did… And he did. Jesus has street cred. Whatever he says will happen, will happen. And to those who reject Him? This hell thing? Will happen. (4) Good Fish are Real I’m not gonna lie. Thus far this is one of the least uplifting sermons of all time. Because – if we are talking about bad fish – how do you not begin to be filled with absolute fear! We are sinners. All of us. And I am included! I’m like some ugly carp at the bottom of a mutant ooze infested landfill with three eyeballs where his gill should be. I’m gross and my sins are gross. I think -- There is no reason that God would ever want to collect me in his basket and take me to heaven! You too? Here’s something interesting. When Jesus uses the word “end” here in verse 50, he uses the word: syntelia. That’s a form of the world telos which means: the end. The end is when judgment will happen. The end is when God will bring justice against sinners. Now – here’s where things get really interesting. Because about a year and a half after Jesus spoke this parable -- Jesus spoke something else. On the cross. Right before he died. TETELESTAI! Which is the exact same root words that Jesus used in our parable to denote the end times. IT IS FINISHED. In other words, judgment has happened! From God’s perspective – Jesus has been judged as the bad fish. And you – friends—you have been judged righteous. Think about that! We are sinners. We are filled with a yucky past. We are grody to the touch. Yet because of what Jesus has done, you have been declared GOOD. Worth keeping. Ready to take home in the take basket. And understand this point too: We are not judged by our good merits. We are not judged by our good deeds. We are not judged by our good tries. We are judged entirely by what Jesus did for us on the cross! And we are judged righteous. And by faith in Jesus, we are the good fish! We will not be thrown out. We will be collected and taken home. (5) Heaven is Real Because that’s what the good fish have to look forward to. This parable just touches the surface of it. It says that the good fish, will be placed into baskets. But what it doesn’t say is that those baskets have someone’s name written on the handle. They have someone’s name written in Black, Permanent Marker. GOD’S. Because the good fish – that is – those made holy by faith in Jesus Christ – will be brought to God’s home. The kingdom of righteousness. The home of peace. Heaven. And unlike this world -- With danger lurking on every corner… And predators chasing after us… And giant waves of life hitting us again and again… Heaven is peaceful. Heaven is a place of forgiveness. Heaven is a place of peaceful rest. Heaven is yours. Friends! Praise the Lord for being caught in the net and taken home to heaven. Amen.  Today we are continuing our series called The Kingdom of God is Like. It’s a series all about parables. Parables are short earthly stories that teaching about the eternal kingdom of God. Last week, so far, we have heard that the kingdom of God is like a sower, a growing seed, a mustard seed, a homeless fox, an abandoned burial plot and a plow. Today’s parable is well timed, because it fits in perfectly with a certain holiday. I don’t know about you, but this past Wednesday, there seemed to be an extreme increase in the number of pirates that live in Raleigh. Over at the new school, we have a security system with a key fob and you’d think it would lock out pirates, but these pirates were tricky and made their way into the school -- little 3-foot-tall pirates. With eye patches and stuffed parrots. Pirates love treasure: gold necklaces, silver artifacts, coins, jewelry, bottles of rum. They loved treasure so much that they’d run ashore near a local port, approach someone’s front step and force them to give them treasure. Not at all unlike what some little 3-foot-tall pirates did around my house on Wednesday! And then, pirates take the treasure, sail to some deserted isle and bury it. Deep under the ground. With a few pieces of wood lain across the top: “X” marks the spot. Jesus’ parable today says this: “The kingdom of God is like a hidden treasure.” Before we look at it, a prayer: O Lord, strengthen us by the truth; your Word is the 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. A Hidden Treasure Jesus’ parable is from Matthew 13. Take a look: The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. (v.44) In his parable, the treasure is found by a man at work in a field. It’s the middle of the hot day. He’s sweating. He’s using a fence post digger to dig a hole for the fence post he’s installing around the back of his owner’s property. He’s slams and digs. He slams and digs. He slams and digs. All day long. Until… Sometime around quitting time…. He slams and… CLANK! That’s strange. He slams and… CLANK! At first, he thinks it’s a rock. He looks around to see if he can adjust the post hole so he doesn’t have to go through the trouble of moving the rock. But right as he’s about to adjust the hole to the right and he’s thinking of his company’s slogan: “THE RIGHT HOLE IN THE RIGHT SPOT ALL THE TIME,” the glint of the evening sun shines off of something in the middle of the ground. What is it? He reaches down. He brushes the dirt off the top to reveal – a metal crest on the top of an ancient chest. His heart starts pounding. He digs. To the front. To the back. To the side. Until he gets enough of the dirt out of the way to pull the chest out of the hole and look inside. TREASURE: Gold. Silver. Diamonds. Jewels. It must be worth millions of dollars. The man looks around. The thing is – this isn’t his land. It isn’t his property. And the chest isn’t his property. If he lets anyone know that he found it on this land, then the treasure will no longer be his. It’ll belong to the guy who’s fence he’s digging. So… He puts the chest back into the hole. He covers it with dirt. He takes two twigs and aligns them in an “x”. He heads up to his employer, wishes him a good evening and leaves for the day. But his work isn’t done. Later that night, he gets onto his bank account and empties his 401k into his checking account. He goes on Facebook marketplace and begins placing anything he owns on sale: His car. His motorcycle. His bass fishing boat. His Mickey Mantle Rookie Card. Even his Xbox! The next morning, he heads to the bank and he puts his house on mortgage! He takes all of this money. He heads to work. He slams a check worth 3 times the amount of the property onto his client’s desk: I’ll buy this property. I just think it’s nice. I figure if I put fence post holes into it; it might as well be mine. At 3 times the price, his client can’t say no. The man buys the property. The property is his. Everything on the property is his. But he doesn’t care about most of it. He only wants THE TREASURE. II. A Priceless Treasure Jesus says this: “The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field.” (v.44) Because here is the truth: God’s kingdom is eternally priceless. There is nothing as valuable. … nothing as precious. …nothing as eternally priceless as the kingdom of God. It lasts forever. Brings enduring peace. And connects you to your heavenly father. If you’ve ever searched for kingdom of God, then, you understand the digging for treasure scenario. Because the religious landscape can be a lot like the Sahara Desert. Places to dig everywhere. Where is the treasure…? And so you start digging near a very peaceful looking pile of dirt. A lotus flower is growing nearby. “Oh! This must be the Sand of Spirituality. I’ve heard of that. Maybe this is where I’ll find the treasure of God’s kingdom.” And you dig And you learn breathing practices. And you fold your body into a pretzel. And you listen to Yanni. And you think that you are closer to God… Because you stopped feeling stress… And started feeling nothingness. Oh, the wonderful nothingness. Suddenly – you think of that jerk Bob from work. He should be slapped. And you realize… You are the same. You still sin. You still feel guilty. Now you just own a bunch of Yanni CDs. This is not a treasure worth keeping. You walk a bit farther and you find a big old pile of rocks. It’d be tough work to dig over there. But then again – that’d make it the perfect place to put the treasure – under the stones of Self-Righteousness. And you dig and work hard because you figure if you work harder than anyone else, God will be impressed! You work hard at being nicer to your family. You work hard at never saying a mean thing. You work hard to give extra money to charity. You work hard at never taking a second glance a member of the opposite sex. You work hard at being self-righteous. Until you’re scrolling through Facebook after a day of finding self-righteousness and… An ad pops up for a TRIAL offer of something…with a scantily clad lady telling you to buy it. And you look her a bit longer than you should. And you think about using some of the money penned for God to buy that thing to make the pretty lady happy. And your spouse walks in and sees what you’re looking at, so you say something mean in response. And then you want to get rid of the guilty your feeling, so you tell her about all the bad things she has done. And… Suddenly… Those stones of self-righteousness come tumbling in on top of you. This isn’t the treasure. And you dig other places. You dig in the mine of Material Wealth. No treasure. You dig under the sands of self-allegation. No treasure. You dig in the pile of filth known as Facebook. No treasure. No connection with God. No peace. In fact, you start to notice a pattern – all these attempts at getting closer to God are the same: Do Mormon things and God will like you. Do Islamic things and God will like you. Do Jewish things and God will like you. Do Hindu things and God will like you. Do Tom Cruise things and…well…Tom Cruise will get richer. It’s all the same! It’s all worthless! It’s all meaningless! And then.... When you’re about to give up. When you’re tired. When you’re exhausted. When you say: “I’m through! I’m done with this religious stuff. God hates me and that’s that. I might as well give up. I might as well put down my shovel and…” CLANK! What was that? CLANK! There appears to be something here. CLANK! There appears to be something different here. This is the Gospel. It’s the message of sins forgiven. It’s the message of the true God. It’s the message that Jesus lived for you. It’s the message that Jesus died for you. It’s the message that Jesus rose for you. It’s the message that Jesus has removed every last one of your sins. It’s the message that you are his child, you are forgiven, and you will be in heaven with Him. It’s this message: You know it is was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. (1 Peter 1:18-19) Think about it! That’s the value of Jesus’ blood. It’s more valuable than gold. It’s more valuable than silver. It’s more valuable than a treasure chest of jewels, a treasure chest of rubies or even a treasure chest of those golden foil wrapped coins with chocolate inside. It’s more valuable than good works. It’s more valuable than good feelings. It’s more valuable than any halfhearted, sin-tainted attempts at being holy. It’s the blood of Jesus. Our sacrificial lamb. The perfect Son of God. His blood has infinite value. And friends – it pays for your sins. It pays for your guilt. It means forgiveness – full forgiveness – free forgiveness – absolute forgiveness -- For you. III. WHAT NOW? (1) Give up Untreasures That’s what the man who found the buried treasure did. He sold everything he had. He made room for the real treasure. He made certain the REAL treasure would be his. Do the same with God’s kingdom. Because here’s the truth: The devil will do everything possible to make you think that something that’s NOT the treasure…IS the REAL treasure. Don’t get rid of that addiction; it’s too valuable to feeling good. Don’t get rid of that priority; it’s too valuable to being cool. Don’t get rid of that self- righteousness; that’s the secret treasure that truly connects you to God. It’s all lies. Lies that will prevent you from keeping the true treasure buried within your heart. And if you listen to the devil, instead of burying the Gospel deep in your heart, you cling to something utterly worthless. It’s like someone trying to offer you a check for a hundred, billion dollars! But you really like the piece of mushed banana that you have in your left hand right now so…I’ll pass. Don’t be foolish! Don’t fall for the devil’s lies. The Gospel is eternally priceless! Get rid of the fake treasure that’s taking up the spot where you’re the REAL treasure of Jesus needs to be. And bury the treasure of the Gospel deep in your heart. (2) Bury the Treasure That doesn’t mean: “Hide the Gospel and tell no one about Jesus.” Nope. That’s entirely contradictory to Jesus’ own directive to “Go and make disciples of all nations…by teaching them.” (Matthew 28) Rather it means to hide the Gospel deep within your own heart. To bury it deep within your soul. To place it into the very core of your being and who you are. How do you do that? Get a surgery with one of the fine doctors at Duke and have him implant one of those little Bibles from the Gideons? Nope. You spend time in God’s Word. You read The Gospel message. You study the Gospel message. You gather for worship. You gather for Bible study. You spend time with Jesus, because in doing so – his message – the message of the Gospel – moves… From the pages of Scripture To your eyes. To your brain. To your heart. It’s like a beautiful diamond. You go down to the Jeweler’s and look at it in the light -- And if it’s cut well – no matter how you look at it – you see something magnificent. It’s the same with the Gospel message. Here’s I see God’s incredible compassion. Here I look at God’s amazing power. Here I look at the value of Christ’s redemption. Here I enjoy the view of my atonement. Here I see the mesmerizing perspective of peace with God. And here I see the glories of heaven itself. Bury it. Bury God’s kingdom deep in your heart. ** The audio has an extra story in it. You can find it here ** Conclusion: I said the parable of the treasure fits well into a recent holiday. But I wasn’t referring to Halloween. Wednesday was also the 501st Anniversary of the Reformation. It’s the anniversary of a time when the treasure of Gospel was rediscovered. Because the religious climate at that time – in the Christian church – was such that there was no treasure. If you wanted to get God’s’ forgiveness, you needed to… Do good things. Say prayers to Mary. Cross yourself in the right way. Give money to charity. And buy pieces of paper that said: “You are forgiven.” And it was in that climate – in that treasure-less church that God re-revealed the TRUE treasure of the Gospel. That Jesus is your Savior. That in Him you are forgiven. That by faith you are saved. Friends, it’s 500 years later. That treasure is at our fingertips again. Don’t lose it. Bury it deep within. Amen.  Today we are continuing our series called The Kingdom of God is Like…and hearing yet another parable from Jesus about the kingdom of God. Remember, a parable is an earthly story that tells about the kingdom of God. So far – we have heard three.
And today we are going to double the number of parables that we’ve heard. We are looking at three very short, one sentence parables from Jesus. Each one offers a similar, but slightly distinct perspective on the Kingdom of God. Before we begin, let’s pray: O Lord, strengthen us by the truth; your Word is the 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. …Like a Homeless Fox The parables for consideration come in rapid fire format from Luke 9 starting at verse 57. It’s in a section where Jesus is walking about with a crowd of people following him. I always think that’s interesting and worthy of a sermon of its own – Jesus didn’t sit around and wait for people to come to him; he went out and found people to bring the message of the Gospel to. But…I’ve already got three other sermons to go through today, so…I digress. As Jesus is walking, one man is getting pretty motivated listening to Jesus. He’s getting pretty excited. He’s getting pretty pumped up. So, he shouts: “Jesus, I will follow you wherever you go!” (v.57) To which… …Jesus doesn’t high five him. …He doesn’t congratulate him. …He doesn’t even clench his fist in private celebration. He says, “Foxes have holes and birds have nests, but the Son of man has no place to lay his head.” (v.58) Have you ever seen a fox? Foxes can be hard to spot. Little, red, dog-looking things with fluffy tails. They are hard to spot, because they are very good at hiding. And they hide in their fox hole or fox den. Usually it’s thick inside some brush or a hole in the rocks or maybe even some mud in the ground. It’s not fancy. There’s no Wi-Fi connection – but the fox has a place to be. And a bird nest is similar. Bird nests are made from twigs, straw, branches, and even some stray dog hairs. They are not worth very much on Zillow, but it is a nice place for the bird to stay. Think about this: Foxes have bushy dens. Birds have twiggy nests. The Son of God who comes from heaven itself? Not even a pile of twigs to call his own…. Very literally – during the 3 years that Jesus did ministry, he didn’t have a home. He didn’t have a studio apartment. He didn’t even have a room at the Extended Stay. He was essentially homeless, staying wherever people opened their homes to him or under a myrtle tree if he had to. It wasn’t because he was without resources. Remember: He made bread come out of thin air. He found a coin within a fish mouth. He controlled thunder and lightning. He was homeless NOT because he didn’t have the resources. He was homeless because he was too focused on his work with the Kingdom of God. Truth: The Kingdom of God is greater than material wealth. Because Jesus’ answer gives us a glimpse into the heart of the man who wanted to follow him. Commonly people thought Jesus was the Messiah, but they had a false idea of the Messiah. They thought that the Messiah would lead to political power, a restoration of the Kingdom of Israel, and a toppling of the Roman Empire. The man probably thought: “I’ll follow you Jesus! All the way to your future palace. Hopefully there’ll be a room in that palace for me. With my own servants and a plush bed and all the spending money I could desire.” But… The kingdom of God was not about material wealth. The kingdom of God was greater than material wealth. This absolutely applies today. Because it is so easy to think that material wealth is greater than Kingdom wealth. Whether it’s giving up money in the offering plate that could be used in a $401k. Or giving up time on a Sunday that could be used to work on your side business and make some more cash. Or giving up that good job offer that always has me working on Sunday and could lead to a million-dollar home near a golf course in North Raleigh. Remember – the Kingdom of God is greater than Material Wealth. Because material wealth won’t last. The dollars will dry up. The things will get old. The stuff will need to be replaced. This past week – if you saw the floors here – they are freshly waxed. They look awesome! But this morning – I stepped with my shoes in the wrong direction and - well – material wealth doesn’t last. But God’s kingdom does. God’s kingdom offers forever forgiveness in Jesus. God’s kingdom offers the promise of eternal life. God’s kingdom offers the eternal comforts of heaven. To be fair – Jesus knew that. And he forsook material wealth in order to win for you eternal riches. The Bible says this: Though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, that you through his poverty might become rich. How poor did Jesus get? He died on a cross. How rich will you be? He gives you a room in heaven. While on earth remember – the Kingdom of God is greater than Material wealth. II. …an Abandoned Burial Plot As Jesus keeps walking, he turns to another person that he meets along the way and he says to him: “Follow me.” To which the man responds, “First, let me go and bury my father.” (v.59) Which doesn’t seem like that crazy of a request. That seems like a very important family task. Of all the tasks that one could do – burying your family member seems near the top. But look at Jesus’ response: “Let the dead bury their own dead, you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” (v.60) Does that seem a little harsh? If I asked one of you to help me go around the neighborhood and invite people to church and you responded that you needed to work on your dad’s funeral, I would probably tell you. “OK. No worries. I’m sorry for your loss. You are in my prayers.” But Jesus says, “Don’t worry about your dead father, worry about the proclaiming the kingdom of God.” Why? If I can be crass for a moment. At the seminary, one of our professors was talking about ministering at a funeral. He mentioned that many love to talk about how great a person was in the funeral sermon. He suggested we don’t do that. Why? If I can quote my seminary notes: “The funeral sermon isn’t for the dead. They can’t hear you. They’re dead. The funeral sermon is for those who are alive – that they too, may live.” Let’s be clear. Jesus isn’t saying that you shouldn’t have a funeral for your family. But he is saying that even the most important seeming earthly task is nothing compared to the work of the kingdom of God. To put it simply: The kingdom of God is greater than any earthly task. I think our society really needs to remember that. Because it isn’t as if the struggle is between should I plan my dad’s funeral or tell about Jesus. (If it is, it’s a once in a lifetime struggle) Usually the struggle is: Can I go to worship this week? My kid has a baseball game. Can I attend that Bible study? I’ve gotta do housework – have you seen the leaves at my house? Should I plan on Garden Kids? Nah…I’ve got to work on some kind of task so that I can get to all my other tasks on my task list. REMEMBER: The Kingdom of God is greater than any Earthly Task. It’s a task that produces lasting results. Taking your kids to baseball practice will produce skills that last to high school, maybe collect – league softball and slowly deteriorate. Raking your leaves? More will fall. Any kind of task? You will have to do it again and again and again and again…because the benefits only last for a moment. But the Kingdom of God last forever. Jesus knew that. It’s why Jesus endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Heb. 12:2) He kept his mind on the most important task. You do the same. III. …a Plow Final parable. Another person says to Jesus, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” (v.61) It’s not as big a task as planning and carrying out a funeral. It’s just a quick kiss on the cheek, a hug and a goodbye! But – Jesus’ response is again surprising: “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” (v.62) Have you ever used a plow? At the time of Jesus, they didn’t have a one of those big, gas-powered machines. They had a horse or donkey and hooked up to the plow. Your job is to stare where the plow is plowing and help to keep it in a straight line. If you don’t pay attention, do you know what happens? You go left. You go right. It gets all caddywampus. And it’s the same with working in God’s kingdom. If you’re more worried about what your family thinks than what God thinks then… …I was going to go to worship, but my spouse wants me to Netflix binge with him. …I was going to teach my kids that sin is wrong, but my sister disagrees with me. …I was going to lead a pure life, but my boyfriend wants me to do otherwise. And suddenly your following of Jesus is a caddywampus mess! Here’s the third truth: The Kingdom of God is greater than Any Kind of Relationship. And again – Understand Jesus’ point. He wants you to love your family. Absolutely he does: The Bible tells you to love your family. He’s the one who created the idea of family. And he’s the one who created your family and gave them to you. Please – this isn’t Jesus’ way of saying – stop loving your family! It’s Jesus’ way of saying love your family; just love your heavenly Father more. Because loving your Father most will actually show your family a greater love than you ever knew possible. TRUTH: The Kingdom of God is greater than Any Kind of Relationship. To be fair, our Heavenly Father knew that. That’s why he was willing to put his relationship with you above his relationship with His only begotten Son. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) IV. What Now? The message is simple. The message is clear. The kingdom of God is greater than material wealth, earthly tasks, and any human relationship. The kingdom of God is of the utmost importance. Do you want to follow Jesus? Follow this truth. Make the God who made you most important be most important to you. Amen. |
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January 2021
Pastor Phil Kiecker
and his wife, Julianna love serving the community of North Raleigh.
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