©2003 Larry Huntsperger Peninsula Bible Fellowship

04/11/04

Easter!

4/11/04 Easter

We spent last week looking

at the beginning of the most crucial single week in all of human history.

It was a week that began

with a Man named Jesus

riding into Jerusalem

surrounded by thousands of cheering

men,

women,

and children.

It was a week

that, from the crowd’s point of view,

had the makings of great things to come.

Here, at last was a Man

who had both the plan

and the power to change the world.

Here was a Man

who could heal the sick with just a touch,

or a word.

Here was a Man

who could offer forgiveness

and hope to those trapped in their own addictive sins.

Here was a Man

who could create food from nothing

and gave it free of charge.

Here was a Man who could not be intimidated

or bribed

or confused

or tricked

or mentally out-maneuvered.

And finally, at last He had come to Jerusalem publicly,

surrounded not just by His handful of faithful followers,

but by thousands who now sang His praises and stood behind Him.

It was a week

that also began with a terror

gripping the hearts of those in power.

Everything they had built so carefully,

everything they had bought

and bribed

and negotiated with Rome

now stood threatened by this Man.

All the prestige and power

that flowed to them

through their carefully crafted religious system was now in jeopardy.

There was no choice here -

the Man had to be killed.

After the feast was over,

and the crowds had dispersed,

then they would get Him,

and put Him on trial,

and execute Him.

But not now.

Not with all of these cheering masses at His side.

And we saw last week

the way this Man, this Jesus

carefully guided each day,

each event,

each response of those around Him

to coordinate perfectly

with the plan He Himself had predetermined.

He had not come to conquer,

He had not come to rule,

He had come to die

in the way

and the time

and the place

that He Himself had determined -

not a few days earlier,

not even a few years earlier,

but from before the foundation to the world.

This was the Feast of the Passover -

to the Jewish people simply the remembrance of an historical event,

an event that had taken place more than 1200 years earlier.

But to Jesus

that feast was a vivid snapshot of Himself,

a snapshot that had been carefully created by God

and placed into history

as a promise of what was to come.

If you’ve read the book of Exodus

you remember.

The Jewish people were slaves in Egypt.

Their Egyptian masters would not let them go.

And on that first Passover

God told Moses what to do.

He told Moses to tell the Egyptian people

that this night their hearts would be broken

and their grief would engulf them like a flood,

because this night the first born

of every family

and every creature in Egypt would die.

But there was more.

Each Jewish family was to take a lamb,

and kill it,

and place some of its blood above their door.

Then they were to roast the lamb

and eat it in its entirety that night.

And then came God’s promise:

Ex. 12:13 '' And the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

“I will pass over you...

I will pass over you...

I will pass over you.

The Passover of God.

And it all happened

just as God had said.

There was no family in Egypt that night

that did not feel the pain, the agony of death,

none, that is, except for those who had heard the voice of their God

and, for reasons that, then, seemed to make no logical sense at all,

had placed the blood of a lamb

above their door

and then eaten that lamb

as God had instructed.

And now, more than a century later,

Jesus rode into Jerusalem for that Passover feast

knowing what no one else could even guess-

this feast,

this celebration was simply a portrait of Himself.

He was that lamb.

It was His blood that had the power

to free them from death.

In the book of Revelation,

chapter 5, verse 11,

God allowed John the remarkable privilege of looking into

the very presence of God,

and then He allowed John to show us what He saw.

And I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing."

I don’t want to just quote scripture

and have it roll off of us.

Do you know what’s happening in those two verses?

God is allowing us

just a glimpse inside the center of all that is.

He is allowing us to see inside

the throne room of God Himself.

And this is not some stupid science fiction movie

in which some space traveler supposedly discovers the center of the universe,

or heaven,

or the mind of God.

What we have here in Rev. 5 is the real thing.

This is a glimpse into the very presence

of God Himself.

And what John saw there

was not some weird science fiction stupidity.

What he saw were countless created beings united in the proclaimation of one single message:

"Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing."

You see, what took place

during that final week of Christ’s earthly life was no accident,

no mistake,

no unfortunate turn of events.

It wasn’t simply the beginning of another religion,

or the tragic martyrdom

of a great religious teacher.

It was God Himself

in one final, incredible moment,

bridging the great gulf

between Himself

and His creation

by presenting Himself

as a perfect sacrifice for our sins -

those sins that separated us from Him.

And for this to make sense to us

we need to keep it personal.

It was not just the sins of the world

that Christ died for,

it was your sins

and my sins.

I believe one of the greatests tragedies in our world today

is that we are forever looking for the right “answer”

when what we really need is the right Person.

And that will only make sense

when we remember that Christ’s last week on this earth

did not end on the cross.

Matt. 28:1-9 Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave. And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it. And his appearance was like lightning, and his garment as white as snow; and the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men. And the angel answered and said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.” And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him...

And then Matthew records

the very first words Jesus spoke

following His resurrection.

He said:

"Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they shall see Me."

Not “my disciples”

not “my followers”,

not “my pupils”

not even “my men”.

He said “my brethren” - My brothers.

What awesome words to come out of the mouth of God.

“Do not be afraid”.

“Tell my brothers...”

You see, from the very first words

that came out of His mouth

He wanted us to see

how everything had changed forever.

This was not the terrifying voice of God

booming from the smoke and fire,

declaring “THOU SHALT NOT!”

This was the voice of God

introducing us to what life would be like

once the barrier of our sin

has been removed.

True, this was not Jesus talking to the masses

who walked away from Him in disgust

when He failed to play by their rules.

This was Jesus

talking to those who had chosen

to place their lives

into His hands

and call Him Lord.

But the message is clear...

“Do not be afraid -

I now call you My brethren.”

It was the first time

He had ever used that term

to refer to any of His followers,

it was the first time He COULD,

because it was the first time

in the history of the human race

when the debt was finally paid in full,

and men and women could become

not just God’s creation

but also His friends -

sons and daughters of God the Father

and brothers and sisters

of God the Son - Jesus Christ.

Matthew goes on with his account.

Matt. 28:17-20 And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

As we celebrate Easter this day

I want to contribute to that celebration

by reminding us of 5 amazing changes

that took place between God and His people

as a result of the death and resurrection of Christ.

Matthew reveals these changes in Matthew 28

through the words that Christ spoke

during His final contacts

with His people.

We have already seen the first two

in those first words spoken by Christ

outside that empty tomb.

1. His very first words, ‟Do not be afraid” revealed the new access to God offered to us through Christ.

Do not be afraid!

For the first time since Adam and Eve cowered in the Garden of Eden following their rebellion against God,

a man could kneel before his God without fear,

knowing that the debt for his sin

had been paid in full by God Himself.

Paul said it so well in Rom 5:1 and 8:1 -

Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ...

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

2. Then, His second phrase, “...go and take word to My brethren...”

revealed the new relationship

God now offers to those who come to Him.

Now, for the first time

through Christ, Our God can become our Father,

and our Savior could become our big Brother.

Welcome to the family.

3. And then Christ went on

to tell us about our new basis for victory.

Matt. 28:18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth...”

And with those words

He began to prepare His people

for a whole new perspective on life.

You see, He wanted us to know

that life for His people

is no longer the way it appears.

It’s true - we continue to live

in a world deeply scarred by the effects of man’s sin

and man’s rebellion against God,

but now we live that life

held securely in the hand of our God,

knowing that nothing touches us

without His knowledge,

and nothing comes into our life

that He cannot take

and reshape for good.

Here again, Paul said it better than I ever could.

Rom. 8:28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

4. And then our Lord went on to reveal to us the new place of significance

His death and resurrection

has brought to His people.

He said,

Matt. 28:19-20 "Go therefore (or more accurately, “as you are going”) make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you;...”

A number of years before his death

Dr. Francis Schaeffer wrote a book entitled: No Little People.

In it he was talking about the people of God,

about Christians.

It’s been years since I read the book,

and though I have forgotten the details of his message,

that title, “No Little People”

and the message it communicates

has stayed with me ever since.

The world in which we live

has its own way of determining

who’s big,

who’s important,

who matters,

and who doesn’t.

It is a system based on wealth,

and fame,

and power,

and influence.

In that system

there are a few people at the very top -

the privileged,

the powerful,

the beautiful ones.

And then there are the rest of us, you and me -

the little people who do not matter.

But in Christ

and through Christ

all of that changed forever.

For, you see,

to each of us who come to Him

He gives a role of tremendous significance.

Paul calls us His ambassadors.

And our Lord tells us that He now entrusts to each of us

the greatest calling a human being can ever know.

It isn’t complicated -

He dwells in us and reveals Himself to us,

and we in turn reveal Him to our world,

through our actions,

through our words,

through our life-style,

through our choices, and priorities, and values

we tell our world that Jesus Christ is not dead,

He is alive,

and He lives within us,

and He has the ability to transform our lives.

No little people. No little places.

5. And then Matthew ends his record

of the life and death and resurrection of Jesus Christ

by recording our Lord’s great, final promise to us,

that promise that proclaims the new union between us and our God.

Matt. 28:20 ... and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. "

Maybe Paul’s words at the end of Romans chapter 8 say it best:

Rom. 8:35-39 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, “For Thy sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

That really is what our God accomplished for us

through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.