Easter Sermon - 2017

I don’t remember much of that day - most of it is a blur. I remember it being cold. I remember it snowing. I remember being miserable. It was winter and I was with the Boy Scouts troop 35 out of Johnson City. We were doing a camporee or a Jamboree or something like that where troops from all over were gathered together at Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park. I remember hating it. I hated camping. In a world where such a thing as a Chiropractic pillow and a temperpedic mattress exist it is beyond me why anyone would willingly choose to sleep on the cold hard ground. But I went anyway. I took my little gray sleeping bag and my dads old orange pup tent and in the cold wind I set up my little shelter from the storm that was about to blow through. Little did I know, it would not be enough to help me. The winter storm rolled through East Tennessee dumping snow on all of us as we slept. Normally that wouldn’t be a problem, a little snow never hurt anyone right? But that night as we slept and the wind howled and the snow came down the tree branches above our group began to bend under the ever increasing weight of the snow. More and more came down until one of the branches just couldn’t bear the load any longer and it snapped. And who do you think was under that particular bough of the tree in his little orange pup tent in his little gray sleeping bag? Me - yeah, me. The branch and snow came down and while thankfully the branch didn’t land on me, the snow did and it completely collapsed my little pup tent. Now I was so exhausted that I mostly slept through this. I remember vaguely wondering why my face was cold and wet, but I chalked it up to the fact that I was camping and that it just goes with the territory. That’s how my mind works when I’m sleeping - I become much more pessimistic and sarcastic. That’s why if you ever have the misfortune of talking to me before coffee in the morning I just apologize now. I’m sorry for the things I say before coffee, when I’m still not fully awake I can say some terrible and mean things that I have to apologize for later. It’s not pretty.

So all night long I lay under a pile of snow inside a thin little collapsed tent. All the while my body heat is radiating out and the snow is slowly melting and refreezing all around me. In the morning I vaguely remember wondering what happened. I wondered why I was cold and wet and why everything felt frozen. I wondered why my face was right against the fabric of my orange pup tent rather than staring up at it above me. It took me a second to get my bearings but when I finally did and managed to dig my way out from my frozen crumpled mess of a tent. I put the pieces together about what happened, but my head felt funny, my whole body felt funny. I was dreadfully cold and I felt sleepy in a way that was very unfamiliar. Our troop along with all the others made their way to the morning muster around the flagpoles for the start of the day. I remember stumbling down the road to the ceremony. I remember lifting my arm to salute the flag and snapping my legs and knees into their proper position for the salute, but just as my hand approached my brow, the world began to go dark. I don’t remember what happened next. I don’t remember slumping to the ground. I don’t remember my friends trying to figure out what was wrong with me. I vaguely recall them dragging me back to camp where the adults were but after that I was out for good. A few hours later I recall waking up warm which was a nice feeling for once. I was curled in a ball wrapped in blankets and I was in the back of an SUV. I have no memory of how I got there or who put me there, but man oh man was I glad they did.

Come to find out I had a little bit of hypothermia, my core body temperature had dropped because of the cold and the melting and refreezing snow all around me for hours. My body just finally decided it had had enough and when I saluted I went unconscious for a bit. My fellow scouts delivered me from the morning muster and my scoutmaster took me and got me as dry and warm as he could raising my body temp and bringing some life back into my unconscious body. I needed someone to deliver me, because I was totally incapable of helping myself - I was powerless.

Today all across the country preachers are preaching the Superbowl message of sermons - Resurrection Sunday. The one Sunday a year where people can manage to drag family members out to church who don’t normally go to church. Maybe you’re here because someone dragged you here. And thousands of preachers across America have labored tirelessly for weeks now trying to come up with the right words to connect with you folks who don’t normally attend in hopes of somehow managing to get you to stay. But you know what I’m not interested in the least if you stay. I’m interested in if you know the Gospel.

And I know what you’re thinking. Of course I know the gospel preacher man, I may not be here every Sunday or any Sunday except Easter but I know the Gospel. Do you really? Are you sure?

Well sure I’m sure. I grew up in church. Was born and raised in it. Yeah that’s not what I asked. I asked do you know the Gospel?

Well I know all about Jesus. He did miracles. He was a good teacher. He was a nice guy who just loves everybody. Yeah again I didn’t ask if you know ABOUT Jesus, I asked do you know the Gospel? Have you ever even heard it? Could you articulate it to me clearly?

Well of course I accepted Jesus into my heart at church camp. Yeah that’s not what I asked. Jesus doesn’t need your acceptance, He doesn’t want a one and done statement of “faith” that you can’t even remember a day, month, or year for - What I asked is do you know the Gospel?

And I know in the heart of the Bible belt that may seem a strange notion, especially to you who “grew up in church,” but I’ll be honest I worry most for those of you who did. I was listening to a great preacher recently who was talking about the most recent bunch of baptisms his church had done and the testimonies - the stories of conversion that were shared. And there were a few that were really dramatic and powerful, but for the most part he said that he was distraught because story after story was the same. Men and women of all ages related how they had grown up in church, but had walked away from it. They had either stopped attending or stopped believing and they just drifted away until later in life they finally for the first time encountered the real Gospel. And like this preacher when I heard that I was distraught that so many could have so much contact with the church when they were younger and yet have no exposure whatsoever to the Gospel. So this morning - that’s what you’re going to get.

If you have a Bible open to Col 1:13-23

If you’re like me and you grew up in church you probably heard the same message a lot. You need to “accept” Jesus into your heart. You need to “let” Jesus in and sit on the throne of your heart. You need to say a prayer and then go take a bath in the baptistry because that’s what gets you “saved.” But what if I told you all of that while well intentioned isn’t the Gospel? What if I told you Jesus doesn’t need your acceptance? What if I told you that the whole notion of “letting” God do anything is absurd? What if I told you that a one and done prayer followed by a quick dunk in water doesn’t save you? What if I told you that rather than you accepting Jesus to be saved, He needs to accept you? What if I told you that you don’t let God in, He lets you in? What if I told you that God isn’t interested in a set of words you said once as a kid, but rather that He’s interested in what you believe and what you’re doing with you life right now? What if I told you that the water you got dunked in is meaningless if you don’t actually know the Gospel?

Colossians 1:13–23 ESV

He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Colossians 1:13

I have bad news. All around the country today everyone if proclaiming good news, but me I have bad news.

I have news so bad that it will make your head spin. I have news so terrible that it is life altering. I have news that when you hear it and understand it you will wail and weep as the prophets of old did. Are you ready for it? Here it is...

God is Good.

I know what you’re thinking - that’s not bad news. That’s great news. Yay! God is good. Woohoo. No you’re hearing me, but you don’t understand yet. God is good and this is horrifying news because while God is good, you are not. I am not. We are not. Humanity is not. And this good God, this righteous, just, and holy God will not tolerate evil. He will not tolerate sin. He will not tolerate us to be frank. God the eternally good one will not allow our evil, our darkness to stand against His goodness and light. He must and will punish sin and destroy sinners because that is what is right and just and good. And that should terrify you! A good God doesn’t allow evil to go unpunished, He doesn’t allow sin to go unanswered. He answers it with wrath. That phrase God is good should cause you to tremble and quake before Him. You by your very nature and you every day choices are hostile towards God, you are alienated from Him, you do evil deeds which makes you His enemy. That’s bad news! You can’t have the Gospel without the bad news. You can’t understand the Gospel without knowing that you are an enemy of God by nature and by choice. A Gospel that isn’t honest with you about your sorry state before almighty God is no gospel at all. Because if you don’t understand the bad news, how could you ever understand the good news?

What is the good news? The good news is exactly what Paul just said. Jesus Christ, God incarnate, wrapped in flesh, came into the very world He created to seek and to save the lost. He came to deliver from darkness we who have made our home in darkness, who like small children pathetically attempt to hide ourselves in it from our Creator. Jesus comes to die as the sacrifice once and for all as the ultimate and complete payment for every sin of the believer. And it is through his death on the cross that payment is made, it is through the spilling of His most innocent blood that we are redeemed because the wages of sin is always, always death. You and I deserve death. It is our due. But God in His grace works to accomplish the saving of many lives from that death and it is by His work alone that we are delivered from death to life.

It’s like little boy scout me shivering and shaking in the cold from hypothermia… lying passed out on the ground… we cannot save ourselves. We cannot deliver ourselves. You and I needed someone to deliver us, to save us. I needed someone to lift me up out of darkness and to drag me back home. I needed someone to give me warmth - to save my life, just as a man I need Christ to give me forgiveness and to give me life. I needed delivering because a dead man can’t save himself.

And here’s the beauty of it - when Christ delivers it is fully and completely accomplished. Our life is secured, not solely by His death, but by His life. Because here’s the really great news you guys - Jesus didn’t just die. Jesus comes back to life. He resurrects which is why this Resurrection Sunday we celebrate, we sing, we eat, we play, we take great joy in reflecting on the truth. Because Jesus is alive. We don’t worship some piece of rock or wood or gold. We don’t kneel before altars or icons. We don’t pray to a dead man. We who are in Christ worship a living Savior. And my fear is this. Many of you have grown up in a church tradition where you think Jesus needs your permission to do something. You grew up going to church where you were told it was all about you, it was your decision, you have to ask Jesus, you have to accept Jesus, because Jesus is at your disposal. My friends you have been lied to. Not intentionally - I think all those preachers and teachers intended to do right and God often uses even such terrible theology to draw people to Himself. God can draw a straight line with a crooked stick. God can use imperfect me to work His perfect plan.

But here’s the issue. It’s not about you accepting Jesus. Jesus doesn’t need your acceptance - you need His. You’re the sinner on trial here, not Him. He’s not wringing His hands just hoping that you’ll let Him in. You’re not breaking His heart. No if you don’t surrender to Him, He’s going to break you. Why? Why? Because Jesus is God and God will not tolerate sin, He will not allow Sin to go on forever unpunished or unpaid for. You need to know who you’re dealing with folks. I know we all grew up coloring Jesus pictures with a nice long flowy sash and big 80’s hair and always smiling and gentle, but that it a thoroughly misleading picture of God.

Did you see how Paul describes Him?

He is the image of the Invisible God.

He is the firstborn of all creation - meaning everything belongs to Him by rights, you belong to Him by rights.

He is the creator of ALL things, both seen and unseen, high and low, great and small.

He is before all things - He existed as God before all of creation

He is the one who holds everything together - the fact that the molecules in your body are holding together and not spinning apart wildly right now is because of Him.

He is the Head of the Church.

He is the beginning.

He is the firstborn from the dead - meaning Jesus is alive, a living savior.

He is, in everything, preeminent - meaning surpassing all other things, distinguished, outstanding, renowned, celebrated, and illustrious.

He is God, in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.

He is the only one who can reconcile anything or anyone to Himself, because reconciliation only comes through making peace by His blood.

You have to ask Jesus into your heart? Really? Give me a break.

No He doesn’t need squat from you, you need everything from Him!

So what then? How then can I be saved?

But Paul like so many other evangelists doesn’t only deliver bad news

You must throw yourself upon His mercy. You must throw yourself upon His grace! You must believe, you must trust, you must have faith in Jesus and as Paul says you must CONTINUE in it!

Scripture shows us what this looks like rather clearly.

We must trust in Jesus. This isn’t just mental assent to the fact of Jesus existence this is full on I put my life in your hands, I follow you, I do what you command, I submit to you, I surrender to you, I need your death and you life to pay for my sins and to give me life.

Jesus commands in - Repent and Believe.

Turn away from the things God has commanded you not to do. Turn towards all the ways God has commanded you to. And believe in God’s power to do the otherwise impossible. Believe in Jesus, throw yourself upon His mercy and trust in His promise.

You need God’s work in your life

1 John 1:9 ESV

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Not if you let Jesus in, if you give Him a spot in your heart, not if you make a decision to allow Jesus - no if you throw yourself humbly at His feet recognizing that He is God, you are not and you need Him to save you from sin, from death, from wrath, and from Hell. Then He will be faithful to forgive.

And my friends that is a promise of God. A promise that was secured both by death and by resurrection and it is promise worth celebrating today, and every day for those of us in Christ Jesus.

Let’s pray!

PRAYER

We’re going to have one more song of praise to the Lord Jesus and then dismiss. As we sing if you need to confess before God and man today that you are a sinner in need of grace. If you have yet to submit to Jesus as Lord, to kneel before Him as follower - today this song is going to function as an invitation hymn. An invitation for you to throw yourself upon God’s mercy and receive from Him, life.

If you need to do that - do NOT wait. Come forward now as we stand and sing together!

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