Disciples and Sinners

[The following is the manuscript of my sermon delivered on the 26th of April, 2015.]

Today I’d like to return to a time very early in Jesus’ ministry, when He is just getting started actually.  He begins near home, working around the Sea of Galilee, building a following as He goes.  He first approaches a group of fishermen.  You know their names: Simon and his brother Andrew, and James and his brother John.  Jesus promises to make them fishers of men and they abandon their old lives to become His disciples, to study at His feet, to learn from Him, to obey His commands.

Who was next to accept Jesus’ invitation?  Listen and follow along as I read to you from the Gospel of Luke, chapter 5, verses 27 through 32...

27 After these things He went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” 28 So he left all, rose up, and followed Him.

29 Then Levi gave Him a great feast in his own house. And there were a great number of tax collectors and others who sat down with them. 30 And their scribes and the Pharisees complained against His disciples, saying, “Why do You eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”

31 Jesus answered and said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

--Luke 5:27-32 (NKJV)

Let us pray…  Lord Jesus, we come before you this morning as humble sinners, in need of a Physician to heal our spirits.  Speak to our hears, dear Lord, the message You would have us hear.  In Your beautiful name, O Jesus we pray.  Amen.


Because his wife had the flu, her husband attended a Sunday worship service without her.  When he returned home, she asked for a recap.

Wife: “How was the service this morning?”
Husband: “Good.”
Wife: “And the special music?”
Husband: “Good.”
Wife: “Attendance is sometimes low this time of year; how was the turnout?”
Husband: “Good.”
Wife: “What was the sermon topic?”
Husband: “The importance of good communication.”


How many of you ladies can relate to that little story?  How many of your husbands communicate in much the same manner as this one?  “How was work today, dear?”  “Ok.”  “Anything interesting happen?”  “Nope.”  Of course, you can substitute “work” for “school” and “husband” for “teenager” and the conversation would be pretty much the same.

Effective communication is often a problem among us humans.  But not for Jesus.  If He thought we would not be able to understand His message in plain ordinary speech, He would paint a word picture for us using parables.  But He is pretty clear in today’s scripture, isn’t He?  “Follow Me”, He tells the tax collector, sitting in his booth.

By the way, the man Luke refers to as Levi is the one we generally call Matthew.  Levi is the Hebrew name; Matthew is the Greek name.

So Jesus issues the same invitation to Levi, or Matthew, as He did to the fishermen:  Follow Me.  And just like Simon, Andrew, James, and John, Matthew also left everything behind to become a disciple of Christ.

But then Matthew decided to celebrate.  He threw a big party for Jesus and his fellow disciples, and he invited many of his friends to come too.  Now many of Matthew’s friends were also his former co-workers: fellow tax collectors.  In the times of our scripture, tax collectors worked for Rome, extracting as much as possible from the Empire’s subjects.  These were almost always Jews, taking money and goods from their fellow Jews.  Many of these took more than Rome required, pocketing as much as they could get away with and becoming well-to-do by basically stealing from their fellow countrymen, their neighbors, even their own relatives.  We might not care much for the IRS and Revenue agents, but tax collectors in Jesus’ day were literally hated and considered great sinners by the Jews.

So here’s Jesus and His followers enjoying this great feast in the company of some of the most despised people in the land.  Again, this is just as Jesus is getting His ministry started, but already here come the Pharisees and their scribes trying to make trouble for the Lord.

“Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”, they ask the disciples.  “Don’t you realize this puts you in the same light as these sinners, just by associating with them?”

The Pharisees may have tried to put the disciples on the spot, but Jesus answered.  He communicated clearly and succinctly, leaving no room for misunderstanding.

“Those who are well have no need for a doctor.  Only those who are sick require a physician.  The same goes for Me.  The righteous have what they require.  And I’m not here for those who think they already have all they need.  I came for sinners just like these you so unkindly make note of.  I came to call them to repentance.”


Jesus came to this world seeking sinners.  And not just tax collectors.  A little earlier in chapter 5 of Luke’s account, Jesus directed those fishermen I mentioned a moment ago to cast out their nets, and they brought in a load of fish so great it threatened to sink their boats.  Listen to how one of them reacted in verse 8…

8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!”

--Luke 5:8 (NKJV)

Peter, the one who would become the very foundation of our Lord’s church, recognized and acknowledged the fact that he was a sinner, unworthy of anything Jesus might offer, unworthy even of the Master’s presence.  “Leave me, Jesus.  I’m not even fit to be around, for I am a sinner.”

But Jesus calmly and quietly proved the point He would make later to the Pharisees.  Listen to our Lord’s response, in the last part of verse 10…

10 ... And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.”

--Luke 5:10b (NKJV)

“Simon,” Jesus says, “don’t worry about being a sinner.  It is for you that I came.  I can use you.  I will use you.  You will no longer catch fish for a living.  From now on, you will catch men for Me.”


Disciples and sinners.  Jesus came to make disciples and to seek out sinners.  Which are we?  I believe most of us are both, just like Peter.  We were born into a fallen world and inherited the sin of Adam.  And if we’re completely honest with ourselves, we, like Peter, can acknowledge that our sinful ways didn’t stop there.  Even now, we struggle with sin, with temptation.  Some of us more than others.  Even if it’s just a little sin, like taking pride in some personal accomplishment rather than acknowledging God as the source of all our abilities and resources.

But just because we may be a sinner, doesn’t mean we can’t still be a disciple of Christ.  Jesus chose Peter to be a disciple, and the rock upon which He would build His church, knowing full well that Peter was a sinner.  Jesus chose Matthew, a sinner, and dined with him and other sinners.  Jesus chose Andrew and James and John and all the rest, even though they all sinned in the eyes of God.  He made them His disciples and used them to start His church and advance His Father’s kingdom.


Are you a sinner?  Will you be a disciple?  Our Congregational reading this morning could just as easily be called a prayer of discipleship.

Jesus has chosen you as one of His own.  If you are here this morning, or if you’re listening to this message over the internet or reading the manuscript, then Jesus has chosen you to be one of His disciples.  Will you answer His invitation to follow Him?  What will you give up to do so?

He really doesn’t ask much, just that you believe in Him as the Son of the one true God and that you repent of your sins, that you turn from your sin and not go back.  Remember: that’s why He came, to call sinners to repentance.  To call us as disciples, to call us to repent.


So let’s say we answer that call.  Are we willing to step out and catch men for Him, or are we afraid?  We walk through this world every day, even Sunday after we’ve spent time here worshiping our God and our Lord Jesus.  Every day we have opportunities to interact with other sinners who need to hear the call of Jesus, who desperately need to receive the Good News He offers.  Will we share it?

Let me provide a little extra incentive.  In Isaiah chapter 52, verse 7, the prophets tells us…

7 How beautiful upon the mountains
Are the feet of him who brings good news,
Who proclaims peace,
Who brings glad tidings of good things,
Who proclaims salvation,
Who says to Zion,
“Your God reigns!”

--Isaiah 52:7 (NKJV)

Bring the Good News to those who most need to hear it!  Proclaim the peace of God.  Share the Gospel.  And our God who reigns will see us as beautiful.

We’re already sinners, commanded by our Lord and Master to repent.  Let’s accept Jesus’ invitation and also be His disciples.  We have nothing to fear, for our Lord is with us.  He came for us.

Amen.


Let us pray…  Dearest Jesus, we know none of us are perfect.  We know we have our faults and don’t always act and think in ways that our Father in heaven would see as right or righteous.  We thank You so much, our Christ, for sacrificing all so that we might be able to stand before our Father someday, washed clean by Your precious blood, spilled for us.  We are so grateful, O God our Father, for Your great grace that would forgive us for Your Son’s sake.  We are unworthy - we are undeserving, of Your great love.

Heavenly Father, Your Son calls us to repent, to turn our backs completely on our sins and commit them no more.  Sometimes Father, it is so difficult to fully repent.  It is so hard to not keep doing the same thing over and over.  We want to do as Jesus asks – we want to completely turn from our sin and sin no more.  But while the spirit may be willing, the flesh can be weak.  Help us, please Father.  Strengthen us, encourage us, so we can fully do as Jesus commands.

Hear us now, O Lord, as we speak from our hearts our vow of repentance, and as we listen for Your reply…

Lord Jesus, You came into this world not to visit the well, but to heal the sick.  You came not to warn the righteous, but to call sinners to repentance.  We try to be righteous, Lord.  We try to make and keep our hearts right with God.  But sometimes we fail and sometimes we sin.  We know You are still with us, dear Jesus.  Please help us repent of our sinful ways.  Heal the brokenness of our spirit and make us whole.  In Your most blessed name, Christ Jesus we pray.  Amen.

How Do I Love Thee?

[The following is the manuscript of my sermon delivered on the 19th of April, 2015.]

Over the last few weeks, we’ve been looking at the Resurrection Story from the Gospel according to John.  Today I’ll conclude this story of Jesus from John’s eyes, and I’d like to do so in much the same way Jesus did, by asking a question.

Hear and follow along to an exchange between the resurrected Jesus and Peter, His rock, as recorded toward the end of John’s Gospel account, chapter 21, verses 14 through 19, and I’d like to read from the Contemporary English Version…

14 This was the third time that Jesus appeared to His disciples after He was raised from death.

15 When Jesus and His disciples had finished eating, He asked, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than the others do?”

Simon Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, You know I do!”

“Then feed My lambs,” Jesus said.

16 Jesus asked a second time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?”

Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, You know I love You!”

“Then take care of My sheep,” Jesus told him.

17 Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus had asked him three times if he loved Him. So he told Jesus, “Lord, You know everything. You know I love You.”

Jesus replied, “Feed My sheep. 18 I tell you for certain that when you were a young man, you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will hold out your hands. Then others will wrap your belt around you and lead you where you don’t want to go.”

19 Jesus said this to tell how Peter would die and bring honor to God. Then He said to Peter, “Follow Me!”

--John 21:14-19 (CEV)

Let us pray...  Lord Jesus, we bow our heads to You and open our ears to hear Your message for us this morning.  Speak to us, Lord, in words that we might hear, and stirrings of our hearts that we might feel.  In Your most beautiful name, Jesus we pray.  Amen.


Poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning lived from 1806 until 1861 – a mere 55 years.  In 1850, she wrote her Sonnet #43, more commonly known by the title I’ve given this message today:


How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of being and ideal grace.
I love thee to the level of every day’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for right.
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.


Isn’t that beautiful?  Many of you may be familiar with this poem, but for just a moment, consider it from a slightly different perspective.  Can you hear Jesus saying these words, maybe from the cross?  Or perhaps He would declare His love for us while still walking among us after His resurrection but before His ascension into heaven, such as in our scripture reading this morning.

“I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach, to the level of every day’s most quiet need.  I love thee freely; I love thee purely, with My childhood’s faith.  I love thee with the breath, smiles, tears, of all My life.  I shall but love thee better after death.”  And isn’t that Jesus, loving us all the more even after His death?


How do I love thee?

This is the third time Jesus has appeared to His disciples as a group after His resurrection, not counting the one instance when He appeared to Mary Magdalene alone.  They had just shared a meal, a breakfast of fish and bread – Jesus showing His love and His fellowship with His followers.  I believe Jesus took Peter aside to have this little discussion, because in verse 20 John notes that “Peter turned and saw Jesus’ favorite disciple following them”.

So Jesus gets Peter alone for a few minutes and asks him, “Do you love Me more than the others do?”  And Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, You know I do.”  Notice that Peter didn’t say that he loved Jesus more than the others love Him.  He didn’t even say the words, “I love you”, not in this translation.  Again Jesus asks if Peter loves Him, and this time Peter replies that Jesus knows the disciple loves His Master.  He doesn’t really say, “I love You”, but “You know I love You”.  Jesus asks yet a third time, “Do you love me?”

This stung Peter, being asked the same thing for the third time.  John even notes that Peter was hurt.  Why?  I mean besides the obvious.  Doesn’t it hurt if someone questions our love for them, especially after we’ve said we love them?  Peter, being a pretty emotional fellow, would have felt embarrassed and hurt being asked again and again if he loved Jesus.  But there may be another reason for the pain, and it ties in with how Jesus addressed Peter in his three questions.

Peter denied Jesus three times after the Lord’s arrest, just as Jesus had said he would.  Three times he denied knowing Jesus or having been with Him.  And three times Jesus asked, “Do you love Me?”  Three times Peter had denied Jesus – who could blame the Lord for wanting to be sure that Peter indeed loved Him?

Those denials threatened to strip Peter of his discipleship!  And the telltale sign is in the name Jesus called Peter by – Simon, son of John.  This was Peter’s former name, before he became a disciple.  Jesus renamed him Peter, Rock, the foundation upon which the Lord would build His church.  Jesus normally called him Simon Peter or simply Peter, but now He reverted back to the old “Simon, son of John”.  Did Jesus no longer consider Peter His disciple, because of those denials?


How do I love thee?

We know love is extremely important to Jesus - it’s His overriding theme.  He commands us to love - to love God and each other.  Listen to what He says in the 15th chapter of John’s Gospel, verses 12 through 14…

12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. 14 You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.”

--John 15:12-14 (NKJV)

He certainly laid down His life for us, and much more!  Of course, Jesus comes by this devotion to love honestly – He gets it from His Father.  I want to read from John’s 1st letter to the far-flung Christian church, from chapter 3, and I’ll start with the first part of verse 1 and then go to verses 16 and 17…

1 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!

16 By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?

--1 John 3:1a, 16-17 (NKJV)

God loves us so much He calls us His children!  Jesus loves us so much He gave His very all for us!  How do I love thee?  John says the very least we can do is help our brother in need, otherwise we have no love in us.  If we turn our back on those whose needs are great, then even the love of God can’t abide in us.


How do I love thee?

Three times Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love Me?”  Three times Peter answered, “You know I do.”  And each time, Jesus instructed Peter to take care of His sheep.  We know Jesus meant His church, not literal sheep.  Jesus is charging Peter to look after the Church of Christ after Jesus leaves this earth and returns to heaven.  He is instructing Peter to put that love he just professed into action by seeing to the needs of his brethren.  And He is restoring Peter’s discipleship, an act of love and compassion on His own part, a sign of both His love and His lordship.

“Do you love Me, Simon, son of John? Then prove it!  Put that love into practice and see to the needs of all those who will follow Me.  And then, when you die, it will be to the glory of the Lord and you will bring honor to God.”


How do I love thee?

Maybe Jesus kept questioning Peter’s love because He wanted to bore down to the root of discipleship: what do we love the most?  What do we put our greatest love in?  What matters the most to us in this life?  In what do we invest our all?

Do we love Jesus more than anything else?  If so, we know what we must do.  We must feed His lambs.  We must take care of His sheep.  We must see to the needs of our brothers and sisters.  We must put that love for Jesus into action.

And there’s one last instruction Jesus gave Peter:  “Follow Me”.  To be disciples of Jesus, to be worthy of His calling, we must truly follow Him.  Fortunately, He doesn’t ask for much, just that we turn from our sin and love each other the same way He loves us.

And if we do that, He’ll never have to ask, “Do you love Me?”

Amen.


Let us pray…  Lord Jesus, You ask of us such a simple question, one we ask each other from time to time:  “Do you love Me?”  When we ask it of each other, we are seeking confirmation of their love, maybe because they don’t show what we expect to see.  “If you really love me,” we’ll say, “you’ll show it more.”  Is that true of us, Lord?  Do we fail to show the level of love You would expect to see from us?  Is that why You have to ask, “Do you love Me?”  Because we don’t prove with our actions what our words so easily try to convey?

We are so blessed, Jesus!  Our heavenly Father gives us so much, and all so that we can share with others.  Whether it be some element of our earthly resources entrusted to us, some special talent He graciously bestowed upon us, or simply a measure of the time He has allowed us here on this earth, we have so much that we can share with those who have so little, or for whom the need is so obviously great.  Help us, please Lord, to see the need right before our eyes and to respond to that need in a way so quickly and so righteously that You will have no further need to ask, “Do you love Me?”

Father God, hear us as we pause for a moment to speak to You silently from our hearts, to give You our thanks, to honestly repent of our misdeeds.  Hear us, and then speak to us in the quiet that we may know Your voice and Your will…

Father God, Your grace and Your mercy and Your generosity know no bounds.  You give to us so that we might share with others.  You bless us so that we might be a blessing to the world.  Father, forgive us the times Your Son had to ask if we love Him.  Jesus, please be patient and help us show Your love to all this earth.

In Your most blessed name, Jesus, we love You and we pray.  Amen.

That You May Believe

[The following is the manuscript of my sermon delivered on the first Sunday after Easter, the 12th of April, 2015.]

Last week we looked at the Resurrection Story from the first 18 verses of John’s Gospel chapter 20.  Today we’ll continue that story, beginning with verse 19 and what followed in the days after Jesus’ resurrection.

Hear now the words from John’s Gospel account chapter 20, verses 19 through 29…

19 Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.

21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” 22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

24 Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.”

So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”

26 And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!” 27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”

28 And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”

29 Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

--John 20:19-29 (NKJV)

Let us pray...  Father God, may Your Holy Spirit touch each heart this morning and move us forward in our spiritual maturity.  Let each receive the message You have for us.  And may we grow ever closer to You and our Master Jesus.  In that most precious name, Jesus, we pray.  Amen.


A few minutes ago I told the kids that sometimes our brains can be tricked into believing that something we’re seeing is real, even when it can’t possibly be real.  Well, sometimes we refuse to believe something is real, even when we see it with our own eyes.

"Isaac’s Storm" is a very interesting book about the hurricane that wiped out Galveston in 1900. One of the main plot lines of the book is about how everyone was convinced that a hurricane could never strike Galveston, even as one approached landfall. The author vividly describes how as the streets began to flood people went about their business as if nothing was wrong. Children played in the water, men gathered for breakfast at the local diner, and no one fled from the storm that was about to strike.

Some didn’t worry because Isaac Cline, the national weather service officer in Galveston, assured them it would not be a severe storm. Other’s simply believed that Galveston was invincible. Some thought that since they had never seen a hurricane strike Galveston one never would. So for a number of reasons, people assured themselves nothing bad would happen. And as a result over 6,000 people died one September day in 1900.

Today we can see storm clouds forming on the horizon. There is a moral and spiritual decline that continues to erode our national life. The warning signs are there for us to see - the signs that Jesus is coming soon. They beckon us to return to the Lord and seek refuge in Him. How will history look back on what we did as the storm approached?


This story brings to mind the days before the Great Flood and how the people must have reacted as Noah readied the ark.  I can especially see the kids playing in the rain as the earth begins to flood.

What about us, today?  Do we just go about our day to day lives thinking the end of the world won’t happen because it has never happened before?  Are we playing in the streets, ignoring the coming threat to mankind?

We have our own “Isaac Cline’s”, who tell us that God loves us so much that even if something does happen it won’t be all that bad.  We have those that say God loves us so much He’d never let anyone suffer, no matter what!  They are basically saying that God won’t do what God has said He will do.  Now I’m not one to second guess God, but I can find no instance in our Bible where He has not done exactly what He said He was going to do.  So I would suggest we take no chances.

First we need to make sure our own lives are in order, because our Lord could return at any time now and take His church home.  And I promise that is one ride we don’t want to miss.

But then, rather than just sit back and wait to see what happens next, we need to redouble our efforts to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and what He can offer the world before it is too late.  We need to help save as much of mankind as possible while there is still time.


You may be scratching your head right now, wondering what any of that has to do with today’s scripture.  Well, it’s all about needing proof.  The people of Galveston had some measure of proof that a bad storm was coming, yet they simply ignored it.  They refused to believe their own senses.

Thomas was surrounded by his closest friends, men and women he’d been traveling with for three years, yet he refused to believe them when they told him that Jesus was alive and among them again.  No, he said, I won’t believe a word of it, not until I can see His scars, touch the holes the nails made in His hands.  Until I can slip my hand into the hole the spear left in His side, I will not believe that it is Jesus who lives again.  I want proof – cold, hard, irrefutable proof.  I want proof that this is a hurricane, and not just a late summer shower.


I don’t think there is anyone here this morning that doesn’t believe that Jesus is the Son of God, born of man, lived among men, died at their hands, was dead and buried, and then was bodily resurrected from the grave by God His Father and taken back home to heaven.  But why do we believe this?  I mean, it’s a very good thing that we believe, but we should also be sure of why we believe.

Is it just because that’s what we’ve been told all our lives and our parents or the preacher would never lead us wrong?  If you’ve been brought up in the church, if your parents pretty much made sure you went every Sunday and you attended Sunday School and Vacation Bible School and any other church-related activity available, then you may have never had a moment’s doubt about what you had been taught, you never doubted Jesus and you wonder how anyone could.  Or maybe Jesus has touched your life somewhere along the line and had such a profound influence over you that there is no way you could ever doubt Him again.

The young Pharisee named Saul never knew Jesus personally, never walked with Him on His travels, never talked with Him, never even listened to Him during one of His lectures that we know about.  Yet Jesus came to Saul on the dusty road to Damascus one afternoon in such a blinding glory that the man Paul who came forth from that encounter was so dramatically changed that he could never doubt just who Jesus truly is.  Jesus touched his spirit and he was never the same again.

How many of us have had a similar experience?  How many have been so strongly, completely, thoroughly impacted by the actions of our Lord Jesus Christ on our lives that we have no doubt whatsoever that He lives and that He is God!!!


But there are so many countless others that have not had either of those experiences – they weren’t brought up so closely in the church and they haven’t felt Jesus touch their lives.  How do we help them come to see the truth when we can offer no hard, irrefutable proof, no firm evidence of Jesus as God?

The easy answer is to let them see Jesus in us.  That would require, of course, that He can be seen in us, that He is manifested in how we live our lives.  If we love Jesus, if we follow Him, we will obey His commandments, especially the part about loving one another.  That’s how people can see Jesus in us, in how we love one another - truly love, unconditionally love.  Meaning we don’t talk nasty to or about other folks, even in joking.  We practice what we preach rather than caution others to “do as I say not as I do”.

I can’t show you the nailed-scarred hands of my risen Savior.  I can’t let you touch those beautiful hands that reach out to even a sinner like me.  But I can show you the same love He shows me.  I can show you His heart by showing you mine.


The storm clouds are forming, the rain is starting to fall.  Are we ready?  If you’re not sure, if you have doubts, if you haven’t yet given yourself over completely to Jesus to rule your life and be your Master, then please come see me just as soon as you can.

Don’t wait – don’t hesitate too long.  The clouds are churning, there on the horizon.


What more proof do we need?  John concludes chapter 20 of his Gospel by acknowledging that he could have provided even more.  Listen to the end of the chapter, verses 30 and 31…

30 And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.

--John 20:30-31 (NKJV)

John felt certain he had already given us enough proof to believe in the risen and living Jesus, and I agree with him.  The Gospels were all written and spread throughout the known world during the lifetimes of many who would have witnessed the things John and his fellows wrote about, including our Lord’s resurrection.  Yet none of these people refuted what was written.  Not one.

All of this was written - and preserved for two thousand years now! – so that we might believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and in believing, that we may have everlasting life in the name of Jesus our Christ.

We have not seen, yet we believe.  And so we are blessed – Jesus Himself says it is so.  Praise be to God!

Praise be to Christ Jesus!

Amen.


Let us pray… Father, this is such a beautiful time of year.  All around us is renewal, and we can’t help but feel renewed ourselves.  Blossoms all around, birdsong fills the air, and we are so happy to be alive!  Lord, we can’t help but know that Spring is here because it affects all five senses.  The sights, the aromas, the tastes, the sounds, the soft caress of warm sun-filled breezes all serve to whisk us out of our winter doldrums and into a new world, a new life.  Just as Your Son Jesus whisked us out of our old, dark life of sin into a new and joyous life with You and Him.

We are so blessed, Father, that Christ Jesus would love us so much He gave His all for us, just so that we may believe.  We are blessed by the writings of John and Paul and all those who filled our Bible with Your words.  And we are yet more blessed because through all this we choose to acknowledge and believe in Jesus as Your resurrected Son, as our Lord and Master, as our one true Redeemer and Savior, even though we never saw Him with our eyes, even though we never saw Him working miracles in person, even though we never touched His nail scarred hands.  Thank You, Father God!  Thank You, Lord Jesus!

Father, we pause for a moment to speak to You silently from our hearts, to offer our thanks, to offer our repentance.  Lord Jesus, if there is anyone with us this morning who still has doubts, who is still waiting for further proof that You live even to this day, then speak to them, please Lord.  Let them see Your hands and Your side, that they might also believe.  Let them look up from the foot of Your cross and see Your radiant face smiling down on them.  Hear us now, O Lord.  Speak to us now, O Lord…

Father God, You are gracious, You are merciful, and You are generous.  You give us all we need and then bless us even more because we believe in Your Son even though we lack physical evidence.  He is our Lord and our Master – of that we have no doubt.  Thank You, Jesus, for the great sacrifice You made on our behalf, just so we may believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing we may have life in Your name.

In Your most blessed name, Jesus we pray.  Amen.

The Empty Tomb, The Empty Cross

[The following is the manuscript of my sermon delivered on Easter Sunday, the 5th of April, 2015.  Holy Communion was also observed during this service.]

1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. 2 Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.”

3 Peter therefore went out, and the other disciple, and were going to the tomb. 4 So they both ran together, and the other disciple outran Peter and came to the tomb first. 5 And he, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen cloths lying there; yet he did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; and he saw the linen cloths lying there, 7 and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself. 8 Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed. 9 For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. 10 Then the disciples went away again to their own homes.

11 But Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. 13 Then they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”

She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”

14 Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?”

She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, “Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”

16 Jesus said to her, “Mary!”

She turned and said to Him, “Rabboni!” (which is to say, Teacher).

17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’” 

18 Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her.

--John 20:1-18 (NKJV)

Let us pray…  O God our Father, Your Son gave His all for us, and the world He came to save crucified Him and buried Him in a cold, dark tomb.  And then, Father, You showed the world how much You love Him and us.  You raised Jesus from the dead!  And now He reigns at Your right hand.  Father, speak through me the words You need Your children to hear.  Let them hear only the thunder of Your voice.  Let them see only the radiant face of Jesus.  In that dearest name, Jesus, we pray.  Amen.



The Sunday School teacher was excited and enthusiastic as she looked across her class of four-year-olds and asked, “Does anyone know what today is?”  One little girl held up her hand and answered, “Yes, today is Palm Sunday.”  The teacher exclaimed, “That’s fantastic!  That’s wonderful! Yes, today is Palm Sunday.  Now does anyone know what next Sunday is?”  The same little girl again held up her hand and replied, “Yes, next Sunday is Easter Sunday.”  And again the teacher said, “That’s fantastic!  Now, does anyone know what makes next Sunday Easter?”  The same little girl responded and said, “Yes, next Sunday is Easter because Jesus rose from the grave.”  Before the teacher could congratulate her, she kept talking and said, “But if He sees His shadow, He has to go back in for seven weeks.”

[from 1001 Humorous Illustrations for Public Speaking, #304, “Get the Story Straight, p. 127]


There is so much contained in today’s scripture reading, and so little time to give it full consideration this morning.  So I want to focus primarily on just a few points, the first of which is the tomb where Jesus was buried.  Let’s try to put ourselves on the scene along with Mary Magdalene, Simon Peter, and the “other disciple, whom Jesus loved”, as our author the Apostle John often calls himself.

Mary came to the tomb first and found the stone, a huge boulder, rolled away from the entrance.  She ran back to get Peter and John and us so we could see for ourselves.  And there it is, the gaping mouth of the tomb, the stone somehow pushed out of the way.

Why?  Why was the stone rolled out of the doorway?  Did Jesus need the stone moved so He could walk out, so the angels that Mary noticed did the heavy lifting to clear the way for our Lord to escape the grave?

Hardly.  Jesus didn’t need for the stone to be moved.  Let’s look at just a little further into this 20th chapter of John’s Gospel, first at verse 19…

19 Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be with you.”

--John 20:19 (NKJV)

And then verse 26…

26 And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!”

--John 20:26 (NKJV)

Do you see the common thread, not counting the “Peace to you” greeting, that is?  In both cases, Jesus simply appeared in the midst of the group of disciples, even though the doors were shut and presumably locked, since the disciples were scared for their lives of the religious leaders right then.

This is Jesus after His death and resurrection but before His ascension back into heaven.  At this point He was more spiritual than flesh.  He even confirmed it Himself, to Mary.  Look at verse 17:  “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father.”

So if Jesus could simply walk through that stone as easily as He did the doors, why was the stone rolled away?  So we could look in and see that He was no longer there, His body was not in the tomb.

The tomb is empty.  The only thing left there are the burial cloths, the linens that Jesus’ body had been wrapped in.  In verse 7, John specifically mentions the cloth that covered Jesus’ face, being folded neatly and placed apart from the linens.  Luke, in chapter 24 verse 12 of his Gospel, describes the linens as “lying by themselves”.  Basically, they were neatly folded and lying off to the side.  Grave robbers wouldn’t have taken this much time.  They’d likely have taken the body, linens and all.

Why were the linens lying off to the side?  So we could see them and know they were removed with care – Jesus had no need for them now.

We can see the tomb is empty.  The evidence clearly indicates this was not the work of grave robbers.  The only explanation, at least to our thinking, is that God the Father raised His Son from the dead, and Jesus simply left the grave behind Him.


I’d like to look at one more point that is not from today’s scripture but that concerns the soldiers charged with guarding the tomb.  What happened to them?

They were supposed to keep anyone from entering the tomb and stealing the body, lest the followers of this Jesus claim He rose from the grave like He said He would.  Boy, are they in trouble now!

Well, we can find out what happened to them by reading Matthew’s Gospel account, chapter 28, verses 11 through 15…

11 Now while they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that had happened. 12 When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13 saying, “Tell them, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.’ 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will appease him and make you secure.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were instructed; and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.

--Matthew 28:11-15 (NKJV)

Some things never change, do they.  A government cover-up, hush money paid – this could have easily have occurred today right here in the good old US of A.  But I don’t mention this to bring up the subject of state sponsored pay-offs.

Listen to the last phrase again: “this saying is commonly reported among the Jews today”.  “This saying” is the lie the guards were paid to spread.  Mary Magdalene and the disciples tried to share the truth, that Jesus had been resurrected from the dead by God.  The chief priests and the guards spread a lie instead.

God has given the readers of Matthew a choice: to believe the false testimony of the guards, or the true testimony of the visitors to the tomb that first Easter morning.  Sadly, most of the Jews, Matthew’s primary audience, chose to believe the guards.  We also have to choose, and to fully believe in what we have chosen.


The tomb is empty.  Jesus has left it behind.  What about the cross, since that is part of my message title today?  The cross hasn’t been mentioned in any of our scripture this morning, so why do I bring it up?  Simply because Jesus left it behind, too.

I’ve always found it a little odd that we chose the tool of our Lord’s pain and suffering and death as the symbol of our faith and belief in Him.  I really think the empty tomb would be far more appropriate, because it shows that He conquered death.  Of course, an empty tomb would be a little problematic to display on our walls or around our necks.  So we use the cross, Jesus’ cross.  Not the simple upright and crossbar that most crucifixions were done on, but the cross of Jesus with the extension on top to hold the sign Pilate had made up declaring Him the “King of the Jews”.

Have you noticed the cross most Roman Catholics use?  It’s called a crucifix because it bears the likeness of Jesus nailed to the cross.  Our cross is empty.  Jesus is no longer there.  The tomb is empty.  Jesus is no longer there.

Earlier I asked why was the stone rolled away from the entrance to the tomb, and then I answered so that we could see inside, to see it was empty.  If we had not been able to see inside, to see that Jesus’ body was not there, would Christianity have even gotten started?  If Jesus had died and been buried and that was the end of it, would we worship Him today?  Very unlikely, because then He would have simply been just a man – a very remarkable man, maybe, but still just a man like any one of us.

We needed to see proof of His resurrection, proof of prophecy fulfilled.  The empty tomb, the empty cross.  Both point to our risen Lord, no longer bound by the flesh, no longer captive to pain or death, but freed by God and taken to heaven to sit at His right hand.  And someday He’ll come back to earth to take His church home, and then we can add empty church pews to the tomb and cross.  I fear many church buildings will not be completely empty, but those who truly follow Jesus will no longer be here.


The empty tomb and the empty cross bear witness that Jesus is no longer here in this earthly plane.  The empty tomb and the empty cross prove that our Savior lives!

Christ our Lord has risen today!  He lives forever!  Alleluia!

Amen.


Let us pray…  Father God, today is special in so many ways.  We see the glory of Spring all around us with the blossoming trees, bushes and flowers and in the birdsong that greets us as we walk along in this Your beautiful garden.  The earth is renewed, it comes to life once again after being dormant in the winter.  And that is our sign of how You brought Your Son back to life, which we celebrate this Easter morning.

Father, we also take this time to honor and remember the sacrifice Your Son made for us, how His body was broken for us, how His blood was spilled for us.  We know, Lord, that we must take of the elements of our Christ Jesus with a right heart.  We must repent of our sin and recommit ourselves to truly following Jesus as our Lord and Master, and not only as our Savior.  Lord we pause now for just a moment to come to You in the silence and confess from our hearts our sin, to repent of our sin, and to seek Your mercy and Your grace.  Father, if there is one among us this morning whose heart is not right with You, please let them come to Your altar before approaching Your table, so that together we might ask Your forgiveness and seek Your favor…

Father God, You are gracious.  You give us far more than we could ever earn, blessing us each day of our lives.  Father God, You are merciful.  You withhold the punishment we so rightly deserve, allowing Your Son to bear our stripes for us.  Lord Jesus, we acknowledge the sacrifice You made for us and we thank You.  Jesus, we know You are our Savior and we also accept You and submit to You as our Master.  Take us, please Lord, and use us as You will.

In the blessed name of Jesus we pray.

Amen.

He Is Not Here

[The following is the manuscript of my meditation delivered for our Easter Sunrise service held outside at our Angel Court on the 5th of April, 2015.]

1 Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. 3 His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. 4 And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.

5 But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. 7 And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.”

8 So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word.

9 And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, “Rejoice!” So they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him.

--Matthew 28:1-9 (NKJV)

I know of very few people over the age of 30 who have not experienced the passing of someone close to them; who do not understand the terrible grief of losing someone they loved so much - a grief that hurts down to the core of their being and leaves them wondering how in the world they’re going to carry on.  Matthew opens his resurrection account with an expression of this grief.

Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary”, the mother of James the Less and Joses, come to the tomb where their Lord had been buried two days before.  They’ve come to anoint the body, to show their respects, to grieve.  So they walk up to the tomb and …

What happened here?!?  There must have been an earthquake!  For that huge stone they sealed the grave with has been rolled off to the side, and seated on it is an angel!  He’s as bright as lightning, his clothing as white as snow.  The guards are over there to the side trembling in fear, afraid to even move.  The tomb is open, but where is the body of our Master, Jesus?

The angel calms the Mary’s with the simple command, “Do not be afraid”.  He knew why they were there, of course, but he also had an important mission to complete.  “The One you seek is not here.  He is risen.  Come, look in the tomb and see for yourself.”  Then the angel sent the women on their way, instructing them to tell the others the Good News.  But before they could make it back to the disciples, Jesus appears to them and says “Rejoice!”  And they immediately rush to Him and worship Him.


The angel said of Jesus, “He is not here”, meaning in the tomb.  Our Lord conquered death.  His Father, our Father, God resurrected Him from the grave.  He was no longer there, confined to a hole in the ground, bound by death, constrained by earthly ties.

But because of that, He is certainly here!  He is here all around us.  He is here within us.  Our Lord lives even to this day!  And for that, we rejoice!  For that, we worship Him!

Christ the Lord is risen today!

Alleluia!

Amen.


Let us pray…  Lord Jesus Christ, Savior, Redeemer, Master…  We stand before Your empty grave, we see the stone rolled away, we hear the angel’s words, and we are in awe, too amazed to believe what our senses tell us.  And then You speak: “Rejoice!”  And all we can think to do is to sings Alleluias and worship you.  You sacrificed all for us, You died for us, You were buried for us.  You bore no sin of Your own so You carried all the sins of the world to the grave and left them there, just so we might be washed clean when we stand before God at our last.  We praise You, Lord Jesus, and we thank You!  Words alone could never convey just how thankful we are, so we give You our hearts in gratitude.  We give You our lives – take and use them as You will.  In Your glorious name, Lord Jesus, we pray.  Amen.

Share the Cup

[The following is the manuscript of my meditation delivered for our Maundy Thursday service held on the 2nd of April, 2015.  The service also included Holy Communion.]


Listen to the Gospel account of John, chapter 18 verses 1 through 11, as he describes the last few minutes Jesus knew as a free man on this earth...

1 After saying these things, Jesus crossed the Kidron Valley with His disciples and entered a grove of olive trees. 2 Judas, the betrayer, knew this place, because Jesus had often gone there with His disciples. 3 The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the olive grove.

4 Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to Him, so He stepped forward to meet them. “Who are you looking for?” He asked.

5 “Jesus the Nazarene,” they replied.

“I am He,” Jesus said. (Judas, who betrayed Him, was standing with them.) 6 As Jesus said “I am He,” they all drew back and fell to the ground! 7 Once more He asked them, “Who are you looking for?”

And again they replied, “Jesus the Nazarene.”

8 “I told you that I am He,” Jesus said. “And since I am the one you want, let these others go.” 9 He did this to fulfill His own statement: “I did not lose a single one of those You have given Me.”

10 Then Simon Peter drew a sword and slashed off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest’s slave. 11 But Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword back into its sheath. Shall I not drink from the cup of suffering the Father has given Me?”

--John 18:1-11 (NLT)

This has been an eventful week for Jesus and His followers.  On Sunday they rode into Jerusalem to great fanfare, with the crowds waving palm branches and singing and praising God for sending their Messiah.  Then as the week went on, Jesus cleaned out the Temple, running off the money changers and knocking over their tables.  He healed the lame and the sick, like He always did when He entered a town.  And He got into debates with the Pharisees and Sadducees, as usual.

He also got His disciples scurrying around and working on a supper for all of them to celebrate the Feast of Passover.  Oh, and one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, was pretty busy himself, plotting with the Sanhedrin to betray Jesus to them.  But Jesus knew this was His last trip to Jerusalem, and His last meal with His closest friends and faithful followers.

He cried over Jerusalem, He prayed for His disciples, and He took one last opportunity to teach a lesson on faith.  And then came the supper, the last time He would sit down as a Man and share a meal with those He loved so very much.  He began by washing their feet, to teach them servitude.  Then He blessed the bread and the wine, pleading with His friends to never forget Him, to remember Him every time they ate and drank.

After supper, they sang a hymn and walked over to a grove of olive trees, a garden, a place where Jesus and His followers often met to talk and pray.  And there, one that Jesus loved, one that He called “friend” betrayed Him to a contingent of armed men sent by the religious leaders.  Peter – that fiery, headstrong disciple who wore his emotions on his sleeve, who usually acted before thinking – whipped out his sword and with one quick swing sliced the right ear of the high priest’s servant Malchus clean off!

I sometimes picture Jesus interacting with Peter much like a parent does with a small child.  Peter does something crazy, Jesus reacts with great patience.  Time after time.  Peter hops out of the boat and tries to walk on water but loses focus and starts to sink.  Jesus calmly reaches out His hand and saves him.  Peter is all indignant about Jesus washing his feet.  Jesus take the time to explain that if he does not let his Master serve him, then he can’t be one with his Master.

And here’s impetuous Peter at it again, this time cutting off a man’s ear in a fit of anger.  I can see Jesus quietly bending down, picking up the dismembered ear and wiping the dirt from it, then placing it aside Malchus’ head and healing him before turning back to Peter and patiently telling him to put away his sword – there’ll be no more blood shed here tonight.

But then Jesus asked a question that shows just how clearly He understood the role God assigned Him:  “Shall I not drink from the cup of suffering the Father has given Me?”  The Contemporary English Version puts that in the form of a statement rather than a question.  Verse 11 in the CEV reads:  “Jesus told Peter, ‘Put your sword away. I must drink from the cup that the Father has given me.’”  I must, I have no choice, but to drink from the cup of suffering, for this is My Father’s will.


Tonight we will be taking the bread and the juice of the vine in observance of that last meal our Lord ate on this earth.  We do it to remember Him, to honor Him and the sacrifice He made on our behalf.  The Apostle Paul cautions us to not take Communion in an unworthy manner, for the wrong reasons.  Otherwise, he warns, we will be guilty of the body and the blood of Jesus.

We must examine ourselves, examine our hearts, to make sure we are right with God.  And we need to do that right now, right here before we receive the sacrament.  By taking of the bread and the juice, we acknowledge Jesus as our Lord and our Master.  We recognize the bread as His body, broken for us.  And the juice as His blood, spilled for us.  In this act, that we too often do without really thinking about it, we are taking the cup Jesus offers, the one He Himself drank from.


Are we really willing to share that cup?  The cup of suffering?  God the Father handed that cup to Jesus, His Son.  Jesus drank deeply from it, knowing the suffering He would bear.  And now He offers the cup to us.  He’s holding out His hand, the same hand He once held out to Peter to save that drowning man.  We’re drowning too, drowning in a fallen world awash with sin.  If we accept that cup and drink from it, we may have to suffer some, too.  But the same hand that extends the cup will reach out and save us if we accept what Jesus offers.

In a moment we will be called to confess our sins.  It is a short and simple reading, easily done without giving it much thought.  But I encourage you to truly confess prayerfully.  Go past the words and lay your heart before God.  Take this time to repent of any sin and promise anew to follow only Jesus.

Let us stop driving nails into Jesus' hands.  Let us share the cup with Him instead.
Amen.


Let us pray…  Lord Jesus, You offer us forgiveness.  You offer us everlasting life.  You offer us all the glory that God bestowed upon You.  And You offer us the cup that God our Father handed You, the cup of suffering.  Jesus, we know that taking up our cross to follow You provides no promise of happiness and pleasure in this life.  We understand that if we accept Your cup, that we also may be called on to suffer for the good of God’s kingdom and the fulfillment of His great plan.  By sharing Your cup, we offer our all to You.  In Your precious name, Lord Jesus, we pray.  Amen.