You'll get through this

We began a new series this past Sunday on the Ridge. I was fortunate enough to be able to preach the first message in this series. Here it is, and let me know your thoughts.

 

 

ILLUSTRATION- Have you ever been in a difficult situation? Have you ever found yourself in a hard spot, not really knowing what to do next?

            I remember one of those events in my life as if it were yesterday.

            I was in my senior year of high school and I was downstairs in my dad’s home office, studying (cough cough) for my final exam in French.

My dad was outside mowing the lawn, and my mother and brother were nowhere to be found; so it was up to me to answer the phone should it ring, which it did, and I was completely unprepared for what happened next.

“Hello” I said.

The voice on the other end of the phone said: “We need to talk.”

Because I was so entrenched in my studies, I said: “Who’s this?” “Giselle” the voice said.

Giselle was my girlfriend during my senior year of high school.

“Ok” I said, “about what?”

“Us” she said. “Things are moving too fast and we need to break up.”

Immediately my heart sank.

I wanted to talk things through, but she had made up her mind.

I hung up the phone and I went and found my father, who by this time had come in from outside.

He sat me down and basically told me that I would get through this; although it would hurt for a while.

Because it was one week before graduation and prom, Dad suggested that I call Giselle back and ask about the various parties we were supposed to attend together and work out the details.

We did attend those graduation activities, but I have to tell you, it was awkward.

Giselle broke my heart. Eventually I moved on from her; and I married the love of my life, but it took time and a reminder from God that I needed to trust that He knew what He was doing.

This morning we are kicking off a brand new 6 part sermon series called “You’ll get through this.” This series is based on Max Lucado’s book of the same name.

ILLUSTRATION-A dear friend of mine gave me a copy of this book for Christmas, and I began to read this book as I was in the middle of a difficult situation in my life, Beth and I were in Halifax for pre-liver transplant testing.

            After I read the first chapter of this book, I knew that we needed to bring this series to our church, because each one of us has been, will be, or currently are in a difficult situation.

            What we need to know when we are in these difficult situations is that there is hope! There is Someone who is standing by ready to remind us that we will get through this.

            Our series will focus on the life of Joseph, whose story can be found in the very first book of the Bible, Genesis from chapters 37-50.

            Joseph’s life is an interesting one. He was the 11^th son of Jacob and was clearly the favorite son.

            We know this because Joseph’s mother was Rachel, and his father, Jacob, loved Rachel a little more than his other wife, Leah.

            We also know that Joseph was Jacob’s favorite because Jacob gave Joseph a coat of many colours, much to the chagrin of this 10 other siblings.

            I think it’s important to note before we get too much deeper in the story that Joseph was the great-grandson of Abraham, who was a rock star in the first part of Genesis.

            God made an oath to good ol’ Abe that his descendants would be as numerous as the sand on the sea shore, and this promise was being fulfilled

through Jacob’s decedents.

            So the characters in this story are not background people. They are, as Max Lucado says: “The Scripture’s equivalent of royalty” (Lucado, 2013, 5) they are front and center people; they are one step above VIP’s!

            This is where the story gets interesting. As mentioned a few moments ago, Joseph was the favorite son and this made his brothers furious.

ILLUSTRATION-You’d be furious too if your sibling was given a gold Cadillac and you were given a broken down Pinto; you’d be furious if your sibling was given an all-expenses paid trip to Turks and Cacaos, and you were given a one way trip to the frozen Tundra (AKA New Brunswick).

            Joseph’s brothers resented him because he was the favorite son. They were forced to work, and he was able to lounge around by the pool.

            Joseph’s siblings also hated him because he had a series of dreams, in which he told them that they would end up bowing down to him; only adding fuel to the fire.

            One day Joseph’s older brothers were out tending their fathers flocks and Jacob was wondering how they were making out, so he sent Joseph out to see how they were doing. (Clearly, Twitter had yet to be invented)

            When Joseph’s brothers spotted him coming towards them, they plotted to

kill him, but after some discussion, they decided to put him in a pit.

         We’ll pick up our story in Genesis 37:23:

            “So when Joseph arrived, his brothers ripped off the beautiful robe he was wearing. 24 Then they grabbed him and threw him into the cistern. Now the cistern was empty; there was no water in it.

25 Then, just as they were sitting down to eat, they looked up and saw a caravan of camels in the distance coming toward them.

It was a group of Ishmaelite traders taking a load of gum, balm, and aromatic resin from Gilead down to Egypt.

26 Judah said to his brothers, “What will we gain by killing our brother? We’d have to cover up the crime.

27 Instead of hurting him, let’s sell him to those Ishmaelite traders. After all, he is our brother—our own flesh and blood!” And his brothers agreed.

28 So when the Ishmaelites, who were Midianite traders, came by, Joseph’s brothers pulled him out of the cistern and sold him to them for twenty pieces of silver. And the traders took him to Egypt.” (Genesis 37:23-28, NLT2)

Joseph didn’t see the attack coming; it caught him totally off guard.

All he was expecting was to chat it up with his brothers and then go back home and put some shrimp on the BBQ and enjoy his life, but that didn’t happen.

Instead of being on his way back to his daddy, he was forced to the bottom of a pit, and eventually on his way an unknown land.

Chances are that you didn’t see your pit coming either. Chances are that you were blindsided by your not-so-good-news.

ILLUSTRATION- I had no idea that my heart would get broken that night I answered the telephone; and you had no idea that your world would crumble around you either.

        It seems like you are stuck at the bottom of a waterless pit, with no way out.

I'd like to tell you that Joseph's story got better after he was thrown into the pit, but I can't. Joseph’s story got worser before it got better.

As we just read, he was sold into slavery; was taken to Potiphar’s house, promoted to a high position in Potiphar’s house, but because Mrs. Potiphar couldn’t keep her hands to herself, Joseph was sent to prison- through no fault of his own.

While in prison his good behaviour earned him a good position of responsibility over the other prisoners, only to be left out once again.

After several more years of waiting, Pharaoh finally promoted Joseph to CFO- Chief Food Overseer- and he successfully navigated Egypt through a severe

famine.

But it didn’t happen overnight. More than once, Joseph was left alone.   

Through all the hard times, Joseph never gave up. If he doubted God, he never let on about it. He simply believed that God would get him through this.

How do I know that? Fast forward 20 years of so after Joseph was sold into slavery and his brothers are now in the midst of the famine, and they come to Joseph for help.

Their father, Jacob was dead, and they were worried that Joseph would retaliate for all the terrible things they did to him, so they pleaded for mercy from Joseph.

Joseph replied in a most unusual way; look at Genesis 50:20, which also happens to be our key verse for this series:

“You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.” (NLT2)

Joseph isn’t harsh with his brothers. He doesn’t even seek retribution. He simply reminded them that what they intended for evil, God redeemed for good.

No matter what comes into your life, God can redeem it for good. This is what the story of Joseph teaches us. God took something incredibly bad, and weaved it into something beautiful.

This is God’s speciality. He does His best work in our difficult situations.

ILLUSTRATION- On Wednesday, I had severe stomach pain. By 2:30 in the afternoon, I was flat on the bed where I stayed for the rest of the day and into the night.

            The pain was so bad that Beth was considering taking me to the hospital.

            As I was lying on the bed, stomach churning with pain, I was reminded of our key thought for this series.

This key thought is the first thing I see when I turn my phone on; it’s one that I have memorized, and it’s one that we will come back to again and again during this series, so I encourage you to write it down and begin to memorize it.

I believe these words will help all of us when we are in a pit; if Joseph was here with us today, this is what he might say to us about our difficult situations:

“You’ll get through this. It won’t be painless. It won’t be quick. But God will use this mess for good. In the meantime don’t be foolish or naïve. But don’t despair either. With God’s help, you will get through this.” (Lucado, 2013, 3)

If God can redeem Joseph’s situation, He can certainly redeem your situation as well.

You will get through this. We fear we won’t, but the truth is, with God’s help, we will.

Hear these words from God himself, as recorded in Isaiah 43. This is a word to God’s people:

“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. ² When you go through deep waters, I will be with you.

When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.

³ For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.” (Is. 43:1b-3a, NLT2)

We may feel as if we won’t get through our difficult situations, but with God’s help, we will.

It won’t be painless. We probably will have to endure some pain and trouble when we go through difficult seasons of life so it won’t be painless, nor will it be quick.

Joseph was 17 years old when he was sold into slavery and was at least 37 years old when he saw his brothers again. That’s 20 years of difficult situations.

Your situations, my situations, our situations won’t necessarily be painless or quick, but God will use your mess for good.

God is a God who is able to bring good out of bad.

Paul wrote in Romans: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

(Romans 8:28, NIV84)

            If you belong to God, He will turn your junk into treasure. It may take time, but He will use your mess for His good.

            We need to know that with God’s help, we will get through our difficult situations, one step at a time.

            We need to be reminded that: “Those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31, NLT2)

            This study on the life of Joseph will remind us that You’ll get through this. It won’t be painless. It won’t be quick. But God will use this mess for good.

         In the meantime don’t be foolish or naïve. But don’t despair either. With God’s help, you will get through this.”

            So, what am I asking you to do today? Here are three things, pick whatever one applies to you:

·      If you find yourself in a difficult situation, take note of our key verse, found in Genesis 50:20 and our key thought and begin to ask God what it is that He wants you to learn in this difficult situation.

o   It could be that He wants you to trust in Him more;

o   It could be that He wants you to give something up;

o   It could be that God wants to show you something that you might not notice any other way…

   So begin by asking God what He wants you to know, and ask Him for help as you endure your difficult situation.

·      If you are not in a difficult situation at this moment in time, would you please pray for those of us who are? Pray that we will get through this.

·      If you’re not into praying, or don’t know how to pray, send a card, or a cheesecake to someone who is going through a hard time--and there are several people in our church who are going through a difficult time—remind them that God will use this mess for our good and His good.

·      Get involved in this study. Joshua’s Sunday school class and the Berean Tuesday morning bible study group will both be doing this study and PM and I will be speaking on a different topic each week, so do your best to be here on Sunday’s.

            The story of Joseph is included in the bible to remind us that though satan intends to harm us; God will weave it into something good.

            You’ll get through this. It won’t be painless. It won’t be quick. But God will use this mess for good. In the meantime don’t be foolish or naïve. But don’t despair either. With God’s help, you will get through this.”  

 

The Resurrection changes everything

This is my sermon from Easter Sunday.

 

 

            Good Morning everyone, and welcome to church today. My Name is Pastor Nick and I am the Lead pastor here on the Ridge, and I'm very glad that you are here with us today.

        Today is, in my humble opinion, the greatest day in History, not just the history of the Christian Church, but all of history.

It’s the greatest day in history, because the tomb, the spot where Jesus' body had been put when some men took Him down from the cross, is empty.

            Just to bring you all up to speed, we are in part 4 of our current sermon series called Jesus paid it all. The key verse for this series is Isaiah 53:5:

            He- that’s Jesus—“he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.” (Is. 53:5, NIV)

            Isaiah reminds us that Jesus was crucified; He was killed for our sins, for the sins of the world.

            He paid the price that sin demanded; Jesus hung on the cross and died.

        Jesus was taken down from the cross and placed in a new tomb that Joseph of Arimathea had purchased, and a stone was placed in front of the tomb and then everyone went home to watch the day’s events on CNN.

            The next day was the Jewish Sabbath, so nothing was going to happen, but on the third day; which was also the first day of a new week, some lady followers of Jesus got up real early and went out to the tomb to anoint His body…. Only there was a problem.

            Jesus body wasn’t there. This terrified these ladies. And rightfully so; if you were prepared to anoint a body and all of a sudden that body wasn’t there, you’d be terrified as well!

            At just the right time, an angel of the Lord appeared to them and said: "Don't be alarmed….You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified.

        He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.” (Mark 16:6, NIV)

            Friends this is good news! Jesus Christ has risen from the dead!

Because this is true, I would like to suggest to you the bottom line of my sermon, you (hopefully) saw it in the opening video, if you have a pen you might want to write this down: “The Resurrection Changes Everything”

            This is a thought that Paul picks up in his first letter to the Corinthian church.

            The Corinthian’s were new believers and they had many questions about the faith, and one of those questions was about the resurrection: Was it true? If so, were they to believe it?

            In this letter, Paul laid out the case of a resurrected Christ, which is incredible considering who Paul was before he came to faith in Jesus.

            Before he came to faith in Jesus, Paul was known as Saul and he was the chief killer of Christians.

If you were an early follower of Jesus, and Saul found your Facebook page, you could almost bet that the next day he would be at your doorstep ready to, at the very least put you in prison, or at most, kill you just for being a follower of Jesus. 

            We’re told in Acts chapter 8 that Saul gave oversight, and approval to, the stoning of Steven.

            Saul did whatever he could do to stop the work of Jesus, until one day the work of Jesus stopped Saul.

            The account is recorded for us in Acts chapter 9…

         Saul was on his way to Jerusalem to carry out his work against the followers of Jesus, when he was knocked off his high horse on the Damascus road.

            A bright light blinded Saul, and has he was lying on the ground he heard a Voice say to him: "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" (Acts 6:4, NIV)

            Saul responded by asking: "Who are you, Lord?" (Acts 9:5a, NIV)

            The answer came: "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting" (Acts 9:5b, NIV)

            Saul had an encounter with the Risen Lord Jesus Christ and it changed everything. 

        He was no longer a hater of the church; he did all he could to see to it that the church grew; and Saul, AKA Paul, took the message of the Resurrected Christ to parts of the world that had never heard the Gospel.

            One encounter changed a murderer into a preacher. How is this possible? Simple. The Resurrection Changes Everything.

Or how about Peter? Most of us are mildly aware of Peter. 

He’s the one who asked Jesus to walk on water, and he actually took two or three steps on the water, but once he looked down and saw the wind and the waves, he got scared, and sank like a stone.

            On the night Jesus was arrested, Peter took out his sword and sliced off the ear of the high priest’s servant; only to have Jesus put it back on, and tell Peter to put away the sword.

            Or the Peter who swore to Jesus that he would never deny Him, when in fact he did deny Jesus, not once, not twice, but three times, each denial more serious than the one before it.

            After Jesus’ resurrection, Peter was a changed man!

            Jesus sought Peter out, and restored him, and Peter went on to preach the Gospel and saw literally thousands of people come to faith in Christ on a daily basis.

            What happened? Why the change? Before the death of Jesus, Peter was a fly by the seat of your pants kind of guy, but after the Resurrection of Jesus, he fearlessly preached Jesus. 

Why the difference? Because The Resurrection Changes Everything!

ILLUSTRATION- Or how about a kid from a small part of the city we’ll call William.

William never really liked being in front of crowds speaking, and would often do whatever he could do to get out of public speaking, volunteering to go first on the occasions that he had to give a speech in school…

            While attending university later in life, William was engaged to his sweetheart, but was messing around with three other women at the same time, and it wasn’t until William hit rock bottom that he had an encounter with Jesus Christ.

            How can I sit before you today and proclaim the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ? Because The resurrection changes everything. 

            I may not have it all figured out as of yet church, and I probably never will, but I have bet the farm on the One who said He was going to die and rise again and actually pulled it off!

Jesus said His Resurrection would change everything, and He was 100% right.

This is the truth that Paul explained to the Corinthian Church: The Resurrection changes everything. 

Let’s look at the first 9 verses of 1 Corinthians 15. I’m reading from the NLT, first edition, if it sounds different than what you might have in your Bible, if so you can follow along on the screen.

 “Now let me remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News I preached to you before.

You welcomed it then and still do now, for your faith is built on this wonderful message.

2 And it is this Good News that saves you if you firmly believe it—unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place.

3 I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me—that Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said.

4 He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, as the Scriptures said.

5 He was seen by Peter and then by the twelve apostles.

6 After that, he was seen by more than five hundred of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died by now.

7 Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. 8 Last of all, I saw him, too, long after the others, as though I had been born at the wrong time.

9 For I am the least of all the apostles, and I am not worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted the church of God.” (1 Corinthians 15:1-9, NLT1)

Very carefully, Paul lays out the facts about Jesus:

·      He died for our sins, just as the Scriptures had said;

·      He was placed in the ground, just as the Scriptures had said;

·      He was raised from the dead on the 3^rd day, just as the Scriptures had said.

As proof of His resurrection, Paul tells us that Jesus had been seen by more than 500 people, and Paul included himself in this grouping of people.

It would be possible for 1 or 2 people to say that the resurrection didn't  happen, but to have over 500 people say the resurrection did happen, that's something else, considering I can't even get my family to agree with what we should have for supper!

Then Paul lays out a series of arguments that must be made either for or against the resurrection.

If, he says, there is no resurrection, then:

1)     There is no Resurrected Christ (13&16)

2)     Our preaching that Christ has been raised from the dead is empty and meaningless (14a);

3)     (If there is no resurrection then) Your trust in Christ is also useless. (14b)

4)     Paul’s own testimony about Christ’s resurrection would have been a lie, because it claimed that God did something He didn’t do. (15);

5)     (If there is no resurrection then) Faith in Christ is also useless (17);

6)     Believers are still under sin’s curse and are not justified (17b);

7)      There is no hope for those who died believing in Jesus if there is no resurrection (18);

8)     (if there is no resurrection then) All who died in Christ are lost (18)

9)     “If we have hope in Christ only for this life, we are the most miserable people in the world.” (1 Cor. 15:19, NLT1)

If there is no resurrection, we all are wasting our time, we might as well as close down the church and never open again, because we’re lying to everyone, and to make matters worse, we just stole your money to promote one great big lie.

            But Paul states very plainly in verse 20 of 1 Corinthians 15: “But the fact is that Christ has been raised from the dead. He has become the first of a great harvest of those who will be raised to life again.” (NLT1)

            Because Christ has been raised from the dead first, all who die believing in Him will live even though they die.

            Jesus Himself said so: “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; 26 and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26, NIV)

            Do you believe this? Do you believe that Jesus Christ paid the penalty that sin demanded? That by His death on the cross your sins are paid in full?

Once again, our key verse says it all: “he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.” (Is. 53:5, NIV)

            Jesus was crushed so you could be whole, He was placed in the grave for three days, then rose again and now sits at the right hand of God and He is inviting you to turn from your life of sin and shame and guilt and hopelessness and experience the power of the Resurrection, because the Resurrection changes everything!

            In order for this to happen, we must take Paul at his word. In 1 Corinthians 15:2, he writes: “And it is this Good News that saves you if you firmly believe it…” (NLT1)

            The only way to experience the power of the Resurrection; the only way to have your sins forgiven, and your conscience cleansed is to place your trust in Jesus Christ.

            As Paul wrote to the believers in Rome: “If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.” (Romans 10:9-10, NIV)

To receive Jesus and all that He has done for you, you must Admit, Believe and Confess:

·      Admit that you have done wrong; admit that your sins are the reason Jesus went to the cross;

·      Believe that His death was and is and always will be final payment for your sins;

·      Confess your willingness and allegiance to following Jesus Christ as the Lord of your life.

You should know friend, that we as a church have been praying for this moment; we have been praying that people would come to faith in Jesus today—because we know that The Resurrection changes everything- including your life.

If you have never asked Jesus to forgive you of your sin and invited Him into your life;

Or if you have done so but have wandered away from following Jesus, today is your opportunity to meet Jesus face to face.

Hear me on this one: It doesn’t matter what you have done—or what you haven’t done --with your life, God can and wants to give you a fresh start today, because The Resurrection changes everything.

If you’ve blown your relationship with God into another stratosphere; you can come back to Him today, because The Resurrection changes everything.

If you’ve never given your life to Jesus you can do so today, because The Resurrection changes everything.

If you Admit, Believe and confess, you can be made new because of the death and resurrection of Jesus. 

Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians that: “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (5:17, NIV) 

Can I let you in on a little secret? These words “if anyone” are extremely complex, and have an interesting meaning: they mean: IF ANYONE!

·      If you are a murder, and you confess Christ, you can be made new;

·      If you are an adulterer, and you confess Christ, you can be made new;

·      If you are into porn, and you confess Christ, you can be made new;

·      If you are an alcoholic and you confess Christ, you can be made new;

·      If you are a liar, a speeder, or a drug addict and you confess Christ, YOU CAN BE MADE NEW.

Paul knew these words to be true; he was a stone cold killer but was made new because The Resurrection changes everything.

So I wonder today who among us needs a fresh start. Who needs to experience new life today—maybe for the first time, or maybe for the millionth time?

If you would like to receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior, as the band makes their way back on stage, I’m going to ask you to respond publically.

By doing so, you are saying “preacher I want a new life in Jesus Christ”

Because the resurrection changes everything, you can have abundant life now and in the life to come, but it only happens as we place our trust and confidence in the Resurrected Jesus, so if you would like to begin a new life with Jesus today, I invite you right now to lift up your hand, and pray this prayer with me:

Lord Jesus, you paid the penalty that sin demanded, I am a sinner and I ask you to forgive me of my sin and come into my life and help me to live for you. 

If you prayed that prayer, you are being made new because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Don’t keep this news to yourself. You need to tell me and Pastor Mike and everyone else in the world; because The Resurrection changes everything.

I also want you to be aware, that our baptismal tank is full and should you wish to take a step of obedience and get baptized, we can do that a little bit later this morning, all you have to do is come talk to me or Pastor Mike and we’ll help you take another step in your new life with Jesus.

I believe with all my heart that the resurrection changes everything and everyone… the question is will you allow Jesus to make this change in you?