“Does it Matter?”
Easter Sunday
April 5th, 2015-MRWC
Today is one of—if not—the most
important day in the History of the Christian Church.
We have been celebrating this milestone
all morning. And we will continue to do so after this message.
From the songs that have been—and will be-- sung, to the Scripture
verses that will be shared; to the baptisms that we will see a little bit later
on, they all point to the same truthà The
Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
It was on this weekend over 2000 years ago that our Lord
and Saviour defeated death and secured our freedom.
Because Jesus endured the pain,
suffering, rejection and humiliation of Good Friday, Sunday morning is a time
of great rejoicing.
We rejoice because the tomb is empty.
“…Why do you
look for the living among the dead? 6 He is not here; he has risen!”
(Luke 24:5b-6, NIV)
The
grave is empty and our Saviour lives!
I would like to work through a
question, that at one time or another, has been asked by people all over the world—maybe
even you—about the events of this day.
The
question is “Does it matter”?
More specifically, “Does it matter to me, on April 5th, 2015 that
the grave that once held the Body of Jesus is empty?
Does it matter to you that Jesus is alive,
when tomorrow you could receive a diagnosis that will blow your current reality
into the next stratosphere?
Does it matter to the world that the
only One who can help them is alive and well and waiting on us to come to Him?
Does it matter?
With all of the problems that we
face, with all the bills that need to be paid; with all the running around that
“needs to be done”; with all the demands on our time, does it matter that Jesus
is alive?
The Resurrection of Jesus Christ: Does it really matter?
Because I am a follower of Jesus Christ, I find answers to life’s
most pressing questions in the Bible, and the Bible tells me that the
Resurrection of Jesus Christ matters very much to us today.
There is an interesting verse
recorded for us in Romans 8:31 that will serve as our main text for the day.
In Romans 8:31 we read these words: “…If God is for us,
who can be against us?” (NIV)
This is an interesting statement from Paul. Listen to it once again,
this time from another Translation: “If God is for us, who can ever be against us?” (Rom.8:31, NLT2)
I’d like to unpack this verse just a
bit and see what we can learn from it this morning. From this verse, we know a
few things.
First of all: We know what is
against us!
We know that time is against us. We
know that death is against us. We know that evil is against us.
We know, as Max Lucado says, that “disease, inflation, corruption and
exhaustion” are all against us. (Lucado, 2006, 11)
Most of the time we focus on the negative aspects of life, probably
because all of these things are against us.
But have we never stopped to
consider what is for us? I probably should re-phrase that question… have we ever stopped to consider
“Who is for us?”
This is the 2nd truth
that we learn from Romans 8:31… we learn from this small verse that “…God is for us…”
(NIV)
Make note of this church: GOD IS FOR
US! Say it with me: “God is for us!” (Now say it like you believe it: GOD IS
FOR US!)
Contrary to what people think, God
is not against us; “…God is for us…”
Ø
God is not out to hunt us down;
“…God is for
us…”
Ø
God is not out to ruin our
lives because
“…God is for us…”
Ø
God is not against us, but “…God is for us…”
Some of you need to let these words sink in. God is for you, He is
not against you. Today. At this very hour. God is for you!
While some of you may be against God, He is not against you. Paul
reminded us that “…God is for us…”
This is the reason that Jesus came to this earth. He “…became flesh and
made his dwelling among us.” (John 1:14a, NIV84)
Jesus became a living, breathing
human being. He lived on this earth for 33½ years and then made His way to the
cross to die the most humiliating death known to man to show you that …“…God is for us…” (Rom.
8:31a, NIV)
Jesus willingly went to the cross to pay the price for
our sin.
“God made him who had no sin to be a sin offering for us, so
that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2Co 5:21,
NIV)
Jesus went to the cross to show us that “…God is for us…” (Rom. 8:31, NIV)
There is a question that is asked in
Isaiah 49, and interestingly enough, this question is asked by God Himself: "Can a mother
forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne?
But even
if that were possible, I would not forget you! 16 See, I
have written your name on the palms of my hands. (Isa
49:15-16, NLT2)
Even if a mother could forget her child—if
that were possible, God told the Children of Israel: “…I will not forget you” (Is. 49:15,
NIV)
God will not forget us because “…God is for us…” (Rom. 8:31a, NIV)
Do we understand this truth? Do we
understand that God is not against us; but God is for us? With all of the pain,
hurt, and suffering that we endure, do we understand that God is for us?
I don’t know if I completely understand
this, or can even explain why, but that doesn’t make it any less true.
God is for
us, and
the empty tomb proves this to be true!
If God was against us, He would not have sent Jesus to die in our
place. If God was against us, we’d have a one way ticket to Hell.
But God is not against us; "God is for us." (Romans 8:31, NIV84)
Max Lucado, in his book, “For these tough
times”, shares the following illustration:
ILLUSTRATION- Suppose a man
comes upon a child being beaten by thugs. He dashes into the mob, rescues the
boy, and carries him to the hospital.
The
youngster is nursed to health. The man pays for the child’s treatment. He
(then) learns that the child is an orphan and adopts him as his own and gives
the boy a home.
And
then, one night months later, the father hears the son sobbing into his pillow.
He goes to him and asks about the tears.
“I’m worried, Daddy. I’m worried about
tomorrow. Where will I get food to eat? How am I going to buy clothes to stay
warm? And where will I sleep?”
The
father is rightfully troubled.
(Then
he beings to speak): “Haven’t I
shown you? Don’t you understand? I risked my life to save you. I gave my money
to treat you. You wear my name. I’ve called you son. Would I do all this and
then not meet your needs?” (Max
Lucado, for these tough times, pgs14-15)
Isn’t this boy’s question, our
question? Don’t we all fear where the money’s coming from? Don’t we all need to
know where we will get the food to feed our families?
Would God save us, just to watch us
worry? “Would He be nailed to the cross for
your sins and then disregard your prayers?” (Lucado, 2006, 16)
Absolutely not! God isn’t against
us! God is for us! And if God is for us,
He will meet our needs.
We read these words in 1 Peter 5:7:
“Cast all your
anxiety on him, because he cares for you!” (NIV 84)
Because God is on our side, we can
place our trust in Him. We can, and should, put our hope in Him.
The Bible says: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your
own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your
paths straight.” (Prov. 3:5-6, NIV)
Even though things
are against us, God is for us, and He wants us to trust in Him.
Isaiah 43 reminds us of this truth: “But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you. O Israel, the one
who formed you says, “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, (This
is against us) I
will be with you. (But God is for us)
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.
All these things are against us, but God is for us.
3 For I am the Lord,
your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. (Is.
43:1-3a, NLT2)
The God of the Bible, the God who raised Jesus Christ from the dead is
the very same God that is for you…God is pro-you. Tweet that: God is for me!
He wants you to have life—He wants you to find life: “The thief,
Jesus said, comes
only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and
have it to the full” (John 10:10, NIV)
The Lord Jesus Christ was given for you; He was given in exchange for
you. Jesus died the death
we should have died, so we can live the life we were supposed to live.
He rose again so you might rise again. Jesus said "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 that Jesus died the death you were supposed to die, and
descended into the grave, but rose again three days later to make it possible
for you and me to live with Him forever?
It’s as author and Pastor John Ortberg once said: “The story of the Bible isn’t primarily
about the desire of people to be with God; it’s the desire of God to be with
people.”
The message of this very day is that God is for you; God is for me, “…God is for us”
(Romans 8:31a, NIV84)
Paul reminded us in 1 Corinthians 15: “…if Christ has not been
raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless.
15 And we apostles would all be lying about God—for we have said
that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can’t be true if there is no
resurrection of the dead.
16 And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has
not been raised.
17 And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless
and you are still guilty of your sins.
18 In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost!
19 And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more
to be pitied than anyone in the world.” (1 Cor. 15:14-19, NLT2)
If, Paul said, the
Resurrection of Jesus Christ didn’t happen, then life is, as the writer of
Ecclesiastes has said on more than one occasion “meaningless”.
Paul reminded us that “…if we have hope
in Christ only for this life, then we are the most miserable people in the
world” (1 Cor. 15:19, NLT1)
However, because God
is for us, because God is on our side-à Jesus is Alive! “But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the
first of a great harvest of all who have died.
22 Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone
who belongs to Christ will be given new life.” (1 Cor. 15:20, 22, NLT2)
Because God is for
us, we have hope in Jesus Christ, not only in this world, but also in the world
to come.
Let’s jump back to
Romans chapter 8. A few verses after our main text of Chapter 8:31, Paul asks
another question: “Can anything ever
separate us from Christ’s love?
What a great question! I know
this is a question that we have asked ourselves more than once, after we have
messed up, and did that thing that we said we would never do.
Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or
calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or
threatened with death?...
37 No, despite
all these things, overwhelming
victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love.
Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today
nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from
God’s love.
39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed,
nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God
that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:35, 37-39, NLT2)
Friends; what you and
I need to know this morning is not what is against us--- we are well aware of
what is against us, --- What we need to know this morning is that “…God is for us…” (Rom. 8:31a, NIV)
God is on your side. God is pulling
for you. God is aware of all your needs, questions, problems and pain; and God
wants you to leave all of those at the foot of the Cross and remember not what
is against you, but remember Who is for you.
So what do I want you to do with
what you’ve just heard? Well, a couple of things.
First of all, if you have never
received the work of Christ; if you have not asked Jesus to forgive you of your
sins, and cleanse you and live inside of you, I want you to know that there is
no better day than today to ask
Jesus to make you a new person.
There will never be a better time
than the present to say: “Lord Jesus, I confess that I a sinner, who needs a
Saviour. I’ve heard today that you are for me, so please forgive me of my sin
and come into my life.”
If you are to pray this prayer—or
one very similar to it—then you are part of God’s family.
If you prayed this prayer, your next
step is to tell someone who is a follower of Christ, so they can come beside
you and help you in your walk with Jesus.
The second thing I want you to do
with this sermon is: When
you’re having one of those days, remember that God is for you!
When the bills are piling up, when
the money has run out, when the diagnosis has left you scratching your head;
when your spouse, or your children, have abandoned you, when you are at the end
of your rope, and you don’t even like you, remember that God is for you.
Remember that God loves you. God sent His Son to pay the
ultimate price so that, even on your worst day, God will still be with you, God
will still be for you.
The Resurrection of Jesus Christ
matters because God
is for us…” (Rom. 8:31a, NIV)
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