In the Hope of the Spirit

Hello, it is good to be with you today.

Have you adjusted to self-isolation yet?

Have you changed your routine?

Are you now working at home, exercising on the floor of the lounge room in front of a workout video?

Have you started doing homeschooling and maybe spending more time gardening?

Are you used to not being allowed to go outside yet?

And this past week I celebrated my 35th birthday.

And it was a bit strange because I couldn't see anyone.

And I kept speaking to people and people kept saying,

I really look forward to when life goes back to normal.

And I can come give you a hug and say happy birthday.

And I love that idea.

But have you found yourself saying similar things?

Similar things like when it goes back to normal.

When life goes back to how it was.

I wonder if this is a problem for us.

I wonder if we idolise how things were a couple of months ago.

It's as if that time when we could go outside was perfect.

Now it was definitely better.

But there were still plenty of problems.

Today we are coming to the end of our series, We Believe,

as we look at what Christians believe from the Apostles' Creed.

And today we're looking at the last two lines.

That we believe in the resurrection of the dead.

And that we believe in everlasting life.

And today we're going to be challenged to not just look forward to life going back to normal.

Back to how it was.

Back to something better.

For some of us, I'm sure we're loving hanging out at home.

But for many others, surviving each day of the week is really tough.

But we have something to look forward to that is better than life going back to normal.

We're looking forward to something that won't break apart, that won't fade or be destroyed.

We are looking forward to what God has prepared for us after death and for our life everlasting.

So as we look at God's work today, let me pray.

Dear Heavenly Father, as we hide at home to protect loved ones and those we don't know,

Father, please be with us in isolation.

Help us to look forward to what you have prepared for us in the future.

Amen.

The first thing we're going to look at today is that we believe in the resurrection of the dead.

The New Testament shows that the hope that we have a full life after death.

It is not a spiritual life or a life without a body.

It's not a metaphor.

But there's a future hope of life with a body.

Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 4 that Jesus died and rose.

And God will do the same for those who die.

And Romans says that we have been united with him in his death.

And we will certainly be raised with Jesus, just like he was.

And Jesus says in John 11 that whoever believes in him, even though they die, will live.

Jesus and the other New Testament writers fully believe that just as Jesus died and came back to life,

so will those who believe in him die and come back to a physical life.

Paul in 1 Corinthians 15 shows how central believing in the resurrection of the dead is.

He says in 1 Corinthians 15 verse 3 that it is of first importance that Jesus died for our sins,

1 Corinthians 15:3

that he was buried and that he was raised.

Because if Jesus wasn't raised, there is no hope for us.

Verse 18,

Then those who have also fallen asleep in Christ are lost.

And we are to be pitied for thinking that we will come back to life from the dead.

But, Paul says,

But, that is not how it is, but,

verse 20,

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead.

The first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

For since death came through a man,

the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.

Adam, along with Eve, sinned,

and death was the result.

Jesus did not sin.

And he was placed on a cross instead of us.

And his resurrection means that eternal life is the result.

We are going to celebrate this, this coming Sunday on Easter Day,

where we remember that it is not just a story, but it is history.

That God came himself and died for us on the cross.

And three days later was raised to life everlasting.

He was raised.

People, hundreds of people saw him

before he ascended to the right hand of the Father.

He is the first fruit.

He is the prototype of the resurrection for us.

Because, as Paul says in Christ,

all will be made alive.

I think 1 Corinthians 15 is a really helpful reflection for us on the resurrection.

Now, I've only touched on it briefly.

Let me encourage you to read the rest of 1 Corinthians 15 after church today.

But it is good for us in all seasons

because it enters into the drama of our lives.

We live and start with families

and go to work

and spend time with friends

under the dread of death.

It steadily walks towards us

and to our loved ones.

At the moment,

our whole world is either in lockdown

or heading to lockdown

because we fear death.

We are weak to it.

Whilst not all who get coronavirus will die,

it's spread,

spreads fear,

fear of death.

Because we are weak,

fleshly bodies,

fearful of taking our last breath.

And we've seen the response

of plenty of people

to go on a horde,

trying to protect themselves

for another day.

But even when life does go back to normal,

whether it's in a day

or six months,

we will still

all fear

and face death.

Our hope for the future

has to be bigger

than death.

The Apostle Peter

wrote a letter to a church

who was

in a somewhat similar position.

They were facing

persecution and death

and they were fearful

of what was to come.

And he encouraged them

in this time of uncertainty.

From 1 Peter 1, verse 3,

1 Peter 1:3

it says,

Praise be to the God and Father

of our Lord Jesus Christ.

In his great mercy

he has given us new birth

into a living hope

through the resurrection

of Jesus Christ

from the dead.

And into an inheritance

that can never perish,

spoil or fade.

This inheritance

is kept in heaven for you.

God, in his great mercy,

has given us hope

in uncertain times.

Resurrection from the dead

like Jesus.

And we have an inheritance

that can never spoil

like too much

stocked food.

It can't fade

like our patients

with our family

and friends

and housemates.

It can't be stolen

like toilet paper

from an unguarded

shopping trot.

This is what Christians

put their hope in.

A resurrection

that cannot spoil

or fade or perish.

after we die

we will all be raised

to the life

of a physical body

just like Jesus's.

This is the hope

that we have.

We don't wait

for a spiritual future

but we are waiting

for future bodies

to be raised.

But other than

just having a body

in this everlasting future,

what does it actually

look like

to be in this future

that God has prepared

for us?

Well, we come to

the final part

of the creed.

The final line

of the creed

says that we believe

in the everlasting life.

And the New Testament

paints a picture

for us

of what this

everlasting life

looks like.

Jesus in John

John 14 · chapter mention

chapter 14

tells his disciples

that he's going

to God

to prepare

a house,

to prepare

a place

for us.

Jesus is preparing

God's house

for us

for eternity.

And in this chapter

Jesus is potentially

alluding

to the types

of houses

that rich

Roman rulers

would have.

They would have

houses that had

a central atrium

and all around

the atrium

would be rooms.

You know,

a central space

and then around

the atrium

would be different rooms.

And so

all of the bedrooms

would connect

into a central

gathering area.

So you could

connect and gather

with people

very easily.

And this is a picture

of God

that he doesn't

just have a place

for us

but it's a place

that is connected

to everyone else.

A place

where there is

community forever.

A place

where God

is with us.

And I am

yearning for that.

It is good

to be standing

with you today

looking down

a camera

into your living

room

starting to

wherever you

are right now.

It is good

to be with you

but I am

yearning

to be

gathering with

you in church

together.

This building

is empty

and I miss you.

I miss

gathering

and singing

loudly

as a church

and I am

looking forward

to that day

again.

But how much

greater will it

be

when there will

be nothing

that can stop

us from

gathering

together

and praising

God.

Two passages

from Revelation

continue to

paint what

this everlasting

life will look

like.

Revelation

21 shows us

John's vision

of heaven

and God

shows him

and from

verse 3

it says

I heard a loud

voice from

the throne

saying

look

God's dwelling

place is now

among the people

and he will

dwell with them

they will be

his people

and God

himself will be

with them

and be their

God.

He will wipe

every tear

from their

lives

for there will

be no more

death

or mourning

or crying

or pain.

The old

order of things

has passed

away.

God himself

will dwell

with us

in heaven.

God has

destroyed

the old

order of

things.

There will

be no more

pain or tears

but God

himself will

be with us.

John continues

painting his

picture of

heaven in

verse 18

the wall

was made

of jasper

and the

city of

pure gold

as pure

as glass.

The foundation

of the city

walls were

decorated with

every kind

of precious

stone.

The first

foundation

was jasper

the second

sapphire

the third

agate

the fourth

emerald

the fifth

onyx

the sixth

ruby

the seventh

chrysolite

the eighth

beryl

the ninth

topaz

the tenth

turquoise

the eleventh

jesson

and the twelfth

amethyst.

The twelve

gates

the twelve

pearls

each gate

made

of a single

pearl.

The great

streak of the

city was

of pure

gold

as pure

as translucent

glass.

This is just

an amazing

picture of

luxury and

decadence of

what the city

of God is

going to look

like.

I love the

picture of the

street of gold

it's like it's

polished so

much that it's

translucent and

see-through.

This is a

picture of the

greatest city

ever where you

can even put

precious stones

in the wall

without fear of

them being

stolen.

It's a

wonderful picture

of our

everlasting

future.

God has

spared no

expense to

prepare it for

us by

sacrificing his

own son so

that we can go

to a city

covered in

jewels and

riches that

is not filled

with fear and

uncertainty and

tiredness and

fatigue from

trying to figure

out how to

work from home,

how to do

homeschool,

how to try

and get enough

food that you

need with

restrictions on

food all at

the same time.

Revelation lifts

our eyes to a

picture of a

better city.

A city that is

better than

Sydney, better

than any in

the world.

Hebrews 13

calls us to

look to this

city because it

is better than

the one living

in.

I don't think

we do this

nearly enough.

I don't think

we look to our

future hope, to

this city that

we will be in

enough.

We don't look

to this

heavenly city

and spend

enough time

thinking about

what everlasting

life will look

like.

Colossians

Colossians 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3

that was read

for us says

since then

you have been

raised with

Christ.

Set your

hearts on

things above

where Christ

is, seated

at the right

hand of God.

Set your mind

on things above,

not on earthly

things.

for you

died and

your life

is now

hidden with

Christ

your God.

That is

where our

life is.

We have

been raised

with Christ

and now

our life

is hidden

with God.

It is not

this temporary

life.

We are here

but for a

moment.

We will be

there with

God for

eternity.

And so

we should fix

our minds

on it.

as Paul

has said.

Fix our

minds on it.

We should

get excited

for it.

We should

long for it

and not

hold too

tightly to

this life

here.

The

Barnett family,

we have been

here in St.

Paul's for

nearly two

years.

We are

coming up

to our

second

anniversary.

And I

remember once

it was

announced that

we were

rejoining

St.

Paul's

family and

leaving

our

family.

I

remember

getting

very excited.

I was

looking forward

to working

with the

team here

of St.

Paul's,

looking forward

to rejoining

family.

I was

looking forward

to working

with Steve

again.

And I

remember

doing so much

planning and

preparation.

One of the

things I

really love

to do

is I

would draw

the shape

of the

house and

then I

would draw

where the

furniture is

going to

fit in and

I would

plan how

the house

is going

to look.

When we

had a

day off

we'd

measure up

things in

the house

we'd

call in

on the

team and

see how

everything

was going.

My

future

was never

far from

my mind.

I was

living and

planning for

that future

day to

come when

we would

come to

our new

home.

This is

what we

are meant

to be

doing.

To be

looking forward

to the

day when

we come

to our

home.

For us

we need to

be setting

our mind

on what

is to

come.

What is

above.

I can't

wait to

see my

grandmother

again.

To see

many loved

ones.

To never

be in

pain.

To be in

a city of

such wonder

and security

that God

has placed

precious stones

in the

walls.

I am

excited to

see all

that God

has prepared

for us.

Because our

everlasting life,

our future

will be

a place

of more.

It is

more than

we can

imagine.

It is

more joy,

more goodness,

more purity.

Everything we

think is good

will either be

amplified or

it will be

replaced with

something even

better,

something

transcendent.

It will be a

place of the

highest joys

and the

deepest and

most satisfying

pleasures.

so we

should set

our minds

on.

And then

there is

our God.

We will

know God

for eternity.

We will

get to speak

with him and

ask him our

questions.

We will

get to praise

him for his

grace and

kindness and

love to us.

We will be

there with our

brother and

saviour Jesus

and we can

thank him and

praise him for

all that he

has done for

us.

As I

mentioned,

it was my

birthday on

Wednesday.

Today,

April 5th,

is Micah's

birthday.

He turned

three today.

And one of

his grandmothers

sent him some

birthday presents

in the mail.

And he was

really excited to

open those up.

He opened those

up while his

grandmother was

on FaceTime.

So she could

see his

excitement for

those presents.

And those

presents were

great.

But how much

better will it

be when Micah

and his

grandmother are

reunited?

And they

can hug.

He can hug

his grandmother

and say,

thank you.

God has

so many good

things waiting

for us in

heaven.

But how much

better will it

be that we

get God

himself?

As we come

to the end

of the Apostles

Creed, it

ends with an

absolute bang.

We have

declared what

we have

believed,

what we

continue to

believe about

God, our

Father, that

he is almighty

and he created

the heavens and

the earth.

We declare what

we believe about

Jesus, his

son, our

Lord, who was

conceived by the

Holy Spirit, born

of the Virgin

Mary, that he

suffered even

though he was

innocent and

was crucified,

died and was

buried.

He suffered

hell for us.

Yet he was

raised from the

dead, he

ascended into

heaven and

now he sits

at the right

hand of God

on the throne

above all

thrones with

the name of

all names.

And we

believe that

he is coming

back to judge

the living and

the dead.

And we

believe in the

Holy Spirit

who has made

us a church,

who has united

us together,

even though we

are divided,

united us

together to

treasure Jesus

together.

He has brought

forgiveness from

our sins and

he will one

day raise

us from the

dead, just

like Jesus.

And we

will live our

life with God

for eternity.

This creed

doesn't exhaust

all that there

is to say

about the

Christian faith.

But Christians

have declared

this boldly for

centuries, in

the face of

opposition, in

the face of

death and

plague.

We take our

place with all

of our brothers

and sisters

declaring what

we believe

about our

God as we

follow him.

The creed

starts with

our God who

has created

and ends

with the hope

that we have

in what God

has created

for us, the

new heavens.

So right

now, it is

easy for us

to have our

eyes set on

when the lockdown

ends, whether

that's July 1st

or some other

time, when

this is all

over and

life can feel

like it goes

back to normal,

we can go back

to work and

school and go

outside and go

to shops and

restaurants again,

but it won't

be satisfied.

It will be

better, but a

normal life here

is not all that

God has for us.

And if we are

just yearning for

life to go back

to normal, we

will be let

down.

God has

something far

better in

store for us

that we can

be setting our

eyes on.

A day that is

worth yearning

for and looking

to.

A day that

will satisfy.

A life lived

for eternity,

in God.

Let me pray

for us.

Heavenly Father,

we thank you so

much for the

Apostles' Creed

that we can

declare what we

believe about

what you have

done for us

and who you

are.

Heavenly Father,

help us to

set our eyes

on things

above.

Help us to

set our eyes

on the

resurrection hope

that we have,

that we get to

be with you

forever.

Lord, as we

live our lives

waiting for that

day, unsure of

what tomorrow

will look like,

Father, help us

to place our

anxieties and

worries before

you and help

grow our trust

in you as the

God who is

sovereign over

all things,

all plagues and

disease.

And help us to

know and to

long for the

day that we

will see you

face to face

and be with you

for eternity.

And we pray

this in your

Son's name,

for your

glory.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.