Easter 2018

The universe held its breath as the Son of God was born in a nobody town.

And a woman gave birth to her firstborn and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them in the end.

And a part from a handful of astronomers, wise men, and shepherds, his presence at birth, earthly presence at least, went largely unnoticed.

But then thirty years later, as an adult, he burst onto the scene, calling people to follow him, healing the sick, the lame, the blind, performing all kinds of miracles, speaking in parables, and crowds and crowds of people followed him wherever he went.

And as his ministry went on over the course of three years, he spent less time with the crowds and more time with the disciples.

And the more time he spent with the disciples it wasn't as if they began to get a real clear understanding about even who he was and who his mission was until after he died and rose again.

And so he enters into the temple on the last week before his crucifixion, and he overturns the tables of the money changers and those selling pigeons.

And he's hauled before a mock trial that turns into a mob scene, and they crucify him.

The soldiers who stand beneath his cross jeer at him.

You said you could build the temple, come down.

Of course, the great irony of it is the Lord could have called upon twelve legions, seventy-two thousand warriors from heaven, and God would have given them to him.

But the irony is that the soldier who said you can't even come down from the cross was in some ways right, because if he did, he wouldn't have accomplished salvation for us.

And so around 3 p.m., the time that the sacrifices were offered every day for fifteen hundred years, the Lord of glory died.

But on the dawn of the third day, something happened that changed the course of human history.

Familiar words, Matthew 28, 1 through 10.

Now after the Sabbath, Sabbath on those days was Saturday.

After the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, that is Sunday, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.

And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it.

His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow, and for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men.

But the angel said to the woman, Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.

He is not here, for he has risen, as he said.

Come, see the place where he lay.

Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee.

There you will see him.

See, I have told you.

So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples, and behold, Jesus met them and said, Greetings.

And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshipped him.

Then Jesus said to them, Do not be afraid.

Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.

Let's pray together.

Heavenly Father.

Remarkable passage.

All of the witness of all of Scripture points to this moment.

And so turn our affections to it as well.

So that what we hear and know and do would bring glory to you.

We pray it in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, this past fall, Kim and I had the privilege of having dinner with some of our mentors, an older couple who are retiring this year after many, many years of faithful ministry.

And because they are from the extreme northern part of the United States, they cooked for us a dish that they knew that we would have never tasted before.

And because she knew that we liked food, she printed off the recipe for us to have.

And as we began the meal and began talking about her family heritage, we discovered there's a whole lot more than meets the eye.

But he comes from a long line of physicians.

His father was the personal physician to one of the Russian czars.

So her family is Russian.

And to prove it, she says, Do you see this, some of these candlesticks, some of these uh candle obras over here on this child, all this silver?

That's from the royal family.

And story after story began to unravel, but one of the most interesting and exciting stories she told was on a night where her grandfather and grandmother were returning from dinner on a horse-drawn carriage through the woods.

That I have in my mind about Siberia, you know, although they weren't there.

And so off they are through the woods.

And she said, as they were traveling, the sound of the wheels and the neighing of the horses was not loud enough to drown out the sound of the chasing wolves.

And so the driver began to encourage the horses faster and faster and faster.

But no matter how fast they ran, the wolves seemed to keep up and in fact seemed to be gaining on them, and the howling got louder and more intense.

And so you know what the driver did?

He would unhitch one of his horses and let them go to the wolves so that the team would go on.

On and on and on and unhitch another horse to be a sacrifice to the wolves, and on and on and on.

He gave up his own to rescue those he loved.

And so in the fullness of time, God sent his one and only Son to give up his own to rescue those he loved.

Me and you.

And it changes our task in this life.

What we're called to do and how we're motivated to do it.

It changes everything.

The resurrection has changed everything.

First, it changes our confession.

Just look at the first part of chapter 28.

Now, after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and other Mary went to see the tomb.

Other gospel writers take pains to remind us that they're going at dark.

Just before dawn, is it dark?

They're going at dark.

And in scriptures, we know from the Good Friday service and from other readings in the Old Testament, we know that darkness represents God's judgment, but it also represents the darkness and sin nature that we're all born with.

It represents the darkness of our understanding about who we are and about who God is.

And so here come Mary Magdalene and Mary, they're coming to the tomb, they're coming at dark, because not only does that time of the day represent God's judgment over death, but it represents their own darkness about who they believe Jesus is.

Remember, they've been with Christ now for many, for all of his public ministry.

And yet they're still in the dark about who he is.

And other gospel writers say that they're not just in the dark.

They're coming in the dark, they're coming to the what?

They're coming to the tomb.

Other gospel writers say, and they're bringing with them spices to anoint the body.

They're not expecting to see the risen Christ.

And look what happens.

Look who they meet.

And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it.

It's amazing to see, it's amazing to see what happened.

Just imagine the fear if what you expected to see was not at all what you got.

This morning, when I went to take our dogs out in the darkness, it was still dark outside.

I go outside and take the dogs out, and there was this gigantic owl in our carport, and it scared me to death because it made a swoop down at me.

And I thought, I mean, I'm gonna die on Easter morning.

The thing chasing me around the carport.

I'm glad the YouTube people weren't there to video it.

But just I mean, just imagine going to see the tomb and seeing something that you totally did not expect.

I know that I've said it before, I've talked about angels not being like our Christmas ornament angels.

We think of angels because we think of this nice and beautiful wings and pretty pink flowing gowns like some of the children, the girls were running around here today.

That's not what a warrior from heaven looked like.

They were terrified.

Professional assassins that had overseen many crucifixions are terrified because their warriorship, their appearance is like lightning.

And it says it says that they're filled with fear.

But the angel says to the women, don't fear.

Go on and tell his disciples that he's risen.

And as they're going on on the road, guess who meets them?

Jesus does.

Now it's interesting that in recorded in this text, it doesn't say that either one of the Marys asked the angel, Are we going to see Jesus on the road?

But when they encounter the risen Lord, what happens?

They fall on their face and they grab his ankles and they worship him.

You see, the resurrection of Jesus Christ changes our confession.

It removes the scales from our eyes so that we're able to see ourselves before him and confess him as Lord and worship him.

How does Jesus meeting you on whatever road you're on today, how does that have an impact on your life?

For some of us, we're indifferent towards it.

And that indifference bothers us.

Perhaps that we know that we ought not to be indifferent.

Perhaps that we know that we ought to be more moved by the resurrection than we are, and it bothers us.

For others of you, the indifference doesn't bother you.

In fact, you're indifferent to your indifference.

But the reality of who Jesus is because of the resurrection, that the Lord, the Bible tells us that the Lord Jesus has been given the name above every name because he's defeated sin and death and hell forever and raised from the grave means that no matter what we believe about who he is, he is still our Lord.

I mean, the same happens right when we elect a president, regardless of whether or not we voted for that president, he's still our president.

And wherever he goes after elected to office, after the term is over, he has secret service and he's referred to as Mr.

President.

In the same way, regardless of what we may think about the Lord, the resurrection confirms the fact that he is, in fact, our Lord.

It changes, you see, it changes our confession.

But it also changes our perspective, too.

I want you to notice the different kinds of responses that are portrayed here to what the angel, the resurrection that the angel announces produces, both in the guards and in the women.

So their fear leads to death.

But the women's fear in verse 8, they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, ran to tell his disciples, but their fear leads to joy.

What's the difference?

Because they understand who Jesus is and what he accomplished, that in his death and resurrection, he defeated death forever, and that changes the way that we think about end-of-life issues.

It changes our perspective on death, friends.

And it's something, that's something that all of us will have to deal with.

And some of you are dealing with it in a variety of different ways, even now.

Whether with loved ones or with friends and their loved ones, or remembering during this Easter season our loved ones who have gone on before us.

But the resurrection says that end of life issues are profoundly affected because Jesus rose from the dead.

You know, I think the way that we experience death today is shaped in so many ways by our own medical advancements and advancements in science.

I think the way that people experience death even a hundred years ago is different in some ways because we have the ability to prolong life.

And in some ways, we can prolong life almost indefinitely.

One of our church planners who was here through our church planning cohort ministry, who lives in Kirksville, Missouri, is in his early 50s and had his second heart transplant.

And was in the hospital for almost a year while they kept his body alive with machines waiting on the heart.

It's remarkable.

But what the resurrection tells us is that in the moment when we have to say goodbye to our loved ones or when we contemplate our own death, that this life is not all that there is.

The resurrection tells us that God cares about what happens to us after, because we get to go be with Him.

But you know what the resurrection also changes the perspective on?

And I think it's something that we don't often think about, particularly on Easter, but Easter's when we really need to think about this.

The resurrection also changes our perspective on this physical earth and creation.

When the angels said, Come see where his body lay.

And then the women meet Jesus on the road and they go to him and they take hold of his actual physical feet.

Jesus' physical resurrection from the dead tells us that God cares about this physical creation.

One of my seminary professors used to say, God doesn't make junk and he doesn't junk what he makes.

Sometimes we believe that in the new heavens and the new earth, it means that God is going to just wipe out all of this.

But no, the Bible says that God's dwelling place will be with who?

With man.

Which is where?

Here.

On this earth.

With resurrected bodies.

Now, I don't know what that what that means fully, but I can tell you that it has profound implications for even the way that we talk about our mission as called apart.

The resurrection, friends, is why we say we're living our life as mission to redeem Birmingham for the glory of God and go to the city.

Because if God didn't care about Birmingham, if it was just going to be a wash, then why should we care about it?

But the resurrection says that God cares deeply about this physical creation.

Now, what does that practically mean for you, kids?

I'm going to talk to you in the room so you listen.

Adults, you don't listen to this part.

I'm kidding.

Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, that means that God cares about how you act and behave on the playground.

Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, that means that God cares about your desk in your school and how you act around those people that sit with you.

That you can actually affect change in your classroom.

That you can actually be different and bring hope to the playground.

Because of the resurrection, that God says He actually cares about your school building and the scariest part about your school, which is the lunchroom.

The older you get, the scarier the lunchroom becomes.

That because of the resurrection, you can bring hope to your lunchroom.

I bet you've never heard a preacher say that.

Because of the resurrection, friends, your yard can be different.

Your relationships can be different.

Your job can be different.

Your marriage can be different.

Your relationship with your parents can be different.

Your relationship with your siblings can be different.

Art can be more hopeful.

Businesses can thrive because of the resurrection.

God cares about this earth.

See, it changes our perspective about everything.

And it also changes our mission.

It also changes our job, our task.

Now, you don't have this printed in your worship guide, but it's in your Bibles.

Eight verses later is the fulfillment of what Jesus says in verse 10, go and tell my disciples I'm coming.

In verse 18, you remember what he says?

Famous verse, the Great Commission.

Jesus came to them and said in verse 18, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I've commanded you, and behold, I am with you always to the end of the age.

What's our main task here?

Our main task is to make disciples.

It's actually the only command that's in this phrase.

All the other things are supporting the command of make disciples.

He doesn't say, go therefore and build big churches, go therefore.

And do church plants.

Go therefore and make converts.

Go therefore and help the poor.

Go therefore and give to the needy.

Although those are all great things.

He says, go therefore and make disciples.

To make disciples is the command.

How are we to do it?

We're to do it by going, by baptizing, and by teaching all that Jesus had commanded.

And do you know what happens as a result?

Disciples are made.

How can you tell if disciples are being made?

Love.

Remember what Jesus said?

All men will know you are my disciples if you have love one for another.

You know, I have to be careful saying this because I know that when I say this word, this will be interpreted in however many people are in here in that many different ways.

But I think that Cabal Park is experiencing somewhat of a revival.

Don't be afraid of it.

What do you mean by that?

Well, I've said that a handful of times in different settings, but never here.

Well, I did here in the 8:30 service, I said it here.

What do you mean by that?

That's always the question that I get that follows up.

Well, tell me what you mean by that.

And candidly, I didn't have a great answer for it up until this morning.

You know, I could say lots of things.

Well, I you we're seeing disciples being made.

We're seeing never in the church's history, and I've been here since the beginning, never in the church's history have we seen people come to faith in the way that they have, or disciples being made, or people making hard choices about the way that they're living their lives, or the way that they're living their what they're doing for their jobs in order to advance the kingdom.

Or we could say, and this is true, I've talked with Adam, who leads our worship up here.

He says, the singing is actually louder.

And it's not because there are more people.

What is it?

It's love.

You can feel it.

You can taste it.

You can experience it in conversation with one another.

You know what it is?

It's Christ's love.

And we get to be a part of it.

Now, before you go having a big head thinking we did something really great, remember that Jesus says, all authority on heaven and earth has been given to me, not me, but him.

And if it's all been given to him, that means all the glory goes to him.

And if all the glory goes to him, as we're making disciples, then he also wants us to know something else in verse 20.

He says, Knowing that the task will be long, he says, I am with you always, even to the very end of the age.

You know, in the verses that come in between verse 10, our passage, and verse 18, what I just read, there's some hard verses about some people believed, but others still doubted.

And that's kind of our experience, isn't it, in life?

That we go through periods of belief and doubt, but also that the people that we pray for, perhaps for years, continue to doubt, and maybe even we'll never see them believe.

And we think to ourselves, what, you know, one, what's my comfort?

And two, uh, maybe I'm not the right person to be doing this, anyways.

Well, your comfort's in the fact that Jesus says he's going to be with you.

The risen Lord is with you.

And the reason why you, every single one of you, play a vital role in God's kingdom is because you're made in the image of God for whom Jesus gave his life.

And you say, well, you don't maybe you don't know the things I've done or I'm doing.

Well, if you feel that way, then I think it's helpful to remember who penned these words so that we would remember them.

The book of Matthew is written by a guy named Matthew.

Matthew, do you remember what he did?

He's a tax collector.

People hated him.

He stole from the poor, he stole from the rich.

But when Matthew encountered Christ, his confession, his perspective, and his task changed.

And so can yours.