Scandalous Mercy Part 1 | Messy Mercy (Easter) with Chris Schlotterbeck

Hey guys, this is Tracy. If at any time you'd

like to connect with HCV, go to hcv .church forward

slash connect. If you feel called to give, go

to hcv .church forward slash give. And if at

any time you feel called to make a change in

your life, text change me to 970 -00. Enjoy the

message. Now, I'm out of breath. Are you guys

ready to hear an Easter message? You guys ready

to do this? So, without further ado, I give you

our lead pastor. Rudy. Rudy, what did you do?

Easter is ruined. I needed those flowers, dude.

I needed that pot. You know, friends, here's

the reality. At some point in life, we're all

going to break. And when this happens, humanity's

initial reaction is one of frustration, anger,

and judgment. But God, God doesn't run away from

broken pieces. He comes near. And not only does

he come near, our God humbly and gently kneels

down and begins to pick up each piece. Not one

forgotten. Not one ignored. And the beauty of

this is summed up in one word, and it's called

mercy. Mercy is God giving us what we don't deserve

in our brokenness. And he doesn't stop there.

He doesn't glue us back together so that we're

the same person that we were before. Because

of Easter, he takes it a step further. And he

creates something brand new. A masterpiece. Good

morning and welcome to HTV. Happy Easter. And

if you're joining us from home, thank you for

welcoming us into your space. There is a word

at the very heart of the gospel, a word we often

use but very rarely grasp. And that word is mercy.

We sing about it. We pray for it. We hope for

it. Yet when it meets us face to face, it can

almost feel too good to be true. Mercy is not

getting what we deserve. It is love when we have

failed. It is compassion when we wandered. It

is God looking at us, making eye contact in our

worst moments, in our deepest regrets with eyes

full of grace. And nowhere is that mercy more

visible than in the story of Easter. Because

see, at the very moment humanity had done its

worst, because of Easter, God responded with

his best. At the cross, we see the judgment that

we all deserve. But at the empty tomb, we see

mercy that we could never earn. Today, we stand

in that tension between who we have been and

who God is calling us to become. And the good

news is this. Mercy has the final word. See,

because of Easter, there's no person God can't

reach. There's no life he can't change. There's

no situation he can't handle. There's no miracle

he can't do. And that church is good news. And

that's why we gather to celebrate every single

Easter. Let's open in prayer. Holy Spirit come.

God, we are grateful that we can gather together.

I just pray, God, that you would open every ear,

mind, heart to receive your truth this morning,

God. I silence distractions in Jesus' name. And

I just pray, God, that we would all leave here

differently than when we came. In Jesus' name,

amen. That prayer leads us to our first thought

this morning. See, life can be messy. Life can

be messy, Luke chapter 24 verse 1. But very early

Luke 24:1

on Sunday morning, the women went to the tomb

taking the spices they had prepared. And see,

quite often what happens when we know a story

from the Bible is we quickly read past verses

that are important to the narrative. Just like

the one I read to you. Early in the morning.

Ladies were walking to the empty tomb. In our

mind, it's Easter. Praise God, Jesus has risen.

And typically when it comes to Easter Sunday,

we dress up a little nicer. We put on a big smile.

We take family photos. We gather for a meal.

We celebrate. So when we read about the first

Easter, we immediately think it was a celebration.

In fact, it had to be the best celebration that

ever was. Right? So when reading that first verse,

we quite often picture these ladies, not in pain,

not suffering, not fearful, but in Sunday's best,

going to celebrate the risen Savior because we

know the end of the story. However, today, I

want us all to put ourselves in their shoes for

just a moment. See, they don't know the ending.

They don't know it's Easter. They're just living

in the mess. Because see, that first Easter morning,

it wasn't a celebration. It was a disaster. For

starters, these women were walking to a tomb

for someone that they loved to put burial spices

on a dead body. They didn't know Jesus had risen.

They were heartbroken. They had loved Jesus.

But at the same time, in their grief, they were

also a little mad, a little confused, a little

scared. Because remember what Jesus told them.

I am the Son of God. I am going to build a kingdom

that will never end. I am the Chosen One. I am

the Messiah. So we find these women totally confused.

and feeling a little betrayed. Maybe Jesus didn't

lie to us. It could be that he thought he was

the Messiah, but he can't be because we saw them

die. We saw them buried. A dead person can't

build a kingdom that will never end. So you see,

we have all these emotions. We have this tension

that the first Easter would bring. And remember,

these women, they were all alone. The disciples,

they had scattered. They were now in hiding.

What is so important about this line of thinking

is if you walked into this place to celebrate

Easter and your life feels a little messy, you're

not alone. If you gathered here with us this

morning or you're watching online and you're

trying to put on a smile, you're trying to celebrate,

you're trying to engage in worship, but mentally

you're just checked out, you're not alone. If

you're currently walking through challenges in

this life, you're experiencing some turmoil,

let me say it again, you're not alone. Truth

is, we are all broken people living in a broken

world. And I can almost guarantee there's not

one person in this place that isn't struggling

with something in their life. And maybe it's

not personal. It could be that a loved one is

struggling or sick. It could be in today's economic

climate, you're struggling with the pressure

to just pay the bills. Maybe for you it's a relationship

that's broken or a marriage that you're fighting

for. Maybe you're dealing with a diagnosis. Maybe

you lost a loved one and are walking through

a season of grief. Maybe for you it's mental.

It's anxiety or depression or fear or, dare I

say, suicidal thoughts that no one knows the

pain you're feeling inside. Let me tell you again,

you are not alone. And John... Chapter 16, verse

33, Jesus told us, I have told you all this so

that you may have peace in me. Here on this earth,

you have many trials and sorrows. In other words,

life is messy. But take heart, church, because

I have overcome the world. See, because of Easter,

everything has changed. Jesus overcame death

and the power of this world. And I want to encourage

you this morning. It's okay to not be okay. Because

see, there's good news today. And there's good

news for your life. Let's continue reading Luke

24, two through six. They found that the stone

had been rolled away from the entrance. And notice,

no high fives, no celebrating, no hallelujahs.

In fact, in all four gospel accounts, we find

these women completely confused, believing the

body had been stolen. Continuing on. So they

went in, but they, They still didn't find the

body of the Lord Jesus. As they stood there puzzled,

two men suddenly appeared to them, closed in

dazzling robes. And again, we fast forward to

the end of the story. Oh, the angels are here.

Now they'll understand. Two men in white clothes,

dazzling white clothes. Like if I was them, I'd

be feeling the same way. A little freaked out.

Like, what is going on? And you may be sitting

there thinking, oh, there's no way, Chris. They

wouldn't feel that way. Okay. If two shiny dudes

appeared in your kitchen this afternoon after

Easter service, how are you going to feel? How

are you going to feel? Let's continue. The women

were terrified, just like you would feel. and

bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the

men asked, why are you looking among the dead

for someone who is alive? He isn't here. He is

risen from the dead. Remember what he told you

back in Galilee. See, we know that that is good

news. They didn't. And while this conversation

is happening with the angels, look at Mary's

posture, John chapter 20, verse 11. Mary was

John 20:11

standing outside of the tomb crying, weeping.

Then she stopped and looked in. See, Mary was

broken in pieces because her life was messy.

Which leads us to discover three important Easter

truths today that I believe you can take from

today and live with for the rest of your life.

And the first is this. Because of Easter, Jesus

still shows up. See, Mary is outside of the tomb,

crying and confused. She stops, looks in, sees

that it's empty, then turning to leave with all

of these emotions in her mind, all this negativity,

all this doubt, her broken heart. We read this

in John chapter 20. She turned to leave and saw

John 20 · chapter mention

someone standing there. It was Jesus. But she

didn't recognize him. Dear woman, why are you

crying? Jesus asked her. Who are you looking

for? She thought he was the gardener. Sir, she

said, if you have taken him away, tell me where

you have put him and I will go and get him. See,

in her brokenness, Jesus showed up. In her doubt,

Jesus showed up. In her confusion, Jesus showed

up. And it wasn't just to Mary. Let's continue

in verse 19. That Sunday evening, notice we're

now in the evening. That was the morning. The

disciples were meeting behind locked doors because

they were afraid. They were terrified of the

Jewish leaders. Suddenly, Jesus was standing

there among them. Peace be with you, he said.

See, the disciples hadn't read the story yet.

They didn't know Jesus had risen. They were full

of fear and doubt. Jesus. Still showed up. Look

at Luke 24. That same day, two of Jesus' followers

were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven

miles from Jerusalem. In other words, they had

given up. They thought it was over. Jesus had

died. He was buried. As they walked along, they

were talking about everything that had happened.

They stopped short, sadness written across their

faces. Guess who showed up in their sadness?

Jesus. And he would walk all the way to Emmaus.

There's this guy named Peter. He leaves the group

full of guilt, shame. He had denied Jesus, ever

existed three times. So he goes fishing. He takes

a few friends with him, and we read this in John

21. At dawn, Jesus was standing on the beach,

but the disciples couldn't see who he was. He

called out, fellows, have you caught any fish?

No, they replied. And Jesus keeps showing up.

And see, I think this is one of the most beautiful

parts of the resurrection that we need to remember.

Dead guys don't show up anywhere. But when Jesus

stepped out of the tomb and proved that he was

the King of kings and the Lord of lords, he can

show up in people's lives for the rest of eternity.

And friends, dare I say that is still happening

today. See, we are experiencing this abundance,

these interactions every single week here at

HCV. And you don't have to have it all together

before Jesus shows up. I mean, we just read about

all these people. They were hurting. They were

depressed. They were broken. They were grieving.

They were anxious. They were regretful, shameful,

scared. And Jesus showed up. See, God is not

waiting for us to fix ourselves. He's not waiting

for us to get more spiritual before he shows

up. You just heard Rudy say, on Good Friday,

we baptized nearly 90 people who declared they

were publicly following Jesus. And an amazing

move of God. And it was interesting, one of the

gentlemen that had gotten baptized, he wanted

to share his story with me. And I was right over

there in the baptismal, still in the water, cold,

shaking. And he comes up to me, Chris, you got

to hear my story. I said, okay, tell me. I promise

I'm listening. And he began to say, you know,

my sister goes to HCV. She comes here. And she

invited me to church last Christmas. She said,

why don't you come to Christmas Eve with me?

And my response to her was, no, I don't need

church. I don't need your church. I'm good right

where I'm at. And just that week, that week after

she invited me, I was hunting and I was in my

tree stand 30 feet above the ground in a tree.

And I don't remember much from that day, but

I do remember falling out of that tree stand.

I fell 30 feet and bounced off the ground. And

when I came to, I heard my name being spoken

audibly in my ears. And as I woke up and looked

around, not being able to move, I recognized

that voice as God's voice inviting me back home

and getting my attention that I needed to get

back into church. And he said to me, he said,

Chris, I walked away from that accident unscathed.

But I haven't missed a Sunday since. And not

only have I not missed a Sunday since, I'm now

getting baptized because all I want to do is

go all in for Jesus. And you say to me, well,

Chris, why is that important? Well, it's important

because Ecclesiastes 3, verse 11 says, God made

Ecclesiastes 3:11

everything beautiful for its own time. He planted

eternity in the human heart. In other words,

it doesn't matter where you are, what you're

going through, you have eternity in your heart.

And if you have eternity in your heart, then

God can speak to you, whisper to you, audibly

invite you home. And listen, when we are experiencing

troubles in this world, when it feels like you're

drowning, we need to start to expect that Jesus

is going to show up because he does. And I want

to challenge you today. Let's make this Easter

a little different and take it a step further.

And my challenge to you is not to expect Jesus

to show up, but ask for him to show up. That

we would all start to ask. For Jesus to show

up in our lives. Because when Jesus shows up

in our lives, look what happens. Jeremiah 29

Jeremiah 29:12–14

verses 12 through 14. In those days when you

pray. In other words, today when you pray. And

you say, Chris, that's not what it says. Yeah,

but Jeremiah was a prophet. And that prophet

was speaking to our times. In those days when

you pray, I will listen. And if you look for

me wholeheartedly, you will find me. I will be

found by you, says the Lord. I will end your

captivity and restore your fortune. In other

words, if we seek him, we'll find him. If we

knock, he will open that door. And if we ask,

he will listen. See, Jesus has risen from the

dead so he can show up in our life. And let's

start to expect those encounters to happen every

single day, which leads us to our second truth.

Not only does Jesus still show up, because of

Easter, we need to remember. Now you say, Chris,

is that really a truth? Well, notice the very

first thing the angel says to these women who

were sad, brokenhearted, downcast, Luke 24. He

isn't here. He is risen from the dead. Remember,

church, What he told you back in Galilee, that

the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands

of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would

rise again on the third day. Then they remembered

that he said this. And see, I find it interesting,

and I've actually skipped over that verse before,

not even recognizing the word remember. It's

interesting that God told people, a group of

people, that were struggling, brokenhearted,

downcast, to remember what Jesus did. Why? Well,

because of Easter, we have something to remember.

See, Jesus told them he would be crucified. Jesus

told them that he would rise again. And one of

the best things we can do when we're really struggling

is to take all of our negativity and fears and

doubts and unanswered questions, all those difficult

situations that seem impossible, and we need

to begin to run them through the God filter.

And you say, well, what is the God filter? How

do you make coffee? You grind up your grounds

and you pour it into the filter. And then you

have a beautiful, delicious cup of joe that comes

out. Well, we all have the God filter. And that

God filter is remembering what Jesus did for

us. Remembering that he went to the cross. Remembering

that Jesus is now alive. Remembering that he

still shows up. Remembering that he can do the

impossible. See, when you're struggling, I want

to challenge you to remember two important truths.

And the first is this. Remember Jesus loves us.

1 John 4 .10, this is real love. Not that we

love God, but that he loved us and sent his son

as a sacrifice to take away our sins. And I say

this often, and I mean it, church. This isn't

about you. It's not about how well we love him.

It's not about how much we pray. It's not about

how much we serve. It's not about how well we

play the guitar or how much Bible we read. It's

about Jesus loving us. And you say, really, Chris,

is that scriptural? Sure is. Won't you ask the

thief on the right? Last time I checked, he never

went to church. Didn't read the Bible, didn't

pray. But he is now in eternity. And see, Jesus

doesn't love a future version of you. He loves

you right here, right now, just as you are. And

I believe someone needs to hear this this morning.

God loves you. And you're here for a purpose.

And the second thing we need to remember is that

Jesus died for us, Romans 5, 8. But God showed

his great love for us by sending Christ to die

for us while we were still sinners. The women

were hurting. And God reminds them to remember

what Jesus did for them. See, Jesus knew in the

garden as he was sweating profusely blood droplets

from his forehead. He knew the pain and suffering

that he was going to go through for us. He knew

he would be beaten beyond recognition. He knew

he would hang on a cross where he would be spit

on and mocked. And see, we forget sometimes when

we see pictures of the crosses that they're wrong.

See, in Roman crucifixion, the Romans, when they

killed someone, they would put the crosses at

eye level so that person could be spit on, mocked.

made fun of, and Jesus did that for us. Jesus

knew he would die for you and me. And the next

time you're struggling through life and you feel

like you're drowning, take a minute and remember

what Jesus did for you. See, he loves us so much

that he died for us so that we can walk free

from anxiety and regret into a life of abundance

so that we can be masterpieces. There's no situation

in life that Jesus can't handle. He has been

through it all. And why is this so important?

Well, John 3, 16 reminds us. For this is how

God loved the world. He gave his one and only

son so that everyone who believes in him will

not perish but have eternal life. God says, let

me be clear. There's a reason Jesus suffered,

died, and rose from the dead. It was so you and

I can avoid eternal separation from God. And

we can spend eternity with Jesus in God's kingdom.

And God reminds us whoever believes it experiences

eternal life and lives in abundance right now.

Not tomorrow, right now. Which leads to our final

Easter truth. Jesus still shows up. We need to

remember. And church, there was purpose in our

pain. Now we're going to zero in on this lady

named Mary Magdalene. She was one of the women

who were first to go to the tomb. And she was

experiencing the pain of Jesus' death. But she

also experienced a lot of pain in her personal

life. We read in Luke chapter 8. Soon afterward,

Luke 8 · chapter mention

Jesus began a tour of nearby towns and villages,

preaching and announcing the good news about

the kingdom of God. He took his 12 disciples

with him, along with some women who had been

cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them

were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out

seven demons. Now, I don't know about you, but

if I knew a person that had one demon cast out

of them, I think we can all agree that person

had some issues. Can we all agree on that? But

if God has to cast out... Seven demons? That

person was a mess. But at the same time, I can't

even picture the pain that Mary experienced throughout

her life. I can't imagine the dysfunction she

lived in. I can't imagine how many people wanted

to totally avoid her when she came near, wanting

nothing to do with her. See, she had a painful

past. And she experienced freedom from her pain

when she met Jesus. So when Jesus died and was

buried, Mary once again found her place in a

place of brokenness. She goes to the tomb. It's

empty. She thinks someone stole the body. She's

totally confused, hurting. But notice what Jesus

says to her. John 20. Mary, Jesus said, she turned

to him and cried out, Rabbani, which is Hebrew

for teacher. She recognized his voice. Notice

she didn't recognize him and his resurrected

body. She heard his voice. Don't cling to me,

Jesus said, for I haven't yet ascended to the

Father. But go find my brothers and tell them

I am ascended to the Father and your Father and

my God and your God. Mary Magdalene found the

disciples and told them, I have seen the Lord.

Then she gave them his message. See, Mary was

experiencing grief and pain. What did Jesus do?

He took her pain and turned it into purpose.

Notice what Jesus said. Go and tell the disciples

everything you have seen and heard. Mary was

the very first person to ever share a testimony

about the resurrected Jesus. And see, that started

a movement. The disciples believed. Peter got

up and preached 3 ,000 would be saved. Then it

went to 5 ,000. Then it went to 10 ,000. Then

100 ,000. Today, there is over 3 .2 billion people

in the world who believe that Jesus is the Son

of God and was risen from the dead. And see,

this whole movement did not begin in a living

room at a Super Bowl party. This whole movement

began with Mary's testimony. Mary had a purpose

on her life that more than she could ever think

or imagine. She had so much purpose on her life.

We're still talking about her more than 2 ,000

years later. See, Mary experienced the God of

more. And God is inviting us to experience more

today. How do I know that? Ephesians chapter

three, verse 20. Now, all glory to God, who is

able through his mighty power at work within

you, within me, to accomplish infinitely more

than we might ask or think. See, God had a purpose

for Mary that she never thought she could do

for herself. And I have no idea what you're going

through today. I have no idea what you brought

into this room. But can I remind you? There is

no person that God can't reach. You're not too

far gone. You're not at a point in life where

you're so broken that God won't come and pick

up the pieces. You're not at a point where God

doesn't see your hand coming up out of the water.

God is in the business of changing lives in this

community of faith. And not only does he change

lives, he turns our pain into our This week I

was reflecting on one of our leaders within our

community of faith and just kind of began to

weep. It was right around this time. It was late

spring. Easter had passed. We all decided as

a staff to go out for lunch. We went to a local

bar, restaurant, sat on the outside patio deck,

if you will. Just so we could spend time together

and reflect on all that God was doing and have

fun. And we ran into a bartender there. And this

bartender was broken. He was tired. He was worn

out. He had seen the pain and heartache of the

church and judgment and hypocrisy. He was a youth

leader as a youth. But walked away from God.

And this church staff was having fun and having

lunch. And, oh, the pastor ordered a Long Island

iced tea. If you don't know what that is, you

can look it up. Don't judge me. Don't judge me.

And as we were sitting there interacting and

having fun and talking about Jesus and God with

this young man, he became interested and listened

and we invited him to summer jams and he came

to summer jams and heard one of his favorite

songs, non -Christian. And that Sunday recommitted

his life to Jesus. And now, fast forward, that

young man is now a leader in our community of

faith. He's leading young people and youth and

giving back to them and speaking into their life.

He's the coach of a softball team, not in the

church league, in the tavern league, because

he wants to see people meet Jesus. See, God shows

up not just in a church building. God shows up

in bars. God changes lives. And desires to continue

to do so. So I want to challenge you today. To

remember. That because of Easter. Jesus loves

us. Jesus died for us. Gave us his spirit. We

are can be forgiven. And are forgiven. And there's

nothing in this world he can't handle. And no

matter what life throws at you. Because of Easter.

No matter how great the pain, God turns our pain

into purpose. Leading us to impact and change

the lives of others so that our masterpiece that

he created us to be shines for all men to see.

Will you stand with me? I want to close today

with two simple questions. And the first is this.

And the first is a challenging one because I'm

going to ask you to be honest. If you're here

today and you've walked into this place and you're

struggling, maybe you feel like you're drowning.

You're overwhelmed. Can I encourage you and say

that Jesus still shows up? And how do I know

that? Well, last night at our first ever Saturday

evening gathering, I had a young lady come up

and share with me. She came right up front and

said, Chris, do you remember me? I said, no,

I don't remember you. I'm sorry. She goes, about

eight months ago, you reached out to me. I was

on a camping trip with my family and was struggling

with suicidal thoughts. I was contemplating ending

my life and you called and you encouraged me

and prayed for me and broke off a spirit of death

over the phone. That was one of the most difficult

weekends I had ever spent. But God began to move.

And she looked at me and she goes, can you believe

that I'm now at a point eight months later that

my husband and I have just... booked a trip to

Africa this summer because we're going to serve

in an orphanage. And she goes, I needed to share

that with you so you could share it with other

people so that they can be encouraged that even

in the contemplating of suicide, God still shows

up. So if you're here this morning and you're

struggling, I want you to be honest. I want you

to put your hand up. I want you to put it up

real high so I can see them. It could be anything,

church. Put it up. Now here's what I want you

to do. I want you to look up to heaven. I want

you to keep your hand up. Don't put it down because

if you put it down, then you're saying you're

lying. I want you to look up to heaven. I want

you to say these words. Jesus, I need you to

show up. Change my circumstances. Meet me where

I'm at. Holy Spirit, empower me today. In Jesus'

name, amen. Now you walk that out and you believe

Jesus is walking with you. For life or mine Either

one Turn water into wine Please fix my heart

And the things inside Yo