In Christ Alone: An Easter Message

Easter 2013: In Christ Alone

So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. 23 For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.

It had been a long strange trip to Athens, the capital of Greece. The city was full of gorgeous statuary, much of which was dedicated to the gods and goddesses of Greece. Indeed, the ancient Greeks were very religious, although not in the same way we may consider ourselves religious. Their gods were less personal, very selfish, prone to the weaknesses of humanity. In addition, much of the religious activity of the ancient world was political and even economic, not devotional.
The Areopagus was an ancient gathering place of ideas. Philosophers and scholars would debate and dictate and pontificate there. Think of it as akin to the internet today, an idea exchange, or perhaps like an ancient TED conference. There, the Athenean people had set up many statues to different gods and goddesses, and in addition, to be certain that they had not left anyone out, set up a stone to the agnostos theos, or “the unknown god…”
We immediately distance ourselves from the ancient people among whom Paul ministered. We assume that we are too modern and sensible to be polytheists, or idolaters. If only that were the case.

In America today, even with rising trends in atheism, in many ways we are more religious than we have ever been. This makes perfect sense. We were after all wired to worship. Idolatry is either exchanging the one true God for the worship of a false God, or the worship of the true God in a false way. We will worship something, or someone. Either the creator, or the creation, or even at times things that we created beings have created. It is possible even for Christians to be guilty of idolatry, of placing someone or something before God in our lives, as well as to worship God in a way that dishonors Him or grieves the Holy Spirit. 2 Timothy 3:5 warns for instance against those who hold to a form of godliness but deny God’s power.

Paul recognizing the amazing opportunity set before him, leans in to explain to them that He knew who this unknown God was, and that he wanted them to know Him as well:

24 The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, 25 nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. 26 And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, 27 that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him.
Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, 28 for

“‘In him we live and move and have our being’;

as even some of your own poets have said,

“‘For we are indeed his offspring.’

29 Being then God's offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man…

Paul begins by making a case for God as the creator of all… that we would worship the Creator instead of the creation, or even worse, those things which we have created. I don’t believe this is a minor point.

I only want to point out to you that time and again, when the Scriptures appeal to us about God’s power, they point to His power as Creator. In fact, Paul will later write to the Romans:

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. Romans 1:18-20

But we will come back to this later:

We grope in the darkness, looking for something to satisfy our thirst, searching for God-particles, and anything that will explain us, that will heal and help us. But it is only when we realize that life is found in Christ alone that we truly begin to live.
v. 28 was whispered into my ear on the day of my ordination. I can’t say for sure if I had ever read it before that. “‘In him we live and move and have our being’, reminding us that it is only by the grace of Christ that we have anything, that we are able to do anything, and that we even are. For in Him we have our being. We are made by God and for God’s glory.
30 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”

Times of ignorance were once overlooked. One source noted that this means “God did not bring immediate justice to the world in previous times.” But now has fixed a day. The clock is ticking, both for us personally and for all of Creation and in the meantime, God is commanding that all people everywhere should repent. That they should turn from their sin to avoid the wrath to come. He has fixed a day. A day that we do not know when (Matt 24:36), but we know that it is coming, and that HE is coming. The righteous man that he has appointed is His Son Jesus Christ:

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. 2 Cor 5:10

And how do we know this? Paul says by the historical fact of he Resurrection.

How important is a belief in Jesus being raised from the dead? Let’s hear from Paul again:

And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 1 Cor 15:14

So if Christ has not been raised, then our faith is in vain. We are then to be most pitied of all because the belief that we hold closest to our hearts is indeed a lie. Worse still, if Christ has not been raise, there is no hope of salvation:
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9

Furthermore, let me say that if there is any road to Heaven other than by Christ, Jesus Himself is to be most pitied, because His sacrifice was needless. Why would God subject His son to the torments of crucifixion if there was any other way? Do you hear me?
I have to appreciate here what David Platt noted last night during Secret Church, that if ignorance of the Gospel was a way of escape, then we should stop preaching the Gospel.
32 Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, “We will hear you again about this.” 33 So Paul went out from their midst. 34 But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.

Now, I know what is on the line here. When people talk like this, some will mock you… but I say “What a small price to pay for the Gospel.”
Consider if you will the Hui (“Whey”) people of China, whose families will turn them out into the streets if they forsake Islam and embrace Christ.
Consider if you will Saeed Abedini, in prison since 2012, now serving a 12 year sentence for preaching the Gospel in Iran.
Fine then. Ridicule me for believing that God spoke all of Creation into existence. Snicker at me for teaching that there is a real Heaven and a real Hell, and that both are eternal destinies for mankind. Mock me when I say that they only way to salvation is not through adherence to a religious program, or to a Christian social club, or even to a church. “He saved us, not because of righteous things which we had done, but because of His mercy… [Titus 3:5].
Some hearts are so hard that it would seem as if no rain can penetrate them.

All must hear, but only some will listen.
Then others will say, “Let’s talk about this some other time…” The thought of a 2000 year old story having any relevance to them today will seem ludicrous. Those who confuse the Christian faith with a list of rules, or a regimen of spiritual fitness exercises, might just walk away from the water cooler when you start talking about a dead man walking out of a tomb.
So I wonder today about you.
Are you listening? Have you heard? Have you trusted Christ, have you turned away from your sin?

I love what the AWANA ministry defines the Gospel as. In two words, “substitutionary atonement”, or in four words, “Jesus in my place”.

I love the simplicity in that explanation. And most often, theology is best explained in simplicity, so perhaps you caught the BC Comic floating around in cyberspace this week about Good Friday. One character says, “I hate the term ‘Good Friday” to which the other replies, “Why?” the response comes, “My Lord was hanged on a tree that day.” To which the other replies, “If you were going to be hanged on that day, and he volunteered to take your place, how would you feel?” “Good.” ‘Have a nice day”.

So one more time: God created you. He alone is worthy of worship. We worship things other than God by putting them in front of Him. That is sin. Sin breaks fellowship with God. Without a savior, sin sends us to Hell. Jesus was born for the very sake of dying for your sins so that you would not have to die. He rose again that you might live. But you have believe that he rose from the dead. You have to repent, which means to turn from your sin, and you cannot be saved by your own goodness. You can only be saved in Christ alone.
Lastly friends, I want to urge you. Don’t wait until next time. We may think that we need to think this over, but the Lord may come again, or your time may come before then. So if you have not trusted Christ, now is the time. What better day to be risen from the dead than on Easter?

Following Until We Understand: A Palm Sunday Meditation

Today begins our Holy Week services. All of our services this week will tie in together as part of a five part story.  Today, we remember the Lord’s Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem: (John 12:12-19)

12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.  13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”

The feast mentioned here is the Passover, often causing the city of Jerusalem to swell to as many as five times that.[i] After a dip from the whole ‘eat my flesh and drink my blood’ incident (what David Platt perceptively refers to as a PR disaster[ii]), Jesus had reached a sort of celebrity status due to the raising of Lazarus and at His entry the people went wild![iii] So in a display of adoration the crowds gathered and shouted out “hosanna”!  

“Hosanna” is an English rendering, of a Greek attempt at a Hebrew phrase meaning “Save us”.  The same phrase used in Ps 118:25-26 when the Psalmist cries out:

 Save us, we pray, O Lord!

O Lord, we pray, give us success!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!

We bless you from the house of the Lord

In a sense, this calling out is a recognition of who Jesus is, or at least who they believe Him to be at this time. One who is able to save them. To deliver them. We shouldn’t necessarily see this as a ‘confession of faith’ however. As we will see in a few weeks (Jn 12:20&ff) it does not take long for this crowd to turn against Jesus. But they seek deliverance from earthly bondages, from the occupation of a Gentile power, when what they need to be delivered from is spiritual bondage.

Jesus seems to have carefully sent the message that He had not come to conquer. At least not yet.[iv] (John 10:14-18 tells us that He had not come to take lives, but for His life to be taken at the proper time for the salvation of all who would believe.)

14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,

15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion;

behold, your king is coming,

sitting on a donkey's colt!” [Zech 9:9]

               

                A donkey would be what a king might ride in times of peace, or when they were not trying to display power or perhaps out of mere necessity.[v] But in this case, Jesus seems to be sending a clear message that He is indeed a king, but not like the kings of this world. He is a different sort of King, for a different sort of Kingdom. (Notice that He does not deflect the worship of the people, but embraces it.[vi])

25 But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, 28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28, ESV)

But as is so common, even those closest to Jesus are unable to understand Him:

16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. 

Jesus, of course, would be glorified in his death and His resurrection. Hindsight is (almost) always 20/20. Finally, from where they sat, after the fact, they could see.

I wonder how often we cannot see Jesus for some reason. Perhaps the forest for the trees, or the Lord for the disciples (another sermon entirely…) Because of our religious sensibilities? Because of our biases? How many people missed Jesus that day because he was not up to specs for them. How many will miss Him today because they have expectations that He is not meeting, instead of asking Christ what He expects from them. At some point the question should shift from asking what our Savior can do for you, to what you can do for your Savior.

17 The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. 18 The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”

In Matthew, the Pharisees tell Jesus to silence the crowds, in this case they want to silence Him, and for good. This business about Lazarus had gone on long enough. People everywhere were coming to Christ, and the religious establishment had to put an end to that before any more of their power and prestige was lost.

Dead men make no disciples. (Or so it was generally believed…)

Which, in my mind; begs a few questions:

Firstly, will you follow until you understand?

Sometimes we put too much emphasis on understanding. Time and again, we hear testimonies about people who were baptized at a young age, and then later doubt their salvation because they did not fully ‘understand’ what they were doing. My question to them is, “Did you believe?” Because salvation comes by faith, not by mental ascent. Thankfully, there is no I.Q. test for entrance into Heaven.

But in this case, my point is this: the disciples were clearly unclear about who Jesus was. They understood bits and pieces that that got in glimpses, like the raising of Lazarus, but from there on out, there was a great deal of confusion in their hearts—“who is this man?” So, even though, we often think of the Twelve as a league of extraordinary gentlemen, they were more or us utterly ordinary; more like us than we might want to admit for both their sakes and ours.

They heard what Jesus said. They saw what Jesus did. Yet, it was not until the Resurrection on Easter morning that they understood as fully as they could. In the meantime, faith had to make up the balance, and that sort of faith can only come by the grace of God.

So I wonder, are you in a place in your life where you are having to believe, even though you have not yet seen? I hope so. I hope with all of my heart that there is some part of your life that is being lived by faith alone.

Secondly, let us see how quickly Jesus goes from being ‘wildly popular’ to being betrayed. As stated before, Jesus had reached some sort of celebrity status after the raising of Lazarus. He had been trending to be sure. As soon as people saw Him entering the city, they were enthralled. In Matthew, the crowd is said to be ‘stirred’, another translation records this as being ‘wild with excitement” (NEB) which is probably closer to the situation. Imagine for a moment if, say, your favorite musician, or athlete, walked into the room just now, completely unexpected. What sort of reaction would there be?

A few years back, Justin Bieber made a semi surprise appearance at a mall, and the response was so overwhelming that the police shut the entire thing down.

While Bieber still be making his Beliebers short of breath, he hasn’t risen anyone from the dead to my knowledge. I can only imagine that there was a different sort of excitement over Jesus that day.

There is an old song called, “When God Cried”, which has the line “The crowd that cried “hosanna”, now shouted for his death…” It has been running through my head for weeks; off and on for years really. So, ultimately, what I am asking is this: I wonder, what does it take for to get us from “Hosanna” to “Crucify him!”

Perhaps this happens most easily when we are ready to take Christ as our Savior, but not as our Lord. When we understand the message of the Cross to be the message that matters most of all the messages that we are getting. That He alone died and rose again that we might live; and that therefore, we should live for Him above all else.

We have to remember that Jesus has indeed established a Kingdom; one that is over and against the kingdom of Caesar, of the Devil, of the world. And He is inviting us to become part of that Kingdom by grace through by faith.

But we have to remember that being a subject of a Kingdom means being subject to a King. In our case, we call that repentance, away from this world and toward Christ that makes the leap from death into life. And though we are not saved by our works, we are proved by them.[vii]

Perhaps we are not as far removed from the crowds that day as we might wish.

Let us pray, for the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

---

[i] J. Jeremias, and others.

[ii] Platt’s point of course is that Jesus did not come to make a mighty media machine, but to die and rise again. There are crucial points in Jesus ministry where He could have pressed His popularity, stoking the embers of nationalistic zeal or exploiting the weaknesses of the poor for instance, and instead, simply preaches the truth and lets the chips fall when they may.

[iii] In the NEB, Matt 21:10 reads “they were ‘wild with excitement’”

[iv] Rev 19:11&ff

[v] 2 Sam 16

[vi] We see this much more clearly in Matthew’s account

[vii] I heard an amazing explanation of this recently: Say two men are sitting in an air terminal. One of them is dressed in a way that suggests he has just returned from an extended climb. The other looks at him and says, “Hey, I love to climb!” to which the first man replies, “Oh? Great! I just got some great gear on my trip (explanation follows). What sort of gear do you use?”, to which the man replies, “Well, I have a North Face jacket.” Suspicious, he pries a bit, “What sort of climbing do you do?” to which the other replies, “Well, not much… well, actually, I haven’t ever climbed anything but the rock wall at the playground at McDonlad’s…” Is the second man a climber or not? He doesn’t have any climbing equipment. He does not climb. But he calls himself a climber.