← ArchiveSunday, April 1, 2018DateApril 1, 2018Speaker—Text—Passages in this sermon2 Corinthians 51:46Matthew 15:12Matthew 216:07Psalms 227:13Ezekiel 3720:19TranscriptMachine transcribed. Click any line to jump there.0:00Music playing Music playing0:30Music playing Music playing1:00Music playing If you have your Bible with you today, either physically or electronically, go ahead and open and join me in the book of 2 Corinthians.1:302 Corinthians chapter 5. It's in the New Testament about halfway through, about three quarters of the way to the end of your Bible. 2 Corinthians. You know, there's been a lot of famous deaths in history. JFK, Marie Antoinette.1:59You have people like Cleopatra, but we do not refer to these deaths by the way they died. We don't refer to them as the assassination or the guillotine or, for Cleopatra's sake, the poisoning. And yet, even for those that do not follow Jesus Christ, and some of you might be in that category right now. If I mention the crucifixion, we all know who we're talking about.2:29What makes the crucifixion different? Because the fact is that there have been thousands of people that were crucified on a Roman cross. Maybe hundreds of thousands of people. And yet, the death of one man has a privilege that no others has. What makes this death different? We're going to tackle this issue this morning because we believe this.2:57That today the world pauses and reflects on one man who died on one Roman cross. Just one out of the thousands. But this death was different. This death was not by poisoning or assassination or murder or martyrdom or guillotine. This death was different because of how it ended.3:28You see, for this man in Rome, in Palestine at the time, death was not the end. Because in three days, although he died on the cross, he rose again. Again, he's not there. And we need to admit that we are a very peculiar, odd people. That we worship something and so on that people say, that can't even happen. And we say, well, I don't know how it happened, but I believe it did happen.3:57Because everything on my faith hinges on this one man who died in Palestine and in three days later, he rose again. So let me quickly sketch out the story of paradise lost and paradise regained for you. You're welcome to shout in the midst of this run through. I'm going to basically summarize the whole New Testament in about three minutes.4:23Some of you are like, that is possible. I don't know why that was not a joke. Paradise lost. Scripture says that we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. I have sinned. You have sinned. We all have sinned. Your sin is not greater than mine. My sin looks different than yours. But it is of equal eternal value. It is holy rebellion against God. If you were here last week, God reminded us in his word that we, he did not prepare hell for us.4:51We choose hell. We ignore God. We ignore his design on our life. We say, God, no, thank you. And so he sent his son through a virgin. Yet Christianity is strange. Not only do we worship a man who died on the cross and rose again, he was born of a virgin who would become pregnant and would name him Emmanuel in Matthew chapter 1. This child was visited by the wise man who went to the king of that time, Herod,5:19and said, hey, a baby's going to be born. The king was so paranoid that he desired to kill every child born in that small village to the age of two. This is how God has prepared the world for his son. Murderous threats. So Jesus had to flee to Egypt. Now, why would a king who had authority feel pushback or be threatened by a child? That's who Jesus is. He threatens the status quo.5:48This child born of a virgin was baptized as an adult and then led into the wilderness where he fasted and was tempted 40 days and 40 nights in every way, yet was without sin. The child grew and became a man who performed many mighty acts in and around the Galilee region for around three years in Matthew 21. And on one night where Jesus would eat his last meal with his best friends, his disciples, one man that night would betray him.6:15The other one of his best friends would deny him. They would take him to the Sanhedrin, the religious council, who would drum up people to give false accusations against him. They had several people where they could not find any false accusation to accuse him of because he was without sin. And so they finally drummed up some false record of him. He was handed over to the governor, Pilate, chosen to die by the cross.6:46They released a convicted criminal. Instead, he was mocked by the military, forced to carry his cross, and then crucified in a place called Golgotha, or the skull. On this cross between two criminals, darkness came over the land from noon until three. It's about to get more strange. Jesus cried out on the cross. Jesus is God, and he cried out as Psalm 22 tells us,7:13My God, my God, my God, my God, why? Have you forsaken me? After he died, you ready for this? The curtain of the temple was torn in two. It gets even more strange. Tombs were opened up. Bodies were raised. A rich man whose name was Joseph buried him in his own tomb. Some were so worried that someone would steal his body that they posted these horrifically brutal seasoned war veterans at the tomb.7:39This is what happened to those men. These battle-hardened soldiers saw an earthquake in this bright light, and they were terrified as dead men. When some women came to prepare the body with spices, they were met by an angel who said, Do not be afraid. Do not be afraid. Do not be afraid. He's not here. He is risen.8:10Just as he said, this is historical fact that Jesus died, but he did not stay in the tomb. This has eternal ramifications for your life and for my life. This is the power of the resurrection, and this resurrection will change your life. And I admit to you this morning, this is incredibly odd. The chances of this happening are mathematically impossible, and yet with God, all things are possible.8:37And so today we reflect on what is not possible that we who are sinners could ever be brought back into a right relationship with the Lord. And yet through the cross and the resurrection, every sin that you have committed, every sin that you have brought in here, you can leave washed and refreshed, reconciled and redeemed in new life because of this resurrection.8:54Oh, there is hope in the resurrection. So let's read the scriptures together now, and then we'll pray. And I want to give you four promises and four truths that are a reality because of Jesus, because of the resurrection for you.9:172 Corinthians 5, beginning in verse 14. Paul, writing to the church in Corinth, says, For the love of Christ compels us. Since we have reached this conclusion, if one died, if Jesus died for all, then all died.9:46If he died for all, so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the one who died for them and was raised. This glorious exchange taking place. From now on then, we do not know anyone from a worldly perspective. Even if we have known Christ from a worldly perspective, yet now we no longer know him in this way.10:11Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away and see, the new has come. Everything is from God who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us now the ministry of reconciliation.10:32That is, in Christ, God has reconciled the world to himself. Listen to this beautiful verse. Not counting their trespasses against them. He has committed the message of reconciliation to us. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ. Since God is making his appeal through us, we plead on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God.11:00He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, that in him we might become the righteousness of God. Let's pray. Father, this is our hope. This is our desire that those this morning who do not know you will be reconciled. They will be brought back into a right relationship.11:27So, Lord, we ask right now that you would water our souls with joy because of the resurrection. That we would leave here compelled by love. Not encouraged, but compelled. Not old, but new. Not in brokenness, but reconciled. Lord, that we would leave here not in wrong, but we would be made right. This is the power of the resurrection, and this is a promise that we will grasp.11:56Lord, thank you. We do not deserve your grace, and yet that is why it is called grace. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen and amen. I have several motivations. I want to throw my cards on the table. That way you know who I am and what I'm going to do here. If you are a Christ follower, I want you to be encouraged.12:22I'm going to give you four truths that you can hold on to and you can grasp, and you will leave here renewed and overjoyed that everything that God has promised through Jesus Christ, He has promised to you. So you should be very vocal and joyful and happy and rejoice that the resurrection is true and that God has restored you to new life. If you are here and you don't know Jesus Christ, I want you to know my desire is that you would know Him.12:51I don't want you to leave here in the way that you came. I want you to leave your brokenness, and I want you to find Jesus Christ, and that is the hope of this church. Our DNA is to share the good news of Jesus with the whole world and with the whole person. And you are not sinful. You are not too sinful enough for God not to love you. You know how I know that? Because I'm here.13:21If there is someone that was too sinful to be forgiven, I would be the person. So I stand here as a beacon of hope that I, the chief of sinners, can find redemption, and so can you. So with that, let's look at four promises of God through the resurrection. Promise number one. Look at verse 14. The love of Christ compels us.13:47Because of the resurrection, I am loved, and I am compelled by love. Think about that. Because of the resurrection, you are loved by God, and you are compelled by love. Have you ever wondered if God loves you? This is proof. He does. And now you can live out the love of Jesus Christ in your love. This is the same man, Paul, who was writing to the church that says,14:15I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection. He's writing and saying, we are loved by Jesus. We are compelled now to love the world by him. You see, in the cross, you and I find the single boldest declaration of love the world has ever known.14:33You will not find a greater symbol of love than the cross. At the same time, it's a horrific conclusion for the Son of God who died for your sake. You see, it's not love of God that sustains and compels you.15:03It's God's love for you. So I'm not going to tell you today, well, all you have to do is love God. No, it's the reverse. God is saying, he loves you. And so I have a very low view of man, that we are sinful. And I have a very high view of God, that he loves us in spite of our sin. And he sent Jesus to bring us back into right standing with him. This is the power of the resurrection.15:31This word compels here that Paul uses in verse 14. It's the same word that they would use in Hebrew and also Greek that means knit together. Some of you like to knit things. It's a word that means knit or sustain. It's as if Paul talks about the love of Jesus and says that my life is now so knit with the love of Christ because of the resurrection that if you would pull that one strand out, what would happen?15:49My whole life would unravel. That is the love of Christ towards you. He doesn't just love you on Easter. Baby Jesus just doesn't love you on Christmas. He loves us every day, every minute, before and throughout eternity because of the resurrection.16:18This is the power that we have. And I don't want a Savior that does not love me. I want a Savior that gives me and compels me and gives me superhuman love that I can love myself and now love the world. I want a love of the Savior that looks like some of these moms. Have you ever heard the stories of a mom that her child was trapped in a burning building or a car and she lifted the car?16:44That actually happens. Let me give you two of these stories. A lady named Lauren Kornacki. She was 22 years old in Virginia in 2012, raised a BMW 525i for some of you car guys, right? It's probably black with tan leather. She raised it off of her father when the car toppled from the jack.17:10Men, take note. You think you're strong? Women are infinitely more stronger than men. I'm just going to admit that. She raised a car off of her father. There's another report that a lady named Lydia Anguillou went toe-to-toe with a polar bear in northern Quebec to protect her son and his friends while they played hockey. She beat a polar bear off of her son to protect them.17:40This is the love of our father. Give me a savior that is willing to look death in the face and defeat grave for me. I don't want a puny savior. I want a savior that went to hell and defeated the grave so I won't have to. This is the love of our father. This is the love of Jesus for you. Jesus did not die and raise to new life to give me the warm religious fuzzies.18:10That's not what God wants for me. God wants us to be compelled by love. To say you are knit so deeply with the love of Christ. If the strand was pulled, everything would unravel. But don't give up. God will not let you unravel because of the cross. That was the needle that Jesus used to knit his love for you.18:35Because of the cross and the resurrection, you are loved and compelled by love. You are loved. Look at verse 14. For the love of Christ does what? It compels us. If you have never heard that, you are loved by God. And he manifests that in the cross of Jesus Christ. Second promise. Not only are you loved, but we see in verse 17.19:03Because of the resurrection, I am made new. Look at verse 17. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Not a halfway creation, not a refurb creation, but a new creation. What has happened to the old things? The old has passed and the new has come. This is the mandate. This is the design of the Father for you.19:33You are infinitely broken because of your sin. And God doesn't make you burn the law. And this religious guy comes up to Jesus and says, Good teacher, what must I do to inherit the kingdom of heaven? That is a great question to ask Jesus, by the way. And Jesus gives him an odd answer. Jesus tells him very simply, you must be born again. And Nicodemus has an answer that we should have if we're really thinking.20:00He says, how does that happen? How can one jump back into their mother's womb? See, Jesus is reminding him, I give new life. You must be born again. I am radically making you new through the resurrection. In Ezekiel 37, God brings this prophet who is proclaiming good news. And he brings him to this valley of dry bones. It probably sounds like a church.20:29And the prophet sees this valley. And this is what he sees and says. God says to the prophet, prophesy to these bones, dry bones, and say to them, dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. This is what the Lord God says to these bones. I will cause breath to enter you and you will live. Now these bones were what? Dry and they were dead. And God is telling the prophet, speak to that.20:57Speak to those things which are dry and dead and say to them, I will breathe on you and you will live. And in verse 6, I will put tendons on you and flesh to grow on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath in you so that you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord. Listen, here is the glorious promise of the resurrection. Jesus did not die and rise to new life to leave you dead.21:27Jesus did not die and rise again to leave us dead. This is the promise of God's word to you and I, that in the resurrection, we have new life. See, I don't want God to refurbish me. I don't want him to renew me. I need a radical new life. And this is the promise of the empty tomb.21:56The empty tomb is screaming at us. You can be new. And if you walked in today and you were hoping to be better, that's not what we're offering today. I don't have hope for you. If you walked in here saying, you know what? I've had a lousy week, but I just want to feel a little better about myself.22:23I want you to know you are dead in a dry valley. But Jesus Christ can bring life into you and he will make you radically new. That is the hope. This is what we cling to. Lynn Sullivan tells a story about his grandparents that grew up in the 20s. And they got married and they wanted to live, they wanted to buy a house. They didn't have the money.22:53So they bought, they lived in grandpa's old house. And they hate, she hated the house. You know, sometimes ladies, when you enter a new house, you want to make it yours. And she hated this old house. It was drafty. It was creaky, but they didn't have any money. So they demolished the old house. But they used all the old lumber to make the new house. And a funny thing happened in the new house with the old lumber. The doors still creaked. And the house was still drafty.23:22Because they had used the old parts. And Lynn says he remembers his grandmother. She hated this house. Her entire life. It was a source of grief to her. Because they had used everything that was old and tried to make it new. You see, God doesn't take what was old from you and renew you. Verse 17 says this. Behold, he will give you new life. And what has happened to the old things?23:51Old things have passed away. See, the new has come. This is the power of the resurrection. If you are in Christ, you are not the same. You're not the same. Because Christ has radically changed you. And he has modeled that because he died and rose again. The first promise is that in the resurrection, God shows you that you are loved and you are now compelled by love.24:18The love of God doesn't leave us and we say, that's nice. No, we are knit and compelled by love. We are made entirely new. And some of you need that this morning. Let's be honest with ourselves. You looked in the mirror and you said, man, I look rough. I look like death. And God says, I'm glad you mentioned that. I'm the life giver. He gives us life.24:48So do not go back to the old way. If you are in Christ, you are under new management. The king now reigns. The old has passed and new has come. Promise number three. Paul says this in verse 18. Everything is from God who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. Now, this is a word that is unique to Paul, this word reconciliation.25:16And it simply means this. Reconciliation is the mending of a friendship between enemies. So why would Paul then tell us that God has reconciled us? That can only be possible if you and I are enemies of God. He said, well, pastor, you're not supposed to say that. God loves everyone. Are you saying that you're a hate monger and Bethel hates people and you're saying we're enemies of God?25:46We're not friends. This is what your sin does to you. God does not ignore my sin. My sin is looking at God for me personally saying, God, I hate you. I hate your ways. I hate your glory. I'm going to live for myself. And God says, okay. But I will not let you stay in your sin. The power of the resurrection says that God is offering us reconciliation.26:14That he is restoring that broken relationship. And look how this takes about in verse 18. Everything is from God who has reconciled us to himself. So when my relationship with God is broken and if you have not put your faith in Jesus, you do not have a relationship with the father. And don't leave here, don't leave here being okay with that. You are walking a road in eternity away from God.26:45God has not prepared hell from you, but you are choosing that because of your sin. And that is my story. And verse 18 reminds us because of the cross and the resurrection, who pursued us? Look at verse 18. God who has reconciled who to himself. So because of the resurrection, God has taken the first step towards you. Let that sink in. That I am in rebellion.27:14I am in sin. I am in hate. And what does God do? He extended his hands. He sent his son. Reconciliation is God coming towards you and saying, look, don't clean up your act because you can't. Just turn from your sin and turn to my son and I will restore you. Thank God for reconciliation. Not only does God do that, but he reminds us that this mended relationship is found through who?27:40In verse 18. God has reconciled us through Christ. Which reminds us that I can't earn his friendship. I can't earn right relationship with God. It is grace. It is not earned. You know why I love that verse that it is grace that I have been saved? Because if I could earn grace, if anyone could earn grace, it would not be me. If anyone could lose grace, it would be me.28:10And you know why I'm so thankful that grace is grace and mercy is mercy? Because I can't earn it. And so I come before God and say, God, I cannot earn anything. And God says, I'm glad you said that. Because it's through Christ, through faith in him alone, that you will be in a relationship with me. See, reconciliation is God saying, I will not force you to follow me and serve me.28:37But if you choose life, I will give it. If you turn from sin, I will forgive your sin. If you turn to me, my son has already paved the way. I was reading a story about a young college student in Japan. And he was plastering the subway. And this young man was from Korea. And he saw someone that fell in the Tokyo subway station.29:03And if this young Japanese man fell into an oncoming train, and so the Korean plasterer, he jumped down to save this Japanese. And he jumped down to save them, but neither of them made it. They both died in horrific, tragic accidents. But what you need to know is that the Koreans and the Japanese have irreconcilable differences.29:28And these cultures hate each other because of the atrocities in World War II. And this man, this Korean, jumped out and saved this other Japanese gentleman. And it began to change relationships. Even so that the prime minister of Japan said this. He said that we have now begun to talk about reconciliation.29:55A 62-year-old Japanese man said, I felt a kind of shame that a young foreigner sacrificed his life for a Japanese. He said, this is not an easy thing to do. You see, reconciliation only happens through sacrifice. It only happens through sacrifice. And Jesus Christ took your place on the cross. God took the initiative to bring you back into a right relationship.30:26Embrace that. If you are a follower of Christ, I want you to hear this. This is the third truth of the resurrection. Because of the resurrection, you are wholly reconciled to God. Rejoice in your new status. No one can take that away. Because of the resurrection, you are reconciled to God. Why are we reconciled? Because of the resurrection.30:56So when Satan tells you, you are not right with God, you tell him, you don't know my father. He has reconciled me. This is the power of the resurrection. The resurrection, you are made new. You are loved. You are brought into a new relationship. Fourth promise. We find here in verse 21. He made the one who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God.31:26Because of the resurrection, you are made righteous. I am made right. As C.S. Lewis and even Martin Luther said, that this is the glorious exchange. That Jesus died on the cross. And he who knew no sin became what? Became sin. Whose sin did he take?31:56Mine. Yours. So Jesus took my sin on the cross. And he should not have. But he did. And in return for taking my sin, what does he give in return? His righteousness. So God looked upon his son and sees sin. And because I believe in Christ, he looks upon those who believe as righteous. You see, Jesus has traded his righteousness for your sin.32:25That is the glorious power of the resurrection. And I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, but Josh, you don't understand. Pastor, I'm not right. I know you're not right. I hear that all the time. Dude, you are not right. And I'm like, I'm not, but I'm righteous. I'm not right, but I am righteous. And you know, if Christ has made me righteous, who's going to take that away?32:53No, God doesn't look at me and say, do you sin again? Gosh, I didn't know that was happening. You are no longer righteous. That's not what God does. He made me righteous. He took my sin, all of my sin, and in return for all of my sin, he gave me all of his righteousness. That is the power of the resurrection. So do not leave you thinking, well, I am so sinful, God will never love me.33:20He loves you. I am so sinful, I am dead in my sins, but he makes you new. I am so sinful and broken that God will never bring me back into relationship. This is the power of the resurrection. Well, pastor, I'm so sinful. God is not going to look at me and call me righteous. No, the glorious exchange is that he who knew no sin became sin that we might become the righteousness of God.33:45That we might be able to sing this hymn. Behold him there, the risen lamb. My perfect, spotless righteousness. The great, unchangeable I am. The king of glory and of grace.34:13One with himself I cannot die. My soul is purchased by his blood. My life is hid with Christ on high. My Christ, my Savior, and my God. My perfect, spotless righteousness. That is not just calling God our righteousness. That is saying, God, you have given me your righteousness. So how about you? Do you feel righteous?34:43He's like, well, I don't. I'm sinful. Do you feel broken? He's like, yeah, I do. Do you feel dead? You're like, yeah, that's me. Do you feel unloved? He's like, okay, check, check, check, check. I want you to know today that because of the cross and the resurrection, you are loved. You are loved. You say, well, I need to hear that. Good. And if you are a Christ follower, I want you to know infinitely you are loved.35:10Just say that. I am loved. You don't have to, but I am. I need to hear that. Right? And because I am loved by God, I am now compelled by love. This love doesn't just comfort me. It doesn't just encourage me. It compels me. I'm not going to leave here saying, hmm, that's nice. I'm going to say, Lord, I am loved by God and nothing else matters.35:37Because of the cross and the resurrection, you can be made new. And if you are following Christ today, you are under new management. Don't try to use the old house, the old parts. Say, God, thank you for creating in me a new heart, a right spirit. Cling to that promise. Rejoice in that truth. Cling to the promise that God has reconciled, that he has brought you back into a relationship with him.36:08That you who are an enemy of God because of your sin, you who are running to hell in the darkness of your sin, God grabs you and said, don't do it. Come back. And we who are dirty, filthy rags. Jesus has exchanged his righteousness for ours. This is the power of the resurrection.36:37This is what God's word wants you to grasp this morning. And if you are here and you have never grasped these truths, you say, well, Burnham, why are you jumping around like a crazy man? I'm crazy because these have penetrated my heart that I will never be the same. And if you think that's strange, I want you to know that it will be gloriously beautiful to you if you follow Christ this morning.37:00And my heart is as Paul, what he says here in verse 20. We plead on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. If you have not followed him, you are on a path of destruction. And God has already taken the first step. He sent his son. He loved you so much that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes will not perish but have everlasting life.37:27Do you believe? This is a belief that changes who you are. This is a belief that makes you new, that reconciles you, that brings you forgiveness and love and hope and mercy. And you say, well, I want that. It can be yours right now if you accept the invitation of the cross. You see, this is the most glorious day in the world that Jesus died to make you radically new.37:57And he will, if you trust in him, this morning. If you are a Christ follower, say this with me. I am loved. I am loved. How awesome is that? I am new. I am new. Satan, wherever you are, are you listening? Right? I am reconciled. I am reconciled.38:26And I am righteous. Let's pray. Father, we thank you.
