March 23, 2008 Easter Service
The Victory of the Cross
The Victory of the Cross
When I survey the wondrous cross, on which the prince of glory died, my richest gain I count but loss, and pour contempt on all my pride. See from His head, His hands, His feet, sorrow and love flow mingled down, did ever such love and sorrow meet, or thorns compose so rich a crown? Oh the wonderful cross the wonderful cross bids me come and die, and find that I may truly live. The cross is a symbol of transformation. Failure is turned to success, weakness to strength, death to life and victory is pulled out of defeat. In the power of the cross there is victory for mankind victory not just over sin but over death itself. This is great news because the victory that the cross freely gives us is one we could never get for ourselves. In the cross we are forgiven our sins and we receive life.
God is a righteous and powerful God. In His complete and total righteousness, in His majesty and sovereignty God is in His very nature good. God is in fact so good that He cannot be in the presence of that which is not good. He is a Holy God and there is none like Him. This Holy God created man in order to have a relationship with him. Yet man chose to deny God in efforts to make himself like God. So man chose that which was evil rather than that which was good, and sin entered the world. Now the wage of sin, is death and God who is righteous and good hates sin. All of those who sin deserve to die. It is the price that must be paid for our own wickedness. Yet God who is rich in mercy and abounding in love was willing to let us suffer the fate of our actions. He was not willing to let us pay the price for our sins. God then is faced with a dilemma. He desires to have a relationship with us but because of our wickedness He could not. Now God could not just ignore our sins because God is a righteous God whose nature demands justice. He is also a loving God whose nature demands mercy. So how can God satisfy His just nature while at the same time? God hates sin and cannot be around it…but God loves man and desires to be around them…so how can God be with man who sins if He cannot be around sin? The answer is the cross. Through the sacrifice of His Son, through the blood of the lamb the price of sin was paid. God’s righteous anger against sin and wickedness was turned away and His perfect solution to the ultimate problem made known. Through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross sin was overcome. Death was defeated it has been overcome. Through the cross…our sins were paid for. We were bought at a heavy price but now we are free. We are the children of God…we are saved.
The Cross of Christ is a symbol of victory transformed out of a symbol of defeat. The very change in the symbol shows the power of the transformation of the cross. For against all social, political, honorable, and personal forces at work in society, that which was the most shameful and offensive, that which was the source of defeat, became the greatest symbol of victory the world would ever see. But Easter isn’t really about the cross…it’s about the tomb. Turn in your Bibles to John 20.
We all look at life through different perspectives. The things that we have seen, the things we have experienced, and the things we have done affect the way in which we view life. Our own personal biographies and our testimonies change our perspectives of the world. These perspectives do not just affect how we see, but what we see. A woman who has been betrayed in by the men in her life will often times have a hard time seeing men as trustworthy. A man whose life has been characterized by disappointments and failures will commonly expect failures and disappointments in his future. Those who have been hurt by love find it hard to love. The things that have happened to us and the things we have done affect our perceptions. We are going to look at a few different perspectives of the tomb and I want you to look at these characters…and ask which one am I? I am convinced that if we look at these few characters each one of us will see a reflection of ourselves in one of them. Let’s look at the text:
Jn 20:1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. Jn 20:2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” Jn 20:3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Jn 20:4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. Jn 20:5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Jn 20:6 Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, Jn 20:7 as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. Jn 20:8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. Jn 20:9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) Jn 20:10 Then the disciples went back to their homes, Jn 20:11 but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb Jn 20:12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. Jn 20:13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” Jn 20:14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. Jn 20:15 “Woman,” he said, “why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” Jn 20:16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). Jn 20:17 Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ” Jn 20:18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.
So here’s the story. Jesus has been dead for three days. It is early Sunday morning at the beginning of the week when Mary arrives at the tomb. She is the first one to come by the tomb but she won’t stay long. She has come with spices to anoint Jesus body which was a common burial practice, it kept the tomb from, well…smelling like death. When she arrives she finds the stone has been rolled away and inside Jesus body is no where to be found. So she runs back to the apostles and reports that Jesus body is gone. 9 of them laughed at her. “You must be on drugs” “You’re crazy” “You’re a woman” and other insults of the like. Peter gets up and races for the tomb. John follows. John is a little younger than Peter, probably in a little better shape in actually races past Peter to the tomb. He gets to the entrance looks inside, sees the burial clothe but does not enter. A few moments later Peter comes crashing by a little slower, a little out of breathe. Where John stopped Peter didn’t he boldly dashes into the tomb and sees the strips of linen. John then enters the tomb behind Peter…He sees the linens and John believes. John makes the connection between what is written in chapter 20 and what is written in chapter 11. He remembers Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead and the tomb clothes he was wearing…in seeing the linens John realized that just as Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, now He too had been raised. John sees and believes…John now knows that Jesus is alive. Peter on the other hand is not so sure. He does not see and believe like John does. My question is why? Why does John believe and Peter doesn’t? This doesn’t seem to fit. Peter and John are both very bold, but it seems throughout the Gospels that Peter certainly has faith in the power Jesus. It was Peter that got out of the boat and walked on water…sure he sank…but John was still in the boat. It is Peter that gives the good confession not John…so why here does John believe and Peter doubt? Both of them were in the inner three of Jesus disciples, both of them performed miracles, both of them cast out demons, both of them were with Jesus for three years, both of them were there at the transfiguration, both of them saw Lazarus and Jairus’s daughter raised, both of them were in the courtyard where Jesus was on trial…and there it is. There is the difference between these two men. In the courtyard Peter denied Jesus…not just once…not just twice…but three times. Now there are people who will try to explain Peter’s denial…they will say that he was trying to sneak in and get Jesus out so he denied Jesus because he didn’t want to get caught. While fitting with Peter’s personality…this does not fit with the events that followed. Peter was broken up to the point of weeping when he realized what he had done. Peter denied Jesus three times…John didn’t. Perhaps the difference between these two men’s view of the tomb is not in the personality but in their biography. So perhaps the reason John believes and Peter doesn’t is because for John the resurrection is a joyous event. Jesus is alive. He is back. What wonderful news! John knew exactly what this meant. Jesus really was the Son of God. John had followed faithfully and believed in Jesus…but the cross certainly would have given him doubts…and now with Jesus risen from the dead John feels nothing but pure joy and excitement. Things are a little different with Peter. Peter made a mistake…he fell short…he sold Jesus out after boldly claiming he would die for Him…Peter denied Jesus to spare himself. Certainly you can understand I mean think about it. He is in courtyard with a crowd of people who hate Jesus…they have murder in their eyes and people are connecting him with Jesus…if they found out…if they knew…he could be arrested or maybe even just killed on the spot. You can understand denying Jesus to save your own skin…I mean maybe he had his fingers crossed behind his back. But now what? If Jesus was back…what would He have to say? What would Jesus do to him? The pain of his mistake blinds Peter to the truth that is right in front of him. Peter and John leave before Mary gets back. It’s not like she could keep up with the boys as they ran to the tomb. They may have even passed her by as the left. We don’t know that she was a prostitute but we do know she had seven demons cast out of her. This is a woman who has experienced first hand the power of God. Jesus delivered her from her bondage, and now her teacher…her savior was gone. She could not even pay proper respects because someone had taken His body. She is alone. She is at the tomb and she is weeping. Jesus then standing behind her asks her why she is crying. Mary turns to see Him but because of the tears in her eyes she does not even recognize Him. She thinks that He is the gardener and says something very silly: “she says to the gardener if you have taken him away tell me where you put him and I will get him.” As if the gardener was playing a game: move the dead body around for no good reason. Then He says to her: “Mary.” He calls her by name and while her pain and tears have kept her eyes from seeing properly her ears recognize His voice. When she does she is filled with joy because she now knows that Jesus is alive. He has conquered death and now He is alive.
There is one more person I want to tell you about. That evening Jesus appeared to His disciples. They were together in a room with the doors locked. Jesus either teleported Himself into the room or walked through the walls but He comes in and breathes on them. But one of them missed out. Thomas had been out when Jesus appeared to the others and missed the whole thing. Talk about walking out during the most important part of the movie…we don’t know why he was gone just that he was. When he comes back the disciples have all lost it. They are saying that Jesus has come back and that He appeared to them. Thomas is standing there thinking, great, first the women think they see Jesus now you guys as well. Because of this Thomas is called the doubter. He says: unless I put my fingers in his wrists and hand in his side I will not believe.” I don’t think Thomas is so much a doubter as he is from Missouri…’show me’ he says, ‘prove it’. One week later Jesus appears to Thomas. Jesus then as if He was in the room to hear what Thomas had said Jesus quotes Thomas almost word for word.
Now the question is which one are you? Some of you sitting in this room have seen the resurrected Lord…and like John you just believed. For you it is just pure joy to know that God is risen and you have the faith to follow Him wherever He may lead you. Some of you have the faith of John…you follow faithfully. You have seen the empty tomb and that is all you need. That is truly incredible. A faith like John’s is rare. I think there is a connection between John’s distinction as the disciple that Jesus loved…and His faith. John’s love for Jesus enabled him to see the truth. There are probably more of you like Peter. You see the empty tomb and part of you is filled with joy…but another part is filled with fear. You know what you have done. You know how you have betrayed your Lord even after declaring your unwavering faithfulness you know you have failed. You see the tomb…and you want to believe…but your past mistakes get in your way. You are holding on to your failures and failing to see what right in front of you. You are happy that Jesus is alive…but you are terrified of what He is going to say to you. You are afraid of what He will do. Some of you are like Peter and you past mistakes keep you from experiencing the fullness of the joy of the resurrected Lord. To those of you who are Peter…you need to know the power that exists when you let your mistakes go. Peter became the rock of the church. He was one of the most dynamic and powerful leaders the church has ever seen. The mistakes that you made have been wiped away and you are made new. Some of you are like Mary. You cannot even see Jesus when He right in front of you because of the tears in your eyes. The pain you feel and heartache inside blinds you from what is standing right in front of you…and the tears you shed from your pain keep you from seeing. Take heart, it is to those like you that have the privilege of being the first to announce the risen Lord. Mary was the first person Jesus appeared to. She was the first to proclaim to good news that Jesus is alive. You despite the pain you are feeling now, it will be replaced with indescribable joy. Then there are those of you who are like Thomas. You need proof. You want to see for yourself. You want to put your hand in His side and some people may criticize you. They may say you do not have faith. But that is not the case. Let me tell you something. Thomas makes one of the most profound statement in all of Scripture. Upon seeing Jesus he proclaims: “My Lord and My God”. To my knowledge this is the only time such a statement is made. Jesus is called Lord, but not MY Lord. Do you understand what that means? Thomas is a Jew. A monotheist to the very core, by saying to Jesus MY LORD…Thomas is calling Jesus God. Not just saying Jesus is from God…but Thomas recognized that Jesus actually is God. For those of you who are Thomas…do not be ashamed of your need for proof, but when you get it proclaim it as Thomas did- MY LORD AND MY GOD. Which one are you? How do you view the tomb? Through what perspective do you see?
Despite their differences do you know what all these people have in common? They all got it. Though they all took different routes, they all made it. That is the beauty of the power of the cross. It does not matter where you came from. It does not matter what got you here. It just matters that you made it. Whatever you have done in the past is not important because the power the cross is not dependent on you. The cross is the victory over sin. All sin from all people. Through the cross and the tomb God removed our transgressions. For those who have accepted Him the death that we deserve we will no longer receive. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and are justified freely by His grace. Through the cross God offers us life. The only condition is that you take it. Regardless of which character you are, the cross is still the source of your life and victory.
