INTRODUCTION
„X SLIDE #2
„X Today we are here to celebrate Easter Sunday, or Resurrection Sunday.
„X This day is unique in the sense that we are celebrating something that changed the course of history and the destiny of mankind forever!
„X Christianity is the only faith where we do not come together to mourn the death of our leader, it is the only faith in which we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord. Jesus defeated death so that we no longer are trapped by the curse of death!
„X Do you ever remember a time that someone else paid the price for something you did? Did you have a brother or sister who took the rap for something you did? Maybe you did something at school that someone else got into trouble for?
„X Have you ever done something that required punishment, only to have someone voluntarily step up and take your punishment for you?
„X If you have ever had this happen to you, did you feel bad that another person took the punishment that you had earned, or were you just happy that you got away with it and someone else took the fall for you?
„X Today I would like us to understand that Jesus pain was our gain.
„X We all have sinned and because of that we have put ourselves at war with God.
„X This sin in our live makes us deserving of eternal punishment. Today, we are going to see that Jesus stepped up to the plate to take the punishment that belonged to us and put it upon Himself.
„X Today we will see why His pain was our gain!
„X Let us read 1 Peter 2:21-25.
„X The book of 1 Peter was written to encourage Christians who were being persecuted for their faith.
„X We are told that when we suffer we need to realize that Jesus set an example for us to follow.
„X We are called to do good even if we suffer for it.
„X SLIDE #3 2 Tim 3:12 reminds us: Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.
„X We are not the only ones who sometimes suffer for doing good, Jesus did! As we will see, Jesus allowed this to happen for the benefit of others!
„X The word translated ¡§example¡¨ was a word used that pointed out the way a child was taught to write. Letters were written on a page and the children would trace the letters so they could learn how to write.
„X Jesus set an example of how to handle persecution.
„X CLICK #3 1 John 2:6 says: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.
„X As we look at why Jesus suffered on the cross, we need to realize that His pain should have been our pain.
SERMON
His pain was our gain because: SLIDE #4
I. HIS PAIN SHOULD HAVE BEEN OUR PAIN.
We need to understand that it was: SLIDE #5
1. Our sins caused His pain.
„X Verse 22 reminds us that Jesus committed NO sin! This whole passage ties back to Isaiah 53 which is part of what is called the ¡§suffering servant poems. They were written a few hundred years before Jesus was born and they spell out exactly what was to happen to Him.
„X Jesus was an innocent person. He lived a perfect sinless life. The bible shares this with us in many places. 1 Peter 1:19 says His blood was spotless, without blemish.
„X We are told that not only were Jesus actions sinless, but that He did not sin in His speech!
„X When Jesus was on trial, the religious leaders had to find people to falsely accuse Him of violating the Law. Matthew 26:59-60 SLIDE #6
„X Verse 24 tells us that when He went to the cross that He bore our sins in His body on that cross.
„X The word ¡§bore¡¨ was used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament to designate the act of a priest in offering various sacrifices upon the alter.
„X Jesus body was a sacrifice for our sins! HEBREWS 7:27. SLIDE #7
„X SLIDE #8
2. Jesus did not vow to get even with us for the problems we caused Him.
„X When we get in trouble for something we did not do, our reaction would most likely be that we would vow to get even with the one who got us in trouble. Even if someone were to turn us in for something we had done, most people would want to get even with them.
„X Verse 23 says that when Jesus was unjustly being beaten and crucified, He did not use harsh words towards those who abused Him.
„X I remember getting in trouble for something my brother did, the whole time my thoughts were all about getting him back, making him pay.
„X If there was a time in the life of Jesus He was going to sin, the crucifixion time would seem like the time to do it.
„X Jesus knew it was my sins that put Him on the cross, yet not only did He not harbor any ill will towards those who were directly responsible for His death, but He harbors no ill will towards me! SLIDE #9
„X Luke 23:34 says: But Jesus was saying, ¡§Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.¡¨ And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves.
„X Jesus uttered no threats! He went to the cross because He loves us!
„X SLIDE #10
3. Jesus fully trusted God.
„X How was Jesus able to endure such suffering? He was able to do it because not only did He love us, but He fully trusted God. He knew that God would do was He promised, He knew that His sacrifice was not in vain!
„X He knows that God judges righteously!
His pain was our gain because: SLIDE #11
II. HIS PAIN OPENED THE WAY FOR OUR NEW LIFE.
1. His pain allowed us to have eternal life.
„X Verse 24 tells us that by His wounds, we were healed! This is used metaphorically to mean, ¡§to bring about one¡¦s salvation.¡¨
„X A wound or stripe was a mark or welt left on a person¡¦s back when the scourge struck them. The scourge was a instrument that was made of strips of leather with chunks of glass and metal ingrained in the strips. When used properly, it would literally rip the skin off the body. It was a brutal thing to go through.
„X By paying the penalty for our sins, Jesus opened the door to eternal life for us all!
„X The Old Testament was full of animal sacrifices, but these did nothing more than to temporarily cover sins and show mankind the cost of sin and the need to be righteous. SLIDE #13
„X Hebrews 10:4 says: For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. CLICK 13
„X In Hebrews 9:22 it is written, And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.
„X Christians are not ¡§BETTER¡¨ than other people, they are forgiven because they have accepted the gift of salvation from God! SLIDE #14
2. His pain broke our slavery to sin.
„X Jesus carried our sins to the cross so that we could die to sin and live righteously!
„X The passage shows us that before we can live, we must die to sin.
„X READ Romans 6:1-11
„X Since we are no longer slaves to sin, we can live for Jesus. We will struggle with sin, but it is not longer the master of the one who belongs to Jesus!
His pain was our gain because: SLIDE #15
III. HE IS THE GUARDIAN OF OUR SOULS.
SLIDE #16
1. Our souls are safe in His hands!
„X Verse 25 gives us a reason for Jesus suffering for us. It was for our own good!
„X Peter tells us that before we come to Jesus, we all continually stray like sheep.
„X This is not a complement to us. Sheep are dumb. We are being compared to a dumb straying sheep. A lost sheep will eventually find itself in a bad position. When we are without Jesus, we are going to fall prey to the same fate.
„X We too will find ourselves in a bad way.
„X When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we have returned to the great Shepherd.
„X He is called to Guardian of our souls!
„X This word ¡§guardian¡¨ had a great history.
„X It denoted a person who would guard and protect.
„X Jesus will protect our souls from the enemy. He will help protect us from anything that would jeopardize our soul.
„X He will lead us to places of rest and nourishment. HE will never lead us wrong!
CLICK 16
2. A dead savior cannot protect us.
„X The reason that Jesus can be the Great Shepherd and the guardian of our souls is the fact that He is a live and seated at the right and of the Father!
„X A dead shepherd cannot lead the sheep. A dead guardian is nothing more than a scarecrow.
„X Jesus not only died on the cross, but He rose on the third day!
„X READ 1 Corinthians 15:1-6
CONCLUSION
„X SLIDE #17
„X What is Easter to you? Is it a big bunny and candy? Is it a time for family? Is it the time when we are compelled to go to church?
„X Easter is the time where we celebrate the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus! We do not go to a tomb to mourn His death, because He is not in the tomb!
„X READ Matthew 28:1-8
„X David is going to share a special with us, Watch the Lamb. This will be our invitation song today.
„X If you want to make Jesus your Lord and savoir, please step up and come forward as David sings this morning!
