Things Are Not Always What They Seem

Easter Sunrise 2021

Things aren’t always what they seem

- Read Luke 23:32-24:12

About 17 years ago, when Drew was about 4 or 5, Gladys, Drew, Gladys’ brother Paul and her dad Leon and I all went to Blue Springs. We were going to go canoeing because Paul wanted to film some alligators.

Now Drew, who is normally adventurous, didn’t want to go. He was young at the time, and something about being in the water with alligators really spooked him, and he didn’t want to go. So we left him with Mr. Leon, and Gladys Paul and I canoed up the river. We cut across one of the old cuts through there that they dug a century or more ago, to harvest the cypress, on our way to the dead river. After canoeing for a while, we went back to Blue Springs.

When we got back, we noticed something strange about Mr. Leon and about Drew. Mr. Leon’s lips and teeth were yellow and orange, and he had a yellowish streak down the front of his shirt. Drew’s lips and teeth were blue, and he had a blueish streak down the front of his shirt.

It turns out that Drew had gotten into the Easter Egg Dye tablets, and thought they were candy, so he ate one and he brought one to his grandfather.

Things are not always how they appear, and that is especially true at Easter. I mean, nothing we just read is what it appears to be. Think about it.

Think about who the crowd chose.

1. The One the crowd chose

This passage tells us about a man named Barabbas. Barabbas means “son of the Father”. The Bible tells us in Matthew that Barabbas was a thief, a robber, a highway man. The word used to describe him is one which gives the idea of a thief who worked with a company of thieves. Here we are told that he was a rebel and a murderer.

So Barabbas was a murderer, a revolutionary and a highway man.

Jesus was the only begotten Son of His Father. What was He known for? He was known for healing people. He was known for feeding people. He was known for bringing the dead back to life, for making lame people walk and blind people see. He was known for teaching people to turn the other cheek and to go the extra mile.

The crowd was given a choice. Will you take the son of the father, who is a murderer and a thief, or will you take the Only Begotten Son, who has done nothing but help people?

Our survey says, “We’ll take Barabbas.” So Pilate asks, “What will I do with Jesus?” Crucify Him! Does that make any sense?

2. Think also about what the people cried.

This passage tells us that the crowd kept hollering for Jesus to be crucified. Matthew tells us hearing this that Pilate washed his hands in front of the people and told them, “I am innocent of this man’s blood.”

The people cried, “His blood be on us and our children.”

Oh, the people that day thought they were bringing down a curse on themselves. Little did they know that every Christian since that time has wanted the blood of Jesus on them and their children.

The Bible tells us, without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins.

> 1 John 1:7 "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin." 1 John 1:7

Instead of the blood of Jesus being a curse on us, it actually cleanses us.

Many of ya’ll know my brother-in-law, Paul, videos everything. Well, earlier this week he was playing a video of an early baptismal service here at the church. Baptized a lot of folks that day, including a number of children. One of the children I got to baptize that day was Drew. And I was crying as I did it.

And you should have seen him roll his eyes when I said, “I baptize you my brother”.

A couple of days ago my brother Dusty sent us a clip showing a Master Sargent Michael Fisher, a Marine, giving the first salute to his son who had just been made a second lieutenant. The dad’s voice was breaking up as he did so, he was so proud of his son. I showed the video to Gladys and I said, “It doesn’t get any better than that.” Gladys said, “Yes it does. You can baptize your son.”

What parent doesn’t want their child cleaned by the blood of Jesus? What grandparent doesn’t want to know that they, their children and grandchildren are all going to have a reunion in heaven one day?