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Lent Resolutions

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I’m terrible at New Year’s resolutions like 90% of the rest of you. For 7 years now I’ve resolved to juggle 5 by the end of the year, and only this year did I actually buy 2 more softballs to add to the 3 I can already juggle. New Year’s Day is a terrible day to start anything new anyway. You are tired, the day is short and cold, you aren’t in your groove because you have the day off work, and it’s rarely a starting day like Sunday or Monday.

Instead, let me present to you the ancient practice of Lent.

Lent is the period of time where traditionally, the church has fasted and prayed and repented in order to prepare for Easter. A period of treating yourself severely to make yourself more holy in preparation for Easter Sunday. Some people fast from chocolate, or red meat on Fridays, or social media. It’s like many other fasts, where people typically abstain from something that is really a good thing to abstain from. You’d be healthier and better off to lay off the chocolate and steaks on Fridays anyway!

Lent offers you a chance to change your life for better reasons than the changing of the year. You can change habits in your life because Jesus has risen from the dead! With an eye toward Easter Sunday, you can choose what stuff to give-up and add to your life in a different way than you would on New Year’s.

It’s not about holiness. Christ’s death on the cross and resurrection have fully completed all of our need for holiness. It’s not about self-improvement, because Jesus is using the Holy Spirit to work inside of you to make you as improved as He wants you to be. It’s about habits and preferences and the little things we do in the day that either stall life or point it toward the Lord.

Take these bright and getting brighter days leading up to the anniversary of the greatest event ever and give your habits a jolt. The increased time with the Lord will grow you and the time away from whatever you fast from will make you healthier. And then on Easter, your celebration of Christ’s resurrection will be richer because you aren’t just marking it on the calendar, but in practice.

John 19 – Jesus Died on the Cross on Purpose

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Here is my sermon on John 19. What is unusual about this is that usually I would preach on the passion and crucifixion on Easter, but since I’m doing expository preaching chapter by chapter through John, we have Easter in February!

Pilate, Jesus, the Jewish leaders of the day, I talk about a lot of things in here.

Enjoy, and share any feedback or comments on your own blog or Facebook.

Easter 2017 – Many Were Afraid of Jesus

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Here are my notes and the recording of my Easter sermon this year. Notes get crazy at the end, but I dump them here for your ease.

Download: Easter-20170416

Jesus Arrested by an Army

The Jewish leaders were Afraid of Jesus rising from the dead.
The city would have been crowded as ever. Passover filled the city of Jerusalem beyond capacity. People would be camping out all around the outside of the city too! It was tense! Passover was a deeply spiritual holiday AND a deeply patriotic holiday all at the same time.

The city was buzzing with fear and excitement about Passover AND about Jesus. Palm Sunday had just happened. Jesus clearing out all of the the merchants in the temple had just happened. Jerusalem was a lit powder keg and nobody knew how long the fuse would burn.

The Roman guards were sent out to arrest Jesus in the garden.

John 18:4-6 Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?” 5 They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am he.” Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. 6 When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground.

When Jesus said “I AM HE” he was quoting God speaking to Moses at the burning bush. This was like Jesus said, “I’m Jesus of Nazareth, but there is something else you should know: I am God!”

Can you imagine dozens, maybe 100 soldiers all falling down and then scrambling to get back up? Imagine their conversation as they marched in the middle of the night to arrest Jesus.

Government Officials were Afraid

When Jesus was taken before Pilate, Pilate did the classic political move and passed the responsibility to somebody else.

Luke 23:6-12 When Pilate heard Jesus was stirring up people in Galilee, he asked whether the man was a Galilean. 7 And when he learned that he belonged to Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him over to Herod, who was himself in Jerusalem at that time. 8 When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see him, because he had heard about him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by him. 9 So he questioned him at some length, but he made no answer. 10 The chief priests and the scribes stood by, vehemently accusing him. 11 And Herod with his soldiers treated him with contempt and mocked him. Then, arraying him in splendid clothing, he sent him back to Pilate. 12 And Herod and Pilate became friends with each other that very day, for before this they had been at enmity with each other.

Herod is afraid to do anything, Pilate is afraid to do anything. Pilate finally gets mad at Jesus and says

John 19:10-11 So Pilate said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?” 11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.”

Jesus says it right here. “Pilate, I have authority to judge here, and you will be judged, but the one that gave me over to you will be judged worse.

That is when Pilate really becomes afraid.

They Sealed the Tomb

*Matthew 27:62-66 * 62The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ 64 Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” 65 Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.

They probably sealed it with a rope and wax or clay. This was not a super-glue seal. This was a fragile, if you break it you’re busted seal. The seal could only be broken by the authority of the one that made the seal.

The guards took their watch seriously. If a captive was released, they would be killed. If these guys weren’t in the group that fell down when Jesus identified Himself, they surely heard about it. They were there when Jesus was crucified and the sky went dark and the earthquakes happened. These guys are not going to guard this tomb like lazy bums.

Jesus rises from the dead.

When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. 3 And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?”2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men.

Sometime between this happening and the women arriving, the guards woke up and ran off. The angel sitting on the rock went away too. John uses a greek word for the stone being rolled away that means “to pick up and discard”

3 but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. 5 And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” 8 And they remembered his words,

2 So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” 3 So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. 4 Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, 7 and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. 8 Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9 for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10 Then the disciples went back to their homes.

11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. 13 They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 14 Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ”

Fasting for Lent

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I know that Jesus said that our fasting should be in secret, but I’m going to at least talk about it a little bit here. LENT is coming, and I’m preaching both Sundays around Ash Wednesday at a protestant church. The funny thing is, when we think that we can beg God’s favor and force His hand, we are acting more like Islam than Christianity. I hope to flesh this out more in the coming weeks, but until then, let’s start things off with a baseline definition of fasting. It’s Isaiah 58.

[1] “Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins.

[2] Yet they seek me daily and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God.

[3] ‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’ Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers.

[4] Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high.

[5] Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the LORD?

[6] “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?

[7] Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?

[8] Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.

[9] Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,

[10] if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.

[11] And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.

[12] And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to dwell in.

[13] “If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly;

[14] then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” (Isaiah 58 ESV)

 

Jesus, The Example Set

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1 Peter 2:21 ESV

For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.

Whatever we celebrate about Christ’s doing today, whatever joy we have in His resurrection and defeat of death, we can hold on to not only as a great work for our sake, but also as an example to follow.It was His relationship and submission to the Father that brought it all about. Let that one thing be our focus, our desire, and our imitation of Him. Any other activity, motive, or movement must take second place.

1 Corinthians 2:2 ESV

For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.

Revelation 2:4-5 ESV

But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. (Revelation 2:4-5, ESV)

I could go on. There are numerous places where Jesus emphasizes Himself as the point of it all and where the Apostle Paul, the Apostle John, and others state that whatever teaching they passed on, whatever other advice they gave, JESUS is the point and the fulcrum of all of it.

Celebrate the focussed Christ-Centered life today! Happy Easter!