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"A Week To Realize" |
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We tend to see or hear pieces of the story. We usually get the big picture: Jesus was God and He came to Earth to die as the ultimate payment for our sins. He was buried and three days later He came back to life and walked out of the tomb. That’s the big picture, but what about all the little pieces? I don’t often get the time to work jigsaw puzzles, but I do enjoy the challenge. I know what it’s supposed to become and I love trying to figure out how this piece fits. Every little curve, every nuance of color and shape all have a plan and purpose in the big picture. This morning we begin a three part series CSI:EASTER, Examining The Evidence. We’re going to piece together the facts surrounding the Resurrection of Jesus. We’ve already looked at the proof of who Jesus is and evidence of the resurrection, not we want to put together the personal case for Christ. What did Jesus do, why did He do it and what’s our part? How do all the pieces fit together? Because there are a lot of pieces! If you are in church for very long you will eventually hear a lot of talks. Many of those sermons will talk about events, illustrations and teachings of Christ that took place during this final week of Jesus’ earthly life. In fact if you count all of the chapters & verses in the four Gospels (that deal specifically with the life of Jesus) you will find that one-third of the Gospels deal with the last seven days of Jesus ministry. A lot happens between what we call “Palm Sunday” and Easter Sunday. If you look in your Discovery Pack this morning you will see a chart of the main events that took place during that week. There’s more, these are just the main points. We’ve given each day a specific title to help us uncover what I believe are some major truths from this week.
The week begins on the Sunday prior to what we now call Easter Sunday. Remember that the Jews worshipped on Saturday, so Sunday would have been the beginning of their work week. However, this week was special because many people were arriving in Jerusalem for the Passover at the end of the week. Jerusalem would swell to maybe ten times it’s normal population during Passover week. It was the biggest celebration of the year. Sunday is the DAY OF DEMONSTRATION OR RECOGNITION. What a day it was too. As Jesus arrives outside Jerusalem He climbs onto the back of a young donkey and begins riding into Jerusalem. Crowds begin to form scattering their coats and palm branches onto the ground. Why? Because the people were honoring Jesus as the Messiah! In the Old Testament book of Zechariah, the prophet declared: “Rejoice greatly, people of Jerusalem! Shout for joy, people of Jerusalem! Your king is coming to you. He does what is right, and he saves. He is gentle and riding on a donkey, on the colt of a donkey.” Zechariah 9:9 The people shouted, “Blessed is the king of Israel, who is coming in the name of the Lord”. “Hosanna in the highest to the Son of David.” Hosanna! Literally “Save us now!” Now, none of that means much to us today – but back then – it meant everything! They were proclaiming that Jesus was the King, their Messiah. They were shouting that Jesus was their Savior, Messiah and they were calling for Him to save them. Then Jesus stops, and He begins to cry… “I wish you knew today what would bring you peace…All this will happen because you did not recognize the time when God came to save you.” Luke 19:42,44 Though the religious leaders don’t like what’s happening, it appears that the people are behind Jesus. That’s what happens on Sunday. So what can we learn from Sunday? Here it is: WORDS ARE NOT ENOUGH. Words are simply not enough. I’m amazed that the crowds are cheering for Jesus. The movies always show small groups, but there were thousands there that afternoon as Jesus rode into Jerusalem. From all over Jerusalem they had come and they were cheering for Jesus. The tragedy is that in just four days many of these same people would be cheering again – not “Hosanna”, but “crucify Him!”. Remember the scene in the PASSION of the CHRIST were Pilate calls out to the crowd, isn’t this the same man you celebrated a few days ago?” Within a few days they had turned on Him. Why? Because words are not enough. It’s easy to go along with the crowd. It’s a rush to cry out and cheer for the winning team. But it’s entirely different to put your heart, soul and life behind those words. One of the most practical lessons we can learn from the PASSION week is that words are not enough. What you say is not nearly as important as what you do. Don’t get me wrong – you should say the right words, but God is looking at our heart attitudes, not our words. Jesus teaches that lesson on Tuesday afternoon when He tells the story of the farmer and his two sons: “Tell me what you think about this: A man had two sons. He went to the first son and said, ‘Son, go and work today in my vineyard.’ The son answered, ‘I will not go.’ But later the son changed his mind and went. Then the father went to the other son and said, ‘Son, go and work today in my vineyard.’ The son answered, ‘Yes, sir, I will go and work,’ but he did not go. Which of the two sons obeyed his father?” The priests and leaders answered, “The first son.” Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes will enter the kingdom of God before you do.” Matthew 21:28-32 Did you get His point? God is not concerned about what we say. He’s concerned about what we do! We don’t know a lot about Monday of the Passion week. Only three events are recorded in the Gospels. Monday is the DAY OF PURPOSE. Each evening Jesus would travel from Jerusalem to Bethany. He might have stayed with His friends Lazarus, Mary and Martha. Quite possibly, He and His disciples could have camped out under the olive groves all over the hillsides on the Mt of Olives where Bethany was located, about two miles from Jerusalem. Each morning Jesus and His disciples would leave Bethany and make the short walk down the hill across the Kidron Valley and up the hill to Jerusalem. Along the way there were olive and fig groves, vineyards and other types of gardens. It would have been a beautiful walk. Breakfast would have consisted of fresh fruit picked along the way. Monday morning began with Jesus on this walk with His disciples when He passes a fig tree. But this tree, unlike those around it had no fruit. There were lots of leaves and foliage – but no fruit. Jesus does something astonishing and drastic. He pronounces a curse on the fig tree. The next day as Jesus was leaving Bethany, he became hungry. Seeing a fig tree in leaf from far away, he went to see if it had any figs on it. But he found no figs, only leaves, because it was not the right season for figs. So Jesus said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And Jesus’ followers heard him say this. Luke 11:12-14 The Bible tells us that everyone heard Jesus’ pronouncement. But what was that with so much to think about and look forward too in Jerusalem. So they walked on. Soon they arrived at the Temple. There Jesus surveyed the scene. Two years before this the Bible tells us He saw the same thing, people using the Temple to take advantage of people – selling things for sacrifices and doing so at exorbitant prices. Two years before this day Jesus made a whip and used it to drive out the money changers and merchants. “Don’t turn my Father’s house into a marketplace.” (John 2:16). It was the same on Monday of the Passion week. Jesus surveyed the same scene and again He knocked over the tables and stalls of stopped everyone from bringing in more merchandise. Then He taught them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a place of prayer for all nations,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.” (Mark 11:17) The Gospels tell us that Jesus then spent the rest of the day in the Temple healing. “Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them. But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant…” Matthew 21:14-15 Monday was a day of purpose. It started and ended with purpose. Why did Jesus curse the fig tree? Because it was not fulfilling it’s purpose. Why did He clear out the Temple? Because they were using the Temple for something other than its purpose. It wasn’t a CostCo, it was a place of prayer and sacrifice. And why did He heal the blind and lame – because that was His purpose. Monday reminds us that God has a purpose for each of us. And as easy as it is to get sidetracked from that purpose – we must constantly be reminded that our purpose is everything. Jesus had arrived at the Passover celebration in Jerusalem with one distinct purpose – to go to the cross. He never lost sight of that purpose. Everything He did was leading to and focused on the cross and the honor and glory that would bring to God the Father. Tuesday was the busiest of the four days leading to the crucifixion. It was the day Jesus demonstrated His unique authority as God. Tuesday was the DAY OF AUTHORITY The morning began with the same walk they had taken on Monday, down the hill from Bethany, up the hill to Jerusalem. But as they passed the fig tree that Jesus had cursed the disciples noticed that the cursed tree was already dead: “The next morning as Jesus was passing by with his followers, they saw the fig tree dry and dead, even to the roots. Peter remembered the tree and said to Jesus, “Teacher, look! The fig tree you cursed is dry and dead!” Jesus answered, “Have faith in God…” Mark 11:20-22 Peter was amazed. Living trees don’t totally dry up and die over night. They do when Jesus curses them, because Jesus has authority over nature. He had proved that over and over again. This was just another demonstration of that power. It He tells a tree to die – it dies! When they arrived at the Temple the controversy over His authority immediately began. When the religious leaders (who made a lot of money off the Temple market) found Jesus, they confronted Him: “What authority do you have to do these things? Who gave you this authority?” Matthew 21:23 Jesus answered, “I also will ask you a question. If you answer me, then I will tell you what authority I have to do these things. Tell me: When John baptized people, did that come from God or just from other people?” That stumped the leaders, not because they didn’t know the answer, but because they were afraid to admit the truth. If they said John the Baptist (a very popular prophet) received his authority from God in Heaven then they would also have to admit that they were not willing to believe what John taught – that Jesus was the Messiah. On the other hand if they said John the Baptist had no authority the people would revolt. So they took the easy way ought and simply said they didn’t know. Jesus told them if they would not answer his question – He would not answer theirs. That was when He told the story of the two sons that we mentioned earlier. He followed that parable with another: A landowner created a beautiful vineyard with all the equipment necessary to have a very profitable, successful business. Then he leased the vineyard and facilities to some men and he moved away. When it was time to pay the rent he sent a messenger to get the rent. But instead of paying the rent, they beat and killed the messengers – over and over again. Finally the owner decided to sent his own son. Surely they would respect the son. But they took the son and murdered him as well. Then Jesus asked the religious leaders, “When the owner of the vineyard returns…what do you think he will do to those farmers?” Matthew 21:40 Of course, he would put the wicked farmers to death and lease the vineyard to someone who would be honest, was the religious leader’s answer. That’s when Jesus turned it back on them – that’s what they were doing to God’s Son, Jesus. They were ignoring what the earlier prophets had written and now they were rejecting Jesus, God Himself. What’s the point? Jesus is God’s Son and has the same authority as God the Father. The challenges kept coming. Next they challenged Jesus about paying taxes. Why should they as Jews who were ‘God’s people’ pay taxes to Caesar (the Romans)? Jesus simply told them they were fools to try to come up with trick questions. “Whose picture and title are stamped on [the coins]?” Caesar’s of course. Then, “give to Caesar what belongs to him. But everything that belongs to God must be given to God.” What the point? Don’t withhold from God what He has authority over – your life! The next challenge was about the resurrection – we’ll deal with that one another time. Then came the challenge about which was the most important commandment; remember the answer to that one? “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and most important command. And the second command is like the first: ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’” Matthew 22:37-39 Jesus then challenges the religious leaders. They had spent all of their time build their own power base and forgetting that it was God’s power, not theirs. He goes on to preach several powerful messages about the future, and about His coming again and the Kingdom of Heaven. It is during this time that Jesus is visited by some Grecian proselytes (Greeks who had become religious Jews.) They approached on the of the disciples, “Sir, we want to meet Jesus.” But instead of meeting with the Grecians, Jesus uses this opportunity to talk about His own death, resurrection and the struggles He was about to face. Jesus finally cries out to God, “Father, bring glory to your name.” (John 12:28) Then, as it happened at His baptism, a voice from heaven spoke, “I have brought glory to it, and I will do it again.” The crowd standing there, who heard the voice, said it was thunder. But others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus said, “That voice was for your sake, not mine. Now is the time for the world to be judged; now the ruler of this world will be thrown down. f I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people toward me.” Jesus said this to show how he would die.” John 12:28-33 What’s the point? Jesus has authority over His own life and death and resurrection. This third day, Tuesday continues with more examples of Jesus’ authority and more examples of those around Him rejecting His authority, but it ends with a powerful illustration of submitting to His authority. It’s found in Matthew chapter 26. “And when Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, a woman came to Him having an alabaster flask of very costly fragrant oil, and she poured it on His head as He sat at the table. But when His disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? For this fragrant oil might have been sold for much and given to the poor.” But when Jesus was aware of it, He said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a good work for Me. For you have the poor with you always, but Me you do not have always. For in pouring this fragrant oil on My body, she did it for My burial. Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.” Matthew 26:6-13 This grateful woman had honored Jesus with her very best because she realized who He was and what He was about to do. What does Tuesday teach us in the midst of the busyness and confrontation? It teaches us that Jesus has the authority over everything. Wednesday is silent. If we have our chronology down correctly, we know nothing about what happens on Wednesday. Scholars call it THE DAY OF SILENCE. I’m sure a lot happened on Wednesday, just like it had on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. We’re not told everything Jesus did. That’s not the point of the Gospels. The Apostle John said it this way, But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Then, by believing, you may have life through his name...There are many other things Jesus did. (John 20:21, 21:25) Here’s the point of Wednesday: We don’t have to know everything, we just have to act on what we know! That’s also what Jesus told Thomas after the resurrection. Thomas was the doubter, Doubting Thomas. While all the other disciples had seen Jesus, for some reason Thomas was absent. When he did arrive, he didn’t believe any of the other ten. “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.” John 20:25 But a week later when Jesus appeared to the disciples again, He spoke directly to Thomas: “Put your finger here and see my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!” “My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed. Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who haven’t seen me and believe anyway.” John 20:27-29 Sometimes we just have to accept the evidence and come to a conclusion. We must realize that words are not enough – that’s what Sunday was all about. We must live out our faith in Jesus not just speak out. Our lives must match our words. We must realize that we were created for purpose – that’s what Monday was all about. We must be willing to live out that purpose. We’re not allowed to either ignore our purpose or change our purpose. The only thing that will make us complete is living out our purpose. We must realize that Jesus has ultimate authority over everything – including our lives. Sure we can choose to fight that authority, but in the end, He’s still God. We can choose to be like those who constantly questioned Jesus’ authority or we can be like the woman who honored Jesus by giving Him her very best. We must realize that sometimes we don’t know it all – that’s what Wednesday was all about. We don’t have to know it all, we only have to act on what we know. And what we know was demonstrated that Thursday before Jesus went to the cross. Thursday was the DAY OF PREPARATION. Through it He prepared to show His love to the entire world. We again do not know much about what happened throughout the fifth day of the PASSION week. Everything seems to focus on what happens that evening. Jesus sends Peter and John, two of His disciples, to prepare for the Passover meal. Once they all arrive at the Upper Room Jesus takes off his regular clothes and puts on servants clothing. He then proceeds to wash each of the disciple’s feet – a job usually delegated to the lowest of the servants. He then challenges the disciples to follow His example and become willing to really serve others. During the Passover meal He introduces what we have come to call the LORD’S SUPPER. He passes the bread and tells them the bread is a symbol of His body that is about to be broken for them. Then He passes the cup and tells them that it symbolizes His blood that is about to be poured out for them so that their sins can be forgiven. I’m sure the disciples were confused. They knew something was up, but they refused to admit it. Jesus had told them that He would be crucified, but they did not want to accept that. So Jesus lovingly prepared them for what is coming next: His betrayal and crucifixion. He tells them about heaven. “In my Father’s house are many mansions” John 14:2 He tells them about the Holy Spirit, “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Encourager who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.” John 15:16-17 Then He explains to them that they are connected to Him just like a branch is connected to a grapevine. They would be supplied with everything they needed from Him and in turn they would produce much spiritual fruit. Then He again prepared them for His crucifixion: “Are you asking each other what I meant when I said, ‘After a little while you will not see me, and then after a little while you will see me again’? I tell you the truth, you will cry and be sad, but the world will be happy. You will be sad, but your sadness will become joy...Now you are sad, but I will see you again and you will be happy, and no one will take away your joy. In that day you will not ask me for anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you anything you ask for in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy will be the fullest possible joy.” John 16:19-24 Jesus spent that final Thursday preparing His disciples for the struggles and victories that were about to come. None of them but Jesus could have fully imagined what was about to happen in the Garden of Gethsemane, the trials, beatings and crucifixion. None of them understood that the Resurrection was just three days away. But He was not just preparing them for the heartache of Friday (when He would be crucified), Jesus was preparing them for the joy and power that the Resurrection would bring. Jesus prepared them by showing them over and over again that He loved them and knew what was best. Outside of the cross itself, and all that it means, these final days of Jesus life were His greatest demonstration of how much He loved us. Why take the time to go through these final five days leading to the cross? Because we need to realize once again that words are not enough. It’s not enough to just call Jesus Lord – we have to live each moment with Him as our Boss. Because we need to realize our purpose and be willing to live it out to God’s glory. Because we need to realize and accept Jesus’ authority in our lives. He proved He was worthy of that trust. Because we need to realize that we don’t know everything and we need to following the One who does! Because we need to realize how much Jesus loves us. Everything that happens in our lives is preparation for what comes next. If we are willing to listen and follow Jesus and the Holy Spirit we will be prepared for anything. So how does that fit in your life particularly? Ask yourself these questions: (1) Does my life match my words when it comes to how I live out my relationship with Jesus Christ? (2) Am I discovering and fulfilling my God given purpose? (3) Am I allowing Jesus absolute authority over every area of my life? What am I holding back? (4) Am I willing to obey God’s commands even if I don’t know or understand everything? Where am I refusing to obey? (5) Do I live as though I really know and believe that Jesus loves me? Am I confidently accepting the struggles knowing that they are simply are of God’s preparation process in my life? I’m thankful that Jesus was willing to go through the details of that week so that we could make sense of the pieces. Put together they make the cross so much more meaningful and powerful.
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For information on graphics and PowerPoint for this or any other message on our site, contact Paul Newell at paul@familyfellowshipchurch.com. |
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(c) Paul Newell 2004 FamilyFellowship Church P.O. Box 465, Beaumont, CA 92223 |
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