The Way is Given
Sunday, March 27, 2016 – Easter
The Sabbath was dawning over Israel but there was a sadness that filled the hearts of many on this day. According to the Law of Moses, this was to be a day of rest from their labors and a time of being refreshed and getting prepared for the week that would follow. But on this day there was anything but rest for those who had known and loved Jesus of Nazareth.
Before the Sabbath had begun, on Thursday night, at an illegal, mock trial, Jesus had been condemned. He had been beaten mercilessly by the Romans at Pilate’s hall, and then forced to carry his cross to the hill of the skull outside of the city of Jerusalem. There, on Friday evening, Jesus had been crucified like a common criminal as the religious leaders of Israel, and many others looked upon him and laughed at his suffering.
For six long hours, from 9 am until 3 pm, Jesus hung on the cross. During that time the sky grew dark, storm clouds gathered and the lightning flashed. Even the very ground beneath Jerusalem trembled that day as the Son of God, the Creator who had spoken all things into existence, laid down his life, and willingly shed his blood so that all things could be redeemed back to God.
Satan thought he had won, but he was soon to discover that he was utterly defeated, because Jesus did not die when his body drew its last breath. At that last terrible moment, after all he had suffered, Jesus simply said, “It is finished”, and his spirit left his body to go and complete the work that had to be done in the grave. The price of our redemption was paid in full! Jesus paid it all!
At the instant that Jesus spoke those words, there was a sound that came from the Holy Place of the temple that was unmistakable. It was the sound of the tearing of cloth as the veil of the temple; that huge, thick veil that had kept men from entering into the presence of God before the Ark of Convenant was ripped in two from top to bottom, allowing anyone to walk in unrestricted.
Jesus had said in John 14:6, "… I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Therefore, through his death, the Way was opened to enter into the presence of God without all of the ceremonial cleansings and rituals of the Law of Moses. Jesus’ own sacrifice had fulfilled every requirement of the Law.
• No more would any man have to offer blood sacrifices, or burn flesh upon the Brazen Altar, or wash at the Laver of Water.
• No more would only a specified and specially prepared few men be the only ones who could enter into the very presence of the glory of God.
• The Menorah, or the Golden Candlestick would not have to be tended to in order for the light to shine.
• The Showbread would no longer required, and even the Altar of Incense would no longer be needed.
All of these things were but types and shadows of Jesus Christ, pointing toward this day when Jesus would come and give his life and then fulfill all that these things were meant to teach us.
Jesus had said in John 4:23-24, "But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."
The worship of God through the rituals of the ceremonial law was only for a time so that Israel, and the world, could be shown just what God the Father demanded as true worship, obedience and sacrifice for sin.
But all of the sacrifices of bulls and goats, doves and sheep, could not fulfill the demand of the shedding of perfect blood for the cleansing of sin. They could only push those sins ahead, allowing God to bless the people in spite of their sin, until the day would come when that perfect sacrifice of blood could be found acceptable according to the absolute holiness of God.
The only way that perfect blood could be offered was for God to offer it himself. For this purpose, Jesus had come into this world!
The Way had been made for true worship of God to be made from the heart of each man, woman and child. We are given a Way to live in the presence of God all of the time, and can call upon him in any hour, and under every circumstance. Our God does not sleep, nor does he grow weary, but his ears are always open to hear our prayers, and his eyes are ever watching over us as he tries to show his everlasting love to us.
God looked upon all of creation, and upon man that he had formed with his own loving hands from the dust of the earth. He looked upon man, to whom he had given life by breathing his own breath and life into man’s body. Man had become a living soul; a body of flesh that held an eternal soul within.
But this man that God loved so much, had created in his own image, had desired to be cared for and made into God’s own children; someone that God could lavish every blessing upon; could show such tender loving care for; could provide all of the beauty, love, peace and joy; give such an abundant and eternal life to; this man had fallen into sin, lost his position in God; and was instantly condemned to eternal death.
He would be ever separated from the tender hand of God’s love! He would no longer walk with God and know his Creator as a loving Father!
All that man could know about God now was that he would be a Righteous Judge who would have to sit in judgment and condemn them to be forever cast from him, to spend an eternity in a lake of fire that was never meant for a man to experience. That fallen man would have to experience the same eternal punishment that was designed only for Satan and the fallen angels.
How sorrowful was God on that day when man fell. But it did not take God by surprise for he knew that in man was a heart that could, and would, choose to rebel. God had loved us so much that he gave us the power to choose, a free will to use in deciding whether we wanted to love him or not.
• God did not want robots!
• He did not want us to be as slaves to his service!
• He did not desire to have uncaring, cold, absolute mindless creatures who would do his bidding without compromise or choice.
He wanted children, sons and daughters, who would fill his house with joy, laughter and would praise him simply because he is everything to them. But God knew that giving men that choice also came with risks and the knowledge that some would not choose to love him in return.
God’s love does not change like the love of men! His love is not changed by pride, by doubt, by fear, by selfishness. His love is unconditional and can never fail; and though he knew he must judge all men for sin, his love for those who sinned never faded.
For that reason, God chose to make a way back to him, by sending the Way, so that men may accept that Way and believe in the Way by faith alone.
What did the love of God do so that men could find this Way?
Jesus gave us this answer and revealed the way as he spoke to Nicodemus, a Jewish Rabbi and Pharisee, one of the rulers of the Jews who came to him one night with a curious and searching heart.
John 3:16-17, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved."
And so, as we said in the beginning, the sun arose in the sky on that Sabbath morning. The Way had been made, the price had been paid, and salvation, or redemption back to a right relationship with God, was possible again.
But the sadness still lingered, for in the mind of man, Jesus was dead. What now? Where do we go from here? What do we do now? It was easy to hear the voice of Jesus and follow him while he was walking with us; but what about now? The Way has come; but now we don’t see the Way anymore!
The followers of Jesus had no idea of what was going on while Jesus’ body was in the grave. Just exactly what goes on after death, or how God does what he does, or what it may be like when the soul leaves the body, has been and shall always be a mystery to those who yet alive. We can only see it as through a dark glass, with glimpses here and there, but the mystery remains, and with that mystery comes fear of the unknown. The only thing that dispels that fear is greater faith and trust in the Lord.
On the first day of the week, three days after the crucifixion as reckoned by the Jewish calendar, the time had finally arrived that the followers of Jesus could have full closure on Jesus’ death by making the final preparations for his body.
We are celebrating Easter this morning because of that day! I know that many try to say that Easter is nothing more than celebrating a pagan holiday, giving homage to the coming of springtime and new life rising in the world around us.
Let other say what they want; to those of us who know what happened on that first Sunday morning, over 2000 years ago – THIS DAY MARKS THE DAY THAT WE RECEIVED THE GREATEST HOPE, THE MOST WONDERFUL BLESSING; AND THE FULFILLMENT OF THE GREATEST PROMISE THAT JESUS EVER SPOKE!
THIS DAY MARKS THE HOPE OF THE RESURRECTION AND THE POWER TO RISE AGAIN INTO ETERNAL LIFE; AND THE PROMISE THAT WE SHALL NEVER TASTE DEATH!
The Easter bunnies, chocolate candy, colorful eggs in baskets with green dressing or grass are all wonderful. But whether you’ve been blessed with all of this; or whether you’ve bought a new Easter outfit; or whether you’ve planned a day with your family; no matter what else you might think of as being a part of Easter – the BEST PART IS THAT YOU NOW HAVE THE CHANCE FOR ETERNAL LIFE!
When I think of all of the things that are going on today in our world, I’m reminded of what it means to know the Way! Having Jesus in your heart gives you a hope for a brighter tomorrow when hope can be found nowhere else.
No matter what comes your way; you know the Way; you know the Truth and you have the Life of God in you, and nothing can take that away.
There are many in this world today who are waking up to another day of hopelessness.
• They have no hope for tomorrow and little hope of surviving this day. It seems that all that is in the world is arrayed against them, driving them like lost sheep without direction, into a bottomless pit of despair!
• There are many who awoke this morning to a feeling of utter helplessness and despair because all they have known and all that they see is nothing more than endless pain and suffering until that day when death comes for them.
• There are those who are lying upon their bed of affliction right now, contemplating whether it is worth living another hour, much less another day. The wisdom of man has failed them. The medical profession has given up on them. There is no future. Only darkness and uncertainty awaits them with each breath, and with each breath they wonder, is this to be my last?
A man that does not know the Way, has not found the answer that only Jesus provides, and yet faces all of the uncertainties, troubles and cares of life, is a most miserable creature.
What is man without his Creator? What is man without God? What is man without the hope of the resurrection? HE IS NOTHING MORE THAN A SHEEP BOUND FOR THE SLAUGHTER!
• But we who have found the Way;
• We who have come to know the Lord Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior;
• We who have been given Eternal Life and the unfaltering faith in the fact that there is coming a GREAT RESURRECTION DAY –
1. We can face tomorrow with joy in the face of trouble.
2. We have peace in the midst of conflict!
3. We have love when no one else can find it.
4. We have the promise of Jesus that he will never leave us, nor forsake us, but will be with us through every trial and test; all the way to the very end of our days
5. And we have the promise of eternal life in Christ and a place in the house of our Father in Heaven.
How blessed we are that we know the Way, the Truth and the Life! How great it is to know who holds our tomorrow! How wonderful to rest in his loving arms and just have faith and trust to know that all is well with our soul!
Oh that all men could know the love of God! Oh that all men could believe upon him and trust in Him!
God has made a Way! Jesus is that Way, and there is no other! Jesus Christ alone is the Way, the Truth and the Life; and no man can enter into the presence of the Father in Heaven except through Jesus and the blood that he shed upon the cross!
• Let us praise God this morning for the great hope of the Resurrection!
• Let us worship God this day, rain or shine, because it is a day that the Lord has made and he has given us all that we need to truly enjoy it!
• Let us thank Jesus for his great love and for not giving up on us!
• Let us ever serve the Lord, knowing that in serving Jesus, there is an eternal reward awaiting that nothing of this earth can compare!
That is the message of Easter!
• It is a message of hope and joy!
• It is a message of peace and love!
• It is a message that you have a tomorrow coming that is brighter, better and more grand than anything you could imagine!
One day soon, we are all going to wake up to a brand new day! That will be the day when Jesus comes again to call his bride to come away! What a day that day will be!
Thank God for Easter!
Thank God for the Resurrection power of Jesus Christ!
Thank God for the price Jesus paid, for the death he suffered and for the life that he gave!
Thank God that I have found the Way,
…and may God help me to show many others that Way, and lead them to the foot of the cross.
Closing remarks and Altar Call:
My friend, if you don’t know the Way; if you’ve not found forgiveness for your sin, and been made righteous in God – today the Way is before you.
Jesus came that you might have life, but you have to choose to accept it and believe upon what Jesus has done for you by faith alone.
There is no price you must pay other than repentance for sin! There is no work you can do other than just accept the free gift of grace and salvation through the finished work that Jesus has done upon the cross on your behalf.
Jesus said, “It is finished”! Your price for sin is paid! You debt is gone! The Way is open for you to enter into God’s presence and be accepted as his own son or daughter! Jesus’ part is finished; but your part has just begun. Your part is to accept it by faith and then serve the Lord!
Let Easter mean something very special to you; something it’s never meant before! Let Easter mean that you too, have eternal life; and that you can have your part in that great Resurrection morning that’s coming soon!
Give your heart and life to Christ! Believe upon him and the power of his shed blood, and all of the promises of God will be yours forever.
Let us go from this place with rejoicing! Let us shout for joy because Jesus arose from the grave victorious, and because he lives, we can face tomorrow with our heads held high, with hope in our hearts and with the praises of God Almighty upon our lips!
AMEN
