EASTER: Dealing with the HARD Truth!

In 1882 the famous German philosopher Nietzsche made this statement in a book:

"God is dead". Sadly, Nietzsche and everyone born at that time are also. This is the hard truth Scripture makes clear. Here is how it is stated in two different renderings:

NET - Romans 5:14 Yet death reigned from Adam until Moses even over those who did not sin in the same way that Adam (who is a type of the coming one) transgressed.
 
NLT - Romans 5:14 Still, everyone died—from the time of Adam to the time of Moses—even those who did not disobey an explicit commandment of God, as Adam did.

 
In 2006 a politician put out a movie dealing with global warming. It communicated a warning of future problems for life on this planet.
 

A science article in 2021 stated this -

Arctic Ice Coverage Is Up Substantially: Scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center announced Wednesday that the Arctic ice sheet extends 25 percent further than it did last summer.
 
There can not be any honest debate concerning the fact that humans impact the environment…for goodness sake, cows impact the environment just by releasing gas, and cows don’t build, drive, or smoke! We must face the truth that we are stewards of this planet God gave us and do our best to take care of it, not destroy it. As long as we remember this planet was given to us and for us, not the cows. How much damage and how bad, I will not get into a debate about that right now, because I have a much larger point.
 
What saddens me is that so many people turn a blind eye to the Most Inconvenient Truth…all of us will die! Past, present, and future, until Christ returns.
 
Scripture states what each individual earns for their sin - death. (Rom 6:23)

Death means physical separation from our body and spiritual separation from God.

Jesus Christ experienced both for every human. Today, represents a day over 2,000 years ago, the Godman’s body was dead in a tomb. He allowed that for one reason – YOU! No, not “you & me” or “the world” that is how we deflect dealing with this reality.

Today, focus on YOU. Are you eternal? If not, then, what? Have you spent any time considering what happens to you when your physical heart stops beating? If not, why? Take a…pause and consider it.
 
The “So What”: We spend so much time thinking and planning for retirement, but that lasts about as long as a belch compared to eternity! At least have the honesty to take 30 minutes to ponder what you believe about your next life after this life. If you believe there is nothing, that is sad. If you believe there is more, then what, why, and how? Tomorrow we will look at Scriptural answers to that. 

EASTER: Will I have the resources to fulfill the life that God gave me?

A Chicago lawyer was trying to find a young woman who had inherited a fortune.  He had traced her to Los Angeles where the trail went cold. He hired a detective agency to find her. An investigator with a great record was assigned to the case. After a few weeks, he called the lawyer. “I found her", he told the lawyer. “Where is she?” the lawyer asked. “In Las Vegas with me...we are celebrating our honeymoon!"

 After decades of ministry, I have encountered the question concerning resources the most. From Believer and unbeliever. Whether the god is God, or some other created deity or the “person in the mirror”, every person I have met, except individuals that are contemplating suicide. (sadly, they have given up on themselves, which the our adversary desires) To be frank, this would be one of the top five questions in my life.

“Purpose” is a major issue in human life, we all focus on that and if we give up then we surrender our will to live. This is why it is essential that we remain connected to our Creator and seek His direction. He alone knows what we were created for and what our purpose can be.
 
The “adversary” works hard to destroy that because he hates what God loves! Jesus did many things to show us we need not expend our energy worrying over this. Here are just three:

 Luke 5: 4-7 
When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. 

John 6:8-13  Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and the men sat down, about five thousand of them. Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish. When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.
 
Matthew 17:24-27 After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma tax came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?”  “Yes, he does,” he replied. When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own sons or from others?” “From others,” Peter answered. “Then the sons are exempt,” Jesus said to him. “But so that we may not offend them, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”
 
I believe these passages speak for themselves – no commentary needed…except don’t go fishing planning to pay the IRS!
 
The “So What”: Where do you look for supplying your needs? A job, a relative, the lottery? Where do you invest most of your energy and time, getting close to money, getting close to someone with money, or staying close to God? When I had to leave the mission field due to health, I took my eyes off of the Lord and fretted about “Now What?” That was a huge mistake, and I suffered for that. Don’t allow the enemy to deceive you the way he deceived me – focus on staying close to God, allow Him be concerned about your needs!

EASTER: Is any relationship impossible?

Romans 5:10 For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved 

through the life of his Son.

When I was Church planting in Hawaii, I was called by one of my men that had become involved in a very difficult situation. He had a neighbor that had entered into a relationship with Christ, which we had all been praying for. That’s when the truth came out about this man. He had abused his daughter for years, and his salvation experience had led him to confront this demon and ask his daughter for forgiveness. I fully supported this and had helped him see that he needed to understand that once he did this, he would need to submit to what God brought about through this.

That could be anything from restoration to rejection and even jail time. He desired to meet with his daughter alone and then have us come over. When he called we came into his home and there we found a broken daughter lovingly hugging her very broken, ashamed, and repentant dad! She had trusted Christ years before and was praying for God to help her father!  Only a mighty God could reconcile the damage this man had done. I was  awe-struck with God’s mighty grace as I witnessed their relationship blossom for two years.

God’s love, grace, and forgiveness bring hope to any relationship…if we will allow it. Three prominent relationships are seen in Scripture that testify to this Truth. 

Matthew was a traitor to his own people and profited off the taxes he collected for the Romans. Simon was a “Zealot” which was a group of Jews that despised Rome and would even kill to break Rome’s grip on Israel. Yet, because of Christ, they became brothers and lived, ministered, and were martyred for their faith.

Saul of Tarsus was a Pharisee that feared and hated this new religion that he believed threatened authentic Judaism. Jehovah’s salvation was for Israel only. Gentiles were dogs, and could be saved, but never be the same as one of God’s “real” children. Because of Christ, Saul became Paul and was used by God to bring the gospel to the Gentile world, even Rome and Nero! 

2 Corinthians 5:19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.

Humans rejected God and demanded to make their own standards and gods. Instead of turning His back on them and allowing them to blindly go to hell (Separation from God) He sent a bridge to them. Jesus Christ volunteered to pay the penalty of sin and offer any human that wanted forgiveness to experience a new life and an eternal relationship with their Creator! 

The “So What”: Do you desire a relationship with your Creator? Are you tired of the gods you have made, that now rule you? Is your god the mirror? How far has that gotten you? How do you sleep at night? When you think about dying, what do you feel? Fear? Refusal to think about it? If you don’t like God’s plan of salvation, what is yours? 

Easter: Is meeting God’s standard for righteousness impossible?

I remember right after we bought... (borrowed from the bank)...our first house, we had a tremendous week of rain. Twelves inches of water flooded our family room, bedrooms…the entire basement! NEVER had I felt so down! We discovered the true history of the house. Flooding happened every year, the seller hid it. I had no idea what to do. I was living on a Pastor's salary and did not have the income required to fix it. God sent a miracle. A man knocked on my door and explained his backhoe had broken down on the back of my property. I could see he was very flustered and didn't know what to do. I told him he could leave it on our property while he fixed it. Long story short, before he left, he dug a trench from my backyard to the front onto the street! I bought the gravel, he put it in, then the drainage pipe and covered it! I never had a flood again…he did for me what I could not do for myself!  
 
Easter communicates that reality! To live with God requires perfect righteous living…which none of us can accomplish for ourselves. Can you imagine anything more unrighteous than a demon? Only Jesus can make that wrong right!
 
Mark 5:1-15 They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. 2  When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet him. 3  This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him any more, not even with a chain. 4  For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. 5  Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones. -  15  When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid.
 
When Jesus took my sin, and your sin, onto Himself, He was separated from His Father. He offered His righteousness to us, provided we will humble our pride and accept it. 
 

Spring break is great, everybody loves a time away from work and the normal pressures of life. How much more important is an eternal break? Knowing that you have been set free from the debt of your sin…because Someone (Jesus) was willing to pay that debt for you. 
 
Fight to take a quiet moment from your spring break to make sure you have secured an intimate relationship with your Eternal Creator. He desires to be in a love relationship with you more than you can understand.

 

The “So What”

Who is God to you? How important is that question compared to any other one in this short life? Where will you be a billion years from now? It is up to you to decide what you will do with the offer Jesus has made to you.

EASTER: Is there anything really Impossible?

 If we were to make a list of things that were once thought to be impossible it would be very long. Some on that list would be.

 
Go around the world in a short time.
A ship that can go under water on purpose!
Man can fly, and land on the moon and return.
Talk to almost anyone, anytime and anywhere in the world.
See every country in the world, yet never leave home.
 
I made my own list:
A Pro Athlete not demand more money.
A teenager live without a phone.
A politician, televangelist, or lawyer tell the truth.
A short-winded preacher.
Nathan Leigh, while awake, be absolutely quiet for 30 minutes!
 
No other belief system in history claims its founder died and came back to life!
 
Jesus claims that and did it!
 
After hearing what happened to Jesus at the cross, a three-year-old boy asked his mother, “Who did it? The Democrats or the Republicans?”
 
If there was any event that seemed impossible, it would be what took place during this time 2,000 years ago…a man dead 3 days comes back to life!
 
Once when Jesus was discussing salvation with His disciples, he said this:
 
Luke 18:25-27 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?”  Jesus replied, “What is impossible with men is possible with God.”
 
Why would Jesus say this about the rich? Are they more evil, more sinful? That is stated a lot today, from Hollywood, TV personalities, and political “movers and shakers”. What I find so amazing is that compared to us average folks…they are the RICH!

What Jesus said is true, but it is not about the money, though money contributes to the problem. The issue is a desire to depend on and have faith in ourselves, not God. God is sinless and sinless perfection is what it takes to live with Him. 

That requires honest humility, which our pride is allergic to.
 
Jesus accomplished a way for us to be made sinless in God’s eyes. As we consider the impossible made possible this week, I want to look at several other “impossible” things Jesus accomplished.
 
The “So What”: Is there anything you consider impossible that you are dealing with right now? Have to talked to God about it? Would you be willing to let God show you how to deal with it?