Celebrate Life
For the last several weeks we have been on this journey of the cross. We looked at...
The Road to the cross was one of Sacrifice – God gave the most valuable thing in all existence – his son – to demonstrate the great value we are to him and how much he loves us.
When you love someone- you will sacrifice yourself for them –
Rom 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
The Heart of the cross was forgiveness – though it was completely unmerited, he didn’t have to forgive us but he did. Can you imagine what our world might be like if God had not forgiven us? We would be living in a legalistic, cold, heartless existence. And yet on the cross he prays for us:
Luke 23:34 "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."
How often we do not have a clue what we are doing, the damage we are inflicting on ourselves and the relationships around us. When left to our own devices, our own understanding, our own initiatives, our own agendas, we will do what we think is best for ourselves, even if it means hurting others – or our longterm best. So often we don’t really know what we are doing, and they didn’t know then that they were killing the Son of God, and yet He forgave them. He also forgave us in our arrogance and ignorance.
The work of the cross was salvation – Jesus saves us from our sin, He is the only one who could save us from our sin and re-introduce us to the Kingdom of God.
Rom 3:23 “...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Our sin is all the things we say, do, think, act out that are in direct opposition to a God who is good in every way, true in all He does, pure and holy in his essence, and He created us in His image, to be just like him.
Our sin mars and destroys that image that God created us to carry so he could reveal himself through our lives to the rest of the world.
It is our sin that separates us from God – and others – destroying relationships because sin is the celebration of our own selfishness, as we try to control our world to our own liking.
- And so we get angry to justify our value and importance;
- we steal to get what we think we deserve;
- we lie to make myself seem something we are not in the eyes of someone else;
- we engage in sexual immorality in our pursuit of feeling loved;
- we slander others to build ourselves up;
- we look to other things to be our god in an attempt to control our circumstances, and worst of all, we think we are god, or at the very least, equal to God.
Sin carries consequences – not only in my life, not only in my relationships, but Sin carries consequences before God. God created us in his image, pure and holy, good in everyway and my sin destroys that image.
If someone destroyed your image you would become very intolerant. Identity theft is a real problem today, and our sin destroys the identity of God in our world, because he made us to bear his image. The consequences of our sin lead to our eternal separation from God – he will not have us stealing his identity and destroying his image forever. Our sin will lead to our eternal death.
All our sin leads us to death, like a cancer that eats away at our souls and relationships with others and with God.
The effect of the cross was Death – Death is real and final. Anyone who has experienced death up close and personal – not so personal that you have died, but have tasted the bitter sting of death, knows that when someone or something dies, it is over, it is done with.
When a loved one dies from a long and agonizing illness, we say, “well at least they are not in pain any longer, it is over...”
Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life inb Christ Jesus our Lord
Jesus experienced death on the cross, everything about him died. He was as John the Baptist described:
John 1:29-30
The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 3
God is no ordinary God and He brought His Son back to life. Because sin was paid for and Jesus was still God, there was nothing to hold him in the grave. Jesus conquered death and rose from the grave. Because He conquered death – he cannot die again
This is the most surprising and unexpected reality – Jesus rose from the dead. No one really expected it. It had never been done before. Even though Jesus said it was going to happen, it was a surprising and new phenomenon.
What is even more surprising is that through our faith in him we are included in His new life.
Rom 6:8-14
8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.
11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13 Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. 14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.
He took my sin to the cross – he sacrificed himself for me; He took the penalty and consequences of my sin so that I could be forgiven. My sin died with Christ. Because He died, it was final – all done. There is nothing more that could be done with my sin.
- Easter
enables me to live free from sin
and celebrate life – 11 In the same
way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
- Sin keeps me from experiencing what is good and true in every area and relationship in my life.
- Because of Jesus death, my sin is now dead and powerless; His death put my sin to death.
- I live to God now
Accepting Jesus death on the cross as including my sin is like declaring personal spiritual bankruptcy. You are financially bankrupt when you are in over your head financially, you have more debts than assets; more creditors chasing you than you can deal with; and you see no way out on your own. You cant work hard enough to get out from under the financial situation, you will never be able to pay off your debts.
Our sin causes us to become spiritually bankrupt as well. You only have one creditor = God himself and your sin has put you in arrears. There is no way out, you cant do enough good to make up for the damage you have caused to your life as a reflecting revelation of himself. But Jesus death on the cross sets you free. When you have received forgiveness from bankruptcy you are free to start over.
Now he lives completely to God. Because He rose from the dead I can live free
Because Jesus is risen from the dead – I am alive unto God – not alive to myself any longer. I live to God now – not out of obligation but desire, because he set me free.
- I
celebrate life by offering myself to God everyday – 13
offer yourselves to God, as those who
have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as
instruments of righteousness.
- The power of Jesus resurrection brings my soul to life
- I am able to live His revelation in my life – Live in His goodness and truth – an ‘instrument of God’s righteousness’; able to live ‘rightly’
When I become alive unto God I am His and he sets me apart for himself
Offering myself - Presenting myself - to God means that from this point forward I consider my whole life as belonging to God – all that I am, all that I have, all that I will be is his. This comes into play in how I use my time, my money, my talents, All of it now belongs to Him
** this is not your ‘old self’ that you are giving to God, but you HAVE BEEN BROUGHT FROM DEATH TO LIFE – those who believe and receive this new life are in this state or condition – they are no longer dead in their sin, they are no dealing with that any longer but they are now quickened, and alive and the first thing we do is offer ourselves to God
This is where everything begins new – my “old” life has been crucified with Christ – nailed to the cross with Christ
Gal 2:20
20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
- I celebrate
life by living in the strength of His
grace - 14 For sin shall
not be your master, because you are not under law, but under
grace.
- I am no longer required to live in the strength of my own goodness.
- I am free and live under God’s grace.
Under God’s grace I begin to live again. With new hope, new direction for my life. The smoke of my life has cleared and I am able to see the reason I was made, - to demonstrate God’s goodness in my little corner of the world, and with all the talents, gifts, he endowed me with. And not only that but he gives me new gifts as well – spiritual gifts – so that I have even more opportunity to live like his child.
When my father had finally declared bankruptcy I saw the stress of his life go down dramatically, he was free like he had not been in a very long time.
When someone declares bankruptcy – you live under the grace of the bankruptcy and hopefully they begin to make different decisions, living in different ways so they can be and do differently
This morning maybe you have been living spiritually bankrupt for a long time.
You can live under the grace of Christ, be forgiven and live free and alive like never before. You can live out the reason you were made – declaring God – his goodness and celebrating life.
You can begin to celebrate life by:
- coming before God recognizing that Jesus took your sin to the cross, asking him to forgive you; receive that forgiveness and new life
- Offering yourself to God to live in His good, right and true ways, letting God reveal himself through your life
- Begin living under His grace – recognizing you are free now, like never before.
Message: Celebrating Easter goes beyond today to everyday. Easter is celebrating the new life that Jesus brings me every day.
- Easter enables me to live free from sin (v11)
- Now I can offer myself to God everyday (v13)
- Living in the strength of His grace (14)