00:00:00 --> 00:00:02 Good morning and let me add my welcome.
00:00:02 --> 00:00:05 My name is Sam and I'm on the ministry team here at St Paul's.
00:00:06 --> 00:00:09 I'm going to pray for us and then we're going to reflect on that passage
00:00:09 --> 00:00:13 and the story of Easter that we have been reminded of this morning.
00:00:15 --> 00:00:18 Father God, we thank you for the chance to gather this morning
00:00:18 --> 00:00:20 and we ask that you might give us clarity
00:00:20 --> 00:00:23 as we reflect on a story that might be familiar,
00:00:24 --> 00:00:28 that might even have baggage attached for us personally.
00:00:28 --> 00:00:32 Please give us the ability to look fresh
00:00:32 --> 00:00:36 and to hear what it is that you want us to hear. Amen.
00:00:38 --> 00:00:41 This week, the British comedian Ricky Gervais
00:00:41 --> 00:00:46 was asked by the Wall Street Journal to write an article for Easter.
00:00:46 --> 00:00:50 It was a follow-up to an article that he did around Christmas time
00:00:50 --> 00:00:51 entitled, Why I'm a Good Atheist.
00:00:52 --> 00:00:56 This article he entitled, Why I'm a Good Christian.
00:00:56 --> 00:01:00 He was quick to concede that the heading was provocative and misleading.
00:01:01 --> 00:01:04 But in his article, he talked about how he admired Jesus.
00:01:04 --> 00:01:07 He admired the teachings. He admired the life.
00:01:07 --> 00:01:11 Although he rejected any claim that Jesus might be a God or a saviour.
00:01:12 --> 00:01:15 And he expressed that he was frustrated with Christians
00:01:15 --> 00:01:18 who claimed to follow Jesus but were so drastically
00:01:18 --> 00:01:21 nothing like the one they claimed to follow.
00:01:21 --> 00:01:26 And from there, his article proceeded to work its way through the Ten Commandments,
00:01:26 --> 00:01:31 one at a time, basically showing how he was ticking the box on all ten of them.
00:01:32 --> 00:01:35 And then finished with the sentiment that he guesses,
00:01:35 --> 00:01:38 in light of his ticking the box on the commandments,
00:01:38 --> 00:01:40 he's as good a Christian as anyone.
00:01:41 --> 00:01:43 Now, I find Ricky Gervais a very funny comedian.
00:01:44 --> 00:01:45 I really enjoy the stuff that he does.
00:01:45 --> 00:01:49 And so, I was interested in his reflections.
00:01:50 --> 00:01:52 Obviously, I disagree with him on a bunch of stuff.
00:01:53 --> 00:01:57 But what stuck out for me was where he ended up
00:01:57 --> 00:02:00 having been asked to write something about Easter.
00:02:01 --> 00:02:03 He's clearly not a believer.
00:02:04 --> 00:02:07 He doesn't think that Jesus legitimately died and rose again.
00:02:07 --> 00:02:11 But having been asked to write this article,
00:02:11 --> 00:02:15 he didn't wrestle with the historical reliability of Jesus.
00:02:15 --> 00:02:16 Didn't touch it.
00:02:17 --> 00:02:20 He doesn't express difficulty believing that Jesus rose again.
00:02:22 --> 00:02:27 For him, an article about Easter is an article about morality.
00:02:29 --> 00:02:33 That was, for him, what it meant to respond to the question,
00:02:33 --> 00:02:34 what is Easter for me?
00:02:34 --> 00:02:37 It was to measure how good or bad he thought he was
00:02:37 --> 00:02:40 by this apparent standard that God sets.
00:02:40 --> 00:02:43 And for a lot of people, and even for some Christians,
00:02:44 --> 00:02:45 that's all Easter is.
00:02:48 --> 00:02:51 Following Jesus is about little more than living
00:02:51 --> 00:02:53 some kind of exemplary moral life.
00:02:54 --> 00:02:56 And, of course, holding other people to do the same,
00:02:56 --> 00:02:57 being the moral police.
00:02:58 --> 00:03:02 Now, I don't know what your perspective on Easter is.
00:03:02 --> 00:03:05 I don't know why you came into this building this morning.
00:03:05 --> 00:03:09 This could be your annual or your biannual church visit.
00:03:11 --> 00:03:13 Now, I don't know what interactions you've had
00:03:13 --> 00:03:15 with Christians in the past, good or bad.
00:03:17 --> 00:03:20 But I do know that many people I speak to
00:03:20 --> 00:03:24 approach a day like today feeling guilty.
00:03:26 --> 00:03:29 We've sung and we've been reminded of the savageness
00:03:29 --> 00:03:30 savageness of that first Good Friday.
00:03:32 --> 00:03:34 That an innocent man would be butchered.
00:03:36 --> 00:03:38 And it could be that you're here today
00:03:38 --> 00:03:40 because you know you're supposed to be.
00:03:41 --> 00:03:44 You know that it is significant, you know it matters,
00:03:44 --> 00:03:46 and you get this sense that if you don't come here,
00:03:46 --> 00:03:48 you might be doing something wrong.
00:03:48 --> 00:03:49 And so you are here.
00:03:50 --> 00:03:51 But maybe there's a part of you,
00:03:52 --> 00:03:53 maybe it's even a really big part of you,
00:03:54 --> 00:03:55 that will breathe a sigh of relief
00:03:55 --> 00:03:57 when we get to the end of our time together.
00:03:58 --> 00:04:01 And maybe you can go back into that normal pattern
00:04:01 --> 00:04:04 where maybe you know that God might not be happy with you,
00:04:04 --> 00:04:06 but it's easier to kind of hold it at arm's length.
00:04:08 --> 00:04:09 If that's you,
00:04:10 --> 00:04:12 I want to say I'm really glad you're here.
00:04:13 --> 00:04:16 Because I actually believe that God has something significant
00:04:16 --> 00:04:18 that he wants to say to you this morning.
00:04:19 --> 00:04:21 Something that might actually transform the way
00:04:21 --> 00:04:22 that you not just view Easter,
00:04:22 --> 00:04:24 but the way that you view Jesus himself.
00:04:25 --> 00:04:27 Because Easter is not about guilt.
00:04:28 --> 00:04:29 Jesus didn't die on the cross
00:04:29 --> 00:04:32 so that then he could spend the rest of our lives
00:04:32 --> 00:04:35 making us feel bad about how far short we fall
00:04:35 --> 00:04:37 of the kind of life that he calls us to.
00:04:38 --> 00:04:41 Jesus didn't go through everything he went through
00:04:41 --> 00:04:43 so that we could be pressured into being more moral.
00:04:46 --> 00:04:50 Easter is the high point of God showing us who he is.
00:04:50 --> 00:04:55 Easter is the moment where God tries to just zoom in on himself for us
00:04:55 --> 00:04:58 so that we might get a picture of what he's like,
00:04:58 --> 00:05:00 how he works, who he is.
00:05:00 --> 00:05:02 And the Bible makes it really clear,
00:05:02 --> 00:05:04 God is love.
00:05:06 --> 00:05:08 Not just God loves, although that's true,
00:05:09 --> 00:05:12 but the Bible actually says love is who he is.
00:05:12 --> 00:05:15 It's how he works.
00:05:16 --> 00:05:17 And so importantly,
00:05:18 --> 00:05:20 it's how he feels towards you.
00:05:23 --> 00:05:26 I want to show you two things this morning about God's love
00:05:26 --> 00:05:30 that I hope and pray will transform the way you feel
00:05:30 --> 00:05:31 when you come to Easter,
00:05:32 --> 00:05:33 when you think about church,
00:05:33 --> 00:05:34 when you think about Christians.
00:05:35 --> 00:05:36 But more than that,
00:05:36 --> 00:05:40 I want to show you two things about God's love from the Bible
00:05:40 --> 00:05:44 that I believe could transform your whole life.
00:05:46 --> 00:05:47 And so I want you to bear with me.
00:05:49 --> 00:05:52 I want you to give God a chance to speak a little bit louder
00:05:52 --> 00:05:54 than maybe some of those negative interactions
00:05:54 --> 00:05:57 or unhelpful voices have spoken in the past.
00:05:57 --> 00:06:00 And I want you to hear from him two things.
00:06:02 --> 00:06:03 First one,
00:06:05 --> 00:06:07 God loves you.
00:06:09 --> 00:06:10 God loves you.
00:06:12 --> 00:06:13 I remember growing up as a kid,
00:06:14 --> 00:06:17 one of my biggest fears was whether or not God loved me.
00:06:17 --> 00:06:19 Now, it's not something that I would focus on regularly.
00:06:19 --> 00:06:21 It's not like I walked around thinking,
00:06:21 --> 00:06:22 does God love me now?
00:06:22 --> 00:06:23 But I had this awareness.
00:06:24 --> 00:06:25 I knew enough about God.
00:06:25 --> 00:06:27 I'd heard enough Bible stories.
00:06:27 --> 00:06:29 I'd heard the Easter story enough times.
00:06:29 --> 00:06:30 And I knew enough about me
00:06:30 --> 00:06:33 that there was some sort of a gap there.
00:06:34 --> 00:06:35 I knew God was powerful.
00:06:35 --> 00:06:36 I knew he was holy.
00:06:36 --> 00:06:37 I knew he was perfect.
00:06:37 --> 00:06:39 I knew he was in charge.
00:06:39 --> 00:06:41 And I knew that I was the kid at school
00:06:41 --> 00:06:42 that other kids' parents would say,
00:06:42 --> 00:06:43 don't hang out with that kid.
00:06:45 --> 00:06:47 I knew what it was to do the wrong thing and get punished.
00:06:47 --> 00:06:49 I understood how life worked.
00:06:49 --> 00:06:50 If you do something bad,
00:06:50 --> 00:06:51 then there's consequences.
00:06:51 --> 00:06:52 And so for me,
00:06:52 --> 00:06:54 taking that correct understanding of life,
00:06:54 --> 00:06:56 that do something wrong,
00:06:56 --> 00:06:57 pay the price for it,
00:06:58 --> 00:07:00 and then this God who is good and requires me to be good,
00:07:00 --> 00:07:03 those things coming together didn't make sense to me.
00:07:04 --> 00:07:05 I'd heard the phrase,
00:07:05 --> 00:07:06 God loves you.
00:07:07 --> 00:07:09 I'd heard the sentiment that God is loving.
00:07:09 --> 00:07:12 But I couldn't understand how someone like me,
00:07:12 --> 00:07:14 who was bad,
00:07:14 --> 00:07:15 is bad,
00:07:16 --> 00:07:17 could be loved by God.
00:07:17 --> 00:07:21 The way I had experienced love in my life
00:07:21 --> 00:07:23 was so restricted
00:07:23 --> 00:07:26 to when I do good things,
00:07:26 --> 00:07:27 I'm loved.
00:07:27 --> 00:07:29 And when I do bad things,
00:07:29 --> 00:07:29 I'm punished.
00:07:29 --> 00:07:31 It's not to say my parents were harsh or bad
00:07:31 --> 00:07:32 or anything like that.
00:07:32 --> 00:07:33 They were great.
00:07:34 --> 00:07:36 But that is how we engage with love with one another.
00:07:37 --> 00:07:40 We tend to love when it's positive coming back the other way.
00:07:40 --> 00:07:41 But when someone hurts us,
00:07:42 --> 00:07:43 that love quickly dries up.
00:07:43 --> 00:07:46 And so from that place,
00:07:46 --> 00:07:48 the idea of a God who is love and could love me
00:07:48 --> 00:07:50 was really difficult to comprehend.
00:07:51 --> 00:07:53 And this is why Easter can be offensive.
00:07:54 --> 00:07:55 This is why I understand,
00:07:55 --> 00:07:58 and it makes sense that some people maybe don't want to
00:07:58 --> 00:08:00 be in church or around Christians
00:08:00 --> 00:08:01 or hear this message.
00:08:03 --> 00:08:05 Easter and the cross and Jesus' death
00:08:05 --> 00:08:08 is the answer to the problem
00:08:08 --> 00:08:10 that God is holy and we are not.
00:08:10 --> 00:08:13 So even wrapped up in this message
00:08:13 --> 00:08:16 and wrapped up in the fact that God is trying to show you
00:08:16 --> 00:08:17 how loving he is towards you,
00:08:18 --> 00:08:19 part of that message is
00:08:19 --> 00:08:21 you actually don't deserve that love.
00:08:22 --> 00:08:24 It's not the whole message,
00:08:24 --> 00:08:25 and that's the problem.
00:08:25 --> 00:08:26 When we just stop there,
00:08:27 --> 00:08:28 hearing that we're not good enough
00:08:28 --> 00:08:29 and walk away feeling worse
00:08:29 --> 00:08:31 or feeling this pressure to try harder,
00:08:32 --> 00:08:33 it's not the whole message,
00:08:33 --> 00:08:34 but it is part of the message.
00:08:35 --> 00:08:37 And so if you have come here this morning
00:08:37 --> 00:08:40 and you do feel that sense of guilt or failure,
00:08:40 --> 00:08:41 I want to say on one level,
00:08:41 --> 00:08:43 that's actually kind of okay.
00:08:45 --> 00:08:46 Because it's true.
00:08:48 --> 00:08:49 You and I and everybody else
00:08:49 --> 00:08:52 isn't worthy of the love of a perfect God.
00:08:54 --> 00:08:56 The way that we treat him when we live,
00:08:56 --> 00:08:58 the things that we put in front of him in our lives,
00:08:58 --> 00:09:00 the things that we treat as more important,
00:09:00 --> 00:09:01 is not okay,
00:09:02 --> 00:09:03 is offensive,
00:09:03 --> 00:09:06 but it's just not the whole message.
00:09:08 --> 00:09:08 And see, the issue is,
00:09:08 --> 00:09:09 when you come to Easter
00:09:09 --> 00:09:10 and you hear something like that,
00:09:11 --> 00:09:12 what do you do with that?
00:09:13 --> 00:09:15 You can do the Ricky Gervais trick
00:09:15 --> 00:09:16 and just move the goalposts a bit.
00:09:17 --> 00:09:19 He just changed the way he read the Ten Commandments
00:09:19 --> 00:09:20 to give himself a tick on all of them
00:09:20 --> 00:09:22 and then you might feel a little bit better.
00:09:24 --> 00:09:25 Alternatively, you could just reject God
00:09:25 --> 00:09:26 and say, I'm not interested
00:09:26 --> 00:09:28 and I won't be held to your standard.
00:09:30 --> 00:09:31 But maybe there's a third option.
00:09:31 --> 00:09:34 Maybe there's something better
00:09:34 --> 00:09:36 that God actually designed for us.
00:09:37 --> 00:09:39 As Steve was reading out that passage for us,
00:09:39 --> 00:09:42 two thieves were crucified on either side of Jesus.
00:09:43 --> 00:09:44 So one on either side of Jesus.
00:09:45 --> 00:09:47 And there's two responses there.
00:09:48 --> 00:09:50 I remember hearing this story as a kid.
00:09:50 --> 00:09:52 There was a children's storybook version
00:09:52 --> 00:09:54 of the thief on the cross.
00:09:55 --> 00:09:57 And I always found it entertaining
00:09:57 --> 00:10:00 because one thief just looked like a derelict.
00:10:00 --> 00:10:02 You know, he was unshaven.
00:10:03 --> 00:10:05 He had a scowl on his face
00:10:05 --> 00:10:06 in each of the illustrated pictures.
00:10:07 --> 00:10:09 You knew straight away that he was the bad guy.
00:10:10 --> 00:10:13 But the other guy who eventually asks for Jesus' mercy
00:10:13 --> 00:10:16 somehow looked like it was an accident that he was there.
00:10:17 --> 00:10:18 He'd been mostly good.
00:10:19 --> 00:10:20 I mean, he was even clean shaven.
00:10:21 --> 00:10:24 And then somehow he just ended up in the wrong place
00:10:24 --> 00:10:26 and was alongside this other criminal.
00:10:26 --> 00:10:28 But just to be clear,
00:10:28 --> 00:10:29 that's the kid's story version and it's wrong.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:34 All the Bible says is that there were two criminals
00:10:34 --> 00:10:39 and they both deserved to die for how they had lived.
00:10:40 --> 00:10:42 That's the man's own admission.
00:10:42 --> 00:10:44 We're getting what our deeds deserve.
00:10:45 --> 00:10:46 These two men,
00:10:47 --> 00:10:49 when confronted with the innocent death of Jesus,
00:10:49 --> 00:10:51 respond in two completely different ways.
00:10:51 --> 00:10:54 One is to mock and reject the fact
00:10:54 --> 00:10:57 that Jesus could possibly have any right over his life,
00:10:57 --> 00:10:59 could possibly be loving towards him.
00:11:00 --> 00:11:02 The other one is to recognise
00:11:02 --> 00:11:06 that actually when you stand next to the perfection of Jesus,
00:11:06 --> 00:11:10 the only response is to recognise,
00:11:11 --> 00:11:13 yeah, I am unworthy.
00:11:15 --> 00:11:18 But this thief recognises something else.
00:11:19 --> 00:11:23 That Jesus is here to deal with that unworthiness.
00:11:24 --> 00:11:26 The whole reason he came
00:11:26 --> 00:11:30 was so that God's love could steamroll our inadequacy.
00:11:31 --> 00:11:33 God's love is an offer for anyone.
00:11:33 --> 00:11:37 When I say God loves you,
00:11:37 --> 00:11:40 it's not some vague hope that possibly he might love you
00:11:40 --> 00:11:41 and you might think,
00:11:41 --> 00:11:43 Sam, you don't know who I am, what I've done.
00:11:44 --> 00:11:44 You don't know my past.
00:11:44 --> 00:11:46 You don't know my thoughts.
00:11:47 --> 00:11:49 It's not a hope that God might love you.
00:11:52 --> 00:11:53 What this story shows us
00:11:53 --> 00:11:57 is that God can and does love the worst person
00:11:57 --> 00:11:59 on the worst day.
00:11:59 --> 00:12:02 In this passage,
00:12:03 --> 00:12:05 he offers forgiveness to a thief
00:12:05 --> 00:12:09 who does nothing except ask for it.
00:12:10 --> 00:12:12 There's not even the opportunity for this thief
00:12:12 --> 00:12:14 to somehow try and make up for the life that he had before.
00:12:14 --> 00:12:15 He's about to die.
00:12:16 --> 00:12:17 And yet Jesus says,
00:12:17 --> 00:12:18 I love that person.
00:12:19 --> 00:12:22 One of the most significant prayers in Scripture
00:12:22 --> 00:12:24 was in verse 34.
00:12:24 --> 00:12:29 Just try and be in this moment.
00:12:30 --> 00:12:32 Jesus has just had nails
00:12:32 --> 00:12:34 driven through his wrists and feet.
00:12:36 --> 00:12:38 He's hanging on a cross,
00:12:38 --> 00:12:39 slowly suffocating,
00:12:40 --> 00:12:42 barely alive from the beatings he's had
00:12:42 --> 00:12:44 for the previous few days.
00:12:44 --> 00:12:48 And he looks down at the people
00:12:48 --> 00:12:50 who have done this to him.
00:12:51 --> 00:12:52 And he prays,
00:12:54 --> 00:12:54 Father,
00:12:55 --> 00:12:56 forgive them,
00:12:58 --> 00:13:00 for they do not know what they are doing.
00:13:02 --> 00:13:04 Even in their moment
00:13:04 --> 00:13:07 of most active opposition to Jesus,
00:13:08 --> 00:13:10 he still has love for them.
00:13:10 --> 00:13:14 He still has care for them.
00:13:15 --> 00:13:16 And so I can say,
00:13:16 --> 00:13:17 and you can know,
00:13:17 --> 00:13:20 that even in your worst moments in your life,
00:13:21 --> 00:13:21 even in the points
00:13:21 --> 00:13:24 where you most actively reject God
00:13:24 --> 00:13:25 and ignore him
00:13:25 --> 00:13:26 and treat him like he doesn't matter,
00:13:27 --> 00:13:29 that love is still offered.
00:13:35 --> 00:13:37 If Easter time makes you feel guilty,
00:13:37 --> 00:13:40 I guess that's okay.
00:13:42 --> 00:13:43 Because you are guilty.
00:13:46 --> 00:13:48 But you need to understand,
00:13:49 --> 00:13:51 there is no standard to meet
00:13:51 --> 00:13:52 if you're going to be loved by God.
00:13:53 --> 00:13:55 The fact that you don't deserve God's love
00:13:55 --> 00:13:57 doesn't actually disqualify you from it.
00:13:58 --> 00:13:59 There's no entry requirements.
00:13:59 --> 00:14:00 Just stop running
00:14:00 --> 00:14:02 and ask God for his mercy.
00:14:04 --> 00:14:06 There were probably nicer, better people
00:14:06 --> 00:14:08 than the thief and the soldiers on that day.
00:14:09 --> 00:14:10 But they were the ones who said,
00:14:10 --> 00:14:12 God, I want the love that you're offering.
00:14:15 --> 00:14:17 God's love isn't his way of saying,
00:14:17 --> 00:14:18 look, let's forget about
00:14:18 --> 00:14:19 some of the rough edges in your life.
00:14:19 --> 00:14:21 Let's pretend they never happened.
00:14:21 --> 00:14:22 He's not looking at you
00:14:22 --> 00:14:24 through rose-colored glasses.
00:14:26 --> 00:14:28 Easter is God saying,
00:14:28 --> 00:14:30 I know the worst bits about you.
00:14:31 --> 00:14:32 And I love you anyway.
00:14:36 --> 00:14:38 But more than that,
00:14:39 --> 00:14:42 the second thing that God says to you at Easter
00:14:42 --> 00:14:44 is look at how I love you.
00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 Because just love in itself
00:14:47 --> 00:14:49 might actually just add to the guilt.
00:14:51 --> 00:14:54 I mean, the idea of love sounds fantastic,
00:14:54 --> 00:14:55 but maybe that's not enough
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 if you're feeling guilty.
00:14:56 --> 00:15:01 I believe it was a few months ago
00:15:01 --> 00:15:02 that some hackers
00:15:02 --> 00:15:05 cracked the internet site
00:15:05 --> 00:15:07 Ashley Madison.
00:15:08 --> 00:15:09 It's a site that exists
00:15:09 --> 00:15:12 to facilitate extramarital affairs
00:15:12 --> 00:15:13 discreetly.
00:15:15 --> 00:15:16 Some hackers decided
00:15:16 --> 00:15:18 that they would go in
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 and take the database of members
00:15:19 --> 00:15:20 from that site
00:15:20 --> 00:15:21 and make it public.
00:15:22 --> 00:15:24 The result being that
00:15:24 --> 00:15:25 thousands and thousands
00:15:25 --> 00:15:26 of marriages
00:15:26 --> 00:15:28 were thrown into disarray
00:15:28 --> 00:15:28 when suddenly
00:15:28 --> 00:15:30 the infidelity of one partner
00:15:30 --> 00:15:31 became public.
00:15:34 --> 00:15:36 The awkwardness of this,
00:15:36 --> 00:15:37 it even resulted in instances
00:15:37 --> 00:15:39 of some people committing suicide
00:15:39 --> 00:15:40 because they couldn't deal
00:15:40 --> 00:15:40 with the guilt.
00:15:41 --> 00:15:42 And I read one story
00:15:42 --> 00:15:43 of a wife
00:15:43 --> 00:15:44 whose husband
00:15:44 --> 00:15:45 had committed suicide
00:15:45 --> 00:15:46 and her devastation was
00:15:46 --> 00:15:48 that she would have
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 worked through it with him.
00:15:50 --> 00:15:52 She would have continued
00:15:52 --> 00:15:52 to love him.
00:15:54 --> 00:15:55 But can you understand
00:15:55 --> 00:15:57 that the awkwardness
00:15:57 --> 00:15:58 in a scenario like that
00:15:58 --> 00:15:59 is that even though
00:15:59 --> 00:16:02 one party has been unfaithful
00:16:02 --> 00:16:02 and the other party
00:16:02 --> 00:16:03 has said I'm willing
00:16:03 --> 00:16:04 to keep loving you,
00:16:05 --> 00:16:08 the unworthiness of the love
00:16:08 --> 00:16:09 that this cheating partner
00:16:09 --> 00:16:10 is receiving
00:16:10 --> 00:16:11 almost makes the love
00:16:11 --> 00:16:12 hurtful.
00:16:13 --> 00:16:15 It almost makes you feel worse
00:16:15 --> 00:16:16 because you know
00:16:16 --> 00:16:17 you don't deserve
00:16:17 --> 00:16:18 to be treated this way
00:16:18 --> 00:16:19 because that's not the love
00:16:19 --> 00:16:19 you've been giving.
00:16:20 --> 00:16:21 And so it could be
00:16:21 --> 00:16:22 that you hear God is loving
00:16:22 --> 00:16:23 and it's not that you haven't
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 heard that message
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 but really it just makes
00:16:25 --> 00:16:26 you feel worse.
00:16:27 --> 00:16:28 You hear that Jesus
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 loved you so much
00:16:29 --> 00:16:31 he died on the cross
00:16:31 --> 00:16:32 and if anything
00:16:32 --> 00:16:32 you're like
00:16:32 --> 00:16:34 stop telling me that
00:16:34 --> 00:16:37 because he would love me
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 that much
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 while I'm over here
00:16:39 --> 00:16:39 treating him like
00:16:39 --> 00:16:40 he doesn't matter.
00:16:40 --> 00:16:41 If anything it might
00:16:41 --> 00:16:42 just heap guilt on you.
00:16:45 --> 00:16:46 But Easter isn't just
00:16:46 --> 00:16:48 God saying he loves you.
00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 It's showing you
00:16:49 --> 00:16:50 how his love
00:16:50 --> 00:16:52 fixes that issue.
00:16:53 --> 00:16:54 God's love
00:16:54 --> 00:16:55 is more than just
00:16:55 --> 00:16:55 some feeling
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 or some sentiment.
00:16:57 --> 00:16:58 The cross is not
00:16:58 --> 00:16:59 some masochistic
00:16:59 --> 00:17:00 bunch of flowers
00:17:00 --> 00:17:03 or hallmark card.
00:17:04 --> 00:17:05 It's effective.
00:17:06 --> 00:17:07 It works.
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 It does something.
00:17:09 --> 00:17:10 In the Old Testament
00:17:10 --> 00:17:11 in the book of Isaiah
00:17:11 --> 00:17:12 written a long time
00:17:12 --> 00:17:13 before Jesus turned up
00:17:13 --> 00:17:14 God promised
00:17:14 --> 00:17:15 that he would provide
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 a saviour
00:17:16 --> 00:17:17 to deal with that issue
00:17:17 --> 00:17:17 that gap.
00:17:19 --> 00:17:19 And the way
00:17:19 --> 00:17:20 that saviour
00:17:20 --> 00:17:21 would save us
00:17:21 --> 00:17:23 was through an exchange.
00:17:23 --> 00:17:24 Now let me read it to you
00:17:24 --> 00:17:26 from Isaiah 53
00:17:26 --> 00:17:27 it'll be on the screen.
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 He grew up before him
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 like a tender shoot
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 this is describing Jesus
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 and like a root
00:17:32 --> 00:17:33 out of dry ground
00:17:33 --> 00:17:34 he had no beauty
00:17:34 --> 00:17:35 or majesty
00:17:35 --> 00:17:36 to attract us to him
00:17:36 --> 00:17:38 nothing in his appearance
00:17:38 --> 00:17:39 that we should desire him.
00:17:40 --> 00:17:41 He was despised
00:17:41 --> 00:17:42 and rejected
00:17:42 --> 00:17:43 by mankind
00:17:43 --> 00:17:45 a man of suffering
00:17:45 --> 00:17:46 and familiar with pain
00:17:46 --> 00:17:47 like one
00:17:47 --> 00:17:48 from whom people
00:17:48 --> 00:17:49 hide their faces.
00:17:49 --> 00:17:51 he was despised
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 and we held him
00:17:52 --> 00:17:53 in lower seam.
00:17:55 --> 00:17:56 Surely he took up
00:17:56 --> 00:17:57 our pain
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 and bore
00:17:58 --> 00:17:59 our suffering
00:17:59 --> 00:18:01 yet we considered
00:18:01 --> 00:18:02 him punished
00:18:02 --> 00:18:02 by God
00:18:02 --> 00:18:03 stricken by him
00:18:03 --> 00:18:04 and afflicted
00:18:04 --> 00:18:06 but he was pierced
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 for our transgression
00:18:07 --> 00:18:08 he was crushed
00:18:08 --> 00:18:09 for our iniquity
00:18:09 --> 00:18:10 the punishment
00:18:10 --> 00:18:11 that brought us
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 peace was on him
00:18:12 --> 00:18:14 and by his wounds
00:18:14 --> 00:18:15 we are healed.
00:18:16 --> 00:18:16 What happens
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 in the cross
00:18:17 --> 00:18:17 is that
00:18:17 --> 00:18:19 that all the things
00:18:19 --> 00:18:19 that are part
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 of our life
00:18:20 --> 00:18:20 and our character
00:18:20 --> 00:18:21 and our values
00:18:21 --> 00:18:22 and our actions
00:18:22 --> 00:18:23 and our thoughts
00:18:23 --> 00:18:24 and part of us
00:18:24 --> 00:18:25 that in any way
00:18:25 --> 00:18:27 draw the just
00:18:27 --> 00:18:28 judgment of God
00:18:28 --> 00:18:31 it is completely
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 transferred
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 to Jesus.
00:18:35 --> 00:18:36 When we look at him
00:18:36 --> 00:18:36 on the cross
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 as an innocent man
00:18:37 --> 00:18:39 we look rightly
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 but what we need
00:18:40 --> 00:18:41 to look harder
00:18:41 --> 00:18:41 and see
00:18:41 --> 00:18:43 is the reason
00:18:43 --> 00:18:43 he's there
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 is not just
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 to do something
00:18:45 --> 00:18:45 dramatic
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 as an innocent person
00:18:46 --> 00:18:48 but so that
00:18:48 --> 00:18:48 the punishment
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 we deserve
00:18:49 --> 00:18:49 can actually
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 be given.
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 God can't just
00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 shrug his shoulders
00:18:53 --> 00:18:54 he can't just
00:18:54 --> 00:18:55 let us off.
00:18:57 --> 00:18:58 What we have done
00:18:58 --> 00:18:59 deserves to be punished
00:18:59 --> 00:19:01 and what Jesus does
00:19:01 --> 00:19:02 is absorb
00:19:02 --> 00:19:03 that punishment.
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 The forgiveness
00:19:06 --> 00:19:07 that God offers
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 isn't a
00:19:08 --> 00:19:09 let's forget
00:19:09 --> 00:19:09 what you've done
00:19:09 --> 00:19:11 it's a
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 let me pay for it
00:19:12 --> 00:19:14 let me cover
00:19:14 --> 00:19:15 it over
00:19:15 --> 00:19:16 let me atone
00:19:16 --> 00:19:17 for it
00:19:17 --> 00:19:20 he takes on him
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 every bit of you
00:19:21 --> 00:19:22 that is unworthy
00:19:22 --> 00:19:23 of God
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 and his love
00:19:24 --> 00:19:27 and not just
00:19:27 --> 00:19:27 takes it
00:19:27 --> 00:19:30 but exhausts it
00:19:30 --> 00:19:31 satisfies it
00:19:31 --> 00:19:33 absorbs it
00:19:33 --> 00:19:34 deals with it
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 finishes it
00:19:35 --> 00:19:37 Easter
00:19:37 --> 00:19:38 isn't just
00:19:38 --> 00:19:38 God
00:19:38 --> 00:19:38 saying
00:19:38 --> 00:19:39 he loves
00:19:39 --> 00:19:39 you
00:19:39 --> 00:19:42 but it's
00:19:42 --> 00:19:42 God saying
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 my love
00:19:43 --> 00:19:43 is enough
00:19:43 --> 00:19:46 for every bit
00:19:46 --> 00:19:47 of you
00:19:47 --> 00:19:48 it's God
00:19:48 --> 00:19:48 saying
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 if you would
00:19:49 --> 00:19:50 just
00:19:50 --> 00:19:51 accept
00:19:51 --> 00:19:51 my love
00:19:51 --> 00:19:52 if you would
00:19:52 --> 00:19:52 just
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 ask for
00:19:53 --> 00:19:53 my mercy
00:19:53 --> 00:19:55 then you
00:19:55 --> 00:19:55 would never
00:19:55 --> 00:19:56 be unloved
00:19:56 --> 00:19:59 it's God
00:19:59 --> 00:19:59 saying
00:19:59 --> 00:20:00 the death
00:20:00 --> 00:20:01 of the
00:20:01 --> 00:20:01 God
00:20:01 --> 00:20:01 man
00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 of Jesus
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 is sufficient
00:20:03 --> 00:20:04 for everything
00:20:04 --> 00:20:05 you've ever
00:20:05 --> 00:20:05 done
00:20:05 --> 00:20:05 or will
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 do
00:20:06 --> 00:20:09 and so
00:20:09 --> 00:20:11 guilt's
00:20:11 --> 00:20:11 not there
00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 anymore
00:20:12 --> 00:20:14 even if you
00:20:14 --> 00:20:14 make mistakes
00:20:14 --> 00:20:15 in the future
00:20:15 --> 00:20:17 Jesus' death
00:20:17 --> 00:20:18 in your place
00:20:18 --> 00:20:19 is enough
00:20:19 --> 00:20:21 Easter is not
00:20:21 --> 00:20:21 a time
00:20:21 --> 00:20:22 to feel guilty
00:20:22 --> 00:20:23 there is a
00:20:23 --> 00:20:24 weight and a
00:20:24 --> 00:20:25 gravity about
00:20:25 --> 00:20:25 Good Friday
00:20:25 --> 00:20:26 but it's not
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 a time for
00:20:27 --> 00:20:27 guilt
00:20:27 --> 00:20:29 today is the
00:20:29 --> 00:20:29 day that we
00:20:29 --> 00:20:30 remember and
00:20:30 --> 00:20:30 celebrate
00:20:30 --> 00:20:31 that God
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 offers freedom
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 from guilt
00:20:33 --> 00:20:35 forgiveness
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 from sin
00:20:36 --> 00:20:38 love
00:20:38 --> 00:20:40 unconditional
00:20:40 --> 00:20:41 unending
00:20:41 --> 00:20:45 please hear
00:20:45 --> 00:20:45 God today
00:20:45 --> 00:20:48 as you are
00:20:48 --> 00:20:48 right now
00:20:48 --> 00:20:50 no changes
00:20:50 --> 00:20:52 no improvements
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 no adjustments
00:20:53 --> 00:20:53 as you are
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 right now
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 God says
00:20:55 --> 00:20:56 I love you
00:20:56 --> 00:20:59 that's why
00:20:59 --> 00:20:59 Jesus came
00:20:59 --> 00:21:00 that's why
00:21:00 --> 00:21:01 he died
00:21:01 --> 00:21:02 so that you
00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 could know
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 God loves
00:21:04 --> 00:21:04 you
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 so that you
00:21:05 --> 00:21:05 could have
00:21:05 --> 00:21:06 confidence
00:21:06 --> 00:21:07 that in spite
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 of who you
00:21:08 --> 00:21:08 are God
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 will keep
00:21:09 --> 00:21:09 loving you
00:21:09 --> 00:21:12 but one last
00:21:12 --> 00:21:12 thing
00:21:12 --> 00:21:15 this isn't
00:21:15 --> 00:21:17 some transaction
00:21:17 --> 00:21:17 going on
00:21:17 --> 00:21:19 it might all
00:21:19 --> 00:21:19 sound a bit
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 mechanical
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 so ours goes
00:21:21 --> 00:21:21 over here
00:21:21 --> 00:21:22 dealt with
00:21:22 --> 00:21:22 we're good
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 ticket to heaven
00:21:23 --> 00:21:24 fantastic
00:21:24 --> 00:21:28 might sound
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 like we get
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 this little
00:21:29 --> 00:21:30 bit of God's
00:21:30 --> 00:21:30 love to be
00:21:30 --> 00:21:31 forgiven
00:21:31 --> 00:21:31 we look
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 forward to
00:21:32 --> 00:21:32 heaven and
00:21:32 --> 00:21:32 then we've
00:21:32 --> 00:21:33 got this
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 earth waiting
00:21:34 --> 00:21:34 room
00:21:34 --> 00:21:37 and maybe
00:21:37 --> 00:21:37 there's some
00:21:37 --> 00:21:38 half truth
00:21:38 --> 00:21:38 there
00:21:38 --> 00:21:41 but the cross
00:21:41 --> 00:21:41 means more
00:21:41 --> 00:21:42 than that
00:21:42 --> 00:21:43 God's love
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 is bigger
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 than just a
00:21:45 --> 00:21:45 tick on your
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 report card
00:21:46 --> 00:21:47 and something
00:21:47 --> 00:21:47 to look forward
00:21:47 --> 00:21:48 to in the
00:21:48 --> 00:21:48 future
00:21:48 --> 00:21:50 remember that
00:21:50 --> 00:21:50 the whole
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 point of
00:21:51 --> 00:21:53 Easter is
00:21:53 --> 00:21:53 that we
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 might see
00:21:54 --> 00:21:54 what God
00:21:54 --> 00:21:55 is
00:21:55 --> 00:21:56 see how
00:21:56 --> 00:21:56 he works
00:21:56 --> 00:21:57 see what
00:21:57 --> 00:21:57 he's like
00:21:57 --> 00:21:59 being loved
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 by God
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 is not so
00:22:01 --> 00:22:02 much about
00:22:02 --> 00:22:03 the love
00:22:03 --> 00:22:04 that God
00:22:04 --> 00:22:04 gives
00:22:04 --> 00:22:06 it's about
00:22:06 --> 00:22:06 the God
00:22:06 --> 00:22:07 who gives
00:22:07 --> 00:22:08 that love
00:22:08 --> 00:22:09 that's what
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 Easter is about
00:22:10 --> 00:22:10 that's what
00:22:10 --> 00:22:11 the barrier
00:22:11 --> 00:22:11 of us not
00:22:11 --> 00:22:12 being good
00:22:12 --> 00:22:12 enough and
00:22:12 --> 00:22:13 God being
00:22:13 --> 00:22:13 perfect
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 that's the
00:22:14 --> 00:22:14 problem
00:22:14 --> 00:22:16 that we're
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 not connected
00:22:17 --> 00:22:18 to him
00:22:18 --> 00:22:18 that we can't
00:22:18 --> 00:22:19 relate to him
00:22:19 --> 00:22:20 that we can't
00:22:20 --> 00:22:21 talk to him
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 that we can't
00:22:22 --> 00:22:22 depend on him
00:22:22 --> 00:22:24 Jesus death
00:22:24 --> 00:22:25 in our place
00:22:25 --> 00:22:26 doesn't unlock
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 a fix of love
00:22:27 --> 00:22:27 it doesn't give
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 you a shot in
00:22:28 --> 00:22:28 the arm to
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 make you feel
00:22:29 --> 00:22:29 better about
00:22:29 --> 00:22:30 yourself and
00:22:30 --> 00:22:30 so that you
00:22:30 --> 00:22:31 don't have to
00:22:31 --> 00:22:32 fear hell
00:22:32 --> 00:22:35 Jesus death
00:22:35 --> 00:22:35 on the cross
00:22:35 --> 00:22:36 actually takes
00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 you from being
00:22:37 --> 00:22:38 far away from
00:22:38 --> 00:22:38 God the Bible
00:22:38 --> 00:22:39 even says being
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 an enemy of
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 God and
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 draws you into
00:22:42 --> 00:22:43 a relationship
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 with him where
00:22:44 --> 00:22:44 you are a
00:22:44 --> 00:22:46 precious child
00:22:46 --> 00:22:48 where you are
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 immovably
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 brought into
00:22:50 --> 00:22:50 the family
00:22:50 --> 00:22:52 loved
00:22:52 --> 00:22:54 protected
00:22:54 --> 00:22:55 provided for
00:22:55 --> 00:22:58 Jesus love
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 isn't a fix
00:22:59 --> 00:23:01 it's a
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 foundation for
00:23:02 --> 00:23:02 life
00:23:02 --> 00:23:05 I remember
00:23:05 --> 00:23:05 as a kid
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 growing up
00:23:06 --> 00:23:06 I used to
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 sometimes question
00:23:07 --> 00:23:07 my parents
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 love for me
00:23:08 --> 00:23:10 in the little
00:23:10 --> 00:23:10 things
00:23:10 --> 00:23:12 they would do
00:23:12 --> 00:23:13 big things
00:23:13 --> 00:23:13 for me
00:23:13 --> 00:23:14 they would
00:23:14 --> 00:23:14 look after me
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 they would
00:23:15 --> 00:23:15 provide food
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 for me
00:23:16 --> 00:23:16 they would
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 take me to
00:23:17 --> 00:23:17 school
00:23:17 --> 00:23:17 they would
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 support me
00:23:18 --> 00:23:18 and encourage
00:23:18 --> 00:23:19 me in
00:23:19 --> 00:23:19 whatever I was
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 doing
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 but oh
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 horror
00:23:22 --> 00:23:22 sometimes they
00:23:22 --> 00:23:23 would deny
00:23:23 --> 00:23:24 me McDonald's
00:23:24 --> 00:23:26 and in
00:23:26 --> 00:23:27 anguish
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 sometimes in
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 tears I'm not
00:23:29 --> 00:23:30 embarrassed to
00:23:30 --> 00:23:30 admit
00:23:30 --> 00:23:32 I would wonder
00:23:32 --> 00:23:32 whether they
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 still loved me
00:23:33 --> 00:23:36 I would sit
00:23:36 --> 00:23:37 in my room
00:23:37 --> 00:23:37 reflective
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 angry
00:23:38 --> 00:23:39 mopey
00:23:39 --> 00:23:40 thinking how
00:23:40 --> 00:23:40 could they
00:23:40 --> 00:23:41 possibly love
00:23:41 --> 00:23:41 me and deny
00:23:41 --> 00:23:42 me something
00:23:42 --> 00:23:44 so amazing
00:23:44 --> 00:23:46 and as I
00:23:46 --> 00:23:47 grew and
00:23:47 --> 00:23:47 matured
00:23:47 --> 00:23:48 ever so
00:23:48 --> 00:23:48 slightly
00:23:48 --> 00:23:50 I began
00:23:50 --> 00:23:51 to realise
00:23:51 --> 00:23:51 that
00:23:51 --> 00:23:53 the costly
00:23:53 --> 00:23:54 ways that
00:23:54 --> 00:23:54 they loved
00:23:54 --> 00:23:55 me
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 the big
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 things that
00:23:57 --> 00:23:57 they did
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 in my
00:23:58 --> 00:23:58 life
00:23:58 --> 00:23:59 at their
00:23:59 --> 00:23:59 own
00:23:59 --> 00:24:00 expense
00:24:00 --> 00:24:00 gave
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 context
00:24:01 --> 00:24:02 to the
00:24:02 --> 00:24:02 little
00:24:02 --> 00:24:03 ways they
00:24:03 --> 00:24:03 loved me
00:24:03 --> 00:24:03 that I
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 didn't
00:24:04 --> 00:24:04 understand
00:24:04 --> 00:24:07 it was
00:24:07 --> 00:24:07 out of
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 love for
00:24:08 --> 00:24:08 me
00:24:08 --> 00:24:09 that they
00:24:09 --> 00:24:09 didn't
00:24:09 --> 00:24:09 allow me
00:24:09 --> 00:24:09 to eat
00:24:09 --> 00:24:10 McDonald's
00:24:10 --> 00:24:10 every day
00:24:10 --> 00:24:11 and it's
00:24:11 --> 00:24:11 out of
00:24:11 --> 00:24:11 love for
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 me that
00:24:12 --> 00:24:12 they
00:24:12 --> 00:24:12 discouraged
00:24:12 --> 00:24:12 my
00:24:12 --> 00:24:13 habit at
00:24:13 --> 00:24:13 the
00:24:13 --> 00:24:13 moment
00:24:13 --> 00:24:16 but in
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 that moment
00:24:17 --> 00:24:17 I didn't
00:24:17 --> 00:24:17 understand
00:24:17 --> 00:24:18 it
00:24:18 --> 00:24:18 it wasn't
00:24:18 --> 00:24:18 until
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 I was
00:24:19 --> 00:24:20 that little
00:24:20 --> 00:24:20 bit
00:24:20 --> 00:24:20 older
00:24:20 --> 00:24:20 and could
00:24:20 --> 00:24:20 actually
00:24:20 --> 00:24:21 look at
00:24:21 --> 00:24:21 the big
00:24:21 --> 00:24:22 things they
00:24:22 --> 00:24:22 done in
00:24:22 --> 00:24:22 my life
00:24:22 --> 00:24:23 the sacrifices
00:24:23 --> 00:24:24 they made
00:24:24 --> 00:24:24 so that I
00:24:24 --> 00:24:25 could do
00:24:25 --> 00:24:25 what I
00:24:25 --> 00:24:26 needed to
00:24:26 --> 00:24:26 do
00:24:26 --> 00:24:26 that I
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 suddenly
00:24:27 --> 00:24:27 realised
00:24:27 --> 00:24:27 that even
00:24:27 --> 00:24:28 though I
00:24:28 --> 00:24:28 don't get
00:24:28 --> 00:24:28 it
00:24:28 --> 00:24:29 even though it
00:24:29 --> 00:24:29 doesn't make
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 sense to me
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 they're actually
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 probably loving
00:24:32 --> 00:24:32 me there
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 because it
00:24:33 --> 00:24:33 would be
00:24:33 --> 00:24:33 ridiculous
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 for them
00:24:34 --> 00:24:34 to do
00:24:34 --> 00:24:34 something
00:24:34 --> 00:24:35 that costs
00:24:35 --> 00:24:36 them and is
00:24:36 --> 00:24:36 painful for
00:24:36 --> 00:24:37 them out of
00:24:37 --> 00:24:37 love
00:24:37 --> 00:24:39 and then to
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 withhold something
00:24:40 --> 00:24:40 small and
00:24:40 --> 00:24:41 insignificant like
00:24:41 --> 00:24:42 a five dollar
00:24:42 --> 00:24:43 McDonald's meal
00:24:43 --> 00:24:45 just to
00:24:45 --> 00:24:45 spite me
00:24:45 --> 00:24:49 the New
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 Testament tells
00:24:50 --> 00:24:50 us in
00:24:50 --> 00:24:50 Romans chapter
00:24:50 --> 00:24:51 8 it's on
00:24:51 --> 00:24:52 the screen
00:24:52 --> 00:24:53 he who did
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 not spare his
00:24:54 --> 00:24:56 own son but
00:24:56 --> 00:24:56 gave him up for
00:24:56 --> 00:24:58 us all how
00:24:58 --> 00:24:59 will he not
00:24:59 --> 00:25:00 also along
00:25:00 --> 00:25:00 with him
00:25:00 --> 00:25:02 graciously give
00:25:02 --> 00:25:02 us all
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 things
00:25:03 --> 00:25:09 he who did
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 not spare his
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 own son
00:25:11 --> 00:25:13 God who
00:25:13 --> 00:25:13 was willing
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 to send
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 Jesus to
00:25:15 --> 00:25:15 the cross
00:25:15 --> 00:25:17 put him to
00:25:17 --> 00:25:17 that through
00:25:17 --> 00:25:18 the anguish
00:25:18 --> 00:25:19 of absorbing
00:25:19 --> 00:25:19 our punishment
00:25:19 --> 00:25:21 when that
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 becomes the
00:25:22 --> 00:25:22 baseline of
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 the way that
00:25:23 --> 00:25:24 God loves
00:25:24 --> 00:25:25 us we
00:25:25 --> 00:25:25 can be
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 confident that
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 there is no
00:25:27 --> 00:25:28 moment no
00:25:28 --> 00:25:29 circumstance
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 no difficulty
00:25:30 --> 00:25:31 no struggle
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 no joy
00:25:32 --> 00:25:33 where God
00:25:33 --> 00:25:33 is not
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 actively
00:25:34 --> 00:25:34 loving us
00:25:34 --> 00:25:37 what Easter
00:25:37 --> 00:25:38 does is not
00:25:38 --> 00:25:39 just give you
00:25:39 --> 00:25:39 the tick of
00:25:39 --> 00:25:40 forgiveness
00:25:40 --> 00:25:40 although that
00:25:40 --> 00:25:41 is incredible
00:25:41 --> 00:25:43 what Easter
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 does is not
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 just give you
00:25:45 --> 00:25:45 the guarantee
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 of heaven in
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 the future
00:25:47 --> 00:25:47 although that
00:25:47 --> 00:25:48 is overwhelming
00:25:48 --> 00:25:52 what God
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 does in the
00:25:53 --> 00:25:53 cross is give
00:25:53 --> 00:25:54 you the
00:25:54 --> 00:25:55 baseline for
00:25:55 --> 00:25:55 his love
00:25:55 --> 00:25:57 he gives
00:25:57 --> 00:25:58 you the
00:25:58 --> 00:25:59 biggest thing
00:25:59 --> 00:26:00 the most
00:26:00 --> 00:26:01 costly thing
00:26:01 --> 00:26:04 so that even
00:26:04 --> 00:26:04 in struggle
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 you can say
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 even though I
00:26:06 --> 00:26:06 don't get it
00:26:06 --> 00:26:08 I know that
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 God would not
00:26:09 --> 00:26:10 withhold something
00:26:10 --> 00:26:10 good for me
00:26:10 --> 00:26:13 even though he
00:26:13 --> 00:26:14 might not be
00:26:14 --> 00:26:14 making me better
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 quick enough
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 for me
00:26:16 --> 00:26:17 even though he
00:26:17 --> 00:26:18 may not be
00:26:18 --> 00:26:18 giving me a
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 job quick
00:26:19 --> 00:26:19 enough
00:26:19 --> 00:26:21 even though he
00:26:21 --> 00:26:21 may not be
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 solving my
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 financial struggles
00:26:23 --> 00:26:23 quick enough
00:26:23 --> 00:26:25 even though he
00:26:25 --> 00:26:25 may not be
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 settling my
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 anxiety quick
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 enough
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 even though he
00:26:28 --> 00:26:28 may not be
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 providing the
00:26:29 --> 00:26:29 partner that I
00:26:29 --> 00:26:30 desperately want
00:26:30 --> 00:26:31 quick enough
00:26:31 --> 00:26:32 or even at
00:26:32 --> 00:26:32 all
00:26:32 --> 00:26:37 I know he
00:26:37 --> 00:26:38 still loves me
00:26:38 --> 00:26:39 because the
00:26:39 --> 00:26:40 baseline is he
00:26:40 --> 00:26:41 gave me the
00:26:41 --> 00:26:42 biggest best
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 most costly
00:26:43 --> 00:26:44 thing first
00:26:44 --> 00:26:47 so how would
00:26:47 --> 00:26:47 he not also
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 give me every
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 other good
00:26:48 --> 00:26:49 thing for me
00:26:49 --> 00:26:50 out of love
00:26:50 --> 00:26:52 what Easter
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 does what the
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 cross does
00:26:54 --> 00:26:57 is gives us a
00:26:57 --> 00:26:58 foundation for
00:26:58 --> 00:26:58 life
00:26:58 --> 00:27:02 because of
00:27:02 --> 00:27:02 Jesus you can
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 know that God
00:27:03 --> 00:27:05 loves you even
00:27:05 --> 00:27:05 though you don't
00:27:05 --> 00:27:06 deserve it
00:27:06 --> 00:27:09 and you don't
00:27:09 --> 00:27:09 have to spend
00:27:09 --> 00:27:10 your life feeling
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 guilty about that
00:27:11 --> 00:27:11 because he's
00:27:11 --> 00:27:12 wiped away the
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 guilt he's
00:27:13 --> 00:27:14 paid the debt
00:27:14 --> 00:27:14 it's done
00:27:14 --> 00:27:15 there's no point
00:27:15 --> 00:27:15 dragging it back
00:27:15 --> 00:27:16 out it's been
00:27:16 --> 00:27:17 pushed to the
00:27:17 --> 00:27:17 side Jesus has
00:27:17 --> 00:27:18 said it's
00:27:18 --> 00:27:20 finished and so
00:27:20 --> 00:27:20 you can bask in
00:27:20 --> 00:27:21 the love of God
00:27:21 --> 00:27:24 confidently you
00:27:24 --> 00:27:25 can know that his
00:27:25 --> 00:27:26 love is sufficient
00:27:26 --> 00:27:27 for even now when
00:27:27 --> 00:27:31 you fail and you
00:27:31 --> 00:27:31 can know that his
00:27:31 --> 00:27:32 love is limitless
00:27:32 --> 00:27:35 because the God
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 who created
00:27:36 --> 00:27:38 everything has
00:27:38 --> 00:27:39 already given his
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 best gift to
00:27:40 --> 00:27:42 you his most
00:27:42 --> 00:27:43 costly gift to
00:27:43 --> 00:27:46 you and so in
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 any situation
00:27:47 --> 00:27:49 no matter how
00:27:49 --> 00:27:51 painful and
00:27:51 --> 00:27:52 there will still
00:27:52 --> 00:27:52 be painful
00:27:52 --> 00:27:55 situations you
00:27:55 --> 00:27:55 can know that
00:27:55 --> 00:27:56 God is loving
00:27:56 --> 00:27:58 you then because
00:27:58 --> 00:28:00 of Jesus even
00:28:00 --> 00:28:01 if you don't
00:28:01 --> 00:28:01 understand it you
00:28:01 --> 00:28:03 can look and
00:28:03 --> 00:28:03 say I know he
00:28:03 --> 00:28:05 loves me because
00:28:05 --> 00:28:05 he's already given
00:28:05 --> 00:28:08 me his best there
00:28:08 --> 00:28:09 is nothing he
00:28:09 --> 00:28:10 would withhold from
00:28:10 --> 00:28:11 those who are his
00:28:11 --> 00:28:11 precious children
00:28:11 --> 00:28:15 I don't know why
00:28:15 --> 00:28:15 you came today
00:28:15 --> 00:28:18 I don't know what
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 Easter meant for
00:28:19 --> 00:28:19 you when you
00:28:19 --> 00:28:20 walked in the door
00:28:20 --> 00:28:22 but I really pray
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 that today you
00:28:23 --> 00:28:24 hear and believe
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 God's words to
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 you
00:28:26 --> 00:28:29 he says I love
00:28:29 --> 00:28:31 you just as you
00:28:31 --> 00:28:31 are
00:28:31 --> 00:28:34 no conditions
00:28:34 --> 00:28:35 no strings
00:28:35 --> 00:28:35 attached
00:28:35 --> 00:28:37 my love is
00:28:37 --> 00:28:38 enough to deal
00:28:38 --> 00:28:39 with anything you
00:28:39 --> 00:28:39 have done or
00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 will do
00:28:40 --> 00:28:44 and my love for
00:28:44 --> 00:28:44 you is
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 unconditional
00:28:45 --> 00:28:47 undeserved
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 unlimited
00:28:48 --> 00:28:50 and unending
00:28:50 --> 00:28:53 I pray that
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 today you might
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 taste and feel
00:28:55 --> 00:28:55 that kind of love
00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 for you
00:28:56 --> 00:28:59 and have your
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 whole life
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 transformed by
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 it
00:29:02 --> 00:29:05 let's pray
00:29:05 --> 00:29:10 father God we
00:29:10 --> 00:29:11 want to thank you
00:29:11 --> 00:29:11 for Jesus
00:29:11 --> 00:29:14 we want to thank
00:29:14 --> 00:29:14 you that even
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 though we don't
00:29:15 --> 00:29:15 deserve it you
00:29:15 --> 00:29:16 were willing to
00:29:16 --> 00:29:17 go to incredible
00:29:17 --> 00:29:17 lengths that we
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 might be confident
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 that your love is
00:29:19 --> 00:29:20 not just a
00:29:20 --> 00:29:20 sentiment it's an
00:29:20 --> 00:29:22 action it's
00:29:22 --> 00:29:23 sufficient
00:29:23 --> 00:29:25 God I pray that
00:29:25 --> 00:29:25 if there are
00:29:25 --> 00:29:26 people in this
00:29:26 --> 00:29:26 room now who
00:29:26 --> 00:29:27 maybe are following
00:29:27 --> 00:29:27 you but are
00:29:27 --> 00:29:28 wrestling with
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 doubts
00:29:29 --> 00:29:30 wrestling with
00:29:30 --> 00:29:30 their own
00:29:30 --> 00:29:32 failures may
00:29:32 --> 00:29:33 they know that
00:29:33 --> 00:29:33 your love is
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 enough
00:29:34 --> 00:29:36 there are people
00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 in this room
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 wrestling with
00:29:38 --> 00:29:39 the insecurity
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 or uncertainty
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 of circumstances
00:29:41 --> 00:29:42 in life may
00:29:42 --> 00:29:43 they see the
00:29:43 --> 00:29:45 cross as the
00:29:45 --> 00:29:46 guarantee that
00:29:46 --> 00:29:46 there is no
00:29:46 --> 00:29:47 limit to your
00:29:47 --> 00:29:47 love
00:29:47 --> 00:29:50 if there are
00:29:50 --> 00:29:51 people in this
00:29:51 --> 00:29:52 room who don't
00:29:52 --> 00:29:52 yet know what
00:29:52 --> 00:29:53 it is to be
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 loved like that
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 I pray that
00:29:55 --> 00:29:56 today might be
00:29:56 --> 00:29:56 the day where
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 like the thief
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 they ask for
00:29:58 --> 00:29:58 mercy
00:29:58 --> 00:30:00 and they
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 taste and
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 experience your
00:30:02 --> 00:30:03 perfect love
00:30:03 --> 00:30:05 Amen
00:30:05 --> 00:30:07 beautiful
00:30:07 --> 00:30:07 Amen
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 ippa