RESURRECTION FAITH
Acts 2:14a, 22-32
I Peter 1:3-9
In the movie, "UP," we see Carl's front door door and listen as he unlocks, one by one, six locks follwed by the drawing of the chain bolt.
Carl is grieving the death of his wife, Ellie. He's angry -- Ellie is gone, the big city has grown up around his home, and the world as he knew it is gone.
I imagine the disciples felt much the same -- grieving and angry, and most certainly afraid. They had locked and bolted the door in the house where they were hiding out from the authorities after Jesus' death. If I had been there, I would have dragged out every piece of heavy furniture I could find and piled it in front of the door.
And then, Christ appeared to them on the evening of the day of his resurrection. A week later, he appeared again to them, challenging Thomas to unlock his own grieving heart and doubting mind to touch his wounded hands and side.
Forty days later, at the feast of Pentecost, Peter stood before the crowds and testified, "Listen, my fellow Israelites, even though you nailed Jesus of Nazareth to a cross and killed him, God raised him up! God's power freed him from the power of death -- Death is no match for Jesus!"
It was this confidence in the risen Christ, this resurrection faith that empowered the disciples to draw the bolt and unlock the door.
It was this resurarection faith that led them in obedience to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the promised Holy Spirit.
It was in this resurrection faith that the disciples went boldly into the streets to proclaim what they had all witnessed -- the risen Christ! From this resurrection faith, the church was born.
The chuch grew upon the power of the resurrected Christ, and new, living hope was given to humanity through Jesus Christ.
Yet, how easy it is for us to put our hope and confidence in people, organizations, wealth, ambition, status and power instead of Jesus. How easy it is sometimes to make the focus of our time and energy destructive forces like anger, unforgiveness and selfishness.
C.S. Lewis' book, The Great Divorce, is about the separation of humankind from God through sin. In it, a group of people from hell take a bus trip to heaven. One passenger is a woman who, in life, had placed all her devotion, hope, energy into her only son, instead of Christ.
In I Peter 2:9, it does say that we do receive the outcome of our faith.
It can happen even within the church. People forget that the church is not where we should place all our hope, energy, affection and confidence. Christ, not the church, is the source of our resurrection faith. The church is the vehicle for procliming the risen Christ.
I've seen fellow clergy fall into this trap. Everything they were and had went into the church and keeping their congregations comfortable and happy. It caused them and their families misery and brokeness. One colleague had a heart attack and almost died. She confessed that her mistake was in serving the church instead of serving Christ through the church and with the people.
Where do we put our faith and confidence? What outcomes are we experiencing in our lives? Is it new life and excitement about being Christians? Or are we closed, our lives locked tight against the working of God's grace?
When the Risen Christ is the source of our faith, we receive the salvation of our souls. When the Risen Christ comes into our hearts, we unlock the doors of our lives, and the outcomes of our resurrection faith are wholeness and transformation as we grow more like Christ, loving like Christ, and serving like Christ.
When the Risen Christ is the source of hope and confidence, the church grows on the power of God's grace. We unlock the doors and fling them wide. We take the chance to go out into the world and share our faith, inviting others to join us. We take the chance to go out and make a difference in our community, and even in the world.
We can take chances like this, because God has our back. Through the risen Christ, we live in hope, full of joy and excitement in his presence.
Just unlock the doors, and let him come in to reign supreme in our hearts and in our churches.
I Peter 1:3-9
In the movie, "UP," we see Carl's front door door and listen as he unlocks, one by one, six locks follwed by the drawing of the chain bolt.
Carl is grieving the death of his wife, Ellie. He's angry -- Ellie is gone, the big city has grown up around his home, and the world as he knew it is gone.
I imagine the disciples felt much the same -- grieving and angry, and most certainly afraid. They had locked and bolted the door in the house where they were hiding out from the authorities after Jesus' death. If I had been there, I would have dragged out every piece of heavy furniture I could find and piled it in front of the door.
And then, Christ appeared to them on the evening of the day of his resurrection. A week later, he appeared again to them, challenging Thomas to unlock his own grieving heart and doubting mind to touch his wounded hands and side.
Forty days later, at the feast of Pentecost, Peter stood before the crowds and testified, "Listen, my fellow Israelites, even though you nailed Jesus of Nazareth to a cross and killed him, God raised him up! God's power freed him from the power of death -- Death is no match for Jesus!"
It was this confidence in the risen Christ, this resurrection faith that empowered the disciples to draw the bolt and unlock the door.
It was this resurarection faith that led them in obedience to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the promised Holy Spirit.
It was in this resurrection faith that the disciples went boldly into the streets to proclaim what they had all witnessed -- the risen Christ! From this resurrection faith, the church was born.
The chuch grew upon the power of the resurrected Christ, and new, living hope was given to humanity through Jesus Christ.
Yet, how easy it is for us to put our hope and confidence in people, organizations, wealth, ambition, status and power instead of Jesus. How easy it is sometimes to make the focus of our time and energy destructive forces like anger, unforgiveness and selfishness.
C.S. Lewis' book, The Great Divorce, is about the separation of humankind from God through sin. In it, a group of people from hell take a bus trip to heaven. One passenger is a woman who, in life, had placed all her devotion, hope, energy into her only son, instead of Christ.
In I Peter 2:9, it does say that we do receive the outcome of our faith.
It can happen even within the church. People forget that the church is not where we should place all our hope, energy, affection and confidence. Christ, not the church, is the source of our resurrection faith. The church is the vehicle for procliming the risen Christ.
I've seen fellow clergy fall into this trap. Everything they were and had went into the church and keeping their congregations comfortable and happy. It caused them and their families misery and brokeness. One colleague had a heart attack and almost died. She confessed that her mistake was in serving the church instead of serving Christ through the church and with the people.
Where do we put our faith and confidence? What outcomes are we experiencing in our lives? Is it new life and excitement about being Christians? Or are we closed, our lives locked tight against the working of God's grace?
When the Risen Christ is the source of our faith, we receive the salvation of our souls. When the Risen Christ comes into our hearts, we unlock the doors of our lives, and the outcomes of our resurrection faith are wholeness and transformation as we grow more like Christ, loving like Christ, and serving like Christ.
When the Risen Christ is the source of hope and confidence, the church grows on the power of God's grace. We unlock the doors and fling them wide. We take the chance to go out into the world and share our faith, inviting others to join us. We take the chance to go out and make a difference in our community, and even in the world.
We can take chances like this, because God has our back. Through the risen Christ, we live in hope, full of joy and excitement in his presence.
Just unlock the doors, and let him come in to reign supreme in our hearts and in our churches.
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