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Main Theme: Easter – it makes Christianity different than all other world religions. Why? Christ’s death and resurrection was a gift of Grace! We are saved not through our works but through grace alone! The world says earn God’s favor – and that often appeals to us. But God’s love comes unconditionally and all we can do is reject it, but never earn it! Grace is the gift of a divine relationship with Jesus! Truth is, we are sinners, and yet, through Christ we are recreated! Our motive for serving Him is not in order to earn His love or favor, but because He already loves us! While there are many sad reactions to grace, including rejecting it, Easter is not about us, but it is about God! It is about a love we cannot earn nor deserve but receive anyway because of a grace-filled relationship with Jesus Christ!

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1) UNIQUE? At a comparative religions conference, wise and scholarly theologians were in a spirited debate about what is unique about Christianity. “Incarnation” and “resurrection” were concepts suggested as setting Christianity apart from other religions. But someone else quickly pointed out that God appearing in human form, and being raised from the dead occurs in other faiths too. When CS Lewis walked in and asked what all the rumpus was about – he was told “We’re debating what’s unique about Christianity.” “Oh, that’s easy,” answered Lewis. “It’s grace.”

2) GRACE! The room fell silent, as Lewis continued that Christianity uniquely claims God’s love comes free of charge, no strings attached. NO other religion makes that claim.” They thought it over and agreed - Buddhists, follow an eight-fold path to enlightenment. It’s not a free ride. Hindus believe in karma, that your actions continually affect the way the world will treat you; that there is nothing that comes to you not set in motion by your actions. Someone else observed the Jewish code of the law implies God has requirements for people to be acceptable to Him, and in Islam, God is a God of Judgment - not a God of love. You live to appease Him. At the end of the discussion everyone concluded Lewis had a point. Only Christianity dares to proclaim God’s love is unconditional. An unconditional love that we call grace. It has nothing to do with whether we deserve it or can earn God’s love or favor. Grace is all about God, and His freely giving to us the gifts of forgiveness, mercy, and love.

3) EARN IT! Today we celebrate Easter – because the events that lead to the empty tomb reflect a divine gift that reflects the heart of God – a gift of unconditional love called grace! Yet sadly enough, the world around us suggests the opposite. That God’s love is like all other worldly love – it must be earned. It is conditional. What you do will determine whether you receive it or not. After all, we told – nothing is truly free! Even God’s love! The world says “Earn it!” And you know what – that’s exactly what most people try to do. INCLUDING… many in the church! Did you know that according to George Barna’s in-depth research, most Americans, including many professing Christians, believe that people are inherently good and that their primary purpose is to enjoy life as much as possible. 55% of adults and 60% of young people believed that if a person is generally good or does enough good things for others during their life, that they will earn a place in heaven.

5) WE/US! Now before we frown too much about those 55-60%, let’s think back through our lives and ask ourselves – haven’t some of the most rewarding fulfilling times been when we heard those words of acceptance we all crave, “Good Job! Well done!” It means we earned someone’s praise or respect! A student takes “The National Merit Scholarship Exam,” scores high, and wins a college scholarship as the result, and we say “That student has earned the scholarship; he or she deserves it.” When we receive a pay check for our labor – it’s called a wage. When we compete and get a trophy, that is a prize. And when we receive recognition for our service or high achievements, that is an award. And we’ve grow to like wages and prizes and awards. Why? Because the focus is on us! On what we have done! On what we have accomplished! And so, when it comes to faith and religion and God, we assume that it works the same way: it’s up to us to earn God’s favor and love, and by racking up enough brownie points with the Man Upstairs, we can settle down in our easy chair and feel good about ourselves! We can place our ticket to heaven on the fireplace hearth next to our other well earned trophies!

5) SOMEONE! Problem is, salvation doesn’t work that way! As much as we may want to insist that God grade us each and every day, are we sure that’s what we really want? Because according to the scriptures, God doesn’t judge us like our math or English teacher did. (If you get 90% it’s an “A”, 80% - “B”, 70% - C, etc…) According to Genesis, God uses a pass/fail evaluation system. Only “Perfection” earns you God’s favor – only living 100% according to His will guarantees a heavenly position forever! But sin, and that means any one sin, separates us from God, and we’re told in Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death…” I don’t know about you, but I’m honest enough to know that while I don’t want to, I sin! Just ask my wife! And therefore I know what Romans 3:23 says is true, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Wow, if I can’t be perfect enough to earn my salvation – then should I despair and give up all hope? Heaven’s no! Because someone stepped forward and paid the penalty for my sins! Someone stepped forward and volunteered to suffer and die in my place. Someone did for me what I cannot do for myself, wash away my sins leaving me pure and holy in God’s eyes! That someone rose from the dead this morning!

6) STILL! You know what is so ironic; even as we begin to grasp the unconditional love reflecting a Creator who would lower Himself and walk among us, to suffer and die for us… many of us STILL want to know what our part is in this gift. Why? Because you and I are born self-centered and everything in our worldly experience has demanded the focus “to be on me”! And since I like receiving wages, prizes, and awards due to my efforts, I may STILL demand a part in the salvation process! If so, that means I have to abandon grace, or give it lip-service while trying to do good things to others so I can take the credit for getting to heaven. And I have to live in a world of denial – claiming my sins are just little sins and “don’t really count”, or we claim as one of Margaret Flannery’s friends did “Since I have been saved, I haven’t sinned!” Yeh right! What we have done is join the rest of the world in STILL wanting to believe that the right performance, the right sacrifice, the right chant, the right ritual, the right religious behaviors will get me to the gates of heaven. It is a kingdom of tradeoffs. If I do this, God will give me that.

7) ARROGANCE/FEAR! The results: Either arrogance or fear. Arrogance if you think you’ve achieved it – allowing you to now look down in judgment on others who weren’t as good or hard working as you! Or fear, if you suspect you may NOT have been good enough to achieve salvation. But Christ’s kingdom is just the opposite. It’s a kingdom for the poor! It’s a kingdom where membership is granted, not purchased. What Jesus did for us is show us that we are placed into the kingdom. You and I are adopted! And this occurs NOT when you “do” enough, but because you can never do enough. Christ offers it to you; freeing you from sin, mercifully forgiving you, and doing so out of a love found nowhere else on earth! It’s why Chuck Swindoll puts it this way, “To show grace is to extend favor or kindness to someone who doesn’t deserve it and can never earn it.” Indeed, grace is a gift that humbles us without degrading us, and exalts us without inflating us. No, God does not want you or I to be forever in denial about our sinful condition – either living in arrogance or living in fear. He wants us to live free from those impossible expectations and be immersed in His life-giving grace.

8) MIRACLE OF GRACE! Believe it or not, the miracle of grace is what helps us to see us, the world… and God as they really are! In a mission church in a poor part of town, a judge and an ex-convict took communion together at the railing. After the service, the judge commented to the pastor about God’s miracle of grace. The pastor thought he was talking about the ex-convict, but the judge quickly set him straight. “I wasn’t referring to him, but to myself. When that convict was released he knew how he had ruined his life and had no hope in himself. God brought him to see that in Jesus he had forgiveness, hope, and salvation. But look at me. From little on up I was taught to be good, to say prayers, to go to church. I went to Oxford, passed the bar, and eventually became a respected judge. Nothing but God’s miracle of grace could lead me to see that I am a sinner on the same level as that convict I sent to jail.” See, grace opened his eyes to the fact that as sinners, we are all on the same level – by nature dead. We deserve only God’s anger and punishment. But grace is undeserved love. We cannot earn or purchase God’s grace! It comes at Christ’s expense and that is why the miracle of grace is only in Jesus.

9) CHANGE! I have said, and will continue to say, that “There is nothing you can do to make God love you more, and there is nothing you can do to make God love you less; He just loves you!” And if you can begin to grasp the meaning of those words – they will change you! It may be a free gift, but it will make a huge change in your life! That’s how grace is! You don’t change to receive God’s grace, you change as a result of receiving God’s grace. Grace is like corrective surgery. We are helpless, but God gives us grace, and that grace begins to change within us, what we cannot change for ourselves! And to illustrate what kind of dramatic change grace can bring about, some one once explained it this way: Suppose some one breaks into your home, and in the course of that robbery, kills your child. If you hunt them down yourself and kill them, that’s vengeance. If you allow the police to do their jobs and the person is caught and punished, that’s justice. But if you take that person into your home and adopt them as your son or daughter, that’s grace! Now I don’t know about you, but if I were to try to bring about that change in myself - reflecting God’s grace on my own – I would be a total failure. But thankfully, it is God’s grace that does the changing! We don’t change to receive God’s grace, we change as a result of receiving God’s grace.

10) REJECTED! Know this about grace! God pours it out on all His children! But that does not mean it is received. It can be rejected! In the children’s sermon we placed the child in a jail that represented our bondage to sin, Satan, and death. And we said that some think Jesus comes and unlocks the door but it is up to us to walk out – giving us some part in our salvation. But as the scriptures point out, (Ephesian 2:8-9) “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” No, Jesus walks up to the jail, and all the walls fall down – we did nothing to be free! Jesus did it all on the cross! However, remember what I said, we CAN in rebellion raise the walls back up and say “Go away Jesus!” Sure, we can do nothing to earn our freedom and grace, but we can reject it! And we do that when we chose to go it alone or hold onto the sin in our lives! We can reject God grace!

11) EMPTY HANDS! I’ll never forget reading a story about a Christian pastor who had a member who was about to leave his wife of 15 years for another younger and prettier woman. He knew it was wrong, and so he asked the pastor, “Do you think God can forgive something as awful as I am about to do?” What a question huh? What would you answer? How can the pastor dissuade his friend from committing a terrible mistake if he knows forgiveness is right around the corner? He remembered that CS Lewis once quoted Augustine, who said, “God gives where he finds empty hands.” You see, if a persons hands are tightly grasping something (like worldly sin), they are not open to accepting God’s gift of gracious forgiveness! If I’m committing adultery, and have grasped it tightly, I can ask for forgiveness, and God may want to give it, but until I surrender my adulteress ways, until I release my grip on my sin, how can I receive God’s forgiveness? This is how grace works! Some people hear about grace and assume they can just keep living their life any old way and God will forgive them! But if Jesus tears down the walls of our bondage and we react quickly to raise those walls back up again – we reject that grace. If He attempts to place grace into our hands, but they’re are already grasping tightly sinful things we are not willing to let go of – grace is rejected! Can God forgive any sin? Yes! But God can fill only empty hands with grace! Are your hands filled – or open to this Easter gift?

12) OBEDIENCE? And it is the same with obedience. We don’t “obey” Christ to “get” grace. Grace changes us and empowers us to obey! But not to worship Him regularly, not to grow in our discipleship, not to give freely of our time, talent, and treasures, not to serve our neighbor, not to share the good news with others… means we have chosen to hold onto something else – something more important than the gift Jesus offers us. It means we have raised again the walls of bondage that Christ so freely and generously tore down! We’re basically telling Him, “Go away Jesus! I am comfortable living my own life, running things my way! I like my sin. I like not having to obey anyone else but my selfish desires.” Grace can be rejected through intentional disobedience. On the other hand, when God’s grace is once again poured down upon us, if we do not reject it, it can empower us to obey the will of God, and as a result we experience the fullness and joy of a life-giving relationship with Jesus! Is that what we want?

13) A STORY! Pastor Charles Stanley once told a story that illustrated the concept of grace, and how we often choose to react to that grace! One of his seminary professors distributed the final exam with a caution to read it through before answering any of the questions. As Charles read the test, it became clear that no one in the class had studied nearly enough! The more the class read, the more audible groans could be heard by all. On the last page however was this note: “You have a choice. You can either complete the exam as given or sign your name on the bottom and in doing so receive an “A” for this assignment.” The students sat there stunned, until the professor’s point about grace dawned on them, and they turned in their tests and silently filed out of the room. Later Charles talked to the professor and discovered that in past classes some students never followed the instructions, and worked for hours before reading the final page. A couple of students, after reading only a few pages, got furious with the test, quit, and stormed out without ever signing it. They never realize what gift was available, and as a result they lost out totally. One fellow read the entire test, but decided to take it anyway! He didn’t want any “free gift”; he’d earn his grade! (By the way, he got a C+, but he could have had an “A”.)

14) FREE! This story illustrates how differently some of us react to God’s gift of grace! Some look at God’s high moral and ethical standards and throw their hands up in despair. They surrender, exclaiming “Why even try!” They know they could never live up to all that stuff! Others of us are like the student who was aware of the professor’s offer but chose to take the test anyway. Unwilling to receive God’s free gift of forgiveness and grace, we set out to rack up enough points with God to earn it! But God’s Easter gift, this gift of grace through Jesus Christ, is truly like the professor’s offer. It may seem impossible, and unbelievable – but if we do not reject it, we will discover that, yes, God’s grace is truly free! He has done for us what we could not do for ourselves! We are free from the power of sin, Satan, and death! No longer will these three powers separate us from our Creator, no longer will they have the final Word in our lives! Because the Lord’s grace is free, we are set free!

15) NOT CHEAP! Some one once said G-R-A-C-E stands for “God’s Righteousness At Christ’s Expense!” Let us remember, that even though Grace is free, it was not cheap! Grace is a gift that costs everything for the giver and nothing for the recipient. Truly grace comes to us today through the sacrifice of Jesus of Nazareth who at Calvary received the punishment that you and I deserve for our sin. His back was whipped for the idols that we have bent our backs to. Nails were driven through His sinless hands for the selfish things that we have done with our hands. Nails were driven through His feet for the paths that we have chosen to walk. He wore a crown of thorns for the things we have given our minds to. A lance was driven into his heart for the ungodly things we have held in our hearts. God’s grace may be free, but it was not cheap!

16) FULL! Oh sure, the world may declare that we must earn any love we get, but this Easter event says otherwise! And our selfish egos may be tempted to think we can earn God’s favor and love, but the Spirit makes it clear – we sinners neither deserve nor can earn a place in God’s kingdom! And yet – today the Kingdom is ours! Easter declares that those who benefit from the promises and eternal blessings of God are those who discover themselves being invited and pulled into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ! No, you can’t earn His love, nor do you deserve it, but Jesus lovingly offers it to you anyway! The tomb and the cross may stand empty today, but your hearts are meant to be full… full of unconditional love, full of forgiveness, full of power, and full of hope. But above all… your hearts, your lives are meant to be full of God’s grace – because “He is risen!” (He is risen indeed!) Praise God! AMEN!

 

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Opening prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, our hearts sing out, our faith expands, our fears and anxieties have been replaced with awe and wonder at the miracle of Easter! We hear of an empty tomb, and resurrection – and our hope is restored! Sin, Satan, and death have been shown for what they are – powerless over our lives! Your victory over them, has become our victory – because of your amazing grace. We who do not deserve your love, we who cannot earn your love, now bask in it because of what your Son did for us! The heavens sing, the universal church sings, and we (your humble and thankful servants) sing out at the miracle of Easter. Our hearts now receive purpose, peace, and power because of your unconditional love for us! Draw us closer as we worship you. Embrace us more strongly as seek your protection and strength! Wash us clean as we lay our selfish ways at your feet! And help us to see that you did not just save us this day FROM something, but FOR something – something divine: a life whereby you live within our hearts and further your cause in us and through us! We pray that you would do within us what we cannot do for ourselves; make our hearts, minds, and souls be at your disposal each and everyday! As the people of Easter, raise us up, empower, and set us free to reflect your grace and unconditional love to all we meet! In Jesus Name we pray, AMEN

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Sermon/Confessional Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father, we would like to believe that grace defines everything we are and say, but we confess – receiving and giving unconditional love is not as easy as would seem. Our selfish desires, our need for control, our desire to do it our way handicaps us from serving others as we were designed to do. We admit the focus at Easter should be entirely on you, and yet we yearn secretly to be somewhat responsible for some portion of our salvation. Forgive us, and free us to surrender everything we are and have to you!

Lord, we confess that what others receive from us is not always grace! That’s because the grace you pour down upon us is often rejected as we hold on to the worldly, sinful parts of our lives that we have grown comfortable with. We confess we haven’t always allowed your grace to change or shape us. We have often failed to receive your gift of grace with open hands, because they grasp tightly things belonging to our own agenda. Forgive us for our intentional disobedience! And transform our lives that your grace would shine through us and into the lives of others we are called to love and serve!

And now Lord, although you know us better than we know ourselves, listen as we share in a moment of silence, those other parts of our lives that need to be forgiven, washed clean, healed, and recommitted to you! (made anew.)

(Silence)

Lord, this amazing gift of grace we have received this day cost us nothing, but cost Jesus everything! Because He took our sins upon His shoulders and suffered and paid the penalty for us, we stand Holy and Pure in your eyes! Our heavenly future is secure, and our hearts are full of your unconditional love and grace. May the rest of our lives be a response of thanksgiving and praise by the way we live, love, and serve those you love! AMEN

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Assurance of Forgiveness:

Friends, listen to the good news: The Lord, whose empty tomb displays a heart of grace and unconditional love, that Lord has mercifully heard your confession and eagerly forgives you all your sins. Go now, having experienced the sacrifice, the glory, and the love of God, and pour your life out for others as the people of Easter! With open hands receive His grace and share His victory over sin, Satan, and death with those who also need what only His grace can bring! In Jesus Name we pray! AMEN