Easter 2020

Well, hello everybody and welcome once again to our Easter service here at Twin Lakes Church live online. My name is René, another one of the pastors here at TLC. I'm so glad that you are joining us. As Mark said, we have people watching right now from all over the place. Literally, we've been watching the comments on Facebook live and on YouTube and on our church website. We have people from Atascadero to Zambia from A to Z joining us right now. So it's just great to have you with us.

You know, we may be in thousands of homes right now, thousands of locations, but we are one church, one body, celebrating one risen Lord together today. And I want to show you something that brought that truth home for me in a very unusual way this weekend. So Friday night I walk in to help prepare for the Good Friday live streaming services and to my total surprise I see this. Literally hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of selfies taped to seats all around our empty church auditorium.

Some very enterprising and wonderful people here at Twin Lakes Church had arranged a surprise for those of us here on staff. They had arranged for you to send in your photos and then they taped them all over the pews. In fact, they even taped them in the spots where many of you normally sit. I have to say I was so grateful. First I cried because I missed you guys so much and then I laughed because I saw Waldo and Chewbacca. And so there's probably some more prizes here waiting for us. But we were so grateful for that. What a beautiful, beautiful symbol.

And if you have not sent in your photo yet, take a selfie and I promise you we will tape them to a pew here in the church. You can send them to info@tlc.org and we will put them up. Now with all that in mind, picture yourself here as one of those kind of photos come to life and let's say that ancient Easter greeting together again. Imagine this happening in thousands of homes all over the county and the world right now. Here we go. Christ is risen. He is risen indeed.

Well I want to talk about light for the lockdown today because it occurred to me on that very first Easter Sunday, the very first disciples of Jesus were all gathered in a lockdown too. In John 20:19 it says, "That Sunday evening the disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid." They were afraid because any step outside, if they ventured out everywhere they could possibly go, they were under threat because the people who killed Jesus were now hunting them down too and so they stayed inside where it might be safer.

And so this Easter we are all like the very first Easter, we're in our houses again. Many of us are afraid again and they felt not just fear, they felt guilt because they had all let Jesus down, had all abandoned him and of course they felt grief because their dear friend was dead. And you know we have that in common with them too. All of us right now are collectively grieving some of the things that we have lost but something happens in that room. Think of the before and after. They're in that room first with fear and then that turns to faith.

They go from guilt to freedom, from grief to hope and they rocket out of that room and change history. What happened in that lockdown? Well I want to tell you the story as it unfolds verse by verse in the next few verses in the Bible in John 20:19–29. And you know what? I really believe that the risen Jesus will meet you in your lockdown too. He'll meet you in your room, in your home, wherever you're watching whether you're alone or with people. He'll slip in and his Spirit will speak peace to you too if you are open to him.

Jesus speaks to the disciples three resurrection truths for people in lockdown because Christ is risen. We can know number one your fears need not control you. Your fears need not control you. You know it's normal to feel threatened when something is threatening like it is right now but your fears don't have to control you. Your emotions, your decisions. It says the disciples were afraid and of course Jesus must have known this right but I kind of love how playful he is. He doesn't try to ease into the room. It seems like he almost deliberately startles them. He just pops in and says peace be with you.

Now in those days peace be with you was greeting. It was kind of like saying good evening or good morning just as it is in Israel today where they say shalom the Hebrew word for peace as a greeting. Isn't that a beautiful word? Doesn't the sound of that word just bring peace to you? It sounds like peace doesn't it? In fact let's all say it together shalom but what I love is that Jesus pops into the room and greets them shalom brothers. I love how casual he is and the disciples just freak out understandably.

In fact Luke's gospel adds some detail. It says Jesus himself was suddenly standing there among them. Peace be with you he said but the whole group was startled and frightened thinking they were seeing a ghost. Of course they were. They're screaming. Why? No one expected a resurrection. You know I had an amazing opportunity the first time I was in Israel to actually explore a real first century tomb with a rolling stone in front of the entrance just like the one that Jesus was laid in according to the Bible. Some road workers had discovered this when they were widening a road.

Now today this is all blocked off. You can't go in it anymore of course but this was right after it was discovered. Basically the dirt had been brushed off just a couple of weeks before and so I was able to just walk right in. I took these pictures of it with my own cell phone and it was so quiet and cool and dark inside and I laid down on the slab just to try to imagine what it must have been like to come back to life. So I closed my eyes while I laid down and I held my breath as long as I could and I crossed my hands like this over my chest and then I took a deep breath and opened my eyes and imagined the moment of the resurrection and what it must have felt like for Jesus Christ.

It was a moment of real reverie and then I heard a tourist bus pull up outside. Some people walking toward the cave entrance who didn't know I was in there. In fact I took a picture of them approaching. You can see them in this next picture just outside the cave entrance and I could not resist this opportunity. I laid right back down and pretended I was dead, closed my eyes, motionless and I waited until they were just inside and I could hear them kind of like what's that on the slab and then I yelled surprise! Needless to say they were rather alarmed. There was screaming, there was running, but it was amusing for me and I got to sense a little bit of the playfulness of the risen Jesus here in this verse. Shalom dudes!

They freak out and then after he had said this he showed them his hands and his side and the disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord and then Jesus says it a second time again Jesus said, "Peace be with you." Now why does he repeat this? He'd already said hello. Well this time it's more than a greeting. This time he's saying, "Guys, seriously, Shalom be with you." He's saying you can be at peace now because look you know if worse comes to worst and the Roman government exerts that the most frightening power they have, the power of crucifixion, you can know that resurrection awaits so your fears need not now control you.

And of course the same exact thing goes for you and me right now. It's normal to feel anxious in times like this but there's immediate uncertainty but underneath that there can be a foundation of deeper peace because we know ultimately we're going to be okay because Christ is risen, he is risen indeed, your fears need not control you and second your failures need not define you. Your failures need not define you. I want you to think about this group of guys. The last time they had seen Jesus these guys had all abandoned their friend while he was being tortured under this kangaroo court trial. I mean how guilty do you think these guys all felt? How ashamed? How disqualified?

But watch this then the very next thing Jesus says is not you sniveling cowards, not what am I gonna do with you but and this had to be the last thing they expected as the Father has sent me I am sending you. What? I mean the risen Jesus has been with his disciples for all of about 30 seconds and then he says yeah that mission that I used to talk about that the Father gave me yeah that's yours now and it says with that he breathed on them and said receive the Holy Spirit. He's giving them power the power of God to do their mission with you know he's empowering them not just commissioning them and he says in the next verse that their mission is to preach forgiveness of sins.

Your failures need not be final. I mean imagine the relief that these disciples felt in that moment. I heard a pastor once describe what must have been a similar feeling. It was his very first day of playing little league baseball and he said all 60 of his relatives there in Iowa showed up to watch him play and he says I came up to bat three times and struck out every single time. Last inning, two outs, bases loaded. He says our team was behind by one run and of course I was up. He says I picked up the bat I was scared I was shaking the pitcher winds up I don't even see his first pitch whoosh heard it hit the catcher's mitt funk heard the umpire yell strike one second pitch whoosh funk strike two one more chance.

He said I told myself I gotta get hit gotta get hit gotta get hit he says I actually swung during the pitchers wind up swung as hard as I could and I missed. He says I heard the umpire strike three you're out game over huge cheer from one side of the stands audible grown from the other and he says I knew I had failed dropped the bat started the longest walk of my life to the bench at the end of the dugout. He says I sat down and sobbed for probably a good 15 minutes. He says during that time I heard all the car tires scrunch on the gravel as everybody pulled out of the parking lot and then everything got quiet and then a noise from the pitchers mount funk funk and a voice hey kid get back up game's not over yet.

He says I looked up and there on the pitchers mound stood my dad wearing a mitt throwing a ball into it I looked up into the field my relatives were all there my aunt Emma and left my nearly blind uncle Joe in right a bunch of toddlers waddling around the infield he says I sheepishly picked up the bat walked over to the plate and everybody out there started cheering for me dad threw a pitch and I missed dad threw another pitch I missed again about 15 pitches later dad threw it right down the middle and whack almost by accident I knocked it into left field ran to first base stop never been there before just in time to see aunt Emma the left fielder throw the ball into center field and I thought cool I'm gonna get a double I ran to second base just in time to see Todd a pretty good athlete playing center throwing the ball into right at this point I knew I'm gonna score my blind uncle's never gonna get this ball rounded third sprinted toward home sled across jumped up and then I saw him about five feet in front of me my dad down on one knee tears streaming down his face he held out his arms and said son welcome home you're safe.

I threw myself into his arms as he whispered in my ear I told you the game wasn't over yet what a great story right well do you see that this is exactly what Jesus is doing for his disciples as the father has sent me I am sending you guys guys I know you've benched yourself I know you failed but get up off that bench the games not over and no matter how many times you have failed God says to you the game's not over.

I'll tell you a story that happened just past Thursday of this past week a TLC a tender DD Vargas started something called project elder care which brings bags of essentials to senior citizens during this lockdown Thursday DD is delivering to an older man she leaves it on his porch backs away he opens the door and he looks at the groceries and begins to cry and he says I thought God had abandoned me and DD says God will never abandon you and he says no you don't understand God should have abandoned me I've done some very bad things and DD says welcome to the club we've all got things in our past that we're probably ashamed of but look God didn't abandon you God came looking for you and God has found you and that's what happened to these disciples they're in it they're hiding they're in a locked room but Jesus found them and Jesus found you this morning to say on Good Friday I took your sins to the cross and on Easter I stepped out of the tomb to tell you your sins can be forgiven your failures need not define you.

And point three your future need not be hopeless your future need not seem hopeless to you resurrection means the story is not over in fact it's just starting now if you found yourself at times to be a little skeptical of these resurrection stories of course you know the disciples were all skeptical of the resurrection at first like in the next verse John 20:24 it says one of the twelve disciples Thomas nicknamed the twin was not with the others when Jesus came and they told him we have seen the Lord but he replied I won't believe it unless unless what I see the nail wounds in his hands and I put my fingers into them and I place my hand into the wound in his side and I don't like the way he's been referred to as doubting Thomas because he is just echoing exactly what all the disciples said earlier when they had heard from the women that Jesus was alive the Bible says they all thought it was nonsense until Jesus had appeared to them.

Well eight days later the disciples were together again and this time Thomas was with them the doors were locked but suddenly suddenly as before Jesus was standing there with them and he says Shalom peace be with you and then he said to Thomas put your finger here look at my hands go ahead put your hand into the wound on my side don't be faithless any longer believe that's interesting because he's saying look this is my real once-dead body nobody can have these kinds of wounds and live but now I'm alive what is so important about that well I want to leave the story of John 20 for just one verse I want you to look at 1 Corinthians 15:20 this is one of the most important verses about Easter in the Bible it says but Christ has indeed been raised from the dead stop there for just a second that's an interesting and important word indeed Christ has indeed been we say Christ is risen he has risen indeed you ever wonder why do we add the word indeed it sounds very British doesn't it brilliant quite sir indeed who talks like that but indeed is an important word because it means Christ is really risen actually you know we don't say Christ is risen he is risen metaphorically that's not very inspiring is it we say he is risen he is risen indeed.

You know think of this something happened to galvanize that little group of fearful disciples in that locked room and they were not transformed by the idea that Christ is risen metaphorically now they were changed they got courage because they believed Christ is risen he is risen indeed as the guarantee that those who sleep in death will also be raised you see these disciples had no fear of death anymore it was like Romans do your worst right we know what happens after death and before death I mean if God raised Jesus from the dead that means really anything is possible in this life because he's God and Thomas gets this he sees this and said to Jesus my Lord and my God and Thomas really goes from doubt to maybe getting the implications of this better than any of the disciples so far because he suddenly realizes that the resurrection actually validates Jesus Christ's most outrageous claim to be God incarnate and that means that you have the greatest creative power in the universe who came down here to earth to be with us and went through death and back again and he's with you and calls you friend man that is powerful.

I want to tell you a story I have a friend named John and John has a friend named Danny and John told me a story about Danny one time Danny goes spelunking you know what spelunking means it means to go and explore a cave well Danny went spelunking with a friend of his who had been through this particular cave before and at one point the guy says Danny I discovered this really cool huge cavern it is beautiful but it's a little tough to get to would you like to go to it Danny says yeah so off they go into a tunnel and the tunnel keeps getting smaller and smaller and more and more constricted at one point they have to duck down to walk and the passageway keeps narrowing and lowering and eventually they have to get on their hands and knees to crawl through this tunnel and eventually keeps lowering and narrowing until they have to get on their backs and push with their feet to move forward through the tunnel and eventually it gets so narrow that they just are pushing with their heels and then it gets even narrower to the point where when they breathe in and their lungs expand they're stuck and so to move forward Danny has to exhale scoot himself forward with his heels and then inhale and he's stuck and then he exhales he's able to scoot forward.

And some of you are experiencing kind of sympathetic claustrophobia right now and it's at that point in the tunnel that Danny hears the voice of his friend and his friend says Danny this is very important you must listen to my voice right now and my voice only he says if you listen to the voices in your head and you let your mind run wild you're gonna flip out and you'll never make it but Danny I have been through here already and you can trust me this leads somewhere amazing just keep listening every moment to my voice. Danny died in that cave no I'm just I just made that up Danny made it all the way through and it was glorious but he was able to keep going because he knew someone had been through this before and was assuring him there is glory ahead and you understand that voice for Thomas and that voice for you and me is now the risen Jesus saying keep going I'm with you you will make it he is leading you to heaven but not just heaven also a new kind of life now a life of peace and a life of assurance and this is real stuff you know it's not just like church propaganda.

Last week I asked you to send me some emails about reasons you still have hope right now as we're going through all of this together I wish I could read you all the responses but here are just three look at what these people all have in common I have hope despite the chaos in the world at so many levels and despite my own fears and concerns I have a risen Savior who is my counselor and my Prince of Peace another person wrote I have hope because I know I am NOT alone another I work as a nurse and he gives me strength and peace as I go to work what I'm saying is it really makes a real difference in real life for real people to listen to his voice when we go through the dark and narrow times.

You say René that sounds great I'd love to hear his voice how do I hear his voice well one way is through his word in the Bible you say I wouldn't know the first place to look in the Bible well if you download the sermon notes for today at TLC org slash notes on page two I put excuse me a short list of just some of the things that the risen Jesus is saying to you and these are all right from the pages of the Bible things like I am with you always things like my peace I give you things like do not worry about your life and I want to challenge you print this out or download it onto your phone read these promises every day this week so you hear the voice of Jesus in your locked room.

Okay let's wrap this up did you know that you're in the Bible it says then Jesus told him because you've seen me you've believed blessed are those who have not seen me and yet have believed that's you and me can you believe it will change your life forever now you might be thinking yeah but I still have questions like Thomas did he got answers what am I supposed to do with my questions listen it is totally okay to say you know I'm choosing to believe but I also have a handful of questions here this week we are beginning starting point virtual groups starting point is designed for people who want a place that they can honestly ask questions about the faith you can go to TLC org slash starting point for info you know maybe you are a brand new believer like as of today or maybe a returning believer you went to church as a kid now you're getting interested again or maybe you're still a seeker you're honestly not a believer yet in all those situations starting point is for you you will find it a place that you can honestly ask questions and learn and grow.

So I urge you today to risk saying to Jesus as Thomas did my Lord and my God you see when you say this sentence that's a sentence of possibility because you're saying to Jesus first you're my Lord my master the voice I'm listening to in the tunnel your Lord not any disease not my fears not my feelings not somebody else's opinion I'm gonna listen to your voice above all and my God you're saying I choose to believe that there is a God who looks and acts like Jesus he loves me he's with me he comes looking for me even when I've lost my belief that kind of affirmation will give you light for every lockdown when I choose to believe Christ is risen say it with me again he is risen indeed.

Let's pray together I invite you to fold your hands and close your eyes and bow your head just as a symbol of humility and submission to God and I want to invite you right now to say to Jesus maybe for the first time or maybe as a reaffirmation Jesus I don't understand it all but I choose to affirm you as my Lord and my God you are the kind of Lord and God I want to believe in and so today I believe I believe you died and rose again I don't understand it but I choose to believe it help me keep hearing your voice during the time in this tunnel and Lord we pray for those on the front lines of the crisis like the nurse whose email we just read doctors nurses researchers victims families the unemployed those in financial crisis God give them your strength and your power and your peace and help us to know how best to help them to help them in Jesus name amen.