Truth Lasso

Tonight is the most important message I’m going to give, and you guys will see why. So tonight, more than the other nights, please give me your complete attention. Today, you guys were talking about someone named Esther. Who was Esther? She was chosen to be the new queen for the king because she was so beautiful. Did you know that Esther is actually one of two woman in the Bible who have a book named after them: Esther and Ruth. Esther was kind of a big deal. So, Esther was the queen and she was married to the all-powerful king. Do you guys know what was going to happen to Esther’s people? Right, they were going to die if the evil Haman, the king’s right-hand man, got away with his scheme to kill all the Jews, the Israelites. The only one who stood any chance of saving the people of Israel was Esther because after all, she was the queen. But there was one problem. In Esther’s time, she be killed for going to the king uninvited. The king had control of the life of even his queen. But it was the only shot her people had at salvation, so she had to take it. It was like walking into a dangerous situation where you had no idea what’s going to happen. You know, it’s like ding dong ditching. Who here went ding dong ditching last night? No, don’t tell me. The first rule of ding dong ditching is that you don’t tell adults! But I bet every one of you have either been ding dong ditching this week or someone else ding dong ditched you. But you know who hates ding dong ditching? Ms. Laura and some of the other adults. You better be careful to not let Ms. Laura catch you, or else you’re going to be in big trouble, right? I got caught by Ms. Laura once and our whole cabin got in trouble. Then we went and did it again the next night. But my point is that ding dong ditching sure is fun and is totally worth it, but it’s risky. You could get caught and get in big trouble. That is kind of like what Esther was about to do. It was risky going before the king like that. But it was worth the risk to save her people. In the end, the king did not kill Esther, but he saved her people and killed the evil Haman instead. Things worked out in the end and Esther’s people were saved!

I know a superhero who is sort of like Esther. Her story is even similar. That’s right, it’s a female superhero today, not a male superhero. Today’s superhero is none other than Wonder Woman. Does anyone know Wonder Woman’s story? Wonder Woman is an Amazon princess. The Amazons are a race of all woman warriors who live on an island and they are some of the most powerful warriors ever. They are known for being very beautiful and very strong. Wonder Woman’s mother, Hippolyta, was the queen of the Amazons. Wonder Woman saw the peace on her island and the craziness out in the world. She knew that she could go out and do some good for people, but if she left the island she would be banished and never be allowed to return. Wonder Woman decided that even though she could never return to her island, the world needed saving and that was more important. She left the island, never to return, but she became an inspiring superhero for everyone, especially women and girls. Girls can be superheroes too! I know this week we’ve only looked at guy superheroes, but there are tons of female superheroes who are also cool! This day I wanted to talk about Superman, but I wanted to make sure that for at least one of the nights, you girls had a female hero to look up to, so I went with Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman is one of the strongest of all the amazons. In fact, she’s almost as strong as Superman, the man of steel himself. Not to mention, she’s really hot too. She has bracelets on her wrists that let her deflect bullets, a tiara that is basically a boomerang, and a lasso of truth. Anyone who she ties up with the lasso is compelled to tell the truth. Wonder Woman’s story is so much like Esther’s story. Esther and Wonder Woman both went and gave up their own privileges so that they could save people. They knew that they had a choice. They could either keep to themselves or they could use their position and power for the good of people. Heroes sometimes have to make sacrifices for the greater good.

Now I have here a lasso I made. Actually, I don’t even know how to make a lasso. It’s really just a rope I brought and tied a knot in it. One of Wonder Woman’s main weapons is her lasso of truth, like I told you guys. Anyone she lassos if forced to tell the truth whenever she asks them a question. Like this (throws rope around a kid). Tell me the truth: do you like pizza WITH pineapple on it. (Lasso another) Tell me the truth: do you like swimming more or night games more? (One more kid) Tell me the truth, did you go ding dong ditching last night (use a kid that you know did it). Seriously though, wouldn’t it be cool if a lasso like this actually existed? You could always get people to tell you the truth. You would never have to wonder if the person is lying. If you thought they were, you’d just have to lasso them and get them to speak. The truth is so much better to hear than lies are. Who wants to hear lies all the time? Imagine if everything that you heard was a lie. You wouldn’t know what to do with yourself! The truth is always much better than lies and deception.

Now, let me tell you the ultimate truth, the truth about Jesus. When I say I’m telling you the truth about Jesus, I mean that this is a true story that actually happened. Look, I’ll even put this lasso of truth around me. Now, you’ve probably heard about this Jesus before. The story of Jesus starts with a girl named Mary. She was only about 13 years old, about the same age as you guys. One day, an angel came to her and told her that she would have a son. But this was not just going to be any normal baby boy, this boy was going to be the savior of the world. You see, for hundred of years, Mary’s people, the Jews, had been waiting on someone called the Messiah, a man who was sent from God and would redeem and save Israel from their sins. The Messiah would lead Israel to show God to the nations. Everyone would get to know God because of the Messiah. This Messiah was Jesus, and he wasn’t just some ordinary guy. He was God’s son, his only son. And Jesus was became bot fully God and fully human. Just like how Esther went before the king to save her people and how Wonder Woman went out into the world to save people, Jesus was sent from heaven to go and save the world. And not just some of it either. Jesus came to save the whole world. Scripture tells us that God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not die, but have eternal life. So Mary is told that she will have a son and that he is the promised Messiah that they have been waiting for! Mary has her son and he was named Jesus. Jesus becomes an adult and he goes to find some followers, some people who he can teach the right way to live. He wants to teach them how to live in a right relationship with God. Jesus takes 12 men and they become his disciples, his students. Jesus taught them for a few years what it meant to live a righteous live with God.

One of his greatest teaching moments happen with feet. You see, back then, everyone wore sandals all the time. Other shoes didn’t even exist. I have some sandals right here. Now if I walked through mud with my tennis shoes and I took my shoes off later that night, my feet would be fine. No mud would be on my feet. But if I walked through mud with these sandals on, how nasty would my feet be later that night? Who here would be willing to wash my feet later that night? Put your hands down, not one of you would wash my feet. I would make sure that they were so nasty that you wouldn’t even want to touch them. Well, this is exactly what Jesus did for his 12 disciples. Their feet were super nasty from walking all day and they might have even been bloody. Ewwww. But then Jesus does the unthinkable. He does something that only the servants were supposed to do. He washed each one of the 12 disciples feet. What about the one who stepped in cow poop earlier in the day? Yeah, he washed his feet too. Jesus, being God himself, washed the nasty feet of his disciples. But the lesson that Jesus wanted them to learn is that just as he had loved them by washing their feet, they had to love other people too by washing their feet. This is what Jesus came down to Earth to teach. He came down to earth to teach people the way of love. He taught us the greatest commandment, the guiding principle for all our lives: Love God with all you’ve got, and love others with all you’ve got. At least once every night, I’ve mentioned that. Because more than anything, Jesus wants us to learn to love, the greatest trait that any superhero can have.

But Jesus story doesn’t stop there. Jesus knew that his mission was to save the world. The world was a mess, but it was worth saving. God loved the world after all, he created it. Jesus was betrayed by one of his 12 disciples and he was handed over powerful people, people who had the power to kill him. The powerful people hated Jesus, so the had him beaten, bruised, and broken. He was on the verge of death. They took him and had him crucified, nailing him to a cross. Jesus suffered up on that cross, but it was the only way to save people. You see, people were sinful. They had a hole in their heart, and the only way to fill that hole was with a relationship with God. People were created to have a relationship with God, but because they were sinful, God couldn’t be a part of their life. But there was one way to fix this problem. Jesus had to die, paying the price for our sins. So up there on that cross, Jesus suffered for many hours, each breath getting harder and harder to take. But Jesus knew that it was the only way. Like Esther, it was the only shot his people had at salvation. Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “It is finished!” And then he died. Sometimes, being a superhero means making the ultimate sacrifice: giving up your life to save people. Jesus made that ultimate sacrifice Jesus died, but it was not for nothing. It was so that people everywhere could have the opportunity to know God and have a relationship with him. We read in John 3:16 that God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life. But still, Jesus story doesn’t stop there. Even death couldn’t stop Jesus. Jesus returned to life on the third day, showing people that the price had been paid! Jesus showed us all that eternal life is our reward for believing in what he did for us!

So right here, right now, each one of you have a choice to make. You can either believe that what I said is true, or you can deny it. But here is the real truth that I want each one of you to hear. Jesus loves each and every one of you so much that he died for you. He loves you so much, and he doesn’t care how much crap you’ve got on your feet. He wants to wash your feet, to get rid of all that filth that is caked onto your skin. You just have to let him. So tonight, anyone who believes that Jesus story is true, I want you to know something. Eternal life and a real, true relationship with God is waiting for you. That God shaped hole I talked about is what Jesus wants to fill tonight in each one of you. You just have to believe that Jesus loves you and that he died for you. He sees you as you are, all your imperfections and flaws. But he doesn’t care. He just wants you. Will you take that first step on the journey with Jesus tonight? We have this altar up here, and if you want to make a decision to become one of Jesus disciples, one of his students, I want to invite you to come down to the altar. You can also stay in your seat. If you need some help, any one of these adults would be happy to help you. They came here for you. But if you want Jesus in your life, I want to give you that opportunity

Pray this prayer after me, “Jesus, I know that I’ve sinned. I’m not who I should be. Something is missing from my life, and that something is you. I am sorry for what I’ve done. I want to be better. Jesus, I believe that you can make me better. I believe that you died for my sins and that you made a way for me to live a better life. I want to invite you into my life today Jesus. Amen.