Putting The Pieces Together
The resurrection of the Lord continues to be known and celebrated among I think in fact that message is what we carry to the world right this message. The Lord is risen. He is risen indeed Alleluia and and bit by bit slowly as we grow in faith mature. He has his disciples of the Lord until one day when all things are made new and a whole big complete pictures made. No, in fact, even Jesus tells us while he was here on Earth bit by bit piece by piece the puzzle putting being put together. The resurrection of Our Lord is one of those pieces of the big picture of our Messias accomplished work Among Us in just a few weeks. We're going to celebrate his Ascension. We're going to celebrate Pentecost and all of those events are part of the bigger picture the puzzle that's made known to us as people of God people of faith in the plan and work if his salvation, This is the biggest puzzle in the world world records 550 1,200 some pieces could remember all the numbers 1011 the University of economics in Ho Chi Minh Vietnam students put this puzzle together. You can see it. It's more than 8 ft tall and 29 ft long. How do you think that puzzle gets put together one piece at a time, right? This is the largest elephant in the world ever recorded. I don't have the numbers on it, but you can see the man standing there in the people standing there and at the Fallout big elephant. When you're solving a problem and you're trying to figure out the what the end result might be. How do you eat an elephant one bite at a time until the whole picture is either put together or eaten for an elephant Shake? Right and it's all gone either putting together or all gone for those disciples as we find them today in the Gospel of Luke. They while they were still talking about this. They're trying to eat the elephant there trying to figure out deconstruct what's going on, but they're also trying to see you then in the bigger picture of what's Happening. Remember the disciples. Are are there in the in the upper room? It's it's now evening earlier in the day John tells us that Jesus had been there with them his piece Thomas hadn't been there that morning and disciples were telling Thomas about the resurrected Lord later in the day. There were these Staples walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus and Jesus appears with them and he opens up the scriptures you open your mind to the truth of the resurrected Messiah he break bread with them in their home. And then he disappears while these two disciples from Emmaus. They've run back to Jerusalem and they are here now in the upper room where Jesus appears again and they're talking about these things when Jesus say to you on the road to Emmaus. What was it? Like when he broke bread with you? Let's go back and rehearse what the women saw earlier in the day. What was that like talking about these things moving the puzzle pieces around the board trying to put the fine to put the puzzle together. Elephant one bite at a time trying to make sense of all this and all of a sudden. Jesus comes into our midst peace be with you. He says they were startled frightened looking like they had seen a ghost. Well, yeah normal typical human reaction. I think I might be the same way right you as well. Sure. It says therefore those days for these disciples. Somebody had taken that puzzle that they were putting together and swiped it onto the floor now all the puzzle pieces are scattered again, but what isn't anymore they're trying to figure out how is it that Jesus can be alive that we can see him, but that he is glorified. How does this week? We see the nail prints on the knife and how is it that he would come to us? We who are so frightened and Afraid locked behind doors Unworthy of the presence of the the Risen Lord in yet. And yes, he's here with this Kingdom blessing Alto. Peace be with you. In the midst of this Jesus says to them he says why are you troubled? Why do doubts rise in your mind look at me cuz my hands are my feet. You can see that I once was dead, but now I'm alive. Do you have something to eat mystery that this glorified risen one who can appear before them and yet eat food. This is something of God and of his kingdom and something that we're not used to and so Jesus for them in their midst. He starts to put the puzzle pieces together for them. I want you. To see me. I want you to know that I'm raised from the dead. I want you to know that I'm Victorious for you. Here's the bigger picture. This is my kingdom work as my as the Messiah your Messiah now appears to you with my job of redemption nearly complete my mission nearly accomplished and I want you to be a part of that mission. I told you while I was still with you that this all would happen. I gave you the puzzle pieces. You just didn't put them together in the right way. You can maybe understand or or grass the bigger picture. I told you that everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the Psalms. I told you this. So now I'll give you a show until here. I am in front of you and I'm appearing here for your sake that you might believe that I am the one who fulfills and complete all of scripture. The father's plan for your Redemption and salvation the way that Jesus puts it is this top Punta in the one and it's an intensifier there. I am the one I am the one who puts the pieces together one at a time completing it all for you. And what does he complete? What is the complete for us? But as we heard read Jesus is the one who comes to forgive our sins. to forgive our sins when our life is like a puzzle. Swept off the table all the pieces on the floor. We know what that's like when a relationship getting back into place and something is said or done and we take steps backwards. Right when I think I've got this issue in my life under control in obedience to the Lord. I'm tempted again and I fall back into Old patterns puzzles pieces on the floor. Right when I think that I taken some steps forward and maturity of a face growing in the Lords of establishing some habits in human. What happened? Fall back into patterns that are less than God glorifying and not good for me. Jesus completes that Which we cannot? He put the bigger picture together. And what is that bigger picture? It's the bigger picture of you and me having a place in his kingdom because he has accomplished completed his work.
When he's with his disciples in the upper room, he's not yet fulfilled that not yet Ascension Pentecost. We're 99% of the way there when he returns again one day when all things are new. That's a hundred percent. But he's working all this out. He's putting the pieces together. He's giving to us an opportunity to understand the bigger picture of where we fit where you fit in his kingdom your place. I would loves you and cares for you and gives you a unique place part of the Mosaic Jesus who lives for you. And for those men in the upper room those disciples they are the women to he opens their minds so they could understand the scriptures. To bring us into the fullness of the the ways of the Lord God, isn't that what he wants for you and me to to understand the fullness of the scriptures this Timeless inspired truth that he gives to us that we might have insight into his redeeming work into the place where we fit in his kingdom how he puts the pieces together in my life and yours for his sake Wilshire. Jesus brings me into the truths of his kingdom. That's where he wants us to be. As your pastor I will continue to be in the word preaching it teaching it for us because this is what the Lord wants us to be. There might be other issues that we need to address over time as we live in a fallen broken World Is Our Lives intersect in darkness as we are but it's always going to be based out of the word these truths that the Lord gives because that's our foundation. That's who we are as Gods people. That's the board on which the puzzle pieces are put together the truth of God's word and he wants you and me to understand these truths. I need it for the plug here for a minute in a few weeks. We're going to start a new Bible class on Sunday mornings on the Book of Revelation people are interested in that door or maybe a little shy of that as well. Here's an opportunity for me to encourage you as your pastor to embrace these troops or a truth a particular truth that's given to us in the Book of Revelation. Join me for Bible class. Let's get in the word and dig around let's let's see each other grow and mature in these truths so that we might be that full Mosaic of the kingdom of God in Jesus Christ worked out in you and me.
Jesus would you say to them this is what is written. The Messiah will suffer will rise from the dead on the third day and repentance for the Forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to All Nations and just going to start here in Jerusalem. And of course that starts with with Pentecost in the coming of the Holy Spirit to the disciples staying in there in Jerusalem, when you were baptized into Jesus Christ into the kingdom into a relationship with your heavenly father as his daughter or is his son. So you two were empowered with the spirit because Jesus and Powers each one of us to embrace the fullness of his work in me. I am forgiven I'm giving you life. I'm giving a new opportunity to live that life everyday because we're giving me friends. This marks us as got people there. And it's our witness then to the world. That we might live that fullness of Christ Jesus in us to them. They might know the fullness of the love of Jesus that he has four others too and Jesus told his disciples in the upper room brothers sisters, you are witnesses of these things your Witnesses of them. You've seen the working of the Lord You've experienced his miracles. In fact it just a few minutes you're going to experience that Miracle first and Take eat. This is the body if you take drinks the blood of Christ.
But who you are in Jesus by faith in Miracle? This is the witness of these things of the Kingdom that we carry with us in our lives and relationships with one another into the world because Jesus imparts to each one of us to me the Holy Spirit to live out his mission. It doesn't matter our age or our ability or disability or it doesn't matter where we are in the maturity perspective of Faith. It's that Jesus has given to each one of us the opportunity to live out his mission as he lives and dwells in you. What are the great Joys that I have in ministries throughout the week in convert it in conversations with you to see how the puzzle is being put together in your life. That's what I got to experience this last week because of Jesus working in a situation in a relationship in me another piece put the put together the puzzle the picture at the Mosaic of your life and his kingdom to share Jesus with my my neighbor and the prayer that we we lift it up. This is how the Lord is answering that puzzle pieces start coming coming together in the fullness of how we see the Lord at work. So I would encourage you don't share with each other, encourage each other in this joy of the mission of the Lord be known Among Us in these great ways. And you each one of you me and others yet to come. We're part of that bigger picture. As Jesus Christ brings us into his kingdom for our Eternity for relationship on to life Everlasting with our heavenly father. How we celebrate right and give it to give thanks and rejoice in our place your place mine each of us. In this big beautiful puzzle Mosaic of Jesus Christ and his kingdom lived Out Among Us. All because of the joy that we know in his victory as we declare it again. The Lord has risen he has risen indeed Alleluia father. Thank you for giving to us your word today building our life putting them together like a puzzle that you're you are the hand that puts these pieces together, and we know our place and we know your work Heavenly Father do Jesus Our Savior by you speak to bring us together. We rejoice and for that we give you. Thanks. Now Heavenly Father give us those Faith eyes the desire to see you at work and to express that to you but keep us growing in the truth of your word and expressing that mission of Jesus and who we are is your people we know you love us and we love you too because of Jesus our savior and his name we pray. I'm in May the peace of God that passes our understanding keep our hearts and Minds in Christ the Lord You're Risen Savior that he lives in you to him be the glory and the praise I'm in.