Sifted, but I choose to Save. Easter 2025
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Intro and Tension
Intro and Tension
Speak 2 people today = Know Christ - Yet hanging on to yourself.
OR…Here because Easter - Know OF Christ, but don’t know Christ.
Either way | We all have something God wants us to let go of.
India | Pack 13kg because domestic flights | 13Kg not alot, had to take out what is the essentials
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
Jesus hung on a cross | So we MIGHT die to something | to Sin and Seperation from the Father.
Title: Sifted, but I choose to Save
Today go through;
Why is Cross and resurrection important? If God loves us, why is there conditions to being with him?
I love how Peter describes the cross;
knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.
Ransomed = it means redeemed | paid blood -
From what? Futile Ways = Anastrophe’ = Futile, Empty, Nothingness;
Before foundation of world - Why important? God made choice to save us…Why did God have to make choice?
Because of a choice we made…
Masters = These are the terms of coming to the masters. Eden also had terms - Don’t eat from the tree - and Adam ate from tree
Need to understand | We to would have eaten from tree | Look at graciousness of God, Needs to be Consequences | but here, God promises Satan will lose.
I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
Then the seperation;
He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.
God is Holy | No longer meet the requirements of Holiness.
And because of Adams sin - We are born of Sin | Called Adams Seed.
(Don’t have to teach kids to be bad)
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.
and because of that:
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
Sin = Missing mark = All missed ark of holiness of God | Cheribumm protected way to tree of Life.
However, God wanted relationship with us - It’s why we were created | Wanted us back
but Problem - The debt had to be paid | We were incapable of paying what is required. Wages fo Sin is Death = However required a sinless man, to pay for our sins.
Don’t miss this;
Jesus looks down | Sees us in futile ways | Rebellion against God | Unable to save and chooses to step down | To do what only Jesus could do.
What was sufficient payment? Death of a spotless lamb… but far more than that.
Jesus knew all that he had to go through | Garden of Gethsemene | Humanity felt it, sweating drops of blood before saying;
Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”
Leaves | Gets arrested | Goes before religious leaders; They spit on him | Strike him | Slap him
handed over to Pilate | Pilate offers to release him - Crowd scream “Crucify Him, Crucify Him”
Crown of thorns | Carried his cross through market place | Put on a cross to die and says;
And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Jesus yielded up His Spirit and dies…Jesus was in the grave.
Jesus been tortured, beaten, whipped, and now lays in a grave.
Question; Aren’t you glad the story doesn’t end on Friday.
Saturday came - Hope was gone | But on SUNDAY.
Women went to tomb | Stone was rolled away | Angel was sitting there;
But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.
DEATH COULD NOT HOLD HIM - JESUS IS ALIVE!!! Jesus had Conquered Death, Hell and the GRAVE.
When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
This is Hope for eternal Life.
Listen;
1st thing in Matthew’s Gospel that’s recored after Jesus’ Death;
And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.
Curtain Splitting is recorded in 3 Gospel accounts | Why important?
Curtain represented barrier between us and God’s Presence | Cheribum on outside of Garden of tree of life | The Holy of Holies
Death of Jesus made way for us to be back in relationship with God.
Price paid | Jesus said - It is finished | Debt paid.
However, there are terms. God’s terms
Now, you can go and eat of tree of Life…on one condition…Covered by the blood of the Lamb.
Question then - How are you covered by the blood?
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
What does believing that Jesus is Lord mean?
Means we admit we are no longer Lord of our lives. Jesus is King.
(Maybe revelation)
Laying down our life and admitting it’s not about us - Knowing that there is a better way;
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Jesus wants to take you from where you are…and give you a resurrection and relationship.
So what do we do?
Put our flesh to death, and be resurrected in Christ
Message of Easter not only Jesus died on cross.
Message is Jesus died on cross FOR YOU, defeated death, hell and grave so YOU could have ETERNAL LIFE.
How? Putting to death our flesh and selfish desires.
Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
Jesus not asking us to do aything He did not do | Not easy, worth it - Can’t have a resurrection without a death.
2. Accept the terms of the agreement
Masters = No phones = Best experience of their life.
“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
Jesus; Narrow is the path, but few find it - broad is the path that leads to destruction.
LIFE the promise is LIFE.
3. Follow and Trust Jesus to go somewhere you have never been
Don’t know where he might take you - Never been - But you KNOW WHO HE IS and JESUS CAN BE TRUSTED.
In series called “Sifted | Series on trials | All been through | Maybe you are at end of yourself, Struggling, Maybe came in sifted.
Jesus said, before foundation of world, I will be sifted but I choose to save.
He hopes your response will be;
I may be sifted, but I CHOOSE to be SAVED.
The presence of God is waiting for you.
Will you choose Jesus today?
