Know. Believe. Follow.

▾ Know. Believe. Follow.

▾ Introduction

As we fast approach Easter, we are reminded of the centrality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But we must remember that the world is no help to us.

As we fast approach Easter, we are reminded of the centrality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

A shopping center in Wales demanded that a church remove the name “Jesus” from its advertising for Easter services.

• A shopping center in Wales demanded that a church remove the name “Jesus” from its advertising for Easter services.

A shopping center in Wales demanded that a church remove the name “Jesus” from its advertising for Easter services.

• NBC is broadcasting a live performance of the blasphemous musical, “Jesus Christ Superstar,” Easter night. In the musical, Judas Iscariot is the hero, a sensible, stable man who sees Jesus of Nazareth as a manipulative seeker of fame.

NBC is broadcasting a live performance of the blasphemous musical, “Jesus Christ Superstar,” Easter night. In the musical, Judas Iscariot is the hero, a sensible, stable man who sees Jesus of Nazareth as a manipulative seeker of fame.

• NBC is broadcasting a live performance of the blasphemous musical, “Jesus Christ Superstar,” Easter night. In the musical, Judas Iscariot is the hero, a sensible, stable man who sees Jesus of Nazareth as a manipulative seeker of fame.

NBC is broadcasting a live performance of the blasphemous musical, “Jesus Christ Superstar,” Easter night. In the musical, Judas Iscariot is the hero, a sensible, stable man who sees Jesus of Nazareth as a manipulative seeker of fame.

• The apostate writer Bart Ehrman continues his crusade to “de-convert” Christians by attacking the truth of Scripture and the Person of Jesus with mockery and contempt.

The apostate writer Bart Ehrman continues his crusade to “de-convert” Christians by attacking the truth of Scripture and the Person of Jesus with mockery and contempt.

• The apostate writer Bart Ehrman continues his crusade to “de-convert” Christians by attacking the truth of Scripture and the Person of Jesus with mockery and contempt.

The apostate writer Bart Ehrman continues his crusade to “de-convert” Christians by attacking the truth of Scripture and the Person of Jesus with mockery and contempt.

And besides the atheists and agnostics who deny Jesus Christ, there are also multitudes of those who want Him fragmented and partial.

• And besides the atheists and agnostics who deny Jesus Christ, there are also multitudes of those who want Him fragmented and partial.

And besides the atheists and agnostics who deny Jesus Christ, there are also multitudes of those who want Him fragmented and partial.

This morning we are going to see that

Christians must know exactly who Jesus is,

Christians must believe fully in what Jesus came to accomplish, and,

• Christians must believe fully in what Jesus came to accomplish, and,

Christians must believe fully in what Jesus came to accomplish, and,

• Christians must believe fully in what Jesus came to accomplish, and,

Christians must follow Jesus on His terms.

• Christians must follow Jesus on His terms.

We must know. We must believe. We must follow.

We must know

Matthew 16:13–17 ESV

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. ()

▾ We must believe.

▾ As we saw last communion Sunday, the people had a variety of opinions about who Jesus was.

• From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” ()

▸ What do people believe about Jesus’ work?

But it doesn’t matter what THEY think, whoever THEY are.

Jesus says that what matters is what YOU think.

I’ve had plenty of conversations with people who want to discuss theories about Jesus Christ is, but the real issue is what that person thinks. What I think. What you think.

• I’ve had plenty of conversations with people who want to discuss theories about Jesus Christ is, but the real issue is what that person thinks. What I think. What you think.

▸ Jesus tells us He “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” ()

▸ What does it mean to be a sinner?

• I’ve had plenty of conversations with people who want to discuss theories about Jesus Christ is, but the real issue is what that person thinks. What I think. What you think.

That knowledge is not gained through reading, or through teaching, or through sermons.

▾ Jesus didn’t come to retrain us, to give us better habits, to encourage us to be a little nicer.

It’s not gained through meditation or studying other religions.

• He came to change our verdict from “sinner” to “righteous.”

▾ It comes, Jesus says to Peter, as a gift of God the Father, through, as the Scripture makes clear, the Holy Spirit’s ministry.

It comes, Jesus says to Peter, as a gift of God the Father, through, as the Scripture makes clear, the Holy Spirit’s ministry.

Luke writes that when the Gospel was preached to the Gentiles in Psidian Antioch, “as many as were appointed [by God] to eternal life believed” ().

Acts 16:14 ESV

One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul.

The Lord opened Lydia’s heart to pay attention to the Gospel. ().

Paul said to the Corinthians,

1 Corinthians 3:6 ESV

I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.

• He did this by His death and resurrection.

• says that the Lord opened Lydia’s heart to pay attention to the Gospel, to understand the truth that Paul spoke.

1 Corinthians 3:6 ESV

I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.

We are called to plant the seeds of the Gospel, and to water those seeds by praying for and talking with those who are hungry. But God must give the growth. The success of evangelism belongs to God, not us.

1 Corinthians 3:6 ESV

I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.

• This is the Gospel. We must believe it.

We have to know who Jesus is, but true understanding comes only as a gift of God.

▾ We must follow.

• Luke writes that when the Gentiles in Psidian Antioch heard the Gospel, “as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.” ().

▾ We have to know who Jesus is, but true understanding comes only as a gift of God.

• Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. ()

That means that we must begin with humility, not pride. We must come to Jesus in humility, and encourage others to do the same.

• Being a Christian requires right theology – no one is a Christian whose knowledge of Jesus is contrary to Scripture – but it requires more than right theology.

We must believe.

• Being a Christian requires correct belief – no one is a Christian who does not believe in Jesus Christ – but it requires more than mere agreement or acceptance.

Matthew 16:21–23 ESV

From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

• From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” ()

• Jesus says that those who want to be His disciples – those who want to be saved from sin and rightly related to God; the word “Christian” did not exist during Jesus’ ministry – had to take up their cross and follow Him.

People have all sorts of ideas about Jesus’ work.

▾ What do people believe about Jesus’ work?

▾ What doesn’t it mean to carry your cross:

Some say that He came to liberate people from what causes suffering.

• Some say that He came to liberate people from what causes suffering.

• It doesn’t mean being short, or poor, or having bad skin.

Some say that He came to defeat social and economic injustice.

• It doesn’t mean being shy, or being bad at math.

• Some say that He came to defeat social and economic injustice.

One United Methodist minister said that Jesus came to deliver us from “a global spiderweb of imprisoning toxicity,” whatever that means.

• One United Methodist minister said that Jesus came to deliver us from “a global spiderweb of imprisoning toxicity,” whatever that means.

• It doesn’t mean having cancer or Alzheimer’s disease.

Others say that Jesus came to show that everyone should be fully accepted all the time.

• Others say that Jesus came to show that everyone should be fully accepted all the time.

▾ What does it mean to be a cross-bearing follower of Jesus Christ?

• It means what Jesus said to Peter in , setting your mind on the things of God, and not the things of man.

Jesus tells us He “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (). His blood, He says, was “poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” ()

His blood, He says, was “poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” ()

Matthew 20:28 ESV

even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

▾ Warren Wiersbe says this,

• His blood, He says, was “poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” ()

▸ To deny self does not mean to deny things. It means to give yourself wholly to Christ and share in His shame and death … To take up a cross does not mean to carry burdens or have problems … To take up the cross means to identify with Christ in His rejection, shame, suffering, and death.

On His cross Jesus bore the wrath of God against sinners, providing forgiveness for sins. By His resurrection He justifies sinners, declaring them righteous before God.

• It’s what we see in , “present yourself as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”

• By His resurrection He justifies sinners, declaring them righteous before God.

• It’s what we see in , “whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ … for His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.”

What does it mean to be a sinner?

▾ What did Jesus mean by “whoever would save his life”?

It has nothing to do with being a good person or a bad person. Sinners are nice, kind, sweet, well-intentioned people. “Sinner” has nothing to do with “bad person.”

• He’s not talking about those who are trying to save themselves from sin, which is impossible.

▾ Sinners are nice, kind, sweet, well-intentioned people.

They fight for the rights of others.

• He’s not talking about those who are trying to save themselves from death or disease.

• They sacrifice themselves.

They sacrifice themselves.

▾ He’s talking about those who are trying to save their lives from HIM!

• They have the right theology – they know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

They run into burning buildings to put out fires.

• They run into burning buildings to put out fires.

• They give generously of their wealth.

They give generously of their wealth.

• They have the right confession – they believe that Jesus came to save sinners.

They feed the poor.

• They feed the poor.

• But they will not accept the cost of being His, which is denying themselves and identifying with Jesus in His rejection, shame, suffering, and death.

▾ This is a serious issue. Jesus says,

They build hospitals.

• They build hospitals.

• They overturn slavery.

They overturn slavery.

• “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ ()

Sinners have created treatments for all sorts of diseases, ended smallpox and measles epidemics, risked their own lives to help people during epidemics.

• Jesus says that there will be many who had the right theology – they know that He is Lord.

• Sinners have created treatments for all sorts of diseases, ended smallpox and measles epidemics, risked their own lives to help people during epidemics.

“Sinner” does not mean “bad person.”

• They have the right confession – they call Him Lord.

▾ If you read through the Word of God, you’ll see that the word “sinner” is never modified.

If you read through the Word of God, you’ll see that the word “sinner” is never modified. That is, we never read of “bad” sinners, or people who were “kind of” sinners, or a few who were “really, really wicked” sinners. People are simply sinners, period.

• That is, we never read of “bad” sinners, or people who were “kind of” sinners, or a few who were “really, really wicked” sinners.

• But there was never a transformation of their lives. They did not do the will of the Father. There was no obedience. Their faith was mere words. There was no commitment, no devotion, no following. They were never born again. They accepted what they were taught about Jesus, without argument. They agreed with the message of the Gospel. But their lives were untouched.

• People are simply sinners, period.

▾ Bringing it home

That’s because the word “sinner” is not a character flaw, or a description of behavior, but a legal judgment of God.

• We could say that it’s all about the Gospel. What sort of a Gospel do you have today?

▾ That’s because the word “sinner” is not a character flaw, or a description of behavior, but a legal judgment of God.

A person who is convicted in a human court of law is found “guilty.”

• A person who is convicted in a human court of law is found “guilty.”

▾ The majority of the world has no Gospel at all.

A person who is convicted of rebellion by God is a “sinner.’

• They deny that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

• A person who is convicted of rebellion by God is a “sinner.’

• This doesn’t merely include atheists and Buddhists and Muslims, but countless religious liberals who call themselves “Christian,” but who deny the Son of God as surely as the Pharisees did during Jesus’ time.

Because we are conceived and born in rebellion, we are born already guilty; we are born sinners.

• They have no Gospel at all.

Jesus didn’t come to retrain us, to give us better habits, to encourage us to be a little nicer.

▾ Many of those who claim to be Christians have a false Gospel.

• He came to change our verdict from “sinner” to “righteous.”

He came to change our verdict from “sinner” to “righteous.”

He did this by His death and resurrection.

• This isn’t just heretical groups like Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses, but those who say that salvation is NOT through Jesus’ alone, but also requires good works, religious duties, membership in the right church, sacraments, baptism, and so on.

• He did this by His death and resurrection.

• They have a false Gospel.

This is the Gospel. We must believe it.

▾ But some certainly have a genuine relationship with Jesus.

We must follow.

• Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. ()

• They know that He is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

Matthew 16:24–27 ESV

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.

• They fully believe that He came to save sinners, and did so all by Himself, bearing the wrath of God on the cross, and justifying them with His own righteousness.

• Being a Christian requires right theology – no one is a Christian whose knowledge of Jesus is contrary to Scripture – but it requires more than right theology.

Being a Christian requires right theology – no one is a Christian whose knowledge of Jesus is contrary to Scripture – but it requires more than right theology.

Being a Christian requires correct belief – no one is a Christian who does not believe in Jesus Christ – but it requires more than mere agreement or acceptance.

▾ And they are devoted to Him.

• He is not Lord in word only, but also in their lives.

Jesus says that those who want to be His disciples – those who want to be saved from sin and rightly related to God; the word “Christian” did not exist during Jesus’ ministry – had to take up their cross and follow Him.

• They deny themselves and follow Him, often on sore feet and aching legs, often through stumbles and falls, but so clearly drawn to Jesus by the Father that, even when they have no strength of their own, they call upon Him for grace and mercy in time of need.

What doesn’t it mean to carry your cross:

• They don’t find following Jesus to be easy; to the contrary, following Jesus often means great difficulty, social isolation, being the unpopular one among friends and family.

It doesn’t mean being short, or poor, or having bad skin.

It doesn’t mean being shy, or being bad at math.

• It doesn’t mean being shy, or being bad at math.

• They aren’t proud of themselves for following Jesus, either, because they know that it is only by His grace, His mercy, the call of His Father, the power of His Spirit, the truth of His Word, the vibrance of His life in them, that makes it possible. Their salvation is not an achievement to celebrate, but an undeserved gift to receive with gratitude.

It doesn’t mean having cancer or Alzheimer’s disease.

▾ They have the true Gospel.

• It doesn’t mean having cancer or Alzheimer’s disease.

• The Gospel that saves from the eternal penalty of sin.

What does it mean to be a cross-bearing follower of Jesus Christ?

It means what Jesus said to Peter in , setting your mind on the things of God, and not the things of man.

• The Gospel that saves from the present power of sin.

Notice that Jesus doesn’t say “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny things,” but “let him deny himself.”

Denying yourself means giving yourself entirely to Jesus Christ. It doesn’t mean carrying burdens or having problems, but identifying with Jesus in His rejection, shame, suffering, and death.

It’s what we see in ,

Romans 12:1 ESV

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

It’s what we see in ,

Philippians 3:8–9 ESV

Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—

Philippians 3:7 ESV

But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

In Jesus says that the one who wants to save his life will lose it. He isn’t talking about those who are trying to save themselves from sin or judgment, but those who are trying to save themselves from Jesus Himself.

They have the right theology – they know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

• They have the right theology – they know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

• It’s what we see in , “present yourself as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”

▾ Warren Wiersbe says this,

• The Gospel that will one day deliver from the constant presence of sin.

▾ To deny self does not mean to deny things. It means to give yourself wholly to Christ and share in His shame and death … To take up a cross does not mean to carry burdens or have problems … To take up the cross means to identify with Christ in His rejection, shame, suffering, and death.

▾ Yes, that’s right.

• Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 60). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

• Jesus’ death on the cross satisfied God’s wrath against sinners, and so canceled the eternal penalty of sin. There is no judgment for those who are in Jesus Christ.

• It’s what we see in , “present yourself as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”

• By God’s grace, through faith, we are counted dead with Jesus on His cross, and alive in Him through His resurrection, and so the present power of sin is broken. Those in Christ have been set free from slavery to sin. We still sin, of course, but by choice, not because we are slaves to it.

• And we will one day be delivered from the constant presence of sin in our lives, which resides in our sinful flesh. Until these bodies are dead, sin will follow us around, like Pig Pen’s dust cloud from Charlie Brown. But that sin can no neither command us to obey nor condemn us to hell.

• It’s what we see in , “whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ … for His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.”

▾ The message of Easter is the message of the Gospel.

▾ What did Jesus mean by “whoever would save his life”?

• He’s not talking about those who are trying to save themselves from sin, which is impossible.

• Jesus Christ came to save sinners.

• He’s not talking about those who are trying to save themselves from death or disease.

• He saves them from the penalty and power of sin, and will one day deliver them from the presence of sin.

• He does this by His own grace and mercy, and not because of any worth on their part.

▾ He’s talking about those who are trying to save their lives from HIM!

• We know that the Gospel has taken root in our lives because we understand the truth about who Jesus is, we believe fully in what He came to accomplish, and we faithfully obey Him as our Lord.

• They have the right theology – they know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

• That obedience does not save us, but rather shows that we have been saved, because apart from His life in us, obedience is impossible.

They have the right confession – they believe that Jesus came to save sinners.

But they will not accept the cost of being His, which is denying themselves and identifying with Jesus in His rejection, shame, suffering, and death.

• Faithful obedience is not the cause of salvation, but the evidence of salvation. If you have the knowledge of who Jesus is, and the belief that He is the Savior, but the faithful obedience is missing, then ask Him for it. Ask Him for genuine transformation. Ask Him to grant you submission as well as knowledge and faith.

▾ This is a serious issue. Jesus says,

This is a serious issue.

Jesus says,

Matthew 7:21–23 ESV

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

There will be many who had the right theology – they know that He is Lord – and the right confession – they call Him “Lord,” after all.

• Jesus says that there will be many who had the right theology – they know that He is Lord.

But there was no application of their knowledge. There was no evidence of their faith. They were untransformed. They did not do the will of the Father. They did not truly know Jesus. And, most important of all, He did not know them.

I’m going to hammer this again because eternity is on the line.

Jesus is going to reject people whose knowledge of theology was accurate, and whose words of faith were flawless, but whose lives were unchanged by the Gospel.

• But there was never a transformation of their lives. They did not do the will of the Father. There was no obedience. Their faith was mere words. There was no commitment, no devotion, no following. They were never born again. They accepted what they were taught about Jesus, without argument. They agreed with the message of the Gospel. But their lives were untouched.

▾ Bringing it home

It comes down to the Gospel. What sort of Gospel do you have?

The majority of the world has no Gospel at all.

They deny that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. This is not simply Muslims and Buddhists and other world religions, but the countless religious liberals who call themselves “Christian,” but who deny Christ and His Word.

They have no Gospel at all.

Many claim to be Christians, but have a false Gospel.

This isn’t just heretical groups like the Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses and Unitarians, but all those who say that salvation is NOT through Jesus alone, but requires good works, religious duties, sacraments, baptism, membership in the right church, and so on.

They have a false Gospel.

But there is a remnant of humanity, chosen by God, redeemed by His grace and mercy, who know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God; and who fully believe that He came to save sinners, and saved them all by Himself on the cross; and who are devoted to Him, obeying Him as their Lord.

▾ The majority of the world has no Gospel at all.

• They deny that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

They deny themselves and follow Him, often on aching feet, through many stumbles and failures, but are so clearly drawn to Jesus by the Father that, even though they have no strength or ability, they call upon Him to carry them.

• This doesn’t merely include atheists and Buddhists and Muslims, but countless religious liberals who call themselves “Christian,” but who deny the Son of God as surely as the Pharisees did during Jesus’ time.

They don’t find following Jesus to be easy; to the contrary, they find it hard, but follow Him anyway.

And they don’t find following Jesus to be a reason for pride; they know that He has done it all for them, and given them the gift of salvation. Salvation is not an achievement to proudly celebrate, but a gift to gratefully receive. They know that obedience is not the cause of salvation, but the evidence of it. When that evidence can’t be found, they call upon Him for grace and mercy and transformation. They don’t try harder to change themselves, but continue to deny themselves and trust Him to change them.

• They have no Gospel at all.

They have the true Gospel. They trust in it themselves, and urge others to trust it as well.

▾ Many of those who claim to be Christians have a false Gospel.

• This isn’t just heretical groups like Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses, but those who say that salvation is NOT through Jesus’ alone, but also requires good works, religious duties, membership in the right church, sacraments, baptism, and so on.

• They have a false Gospel.

The message of Easter is the message of the Gospel.

• They know that He is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.

• They fully believe that He came to save sinners, and did so all by Himself, bearing the wrath of God on the cross, and justifying them with His own righteousness.

▾ And they are devoted to Him.

• He is not Lord in word only, but also in their lives.

• They deny themselves and follow Him, often on sore feet and aching legs, often through stumbles and falls, but so clearly drawn to Jesus by the Father that, even when they have no strength of their own, they call upon Him for grace and mercy in time of need.

• They don’t find following Jesus to be easy; to the contrary, following Jesus often means great difficulty, social isolation, being the unpopular one among friends and family.

• They aren’t proud of themselves for following Jesus, either, because they know that it is only by His grace, His mercy, the call of His Father, the power of His Spirit, the truth of His Word, the vibrance of His life in them, that makes it possible. Their salvation is not an achievement to celebrate, but an undeserved gift to receive with gratitude.

▾ They have the true Gospel.

• The Gospel that saves from the eternal penalty of sin.

• The Gospel that saves from the present power of sin.

• The Gospel that will one day deliver from the constant presence of sin.

▾ Yes, that’s right.

• Jesus’ death on the cross satisfied God’s wrath against sinners, and so canceled the eternal penalty of sin. There is no judgment for those who are in Jesus Christ.

• By God’s grace, through faith, we are counted dead with Jesus on His cross, and alive in Him through His resurrection, and so the present power of sin is broken. Those in Christ have been set free from slavery to sin. We still sin, of course, but by choice, not because we are slaves to it.

• And we will one day be delivered from the constant presence of sin in our lives, which resides in our sinful flesh. Until these bodies are dead, sin will follow us around, like Pig Pen’s dust cloud from Charlie Brown. But that sin can no neither command us to obey nor condemn us to hell.

▾ The message of Easter is the message of the Gospel.

Jesus Christ came to save sinners.

He saves us from the penalty and power of sin, and will one day deliver us from the presence of sin.

He does this by His own grace and mercy, and not because of any worth on our part.

We know that the Gospel has taken root in our lives because we understand the truth about who Jesus is, we believe fully in what He came to accomplish, and we faithfully obey Him as our Lord.

• That obedience does not save us, but rather shows that we have been saved, because apart from His life in us, obedience is impossible.

• Faithful obedience is not the cause of salvation, but the evidence of salvation. If you have the knowledge of who Jesus is, and the belief that He is the Savior, but the faithful obedience is missing, then ask Him for it. Ask Him for genuine transformation. Ask Him to grant you submission as well as knowledge and faith.