Is Jesus The One?

Good morning, and happy Resurrection Sunday. If you have a Bible, please open up to Matthew chapter 11 or grab your phone. That's totally acceptable and flip it on Open to Matthew chapter 11. Let's pray. Spirit we just want to invite your presence into this time. And that is we consider the scriptures. And look at our own hearts and consider Jesus that you would be working in our lives, encouraging us and drawing us together under the king. Maybe rest in who you are rejoicing who you are in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Hey, well, it's great to be back with you. I was away for two Sundays, which can be good or bad on the Sunday I come back so I can either have lots to say or I can kind of spaced out when I'm on vacation and will not have too much and I think it's going to be the first option rather than the second option. So hopefully brought a comfy chair this morning, but vacation was absolutely great. I got to drive on bookends about 35 hours round-trip. Yeah school stop for some of you that probably sounds absolutely miserable for me. I'm a weird. I think I missed my calling my wife didn't none of the driving. I did all of the driving and I absolutely loved it. So for me, it's time to do some of my favorite things drink coffee sit talk to my wife and listen to music so Road. For me, I just absolutely phenomenal now on a road trip that long how you get to listen to lots of music and when I'm with my family nor movie has genres that we kind of hang out in and listen to you for just even driving over the hill to Portland. But when you're 35 hours round-trip everything and anything is open, so I'm forcing my wife to listen to hip-hop. It's awesome. Maybe some old 90s Will Smith hip-hop. Okay going way back for me at least and then we listen to some country music and country music was a little bit of a workout for me at first it began about 11 years ago. She introduced me to Brad Paisley and has slowly gotten me to like some of the 90s 80s and even older country music and so we have this vast array of genres that we would listen to in the car and I hear something that's really interesting about music. At least my perception about music music is a great way to get a feel for what's going on in culture. Music is a great way to get a feel for what's going on in the culture people tend to write about and sing about things that are deeply close to their hearts things that are connected to them. So again, like country music is going to be a lifted truck or something in your Koozie and like rolling down the street looking at everybody. I I don't know why that's just country music. Ok, and so people write what's near and dear to their hearts and one of the themes that kept coming up and some of the more recent pop culture country kinds of songs were the questions of what's going on in our world today. There's this moment that we're all living in right now and it's a moment in which we are and I'm going to use this word a lot this morning and give some of my definition behind it. But it's a moment in which people from all ages from all classes from all races in America are doing a bit of deconstruction of what's going on and culture and society. And there's this lingering question of why can't we all just get along? There's one of the songs I heard this comes from Luke Combs. You guys know who Luke Combs is yeah. She comes in like a hurricane. Okay, Luke Combs when here's this one. Larry Sharpe we're striking matches on the TV setting fires on our phones bearing crosses. We believe in dying on tempers flare the Flames fly higher as we were closer towards the Sun but I like to think too much damage ain't been done. We're all so far apart so far apart now it's as deep as it is wide. We're about to fall apart. Now, we can't reach the other side. We got to find a way across the Great Divide. I don't know if you're aware of it or not. But in our culture right now in America, there's something Vision going on right? You probably talked a little bit about it over dinner. Maybe even on a through few threads on Facebook seen a couple of posts. And there's this angst that's happening within our culture and there's really unless you've been under a rock for the last year. No way to escape listening to hearing about this divided that's happening in our country and our families and in our lives. What's going on has caused division. Now what's going on is people are going through a moment of deconstruction. Now before we explain that I want to talk about Construction Construction is how you formed your views. It happens. When you're young it began when you were attending school within your family your friends your neighborhood the things you read the things that you listen to they begin to form a worldview for you away. Once you see the world support example, this is just my personal construction when I was a kid, I grew up as a church kid what I mean by that is we went to church twice midweek and three times on Sunday, right Sunday school Sunday Sunday night that was incredibly formative and shaping My Views and how I viewed the world around me how I viewed money how I view Christian tidied sexuality. It was incredibly formative and shaping these used and I would look at the world around me every single person has this experience one way or another of having your views shape or influence, whether it's from Friends professors universities, these things have shaped your lives and given you a view now. There's a question. What does this have to do with Jesus and the resurrection and Matthew 11 and me. Why would you open up with something like this? Well, Matthew 11 chapter 11 verse 1 through 6. Read this this morning. It says when Jesus had finished instructing the 12 disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in their cities now and John heard in prison about the Deeds of the Christ or Messiah. He sent word by his disciples and said to him. Are you the one who is to come or shall we look for another and Jesus answered them go and tell John what you hear and see the blind receive their sight the lame walk lepers are cleansed the deaf hear the dead are raised up and the poor have good news. Priest of them blessed is the one who is not offended by me. Let me just get some background here right now. If you tracked with us through Matthew or you read some of the gospels on your own John the Baptist, he was born about six months before Jesus. His mother was Elizabeth. His father was the high priest and he'd grown up knowing about Jesus and sharing maybe a little bit about Jesus even in their childhood and it's Sean gets a little bit older he has this call on his life to be this profits that is calling is real to repentance. He is doing what we say is preparing the way for the Messiah to come now. His influence was all shaped by his Jewish upbringing the Old Testament scriptures what his family with his community with his friends were telling him. So he constructs this view about who this Messiah is and he even declares that he is fulfilling these words. That are prophesied of the 4Runner that would come and make way for Jesus talking about Jesus. He's repairing people's hearts. He identifies Jesus as the Lamb of God. He further identified Jesus of Nazareth as the one that he baptized in the spirit rests upon him and he says I had received word that who the spirit rests upon. He is the Messiah he is the Son of God and early on in John's Ministry things went really really well. I mean, the guy was out in the wilderness people were coming crowds were large people were getting baptized when his disciples came to him and said, they're starting to follow Jesus. He's great. I'm doing my job. I must have decreased. He must increase John could have been on the preaching circuit. John could have written the book on how to do ministry. Jaunt was solid but like every Prophet that you just about read about in the Old Testament things take a turn for John and they do not go well for him. If you were to flip over a couple of chapters, you read that he finds himself in prison.

It begins to wonder and it begins to question. Are you the one Jesus? Why would he do this? I would John do this. He had this fantastic upbringing preaching fees teaching. He's telling everybody about Jesus. He's excited. He's pointing people to the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world. What is going on in John Hart? What is going on in John's mind? And he begins to wonder. Is he the one what happens is is John is doing a little D Construction in the dungeon. Is in prison he serve God faithfully and life is not turning out how he wanted and he wants to know should I be looking for another interesting because in life only hit these pivotal moments. Maybe you run up in the church. Maybe even a Christian for 10 or 11 years 12 years 30 years and you hit him moments where you're in a dungeon, so to speak and some of the excitement.

some of the thrill and worn off of you and all of a sudden marriage is not as good as what it wants was or your kids lived on a completely other direction or your business is not happening the way you anticipated it would continue on and provide for you and you look at everything you've done for this Jesus for this God and you begin to say wait a second. It doesn't add up. Are you the one or maybe you've been in church and you've been hurt by your church or a church member or a pastor or a leader? And you go this does not add up. I don't get it Jesus. If you're the one thing should go a little bit differently for me in my life is heat when we hit problems. We begin to deconstruct our culture. Western America has hit a massive problem and they're beginning to look at everything that's gone into influencing the decisions and what's happening in the world today and they're starting to deconstruct and saying what do we need to tear down in order to build something back? We do this on a large societal scale. Would you the song Church level scales? We can do this on individual scales. And I got this fear for a lot of Christians. experience the excitement and they're in this moment right now. And they're going what's going on around us. How does Jesus move in the situation and More in these dungeons because previously read nosteam book and he said life shouldn't be this way. I heard a preacher on TV say if I just did these things it should all look very different for me. And so many Christians have been taught sermons on how to manage God how to learn how to get God on your side. But if you live a certain way life will go a certain way and all the sudden it's not working out and if used Faith as a behavioral tool to direct God or Force commands that God that's not how God actually works is it? If it is John the Baptist would not be rotting away in prison.

Jesus himself said there's not a man greater born of a woman then John. He got it, right. And what happens to him a story ends with the prison doors opening up being carried out by guards with chains on him and losing his head. Very dark hard painful story now is another way to your side to this as well. And it's this. When John asks is Jesus the one he's referring to a passage in Isaiah 42 verses 1 through 9. This passage would have shaped his views and expectations of the Messiah and you can begin to go down the list of what the Messiah would do. He would heal the lame he would give the blind sites. You would speak. Hope into people's lies. And so what is Jesus doing? Is he getting to do these things in front of John's disciples and they go back and tell John this is what he's done and John's probably sitting there going well in Isaiah It also says that he sets the captives free and yet that is not something Jesus. It's a John and his deconstruction moments. Has to build something up in its place Jesus. Are you the one or should I look for another see the response of Jesus to John is not one of him saying yes, it's him saying look at what I'm doing and bringing the kingdom and now you have to make a decision on what you're going to build up in its place. Jesus is saying John you had a construction. You're in a deconstruction. And now you are in reconstruction. And what are you going to build up in its place? Here's who I'm revealing myself to be to you and to your disciples. What are you going to do with that reconstruction this morning? And we're not going to be super long on this begins with asking the right questions here today. It's not is this a comfortable Church where I'm going to fit in am I going to like the music? What do you do in the community? The question that were asking the thing you should be curious about this morning is Jesus. Are you the one? Are you the one? Anybody in here is not just having some kind of. Deconstruction moment within their Christian faith, but maybe you're looking at even America or Western culture at large and we're tearing it down in hopes of rebuilding it back up. If it's not done with the understanding of who Jesus is it'll just fall apart again and again and again If you don't replace it with the right answers of Jesus, if you're not under the king of who Jesus is in his kingship, you're going to rebuild an incredibly wrong way only to be left broken and empty time and time again now if you are in here. You're looking at the church. So you're looking at what's going on and culture around us. It's okay to have doubts. It's okay to deconstruct. It's not wrong. You're not in a bad place of Our Heroes of the Old Testament have done that Thomas doubted other Apostles doubted, but when it comes to building this back up when I say it begins with Jesus and we have to question. Is he the one here's what I want us to focus on. Did he fulfill what the Old Testament said about him being the Messiah? Rihanna Sia We're studying this right now as a group of people we're going through Matthew's gospel and all that he has to say about who this Jesus is and you're going to be left with having to make your own conclusion on did Jesus not only come not only live in Cheech and do Miracles but then did he also die on a cross and three days later was he resurrected. Is he who he said he was did he do what he said he would do. 34 fill with the scripture say did he actually resurrect if Paul says in 1st Corinthians, if Jesus didn't you me we of all people are most miserable. We would have been better off grabbing brunch this morning than Gathering as a people if Jesus didn't resurrect. You have a bathroom a little closer. The donut would have actually, you know have made it and it would have been a great day. But if Jesus did resurrect pulse saying this gives us all the reason all the evidence as to coming underneath his kingship. What does it mean if Jesus Resurrected? Christians believe that it means that your sins sins are the things that we do that don't measure up to God's standards that also end up hurting and harming not only ourselves but others around us so that you are forgiven because he is your substitute. He stood in your place. This is substitutionary atonement.

But you racked up a debt. And then he stood in that place. It also means he's the first fruits of the Resurrection. So not only that you are forgiven, but that he promises you knew life in the age to come because of what we have in Christ. We also know that Christ is Victorious because he conquered the grave death could not keep him. The tomb could not contain him. Christ is risen. Christ is risen, and this is a reality. This is a hinge upon which everything in the world turned and changed because of this truth. It means also that you participate in this Divine Life Here and Now bringing the kingdom that's him inviting you in to be participant. It means absolutely he has redeemed you that he forgives you that guilt that shame that burden that weight. It is gone. It means he reigned and you are his Ambassador and that you go and do the things that he did and this morning is an invitation into that life.

I don't know where each and every person sits this morning. But I know deep down for a lot of us. There's been many questions ass that's been a lot of wondering and deconstructing happening in our lives and we have to build upon the foundation which is Jesus. Any attempts outside to build a Biblical Faith outside of scripture is going to fail you. Any attempt to try to reconcile what's going on in the world today and then to try to produce a better outcome as well as it may be intended is going to fall short. Unless King. Jesus is at the head of it. And we as Christians have opportunity to bring that truth and our town of Redmond into our families and into our friendship because of what Jesus has done. Yes, their cultural battles happening I get that. Yes, our friends Christian and non-Christian alike are deconstructing what's going on in the world. But yes, you have hope because you get to tell others about who Jesus is a friend. Take this serious. Ask yourself, where am I at? And what a my rebuilding with I want to invite you to rebuild under King Jesus the transformed wife. The upside down kingdom the substitutionary atonement that's been given to us the empowerment to walk in his life. That's the good news of Easter. The bad news of the world has been the same Tower of Babel. They tried to wreck the perfect Society. Rome they built their systems and have the Pax Romana and tried to build a culture that would through Force but try that all get along like all the songs that were singing about today it all comes to not unless Jesus is at the head of prime. Jesus thank you for your help your love and your life. And in a year like the year that all of the world has been experiencing. That is impact has rippled all the way down to little Redmond, Oregon and where we have questions and are wondering and asking and understanding that's okay. We pray that this morning there'd be a turning point in our hearts and our lives and we'd be committed as a people to build upon the foundation. That is Jesus the AC Unity under Jesus that we may not have uniformity because we can have difference of opinions and ideas, but we have the same King who desires the same thing for your people. And may we be United under that and it's that Jesus is King that Jesus is Lord. So we come now to worship you to praise you to serve you in Jesus name. Amen.