Untitled Sermon (14)

What if I told you that Easter is not primarily about forgiveness of sin? That when Jesus hung on the cross his goal was about more than just erasing your mistakes, canceling your sin, and giving you a clear record?

What if I told you that if the only thing the cross and empty tomb does is drive you to the altar----you’re missing the point?

Would you be perplexed? Angry? Would you walk out of this service and call me a crazy man? Well, get ready- because that is exactly what I am saying today.

I am saying loud and clear that if you think forgiveness is the main crux of the cross- you are drastically and emphatically selling the Easter story short.

The emphasis of the cross is not forgiveness, it is reconciliation, and those things are not the same.

You see, forgiveness is a term that is based in consequences. And yes, the cross definitely deals with consequences of sin.

Romans 6:23 reminds us that the consequence for sin is death. Not physical death, but spiritual death- separation from God. Being separated from God is the curse that entered the world when Adam and Eve sinned in the garden, and up unto today, and from today until the return of Christ sin will always result in separation from God. Until our sin is paid for the debt will be owed.

So, Jesus, at the most basic level of the cross pays the debt and forgives our sins- 1 Peter 2:24 tells us 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.

This healing, this forgiveness is exactly what our souls need. Most of us have been forgiven on a traffic ticket. You know the feeling when the blue lights show up in your rear view mirror- it happened to me just the other week. I was pulled over because I do not have my front license plate on my Jeep- I lost it during the big snow in February. So, I was pulled over behind Kroger and the officer asked my where my plate was. My stomach got out the knot really quick when he said- ok, you’re free to go.

Now, if the pardon, the forgiveness for such a small thing is that relieving, imagine the weight lifted off our souls as Jesus forgives every offense we have ever committed.

Christianity is the only thing in the universe that heals a great disease by giving the physician the sickness.

But friends, the cross is about more than forgiveness- the cross is about reconciliation. And while forgiveness and reconciliation are related, they are definitely not the same.

What is the difference? The difference is relationship. You see, forgiveness is about removing of consequence, but reconciliation is about restoring relationship. In fact, in the context of the Bible reconciliation is best understood as bringing 2 parties together.

I can forgive someone and have no relationship with them. Some cuts me off in traffic- I do not need to know them to forgive them. Someone makes a mistake on my bank statement- no need to take me out to dinner to make up for it; fix the mistake and I will easily forgive you for it. No relationship needed.

But the cross is much more than that, isn;t it....

1 John 3:1 ESV

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

The cross does more than just forgive sin- the cross alters relationship. Instead of being separate from God Jesus’ work on the cross bridges the gap, acting as a bridge between us and our Holy God.

We must remember that sin does not just harm people; it harms relationship; It brings baggage into our lives that we must address or the relationship will never be the same. Jesus comes out of the tomb on Easter Sunday morning, and as he walks out the universe declares that our standing with God is now drastically different.

John wrote that we are now able to be called Children of God. Jesus walking from the tomb in the first moment in your adoption journey.

Ephesians 1:5-7 tells us that he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,

Jesus ministry- specifically his death and resurrection change our relationship with God. You see, when Jesus defeats sin and death it opens a new way for us to relate to God- we now call him Father. You see, the idea of God being a father is scarce in the OT- and even when it is sparingly used it is rooted not in relationship, but in authority. When God is called “Father” in the OT it is usual connected to allegiance or discipline.

But when Jesus arrives on the scene he recasts God in this new light- God as father. But don’t be fooled, friends, yes God is Jesus’ literal father, but there is more to it than that. As we read through the Gospels and see relationship that Jesus and God had it is not to show us the uniqueness of Jesus- it is to provide for us a model and example. The kind of connection that Jesus has with God is the kind of connection that God wants to have with us.

In the OT this kind of relationship was impossible, because while the blood of animals could cover sin- it could not fix the broken relationship and the separation from man to God- again forgiveness not reconciliation. Sacrifice in the OT was a zero sum game- it could get someone out of the red, but it would never give them a full connection with God. It could not bridge the gap- only Jesus could do that.

This is exactly what Jesus meant when he said that we must be born again. Forgiveness is just the beginning- but it is not the sum and total of our faith.

Some people have asked for God’s forgiveness, but they have not been born again. They felt the spirit of conviction at one time or another; they might have even come the altar and prayed, cried, felt sorry for what they did; and they asked God to forgive them. But, life really didn’t change. I equate it to mowing your grass the first week of Spring. No mater how hard I try to mow it one time I year- that grass just keeps on growing! That one cut, even one cut a year, just does not do the job! That is the problem with asking if someone has asked forgiveness for their sins- its like the grass- we keep on sinning so a one time event, a one time confession, is not enough to keep us in the will of God.

There are also some that may have asked for forgiveness and they may have made some changes in their life, but they have not been born again. You know, I love my Jeep. There is nothing better than taking off the top and doors on a sunny day and cruising down the road. But, there are some disadvantages to owning a Jeep- like Jeeps are not really made for hauling. There are some days that I could really use a big truck- like a Dodge with a Cummins Diesel under the hood. Now, I’m going to let you in on a little secret here. If I go out and buy all new Cummins Diesel badges for my Jeep; if I put the logos and decals on the side- even if I put one of those huge muffler tips on the exhaust pipe like all the big trucks have- it wont change anything about my Jeep’s ability or performance. I could put the big tow mirrors out the side like the big trucks have, I could even run smoke stacks up the side of my cab- nothing will really be different.

Why? Because I have not changed anything under the hood. It may look different on the outside, but it is still the same on the inside. The same can be said if we claim the forgiveness of the cross, but not the reconciliation. Many Christians have not allowed the Resurrection of Jesus on the inside- so they are still the same in their hearts. Even if they look like Christians on the outside.

But Jesus offers us much more. Listen to John’s words in the beginning of His Gospel.

John 1:9–17 ESV

The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’ ”) For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

John says that we have the RIGHT to become children of God. Friends, Jesus has done his part. Once Jesus walked out of the tomb on Easter morning your debt had been paid, Hell had been defeated, and your adoption papers had been signed- the impetus is now on you.

You have the choice today to change your relationship with God- to walk from this place as a Child of God. As John says, as children not born of a father’s will or man’s decision- but born again by the very Spirit of God.

I want to ask you a question today- do you have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ? Notice, I am not asking you today if you are a Christian, or if you have asked God for forgiveness, I am not even asking if you go to church. I am asking DO YOU HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST- because that is at the heart of the cross.