Highlights of Exodus 20-40. Do you fear God?

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Psalm 119:1-40.

Heb 4:12-16

Heb 12:18-29

Do you fear God? Do you fear Him? The Lord, the Lord, the gracious and compassionate God, who does not let the guilty go unpunished.

Exodus has shown us God, God in all his terrifying glory and holiness. He is the reality, real reality of the world we live in.

It is not our world. It is His.

God is not a figment of our imagination. He is real. All we see around us shows us his power, his glory, his majesty.
And if philosophy pretending to be science has put doubt in your mind that maybe all this just randomly happened, that design without a designer, that order came out of chaos, if you’ve been made uncertain by loudmouths with degrees talking about things they know nothing about and aren't qualified in – well, let history put your mind at rest. Because God has made himself known at various times and in various ways. Like in Exodus, in a BIG way!
When scientists run tests, they record the unusual events – the outliers, because if there are many of them, unexpected results, then it can mean their initial hypothesis is wrong. This book, the Bible is in a sense, a record of outliers, unexpected results, which prove wrong our hypothesis that there is no God.

There is a God, and this is His world. And each of us were made by him and for him. That is our purpose. That is who we are. We are made to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.

We are much more that “bags of meat, breathing, eating, and defecating”, as a leading psychologist described us. Who will you listen to? Him? Or God? What’s his track record? What is God’s?

Today as we look back over what we have seen of our awesome God through the pages of Exodus, I want to focus our attention on four big questions. These are the Highlights in Exodus

1. Who is God? The power of our God

2. How do we know Him? The wonder of his living word

3. Who are we? The sinfulness of humans

4. Can we know God? The grace of God who makes a way of salvation – but that way of salvation is his

Now, I’m not going to start at chapter 20 and go through to 40. I’m going to pick up some of the big themes throughout.

First question, then:

1. Who is God? The power of our God.

Ex 20:18–19 When the people heard the thunder and the loud blast of the ram’s horn, and when they saw the flashes of lightning and the smoke billowing from the mountain, they stood at a distance, trembling with fear. 19 And they said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we will die!”

Have you ever been so afraid of God you thought you would die? Ever been terrified to open your Bible because He will speak to you! You know, we’re so used to the happy smiley Jesus. Our brother, our friend. And he is that. But He is more than that! He is the Living God, the consuming fire.
Remember the building of the Tabernacle? How it was built in layers. Do you remember why?
Not to protect God from us but to protect us from God.
What does that tell us about God?

Exodus opens with the people of God in slavery. They are oppressed by state power. The government in Egypt was misusing its power. Everywhere they looked they saw the power of Egypt. They saw their fellow believers enslaved, beaten, mocked, by those who believed themselves superior. They saw them bowing down to their idols, their idols which had brought so much success. Oil. Trygd. Democracy. Moral superiority. Sexual freedom. Waving the rainbow flag as they rejoiced at their victory over God. Oh, sorry, I mean the gods Ra and Osiris and Hapi, the god of the Nile.

You see, Egypt, like secular Norway, set themselves up against the God of the Universe. No god would tell them what to do.

Turn to Ex 7:4 Even then Pharaoh will refuse to listen to you. So I will bring down my fist on Egypt. Then I will rescue my forces—my people, the Israelites—from the land of Egypt with great acts of judgment. 5 When I raise my powerful hand and bring out the Israelites, the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD.”

The Egyptians lived in peace and security, patting themselves on the back for their own cleverness. The God of the Israelites, Yahweh – what a joke. They gave him no thought. These weak and puny slaves. These backward, sexually frustrated, women-hating, fools. Who needs their God, their Jesus? Secure in their own wisdom. Until the hammer falls.
If you’ve given no thought to God, this true story is given for your warning.
If you know God, this true story is recorded for your encouragement.

Ex 13:14–16 “And in the future, your children will ask you, ‘What does all this mean?’ Then you will tell them, ‘With the power of his mighty hand, the LORD brought us out of Egypt, the place of our slavery. 15 Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, so the LORD killed all the firstborn males throughout the land of Egypt, both people and animals. That is why I now sacrifice all the firstborn males to the LORD—except that the firstborn sons are always bought back.’ 16 This ceremony will be like a mark branded on your hand or your forehead. It is a reminder that the power of the LORD’s mighty hand brought us out of Egypt.”

Do we teach our children to fear the Lord?

Because he is mighty to save, yes, and in saving he will judge everything else. All the false gods of this world will fall before his awesome and terrifying power. He judged the gods of Egypt, they fell before Him. As we read on we see he judges the gods of Canaan and the surrounding lands. They fell before him. He will judge the gods of Norway too. And they will fall before him.

And he will judge his people. Because when He rescued them, He brought them to himself, to a fearful sight. To thunder and smoke and fire and terror.

Do you fear God? You should! He has terrifying power. Awesome power.

Who is God? Quite simply, he is One to be feared. He is immensely powerful. We forget that. The holy God. But if we fear him, then our fear is in the right place. Because he holds all things, rules over all things, controls all things. Why be afraid of anything else?

Because people are afraid of many things. Particularly death. People fear death. Psychiatrists call dealing with death “terror management theory”. Death is terrifying. And it is right to fear death. But the one who holds life and death in his hand, the one who can breathe through his nostrils and cause a hurricane. The one who, at a word can take the life of every firstborn in Egypt. He should be feared.

What are you afraid of? Think about it now.

Now think about the terror of the Holy Awesome God. What is that thing compared to him?

The second verse of “Amazing Grace” begins like this: “Twas Grace that taught my heart to fear”.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” says Proverbs.

Who is God? The one who is to be feared. And therefore we need fear nothing else!

And that brings us to our next question

2. How do we know him? Power of his word

Ex 20:1–2 Then God gave the people all these instructions: 2 “I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery.

Ex 34:5–7 Then the LORD came down in a cloud and stood there with him; and he called out his own name, Yahweh. 6 The LORD passed in front of Moses, calling out, “Yahweh! The LORD! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. 7 I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin. But I do not excuse the guilty. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren; the entire family is affected— even children in the third and fourth generations.”

Why are you at church? For a good social event? To have your worldview confirmed? To be looked after? To have your preconceptions affirmed? To not be lonely?
Now some of those are good, but none of those are why you are here. You are here for the same reason that you sit down at the dinner table every day. For without church, you die.

God’s word is our lifeline. How do we know God? We know god only through his word. He tells us who He is. “Yahweh! The LORD! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.” That’s who he is. We know God because he tells us who He is.

Imagine if He never spoke. Things just happened. No explanation. That’s the way of pagan religions. That’s the way of evolutionary psychology. Things happen and then you manufacture an explanation afterwards. “Yes, people developed compassion because the people who didn’t work together all died out.” It’s guessing in the dark, on the level of “Thunder is Thor’s hammer striking the anvil!”. If God never spoke we would still be in darkness.

Have you ever thanked God for speaking to you? That He relates to you, person to person. Remember how we read in 33:11 the people were in awe that Moses could speak to God face to face, as one would a friend. We have that same privilege!

Do we treasure that? We can know God because he speaks. And his word is powerful. His word is authoritative.

I want to show you something that I have found particularly helpful through the years. It is the four sources of authority. What is the highest authority in our lives, that everything else must defer to. Is it tradition, reason, emotion, or the Bible. We can probably identify certain church groups on this scale. But what about us. I think if we’re honest, most of us aren’t here. When God challenges us through His word the Bible how do we respond? We are lead by our feelings (that feels wrong, I won’t believe it), our mind (that’s illogical, I don’t believe it), or our traditions (that’s not what my mom said, or my pastor said, or that guy on TV). Now that’s partly good: we must think and feel and remember what others have said about the Bible – but at the end of the day who are we going to believe? God. Or our tradition? God. Or our own thoughts? God. Or our feelings.

A lot of this can be traced back to how we were saved. If you were saved through reason you are more likely to be in this box. Or through an experience – in the emotion box. But however we were saved we are all lead back to God’s word. Like the Israelites were saved dramatically through miracles and then came to Sinai where God spoke to them.
We need to train ourselves to move into the Bible box. His word is truth. True truth.

So that’s why we’re here. We go to church first, primarily, to hear God’s word. Everything else: friendships, service, compassion, affirmation, having a good time whatever – that’s all secondary, a by-product. This is central: we are here to hear from God. Because we want to know him. We’re gathered here to know GOD.
We learn that from Exodus. Because this gathering around the mountain is the first church. The word church simply means a gathering. “Let my people go, that they may worship me” was the command given to Pharaoh. And what is the worship we see? Not singing, dancing, sacrificing, doing things for God - but listening.

Church is the gathering of God’s people – but not just for anything. Church is the gathering of God’s people to hear God’s word.

Who is God? The powerful one who should be feared.
How do we know God? We know him through his powerful word.

3. Who are we? The sinfulness of humans

Ex 20:1–3 Then God gave the people all these instructions: 2 “I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. 3 “You must not have any other god but me.

Ex 33:4–6 When the people heard these stern words, they went into mourning and stopped wearing their jewellery and fine clothes. 5 For the LORD had told Moses to tell them, “You are a stubborn and rebellious people. If I were to travel with you for even a moment, I would destroy you. Remove your jewellery and fine clothes while I decide what to do with you.” 6 So from the time they left Mount Sinai, the Israelites wore no more jewellery or fine clothes.

Who are we? Well, we learn very quickly from Exodus, we are not God. Our words do not have the power to bring life. Our actions are limited. In fact, we find we are just like the Israelites. And they were slaves. Slaves physically, yes, but also in their minds. They thought like Egyptians. Moses was gone a bit long, so they made a Golden Calf. Seemed like a good idea. Logical. Something they’d seen their “betters’ doing in Egypt. Oops. And we too are slaves. Slaves to sin. And sin affects every part of us, also our mind.

There is a helpful doctrine called “total depravity”. And you need to know this about yourself: You are totally depraved! I am totally depraved.
Now that does not mean you are as evil as evil can be. But it does mean that sin has corrupted every single part of you. There is no area of you that is not corrupted by sin. Even our minds. Our thoughts are darkened. The Israelites thought the Calf was a great idea!

An example of this is when Petter went through some of the laws God gives Israel. Some of them seem barbaric, wrong. But as Petter explained and we could see how they would work out in practice, how they are given to protect the weak and uplift the poor – and then we see the kind of laws we make with our wisdom which seem to be so good but all too often end up oppressing the weak and poor. We are not as wise as we think. And it’s because we forget about sin. We are not good people altruistic going through life spreading joy, and we do not live in a world full of those people!

For example. There is an “epidemic” of loneliness now in the UK. 9 million people are lonely. They are raising funds! They have a minister of loneliness! This is the result of selfishness - sin. Your own selfishness and the selfishness of those around you. As we move further away from the gospel we see the effects. People can’t live together any more. Can’t be bothered to look after each other, bear with one another. Sin is always the problem. The root cause of all family breakups, of divorce is sin. There is no great mystery here why things go wrong. People are sinners.

There is a way that seems right to a man. It builds a Golden Calf. We laugh. We read chapter after chapter about the Tabernacle, its layers, its altar for sacrifices, the barriers, the washing, the blood, oh goodness, the blood! And it all seems a bit much! It’s illogical – wrong - to our minds. It feels like overkill. Why? Because we don’t really believe we’re all that bad. We don’t actually believe we’re sinners.

Four areas of authority. Which one do you trust? ACTUALLY.

Do you realise your heart and mind is corrupt, broken, in darkness?

For if we had no sin, why would blood sacrifice be necessary. If we had no sin, why would the Son Himself come out of Heaven, subject himself to becoming man, be scorned, mocked, beaten and crucified, and then to die. Look to the Cross, and believe.

Who is God? The one to be feared, yes.
How do we know Him? Through his powerful living word.
Who are we? Sinners. Corrupt and foolish
But, can we know God? Yes. Remember his words.
Ex 20:2 “I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery.

He is mighty, powerful, the God to be feared. “Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace that fear relieved”. Because He is also the God who saves sinners. He is the God who comes to live with his people! Not just in a tent! But he became one of us. Fully human. Fully God. In Jesus Christ our Lord. And Jesus is our mediator. Moses was playing his role when he ran to the Lord to plead for the Israelites after their sin. And Jesus is now pleading for us to the Father, our high priest who has offered the perfect sacrifice on the Cross. His death means that we can be free.

God is terrifying. But to fear him drives us to him, and we find that fear relieved. There is a way to be made right with God, and his name is Jesus.

So let us draw near to our great God. Let us not fear any frightening thing, because what is that next to God? Let us throw aside any other voice and trust his word because there is power. And let us love one another with his love. No loneliness epidemic here. God does not just bring individuals to him, but forms communities. The gathering at Sinai was the first church. The way we love and care for each other is a witness that will shine all the stronger. Because our relationships are based on God’s love. Not our selfishness.

Who is God? Awesome. Powerful. Terrifying. Wonderful. Love.

Don’t be afraid of anything. Don’t listen to anything above him. He is the Ultimate Reality.

Easter Sunday 2018: Jesus is God’s solution to our real problem.

Mark 15:1-16:8

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Everyone knows that there’s a problem with the world.

Sportspeople cheat. Politicians lie and cheat their way into power. Bureaucrats misuse their power for dishonest gain, or just because they like power. Lovers, “Samboer” argue and fight and hate the ones they’re with. Marriages end in divorce. I see lots of men spending so much time “working” or fixing their garden or tinkering in the garage – avoiding the woman inside the house. People don’t love the one they’re with. Why?
An older brother sexually abuses his younger sister. Children are neglected and not loved the way they should. Children are used as pawns in a power game between two divorced parents, bounced between houses like ping pong balls. A terrorist kills 77 people, mostly teenagers. A man chops the head off another man in Maxbo. Many suffer from depression. Many are addicted to drugs, to alcohol. Anything to dull the pain.
All this just in Norway, one of the best, safest, most moral, most wealthy, most educated, technologically advanced, with some of the best labour laws and the longest holidays in the world.

Never mind the horrors that go on in the rest of the world! War. Terror. Brutality. No freedom. No peace. Fear. Slavery. Abuse. Poverty. Horrible working conditions.

If we stop and think for a moment, open our eyes and look around, really look at what is going on. We cannot help but admit that there is a problem. Why can’t we all just get along. Especially here in Norway? We have every advantage under the sun and yet we still fail to love each other like we should. In my daughter’s class nearly all the parents have split up. Unable to love each other even for 10 years. Why?

There is a problem. And our problem is not lack of education. Education just makes us cleverer at making weapons to kill each other like machine guns mowing down kids at school. Or at manipulating people to subvert democracy – like the Facebook scandal. Or making nuclear bombs or chemical weapons.
Or using psychology to designing adverts to create needs in us and make websites and apps to distract us as much as possible because when they have our eyeballs they can suck the most money out of us.
Education can be used for great good. Or terrible evil.
Technology likewise.

Lack of education is not our problem.

Maybe it’s morals that we need. A moral teacher. If we just TELL people what is right and wrong and force them to obey… well that doesn’t work.
Because who watches the watchmen? Whose morals are the right morals. What if the enforces become corrupt. Because that’s happened every time we’ve tried moral enforcement.
And if you’re thinking “put the church in charge, then there will be peace.” Sorry, but church leaders become corrupt and people then join the church for power, not to serve Jesus, and history shows us the terrible consequences of church and government being too close. That’s why the US has separation of church and state. Not to protect the state from “religion” because that’s just dumb. No. It was to protect the church. To ensure there was no state religion where the church becomes just a wing of the state.

You know if the problem was lack of education, wealth, democracy, morality, or any of these other things then Norway would be a paradise. A problem-free haven filled with the happiest people on earth.

But we’re not. Something eats away at us and destroys us from the inside out. Like a cancer it rots our best efforts makes them fail.

And the Bible calls that sin. Sin is ignoring God. Rejecting him. Disobeying him. That’s sin. And it’s the root cause for all our problems. Sin is what causes us to self-destruct. Because we reject God we can’t work right, and we end up turning on each other.

And that’s why Jesus came.

If God had perceived that our greatest need was economic, he would have sent an economist. If he had perceived that our greatest need was entertainment, he would have sent us a comedian or an artist. If God had perceived that our greatest need was political stability, he would have sent us a politician. If he had perceived that our greatest need was health, he would have sent us a doctor. But he perceived that our greatest need involved our sin, our alienation from him, our profound rebellion, our death; and he sent us a Saviour. – Don Carson.

I want to make just two points today.

1. Jesus died on the cross to solve the world’s greatest problem.

2. Jesus died and then rose from the dead - for you.

1. Jesus died on the cross to solve the world’s greatest problem.

Mk 15:22–24 And they brought Jesus to a place called Golgotha (which means “Place of the Skull”). 23 They offered him wine drugged with myrrh, but he refused it. 24 Then the soldiers nailed him to the cross. They divided his clothes and threw dice to decide who would get each piece.

The cross.

Why a cross?

Have you ever wondered about that. Crucifixion was the worst form of punishment the Romans could devise – perhaps the worst in all of history. So why did God choose that? Jesus could have died any way. Why such a brutal, horrible, cruel and degrading way?

I’m not sure of the answer. But I can think of two possible reasons.
One is that it reflects our nature as human beings. Our worst selves are there put on display. Our cruellest method of torture, where we nail someone to a cross of wood so that they eventually suffocate to death because they can’t lift themselves up. Strip them naked and watch them die over days, jeering and mocking them, until their strength finally gives out and they sink down to die. That is what we use our brilliant minds for. Cruelty. It is the worst part of us on display.

Mk 15:17–20 [The soldiers] dressed him in a purple robe, and they wove thorn branches into a crown and put it on his head. 18 Then they saluted him and taunted, “Hail! King of the Jews!” 19 And they struck him on the head with a reed stick, spit on him, and dropped to their knees in mock worship. 20 When they were finally tired of mocking him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him again. Then they led him away to be crucified.

The cross is the worst part of humanity on display.

And it is the best part of God on display. Because he takes the worst part of us, our brutality, our violence, and turns it to good!
The cross cries out that there is hope even for the worst of us, hope of redemption.
And the cross shines out in glory for those of us who have suffered, those locked in the darkness – we are not beyond God’s reach. Even our suffering can be redeemed, turned to good, in God’s hand.
Look to the cross! Rampant hatred and cruelty which God turned to the greatest act of love the world has ever seen. The cross is emptied of its hatred and cruelty and is now a beacon of hope. That’s power. That’s love. That’s what we celebrate at Easter.

Mk 15:37–39 Then Jesus uttered another loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 When the Roman officer who stood facing him saw how he had died, he exclaimed, “This man truly was the Son of God!”

The Temple was were you went as a Jew to get forgiveness for your sins. You had to bring an animal as a sacrifice. That animal was killed in your place, a substitute. Its blood was splashed on you to symbolise that you were covered by its blood – it died in your place. It was a powerful picture of the seriousness of sin – rebellion against God, saying no to God, ignoring God. Sin means death!
But also a powerful picture of redemption and forgiveness. There was way out. You could come to God through the sacrifice.

And all that only pointed the way to Jesus. That’s why Mark tells us about what’s going on in the Temple at the moment of Jesus’ death. The camera suddenly zooms from the Cross on Golgotha, outside Jerusalem, and into the city centre, right into the Temple – and then back again. Because the “curtain” in v38 And the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. was a massive, thick piece of cloth 20m high, 20m wide, and 10cm thick that blocked off the “Most Holy Place” where God symbolically “lived”.

Torn down when Jesus died.

Why? Because God is no longer found at the Temple. Sacrificing an animal there is no longer needed. That just pointed to Jesus. He is where we find forgiveness of sins now.

It also means that the way to God is now open. And open for everyone. Not just the Jews, or the priests, or the High Priest – but everyone. The way to God is open. No barriers.

And we see that immediately. Camera zooms back and
39 When the Roman officer who stood facing him saw how he had died, he exclaimed, “This man truly was the Son of God!”

The statement in verse 39 is utterly incredible: “This man truly was the Son of God!” What is it that turned this man around – from abusing Jesus to worshipping Jesus? V39 says when he “saw how [Jesus] died”. I wonder what he saw? Perhaps he saw in Jesus’ eyes, through the spiritual and physical pain, the love that drove him to the cross? Perhaps Jesus looked at him with eyes so filled with forgiveness it pierced even this rough Roman soldier’s heart? Perhaps it was something else. We don’t know – but it was the death of Jesus that brought him new life, as it has been for every Christian since.

Our world can be dark and brutal. Our lives can be filled with pain. But in that dark the light of God’s love displayed on the cross shines all the brighter. And in our pain we hear him say “I am with you”. He knows our pain. He has been through it. He is with us. And he will bind up our wounds and heal us – partially now, and completely on the great day when he returns.

And we know this because of today. Easter Sunday. Resurrection Sunday. The day in history when a dead man rose again to life, just as he had predicted, and blew the minds of everybody involved.

2. Jesus died and then rose from the dead – for you

Mk 16:6 but the angel said, “Don’t be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead!”

He is risen. Amen. He is risen indeed!

But this was not what the women going to the tomb expected. We do. We know the story. Perhaps so much that it loses its impact. But what did they expect? A corpse. Probably starting to smell. It wasn’t -10!
Because what were they carrying to the tomb? 16:1 tells us they went with burial spices! Not party balloons, whistles, streamers and a banner saying “Welcome back Jesus!”. There was no band coming with them to say tadaa! as Jesus came out.
You know, Jesus’ closest followers did not believe that he would rise from the dead – even though he’d told them. They probably thought he meant in some kind of spiritual way. “I will live on in your heart”. Not actually die in front of their eyes and then physically come back to life. Who does that.

So the women are going to anoint the corpse. The men are so depressed and defeated they can’t even bring themselves to see the body. After all, they thought Jesus was the Messiah, the Christ, the Great Rescuer – and then he DIED!

So their discussion on the way to the tomb wasn’t A Great Discussion of Faith and Belief “oh won’t it be good to see the risen Lord Jesus again. How wonderful”. 3 On the way they were asking each other, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?”

Some people foolishly claim that “it wasn’t Jesus on the cross” or “he didn’t die, he just fainted”. But that’s nonsense. The religious leaders hated Jesus so much they got him crucified. The Roman soldiers were experts in crucifixion. They wouldn’t be fooled by someone fainting, and they wouldn’t crucify the wrong person because if Jesus had escaped their own life would be forfeit. Jesus really died. Everyone knew he was dead. Pilate even double-checked his death because people normally took days to die on a cross – Jesus gave up his own life after a few hours. So he double-checks with the Roman officer in charge – is he really dead? Yes, says the officer.

That’s why when Jesus rose from the dead it shook the world. The ripples of that one event spread around the world like a shockwave. This year we call 2018 because of Jesus. Because of his resurrection we claim his birth as year zero. That is a massive shockwave.

We are here because something enormous happened 1986 years ago, something so big that it totally transformed the Roman world and continues to affect the whole world. Like ripples in water, we see that something happened in Jerusalem in 33AD and within 30 years it had spread through the entire known world, even to the Emperor. With no internet. No phones. No army. No political power.

Just a testimony: I saw and listened and touched and knew Jesus. He did amazing miracles, he spoke truths that we had never heard before - and then he died. And we all thought it was the end. And then he rose from the dead!

A likely story! But history revealed that something happened Easter AD33 in Jerusalem. Something massive. Something so incredible that it sent shockwaves throughout the world.
And if it wasn’t the resurrection of Jesus – what was it?

Because it must have been just as amazing, just as astounding, just as incredible. And for that we have NO EVIDENCE.

History forces us to consider the unthinkable: that Jesus of Nazareth, wise man, ethical teacher, miracle-worker, guru, a man of love and peace, was really something much more. Saviour. Lord. God Almighty, creator of Heaven and Earth, with power over all things, including death.

The ripples in the water call out to us. The tomb is empty. Jesus rose from the dead.

Difficult to accept? The disciples would agree with you. His closest followers didn’t believe it. How do the women react in today’s passage when confronted by the empty tomb? Happy? Overjoyed? Vindicated? No. Shocked v5. Frightened v8. Trembling v8. Bewildered v8. And every meeting with Jesus went the same way. “I don’t believe it!” until they saw him. And they believed. And gave their lives so that we might believe.

Now, maybe you’re a believer today, maybe you’re not. If you’re not, make a decision right now, between you and God, to find out the truth. Not to say “yes I believe” but “I want to fin the truth”. And keep coming, keep asking questions.

And if you are a believer? Keep looking to the cross. Because too many who call themselves Christians these days are anything but. The media likes to paint Christians as prejudiced, hateful people without joy and bound by rules – and that’s all too true of Christians who don’t know Christ. But Jesus said, “Come to me, as you are, anyone - the way is open. The price is paid.”
We celebrate today that Jesus' death has set us free from rules and given us an eternal joy that bubbles up inside us because we know God!

Of course, there are other choices you can make.
Perhaps you’d like to take a dip in the river Ganges during an eclipse? “Taking a holy dip during the solar eclipse is a very pious act. It is very auspicious, it is very fruitful and it can get one salvation,” the words of Hindu priest Babu Ram Sashtri to Reuters television.
Or maybe you think that’s nonsense and you’d prefer cold hard science. Then make sure you know what you’re in for. Alex Rosenberg in “The Atheist's Guide to Reality” makes it clear what you’re signing up for.
- Is there a God? No.
- What is the nature of reality? What physics says it is.
- What is the purpose of the universe? There is none.
- What is the meaning of life? There is none.
- Why am I here? Just dumb luck.
- Is there a soul? Is it immortal? Are you kidding?
- Is there free will? Not a chance!
- What is the difference between right and wrong, good and bad? There is no moral difference between them.
- Why should I be moral? Because it makes you feel better than being immoral.
- Is abortion, euthanasia, suicide, paying taxes, foreign aid, or anything else you don’t like forbidden, permissible, or sometimes obligatory? Anything goes.
- Does history have any meaning or purpose? It’s full of sound and fury, but signifies nothing.

Or perhaps you could look at the evidence for the resurrection. A powerful statement of God’s redemptive power and his love for… yes, even you. Like ripples in the water, the cross echoes through history and calls on you to respond. Will you stand and say “Truly this man is the Son of God”?

May this Easter Sunday be the start of a new life for each one of us as we accept afresh, or perhaps for the first time, the power of the resurrection life of Jesus to wipe away our past sins, to fill us with joy even in the darkness and difficulties of life, and lead us safely to the Glorious Day when we will see him face to face.

He is risen. Amen. He is risen indeed!

Rom 8:1-16 The joy of the gospel!

Rom 8:1-16

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Rom 8:1 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.

No condemnation. Why? Because we belong to Jesus. Law of Spirit (life) instead of law of sin and death. The law cannot condemn us, just like if you’re dead the police can’t come and arrest you and you can’t be convicted. We have died with Christ and so the law – God’s law – cannot convict us. We are dead to the law and alive to Christ! We are dead to sin because we live for Christ.

This is the message of Romans! No condemnation. We do not have to placate God. We do not have to worry about our “performance”. We do not have to live in fear of disappointing God so much that he throws us out. He is a good, good father. He loves us unconditionally. I don’t know what kind of parents you had. Some of you maybe did grow up in fear. Fear of disappointing them. Fear of upsetting them. But in Christ there is no fear. He has declared us to be in the right with him. He loves us and nothing can separate us from that love.

Nothing can separate us because his love is not based on our performance - we are weak because of sin and so we fail – his love is based on his performance, guaranteed by the cross and resurrection. God has done what the law could not because we are weak. V3 So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins.

His sacrifice means that we are in perfect relationship with him. With God. A relationship so perfect that we can call God “father”.

Lord grant us today that we will see the glory and the joy of the gospel. Open our eyes to your mercy. Let us feel it! Amen.

Ok. It’s been a while since we’ve been in Romans. And v1 starts off with the word therefore. If you see a therefore ask what the therefore is there for! Two good reasons to do a quick review of Romans so far.

So let me take us through what we have learned so far to bring us up to this most powerful statement: so there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.

Romans kicks off with something equally powerful: 1:16, our key verse: I am not ashamed of the gospel for IT is the POWER of God for salvation. The gospel is GOD’S power for salvation for ANYONE who believes.

Why? Why do we need the gospel? Why does the gospel need to be God’s power? Why can’t it be our power? 1:18 gives the answer: Ro 1:18 But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness.
The gospel has to be something FROM God TO us (not us reaching out to God) because we are sinners and God is angry with us. How do we know this? Look around at the world. The mess we see around us is proof of God’s judgement. He gives us over, abandons us to our foolishness. He allows us to sin.

And chapter 2 says the way out isn’t being good – because the good person just condemns themselves! Lying is wrong, but we lie.
And being Jewish doesn’t help either. Because the Jew who is supposed to keep the law, doesn’t. So instead of the Law bringing salvation, it brings condemnation.

And so we end up with this sobering conclusion in 3:10 No-one is righteous, not even one. All our excuses are brought to nothing. How often have you done something despite the fact that you knew it was wrong? What about all those things in the moral “grey area”? Our own morals condemn us long before we even get to God. Ro 3:10 “No one is righteous— not even one. 11 No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. 12 All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.”

And that is why we are not ashamed of the gospel! No we rejoice in the gospel! Because in it a righteousness FROM God is revealed. God’s power for salvation in Jesus Christ. Ro 3:22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.
In the gospel God does what we can’t:
we break the law, so Jesus keeps the perfectly law for us. Justified.
We are slaves to sin, in bondage to sin, so Jesus never sins – a perfect sacrifice. He pays the price to set us free. Redeemed.
We face Gods just anger – so Jesus takes our sin upon himself, and satisfies God’s anger with his sacrifice on the cross. Propitiated.
We are justified, redeemed, propitiated.

Ro 5:1 Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. 2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.

But it’s not just our future which is secure, it is now. New life starts now. Not just saved FROM sin but saved FOR God. We have new life. Sin brings death, but faith in Jesus brings life.

As Christians we are the new humanity. Jesus is our new Adam. As human beings we are all sinners, because we are all born “of Adam”. His sin DNA is in us and we all confirm that we are sinners almost immediately. Just watch kids! No-one teaches them to sin but they do. This is why God must be sovereign over salvation. If we had any part to play in our salvation, then the unborn, the mentally challenged, and babies and small children all have no way to be saved. Because they are in Adam Ro 5:12 When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.

Therefore we are not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of…. GOD for salvation. Not us, praise God. So anyone can be saved. The unborn, the aborted, the mentally challenged, and you and me. The Spirit can wake anyone to life.
Adam’s one act brought death, but Jesus’ one act brought life - big enough and powerful enough to swallow up Adam’s act of death and reverse the curse. Amen!

Therefore, how should we live? Chapter 6 Like we belong to God! Ro 6:20–23 When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. 21 And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. 22 But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

But, we say, I don’t FEEL like I’m dead to sin. In fact, sin feels very alive in me! I keep doing what I don’t want to do. Ro 7:23–8:1 But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. 24 Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? 25 Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.

The answer when we are tempted to sin is to remember who we are. We belong to Christ. We have died to sin. Sin has no power over us. We don’t need to sin anymore!
Because what benefit does sin bring? When was the last time you sinned and thought “I’m so glad I did that”. Sin brings judgement and sin leads to eternal death. But now, in Christ, we can be righteous. For the first time we can choose not to sin!

So there are now two of me inside. The old man of sin and death, and the new man of Spirit and life. I am free now! I don’t have to listen to the old man anymore. I don’t have to follow the old way of life. Ro 8:2 And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.

In Christ we are for the first time truly free. Free to see ourselves as we truly are – sinners. Full of selfishness and self-justification, and excuses for our behaviour and the painful awareness of “me” and how are people seeing me and what if they don’t like me. We’re set free from that self-obsession so that we can glorify and enjoy God – what we were made for.
We’re free to choose not to sin, and we have been given the Spirit who raised Christ from the dead. His power is sufficient!

Chapter 8 continues to remind us of the incredible truths of the gospel as Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, writes these words in v3, summing up what we’ve been learning from the previous chapters:

3 The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have.

That’s what we just celebrated at Christmas. That God was born a man. Now that is astounding enough – that he became one of us to reveal himself to us. But that’s not all. V3 continues: And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. 4 He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.

Wow! The law was fully satisfied in Jesus. That’s why there’s now no condemnation. The law was fully satisfied. Why? Because Jesus perfectly kept the law - AND he then took the punishment that law-breakers like us deserve: Death. He died. His death freed us from the condemnation of the law. The fine has been paid, the prison sentence served, the death for the death penalty died, the firing squad has shot a guilty person. Our sins were transferred to Jesus on the cross – he became guilty for us and so our guilt and shame and sin is all gone. We are free! We are reborn!

We now follow a new law in ourselves. No longer a law of sin and death, but a law of the Spirit. A law of life.

That is something that comes from within. You cannot pretend to be a Christian. You must have the Spirit. Because the Spirit changes you from the inside out.

5 Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. 6 So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.

You know, I have discovered that that is true. When I sin it leads to problems! Many problems. When I obey God it leads to life and peace. Maybe not instantly, sometimes it means going through difficulties – saying sorry, confessing a lie or a mistake – but it sets the relationship back on track. So many people live with homes full of strife – fighting and arguing and nastiness. Because they’re trying to protect themselves, and so no-one says sorry, no-one says I love you – because that would show I’m vulnerable. As Christians that is not how our homes should be. We should be quick to say sorry because we know we’re sinners. We should say “I love you” and risk being hurt because we’re already perfectly loved by God. And it’s amazing the change you will see. Ask those in the church who’ve become Christians about the change in their home life!

My Dad’s friend when he became a Christian said “I can’t sin properly anymore!” It’s true! There is a new nature within you.

7 For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. 8 That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God. 9 But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.)

If you find it easy to sin, you are untroubled by sinning, or you find yourself dismissing or ignoring God’s commands – maybe you’re not a Christian. Maybe you don’t have God’s spirit in you and you’re trying to impress God with your own efforts. That is the law of sin and death and you will fail. In fact, as v7 says you are hostile to God.

Please, take the opportunity now to ask God to show you the truth and to repent.
If you’re worried about not belonging to Christ, if you’re worried that “oh no I keep sinning – do I belong to Christ” - the fact that you’re worried about it means you do belong! That desire in you to obey, to stop sinning. That crushing disappointment when you sin. That cry of despair in confession. That resolve to fight sin. All signs that you belong to Christ. For we are in bodies full of sin, but we are in our spirit righteous before God.

10 And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. 11 The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.

Isn’t that amazing? We don’t deserve that. But God takes our sinful rotten, dead selves, and makes us alive.
You know, if we saw ourselves in glory we would fall at our own feet in worship for we would be so glorious and amazing. That is what God I doing in us and will complete. He will turn us into a trophy of grace to the praise of his eternal glory.

Remember that. Remember his power works in you. The same power that raised Christ from the dead – is in you. You can resist sin!

There is deep eternal joy awaiting us. Let’s keep our eyes fixed ahead, for the glory and joy to come.

Debby and I were talking yesterday and I said to her that I wished I knew that she was in my future when I was younger. It would have been so much easier to keep myself from certain temptations and sins knowing that she was waiting for me. Why mess around with junk when gold is ahead?
And it struck me that that is exactly where we are. We know what is coming in our future! We have a glorious, joyful eternity ahead of us. Why mess around with “pleasures” that promise much but deliver only heartache. Fill your mind with him, with your future, and you will find the temptations of this world become quite dull.

12 Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. 13 For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live.

Now I could end there. Choose life. Praise God and all that. But I want to end with a little encore. A little extra that will blow your mind. And it’s in the last few verses of today’s reading. When the Spirit opened your eyes and you believed in Jesus this is what happened: you became a child of God. Jesus our brother. God our Father. A new Spirit in us.

14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. 15 So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” 16 For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.

We do not need to be afraid. We are not fearful slaves. We are beloved children. I don’t know how good or bad you parents were, but God is perfectly good. To be his child is amazing. We are adopted as his children and we can call him “Abba, father”.
Abba is a word in Aramaic meaning “Daddy” or “Dad”. It is an intimate and personal word. “Father” sounds quite formal – Abba is personal. And we can call him Abba.

But why does the Holy Spirit here use the phrase “Abba , father”? To show us something amazing! There are only three places in the Bible this phrase “Abba, father” is used. Once here, once in Galatians, making the same point as here – but it’s first used in Mark 14:36. Turn back there and read it and be amazed. “Abba” is the intimate word Jesus used to talk to his father. In deep distress the night before his crucifixion he calls out to God saying “Abba, father”. “You are my father, my Dad”, he says.

And this is what is mind-blowing: we can say the same thing. We have the same access to God as father, the same intimacy, the same rights as a son as Jesus. That is what he has given to us. Amazing grace indeed!

If you are in Christ, then you are a child of God. And God is your father. Isn’t that just astounding. Praise God. Praise him with great praise. What a gospel we have.

Ro 1:16 For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes. No longer under law, free from sin, we have the Spirit and we are called sons and daughters of God.

O Lord fill us with joy and wonder at your mercy. Fill us with awe at what you have done. Capture our vision so that we are not tempted by the lesser distractions of this world, sin which drags us down – but let us look forward to the glorious future you have prepared for us in your mercy. And let us remember who we are. Child of God. A child of God. Daddy! We cry. Dad! My Dad in Heaven, I praise your name. our Dad in heaven, we love you.

If you don’t know him, get to know him now. If you need to make right with him, do that now during communion. Lord, move in mercy I pray. Amen.

Romans 5:12-6:5 Jesus the new Man.

Romans 5:12-6:5

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Today I’m going to teach you how to cheat death. But wait! There’s more: I’ll give you the secret to triumphant living. To living in victory over your sin. I’ll give you the secret to eternal life. And all this for only 99 999! (We need to buy a building.)

No! Actually, Jesus gives us all this – for FREE! Not death, but life. And triumphant living, victory over sin – in dying to ourselves, and being raised to life in Jesus.

See our problem is that we are in Adam. We are human beings. Human beings sin. Sinners die. Uh-oh.

We need to be remade. We need to reboot the human race. And that’s what Jesus does. He is the new Adam. In Him, we die to the old way of Adam, and are spiritually raised to life. He is the new Adam. We are human beings 2.0. We are the gloriously restored humanity – humanity as we were meant to be, but better, because in Christ we will be raised incorruptible, perfect, not in the image of Adam, but the image of Jesus Christ, the son of God. Amen.

Just two points today.

1. Adam brought sin and death

2. Jesus brings grace and life

1. Adam brought sin and death

12 When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.

Sin entered the world. In the original Greek the first word in v12 is “therefore”. The Holy Spirit through Paul is coming back to and building on what has come before. Sin entered the world and we are all sinners. What’s the therefore there for? To remind us of what came before! Not 5:1-11 but chapters 1-4. I just want to spend a few minutes reminding us of what we have learned so far, because it all comes into focus in this passage.
Chapters 1 to 3: We are sinners, under God’s wrath. We see God’s wrath revealed in the world around us as He lets sinners sin. He gives us over, abandons us, to experience the sinfulness of sin. He gives us what we want, and that is terrifying (chapter 1). And chapter 2 says that following the law or being good is no help, because the law just shines a great big spotlight on our sin, and being good – well, it just reveals us as hypocrites, because the same things we criticise others for, we do. We all say lying is wrong, yet we all lie. Judged by our own judgement.

Do we see now why salvation must be by grace and cannot be through us? As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous— not even one. (3:10).

And so we are made righteous by receiving the free gift of righteousness. We are given Jesus’ righteousness. In Christ we are reconciled to God because in Christ we are justified, redeemed, and propitiated.

This deals with the threefold problem we have with God.
1. We have broken his laws and are so declared guilty. As a righteous judge he must find us guilty.
2. We are slaves to sin. We can’t stop sinning, and are therefore cut off from God.
3. We are under God’s wrath. Because of our sin, which is saying to Him “I wish you were dead”, and seen in how horribly we treat each other, God is rightly angry with us.

So in Christ those problems are dealt with.

We are guilty, so God justifies us. God as judge says: righteous. It is a legal declaration. Under the law, we are righteous. No longer a spotlight on our sin, but now a spotlight on Jesus’ righteousness.

We are slaves to sin so God redeems us: God buys us from slavery to sin. Jesus paid the price on the Cross to buy us back. We now belong to God. Slaves of righteousness. We are twice bought. We belong to God because he made us, and belong to God because he bought us with his blood. So we are no longer slaves to sin, but servants of God.

We are under God’s wrath, so God propitiates us. God sacrifices himself. For the wages of sin is death because sin is rejecting God, and to reject God is to reject life and so we die. Instead, Jesus took our place as our substitute. In Christ we are no longer under God’s wrath because in Christ we died and so satisfied his right anger. There is now no condemnation, no anger for we who are in Christ.

In Christ we are justified, redeemed, propitiated. There is no further judgment over us. We are no longer slaves to sin. God is not angry with us anymore. We are reconciled to God, and we have peace with him. We live in the realm of grace.

Therefore.

12 When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.

The Holy Spirit through Paul now ups the ante. He makes things much worse for the person who is still clinging to the delusion that he can make himself right, justify himself before God.

Because of the problem of original sin, even if we lived a perfect life, we would still be condemned. You see, we are “in Adam”. We have inherited his sin. He is our representative if Jesus is not.

How do we know that Adam is our representative? We die. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.

“But” you might say “sin is breaking God’s law. There was no law to break before Moses, so how can you say they sinned?”

13 Yes, people sinned even before the law was given. But it was not counted as sin because there was not yet any law to break.
14 Still, everyone died—from the time of Adam to the time of Moses—even those who did not disobey an explicit commandment of God, as Adam did.

Death is the great evidence that we are sinners. No sin, no death. But we all die as proof that we are sinners. We grow old because we are sinners. We suffer because we are sinners. The only one who did not stay dead is Jesus. The resurrection is vital. If Jesus stayed dead, then he too was a sinner. But because death could not hold him, he proved his righteousness – a righteousness he gives to us. Because Jesus rose from the dead we – you and I – can be certain that in Christ, we are ALIVE!

The awkward phrasing in v13 is puzzling “But it was not counted as sin because there was not yet any law to break”. It’s puzzling because it’s something he’s going to address in chapter 7, so it’s just in seed form here, not really explained. There we read that we have died in Christ, and the law does not apply the dead people. You can’t say “hey, you disobeyed the law”. He’s dead!
So before the law came we couldn’t actively choose to disobey God’s law. God says “do this” and we choose to do the opposite. We can’t sin by breaking the law if there’s no law!

But, we still die! Even those who didn’t disobey the law still died. Why? Because they are in Adam. We all inherit his sinfulness. We are all condemned because he is our representative. So even apart from the law, we die.

So whether we actively rebel against God, or just passively go along “in Adam”, we’re in the same boat. 14 Still, everyone died—from the time of Adam to the time of Moses—even those who did not disobey an explicit commandment of God, as Adam did.
You can’t argue before God that “I didn’t actively disobey you, so you have to accept me”. Even if we didn’t sin like Adam, we still have Adam’s DNA, his sinful nature. If you don’t believe me – wait until you have kids. Because I did not sit them down one night and say “Kristin, Kaleb, an essential life skill you need to learn is lying. So I’m going to teach you how to lie.”
It came naturally from them, from within.
I didn’t teach them to fight, and argue, or disobey me. That came from the nature within. Every single one of us confirms with our words, thoughts, actions and inactions that we are children of Adam. And so every one of us will rightly deteriorate and die.

Adam brought sin and death

2. Jesus brings grace and life

18 Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone.

V18 continues the sentence that was interrupted back in v12. Paul was going to contrast Adam and Jesus – directly, but then realised he needed to explain more. 12 When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned… v18 but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone.

That’s the contrast and the comparison. Because Jesus and Adam are both alike and different. They are alike in that both stand as our representatives. Both did one act which determined our destiny. Adam sinned and brought death, Jesus died in our place and brought life.

But they are also different. For Jesus is greater than Adam. The second Adam is greater than the first.

15 But there is a great difference between Adam’s sin and God’s gracious gift. For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ.

Adam sins once, and condemns many. One to many. But the grace of God in Jesus Christ is that the many are swallowed up in the one act of grace. Imagine a jar full of marbles. It’s easy to smash that jar. One act. And many marbles . It’s easy to destroy, very difficult to restore.

So Jesus and Adam are similar in the one act affects many, but Jesus is so much greater because his one act fixes everything. Restores everything. V 16 continues: 16 And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins.

Sin breeds sin. From Adam’s one sin the world was plunged into chaos. Just think of how quickly things escalated: their firstborn son, Cain, murdered his brother Abel. From one act of disobedience, “no I’ll decide thanks for myself”, and then there’s jealousy, envy, hatred, and then a man standing over his brother with a rock.
In Greek mythology we read of Pandora’s box. Pandora, the first women on earth was given a present of a box (or jar) by the god Zeus, and was warned not to open it. Of course, full of curiosity, she opens it – only to unleash all the horrors of evil and death on the world. She desperately tries to close the box, but can’t. How can you close Pandora’s box once it’s been opened?

Well, you can’t. But Jesus can. The Pandora’s box of sin has doomed the world. One act of Adam has destroyed us. But Jesus is greater. Because his one act gathered all the doom of man from all of time and space, even deep within us. Our sin, all of our sin, sins in our past, sins now, sins in our future, sins we’re not aware of, sins we are aware of and should have stopped doing but we keep choosing to do – even those sins Jesus gathered. His one act of righteousness on the Cross pulled all these sins, this Pandora’s box of doom. From all of time and space and he pulled it all down onto his body and put it to death with his own death. 17 For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.
Hallelujah! Praise Jesus. Because in him our sins have been dealt with. They have been killed. We have died to sin and so now live for Christ.

In Jesus we are humans as we truly are meant to be. Renewed, the new man. A new start. A new humanity. Adam is dust to dust. Christ is death to life. Eternal life.

And the law is no threat to this. Oh yes, the law shines a spotlight on our sin and says “Out! Out! Condemned!”. But v20 God’s law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God’s wonderful grace became more abundant.

Our sin is no threat to God. The greater our sin, the greater his grace. It’s like when I was growing up and arm-wrestling my Dad – the stronger I got the stronger he got! Or that’s how it seemed. He obviously wasn’t using his full strength when we were arm-wrestling. But the harder I pushed, he just was able to effortlessly match it. I could not overcome his strength.
Likewise our sin cannot overcome God’s grace. The greater our sin, the greater his grace. He effortlessly matches it. So v21 So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God’s wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

We can sum up the argument of this chapter like this: “Just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned, so righteousness entered the world by one man, and life through righteousness”

Or to put it very simply: In Adam we die. In Jesus we live!

Ok. But what does that mean for us then. How does that affect how we live. And so in these last few moments we’re going to let the Holy Spirit apply these truths to us through 6:1-5

Ro 6:1–5 Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? 2 Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it?

The first effect this being in Christ and not in Adam should have is: obedience. We are set free from sin. We are no longer in Adam. We don’t have to sin any longer. We can do what is right.

3 Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? 4 For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. 5 Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was.

We are dead to sin, and alive in Christ. We have a new power in us.

You know we often get frustrated with our sin, but often it’s because we’re trying to fight sin in our own power. “C’mon, pull yourself together” “Do better” “You fool, you idiot” and so on. Berating ourselves, mentally beating ourselves up. This is not the way of the Christian.

Do we not believe that in Adam we are subject to sin that leads to death? And that we are powerless to stop it?

We cannot fight sin. But Jesus can. So we need to ask him for help. Jesus, I have sinned again. I can’t fight this, but you can. I believe in your grace, paid for on the cross, that means you will accept me. That means you hear my prayer. Help me to die to sin, and live for you, Lord!

We’ve had a few baptisms in this church, and they’re a great visual picture of this dynamic. We die to ourselves, and we live for Christ. We give up on ourselves, our own power, our own efforts, our self-reliance. We die as we go under the water, and we rise up to relying on Christ, on the Spirit’s power, on his one act that brings us all life.

Let us die to sin, and live for Christ. We are no longer in the old man, Adam, but in the new man, Jesus Christ. Let’s live like it. Amen.

Romans 2:1-3:10 Excuses we make.

Romans 2:1-3:10

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It's not my fault. You know, whenever I do something wrong, it's not because I chose to but because you pushed me to it or they said it or I had a bad day and at least I didn’t do what she did...

Does that sound familiar? Is that you as well as me?

So when God says in 1:18 that God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness then our inner lawyer immediately starts preparing our defence.

No God, you can’t be angry with me because ...

How would you finish that sentence? No God, you can’t be angry with me because ... maybe

1. I’m good 1-16 or

2. I’m religious 17-29 or

3. It’s not fair 3:1-10

Because they are the three excuses we see in today's text. God can’t be angry with me, can’t judge me because ...

1. I’m good.

2:1 You may think you can condemn such people, but you are just as bad, and you have no excuse! When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge others do these very same things. 2 And we know that God, in his justice, will punish anyone who does such things. 3 Since you judge others for doing these things, why do you think you can avoid God’s judgment when you do the same things?

Every one of us is judgemental – we condemn others for what they do. On Wednesday, I drove over 'heia to Kongsberg there was a guy driving right up my backside. No 1001-1002-1003. I got angry because it's dangerous. And then it struck me that I did the same thing day before with someone who driving exactly 10 k’s below the speed limit. Because I was annoyed I drove too close for a good while until the Holy Spirit persuaded me to back off! But how could I be angry with the guy behind me when he just doing exactly what I did. I was judged, condemned, by my own judgment.

And we do it again and again. Ooh, we get so mad when people lie to us! But then we lie – but that was for a good reason! We’ve condemned ourselves. What about gossip? Or envy - "I want that"? Or greed - we all eat too much and buy too much! Or when our children are disobedient ... but we were disobedient ourselves. Oops!

We don’t even need God to judge us. We don’t need his law, his standard - we are all fall short of our own standard. We are all judged guilty by ... ourselves. Good grief!

3 Since you judge others for doing these things, why do you think you can avoid God’s judgment when you do the same things?

Isn’t it weird that we people have a standard a "law" that we all break, but we all agree is correct and that we should obey?

We find that we measure our actions against some kind of Standard, some real sense of Right and Wrong. Humans have this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way; they do not do so. It's almost like we know there's a standard, a law that's over us, beyond us, and not from us. Our morality reveals that we know God and his morality, his law.

14 Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. 15 They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right.

The law's requirements - the good law of God, His morality - is written on our hearts. Yes, it is affected by sin, and so our conscience is not a trustworthy guide, but ... but it is still a guide, which shows us what is right and wrong. And makes us feel guilty when we do what is wrong! We can’t use the excuse "I'm a good person" because we don’t even reach our own standards. And the fact that we don’t measure up, that we know what is wrong - but we choose to do it anyway - it's a sign of what we learned last week: that God’s anger is revealed by Him letting us do what we want. He allows us to do just what we want so that we will see and understand - oh, I'm not as good as I thought, because I do what I know is wrong.

Of course, sometimes we do listen to our conscience – and sometimes we don’t. That's why it says in 15 their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right..

And it continues: 16 And this is the message I proclaim—that the day is coming when God, through Christ Jesus, will judge everyone’s secret life.

For we see God’s anger both now and in the future. God’s anger is revealed now in what we do - but this is limited. He allows just enough for us to understand that we are filthy in what we do, say and think. Of course, most of us just pretend nothing’s wrong but like a toddler running around with a smelly nappy, even if we pretend nothing’s wrong, it's quite clear to everyone else that something is seriously wrong with us. We need to be changed and cleaned!

We live in a filthy world with filthy people. We need help. And this is just a limited picture of our sin. God only allows a fraction, one third according to Revelation 8. If he let go, this world would literally be hell. In his grace he limits our sin. Like a dam wall, he holds back the flood of our sin. That we here in Norway have such a good life is a miracle, a gift from God - and we don’t even thank Him, but pat ourselves on the back! How clever we are!

We see God's wrath in what we do - but we will see the wrath of God in the future on Judgment Day. That day when God will put an end to all evil, all that is wrong, all that is filthy. And that’s us, if we’re not washed clean by Jesus. For everyone not washed clean by Jesus is still dirty.
That’s what we celebrated this morning with Birthe. She believes in Jesus. She lives for him. She belongs to him. He has washed her clean and raised her to new life in him. Therefore, she was baptised as a symbol of what God has done in her. She was washed with water as a sign that she is now clean.
And that offer is for everyone. We are all guilty. We can all come to Jesus and be washed clean. If that’s you, today would be a good day to accept Christ Jesus as Lord and Saviour. Talk to me afterwards if you’d like to do that.

Because v4 warns us: 4 Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin? 5 But because you are stubborn and refuse to turn from your sin, you are storing up terrible punishment for yourself. For a day of anger is coming, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.

Judgment Day is coming as certain as the clock ticks and the sun rises. And it is our own deeds - what we have done and said and thought – that is what will judge us.

6 He will judge everyone according to what they have done. 7 He will give eternal life to those who keep on doing good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers. 8 But he will pour out his anger and wrath on those who live for themselves, who refuse to obey the truth and instead live lives of wickedness. 9 There will be trouble and calamity for everyone who keeps on doing what is evil—for the Jew first and also for the Gentile. 10 But there will be glory and honor and peace from God for all who do good—for the Jew first and also for the Gentile. 11 For God does not show favoritism. 12 When the Gentiles sin, they will be destroyed, even though they never had God’s written law. And the Jews, who do have God’s law, will be judged by that law when they fail to obey it.

At first glance, v7 seems to give us hope that we can actually do it ourselves. If I keep doing good and seek glory, honour and immortality, I can earn eternal life. Yes. But who in the world does that? None of us. None of us except Jesus has lived consistently like that. Because it's not enough to try - but you must have succeed. Do or do not. There is no try! Every minute of every day from when you were a baby until you are old and grey you must have done only that which is good and sought glory and honour and immortality…. Good luck! Let me know how it goes.
If you’re still labouring under the delusion that you can somehow succeed - read one of the gospels and compare your performance to Jesus’. Because he is sought only God's glory, God’s honour and what is immortal. He is the standard.

Verse 7 is also an important lesson in reading things in context (from the verses around). Because the whole argument from 1:18 is building up to 3:10 “No one is righteous— not even one”. The Holy Spirit through Paul wants us to understand that everything except trusting in Jesus is in vain. Rubbish. Whether it's our goodness or our religion or anything else. Useless.

“I’m good” is no excuse. And neither is "I'm religious."

2. I'm religious

17 You who call yourselves Jews are relying on God’s law, and you boast about your special relationship with him. 18 You know what he wants; you know what is right because you have been taught his law. 19 You are convinced that you are a guide for the blind and a light for people who are lost in darkness. 20 You think you can instruct the ignorant and teach children the ways of God. For you are certain that God’s law gives you complete knowledge and truth. 21 Well then, if you teach others, why don’t you teach yourself? You tell others not to steal, but do you steal? 22 You say it is wrong to commit adultery, but do you commit adultery? You condemn idolatry, but do you use items stolen from pagan temples? 23 You are so proud of knowing the law, but you dishonor God by breaking it. 24 No wonder the Scriptures say, “The Gentiles blaspheme the name of God because of you.”

You can feel the force of the argument. Paul sees before him a Jew, proud of his religious upbringing, proud of his own accomplishments. And he knows that guy well, because that's what he was before he met Christ. He was a religious giant! He says elsewhere, in his letter to the Philippians 3:4b Indeed, if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts, I have even more! 5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. 6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.

He was the most religious of all religious people! He lived for the glory of God, so he thought. But he continues in v7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.

Religion without Christ is worthless. In fact, it mocks God. 24 No wonder the Scriptures say, “The Gentiles blaspheme the name of God because of you.”

For religion leads to hypocrisy, a thin outer layer of “holiness”, while behind the mask is a heart filled with selfishness and sin. Just think of the crisis that’s hit the Catholic Church and the Jehovah’s Witnesses, where they covered up child abuse to maintain a “holy” appearance. The Bible says what they should have done was exposed their sins, and dealt with them. Taken the punishment of the law, apologise, and make it public. For the gospel is that we are sinner, and Jesus is righteous - not “we must pretend that we are righteous”!

That is a religious spirit, which says it is appearance that matters. But God says it is what is within that matters. And only the Holy Spirit can change us from the inside out. That’s the point of the gospel!

25 The Jewish ceremony of circumcision (the sign that were a Jew and belonged to God) has value only if you obey God’s law. But if you don’t obey God’s law, you are no better off than an uncircumcised Gentile. An external sign is not enough. Just like baptism. An external symbol can’t impart righteousness and holiness to Birthe or any of us. Only Jesus can do that. It must be something that comes from within, from the Holy Spirit’s work in us.

26 And if the Gentiles obey God’s law, won’t God declare them to be his own people? 27 In fact, uncircumcised Gentiles who keep God’s law will condemn you Jews who are circumcised and possess God’s law but don’t obey it. There is no value in circumcision if you don’t keep the law. And there is no value in being baptised in the State Church or even Rock International Church if you don’t keep the law. And you can only keep the law in Christ. He must give you his fulfilment of the law, his righteousness.

28 For you are not a true Jew just because you were born of Jewish parents or because you have gone through the ceremony of circumcision. 29 No, a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks praise from God, not from people

As it says in v6 He will judge everyone according to what they have done. We all are judged by our works (what we have done). The question is who's works will we be judged by? We have a choice. Either we stand with our own works - and our own actions and words and judgements on others will condemn us to hell. Our “goodness” and our religious performance is not enough.

12 When the Gentiles sin, they will be destroyed, even though they never had God’s written law.(because we judge ourselves with our own goodness) And the Jews, who do have God’s law, will be judged by that law when they fail to obey it.

Being good doesn’t work. Being religious – even being a JEW, God’s very own people, does not work.

I am good, I am religious are worthless excuses. Our sin is exposed. So, we do what everyone does when we’re caught out, exposed – we say “It’s not fair”.

3. It’s not fair!

3:1-10 is a bunch of excuses as to why God can’t judge us. Andm yes, they’re a bit dumb - but you've probably used them yourself and you've probably heard others use them!

The first is what’s the point then of being religious? 3:1 Then what’s the advantage of being a Jew? Is there any value in the ceremony of circumcision?

The question is me focused, my performance. Paul dismisses it with focusing on God. 2 Yes, there are great benefits! First of all, the Jews were entrusted with the whole revelation of God.

The only advatange to being religious is what we know about God. But knowledge does not save. You actually have to do something with that knowledge, and trust in Christ Jesus for salvation.

The next excuse is: Ok, so we have to trust God. Fine. But the Jews didn’t. So doesn’t that ruin God’s revelation?

3 True, some of them were unfaithful; but just because they were unfaithful, does that mean God will be unfaithful?

Salvation comes through the Jews. But you Paul now say that there is no salvation in the Jewish religion, only in Christ. If that were true, if the Jews are unfaithful, then it’s all ruined. The promises of God are nullified!

4 Of course not! Even if everyone else is a liar, God is true. As the Scriptures say about him, “You will be proved right in what you say, and you will win your case in court.”

The Jews’ unfaithfulness does not blot out God's faithfulness – it just highlights it! Like when you paint a white wall - it looked white before, but when you apply the new paint – then you see how dirty it was before! The new paint emphasises how dirty it was before. And so with God. His faithfulness is not nullified by our unfaithfulness – no – it reveals our unfaithfulness!

Now our excuses start to get desperate!
5 “But,” some might say, “our sinfulness serves a good purpose, for it helps people see how righteous God is. Isn’t it unfair, then, for him to punish us?” (This is merely a human point of view.)
6 Of course not! If God were not entirely fair, how would he be qualified to judge the world?

God allows us to sin as proof of his right judgment. If he didn’t allow us to do what we wanted, how could he judge us? But because he let us do what we want, then we prove his judgment is correct.

7 “But,” someone might still argue, “how can God condemn me as a sinner if my dishonesty highlights his truthfulness and brings him more glory?” For a devilish sentence that is! "God needs my sin so that he can be glorified in his mercy, therefore he can’t judge me for my sin! 8 And some people even slander us by claiming that we say, “The more we sin, the better it is!” Paul doesn’t even bother to answer such a ridiculous twisted statement. But simply says: Those who say such things deserve to be condemned.

9 Well then, should we conclude that we Jews are better than others? No, not at all, for we have already shown that all people, whether Jews or Gentiles, are under the power of sin. 10 As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous— not even one.

All excuses are worthless. We all are guilty before God. Therefore this morning in the baptism we did not celebrate Birthe, but God - his grace in her life. We did not celebrate that she has been good enough or religious enough or has come up with a good enough excuse for God. No! We celebrated that Jesus has taken her place, taken the punishment she deserved and swapped her sin with his righteousness. Amen and hallelujah.

How would you finish the sentence God, you can’t be angry with me because... I'm good - but you're not. I'm religious – but you've broken the law. It is unfair - but God's judgment is fair. No. The only answer that works is this: God, you can’t be angry with me because I rely fully and wholly on Jesus Christ: that I have received his righteousness and my sins have been washed away by his blood on the cross. We live by faith, and nothing else. Amen.

Grace (Romans 3:10-26)

Romans 3:10-26

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In February 1996 I nearly died.

I was on a hike with a bunch of first-year students from the University of Cape Town. It was late in the evening and dark - and my friend Mark and I decided to take a “shortcut”. Why go around when you can climb straight up? And that’s how this genius here found himself stuck halfway up a cliff face unable to move either up or down. I could see the lights of Cape Town city centre below me, and the stars above me, and I began to realize that maybe this had been a rather stupid idea. Fear gripped me as I saw the situation I was in. My arms and legs began to tremble with fatigue.

As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous— not even one. 11 No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. 12 All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.”

These verses describe our situation. We have chosen the wrong path. Two ways to live – and instead of choosing God's way, we have gone our own way. And now we begin to realize that maybe this wasn’t our best move. Maybe you’re here today because your arms and legs are starting to shake and you don’t know how long you can hang on before you lose your grip.
Maybe you’re looking at the ground far below and you’ve been tempted to just give up. Take your own life. At least you’ll be at peace? Right?

Maybe I would’ve started thinking like that gripping onto that cliff 300 meters above Cape Town? How long could I have hung on for?

Well, who knows, because suddenly a hand reached down, grabbed my right arms and hauled me upwards. I was saved! I had been in a terrible situation, without hope – until I was rescued by someone standing on solid ground.

20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are. 21 But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. 22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ.

If you are a sinner today - and you are because you are a human being - you are a sinner here today, so you, like me, need someone to save you from yourself. And that's what Jesus does. He is the mighty hand that reaches down and pulls you up to safety.

In my case on the cliff that mighty hand was my friend Mark, who had climbed with me, was got stuck, but after a moment of intense sweating and equally intense prayer in a slightly higher octave than usual from both of us, he managed to see a tiny shrub that he could grasp. He pulled himself up on the shrub, and then managed to pull me up. We called that shrub “answered prayer”!

I have to say that Mark and I had true faith that evening. Because we risked everything on that little bush. If it had come loose we would both have fallen and probably not survived. I stand here in front of you today because I had faith and trusted that little shrub on Signal Hill in Cape Town in February 1996 - and it held fast!

But how about you? What do you trust? What are you believing in? Is it yourself? Are you betting your whole life now and into eternity on… you? Is it your good morals you’re betting on? Your background? Your church experience? Your “goodness”? Or, are you betting on “science” to save you (which I think is always a bit strange. I believe in science. Everyone believes in science. It explains how the world we live in works and it’s constantly evolving. It's like saying “I believe in the dictionary”). Or maybe you believe in Buddha or Mohammed or Krishna or countless other gods or alternative philosophies. Or religion without Christ - which is really another way of saying “I believe in myself and my own efforts”.

How secure do you feel? Is it working? Is it solid? Or are you feeling the roots begin to losing their grip on the rock, and you see the long fall awaiting you?

God tells us that anything but him is worthless. It will fall. Oh you may succeed in climbing your own way - for a little while. Some of us get a little further than the rest. But we are all of us stuck. None of us can reach up to God on our own. None of us are good enough. We all are miss the mark. And so we are left clinging on for dear life, waiting for the inevitable.

As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous— not even one. 11 No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. 12 All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.”

We reject God, and that is the root of what the Bible calls sin. Sin is a term that encompasses everything that is wrong with us and the world. It does not mean naughtiness, and it's doesn’t mean delicious like the adverts use it “oh, that ice cream is sinful”!
Sin is rebellion against God: we have chosen our own way. And because we have turned our backs on God, broken our relationship with him, everything begins to go wrong.

Sin is unfortunately the easiest Biblical doctrine (teaching) to prove. We know it all too well. Turn on the news. Look at your own life. We hurt people - even those we love the most. And we are hurt by them in return.

Why? Because we have chosen our way instead of God's. We were created to function with God as King – then everything just works. But we have chosen the path of death.

Just read v13 to 18. Does this not describe our world and all too often our own lives?

13 “Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave. Their tongues are filled with lies.” “Snake venom drips from their lips.” 14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.” 15 “They rush to commit murder. 16 Destruction and misery always follow them. 17 They don’t know where to find peace.” 18 “They have no fear of God at all.”

It is a summary of what the Bible says about humanity without God. And to our shame - he's right. The world is full of violence and abuse of power. Our lives are all too often full of lies and gossip, curses and bitterness. And peace! We lack peace. There is no peace in the world and no peace inside us.

What do we do when we realize this? I'll be better, we say. I'll work harder, be a better person, strive.

We have the story of Israel in the Bible to tell us that this does not work! For they didn’t have their own made-up morality, but God's morality, called the "law". They had the Temple, and miracles, and had experienced God's kindness and faithfulness - and they failed to keep the law.

19 Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God. 20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.

As v19 and 20 say the law, or morality, is not the way to salvation, but instead it mocks us by showing us that we can not do it.
The law is laughs at us as it shines a spotlight on those areas in which we fail most.

Just take some of the ten commandments: No other gods before me. Fail. Do not worship anything but me. Oops. Money, power, sports cars ... Fail. Honour your mother and father. Fail. Be sexually pure. Fail. Do not lie. Fail. Do not covet (be jealous of) what other people have. Fail and fail again!
And these are just some of the Ten Commandments, never mind the rest of them. And not to mention what Jesus said!
The law makes a mockery of us. And you totally miss the point if you come to the Bible to find a way to impress God as if you could be obedient to God. The Pharisees who killed Jesus thought that, and so do cults like Jehovah's Witnesses and Iglasio ni Christo (Church of Christ)

20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.

What hope is there, then? Because if we have sinned against God and cannot make amends because we can’t be good enough, and if the law is no way of salvation but a judgment, and if religion has no answer and science has no answer and humanism doesn’t work either - because if the Jews who received God's morality direct from God failed, we can be quite sure that following our own made-up morality isn’t going to succeed in impressing God. So, if nothing we do works - what hope is there?
Just like me on the cliff - we need a rescuer. We need someone other, someone above, someone who standing on solid ground to reach down and pull us up. We need someone who can do what we cannot. And that's what Jesus does.

20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are. 21 But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. 22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. 23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. 24 Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. 25 For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood.

Let us spend a few minutes on these verses. For this is the essence of Christianity.

21 But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago.

That word “but” at the beginning of v21 is probably the most important word in human history. For all hope was lost - but God. We were done for, arms trembling on the cliff face - without hope. And then we hear a voice “grab my hand”. I tell you that I was filled with rejoicing when I heard those words!
But what a fool I would have been if I had said “no thanks, I can manage”
Don’t do that! Accept Jesus and let Him pull you up.

We rather naughtily call v21 God's big butt! Yes, it’s childish I know. But it is God's great big BUT! We deserve judgement. We deserve hell because we chose life without God and life without God is the very definition of hell! As Homer Simpson says "Doh!"
BUT GOD! God set in motion his rescue plan, and instead of US dying, HE died! That is love.

21 But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law,

God’s righteousness is not gained through the law. You don’t have to fix up your life before you come to him. It has nothing to do with what you do or have done. Without keeping the requirement of the law.

22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. 23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.

This gospel, this good news, is not only for the “good people”, those who are good at religion, the ethnic Norwegian or those who are “proper” people, good an upstanding citizens. This is for everyone. Because all have sinned. I am a sinner, you are a sinner, the pope is a sinner, the King is a sinner. We are all sinners and we all need Jesus. We all fall short of the glory of God. We fall short, we don’t make it, we run out of steam and we are ridiculously far away from the finishing line.

24 Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.

God’s righteousness is a gift. It is given, not earned. At Christmas you don’t open your presents and then say “how much do I owe you?”! It's a gift. The gift of free grace from God to each of us who is willing to receive it.

24 Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. 25 For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood.

On the cross Jesus took our punishment. We are all sinners, unable to save ourselves, and so in his love and mercy he stretched out his arms and bore all our sins on his shoulders. He dealt with our sins as he carried our sins into death.
When Jesus was on the Cross - the Son of God on the Cross - God the Father gathered all the sins that all his people had committed from the past and the future - all your sins and all my sins - and laid them on Jesus on the cross.
Like when you use a magnifying glass or a prism to gather and focus light to a point, a burning point – really fun when you’re a young boy – I can burn things with LIGHT! – but on the Cross it was as if God had a huge cosmic magnifying glass that gathered all of our sins from all of time and space and focused them down to burn of the cross.
“It is finished!” cried Jesus as he breathed his last.
And dealt with all our sins – our past sins, and even the sins we haven’t committed yet – all our sins were dealt with on the cross. Amen and hallelujah. His sacrifice has made us right with God. He calls us “righteous” because we are now redeemed in Christ Jesus. His death, his blood, has made us clean.
Yes, we are sinners, but we are forgiven sinners, declared righteous by the judge, and so we are righteous.

Imagine if you were unlucky enough to end up in court. You wait for the verdict. The judge's word has power, real power. If he says “guilty” - then you are, and you will be punished.
But if he says “innocent” – then you are, and you are free.

In Christ Jesus we are declared “innocent”. And if an earthly judge has so much power in his judgment - how much more God Almighty?

If you are here today and you feel unworthy, weak, hell-bound – you’re in the right place. We here are not good people who have impressed God, but we are sinful people who have had their eyes opened. We are all by nature selfish egotists who ignore God. And we come to him to say sorry - and then we discover that it is He who has been calling us and working in us to call us to Him.

So I’d like to welcome you here today, especially if it's your first time, and especially if you're not a Christian. Because you are here today because the Holy Spirit is at work in you. God is saying to you: “Come, I accept you as you are”

In this church you come as you are. Here you will find mercy. Here you are allowed to fail, to be a sinner, without judgement. Here we know that we are sinners, but also that we are forgiven! Amen.

Now some of you are maybe sitting there now saying to yourself “yes, yes, but he doesn’t mean me. I'm too bad for Jesus, too far gone. If you knew what I’ve done... Jesus won’t accept me.”
If that's you, then I have a word for you: rubbish! Jesus came for you. You who know you're too dirty, too ruined, too bad, too sinful - it's you he came for. He didn’t come for those who think they can do it, but for those of us who admit that we can’t, that we need him. It is by faith. Not effort.
It doesn’t matter lies in your past. Norwegian society may well judge you and exclude - but Jesus does not. Here there is always hope.
In this church there are people just like you. People who have done the same things as you. Some of them, even worse things! And they have experienced the truth that we read about here. We are forgiven. God forgives us because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross.

So receive. Don’t hang on the cliff, arms shaking, waiting to fall. Lift up your eyes and see Jesus standing there with an outstretched arm saying “take my hand, you don’t have to struggle any more. With me you are safe. With me you will find peace”.