From the thief on the cross next to Jesus who knew that he was the Son of God to the centurion, as the atmosphere began to change and the sky began to turn black as Jesus was passing, he said, "Surely this was the Son of God". How John and Peter and his mother Mary were affected as they stood and watched as he was passing on the cross. To see how they would have felt when they ran to the tomb, and John, the one who rested on Jesus' breast came and saw that the tomb was empty; to the day when Jesus appeared to the disciples when they were all gathered in that place and one had opened the door and saw that it was Jesus and shut it then all of a sudden Jesus appears in the room and they said, "I just want to know that its you", and Jesus showed them the nail prints in his hands and feet and the spear print where it had stuck in his side and how they rejoiced that Jesus had risen and were a part of something that was so unique that had never taken place in history; to the way that each and every one of us felt when we came to Jesus.
Do you remember when you gave your life to the Lord? I was 5 years old kneeling at my bed with my brother as my mom led both of us to Jesus and from that day on our lives had never been the same. I remember when I was at youth camp and was filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues and many of us had a glorious time together. I remember being in the Baptismal at my home church as I was getting ready to say that I had died and buried myself to my old life and rose to walk in the newness of life and I also remember my youth pastor wanted to hold me under just a little longer than he was supposed to but I remember that I was different when I came up. How many remember the day that you gave your life to Jesus? What a personal and powerful thing? Today we don't just gather because something religious took place, we gather because God did something so personal for every one of us. I love that song about the thief on the cross. Can you imagine being someone who deserved to die right there next to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords? How many know that if a thief on the cross can realize that Jesus is the Savior and the Messiah then there are many who could do it today?
This morning I want to talk about the Passover blood of Christ, an illustrated message of how this blood has affected every one of us in our own life and how it's affected the whole world. 1st Corinthians 5:7 is where I'd like us to turn to today as we talk about this risen savior. I want us to think about the importance of this blood that Jesus shed for us. I want to remind you that Jesus, although he died on the cross, did not stay on the cross. There's a lot of churches today that have pictures and statues of Jesus still hanging on the cross. You'll never find one of those in a church that I pastor because he's not on it anymore. He rose from the dead and he lives again but what he did on Calvary makes all the difference.
1st Corinthians 5:7 says, "For indeed, Christ, our Passover was sacrificed for us".
Father, as we come to you this morning, we thank you for sending your son, Jesus. Jesus, as we meet with you today we thank you that you live, we thank you that you are here in this place and we thank you for what you've done in every one of us. May we decrease and may you increase, in your holy name. Amen.
Without the death of Christ there would be no Easter and without the crucifixion there would be no resurrection. At this time of year we are celebrating two of the most important things that ever took place in the history of mankind and that ever happened for us as believers. For the Christian these are days of rejoicing and of personal thanksgiving. I think that these are so necessary especially in Pentecostal churches. Have you noticed that there really is no formality for any of us? There's almost no day that seems more important than the other. I think that's because it's important that Jesus lives in us every single day. But I love the fact that we celebrate the resurrection because no matter what we've done throughout the year or what's been going on in our life, it is a day where the world stops. I don't care who you are, Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, or Christian, around the world today everybody knows that it is Easter, the day that we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It's in the papers, on the billboards, on the television and radio. Some people went to the beach and had a sunrise service, even got all dressed up with heels. I'm thinking if you're going to the beach then go barefoot, Jesus did.
The truth is this, today helps us to remember the great price that was paid for our life so that we can be called Christians and be in right relationship with God. Jesus gave his life for us and he overcame sin and death and rose again in victory over every enemy that has ever plagued mankind. The blood of Jesus has changed our lives and it has changed the world forever. Jesus is the precious Lamb of God that is slain for you and me and may we never lose sight of the priority of the blood of Jesus Christ. We don't hear much about the blood anymore. We used to sing about it and I'm so glad we did today and it's absolutely something we should do. We used to thank God for the blood and declare the usefulness of it. But today the thought of blood seems a little untidy and radical for every one of us. We can watch all these CSI investigations and Law and Order shows and eat dinner while we're watching them cut open bodies but when we come to church we have to keep it neat.
The blood of Jesus is a powerful thing and we are not above the indignity of all of that. The truth is if you take away the blood from the message of the gospel you not only deny the reality of all that Jesus did but you rob everybody of the power that obliterated the grip that sin and death had on the lives of men. That's what made the difference. It is the blood of Jesus and only the blood of Jesus that washes the stain of sin and makes us whole and complete to be able to walk in the will of God. It's that blood. Many of us have never ever had to hold a loved one in our arms as their blood poured on the ground and their life slipped away but we have a Savior who did this for us.
In Exodus 12 there was a foreshadowing of what God had planned for his children. It's called the Passover. The nation of Israel had been held in captivity and slavery for many generations. As a matter of fact that's all the nation of Israel knew up to that point. They had been in Egypt and all they knew as the children of God was what it was to be held in captivity. God sent a messenger named Moses to those people who said he was going to set them free. Up to that point the world hadn't listened that these were God's people. God told the children of Israel to sacrifice a pure, spotless lamb then take the blood of that lamb and put it on the doorpost of their home. God was going to send a death angel into the enemy's camp to prove that He is God and selectively kill the firstborn male in every home and the firstborn male of their livestock. He was going to let them know that He was God, nothing else would be touched but the very first born. So the children of Israel did that.
As a matter of fact, the Jews, even this week celebrated the Passover on Wednesday and they practiced what was done on that day and know that God had set them free. Listen, how many know that God has set you free? You've been washed in the blood of Jesus Christ and he could come back at any moment. How many of you today are ready to go home to be with Jesus? How many are ready to go to Heaven and be with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords? I think it would be appropriate if Jesus came back on Easter. It would freak the world out and it would be a wonderful thing.
In Exodus 12:13 says, "Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are and when I see the blood I will pass over you and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt". Man had been held in captivity, Israel had been held in captivity and on that night the death angel passed through and God saw the blood that was on the doorposts of his children and the angel passed over those houses and only those who did not belong to God saw death come to their home. In the same way, man has been captive by sin and we have been enslaved by the enemy of our soul but Jesus became the Passover lamb so that those who know him as Lord and Savior and have had his blood applied to our life could be free from death and sin and the result that sin brought into the world forever.
In Egypt he took the firstborn so that the world would know that He is God. But Jesus sent his firstborn for us so that the world would know that it was his blood that could set us free from sin. It's when we accept his sacrifice on Calvary that his blood becomes a sign that we belong to God. The Bible says that God knows those who are His, those whom the blood of Jesus has been applied to their lives. How many know today that God knows who you are? God knows if you've given your life to Him or if you haven't. The blood of Christ was necessary and is a requirement for bringing us back into a relationship with God. The Bible tells us that the life is in the blood.
Leviticus 17:11 says, "The life in the flesh is in the blood and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul". Listen to me, no blood, no atonement. There is in the world today this thing that will tell you that there are many ways to come to God, that there are many different avenues, many different religions, many different ideas. Without the blood of Jesus being applied there is no way. It's the blood of Christ that brings us peace with God. Sin in our life makes us an enemy of God but Jesus was the peace offering. I want you to think about this, the one who was offended came to those who offend and he made a way of peace. The Bible says that, "while we were still sinners, Christ died for us". Without Christ there is no way to God. I want to encourage us this morning, may we never ever see the blood of Jesus as an ordinary thing. May we not walk one day, may we not live one moment thinking that what Jesus did was so ordinary. May we never come to an Easter celebration thinking it's just another day at church and I can't wait to have a good meal with my family. How many know today is a special day because without that blood there is no way, only through Christ.
Hebrews 9:22 says, "Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin". Without Christ there is no forgiveness. The cross was not only a tool of death but the cross spiritually became the most important medical tool that has ever been used in history. It was only the blood of Jesus that could cure the cancer of sin. Men today have realized that if we infect some people with just a little bit of the disease that you can build up an immunity to it. You can get a shot and somehow you'll build up a resistance. Sometimes people think that same way, that if I just get a shot of a little bit of sin then I could build up a resistance. That's not true, if you just do a little you're going to wind up with the greatest infection you've ever had.
When Jesus came we didn't just need someone to come and take the blood of the human race and put it through a dialysis machine. That's what some people do, they kind of play church like they're going to a hospital. "I know I wasn't good this week so I better go to church". You don't need to come and get hooked up anymore. Some people think "I just need an infusion, if I can get just a little bit of the blood of Jesus in me I'm going to be ok". But the truth is man needed a transfusion. Jesus needed to come and make us clean again. Not only does his blood free us from the sickness of sin, his blood frees us from every sickness that there is. The truth is the cross was a very bloody place.
On Good Friday I don't even know if you stopped to think about what happened 2000 years ago. Jesus had been judged, an innocent man who had done absolutely nothing wrong. They took him out and began to beat him. They took a rod and whacked him on the skull and he began to bleed. They began to pluck his beard and took a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They mocked him and said he was the King of the Jews and even made a sign in Hebrew and put it across the cross. What they didn't realize is although it was rough they had actually just put on the nameplate of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords who was dying for our sins. They took nails after they had beaten him 39 times. Isaiah says, "By his stripes we are healed". I wish we'd run to Jesus more than we run to the doctor. I'm not against doctors, I think they're wonderful but the blood of Jesus makes us whole. That's why we come and lay hands on the sick and pray the prayer of faith because we believe that what Christ did on Calvary made all the difference. After they had beaten him they made him carry his own cross. Can you imagine your back having been laid wide open and being forced to drag a heavy cross through the streets? Then they laid him down and put nails in his hands and feet. They stripped him naked on the cross, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, leaving him wide open for everyone to see. He held absolutely nothing back.
Matthew 26:28 says, "For this is my blood of the new covenant which is shed for the remission of sin". Many people have looked for a miracle cure for the sicknesses and problems of the world. The miracle cure has been ours for 2000 years, it is the blood of Jesus Christ. This blood was untainted blood. Jesus lived a pure life without sin. He was the only one in history who has never sinned. Hebrews 4:15 says, "For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weakness but was in all points tempted as we are yet without sin". 2nd Corinthians 5:21 says, "For he made him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him". The blood of Christ contains the antidote for our life. We didn't just need a little bit, we needed a transfusion and we needed pure blood. When you go to the hospital you're not looking for something that's been tainted.
No one else could do this for you and me. I want you to think about the greatest saint that you ever met. Jesus knew what it was like to be tempted every single way. He knew what it was to see people around him pass away and he felt the hurt. He knew what it was to watch people suffer from sickness. He walked this earth and saw it for himself and that's why our High Priest, Jesus, gave his life. 1st Peter 1:18-19 says, "Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things like silver or gold from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers but with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot".
Judas, when he betrayed Jesus and couldn't even deal with it himself said, "I have betrayed innocent blood". Just as that blood on the threshold made a way of escape for the children of Israel it has made a way for us. We have kept the cross so sanitized but what happened was so real. The blood of Jesus makes a way for us. Hundreds of years before Jesus, God had already demonstrated for the world his plan of salvation through the Passover. Colossians 1:19-20 says, "For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, whether things on earth or things in Heaven, having made peace through the blood of the cross". Jesus became the way, the only way to the Father because of the cross. Jesus said, "I am the door and if anyone enters by me he will be saved".
When you look at that cross I want you to see a doorway. The way is locked without the key. If you ever wanted to see what the key looked like, it's the cross of Jesus Christ. That made the way to the Father. "I am the door. If anyone enters by me he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture". Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me". He's the only way, the only way we come to God.
We've used a lot of religious symbols in our time and many today will look at a cross. Some people in the Philippines decided they wanted to reenact the crucifixion for real. Jesus said, "I am the door. If you'll come to me I'll make a way to God". People are fascinated by doors, they are portals to a whole other place. As a matter of fact, whenever I pass a door I want to open it and want to find out what's in it. I remember when I was growing up about 4 years old in the Christian Missionary Alliance Church back in Pittsburgh. I would run through the hallways and wanted to open every door. I remember discovering the furnace room one day and it looked huge. I used to go in there and hide and then I found the Pastor's office but I was afraid and used to run out of there. But Jesus is the portal to peace, to salvation and to right relationship with God. He only made one door. He didn't say, "Let's make a deal". He made it easy and just made one door.
The blood of Christ deals with willingness. In John 10:8 it says, "No one takes it from me but I lay it down myself". One of the challenges of pastoring is preaching at Easter and Christmas. I love to preach it, it's simple. The message doesn't change because there's only one way.
I've played with my boys trading shots in the arm. How many men have played that with their son before? Who can take it the most? Daddy can always take it the most, they just need to understand that. But I can't ever take a shot in the stomach and I protect myself. Do you realize that this was God's son and he willingly laid down his life? At any moment he could have taken the whip from those soldiers and he would have made star wars look like kid stuff. At any moment he could have taken himself off the cross. God made flesh, you don't think he could have just made himself whole right there? He could of made the blood and the pain go away. He raised the dead. Jesus could have come off that cross himself but he said, "I willingly lay down my life". What a savior. That makes it personal.
The difference between the Christian and the rest of the world is this, it's a personal thing. Today there will be lots of people in church and around the world that will acknowledge that he's the King. There will be many that acknowledge that he died and a few that will acknowledge that he rose from the dead. But for those of us who know, that willingness of him to lay down his life speaks that it's our willingness to accept him as the savior. There is no forcing you just like no one forced Jesus on that cross. The Roman soldiers think they were big and bad but they didn't put him there. Jesus put himself there. No one forced you and me to become Christians. You may have grown up in a Christian home but your Mom and Dad didn't force you to make Christ the Lord of your life. They may have showed you the way and set the example but we willingly give our own life to Jesus. That's why Easter is so special because we chose the way, no one forced it. People led it to us but we had to look at it and say, "I believe, I know he covered my sin". How many of you believe this morning? He is the way, the truth and the life.
That's why this time of communion is so special. Communion is our acknowledgement of all that Jesus did. It's our acknowledgement that not only did he give his life but that we willingly accept him as savior. As we hold the symbols of the body and the blood in our hands, let this day be personal. "Jesus, I thank you for all that you are to me". I want to encourage you, are you in right relationship with the Lord? Before you receive this, do you know Christ as your Lord and Savior? Have you invited him into your life? Are you away from God today? You know that you've accepted him but you've stepped away from serving God. Today is the day that you make your life right with him again. He's the only way. He is the door.
