Go
FILTER BY:

← back to list

    Aug 14, 2016

    Experience the Presence of God Through the Wonder of Christ's Passion

    Passage: John 20:19-31

    Preacher: John Huizinga

    Series: Experiencing God through the Wonder of . . .

    Category: Practicing the Presence of God

    Keywords: cross, desire, doubting thomas, passion, sacrifice, suffering, thomas

    Summary:

    When the resurrected Jesus comes to doubting Thomas, he reveals the wounds of the cross to his disciple. And it is when Thomas sees the marks of Christ’s passion he believes. What does it say to us that the true God suffered? It says nothing separates form the love of God. It says grace is exercised even in our worst and when at our worst. It says Christ alone redeems the brokenness and injustices of life. It says there is purpose after all in such suffering, for there we meet the Lord, and find our hope and peace.

    Detail:

    I think of two girls this morning:

    Amy and Annie.

    They are the daughters of Rod Blagojevich.

    They found out this week that

    barring a turn of judicial events,

    after the judge refused to reduce his sentence,

    they will grow up without their father.

    It’s not their fault; it is his.

    But that doesn’t take away from their tears,

    knowing now that with their dad’s sentence,

    they too are being sentenced,

    and will grow up with that pain alone.

     

    Earlier in the week a black woman on the south side spoke for most of her neighbors when she said,

    ‘I cry everyday living here.’

    She spoke in response to another shooting

    that left more kids without mothers and with fear.

    All around there is nothing but helplessness

    when it comes to the unjust acts of violence.

     

    Great suffering brought about every day

    by both justice and injustice.

    That’s just what one man

    in this gospel story experienced.

    His worst fears had come true.

    His friend was also unjustly killed.

    But he died to secure justice for the likes of this man. This last man I’m talking about is Thomas.

     

    He had heard Jesus enough in his years with him

    to know this was going to happen.

    Thomas had said as much

    when the disciples followed Jesus to Jerusalem,

    ‘Let’s go there to die,’ he prophesied.

    Thomas deserted his Savior

    as quickly as the rest of them.

    He knew there’s no fighting city hall,

    or Roman rule, or Jerusalem mobs.

    He knew he contributed to the cross

    as much as anybody else.

    He needed the injustice Jesus took for him

    to receive the justice and mercy of God.

     

    So Thomas becomes for each one of us

    the one to look at when it comes to

    suffering and sacrifice.

    How to live with it,

    what to do with it,

    where is God in it.

    And the revelation of this story is that

    you and I meet Jesus in his suffering for you.

    Thomas finally realizes just who Jesus is

    when he see the nail-scared hands and the riven side. He sees his wounded, risen Christ and exclaims,

    ‘My Lord and my God.’

     

    We meet God in Christ’s passion, in his sacrifice.

    That’s the testimony of the Bible.

    The disciples on the road to Emmaus

    had their eyes opened at the breaking of the bread, at that moment when they saw the hands of Jesus who had carried the cross,

    and received the bread of his body given for them.

    We also receive the bread and cup

    and in this sacrament by faith see for ourselves

    this one true God is the God who suffered,

    willingly,

    for you, for the sin of the world.

     

    One profound way we experience

    the presence of God

    is in this passion of Christ.

     

    There is great distance between ourselves and others when we sense they don’t have a clue

    about what we’re going through.

    This is one of the American public’s frustrations

    with our elected officials,

    both democratic and republican:

    because they don’t have to deal with

    the same health care system the rest of us do,

    and because they aren’t in the social security system like most others there is a basic lack of trust:

    they don’t know what we have to live with.

     

    I think there is a similar detachment

    in communities with their churches.

    When we as Christians -

    living in the name of the One who was one of us,

    who came to live with creation -

    when we aren’t involved in our communities,

    aren’t bringing hospitality or care

    to our neighborhoods and neighbors,

    the suspicion is that the church doesn’t know

    what real life is all about.

    That’s why we are encouraged and challenged

    to decide, to choose,

    to be involved in a community event or program. In order to share in life

    with our neighbors and communities.

    It’s why I spend time at Sunrise across the street,

    and with Joel down the street at Lombard Place,

    and with a community group reaching out to kids

    in the Lombard-Villa Park area

    through Willowbrook High.

    And I’ve heard stories of some of us

    involved in community hobby groups, local boards, other volunteer associations, coaching sports or helping neighbors in need.

    So how about you?

    How about committing to taking time

    to be with our neighbors and classmates, sharing life?

     

    It is in a small way to image,

    to mirror, the profound way Christ is with us.

    When we consider the cross,

    we understand that there is nothing

    that separates us from God’s redeeming love.

    The cross bridges the distance.

    For Jesus even suffered for you.

    The cross tells us God is the God who suffered.

    If we take to heart how Jesus was unjustly accused,

    and he took it,

    and how he,

    by whom and for whom all things were created,

    was mocked and beaten,

    and he just took it,

    over and over he was whipped

    until his back was torn to shreds,

    how sinful men nailed him to the cross,

    how along the way as he carried the cross

    he took on himself each and every sin of yours,

    yes, here is John’s pride,

    and here is Mary’s envy,

    and here is DeShawn’s anger,

    and here is Mateo’s sloth,

    and he laid each sin on his heart . . .

    The sacrifice and suffering of God-come-in-the-flesh

    shows the deep meaning of the reality

    that God is with us always.

    The cross shows God is God even in the worst:

    nothing is out of bounds when it comes to

    God’s grace and sovereign care.

    Christ brings divine purposes of forgiveness, redemption, and salvation in the worst and in your worst.

     

    Jesus will stick with us in all things.

    We have experiences where those

    we thought would be there for us

    won’t or simply can’t.

    And sometimes we sin when we confuse the two,

    and blame or judge another undeservedly

    for not being there for us,

    not perceiving that in this situation

    she couldn’t be there for us.

    But at other times we suffer

    because the one we thought should be there

    didn’t come thru:

    they promised, but they broke their promise,

    you thought they’d give you a break, but they didn’t,

    you trusted their word

    only to find out they lied . . .

    I think of that funny scene from years ago

    in the movie Space Jam,

    at a crucial moment in the basketball game,

    and actor Bill Murray joins the huddle

    as if he has the play to win the game.

    He pledges his best.

    But when Michael Jordan reminds him

    they’re on defense, he stops short:

    woe, I don’t play defense!

    And we get let down and hurt

    when we’re left defenseless;

    when those we thought would be there for us

    are no-shows.

     

    So meet Jesus at the cross.

    He is with us always, all ways.

    Thomas comes with all his regret

    and sees the wounded but now risen Jesus,

    and says, MY Lord and MY God!

    Even in the worst I am now set free to hope:

    to apply those forgotten words like forbearance,

    and steadfastness, and patience,

    and even for the joy set before us

    take up my own cross and follow him

    to those eternal purposes.

     

    A new Christian tells this story:

    [from Christianity Today]

    For a very long time, almost my entire adult life,

    I did not believe in a good God

    because of suffering and mental illness

    and torture and genocide and

    homeless people with frozen hands.

    It happens that my life has been greatly blessed  . . .  

    I had a good family, a good education, good health, and meaningful, valuable work to do.

    But I strongly believed there was no integrity

    to believing in God if one had my life.

    Who wouldn't be grateful?

    The real difficulty for me was the apparent absence of a loving Lord from the lives of the suffering,

    the despised, the raped, and the hungry.

    My refusal to enjoy the comfort and joy of faith

    was my own act of solidarity with them.

     

    But I learned that

    people actually feel God's presence most tangibly when they are in the depths of suffering and loss.

    A Ugandan landmine survivor named Margaret

    made that clear when I met her in 2001

    at an international conference to ban landmines. Margaret had been on a bus,

    returning home from work,

    when it was ambushed by Ugandan rebel forces.

    The fighters pulled women and girls off the bus

    and raped them.

    To escape, Margaret scrambled off the road

    into the bush.

    She stepped on an antipersonnel mine;

    it tore her leg off.

     

    Now in my 2001 worldview,

    Margaret's horrendous injury –

    the stump of her leg was badly infected

    when we met and she was in incredible pain –

    should have been reason enough

    for her to curse God.

    But she didn't.

    When she got up on the podium to speak

    to several hundred activists from around the world, Margaret thanked God for her amputation.

    She said she experienced Jesus' presence

    much more after her injury,

    that he had blessed her daily with love and friends and had given her good work to do

    in helping other land mine survivors.

     

    I was embarrassed.

    I was a lifelong atheist

    and so were most of my friends in the crowd.

    But my thoughts shamed me.

    Margaret had something I didn't.

    She was powerful and gracious,

    and she lived a life of radiant gratitude.

    I didn't live a life of any gratitude, come to think.

    In addition to being embarrassed, I was envious.

     

    And so began her journey to faith

    in the God who suffered for her

    and brought meaning and a future.

    For Jesus did more than just suffer.

    He conquered death and sin.

    14 He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. 15 In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.

    In the language of Colossians 2

    we are reminded,

    that salvation resulted from Christ’s suffering.

     

    So whether you carry deep regret

    knowing you’ll live with the consequences

    of what you’ve done for the rest of your life,

    or you find yourself more angry

    as your frustrations about the grind of life

    just seem to stack up like dirty laundry,

    or your hurt has how become a part of who you are, and what’s wrong has turned into

    what’s wrong with me,

    or you’ve made life around

    your idols of happiness and pleasure

    and are distracted

    away from God’s kingdom and righteousness . . .

    meet Jesus again at his cross:

    1 Peter 3 -  18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.

     

    Jesus knew that Thomas needed this.

    According to the eyewitness account,

    Thomas dismissed the testimony of the disciples.

    When they told him they had seen Jesus,

    alive again, risen from the dead,

    Thomas said unless I see it for myself . . .

    According to the account,

    Jesus wasn’t there when Thomas said

    “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

     

    But a week later,

    when Jesus appears

    present with the disciples and Thomas,

    he answers Thomas’ painful objection word for word:

    27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

    How did Jesus know?

    He wasn’t there

    when Thomas raised his objection

    in sorrow and regret.

    Get it?

    The risen Lord Jesus knows what we need

    in order to be assured of his presence.

    Mary needed a voice in the garden

    on that resurrection morning.

    John needed to see the evidence

    of an open tomb and grave clothes left behind.

    Thomas needed to see Jesus

    conquering death and sin.

    Jesus gives you what you need.

    His cross brings to you just the gracious blessing

    you require.

     

    We call the will of Jesus to sacrifice himself

    and suffer the cross,

    we call this the ‘passion’ of Christ.

    Meaning a great sorrow and a heavy burden

    and the deepest of desires.

    Hebrews says it this way:

    for the JOY set before him he endured the cross.

    Christ’s passion was to willingly suffer for your sin.

    This is a week when passion is center stage

    in our world

    at the Rio Olympics.

    We cheer those conquering tremendous odds

    and sacrificing everything for a chance at gold.

     

    But a few times as Jesus walked with humanity on earth,

    he asked this question of passion:

    what do you want me to do for you?

    A question designed to expose your deepest desires, your greatest passion,

    the thing for which you were given life.

     

    Most of us have a hard time answering this question.

    It takes a disciplined heart exercising mature faith

    to be able to hear and respond to this question,

    but it is the question that opens us up

    to our true sharing in the passion of Christ.

    Jesus asks, what do you want me to do for you?

    Could you get down to the heart and soul

    of the matter and give an answer?

    What is your deepest passion?

    You may begin to find the answer

    when you meet Jesus at his cross -

    Philippians 1:29 For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him . . .

     

    So perhaps this is our faith response

    in meeting the Christ who suffered for you.

    To share in his suffering and sacrifice:

    As he said in Matthew 25 –

    when you share in the suffering of others:

    the hungry and thirsty,

    the homeless and the victimized,

    when you feel injustice with those who have been wrongly judged

    there, in those situations –

    whatever you did for the least of these,

    you did to me.

    For in sacrifice,

    the glory of this world is put in its place:

    Our idols of happiness,

    pleasure,

    security and safety,

    are deaf and dumb when it comes to real life.

    But Jesus suffered for you.

    There I meet the real God

    and receive the real gift of life . . .

    On the back of your worship handout

    are some faith responses to today’s message.

    These can help us meet Jesus

    in his sacrifice and suffering for our sin and salvation.

    Why don’t you decide on one of these responses

    for this week.

    And after you have completed

    the exercise in discipline,

    tell someone about it,

    and how you met Jesus again

    as the only True God who suffered for you.

    Now we eat the bread

    as a sign that he gave his body for you,

    and we drink the cup

    as an assurance

    that he shed his blood for your forgiveness.

    By faith we now meet Jesus in his suffering.

     

     

     

     

    • HANDOUT:

    To experience the presence of Christ by the love of our heart, soul, mind and strength for his passion:

     

    mind: Take time for a rational exercise on Christ’s passion. Spend time studying the crucifixion, look up a study on the crucifixion or read some quotes from classic Christian theologians like John Calvin or St Augustine on the crucifixion online, or get a book from our library or your public library that studies the sacrifice of Christ, or write a paragraph on how the crucifixion of Jesus has changed your life.

     

    soul: Connect emotionally with Christ and his passion through the arts. Listen to some songs that praise Jesus for his death on the cross, a couple of hymns like Ah, Dearest Jesus or O Sacred Head, Now Wounded. Or some newer songs like Lead Me to The Cross or How Deep The Father’s Love for Us or The Power of the Cross. Memorize a stanza and include that stanza in your prayers of thanks and praise. Or look up some classic paintings or artwork that depict Christ in his suffering and reflect on his sacrifice for you.

     

    strength: In a practical way embrace the suffering of Christ by choosing to take up your cross and follow him. Is there a sinful habit it is time to change? Is there someone needing your help calling you to sacrifice some time and resources? Is there suffering in your life that has frustrated you or blocked your relationship of faith to God to bring to God in prayer?

     

    heart: Practice the hope of the cross by remembering Christ’s sacrifice thru the week. Each time locate a verse in the Bible that refers to the cross, and read it personally. That is, add your name to the beginning of the verse or the end, to remember that Jesus suffered for you.