Transformative Power of the Resurrection: A Call to Action
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Today, in our Bible reading, we encounter the risen Jesus along with his faithful followers. How many of us have questions for Jesus just as they did? How many of us are confused or uncertain about what is happening with Jesus and what it means in our lives? The early followers did have all the answers, and we are still looking for understanding today. Let us listen to God's word and open our hearts and minds for God's guidance today. [00:00:00]
When we look through church history, there are people who seem to be different because they encountered the risen Jesus. When we look at St. Paul, he was a guy who grew up as a good Jewish boy. He did all the things he was supposed to do. He did the correct offerings. He had the correct worship. He went to all the right schools. He grew up to become a Pharisee, one of the respected Jewish authorities. And when these crazy people who believed in Jesus started creating trouble, he was very good at going after them. [00:04:13] (41 seconds)
When we look at the lives of the early believers, the lives of the early early church, they don't seem to be the same either. They seem to be different. They go around setting up communities of believers all over the place. They're not worried about building big fancy temples. They're not worried about which empire they are a part of. They just go talking from person to person, spreading the news. And when plagues showed up in their villages, when people would abandon villages in order to avoid getting sick and dying, these early Christians would stay behind. [00:05:43] (44 seconds)
They had this crazy idea from Jesus that they were supposed to stay and try to heal people, to stay and be with people who were suffering. They stayed, and sometimes they brought healing, and people lived. Sometimes what they offered was that no one would die alone these believers were changed they behaved differently they did things differently than their neighbors what was going on what was this change in our own Methodist tradition we were changed by the message of Jesus Christ we believed that we should be doing things to make lives better for people. [00:06:26] (52 seconds)
So what is it that changed with the resurrection and why is Easter about more than bunnies and hams and fancy hats and what is the meaning of the end of Jesus life we have been talking about how we have needed to become at one with God again the fancy theological term for this is atonement how do we become holy in our relationship with God again going all way back to Adam and Eve we have had free will and we have used our free will to sometimes make bad choices to sin and screw up the world. [00:07:51] (48 seconds)
What is the real change of the story of Jesus? What is the real meaning of his life to us today? I think it is that our God is an odd God. He has strange ideas about what is important in the world, and I think the story of Jesus and the story of Easter is that we need to change and embrace the oddness of our God. So what are the ways that God is odd and wants us to change? [00:11:41] (36 seconds)
First of all, most gods want to be connected with powerful empires. When you look at all the gods of Egypt and all the gods of Assyria, the gods of Roman Greece, our God, instead of aligning with powerful empires, has this ragtag group of people living in an area called Israel. These are not wealthy people. These are not powerful people. It's a stretch of land that has very few natural resources. It has no great and mighty rivers like the Tigris, the Euphrates, or the Nile. [00:12:19] (44 seconds)
God doesn't set up powerful kings and generals. God doesn't set up powerful empires. God does not believe in vengeance, an eye for an eye, but instead says, I want you to forgive. I want you to turn the other cheek. I want you to give your coat to someone who is cold. I want you to love your enemy. Our God has odd ideas about what's important about life on earth here. And reflecting that, our God, through Jesus, sets up a church that is also odd. [00:13:14] (38 seconds)
Sometimes we have the strangest people that get welcomed into the church, people whose lives are seriously messed up, people who've been addicted or corrupt, people who've been prostitutes, people who have been powerless, people who've been sick, mentally and physically, people who've been living with disabilities. Our God welcomes all of these people in and creates a church that creates a church. where we're supposed to encourage and support each other and not judge each other to welcome people who are lost and lonely. [00:13:49] (40 seconds)
When we think about this church Jesus doesn't tell us to go build fancy ritzy powerful expensive buildings Jesus tells us to go talk to each other to share the message of Jesus with each other to heal each other Jesus says to believe and be saved to go and do what he did in our reading he says the father sent me I am sending you to go not just to sit around and feel comfortable but to go and to share Jesus with others to share the love and grace and salvation of Jesus with others. [00:14:51] (47 seconds)
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When we look through church history, there are people who seem to be different because they encountered the risen Jesus. When we look at St. Paul, he was a guy who grew up as a good Jewish boy. He did all the things he was supposed to do. He did the correct offerings. He had the correct worship. He went to all the right schools. He grew up to become a Pharisee, one of the respected Jewish authorities. And when these crazy people who believed in Jesus started creating trouble, he was very good at going after them. [00:04:13] (41 seconds)
When we look at the lives of the early believers, the lives of the early early church, they don't seem to be the same either. They seem to be different. They go around setting up communities of believers all over the place. They're not worried about building big fancy temples. They're not worried about which empire they are a part of. They just go talking from person to person, spreading the news. And when plagues showed up in their villages, when people would abandon villages in order to avoid getting sick and dying, these early Christians would stay behind. [00:05:43] (44 seconds)
They had this crazy idea from Jesus that they were supposed to stay and try to heal people, to stay and be with people who were suffering. They stayed, and sometimes they brought healing, and people lived. Sometimes what they offered was that no one would die alone these believers were changed they behaved differently they did things differently than their neighbors what was going on what was this change in our own Methodist tradition we were changed by the message of Jesus Christ we believed that we should be doing things to make lives better for people. [00:06:26] (52 seconds)
So what is it that changed with the resurrection and why is Easter about more than bunnies and hams and fancy hats and what is the meaning of the end of Jesus life we have been talking about how we have needed to become at one with God again the fancy theological term for this is atonement how do we become holy in our relationship with God again going all way back to Adam and Eve we have had free will and we have used our free will to sometimes make bad choices to sin and screw up the world. [00:07:51] (48 seconds)
What is the real change of the story of Jesus? What is the real meaning of his life to us today? I think it is that our God is an odd God. He has strange ideas about what is important in the world, and I think the story of Jesus and the story of Easter is that we need to change and embrace the oddness of our God. So what are the ways that God is odd and wants us to change? [00:11:41] (36 seconds)
First of all, most gods want to be connected with powerful empires. When you look at all the gods of Egypt and all the gods of Assyria, the gods of Roman Greece, our God, instead of aligning with powerful empires, has this ragtag group of people living in an area called Israel. These are not wealthy people. These are not powerful people. It's a stretch of land that has very few natural resources. It has no great and mighty rivers like the Tigris, the Euphrates, or the Nile. [00:12:19] (44 seconds)
God doesn't set up powerful kings and generals. God doesn't set up powerful empires. God does not believe in vengeance, an eye for an eye, but instead says, I want you to forgive. I want you to turn the other cheek. I want you to give your coat to someone who is cold. I want you to love your enemy. Our God has odd ideas about what's important about life on earth here. And reflecting that, our God, through Jesus, sets up a church that is also odd. [00:13:14] (38 seconds)
Sometimes we have the strangest people that get welcomed into the church, people whose lives are seriously messed up, people who've been addicted or corrupt, people who've been prostitutes, people who have been powerless, people who've been sick, mentally and physically, people who've been living with disabilities. Our God welcomes all of these people in and creates a church that creates a church. where we're supposed to encourage and support each other and not judge each other to welcome people who are lost and lonely. [00:13:49] (40 seconds)
When we think about this church Jesus doesn't tell us to go build fancy ritzy powerful expensive buildings Jesus tells us to go talk to each other to share the message of Jesus with each other to heal each other Jesus says to believe and be saved to go and do what he did in our reading he says the father sent me I am sending you to go not just to sit around and feel comfortable but to go and to share Jesus with others to share the love and grace and salvation of Jesus with others. [00:14:51] (47 seconds)
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