Acts 10:34-43.                    He is Risen, indeed!!!                                     27/3/16

34 Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favouritism 35 but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. 

36 You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 

37 You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached— 

38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him. 

39 “We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a cross, 

40 but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. 

41 He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 

42He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. 

43 All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

He is risen! He is risen indeed! Did you hear and understand what we have just said? Our Lord Jesus has risen from the dead! Yet, it would seem that we have heard this so often that it brushes over us without meaning much at all. After all what difference has it made to our everyday life? What difference does it make to our church that is seemingly, slowly dying? We all seem to have more important things to focus on.

Now this morning typifies this for many people. For many, the first thing this morning on the agenda is the Easter eggs. Here we have something that gives our Easter a buzz. There is excitement in the house. How many, and how much chocolate can we amass this year. How much of a ‘high’ will the kids and we ourselves have this year? How long will this chocolate last?

Yes, we have set up a whole industry and worked out ways that we can make this chocolate even more addictive and appealing. We have ensured great advertising happens around it so that we can get even more out of this little high that we have made for ourselves. It all helps the economy and helps make the world tick. And it something we can easily be involved in, without any real thought. It is something nice for us to focus on so the Easter can mean something for us.

So here we have something that focuses people’s minds and engages their thinking and talking about Easter so that they are in some way freed from the thinking and hassles of their everyday life. So Easter bunny and the chocolate becomes the buzz of the weekend, while the real meaning of Easter becomes just a ho hum part of what they have heard over and over again when it comes to Easter.

But as we are already hearing in the media with the over indulgence of chocolate comes hypo kids, weight gain and guilt, and very quickly the buzz is gone and we still have nothing to help us to face life in our troubled world. Frustration and depression quickly comes into our lives once more. There was only a very brief escape from the realities of life.

Sadly, even from within the churches the same kind of thing takes place. We hear nice messages of love and hope, self-giving sacrifice and example. Things that can lift our spirits but which fall short of actually dealing with the real issue of Easter. Love and justice, inclusivity, being loved and valued, our longings and hopes, were comments made by church leaders this Easter. And they are wonderful messages and surely are flow-ons from the real Easter message.

However, when they become the main focus then all too quickly we are left frustrated and depressed. No matter who we are or what we do, when the focus is on us and what we do or should be doing, thinking or feeling, we will all too quickly come up short. It is all nice and good but we and others around us will continually not measure up. Then we become frustrated and depressed or self-righteous and arrogant.

Yet surely, here again this weekend, our focus is drawn away from I, me and myself. These days we have planted before our very eyes that which shakes us to the core and glues us to that which is utterly mind blowing. That innocent man hanging on a cross to die surely touches as much the Brussels bombings. More so, when we realize that this was the Son of God willingly hanging there. And even more so when we hear this morning news that he is risen from the dead.

Peter here in this reading is absolutely focussed on God and what he has done through his Son Jesus Christ. For Peter it is all about Jesus and who he is and what he has done. He cannot stop talking about him and pointing others to him, for it is there alone that humanity can find and have that which is truly needful and helpful.

This Jesus is where it is at, not us. Only in him can we find love, justice, hope and all the rest. He alone is what is important and life giving. He alone enables us to have meaning and purpose and hope. He alone enables us to have life, here in this troubled world of ours, as well as in heaven for all eternity.

Listen to Peter:  “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favouritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. God is the determiner of who is acceptable and who is not. Not us and our reasoning and what we would like to think. It is not about what we have done or not done; but whether we are prepared to take him seriously as God and Lord over all.

He goes on to remind us that God himself tell us that Jesus Christ is all important. He says: You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. In him we have really good news for us. News that turns our life upside down. In him there is peace – true peace - lasting peace – even in the midst of terrorist bombings.

Why? How? Peter goes on: God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him. Here, in Jesus walking this earth 2,00years ago in Israel, God was at work. Miraculous things, beyond human possibility. These are things that happened in history – in our world. This is no fairy story, or wishful thinking.

Peter and the disciples: “We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They saw, heard and experienced things that could only be of God almighty himself. But even more, they testify that: They killed him by hanging him on a cross, but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. 

This is absolutely amazing news. There is something super special about this person and what he is doing. Nobody dies in this fashion and then rises again. It just doesn’t happen in this world of ours. Except if it is God himself at work.

Peter goes on: He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. 

So even when it comes to the message that is to be preached, it is Jesus who determines what that should be. That is that God has appointed Jesus to be the judge of all. He determines who goes to heaven or to hell. In this regard the Bible itself determines what that is.  All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

So those who look to Jesus Christ and his death on the cross for the forgiveness of sins has the assurance that they have peace with God and eternal life in heaven. When we look to him and focus there we can be sure. However, when we turn to ourselves and what we do and how we are responding and all rest, we will doubt and despair. Focus on him and what he says and trust that he has it in hand, then we can go forward boldly and confidently.

If we take God at his word and look to Jesus alone and what he did over Easter, then we can know for sure that this is the greatest and most fantastic thing that could ever happen for our lives. With him front and centre we can be sure that all will be well for the rest of our lives. No matter what we face or have to go through, we know for sure that Jesus has taken care of it and that he now has the last word.

He is risen! He is risen indeed! The Lord Jesus who died on the cross three days before has been raised to life again: never more to die. All those then who believe and are connected to him receive forgiveness of sins through his name. They are joined to him and his death and resurrection and so are assured that they too will rise from their death and have eternal life in heaven.

To him be all glory and honour now and forever. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish