Focus: Discipleship
Function: To Help the Congregation realize we are already part of God's Kingdom
Form: GOK
Intro:
When should preaching be comforting and when should it be confrontational? Some would say it should always be confrontational, others, never confrontational.
I attended a funeral at a former parish last Saturday, and one of the members said to me, as I was talking with the pastor: “This is the guy who steps on our toes now, and he does a pretty good job.”
I am pretty sure that was a compliment. However, one colleague of mine said: “When they say `step on our toes' they mean, `step on someone else's toes!'” So, this is just in jest, I am not speaking about anyone here, but maybe, tongue in cheek, it should be confrontational when it is about the other person and comforting when it is about us.
I know I have heard sermons and thought to myself, boy o boy, why isn't so and so here to hear this?
And then, I realize that God doesn't want me thinking that way. He wants me to consider my own self when I am in His presence. AMEN?
And Brother Paul, in his epistles wrestled with just how stern he should be as pastor.
In 2 Corinthians, when he is defending himself against criticism that had stirred up trouble for him from people, and he had to explain all sorts of ways that they had made big issues out of small problems. In the course of that, he tells them that at times, they listen to preaching, which in his opinion is actually abusive and manipulative. He says: 2 Corinthians 11:19You gladly put up with fools since you are so wise! 20In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or puts on airs or slaps you in the face.
I wonder why at times people continue to listen to shame. Apparently with Paul, when he wrote letters to them, he was bold, but when he was with them, he was very tender. So, they accused him of being two-faced and wishy washy.
So, when should preaching get specific and confrontational? I guess the pastor needs to let it up to the Holy Spirit.
And in this passage, it gets as confrontational as it can. In verse 23, “this Jesus, whom you crucified...” And again, the last verse: Jesus, whom you crucified.
Twice he reminds them that they are guilty of murder, judicial murder.
But wait. Peter isn't preaching to the religious leaders who tried to silence Jesus by putting Him to death.
No. Jesus is speaking to the regular people, people like you and me.
And He tells them: “You crucified Christ!”
And this sermon, my friends, is how the Church began.
This is the first sermon, the first evangelistic crusade in the history of the Church.
And it starts with these words.
YOU Killed Him! (SHOUT IT)
They weren't the syrupy words of encouragement: “have faith and things will get better.” It wasn't the false words: “God loves you and he will prove it to you if you just give a little more to me...” It wasn't the words that I preach the most, to the body of Christ, not to unbelievers, to you all “God has called us to take up His cross, follow the mission of Jesus, live for the Kingdom of God that is already here....”
Now, this evangelistic message is: “You Crucified Him.”
And it isn't just about the whole doctrine of salvation from our sins.
(ASK) What is the Atonement?
Can we put that doctrine in words simple enough for our little children to understand?
The atonement is a sophisticated doctrine.
And Peter says nothing of it.
Peter says nothing of heaven and hell, the sinless perfection of Jesus Christ, His virgin birth which kept Him from the inherited sin of Adam and Eve, or Jesus being the perfect sacrifice and all the doctrine around that.
All he talks about is the fact of Jesus resurrection and how it was prophesied in the Bible.
In preparation for ministry, I took a whole semester class in the doctrine of the salvation, called “Soteriology.” I mean we looked at it from every angle.
And I was just as confused at the end of it as I was at the beginning. I mean, I could give all the definitions, all the symbols of it from the Old Testament, all the little cliches to help me remember, but the mystery of God, saving the world through the cross is just too much to comprehend with human words.
AMEN?
So, here is Peter, in this first ever sin-convicting sermon of the Church.
And they knew that although they were not the ones who forced Pilate into having Jesus crucified, that although they were not the ones who manipulated the crowd into crying out (loudly) CRUCIFY!, they knew in their own hearts that it was for them, for them as individuals, that Jesus gave up His life to redeem.
Although all the mystery of it was not explained, the Holy Spirit was at work, and they knew that before God, they needed a redeemer, Jesus Christ.
And it wasn't a feel good message full of hope. Peter is right there, in their faces, pointing his finger at them, not pulling any punches or saying it in a way that doesn't offend. He pointed the finger at them and said “You did it.”
I watched part of the Passion Of the Christ over Easter weekend and I remember Mel Gibson, in an interview about the movie saying: “the only part I am playing is my left arm and hand handling the hammer, nailing Jesus to the Cross. Because I, we, killed Him.
One commentator said this: “When Peter is telling them that they are guilty of the murder of Jesus, it doesn't sound like Peter is preaching `good news.'” He said: “in this context, we have to realize that Peter is preaching with such passion because he is preaching very `Important News.'”
It is good news, because we need a Savior, and Jesus became that savior for us.
But Peter's passion is based on the importance of this news.
We need Jesus and in that confession we are saved.
So, this is a sermon in two parts. The first is a confession, by all of us, and the second deals with how we can respond.
To punctuate the confession, please join in on the Chorus as we sing a song together. The song is written in the form of a Gregorian Chant and is actually one of the first hymns sung by the early Church. We are going to join with the early church as Mike and Sarah lead us in Lord Have Mercy.
Now the second part.
Important news.
In the first chapter of Acts. After Jesus has died, rose again and literally fulfilled all that He said He would fulfill. And even though things went backwards, ending in His death and resurrection, the disciples still ask Him if it was now that He was going to restore the political kingdom of Israel.
They still were thinking in human terms. They were still looking for Jesus to come as the great military/spiritual leader, kick the behinds of the Romans all the way back home, take over their kingdom and rule the earth in glorious luxury and power.
They did not understand the important news, that God's kingdom had already been in their midst since the beginning of the whole Jesus affair when John the Baptist started preaching: “repent, the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
They weren't getting it. And it is hard to understand because it is an upside down kingdom.
The first shall be last, the greatest will be the servant of many, the master washes the feet of the slave instead of vice-versa.
It is a Kingdom where it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than the rich and successful in the world's eyes to get into this kingdom.
This kingdom says “if you are poor, you are blessed... If you mourn, you are blessed.”
This kingdom indeed has important news.
And, it is important for us to remember that.
We possess not only the words to eternal life, but hope for the poor. Those two messages go hand in hand throughout Jesus' teaching.
And remember, the Kingdom of God is already here.
The Disciples were still looking for a kingdom that is to come.
And so often we are too.
Don't beat yourselves up over it, if the disciples were having a hard time figuring it out, then why should be be surprised if we do to?
And the problem can be summed up like this: We look for heaven where our final reward is and then live for ourselves here on earth.
We forget the words of Jesus “Blessed are you if you are criticized, spoken evil of when you did the right thing.” Instead we whine and wonder how people can be mean and how their meanness has hurt us. And in doing that, we forget that the kingdom is already here.
God has left us on this planet because He has a job for us. And it isn't building our 401's. We have a story to tell to the nations.
Peter, Paul, James, Mark, Luke, Matthew all these guys are going to go on to be killed for their faith.
It didn't make any difference to them. They had already inherited the Kingdom of God and it couldn't be taken away from them.
So, as we look at the first Church in the book of Acts, let us take up their cause and accept our duty as Christians.
We aren't here to get a pass into heaven by making a confession and then to continue to live our lives for ourselves.
We have a story to tell to the nations. We have important words.
Join us in the closing Hymn: “We've a Story To Tell To the Nations.”
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