Following is the text of my portion of the Good Friday 2014 message at Mariners Church. Paul, our lead pastor, and I shared the speaking and it was interspersed with worship music. I welcome you to listen to the full service and get caught up in the worship of the evening. But I also include my text below as it will serve to encourage you as well. Paul opened the evening by setting up our sin condition and Christ’s suffering on the cross. It was followed by the song: Blessed Redeemer.
My message section 1…
As we’ve spent some time recognizing that our sin has created this absolute separation from God, I think of that cinematic effect where the view of something moves further and further away from our grasp as I am pulled back in some sort of tunnel. My SIN…MY sin…has left me lost and hopeless and broken and far from the God who loves me and created me to have a full life with Him.
BUT GOD…
But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. Romans 5:8 (NLT)
But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) Ephesians 2:4–5 (NLT)
Today is GOOD Friday. The crucifixion, the blood, the gore, the pain and suffering. We could focus on them. But WHY? When we could focus on BUT GOD! His love and pursuit of us is what drove Him to the cross.
Our sin forced this great divide from God that we have no ability to fix or repair. We try. But we fail. I know this doesn’t sit well with us. We hate to hear this. We muster up all our efforts and self esteem to make ourselves look good to Him and others. But dead is dead.
BUT GOD never gave up on us.
Even though we don’t deserve forgiveness…He forgives.
Even though without God, we are worthless…He has chosen to love us.
The apostle Paul, after listing all the things that he and others would think made him worthy and a great man, said,
I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness … rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. Philippians 3:7–9 (NLT)
This is why we devote our lives to following God. He has rescued us. This is why we worship. He is great and loving and has restored hope to us. This is why we sing and become joyful. He has brought us back from death in our sins to a full life in Him.
As we continue this evening we’re going to sing some songs that put this in the proper perspective. We bring nothing to our relationship with God. He is the one who pursued us. My goodness is not good enough. His is, and He gave it to us. My strengths are not strong enough.
BUT GOD…
This next song’s chorus says,
Our sin was strong, but Jesus is stronger.
Our shame was great, but Jesus you’re greater!
As we sing that, I invite you to get lost in a “BUT GOD” moment.
SONG: Raised to Life (Elevation Worship)
SECTION 2
So if Jesus is greater and stronger than our sin and shame, why do so many of us still struggle?
I’ve observed in others and in myself, times when I let my shame get the best of me. I see people let the victory over sin pass them by. The victory Christ has freely and fully made available to us.
I want to go and shake that person and say, YOU’RE NOT THE EXCEPTION!
Your shame…Your guilt. They’re not a shock or too great for God!
He’s able to bring real change and freedom to all of us. To you!
We need to stop trying to gut out our plan and willpower to overcome the struggles in our lives. God can be trusted. His plan is best.
Please stop standing on the edges. Stop staring from the outside looking in wondering why you’re the “only” one not experiencing the joy that we talk about. Again, you are not the exception!
Paul writes,
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ.
This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. Ephesians 1:3–8 (NLT)
This is why it is GOOD Friday. It was God’s plan all along to pour out His grace and mercy on us. To pursue us, to give us freedom! This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.
I hope tonight something that has been said here has helped you to move God’s grace, His free gift of forgiveness, down into your heart to defeat this cycle of shame, to experience His great love.
He pursued you. So what does it look like to pursue Him? To respond to him?
What does it look like to show gratitude to the one who has rescued you? What does it look like to live your life in that freedom and pursuit of more of Him?
Our worship team is going to come and lead us in songs. Again, I invite you to focus on what He has done for us. FOR YOU!
Perhaps tonight you come here having been wrestling with letting go. Maybe you’ve felt it really didn’t seem to be for you. Or that somehow, you accepted forgiveness, but didn’t let go all the way. To live in that real freedom He purchased for us.
Maybe that cycle of shame – of going back over and over again to the same exhausting destructive choices, has left you feeling hopeless.
Maybe you’re here this evening and this is all new to you and something in you is saying to dive in. To give in. To let go.
Then please do.
His love is crazy and irrational and His pursuit of you is passionate. He never has or ever will give up on you. And He doesn’t ask that you that you fully understand it, just that you receive it.
As you sing these songs, pause and just say something to God like, “I want this. I want you to lead my life, to give me that freedom. To learn to trust you. Thank you for rescuing me, for loving me.”
In a few moments we’re going to take communion together – to remember His death on our behalf – by taking the bread and cup. It’ll be a bit later and Mark will let you know when you can come up and get them. When you do, please take them to your seat and wait with them until we all take together.
SONG: When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, Your Glory/Nothing But the Blood of Jesus (All Sons & Daughters)
Communion
SONG: I Stand Amazed