MPC 11th April 2004.April 11 - Acts 3-4:4 - "Verdict Overruled; Verdict Reversed"
Maurie Cropper MPC 11th April 2004.
I'm sure many of you have seen that movie The Passion of the Christ and I guess it'll get a few Oscar nominations. But I want to take you back to 1996 when another movie was nominated for an Oscar. It was also based on a true story and was first published as a book, and has since been made into an opera.
It's called called Dead Man Walking. It's about a convicted murderer on death row. He's a nasty piece of work. Arrogant and gutter-speaking. He's not only in trouble, but is also very troubled about his pending execution. He seeks the advice and the help of a prison chaplain who's a nun.
The only thing that can change his situation is if his death penalty verdict was overruled. Reversed. Overruled and reversed by the Governor, who's the highest authority in the State. Yet ironically, his death won't clear his name.
It's a complex story that touches on themes like crime and punishment, revenge and redemption, fear and salvation. It's a story that raises many questions. And while there aren't any clear-cut answers, one thing is clear: this story isn't about an innocent man wrongfully found guilty.
There's no doubt at all of his guilt. He was guilty!!
This is in absolute contrast to Jesus. His friend and disciple Peter, quotes the prophet Isaiah [53:9], when he says that Jesus “...committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” [1Pet 2:22]
Jesus was innocent of any crime. Yet he died that cruel death.
It's hard to grasp what the impact of that day, the day he hung dead on the cross, must have had on the followers and disciples. How their hopes must have been crushed. How totally devastated they must have been when the verdict had gone against Jesus and now he was dead.
He'd been condemned in an authorised Jewish court. He'd been sentenced and executed by Roman law. Worse still, according to the scriptures in Deuteronomy 21 [vv22-23] whoever is found guilty of a capital offence is to be killed and hung on a tree so as to demonstrate that they are under God's curse.
And his shame was capped off by being hung between two criminals.
The public rejection of Jesus couldn't have been more thorough!
At every point he was rejected!
Judicially, politically, physically, relationally, ...even spiritually!
Rejected, rejected. Rejected by his enemies, by his friends and by his heavenly Father.
Religion, law, man, God and death had all turned against him to wipe him off the face of the earth.
The verdict was made. It was decisive and it was over.
No power on earth could ever reverse what had happened.
No power on earth could rescue him.
And no power on earth could re-instate him.
To his followers, standing there looking upon a dead Jesus, it was over – it was finished!
In hindsight we know that it wasn't the end. We know that the outcome was to be different. But to those who there with Jesus in his death the next couple of days must have been a confusing and crippling time. With all hope dashed. Their grief over his death must have been immense. Their grief over what might have been may have even turned to anger at God. Or at least disbelief in him and his promises.
But as we know their disbelief and sorrow soon turned to joy. Even for the disciple Thomas who had to see and touch Jesus' wounds before he could believe. After all he'd had he's hopes dashed once before he wasn't going to go through that pain of losing Jesus again.
It must have been a moment of unspeakable joy. No wonder that the first public proclamation by Peter was simply to say, and it's there in verse 15 of Acts 3, “You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead.” Jesus, who had been dead, is now walking.
While no human authority could have brought Jesus to life, God could ....AND DID!
In raising Jesus from the dead God reversed, God overruled the verdict which had been passed on him.
God was in part declaring that human opinions about Jesus have been turned on their head.
Condemned for blasphemy, he was now declared as the true Son of God, designated to sit with God in Heaven.
Executed for sedition, for causing a stir, for claiming to be King, God now confirmed him King and Lord over everyone and everything!
Hanged on a tree under the curse of God, he was now vindicated as Saviour of sinners, and given the right to rule and reign at the right of His Father in heaven.
The authority of God overruled any earthly authority. And very importantly overruled Satan and his big trump card of DEATH! All were overruled by God in the resurrection of Jesus.
The resurrection of Jesus was the reversal of man's verdict to get rid of Jesus.
A reversal that from an authority higher than anything human. Only God had the authority to reverse the death of Jesus.
That's why a pumped up Peter was able to say: “You killed him ...but God raised him.”
And somewhat ironically the resurrection of Jesus isn't just about the reversal of a Roman verdict.
It's also, about the reversal of a verdict that was pronounced over everyone since the time of man's rebellion against God in the Garden of Eden. The verdict of God that we read in Genesis 3:22,23 “...mankind must not be allowed to reach out his hand to the tree of life... in order to live forever.” So... until the penalty for their rebellion could be paid, God banished them from the Garden of Eden. And of course it's in the crucifixion of Jesus the penalty was paid.
So the resurrection of Jesus is about reversing that verdict to ban mankind from having access to the tree of life.
What an incredible reversal! This means, because Jesus paid the penalty that was on our heads, we're now able to approach our Father God through him. And because we have access to Jesus as the tree of life, we're now able to experience eternal life.
Just as Jesus said: “I am the way, the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.” And his resurrection is confirmation of those promises.
Promises that few accept.
In last Thursday's Courier-Mail it was suggested that “the overwhelming majority of those under 20 barely know what Easter is all about.” In referring to the resurrection the article went on to say that “a generation or two ago, most Australians either believed the claims, wondered about them as agnostics or rejected them as atheists.”
So what the article was saying, is that for 2,000 years nothing much changed regarding people's view of the resurrection. But in the last couple of generations everything has changed. People no longer 'wonder' about the resurrection – they're simply indifferent.
Their catch-cry has become: “Who cares? I DON'T!”
Look let's take a look at the main players in our reading.
There's three groups.
There are those who are convinced of the resurrection of Jesus and now place their trust in him. People like Peter and John.
And there are those who are still running their own lives.
They haven't been convinced about Jesus. Peter refers to them simply as “Men of Israel...” They were the people, the crowd that were attracted to the healing of the crippled guy. Curious people. People who hadn't yet made up their minds about who Jesus was. Yet in their indifference they are guilty of the death of Jesus.
Peter goes as far as to say that they have to take ownership of the role they played in Jesus' death. In fact he gets pretty personal when he says, from verse 13:
You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. You killed the author of life.
And for those who haven't yet been convinced about Jesus, Peter says that it's not silver and gold you need in your life, it's Jesus. And that's the offer he makes to the crippled guy.
Verse 6. “Silver and gold I don't have. But what I do have to give you is much better than silver and gold. It's Jesus.”
And from verse 17 to 19 Peter says, “Don't remain ignorant about Jesus, about his life and suffering for you. Repent... turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out and that times of refreshing may come from the Lord... that you might receive God's appointed Saviour... he being Jesus.”
Then there are those who rejected Jesus outright. The priests, the captain of the guard and the Sadducees. They were so peeved that they arrested Peter and John and chucked them into jail.
Read 4:1-3
The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. They seized Peter and John, and because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day.
Everyone falls into one of those three groups.
Either you accept Jesus and his resurrection.
Or you're indifferent towards him. Or you reject him.
Which group are you in?
Are you yet to be convinced of Jesus? Are you indifferent towards Jesus or have rejected him? They're much of the same thing.
Well, the news isn't good. In fact it's terrible news. The Bible tells us that unless you accept Jesus the guilty verdict still hangs over your head. And you don't have to have murdered anyone to remain under the verdict of guilty. Even an appeal based on living a good life isn't enough.
While anyone continues to ignore God's authority over their life, while anyone remains indifferent towards Jesus and thumbs their nose at accepting his death as payment for their rebellion against God, they will remain under the verdict of guilty.
And no authority or power on earth can change that fact.
Listen to what it says from John 3:36:
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him.
So don't muck about anymore. Do something about it. Thank God for sending Jesus to pay the penalty for your rebellion, and get right with God.
But on this special day for Christians, a day when we remember the resurrection of our Lord Jesus, I want to wind up this talk by remembering the resurrection as a time of incredible joy and hope.
The joy of knowing that you're in God's safe keeping. The joy of being able to talk directly to Him. Of knowing that in Jesus your friendship and relationship with God is sealed forever.
And while it's a fact Jesus has ascended into heaven, our real hope focuses on his promised return to restore us to himself.
In Jesus we are heirs of the promises that God made to our forefathers in Christ.
Look at Peter's words in verse 21. “He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.”
And skipping down to verse 24. “Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have foretold these days. And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, 'Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.' When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”
And the resurrection gives us the confidence and the hope, that even though there's persecution for God's people, it won't stop people everywhere hearing about Jesus and believing in Him. It won't stop the growth of the Kingdom of God.
Turn again to the beginning of chapter 4.
The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. They seized Peter and John, and because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. But many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand.
And as if to echo what Peter said in those very early days of testifying to the work and power of the resurrection, the apostle Paul later says in Romans 8:34:
Christ Jesus, who died -- and who was raised to life -- is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
So who can separate us from the love of Christ?
Can trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ... 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
For those of us who follow Jesus the resurrection is an incredibly joyous and hopeful time.
We're not followers of a defeated king... but of the Risen Lord Jesus.
It's a fantastic time to remember and to celebrate.
So let's live our lives with the confidence we have in Jesus, and with a prayerful determination to share our friendship with Him, with others.