Dear Church Family,
I hope you are doing great and looking forward to celebrating our risen Savior this Easter! This is such an awesome time of the year because it reminds us of how much we as Christians must be thankful for. This year we are going to celebrate the fact of how worthy our risen Savior is!! Jesus is Worthy for many reasons, but this year we are going to
celebrate three of those reasons in a sermon series simply entitled “Worthy.” He is the Lamb of God, Suffering Servant, and Risen King!! This series is going to help remind believers of how thankful we should be, and it is going to help non-believers to consider the reality of their lives and how they can be changed for all of eternity! Please make sure to be in worship as we consider the fact this Easter season that Jesus is… “Worthy.”
As you come I want to encourage you to reach out to your friends and family and invite them to attend as well. We will have three services Easter Sunday morning at 8:00am, 9:30am, and 11:00am. Also, this year on Good Friday we are having a special service at 6:30pm where we will consider the Cross and exactly what Jesus was doing on that cross for all who would believe in Him. As James MacDonald has shared, Jesus was doing at least four things that we need to consider…
He Was Substituting
To understand the gospel, you must first understand this idea of substitution. Jesus died first for Barabbas and then for every other human who has ever lived. I am in that line. You are, too. I deserve to die that death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ. That's substitution.
He Was Scandalizing
The Jews, rejecting Christ, called out for His crucifixion, the most shameful, painful, awful death a person could experience. And they wanted it for Jesus. The cross of Jesus Christ has always been an outrageous scandal. What's Jesus doing on that cross? He's fighting for the souls of men. He's seeking to redeem them from their own hatred. Hear the soldiers laughing as the Savior gives up His life for them. Two thousand years later, people still scream and mock the cross of Jesus. It's a scandal!
He Was Suffering
Unlike modern ones, first-century executions did not seek a quick, painless death or the preservation of any measure of dignity. On the contrary, they sought an agonizing torture that completely humiliated the victim. To fully appreciate the meaning of the cross of Christ, you must comprehend the extent to which He suffered for our sin. A holy God poured out His wrath on His Innocent Son so that we could be forgiven. When Jesus said, "It is finished," God said, "Paid in full." Sin has been put away now. The cross of Jesus Christ satisfied the requirements of a holy God.
He Was Satisfying
The gospel of Jesus Christ is only a concept until we comprehend the way Jesus' death on the cross satisfied God's wrath. A holy God poured out His wrath on His Innocent Son so that we could be forgiven. When Jesus said, "It is finished," God said, "Paid in full." Sin has been put away now. The cross of Jesus Christ satisfied the requirements of a holy God. I cannot wait to celebrate our “worthy” Savior with you this Easter season!!!
I love you and I love being your pastor!!
