God’s Story: The
Death and Resurrection of Christ
1: INTRODUCTION
2: God’s story began with Creation
3: Humans living in perfect relationship with
God
4: Then sin entered into the world infecting
everything
5: God established a people through Abraham
3: He rescued them from Egypt through Moses
1: He gave them his law and provided land for
the people of Israel
4: But the issue of sin always had a way to
turn people away from God until . . .
2: The Son of God was born in a manger
5: Jesus grew
1: He called out 12 disciples saying to them
3: FOLLOW ME
4: The final week of Jesus’ life begins
1: SCENE 1
2: Jesus warned his disciples many times
3: His mission on earth would not be what they
expected!
5: The Son of Man must die.
4: Jesus, this is crazy talk. You need to stop
this.
5: Peter, get thee behind me Satan!
1: SCENE 2
3: It is time to enter into Jerusalem.
5: Look, Jesus comes riding on a donkey.
2: It is not quite the big giant entrance like
a king or pharaoh
4: The poor, the children, throwing down palms
on Jesus’ path
1: The religious leaders stand by indignant
2: Jesus surveys the crowd and begins to weep
3: People who are yelling
1-5: “Hosanna!”
3: will soon be used to scream out
1-5: “Crucify him!”
1: SCENE 3
2: Jesus meets with his disciples for what he
knows is his final supper with them.
3: While they were eating, Jesus took bread,
4: and when he had given thanks,
1: he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying,
5: “Take and eat; this is my body.”
2: Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he
gave it to them, saying,
5: “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I
tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink
it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
PASTOR: Let’s pray (Communion)
3: After the supper Jesus announces that one of the disciples will
betray him
2: They all look astounded and shocked
1: They were all quick to swear loyalty
4: Jesus looked at Judas and said
5: “What you are about to do, go and do it quickly”
1: At that moment Satan entered into Judas
2: 11 disciples reclining at a table eating food
3: Unaware that the very presence of God and Satan are physically in
the room with them, Judas left to
carry out his plans
1: SCENE 4
3: The Garden
of Gethsemane
4: Jesus
takes his disciples so that they can pray together
5: “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and
keep watch with me.”
2: Jesus prays with overwhelming stress and anxiety
1: He wrestles with his options
3: He finally prays
5: “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will,
but as you will.”
4: The betrayer comes with the mob
3: He greets Jesus with a kiss
2: The mob attacks
1: The disciples scatter
3: Jesus is taken to court
2: Accusations fly
5: Jesus remains silent
4: The judge feels pressure from the crowd
1: He caves to their demands
5: Jesus is flogged then lead away to be crucified
4: and the disciple who swore to stay with him denied he ever
knew him
3: not once,
2: not twice,
1: but three times; just as Jesus said he would
1: SCENE 5
3: In his crucifixion there are two responses that resemble all
of humanity
2: One who was on a cross beside Jesus, mocked him and made fun
of him
4: The other recognized his sin and the scandal of being
executed alongside Jesus
3: “We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds
deserve. But this man has done
nothing wrong. Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
4: Jesus answered him,
5: “Today you will be with me in paradise.”
1: How do
we see Jesus?
2: Do we
look at Jesus’ powerlessness as an example of God’s impotence?
3: Or as
proof of God’s love?
4: One
sacrifice given up for all of our sins
5: While we
were yet sinners, Christ died for us
1: Satan
was defeated at the cross
3: A new
era of God’s kingdom was about to begin!
5: Isaiah
sums up all these events in a prophecy many years prior
2: He
paints the picture of Christ’s suffering in stating that
4: Surely
he took up our pain and bore our suffering,
1: yet we
considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
5: But he
was pierced for our
transgressions,
2: he was
crushed for our iniquities;
4: the
punishment that
brought us peace was on
him,
3: and by
his wounds we are
healed.
1: We all,
like sheep, have gone astray,
2: each of
us has turned to our own way;
3: and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
4: One
sacrifice, once and for all. Taking upon himself
5: our sin
4: our
shame
3: our
punishment
2: our
suffering
1: our
pain.
1: SCENE 6
5: But the
story does not end with the cross!
3: Three
days later some of the women go down to the grave to care for the body
2: They
were shocked to see an empty tomb
4: Even
more shocking, an angel announcing to them that Jesus is not here. He has risen!
3: They
went back to the room where the men were hiding
2: Jesus is
gone!
1: All of a
sudden Jesus appears among them!
5: Peace be
with you!
3: After
all the disciples have experienced in the past three day, peace was the last
thing they were experiencing.
2: But
Jesus stands before them . . . alive.
4: Death
was not the final chapter.
1: In fact,
he defeated death and now lives again.
2: Oh wait,
didn’t Jesus try and tell us he would rise again on the third day?
1-5: Ohhhhhhhhhhh
3: But even
then some of the disciples wrestled with their thoughts
4: Thomas
heard about Jesus but had serious doubts
5: Jesus
came directly to Thomas and showed him the evidence that he was definitely alive
1: Peter
felt embarrassment and shame
5: He didn’t
know what to think
2: He
decided to go back to the old business of fishing for fish
4: On a
boat he could just distance himself from the whole Jesus thing
3: But
after a bad night of fishing someone on the shore encourages them to try one
more time before they come in
5: All of a
sudden the nets could barely hold the catch of fish
4: The boat
almost started sinking due to the amount of fish
3: Peter
figured it out
2: That is
Jesus on the shore
1: Why did
he bother to come and find me?
5: Jesus invited
them to eat food that he prepared on the beach
3: When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Peter,
5: “Do you love me more than these?”
4: “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
5: “Feed my lambs.”
2: Again Jesus said,
5: “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
4: “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
5: “Then take care of my sheep.”
1: The third time Jesus said to him,
5: “Peter, do you love me?”
3: Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time,
4: “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”
2: Jesus said,
5: “Feed my sheep.”
3: Three times Peter denied Jesus
1: Three times Jesus affirms Peter
2: Jesus did not disown Peter
4: He did not punish Peter
1: Instead Jesus pursued Peter when Peter was trying to avoid Jesus
3: Jesus affirmed Peter
5: Jesus gifted Peter
2: And Jesus helped to remind Peter of who God called him to be
4: Just like the disciples who had doubt, fear, insecurity and guilt
1: Jesus pursued them,
2: loved them
3: affirmed them
4: and launched them out into ministry
5: Just as he does with each and every one of us.
