Matthew 28:1-7,16-20      What Kind of Future?

Rev. David Holwick   M                    The Church You've Longed For, #8

First Baptist Church                                  Easter

Ledgewood, New Jersey

April 8, 2007

Matthew 28:1-7,16-20


WHAT KIND OF FUTURE?



  I. Futurology.

      A. We love to predict the future.

          1) It is a cottage industry with tons of pundits.

          2) They tend to be very gloomy.


      B. Problems on the horizon:

          1) Nuclear proliferation.       Nukes are spreading.

          2) Global warming.              The planet is warming.

          3) Population explosion.        People are multiplying.

          4) Fuel shortages.              Oil is shrinking.

          5) Financial meltdown.          Money is teetering, Soc. Sec.


      C. What is the future of the church?

          1) Our series has focused on building a better church.

          2) But it is obvious the wider church is in trouble.

              a) Islam is overtaking us.

              b) Europeans are abandoning us.

              c) Roxbury Township is over-regulating us.

          3) But Jesus is going to deliver us!


II. The promise of Jesus.

      A. The gates of hell shall not overcome the church.      Matt 16:18


         "On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades

             will not overcome it."


          1) The church will always survive.

          2) The church will even grow, secretly.

          3) But it will never be on top -- until Jesus returns.


      B. Appearances down here do not reflect the reality up there.

          1) What we notice is often superficial.

              a) Famous Christians.

              b) Big churches.

              c) Political impact.

          2) What God notices is in human hearts.

              a) The purpose of Easter is to change us from the inside

                    out.

              b) It can be slow, even imperceptible, but it has to be

                    there.


III. When the world turned upside-down.

      A. The world thought Jesus had his 15 minutes of fame.

          1) He made a splash, then had a disastrous ending.

          2) Even his own disciples basically wrote him off.


      B. Easter changed the headline.

          1) God's view:

              a) My Son was faithful to his mission.

              b) I have now glorified him forever.

          2) Disciples' view:

              a) We don't know how it happened, but Jesus is alive.

              b) Their fellowship is energized by supernatural power.

              c) They have hope and joy like never before.

          3) World's view:

              a) Lots of rumors: stolen bodies, resurrected saints.

              b) Strange events: temple curtain tears down middle,

                    earthquakes.

              c) His disciples disappear into closed rooms, then come

                    out with wild preaching.


IV. The future has already begun.

      A. It is not about going to heaven someday.

          1) Many preachers stress this on Easter: if we believe in

                Jesus, we'll go to heaven when we die.

          2) However, you may be surprised to find out the Bible doesn't

                stress "going to heaven" that much.

          3) The Bible stresses bringing heaven down here.

              a) That's what the Lord's Prayer means when we say

                   "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."

              b) When Jesus was raised from the dead, God's new world

                    began.

              c) Since Jesus was raised from the dead, we have a new

                    job to do.


      B. The real work of the church.

          1) We are to bring the life of heaven to earth in actual

                physical reality.

          2) The resurrection of Jesus' body is more than a proof that

                God performs miracles or that the Bible is true.

          3) It is more than the assurance of heaven after death.

          4) Jesus' resurrection is the beginning of God's new project,

                not to snatch people away from earth to heaven, but to

                   colonize earth with the life of heaven.

              a) We are like those space aliens who landed in Nevada.

              b) Secretly, but steadily, we are taking over the earth.

                  1> Every act of love builds Christ's kingdom.

                  2> Every time peace is made, families are healed,

                       or temptation is resisted, God gains.

                  3> Everything we do now, matters.


      C. The correct perspective is in 1 Corinthians 15:58.

          1) The whole chapter deals with the importance of Jesus'

                resurrection.

              a) Verse 14: If he hasn't been raised, preaching is

                    useless and so is your faith.

              b) We have no future and no hope.

              c) But, of course, he was raised, and death is

                    defeated for us.

          2) Note Paul's conclusion to the chapter, verse 58:

                After spending 57 verses talking about resurrection,

                   he says we should give ourselves fully to the work of

                      the Lord.

                It won't go to waste!


  V. Your personal future depends on a decision.

      A. Do you call him your Lord and your God?

          1) The moment you believe, you pass from darkness to light.

              a) You become part of Christ's kingdom.

          2) From that point on, you must live for the Lord.

              a) Identify with him, in words and actions (baptism).

              b) Follow him, practicing his moral teachings.

              c) Serve him, doing his work wherever it is.


      B. A Muslim saw the light.


         David Seamands tells of a Muslim in Africa who became a

            Christian.

         When his friends asked him why he made that decision, he told

            them:

         "Suppose you were going down a road, and suddenly the road

            forked in two directions, and you didn't know which way

               to go.

          Then you saw two men at the fork, one dead and one alive.

             Which one would you follow?

          I decided to follow the man who is alive."

                                                                   #34324



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SOURCE FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:


#34324  "He Decided To Follow The Man Who Is Alive," from Kerux Sermon

           #22264 by Dr. Ray Pritchard.


This and 30,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be

downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html

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