You Know! So?

April 20, 2014

(Easter Sunday)
Colossians 3:1-4 John 20:1-18 A !s 10:34-43

Some years ago, when I worked in Cleveland, all of our company employees went through a new quality training program in which one of the quality steps was to ask the question, hat!s in it for me"# $any of us thought that the question was a little odd simply %ecause in many cases, the things that we did had nothing in them for us, %ut were done simply %ecause it was company policy or %ecause it %enefitted another department, or more hopefully, that it might actually %enefit our customers& 'ut still, when we make the effort to do something, it is often useful to ask ourselves, So what"# hat is the point of doing the thing that we!re doing" hy do we pay ta(es" hat!s the point" )nd most of us can answer that& Either it!s %ecause we feel that as good citi*ens we should contri%ute our fair share, or %ecause we really don!t want to go to +ail, or something in %etween& hy is it that we mow our grass twice a week" It might %e %ecause we en+oy working out of doors and %ecause we like for our property to look orderly and well maintained& ,n the other hand, if the only reason that we can think of is %ecause of what the neigh%ors might think of us, then we might want to ask why we care so much what the neigh%ors think of us& )s I write each week!s Sunday message, I often think of this& In seminary we had one professor who taught that at the end of each sermon we should ask ourselves, So what"# hat is the point of this message" hat do I e(pect the congregation to do after they have heard it" )nd while I don!t always offer a specific call to action# at the end of each message, I often ask myself if there is a point to what I am preaching& In our scripture message this morning we will hear a sermon a%out -esus that was preached %y the )postle .eter& .eter understood this principle very well and he was clear a%out the so what"# .eter knew what he meant and he knew what he e(pected his listeners to do a%out it& 'ut %efore we get to .eter!s sermon, we should remem%er why we!re all here this morning& e hear the story in John 20:1-18" Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, !hey have taken the "ord out of the tomb, and we don#t know where they have put him$%
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So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. ' (oth were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. ) *e bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. + !hen Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. *e saw the strips of linen lying there, , as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus# head. !he cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. - .inally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. *e saw and believed. / 0!hey still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.1 23 !hen the disciples went back to where they were staying.
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4ow Mary stood outside the tomb crying. 5s she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 22 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus# body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
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!hey asked her, 6oman, why are you crying7%

!hey have taken my "ord away,% she said, and 8 don#t know where they have put him.% 2' 5t this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not reali9e that it was Jesus.
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*e asked her, 6oman, why are you crying7 6ho is it you are looking for7%

!hinking he was the gardener, she said, Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and 8 will get him.%
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Jesus said to her, Mary.%

She turned toward him and cried out in 5ramaic, :abboni$% 0which means !eacher%1.
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Jesus said, ;o not hold on to me, for 8 have not yet ascended to the .ather. <o instead to my brothers and tell them, =8 am ascending to my .ather and your .ather, to my <od and your <od.#%
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Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news> 8 have seen the "ord$% 5nd she told them that he had said these things to her. 0hat!s the Easter story that we all know& 0hat, along with the stories of 1oly eek that we have %een telling for the last month or so, is the great story of redemption and -esus! defeat of sin and death& 0hese are the stories that we have all heard and these are the events that .eter, the disciples, and many in -erusalem had lived through& So many people had witnessed these events during the .assover cele%ration that the news spread all across Israel and -udea and %eyond& )nd so later, as .eter is called to preach in -oppa, which is on the $editerranean Sea near what is now 0el )viv, he says this2 #A !s 10:34-43$
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!hen Peter began to speak> 8 now reali9e how true it is that <od does not show favoritism &) but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. &+ ?ou know the message <od sent to the people of 8srael, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus @hrist, who is "ord of all. &, ?ou know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in <alilee after the baptism that John preachedA &- how <od anointed Jesus of 4a9areth with the *oly Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because <od was with him.
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6e are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. !hey killed him by hanging him on a cross, '3 but <od raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. '2 *e was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom <od had already chosenAby us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. '2 *e commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom <od appointed as Budge of the living and the dead. '& 5ll the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.% .eter says, . &+ You know the message <od sent to the people of 8srael, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus @hrist, who is "ord of all. &, You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in <alilee after the baptism that John preachedA &- how <od anointed Jesus of 4a9areth with the *oly Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because <od was with him.% .eter %egins his message %y reminding his listeners, those who lived nearly fifty miles (and pro%a%ly four days travel) from -erusalem, that they all knew the story& 0hey knew what the prophets had said a%out the $essiah, they knew what -esus had done and the miracles that he had performed& )nd then .eter reminds them of the resurrection story and reminds them that he and others who were there, were witnesses that that part of the story as well& 3

'ut then, without hesitation, .eter answers the So what"# question& )fter reminding everyone that they, like us, know the stories, he then says that -esus commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom <od appointed as Budge of the living and the dead.% 'ecause, everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.% 4ikewise, .aul also cuts right to the chase in Colossians 3:1-4, Since, then, you have been raised with @hrist, set your hearts on things above, where @hrist is, seated at the right hand of <od. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. & .or you died, and your life is now hidden with @hrist in <od. ' 6hen @hrist, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. 'ecause you have %een raised with Christ, set your hearts on things a%ove& Set your minds on things a%ove and not on earthly things& 'ecause you have %een given this ama*ing gift of eternal life, stop wasting your time trying to accumulate earthly stuff& Stop trying to collect the adoration and admiration of other people, stop trying to collect more money, more cars, %igger houses and %etter toys& 5ocus your life on things that will last forever and not things that you will leave %ehind& ) platinum 6ole( is of no value to a corpse in a casket& Instead of investing in things that you will leave to your heirs, .aul reminds us to invest in things that will +oin us in heaven, and there is only on% !hin& that will do that& .eople& You 'now the message& You 'now what happened& You 'now the stories& 'ut so what" 'ecause we know, -esus has commanded us to preach and to testify& Christ has commanded us to tell others the good news so that they can +oin us in eternity& 7ou know& So" 8o, and tell the world&

7ou have %een reading a message presented at 0rinity :nited $ethodist Church on the date noted at the top of the first page& 6ev& -ohn .artridge is the pastor at 0rinity of .erry heights in $assillon, ,hio& ;uplication of this message is a part of our $edia ministry, if you have received a %lessing in this way, we would love to hear from you& 4etters and donations in support of the $edia ministry or any of our other pro+ects may %e sent to 0rinity :nited $ethodist Church, 9<=< 4incoln ay E&, $assillon, ,hio >>?>?& 0hese messages are availa%le to any interested persons regardless of mem%ership& 7ou may su%scri%e to these messages, in print or electronic formats, %y writing to the address noted, or %y contacting us at su%scri%e@trinityperryheights&org& If you have questions, you can ask them in our discussion forum on 5ace%ook (search for .astor -ohn ,nline)& 0hese messages can also %e found online at http2AAwww&scri%d&comA.astor -ohn .artridge& )ll Scripture references are from the Bew International Cersion unless otherwise noted&