Easter Sunday, April 9, 2023 - Reality and Relevance of the Resurrection - 1 Corinthians 15:3-26

 1 Corinthians 15:3-26 Reality and Relevance of the Resurrection

Good morning and welcome! We are so glad to have you all here this morning with us as we celebrate the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ!

We are all here this morning, whether it’s your first time visiting, or you have been coming here Sunday after Sunday for a long time, we are all here today because it is by far the most important day on the church calendar, a special reminder of the most important day in the history of mankind, the day that Jesus rose from the dead.

JP Lange wrote, “[The resurrection of Jesus] is not a point on which we are at liberty to form any opinion we may choose without prejudice to our own salvation.”

What we believe about the resurrection of Jesus matters. So, with that in mind, let’s pray.

It seems to me that looking over the Easter sermons I have delivered over the years the focus has been squarely on the reality of Jesus’ resurrection, or at least trying to convince people of its reality.

I’m not a lawyer, and I’m not going to pretend I’m any kind of legal expert, but I do know that eye witness accounts help to establish facts in any given case. And if eye witness accounts from two or three people are enough to prove the facts then the eye witness accounts of over five hundred people make the case iron clad. This is the case with the death and resurrection of Jesus.

This morning I’d like to turn your attention to 1 Corinthians 15:3-26, that’s on page 961 in the pew Bibles so you can see it for yourselves.

1 Corinthians was the first of two letters written to the Corinthian church by the Apostle Paul about twenty years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. 

The city of Corinth was at the heart of an important trade route in the ancient world. Like many cities that thrive on trade, Corinth had a reputation for sexual immorality, religious diversity, and corruption. The church that the Apostle Paul planted there floundered under all of these influences and began to divide over various issues. Many people compare the church in Corinth to the church in America but you can decide that for yourself after reading it.

Paul wrote toward the end of his letter, in chapter 15:3-11:

3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas (that’s Peter), then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. 11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

Paul was writing this letter to the church, not just the those who gathered regularly on Sunday mornings, but to those who put their trust in Jesus, not those who agreed with the facts that Jesus lived and died but those who were dependant on His death and resurrection for the forgiveness of their sins.

The reality of Jesus’ death and resurrection was already established and remains so to this day. Those who choose not to believe this are rejecting facts, rejecting reality, and most importantly rejecting the Savior Jesus.

As I said at the beginning, the resurrection of Jesus is not a point on which we are at liberty to form any opinion we may choose without jeopardizing our own salvation.

The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is at the very heart of the Christian faith, it is the central point of the Bible, without the resurrection of Jesus there is no forgiveness of sin, without the resurrection of Jesus there is no church, without the resurrection of Jesus there is no hope for the future or hope of life beyond death.

In other words, the resurrection of Jesus is extremely relevant.

Paul goes on to write,

12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

There is so much to unpack here but I’ll try to be brief. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead proves that those who have faith in Jesus will one day be raised from the dead too. The resurrection of Jesus gives us hope for the future because of the forgiveness of our sin, it gives us hope for the future that lies beyond this life, beyond the death of these natural bodies.

Verses 17-19 point out the wonderful benefits of the resurrection of Jesus for those who trust in Him in the negative: 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

But let’s turn it around and read it in the positive. “Since Christ has been raised from the dead, your faith is fruitful and you are no longer in your sins. And those who have fallen asleep in Christ are alive. Since in Christ we have hope in this life and beyond, we are of all people the most joyful!

And Paul conforms this in verses 20-26.

20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. 24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

We are all by nature children of Adam, and as such we have inherited his sinful nature, the nature that chooses sin over and over. The Bible makes it clear that the wages of our sin, what we earn, is death.

But God offers forgiveness for our sin freely, He offers salvation from eternal death freely through faith in Jesus. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

We have hope for this life and beyond because Jesus was raised from the dead. Jesus is the firstfruits from the dead, alive forevermore, and the promise for us that belong to Him through faith is that when He returns we too will be made alive forevermore. Jesus will destroy every other rule and authority and power and that will include death itself.

There are a lot of people in the world, perhaps even you this morning that think that the idea of Jesus being raised from the dead is ridiculous, they scoff at the fact that we are gathered here this morning. 

There are those in the world that think the resurrection of Jesus from the dead is at least reasonable, after all, lots of people were killed for talking about it. It seems unreasonable that anybody would give their life up for a fairytale.

But I’ll say it again as I have tried to represent it in every Easter sermon I’ve preached so far, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is a reality and it is a reality worth staking your life on.

Alistair Begg posed three questions regarding the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead: Is it ridiculous? Is it reasonable? And most importantly, is it relevant?

I believe that the passage we’ve looked at answers all three questions but let me drill down on the last one: is it relevant?

That is if to say, what difference does it make that Jesus was raised from the dead?

Simply put, the resurrection of Jesus from the dead gives us a way to be connected with God the Father and satisfy the deepest longings of the human heart.

When tragedy strikes and we are shaken to our core we all look to God because we are made in His image and are made to long for Him, whether we are shaking our fists in anger or asking Him why He allowed such tragedy to happen, at our core we go to God because He is the answer to the deepest longings of the human heart.

What difference does it make that Jesus was raised from the dead? It is the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ that provides forgiveness for our sin. His sacrifice provides our salvation through faith in Him. It is the gift of God by faith.

And because we have been forgiven through faith in Jesus, in His life, death, and resurrection, we no longer have to fear death any more than we have to fear falling asleep because we know that on the other side we will be with Him forever. Christ is the firstfruits from the dead and when He returns we who belong to Him will be raised too. No guilt in life, no fear in death, this is the power of Christ and His resurrection.

You have to ask yourself the question: is the resurrection of Jesus ridiculous, is merely reasonable, or is it truly relevant?

If you have never accepted Jesus as your Savior, never accepted the fact that His death on the cross was for your sin, but want to, it’s as simple as asking God for forgiveness in prayer, declaring that Jesus is Lord and believing in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and you will be saved, forgiven, and adopted by God as His child.

Would you all stand with me as we pray?

Palm Sunday 2023 Matthew 21:1-11 Who is This? - April 2, 2023

 Palm Sunday 2023 Matthew 21:1-11 Who is This?

Good morning! It’s Palm Sunday in case you weren’t aware. It’s kind of a festal Sunday, the Sunday before Easter, or Resurrection Sunday, it’s a kind of preparatory festival, getting ready for the most important Sunday on the Church’s calendar.

And so with that in mind we are going to lay aside our study in the Gospel of Luke for a few weeks. This morning we are going to look at Matthew chapter 21, and verses 1-11, and that’s on page 826 in the pew Bibles.

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” 4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, 5 “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’ ” 

6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”

Let’s pray.

One of the main difficulties with preaching on festal Sundays like Palm Sunday, and Christmas Sunday, and Easter Sunday is that we get kind of dropped into the middle of an ongoing scene and we have to do a little work to get caught up with the context.

One of the reasons that I prefer to preach expository book by book and verse by verse is that each week we know where we have come from and where we are going. Each sermon builds on the previous text but that isn’t our luxury today.

Today we find Jesus coming from Bethany on His way to Jerusalem. What had happened in Bethany is very important because it has great effect on the context in which we find Jesus.

Can anyone think of a famous family that lived in Bethany? Mary, Martha, and Lazarus.

Bethany was where Jesus was coming from on His way to Jerusalem and that’s important because the folks from Bethany that knew that Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead were most likely part of the crowd shouting their loud Hosanna.

The timing of Jesus’ trip from Bethany to Jerusalem is also important.

Does anybody know what festival the people in Jerusalem were preparing for? Passover.

This meant that there were upwards of 2 million people in and around Jerusalem. The road from Bethany was most likely lined with tents of families that had come to the holy city to celebrate Passover. This would also contribute to the festal atmosphere around the city and these worshippers were also part of the crowd that followed Jesus into the city shouting their loud Hosannas.

Of course Jesus was also followed by the crowds from Galilee as well as His disciples. They had seen His miracles and heard His teaching and they helped initiate this scene that we see played out before us.

But even though they had witnessed the things that Jesus had done and had heard Him talk about the kingdom of God, some form the very beginning of His public ministry, I don’t think that anybody besides Jesus had any idea what was really going on. Not a clue.

I’m not going to try and imagine what the disciples who were sent after the donkeys were thinking, I’m certainly not going to try and imagine what the donkeys were thinking, we only have a faint idea of what this mixed bag of festal crowd members was thinking. I do know that they were all clueless except for Jesus.

So let’s not be like them. They didn’t know what was happening really, but Jesus did, and do you know why? Because He wrote the book, this book, the Bible, Old and New Testaments, so He knew the significance of these events even if everybody around Him didn’t. 

That’s one of the advantages that we have over the crowd and even the disciples, we have the book so we can look up the answers. So let’s look at a few that point out the significance of the day and its events.

First, it was the Sunday before Passover. Exodus 12:1-3 says, The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2 “This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. 3 Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household.

On the tenth day of the month, in preparation for Passover, each family selects a lamb that will be for them the Passover Lamb. Palm Sunday was the tenth of the month and Jesus is our Passover Lamb.

In verse 2 Jesus sends two disciples down into the village to fetch two donkeys for Him to ride into the city. “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.”

Jesus didn’t ask for the donkeys because it was such a long ride from Bethany to Jerusalem, He wasn’t worn out, He was fulfilling prophecy. The prophecy is found in Zechariah 9:9 and Matthew quotes it in verse 5.

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

The donkey itself is significant too. Entering the city on a donkey was a simple way to symbolize the truth that Jesus did in fact come as King of Israel. 

When Solomon became king after David, King David commanded that he ride his favorite mule during the inaugural procession into Jerusalem in 1 Kings 1:33. Now, a far greater "Son of David" rides triumphantly into the city of kings on a donkey.

6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

Why did the crowd shout Hosanna? What does that even mean? Where does it come from?

Good news, it comes from the Bible, the word is defined for us, and the reason the people were shouting it is given to us, all in Psalm 118. 

Psalm 118 was one of the Halel Psalms that were sung specifically when entering Jerusalem, it wasn’t at all random that the crowd just started shouting this at this particular moment, but for the first time they had the right person there in their midst to apply it to.

I’ll read just a portion of it and tell me if anything here sounds familiar.

19 Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord. 20 This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it. 21 I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation. 22 The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. 23 This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. 24 This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. 25 Save us, we pray, O Lord! O Lord, we pray, give us success! 26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! We bless you from the house of the Lord. 27 The Lord is God, and he has made his light to shine upon us. Bind the festal sacrifice with cords, up to the horns of the altar! 28 You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God; I will extol you. 29 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!

Jesus would enter Jerusalem through the gate called Beautiful and go cleanse the Temple of the money changers.

Jesus is the Cornerstone of the Church, the stone that the builders, the Jewish leaders, rejected.

Save us, we pray, O Lord! Know what the Hebrew word is for this expression? HOSANNA!

The Lord is God, and He has made His light, Jesus, to shine on us.

Bind the festal sacrifice with cords, up to the horns of the altar. Jesus is the festal sacrifice, the Passover Lamb, given for us.

And though the crowd that day was participating in the fulfilling of prophecy verse ten proves the point that nobody but Jesus knew what was really happening.

10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”

The city was jammed with people getting ready for the nation’s greatest feast and all of a sudden there is this great procession down the Mount of Olives, through the gate called Beautiful on the east side of the city with people singing and shouting Hosanna and the whole parade is being led by a man on a donkey’s foal. It only stands to reason that people would ask, “who is this?”

And those in the crowd said, “This is the Prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Were they wrong? No. Were they right? Not completely. Their explanation of who this was and their expectations of what He would do fell desperately short.

The crowd said that Jesus was a prophet, Jesus was saying “I am so much more, I am Messiah.”

The hopes of friends and foes alike were fulfilled by Jesus though not in the ways that they thought. 

Jesus suffered death a few days later that He might gloriously conquer it. 

In Jerusalem He didn’t receive a throne as the disciples would have wanted but instead received a cross that He might rule from the throne of the hearts of all that would believe in Him.

The crowd shouted, HOSANNA, save us! And that’s exactly what He would do on the cross, not save us from our circumstances but save us from our sin.

Amen.

Psalm 24

1 The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, 2 for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers. 3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully. 5 He will receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation. 6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. 7 Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. 8 Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle! 9 Lift up your heads, O gates! And lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. 10 Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory!

Talitha Cumi - Luke 8:40-56 - March 26, 2023

 Luke 8:40-56 Talitha Cumi

Good morning! Please turn with me in your Bibles to Luke 8:40-56, page 866 in the pew Bibles.

It seems to me that the Lord has been driving home a message over the last few weeks. I don’t know if you’re hearing it, I don’t know if it’s even for you or if it’s just for me.

It’s the lesson of the gifts given to the disciples in the storm on the Sea of Galilee. A reminder of their powerlessness, and of Jesus’ almightiness.

When the disciples were on the Sea and tossed around by the waves and water started filling their boat they thought they were going to die and that there was nothing they could do about it so they went to Jesus. In Jesus’ almightiness he calmed the storm and calmed their hearts.

It’s a great reminder that in our pride we often think that we are in control of our lives but as soon as a storm whips up, reality is revealed to us that we are indeed powerless, but the eventual stopping of every storm is a reminder of Jesus’ almightiness, whether it’s immediate or over the course of time.

Our text for this morning is another reminder of the frailty and weakness of mankind and the great power of our Savior. It is the overlapping account of the raising of Jairus’ daughter and the healing of the woman with the issuance of blood. Last week we looked at the woman who was healed and today we’ll look at Jairus’ little daughter.

40 Now when Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed him, for they were all waiting for him. 41 And there came a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue. And falling at Jesus’ feet, he implored him to come to his house, 42 for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying. 

As Jesus went, the people pressed around him. 43 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone. 44 She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. 45 And Jesus said, “Who was it that touched me?” When all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you!” 46 But Jesus said, “Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me.” 47 And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed. 48 And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.” 

49 While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler’s house came and said, “Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher any more.” 50 But Jesus on hearing this answered him, “Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well.” 51 And when he came to the house, he allowed no one to enter with him, except Peter and John and James, and the father and mother of the child. 52 And all were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, “Do not weep, for she is not dead but sleeping.” 53 And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. 54 But taking her by the hand he called, saying, “Child, arise.” 55 And her spirit returned, and she got up at once. And he directed that something should be given her to eat. 56 And her parents were amazed, but he charged them to tell no one what had happened.

Let’s pray.

I know that some of you here have been in Jairus’ shoes, I know that Karole-Ann and I have. We once watched a helicopter take off for the hospital with our baby boy, blue, and barely able to breathe. In that hour we were desperate for help, desperate to hear if Sammy was going to live. As evidenced today, praise God, he did!

But I can resonate with that feeling of desperation, of not knowing whether or not my child would live. But I can only imagine what this desperate father would have felt if help was finally on the way but got interrupted by somebody else’s problem and while delayed the word comes that it’s too late.

This was for me and for Jairus, powerlessness on display. I couldn’t help Sam and Jairus could no longer help his little girl. Sam got the help he needed in time and made it to the hospital and received the care he needed to get better but for Jairus’ daughter, the assumption was that it was too late. The assumption was that nobody had power over death. It is one of life’s two great constants: death and taxes.

I’d offer a third great constant: The almightiness of Jesus.

49 While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler’s house came and said, “Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher any more.” 50 But Jesus on hearing this answered him, “Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well.”

Only believe and she will be well. The word Jesus used is “pisteou,” to believe, to have faith, to trust, to have confidence.

This reminds of another time Jesus raised somebody from the dead, a friend named Lazarus in John 11.

Jesus was speaking to Lazarus’ sister just before raising him from the dead

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”

Though this was a very real situation with very real people Jesus shows that He is in fact the resurrection and the life in the life of Lazarus, in the life of this little girl, and in the life of everyone who believes in Him.

51 And when he came to the house, he allowed no one to enter with him, except Peter and John and James, and the father and mother of the child. 52 And all were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, “Do not weep, for she is not dead but sleeping.”

Jesus said that the little girl was only sleeping because her death was only temporary.

I shared at Anita’s service last weekend that we often think that this is the land of the living, and that when we die we go the land of the dead. The opposite is really true – this is the land of the dying, when our life here is over, we are transferred into the land of the living – either to a place of eternal joy or to a place of eternal destruction. There are only two possible destinations.

Warren Wiersbe wrote, “Sleep is a normal experience that we do not fear, and we should not fear death… At the resurrection, the body will be ‘awakened’ and glorified, and God’s people will share the image of Christ.”

When Jesus said that the little girl was only sleeping all those who had gathered to mourn laughed at Him. In First Century Israel you couldn’t wait a week to bury someone who had died. Mourners, sometimes hired, professional mourners, would gather immediately and the body would be anointed and prepared for burial right away, usually within one day.

I can’t imagine Jairus and his wife laughing at the words of Jesus that the little girl wasn’t dead but just sleeping, but professional mourners? Probably.

Jesus put everybody out of the room except the little girl’s parents, Peter, John, and James.

These three disciples were chosen to witness Jesus’ power over death here in this room, at the Mount of Transfiguration they would witness that He would be glorified in His own death, and in the Garden of Gethsemane they would witness His willing submission to death.

54 But taking her by the hand he called, saying, “Child, arise.” 55 And her spirit returned, and she got up at once. And he directed that something should be given her to eat. 56 And her parents were amazed, but he charged them to tell no one what had happened.

In both cases, both with this little girl and with the woman with the bleeding issue, human resources were at an end, they were utterly powerless to fix their problems, and it caused everybody involved considerable suffering. But as Ray Stedman said, “He is able to meet the suffering of the heart, whatever its cause, when the world’s resources are brought to an end.”

This man, Jairus, and his family were powerless to fix his little girl. He could not bring her back to life. His resources were at an end.

But this is exactly the meaning of Romans 8:28, I’m sure you’ve heard it, especially when everything is your life went sideways, “…in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

Why did the woman bleed for twelve years, spend all her money on doctors, and reach out desperately for the hem of Jesus’ garment? Why did this little girl get sick and die only to be raised by Jesus?

For you. For you and for everybody else that needed to be reminded of our powerlessness and Jesus’ almightiness. Not just powerless in the face of the difficulties of this life but powerless in the face of sin and its consequences.

The physical reality of the death and resurrection of this little girl is a picture of the spiritual reality of our own being dead because of our sin.

Ephesians 2:1-10 says,

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, (Just like the little girl) 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh m and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

The Lord Jesus encouraged Jairus, “Do not fear; only believe, be confident, have faith, trust, and she will be well.”

The same is true for us, for you, “Do not fear; only believe, be confident, have faith, trust Jesus and you will be well.

Your sickness may not be cured, your earthly problems may not go away, but by trusting in Jesus our real problem, our sin and its eternal consequences is dealt with forever on the cross of Christ.

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Colossians 3:1-4

Amen.