A sermon from 1998

As a baseline of how I've changed over the years, here's a sermon from 1998. I was working full time, and filling the pulpit at a small rural church in Laurens County GA. Be interested in your perceptions between now and then.

I Love To Tell The Story
Matthew 28:1-10 and other scriptures

I am so glad to be here this morning to share with my fellow Christians the glory of the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Early in the week, Ricky Hilburn sent me the program for today by email and I marveled at just how many of you were going to be involved in the celebration this morning. Young or old, all seemed to want to share in the joy. Each of you who participated in this has told your story in song, testimony, or prayer of what Jesus means to you. Thank you for your sharing.

Each of us who has taken the name of Christ in identification should have a story to tell. I love stories. They lift the facts off the pages and give them life and make them alive. I’ve always used stories as I preached and I guess it’s because I love them. My Mother used to read to me when I was a little boy, and my favorite stories back then used to begin with, “Once Upon A Time”. Since I took Jesus as Lord and Savior though, my favorite story always seems to begin, “Once upon a cross.”

I love to tell that story.

I guess what I like so much about Easter is, well the story of Easter. Just hearing someone read the Scripture when the angel tells those faithful women, “Why are you looking for the living among the dead? He is not here. He has risen, just as He said.” Matthew 28:6 Sends chills down my spine.

It has been an emotional weekend for me.

Friday at noon, we met with others at Bethesda Baptist church in Macon to observe Good Friday. Their cross rugged and wooden was draped in deepest darkest black. The communion table was covered with symbols of the day, 30 pieces of silver, a hammer, some nails. As I sat there and looked at that cross, all I could think of was how horrible a punishment that was. Looking back over the years of my life, I remembered this sin, then that one, and another, and another. Times when I didn’t do what God wanted me to. Times when I did the opposite of what I knew to be right. The hammer and the nails were there. It looked to me like the hammer would fit my hand well. I looked at the silver. That was a lot of money back then. Then I looked up at the cross - and I knew I was guilty.

When I was in elementary school, there were times when I was invited to spend a little time after school. I had distinguished myself in one way or another that day, and the teacher found that though the school day had ended, she simply could not bear to let me go so soon. So I was given the rare treat of additional instruction. One of her favorite things she liked to teach me was cleanliness. She did this by allowing me the high honor of erasing the blackboards for her. Not everyone got to do this you understand, only those of us proved worthy by our actions. Some of those might have, but by no means were limited to, talking in class, failing to do assignments, etc.

I’d get the erasers and wipe the boards for all I was worth, and was satisfied that I had done a good job. Unfortunately, she wasn’t. Seems you could still read some of the words. She had me wet a towel and wipe them clean, until you no longer could tell there had ever been anything written there. It was like a new board, that had never been stained at all.

Jesus did that for me and you. Somewhere in God’s memory was a blackboard with all our sins written on it for all to see. Jesus, with His blood, washed our sins away, until they were completely gone. He died, was buried, and rose again to let us know that in Him, we can have life forever free of the heartache and full of the love of God.

Knowing the story makes Good Friday a Good Friday! It makes seeing the agony and pain that Jesus went through for my sins and for my failure to live a life pleasing to God bearable. It is an amazing thing to me to know that as the Bible says, “This is love: Not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” I have to tell that story, for like Paul, “I am convinced that One died for all, and therefore all died. And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him Who died for them and was raised again.” 2 Cor. 5:14-15 I love to tell the story

It’s the story I love. Reading it year after year, even though I’m like the little boy I read about. Robert Russell relates:

I love to go to Easter passion plays. One night I sat behind a 5-year-old boy who was enthralled. When the crucifixion scene took place, he got real quiet. But
then Jesus came back from the grave and there was a song of celebration and
his eyes lit up. He looked at his mother and said, "He's alive, Mom. He's
alive!" and began to clap. And he hugged her around the neck. It was fun to
see somebody understand the resurrection for real.

Once, we showed a cartoon video of the crucifixion and resurrection to our littlest
Sunday School class. When Jesus was buried, one little boy who knew the story pretty well turned to a buddy and said, 'He's dead now, but he'll be back.”’

Well beloved, He is risen! Because He lives we can have hope grounded in the fact of the resurrection. I Love To Tell The Story!

As some of you know, I have two sons. As they have grown up, I have sometimes went with their Mother when it was time for clothes. A few years ago, I saw this line of clothing called - No Fear. I laughed when I saw it. No fear. That’s a great concept, but it hasn’t entered reality yet, or has it?


What do you fear the most? Losing your job? Losing your family? Losing your life?

Many times I have stood looked into red swollen eyes as we gathered around an open hole in the ground and told them straight from Jesus’ heart through my lips, “Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life, he who believes in Me shall live even if he dies.” John 11:25 That is resurrection power!

Hear me! Most of us before we came to know Christ saw the enemy we could not fake out, could not dodge, could never get around as death. Everything else was important, sure, but our death or the death of the ones we love was too much to bear.

But listen! Here come the women back from the empty tomb telling us the story. Of an angel’s question, and empty tomb, and a risen savior! Death is no longer final. Nothing is!

One thing I have learned for certain as I have lived the last few years is that there are events in this life that will happen and they will hurt. Sickness may come. Death may claim loved ones. We may find ourselves not being able to do what we used to do easily. Finances come together, finances fall apart. Life, this vapor we inhabit just now, is not easy. But in Jesus and His resurrection, we find that nothing can defeat us. There is no reason to fear.

Not disease - for in heaven, there is no such thing as cancer or Alzheimer’s.
Not handicaps - for our bodies will be perfect. Those disabled now will leap to their feet to embrace Jesus. The blind will see the source of all light. The deaf will hear the praise of heaven.

Wow! What a story! No wonder the women were in a hurry to tell it.

I love to tell the story of Jesus -

It has resurrection power over the past. The “If only’s” Many here today have deep and lasting regrets over things that have happened in their past.
If only I had had parent’s that loved me more.
If only I had studied harder, stayed in school, made more of my life.
If only I hadn’t gotten married so soon, or at all.
If only I had married him, or her.
If only my children had not disappointed me.
If only…

Well, we started this story in a cemetery. A place where the past lies buried forever. But in this cemetery, the Lord of the Living is risen to triumph over death, the grave is empty, ready to receive your regrets. Give your if only’s to Jesus. Let the Lord of life give you victory over your past. He will set you free and as the Bible says, “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

The resurrection of Jesus has power over the past.

And power over the present.
A missionary was speaking to a remote tribe of people who had never heard
about the life and ministry of Jesus. Seated in the front row, listening intently
to all the missionary had to say, was the chief of the tribe. As the story of Jesus came to its climax and the chief heard how Christ was cruelly crucified, he could restrain himself no longer. He jumped up and cried, "Stop! Take Him down from the cross! I belong there, not Him!" He had grasped the meaning of the gospel; he understood that he was a sinner, and that Christ was the sinless One.

As you consider that scene of the Son of God hanging on the cross in agony,
with blood flowing from His wounds, can you say from your heart, "I belong
there!?" The Christian can, and then thank God for Jesus.

I tell the story for me, but what about you?

Can you see yourself as the reason Jesus had to die? For your sins? Can you understand that even while you were still sinning, God sent His Son to die, for you? Can you accept that great a love?

Then go one step further and put your trust in Him as your Savior, so
that you can say with Paul, "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer
I who live, but Christ lives in me" (Gal. 2:20). Jesus took our place and died
in our stead. Because He bore our sins, He has opened the way for us to be
brought into fellowship with the Father.

Can you say, "I belong there?" If you can, then you have a story to tell.

Whoever you are today, however black your sins may be, right now, this moment, you can say “I belong up there” and claim Jesus as your personal savior. Right now. That’s resurrection power! That no matter how dead you may be inside, Jesus can give you life again, make you a new creation.

Do you have that Christian? Do you want that fellow sinner? This story doesn’t end in the cemetery - see for the Christian, the end is just the beginning. And I love to tell the story of Jesus and His love.