Magnetic appeal
Commentary
One of the strange paradoxes of the human race is that we should be so strongly attracted to the cross of Jesus Christ. He's a man dying a criminal's death, a man hanging on two beams of wood, naked, tortured, pitilessly taunted by remorseless and exultant enemies. Yet, Jesus draws us like iron filings are attracted to a magnet!
You would almost think that Jesus, instead of saying, "I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all people unto me," should instead be saying, "I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will drive all people away from me." But it is a fact of history that the cross has drawn people to God, and it has succeeded where all other arguments have failed. Men and women, who could be indifferent and even hostile to the precepts and institutions of religion, have surveyed this wondrous cross on which the Prince of Glory died, and their frozen hearts have melted before God's pardon and grace.
How shall we explain the magnetic power of Calvary? What is it about the cross of Jesus that fascinates us, that draws us to Christ, and ultimately that transforms our lives? Each of the lessons for this day helps us to understand something of the truth about the cross of Jesus.
The passage from Jeremiah 31 has been described as "one of the mountain peaks of the Old Testament." I think of this passage as a doorway into the very heart of Christianity. With the prophet, we stand at the crossroads between what has been and what will be. Jeremiah gives us the shape of the new age coming and the content of the new covenant which Jesus announces as having arrived "in my blood." His message excites us and draws us like a magnet, because it is good news. Specifically, it is the good news that we are forgiven, that we are able now to have fellowship with God, that we are God's people, and that we are being transformed into the likeness of Christ so that we can bring righteousness and redemption to the whole world.
The Hebrews reading helps us to see Jesus as the bridge between the living God and fallen humanity. It is God who has taken the initiative in Jesus Christ. The initiative is always with God! We humans may think we have initiated the quest for God, but the truth is that God already created a hunger in the human heart for fellowship with God. What the author of Hebrews is saying is that all the experiences and sufferings through which Jesus passed have fitted him to be our Redeemer and Savior. Jesus can save us, because he has been through every dark valley known to the human spirit.
The words in John's gospel take us to the heart of why the cross continues to draw us to Jesus Christ. In Christ God takes the burden of our human sinfulness from us. We see this act of suffering love, and it makes us ashamed of our sins; it awakens our gratitude and releases within us new springs of love that makes us new creatures, reconciled to God.
OUTLINE I
What's new?
Jeremiah 31:31-34
A. vv. 31-32: The idea of something new is a frequent theme in the Bible. God is establishing a totally new kind of relationship with us -- a covenant based on grace and forgiveness. The new life is dependent upon God's children being filled with the Holy Spirit who will bring peace, power, justice, and blessing to the world. Jeremiah reveals four dynamic dimensions to the new covenant. For preaching purposes, I would suggest we reverse the prophet's order.
B. vv. 33-34: The first dimension is forgiveness. "I will forgive their iniquity." The good news is that by God's grace, we are able to start over, to be cleansed, forgiven, and freed from all condemnation. A second dimension of the new covenant is fellowship with God. "All shall know me." In the past intimacy with God was reserved for prophets and patriarchs, but now with the barrier of sin removed, we can enter into a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
Still a third dimension of the new covenant according to Jeremiah is that we become God's people. "They shall be my people." In Christ we are joined to all other believers, and are enabled to love others even as we have been loved with amazing grace. The final dimension is transformation. "My law on their hearts." This is not a gospel about a ticket to heaven, but a gospel of transforming power. God intends for the children of the new covenant to look and act like children of God!
OUTLINE II
The friend who never fails
Hebrews 5:5-10
A. vv. 5-6: Using the image of the priest as a bridge-builder between God and fallen humanity, the writer to the Hebrews tells us that Jesus did not choose his task. God chose him for it. The initiative in salvation is always with God. We are always the respondents to Christ's initiative. It is God who appoints Jesus to be our priest.
B. vv. 7-8: Jesus, in order to bring us to a new relationship with God, has endured the bitterest experiences in our human life. There is no agony of the human spirit through which Jesus has not come! Jesus can be our Savior and Redeemer, because he came through every dark valley through which the human spirit must pass. He is the friend who never fails, because there is no depth in human experience that he has not already plumbed.
C. vv. 9-10: What Christ offers is the gift of eternal salvation. This is a gift which keeps us safe in both time and eternity. With Jesus Christ, we are safe forever. There are no circumstances, conceivable or inconceivable, that can pluck us from the hand of Christ! This friend who never fails compels us to give him our hearts and our loyalty.
OUTLINE III
The magnetism of the cross
John 12:20-33
A. vv. 27-33: People have been drawn to Christ not by his teaching or by his miracles, or by the character of his personality. It is rather by the sight of Jesus hanging between two thieves, executed like a common criminal. What is it about the cross that so grips and magnetizes our gaze? I would suggest developing a sermon around these three truths:
First the cross appeals to our understanding. Here is the difference between Christianity and the other great world religions. One must be indoctrinated into these ethnic faiths, one must study their philosophies and probe their mysteries, because they have their origin in the minds of human beings. Christianity has its origin in an act of God, not an idea of God, but an act of God, something that God has done, something visible, concrete, historic -- something even the simplest mind can grasp.
Secondly, the cross appeals to our deepest emotions. The suffering of the cross stirs our pity. We look at Calvary and we want to weep. The injustice of the cross stirs our indignation. Jesus is the gentlest, noblest, and kindest person who ever lived, and he is innocent of any crime! The heroism of the cross stirs our admiration. There is nothing to match the magnificence of Jesus in the dark hours of his passion -- his poise, his courage, and his love.
Thirdly, the cross appeals to our dignity as human beings. Think of the contrast between coercion and persuasion that confronts us on Calvary. The human heart cannot resist such a gracious and loving appeal!
You would almost think that Jesus, instead of saying, "I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all people unto me," should instead be saying, "I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will drive all people away from me." But it is a fact of history that the cross has drawn people to God, and it has succeeded where all other arguments have failed. Men and women, who could be indifferent and even hostile to the precepts and institutions of religion, have surveyed this wondrous cross on which the Prince of Glory died, and their frozen hearts have melted before God's pardon and grace.
How shall we explain the magnetic power of Calvary? What is it about the cross of Jesus that fascinates us, that draws us to Christ, and ultimately that transforms our lives? Each of the lessons for this day helps us to understand something of the truth about the cross of Jesus.
The passage from Jeremiah 31 has been described as "one of the mountain peaks of the Old Testament." I think of this passage as a doorway into the very heart of Christianity. With the prophet, we stand at the crossroads between what has been and what will be. Jeremiah gives us the shape of the new age coming and the content of the new covenant which Jesus announces as having arrived "in my blood." His message excites us and draws us like a magnet, because it is good news. Specifically, it is the good news that we are forgiven, that we are able now to have fellowship with God, that we are God's people, and that we are being transformed into the likeness of Christ so that we can bring righteousness and redemption to the whole world.
The Hebrews reading helps us to see Jesus as the bridge between the living God and fallen humanity. It is God who has taken the initiative in Jesus Christ. The initiative is always with God! We humans may think we have initiated the quest for God, but the truth is that God already created a hunger in the human heart for fellowship with God. What the author of Hebrews is saying is that all the experiences and sufferings through which Jesus passed have fitted him to be our Redeemer and Savior. Jesus can save us, because he has been through every dark valley known to the human spirit.
The words in John's gospel take us to the heart of why the cross continues to draw us to Jesus Christ. In Christ God takes the burden of our human sinfulness from us. We see this act of suffering love, and it makes us ashamed of our sins; it awakens our gratitude and releases within us new springs of love that makes us new creatures, reconciled to God.
OUTLINE I
What's new?
Jeremiah 31:31-34
A. vv. 31-32: The idea of something new is a frequent theme in the Bible. God is establishing a totally new kind of relationship with us -- a covenant based on grace and forgiveness. The new life is dependent upon God's children being filled with the Holy Spirit who will bring peace, power, justice, and blessing to the world. Jeremiah reveals four dynamic dimensions to the new covenant. For preaching purposes, I would suggest we reverse the prophet's order.
B. vv. 33-34: The first dimension is forgiveness. "I will forgive their iniquity." The good news is that by God's grace, we are able to start over, to be cleansed, forgiven, and freed from all condemnation. A second dimension of the new covenant is fellowship with God. "All shall know me." In the past intimacy with God was reserved for prophets and patriarchs, but now with the barrier of sin removed, we can enter into a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
Still a third dimension of the new covenant according to Jeremiah is that we become God's people. "They shall be my people." In Christ we are joined to all other believers, and are enabled to love others even as we have been loved with amazing grace. The final dimension is transformation. "My law on their hearts." This is not a gospel about a ticket to heaven, but a gospel of transforming power. God intends for the children of the new covenant to look and act like children of God!
OUTLINE II
The friend who never fails
Hebrews 5:5-10
A. vv. 5-6: Using the image of the priest as a bridge-builder between God and fallen humanity, the writer to the Hebrews tells us that Jesus did not choose his task. God chose him for it. The initiative in salvation is always with God. We are always the respondents to Christ's initiative. It is God who appoints Jesus to be our priest.
B. vv. 7-8: Jesus, in order to bring us to a new relationship with God, has endured the bitterest experiences in our human life. There is no agony of the human spirit through which Jesus has not come! Jesus can be our Savior and Redeemer, because he came through every dark valley through which the human spirit must pass. He is the friend who never fails, because there is no depth in human experience that he has not already plumbed.
C. vv. 9-10: What Christ offers is the gift of eternal salvation. This is a gift which keeps us safe in both time and eternity. With Jesus Christ, we are safe forever. There are no circumstances, conceivable or inconceivable, that can pluck us from the hand of Christ! This friend who never fails compels us to give him our hearts and our loyalty.
OUTLINE III
The magnetism of the cross
John 12:20-33
A. vv. 27-33: People have been drawn to Christ not by his teaching or by his miracles, or by the character of his personality. It is rather by the sight of Jesus hanging between two thieves, executed like a common criminal. What is it about the cross that so grips and magnetizes our gaze? I would suggest developing a sermon around these three truths:
First the cross appeals to our understanding. Here is the difference between Christianity and the other great world religions. One must be indoctrinated into these ethnic faiths, one must study their philosophies and probe their mysteries, because they have their origin in the minds of human beings. Christianity has its origin in an act of God, not an idea of God, but an act of God, something that God has done, something visible, concrete, historic -- something even the simplest mind can grasp.
Secondly, the cross appeals to our deepest emotions. The suffering of the cross stirs our pity. We look at Calvary and we want to weep. The injustice of the cross stirs our indignation. Jesus is the gentlest, noblest, and kindest person who ever lived, and he is innocent of any crime! The heroism of the cross stirs our admiration. There is nothing to match the magnificence of Jesus in the dark hours of his passion -- his poise, his courage, and his love.
Thirdly, the cross appeals to our dignity as human beings. Think of the contrast between coercion and persuasion that confronts us on Calvary. The human heart cannot resist such a gracious and loving appeal!
