The Flipside of Life

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4 April, 2021Pastor Mark SchultzThe Flipside of Easter

Out of battery – No more memory – We can’t afford it – I don’t have time…Much of contemporary life is defined by limits…by scarcity…by what we don’t have. We say “Enjoy it while it lasts”, knowing that all good things come to an end. So we sleep. We eat. We work and we repeat the cycle over and over again. But getting by, treading water until we no longer can, merely existing is not the life we were created for, redeemed for, and raised for. Easter Sunday tells us that there is more life than we can ever imagine. The heart of Easter is not about an empty tomb, but about the fullness of life the risen Christ gives, guarantees, and make come alive in us. Christ is raised not just from the dead, he is raised to life so we can be alive with the fullness of his life. So today we experience the flipside of life…life in abundance that overflows with unbounded joy, unlimited hope, & unending love. It’s a gift that you receive today, tomorrow, and the next day after…all because Christ is risen from the dead. 

#4 in series: The Flipside of Easter

Acts 10:34-43

34 So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, 35 but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. 36 As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all), 37 you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39 And we are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, 40 but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, 41 not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. 43 To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

Mark 16:1-8 

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb 3 and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”

But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. 5 As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.

6 “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’”

8Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.

“Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’” Mark 16:6-7

Resurrection is never a conclusion; it's an invitation to enter into a life that is fully alive with new beginnings and unlimited possibilities

  1. How does today's world define "life" or offer you "your best life"?
  2. What did you come looking to see or hear today? In other words, why did you come to Church or connect online today?
  3. What will being "fully alive" with the good news of the resurrection look like for you today, tomorrow and the next day?

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Death. It's the inevitable that we want to avoid. From anti-aging creams to efforts to download a person’s brain so he or she can continue to live virtually, to cryonics, the practice of freezing and storing bodies or body parts in the hope that future scientists will thaw them and bring them back to life. We are obsessed with health fads like activity trackers and crash diets. We love the idea of a pill that will extend our vitality. Many are waiting in anticipation for the vaccination to be rolled out as a protection against death by virus, so life can resume more normally. For the flipside of death is life...and that is a far more compelling option. But there's a problem. For no matter what medical advances are made, no matter how much we try to avoid it, death comes…to hopes…to dreams...to plans…to relationships…to families...to you. But Good Friday reveals the true flipside of death. That hope is reborn. Dreaming is possible. Plans can be made. Relationships are restored. Hearts are renewed. Love wins and eternal life is real. All because the flipside of Jesus' death is life to all who receive it, believe it and live in it.

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Betrayal...it's what we see as the Flipside of love. It's a word that burns deep. You don’t expect to get undercut, undermined, blindsided or betrayed by someone you trust. Someone you love. It’s cruel. It wounds. “On the night he was betrayed…” God in the flesh, was betrayed at the hands of one of his closest companions. Jesus was not only sold out by one who was supposed to support him and stand up for him, but abandoned and denied by those who knew him intimately. Jesus knows who. He knows when. He knows why. In a different time, different place, or under different circumstances, it could be anyone who has been handed the bread of Jesus’ life. That includes you and me. But for Jesus, the flipside of love is not betrayal, but something far stronger, that gives all those who betray, abandon and deny, a place at his table. It's called grace. And that's what we receive again this day.

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The impact of power. It's been plastered over our television screens over recent weeks. The raw and destructive power of storms, winds, and floods, sweeping up and destroying everything in its path. The abusive and coercive use of power in workplaces and institutions. The violent and corruptive use of power by government and military groups globally. Human nature finds power unavoidably addictive and more often than not, its impact leaves nations and lives broken, torn apart, and destroyed. But when Jesus enters Jerusalem to the shouts and accolades of the crowds we witness and experience the “flipside” of power…power that restores, rebuilds, forgives, heals and blesses. Jesus didn’t grasp for power; he challenged the powerful, the privileged & the proud so that all people could receive the power and presence of God. He flips our world until it is right…in relationship with the Father…responsive to his love…embraced in his death & rejoicing in his life.

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