Copyright © 2017 Territorial Mission Resources Department - Australia Southern Territory 1 Written by Christopher Trodden B.A (Bib.Stud) Easter series: Message 2 Sermon Outline: Good Friday Topic: Easter Friday Main Point: Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on Good Friday, we can now enter through the door that leads to eternal life. Intended Response: Step into a new way of living and reveal the Kingdom of God to others by opening the door to Jesus (Rev 3:20). Key Text Jn 10:7-15 Introduction When we think of Easter Friday, we often recall the dramatic imagery surrounding Jesus’ trial and crucifixion. This message seeks to engage our congregation and visitors by exploring another image – Jesus as the door to life. A. Jesus calls Himself a door Our faith is in the safest place when we trust in Jesus. Jesus was prepared to lay His life down to save ours. As the Good Shepherd, He will never leave us in times of trouble. Point One: Jesus truly is the Greatest Door of all! B. Why did Jesus die on Good Friday Sin came flooding into the earth when Adam and Eve disobeyed God. Actions open doors of consequence and sin. On Good Friday, Jesus opened up the door to eternal life. Point Two: Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on Good Friday, we can now enter through the door to eternal life. C. On the cross, Jesus closed the door that gives sin the rule over our lives But why didn’t Jesus lock the door to sin? We have a choice to close the door to sin and open the door to Jesus. What choice will you make? Point Three: Good Friday reminds us we have a choice to close the door of sin and open up our hearts to Jesus, the door to eternal life. Teaching Illustrations and props: This sermon uses the illustration of Jesus being the door to life. A good prop would be to set up a door on the platform with you. Song list: Behold me standing at the door (229 OSB, 408 NSB), Aurelia (299 OSB, 614 NSB), How great is our God Access more resources, including PowerPoint slides, at www.SArmy.org.au Copyright © 2017 Territorial Mission Resources Department - Australia Southern Territory 2 Written by Christopher Trodden B.A (Bib.Stud) Easter series: Message 2 Sermon Transcript: Good Friday Hook Play clip from Monsters Inc. Door Scene https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbMYtIfKhAw 2 min Introduction: Good morning everyone. Easter has a lot of imagery surrounding it: • Bag of silver coins, • Last Supper, • Washing of feet, • Garden of Gethsemane, • Soldiers with lanterns, • Courtroom, • Whip, • Crown of thorns, • Scarlet robe, • Lamb, • Cross, • Sponge filled with vinegar, • Curtain ripping in two, • Stone that was rolled away, • Empty tomb. Each image tells a different part of the Easter story. As I was thinking through all of this imagery, it came to me that there is another image that tells the Easter story – and it is that of a door. We don’t think about doors much; they’re just an ordinary part of life. There’s nothing special about them. We might become more alert to a door if we’re locked on the outside of one; have you ever needed to get something from a shop and you raced to get there only to discover the door is locked? Copyright © 2017 Territorial Mission Resources Department - Australia Southern Territory 3 Written by Christopher Trodden B.A (Bib.Stud) I counted I went through 9 different doors several times each this morning on the way to church, (bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, garage, car, church entrance, office, auditorium, lunch room…). We will probably go in and out of 30 doors a day without thinking about them. If you Google beautiful doors of the world you will see some of these: And of course, man think this is the greatest door of all… …the fridge Transition The greatest door of all is Jesus. We don’t think of Jesus as being a door, but He is. In fact, He is the greatest door anyone can walk through. What do I mean by this and how might this relate to Easter? Well, let’s read Jn 10:7-15 Scripture Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the door Jn 10:7-15 (gate) for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the door (gate); whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares Copyright © 2017 Territorial Mission Resources Department - Australia Southern Territory 4 Written by Christopher Trodden B.A (Bib.Stud) nothing for the sheep. “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep, and my sheep know me just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. “So Jesus said to them again, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep” (Jn 10:9 NASB). A. In this story, Jesus is speaking to some religious leaders – these people loved God, but they were so focused on trying to be perfect. Jesus was trying to explain to the religious leaders that the only way into God’s ‘good books’ was to trust in His sacrifice. I think that is still a relevant challenge for many people today. Sometimes we feel that we have to be perfect for God to accept us, but it doesn’t work that way. No one can measure up to God’s standard – that’s why God sent Jesus. He was the only one to obey God perfectly. And now, God accepts us not because of what we do but because of what Jesus has done. But back to the story… To communicate this, Jesus He uses the analogy of a shepherd leading His flock: Jesus is the Good Shepherd, we are sheep; and just like a shepherd leads their sheep to green pastures, Jesus will lead us into abundant life. In that part of the world, shepherds would travel miles, leading their flock to feeding grounds. It was very common for shepherds to sleep outdoors in the wilderness with their flock on such treks. To keep flocks safe and warm the shepherd would lead their sheep into natural or man- made sheep pens – a U-shape structure: At night, the shepherd would literally lie down at the front, blocking off the entrance. This action was known as becoming ‘the gate’ or ‘door for the sheep’. Copyright © 2017 Territorial Mission Resources Department - Australia Southern Territory 5 Written by Christopher Trodden B.A (Bib.Stud) 1. As the door to sheep, the shepherd’s body would function as a door, preventing the sheep from wandering off. 2. It was also a way to protect the flock from any wild animals. By laying down, the only way a wolf or jackal could get to the flock was to try and climb over the shepherd to get to the sheep. Of course, this meant that shepherd would wake up and fight to protect them – I’m not sure if anyone here has ever tried fighting a wolf with nothing but a stick in hand but I imagine it’s a pretty scary situation. We just read how a hired hand would rather run away than stay and fight a wolf – this is life or death stuff. There is much we can learn from this illustration: 1. Our faith is in the safest place when we trust in Jesus. 2. Jesus was prepared to lay His life down to save ours. 3. As the Good Shepherd, He will never leave or abandon us in times of trouble. Doesn’t that sound like what happened on the cross on Good Friday? Jesus came, and to save and protect our souls from a godless eternity, He laid down His life to save ours. Jesus acted like a door when He lay His life down on the cross to save us. Jesus truly is the Greatest Door of all! And let’s not forget, Jesus didn’t live a life focused on self – He gave up His life for others. That is what we are empowered to do through God’s Spirit – to transform Australia one life at a time with the love of Jesus. The invitation to walk through the door of life doesn’t just “get us into heaven” – it is about stepping into a whole new way of living – to reveal the Kingdom of God here and now, and invite us through the door of life that is Jesus. Point 1. Jesus truly is the Greatest Door of all! Transition I often think why Good Friday happened. I know what happened: Jesus died on a cross for the sins of humankind. But why did Good Friday have to occur the way it did? Again, I think about a door… B. In the beginning, when God created humankind, we were made to be part of God’s family – to live in a vibrant relationship with God.