Most action movies live and die by one thing—the cliff hanger—that end of the story where the plot is unresolved. You are left hanging in the air. Its purpose is to move you to the edge of your seat, to speculate what will happen next and to buy a ticket to the next installment to see what happens next. That’s when you know you’ve got (in movie parlance)—a “blockbuster.” You’ve dying to know what’s next like in John Wick Two as he runs through a park surrounded by assassins with cell phones as cues to shoot. They ring—CUT TO BLACK, “The End.” Or is it? Will he survive? Like in Dark Knight Rises as Batman, presumed dead, retires, but leaves the location of the Batcave to a young, assistant police detective named Robin. He opens the note. We see him in an empty cave— CUT TO BLACK, "The End.” Or is it? Will Gotham City have another hero? Like the movie, The Italian Job—literally, a cliff hanger—as a group of thieves steal a bus load of gold only to run the bus nearly off a cliff. The bus precariously hangs there. Michael Caine inches toward the gold as the bus teeters and says as he hangs on for dear life, “I have an idea.”—CUT TO BLACK, "The End.” Or is it?
Of all the great cliff hanger movies, there is none greater than The Passion of the Christ. The Seed has been crucified on a cross, dead, and buried—CUT TO BLACK. The cliff hanger is not what you think.
The cliff hanger is not: will Christ rise from the dead. CNN, CBS, Fox News—they all report: He is alive. The cliff hanger is: what will you do with the news that the Seed of a woman has crushed the head of the snake, that Satan is defeated, sin is forgiven, and all mankind is blessed, that there is life after death? Will you accept this news as truth, believe it and live blessed or accept the news as fake news, fiction and live out a death sentence?
How should you respond to the news of the resurrection?
In Genesis 45 and John 20, we see two responses to the news of the resurrection. Jacob and Thomas both hear the good news that there is life after death.
We see in Genesis 45 through Jacob of the Old Testament, that faith is the proper response to the news of the promises of God that there is life after death. His testament is a preview of the New Testament resurrection. Second, we see in John 20 through Thomas of the New Testament that faith is also the proper response to the fulfilment of the promises that there is life after death. Faith is two sides of the same coin—Easter.
As we celebrate Easter, the good news this morning of the “Greatest Story Ever Told is this: there is life after death. The promise of the Seed has been kept. The proper response is faith. As much as our Genesis series was the story of the journey of Christ through the lens of great movies, Genesis was just a preview, a “cliff hanger, if you will, for the next installment—your story. What will be your response of the good news of life after death? You are the cliff hanger.
First, faith is the proper response to the news of the promise of God that there is life after death. We see that Old Testament faith response from Jacob. It is a preview of the New Testament resurrection. Jacob was as good as dead. Everything was falling apart, believing that his favorite son was dead. But he got some good news.
26They told him, saying, "Joseph is still alive. 28Then Israel said, "It is enough; my son Joseph is still alive. I will go and see him before I die." Gen. 45: 26, 28
Jacob believed, but not at first. He was stunned and doubtful until he heard the whole story from his sons who had returned from Egypt. Joseph was a ruler in Egypt. Jacob’s sons also brought back a U-Haul full of provisions—proof that Joseph was, in fact, large and in charge. It was enough. God is, indeed, good.
Here is the back story. Jacob and his family were a mess. There was no food due to a worldwide famine. There was no livestock to speak of. And Jacob’s favorite son, Joseph, the son of is favorite wife Rachel, the son whom he gave a coat of many colors, the son who had wild dreams that he would rule over the family, is dead. His own brothers, out of jealousy of the dreamer because of his dream, put him in a pit, then sold him away into slavery, then reported back to their father he had been killed by wild animals. Jacob’s response was a deep, inconsolable depression. He, locked in mourning, was a dead man walking.
It didn’t look like God was with Jacob, that God would keep the promise of the blessings that were first made to his grandfather Abraham. Then came to the “good news” that there is life after death.
Joseph was alive. Not only was he alive, his dream of rulership was, not a self-fulfilling prophecy, but it was a God-fulfilled one. God orchestrated Joseph’s journey from the pit to Ms. Potiphar false accusation of rape, to his unjust imprisonment. But God orchestrated Joseph’s gifts as a dream interpreter to win favor with Pharoah to become vice-president of food distribution during the worldwide famine. It was at Joseph’s throne that he met his brothers seeking famine relief. The rest, as they say, “is history.” Joseph revealed himself as the brother they tried to kill. He summed up God’s life-giving, promise-keeping sovereignty this way in Gen 50:20:
20"As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good (tov) in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. Gen 50:20
God’s “life-after-death” sovereignty has always brought good so we can say with certainty, “God is good all the time, and all the time God is good. It was all good (tov) for Jacob.
Jacob (Israel) got the best of Egypt’s land—Goshen. (v.10a, v. 20)
Israel got to be near his favorite son and, now, grandsons. (v. 10b)
Israel got provisions for the remainder of the famine (v.11)
Jacob got his spirit (life) back. (v. 27)
Church, there is life after death. God can make it all good:
When you have lost a loved one, God can make it good. The good news is there is life after death. Christ said, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me shall not die.” (Jn. 11:25)
When you feel lost and defeated, God can make it good. The good news is there is life after death. Christ said, "In the world you will have trouble. But be encouraged. Victory is mine; I have conquered the world. (Jn. 16:33)
When the church is on an unsustainable course, God can make it good. The good news is there is life after death. Christ said, “Unless a grain dies, it remains a seed, but if it dies it can produce much grain. (Jn. 12:24)
As you celebrate Easter, the good news this morning of the “Greatest Story Ever Told is this: there is life after death. The promise of the Seed has been kept. Faith is the proper response to the promise of God. As much as our Genesis series was the story of the journey of Christ through the lens of great movies, Genesis was just a preview, a “cliff hanger for the next installment—your story. What will be your response of the good news of life after death? You are the cliff hanger.
Second, we see in John 20 through Thomas of the New Testament that faith is also the proper response of fulfilment of the promise there is life after death. We see this New Testament response of faith in a man famous for doubt—Doubting Thomas. But like Jacob who first doubted, he later responded to the evidence that Jesus is alive. He believed there is life after death.
27 Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe." John 20:27
After Thomas put his hand inside of Jesus, he found a whole new testimony. Look at verse 28: Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!" John 20:28
In Thomas’s testimony, “My Lord” (Kyrios), he is testifying that Christ is now his Master. He will follow Christ, not by sight, but by faith.
Faith is the only proper response to the good news that there is life after death, but not just any faith. Christ defined a proper faith as an Easter faith that blesses according to John 20:29:
29 Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." John 20:29
All the disciples and movers and shakers of the Church found that blessing faith. They were blessed with a personal transformation that blessed the church with direction, growth, and momentum. We have highlighted before Doubting Thomas who gave the church direction to the church east, evangelizing India; Apostle Peter who gave growth to the church, his preaching leading to 3,000 saved; Apostle Paul who gave the church momentum, writing two-thirds of the New Testament.
We also need to recognize the blessed faith of Apostle James the Great, the brother of John, who gave the church his blood. He gave his life, beheaded by King Herod in Jerusalem in Acts 12. It is believed that before his death, he preached in Spain before the Virgin Mary. His body was taken back to Spain, buried were he preached, planted like a seed of grain. His blood faith produced grain, direction, growth, and momentum to the church west via Española. His martyrdom was a living testament of Jesus’ words about life after death:
“Unless a grain dies, it remains a seed, but if it dies it can produce much grain. (Jn. 12:24)
Church, you have the potential of producing much grain. Whatever place you are planted, whatever obstacles you face, go with a blessing faith, a blood faith, believing there is life after death, that you can bring direction, spiritual growth, and momentum. Your blessing faith will be enough. It was for Jacob. It was enough for the Seed who was promised in a galaxy of chaos, who came out of a portal of an empty tomb bringing cosmos to the kingdom to come.
He survived: Abel’s murder, Noah’s flood,Lot’s fire, Sarah’s barrenness, Abraham’s test, Esau’s chili, Jacob’s tricks, a family’s feud, eleven brothers’ jealousy, injustice: slavery, false prosecution, and imprisonment, and throw in a worldwide famine.
Faith lives. It will sustain you.
As you celebrate Easter, the good news this morning of the “Greatest Story Ever Told” is this: there is life after death. The promise of the Seed has been kept. Faith is the proper response to this good news.It was for Jacob and Thomas.As much our Genesis series was the story of the journey of Christ from chaos to cosmos through the lens of great movies, Genesis was just a preview, a “cliff hanger” for the next installment. You are that installment. What will be your story? What will be your response to the good news that there is life after death? Assassins may be in the park. The Batcave may be empty. The bus may be hanging on a cliff. But you are the cliff hanger. You can chose “Cut to black, “The End”, or you can choose
“Camera’s rolling. Action.” Happy Easter.
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