Easter Retreat concluded with a Sunday service overflowing with grace. Pastor Andrew delivered a powerful message that drew listeners’ hearts deeper into the meaning of the cross and resurrection.
The sermon started by looking at Luke 24:1-35, which describes two disciples walking to Emmaus. Though Jesus walked alongside them, they were unable to recognize the resurrected Lord. Their eyes remained veiled by sorrow, still confined in the darkness of the cross. Yet as Jesus opened the Scriptures to them, their hearts began to burn within. And when He broke the bread, their eyes were opened- they recognized Him.
When the Word of God enters our hearts, it starts burning inside of us. We come to understand the breaking of Jesus’ body. We can see that the cross was not just death or defeat, but the conclusion of the cross is the resurrection. The cross and resurrection of the Lord were our cross and new life. When Mary encountered the resurrected Lord, her heart was filled with joy, and so did Thomas. The same change will happen to us when we meet the resurrected Lord- our hearts will be filled with joy and burning. Everything will be renewed, and we’ll become a new creation.
The resurrection interprets the cross. Pastor Andrew then deeply explained why there’s the cross. The cross is done for us, and it’s everything for us. To understand the cross, we need to know who God is and who we are. God is absolutely good and righteous, but we are not. This gap separates us from heaven where the Holy God dwells. As sinners who live in a world that is full of arrogance, lies and immorality, we fail others and ourselves. Not only that, we often blame God for all the suffering we’ve faced and when we see sins around us. The sins of this world attack us again and again, and then we attack God in our hopelessness.
But how did God respond? He came to save us. No matter how many times we rebel against Him, He still sent His Son Jesus Christ to save us. This is the story of the cross. God, who desires faith and love, has never changed. He has loved us perfectly from the beginning. However, our faith is lost and the relationship of love with God is broken. Despite that, God refuses to let us go and He wants us to remain in His love for all eternity. Unlike our love, God’s love is unconditional and not broken. It’s not based on who we are, but who He is. He loves because He is love. Only on the cross, can we understand His love.
The message then turned to Genesis 22:2–14, where we see a shadow of the cross. Abraham held the knife of death- the consequence of sin, the judgment we bring upon ourselves that we rightly deserve. God stopped him and provided a ram as a substitute. The knife didn’t fall on us, it fell on Jesus. God gave His perfectly faithful Son to us so that we don’t need to bear the knife- the weight of our sins. In this act of substitution, we see there is no reason to ever doubt God’s love again (Romans 8:32).
Pastor Andrew also led listeners to see again the relentless love of the Lord through Judas’ betrayal, Peter’s denial, the sins of the chief priests and Pilate. It’s clear- our sins crucified Jesus on the cross. Every lash, mockery and nail that pierced His hands should be ours; but the Lord took them all. The Lord didn’t pay us back with what we deserve, but united with the will of the Father. He drank our bitter cup and gave us the glorious cup filled with God’s righteousness. The cross shows that nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of God.
Through seeing the cross, we can come to see the resurrected Lord, and our lives won’t be the same anymore. The sermon concluded with a call that encouraged listeners to rise up in new life and let the new life become a testimony of the love of the Lord.