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Sermon:
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A few weeks ago as I was preparing for the service at Colonial Haven, I was asked if Jesus suffered in His death on the cross.
This is one of those questions you can't give the kind of answer designed just to make someone feel better, because Scripture is quite clear about the answer, and we heard it just now. Yes, Jesus did suffer on the cross.
But there's more to it than just that. There are two aspects to this story. Which is also what we saw today. And this is the basis for the answer I gave at Colonial Haven.
There is, in the story of the crucifixion, both triumph and defeat. We came in boldly, as Jesus did on the donkey in Jerusalem, declaring boldly "Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!"
And then we heard about Jesus' trial, His sentence, and His painful and barbaric death.
These two aspects mirror our nature as humans. On one hand, we have a greatness in our nature because we are beings created by God. And on the other hand, we posses wretchedness because of our sin.
Jesus, in dying, took our sin upon Himself so that we might die to that sin, and so that we might be forgiven. That death was brutal, painful and ugly just like our sin is. But His death is also triumphant because in it Jesus is conquering sin and death. He is getting ready to rise above it so that we too can rise with Him.
We need to remember both the triumph and the gruesomeness of Jesus' death. To understand the Cross, we have to see both of these aspects. That tension between sorrow and triumph that we experience today is meant to prepare us for the upcoming services this week. Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and The Great Vigil of Easter: taken together these three services are known as the Tritium (consider this is the Faith Fact for today). These services follow one after the other. They are not meant to be taken separately, but, in a sense, they are one great service spread throughout three days. They are one service that incorporates the entire story of Jesus' death and resurrection.
To truly understand the sacred mystery at the core of our faith- Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again- I highly suggest attending all of these services. They are designed to help you live into the story of the Passion and the Gospel more fully. You may find that these services will help you see the story of the Cross in a different way. You may come to understand your faith more fully and deeply through these services.