This is the fifth agster I have stood in|your pulpit--and for
the fifth consecutive time I have found my Hagter Sermon the most
difficult sermon to prevare in the entre church year.\ That may seem

st

eS

ange to yaou--but I think it is a fairly common concern of ministers

“wilted e%
everywhere.| Our problem with #aster mrs when our faith begins
y

the torturous task of maturation. \ At that point, and I'm certain
most of you have been there and back many times, we are not overly

receptive to anything in our religion that we cannot comprehend | We

find ourselves wanting to lodge our faith in persons and events that

fit into the neat categories of the mind. | We have no difficulty be-

lieving in a Jesus who was a great teacher of |morality, our Lord is

the Christ of the Sermon on the Mt., our Christian Faith, a practical

apolying of the Golden ute. \ this point in my own exoerience is most

a
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fellow students, wished that the Go

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nad stooped with the erucifixion.| This we could comprehend--a good
= —_—_—_—_— = ~

man, unyustly executed For 2 good epuse--A cause that we_were hapoy to
ee LNA TREES
proclaim, and to which we were ready to sive dur Lives .\ That desu
——e ———
Christ rose from the grsve simply seemed unnegessary and certainly very
confusing. \ But in moments of candor, however, we were deeply distrubed

oe

by the words that simply would not go anay-(-tnas Jesus, whom men have
hanged on a tree; God nas raised him from the |dead and made him both

Try 28 we might to ignore it, this theme kept rushing
bce als a ad

into our consciousness, and slowly, ever so slowly, we saw the truth that
en ——

the R@sarrection of Jesus Christ is not just_the fosting on the cake,

. the 7
nding to story--but the

ia]

nat just the ‘thgy-binddhappily-ever-after'

central and cbhhesive event in the whole drama, \ We began to see that

re tesucher-—-We

thoes ‘ ol aouyee th. at oag r, =.

gellins the

carmen on the Nh.3; we came to the difficult replizition tat vesus

usc God raised nin from the dead--and

Pindi.iy that tne woole nistory of the Churen hbs been LTivmly rooted

]
tug convietion exprasscd im the Gospels A'He is, aot here; he hase nisen.” )

dig rysurreetion of Christ then becomes the central facet of

Ouy OWT sith) tals L> Woy we worship God--thié is why we worshilo

on Sunday--ithe Diret dey of tie ozs" unis le the souras al

_ = a tmen oy pe , dt om
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event is really celebrated ewery time we gather for worship; \ it is

theevent that tiles the loose ends of my life Loge the n;\ it lies behind

ne,

every sermon I preach;\ it rests Kargx beneath your existence in sick-

ness and health--in life and death.| Ang on this day we are called on

to say somsething joyfully meaningful in 20 min. or less.

=n
ta

This morning, I want to discuss the Resurrection by asicing; (what

Ch
5
ce

our deepest oersonal need?"-~ What is it that you and versonalyy

———,

need? to become fully satisfied, content human peings?” | cuckty, may of

tnat

ae

us mignt respond that we need nhighey standard of living;

=

the-e's nothing wrong with us that another digit in our income

a,

wouldn't correct .\ we feel this way, you and Iido, and 3t the same time

at

we know it is untrue .\ We know those who have little, by way of income

and luxury and yet seem to have more stability | than we.\ we know those

who have more money, bigger care, more liesure|time, and who are
absolutely miserable. \ ‘nd, if we're perceptive we'll realize some

Mitt that our culture has helé up to us the way to the good life paved

8G9in, of 3 ecnenege in ecenery--but in saying this we kmow that our
e aed

4
4
r
g,

ena mails la 6 qeucra | seus E
need goes far seeper.\ i said Wednesday night that humanity, needs

unity more than anything: alse, \ Ths morning I want 60 suggest that your
cso
greatest’ need, and mine, is a sense that we belong here, that we're
ee eee —
azj
needed and wanted and loved; that there's realjreason for our being;

——

that our life has some direction and purpose.

This sense is even harder to come by than|the extra digit on our

paycheck, or tne change of yf localk-~ -or any of the petty problems we

inflate way out ofproportion.

Skeotics tell us there is no meaning, no direction, nossense of
be Longing here .\ They tell us that life is a cynical farce, that

we are wasting our time searching for somethings which will tie it all
together and give it meaning;\ and that the best we can do is get what
we can, take cure of number one and, A Very shallow deoth, enjoy
life, ever fiden drop br it.

You and I are not skepticsl to tha leprse \ pat we are all
eaughnt up in the muddy back wash of 2 ilture And way of live was
We are all part of culture thet har Lorified mater

qente a

fully deities 1ocess satter ;\ ne ars vietims (of 9 ombie gets" ioe
cynicism that says there is no_tomorrow--there| is nothing else--there is
nothing more to life t tnean that which you can touch and feel and buy and
consume.

There is nothing more-- just the immediate tangibilities of life;
and within th context the going gets pretty rough \ We 're all human;
we have our uns and downs ;\ the immdiate, the now, can be pretty miserable.
Life frequently _iets us sown We look candidly at the now, the imaed late ~-

not much to _¢g

and there's

anything but encouraging

\

a world situation that is

raso and embrace;

4 nation filled with strife and sectionalism;

i

perhaps a job we cannot stand,\or londiness tht is driving us to

2spair;
sie

a

©

\

enlightened namiputation.\ ana ¢

Is Lt

question

— —— ee

or family problems tht refuse

811 worthwhile?

to respond to our

Does it really make any sense? or not?

© Acffcieuce “oT Vor

is there nothing more for me than this?

Winter wanes, one morning the depressing borwn blades of grass
suddently are green So, it has been the testimoney of millions upon
millions of men that suddenly there comes flooding into life, a

ite oa: Godlee ppuce

and 2iis them asters sense

at home--2 snowledge that there is 4% reuson Pah our be brs \ Arad ta

thease illios of Christ iins nb pb ints Jaf F rom where ge

whit sources hive i as
this saving, healing, renewink, feeling comet | bean tous ty --soHn qeradsa

ou ceniurien of time, from E_gul of Taresuse te th min OP Lada,

ary €f one volte--trom an ampty tombia Bram a hook hewn nole in tas

bY
ee

Micelesp £ fFory oy sesus chr istS | -

wrPournd thet for thres do

From a tomb marst ons aha toala--beciuss che ipe ig -vigen,

Ls event man nove known thétthe Goof in the world is

more pawerrul Svil eradified the Son of God--an evil

eyes Lode be
ne ye tht

nat

a dfiurs. fo the roetiern,

elvilizwutioan,

—_——

muah

ao ip suprens, God is still
a reac sian

Gowa Lieder

In the Pesurrection of Jesus Christ men have known also that
a ee ee

life @Wins the ultimate confrontation with death. | sening many of our

ee ——

fa

m4
bs

Tear

q

Atl

wn

an sties lies and unsnoken dread of jdeath.\ Sigmund Freud

opointed out that part of living is fearing death--some obsessively,

some unconscliously--but all men--not wanting ta die, wandering

—— sane
an eeeeeninintniol

what it's Like, dreading to aie. | This is not unfamiliar to us.\ Every -
one of us here has thought about death--our own death;|we've mourned
nnn rm (se ee Saeed

” t
fe ‘4 i = ig a Cc > egy 4 4 g. wal
the death of relatives and ftrends;\ we’ cursed God and life that it ends

- oe ae = t=" isk :

all s9 vainly and brutaily.\ ind into the gloom of our despair there
a ree eet a 8

aay oe ~ 4 t pay 7 pA ees io F py 4-la at We a 4 oH Ley eg fe As 4 met awe

comes A brisnht ray of Hopes- 3 ray that began In a toms that Gia Not eno
ia adeeicnereioe nse maneeneens ‘a
at ge ‘" in 2 a er |
che @xX 11 JeUuss Chr!
crane UT Wek a oer apnont faath
& S e : xoe@ ‘ 4
asec
ia Vin 24 ~
Uriends and loved ones, 3
sieht
= . ae +] rr i at ae Pe 4 =
SEQ UP v@SuUs CnRLst

or fy 4 ae o = mo
that God's ilove does not c

al
Gog raised Dp We ean rejoice with Pauir\'o death where is thy sting--
"Plage i ey Paces aes 4 de hey r 4 4 ‘ a Ti. a es ti. Ls i * _ = a 4 ~
. GPaye wirere is vily ¥4h0 BOT y 7 DECaUsS WOGs Lm tne jistor LE 3] eyermy, GL
the Pesurractian, forever defeated even desth we can rajoice at the
a r Seen ee nn
maart a vt - 4
ie ee os ad ok vetlat {
never secs
1. ‘ 7 ri a
Lnpough trees!

:
Py 4 aie pee er = tears <a al ee eae A ae beeen )laAe

ix esurrection men have felt and @xperienced the knowledge
patina Kcckeithl

ee Aaa wae de by oe aes we wk Mere ¢ Se world

tye so Var t we a hes we a3 ate ad et

been in 2 warm house on @ bitterly cold night, Master sig
ern,
entire universe has been made into 2 safe plac.
By way of Ll attempted to
Serena
concern at not saying enough on this day. | i'minot said m
I've xf several gsermin ideas
SQ 2g Resurrection from the de

Christ.) in our econeluding Winutes togetar letl/us
the claims the church has meade. 2t's be frank with each
the cold stare of logic on the traditional waster message
ire characters re @asy to identify ;\ Jerugaien of th
We can aceurately restructure that; tne Passover celebrat
how many oeople were there and what they

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We know he ad

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itenerate Jewish prophet nam

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Romans

in the customary man

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nd turn

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kriow that 4

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there is not 4 secular his

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much is for the record.

NOW let's iook et what happened. \ this Jesus had been a collossal
ciples to aman | therm convictions

and loyalty to him were so shallow that they filled at the first sign

—— ee

of trouble. \ tien ie for great causes, men, willgngly and heroically lay

down there lives for their country, or for thelir family--or for a friend--

or today for Civil nights .\ But so unconvinced) were the disciples that

—

ed him and let him die completely alone.

By every human measurement that ought to be the end of the story.

\ nice tatte--2 tragie ending, like Hamlet .\ But it didn't end there.

Somewhere in Jerusalem, somewhere behing a carefully bolted door, the

li who remained cowered, discuraged, ashamed--prhaps disgusted | And in
ee ene a

aeeeeniditanrsinsiatilting:

their midst--in the midst of these 11 diverse, unlikely men, something

happened.

Something nappened to drive them out of that room--with a

vengeance -eout into the indifferent, hostile streets of Jerusalem to tell b

ae

the worlag the best news that had ever$ come to) man \ Theywould die for

eel

itt| they would leave everything behind because of

|:

as they told ,otners experienced it too, until the whole empire was

consumed by it.\ From there it » Went on to every nation of the world--
across <V centuries of pers ecution, wars, apthy and still it goes on.

History has a way of w@eding out its half] truths. \ Feudalism passed
SSS ay er Teta iil = any

ingo oblivion--so did the Divine Right of Kings~-Nazism died,as will

Communism, \ But nothing, nothing — has negated this -~nothing nas stopped

men from believing and telling and dying for it.

ca
a

ind it began back there--in the morning stilin

of the first day

of the weeic.\ Dig it happen?\ ¢ n we serlously|jask that question? | Men

—_—

have experienced pkaretessdetsis Ltyfnen have known it in their Lives \ the

whole glorious history of Chr&stendom fed on if and still is powered by it.

Let us not be ashamed to affirm the Resurrection from the dead
of Jesus christ | Let us go from this place wiltth the words fresh in
our winds ;\1et us take them into everyday of our lives. "He is not

here--for he has risen!
mee

Armen

resurrect “1 hts. cha \e4ary Chu . Seok Vey
poe Fo tu ~ Wot om Was fee.
egre Nur [aut
“Tsou Rtwrre) Clot

us

yuo s ae Tee\ A pone

our Use Ls Prmwe