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Whistling In The Graveyard (Galatians 2:20)

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MOTIVATE

This week my family traveled to OH. There are some essentials to car trip

  • Functioning vehicle
  • Food (Chocolate / Caffeine)
  • Tunes (or audio books / etc.)
  • Breaks (breaks must multi-task for gasoline, food, bathroom, etc.)
  • Map or familiarity with destination

Likewise, there are some essential aspects of Christianity.

  • Jesus’ Death (cross / crucifixion)
  • Jesus’ Resurrection

Can we trust the resurrection of Jesus? [1]

  • Execution
    • Scourged by Roman proCrown of thornsCrucified… legs not broken = deadBuried with wrappings
    • > Jesus died for sinners
  • Empty Tomb Prophecies from OT
    (Psalm 16:10; Ps 22; Jonah/Mat 12:40; Isa 25:8, 53:8-12; Hosea 6:2). Prophecies from Jesus
    (Mt 12:38-40; Mk 8:31, 9:31, 10:33-34; Jn 2:18-22).Jesus’ grave clothes were unwrapped lying in tombRoman guards accused disciples of stealing the body> Tomb was not open to let Jesus out but to let us in. It’s an invitation for us to investigate.
  • Eyewitnesses  
    • Female testimony
    • Disciples who feared, doubted & fled.. but all became martyrs. A person may die for a lie but not if they knew it was a lie.  
    • 500 witnesses, including brother James & Paul
    • Eventually 4 Gospels
    • > Bible is trustworthy
  • Early Creeds  Legends take generations to develop bc they can be debunked quickly by 1st hand accounts. However, early creedal statements & songs based on 1st gen eyewitnesses of crucifixion & resurrection were used to catechize believers.> The old story how a Savior came from glory can be sung in old and new hymns. Remember in 1960 people likely reviled the songs that today we often revere. Each generation needs biblical truth in its own musical style.
  • Explanatory Power
    • Few religious leaders have sustained multiple centuries, and those who have, only one has claimed to be God and rise from the dead with multiple elements of verifiable evidence.
    • > Jesus changes lives…
      John 10:10 / Galatians 2:20.


This is the message I want to share with you this Easter Resurrection Sunday.


EXAMINE Galatians 2:20         Whistling In The Graveyard

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20

*Paul wrote Galatians

*Paul voiced crucifixion & vowed persecution

*Paul changed by Jesus; prominent missionary

I am crucified with Christ. 

Jesus died to pay for our sin and to provide our salvation. His death gives forgiveness so that when God the Father accepts us.

Ex 1: If a teen stole money from me, I would be disappointed with them. But imagine the parent understands the situation and repays what was stolen. Additionally, the parent instructs their child to apologize and ask forgiveness. At that moment, our relationship would be restored, but we would still work to build trust.

Ex 2: A drunk driver crashes into my daughter’s vehicle, and she dies. The driver gets a life sentence in jail for justice of the crime. But there isn’t relational peace… The only way peace is possible is if I went to him in prison to establish a relationship.

Both scenarios give us a hint of Christ’s work on the cross and the sending of the Holy Spirit. Yet, both fall short of the undeserved mercy and immeasurable grace provided in the gospel = good news of Jesus.

So, our faith in Jesus means we cannot view sin lightly but severely. And viewing sin severely means we seek to sever ties with it. When we say, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” we are affirming sin = death. Therefore, we treasure God’s ways, we value Jesus’ words, and we strive to be a faithful witness of Christ with our head (thinking), heart (character), and hands (lifestyle).  

When we say, “I have been crucified with Christ,” we are affirming sin = death. Therefore, we treasure God’s ways, value Jesus’ words, and strive to be a faithful witness of Christ with our head (thinking), heart (character), and hands (lifestyle).

  • So, we don’t coddle sin but kill it. We have 2 natures, and the one we feed will keep growing. We must invest time into God’s word so that we understand what needs to cultivate or change in our life. We invest time with God’s people for models to follow and mentors to form our life.
  • After we fall, we move forward. Paul says, “And the life I now live in the flesh.” In other words, though we are saved we are still human and will sin. So, Christ living in me crucifies my sin but also raises me to newness of life. Later in Galatians, Paul says, “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desire, and keeps in step with the Spirit” (Gal 5:23-25).

I am raised with Christ.

For someone who becomes a Christian – believes in Jesus; what’s next? Paul says, “I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

We live by faith in the Son of God. Our faith is not general but specific. We follow Jesus.

  • Jesus was sinless, so we strive to sin less.
  • Jesus was serious about Scripture, so we strive to read and reflect truth. We are living sacrifices – not dying for God but living for Jesus.
  • Jesus served others, so we stive to be the hands and feet of Jesus. We cannot serve everywhere and give to everyone, but we can serve and give somewhere. So, our church has a variety of ministries: Greeters, CM, TL/AHG, YM, Momentum, Sisters, Park60, Music, A&V, B&G, and more. And remember, using your gifts is not about clique friendships but spreading the gospel for strangers to become friends, and friends become forever family in Christ.
  • Jesus suffered, so we endure with joy. Like Jesus, Paul suffered.
    • Paul struggled with sin (Rom 7:18 “I know nothing good dwells in me. I desire to do right but I do wrong.”)
    • Paul suffered persecution (2 Cor 11:23, ff) “imprisonments, countless beatings often near death, 3x shipwrecked, danger from rivers/wilderness, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from strangers, danger inside church (false Christians), in toil & hardship, many sleepless nights, hunger w/o food, exposure in cold… and daily pressure to serve God’s church.”
    •  Paul stressed with a thorn in the flesh (2Cor 12). We don’t know exactly what the issue was, but it was likely a physical handicap/pain.  

The Christian’s faith is not general but specific. We follow Jesus.

All this to say is that being raised to life doesn’t mean a life without problems but perspective in them. We are seated with Christ, therefore our faith helps us to focus on what is true and what to do when life gets us down. We are a good news people in a bad news world.

APPLY/TAKEAWAYS

And this leads me to the title of my message: Whistling In The Graveyard.

At first appearance, whistling in a graveyard may sound disrespectful. Cemeteries are not places of cheer or celebration. Tombstones remind us of terrible loss and the 6’ deep topography of separation. Yet, the reason burial grounds are sacred is not because of the land but because of the lives they represent.

When we think of deceased loved ones, they bring a smile thinking of their face, laughter from past memories, and happiness in our heart. And, for the Christian, we know death is but a doorway, and while bones are buried the spirits of believers are in eternal bliss before their Savior and Lord.

Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many rooms… I am preparing a place for you” (Jn 14:2).

Paul said, “When we are removed from our earthly home, we have a home from God, a house not made with human hands but that is eternal in the heavens… God has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So, while we are home in the body we are away from the Lord; yet we look forward to when we are absent from the body to be present with the Lord.” (2Cor 5:1-8 paraphrase)

John said, there is coming a day when “Jesus will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be grief, nor crying, nor pain anymore… behold all things are being made new” (Rev 21:4-5)

So, whistling in the graveyard is the outlook of resurrection life.

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Gal 2:20

Jesus’ sacrificial love gives us

  • Courage amid crisis
  • Joy amid trials
  • Hope amid hardship
  • And a song amid suffering.

We sing:

Death, where is your sting?
Your power is as dead as my sin.
The cross has taught me to live and mercy my heart now to sing:
The day and its troubles shall come, but I know God’s strength is enough
The scandal of grace that Jesus died in my place, so my soul will live…
Forever this hope in our heart.

[1] For more details on the 5-E’s, see: https://growinggodlygenerations.com/2023/04/06/can-we-believe-the-resurrection-of-jesus/

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