The Day Christ 'Lied'

If you saw the bulletin today, or you saw the sermon title, you might have been shocked.

Cecile said yes. Fernando, yes.

We all know about the day Jesus Christ died. Many books, movies, and articles detailing the events on the day Christ died have been read and seen by most of us here today. But are you familiar with the day that Jesus Christ lied? L-I-E-D. Is there a premise in which you would believe that Jesus Christ, your Lord and Savior, the Messiah, would have lied? Or my last two questions, statements, total blaspheme to you. I will preface my sermon today with a scripture I'd like you to turn to. It's in Hebrew 6. Hebrew 6 and verse 18 from a New King James. Preface my sermon today with... Verse 18 says, it is impossible for God to lie. It is impossible for God to lie. Which also relates to Titus 1 and verse 2 that says, which states, God, who cannot lie.

So then, why the title, the day that Christ lied? The reason is, some people, even in this room today, believe that Jesus Christ lied. They believe He lied. It is in their hearts. It is in their minds. It is in their actions. It is in their belief system. They may look around the room and say, who in the world would think that? Let's look today at the perceived lie.

Had He perceived lie? If you would, I'd like you to turn. I'm reading from the New King James. John 10, chapter 10, verse 10.

The perceived lie.

Verse 10 says, I have come that they may have life and live it more abundantly.

I have come that they, that means us, we are His sheep. I have come that they may have life and live it more abundantly. Let's look at the context for the proper exegesis, which is just a fancy theological term, for taking the meaning out of the Scripture. Compare that to Isagesis, where we put in or add to the Scripture, which we do not like to do.

We like to pull out of the Scripture. The meaning of that Scripture is. John 10, 10. I have come that they may have life. The Greek word is dozoic, Z-O-E.

And the Greek word means to live.

And says, and that they may have it. Your New King James says, more abundantly, the more was actually added from the original translation. The English translators added more to it. It's actually that they may have it abundantly. And the Greek word abundant, abundantly, means overflowing above and beyond.

A few translators with an agenda said that this only referred to eternal life. That's what it meant. These stoics, translators, and also teachers, and there are a few, there were a few, not much anymore. But they believe that you shouldn't really be able, or God has not ordained, that we should enjoy life. Even though the second fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5.22 is joy.

But these writers and too many people have looked at this and said, well, it's just talking about heaven, or it's talking about eternal life. But all it takes is to read the context, which most people can do. That's why most people reject that teaching. And you'll find it is referring to not only the gift of eternal life, which is eventually given, but to this life now. And Christ was referring to this life now. The linguist who translated this verse in the New Living Translation might help us to see what the author's intent was. Because in John 10.10 in the New Living Translation, this same verse says, My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. Is that what you believe? You believe Jesus Christ came that we may have a rich and satisfying life, or that it's just all about the future.

Look at chapter 10. I want you to look at the context. Since proper exegesis are taking scriptures apart, the interpretation of scripture, you have to understand about the verses before and even those after. Many people pull out one verse out of a book, out of any of the books, and make a whole doctrine after.

But in chapter 10, I want you to realize this is in the last six months of Jesus Christ's life. Chapter 10 of John takes place on a unique day, the eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles. The eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles. Christ was teaching. It's very interesting because the day actually began, that last, the eighth day of the Feast, actually began in chapter 8. And so here we have an inside look at a holy day, the eighth day of the Feast. Last day of the Feast. We have an opportunity to see what Christ confronted that last day of the Feast of Tabernacles. Because he gives us a detailed look in chapter 8 and chapter 9, and then halfway through chapter 10.

And we see that Jesus Christ, as his life had been before, everything he did was questioned. And that he even goes and heals a man on a holy day, as he'd done and healed on the Sabbath before, but this was a high day.

He was questioned. What are you doing? And as you can read in chapter 9, you'll see that the leaders of that day believed that life was supposed to be hard. Very hard. And the harder your life was, the better the reward. And they taught that to these people. And they were considered the teachers, the Pharisees, the scribes, were considered the shepherds over the people. They were to teach the people. And after three years, Jesus Christ saw firsthand what kind of teachers, shepherds they really were.

And so he comes to chapter 10, in verse 1. He said, Most assuredly I say unto you, He who did not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same as a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his sheep, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, and they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him. For they do not know the voice of strangers. Is it any wonder? He mentions this after being at this feast, keeping the Feast of Tabernacles as everyone is coming to him to listen to him. The true Shepherd.

Verse 6, Jesus said, Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which he spoke to them. Then Jesus said to them, Most assuredly, I say unto you, I am the great I AM. He is pronouncing here, even, that he is the I AM. That he is God. I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before me are thieves and robbers, and the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.

The thief does not come except to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I AM the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd gives his life for his sheep. You read this on down to verse 21. And Jesus Christ is standing up, giving almost a parallel account to Psalm 23.

Because David in Psalm 23 gave this beautiful, beautiful story, I like to say, about the Lord being his shepherd. The very same person who was standing here before, all the nation, telling that he is a shepherd. He is the one. And that we need to follow him. To live a spiritual life should be an abundant life.

To follow Christ, which few do in this world. Compare that to those who do not. Think about it. What are the fears in the world out there for those who do not follow Christ's Word?

I don't have AIDS.

I don't have any sexual transmitted diseases. Most of you do not, either. I do not have to worry when I take a trip that my wife will decide that it's okay to find another man.

I do not go to bed at night in fear of my life, even though I've locked my doors. I do not have a fear that keeps me from driving because of people who are killed daily on the roads.

How about you? Do you like the peace of mind that God grants us? God's Word translation of John 10.10 says, So they will have life and have everything they need.

Like you turn to Matthew 11. Matthew 11.

Incredible verses in Matthew 11. I want to just touch on three. Matthew 11 and verse 28. Here is Jesus Christ making this statement. And what does he say? Come to me.

Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart. And you will find rest for your souls. Don't we all need rest for our souls? Then he says, For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

It's not a hard life.

This is what he's saying. But many people in their minds and in their hearts say it is.

Did Christ lie?

My yoke is easy. The Greek word in easy actually means good, helpful, kind, profitable. This yoke that he's talking about, he's referencing here in the Greek. They used a Greek word picture, and it says, like, this yoke is like feathers to a bird. Like feathers to a bird.

All the birds I've seen, I think, pretty much like their feathers. Is your life abundant?

If not, Christ lied.

Or, or we are doing something wrong. Which is it? Which is it?

Christ lied, or are we doing something wrong?

Like you turn to Isaiah 26.

Isaiah 26, if you will.

Verse 3 from the New King James.

Talking about God here, Isaiah is telling, he said, you, God, you will keep him in perfect peace.

Whose mind is what? Stayed on you.

Could be a key here, huh?

Because he trusts in you, trust in the Lord forever.

Do we believe those Satan's? Like you turn to Psalm.

The book of Psalms, Psalm 145, to be exact.

Psalm 145.

Verse 16.

Psalm of David. It says, God, you open your hand, and satisfy the desire of every living thing.

Is that a lie?

Can you read that and say, well, I don't believe that.

And I say, really? Let's go back to Psalm 37.

Psalm 37, verse 4.

It says, Delight yourself in the Lord, and one of the most powerful, and if it isn't a memory scripture, maybe it should be, for us to remember the second part of verse 4. Delight yourself also in the Lord, and he shall give you the desires of your heart. Has he?

Has he given you the desires of your heart?

Or will you say, that's a lie?

I don't have.

All the desires I need.

Line after line after line after verse after verse after verse from Psalm Proverbs and Ecclesiastes says the same thing just in different words that Jesus Christ said in John 10. That it is about abundance, not only the kingdom of God, but the time that we are living now. They all propose the abundant life while walking with God.

We could spend two sermons just going through every scripture, making that point.

But I asked, do you believe Jesus Christ? Or in your heart, do you say, Jesus Christ lied?

And if he did, he is no one's Messiah.

And to put it boldly, you may be in the wrong church. Because I think the majority of people in this room believe John 10. 10.

Is Jesus Christ's statement in John 10. 10 part of your belief system?

Do you believe it in here? Even if you've been sick, you've been poor, you've been persecuted.

You were made fun of.

Do you still believe? I can honestly say a lot of my days are not abundant.

Let me say that again. I can honestly say a lot of my days are not abundant.

But you know it has to do more with me than Christ. I think many of you can say the same thing.

It is not what we do or don't do in this life. But it's about what Christ does in us, as Bruce talked about in the opening prayer.

That's what it's about.

Those days when... those trying days...

See, I realize that I need to count my blessings instead of thinking my blessings don't count. It's a Chinese proverb that says, The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials.

It's been that way in my life. Like you turn over to John 16.

Read this every year, Passover. John 16 in verse 33, I just like to read it. Such a powerful statement.

John 16 in verse 33 in the New King James says, These things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. Peace. Isn't that what so many people are looking for today?

In the world, you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer. For I have overcome the world.

Showing that if he can overcome the world, so can we. But it's interesting in the original Greek.

The word will is not in there, but it actually reads, In the world, you have tribulation. But as you can see, the writers will have tribulation. There's tribulation all over the world today.

But we don't have tribulation in this room today, do we? We have Jesus Christ and God the Father. I'll read this from the original Greek. The original Greek says, I have spoken these things to you, that you may have peace in me. You have distress in the world, but I am encouraged.

I have overcome the world.

But people will look and say, yeah, Christ also said, because here you are, Chuck, building this thing up about John 10-10.

But have you not read what Jesus Christ said in Matthew 7, 13 and 14? But I think, no! Australia is a gay, difficult is a way. Don't you realize? Christ was saying, it's not supposed to be hard. Everything's going to be hard. It's going to be hard for you to even get up and go in the morning. Because that's the way it's supposed to be.

And they pull out scriptures, and yet they leave so many.

Not turn to the show.

Let's go back to Matthew 7. Remember the Sermon on the Mount? Such an empowering message. Matthew 7.

Matthew 7, verse 13 says, Enter by the narrow gate. For wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leads to destruction. There are many, many who go in by it.

Had someone tell me not long ago, yes, see? That's the easy one. But we've been given the hard way.

And so, maybe if your life isn't hard, you're not going down the right way.

I can't buy that. I can't back it up with scripture. But 14 says, because narrow is the gate, and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. And they made the point. Okay, it says, narrow is the gate, and difficult. If you have a new King James, do you have a margin in the middle for the word difficult? Because it wasn't. It was put in, substituted. Because if you have one, which I do, the actual word difficult is the word confined. Narrow is this path.

Narrow and confined.

But you know, that's not troubling to me. I, Mary, or myself, do not feel confined by the Ten Commandments.

That's why 1 John 5.3 says, Commandments are not burdensome. It's a way of life, abundant way of life. Mary doesn't say, well, Chuck's gone next weekend, let's see, where do I go to find a blond-haired guy?

But she says, wait a minute, no, I can't do that, because I'm confined by those commandments. Oh, my life! I could be living so much better. Think she says that?

That's how some people view God's way of life.

That's sad. That is really sad. And you may say, well, Pastor Smith, your life may be easy and abundant, but mine's not. I've never received all the promised blessings. My life's been difficult and tough, and I've tried to follow God. Don't you realize those scriptures? Acts 14, verse 22 says, we must, through many tribulations, enter the kingdom of God.

Read the context of Acts 14. Paul had just been stoned, and they thought he was dead, and he got up and entered another city, and this was his first statement to the other city. How empowering! That's not a statement that I look as negative. I look, yeah, I went through that. They thought I was dead. Pick me up! We've got work to do. And the next few verses, he goes ahead and makes dink in the elders in these cities. That's positive.

Romans 8, 18, For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared, with the glory that shall be revealed in us. Sorry, I can't find negativity in that statement. To me, that's empowering.

Let's look at that Matthew 7, verse 14 again in the context. The word narrow in the Greek literally means pressed. Pressed. In your old King James, the actual word is straight. S-T-R-A-I-T, not S-T-R-A-I-G-H-T, but S-T-R-A-I-T, which is not the same meaning.

He said, like a pathway in a mountain gorge, that you're hemmed in between walls or rocks, and you're going down this path. Have any of you ever gone to Chattanooga, Tennessee? Thank you, Ben. You, Ben? Okay. Anybody else? Just two? Three? Okay.

I went there as a child. My parents took me, since we lived only about an hour and a half from it. They took me to this place in Lookout Mountain. Huge. Remember that? Yes. Stephen. You can see Lookout Mountain. Oh, you were driving through. That's right. Remember that story?

So here was this path that they gave us to Lookout Mountain. And in one area, you had to go through this path. So I went across this bridge, this swinging bridge, wood-springing bridge. You remember? You might have seen them on TV. But it was this long that went over this gorge. And I remember being a kid, jumping up and down on it. My mother going, stop! Stop! Just get across there. But it was very narrow. I'm sure you would have done the same thing as a kid. But as we crossed this bridge, there were these huge boulders, carved out place in the mountain. And it was just this little path, which was real skinny. And it was actually called Fat Man Squeeze. If you go there today, you'll see Fat Man Squeeze. Well, at the time, I didn't think it was very big because I was a 10-year-old kid. So I went through like this, where my parents had to squeeze through, going through the side. They were pressed because that road was narrow.

Christ here was referring to a treacherous path, a hard climb, perhaps, very small, narrow pathway.

And it led you to the other side, not a flat place on the plane where everything's just wide open.

You see, when he says narrow is a gate, that's a good thing. What he's actually saying is, many people, they don't want to go down that road. They'd have to go where the wide open path where they just do anything they want to do. Why don't I just marry somebody that thinks that way? How do you think that would turn out? Doing anything they want to do. You want to raise your kids? You want to tell them there's a narrow path, as most people basically want to raise their kids that way. There's a confined rules and laws we need to go by. Or do you want to raise your kids and go, I just do whatever you want to do.

This is what Christ is teaching. Negative? I don't think so. Not in my way of thinking. But for those people who have the negative thoughts, they may say, but the Christian life is supposed to be sunshine and palm trees.

Just like Florida.

And Florida is beautiful. You see the sunshine? And you see the palm trees? But go stand out there today on that asphalt for a while. And all of a sudden, sunshine has a downside sometimes. And the palm trees? Coconut fall on your head? And they said more people are killed by coconuts falling on your head than by shark attacks.

Yes, it is beautiful. And if you were in Cincinnati, Ohio, where I was, January, the last week of January of this year, and it's 14 degrees below zero, and it was 80 degrees here, you'd think you found paradise. Sunshine and palm trees.

But this life, we live it, right? You live here, taxes are high.

It's a struggle sometimes to make ends meet, have to work hard.

James 1. We will turn there. James 1.

James 1.

Verse 2. James 1 and verse 2. It says, My brethren, come at all joy when you fall into various trials. We're supposed to be even happy when those trials come. Because you know what? They're always going to be here. We can either look at it like the sermon. Glass can be half empty or half full. Knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. So even when my faith is tested, I'm building patience. A godly attribute.

The only thing I said this morning in my prayer, I asked that God would grant me the patience that He has with me.

Just give me part of that. Because I get impatient. Frustrated. I must think how He must feel with me sometimes.

Verse 4. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. That's what it's about. He's just making it. He's just perfecting us like that gem that has friction to polish it. If any of you lacks wisdom, let Him ask of God, who gives it to all. What? Liberally. What's that word mean?

An abundance! Like, an abundance! He'll give it to you.

Shouldn't it almost be a part of our everyday prayer? Because boy, I sure need it.

And without reproach, and it will be given to Him. But let Him ask in faith with no doubting, for He who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord. He is double-minded and unstable in all of His ways.

He's just asking us to ask in faith. Just trust Him. Believe Jesus Christ told the truth. Jesus Christ did not lie. The big questions of life. Most everyone in this room know them. Why you were born? What is your destiny? What are they worth to us? Are they part of the abundance of life?

My father is not burning in hellfire right now. I know that. My father was a pretty good man. Now, my grandfather, that was a different story. He was not a really good man. But you know what? He's not burning in hellfire, even. And I know that. Because I know the Scriptures. I know what Christ has taught. I know that there's an all-powerful God with a plan for all mankind. And He's got a plan for ISIS too. I don't face my problems alone.

Neither do most of you. I just have to be reminded of that occasionally, but then. Because sometimes I take too much on myself. And there will be peace one day for the entire world. And we're all to be a part of it. We will usher in a peace unknown at any time on planet Earth. In the first chapter of Joshua, the Lord tells Joshua three times one thing. Anybody remember?

Be strong and courageous. You think Joshua heard him? I think God tells you something three times you would be paying attention. Be strong and courageous. You believe He's still saying that to us today? I believe He is. Do you see opportunity as a difficulty? Or every difficulty as an opportunity? Henry Ford made the first American automobile.

But you know, he was not defined by that very first automobile. He made that very first automobile and everyone was excited. But if he was defined by that very first automobile, he would have been considered a failure. He would have been laughed at even today. When he made that very first machine, his focus was on getting you from here to there. They got the machine, the car, running, which was amazing. Never been done before. And they put it in the gear and it went forward. There was just one problem. He forgot reverse. He didn't.

He forgot to put a reverse. His mind was so into making it work and go forward, he didn't think that somewhere you might need to back up. To which that day ended, he started the next day. And within a week or two, he put a reverse. And he is forever remembered. We're not defined by our failures. We're defined by our God and Jesus Christ in us. See, it's not what we do or what we don't do.

We may think we do something really good. It's nothing to God. Or perhaps we think, well, we're kind of a failure because we didn't do that. That doesn't define us. It is what Christ does in us. That guides us, shows us the way. That's what's important, brethren. We just have to do more of letting him guide us, instead of having our own minds. I think of Rama Williams, a comedian, actor who just died, what, two weeks ago, maybe?

You look at him and he had fame, money, power. He wanted Oscar. He won two Emmys. Four Golden Globes and five Grammys. I mean, has that heard of what he accomplished? All the fame. He couldn't walk down the street. He couldn't get on an airplane. Everybody, can I have your offer? Right? He's seen him in the airport. You saw him. Oh, okay. He got his autographs. Fame, money, talent, and in the end, he had no peace. He had no Christ. The only thing he was left with was his belt. Was his belt that he took off and hung himself with his own belt.

Who has abundance? Who has abundance? Now, abundance doesn't mean it's going to be a smoother eye. Just doesn't. But how do we look at it? Do we look at it as difficulty? Or we go, you know, something will get over. Go through, make me stronger. Gary Richmond wrote a book called A View from the Zoo as he worked in this humongous zoo, thousands of acres. And he gave the incredible story of a giraffe, which I'd never seen but one time a giraffe in my life. And I never really got close to it. But they're just these huge animals, right?

Anybody seen one in person? I'd like to. Metrosurf, guess I'll have to go. Yeah, I want to see one, especially after reading part of the book. But a giraffe, when a mother gives birth to a giraffe, a little baby giraffe, I didn't realize they were this tall, but when she gives birth, the baby comes out and falls about 10 foot to the ground. And after it falls to the ground and it is laying there for just minutes, breathing, moving, the mother does something very strange. She takes one of these huge legs of hers and kicks it!

Kicks this baby and sends it rolling in the grass. And it's struggling. And then she goes over again and kicks it again to where it's just kind of, by that time, wobbly, to where it finally gets up on its knees and then gets up on its feet and begins to move and walk. And you think, hmm. And Richmond goes, that was not the incredible part. Incredible part was she walks over and kicks its legs out from under it. This baby. And makes it get up on its feet again.

Why? So it can survive. So it can flourish. So it can learn to get up and take care of itself. God is preparing us in this world for the next one. To be able to help people. He wants us in this life to see the donut, not the hole. Are we going to do that? Are you a hole kind of person? Christ came, he cried, and he died. But he never lied.

He came so that we, all of his followers, could have life and have it in abundance when he is in the center. So as I wrap this up, I want you to think about something. Do we have a little bit of the faith of Moses in each one of us?

If you were Moses, wouldn't you have asked a couple of questions? Because Moses didn't ask him. Do we doubt God has abundance? Think of Moses. Moses left Egypt with 2 to 3 million people minimum. Did he ask out, wait a minute, we're going in the desert. We have very little food and hardly any water. What are we going to do about it? Never see that question asked. Right? This problem was posed to a quartermaster general in the United States Army.

He was asked to do actually a study on it. If he had to feed 2.5 to 3 million people, what would it take? You know what he said? They needed 1,500 tons of food each day. 1,500 tons. To bring that much food each day would take 2 freight trains each one mile long. 4,000 tons of firewood a day to cook the food in a desert. 11 million gallons of water to drink and to wash with each day.

And the campground, that many people with tents set out and the way God had them lined up, very organized to the tee, the camp size 2 thirds of the size of Rhode Island, 750 square miles, just a camp. Do you think Moses figured this out before he left Egypt? He was a military man. Do you really think God has any problem taking care of your needs, taking care of your abundance, brethren? John Mason's book called Believe You Can, he says no one finds life worth living.

You must make it worth living. Because the purpose of life is a life of purpose. So go, brethren go, and finish this Sabbath in abundance. If Satan said it, then I believe it. Is your Savior a liar? Mine's not. Have a great Sabbath.