Sunday 27th April 2008

Today our Vicar, Cameron Barker, continues our look at Paul's letter to the Philipians. The studied reading is Philipians 1:12-30

“If you're not ready to die, then you're not ready to live”. More specifically “if you're not ready to die, then you're not ready to live” the abundant new life that there is in Christ.

That's a headline-grabbing statement I know. And it is meant to be! But it does also provide an accurate title for one of the many sermons that could be preached on this second part of the first chapter of Paul's to Christians in Philippi. Of course I can only preach one sermon today – and this is it. I've gone with this one, because the reality is that if we are truly to live the abundant life that God offers us in Christ, then first we must be ready to die!

That's enough sobriety for now – though there is more of it to come. But first here's a story, about a couple in their mid-80's, who died instantly in car crash. In their 60 years of married life they'd never been well off. But they had always been healthy, thanks to the wife's insistence on a good diet and exercise. On their arrival at the pearly gates St Peter escorted them to a luxuriously furnished mansion – which he told them was their new home. When the man asked how much it was going to cost, St Peter assured him that, this being Heaven, it was theirs for free.

Next he took them to a sumptuous restaurant with a buffet groaning with the richest foods and choicest wines. With a smile St Peter told them that this too was all free – like everything else in Heaven. The man looked nervously at his wife, and then asked where the low cholesterol and low fat options were. St Peter told him they could eat and drink all they liked and never get fat or sick. The man clearly couldn't quite believe it. 'Where's the gym, then?' he asked. 'You don't have to use one,' St Peter said. 'You don't even need a check-up: this is Heaven, remember!' The man glared at his wife: 'If it wasn't for you and your bran muffins we could have been here 10 years ago!'

I know it's only story; but it still makes the point very well. Most of us do as much as we can to stave off death for as long as we can. Not that we acknowledge it, mind. Most of us don't like talking about death – anybody else's, let alone our own; and not even when we know we're dying, usually. Death has been described, I think rightly, as the last taboo in Western society. Hardly anything else is off the agenda for discussion. But we don't like talking – or even thinking – about death. And I do wonder if that's because most of us now aren't at all sure what lies beyond death.

I have asked this question here before; but not for some time; so I'll ask it again now. What do you think is going to happen to you when you die? And, if you think you do know what will happen when you die, what's that based on? Is it based on some vague wishful thinking that everything will be alright, because it somehow has to be? Or is it based on what Jesus said and did by dying to give you eternal life? In other words, is your view of death based on the solid hope that the Christian faith has taught, and that individual believers have held onto in any and all circumstances for 2 000 years? Or is it based on something else? And, if so, on what? Maybe that's the one thing that God wants you to take from today. Do you need to look at what you believe about your death and why; and perhaps change that in the light of these facts?

Well, if you want a concrete example of what that solid Christian hope looks like, search no further than today's passage. Death wasn't the main topic of Paul's letter, or even of this part of it. But he certainly didn't mind talking about death when it came up! Paul wrote about death with total certainty of what it would mean for him. He was convinced that when he died he would be with his Lord and Master, Jesus. Jesus, and spreading the good news about him, had become the purpose of Paul's life. As he wrote here, Paul lived for Christ. He, Jesus, and bringing him glory, was what Paul lived for. For Paul to die was only gain, because then he would know and live in full what he only could partly do in life!

In fact, Paul wrote that, given a free choice, he would prefer to die. That wasn't because he was depressed by his imprisonment, the uncertainties that it brought, or by what he felt was a worthless life. No, welcoming his death was a positive choice for Paul. It was one of faith and trust in his eternal future that he believed was totally assured by and with Jesus. And this was a choice that Paul made in the context of the real possibility of his own death, don't forget! He spelled that all out very clearly for his friends in Philippi. As we saw last week, he'd started his letter by expressing his concern and prayers for them. He knew that they were equally concerned for him in his plight. So Paul wrote next not just about the reality of what he was facing, but also about how he saw it all through eyes of faith.

It's important to recognise that what Paul wrote here was not based on his feelings. In another letter he wrote about how down he got during these long, uncertain months of imprisonment. But for Paul the facts didn't ever change; and those counted for far more than feelings. His faith was solidly based on the facts of who Jesus was and what he had done. The facts guaranteed that, even if Paul was executed, that would not be the end of the story. Death wouldn't be the end: for Paul, or for the Philippian church – any more than death had been the end of the story for Jesus himself. Paul's feelings about what he was having to endure may well have fluctuated. But the facts didn't – and it was in those that Paul trusted, during his imprisonment and for his eternal future. So is that what God is saying to you today? Do you need to rely more on the facts of faith than on fluctuating feelings – no matter how challenging your circumstances may be?

Regardless, we must note that Paul didn't think that he was actually going to die just then. He knew that he might – and he was certainly ready to die. But Paul was equally willing to keep on living – for the sake of the gospel! Paul knew his job was far from done: there were churches, like this one, to keep on caring for; there were more churches to plant. His life's aim and purpose remained the same: it was to bring glory to Christ – at all times; in all ways; and in all circumstances. Paul wanted that to be so, whether he was released from prison and visited them, or whether he was executed. For Paul, to die was gain, and to live was Christ. The detail was safely in God's hands, he believed. So all Paul wanted was for the Philippians to pray for him to face whatever happened with God's courage and strength. And there could be no better lesson than that for us to learn too!

Equally amazingly, Paul even saw how he could bring glory to Christ right where he was! At the start of our passage, Paul even rejoiced because of the ways that the cause of the gospel had been advanced by him being in prison! As he explained, that had happened in 2 specific ways. Paul, being Paul, had lost no opportunity to tell his guards about Jesus! As they were chained to him in 4 hour shifts they'd all have heard why Paul was locked up, and about what he believed, and why. And the other prisoners would have heard that too; and no doubt some of them would have come to faith as a result. Talk about a challenging lesson in making the most of any and all circumstances for Christ! Could that be the lesson that you need to learn today?

Either way, Paul's imprisonment had had other knock-on effects as well. With him not around, others in the church had stepped into his place. Yes, Paul had been arrested for preaching about Jesus. Despite that fact, other people had started proclaiming the same message – and doing it 'fearlessly and boldly', as Paul proudly wrote. They knew what they potentially faced: sharing Paul's fate. But, out of their love for Christ and their desire to share his gospel with people who needed to hear it they took that risk. And once again we must ask ourselves if that's the lesson that God wants us to learn today. Are there ways in which we can and must share the gospel 'fearlessly and boldly', despite the risks that we may run by doing so?

Now we don't have time to explore this business of people preaching for the wrong motives. I'm happy to follow Paul's lead on that, though – and ask what it matters! The point, as Paul made it, is that more people got to hear the good news about Jesus – and had their lives changed by it. They, like Paul, and many people here, discovered their purpose for living – to bring glory to God! For Paul that was good enough – though we mustn't draw the conclusion from this that the ends justify the means. Paul was quick to remind the Philippians how their lives, like ours, must be worthy of the gospel. And that, of course is one lesson that all Christians need to learn all the time. We need to learn how what we do, and how we do, must be in keeping with our proclaimed faith.

This is the point that Paul ended with, and so will I. Above all, Paul wanted the Philippians to live out their status as citizens of heaven. This refers back to last week, when he urged them to be saints. In this context that meant a range of quite specific things. Paul wanted the Philippians to be united in their faith. He urged them to stand firm on what they believed. He encouraged them not to be afraid in the face of their opponents, but rather to be courageous. And, if they did all those things, Paul wrote, that, in itself, would be a powerful witness to the truth of the good news of Christ. Yes, they, like us, had been given this special privilege of believing in him. But that also meant suffering for him, as they had seen Paul do, and now heard that he still did.

It's a ringing note for us to end on today. At all times, in all ways, in all circumstances, Christians must remember our chief purpose in life – to bring glory to Christ. That is to be as true of us as we view death as it is to be of us in how we live. This is why God has put his new heart in us – to be his people, who live for him and share his good news. It begins by us being ready to die. It continues in how we face any difficult situations that we may have to in life. We're to rely on the facts, not our feelings. We're to stand in God's courage and strength – and, by doing so, declare the truth of the gospel boldly and fearlessly. We are to make the most of every opportunity. And the whole of our lives, individually and corporately, must also declare the truth of the gospel. Yes, it is a challenge; but, to live is Christ – and to die is gain, remember. So let's pray for grace to be God's holy people, then ...

Sermon 20th April 2008

Today our Vicar, Cameron Barker, delivers a sermon based on the reading from Philipians 1: verses 1-11

One fine summer's day a senior partner, a trainee solicitor and a legal secretary took a short-cut through a park on their way to a business lunch. The trainee spotted an antique oil lamp in a bush, which the partner instantly claimed. As she began rubbing it with the secretary's scarf out popped a Genie, in a puff of smoke. “I usually only grant 3 wishes” the Genie said, “so you can each have one”.

“Me first” said the secretary. “I want to be in the Bahamas, driving my own speedboat, without a care in the world”. And poof, she was gone!

“Me next”, said the trainee. “I want to be on a beach in Goa, with an endless supply of cocktails and money, and the love of my life at my side”. And poof, he was gone!

“OK your turn”, the Genie said to the partner. And she said, “What I want is for those two to be sat at the table in time for lunch”!

Now I'd best confess that that story doesn't bear too much relation to what follows. Except perhaps that we often see God's role as rather like that of the senior partner! If we're honest, we tend to think of God as a bit of a spoiler, who doesn't like us enjoying life. But nothing could be further from the truth. It was Jesus himself who said that he came to give us life – and not just any life, but life in all its fullness. And so that's precisely what we're going to be exploring from now to the summer. We're going to see how God has indeed given us life, in all its fullness. And the way we're going to do that is by working through Paul's letter to the church in ancient Philippi.

Now it could also be said that those who think of God as a spoiler often see Paul as his chief enforcer! The picture of Paul that we tend to have is of a stern kill-joy, who wouldn't know a good time if it smacked him in the face. But, as we'll see in this series, again that's far from the truth. Paul, like his Lord and Master Jesus, wanted nothing more than for people to live life to the fullest – as God intended us to live. And that fact shines through this wonderful letter that Paul wrote to people that he knew and loved dearly.

What's so amazing is that Paul wrote a letter like this from prison! There's much debate over where Paul was locked up at the time – Rome, Ephesus, or perhaps Corinth. But there's no debate about the fact that Paul wrote this, or about why he wrote. Basically Philippians is a 'thank you' letter. The church in Philippi had sent Paul a gift, and it was one that he greatly needed. In the Roman world you had to fend for yourself when you were imprisoned. You had to pay for your own food and supplies, which couldn't have been easy for travelling preacher like Paul. So these Christians sent him what he needed; both money and someone to help him.

Now this took place at least 10 years after Paul had set up the church in Philippi. Yes, he'd been back to visit them, and had kept in touch over the years. But Paul was now a long way away from them. And it's true to say that if the Philippians hadn't really liked Paul they wouldn't have bothered to support him in these very practical ways. But the reality is that they felt the same way about Paul as he clearly felt about them. That speaks volumes about Paul as a person, and what he was like. So does the rest of this letter, both because it came from Paul's heart, and because its main purpose wasn't to teach or rebuke the readers.

Now it will help to pause there, and refresh our memories about the history behind this. You'll need to re-read Acts 16 yourself for the amazing details of Paul's arrival in the key Roman city of Philippi. It's a gripping read, not least because of what happened to bring about the birth of the church in Philippi. The first member was a rich woman called Lydia, whom Paul had met by the river. But things had really taken off when Paul had cast a demon out of a fortune-telling slave girl. That had landed Paul and Silas in prison for the night – during which there was an earthquake. The Roman jailer feared that his prisoners had escaped, and was about to kill himself, until Paul stopped him. The jailer became a Christian that night instead, along with his whole family, and they then joined this remarkable church.

In many ways this, the first church on mainland Europe was a microcosm of the Roman world. Its members were rich and poor, slave and free, Roman and Greek, Jew and Gentile, male and female, and people of all ages. No wonder Paul liked it so much – even if he couldn't stay too long in Philippi because of what had happened there. But, as I say, Paul had kept in touch with this church, and he prayed for them often. And we can tell how highly he regarded them from the way he addressed them at the start of his letter. In the Greek Paul called the Philippians “saints” – and himself a “slave”, note – which isn't at all what we might expect! But, in fact, saint was just another word for Christian; because that is what we are meant to be!

And in one sense that is what we already are! Hard as it may be to believe, anyone who is 'in Jesus Christ' – which is one of Paul's favourite phrases in his letters – is a saint! It's not that we're perfect, but rather that this is part of our identity as members of God's family. You see, to be a Christian is to be one of God's holy people, and so, a saint. And here, as he often did, Paul wrote to encourage his readers to be what they already were! The difference is that here Paul wrote more as their friend than as an apostle. His appeal to the Philippians to live as what they already were in Christ was based on his own example – and that of Timothy – as willing slaves of Jesus.

Paul was usually a great one for leading by example. And that is nowhere more true than in his praying. In the rest of today's instalment of this letter, we have Paul's prayer for the Philippian Christians. This is what he wanted them to be; and so this is how he prayed for them to be! But note how he began his prayers for them with thanks and joy. And joy is another key theme of this letter, despite the dire circumstance it was written in. Note too how Paul's prayer for the Philippians was full of confidence. It wasn't confidence in any gifts or abilities that the Philippians may have had in their own right. No, his prayer expressed Paul's total confidence in God's ability to finish what he had started in them!

And that's another key theme in this letter: God's ability to finish what he starts. As Paul wrote, “He who began this good work in you will carry it on until it is finished on the Day of Christ Jesus”. Of course Paul had good evidence to base such confidence on. There was all God had done, and was continuing to do, in his own life. There was also what God had done in the Philippian church. Over the years they had grown, in numbers and in faith, in good times and in bad. These gifts they had sent him were just another expression of the partnership that the Philippians had shared with Paul from the time that he'd set up the church.

And so Paul always thanked God for them in his prayers. He held them close to his heart for all that they had done for and with him over the years, both in good times and in bad. Paul even claimed – with God as his witness – that he loved the Philippians with the kind of love that came from Jesus himself. And, because that was so, in his prayers Paul also always trusted that God would help them to continue to grow in their faith, no matter what. In particular, Paul prayed that their own God-given love would keep on growing, or abound, more and more. And, in addition, Paul prayed that such a love would have other specific results.

We'll get to those, but 1st I'll state the obvious! When Paul prayed that the Philippians' love would keep on growing, he meant for that to be very visible! It already was visible, like in the gifts they'd sent him in prison, for example. But, as saints, as God's holy people, their job was to live out and show God's love, for God, for each other, and for God's world. And, as with all of us, there was always room for doing more of that. But, of course they – like us – had to find ways to do that appropriately. So, as part of their growing love, Paul also prayed that the Philippians would grow in true knowledge, and in depth of insight. Then they would be able to discern what was God's best at all times – and be free from blame on the Day of Judgement.

It is a truly amazing prayer. Of course any church leader shouldn't just want to pray it for their church, but should be praying it for them! So don't be too surprised to hear more about this prayer as our series unfolds. And don't be shy about praying it, for yourself and for this church either! If you do want to live to the full this abundant new life that God has given you in Christ, you saints, then pray this prayer! In effect it's a prayer for a new heart, a Godly sort of heart, the type of heart that wants to grow in faith and trust and God's kind of love in any and all circumstances. It's the sort of prayer that God longs for us to pray. And he will answer it, because “he who began this good work in you will carry it on until it is finished on the Day of Christ Jesus”, remember.

That is what Paul believed God could, and would, do. And so that's what he prayed for this church, for these saints. He knew that this was – and is – the way to the best kind of life that anyone could ever want. Imagine having your life “filled with the truly good qualities which only Jesus Christ can produce” – and doing it all “for the glory and praise of God”! Once again, in this area Paul led his readers by his own example, both in what they'd seen while he was with them, and in what they had heard and read since. But they knew too that Paul firmly believed that such a life was not reserved for 'special' people, like him. This was – and is – God's best for all those he has given his abundant life to.

So, this is what God wants, for you and from you. Is it what you want, though? If so, pray this prayer for God's new heart today – and then keep on listening to how Paul told these believers they could live it out. Over the coming weeks that's what we will hear: how to live God's abundant new life in Christ. As we'll see, it's a holy life; it's a life of growing love and holy repentance; it's a life of faith and trust; it's a life of giving and growing; it's a life of true knowledge and perfect judgement. It's a life filled with truly good qualities which only Jesus Christ can produce. It's a life lived for the glory and praise of God. And there can be no better life. So lets pray that we learn to live it ...

Sermon from 6th April 2008

Today's sermon is delivered by our Associate Vicar, John Itumu, and is based on the gospel reading from Luke 24:13-35

On the road to Emmaus
It must have been an awfully difficult time for the followers of Jesus at this time. Imagine the news:
Firstly:
The report from some local well known women – including Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James that they had found an empty tomb – with the stone rolled away, the cloth and linen that had wrapped the dead body left behind.
Secondly:
These same people claim that some two angels had told them not to look for Jesus in the tomb because he has indeed been raised to life as he had said he would.
In John’s account of the same incident, Mary Magdalene is actually spoken to by Jesus himself. (John 20:16ffd).

This was impossible to believe. It is no wonder the faithful witness of these women is evaluated as nonsense 24:11
Idle tales, foolish talk, madness – are among other bible versions descriptions of what the women words sound like.

The Greek translates into useless chatter – a word belonging to medicine vocabulary which describes the hallucination caused by high fever. We should probably expect this from Luke, described as a doctor by Paul in Colossians 4:14

Now look at this again; Peter apparently witnesses exactly what the women see but instead of confirming this strange news, goes away wondering to himself what had happened. Lk 24:12 Could it be that he didn’t want to be associated with this chatter?

But these are the raw facts: someone you knew very well and who you witnessed tortured and crucified and buried has been seen walking around in the neighbourhood… that is not easy everyday stuff.
The prophetic ministry of Jesus; his death at the hands of the Jerusalem temple leadership and now the resurrection was simply too much to make sense of. Don’t forget that just a week before a section of the city had danced to him singing Hosanna, Hosanna! It was clear from Jewish scriptures that anyone left hanging on a pole is under God’s curse. Deut 21:23. Certainly not a Messiah – the anointed one.

Let’s face it, believing the resurrection was tough for them. It is tough for many folk today to believe in the resurrection. Many wish we could have a brand of Christianity that didn’t assault our highly trained rationalized thinking; presented in a form that we can logically comprehend and make sense of; not packaged with bizarre long tales like the resurrection – this is foolish talk, useless chatter.
Just last week the Dean of St Georges Cathedral in Perth Australia urged Anglicans “to be set free from the idea that the resurrection was an extraordinary physical event that restored to life Jesus’ original body – there is nothing historical about the resurrection.” He adds “no one knows what happened to Jesus when he rose from the dead”. In other words, what we just read a few minutes ago is a load of drivel. We need to be set free – it also then means that anyone that believes in the resurrection is in bondage. We want freedom to belief what we want!

The central belief of Christianity is still useless chatter to many people – even those who wish to have the Christian label on them. I will repeat Cameron’s words of last week…if you don’t believe in the resurrection you are not a believer. Unsettling words!

How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken!, an incognito Jesus asks Cleopas and his partner. The description ‘two of them’ characterizes them as among those who had earlier dismissed the women’s testimony as useless chatter.

You would have thought that this encounter with the key player in the saga would help to corroborate the idle tales of the women – but no, it does not. These followers of Jesus fail once again to grasp the upside down new world order that Jesus has talked about continuously in his three years ministry; the oxymoron of a crucified Messiah.

And this is not Jesus’ first time to talk about it:
Luke 9:44
Listen carefully to what I am going to tell you. The Son of man is going to be delivered over to human hands. But they did not understand what this meant… could not grasp it…they were afraid to ask him
Luke 18:31ffd
Jesus took the twelve aside and told them, we are going to Jerusalem and everything that is written about the Son of ma by the prophets will be fulfilled. He will be handed over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him they will flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again. The disciples did not understand any of this. The meaning was hidden from them…

Then and even today, the key to making sense of the death of Jesus lies in interpreting it in the light of scripture – God’s revelation to us. The purposes of God in relation to the career of Jesus will be revealed to anyone who will faithfully dare to engage in the study of scripture. Equally, we will only understand scripture in the light of what happened to Jesus. The two inform each other. There lies the key that would have helped the disciples to recognize the risen Jesus – make the connections.

And so the risen Jesus grasps this Emmaus road opportunity to take these disillusioned disciples back to the basics – scripture. He lays bare the facts as they are. Later Cleopas and his friend recall that their hearts were burning while scripture was being opened to them by Jesus.
It is not a magical thing. The truth is that the word of God changes lives. It brings understanding. It illumines the dark corners of our hearts. Here is an open invitation to seriously and regularly engage with the word of God as written in scripture. It is powerful and life transforming.
Hear what scripture says about itself:

Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Psalm 119:105
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.

We live in a world that is thirsty of knowledge – who am I, why am I here, where am I going? These are good questions that instil in many a determination to search for the truth. We want to know, and we can smell an ignoramus a mile off. But, there is knowledge and knowledge - if we really want to know, and to conform to the original beings that God intended, we will take time with this word, God’s word.

Look again at this irony: Cleopas asks Jesus; are you only a visitor to London and do not know… have you not read the papers, it’s on TV – all channels, it’s the talk of town, how could you possibly miss this?

However, the only uninformed person in Jerusalem happens to be the only one genuinely in the know. What irony! They explain the recent events faultlessly yet they have failed to take the prophecies of Jesus – regarding his suffering, death and resurrection seriously – and so they don’t know!

Cleopas, his friend, any Jesus follower who couldn’t come to terms with this – these according to Jesus are actually the foolish ones. How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken. And with this, Jesus turns tables and exonerates the women previously accused of peddling useless chatter.
They knew all about it, could narrate it, recite it – but it was in the head but not in the heart. And that blinded them.

If we are honest, we shouldn’t find it too hard to empathize with Cleopas and company. It is easy to live lives which are disconnected with the reality and truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is easy to be religious without having a personal believing faith in Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the Son of God who died, was buried and rose again from the dead.
He is the only one who promises a full life, now and eternally, to all who take him seriously. That is his offer to us this morning. Friends, the Emmaus story is a story of a God who does not leave us alone.

Disappointment, doubt, disillusionment, defeat, discouragement, despair and death - all of these words sum up how Cleopas and his companion were feeling as they plodded the 7 mile journey to Emmaus.

These things can easily fill up our lives. however, the best news is that Jesus, the victorious Jesus who defeated the last enemy, death; Jesus the unseen "stranger" is walking alongside us, listening to us, and – he understands. He’s been through it all. That comforts and encourages me. I hope it does the same for you.

Their recognition of Jesus as the risen Lord as he disappeared from their sight simply transformed them – that same night they set off for a return journey, 7 miles to Jerusalem to tell these news.

If only we will give him a chance – his only business is to open our eyes and make our lives worth living. Our next sermon series will examine in depth what such life is like. it has been observed that good living conditions, better medical care than our ancestors had access to continue to prolong our lifespan. But will it be a life worth living?
Friends, we have a caring God who walks alongside us – in life’s way. My prayer is that we would allow him to totally and unequivocally inform and influence the way we live.

Lets pray:
Lord you know me completely. Thank you for dying for me. Thank you for defeating death by rising again. Thank you that you are the unseen stranger that walks alongside me in my life’s journey. I now submit to your authority as written in your word – take total control of me. Amen.

Sermon from 30th March 2008

Today our Vicar, Cameron Barker, preaches, based on the gospel reading from John 20:19-31

“Anyone can be sentimental about the Nativity; any fool can feel like a Christian at Christmas. But Easter is the main event; if you don’t believe in the resurrection, you’re not a believer”.

Now after mentioning Christmas on both Good Friday and Easter Day, I know I risk sounding like a scratched CD. But that quote from John Irving's novel, A prayer for Owen Meany – and the response to it in that book – gives the very best rationale for our post-Easter series. And I promise that the focus of it is on Easter not Christmas. You see, as Owen Meany agrees with the narrator: ‘if you don’t believe in Easter, don’t kid yourself; don’t call yourself a Christian’.

So I was particularly interested to read the result of an on-line survey conducted last weekend. Apparently 57% of British adults believe that Jesus was crucified, died and then rose from death. That sounds very encouraging; until you start to wonder where all those people are this morning! If Jesus truly was the Son of God who died for us on Good Friday; if he did indeed rise from death on Easter Day, as we proclaimed last Sunday; if he really is alive today, those are radically life-altering facts. And if we truly believe them, these facts must shape everything about how we live – because they shape who and what we fundamentally are.

If it's not true, though, “If Christ has not been raised from death then we have nothing to preach and you have nothing to believe. And face it – if there was no resurrection for Christ, everything we've told you is smoke and mirrors, and everything you've staked your life on is smoke and mirrors. Not only that, but we would be guilty of telling a string of barefaced lies about God. All these affidavits we passed on to you verifying that God raised Christ to life are sheer fabrications if Christ wasn't raised. ... And if Christ wasn't raised, then all you're doing is wandering about in the dark, as lost in your sins as you ever were ... And it's also true to say that “if our hope in Christ is good for this life only and no more, then we deserve more pity than anyone else in all the world”.

That's how the apostle Paul summarised the nub of this whole issue in his first letter to Christians in ancient Corinth. If the language sounded a little unfamiliar, that's because I've been quoting from the modern Message version. But it certainly helps focus the mind sharply on the importance of the resurrection. If it is not true, if Jesus wasn't raised to life, then we are in big trouble! The whole of the Christian faith revolves around the truth – or otherwise – of what happened on that first Easter Day.

Now I know that some people, including a former Bishop of Durham, have questioned it before now. I'm also aware that people had questions when we looked at this topic here last autumn. So we are going to dwell on the facts of the resurrection this week and next. The plan is to discover what plenty of others before us have – that the evidence stands up to scrutiny. Then, after we have fully investigated the evidence, we will move on. What we'll then move on to – right through to the summer – is how the resurrected life of Jesus is a life that's truly worth living, now and eternally.

Of course that will be based on believing in the truth of the resurrection. Yes that is, in a way, prejudging the outcome of our investigations. But the glorious truth, again as Paul wrote to the Corinthians, is that “Christ has been raised from death, the first in a long legacy of those who are going to leave the cemeteries”. And Paul also added in his letter the evidence for his own faith in both the fact and the effects of Jesus' resurrection, which had so shaped his own life.

As Paul wrote: “The first thing I did was place before you what was placed so emphatically before me: that Christ died for our sins, exactly as Scripture tells it; that he was buried; that he was raised from death on the third day, again exactly as Scripture says; that he presented himself alive to Peter, then to his closest followers, and later to more than 500 of his followers all at the same time, most of them still around (although a few have since died); that he then spent time with James and the rest of those he commissioned to represent him; and that he finally presented himself alive to me”.

That is in itself is a pretty comprehensive list of evidence. And it all comes from those who believed it so completely that they were prepared to die rather than to recant. But it is far from the full evidence of the Bible. It does depend a little on how you marry them up, but there are as many as 11 resurrection appearances in the New Testament! And, as we heard in our reading from John, as well as in the children's reading from Luke, Jesus didn't appear to 'just' one person at a time. Usually there were a good number of witnesses present, making it highly unlikely that it was just a hallucination by desperate or deluded individuals. And that fact too is noteworthy in helping us discover the truth of the resurrection.

So lets now look at what happened on Easter Day, and then one week later. At Easter itself we usually focus on the events of the morning, at or near the tomb. But this took place in the evening, probably in the same room where Jesus and his disciples had shared a last meal 3 days earlier. Now, don't forget that none of the disciples had seen Jesus at this point. Some of the women had seen him; and, to their credit, some of the men had believed them. But they had not seen him themselves, none of them. And they were clearly still pretty confused and uncertain about it all. They had locked themselves in that room, fearing they might be next on the list for a cross. But I can easily imagine that they were discussing the day's extraordinary events. And then Jesus was there, standing among them!

I don't know how he did it, any more than the disciples did; but there he was, speaking peace to them – not once but twice. And, to prove that it was truly him, Jesus showed them his hands and his side. This clearly wasn't any spiritual resurrection then, so much as a bodily one. Yes, he could somehow pass through a locked door; but Jesus had a body they recognised, and one that they could touch. And his living presence brought them both peace and joy – as it can and must do for all who believe in his resurrection.

Jesus also had a job for his disciples, the same job he'd been trying to give them for 3 years. But, before we get to that job, we need to focus on the person who wasn't there on that Easter night. We're not told where Thomas was, or when he turned up after Jesus had left. But of course the other disciples told him what'd just happened. And of course Thomas didn't believe them! That does fit with what else we know about Thomas from the gospels. He was loyal and committed – but not always the fastest to catch on to what Jesus meant. He often took persuading – and this was no exception. Thomas demanded that he had to see and touch for himself before he could or would believe it was true.

So now we skip forward a week, to the following Sunday. The disciples were in the same room, with the doors again locked. This time Thomas was with them; so he could see for himself that it truly was Jesus who suddenly appeared. First he wished his disciples peace again. Then, echoing Thomas' words, almost to the letter, Jesus invited him to check out the evidence of his eyes with his hands. Jesus made the purpose of his offer plain: “Stop your doubting, and believe!” We're not told whether Thomas did touch Jesus' scars or not – but I'm with those who believe that he didn't. In response, Thomas simply proclaimed to and about Jesus: 'My Lord and my God'.

Now the first part of John's gospel is often called the Book of signs. It records the signs that Jesus did that proved that he was who he said he was. There haven't been any signs since chapter 12: until now! But this surely was – and is – the greatest sign of all! Thomas certainly thought that it was! What greater sign could there be that Jesus was the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God, than his rising from the dead? When he realised that it was true, Thomas did stop his doubting, and believed. You see, there's nothing wrong with questioning the facts. Jesus didn't tell Thomas off for wanting to see and touch before he believed in his resurrection. But our questioning must be of the sort that is open to persuasion by the facts about Jesus. We, like Thomas, must be willing to acknowledge and believe in Jesus for who he is when we meet him.

And this was more than enough evidence for John too. As he wrote, there were so many more signs that Jesus did that he could have written down. But these were, and are, enough: they were, and are, enough for us too to believe that Jesus truly is the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God, who died and rose again for us. That was precisely John's aim in writing his gospel. He wrote so that people who read it, those who haven't known Jesus in person, would also come to believe that Jesus is who he says he is. As Jesus said to Thomas, “You have believed because you have seen me. How blessed are those who believe without seeing me.” And, more than that, John wanted people like us to have life in Jesus through the faith that we can have that he is the risen Son of God.

So, there's challenge for anyone thinking about Easter seriously for the first time. If that's you, I do hope and pray that you too will come to believe that Jesus is the Son of God, who died and rose again for you – even though you have not seen him yourself. The evidence for Jesus' resurrection does hold up more than well enough. So I hope and pray that you will come to have this abundant life in his name through your new-found faith in him. And John or I would be delighted to share the joy and peace that comes with your new Christ-given life – so please do let us do that.

But I guess that it's more likely that you are here today because you already believe in Jesus. Well, if that is true of you, then you need to hear and take on the job that Jesus has for you. It's the same job he gave his disciples when he first appeared to them on Easter Day. Jesus breathed on them, and gave them the gift of his Holy Spirit. That was Jesus' way of equipping his followers to live this abundant life that he died to give them. More than that, Jesus gave them his Spirit so that they could go and tell and show others this abundant life. So yes, be filled with God's joy and peace that Jesus truly is risen from the dead. Enjoy this abundant life that you now have in his name. But go and share it with others too, so that they also can have life and joy and peace through having faith in the risen Christ. So lets pray ...