Sermon Tone Analysis

March 23, 2008                                                                                                       SD 21

Come and See.doc                                                                                           File: G3

Come and See

(An Easter Message)

 

Nate was a skeptic.

He wasn’t an atheist.

But he was a bigot.

At least when it came to people from Nazareth—he viewed them all as unlearned, and uneducated, and just not worth his time and effort.

So when his friend Philip comes talking about the messiah and mentions that he is from Nazareth—he is skeptical.

“Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”

That is his question…

 

His friend Philip doesn’t argue…just extends an invitation…Come and see….

Come and see for yourself…

           

John the Baptist is standing with two of his disciples when Jesus walks near…

      “Look!” says John, “there is the lamb of God.”

When those two disciples heard it they stepped out and started following Jesus down the street.

Jesus turned to them and asked what they wanted…

            “Where are you staying” they asked

                  In other words—we want to spend some time with you

 

Jesus said:  “come and see”

      And they spent the rest of the evening with Him

           

One of them was Andrew (the brother of Peter)

      You hear a lot about Peter—not much about Andrew

            But without Andrew Peter would have never known!

“Come and See…”

 

It is an invitation

 

A woman with a reputation—a bad reputation—met Jesus outside the city of Sychar in Samaria—He talked to her and answered her deepest questions and met her deepest need…

      A deep thirst in her soul was satisfied…

            An emptiness she yearned to have filled was met

 

She went back into her village – unafraid of the people – no longer embarrassed by her past…

      Come see a man who told me everything I ever did.

“Come and see…”

A simple invitation…

      An invitation to open your own investigation into the truth.

It is not enough to have it on the word of someone else…it is time to do your own search…check it out…

 

The claims of Jesus are rather incredible…audacious…

 

And he invites us to take out the microscope…

      Get out the binoculars

            Check it out from every angle

                  Get the big ppicture

                        See the minute detail

 

Investigate!  Come and see for yourself!

Too many will only make a cursory glance at the Gospel message and write it off without the decency of honest investigation…

 

If what Jesus said is true your destiny rest on your response.

If you truly give it your best investigation and discover it to be false—then you can write it off…but don’t allow yourself to just go on without checking Him out…

 

C.S. Lewis said, “if Christianity is false, then it means absolutely nothing (and 2000 years of history is a sham)…If it is true then everything is effected by it.”

Come and see….

Come and view the evidence…

      I could go on to give you all the information today

            Proofs of the resurrection

            Proofs of biblical accuracy and validity

            Proofs of Christian history

                  ETC.

But my invitation to you today is to come and see Jesus!

 

Come and see the Rock that has withstood the erosion of time

Come and hear his voice echo through the words of scripture and through the human heart and mind…

Come and see the truth tested…undaunted…established

Come and know His grace…full and free…

Come and know His love…for you!!!!

Come and see the flame that all the tyrants and oppressors of history have not been able to extinguish

Come and see the passion that persecution and oppression have not squelched

Come and see the hospitals and orphanages rising beside the crumbling ruins of humanism and atheism.

Come and see what Christ has done!

The invitation of Psalm 66:5 is  “Come and see the works of God; /He is/ awesome /in His/ doing toward the sons of men.”

Come and see the lives touched by the masters hand

The alcoholic now dry

The embittered not joyful

The fearful now courageous

The marriages rebuilt

The addict now free

The wanderer now home

The lonely place in the family of God

 

Come and see…

      It is His invitation to investigation

            He is not afraid of your scrutiny

            He invites your questions

            He opens his heart and His word to you!

He won’t avoid your searching

                  He won’t ignore your probe

 

Come and see!!!!

 

“Walk with the women on Sunday morning…just as the sun peeks over the horizon…as they enter the garden where the tomb is sealed…they watched His body being laid in the grave of a man named Joseph…

On earth Jesus had no place to lay his head

In death he used a borrowed tomb…

      But he didn’t stay there long!

They came early in the morning to put spices on the body…

They came to see the tomb—guarded by Rome’s best soldiers

      As they come---the earth shakes…

An angel came and rolled back the stone so they could peer in.

The guards shook and passed out!

The angel just took his place on the stone—he sat donw to wait for the ladies to arrive…

      He said to them, /“Don’t be afraid.

I know that you are looking for Jesus, who has been crucified.

6 He is not here.

He has risen from the dead as he said he would.

Come and see the place where his body was./ (Matt.

28:5-6 NCV)

 

“Come and see the place where He was…”

      “Where He was….”

Come and see the evidence of an empty tomb…

 

Lee Strobel, Educated at Yale Law School, award winning journalist, former legal editor at the Chicago Tribune—was an athiest…until his wife got saved and began her own adventure of faith…She challenged him to look at the evidence…