2005-04-10 — The Conqueror Is Conquering!

Easter 2:
Date: April 10, 2005

Theme: The Conqueror Is Conquering!

I. His Kingdom is now hidden.
II. His Kingdom shall conquer.
III. His Kingdom evokes commitment.
– 1 Corinthians 15:25

– Ude, John

The Order of Worship:

Liturgy: TLH, p. 5 ff.

Hymns:

TLH 208 : Ye Sons and Daughters of the King
TLH 208 : Ye Sons and Daughters of the King

Theme: The Conqueror Is Conquering!

I. His Kingdom is now hidden.
II. His Kingdom shall conquer.
III. His Kingdom evokes commitment.

Sermon: 1 Corinthians 15:25 For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet.

In the name of Jesus April 10, 2005
When Jesus appeared to the Emmaus disciples, why do you suppose He restrained their eyes so they did not recognize Him? Perhaps to reveal how His Kingdom will function in this New Testament age. He does not appear face to face to every inquirer saying, “Look, I am alive.” Instead He reveals His saving death and the resurrection Easter joy through the word of the Lord which we have before us every day of our lives! Our text in parallel thought leads us to consider: “The Conqueror Is Conquering!” 1. His Kingdom is now hidden.2. His Kingdom shall conquer. 3. His Kingdom evokes commitment.
The heresy planting its unbelief in the midst of the Corinthian congregation apparently supported its denial of the bodily resurrection by claiming, “If Christ is arisen and going to raise the dead bodily why don’t we see it happening now, after all, His is the Kingdom?” Easter is indeed the triumphant celebration that Christ is the Conqueror having won the victory over sin, death and the devil. But this is not now apparent in this world, they all remain very active. Yet notice if it can be properly concluded from that, “Obviously Christ never intended to bodily raise the dead.” Then it must also be concluded, “Obviously Christ never intended to physically conquer sin and the devil. So we are doomed to living under their tyranny.” God forbid! Our text is a reference to Psalm 110:1,2 “The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool. The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!” It was through His resurrection that Christ sat down at the right hand of His Father exercising all the power of the Kingdom of Heaven. But notice from this Psalm that the divine plan all along is that the Easter resurrection establishes and seals Christ as the Conqueror while conquering remains to be done. His Word rules in the very midst of His enemies until they are, in the end, made His footstool. Suppose your neighbor has a Rottweiler that growls and snarls whenever you go by. He delights in terrifying you and would obviously love to tear you to pieces. But he is on a chain so he can do you no harm at all as long as you stay out of his territory. That chain has conquered his evil designs and every day is conquering them. Christ’s death and resurrection gospel has conquered sin, death and the devil. As long as we stay in the gospel, out of their territory, all they can do is growl, snarl and try to terrify us with their drooling designs. Through His gospel word Christ is conquering them for us every day. So His Kingdom is working with power through this Bible and pulpit and the Word in your mouth. But if we turn from Christ to enter the enemy’s territory, they’ll tear us to pieces. Why doesn’t Christ just destroy all the Rottweiler’s? Because He desires to lead more away from their jaws before the end comes. His Kingdom is now hidden in the gospel Word ruling in the midst of His enemies and lovingly calling men, women, children to salvation.
Our text also reflects Ps. 110’s declaration that His Kingdom shall conquer, His enemies will all one day be His footstool. Phil 2. “Every knee shall confess that Jesus Christ is LORD to the glory of God the Father.” The only One exempt from that final subjection is the Father Himself. Jesus will give, at that time, His final report to the Father: Mission Accomplished. And deliver the Kingdom won to the Father. The Father gave Him the kingly commission, all authority, to establish the Kingdom by redemption. Now He will return His kingly commission to Him who gave it. That does not mean He will abdicate any more than the Father abdicated when He gave the kingly authority to His Son. V. 28 indicates that the Son Himself will be subject to the Father. That does not mean the Son is eternally subordinate to the Father any more than the Father was subordinate to the Son while He was conquering. John 10:30 “I and My Father are one.” Christ’s Kingdom shall conquer. He will complete the conquering through His word, and hand the Kingdom won to the Father that God may be all in all, that the Triune God Father, Son and Holy Ghost may reign supreme.
You know with that despised Rottweiler you may in the complacency of that protective chain begin to taunt and tease the dog. You may even run through his territory to prove you can outsmart him and may succeed a few times. But you may also pay the price of your complacent foolishness with the loss of part of your body, maybe even with your life when you trip and fall. Hanging around with people daring you to run the gauntlet, urging you to enjoy sin’s pleasures is foolish complacency, gambling with the very victory that Christ has won for you. V.33 “Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.” Awake (Literally “Sober up!”) to righteousness, and do not sin.” Christ’s Conquering should not bring out our complacent foolishness but evoke commitment. Commitment for Christ such as the Apostle Paul revealed even V.32 fighting with beasts at Ephesus, a figurative expression for facing extreme danger. He was not in complacent foolishness gambling with sin’s pleasures. No, in the hope and power of the bodily resurrection in Christ, he accepted the attacks, mockery, even the persecution of men to warn others to stay away from the beasts of sin, death and the devil – to turn to Christ who conquers and chains these beasts for us. It is in this context that V29 refers to those “who are baptized for the dead.” You do well to ask, what does that mean? It doesn’t mean that they were baptized instead of those already dead or instead of unbelievers because Acts 2:38 says, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Each must believe and be baptized for himself. It may refer to a Christian dying in the sure hope of the bodily resurrection in Christ and pleading with their friend or relative to turn from sin and be baptized into the death and resurrection of Christ that they may be together again in the bodily resurrection. This testimony and example of faith leads them to also desire and receive baptism for this blessed purpose witnessed by the now dead Christian. Or it may refer to the practice of believers being baptized “over” the graves of the dead, as a testimony to those doubting the bodily resurrection, “These dead will surely bodily arise as we will also through the resurrection of Christ.” Such was the practice a few centuries later in the Roman Catacombs. Either way Christ’s conquering evoked commitment in their baptism, their life and their death. Awake to righteousness for “The Conqueror Is Conquering!” Amen.