Pastor Sullivan's Blog

In the Name of Jesus. Amen. After Jesus had been baptized by John in the Jordan River, the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness to fast forty days. There He faced the Devil. Afterwards He walked along the Jordan River again. John sees Him, points to Him, and cries out for all the world to hear, “ Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! ” The sacrifices prescribed in the Old Testament did no such thing. They were only good for the man offering up the bull, lamb, or goat. Those sacrifices also were unable to atone for sins. It is written in Hebrews 10:3-4 that “ those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins. ” The Old Testament sacrifices kept Israelites civilly righteous and forgave sins according to the righteousness of the Law. They kept you in Israel, God’s covenant people. But they couldn’t atone for one’s sins and take them away. Each sacrifice looked forward to the La...

In the Name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. We are always tempted on Good Friday to think that it’s not actually all that good. We hear the account of Christ’s betrayal, His trials, His scourging, the crown of thorns, and His rejection by man and God the Father, and we think that evil has one the day, that the sufferings and death of Christ are the triumph of darkness over light. If viewed this way, Good Friday becomes a day of mourning and sorrow over Christ’s death, almost like a yearly funeral for Jesus. But this is not how the Scriptures teach us view Christ’s passion. It is not the triumph of darkness over light. It is not Cain murdering Abel for no reason than to satisfy his own rage. We mustn’t imagine that that on this day that the devil, the world, and the wickedness of men prevail over the goodness of God. Jesus was not at the mercy of bloodthirsty Jews, just as His life was not in Pilate’s hands. When Pilate reminds Jesus that he has the...