Faust
Do you like to play chess? My
children love to play chess. Even my 3-year-old Hannah plays chess in her own
way. It’s hard to beat her.
Pictured on the screen is a painting by Moritz Retzsch in 1831, it was based on a famous German play known as “Faust.” In this story Faust meets a demon named Mephistopheles and agrees to sell his soul in exchange for unlimited knowledge and worldly success. This painting describes Faust near the end of his life, and is depicted as a chess game. Faust in red has only a few pieces left on the board and seems to be checkmated. The devil is the man in green who has a kind of glee painted on his face, and is seemingly saying, “checkmate in two moves.” Faust is anxiously looking over the chess board, desperately seeking a way out, but it seems that all is lost. Soon the game of life will be over and all will be lost.
Through the years, people come and look up at the painting, and see the hopelessness of the situation. They go away feeling, to some degree, that the artist has captured their own situation – anxious, desperate, hopeless. About 30 years later Rev. R. R. Harrison owns this painting and invites guests over tea and spends the evening together. One of the guests, Paul Morphy, was a well-known chess player of the day. He carefully studied the picture and exclaimed, “It’s a lie! The king still has another move. I could take Faust’s position and win the game.” They set up a chess board with the layout of the painting, and one by one Mr. Morphy took Faust’s position and defeated all the guests there. For 30 years people believed the devil was winning the soul of a man who had sinned much, and all it took was a grand master better than the devil, to defeat and snatch from his grip a soul he was sure he had.[1]
The King Has Another Move
The Bible is full of many such
stories, where God’s people were checkmated, hard pressed on every side, but in
each one of them God the greatest Grand Master of all stepped into the
situation and won the game that seemed hopelessly lost. Daniel was thrown in the
lions’ den, but the King had another move. The Israelites were backed up
against the Red Sea, but the King had another move and split the Red Sea in
two. Most of all, Jesus was hanging on the cross, but the King had another move
and could turn it all around for Jesus, raising
him from the dead!
In his book The Chronicles of Narnia, C. S. Lewis tells us the story of Jesus’ resurrection so powerfully. During the Winter Revolution, the White Witch (Satan's figure) tricked Edmund to betray his siblings by revealing their location to her. According to Narnia’s law Edmond now belonged to her as her lawful prey. When the Witch made a claim on Edmund, Aslan (Jesus' figure) spoke to her, offering himself in Edmund's place. The Witch accepted, and that night near the Stone Table, Aslan went up there alone to sacrifice himself in Edmund's stead. The Witch had all her followers gathered at the Table, to witness the mighty lion, the great King of Narnia's fall and death. It was not enough, though, that he simply die, as she wanted him humiliated, tortured, and shamed. So she had him bound, gagged, beaten, and shaved before being dragged over to the Stone Table, where he was executed by the Witch, using her Stone Knife. But what the Witch didn’t know was the Writing upon The Table, saying, "If a willing Victim that has committed no treachery is killed in a traitor's stead, the Stone Table will crack; and even death itself would turn backwards." – The Deep Magic. At dawn, there was an almighty crack, and the Table split in two right down the middle. And Aslan was once again alive and well. Edmund is now forgiven and beloved, and has new life without fear and guilt. The King has another move.
Message of Hope
This is what Easter is for us. Easter
is a message of hope. The
resurrection of Jesus tells us that life is not a dead-end street or a no-exit
situation. Because Christ is risen,
there is always a way out, there is always a second chance, there is always a
new life in him.
This morning I am not standing here to prove Jesus’ resurrection; instead, I am here simply to proclaim the good news of his resurrection – to proclaim the fact how his resurrection changes lives of those to whom he appeared just as the Apostle Paul did. In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul declares:
I passed on to you what was most
important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins,
just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on
the third day, just as the Scriptures said. He was seen by Peter and then by
the Twelve. After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers at one
time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he was seen by
James and later by all the apostles. Last of all, as though I had been born at
the wrong time, I also saw him.
And we all know what happened next to those who had seen the risen Christ. The disciples were afraid, confused, depressed, hiding in the dark. But in a period of less than 50 days they became a group of people so bold, so joyous, so confident. Think about Paul’s life. He confessed that he was the worst sinner (cf. 1 Tim 1:15). He was going everywhere to destroy the church. But after encountering the risen Christ, he was transformed into a person with an unstoppable power and unshakable understanding of his mission.
The Risen Christ Changes Lives Today
The risen Christ changed Paul’s life
and the other apostles’ lives. The risen Christ still can change your life and
my life – if we will let him.
It is possible to recite the Apostles’ Creed and not be affected by it. It is possible to intellectually agree that he or she believes in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, that same person can live a defeated life. Mary was so preoccupied with grief, and she thought she was talking to a gardener, even though the risen Christ was standing right in front of her. Two disciples on the way to Emmaus were so preoccupied with their own agenda and disappointment, and they did not recognize Jesus, even though the risen Christ was walking right beside them for hours.
There was a young man who grew in the church. He thought he believed in God, but actually he didn’t know God. God had little influence on his everyday life. Like everyone else, he became a skeptic. He was no longer able to believe in the Bible as the inspired word of God. Then, he went to the army, and there he became fatally ill. Out of desperation, he cried out to God. And God heard his cry and restored his health. After this, he began to read the Bible from cover to cover for the first time. During this time, he encountered the risen Christ. The young man asked, “Jesus, where were you when I needed you most?” Jesus answered, “My son, I was standing right before you, opening my arms to you, and waiting for 21 years.” And he was never the same after that. The young man was me.
Perhaps some of us may experience “death” – death to hope, death to relationships, death to believing. But today we hear the good news of Easter: The Risen Christ comes to everywhere death is in our lives, and brings life.
“Where, O death,
is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”
Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through the risen Christ today! Sisters and brothers in Christ, wherever you are in your life journey, remember this: The King has another move. You have another move. Move toward him.
[1]
Maurice McCarthy, “The King Has Another Move” (May 29, 2018), http://fireonyouraltar.blogspot.com/2018/05/the-king-has-another-move.html.
Also, Kenneth Chafin, “Easter Means Hope,” Preaching Today, https://www.preachingtoday.com/sermons/sermons/2010/july/eastermeanshope.html
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