Mark 16: April 1: Roll Up the Rim!

Presented to 614 Warehouse Mission Resurrection Sunday Breakfast, 01 April 2018

Mark 16:1-16a:

          16 The Sabbath day ended. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices. They were going to use them for Jesus’ body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, they were on their way to the tomb. It was just after sunrise. 3 They asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance to the tomb?”

          4 Then they looked up and saw that the stone had been rolled away. The stone was very large. 5 They entered the tomb. As they did, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe. He was sitting on the right side. They were alarmed.

          6 “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. But he has risen! He is not here! See the place where they had put him. 7 Go! Tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him. It will be just as he told you.’ ”

8 The women were shaking and confused. They went out and ran away from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.

          9 Jesus rose from the dead early on the first day of the week. He appeared first to Mary Magdalene. He had driven seven demons out of her. 10 She went and told those who had been with him. She found them crying. They were very sad. 11 They heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him. But they did not believe it.

          12 After that, Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them. This happened while they were walking out in the country. 13 The two returned and told the others about it. But the others did not believe them either.

        14 Later Jesus appeared to the 11 disciples as they were eating. He spoke firmly to them because they had no faith. They would not believe those who had seen him after he rose from the dead.

15 He said to them, “Go into all the world. Preach the good news to everyone. 16 Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved

One year on April Fools Day, when I was posted in Saskatchewan, we found out Judy, our receptionist, won $5000 from Tim Horton’s Roll up the Rim contest. On the morning of April Fools Day, Judy told us she had won $5000. At our staff meeting on April’s Fools Day, Judy told everyone that she won $5000. We were so happy for Judy, who is so honest and who is so trustworthy, that she won $5000 on April Fools Day that we were all simply stunned an hour later when she concluded our staff meeting with the words, ‘April Fools!’

Even though we were all aware that it was April Fools Day, even though we all joked about it being April Fools Day, even though we all had openly spoken about April Fools Day, we were all completely shocked when dear, honest, trustworthy Judy ended our staff meeting with the words ‘April Fools!’

It must have been the same for the disciples with Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection: even though they knew about resurrection, even though they all had discussions about the resurrection, even though Jesus repeatedly told them about His resurrection, they were all completely shocked when the angel met them with the words ‘He is risen’, the ladies (and later the other disciples) were so surprised. It would be the same effect as us hearing ‘April Fools!’ The ladies had gone to the tomb to anoint Jesus’ corpse as part of a burial ceremony. Even though Jesus’ followers should have known He would rise from the grave, they believed he was dead; just like we believed Judy had won $5000. April Fools! You thought He was dead but He has risen!

This is what is going on with the ladies in the text today and later with the other disciples still continuing in disbelief. In one account even after the others have finally realized that Jesus has actually risen from the dead just like He said He would, the disciple Thomas is so convinced that Jesus is dead that he only believes the truth when he sees and touches Jesus himself.

Now here we are today, two millennia later, in the conflicting moments of April Fools Day and Easter Sunday and we have that very same decision to make and it is just important now as it ever was. Our very life depends upon it. Who is Jesus? What do we believe? Do we believe that Jesus is God’s own Son and that He rose from the grave? And if so what are we going to do about it?

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Mark 16:1-8: Dead or Alive: what do you believe?

Presented to Nipawin and Tisdale Corps on March 23, 2008 (Resurrection Sunday), the Swift Current corps of The Salvation Army on April 08, 2012, and 614 Warehouse Mission in Toronto on April 01, 2018 by Captain Michael Ramsay

Click here to read: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2008/03/mark-161-8-dead-or-alive-what-do-you.html

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A Resurrection Reflection - Psalm 22, Acts 2:29-31, 17:30-32, Philippians 2:5-11, 1 Corinthians 15:14-22

Presented to Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army on Resurrection Sunday, 31 March 2013 and 05 April 2015; Corps 614 Regent Park, 27 March 2016; and 614 Warehouse Mission, 01 April 2018 by Captain Michael Ramsay.

Click here to read: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2013/03/a-resurrection-reflection-psalm-22-acts.html

Christ has risen! (Christ has risen indeed!)

www.sheepspeak.com

John 12:12-19: Sunday Palm Reading

Presented to Warehouse Mission 614 in Toronto's Cabbagetown, 25 March 2018, Palm Sunday, by Captain Michael Ramsay

Click here to read the original version presented Corps 614 Regent Park Toronto, Palm Sunday, 20 March 2016, click here: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2016/03/john-1212-19-st-johns-palm-reading.html

  

Yesterday Heather, Susan and I watched some youtube clips of the Martians from Sesame Street. Does anyone remember the Martians? ‘Briiiinnngg Telephone’? They came to earth and they would have this little cook that they would consult to find out more about what they were seeing. They would look a phone and with their book eventually figure out that it is not a cow. They would see a clock and see that it has a face and hands and think that it might be a person so they consult their book. And did anyone ever study Shakespeare in school? Or any other old English text? Does anyone remember Cole’s Notes? Do they still make those? Books that we could consult to see what all the different symbols from old England actually meant. Today we are looking at John’s version of what happened in Jerusalem around 2000 or so years ago.  We are going to read it again and then we are going to pull out some of our own version of the Martian Handbook or Coles Notes to figure out what some of the symbolism actually means.

Before we do this though I want us to understand the context of what is happening. Jesus is this celebrity preacher. People have been following him everywhere just to hear him speak, see where he is going and experience what he is going to do next. People with him are healed of otherwise uncurable ailments: the blind see, the lame walk, and just a chapter earlier in the book of John, a dead person is even brought back to life. It is when the dead person, Lazarus, is brought back to life that the political religious leaders’ interest is really piqued in the situation. It is then that the leaders themselves organize this plot to to kill Lazarus again AND to kill Jesus. They are afraid.

Jesus seems to be well aware of all this. He either has perfect knowledge in this moment or has just figured it out because it appears from Verse 7 of this chapter that he had started making arrangements with his friends for his own death and burial. Now more and more people are coming to follow Jesus. There are great crowds in our text and the crowds keep getting bigger. This is the context of our pericope that we will look at today. John 12:12-16 (NIV):

Verse 12: ‘The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.’

Jerusalem. What is the significance of Jerusalem?

1. JERUSALEM

What was the importance of Jerusalem? Like Ottawa is the Captial of Canada and Toronto is the Capital of Ontario, Jerusalem is the historic capital of Judah. It was the capital of the United Kingdom of Judah and Israel when David was King. Now Judah and all of Israel are occupied by the Superpower of their day – Rome.

What does it mean that a country is occupied by another country? It is when a foreign country has army bases and/or soldiers stationed in your country. And if one was going to be a Messiah to lead a successful revolt against their occupiers and/or establish a strong independent country, they may very well do so by publicly riding into Jerusalem, the ancient capital. Today, in our text, Jesus, who is Messiah, is very publicly riding into Jerusalem.

Verse 12: ‘The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.’

Verse 13 says the crowd that went out to meet him “ took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,“Hosanna!”

2. PALM BRANCHES

Palm branches: today is Palm Sunday. Many of us have read this passage every year. What is the importance of palm branches on Palm Sunday? Many in the crowds who have come out to see him certainly recognize that Jesus is Messiah; he is the expectant king. The people are waiving branches of palm trees. Now the palm branch is significant.  They didn’t just pick up palm branches because palm branches happen to be near by; they pick up the palm branches because palm branches are a nationalistic symbol (cf. 1 Maccabees 13:51, 2 Macabbees 10:7; cf. also Leviticus 23:40, Psalm 92:12, Matthew 21:8; Mark 11:8). It would be like if Canada was going to seek independence from the US or someone else and we were waiving maple leaves or flags with the maple leaf on it – everyone recognises that as a symbol of Canada. Canada just had its 150^th anniversary of confederation. Susan, the kids and I headed to Ottawa for it. It was nice, uneventful really, but nice. Fifty years before though when Canada was celebrating its Centennial, it got quite interesting. In July of 1967 Charles DeGualle the President of France, invited by the Canadian government, stood up and made a speach in Montreal, Quebec and cried out, ‘Vive le Quebec Libre”, “Long live free Quebec.” Needless to say this didn’t go over so well with the Canadian Authorities. These palm branches, in our text today, are a nationalistic symbol being raised here in the traditional capital of an occupied territory. It would be like if the crowds were waiving fleur-des-lies or if, like I said, Canada was seeking its own independence from someone and we waved maple leaves or maple leaf flags. The palm branch is a national symbol being raised in the traditional capital of an occupied territory. This is where John drives home that Jesus isn’t just a metaphorical or a spiritual king, Jesus is a political king.[7] He is the King of Kings and the His Kingdom, the Kingdom of God, is at hand.[8] And John’s placing of vv.14-15 after v.13 further conveys Jesus’ and John’s approval of this claim.

12 The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. 13 They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

“Hosanna!”

“Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord!”

“Blessed is the king of Israel!”

3.  ‘HOSANNA’, ‘KING OF THE JEWS’, ‘NAME OF THE LORD’

Our third image to consider today is that of the crowds shouting. Verse 13, John records, ‘They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord! Blessed is the King of Israel!”

This is significant stuff. We sing ‘Hosanna’ in a lot of songs. We always mention ‘Hosanna’ at Palm Sunday. ‘Hosanna’ is what they are shouting as Jesus is riding into the capital of occupied Judea right under the noses of the Romans even as their collaborators, the Jewish religious leaders, have already put a plan into motion to kill Jesus. Do we know what Hosanna means (Verse 13; cf. Psalm 118:25-26)? Hosanna means ‘O Save!’, ‘Salvation!’, ‘Save us!’ [3]

 Jesus is triumphantly entering the historic capital of Judah – which is occupied by the Romans and people are saying, ‘Jesus! You are our king! You –like all kings are supposed to – you come here in the Name of the Lord! Jesus, you – not Caesar, not the Romans, not the chief priests, not the rich, not the powerful elite – Jesus, you are our King; save us from Rome and save us from our present leaders!’[4] Save us! Hosanna. Save us!

The establishment have their people in position: governors in place of recent kings, rotating high priests, soldiers to keep order but Jesus, (who was raised in Galilee which is a particularly rebellious region of a rebellious people – maybe like Quebec or the West here or the US South) Jesus is triumphantly entering the city and the crowds are running out to meet him, calling, ‘save us’, save us! Hosanna, o save us.’ The crowds know he is Messiah. [5]

 They want him to save them from the occupation and they are willing to serve him as king. This is no small thing. Think of what superpowers do when crowds of people gather in opposition. Think of Guantanamo Bay. Think of Abu Gharib. Think of Afghanistan. Think of Iraq. Rome, her sympathizers and the establishment don’t want rivals there and then any more than Washington and her establishment want rivals here and now. These people, the great crowds are risking their lives shouting ‘Hosanna, Salvation, King of the Jews, save us!’

12 The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. 13 They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

“Hosanna!”

“Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord!”

“Blessed is the king of Israel!”

14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written:

15 “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.”

4        DONKEY

The donkey: John quotes Zechariah’s well-known prophesy about the king who will save and rule Israel as he comes into his kingdom on a donkey (Zec 9:9). And here and now comes Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. There is more to this too because a donkey is not a war horse; a donkey is an ambassador’s mount. It is an animal of peace (cf. Genesis 49:10-11, Isaiah 40:9, 44:2)![9] The Romans claimed that their wars brought the ‘Pax Romana’, the Roman Peace, but John here is pointing out that Jesus – not Caesar – is the Prince of Peace.[10] Jesus is King of the Jews and more than that Jesus is King of the World! [11]

 These are exciting times. Jesus’ riding into Jerusalem at this time and place in history is his crossing the Rubicon. (Do you know what the Rubicon is? It is a river outisde Rome and no General was allowed to bring his troops beyond that river. If he did it would be assumed that he was trying to overthrow the government and Rome would deal appropriately. Thus once one crossed the Rubicon with their foces there was no turning back).

There is no turning back. And this is what Palm Sunday is: Palm Sunday is the point of no turning back. Jesus is marching into the capital to great fanfare and we who are gathered here today, we can celebrate this moment. We can cast ourselves alongside the men, women and children watching the parade and cheering as our King rides into town. This is a bigger deal than anything that has ever happened to this or any community to that point in time. This moment in our text today is a moment when the world here recognizes the arrival of the one whom as Isaiah 9:6-7 declares, “The government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever! The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this!” Praise the Lord. Today is Palm Sunday and Palm Sunday is a day of celebration. Jesus is King! Do you believe that? Do you serve Him?

Verse 16 “At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him.”

Today if there are any of us here who don’t yet understand and serve Him and haven’t laid our palm branches in front of the king of heaven and earth – now is our chance to accept His salvation from all the pain of suffering through all the evils of this world on our own. Jesus is King and He will – Hosanna - save us. He will be with us in the very midst of all our difficulties and challenges in our world today. And, as Easter is on its way, we know too that some tomorrow soon, even if we all die before He returns, we will raise from the dead and have the opportunity to serve Him forever in a time when there will be no more tears and no more suffereing! Do you believe that? Do you serve Him?

 Jesus rode into Jerusalem 2000 years ago but even now it is not too late; so why don’t you join us now in celebrating his arrival and in anticipating triumphant return – pledging our loyalty to the King of Kings by laying our palm branches before the King.

You were each given a symbolic palm branch today when you arrived and now as we sing a song together I invite as to lay our palm branches at the altar today to acknowledge our acceptance and allegiance to Jesus Christ as King and our reception of His salvation both now and forever. Come now and lay your branches before the King…

www.sheespeak.com

---

[1] 1) Lamb, 2) March 15, 3) Scotland, 4) Blue, 5) Penguins, a palm sundae

[2] Walter L. Leifeld, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Luke/Exposition of Luke/V. Teaching and Travels Toward Jerusalem (9:51-19:44)/D. Teachings on Times of Crisis and Judgment (12:1-13:35)/7. A call to repentance (13:1-9), Book Version: 4.0.2

[3] Marvin R. Vincent, ‘Hosanna’ in Word Studies in the New Testament Vol. II, (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2009), p. 216.

[4] But cf. Fred B. Craddock, Luke (Interpretation: a Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching: John Knox Press: Louisville, Ken., 1990), 227. Luke (ironically) alone among the gospels does not record these inherent political overtones.

[5] Cf. N.T. Wright, 'God and Caesar, Then and Now'. Available on-line at http://www.ntwrightpage.com/Wright_God_Caesar.pdf

[6] Cf. Colin G. Kruse, “John: An Introduction and Commentary”. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2003 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 4), CD ROM Disc: Tyndale Old and New Testament Commentaries (US) (3.0f) version 2009-10-09T22:50:34Z.

[7] Cf. NT Wight, How God Became King: The Forgotten Story of the Gospels (HaperOne: New York, NY: 2012), 126-154.

[8] Cf. William Hendriksen, John (New Testament Commentary: Baker Academic: Grand Rapids, Michigan: 2007), 187-188.

[9] Andreas J. Kostenberger, ESV Study Bible note on 12:15 (Crossway Bibles: Wheaton, Illinois: 2007), page 2048.

[10] Cf. Colin G. Kruse, “John: An Introduction and Commentary.” Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2003 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 4), CD ROM Disc: Tyndale Old and New Testament Commentaries (US) (3.0f) version 2009-10-09T22:50:34Z.

[11] Cf. Colin G. Kruse, “John: An Introduction and Commentary.” Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2003 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 4), CD ROM Disc: Tyndale Old and New Testament Commentaries (US) (3.0f) version 2009-10-09T22:50:34Z.

John 12:12-19: Morning Palm Reading

Presented to am service at 614 Warehouse on Pam Sunday, 25 March 2018 by Rebecca, Sarah-Grace, Heather and Captain Michael Ramsay and 10 April 2022 by Captain Michael Ramsay

Palm Sunday is a significant day in the Christian Church. Any of us who have grown up in the church or who have been going to church for a few years have inevitably been to a few Palm Sunday services. Do we know what the big deal is about Palm Sunday?

John in his gospel does a great job of telling us the meaning of Palm Sunday in his record of the triumphal entry. He uses a lot of symbolism – not unlike Shakespeare in ‘Julius Caesar’. This week we are going to pull out five pieces of that imagery and then put it back together for a full picture of what Palm Sunday looks like in our life today. In this entry we are going to look at Triumphal Entry and Jerusalem. First, let’s read John 12:12-19:

The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

“Hosanna!”

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

“Blessed is the king of Israel!”

           Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written: “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming,

seated on a donkey’s colt.”

           At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him.

          Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word. Many people, because they had heard that he had performed this sign, went out to meet him. So the Pharisees said to one another, “See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!”

SONG 1: SING HOSANNA

1. THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY

Image number one: Palm Sunday is about the Triumphal entry. What is a triumph? It is victory. These days we have victory parades when teams win championships. In Regina, they officially called part of one of their busiest streets ‘the Green Mile’ for Roughrider fans paraded down there when they won the championship. Many teams have official parades when they win championships. What about Toronto? When the Argonauts or the Blue Jays won the championship, did they have a parade, a triumphal return to the city after winning the championship? Can you imagine if the Maple Leafs win? What kind of a celebration would happen then? This is what is happening here. Jesus is riding into the city and it is celebrated as a triumph. But it is before the game that Jesus' triumph is being celebrated. It is in advance of the final; it is in anticipation of the coming victory.

SONG 2: HOSANNA IN THE HIGHEST

2. JERUSALEM

This brings us to the second of our five images for today: What city is Jesus riding into? Jesus is entering Jerusalem. What is the significance of Jerusalem? Jerusalem is the historic capital of Judah and Israel? Susan the kids and I went to Ottawa for Canada's 150th anniversary. One would expect a lot of patriotism in any capital city on a day of national celebration. Now Jerusalem, in our text today, is part of the occupied territories. The Romans, the Superpower of the time, have troops in the city and they control the government. To some extent they even appoint the religious leaders in Jerusalem (cf. John 18). And like all superpowers they don’t tend to like rebellion and they know that if there is to be a rebellion by the Jewish people it would probably happen here in Jerusalem – their ancient capital city – and it would probably happen now during Passover, when the population of Jerusalem overflows with so many people descending upon the city. Jerusalem is the ancient capital city of a rebellion-prone people.

On Palm Sunday we celebrate Jesus riding into his nation's occupied capital city and anticipating what is to come...

SONG 3: MERCY IS FALLING

AT THIS TIME I WOULD LIKE TO CALL THE USHERS FORWORD TO COLLECT THE OFFERING.

SONG: MAJESTY

3. ‘HOSANNA’, ‘KING OF THE JEWS’, ‘NAME OF THE LORD’

Our third image to consider today is that of the crowds shouting. Verse 13, John records, ‘They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord! Blessed is the King of Israel!”

This is significant stuff. We sing ‘Hosanna’ in a lot of songs. We always mention ‘Hosanna’ at Palm Sunday. ‘Hosanna’ is what they are shouting as Jesus is riding into the capital of occupied Judea right under the noses of the Romans even as their collaborators, the Jewish religious leaders, have already put a plan into motion to kill Jesus. Do we know what Hosanna means ? Hosanna means ‘O Save!’, ‘Salvation!’, ‘Save us!’

 Jesus is triumphantly entering the historic capital of Judah – which is occupied by the Romans and people are saying, ‘Jesus! You are our king! You –like all kings are supposed to – you come here in the Name of the Lord! Jesus, you – not Caesar, not the Romans, not the chief priests, not the rich, not the powerful elite – Jesus, you are our King; save us from Rome and save us from our present leaders!’Hosanna. Save us!

The establishment have their people in position: governors in place of recent kings, rotating high priests, soldiers to keep order but Jesus (who is from Galilee which is a particularly rebellious region of a rebellious people) is triumphantly entering the town and the crowds are running out to meet him, calling, ‘save us’, save us! Hosanna, o save us.’ The crowds know he is the Messiah.

They want him to save them from the occupation and they are willing to serve him as king. This is no small thing. Think of what superpowers do when crowds of people gather in opposition. Think of Guantanamo Bay. Think of Abu Gharib. Think of Afghanistan. Think of Iraq. Rome, her sympathizers and the establishment don’t want rivals there and then any more than today's powers and their establishment want rivals here and now. These people, the great crowds are risking their lives shouting ‘Salvation, King of the Jews, save us!’

SONG 4: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS

4. PALM BRANCHES

And this brings us to the fourth of our five images for today, the palm branches: John tells us also that the people lining the streets aren’t just yelling, ‘save us king’. This is important.  They are waving palm branches. Today is Palm Sunday. Can anyone tell me the significance of palm leaves at this time and place? The palm branches are important.[6]  What do the Palm branches represent?

They didn’t just pick up palm branches because palm branches happen to be near-by; they pick up the palm branches because palm branches are a nationalistic symbol. It would be like if Canada was going to seek independence from the US or someone else and we were waving maple leaves or flags with the maple leaf on it – everyone recognises that as a symbol of Canada. This moment probably would have had an even greater effect on the authorities of Jesus’ day than a similar one did on Canadian authorities in 1967 (Canada's Centennial) when France’s President Charles de Gualle cried out, ‘Vive le Quebec Libre!” while visiting Quebec. The palm branch is a national symbol being raised in the traditional capital of an occupied territory. This is where John drives home that Jesus isn’t just a metaphorical or a spiritual king, Jesus is a political king as well. He is the King of Kings and His Kingdom, the Kingdom of God, is at hand. (And John’s placing of vv.14-15 after v.13 further conveys Jesus’ and John’s approval of this claim.)

SONG 5: JUMPING UP AND DOWN

5. DONKEY 

This brings us to our fifth and final image for today: the donkey. Verse 14: ‘Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written: 15 “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.” John quotes Zechariah’s well known prophesy about the king who will save and rule Israel as he comes into his kingdom on a donkey (Zec 9:9). And here and now comes Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. There is more to this too because a donkey is not a war horse a donkey is an ambassador’s mount. It is an animal of peace! The Romans claimed that their wars brought the ‘Pax Romana’, the Roman Peace, but John here is pointing out that Jesus – not Caesar – is the Prince of Peace. Jesus is King of the Jews and more than that Jesus is King of the World!

These are exciting times. Jesus’ riding into Jerusalem at this time and place in history is his crossing the Rubicon. There is no turning back. And this is what Palm Sunday is: Palm Sunday is the point of no turning back. Jesus is marching into the capital to great fanfare and we who are gathered here today, we can celebrate this moment. We can cast ourselves alongside the men, women and children watching the parade and cheering as our King rides into town. This is a bigger deal than anything that has ever happened to this or any community to that point in time. This moment in our text today is a moment when the world recognizes the arrival of the one whom as Isaiah 9:6-7 declares, “The government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever! The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this!” Praise the Lord. Today is Palm Sunday and Palm Sunday is a day of celebration. Jesus is King! Do you believe that? Do you serve Him?

Today if there are any of us here who don’t yet serve Him and haven’t laid our palm branches in front of the king of heaven and earth – now is our chance to accept His salvation from the pain of suffering through all the evils of this world alone. Jesus is King and He will – Hosanna - save us. He will be with us in the very midst of all our difficulties and challenges in our world today. And some tomorrow soon we will all be raised with Him to be in paradise where there is no more pain and no more suffering! Do you believe that? Do you serve Him?

Jesus rode into Jerusalem 2000 years ago but even now it is not too late; so why don’t you join us now in celebrating his arrival and in anticipating triumphant return – pledging our loyalty to the King of Kings by laying our palm branches before the King.

On this Palm Sunday, as the people waved their branches before their King, I invite us all to come forward and let us pledge our allegiance to King Jesus; Let us all lay our branches before the King…

www.sheepspeak.com 

Devotion 3.25/126: Matthew 5:45: New York Wind

Presented to River Street Cafe, 21 March 2018

My family and I are blessed to be visiting New York this week as my children are on a break from school. It was a bit of a drive from Toronto but we don't mind, we are used to long drives.

It is great we got to see the Brooklyn Bridge, the Barclay Centre (where the Islanders play), the Museum of Natural History, 5th Avenue, Broadway, Time Square, and Central Park, among other places.

We walked around outside quite a bit an enjoyed ourselves - and then it got cold. Have you noticed how things can change in an instant? A day can be perfectly enjoyable and then it becomes too cold (or too hot) and all of a sudden everyone's mood changes.

Scenery hasn't changed. The neat things to see and do haven't changed. The monuments and parks haven't changed. You're enjoyment however has changed.

This is life. Life happens to every one of us. We all have many exciting and enjoyable things to experience just as we have many trials and toils to endure. The difference is how we experience these situations. If we focus on ourselves, it is like we are inviting a cold wind into our day to make us miserable in the midst of all the wonderful sights around us. If we, however, focus on Christ, we will also notice others and have our hearts warmed and lives enriched by his love as we take in all that He is doing around, in, and through us.

www.sheepspeak.com

More blog daily at

https://salvogesis.blogspot.ca/

Lessons from New York: James 1:2-4, 1 Peter 2:11-18, Matthew 28:18-20 & more

Presented to The Salvation Army Warehouse 614, 18 March 2018 and Alberni Valley Ministries, 23 April 2023, by Captain (Major) Michael Ramsay

Today is the day after St. Patrick’s Day so I thought that I would start off our time here with a little St. Patrick’s Day quiz. (ANSWERS BELOW)

1. Where was St. Patrick born?

The place is part of which contemporary country?

a)      Ireland

b)      Scotland

c)      France

d)     Saskatchewan

2. What was the nationality of St. Patrick's parents?

a)      Irish

b)      Scottish

c)      Roman

d)     Martian

3. What is the traditional colour associated with St. Patrick?

a)      Blue

b)      White

c)      Green

d)     Orange

4. What object to St. Patrick famously use to share the gospel?

a)      Clover

b)      Shamrock

c)      Rainbow

d)     Snake

5. In Eire what would one call criminal who comes down with a skin disease?

- a leper con

1 (b), 2 (c),  3 (a), 4 (b)

We know basically the story of St. Patrick, right? He is the one credited with bringing the Gospel to Ireland. He is famously known for using the shamrock as a metaphor for the trinity in his evangelistic efforts and he is mythically credited with driving the snakes from Ireland – this was probably a euphemism for driving paganism from the country by introducing them to Christ and Christianity.

St. Patrick was born in what is now Scotland, the wealthy son of Roman parents in the 4th Century. He was kidnapped and taken away from his family to Ireland. He escaped and then later voluntarily returned to Ireland bringing with him freedom in Christ to the country in which he was held in captivity. Can you imagine? You are kidnapped by terrorist, you escape, and then you return to the country and the people that kidnapped you trying to point each and every one to salvation. That is what St. Patrick did. He gave up everything so that his captors and kidnappers might be free. This seems a more important thing to celebrate on St. Patrick’s Day than green beer, leprechauns, and pots of gold!

The North Eastern US in general and New York in particular has a long Irish-Catholic history. We just returned from spending March break in New York, so today on this St. Patrick's Day weekend, I thought that I would share some lessons I recalled in New York.

LESSON 1

• Matthew 5:43-45: 43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

• Romans 5:3-5 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation works patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope And hope makes not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

• James 1:2-4 Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

• Romans 12:12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

My family and I really were blessed to visit New York this week as my children were on a break from school. It was a bit of a drive from Toronto but we don't mind, we are used to long drives.

It is great we got to see the Brooklyn Bridge, the Barclay Centre (where the Islanders play – they were a favourite team of mine in the early 1980s), 5th Avenue, Broadway, Times Square, and Central Park, among other places.

We walked around outside quite a bit and enjoyed ourselves - and then it got cold. Have you noticed how things can change in an instant? A day can be perfectly enjoyable and then it becomes too cold (or too hot) and all of a sudden everyone's mood changes. The scenery hasn't changed. The neat things to see and do haven't changed. The monuments and parks haven't changed. Your enjoyment however can change quite a bit if it all of a sudden becomes windy and cold!

This is like life in general. Life happens to every one of us. We all have many exciting and enjoyable things to experience just as we have many trials and toils to endure. The difference is how we experience these situations. If we focus on ourselves, it is like we are inviting a cold wind into our day to make us miserable in the midst of all the wonderful sights around us. If we, however, focus on Christ, we will also notice others and have our hearts warmed and our lives enriched by his love as we take in all that He is doing around, in, and through us. Today let us take Jesus up on his offer of pleasant warmth and comfort in the midst of everything we are seeing and experiencing in this life. Lesson one: Romans 12:12, Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

LESSON 2

• 1 Peter 2:11-18: Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor [President], as the supreme authority, 14 or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. 15 For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. 16 Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves. 17 Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.

18 Slaves [Employees], in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. 19 For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God. 20 But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. 2:11 again: Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul.

It was a lot of fun seeing the sights in New York. We had never been there before and our family really enjoys learning about the history of places as we visit them. We read every plaque we see and visit as many museums as we can.

We went to Buffalo, New York before we went to New York City. In Buffalo we saw plaques and monuments to US President Fillmore. He was from Buffalo; he was the last Whig President. We saw a monument to President McKinley who was assassinated in Buffalo. We saw a statue of President Lincoln. I put a Salvation Army 614 toque on him for a picture; we did this unknowingly on or near an anniversary of one of his massacres of indigenous peoples. (Lincoln, sadly, was responsible for many brutal acts and a lot of death and destruction). We saw a monument to Canadian and American friendship noting that our two flags should fly side-by-side for eternity but, alas, they had Ireland's flag flying instead of Canada's. (This was ironically on the same day that our Canadian government mixed up the Belgian and German flags).

In New York we saw monuments to President Roosevelt and others and we visited the New York Museum of Natural History and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Many great things have been accomplished by Americans. Some of the things celebrated by some of the monuments, however, were things that offended my Canadian sensibilities. But here is the thing: I am just a tourist. I can't vote in US elections. I can't change their laws or their culture. I don't have the rights of a US citizen and I shouldn't because I am not one. Even though many Canadians seem to forget it in this day and age as in both our social and mainstream media, we weigh in on their domestic policy as if it were our domestic policy. It is not. They are a foreign country. I am a tourist. When I am there, I am a gracious guest and I do not forget that I am no more than that.

It is the same in our life here on earth for those of us who are Christians. We need to stand up for Christ and we need to serve him. We can't get drawn into audiaphoron, matters of spiritual indifference - things that have no relevance to his eternal kingdom. I have seen Christians detract from the policies of Christ by promoting INSTEAD the policies of Conservatives, Liberals, Republicans, or Democrats as if Christ supports any of these parties over the others:  he doesn't! (They should support him!) We should support him! We need to serve Christ remembering that if indeed we are Christians our allegiance belongs to him for - just like us last week in New York - we Christians are just visiting until we return to heaven or until Christ returns to earth as Lord of it all. Let us not forget where our Citizenship belongs.

Question for reflection rather than response necessarily: how can we act as Christians in an other than Christian world?

LESSON 3

• Matthew 28:18-20: Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

This week was our family’s first ever visit to New York City. It is not that long of a drive from here in Toronto. In the past few months we have also driven to Ottawa, Montreal, Kingston, Niagara, Buffalo (and flown to Victoria).

When we are in those places, the world comes to life. In Montreal, Quebec, and Kingston, our history and identity as a people (as Canadians) is revealed and we can understand it in ways I never could if I never stood on the walls of the Quebec Citadel or looked out over the plains of Abraham.

In New York, we experienced a lot of American culture. It is really quite something to see one of the cultural centres of the US: so many of their TV shows, movies, and figures of their culture are set right there. We were able to walk through Central Park, see the Statue of Liberty, stand in Times Square and see so many other things that we recognize from their songs, books, and music. Like a great children’s book pointed out to me once: their thanksgiving history (and other history) is much different than ours. And so it is even the more amazing to see things like Central Park, the Statue of Liberty, 5^th Avenue, and ride the ferry to Staten Island.

All of these sights mean a lot more when you actually experience them for yourself rather than just seeing them in movies and on TV. I have a much greater understanding and appreciation for New York than ever before now that I have walked its streets and experienced it with my family.

This is the same with Jesus. Jesus is as real as any of the places we have visited. The more time we spend walking around with Jesus and getting to know him with our friends and family, the greater we will love him. He wants us, he does want you to come see him and spend time with him. As you do, even more than visiting a new city, I promise your life will be much better for it. As such, my final encouragement for you today is this. If you have never experienced the joys of Christ before, I invite you to accept his offer as tour guide, host, and saviour today. I promise you will never regret it.

And that concludes the lessons God affirmed in me this week in New York.

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Devotion 3.24/125: Ecclesiastes 3: Sadness

Read Ecclesiastes 3:1-12

I remember when my daughters were about 5 and 6. I was driving the icy highway between Nipawin and Tisdale Saskatchewan. It was Spring time. The weather was changing but this afternoon there was black ice on the road. I hit the black ice not speeding, but going too fast. I lost control of the car. It crossed the road, hit the ditch and rolled over a time or two. I was completely disoriented and in shock as I looked back to see if my kids were safe. The car was upside down. I remember undoing my youngest's seat belt while she was dangling above me, only to have her plummet down to the ceiling. We were fine. I was in shock. I wandered out into the highway; no one hit me. The police and other help were there right away. The car was written off but none of us had a scratch (Maybe Sarah-Grace a small scratch from when I undid her seat belt.)

The next day or so I drove that same stretch of road (in a different car, as that one no longer ran). I pulled the car over to the side of the road where the other car had flipped. I got out of the car and I looked around. It was a beautiful day. The birds were singing; the snow was almost gone; the black ice that we slid on the day before was certainly gone. It was a beautiful day. And then it struck me ...even if we had all perished in that car crash yesterday, it would still be a beautiful day today, the birds would still be singing, the snow would still be melting and the ice would be gone. As a new pastor then, this remembrance has struck me at every funeral that I have been a part of. The beauty of life continues. As sad as life can be at times - and it can be sad - tomorrow, the birds will be singing, the snow will be melting, the ice will have gone away; it will be a beautiful day

There is a time for everything...

Devotion 3.23/124: Pride

• 1 Samuel 17:47 "...it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle belongs to the Lord..."

• Ecclesiastes 9:11 “…The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favour to the learned…”

• Zechariah 4:6 “…This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty.”

• Acts 4:12: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

• 2 Corinthians 12:9-10: But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

• Deuteronomy 8:10-18a: When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never known, to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you. You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.”

• Proverbs 16:18: Pride comes before a fall

• .Job 34:14-15: “If God were to withdraw his Spirit, all life would disappear and mankind would turn again to dust.”

• Matthew 6:32: God knows what you need Matthew 6:33: seek ye first the Kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you.

Devotion 3.22/123: Genesis 39:14-20: [#metoo]

Joseph, the 'slave' in this story was actually a powerful man. He was in charge of all of the properties, possessions, wealth, and the whole estate of the captain of Pharaoh's guards. Women in Egypt of the Pharaohs had a lot less power than do women of today. Potiphar's wife spoke out about this powerful man in her husband's employ taking advantage of her: there was no guarantee her husband would believe her over his right hand man. You can see she even needed the support of his staff to back her up. She confided in them that this servant of her husband's was here to make sport of them. She took a chance, she spoke up, and Joseph lost his job without warning and wound up in prison. There was no trial, you wouldn't want to disgrace Potiphar's wife any further. Even her identity is forever protected. Her name is never mentioned in the official record. She is protected.  

Recently in Ontario the leader of the Opposition Party was accused of similar things by two anonymous people from years gone by and he lost his job and was condemned by the PM, the Premier, his own party and others in a matter of hours. Over night he lost his job and his reputation. His accusers are protected; they went to the media; they didn't face him. He didn't get a trial. He has affidavits and evidence that even seem to clear his name. One day he seemed poised to be the next ruler of this province and the next, with reputation besmirched, his staff turned on him

Joseph we know was innocent but he went to jail.  

Our Lord and Saviour was executed for treason 

It is in your and my moments of insecurity that we turn to the Lord for security. It is when we are broken that He can make us whole. It is when we are fallen that He may lift us up

Billy Graham was ‘Promoted to Glory’. He always put the gospel in its most basic form. We need salvation.  Psalm 46:10: God: “be still and know that I am God.” Lent is a time to be still and focus on God rather than on ourselves. It is reminiscent of Jesus’ time in the desert and can remind us of Joseph’s time on his way to prison.  So today I encourage us not to rely on our positions, our strength, our skills, our talents, our smarts, our looks, or anything else – just like with Joseph in Genesis 39, they can all disappear in a moment but let us instead look to our Saviour for our Salvation. For salvation comes from Christ alone.

Devotion 3.21/122: Romans 3:22b-23: Short

Read Romans 3

Romans 3:22b-23: There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. I read a story by John Phillips:

     ‘Paul describes sin as a coming short of the divine standard.

Two men went to the recruiting office in London to join the guards regiment. The standard height for a guardsman was a minimum of six feet. One man was taller than the other, but when they were measured officially both were disqualified. The shorter of the two measured only five feet seven inches and was far too short; his companion measured five feet eleven and a half inches and, stretch to his utmost, as he did, he could not make it any more. Nor did his pleas avail. It mattered nothing that his father was a guardsman, that he promised to be a good soldier, that he had already memorized the drills and knew the army regulations by heart. He was short of the standard.

            Yes, he is taller than his friend (just like some people may seem holier than the rest of us) but it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter that he is taller, he still isn’t tall enough and there is nothing he can do about that. There is nothing he can do to grow any bigger. Thus he failed to obtain his goal. Likewise, it doesn’t matter if we are Jew or Gentile, male or female, employer or employee, a missionary, a relatively good person, or what have you… for we have all sinned and thus fall short.

We know that “There is no difference, for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:22b-23) and we also know that we “are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24). This is good news. Like so much in this world, it is not ‘what you know’ but it is ‘who you know’. Now to some this sounds unfair but when you take into account that no one knows enough to actually pass the test and merit salvation, then we really do appreciate this grace.

Now God loves the world so much that He did send His only begotten son so that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. He sent His son into the world to save the world not to condemn the world (John 3:16-17) and since He did that at such a great personal expense, let us please accept that gift today and let us not be ashamed of this good news (Romans 1:16-17), let us let all our friends and family know that the Lord our God loves us all. He has purchased this special gift of salvation for every one of us and all we have to do is not decline it; so please let us each accept that love present, that gift of eternal life today.As we accept this gift, our lives will never be the same again.                                      

Devotion 3.20/121: Romans 7:19: Deliverance

Read Romans 7:15-8:2

Paul knows that sometimes even when we understand that there are some things that are not beneficial for us we still do them. This is an old problem. People have wrestled with this one for a long time. Horace said, ‘I pursue the things that have done me harm; I shun the things that will do me good’ (Epistles 1.8.11). Plato said, ‘one may acknowledge evil things to be evil, and nevertheless do them’ (Protagoras). Ovid said ‘I see and approve the better course, but I follow the worse one’ (Metamorphoses 7.20ff). The Apostle Paul said, “For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.”

What can we do when desire to the destruction of sin is pulling upon us like a giant magnet pulling us ever so slowly towards it?  Whether we are trying to stop lying, lusting, or smoking crack cocaine; the more we think about ways to avoid it, the more we wind up pondering ways to imbibe it. Soon our every thought is consumed with that sin that we are trying to flee. It is everywhere! …and then it has us.

There is a secret weapon for seeing sin defeated though. Now I am not saying that if you are a Christian you will never sin but here is the path to freedom, should we choose to take it. Paul says, Romans 7:24-8:2:

7:24 …Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, [He] delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!…8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death...

The one who can deliver us from all of this is Christ Jesus. The Spirit of God Himself will transform us. Instead of wrestling with our sins, we can know that Jesus has defeated sin and death between the cross and the empty tomb. Just like a long-time married couple can often finish each others senteces and know what each other are thinking, as we spend more and more time with Jesus, we will naturally become be more and more like Him and as a result sin less and less. As we pray and read our Bible, as we sing our songs, as we come to Church, as we serve God by serving others in Jesus' Name, as we tell others about the Gospel of Salvation we will be transformed into the very likeness of God Himself! As we focus on God and His holiness that will be reflected in our life!

So today let us resolve to do just that

Devotion 3.19/120: Deuteronomy 8:10 Good Times

Read Deuteronomy 8:1-20

Deuteronomy 8 reminds us of an important truth that, 8:3, because He loves us, God hungers us causing us to rely on Him but, 8:10-11, as we enter a time of abundance we must give thanks to the Lord because, 8:19-20, forgetting the Lord will result in our destruction

As the Hebrews followed God around the desert, He provided for them. Even their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell during this time. God provided for them; When they had nothing, God provided for them Deuteronomy 8:15,16:

He led you through the vast and dreadful desert, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. He gave you manna to eat in the desert, something your fathers had never known, to humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you.

Even though one generation of the Israelites were faithless upon leaving Egypt, that did not nullify the faithfulness of God (Romans 3:3,4) who provided this desert experience as a means to their salvation. God, through Moses reminded the people not to forget this: in the desert, God and God alone provided for them, preparing them to receive this Promised Land. Alas, as God warned them, these times of relying on God passed when the people acquired stability, income, relative ease and apparent self-sufficiency. They didn't think they needed Him once they settled in their promised land so they left Him and then they didn't have Him. And so when life's hard hand dealt them their blows they turned to look for God's protection but they had turned their backs, walked away and left Him behind. God didn't leave them. They left Him. They exchanged the safety of God's love for the death of wealth and the myth of self-sufficiency. 

In our country too: Canada was founded on the Word of God (Psalm 72); we used to have the Lord's Prayer in Parliament and Gideon Bibles in the schools. Now we don't seem to think we need Him anymore.

This is sad but there is some good news. There is still time to return to our Lord. As long as we exist as a nation there is still the opportunity for our nation to return to God. We, as Christians should do our best to help build God’s Kingdom here as it is in heaven. As long as we exist it is not too late, we can still return to the Lord.

We know that as far as Israel is concerned, their Messiah did eventually come, even after all the unfaithfulness. He has come already. Jesus is their, and our, Messiah. Jesus was born, died, and rose from the grave. We know that Jesus will come back too and he will reign forever not only as King of the Jews but also as King of the whole world (cf. TSA doc. 6).

When he does, will he find that we are walking with him or that we have walked away from him and his salvation?