Deuteronomy 8: Thanksgiving Day

Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries, 08 October 2023 and 09 October 2022, by Major Michael Ramsay

 

This is the 2023 version, to view the earlier version click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2022/10/deuteronomy-83-20-and-psalm-100.html

  

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

 

    The book of Deuteronomy here records the time after the Hebrews had fled Egypt and before they reached Canaan. They had only what they could carry and – as they were nomadic – obviously, no farms to grow food, no permanent water source or anything like that. They were hundreds, thousands or even more people without a permanent home wandering around the desert.

 

    As the Hebrews followed God around the desert like this, 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 Israelites was faithless upon leaving Egypt their actions did not nullify the faithfulness of God (Romans 3:3,4) who provided this desert experience as a means to their salvation. The next generation, who was born in the desert, learned to rely on God in their time of real need and God provided for them in the desert. God, through Moses and then Joshua, reminded the people not to forget this: in the desert God and God alone provided for them, preparing them to receive the Promised Land.

 

    But 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 arguably founded on the Word of God: notably Psalm 72:8: that is from where our old name came – when I was growing up this country was called the Dominion of Canada; Canada Day used to be called Dominion Day. 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 or want 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 acknowledging God. Now I am not pretending that Canadians of the ‘olden days’ were better than today. We made mistakes then, like we do now. We are making improvements and we are making some serious errors. We are just people after all. The key is whether we try to serve the Lord or not. He loves us and wants us on His team, as part of His family. Maybe our country as a whole never will be. We, as Christians, however, should do our best to help build God’s Kingdom here as it is in heaven, to help bring people into the family of God’s love and support. We can do this by continuing to serve God by taking care of our neighbour as well as reading our Bibles and spending time in prayer with God and, of course, also sharing about the blessings of doing all these things with others so they can experience it as well. God loves us and as such He wants us all to be part of His Dominion. As long as we exist it is not too late: we can all and each still return to the Lord.

 

    We know that Israel's Messiah did eventually come, even after all the unfaithfulness. Jesus is their and our Messiah. Jesus was born, died, and rose from the grave. And 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 Kingdom?

 

    There is a children’s book, Thanksgiving Day in Canada – it is a favourite book of mine. I have quoted it quite often for many years when speaking about Thanksgiving in Canada – my children all know the book very well too. As I have shared from the pulpit here on a previous Thanksgivings, the other year I found out something very interesting. You know that Susan, the kids and I lived and worked in Toronto prior to being posted here. We were the Officers responsible for The Salvation Army`s Warehouse Mission as well as 614 in downtown Toronto. One year during our time there, with Thanksgiving coming up, I happened to be speaking with our worship leader, Krys Lewicki, about the book and it turns out that he wrote that book (it was promoted by CBC as part of Canada`s 125 anniversary). Krys also wrote a Thanksgiving song that is in that book that we sang earlier and will probably sing again before we leave. About Thanksgiving, from the book:

 

The origins of Canadian Thanksgiving are more closely connected to the traditions of Europe than of the United States. Long before Europeans settled in North America, festivals of thanks and celebrations of harvest took place in Europe in the month of October. The very first Thanksgiving celebration in North America took place in Canada when Martin Frobisher, an explorer from England, arrived in Newfoundland in 1578. He wanted to give thanks for his safe arrival to the New World. That means the first Thanksgiving in Canada was celebrated 43 years before the pilgrims landed in Plymouth, Massachusetts!

For a few hundred years, Thanksgiving was celebrated in either late October or early November, before it was declared a national holiday in 1879. It was then, that November 6th was set aside as the official Thanksgiving holiday. But then on January 31, 1957, Canadian Parliament announced that on the second Monday in October, Thanksgiving would be "a day of general thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed."

Thanksgiving was moved to the second Monday in October because after the World Wars, Remembrance Day (November 11th) and Thanksgiving kept falling in the same week. Another reason for Canadian Thanksgiving arriving earlier than its American counterpart is that Canada is geographically further north than the United States, causing the Canadian harvest season to arrive earlier than the American harvest season. And since Thanksgiving for Canadians is more about giving thanks to the Lord for the harvest season than the arrival of pilgrims, it makes sense to celebrate the holiday in October.

 

    In this day and age of the Holy being replaced by the secular in so much of our society, it is a good encouragement to each of us as individuals and as the Lord’s children here to remember that even our Parliament once declared Thanksgiving as "a day of general thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed."

 

     Please this weekend let us remember not only to be thankful but to be thankful to God; and with all else that we are indeed thankful for let us not neglect our gratitude for the harvest that the farmers have reaped this year and all those who the Lord will and does provide for through that.

 

    This weekend and this day let us remember to offer thanksgiving to Almighty God for all else and for the bountiful harvest with which we have been blessed.

 

Let us pray.

 

 

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Deuteronomy 6:1-12: Songs of Salvation.

Presented to 614 Warehouse Mission, 30 April 2017, and Alberni Valley Ministries, 23 October 2022, by Major Michael Ramsay

  

This is the 2022 Alberni Valley version. To view the original 2017 Toronto version, click here: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2017/04/deuteronomy-61-12-childrens-songs.html

  

I understand that Terri, Rena and Tim’s daughter, just got back from seeing Elton John; friends of mine saw Gordon Lightfoot this weekend. My older daughters and I this summer went to see a number of bands from the 70s and 80s playing in Seattle (which we had been waiting to see since before Covid-19). It is a lot of fun.

            The best part of going to see bands from yester-year play is the memories attached to the old songs and the opportunity to share those and new memories with my kids. We have seen a lot of shows together: Meat Loaf, Joan Jett, Def Leppard, GNR, Deep Purple, Alice Cooper and more. Alice Cooper by the way is an outspoken Christian and the son of a preacher. I actually saw Alice Cooper in concert when I was 17 years-old and then 30 years later, when we lived in Toronto, I was able to see him with my then 16 and 15 year-old daughters. This sort of thing is what our text today is about: sharing our memories with our kids so they can experience all the joy we did and so we can add even more to those memories together. This may even be exactly what is happening in our text today, Moses is probably bringing the Deuteronomy generation to hear the same Ten Commandments play at Mt Sinai that the Exodus generation had heard with him, decades previous.[1]

            In our Scriptures today Moses is talking to the children of the people he received the 10 Commandments with. It is important that children are reminded of, remember and participate in their parents’ experiences. It is important to remember what the Lord has done. When we fail to remember our culture, we lose it; when we fail to remember our past, we lose our future; when we fail to remember what defines us as a people then we cease to be a nation;[3] and when we fail to remember our salvation with our children, then future generations may not experience that salvation anymore (Deuteronomy 8:19-20).[4] This may be what is happening in Canada today. This is what Moses is driving home with this next generation of Israelites. This is important. Don't just hope that our children and children’s children will learn something from a teacher, preacher, or priest. Don't just hope they'll learn life's lessons by accident. Sharing our faith history is our responsibility. Our very survival depends on what we remember from the past and how we carry that into the future.[5]

            In our world today, songs are a great way to bring memories and knowledge and experiences forward to a new generation. I am going to list some songs and see if you can tell me who sang them for one generation or the next [Answers in footnote below]:[6] (1) Cats in the Cradle (2) Signs (3) You're so Vain (4) California Girls (5) Knocking on Heaven’s Door (6) Live and Let Die (7) Landslide (8) Johnny B Goode

            I remember turning on the radio a few years ago and... There is this old Irish folk song – generations old – called 'Whiskey in the Jar'. I don’t know if anyone here knows that song or not. Susan knows all kinds of old folk songs. She really likes some of those old-fashioned numbers and so as a result I was familiar with it. Well, I got in the car one day, turned on the local radio station, and - I don’t know if anyone here is familiar with Metallica, they are a near-contemporary heavy metal band - I heard them doing a heavy metal rendition of this old Irish folk song. I was sort of in shock. I began to think of all the remakes of songs that I have heard over the years. Many times the remakes were my first exposure to the song and it got me thinking: When the words of an old song are put to a new tune they become accessible to a new generation. As we continue to sing these same songs in new ways, we remain faithful to their intent, passing it onto our children and to our children’s children.  This is like our personal testimonies and conversations about the Lord. When we put the gospel message of salvation into our own words, in our own tune and share it with our own children then we are indeed passing that eternal truth of salvation down from one generation to the next.

           When we were in Toronto, our WT leader, Krys Val (Warehouse Mission Band) would write new lyrics to popular tunes from the 60s, 70s and 80s - all of us would then hear the gospel expressed in music that resonates in our hearts and souls and memories and hopefully every time we hear that familiar, sometimes timeless tune we can remember what the Lord has done for us, with us, through us and in us.

            This is what our Scripture today sees Moses doing with the Deuteronomy generation.[7] God, through Moses, says of the lyrics of the 10 Commandments (Deuteronomy 6:7-9):

Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

 

            Moses wants the people to remember even more than just the words to these 10 Commands, of course. The Bible says God remembered Israel when they were in slavery. Now, will they remember Him when they are free? God remembers us when we are struggling. Do we remember Him when we are free? We may turn to God when things are bad; do we turn away from Him when we feel free to live our life for ourselves?[8] Do we remember what God has done for us as we are delivered from our problems? Do we remember how God saved those alongside us? Do we remember how God saved our family members before us? Do we remember how God saved our fore-parents in this country?  

Do we remember the things that God did for the Israelites before he brought them out of Egypt? How did God reveal himself to Pharaoh? Remember the Passover? Remember the plagues (Exodus 7-12)? When Sarah-Grace was 12 years-old, we hit the road with an excellent sermon she preached about the plagues.[9] Do we remember the plagues God used to save the children of Israel? What were they? Snakes, blood, frogs, gnats, flies, cows (dead livestock), boils, hail, locusts, darkness, death of the first born. God wants Israel to remember their salvation from, in and through these plagues. God wants them to remember how they were saved as death passed them over. And God wants us to remember also how generations and a testament later, Jesus won the ultimate victory over death so that we all might live. This is what Easter and Good Friday are all about.

            We are just about to come into the Advent season. We have many traditions around Advent: scripture readings, songs (Carols), candle lighting, and more

            When we invite our children and grandchildren to participate in Advent services; when we bring friends and family to Christmas pageants, when we invite people to a church service anytime of the year with us, we are carrying on that salvation tradition and experience.

            When we bring our children and grandchildren to church we remember and experience corporate worship and salvation together as a family. When we read our Bibles with our children and grandchildren and friends, we pass along the stories of salvation from one generation to the next - we show them what is important by what we do with each other; and as we read the Bible together, as we each experience our glorious personal salvation we can see how that fits in with salvation history and how we are included in the salvation of the whole world.

 

            When we say grace with future generations before dinner - whether at home or in public - we are teaching others the importance of prayer. When we say grace, when we pray in public, we may even be unknowingly encouraging even strangers to be faithful. They might see us and then remember that indeed they prayed with their parents as a kid and then head home and pass on that marker and catalyst for that same salvation relationship with their own children; and then they may experience that same access to all the power, mercy, grace and glory of God.

So, as Hebrews 10:25 extols us, let us not stop meeting together as some are in the habit of doing. Let us not stop singing our songs of salvation with new generations. Let us always read the stories of Noah, Moses, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Jesus Christ with our children, our children's children, our friends, and our family. This week, let us resolve to take the Good News of Salvation and share it with everyone we meet so that they and we may experience the fullness of God's love today and forever more.                          

Let us pray.

---

[1] Cf. Thompson, J. A., Deuteronomy: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 1974 (Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries 5), S. 128

[2]Cf. Captain Michael Ramsay, 'Deuteronomy 8: The Next Generation Thanks The Lord' (Sheepspeak.com: Swift Current, 09 October 2011). Available on-line:http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2011/10/deuteronomy-8-next-generation-thanks.html

[3]Cf. Thomas E. McComiskey, The Expositor's Bible Commentary,  PradisCD-ROM:Amos/Introduction to Amos/Theological Values of Amos/The doctrine of election in Amos, Book Version: 4.0.2; cf. also Willy Schottroff, “To Perceive, To Know,” in Theological Lexicon of the Old Testament, Volume 3 eds. Ernst Jenni and Claus Westermann (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, 1997),516.

[4]Deuteronomy 8:19-20: “If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed. Like the nations the LORD destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the LORD your God.”

[5] Luciano C. Chianeque and Samuel Ngewa, '6:10-25: The Importance of Remembering', Africa Bible Commentary, (Nairobi, Kenya: Word Alive Publishers, 2010), 222.

[6] Cats in the Cradle (Harry Chapin, Ugly Kid Joe), Signs (Five Man Electrical Band), You're so Vain (Carlie Simon, Faster Pussy Cat), California Girls (Beach Boys, David Lee Roth), Knocking on Heaven’s Door (Bob Dylan, GNR), Live and Let Die (Paul McCarthy, GNR), Landslide (Fleetwood Mac, Smashing Pumpkins), Johnny B Goode (Chuck Berry, Elvis, Judas Priest, AC DC, Motorhead, etc).

[7]Cf. Ronald E. Clements, The Book of Deuteronomy, (NIB II: Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 1998), 355.

[8] Cf. Luciano C. Chianeque and Samuel Ngewa, '6:10-25: The Importance of Remembering', Africa Bible Commentary, (Nairobi, Kenya: Word Alive Publishers, 2010), 222.

[9] Sarah-Grace Ramsay, Plague Pops – Salvation only comes from God (Exodus 7-12). Presented to Maple Creek Corps of The Salvation Army, 10 August, 2014 and Swift Current, 17 August 2014, available online: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2014/08/plague-pops-salvation-only-comes-from.html

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Deuteronomy 8 & Psalm 100: Thanksgiving Day

Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries, 09 October 2022 and 08 October 2023, by Major Michael Ramsay

 

This is the original 2022 version; to view the 2023 version, click here:

 https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2023/10/deuteronomy-8-thanksgiving-day.html

  

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

 

The book of Deuteronomy here records the time after the Hebrews had fled Egypt and before they reached Canaan. They had only what they could carry and – as they were nomadic – obviously, no farms to grow food, no permanent water source or anything like that. They were hundreds, thousands or even more people without a permanent home wandering around the desert.

 

As the Hebrews followed God around the desert like this, 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 Israelites was faithless upon leaving Egypt their actions did not nullify the faithfulness of God (Romans 3:3,4) who provided this desert experience as a means to their salvation. The next generation, who was born in the desert, learned to rely on God in their time of real need and God provided for them in the desert. God, through Moses and then Joshua, reminded the people not to forget this: in the desert God and God alone provided for them, preparing them to receive the Promised Land.

 

But 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: notably Psalm 72:8: that is from where our old name came – when I was growing up this country was called the Dominion of Canada; Canada Day used to be called Dominion Day. 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 or want 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. We can do this by continuing to serve God by taking care of our neighbour as well as reading our Bibles and spending time in prayer with God and, of course, also sharing about the blessings of doing all these things with others so they can experience it as well. God loves us and as such He wants us all to be part of His Dominion. As long as we exist it is not too late: we can all and each still return to the Lord.

 

We know that Israel's Messiah did eventually come, even after all the unfaithfulness. Jesus is their and our Messiah. Jesus was born, died, and rose from the grave. And 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 Kingdom?

 

There is a children`s book, Thanksgiving Day in Canada – it is a favourite book of mine. I have quoted it quite often for many years when speaking about Thanksgiving in Canada – my children all know the book very well too. As I have shared from the pulpit here on a previous Thanksgivings, the other year I found out something very interesting. You know that Susan, the kids and I lived and worked in Toronto prior to being posted here. We were the Officers responsible for The Salvation Army`s Warehouse Mission as well as 614 in downtown Toronto. One year during our time there, with Thanksgiving coming up, I happened to be speaking with our worship leader, Krys Lewicki, about the book and it turns out that he wrote that book (it was promoted by CBC as part of Canada`s 125 anniversary). Krys also wrote a Thanksgiving song that is in that book that we sang earlier and will probably sing again before we leave. About Thanksgiving, from the book:

 

The origins of Canadian Thanksgiving are more closely connected to the traditions of Europe than of the United States. Long before Europeans settled in North America, festivals of thanks and celebrations of harvest took place in Europe in the month of October. The very first Thanksgiving celebration in North America took place in Canada when Martin Frobisher, an explorer from England, arrived in Newfoundland in 1578. He wanted to give thanks for his safe arrival to the New World. That means the first Thanksgiving in Canada was celebrated 43 years before the pilgrims landed in Plymouth, Massachusetts!

 

For a few hundred years, Thanksgiving was celebrated in either late October or early November, before it was declared a national holiday in 1879. It was then, that November 6th was set aside as the official Thanksgiving holiday. But then on January 31, 1957, Canadian Parliament announced that on the second Monday in October, Thanksgiving would be "a day of general thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed."

 

Thanksgiving was moved to the second Monday in October because after the World Wars, Remembrance Day (November 11th) and Thanksgiving kept falling in the same week. Another reason for Canadian Thanksgiving arriving earlier than its American counterpart is that Canada is geographically further north than the United States, causing the Canadian harvest season to arrive earlier than the American harvest season. And since Thanksgiving for Canadians is more about giving thanks to the Lord for the harvest season than the arrival of pilgrims, it makes sense to celebrate the holiday in October.

 

In this day and age of the Holy being replaced by the secular in so much of our society, it is good to remember that Parliament itself has declared Thanksgiving as "a day of general thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed."

 

Please this weekend let us remember not only to be thankful but to be thankful to God; and with all else that we are indeed thankful for let us not neglect our gratitude for the harvest that the farmers have reaped this year and all those who the Lord will and does provide for through that.

 

This weekend and this day let us remember to offer thanksgiving to Almighty God for all else and for the bountiful harvest with which we have been blessed.

 

Let us pray.

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Thoughts from our Travels across Western Canada: Philippians 2:3&4, Deuteronomy 6:7, Matthew 13:44, Galatians 5:22-23

Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries, 31 July 2022 by Major Michael Ramsay

 

We had a great furlough. Susan and Heather have been gone for about a month; Sarah-Grace and I flew out to meet them about 2 weeks ago in Winnipeg. We then all drove back across Western Canada. Today I am going to chat about a few lessons learned and/or things that were reinforced for me along the way.

  

Lesson One: Philippians 2:3&4: Human Responsibilities

 

 

One place Sarah-Grace and I visited early in our adventure was the Human Rights Museum in Winnipeg. This is a big building with lots of ramps, and stairs, and walking. They seemed to have walking for the sake of walking, as a good portion of the museum was just long empty ramps to get from one floor to the next. There were a number of exhibits in the building – but not on the ramps. There was, of course, a big section on Germany during the second world war and the holocaust. There was also information about the Rwandan genocide and other terrible things from history.

I noticed that many of the most horrible and violent atrocities in history have been incited by us focusing on our rights rather than our responsibilities: I deserve this (good thing); therefore they deserve (something bad) because they took away my rights - my rights, her rights, his rights. It really seemed clear reading about persecutions, purges, and genocides; it really struck me about times and places where human societies commit horrible atrocities that the perpetrators always seem to focus on their rights. Many in Germany in the 1930s were upset at what had been done to them, how they had been victimized and how they had to make it right. That is how the Nazis came to power. The Hutus focused on Hutu rights and the Tutsi privilege and previous atrocities that a previous generation of Tutsi or others had done to them. Looking through the displays about the many horrific things that we people have done to each other, the people committing the crimes seem to always believe that they are actually the victims, they are righting a wrong, and that the other is ‘getting what they deserve’. They are focusing on their perceived rights as more important than others’: Only Hutu lives matter. As Christians of course, we should know better. We all know the acronym J.O.Y: Jesus. Others. Yourself. Many times the scriptures tell us we should consider God first, then others, then ourselves. Philippians 2:1-4 says:

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.  Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

…in humility value others above yourselves; don’t look out for your own interests but the interests of others. This is the Christian message. Social media and various social movements these days, even here in Canada, seem to be very much focused on people loudly screaming, “I have the right to do this…” Be wary. Be very wary of this. 1 Corinthians 10:23-24:

““I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive. No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.” As Christians, it is imperative that we focus not on our real, perceived or imagined rights but rather on our responsibilities and how we can help one another.

 

Lesson 2: Deuteronomy 6:7: Teach your Children

 

 

          We were able to see many other interesting things while we were in Winnipeg too: the Art Gallery, the Forks, the Museum, the Hockey Sweater the musical, St. Boniface, Booth College… and we even stayed in the same room there we stayed in when we first lived in Winnipeg for a couple of nights before we camped at Birds Hill Park. In between visiting Winnipeg and reminiscing about our time living there 15 years ago we went to pick up Heather from Ukrainian Camp in Gimli – this camp is why we were here. Heather has been learning Ukrainian, as you probably know. Susan’s mom has Ukrainian heritage, and she may have even gone to this camp herself many, many years ago. Coming back, we even stopped by Vegreville to see the world’s largest pysanki (Easter Egg). This is all part of her and Susan’s heritage; just like the Highland Dancing Heather and Sarah-Grace have done is part of their heritage on both sides of the family. This got me to thinking about our Christian heritage and how important it is that we pass on our Christian life. Jesus talks about eating together in remembrance of Him and how He delivers us unto eternal life. We are commanded to never stop meeting together. The Passover, similar to and in some ways foreshadowing this, is all about remembering how God delivered the Israelites from slavery into the Promised Land. The 10 Commandments themselves are all about passing on our heritage and relationship with God to future generations. Deuteronomy 6:1-2, 7-9 and 12 says this,

These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God… Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates…. be careful that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

Our heritage is important. Teaching future generations the lessons, love and forgiveness that is part and parcel of serving the Lord, is how we carry on our heritage of loving God forward through the generations and into a future of His Salvation.

 

Lesson 3: Matthew 13:44: Heaven is a Great Treasure

 

 

          After Winnipeg we were able to go to Regina, Moose Jaw and Swift Current in Saskatchewan. This is also very much a part of our children’s heritage. Not only do they have three or four great grandparents from Saskatchewan but Heather was born there and Rebecca and Sarah-Grace really grew up there. We celebrated the Riders (even though they lost); we were able to see the tunnels of Moose Jaw (a great tourist stop) and got to see a lot of old friends. It was good.

          Next we went to Alberta and stopped at the West Edmonton Mall. Heather really wanted to see the Mall. We went there on Susan’s Birthday. Susan and Sarah-Grace went shopping and spent a good day together while Heather and I spent the day in the waterpark inside the mall before we all met for a birthday dinner. There were a lot of great waterslides. We went on a few of them – not all of them by any means. We spent most of our time in the wave pool.

In the wave pool, everyone stands waiting for these giant waves to come crashing over you and then you try to either jump over them, into them, or just hold firm without being swept away. It was fun. One thing that struck me was the singularity of focus. You had fun but there was no doubt why everyone was in that pool. When the horn sounded and the waves rolled, we all responded. This reminded me of the Holy Spirt greeting the disciples in Acts 2 who were eagerly awaiting Him. It also reminded me of the pearl of great price and Matthew 13:44 where we are told that “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” This is how the Christian life is meant to work – as we focus on Christ, the results are worth more than anything else in the world.

 

Lesson 4: Galatians 5:23-24: The Mark of God Upon Us

 

 

With so many people in bathing suits, I also noticed just how many people have tattoos these days. I think the majority of people between 15 and 50 probably have a tattoo of some kind – and some have lots. The 15-year-olds, I hope they still like whatever it is that they have tattooed on their bodies when they are 50 years old. A lot will change for them between now and then but that tattoo will probably stay the same.

          What my mind thought of when I saw this was… what are the tattoos, the markings of a Christian life? What are the things that when people look at a child of God they will see? What indelible marks does the Holy Spirit put on our lives. I do hope that it is indeed the fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 and 25: the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

After Alberta we continued on through BC stopping to see Rebecca and heading home and as I reflect on this trip it really is my hope that it will be a reminder for me (and maybe all of us here) to

 

·       Philippians 2:3,4: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” Remembering that

·       Matthew 13:44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.” so

·       Deuteronomy 6:7: “Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” For

·       Galatians 5:22-23a: “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”

 

May we always have that in our lives.

 

Let us pray

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and if you like this, you may enjoy Salvogesis Guide to Romans Road available here:

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Deuteronomy 15:1-11: Poor No More! Count Me In!

 Presented to The Salvation Army, Alberni Valley Ministries, 16 January 2022, by Captain Michael Ramsay

Deuteronomy is an interesting book. It begins with probably a recap for the children of the generation who left Egypt, It begins on Mt Sinai, Mt Horeb, and the opening story is that of the Israelites, save Joshua and Caleb, declining the gift of the Promised Land – until it is too late. It then records their desert wanderings and various battles as well as Moses’ prohibition from entering the Promised Land; It then lays out a number of laws outlining how God’s people are to live, the most famous of which are the 10 Commandments listed in Chapter 5. Can anyone tell me what are the 10 Commandments?

 

1.     “I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me.

2.     “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

3.     “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.

4.     “Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you. Six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. And remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

5.     “Honour your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, that your days may be long, and that it may be well with you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you.

6.     “You shall not murder.

7.     “You shall not commit adultery.

8.     “You shall not steal.

9.     “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour.

10. “You shall not covet your neighbour’s wife; and you shall not desire your neighbour’s house, his field, his male servant, his female servant, his ox, his donkey, or anything that is your neighbour’s.”

 

There are a whole lot more laws than these, of course. The next few chapters of Deuteronomy delineate a few more, elaborate on them, give us more details, and/or reasons for them. In Chapter 9 we read the famous episode of the Golden Calf and in Chapter 10 we have the second printing of the 10 Commandments. We then have a number more chapters elaborating upon and explaining the laws. Chapter 15, which we are looking at today, relates very much to Deuteronomy’s version of the Fourth Commandment – keeping the Sabbath Day holy.[1] In Deuteronomy the reason for this commandment is different than the reason specified in the Exodus account (Ex 20:8-11); in the Deuteronomy account the reason for the Fourth Commandment is that the Israelites were slaves in Egypt. They are not to make perpetual slaves of each other. Furthermore, when they enter the Promised Land, Deuteronomy 15:4, “there need be no poor people among you, for in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, He will richly bless you.” But then by Verse 11 it is noted that even so, “there will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.”[2]

 

Matthew 26:11 (Mark 14:7, John 12:8) Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 15:11 in saying, “the poor will always be with you”

 

As this is the case, Ignacio Ellacuria says, in essence, the great salvific task is to evangelize the poor so that out of their poverty they may attain the spirit necessary first to escape their indulgence and oppression, second to put an end to oppressive structures, and third to be used to inaugurate a new heaven and a new earth, where sharing trumps accumulating and where there is time to hear and enjoy God’s voice in the heart of the material world and in the heart of human history.[3]

 

I think that is very important. We need to evangelize the poor. We know what the word evangelize means, right? It comes from the Greek word ‘euangelion’, which means ‘good message’ or ‘good news’.[4] We need to share the good news with the poor. Jesus, as recorded in Luke 4:18, in his very early sermon in the synagogue in his very own hometown quoted the prophet Isaiah – Isaiah 61:1 - in this very sentiment. He said, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me because He has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.”

 

What is this good news? What is this ‘euangelion’? This good news is that we can be saved from eternal death. We can be bodily raised from the dead to eternal life and even more.[5] We can have the Spirit of God on us now in our very lives. By the power of God, we can start to experience a new life this very day – renewing our heart and transforming us from the inside! That we can all have this is good news – especially for the poor! And there is more: for just as salvation isn’t just for the future it also isn’t just for the individual; it is for all creation (Romans 8:19-22).

 

And in our society today, as in almost all, if not all societies throughout history, the group that consistently experiences being excluded from the society of the privileged is the poor. Today in Canada we talk a lot about indigenous history and the TRC. Today out of the United States, BLM is a significant movement. Today there is much talk about identity politics. Today there are many people discriminated against. The people who have been primarily victimized in these and all other groups are the poor. (There are some exceptions, of course. The unvaccinated are being excluded from society at present and they are not all poor – yet. But Quebec may even now be putting a special tax on them! There are many jobs they aren't allowed to hold and they are even being denied benefits!) The consistent target of exclusion in our society – and our world - is and has always been the poor.[6]

 

In the USA which experienced some of the worst slavery and anti-black history in the whole world, this century already they have had a rich, powerful, privileged black man ruling their nation while many black and other people still suffer horribly under the curse of poverty and exclusion from society.[7] The Church however is inclusive society and while some of the poor and disenfranchised are already experiencing the blessings of the Good News of eternal salvation, sadly many are still waiting to experience solidarity in the totality of salvation – that of mind, body, soul, and circumstance. A just society, a Christian society is one where everyone will have access to community. A just society, a Christian society is one where the poor and the wealthy will experience solidarity in their salvation. A just society, a Christian society is one where the rich will no longer risk their eternal rewards by withholding material necessities from the poor, as it says in Matthew 6:19-24.

 

John Sobrino tells us that God can use the poor to unleash the solidarity that can be salvific for both the poor and the nonpoor, where “poor people and nonpoor people are mutually bearing one another, giving to each other, and receiving from each other. This kind of solidarity goes beyond mere unilateral [one-way] aid, with its intrinsic tendency toward imposition and domination. [This kind of Christian Solidarity] … can resolve the ambiguity and root out what is harmful in the falsely universalizing concept of globalization.”[8] Bishop Desmond Tutu, recently ptg, and President Nelson Mandala referred this as ‘Ubuntu’ which literally means, ‘a person is a person through other people.’ [9] Solidarity is not a one-way street where some dominate others. Salvation is not a one-way street where some dominate others. A Christian society is one where we share resources and bear one another’s burdens (Acts 2:42-47).

 

Ignacio Ellacuria writes that we need to work to create such a society that can replace our civilization of capital, our civilization of wealth, with its the closed and competitive individualism. This needs to be replaced with a society of labour.[10]

 

A Society of Love: Societies based on wealth (capitalism) can never be Christian (Matthew 6:24) as they exclude the poor.

 

When Jesus was born, lived, died, and rose again He began ushering in His proleptic Kingdom. We know what ‘proleptic’ means, right? It means both now and not yet. The Kingdom of God has begun. It will culminate in Jesus’ return. The Pentateuch here records what God’s Kingdom will look like. Deuteronomy 15:4 records that “there need be no poor people among you, for in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, He will richly bless you.” Deuteronomy was speaking specifically about the penultimate Promised Land but as with so many other texts, its culmination comes only in the ultimate Promised Land of the Kingdom to Come. This Kingdom is coming now and as we work to make this Kingdom a reality, we prove our citizenship in it (Philippians 3:20).

 

The Church is Christian society. As citizens of Heaven, it is important that we no longer objectify others and exclude them from society. The society of Jesus is inclusive. We need to not only allow but also invite our neighbour to participate in society – No more excluding the poor or anyone else! We need to give every person every opportunity to be part of our group. We need to allow every person to serve. Do not force anyone to just be served. Allow everyone to help. Do not demean some by considering them unable to assist. We must empower every person to help others.[11] We must! The Kingdom of God is about inviting others to be part of a society of Jesus, where we love and serve one another. This is the society we are to be building as we await Christ’s return.

 

Today, I encourage you to look for an opportunity to invite someone to serve our Lord alongside you. For those who work and volunteer here, I invite you to not only give out clothes to others who need clothes but allow someone in need to help you; for those who work here, allow someone who has enjoyed a meal with you at the soup kitchen to clean tables or do dishes alongside you. For all of us who are here today, ask someone you serve what is their opinion – ask someone who may not otherwise think that you even care about their opinion, what is their opinion – and then listen to what they say! And honour them by engaging them! For all of us who are here today, ask someone to pray for you; pray for someone else and then ask them to pray for you! When you do this, you involve others in the community of Christ; When you do this, you involve others in the society of Jesus. When we do this, we invite others to be a part of the Kingdom of God.

 

This week let us look for opportunities not to merely serve others but to invite others to be a part of the Kingdom of God by inviting them to serve God right alongside us. Only then will we all have an opportunity to truly be part of the society of Jesus.

 

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[1] Cf. Ronald E. Clements, The Book of Deuteronomy, (NIB II: Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 1998), 407

[2] Cf. Thomas E. McComiskey, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Deuteronomy/Exposition of Deuteronomy/III. The Second Address: Stipulations of the Covenant-Treaty and Its Ratification (4:44-28:68)/C. Specific Stipulations of the Covenant-Treaty (12:1-26:19)/1. For worship and ceremony (12:1-16:17)/d. Time-related activities (14:22-16:17)/(2) The year of canceling debts (15:1-11), Book Version: 4.0.2

[3] Quoted from John Sobrino, No Salvation Outside the Poor (Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 2008), 76.

[4] Cf. Captain Michael Ramsay, Romans 1:16: I am not ashamed of the Gospel! (Swift Current, SK, The Salvation Army, 05 July 2009) http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2009/07/romans-116-i-am-not-ashamed-of-gospel.html

[5] James D.G. Dunn, Romans 1-8 (WBC 38A: Word Books: Dallas, Texas, 1988), p. 47, “The gospel is not merely the initial proclamation of Christ which wins converts, but is the whole Christian message and claim in terms of the rest of the letter.”

[6] Cf. Thomas Mann, The Book of the Torah (Louisville, Kentucky: John Knox Press, 1998),153. God’s people will love and include the pooer.

[7] Cf. Fidel Castro, Obama and the Empire (Melbourne, Aus.: Ocean Press Press, 2012)

[8] John Sobrino, No Salvation Outside the Poor (Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 2008), 63-64.

[9] Desmond Tutu. No Future Without Forgiveness (New York, NY, USA, Double Day, 1999)31and Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom (New York, NY, USA, Little Brown & Co,, 1994)

[10] Quoted from John Sobrino, No Salvation Outside the Poor (Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 2008), 76.

[11] Solomon Andria “Generosity and Solidarity” in Africa Bible Commentary. (Nairobi, Kenya: Word Alive Publishers, 2010), 231