Romans 1:20: The Reconciliation of Creation (and more!)

Presented to Alberni Valley Ministries 05 October 2024 and the Nipawin Corps, 07 June 2009, by Major Michael Ramsay

  

This is the 2024 BC Version. To view the 2009 Saskatchewan edition, click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2009/06/appeal-of-creation-genesis-1-romans-1.html

   

We just completed a few months of looking at the book of Mark. Did everyone have an opportunity to read it on their own? Susan thought that Romans would be a good next book to look at and as I have written a book on Romans for The Salvation Army I was inclined to agree. (You can read the book here: http://www.sheepspeak.com/ebooks.htm )

 

So this week I get to welcome you to our first stop on this journey through Romans. This is an exciting stop as we can see both Romans 1 and Genesis 1 from this vantage point. Romans 1:20:

 

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities − his eternal power and divine nature − have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

 

This reminds me of a time when my wife Susan and I served as Officers in Nipawin, Saskatchewan. After a day of dealing with another vandalized window at the ministry centre, packing boxes for move day, and writing sermons, we decided to take a short walk in God’s creation. We were depressed, stressed and then… It was amazing. As we walked, our spirits immediately lifted. We strolled around the trees in some of the small forests there. This very beautiful part of the country reminds me in many ways of where I grew up. The trees are not nearly as big nor the forest as thick, but t is quite beautiful.

 

When I was a young adult my friend Dan and I went hiking almost every weekend. I lived in Victoria. He would pick me up after I finished work on Friday nights and we would drive up island as far as we could go, finding new areas to explore. It was a lot of fun. One often experiences the power of God in these times.

 

Stepping out into the wilderness can be like peeling an orange. Much of our life, it seems, has become a peel hiding the beautiful fruit of the Lord’s creation. Our cities and towns have added ever so many layers over God’s creation.

 

We have our warm houses and our heated cars – Susan’s car even has heated seats that Heather likes to turn on! – our paved streets, telephone lines and other wires obscuring the view or more and more being buried beneath the ground; and on the prairies there are ATVs, snowmobiles, and some fancy farm machinery that make life easier but also changes the simpler ways we would otherwise work and play. In our society today we also have the imaginary worlds of television, video games, social media, the Internet, and other entertainment avenues adding a further peel of distance from the realities of God’s creation.

 

Social barriers obscure God’s creation as well. Our education systems let us think that we have solved most of the world’s mysteries all on our own. Our political system leads us to believe that we have absolute control over our own destiny and that we should actually do as we see fit in our own eyes (cf. the sin of Judges, 21:25). We seem to believe western democracy’s line that the majority is right the majority of the time. As we move further and further away from God’s creation physically, spiritually, emotionally, intellectually, and practically, we are enticed more and more to believe the old serpent’s lie that as humankind evolves our “eyes will be opened, and we will be like God” (Genesis 3:5). Stepping out into God’s creation removes the peels from society and allows us to taste the fruit of the Lord (Psalm 34:8). If we don’t do this from time to time, we can fall into the trap described in Romans 1: 18−23 of ignoring and suppressing the obvious truth of God:

 

The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities— his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

 

Acclaimed to be wise, Sigmund Freud – the father of modern psychology– actually believed that society had progressed beyond God. He hoped that civilization would quickly progress even further and move beyond its “illusion” of religion the same way one should outgrow a “childhood neurosis.” Freud had faith that eventually humankind would indeed do this. He thought that “nothing can withstand reason and experience and the contradiction that religion offers to both is all too palpable” [1].

 

Moving beyond the ‘illusion’ of God and religion, for Freud, “would be an important advance along the road which leads to being reconciled to the burden of civilization” (P. 41). Freud was not alone in denying the existence of God. Our society seems to want to progress beyond God’s creation -- as if that were possible.

 

Karl Marx says of religion, “Man . . . looked for a superman in the fantastic reality of heaven and found nothing but the reflection of himself.” [2] He says religion is the “opium of the people” and “the abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is required for their real happiness” (P. 42).

 

Marx, Freud, and many others who have had a profound influence on the world even into the 21st century seem to have chosen to reject God. Even though, as Romans 1:20 states, “… since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities − his eternal power and divine nature − have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made…”

 

God loves us so much that He made it obvious through this life and all He created that He is God; all we have to do is peel back the artificial barriers we create in life, taste the fruit of Jesus Christ and see that He is good. As important as the peels are and as beneficial as many of our modern manmade developments are, it is just as important to take the time to actually see and taste God’s creation and know how good He is (Psalm 34:8).

 

We read the creation account in Genesis 1, which reminds me of a love letter of sorts akin to the Song of Solomon. Look at how poetically the creation story is related to us in Genesis 1.

·       First, on Day 1, our Heavenly Father creates light and day and night and then,

·       on Day 4, three days later, after creating this environment, He lovingly creates the sun and the moon and the stars to be placed within that light (Gen 1:13-19).

·       Next, on Day 2, our loving creator makes the water and the sky and, three days later,

·       on Day 5, He makes sea creatures to be placed in this sea. Next, He makes birds to soar into the skies God made for them (1:4−8, 20−23).

·       On Day 3, our Heavenly Father gathers together the waters to create dry land.

·       On Day 6, He creates plants and animals to be placed on this land that He made for them. God then creates man and woman in His own image (Genesis 1:9−13, 26−7), blesses them and graciously assigns them the job of filling the earth and taking care of it (Gen 1:28−31). The Lord loves His creation: it is good, and He loves us too.

 

It is obvious that God loves us but – too bad – the story of creation and of Adam and Eve doesn’t end here. As we know, Adam (the first man) disobeyed God and he − instead of taking responsibility for his actions ̶ blamed the woman, Eve, and even God.

 

When confronted with his sin Adam said to God, Genesis 3:12, “The woman you put here with me – she gave me some fruit from the tree and I ate it.” And lest we think the woman was any better than Adam, she responded, in Genesis 3:13, that “the serpent deceived me, and I ate”. This was The Fall. With humankind’s sin, we separated ourselves from God’s creation and from God.

 

Now God, of course, had a remedy for this. He really does desire that all the people of the earth be blessed as He blessed Adam and Eve. Genesis 12:1−3 promises that all the nations of the earth will be blessed through Abraham. And God is faithful to that promise. God sends His only begotten son to die and rise again on the third day, so that we might live and so that we might be reconciled to God and His creation.

 

So the, as we go about our lives, let us take a moment away from our busyness; let us walk outside, and as we walk let us take in the abundant beauty that demonstrates God’s love for us. Let us peel back all that blocks the view of our hearts; let us notice each other, our family, our friends, our animals, our gardens, our plants, and all His creation. Let us notice the sun today and the stars tonight. Let us notice all of this around us; then let us bow our heads and lift our voices in praise of our God because He loved us so much that He sent Jesus Christ, His only begotten son, so that all barriers to salvation would be removed. Now we can be fully reconciled to Him.

 

Monday was Orange Shirt Day, Truth and Reconciliation Day. Many of us from TSA walked along with the crowds to Tseshaht First Nation where we were invited to join in a meal and entertainment as a step towards reconciliation with our brothers and sisters here. As we stroll down the road of Romans through Bible Study a little further in the next few weeks and months, we will consider the eternal reconciliation up ahead at Romans 3:23 and elsewhere. For today. I encourage us all to step outside into the Lord’s glorious creation and thank Him so much for that reconciliation with Him, each other, and all of creation that He offers to us all through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.

 

Let us pray.

www.sheepspeak.com 

Mark 3:20-35: The Family of God

Presented to Nipawin and Tisdale Corps of The Salvation Army on February 17, 2008; Swift Current Corps on February 22, 2015; 614 Warehouse Mission on 06 May 2018; Alberni Valley Ministries on 21 April 2024 by Captain (Major) Michael Ramsay

To view the 2008 Nipawin and Tisdale version, click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2008/02/mark-320-35-family-of-god.html

To view the 2015 Swift Current version, click here: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2015/02/mark-320-35-family-of-god.html

To view the Toronto 2018 version click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2018/05/mark-320-35-family-of-god.html

 

Today’s passage is about family. I have been thinking about family lately. Move announcements were this week and each year there is the potential that we can be moved. We were told that we are able to stay here for one more year. This is the longest our family has stayed in one town and even the longest that we have stayed in one province since Heather was born. And whenever we do move – especially if we have to move provinces again – this time will be different; we won’t be taking our who family with us. It is challenging enough with children in Chilliwack and part-time in Victoria as well as parents we don’t seen nearly enough on this Island here. I can’t imagine what it will be like when we move again, this time away from and not with family.

 

Mark 3 is about family – Jesus’ family. 3:20: “Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat.” Verse 21, “When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, ‘He is out of his mind.’” (Sometimes family thinks that about us.)

 

Jesus is portrayed here as almost a workaholic.  He is working late and he takes his work home with him and his work right now is casting out demons and he has a lot of work to do.

 

Can you imagine the scene? It is dinnertime. He comes to a home to eat with his closest disciples. There is so much going on. There are so many people crowding into the house that they aren’t even able to take time to eat. There must be people everywhere and Jesus is working away: he and his disciples are ploughing through people healing them, casting out demons and doing what needs to be done.

 

His family no doubt is worried about his health. They are no doubt worried because he’s not eating anything. They are no doubt worried because he is not taking enough time for himself. He is just working, working, working – without a break – this can’t possibly be healthy, can it? Is it any wonder that his mother and brothers, throw up their hands when they hear all of this and say, Verse 21, “He is out of his mind” – “he’s crazy” – “he’s nuts.”[ 1]

 

Jesus’ family decided that it is time to go and take charge of him. They are going to make him rest and take care of himself. (Now this is interesting because the Greek word KRATESAI is actually the same word that is used when the police go to ARREST someone; so, this is serious.) They are concerned about him and if Jesus won’t take care of himself, they will take matters into their own hands; they will take charge of him because, as they understand it, “he is out of his mind.”

 

“He is demon possessed,” the teachers of the Law say. “He is [even] possessed by Beelzebub…the prince of demons,”[2] Verse 22 records the learned, esteemed, intelligent, and respected teachers as saying – “[It is] by the prince of demons [that] he is driving out demons.”

 

So this is interesting. Both Jesus’ family and the religious experts agree that Jesus is not acting normally here. He is out of his mind; he is demon-possessed. And again, in this crazy scene, we can probably understand what they are saying to some degree, can’t we?

 

Jesus understands and he answers the teachers who –unlike his biological family (cf. 3:31-32)[3] - are right there, near, or even in the house with him and his disciples. Jesus understands what they are saying.

 

Now what the Pharisees might actually be doing here –unlike his family- is probably more than just looking out for his well-being. What they might be doing is probably more than just mocking him or writing him off. What they might be actually doing is gathering evidence or at least inspiration to formulate an official charge against him.

 

In our society today we think nothing of people using the language of demon-possession and witchcraft: we hear it everyday on social media, TV, radio, in pop culture and in casual colloquial language. There are witch stores on the corner here and regular witchy or psychic fairs in town. It is so common that many times we don’t even twig when we hear about witchcraft but it was different in Jesus’ day (cf. Dt. 18:10; 1 Sam 28:9; 2 Ki 19:22; 2 Chr 33:6; Micah 5:12; Na 3:4; Gal 5:20).

 

Witchcraft is a serious crime. It is a sin punishable by death (cf. 1 Sam 28:9).[4] These religious teachers cannot be left to make these remarks unchallenged. It must be addressed. They are in essence accusing Jesus of divination, of witchcraft, of sorcery, and in those days people won’t let that go unchecked. And Jesus won’t let these accusations go unchecked; he speaks to them in a couple of very short parables or metaphors.

 

Vs 23ff: “So Jesus called them and spoke to them in parables: ‘How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come.”

 

Think about it in terms of our world today…Think of Libya, Iraq, Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Sudan, Ethiopia. There is also Ukraine: Hundreds of thousands are dead and still dying and millions fled and still fleeing after our allies toppled their elected government in a coup and now it has escalated beyond what anyone could ever have imagined. The country is divided. It is broke, fighting at first civil war, and now a proxy war between Russia and the US. Divided countries cannot stand: this is what Jesus is saying in this parable. A divided house cannot stand.

 

And this is the kind of thing that is playing out in our very houses here today. If husband and wife aren’t on the same page, how can their children grow up in the strength of a solid family? If mom won’t stop yelling at dad and dad does stop coming home altogether, how can their daughter learn to be kind to her future husband and how can their son learn to stick it out when life gets difficult? If the house is divided, how can it stand?[6] Between 1965 and 1988, Canada's divorce rate went from being one of the lowest among industrialized nations to being one of the highest.”[7] Divided houses do not stand.

 

This is what Jesus is telling his accusers. He is saying that if he is on the same side as Beelzebub, if he is on the same side as the devil, he wouldn’t attack him because then he would be destroying himself. If Jesus were working for the devil why would he cast devils out? He wouldn’t. He doesn’t.

 

There can be many reasons and motives for the Pharisees to accuse Jesus of working for the enemy but he lets them know that their argument doesn’t make any sense. Jesus uses the analogy now of robbing a house. Jesus says that, Verse 27, “In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can rob his house.”

 

If Jesus were on the same side as the devil, why would he even want to rob the devil of his prize? He wouldn’t. If he was working for the devil, then he would not be freeing this man from Satan’s power; because by casting out the demons, he is weakening the Republic of Evil and in the process strengthening the Kingdom of God and when one is at war, one tries to kill one’s enemies and not one’s allies. Jesus is showing those present that indeed he is intentionally attacking the devil’s dominion, freeing his captives, liberating his territory and Jesus is reminding us that no one intentionally kills with ‘friendly fire.’ If Jesus were on the same side as Satan, he says in this parable, he would not rob him of his prize. Instead, as Jesus is more powerful than Satan, by freeing the demon-possessed man, he binds the metaphorical strong man and robs his house.

 

Jesus makes his point. We realise divided houses cannot stand. Houses cannot be robbed without first taking care of the security guard. But Jesus doesn’t stop at making this point. You’ll notice that this story doesn’t end here. Jesus has some strong words for the people who are accusing him of working for the Beelzebub. He says, Verses 28-30, “I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin.”[8] He said this because they were saying, “He has an evil spirit.”

 

Jesus is warning the Pharisees not to say he is demon-possessed. He is telling them point blank that all other sins will be forgiven – EXCEPT for blaspheming the Holy Spirit – He says that there is no sin as bad as this one that they may be committing here. Calling the Holy Spirit evil, rejecting God in this way. There is nothing worse.[9]

 

But what about Jesus’ family? Remember that as the Pharisees said ‘he has an evil spirit (v. 30)’, his own family said that he was ‘out of his mind (v. 21)’ and they came to take charge of, or even ‘arrest’ him; what about his flesh and blood relatives? What does Jesus say when they arrive to ‘take charge of him (v.21)?’ Verse 31. You’ll notice that they even don’t come in. It says that they are still standing outside. They don’t even come into where Jesus is working. They don’t come in to arrest him, to take him home. They, instead, want Jesus to come out to them. People who do that, they can’t be up to any good, can they?

 

Jesus’ family, vv. 31 & 32, send someone in and the crowd tells Jesus that his family- his flesh and blood – those who think he’s out of his mind for doing the will of God – those who gave birth to and those who grew up with him – Jesus’ family is here. The crowd tells Jesus, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”

 

What does Jesus reply? This is important to our story. Jesus replies, verse 33ff, “‘Who are my mother and my brothers?’…Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother.’”

 

Jesus denies his mother and brothers. Jesus doesn’t go out to his family in this story. He denies them. His mother and brothers are not supporting Jesus doing the work of God and he is not acknowledging them.

 

Just like Jesus told the Pharisees, that “whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven” because they said he has an evil spirit. He says of his mother and brothers, who went out to take charge of him, “Who are my mother and brothers?” They are not those who are my flesh and blood if they are opposing the work and the will of God!

 

My family, Jesus says, is “whoever does God’s will.” In our passage here today, the author of Mark has revealed a great truth to us. The family of God is not necessarily the educated, the theologians, the scholars and the pastors. The family of God is not necessarily those who are born into the churches, Christian families and their loved ones.[10] The family of God is quite simply those who do the will of God, which, of course, we discern as we pray and read Scripture.

 

So today, as we have looked at divided houses –those of the parable: of the Jewish teachers,[11] of Jesus’ own biological family – as we have looked at these divided houses, I think we need to consider something ourselves. Are we really members of the family of God, or are we more like some of the others represented here?

 

Are we like the Pharisees? They knew a lot about God, probably more than anyone but they thought they knew better than Jesus. Do we think we know more than God? Do we reject, by our words and/or actions, that Jesus Christ is real? Do we treat what he says and what he does as if it is not truly of God?  This is what the Pharisees did in today’s story. Are we like them?

 

Or are we like his biological family? They grew up with him. They knew him but they wanted to ‘take charge’ of him. Do we ever want to ‘take charge’ of Jesus, like his family whom Jesus even refused to acknowledge in this story? Do we ever try to ‘take charge’ of Jesus and mold him to our idea of what Jesus and God should be rather than to let him make himself know to us? This is what his biological family was doing in this story. Are we like them?

 

Or are we like his true family, his real family, the family of God? …the disciples and others with them here who were doing what Jesus was telling them to do? Do we in our daily lives discern through prayer and Scripture the will of God, and seek to do it?  Because it is only then that we will we truly be Jesus’ brother and sister and mother. It is only then will we truly be a part of the family of God. And this is what Jesus wants. He wants us all to be members of his family and heirs in His kingdom.

 

Let us pray…

Acts 1:12-26: Show us Which You have Chosen

Presented to TSA Alberni Valley Ministries, 07 April 2024, by Major Michael Ramsay

 

To read a version of this sermon presented to Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army, 19 May 2013 click here: Sheepspeak: sermons, articles, and papers: Acts 1:12-26: Show Us Which You Have Chosen (sheepspeaks.blogspot.com)

 

To read a version of this sermon presented to Toronto's Corps 614, 20 Sept 2015, click here:   http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2015/09/acts-112-26-who-have-you-chosen.html 

 

1) How do we choose an important employee, manager, CEO, etc.? (Resume, ability)

 

2) How do we choose the Head of State? (Heredity: intense job-training programme from the moment they are born)

 

3) How do we choose the Canadian Idol, talent show winners and politicians in this country? (Popularity contest AKA an election)

 

4) What is the traditional way that one decides whether the one they fancy truly loves them or not: ‘she loves me, she loves me not’? (Removing leaves from a flower)

 

5) How does one decide which team is going to start with the ball in Canadian football or in a soccer game? (Coin toss)

 

6) How does one decide where to transfer Salvation Army Officers? (Prayer and fasting?)

 

Near the conclusion of Acts Chapter 1, the disciples who have gathered in Jerusalem – about 120 of them – are faced with a choice that needs to be made: they decide they need to choose a successor to Judas. This raises a few questions.

 

1) The first question: Who is Judas?

2)  Why do they need a successor to Judas?

3) The most important questions inherent to the text: How should we make the important decisions that we have to make in our life?

 

We have started studying Acts in our Tuesday night Bible Study; so, in answering these questions, let's review a little bit at the context of our pericope. Acts is the second book written by the author Luke to his friend Theophilus. Can anyone tell me what is the name of the first book Luke wrote to his friend Theophilus? (Luke.) The book of Acts is a sequel to the book of Luke. It is a continuation of the story: The book of Luke tells about Jesus and his followers prior to Jesus’ crucifixion, resurrection and ascension. Acts picks up the story from where Luke finishes off.

 

We read Acts 1:1-11 in the meeting today. This recaps what Luke had earlier written to Theophilus. Acts 1:1-2, ‘In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.’

 

Luke then tells Theophilus that Jesus reminded the believers to stay in Jerusalem and wait for God to fire the Holy Spirit off like a starter pistol, equipping the believers to run to the ends of the earth sharing this Gospel of Salvation with everyone they meet (Acts 1:1-11).

 

This brings us to the first of our 3 questions: who was Judas?

 

Judas Iscariot was one of Jesus’ inner circle of disciples. Judas was the treasurer for the group. He as placed in charge of the disciples’ money. He is remembered as Jesus’ betrayer. He led the Romans and the priests to Jesus and betrayed him with a kiss. Then Jesus was led off to be killed. Then, with the money he was paid for helping arrest Jesus –Verse 18 –bought and field and killed himself. (Acts 1:18-20; but cf. Mt 27:3-10).

 

This is sad and this brings us to our second question: Why do the disciples need a successor to Judas?

 

They don’t replace any of the other disciples when they die; so, why do they need to replace Judas when Judas dies? Jesus tells us that “at the renewal of all things,” his twelve disciples will “sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Matthew 19:28, Luke 22:30). OT Scriptures, in particular the psalmist, also speak to this: Psalm 69:25, 109:8.[1] John, in the book of Revelation writes that at “the consummation of God’s redemption as a ‘Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God’, having twelve gates with ‘the names of the twelve tribes of Israel’ written on them and twelve foundations with ‘the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb’ written on them (Revelation 21:10, 12, 14).”[2] Israelite tradition, Jesus’ teaching and subsequent Christian thought and belief record that the apostles have a role still to play at the resurrection of the dead. Jesus says that it is their job to judge the tribes of Israel after the resurrection of the dead.

 

So then, it is not because Judas died that he needs to be replaced because he will be raised on the last day with all the rest of us and none of the other disciples were replaced when they died. It is because Judas abrogated his responsibility, he forfeited his position as one of the twelve judges of Israel when he betrayed Jesus - who is Israel and the world’s Messiah - and then took his own life.[3] This is why they need a twelfth apostle. As a side note, this is probably where originates the idea that we should have 12 people sitting on juries to determine innocence or guilt in court. Also some people say they chose wrong – that Paul is actually the twelfth but, of course, God doesn’t make mistakes and Paul doesn’t meet the basic criteria laid out in this chapter.

 

In our text then the disciples have before them then two viable candidates who do meet the criteria, Acts 1:23-26, “Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. Then they prayed, ‘Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.’ Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.” Luke records that these people who are gathered together in Jesus’ name when it comes time to make a decision pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen.”

 

This is important and this brings us to our third and most important question today. How do we make important decisions? 

 

When our family was called by God into full-time ministry with The Salvation Army, it was a tough decision. We were first called as urban missionaries in Vancouver’s infamous downtown eastside. Susan and I had two small children then. I had businesses both on the Island and in Greater Vancouver; but my home; Susan, the kids; and our extended families were all on the Island. I loved my businesses. I would have to give up my businesses that I founded and raised almost like a first child in order to enter the ministry and we would have to leave our long-time friends and extended family.

 

We had to make a decision. We could make an economic decision and stay on the Island with our house and our businesses or we could say, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two [options] You have chosen.” We could make a family decision and stay near the children’s grandparents and at that time great-grandparents or we could pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen.” We could make a sentimental decision and stay by all that we have ever known and loved on the Island or we could pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen.” As we are here today we obviously took the latter option as our way forward. Praise the Lord; we followed Him into the mission field.

 

But our reliance on God is not a one-time thing. There are still many more decisions that each and every one of us are faced with everyday in our lives. And every time that we are faced with a decision we have to decide whether we are going to try to decide on our own or whether we are going to trust God to show us the way and then follow Him.

 

Every year the Army has to declare whether we as Officers are going to stay in our communities or whether we are going to be transferred. In any of these situations any of us can just try to make up our own minds and say to the Lord that we are not going to do what you or anyone else says; we can just rely on own devices to make the decision ourselves whether to accept our orders or not; we can tell the Lord to please bless the decision that we are about to make. But really - no matter how skilled we are at making decisions - it is much better to instead pray like the disciples in Acts 1, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen.” And then we need to wait to see how He actually responds.

 

When we don’t do this we can be tricked into making the wrong choice. I remember once when I was living in a different part of the country, there was an election. I prayed. I looked at the various candidates in my riding. I checked out their resumes and past experiences and there were two of the myriad people running who seemed to have the prerequisite qualifications for the position, so I picked one and voted for him. He was elected but no sooner was he elected then he immediately betrayed those of us who voted for him by joining an opposing political party. He ran as if he belonged to one party so everyone who voted for him thought they were voting for a member of political party 'A' but as soon as he was elected, before he was ever even sworn it, he defected to political party 'B'; so in essence political party 'B' had the only two viable candidates in that riding in that election. No matter how much effort I put into casting my ballot, like everyone else who voted for this candidate, I was betrayed.

 

The disciples, in our passage today, have before them then two viable candidates to replace the one who betrayed Jesus, Acts 1:23-26, “Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. Then they prayed, ‘Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.’ Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.” Luke records that these people who are gathered together in Jesus’ name when it comes time to make a decision pray, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen.”

 

This is important. How do we make decisions that need to be made in our lives? Do we attempt to make up our own minds or do we -like the disciples here- correctly attempt to discern the will of the Lord.

 

The disciples, they don’t pray, “Lord please bless our decision making process” and then do whatever they see fit; they pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have already chosen.” They don’t pray, “Lord, please help us to make the right decision” and then do whatever they see fit; they pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have already chosen.” They don’t pray, “Lord, show us what we should do” and then do whatever they see fit; they pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have already chosen.”

 

Do you see the difference? The disciples, they don’t call a big meeting and pray for God to bless the proceedings and then make up their own minds anyway after pouring over all of the resumes, conducting interviews, checking references; they don't make the decision all on their own and then ask God to bless it. Quite the opposite, they pray, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have already chosen.”

 

So what about us? When we are faced with life’s choices how do we decide what to do? Do we pray and then make up our own minds or do we ask for God to show us what he has already decided and keep our eyes and ears open to see what he is showing us? This is the end to which I would encourage us today. Whenever we are faced with a critical decision let us each seek the will of God in our lives and let us each pray as the disciples prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have already chosen.” And then let us actually wait for His answer. I know that as we do, He will show us what He has already chosen for our lives.

 

Let us pray.

 

www.sheepspeak.com

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[1] Cf. Robert W. Wall, ‘Acts’ The New Interpreter’s Bible 10, (Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 2002), 49-50.

[2] Richard N. Longenecker, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Acts/Exposition of Acts/Introduction: The Constitutive Events of the Christian Mission (1:1-2:41)/D. The Full Complement of Apostles (1:12-26)/2. Matthias chosen to replace Judas Iscariot (1:15-26), Book Version: 4.0.2

[3] Cf. William H. William, ‘Acts’, Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, (Atlanta, Georgia: John Knox Press, 1988), 23.

[4] I. Howard Marshall: Acts: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1980 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 5), S.71

[5] Cf. Richard N. Longenecker, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Acts/Exposition of Acts/Introduction: The Constitutive Events of the Christian Mission (1:1-2:41)/D. The Full Complement of Apostles (1:12-26)/2. Matthias chosen to replace Judas Iscariot (1:15-26), Book Version: 4.0.2

[6] Cf. Simon J. Kistemaker, ‘Acts’, New Testament Commentary, (Grand Rapids Michigan: Baker Academic, 2007), 68.

 

John 18:28-19:16: Pilates at 6am

Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries, 24 March 2024 by Major Michael Ramsay. The original version was presented to the Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army, 03 Feb 2013

 

This is the BC 2024 version, You can view the original Saskatchewan 2013 version here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2013/02/john-1828-1916-pilates-at-6am.html 

 

I know it is Palm Sunday today but nonetheless I am going to start our time today with a Christmas story:

 

There is this boy. He starts out writing a letter to Santa but then realises that he will get better results if he writes directly to the Lord. So he writes: ‘Dear Santa (crossed out). ‘Dear Jesus, I have been good for six months; please give me what I want for Christmas.’ He thinks a minute. Crosses it out and writes, ‘Dear Jesus, I have been good for one month; please give me what I want for Christmas.’ He thinks a minute. Crosses it out and writes, ‘Dear Jesus, I have been good for a week; please give me what I want for Christmas.’ He thinks a minute. Crosses it out and writes, ‘Dear Jesus, I have been good for a whole day; please give me what I want for Christmas.’ He thinks a minute and as he is thinking, he spies a nativity scene. He walks over to it. He picks up the statue of Mary and he walks back over to his desk. He places her in front of him; he picks up his pen again and he writes, ‘Dear Jesus… if you ever want to see your mother again…give me what I want for Christmas.’

 

Today’s pericope (John 18:28-19:16) is also about violent and awkward situation. Here we have the Jewish leaders bringing Jesus before Governor Pontius Pilate to receive his death sentence.  We remember the historical setting and the political situation at this time of Palestine. The Romans are the superpower of the day and the Romans are occupying Judea. They conquered Israel by force and their forces are stationed all over the country. Just like in the nations that the US occupies today, some people are fine with it, conspiring with the occupiers to achieve and maintain position and privilege and some people are not: they are looking for an opportunity to revolt. The Pharisees, the Sadducees, the Priests and officers conspire with the Romans and they receive the power to exercise their authority by submitting to Rome. Others however do not. The Sicarii, the Zealots, they are like today’s suicide bombers. They are terrorists. They walk through the crowded marketplaces looking for Romans to stab with their short, concealed Sicarii knives. When our story today is taking place, there are a lot of crowds for people to walk through. It is Passover in Jerusalem and hundreds of thousands or even by some accounts millions of visitors are pouring into Jerusalem.

 

Governor Pontius Pilate, who is the leader of the Roman forces in Judea, does not normally reside in Jerusalem. He is usually posted in Caesarea Maritima but it is the Passover so many Jews are descending on Jerusalem for the Passover.

 

It would be like when the Olympics came to Vancouver. The city was seemingly completely full. In preparation for the event, they even flew people with criminal warrants back to the cities from which they came and the city imported police officers from all over the country to help with policing all of the visitors. Now imagine that the next Olympics are to be held in Kabul, Afghanistan; Baghdad, Iraq or some other US-occupied country; Imagine they are held in Palestine or Kiev. Think of all the extra security forces that would be needed. This is the situation in Jerusalem. Governor Pontius Pilate who usually resides in a fortress in a different city comes to oversee the crowd control. He and Rome are afraid of the potential for a Jewish revolt as all these people are converging on their ancient capital city.[2]

 

It is this situation that the Jewish leaders, the chief priests and officers, decide to capitalize on (cf. John 11:45-57). They want Jesus dead. Jesus has been making problems for them. Jesus has been attracting massive crowds. Jesus has been apparently challenging them at every possible opportunity. In the book of John here it is no secret that Jesus is the Messiah. The Messiah is the one to deliver his people. He is to deliver the people from their occupiers. The religious leaders are afraid that Jesus will start a rebellion that will not only cost them their privileges under the Romans but will also cost many innocent people their lives (cf. John 11:49-52). Jesus, in their eyes, is their adversary and this is the opportunity to get rid of him for good. They decide to bring Jesus to Governor Pontius Pilate, accuse him of treason and have the Romans kill him.

 

Now this is interesting. We know from the scriptures that there are times when mobs of Judeans had picked up stones to kill Jesus (John 8:32, 10:59) and we know that one such mob would later kill Stephen (Acts 7:54–60); so, why did the Jewish leaders need the Romans to kill Jesus for them? We know this was needed to fulfill prophecy (Deuteronomy 21:23; John 3:14, 8:28, 12:32–33) but there were other reasons: One is that the Jewish leaders were afraid of the people. They were afraid of what would happen if they seized Jesus and executed him publicly so instead they grabbed him at night in the garden, held their trials for him and then first thing in the morning, as soon as the governor began work – which was probably before six o’clock in the morning by the way - still under the cover of darkness, they bring Jesus to the Romans.[3] This way if the Romans kill Jesus, the Jewish leaders can easily say to the people that it wasn’t them. And we must remember also that because Judea is an occupied territory, the Jewish authorities don’t really have the authority to execute anyone [4] Sometimes the Romans would turn a blind eye to their unauthorized executions in order to maintain order. But during the Passover, with so many forces stationed in Jerusalem, it probably wouldn’t be worth the risk and – like we said – with the Jewish leaders bringing Jesus to Pilate to be condemned, this way the Romans could take the blame for killing this popular leader so they can be both rid of Jesus and off the hook for his murder. This is the scene in the pericope before us today.

 

Now Verses 28-38 show some very interesting parts of Pilate’s interview of Jesus and his relationship with the Jews. At first it reads as if Pontius Pilate is annoyed by the Jews. Here they are arriving at his doorstep, at the beginning of his workday at 6am, at Passover season, which is the busiest time of the year for him. He interviews Jesus but doesn’t seem to have any patience with the Jews at all. After the interview, Verses 38-40: “…With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him. But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release ‘the king of the Jews’? They shouted back, ‘No, not him! Give us Barabbas!’ Now Barabbas had taken part in an uprising.”

 

Here is an interesting tangent. Does anybody know any Aramaic? Do you know what the murderous revolutionary’s name Barabbas means? Break it into the two parts: part 2 is ‘Abba’; what does ‘Abba’ mean? ‘Abba’ means father. ‘Bar’ means ‘Son of’. Therefore, Barabbas means ‘son of the father’. So ironically, Jesus who is ‘the Son of the Father’ dies in place of Barabbas whose name means ‘son of the father’. But that is a side note; let us return to our story.

 

Pilate and the Jewish leaders are having a bit of a standoff. The Jews want Rome to execute Jesus and the leader of the Roman forces in Jerusalem is not really interested in this for two or three reasons. We know from Matthew’s account that Pilate’s wife has had a vision that would make him not want to kill Jesus (Matthew 27:19) and we know from non-Biblical historical documents that Pilate didn’t really like the Jews and he ruled with an iron fist.[5] Pilate, I think, knows what the Jewish leaders are up to; he doesn’t like them and he doesn’t want to be dictated to by a conquered and an occupied people. He is Roman. Rome is the Superpower of the first Century. They are the Americans of their day. They are not going to be dictated to by a subjugated people.

 

Chapter 19 begins with Pilate possibly thinking that he can just brush this whole thing aside still; he has just tried to release a convicted revolutionary in place of an accused revolutionary but to no avail. Now he resorts to having Jesus beaten. This beating can take place for one of two reasons. One, they did often beat people before crucifixion; or two, they would also beat people in place of crucifixion as a form of brutal humiliation. Given that Pilate ordered this beating and then humiliated him further by having Jesus dressed in a robe with a crown of thorns, this was probably an attempt to avoid signing Jesus’ death warrant and to get rid of these pesky Jewish leaders before they cause some real problems for Pilate.[6]

 

Now in the lines that follow, John 19:12ff., Pontius Pilate is still apparently trying to decide what to do and Jesus isn’t really helping any by refusing to answer certain questions. The Jewish leaders and their mob are getting anxious and no doubt impatient as time goes on. They need this done quickly before anyone might form a rival mob and come to Jesus’ aid; so they push Pilate’s buttons. They know how to get to the governor and they do.  They say to Governor Pilate, Verse 12, “... If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.” The implication here is not subtle; it is that if he does not order Jesus’ execution they will write to his boss, the Emperor in Rome, saying that Pilate let a revolutionary live who was trying to lead a revolt against Rome and as the Roman Emperor at this time seemed somewhat paranoid in general and was not afraid to act militarily at the first perceived threat, Verse 13, “When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge’s seat at a place known as the Stone Pavement (which in Aramaic is Gabbatha).”

 

This next part is the part that I want to focus on. It is where we can ask ourselves what is the author of John telling us in the text here and what is God doing here in this story?

 

We know that the Romans promoted, among other things, an Emperor cult.[7] The Emperor was worshiped as a god. These Jews have just let Pilate know that if he does not kill Jesus, they will report him as supporting a rebellion against his own god-king. Pilate’s response is as masterful as it is vengeful, as it is tragic for the Jews. Verses 14-18:

     It was the day of Preparation of the Passover; it was about noon. “Here is your king,” Pilate said to the Jews.

     But they shouted, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!”

     “Shall I crucify your king?” Pilate asked.

     “We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests answered. Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.

 

“Shall I crucify your king?” Pilate asked. “We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests answered. Do you know what Pilate has just done here to the Jewish leaders? Do you know what the religious leaders have just done? They have just denied their God. In effect the Jewish leaders said to Pilate that if you do not give the orders crucify Jesus we will tell your god-king Caesar that you are disloyal to him; so Pilate responds by saying to these Jews that if you want me to crucify Jesus, you must first deny your God-King. When Governor Pilate got the Jewish religious leaders to confess that “We have no king but Caesar”, that is exactly what they were doing – denying YHWH, the LORD, God.

 

This is Passover. Every Passover the Jewish people concluded the great Hallel (Psalms. 113–118) with this prayer: ‘From everlasting to everlasting thou art God; beside thee we have no king, redeemer, or saviour; no liberator, deliverer, provider; none who takes pity in every time of distress or trouble. We have no king but thee.’[8] The Jewish leaders here are not only indirectly disowning God by rejecting Jesus but they are also openly and actively rejecting God in this scene by saying that they have no king by Caesar (cf. John 1:11).

 

The Chief Priests and Officers want this big problem of Jesus removed from their lives so much that they are willing to disavow God in order to do it. This is what the Jewish leaders have done. What profits a man to inherit the whole world and yet forfeit his soul (Matthew 16:26; Mark 8:36)? This is a tragedy of this story. He came to his own but they did not accept him (John 1:11). The Jewish leaders rejected God and we know that for many this rejection continued. God came to them in their time of need but they thought that they could deliver themselves from their suffering; so, rather than rely on God, they rejected him and suffered without Him. Did God leave them? No, they - the Jewish Chief Priests, Officers, et el. - left God and so they did not have Him.

 

The question for us today then is this: When life starts to get out of hand, when –like the Jewish leaders - there is nothing that we can humanly do; when tragedy strikes our life, do we turn to God and live or do we turn on God and die. Do we turn to God and live or do we turn on God -in our own anger, vengeance, self-pity or arrogance- and suffer the consequences?

 

I want to bring one more thing to our attention here. Immediately preceding the Jewish leaders’ denial of Christ in our story is Peter’s three-fold denial of Jesus (John 18). We are all familiar with that. As surely as the Jewish authorities here openly and publicly disavow God’s lordship, Peter, just prior to this episode denies Christ for a third time (John 18:27) – but Peter, after the resurrection, in a couple of chapters will be reinstated and Peter will not deny Christ again, he will follow him even unto death (John 21:9-19). Peter will confess his sin and Peter will be saved.

 

Today is Palm Sunday. Today is the day we celebrate people welcoming Jesus as King. Today we have the same opportunity, the same choice. As our life comes crashing down around us, as trials and tribulations mount, as enemies and adversaries seem to be raised up from every corner of our world, as our life becomes overwhelming, it is like we are in the courtyard with Jesus and we can either turn on him by indulging in and holding onto our anger, our rage, our righteous indignation, and our own self-pity or we can turn to him and live. So today when life is difficult, let us take courage and let us turn to him who is able, more than able to accomplish what concerns us today. Let us turn to him who is able, more than able to handle anything that comes our way. When life is difficult, let us turn to him who is able, more than able to do much more than we could ever dream. Let us turn to him who is able, more than able to make us what He wants us to be. He is able. Amen.

 

Let us pray.

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[2] Kruse, Colin G.: John: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 2003 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 4), S. 351

[3] cf. William Hendricksen, John, New Testament Commentary, (Grand Rapids, Mi: Baker Academic, 2007), 400

[4] Gail R. O’Day, The Gospel of John, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 9, ed Leander E. Keck, et. al. (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1995),820.

[5] Gerard Sloyan, John, Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, ed. James L. Mays, et. al. (Atlanta, Georgia: John Knox Press, 1988), 204, Gail R. O’Day, The Gospel of John, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 9, ed Leander E. Keck, et. al. (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1995), 815

[6] Colin G. Kruse, John: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 2003 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 4), S. 355

[7]Cf. N.T. Wright, 'Paul and Caesar: A New Reading of Romans', originally published in A Royal Priesthood: The Use of the Bible Ethically and Politically, ed. C. Bartholemew, 2002, Carlisle: Paternoster, 173–193. Reproduced by permission of the author. Available on-line at http://www.ntwrightpage.com/Wright_Paul_Caesar_Romans.htm

[8] Gail R. O’Day, The Gospel of John, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 9, ed Leander E. Keck, et. al. (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1995), 823; Colin G. Kruse, John: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 2003 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 4), S. 359, red 422.