Romans 5:7-8: Death, a Demonstration of Love.

Presented to Alberni Valley Ministries, 24 November 2024. By Major Michael Ramsay. Based on a chapter in his book, Salvogesis’ Guidebook to Romans Road and sermons presented to Swift Current Corps, 26 July 2009

 

To view the earlier sermons, click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2009/07/romans-58-while-we-were-still-sinners.html

To read ‘Salvogesis’, click here: http://www.sheepspeak.com/ebooks.htm   

See also Romans 5:10: Reconciliation Day. Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries, 02 October 2022, by Major Michael Ramsay: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2022/10/romans-510-reconciliation-day.html

 

Romans 5:7-8: “Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die but God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners Christ died for us.”

We have just had Remembrance Day the Monday before last. The Salvation Army plays a big role in Remembrance Day ceremonies across this country because of the great work the Lord did through us during the First and Second World Wars.

General Harry Crerar, former Commander of the First Canadian Army in the Second World War said, “It would be easier to forget one’s name than fail to remember the times without number when the Salvation Army was, in truth, our comforter and friend.” During both world wars and throughout the Cold War, The Salvation Army provided Canadian military personnel with comforts such as hot drinks and snacks and helped keep up spirits by manning leave centres. Very close to the front lines, the Salvation Army showed films, established canteens, organized sporting events and other recreational activities, supplied reading material, stationery, cigarettes, and other items for the troops. The Salvation Army also offered spiritual care and counselling to military personnel: comforting the wounded and to burying the dead. In short, they did whatever they could to help maintain morale. The Salvation Army instructed its supervisors to “care for the body, mind and soul of every [service person] irrespective of creed or personality.” In the midst of the horrors of war, the Salvation Army aimed to offer a glimpse of home to the military.[1]

In Canada, The Salvation Army Home League raised funds and sent thousands of comfort packages filled with socks, underwear, Christmas presents, and other items directly to The Salvation Army chaplains for distribution. Salvationists visited the homes of deceased soldiers comforting and looking into the welfare of many grieving families. Truly the Salvation Army “provided the reassuring link between the fighting man and his world of peace and kindness and sanity”[2].

I have heard many individual accounts from veterans of WWII or their widows about how much God used the “Sally Ann” during the War. Canadian soldiers were sent overseas. Many were saved and many died for our side. 

Christ died for us while we were still sinners (cf. Ro 4:5). Romans 5:10 tells us that besides our being still sinners, we were more than that: we were His enemies (cf. 1 Jn 4:10). When we were still apart from Christ, ‘sinners’ as they say, we were Christ’s enemies. When we were not under Christ’s leadership, we were not subjects of His kingdom and thus – as we are involved in a spiritual war - we were His enemies. We, through our allegiances and citizenship fought against Christ even though His only desire was for all of us to be saved and be a part of His Kingdom (1 Tim 2:4). 

One might respond, “when I didn’t know Christ, I wasn’t his enemy I led a good life. I didn’t hurt anybody. I just happened to get to know God later on in life and become ‘born again’ . . . that doesn’t mean that I was ever God’s enemy, does it?”

The Apostle Paul argues that the sinner (a sinner is anyone who doesn’t serve God) is an enemy of God; the sinner is simply like a citizen of a nation/ group that is not under Christ and thus is at war with Christ. Paul makes a strong distinction between the sinner and the saint. The sinners are not on God’s side. The saints are on God’s side.

A good way to understand how we were “as sinners” and even “as enemies of Christ” could be expressed in a further military analogy. We know of the horrors of war and the crimes that our enemies commit. We, and our allies, however, are far from innocent. In WWII, the UK and the US created an horrific firestorm carpet bombing Dresden and killing many innocent women, children and others. And, of course, the United States intentionally dropped the atomic bomb on an already defeated Japan. War crimes.

During the World Wars, in Canada we treated anyone of German, Italian, Ukrainian, and especially Japanese ancestry as our enemies. We confiscated the belongings and livelihoods of Japanese-Canadians and put them in internment camps. (The famous Canadian scientist and environmentalist, David Suzuki, spent part of his early life in such an internment camp.) We treated innocent people as our enemies. As is shown through the official government apologies and tax money paid in reparations by later generations who were not even alive during the Second World War, the responsibility and the liability for this legally rests with all of us. 

In more recent history, during the “War on Terror,” the American president declared that “Whoever isn’t with us is against us” and proceeded to sanction torture of their captives in Guantanamo Bay, as well as elsewhere in the world. Americans still have their facilities in Guantanamo Bay even today and the acts committed thete have created many enemies all over the world for the rest of us. Terrorism, counter-terrorism, suicide-bombing, assassinations, and mass political murders increase precisely because many countries in this world are falling short of the standard of the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). 

When I was younger I worked at CFB Esquimalt; then Canada was seen as a peacekeeping nation as we recognized more clearly the blessings of being a peacemaker (Matthew 5:9) Things have changed now.

The consequences of all our wars affect not only the families our country and our weapons bomb but they also affect each of us. Especially in a democracy: the consequences of our country's actions impose guilt on us all. Even today we are choosing to spend billions of dollars to kill Russians, Ukrainians, Palestinians, and others instead of feeding and caring for our own families and vulnerable people under our care. The money we spend killing children overseas could easily be spent saving children at home.

Now, just like Canada’s many wars since the end of the Cold War has made each of us (as citizens of Canada) many enemies; so sin makes us enemies of Christ. Before we were a part of His Kingdom, we were at war with Christ. And we can never win such a war so the consequence of this war against Christ; the consequence of this sin is death (Ro 6:23).

Paul tells us in Romans that Adam and Eve were the original sinners (Ro 5:12−21; cf.1 Cor 15). They were the first to transgress the will of God. God told them that they could do anything they wanted so long as they went forth, multiplied and did not from eat the fruit of just one tree. He graciously let them tend take care of His garden (Ge 1:28, 2:17, 9:1). And then what did they do? They disobeyed God – they sinned. In so doing, our ancestors declared war on God. Humankind has been in at War against God ever since (Ro 3:23).          

Paul was writing at a time very like our own as our society distances itself from God. He writes that, “at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly” (Ro 5:6). Verse 8: “but God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners Christ died for us.”

I have heard on several occasions a story about a preacher in an English church whose sermon one Sunday caught the attention of two young boys sitting in the pews. He used the account to impress on the congregation how Christ died for us. He said:

A father and son went fishing off the coast of England with one of his son’s friends. A terrible storm came. The wind and waves tossed their boat up and down, back and forth, and both boys were thrown overboard. The father ran to grab the only life preserver. Even if there had been more than one life preserver he could not possibly have thrown two of them in time. There was only time to save one boy. The father threw the life preserver… to . . . his son’s friend. The boy grabbed it and the man pulled him into the boat. By the time the father had rescued his child’s friend there was no sign of his son. The father had sacrificed his only son, so that the other boy could live. 

 

The story reminds us of our Heavenly Father and His Only Son. God let His Only Son − whom He loves − die so that even those of us who do not know Him, those of us who are sinners, those of us who are His enemies, can be saved. God’s son died for us at just the right time so that all of us can be saved (Eph 1:7; Jn 15:1−17). 

After this sermon, the boys approached the preacher. They asked if he had made up the story. He told them it was true. They weren’t convinced. One boy asked why a father would let his own son die for a kid he didn’t even know. The preacher told him that the father knew that even if his own son were lost, yet he would be saved. He knew that his own son, even if he died, would yet live; he would see him again at the resurrection. The point, the preacher explained, was that the father had sacrificed his son to save the other boy.

“How do you know that story’s true?” demanded one of the two boys, still skeptical.

“Because I was that boy who was saved,” replied the old preacher.

And so it is with all of us. God the Father has already sacrificed His one and only son so that we can live. All we need to do is to grab hold of the life preserver of our salvation, hold tight in holiness, and not let it slip away. Christ died so that we could live. If we grab hold of him we can make it through any storm. We can.

Do not let Jesus’ death be in vain in our own lives. We can make it through anything if we grab hold of him, like a life-preserver, If there is anything we are holding onto that is preventing us from seizing this salvation, let us cast it aside, and grab hold of Jesu. If we are holding on to any aspect of our lives so tightly that we are not fully clutching that preserver of our salvation, let us cast it aside, let us immediately reach out and grab hold of His life preserver so that we can all be gloriously saved for now, in the storms of everyone’s lives and forever more.

          There are friends and family members of many of us here who are being tossed around in the storms of life and feel like they are going to drown, I am sure. Please share the Life preserver of Jesus and His salvation with them. Jesus can get us through every storm and every trouble. No matter who we are and what we have done for, Romans 5:8, “…God demonstrates His own love for us, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Let us pray

Matthew 9:13: "I Desire Mercy, Not Sacrifice"

Presented to Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army, 13 June 2010; Corps 614 Regent Park and The Warehouse Mission, 16 Sept 2016; and Alberni Valley Ministries, 30 April 2023

 

This is the 2023 Alberni Valley Version (See below for links to versions from other places and other times)

 

Summer feels like it is here, I saw someone driving their fancy classic car the other day. Don, you belong to the car club. When do all the summer events begin? Seeing this made me reminisce about my first car, it isn’t quite as fancy as those classic cars but here is a picture of it…

 

Okay that’s not my car –but that isn’t entirely dissimilar from my car. My car only cost $100 and see how Fred’s car is propelled… It only moves because he runs with his feet sticking out the bottom. That was sort of like my Pontiac. Like Fred’s car, didn’t have any floorboards at all on the passenger’s side – so my passengers had to be careful not to drop anything on the floor because it would be gone. It was allegedly a two-door but the driver’s door never worked. This sometimes made it a little difficult especially considering one of my friends for part of this time was confined to a wheelchair so whenever I gave them a ride I would either have to climb over them to get into the car or more likely get in Dukes of Hazard style. (You remember the Duke’s of Hazard where they would climb in through the windows instead of using the door?) – Actually, before I was done with my car, we always had to get in Dukes of Hazard style because the other door broke too. Nonetheless I loved my first car. It was all mine. It did have one good thing about it. It had four really nice moon discs. They were shiny, they were good solid hubcaps and they were really cool.

 

‘I desire mercy’ is a quote from our text today. When I was a teenager I used to let friends drive my car. One friend – Bill– has his learner’s license. We load the car up with many of our friends and we go cruising around the town. At one point we decide to go through the drive through and get some water to drink (we couldn’t afford to buy anything else) so – Bill is driving – he takes us through the drive through and he cuts the corner too close and - ‘crunch’ – there goes my front moon disk and then instead of stopping, (because he is an inexperienced driver) he keeps going and ‘crunch’; there goes a second one. Bill is so upset as he is chased from my car by our friends. He starts walking home feeling quite sad. I take over driving. We order enough waters from the A&W for everyone and Bill too  – remember the quote from the scriptures, ‘I desire mercy’ – we pull up beside him. He comes up to the car and then we – well – we hit him with our waters. Okay maybe that is not a good example of mercy. We got it a little backwards.

 

Jesus said, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice’. This is significant. Look at what is happening in our text today. Jesus is having one of his all too familiar conflicts with the religious teachers. Jesus is walking along after performing a sensational faith healing in front of a large audience, he sees a tax collector and Jesus invites himself over to this house for dinner and the tax collector (Matthew) accepts.

 

Now we should put things in perspective a little bit here. Jesus is famous. He is as popular as any athlete or music star. Just like contemporary celebrities, crowds are following Jesus everywhere. He even has to hop on a boat after the miracle of the fish and the loaves to get away from them. Jesus is a pretty popular celebrity and all the people are following him and Jesus sees this tax collector and he invites himself over for dinner.

 

Anybody have a favourite celebrity here? Call out a name or two… what if _____ invited himself over to your place for dinner, would you accept? Of course. This is what Matthew does.

 

Now Matthew is a tax collector. Strictly speaking he is more like a customs officer, but it was the same idea: he collects taxes for Rome. Tax collectors are not the most popular people in the world these days.

 

It was even worse in Jesus' day. Do you remember who controlled Palestine in Jesus’ day? The Romans. Palestine was an occupied territory. I am the Legion Chaplain here.. As a Judean, for Matthew, sitting in his toll booth collecting taxes from his own people to pay Caesar may even seem be like collaborating with the enemy.

 

So here is Jesus, a celebrity preacher, who some people even know is the Messiah but misguidedly think he will destroy Rome and free the occupied territories and Jesus goes and invites himself over to one of the collaborators' places for dinner.

 

So Jesus’ adversaries think they see a weakness. They think that they can create a scandal that will discredit him. If there were newspapers, internet and the like back then the headline on the 6-O’Clock News would read like verse 11: “Jesus eats with sinners and tax collectors.”

 

Jesus doesn’t deny what he is doing. He is associating with unliked people. The Pharisees have caught Jesus red-handed with these ‘sinners’ they call them, and so, Verse 11: “When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, ‘Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?’” Jesus overhears them and instead of denying his actions, Verses 12 and 13, “On hearing this, Jesus said, ‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.’”

 

So this is interesting. Jesus is quoting Hosea 6. The Pharisees would have been very familiar with Hosea 6. Do you remember who are the Pharisees? The best of the Pharisees are like the good Bible-believing Christians of today, even encouraging us to holiness; Nicodemus and the Apostle Paul were Pharisees (Acts 23:6, 26:5). The worst of the Pharisees, I imagine, if they were around today would be intimidating people on social media who aren’t following societal rules of their day. These Pharisees, who themselves, are very careful not to break any religious laws accuse Jesus every time they catch him doing something that they do not think appropriate.

 

When accused here Jesus says to the Pharisees, Matthew 9:13: “But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’

 

The Pharisees were really good at sacrifice. They did rightly believe in holiness. Amongst their number were probably some of the best of the religious people of their day (cf. Acts 22:1-5; Galatians 1:13,14). Maybe even better than us at following the scriptures. They tithed regularly. They read their scriptures. They come to the synagogue (church) regularly. They did not work on the Sabbath or do anything that would cause someone else to work (Dt 5; Ex20). They are very careful worshiping God by providing the appropriate sacrifices. If they were around today, they most likely would always have a wholesome radio station tuned into their car and/or their computer; they would always be dressed appropriately and they would be very careful to tithe and be self-sacrificing. This is good.

 

Where they go wrong is in pointing out that Jesus by eating with ‘sinners’ is like the sinners and not like them. Jesus agrees that he is not like them and he tells them why: He says the difference is that the Pharisees are not extending mercy. God loves people. The word ‘mercy’ here, ḥesed, means steadfast love or literally ‘covenant love.’ They are accusing Jesus of not being faithful to the covenant with God because he eats with ‘sinners’ but Jesus says that he is faithful to God’s covenant precisely because he does eat with ‘sinners’. Jesus says, quoting Hosea 6:6: “But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but ‘sinners.’

 

The Pharisees sacrificed lots to do many good things right but Jesus says that is not what is most important. God desires mercy and not sacrifice.

 

I remember once when I was visiting a good church many, many years ago; a street person came in and lay down on the pews for a nap. A good, self-sacrificing pastor at this church asked him to leave. Jesus says, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'

 

I have also seen congregations where nice, good, self-sacrificing church people have sat pouting, arms crossed all through the service because some stranger had dared to come an unwittingly sit in their seat. Jesus says, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'

 

I have heard divorced people, single mothers and others tell me that they felt shunned in their churches by the good self-sacrificing Christians after their life circumstances change.  Jesus says, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'

 

I have in my time heard good self-sacrificing Salvationists help the poor but complain whenever someone shows up for help who doesn`t look poor enough or needy enough or who does not seem marginalized. Jesus says, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'

 

I have in my time seen good self-sacrificing Salvationists actually punish people for behaving in ways that are totally consistent with their diagnosis. Jesus says, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'

 

Well, what about us here today? How do we greet the people God brings across our path? Do we extend to them the hesed covenant love of Christ who spends time with them (and us) no matter who they (and we) are.

 

Today, like always, I invite us to examine ourselves. Are we like it says in Matthew 23:24, ‘straining a gnat and swallowing a camel’? Are we ‘majoring in the minors’? Or do we openly embrace our brothers and sisters? Do we eagerly look for opportunities to show our love for God by loving our neighbours –poor or rich, nice or mean, scary or not scary? In short, if Christ showed up today in disguise would we welcome him warmly? If there are any ways that we here today have not been open to serving God by showing this hesed, mercy, covenant love to our neighbours, I would ask the Lord to reveal that to us, so that we can turn that and our whole lives over to Jesus Christ and I pray that people will indeed know we are Christians by our love.

 

May we all today go from here with a renewed impetus to show hesed, mercy, covenant love to our neighbour and may they will know we are Christians by our love.

 

 

To view the 2016 version,  click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2016/09/hosea-66-matthew-913-i-desire-mercy-not.html

 

To view the 2010 original version, click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2010/06/matthew-913-i-desire-mercy-not-sacrifice.html

 

 

 

 

  

Father’s Day Address 2022

Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries, 19 June 2022, by Major Michael Ramsay

 

When we refer to God as our Heavenly Father what do we mean? What are some of the traits and values common among fathers that are a reflection of the attributes of God? God loves us. He is proud of us. He is cheering for us…. We have a number of verses that we will look at on this Father’s Day that show us a little bit about God as our Heavenly Father.

 

Jeremiah 29:11: “'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. '”

We fathers are proud of our kids. We enjoy their performances: school, church and community plays, musicals, recitals. We celebrate their victories as if they were our own. I have cheered many dance medals, at least one soccer medal, and academic and behavourial awards. I think this is what is meant in part by Jeremiah 29:11: “'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. '” God loves us. Our Heavenly Father enjoys our performances and competitions. He cheers for us like a dad cheers on his children. God is proud of us.

 

Psalm 149:4 – “For the Lord takes pleasure in His people; He adorns the humble with salvation.”

I am a proud father. I have three great kids. Rebecca has a natural ability in so many things. She learned to read very early, thanks very much to Calvin and Hobbs comics. Being our eldest, we celebrated so many firsts with her. All of kids! Sarah-Grace: I often remember one play she was in in primary grades. She portrayed a character called ‘Nasty Boots’ that I think the whole town celebrated – it really was that good. She has preached many times not only here but also growing up and as a pre-teen she even went on the road preaching a sermon she wrote and it was very well received. I was so proud. Heather -even right now, at 11 years-old - is producing her own TV show. Like any dad, I am so happy to see my children succeed. So with us, even more with God.

Psalm 149:4 – “For the Lord takes pleasure in his people; He adorns the humble with salvation.” God is our Father and thus like a father, I really believe that the Lord celebrates with us. He laughs with us. He cries with us. He celebrates with us. I know that in recently receiving the award from our community here, I spent quality time really thanking the Lord and spending time with God: Thanking Him for allowing and enabling me to serve Him and others. I know how I am cheering for my kids in everything they do for the Lord, and I want you all here to know that God is cheering for you and me too! And even more! He does take pleasure in us and He lavishes His love upon us.

 

1 John 3:1a – “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!”

As fathers we are also blessed just to see our children grow up: We are excited when they speak their first word, when they take their first step. We are happy when they make a friend.

We are happy when they celebrate rites of passage: We celebrate graduation from a class, high school (or maybe university); when they get a job, when they move out (even though you miss them terribly); and then for some maybe they will go on to get married and/or have kids themselves. And maybe celebrate many more rites of passage. 1 John 3:1a – “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!”

 

John 16:33 – “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. “

 

2 Corinthians 1:3 - “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”

 

As parents we are always concerned for our children and hope they can avoid or get through every crises and struggle. God has the same hope for us like we read earlier in Jeremiah 29:11: “'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. '” But also John 16:33, “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” And 2 Corinthians 1:3, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”

There is trouble in this world. As parents we hope and pray that our children will never fall prey to addiction (drugs, alcohol, gambling, anything); we hope and pray that they are always healthy (and can come through any times when they aren’t); we hope and pray that life doesn’t knock them down too hard or too often; we hope and pray that they are resilient and will continue to get up when life knocks them down (and learn from it too!) – for in this world there will be trouble but God has overcome the world. And as we have every confidence that our children can get through, God has every confidence in us too. We hope and pray that our children will receive comfort from us and we hope and we pray that they will experience the comfort that the Lord offers to each and everyone of us, even and especially in our most challenging times. The Lord, our Heavenly Father loves us even more than we love our earthly children - as impossible as it may seem that anyone could love more than we love our kids, our Heavenly Father does. We hope and pray, with the Lord, that our children are never consumed by hate, fear, or sin. Hate, fear and sin can paralyze us. But love trumps hate and God, our Father, loves us

 

Matthew 10:29-31 – “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

 

Proverbs 3:11-12 – “My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline, and do not resent His rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those He loves, as a father the son he delights in.”

 

When the Bible talks about sin, I really think it is often referring to an Heavenly Father trying to point His children away from trouble. I don’t think sins are a list of things that bad people do. It is more like something we do or something that happens which puts us in harms way (missing the mark). Or it is calamity, destruction and a force all of its own waiting to pounce on us. A loving Heavenly Father thus warns us like He did Can in Genesis 4:7. Remember Cain and Abel? Jealousy and rage and murder are about to consume Cain and entice him to murder His brother and so God (who loves Cain every bit as much as He loves Abel) gets his attention and says, “If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” God loves us all and He desires for us to overcome sin and to overcome the world as He has overcome the world.

 

Luke 12:32 – “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”

 

Our children are among the most precious things in the world to us. God loves us even more than we love our own children. Just like our heart is full when our children make things for us – a picture, or a poem – so is God’s heart when we make things for Him. Just like our heart is full when they do things for us like make a party, mow the lawn, or clean the house; so is God’s heart full when we do things for Him. Just like our hearts are full when our children do things for each other; so God’s heart is full when we do things for one another. Just like my heart is full when I see my children helping and doing things for anyone in need; so God’s heart is full when we help out others in need (either personally, through our Army here, or in other ways). Just like our heart is full even just seeing our children together, so is God’s heart full seeing His children here together. And just like my heart is overflowing when my children are together with me celebrating and enjoying life, I can’t even tell you how much God loves to see each and everyone of you here with Him and each other today. God is a Father to each and everyone of us and His heart is filled and overflowing with joy to have you come together with His other children just to see Him and spend time with Him on this Father’s Day – just like any other day. He loves you.

 

So on this Father’s Day, let us come before our Heavenly Father and know that He is proud of us and He loves us and He wishes the best for us, He will never leave us nor forsake us and He will always be here for us even until the end of the age. Let is pray.

 

Matthew 12,18,25: Three Little Sheep

Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley, 03 April 2022 by Captain Michael Ramsay

To read a version presented to Corps 614 Regent Park and The Warehouse Mission, Toronto, on 22 January 2017, click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2017/01/sheep-love-stories-matthew-1212-15-1810.html

 

We have had the opportunity to read through Matthew as a congregation this Lenten Season. We are all, no doubt familiar with the Three Little Pigs. Today we are going to chat a little bit about the three little sheep in Matthew. The first little sheep we read about is from Matthew 12:7-15. There is a man with Jesus with a deformed hand. Reading again Vs 11-14:

 

11 He [Jesus] said to them, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? 12 How much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.”

13 Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. 14 But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.

Jesus tells us the story of the first little sheep – and the story didn’t go over so well. People plotted to kill him. Jesus had just been accused of breaking the religious law prohibiting working on the Sabbath.[1] He responds by telling this 1^st sheep story and quoting the Bible, Hosea 6:6, and then he further provokes his accusers by not only healing on the Sabbath but by doing so right in the synagogue (the near equivalent of a church). This would be like if a police officer ticketed you for J-walking and then when he was done you J-walked right over to the police station.

 

it is important to note that Jesus wasn’t changing the religious rules here (see Matthew 5:17) at this time many educated, religious, and other people had many different ideas about what was allowed to be done on the Sabbath.[2] Priests worked on the Sabbath and they did not get another Sabbath day off in lieu. [3] Some in that synagogue would have held that it is quite alright to heal on the Sabbath. In Jewish communities even today, hospitals are open on Saturday.

 

Jesus here, through the story of the first little sheep and his actions that accompany it, is showing us that when we interpret our traditions, our culture, our religious practices, and even the Bible, God’s love needs to be the centre of it.[4] God’s love needs to be the centre of God’s law and God’s love needs to be the centre of our lives. That is what Jesus is telling us here with the story of the first little sheep.

 

Some similar examples I have heard from church culture would be when people feel unwelcome in church. One person told me that she remembered as a child that her family was only allowed to sit at the back, in the balcony, so others wouldn’t see them; I had one friend tell me that The Salvation Army was the only place she felt welcome because she was a single mother. That is terrible. Whatever rules people have for church, they – we - really need to interpret them through the lens of love so that we can bring people to God’s love and rather turn them away from that support we all genuinely need. That is what Christ is about and that is what we the church are supposed to be about.

 

This brings us to our second little Sheep, Matthew 18:10-22. We will re-read Verses 102-16 and 21-22:

12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.

15 “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.16 But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses…

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

 

Jesus says that if our little sheep wanders off, we go and get them; then he explains what it means. If someone gets trapped by a sin; if someone gets stuck in a sin; you do what it takes to free them from it because you love them. First you try to help them on the spot, by yourself like a shepherd would try to help his sheep from a pit. Then, if you can’t help them out by yourself, you get one friend or a whole bunch of friends to help you help them out of trouble.  You do whatever you can to help them return to safety and if they are clear that they don’t wish to be saved from their situation, then it says that we are to treat them like we would treat pagans or tax collectors; Now, what does it mean to treat people like tax collectors?[5] Who is a famous tax collector in the Bible? Matthew. Matthew is the one who wrote this book. He is the one who wrote this story. Matthew is saying, 'treat the person caught in sin as Jesus treated me' – with the love God – hoping that indeed at some point the second little sheep will return to the flock.[6] This is what the parable of the second little sheep is telling us. And Verses 22-22, How many times must we forgive someone who sins against us, always? Always times forever Jesus says.

 

Jesus, the Church and Christians aren’t about attacking people with random laws to punish them, we are about loving one another so that they can all experience God`s salvation both now and forever.

 

I am going to share a bonus story that has the same message as the story about the second little sheep. This one is about a trip or two our family took to Florida when Rebecca and Sarah-Grace were 6 or 7 years old.

 

The first time we were in Florida we went to a gator farm where Rebecca and Sarah-Grace were allowed to have their pictures taken sitting on real alligators, holding their taped shut mouths. They did. This was fun.

 

There was one thing though: there are signs everywhere in Florida (like this one) 

telling you not to go near ditches, lakes, or any still water because it may have an alligator, and not a nice tame one like the girls sat on, waiting for you.  On our second trip, a year or so later, Rebecca, for whatever reason, just wouldn’t listen.

 

 

I was getting quite frustrated. Every time I turned around 6- or 7-year-old Rebecca would be bolting to look in another body of water. I kept telling her not to, not because I had some arbitrary law that I wanted to enforce but because I love her and I didn’t want her to be eaten by an alligator. Sure enough, the last time 7-year-old Rebecca went unaccompanied by any Floridian water, no sooner had I picked her up and headed up the embankment than an alligator came out of the water right where she was standing. We were just in time.

 

It is the same with us and God. That is why we are always to forgive and to try to restore each other to holiness: not to punish or to be mean to people but to save each other from the alligator of sin that wants to drown and devour. Just as I never gave up, time and time again, pulling my daughter from the water’s edge, none of us should ever give up on anyone we know; we need to keep pointing them to God’s love and His Salvation. God can help them and us in any situation we find ourselves. That is the point of both the stories of the alligator and of the second little sheep. And that brings us to the third little sheep in the book of Matthew - the parable of the sheep and the goats.[8] Matthew 25 again from Verse 31:

 

31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

       34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

 

To the sheep, Verse 40: “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these siblings of mine, you did for me.’” You are welcome in my Kingdom. The goats, who (equally unknowingly) did not do these things, miss out on the Kingdom. The sheep are in; the goats are out.[9]

 

On a third trip to Florida, this time after Heather was born, we all went to the Animal Kingdom in Disney World. Do you know the Animal Kingdom? It is like a big zoo, nature reserve and/or safari with all the requisite Disney characters and rides added to it. It is quite neat.

 

While Rebecca, Heather and I were visiting the petting zoo at Disney, all of a sudden the sheep left the goats. They were all in one place and then the sheep just split like an invisible hand was separating them. They all ran away from the goats. Rebecca (who was a teenager then) and I noticed this and so we decided to go stand with the sheep.

 

I then asked Heather, who was six at the time, if she remembered the parable of the sheep and the goats and how they were separated. It was at this point that one of the Disney employees must have heard part of our conversation because he told me that the animals do this by themselves. He doesn’t know why but every once and a while the sheep just separate themselves from the goats.

 

I thought about that comment – that the sheep separate themselves from the goats – and I thought this must be the real life example that the story is drawing on to make its point that our actions (whether or not we show mercy, love to one another) are the fruit that broadcast to the world whether we are sheep or goats. If we are sheep we will naturally show love by feeding the hungry, watering the thirsty, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and the imprisoned... Just like a good tree cannot produce bad fruit; so too we who love God will naturally produce acts in keeping with repentance and salvation. God won’t make us love one another against our will and we will not have to master our own will to do those things either. As we come to love God more and more, we will naturally show our acts of love to God and to our neighbour just like how we naturally show our love to our family and friends and just like good trees naturally produce good fruit and good sheep naturally move from the goats. God loves us all and He wants us all to have the joy of loving and caring for one another.

 

These are Matthews stories of The 3 Little Sheep (and the alligator).And today, as we have been looking at these 3 little sheep stories, I encourage us to this end: Let us love the Lord our God and show mercy and forgiveness to one another. Let us seek the Lord with all our hearts for as we love Him and as we love our neighbour, God will naturally transform us into His likeness as easily as He separates the sheep from the goats. Let us all be sheep.

 

Let us pray.

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[1]M. Eugene Boring, Matthew (NIB 8: Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon, 1995), 279: This is a legal accusation rather than a question
[2] Douglas R.A. Hare, Matthew (Interpretation: Louisville, Kentucky: John Know Press, 1993), 131
[3] Douglas R.A. Hare, Matthew (Interpretation: Louisville, Kentucky: John Know Press, 1993), 132
[4] M. Eugene Boring, Matthew (NIB 8: Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon, 1995), 279: Love is the centre of God’s Law: here Jesus is not replacing Sabbath worship but rather explaining it.
[5] Cf. Douglas R.A. Hare, Matthew (Interpretation: Louisville, Kentucky: John Know Press, 1993), 213-215 for a good discussion of this question.
[6] Daniel Hetherington, SJ, Sacra Pagina, The Gospel of Matthew, 272, “The implications of Matt 18:15-35 for life within the3 Church today are great. The text outlines a clear procedure designed to help the sinner recognize the sin and return to the community. It roots reconciliation and forgiveness of sins in God’s mercy, and thus reveals the foolishness of those who try to set limits on their willingness to forgive others”
[7] Cf. NT Wright, Matthew for Everyone Part 2: Chapters 16-28 (NT for Everyone: Louisville Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2004),, p. 30-31 where it is highlighted that while Seraphim always ordinarily have their faces covered in the presence of God, the angels who advocate for the ‘little ones’ always see the face of God.
[8] But cf. D.A. Carson, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Matthew/Exposition of Matthew/VI. Opposition and Eschatology: The Triumph of Grace (19:3-26:5)/B. Fifth Discourse: The Olivet Discourse (24:1-25:46)/6. Parabolic teaching: variations on watchfulness (24:42-25:46)/e. The sheep and the goats (25:31-46), Book Version: 4.0.2: Strictly speaking, this passage is not a parable. Its only parabolic elements are the shepherd, the sheep, the goats, and the actual separation.
[9] Cf. Jim Wallis ‘ Matthew 25 in the Age of Trump’ (Red Letter Christians: January 6, 2017) for a contemporary political reference point, Jim Wallis  reminds us of Matthew 25 Pledge: I pledge to protect and defend vulnerable people in the name of Jesus. Online: https://www.redletterchristians.org/matthew-25-in-the-age-of-trump/
[10] Captain Michael Ramsay, ‘Devotion 2.35/88: Matthew 7:18: Good’ (Thoughts from the Riverside Café: Sheepspeak.com, 13 January 2017) online: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2017/01/devotion-23588-matthew-718-good.html

1 John 4:7-21: Love Them; Don’t Leave Them

Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries, 20 February 2022, by Captain Michael Ramsay

 

The other night we watched in horror with all the other diners at a packed restaurant in Chilliwack as the TV abruptly switched from the Olympics to show police on horseback and with automatic weapons advancing on a crowd of protesters in Ottawa. You could hear the disbelief as none of us - even those who supported the action - could really comprehend that something like this would be happening in Canada. 

On Valentines Day, of all days, when our PM announced that this was coming, my mind went to 1 John 4 because, 'how do I love my neighbour?' has been a question that I -like many people, with many different views- have been and am still really struggling with during Covid-19. 

 

Perfect love drives out fear: People have been filled with so much fear and hate in this country that it is not only driving out love, but it is also clouding our reason - or at least mine! Bars were packed this weekend with people drinking and dancing and in very close contact with each other; we have been at sporting events where people are packed so close together that they can spill their drink on you or spew the food in their mouth on you when they cheer a goal - it doesn't make me feel safe. 

But then look at our rules around vaccine passports. In our province, one must be vaccinated to eat at a restaurant where the server takes your order from the table. The waiter, however, who goes from table-to-table does not need to be vaccinated. If unvaccinated people are more likely to carry the virus, then the legislation is putting all the customers and especially the staff at risk; if not, then what is the point of the passport - to keep unvaccinated patrons away from unvaccinated waitstaff? 

 

There is more: like we just said, one must be vaccinated to eat at a restaurant where the server takes your order from the table; however, you don’t need to be vaccinated if you place your order at the counter and then the same waiter brings the meal to your table. The waiter still comes to the table so why do we need a passport in one case and not the other?

A line that comes to my mind is one that Plato, in his Republic, put in the words of Socrates. When facing his questioners he said, "I am too stupid to be convinced by you". I think this is me relating to our current (especially vaccine) regulations. I am sure smarter people than I am can figure it out.

 

Wearing masks, washing one’s hands, and social distancing all make a lot of sense when trying to avoid a flu, a cold, or Covid-19. Closing borders and limiting travel are great ways to stop the spread of a global pandemic. Wearing masks, washing one’s hands, social distancing are all things we do here to help the vulnerable stay safe because we love them. We also still check people’s temperatures, and we have plexiglass separators everywhere. At the soup kitchen we even have them on every table separating each diner from the person in front of them. I might even go so far as to recommend that everyone who can be, be vaccinated: I have had 3 shots now!

 

The reason that I have had three shots is the same reason why I personally am troubled with our current vaccine mandate – because I am trying to figure out, in this time and place, how to best love my neighbour. I am vaccinated because I feel that I need to do everything out of love; I need to do everything possible to help others – even and especially those who are fearful of unvaccinated people. I would never want to exclude them from anything. I do realize however that there are people who cannot be vaccinated for health, mental health, moral and ethical reasons. I cannot possibly be a part of forcing someone to violate their deeply held moral convictions, can I?

 

The key for Christians alive at this juncture in history, I believe, is to not let the devil tempt us into fear and/or hatred of anyone. Like our scriptures today say, God is love. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God; if we love one another, God lives in us. Whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God.

 

Anyone of us who is on social media should check our posts. If we have posted something that demeans or belittles proponents of an opposing view, take it down. At the very least, commit to only building one another up in the future. If you find yourself getting worked up while you are watching the ‘news’, turn it off. If you find yourself getting worked up while chatting with someone else, take a breath and say a silent prayer for them – or better yet, acknowledge the heart of a person you many disagree with and say a prayer with them. That is an act of love and whoever loves God loves their neighbour. God is love.

 

At this time when our country is seriously and passionately divided, we Christians need to be united in love; we need to remember when walking with one another that:  

 

·        God loves us all (even the other guys!) so much so that He sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins and if anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God.  

·        There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 

·        And whoever does not love, does not know God, because God is love; whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God. 

·        For, God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them; if we love one another, God lives in us.

 

Let us go from here out into this world of hate and fear and let us be different. Let us refuse to hate one another; let us refuse to fear one another. And let us refuse to ‘other’ one another, and may we always, as brothers and sisters, live and walk in the love of God. 

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Luke 3:1-6 (Isaiah 40:1-8) Straight Paths

Presented to The Salvation Army: Alberni Valley Ministries, 05 December 2021 by Captain Michael Ramsay

 

To read a version of this presented to the 230pm service of Warehouse Mission 614 at 252 Carlton St., Toronto, on the second Sunday of Advent, 10 December 2017 by Captain Michael Ramsay, click here: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2017/12/isaiah-401-8-sometimes-buildings-need_9.html

 

To see the 2024 version, click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2024/12/isaiah-40-luke-31011-today-we-are.html

 

To see the 2023 version, click here: https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2023/12/isaiah-401-8-28-31-luke-31-6-straight.html

When we were stationed in Toronto, we participated in the Santa Shuffle, an annual fun race put on by The Salvation Army. Even Heather when she was very little participated and got a medal. I have been injured since the beginning of covid (hamstring and meniscus) but before then – off and on - since I was in my 30s, I have done a bit of running. When I lived in Vancouver, I faithfully ran every second day. I lived about 5km from my office – I used to run there and back. In Winnipeg I lived almost 10km from the College; a colleague and I did that run more than once. In Toronto I would run past the many Officers’ quarters regularly as we all seemed to live in the same area, and here in Port Alberni I even ran with Rebecca a bit before she moved and then I was later injured. Running can be fun – but when you get out of the habit and have to start again or when you start for the very first time it can be a chore. And sometimes those hills in your first few runs can feel like mountains and those valleys, ravines.  I can remember when I was first learning to run being near the end of my run and my energy... rounding a corner and seeing... another hill to try to run up...I then understand Luke 3:4-6 and Isaiah 40:3b-5:

“...make straight in the desert

a highway for our God.

Every valley shall be raised up,

every mountain and hill made low;

the rough ground shall become level,

the rugged places a plain.

And the glory of the Lord will be revealed,

and all people will see it together.

For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

  

This is a great verse to ponder when you are running up and down hills and around curves, looking towards a time when obstacles will disappear. Pre-covid we had a Salvation Army hiking group here that would go for walks on Mondays. There is a lot of hiking on the Island here and if one goes backpacking or on a very long hike, after a few hours following switchbacks up and down mountains, you can almost feel the relief of Luke and Isaiah’s valleys raised and mountains levelled. This is part of the Good News of Luke 3 and Isaiah 40. This is the Good News that John the Baptist proclaims: when Jesus returns with His Kingdom, obstacles will be removed. As during Advent we commemorate waiting for Jesus’ birth, we also hope for His return so our mountains of trouble will be levelled and our valleys of despair will be raised to abundance. The crookedness of our paths will be straightened. That is hope.

  

Last week we lit the candle of hope. Today we lit the candle of love. First one has hope and then one can dare to love. One of the key things about hope and love in the context of Isaiah and thus Luke is that both are to and from God and an humbled people, a conquered people, an exiled people. There is no hope when you are on top of the world...only fear that you will fall off.

  

Sarah-Grace is doing her first in-person year at college. She is going to the same college where I studied my first year or so. When I was in college, I remember looking at the marks going into one final exam and noticing that I had the 3rd highest mark in that class. I then heard the people with the two highest marks brag to each other about which of the two of them would finish top of the class, like no one else was their equal – it was at that moment that I resolved that I would beat them both.  And I did.

  

When we lived in Swift Current Saskatchewan, I believe each Christmas we would raise more money per capita for The Salvation Army than any other place. At first this was a victory – and then it was almost a fear for me. What happens if we are not the best? What if someone beats us? What if I do not beat my previous record? What if I fail?

  

It was the same in university, once I became addicted to ‘A+’s, a ‘B’ was infuriating. There was no inherent joy in achievement anymore only a fear of failure – and that fear of failure can stomp out hope and it can stomp out love.

  

It was not always like that though in school. I remember a time when I would hope and pray and celebrate even a passing grade. I remember Grade 11 French. The only French words I remember from that year we’re ‘ne lancer pas la papier’ which means ‘don’t throw the paper’. Apparently the teacher didn’t like that we threw paper airplanes in class. Every time we made one, we could hear her say, ‘ne lancer pas la papier’.

  

I don’t think I was her favourite student. One day I was in the counselling alcove and I saw my French teacher and she asked me what I was doing. I told her I was switching out of her French in 3rd period... ‘That is a very good idea to be out of my class’, she said. ‘...to your class in fourth period,’ I continued. She was not impressed.

   

But forget my tales of youth. Don’t we all have stories of a more carefree time? Look back on those times: these are usually times when you didn’t have a lot except the love of a few good friends and the hope that the future will be better. There is a lot of freedom in not having much. Is it Janet Joplin who sang that freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose?

  

Sometimes this is right. Sometimes I think we get to a place of fearing loss so much that we no longer have hope and we no longer have love. Sometimes when we have enough to get by, we don’t share what is ours for fear that we might not have something. This is reflected very much in tithing. When a person who has tithed or knows they should tithe, does not tithe... this is a sign that we are not doing well. This is a symptom that we are not free but instead bound up in fear or pride or something else that keeps us from tithing. I remember when we were Corps Officers in Tisdale, there was Ralph. He had a limited income. He only made $52.30 a week and you know what? Every week he tithed $5.23. This is an example of love. This is an example of our hope in the Lord. I think of him when sometimes I am tempted to keep God’s tithe from Him, when sometimes I fear for my finances. I can choose hope and love instead.

Fear can rob us of hope. Fear can rob us of love. In our pandemic, fear is gaining great power. Fear is grabbing a hold of many people and making them insensitive to the plight of others. Fear is making people mean to each other. Fear can be a crippler of hope and fear can detract from Love. Our candle today is love and perfect love drives out fear.

  

In Advent we talk about the Good News of the Salvation of the world. Do you know where in the Bible this Good News shows up for the first time? Genesis 12:1-3: “All the nations of the earth will be blessed” and do you know what happens just before then... Genesis 11: the tower of Babel. God told the people to move and fill the earth. The people said, ‘No. We are going to stay here, build a city and a tower, and make a name for ourselves instead.’ God levelled their tower, their city; their pride and their fear, in order to give them the hope of salvation.

  

Isaiah records how God’s own temple was destroyed, the holy city of Jerusalem, and the independent nations of Israel and Judah - until the day He will return. Their country was conquered, their city was leveled, their temple was destroyed and through this, God provided them with hope. In Isaiah comes this hope of flattened mountains, raised valleys, straight paths and the joy and love that can only come from trusting God.

There are many things in our world, our country, our province, our time, and our life that are coming crashing down all around us these days. God loves us. This is the love that God has for us: He loves us so much that if there are any untraversable valleys, mountains, crooked paths or Babel-like buildings of traditions, pride, fear, hate, or something else in our lives; He will fill in those valleys, flatten those mountains and tear down those buildings, so we can be rebuilt on His foundations.

  

There is a song by a Canadian Band, Glorious Sons, whose first two lines get stuck in my head whenever I hear it on the radio:

I spent all my money on a pack of cigarettes,

for a lady that I love with a name I forget.

The song tells a story about someone’s troubles as it moves to the chorus which proclaims, ‘everything will be alright.’ There have been some troubles in the world recently. For those of us who have already had things come tumbling down around us and are now feel as if we are in exile in our own lives, for those of us who are fearing or grieving, for those of us who feel like all is lost, God is here. When the people were scattered from the ruins of Babel, God was there with Terah and his son, Abraham, offering salvation. When Israel was slave to Egypt, God was there with Moses offering salvation; when Judah was exiled from her city, her temple, and her life, God was there pointing her towards Salvation: Jesus’ Advent; Jesus whose imminent return we eagerly await today – at that time all the insurmountable mountains in our life will be levelled, all the impassable valleys raised, and all our crooked paths made straight – and right up until that time, right until the end of this age, He is here with us in the midst of it all.

  

It is Advent. Let us start (if we haven’t already) and let us continue in hope and in love. Let us all walk in God’s hope and in God’s love for we know He will see us through and we know He is with us even as we look forward to the day of Christ’s return when all those valleys will be raised, all those mountains will be levelled and all our paths will straightened for ever more.

  

Let us pray.

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