Genesis 1-3, Matthew 28, 1 Corinthians 15: He is Risen!

Presented to TSA Alberni Valley Ministries, Resurrection Easter Sunday by Major Michael Ramsay, 20 April 2025.

He is risen! (He is risen indeed!)

 

Easter is the most important date on the Christian Calendar. Do we know why it is the most important date? What are we celebrating? (the resurrection of Jesus) Why does this matter? (it means we can all be raised from the dead)

 

We read the story of Mary and Mary at the tomb today. I think that is a very important story about the first Christian evangelists and preachers: Two women proclaiming the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Do we know the rest of the story?

 

At the very beginning of the Bible, in the first few chapters of the first book in this holy anthology, we have the story of how God created the heavens and the earth. God created it all and it was perfect. Not only were there no bad things like murder, stealing, lying, etc. There was also no injury, no illness, no decay, no death. Even the trees didn’t die. The animals didn’t eat each other. It was paradise – it was the Garden of Eden.

 

Then the very first people that God created did something – they disobeyed God. This was the first badness to enter the world. The first sin. From that point on all that erodes life and goodness flowed into the world. Not only bad behaviours but also decay of plants, animals, and people; injury, illness and death.

 

The Bible then, as we know, has many books in the Old Testament that tell how people interacted with each other and God ever since. Mostly – but not entirely – after a certain point, the books speak about the family and descendants of Jacob who was called Israel. Many of these books are looking forward to a time when the world will no longer be in the state that it is in – when everything will be finally made right.

 

There are many recorded memories of God’s interaction with people, giving us a glimpse into when and how things might possibly return. Under and after Moses there is the Law that is given to God’s people to help us know how to relate to each other – in short it can be boiled down to, as Jesus later said, ‘love God and love your neighbour’ – while we are waiting for everything to be set right.

 

Before that even, God and Abraham make an agreement, recorded in Genesis Chapter 12, that all the nations of the earth will be blessed through Abraham and then in Genesis 15 we get our first glimpse of the cross. There is a ceremony, a covenant and God basically says that if mankind messes up again, like they did in the garden, God will take the punishment, He will die. We do mess up. On Good Friday He does.

 

The word ‘gospel’ that we still use today means, ‘good news’. On Easter – a few days later - we have the Good News. Yes God, Jesus, died. He went to the grave. But then something happened. He came back to life – and when he came back to life, he came back with a body that no longer decays, no longer experiences illness, no longer experiences death. He is the first person to experience life back like it was in the Garden of Eden.

 

Now, I say first ‘person’ for a reason. Jesus is God. Jesus is also a person. He is fully, truly and properly God and he is fully, truly and properly human. At Christmas we celebrate God becoming human – He, who was around at the creation of the world, was also, much later, born. On Good Friday he dies. On Easter He has the first fully resurrected body. His body will now never die, never get sick, never get injured. And when he overcame death on Easter, he really overcame it – not just for himself but for everyone. Jesus never died after his resurrection (like others who have risen from the dead). He went away for a while; but he will come back.

 

When he comes back, he will bring with him the Tree of Life that was in the Garden of Eden and the whole world will be made anew. We spoke about this a few weeks ago while we were looking at Romans 5, Genesis 3, and Revelation 22 where the ultimate return of God is recorded.

 

So that is what we are celebrating today: the first fruits of the resurrection, that the world is set right, and the path has been paved for Jesus’ return. On Easter, God made a way so that we never need to die (again). The Bible says that when he returns, even those who are already dead will raise from the grave and they will never die again and those who are still alive will be changed, healed, transformed into these never decaying, never dying entities that love fully both God and our neighbour forever.

 

Today, as we celebrate His victory over death, decay, and sin; We are even now awaiting Jesus’ return. While we wait, we are we are told a couple of things to do

1.     Never forget what he has done for us and that he will return.

a.     In the Bible they meet regularly over a meal to remember Jesus.

b.     Now we meet on the Lord’s Day, Sunday, and at other occasions, as well as have other ceremonies, to remember what the Lord has done and what we have to look forward to.

 

2.     And the other thing we need to do is to share the love of God with others. We can do this by telling others about God while we take care of one another.

 

So today, as we are celebrating Jesus’ resurrection to eternal life and awaiting his return when the whole world will be set right, let us do our part.

 

God has provided enough to feed, clothe, and shelter everyone in the world; He has given us this beautiful earth to take care of – and He asks nothing more of us that to love Him and take care of each other until He returns  - let us do that until he returns, for when he comes back there will be no more death, no more decay, no more sorrow, no more sadness; only joy, peace and wholeness because He has risen! (He has risen, indeed)

 

Let us Pray

www.sheepspeak.com

www.salvogesis.blogspot.com

Genesis 2:15-3:24, Matthew 28:1-20, Revelation 22:1-5: Life and Death and Creation.

Presented to the Community Dinner at the Friendship Center by Major Michael Ramsay, 19 April 2025.

 

Hello,

I am Major Michael Ramsay from The Salvation Army. As well as running The Salvation Army, the Bread of Life Soup Kitchen, shelter and The Salvation Army thrift store, I am a Christian pastor / teacher. This weekend is Easter. That is the most important time on the Christian Calendar.

Christians acknowledge Jesus as God. Our teachings tell us that God, as creator, created the whole world. And when He did it was perfect. Not only did we not harm each other, ourselves or the earth; but we never got sick, we never got injured; and the earth itself – the trees did not fall to the ground and die. Animals did not eat animals. All of creation was in perfect harmony. The Creator even walked in this Garden He created with people He created.

Then something happened. The first people created made a choice.  Because of this choice, death, decay, harm and hurt entered the world. Where there was none before, now there was illness, injury and death for all of creation. Plants, animals and all that is given life now dies. Since that day, Creator would like nothing less than to get us back to what was our life was like in the Garden: with no more death, no more decay.

Today is the Saturday between Good Friday and Easter. On Good Friday 2000 years ago something happened: God died. Creator died. Jesus died. Today is called low Saturday. How would you feel if we were around when God died?

Tomorrow is Easter. On Easter God, Jesus, Creator rose from the dead. He came to life again. He vanquished death. He defeated it. That is why we celebrate on Easter: we can get back to the Garden. By overcoming death, Jesus ended the decay, death and disease that came to the world and as a result when Creator returns to earth no one will ever die; no plant will ever decay; no animal will ever eat another… there will be no more blindness, no more deafness, no more addiction, no more violence, no more pain, no more sorrow. Only goodness. Only wholeness.

In the Christian faith, everyone who wants to serve the creator is invited to live and help others live like this today by providing for those in need until the day arrives when there is no more need. Our sacred book, the Bible, even tells us the ‘Sheep and Goats’ story: that the nations which take care of the vulnerable will be with the creator forever in the new world and those who don’t, won’t.

The Bible often compares life with Creator, Jesus, to a banquet, a feast, a meal, like we have here today – where everyone is invited: the rich, the poor, the old, the young, the widow, the foreigner, the stranger, the… everyone.

Today… Who has been here at the Friendship Centre before? Who has been here a lot and feels at home, comfortable here? I invite you to look out for the new people, the stranger, our guests – those who you have not seen around here before. I invite you to – on behalf of Creator – make the people who have not been here before feel comfortable. Extend to them the Creator’s hand of friendship. Let our guests know that we are happy they are here with us for when we welcome the stranger, the foreigner in the Creator’s name, we are indeed welcoming in the Creator Himself.

Let us pray

John 12:12-19: Morning Palm Sunday Reading

Presented to TSA Alberni Valley Ministries, Palm Sunday, 13 April 2025, by Major Michael Ramsay

 

Similar versions presented to Corps 614 Regent Park Toronto, Palm Sunday, 20 March 2016 (http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2016/03/john-1212-19-st-johns-palm-reading.html ) and to Warehouse Mission 614 in Toronto's Cabbagetown, 25 March 2018, Palm Sunday (http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.ca/2018/03/john-1212-19-sunday-palm-reading.html )

Palm Sunday, 13 April, 2025

Welcome and Announcements

Opening Worship Set

I Will Enter His Gates

I will Follow Jesus

 

Introduction: Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday is an important day in the Christian Church. Anyone who has grown up in the church or who has been going to church for a few years has inevitably been to a few Palm Sunday services. Do we know what the big deal is about Palm Sunday?

 

John, in his gospel, does a great job telling us the meaning of Palm Sunday. He writes of a triumphal entry. He uses a lot of symbolism – not unlike Shakespeare, other playwrights we may have studied in school, or even well-written books and movies today. This week we are going to pull out five pieces of that imagery and then put it back together for a full picture of what Palm Sunday looks like for us today. First, let’s read John 12:12-19:

 

Scripture: John 12:12-19

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

 

“Hosanna!”

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

“Blessed is the king of Israel!”

 

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

 

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

 

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

 

Song: Sing Hosanna

 

Reading: Triumphal Entry

Image number one: Palm Sunday is about the Triumphal Entry. What is a triumph? It is victory. These days we have victory parades when teams win championships. In Regina, they officially call part of one of their busiest streets ‘the Green Mile’ because the Roughriders have a parade there when they win the championship. Many teams have official parades when they win championships. In 2019 the whole city of Toronto seemed to come out to celebrate the Raptors winning the NBA Championship. Can you imagine if the Maple Leafs ever win? What kind of a celebration would happen then? When British Football clubs win championships, whole neighbourhoods are shut down for parades. When Argentina won the most recent World Cup, the day was declared a National Holiday so everyone could come and celebrate their triumphal procession. This is along the lines of what is happening here. Jesus is riding into the city, and it is celebrated as a triumph. But it is before the game that Jesus' triumph is being celebrated. It is in advance of the final; it is in anticipation of the coming victory.

 

In recent history, we could maybe compare it to the two hockey games between Canada and the USA a few months ago. We (Canada) won the final game and everyone cheered – but remember how loud the cheering was in the first 9 seconds of the first game we played…in Canada… that we lost? Why was it so loud? Our players dropped the gloves and fought their players. This triumphant cheering of patriotism before the game is even under way is probably very similar to people cheering at the Triumphal Entry.

 

Song: Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the Highest

 

Reading: Jerusalem

This brings us to the second of our five images for today: What city is Jesus riding into? Jesus is entering Jerusalem. What is the significance of Jerusalem? Jerusalem is the historic capital of Judah and Israel? 2017 was Canada's 150th anniversary. One would expect a lot of patriotism in any capital city on a day of national celebration. Now Jerusalem, in our text today, is part of the occupied territories. The Romans, the Superpower of their time, had troops in the city and they controlled the government. To some extent they even appointed the religious leaders in Jerusalem. And like all superpowers, they didn’t tend to like rebellion, and they knew that if there was to be a rebellion it would probably happen in Jerusalem – the historic capital city. And it would probably happen now, during Passover, when the population of Jerusalem overflowed with so many people descending upon the city from all over the Empire. Jerusalem is the historic capital city of a seemingly rebellion-prone people.

 

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

 

Song: Mercy is Falling

Tithes and Offering

Communal prayer

Song: Majesty

 

Reading: Hosanna, King of the Jews, Name of the Lord

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

 

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

 

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

 

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

 

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

 

Song: King of Kings and Lord of Lords

 

Reading: Palm Branches

This brings us to the fourth of our five images for today, the palm branches: John tells us also that the people lining the streets aren’t just yelling, ‘save us king’. This is important.  They are waving palm branches. Today is Palm Sunday. Do we know the significance here of palm fronds? The palm branches are important. What do the Palm branches represent?

 

They didn’t just pick up palm branches because palm branches happened to be near-by; they picked up palm branches because palm branches are a national symbol. It is like with the current tariffs and everything how the Canadian flag instantly became meaningful again to Canadians. It would be like if we all thought someone might be willing and able to free us from US influence and control and then spontaneously we all ran to meet them with maple leaf flags or maple leaves. Everyone recognizes the maple leaf as a political symbol of Canada

 

The palm branch is a national symbol being raised in the traditional capital of an occupied territory. This is where John drives home that Jesus isn’t just a metaphorical or simply a spiritual king; Jesus is a political king as well. He is the King of Kings and His Kingdom, the Kingdom of God, is at hand.

 

Song: Jumping Up and Down

 

Reading: Donkey 

This brings us to our fifth and final image for today: the donkey. Verse 14: ‘Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written: 15 “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.” John quotes Zechariah’s well-known prophesy about the king who will save and rule Israel as he comes into his kingdom on a donkey (Zec 9:9). And here and now comes Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey.

 

There is more to this too because a donkey is not a war horse; a donkey is an ambassador’s mount. It is an animal of peace! The Romans claimed that their wars brought the ‘Pax Romana’, the Roman Peace, but John here is pointing out that Jesus – not Caesar – is the Prince of Peace. Jesus is King of the Jews, and more than that, Jesus is King of the World!

 

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

 

Conclusion

Praise the Lord. Today is Palm Sunday and Palm Sunday is a day of celebration. Jesus is King! Do you believe that? Do you serve Him? Today if there are any of us here who don’t yet serve Jesus as King and haven’t laid our palm branches in front of the King of Heaven and Earth – now is our chance to accept His Salvation from the pain of suffering through all the evils of this world by ourselves. Jesus is King and He will – Hosanna - save us. He will be with us in the very midst of all our difficulties and challenges in our world today. And some tomorrow soon and very soon we will all be raised with Him to be in paradise where there is no more pain and no more suffering! Do you believe that? Do you serve Him?

 

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

 

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

 

Song: Hosanna Praise is Rising

Benediction and Dismissal