THE FIRST WORD Forgiveness
Luke 23:33-34
When they came to the place called "The Skull", they nailed Jesus to the cross there, and the two criminals, one on his right and one on his left. Jesus said "Forgive them, Father! They do not know what they are doing."
THE SECOND WORD Assurance
Luke 23:39-43
One of the criminals hanging there threw insults at him: "Aren't you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!" The other one, however, rebuked him, saying: "Don't you fear God? Here we are all under the same sentence. Ours, however, is only right, for we are getting what we deserve for what we did; but he has done no wrong." And he said to Jesus, "Remember me, Jesus, when you come as King!" Jesus said to him, "I tell you this: Today you will be in Paradise with me."
THE THIRD WORD Comfort
John 19:25-27
Standing close to Jesus' cross were his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. Jesus saw his mother and the disciple he loved standing there; so he said to his mother, "Woman, here is your son." Then he said to the disciple, "Here is your mother." And from that time the disciple took her to live in his home.
THE FOURTH WORD Desolation
Mark 15:33-34
And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, "Elo-i, elo-i, lama sabach-thani?" which means, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
THE FIFTH WORD Suffering
John 19:28
After this Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the scripture), "I thirst."
THE SIXTH WORD Trimuph
John 19:29-30
A bowl was there, full of cheap wine mixed with vinegar, so a sponge was soaked in it, put on stick of hyssop and lifted up to his lips. When Jesus had received the wine, he said, "It is finished";
THE SEVENTH WORD Commital
Luke 23:46
Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, "Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit!" And having said this he breathed his last.
Thursday, April 09, 2009
DESOLATION Reflection Has God Left the Building?
What are we to do with these words – “My God My God why have you forsaken me?”
As we reflect upon the cross, these are the words of Jesus which probably cause most problems
How could God turn his back on his own Son?
Many of explained the abandonment as being a consequence of the sins of the whole world past, present and future being thrust on to Jesus like a scapegoat, and that on the cross he becomes a sin offering for us…
So that as more and more sins are thrown at Jesus – it becomes unbearable for the father – for a holy God to look upon him.
The problem with this explanation though is that God is Omnipresent,
He cannot exclude or remove himself from his creation but must look upon sin everyday.
Maybe another way to look at it is that Jesus cry of abandonment mirror the cries of countless millions who suffer oppression, enslavement, abuse, disease, poverty and starvation.
The cry of abandonment mirrors their cries to God
Just as they cry God why is this happening to me?
God where are you?
God why am I suffering?
In the same way Jesus the perfect sin offering feels the cries of the rejected, experiences their pain, identifies perfectly with the millions and millions who have and will suffer.
And at the centre of this decaying world is the cross
In experiencing abandonment and loss God puts his stake in the ground and says “I am here”.
While the cross is about forgiveness it’s also about identification with a suffering humanity.
As we survey the wondrous cross it may feel as though God has left the building – the reality is he is right here in the midst
As we reflect upon the cross, these are the words of Jesus which probably cause most problems
How could God turn his back on his own Son?
Many of explained the abandonment as being a consequence of the sins of the whole world past, present and future being thrust on to Jesus like a scapegoat, and that on the cross he becomes a sin offering for us…
So that as more and more sins are thrown at Jesus – it becomes unbearable for the father – for a holy God to look upon him.
The problem with this explanation though is that God is Omnipresent,
He cannot exclude or remove himself from his creation but must look upon sin everyday.
Maybe another way to look at it is that Jesus cry of abandonment mirror the cries of countless millions who suffer oppression, enslavement, abuse, disease, poverty and starvation.
The cry of abandonment mirrors their cries to God
Just as they cry God why is this happening to me?
God where are you?
God why am I suffering?
In the same way Jesus the perfect sin offering feels the cries of the rejected, experiences their pain, identifies perfectly with the millions and millions who have and will suffer.
And at the centre of this decaying world is the cross
In experiencing abandonment and loss God puts his stake in the ground and says “I am here”.
While the cross is about forgiveness it’s also about identification with a suffering humanity.
As we survey the wondrous cross it may feel as though God has left the building – the reality is he is right here in the midst
Reflection on Triumph
They say you can’t keep a good man down
The Christian story says you can’t keep the God Man down
Even when he appears beaten, even when he’s defeated, like Rocky Balboa he keeps coming back for more.
But here we see the God Man – Jesus- Abandoned, desperate, parched, dying… but still, with his final breath, angry at the gulf between the way things are and the way things might be. - Shouting at the invisible.
Forget gentle Jesus,
if you ever remembered him.
What can you do but shout when you see the distance between the way things are and the way things might be - and find yourself being strung from one side to the other?
Howling your prayers.
Yelling your psalms.
Life screaming at death Hope screaming at cynicism.
If the psalms teach us anything it’s this - if you can’t shout at God, who can you shout at?
And if you think that your decibels can climb across the unknown universe, that you cries can be heard by Love and that Love will answer, then you will shout even louder.
With his final breadth Jesus the God man shouts into the void
It is finished…
A voice crying in the wilderness
The God man trusting in the hands of the unseen,
The hands of mercy,
The hands that make all things new.
They always have and always will.
What other hands dare you fall into?
Perhaps then we are not abandoned.
Perhaps then we are not beaten,
If the cross teaches us anything it is this even when we are defeated there is hope.
In 1985 after the fall of the Iron Curtain, Derry teacher Maurice HARRON created this sculpture "Hands across the Divide," as a symbol of hope for the war ravaged nation of Northern Ireland. He hoped it would inspire peace and reconciliation for the people of Northern Ireland.
In Jesus the divide between us and God has been breached.
We no longer shout our prayers into the void of space but in the name of Jesus we access the throne room of heaven.
It is finished is not the cry of a boxer who has taken one beating too many – it’s a cry of victory.
The breach has been mended.
The final sacrifice has been made.
heads up to http://www.rejesus.co.uk/site/module/seven_last_sayings/ for some of the wording
The Christian story says you can’t keep the God Man down
Even when he appears beaten, even when he’s defeated, like Rocky Balboa he keeps coming back for more.
But here we see the God Man – Jesus- Abandoned, desperate, parched, dying… but still, with his final breath, angry at the gulf between the way things are and the way things might be. - Shouting at the invisible.
Forget gentle Jesus,
if you ever remembered him.
What can you do but shout when you see the distance between the way things are and the way things might be - and find yourself being strung from one side to the other?
Howling your prayers.
Yelling your psalms.
Life screaming at death Hope screaming at cynicism.
If the psalms teach us anything it’s this - if you can’t shout at God, who can you shout at?
And if you think that your decibels can climb across the unknown universe, that you cries can be heard by Love and that Love will answer, then you will shout even louder.
With his final breadth Jesus the God man shouts into the void
It is finished…
A voice crying in the wilderness
The God man trusting in the hands of the unseen,
The hands of mercy,
The hands that make all things new.
They always have and always will.
What other hands dare you fall into?
Perhaps then we are not abandoned.
Perhaps then we are not beaten,
If the cross teaches us anything it is this even when we are defeated there is hope.
In 1985 after the fall of the Iron Curtain, Derry teacher Maurice HARRON created this sculpture "Hands across the Divide," as a symbol of hope for the war ravaged nation of Northern Ireland. He hoped it would inspire peace and reconciliation for the people of Northern Ireland.
In Jesus the divide between us and God has been breached.
We no longer shout our prayers into the void of space but in the name of Jesus we access the throne room of heaven.
It is finished is not the cry of a boxer who has taken one beating too many – it’s a cry of victory.
The breach has been mended.
The final sacrifice has been made.
heads up to http://www.rejesus.co.uk/site/module/seven_last_sayings/ for some of the wording
Reflections on Comfort
What was his mother thinking?
Watching her son dying, slowly, by degrees.
“I wish it had never come to this”? “I wish I could wake from this nightmare”?“I wish I’d never had him”?
And what about the favourite follower?
What’s the point of being a disciple when there’s no master?
So much for being in the inner circle,
when the circle is being bent and broken before you.
So much for being special when all your hopes and dreams are being drained of life in front of your very eyes.
And what were the onlookers thinking?
The ones whose curiosity had slowed them down to a halt,
to check out this first century car-crash? Event-seekers, intrigued by what the small crowd were looking at over there on Skull Hill, what was going through their minds?
Interesting piece of action by the looks of it,
Always good to get the news firsthand.
Nothing like fresh gossip to add a bit of kudos.
Which of us knows what any of the rest of us is really thinking?
We can barely read our own minds, let alone those of others.
None of us can predict the significance of any of our moments.
None of us knows the role we are playing in the invisible grand narrative.
Take the soldiers, dicing for a dying man’s clothes, salivating at the market resale value.
Ringside seats for the cosmic drama…
but too busy living to notice.
We only know for sure what Jesus was thinking of.
He was thinking of others.
As usual and in that, we can take comfort.
Heads up to http://www.rejesus.co.uk/site/module/seven_last_sayings/ for some of the wording and the idea
Watching her son dying, slowly, by degrees.
“I wish it had never come to this”? “I wish I could wake from this nightmare”?“I wish I’d never had him”?
And what about the favourite follower?
What’s the point of being a disciple when there’s no master?
So much for being in the inner circle,
when the circle is being bent and broken before you.
So much for being special when all your hopes and dreams are being drained of life in front of your very eyes.
And what were the onlookers thinking?
The ones whose curiosity had slowed them down to a halt,
to check out this first century car-crash? Event-seekers, intrigued by what the small crowd were looking at over there on Skull Hill, what was going through their minds?
Interesting piece of action by the looks of it,
Always good to get the news firsthand.
Nothing like fresh gossip to add a bit of kudos.
Which of us knows what any of the rest of us is really thinking?
We can barely read our own minds, let alone those of others.
None of us can predict the significance of any of our moments.
None of us knows the role we are playing in the invisible grand narrative.
Take the soldiers, dicing for a dying man’s clothes, salivating at the market resale value.
Ringside seats for the cosmic drama…
but too busy living to notice.
We only know for sure what Jesus was thinking of.
He was thinking of others.
As usual and in that, we can take comfort.
Heads up to http://www.rejesus.co.uk/site/module/seven_last_sayings/ for some of the wording and the idea
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Reflection on Forgiveness… the seven last saying of Jesus
Father forgive them – what an amazing statement,
and not something I find particularly easy to say
– I like most people get angry and upset and somewhat annoyed when someone does something against me.
Revenge is usually the first thing on my mind
The Creed - Get them before they get you is something I lived by for many years – it’s certainly a lot easier to take revenge than forgive.
While if it was you or me we probably would have called down fire from heaven,
or asked God to open up the ground and swallow them up,
Here we have Jesus practicing what he preached – Forgiveness –
It’s so un-natural and yet so basic to the Christian Faith and how many times should we forgive someone 70 times 7 – that translates as an awful lot.
Yet forgiveness has power
– it turns the nameless so and so who wronged us into flesh and blood – a person a fellow struggler on this life journey,
– it releases us from being captive to the past that would stop us moving forward
– it allows us to enter fully into the life of the Kingdom of God
But sometimes the hardest person to forgive is ourselves.
and not something I find particularly easy to say
– I like most people get angry and upset and somewhat annoyed when someone does something against me.
Revenge is usually the first thing on my mind
The Creed - Get them before they get you is something I lived by for many years – it’s certainly a lot easier to take revenge than forgive.
While if it was you or me we probably would have called down fire from heaven,
or asked God to open up the ground and swallow them up,
Here we have Jesus practicing what he preached – Forgiveness –
It’s so un-natural and yet so basic to the Christian Faith and how many times should we forgive someone 70 times 7 – that translates as an awful lot.
Yet forgiveness has power
– it turns the nameless so and so who wronged us into flesh and blood – a person a fellow struggler on this life journey,
– it releases us from being captive to the past that would stop us moving forward
– it allows us to enter fully into the life of the Kingdom of God
But sometimes the hardest person to forgive is ourselves.
Monday, April 06, 2009
Palm Sunday Sermon notes
THINKING ABOUT CUSTOMS.
There are many customs from biblical times that make little sense in today’s world…
Extreme example….(2 Samuel 13:19) Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the ornamented robe she was wearing. She put her hand on her head and went away, weeping aloud as she went.
Ashes repentance
Tearing robes something terrible has taken place
Hand on head expressing grief or punishment
That’s where the idea behind Ash Wednesday come from (ASHES)
Sacrificing animals as a form of worship
Circumcision – I am so grateful that we don’t have that as a requirement for church membership
But some customs we do understand
Communion and baptism being two ancient customs – we have given them a new meaning in light of the Churches experience of Christ, but they still reflect much of the culture of the day
Today we are looking at a custom which does translate – a parade
Parades are something we are all familiar with –whether it be Anzac Day or the local Santa Parade – we’ve all seen them and experienced being part of the crowd. (SANTA PARADE)
EVERYBODY LOVES A PARADE
Wonderful scene to pause on – who doesn’t like a parade,
What’s more it a parade with a donkey – “who doesn’t like donkeys?”
And palms – the 1st century equivalent of helium balloons – who doesn’t like balloons
Maybe the image of a Santa Parade fits in well –
After all the inner examination of Lent, the reflecting on our humanity, the sacrifice, the preparation for Easter – it’s good to take some time out celebrate…
And this was some celebration – Jesus the Christ is entering the City
The Kingdom of God is among us
And wonder the people shout Hosanna – Save us – because they have recognized their sin
This parade is a celebration of God’s victory
Death where is your sting?
This is a Glorious homecoming – Yahoo for Jesus.
But I think we all realize that to see this Parade as a victory march is to put it a week to early.
Jesus’ mission isn’t yet finished by this point
There is no victory YET,
It’s a parade yes,
But its important for us to understand what sort of parade it is, what is driving the crowd,
To assume that they are singing hosanna – Lord Save us and putting them same meaning into it as we would makes no sense of the events that follow in the week leading up to the crucifixion
Parade yes – but let’s not jump to conclusions.
What sort of Parade was it – I guess the answer to that lies with the crowd how they read and understood the situation. (SMALL CROWD)
So who were the crowd, what were there expectations
Firstly we know they were largely Jews, though as John points out (12:20- ), among them were some Greek God fearers.
People who maybe did not want to subscribe to everything of Judaism but were judging by the fact that they were in Jerusalem for the Passover to all intents and purposes followers of God
Enormous crowd gathering for the Passover –
I guess then the fact it was coming up to Passover meant that the population of Jerusalem would have been big…
The background to the Passover is in Exodus 3:7 –
Then the Lord said, “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey…The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. So come, I will send you to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt.” The God who hears the cries of the oppressed. God rescues these helpless slaves out from under the hand of a foreign oppressor.
How did God do this…?
Well if you remember the story of Exodus God first sent 9 plagues down on Egypt and Pharaoh said NO – 9 times (PLAGUE)
He said Yes when God took some extreme measures and allowed the Angle of death to descend on Egypt and kill every first born Son – the Jewish first born sons were spared because they had marked their door posts with the blood of a new born Lamb.
The angel would see this and PASSOVER. (PASSOVER)
So the Jewish people would once a year they would gather at a time called Passover to celebrate their Freedom –
But we know that the Jews of the day weren’t free – far from it
The Romans were in charge and ruled over Jerusalem. (MEDIUM SIZED CROWD)
And The Romans had a Governor – Pilate – Pontius Pilate,
Pilate’s job was to keep order to ensure that the Jews knew who was boss.
In Luke 19:39 we have one of the Pharisees asking Jesus to quiet the crowd Down – Jesus replies – “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.”
The Pharisees want the crowd to quite down because they don’t want the Romans stamping down their authority.
As it was Pilate (the Roman governor) would probably have felt pretty weary about this festival anyway.
Think about it …
There was always a big mess to clean up,
Fights would break out,
And simply more people to govern and take care of during these times.
What is likely given the presence of Pilate at Jesus trail is that just as Jesus was walking into town from the south east, so to was Pilate marching in form the north west, with a message-
“Don’t mess with Rome”
It would begin with the roman eagle saying the Roman Empire is coming.
Behind the eagle would be the roman soldiers sending a message that resistance is futile submit or die.
Historians talk about Pax Romana – the peace of Rome – Rome (MAP) maintained peace through shows of power
Crucifying, flogging, and jumping on the back of anyone who would even whisper rebellion.
Everything is about power and strength and domination.
The roman army on the march evoked fear and terror.
They would march through your village to let you know who rules the world.
And Passover was about Freedom
Passover was to remind them that God hears the cry of his people when they are in trouble.
Given the Political situation of the Day PASSOVER had more meaning
Just as in the same way a man hanging of the cliff by a rope find a new meaning in the prayer – GOD HELP ME.
So with the Roman “jackboots” sitting on their necks the Jews would have discovered a fresh relevance in PASSOVER.
It wasn’t just a recollection of ho God had rescued them once before – it was a cry for help NOW,
it was a cry of RESCUE NOW.
The people sang hosanna – it wasn’t some nice praise and worship song –
it was a cry of help – SAVE US…
So the remembrance of PASSOVER had created a crowd,
The need for a new PASSOVER had swelled the crowd.
Add to that Gossip and the fame of Jesus and suddenly you have a major sized crowd –. (LARGE CROWD)
In this world Jesus is a celebrity the stories about him have been told far and wide and that has added to the number.
Try and picture it – the streets were full of people wanting change, wanting someone to save them – a messiah
Parade yes but probably more like this one… (G20 PROTEST.)
On a Day like this the Romans would have been outnumbered probably 30 -1,
Sure they have swords,
Sure they have body amour
Sure they have shields and horses
Sure they are strong,
But even with a sword could you hold of 30 people hungry for change – I doubt it
On a day like today the revolution could begin….
The Crowd just needed someone to lead them
And so they sing:
“Hosanna!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord
Blessed is the coming Kingdom of our ancestor David!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
Can you feel the tension rising…?
And along comes Jesus….
Ridding on a donkey…
And that is significant,
so significant that Mark spends half of his account describing how the donkey was acquired.
Firstly it’s significant because it’s a fulfillment of a prophecy
Zechariah 9:9“Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Secondly it significant because a King to enter town on a Donkey was to say – I come in Peace
Remember I said at this time we probably have Pilate coming into town with his army in a show of power – I doubt he arrived on a donkey.
More likely a huge Stallion, snorting, kicking it feet in the air… accompanied by chariots, legions of soldiers – marching in line swords drawn
And Jesus came riding into town on a donkey
While Jesus is the Messiah he is no warrior Messiah
Yes the Crowd is looking for a messiah (BRAVEHEART)
But probably more a Mel Gibson Brave Heart Messiah who walks up to the pompous English and say’s “I’ve come to pick a fight”
A Messiah on a war horse not a messiah on a donkey
It was the wrong mode of transport for a political revolution
But precisely the right mode of transport for someone who would offer their life as a sacrifice to take away the sin of the world.
He simply did not meet their expectations
They couldn’t see how someone coming in peace would ever change the world,
would ever be there answers to their cries to God to save them
So we shouldn’t really be surprised when a few days later in the week the song changes
Hosanna (save us) – Crucify him
Give us Jesus – give us Barabbas
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord – cursed is the one who hangs on a tree
Yes a new power has come into Jerusalem – but it’s not what the crowd expected
Yes there cry of Hosannas – Save us will be answered God has heard the cries of his people
But As Dietrich Bonhoffer said before his death at the hands of the Third Reich in Germany"God allows himself to be edged out of the world and on to the cross....and that is the way, the only way, in which he can be with us and help us....Only a suffering God can help."The crowds on that first Palm Sunday wanted a Warrior King,
but Jesus came as a suffering Messiah.
Jesus came as one who would die on a cross for the sake of human kind.
The crowd missed the point.
What about us? Do we get it?
Do we see Jesus as the suffering Messiah who did turn the world upside down for our sake and continues to shape the world with his love and grace?
There are many customs from biblical times that make little sense in today’s world…
Extreme example….(2 Samuel 13:19) Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the ornamented robe she was wearing. She put her hand on her head and went away, weeping aloud as she went.
Ashes repentance
Tearing robes something terrible has taken place
Hand on head expressing grief or punishment
That’s where the idea behind Ash Wednesday come from (ASHES)
Sacrificing animals as a form of worship
Circumcision – I am so grateful that we don’t have that as a requirement for church membership
But some customs we do understand
Communion and baptism being two ancient customs – we have given them a new meaning in light of the Churches experience of Christ, but they still reflect much of the culture of the day
Today we are looking at a custom which does translate – a parade
Parades are something we are all familiar with –whether it be Anzac Day or the local Santa Parade – we’ve all seen them and experienced being part of the crowd. (SANTA PARADE)
EVERYBODY LOVES A PARADE
Wonderful scene to pause on – who doesn’t like a parade,
What’s more it a parade with a donkey – “who doesn’t like donkeys?”
And palms – the 1st century equivalent of helium balloons – who doesn’t like balloons
Maybe the image of a Santa Parade fits in well –
After all the inner examination of Lent, the reflecting on our humanity, the sacrifice, the preparation for Easter – it’s good to take some time out celebrate…
And this was some celebration – Jesus the Christ is entering the City
The Kingdom of God is among us
And wonder the people shout Hosanna – Save us – because they have recognized their sin
This parade is a celebration of God’s victory
Death where is your sting?
This is a Glorious homecoming – Yahoo for Jesus.
But I think we all realize that to see this Parade as a victory march is to put it a week to early.
Jesus’ mission isn’t yet finished by this point
There is no victory YET,
It’s a parade yes,
But its important for us to understand what sort of parade it is, what is driving the crowd,
To assume that they are singing hosanna – Lord Save us and putting them same meaning into it as we would makes no sense of the events that follow in the week leading up to the crucifixion
Parade yes – but let’s not jump to conclusions.
What sort of Parade was it – I guess the answer to that lies with the crowd how they read and understood the situation. (SMALL CROWD)
So who were the crowd, what were there expectations
Firstly we know they were largely Jews, though as John points out (12:20- ), among them were some Greek God fearers.
People who maybe did not want to subscribe to everything of Judaism but were judging by the fact that they were in Jerusalem for the Passover to all intents and purposes followers of God
Enormous crowd gathering for the Passover –
I guess then the fact it was coming up to Passover meant that the population of Jerusalem would have been big…
The background to the Passover is in Exodus 3:7 –
Then the Lord said, “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey…The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. So come, I will send you to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt.” The God who hears the cries of the oppressed. God rescues these helpless slaves out from under the hand of a foreign oppressor.
How did God do this…?
Well if you remember the story of Exodus God first sent 9 plagues down on Egypt and Pharaoh said NO – 9 times (PLAGUE)
He said Yes when God took some extreme measures and allowed the Angle of death to descend on Egypt and kill every first born Son – the Jewish first born sons were spared because they had marked their door posts with the blood of a new born Lamb.
The angel would see this and PASSOVER. (PASSOVER)
So the Jewish people would once a year they would gather at a time called Passover to celebrate their Freedom –
But we know that the Jews of the day weren’t free – far from it
The Romans were in charge and ruled over Jerusalem. (MEDIUM SIZED CROWD)
And The Romans had a Governor – Pilate – Pontius Pilate,
Pilate’s job was to keep order to ensure that the Jews knew who was boss.
In Luke 19:39 we have one of the Pharisees asking Jesus to quiet the crowd Down – Jesus replies – “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.”
The Pharisees want the crowd to quite down because they don’t want the Romans stamping down their authority.
As it was Pilate (the Roman governor) would probably have felt pretty weary about this festival anyway.
Think about it …
There was always a big mess to clean up,
Fights would break out,
And simply more people to govern and take care of during these times.
What is likely given the presence of Pilate at Jesus trail is that just as Jesus was walking into town from the south east, so to was Pilate marching in form the north west, with a message-
“Don’t mess with Rome”
It would begin with the roman eagle saying the Roman Empire is coming.
Behind the eagle would be the roman soldiers sending a message that resistance is futile submit or die.
Historians talk about Pax Romana – the peace of Rome – Rome (MAP) maintained peace through shows of power
Crucifying, flogging, and jumping on the back of anyone who would even whisper rebellion.
Everything is about power and strength and domination.
The roman army on the march evoked fear and terror.
They would march through your village to let you know who rules the world.
And Passover was about Freedom
Passover was to remind them that God hears the cry of his people when they are in trouble.
Given the Political situation of the Day PASSOVER had more meaning
Just as in the same way a man hanging of the cliff by a rope find a new meaning in the prayer – GOD HELP ME.
So with the Roman “jackboots” sitting on their necks the Jews would have discovered a fresh relevance in PASSOVER.
It wasn’t just a recollection of ho God had rescued them once before – it was a cry for help NOW,
it was a cry of RESCUE NOW.
The people sang hosanna – it wasn’t some nice praise and worship song –
it was a cry of help – SAVE US…
So the remembrance of PASSOVER had created a crowd,
The need for a new PASSOVER had swelled the crowd.
Add to that Gossip and the fame of Jesus and suddenly you have a major sized crowd –. (LARGE CROWD)
In this world Jesus is a celebrity the stories about him have been told far and wide and that has added to the number.
Try and picture it – the streets were full of people wanting change, wanting someone to save them – a messiah
Parade yes but probably more like this one… (G20 PROTEST.)
On a Day like this the Romans would have been outnumbered probably 30 -1,
Sure they have swords,
Sure they have body amour
Sure they have shields and horses
Sure they are strong,
But even with a sword could you hold of 30 people hungry for change – I doubt it
On a day like today the revolution could begin….
The Crowd just needed someone to lead them
And so they sing:
“Hosanna!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord
Blessed is the coming Kingdom of our ancestor David!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
Can you feel the tension rising…?
And along comes Jesus….
Ridding on a donkey…
And that is significant,
so significant that Mark spends half of his account describing how the donkey was acquired.
Firstly it’s significant because it’s a fulfillment of a prophecy
Zechariah 9:9“Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Secondly it significant because a King to enter town on a Donkey was to say – I come in Peace
Remember I said at this time we probably have Pilate coming into town with his army in a show of power – I doubt he arrived on a donkey.
More likely a huge Stallion, snorting, kicking it feet in the air… accompanied by chariots, legions of soldiers – marching in line swords drawn
And Jesus came riding into town on a donkey
While Jesus is the Messiah he is no warrior Messiah
Yes the Crowd is looking for a messiah (BRAVEHEART)
But probably more a Mel Gibson Brave Heart Messiah who walks up to the pompous English and say’s “I’ve come to pick a fight”
A Messiah on a war horse not a messiah on a donkey
It was the wrong mode of transport for a political revolution
But precisely the right mode of transport for someone who would offer their life as a sacrifice to take away the sin of the world.
He simply did not meet their expectations
They couldn’t see how someone coming in peace would ever change the world,
would ever be there answers to their cries to God to save them
So we shouldn’t really be surprised when a few days later in the week the song changes
Hosanna (save us) – Crucify him
Give us Jesus – give us Barabbas
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord – cursed is the one who hangs on a tree
Yes a new power has come into Jerusalem – but it’s not what the crowd expected
Yes there cry of Hosannas – Save us will be answered God has heard the cries of his people
But As Dietrich Bonhoffer said before his death at the hands of the Third Reich in Germany"God allows himself to be edged out of the world and on to the cross....and that is the way, the only way, in which he can be with us and help us....Only a suffering God can help."The crowds on that first Palm Sunday wanted a Warrior King,
but Jesus came as a suffering Messiah.
Jesus came as one who would die on a cross for the sake of human kind.
The crowd missed the point.
What about us? Do we get it?
Do we see Jesus as the suffering Messiah who did turn the world upside down for our sake and continues to shape the world with his love and grace?
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Two by Two - Mission Shaped Spirituality
ARE YOU SCARED YET?
Evangelism is scary – I think as we look further into it the scarier it looks – last week Derek talked about traveling light
– leaving some of our baggage behind
I don’t know about you but I am pretty attached to my stuff I am pretty attached to me – and dare I say I am pretty attached to my baggage
If you aren’t’ scared then you should be…
Because not only are we not to take anything
but we are being sent like lambs among wolves
And if you read on through these accounts of Jesus sending people out – you will probably have noticed that in Chapter 22 – you are going to need to take a sword
You couple that with the divide that exist between the world of the Church and the world of those who do not attend and I think we all realize there is a huge gulf
Mission is scary
We have got to ask then – is there any Good News
Does it get any easier?
WE ARE SENT TO PEOPLE LIKE US?
Well we go into the world to do a task – tell people about God’s Kingdom
in doing that we need to realize that we got to people who are like us
Flesh and Blood people who laugh cry, eat, sleep sweat when it get s too hot – freeze when it gets too cold,
People who like us are equally worried about the current financial situation people who are as glad as we are when Friday comes.
There marriages fail at the same rate as marriages in the church.
They have teen pregnancy rates very similar to the rates of teens in the church
And believe it or not the rates of STD’s are statistically higher for Church kids than they are for those in the world
We share a fallen world - We share a fallen nature
The Christian hope and belief is that we ARE being redeemed – we are not there yet
We have been sucked into this FALSE idea that the world in here is great and the world out there is icky…
Well I have some Good news the people we are called to reach are like us
BUILD A BRIDGE
And because they are like us we have a bridge – though there is a divide between the Church and the world we are people with a foot in both camps
We belong here but we belong equally in our work places, among our families that don’t believe, in our neighbourhoods.
Yes there is a divide but the good news is that Jesus can use us as bridges
– To bring the gospel into all the world. We just need to build the bridges in places of connection.
Sandy beeches prone to erosion don’t make good place to build bridges.
Unless you are confident of the place you stand on you can forget about building a foundation for a bridge.
Building between low ground and high ground doesn’t make for good building practice either.
Unless you can meet someone on a level footing bridge building is difficult it requires humility from us
– It may require us to hold our values in check.
I think it’s important to realize most of all that there are some communities that some of us will never be able to build bridges into
– For me the vineyard owner association is probably not a good place to build a bridge
_ I would probably struggle to build a bridge into the rotary club
– The distance to cover may make the span of the bridge impossible to maintain – for me I may not find a person of peace there.
- But the local football club – I think I can do that.
Maybe many of us should not ever think about building a bridge into the skate board culture, but some of us that may be an easy step to make.
In the gospel reading the 72 were told to go and seek out a person of peace
That is a person in which we can find a connection
– not someone who is going to be against us but someone who is like us
– Someone who we understand – someone who understand us
– Someone who speaks the same language
– It could age and stage, it could be social grouping, could be common interest.
I think what you will find when we seek out these people the message will be seen as good news because it is lived out in us.
It will connect, it will offer something, it may even be what they want to hear and receive.
THE ENEMIES PLAN - PROPOGANDA
I want to warn you that that in the face of this type of evangelism the enemy has a plan to undermine it - Yes we do have an enemy
A major way is in the use of propaganda
– the way that he puts doubts in our minds about the world
– the way he demonizes everything.
The Nazi’s used this effectively during ww2 it’s easy to exterminate 6,000,000 Jews when they are faceless animals with a number
– But give them a name, a story, dignity and you have a different situation
Propaganda, hearsay, prejudice and assumptions about others are massive tools in the devils arsenal.
He know if he can confuse the lines of communication that we will fail in our mission
Finding a person with which you share Common Ground is finding the Person of Peace
-Finding a person of peace is the first step to bringing the gospel
-Building a bridge on common ground is the second step
I think at the end of the day this is something we are all capable of doing
MORE GOOD NEWS
The second piece of Good News is that we don’t go alone…
Jesus sent out the 72 in pairs – in teams, in missionary units
We don’t go alone –
On a practical level given the amount of danger it sounds like we are going to face this could be about protection. Maybe Jesus send us in base units of community because we are going like Lambs before wolves – if we are in pairs we can watch each others backs…
While this may be helpful it’s not about watching each others back in a hostile world though I am sure that is a bonus it’s about modeling community.
JESUS MATHS
In mathematics 1 plus 1 always equals 2,
Jesus breaks the rules of Math’s – he promises us that when two or more are gathered in his name then he is there also
Going into mission two by two means we are offering something bigger than the sum of two parts.
Jesus goes with us…
And if Jesus goes with us then God is present in what we are doing
And if God is present I think he will bless it
In Jesus math’s one plus one does not equal 2 people quaking in fear…
It equals infinite possibilities,
The fullness of God with us….
But there’s more….
Not only does one plus one equal God with us, it also demonstrates the message we are called to bring.
It models the Good News
When we are a one plus one and two by two mission community we are in the flesh presenting the Gospel to a the world around us
ONE PLUS ONE ALWAYS GIVES US A FULLER MESSAGE
Far too often we have understood the gospel as encouraging people to subscribe to a certain set of doctrines.
We get them to walk the Roman Road – maybe some of us are familiar with it:
1. Acknowledge God as the Creator of everything - Romans 1:20-21:
2. Realize we are sinners and that we need forgiveness. None of us live up to God’s standards. Romans 3:23:
3. God gave us the way to be forgiven of our sins. Romans 5:8:
4. If we remain sinners, we will die but if we repent of our sins, and accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we will have eternal life. Romans 6:23:
5. Confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and you are saved. Romans 10:9-10:
6. Determine in your heart to make Jesus Christ the Lord of your life today. Romans 11:36:
But while this approach is useful it’s only part of the story – it’s only part of the message
What Jesus calls us to do is invite people to share in the life of the Kingdom –
To participate and become part of this community that lives its life under a God who is Trinity
Doctrine and belief is part of it, but it’s also about a way of living, how we treat one another.
If you were to go to an overseas culture it would probably take about 5 minutes to realize that they have their own unique culture – their own unique way of doing things
The Kingdom of God is no different – it’s culture is based on sharing, mutual support, love, forgiveness, giving people second and third chances,
it’s a culture that says Children are as important as the elders and that leadership is primarily demonstrated in service
– It’s about a different way of living not just in the Church but in the world too.
It’s being salt and light
Salt being an antiseptic, a preservative, adding flavor
Light being about lighting up the dark places.
It’s about offering our lives as living sacrifices to God
Yes we are called to subscribe to a set of doctrines but we are also called to nail our colours to the flag of God’s Kingdom,
to take up a new citizenship.
Evangelism is about inviting people into this network of relationships.
We go two by two because in doing that we model something far greater than a guy standing on the street corner preaching to the lamppost about the Roman road.
SATAN’S PLAN
Again though Satan has a plan
He realizes the power of two people going in the name of Jesus – so he undermines it–
– He tells us forget them we can go this alone
– He says don’t forgive them because they are no good so and so
– He tells us that following Jesus is all about me
– His master plan is about division
But we don’t need to fear
Because we are not in this alone God is with us.
It’s his mission
The God whose mission this is send us we may not have a bag to carry,
We may be going like lambs among the wolves –
We may even be sent out and told to take a sword
But he goes with us
We go in the name of the Father,
Through the life and witness of the Son – just as the word that became flesh and moved into the neighbourhood and calls us to do the same – to make his word flesh in our communities.
To top it all of we go empowered by the Holy Spirit.
What is there to fear?
Satan?
Well why he may attack and undermine we need to realize that when we go in Jesus name – Satan’s plans will fail
A little further on in Luke Gospel from verse 17 we read
The seventy-two returned with joy and said, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name." He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.”
Evangelism is scary – I think as we look further into it the scarier it looks – last week Derek talked about traveling light
– leaving some of our baggage behind
I don’t know about you but I am pretty attached to my stuff I am pretty attached to me – and dare I say I am pretty attached to my baggage
If you aren’t’ scared then you should be…
Because not only are we not to take anything
but we are being sent like lambs among wolves
And if you read on through these accounts of Jesus sending people out – you will probably have noticed that in Chapter 22 – you are going to need to take a sword
You couple that with the divide that exist between the world of the Church and the world of those who do not attend and I think we all realize there is a huge gulf
Mission is scary
We have got to ask then – is there any Good News
Does it get any easier?
WE ARE SENT TO PEOPLE LIKE US?
Well we go into the world to do a task – tell people about God’s Kingdom
in doing that we need to realize that we got to people who are like us
Flesh and Blood people who laugh cry, eat, sleep sweat when it get s too hot – freeze when it gets too cold,
People who like us are equally worried about the current financial situation people who are as glad as we are when Friday comes.
There marriages fail at the same rate as marriages in the church.
They have teen pregnancy rates very similar to the rates of teens in the church
And believe it or not the rates of STD’s are statistically higher for Church kids than they are for those in the world
We share a fallen world - We share a fallen nature
The Christian hope and belief is that we ARE being redeemed – we are not there yet
We have been sucked into this FALSE idea that the world in here is great and the world out there is icky…
Well I have some Good news the people we are called to reach are like us
BUILD A BRIDGE
And because they are like us we have a bridge – though there is a divide between the Church and the world we are people with a foot in both camps
We belong here but we belong equally in our work places, among our families that don’t believe, in our neighbourhoods.
Yes there is a divide but the good news is that Jesus can use us as bridges
– To bring the gospel into all the world. We just need to build the bridges in places of connection.
Sandy beeches prone to erosion don’t make good place to build bridges.
Unless you are confident of the place you stand on you can forget about building a foundation for a bridge.
Building between low ground and high ground doesn’t make for good building practice either.
Unless you can meet someone on a level footing bridge building is difficult it requires humility from us
– It may require us to hold our values in check.
I think it’s important to realize most of all that there are some communities that some of us will never be able to build bridges into
– For me the vineyard owner association is probably not a good place to build a bridge
_ I would probably struggle to build a bridge into the rotary club
– The distance to cover may make the span of the bridge impossible to maintain – for me I may not find a person of peace there.
- But the local football club – I think I can do that.
Maybe many of us should not ever think about building a bridge into the skate board culture, but some of us that may be an easy step to make.
In the gospel reading the 72 were told to go and seek out a person of peace
That is a person in which we can find a connection
– not someone who is going to be against us but someone who is like us
– Someone who we understand – someone who understand us
– Someone who speaks the same language
– It could age and stage, it could be social grouping, could be common interest.
I think what you will find when we seek out these people the message will be seen as good news because it is lived out in us.
It will connect, it will offer something, it may even be what they want to hear and receive.
THE ENEMIES PLAN - PROPOGANDA
I want to warn you that that in the face of this type of evangelism the enemy has a plan to undermine it - Yes we do have an enemy
A major way is in the use of propaganda
– the way that he puts doubts in our minds about the world
– the way he demonizes everything.
The Nazi’s used this effectively during ww2 it’s easy to exterminate 6,000,000 Jews when they are faceless animals with a number
– But give them a name, a story, dignity and you have a different situation
Propaganda, hearsay, prejudice and assumptions about others are massive tools in the devils arsenal.
He know if he can confuse the lines of communication that we will fail in our mission
Finding a person with which you share Common Ground is finding the Person of Peace
-Finding a person of peace is the first step to bringing the gospel
-Building a bridge on common ground is the second step
I think at the end of the day this is something we are all capable of doing
MORE GOOD NEWS
The second piece of Good News is that we don’t go alone…
Jesus sent out the 72 in pairs – in teams, in missionary units
We don’t go alone –
On a practical level given the amount of danger it sounds like we are going to face this could be about protection. Maybe Jesus send us in base units of community because we are going like Lambs before wolves – if we are in pairs we can watch each others backs…
While this may be helpful it’s not about watching each others back in a hostile world though I am sure that is a bonus it’s about modeling community.
JESUS MATHS
In mathematics 1 plus 1 always equals 2,
Jesus breaks the rules of Math’s – he promises us that when two or more are gathered in his name then he is there also
Going into mission two by two means we are offering something bigger than the sum of two parts.
Jesus goes with us…
And if Jesus goes with us then God is present in what we are doing
And if God is present I think he will bless it
In Jesus math’s one plus one does not equal 2 people quaking in fear…
It equals infinite possibilities,
The fullness of God with us….
But there’s more….
Not only does one plus one equal God with us, it also demonstrates the message we are called to bring.
It models the Good News
When we are a one plus one and two by two mission community we are in the flesh presenting the Gospel to a the world around us
ONE PLUS ONE ALWAYS GIVES US A FULLER MESSAGE
Far too often we have understood the gospel as encouraging people to subscribe to a certain set of doctrines.
We get them to walk the Roman Road – maybe some of us are familiar with it:
1. Acknowledge God as the Creator of everything - Romans 1:20-21:
2. Realize we are sinners and that we need forgiveness. None of us live up to God’s standards. Romans 3:23:
3. God gave us the way to be forgiven of our sins. Romans 5:8:
4. If we remain sinners, we will die but if we repent of our sins, and accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we will have eternal life. Romans 6:23:
5. Confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and you are saved. Romans 10:9-10:
6. Determine in your heart to make Jesus Christ the Lord of your life today. Romans 11:36:
But while this approach is useful it’s only part of the story – it’s only part of the message
What Jesus calls us to do is invite people to share in the life of the Kingdom –
To participate and become part of this community that lives its life under a God who is Trinity
Doctrine and belief is part of it, but it’s also about a way of living, how we treat one another.
If you were to go to an overseas culture it would probably take about 5 minutes to realize that they have their own unique culture – their own unique way of doing things
The Kingdom of God is no different – it’s culture is based on sharing, mutual support, love, forgiveness, giving people second and third chances,
it’s a culture that says Children are as important as the elders and that leadership is primarily demonstrated in service
– It’s about a different way of living not just in the Church but in the world too.
It’s being salt and light
Salt being an antiseptic, a preservative, adding flavor
Light being about lighting up the dark places.
It’s about offering our lives as living sacrifices to God
Yes we are called to subscribe to a set of doctrines but we are also called to nail our colours to the flag of God’s Kingdom,
to take up a new citizenship.
Evangelism is about inviting people into this network of relationships.
We go two by two because in doing that we model something far greater than a guy standing on the street corner preaching to the lamppost about the Roman road.
SATAN’S PLAN
Again though Satan has a plan
He realizes the power of two people going in the name of Jesus – so he undermines it–
– He tells us forget them we can go this alone
– He says don’t forgive them because they are no good so and so
– He tells us that following Jesus is all about me
– His master plan is about division
But we don’t need to fear
Because we are not in this alone God is with us.
It’s his mission
The God whose mission this is send us we may not have a bag to carry,
We may be going like lambs among the wolves –
We may even be sent out and told to take a sword
But he goes with us
We go in the name of the Father,
Through the life and witness of the Son – just as the word that became flesh and moved into the neighbourhood and calls us to do the same – to make his word flesh in our communities.
To top it all of we go empowered by the Holy Spirit.
What is there to fear?
Satan?
Well why he may attack and undermine we need to realize that when we go in Jesus name – Satan’s plans will fail
A little further on in Luke Gospel from verse 17 we read
The seventy-two returned with joy and said, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name." He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)