The Witness of Easter

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:  1 Corinthians 15:3,4

The story of Jesus is a “simple” one in the sense of being a matter of fact, straight forward statement of God’s action in the world. Here in First Corinthians Paul tells it in two verses, just 41 words, 94 characters, less than one half the characters of a full-blown tweet of 280.

Paul tells the story as he received it from God. He is telling what he got from the Lord. What he understood God to reveal was that Christ (Jesus) when he died was dying for our sins (The human race’s. This, of course, was so we, each one of us, could be forgiven for our sins.), and Christ’s dying had been foretold by God in the scriptures of the Old Testament. This is such a great and wonderful thing, perhaps beyond our understanding.

But that was not the end of the story of Jesus. Paul goes on in the final 105 characters of this Bible tweet (we might call it a proof text) to proclaim that after he died Christ was buried, that’s what the human race does with the dead, but Christ Jesus did not stay dead. He rose from the dead! On the third day he rose from the dead. That's right, He rose from the dead! And, this too, Paul says, had been foretold by the scriptures.

This is the message of the gospel. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God who came, took the punishment for (died) for our sins, and rose again to show we who trust in him are saved, and if you believe in him you will be saved too. That’s it plain and simple, nothing new “The old time religion,” the stunning, amazing, yet “simple” good news of God for the world. The witness of Easter.

 

The Story of Palm Sunday

So let me rehearse for us again the story of Palm Sunday. The excitement was at a high pitch in Jerusalem, the way it was every year at Passover. People had come from all over Israel, and probably from some other nations bordering the Mediterranean Sea.

In the midst of this celebratory anticipation of Passover which was just a few days away, the crowd hears that Jesus is coming. They have a sense of what it means, and as Jesus is entering the holy city, a cheer begins to go up all through the crowd.

“Hosanna! Blessed is the king of Israel that, cometh in the name of the Lord,” (John 12:13).

The King is coming. Save us, King. Hosanna means "save now."

The crowd is so enthusiastic men start taking off their outer cloaks, and laying them down on the road for the donkey carrying Jesus to walk on, other people pulled branches off of Palm trees and did the same thing with them.

The whole city of Jerusalem was moved. “Who is this?” To paraphrase: Who is this who has gotten the whole city in an uproar? “This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.” (Matthew 21:11 [4-11]).

It seems like this large crowd of Israelites understood what was happening, that Jesus was indicating by the donkey ride that he was king (Zechariah 9:9). They think, I think, "Jesus is not just a prophet. Blessed is the king of Israel. Jesus is king. Hosanna!" Let me add hallelujah, praise the Lord. Jesus is King.

That was the day of recognition. By Friday the same ones who had recognized him as king rejected him. And, do you know what the king did? There in their now He died for their sins. They asked him to save now, and he died. He died to save them then, and us now.

 

The Path To Blessing

And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: 2 and all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God. 3 Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. 4 Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. 5 Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store. 6 Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out. 7 The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways. 8 The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. 9 The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn under thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways.      Deuteronomy 28:1 – 9

This passage of promises was made by God to his ancient people. In essence it says I will bless the nation if the nation follows my direction for proper living. The promise was to a particular nation way back then, but the principle is still operative today. Any nation (put in the name of any Asian nation, or Western nation, South American nation, or any nation anywhere in the world) if that nation will obey the commandments of the God of the Bible, in most cases, the people of that land will experience the good life.

If you read the rest of Deuteronomy 28 you will discover that there is another side to this principle. If the people of any land refuse to follow God’s direction, for whatever reason,  in most cases, it’s society will weaken and be victimized, and tragedy and fear will be the order of the day.

66 And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear day and night, and shall have none assurance of thy life: 67 In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even! and at even thou shalt say, Would God it were morning! for the fear of thine heart wherewith thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see. Deuteronomy 28:66,67

 

 

I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. 1 Timothy 2:1,2

With the nation in turmoil, fears within and fears without, with some dire predictions for America’s future blowing in the wind, what should, what can the individual Christian do?

Pray! Pray for the nation. We are admonished in scripture to pray for the government for those in authority: supplications, prayers, intercessions, giving of thanks for all men according to 1Timothy 2:1.

First, listen to the word of God and recognize that according to scripture the powers that be are ordained of God Romans 13:1, so the government we have is the one the Lord wants us to have at this moment. Pray for the nation. Pray for those in authority whether in Washington DC, or any of the state capitals across the country.

Keep your focus on lifting our country before God. If you pray on your knees or sitting down in a chair devote some time to asking God’s blessing on America, and her leaders. Name some by name. Ask that God will give them wisdom, and a desire to do good for all the people of the land, because God has said the powers that be are God’s minister to do good (Romans 13:4). Pray they will love our country and be open and tolerant of all people and viewpoints. Ask God’s grace for our country to be delivered in some measure through our leaders.

Don’t pray for the country only at a set time. From time to time when you hear about some issue of government send up an instant prayer to the Lord. For example, “Oh Lord please help the president see this issue clearly and do the right thing.” “Oh God, please help the president be strong where he is at this international meeting of government leaders.”

Keep a constant flow of requests going up to the Lord on behalf of America. Prayer is one way all of us can be a blessing to our homeland, and feel that we are having an impact for good in the nation. Remember the Lord’s hand is not shortened that he cannot save (Isaiah 59:1).

Pray for all the things America needs, and thank God for all he has given us and done for us. Offer at least one prayer for the USA every day.

 

O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endures forever. Psalm 136:1

Well, our special American holiday, Thanksgiving, is not far away. I expect for most families there will be a special meal. Many will have the traditional roast turkey and pumpkin pie. But things will not be normal. There is a pandemic, you know . Some families will tragically have empty chairs at their table. Some of those empty chairs represent loved ones taken by the deadly pestilence. Others are where family members who cannot come to Thanksgiving dinner for fear of catching or spreading that awful disease, would normally sit.

These things are sorrowful and saddening. They are distressing and hard. For many, no matter how good Thanksgiving dinner is, it will be covered by a hovering gloom.

Is it possible to give God thanks in such a state as this? Can you praise God when danger is all around?

Well, being thankful to God is a matter of faith, so that if one believes in God there’s always something to be thankful for. And, if nothing else, it is the hopeful expectation of God’s doing a new and blessed thing in days ahead.

Contemplating the destruction of the beloved city of his people, Jerusalem, Jeremiah, moved by his faith in God, in the midst of personal and national sorrow, says: It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him (Lamentations 3:22-24).

Jeremiah got it. Even in the worst of times, if you trust God, the LORD is your portion and you can hope in Him. You can trust God because He sent his son, Jesus. Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead. The Holy Spirit brings Jesus’ life into our lives. Yes, you can hope in God.

Thank you, O LORD!

 A Word For Modern Nations

…Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation: and a house divided against a house falleth. Luke 11:17

 

A Devotional Thought From 2 Chronicles 7:13, 14

In God’s answer to Solomon’s great prayer dedicating the glorious Temple he built to God, God said, among other things: If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people; If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.  

This was a principal given to God’s people in ancient times that has great relevance for today if applied by the peoples of the nations of the world. Take my own land for example, we are in the midst of a pestilence (Covid 19), our land in some places is being devoured (looted, destroyed and burned), and we are not experiencing the cool calming rain of civil discourse that allows the nation to discuss and deal with the issues of the day. Needless to say, but I will say it anyway, these are not good things for our people and our land.

Do we want our nation restored to being a great place for all people? A place were we can live safely, and raise our little ones with the confidence that others will care for them and protect them because we are part of one family of free people in this nation? A place that offers the opportunities of prosperity to all who will play fairly and work hard? A place that experiences all the wonderful blessings available when a nation is at its best?

God gives a playbook here in these verses to restore such goodness. Humble yourselves, we don’t know it all, other voices might have good ideas even if they are not our own. More importantly humble yourselves before God Who does know what is best. Pray. Get in touch with God, let Him speak to your heart with His truth and guidance. And, turn from wicked ways, from wrong doing and do right. Do you want your land restored? The people can do it by following these gracious directions. Each individual helps restore the nation by making these changes in his/her life.