Rejoice Greatly

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey,” Zech 9:9. This incredibly profound prophecy was written 520 years before Jesus rode into Jerusalem on what we now call Palm Sunday. I urge all of you to read for yourself the accuracy of Matthew 21:1-11 and the prophecy hidden for us in Zechariah 9:9. 

Now picture Jesus of Nazareth, sitting on a donkey that has been covered with the disciple’s cloaks, entering the city of Jerusalem. The crowd begins to press in on Him as they sing “Hosanna, Hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” This was from a section of Psalm 118:25-26 that the Jews would sing as they traveled to Jerusalem for three annually required Feasts. Interestingly, sometime during the night of the Last Supper, Jesus and His disciples would have sung this hymn as part of their Passover celebration.  

Back in the book of Exodus, God instructed the Israelites to take a lamb without spot or blemish into their homes on the 10^th day of the first month and then to sacrifice it on the 14^th day. As Jesus rode into the city, He was presenting Himself on that 10^th day as the world’s final Passover Lamb who being God Himself was without spot or blemish. Jesus would later die on the 14^th day of the month becoming the final Passover Lamb who takes away the sin of the world. His cousin, John the Baptist, would declare just that in John 1:29.   

With every step the donkey took that day, the crowd put freshly cut tree branches on the road before Jesus and were calling out “Save now!  Save us now! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” The crowd was looking for their Messiah. The Jews were looking for a king, the Lion from the tribe of Judah, who would take control away from the Romans and usher in God’s promised kingdom. They were right to hail Jesus as their Messiah-King but what they didn’t realize is that He was going to first be bound and led like a lamb to the slaughter. It’s amazing to me watch as an all powerful God, who created all life in the first place, allows Himself to be mocked, beaten and put to death by His own creation.

Jesus had to defeat death before He could return to claim His rightful place as King, ushering in the millennial kingdom and eventually a new heaven and earth. With every step Jesus took that day, He carried with Him all the sins of the world on His shoulders. He paid the ultimate price for us in order that we might be redeemed and be able to enter in to fellowship with God. 

In the book of Daniel there is written one of the most crucial and interesting prophecies ever written. From his captivity in Babylon, Daniel had been reading Jeremiah’s writings and knew seventy years were decreed for the desolations of Jerusalem. Daniel sets his mind to seek and pray to the Lord and ask for forgiveness.  God hears and answers his request by sending Gabriel to comfort him with these words. In the book of Daniel 9:25 Gabriel speaks. 

“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the command To restore and rebuild Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be rebuilt again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times. And after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off, but not for Himself;” 

Sir Robert Anderson and others have completed extensive research, completed numerous calculations and discovered that the bible foretold to the exact day when their Messiah would enter the city of Jerusalem. Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem on the exact day that was recorded in the book of Daniel. The text also records His death. “And after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off, but not for Himself;” 

If by chance you are reading this and have not yet asked God to forgive you then do it now! Hosanna! Save us now! Jesus is waiting to return for us, all those who believe in God’s plan of redemption. Cry out to God and He will hear you, He has given you a way out which is through His Son. Jesus came the first time as the Lamb of God, but the next time He returns there will be trumpets and fanfare as the King of Glory will claim the earth and all those who choose to receive His free gift of salvation. Rejoice Greatly!  

Hope for the future

Has Life been hectic for anyone else? I’ve heard it said that when it rains it pours, celebrity deaths comes in sets of three and Murphy’s Law should be included in the laws of thermodynamics. I’ve been working twenty-one days straight- 12 hour stints, if you factor in the drive time and last night we had to rush to the emergency room, so I’m truly running on near empty.

God didn’t actually promise a rose garden but what He did, was actually cursed us with one. Now what I mean by that is, that while rose bushes come with beautiful fragrant flowers, they still are covered with thorns. Most of us have lived long enough to know that, while life can be full of good time, there are still many hard times to go around. We have no problem protecting our children when they are young from the realities that lurk out in life’s shadows. However, when they turn eighteen we launch them into a pseudo- freedom filled with car payments, insurance and a myriad of other bills.

As I have opportunities to talk to young people today, it is disheartening to hear that many claim they don’t believe in God. The reason they give is that the world is just too full of pain and suffering to believe in an omnipotent being. They can’t fathom that an all loving creator would leave them to flounder out in life’s troubled oceans. Even very young children ask “why would God allow me to hurt myself if He loves me?”

With all the greed in the world, extreme poverty and low wages it sometimes takes an entire month of work to pay our rent.  It’s hard to see how paying $ 4.50 a gallon for gasoline or $ 4.00 for a pound of peas will spur our economy. Do you remember in the classic movie “The Wizard of Oz” where Dorothy, the Cowardly Lion and the Tin Man discover that the image of the great powerful Wizard of Oz is really a balding, old man standing behind a curtain manipulating the image through mechanical controls?

I don’t know what I would do; I don’t know how I would cope with this life if I did not believe in God. While the men behind the curtain continue to be war mongers manipulating the world’s oil prices, food production and corporate profits, it’s clear to me that our only hope for a future must begin  with the return of the King and the restoration of God’s millennium kingdom, where Jesus Christ will rule and reign with an iron scepter.

Our kids are our future. What are we leaving them with when their only option for employment is flipping hamburger patties at In and Out Burger? Does anyone else see a trend appearing when we stand helpless as mom and pop businesses are replaced by larger corporate conglomerations?  Take heart all you people! While the image of the beast might appear frightening, it is only a counterfeit perpetuated by manipulation of smoke and mirrors. The source of all this mayhem and social carnage is a very old crafty spirit who has been described as an angel of light, the lord of the flies or Satan.

So what do we do, you might be asking yourself as your blood pressure rises. Just remember who is ultimately in control. Jesus Christ is in control and the Father has given Him all power and authority. There is a day coming when the man behind the curtain will be chained for a thousand years and then ultimately thrown into hell for eternity.

On the other hand, all of us who have chosen to believe in Jesus Christ will have a much different ending. In the book of Revelation 21:3-5, it states this extremely uplifting promise “God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away”. Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold I make all things new.”

Now if that was not enough, God finishes the book of Revelation 22:17 with the greatest of all invitations: “And the Spirit and the bride say ‘Come!’ And let him who hears say ’Come!’ And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the waters of life freely.”  

Power Struggle

Have you ever craved something? Maybe you were 28 weeks through a pregnancy and craved ice cream with peanut butter or kosher sour pickles. Possibly you were on an expedition in the Himalayan Mountains and began craving an “In and Out double-double with onions”. Whatever it is you crave, would you be willing to give up your freedom for it? Where do these cravings come from? Why do some people crave power and struggle to gain control at any cost?

In the case of the Israelites, they were ready, able and willing to forsake God, His provisions and return to their former bondage in Egypt all for a leek, onion, cucumber, fish or foul. Even in my own life I have to constantly battle cravings, lusts and desires struggling to put God’s will first. These thoughts can appear right out of the blue, during a worship service or bible study interfering with our communion with God.

 So why do men struggle for power in a church organization when Jesus commanded us to submit to one another, to put others first and to fulfill our unique roles in the body of Christ.  He wanted us to wash each other’s feet in the water of the word of God. Men lust for popularity, power and become Jealous of other’s ministries. The root cause is pride. God hates pride and had to design a plan to cancel it out of our lives. His plan involved sending His One and Only Son, Jesus, to earth to live a sinless, spotless life where He satisfied all the requirements to become the “Lamb of God”. As the Lamb, it would be His blood that would forever be applied to the doorposts of the human heart.

In Numbers chapter twelve, we glance at the world’s greatest sibling rivalry where Miriam and Aaron become jealous of their brother Moses and lust for power and recognition. Lucifer once walked among the fiery stones laid out on God’s holy mountain where he lusted to be like the Most High. God alone is worthy of our adoration, He alone deserves our praise; He alone is worthy to receive our worship. We can’t approach Him in our present sinful state, in physical bodies, or we will be consumed by His glory which burns hotter than our own sun.

Too often it’s our pride that gets us grumbling and complaining. Once its loose in our congregation it spreads like a flu virus infecting everyone who comes into contact with it. It’s similar to a forest fire that starts from a single spark then grows in size as it becomes a raging forest fire consuming everything in its path.

The sickness starts in various ways and is transmitted through various vectors but always produces the same result time after time, division in the body of Christ. Worship teams, elder boards and youth ministries are tinder boxes that, if not continually bathed in prayer and humility, will ignite and burn to the ground leaving only ashes, hurt feelings and frustration.

The rebellion of the Israelites, and particularly Miriam and Aaron, illustrates what happens when we do not yield to God’s Spirit but lust after power and control. The Holy Spirit will always guide you in truth. He wants to illuminate your path and get you into fields that are ripe for the harvest. In Zechariah 4:6 the Lord says “It’s not by might, not by power but by My Spirit says the Lord!”.

We have all been born into an ancient, spiritual battle where we don’t wrestle with flesh and blood but spiritual powers in high places. All those who hear take heed and begin today to prepare for war. Although the battle ultimately belongs to the Lord, we have a responsibility to daily put on our battle armor. We must seek and petition God to help us quench the fiery darts that are fired from various places and will not only infect us but will also spread and cripple others. So how do we battle our cravings, lusts and desires?

Ephesians 6:10 “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” Read about it yourself in the New Testament letter to the Ephesians 6:10-20

Victorious!

I remember once attending a very encouraging and uplifting church service where the pastor encouraged us all to love one another, to put others first and to show patience towards other people. It was a very moving sermon and we all held hands and sang something similar to Kumbaya to wrap up the service. After downing a couple quick cups of coffee, 3 donuts and some trite conversation I stuffed my wife and kids into the car for a fast get-away. I put my car into reverse, looked behind me and slowly started to back out of my parking space. Suddenly, I hear “Honk, honk, honk” and slammed on my brakes just as a car load of youth sped by within inches of my bumper.

Now, as the adrenalin was coursing through my veins, I had to patiently wait for a group of church goers who had conveniently decide to hold a prayer meeting in the middle of the parking lot. Eventually, after what seemed like an eternity, I took my place in a line of cars that were waiting their turn to leave the parking lot. However, my turn never came as an overly cautious driver hesitated several times missing a bucket load of opportunities to leave the parking lot. While dangling there from my preverbal thinning rope of virtue, my face began turning red allowing the warm, fuzzy church feeling to escape and I drove back into the bondage of selfishness. Too bad,  It was a good sermon!

 Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:7 “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels,  that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed- always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.”

What a great promise of God for all of us to cling to. This is a wonderful verse to memorize, reminding us that we should never give up or lose heart when we go through tough times. Although we face oppression from every angle of life we are not crushed; even though we don’t have immediate answers to life’s questions we don’t fall into despair;  as Christians we are persecuted, ridiculed but never forsaken;  beaten up and bruised by life’s folly for a season but never eternally destroyed!

We were never created for this present darkness but rather designed for a glorious relationship with an almighty God who is ultimately in complete control. That’s easy for me to say as I sit here writing in the stillness of my office, drinking coffee as I work out the final details of my next fishing excursion.  However, God’s sovereign plan is much harder to see when we are out on life’s bumpy dirt roads and have to change a flat tire or walk to the Quick Mart for a gallon of gas. 

Chapter 11 in the book of Numbers is all about the nation of Israel as they begin to grumble and complain against God. As they begin following the cloud hanging over the Tabernacle and silver trumpet blasts, they were directed to wander and camp in the sparse wilderness located north of the Gulf of Aqaba. Soon after the harshness of their environment took its toll on their countenance, the myriad of campers were quite ready to return to their bondage in Egypt if it meant a warm shower, soft bed and meat to eat.

In the text found in Numbers 11:4-6 it states that the people cried out to Moses “Who will give us meat to eat? We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!”  Can you imagine being Moses and having two million people putting on a “pity party” on your behalf! God up to this point had provided water and manna for them to eat and drink but they were not satisfied and wanted more.

So often I find myself camped in this place of grumbling and complaining wanting more not being grateful for God’s gracious provisions in my life. Oh, how I end up wandering around for years wasting precious time grumbling and complaining. If you are honest with yourself you could probably agree with me and have personally witnessed a church split or damaged relationship that could have been avoided if we had only yielded to the Spirit.

So let me close with this…“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels,  that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed- always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.”