Welcome to the Church - Palm Sunday 28 March 2021
Call to worship and welcome
Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna!
Welcome to worship on this Palm Sunday.
As we join together, we are divided as young and old, not divided as male and female, not divided according to our background and heritage, but we are one people, God’s people. People who are called to God, people who turn to Jesus, people who recognise Jesus as king.
Hymn: 59 All people that on earth do dwell
Prayers of adoration and confession
Loving God, you are our Redeemer King,
for you reign sovereign in our hearts.
Hosanna in the highest. Blessed are you,
O saviour of the world,
for you have saved us from ourselves,
giving yourself for us in love.
We greet you that we might learn of you,
we learn of you that we might love you.
O Lord, you have searched us and known us.
You discern our thoughts from far away.
You are all around us, Lord, and you lay your hands upon us.
We praise you, for we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works.
We praise you, for we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
As we contemplate your glory, Lord, we remember that Jesus rode into Jerusalem not as a conquerer, but in humility, the Servant King, ready to complete the task for which he had walked this world. And so we ask you to forgive us. Forgive us those times we have wandered from your ways. Forgive us those times we have hurt others. Forgive us those times when we think too highly of ourselves and remind us always that you ask from us lives dedicated to service, to you and to our neighbours, wherever and whoever they might be. Enable us to take off our cloaks of self-righteousness and lay them down at your feet. Give us the grace, Lord, to love one another, even as you have loved us.
Amen.
Assurance of forgiveness
The psalmist writes: ‘Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord” – and you forgave the guilt of my sin.’ Psalm 32:5
Hear again Christ’s word of grace to us all: “Your sins are forgiven”.
Thanks be to God.
The Apostle’s Creed
Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David! Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
Hosanna! Let’s wave our palm branches and throw down our cloaks and shout hosanna!
We don’t say ‘hosanna’ that often, and people tend to assume it’s more-or-less the same as ‘hallelujah’.
But hallelujah comes from the Hebrew ‘Hallelu’ (praise) and ‘Yah/Yahweh’ (God), and Hosanna comes from the Hebrew Hoshana which literally means “save now!”.
And “Save now!” as an exclamation became, by Jesus’ time, a way of identifying and praising the messiah.
In shouting ‘Hosanna’ as Jesus was riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, the people were making a declaration as to who Jesus was – they were declaring him to be the messiah – and they were also declaring what he would do “save now”.
Traditionally, in churches we make similar declarations by reciting creeds. Statements of what we believe.
So in unity with the whole Church, let us affirm the faith into which we were baptised.
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Hymn: 215 You servants of God, your master proclaim
Bible readings:
Mark 11:1-11
When they were approaching Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples 2 and said to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden; untie it and bring it. 3 If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ just say this, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here immediately.’” 4 They went away and found a colt tied near a door, outside in the street. As they were untying it, 5 some of the bystanders said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6 They told them what Jesus had said; and they allowed them to take it. 7 Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it; and he sat on it. 8 Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields. 9 Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting,
“Hosanna!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
11 Then he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple; and when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
Philippians 2:5-11
5 Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
6 who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
7 but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
8 he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross.
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
This is the word of the Lord
Thanks be to God.
Sermon: Who is this Jesus?
John Dixon, who’s a minister and an author and the founder of the Centre for Public Christianity tells a story about going on JJJ, the ABC youth radio station, to talk about Jesus. At the end of his segment they opened up the phone lines and invited people to phone in with any comments or questions for John.
He says he was quite nervous about it, because Christians don’t always enjoy a good reputation with the wider community – in particular young people, many of whom grow up these days with no exposure to the church.
But John was surprised: he had ten callers, and they all had good things to say about Jesus.
Well, actually, they all had one good thing to say about Jesus. And that is that they thought that Jesus was a good teacher. They liked his moral and ethical teaching. “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone”, “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”, and so on.
Good stuff. Jesus was a good teacher. Jesus’ teaching remains relevant to the whole world today. And Jesus is acknowledged by people the world over as a good teacher.
So John Dickson was pleased that the people calling into JJJ thought positive things toward Jesus.
But he also lamented that Jesus being a good teacher is only part of what Christians believe about Jesus.
Our service today includes the Apostle’s creed:
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
That’s not just what we at Carlingford believe about Jesus, and not just what the Uniting Church believes or indeed what the protestant church believes, but those words which are part of what’s referred to as the Apostle’s Creed, are a statement of what the worldwide Christian church believes – and in various languages summarised what Christians believe since AD 390.
It gives us those essentials of what we understand about Jesus – that he is God’s son, that he was born a human, that he suffered and died, that he rose again and ascended. And that he will return.
They are big ideas, and they tell us that Jesus was so much more than just a good teacher.
In today’s reading from his letter to the Philippians, Paul gives us what we can think of as his creed, he tells us what he believes about Jesus, and in doing so he is encouraging the Philippians – and us – to understand those things, and to become more like Jesus.
In verse 5 he writes “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus” or more simply the NIV translation gives us “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus”
And then he goes on to tell us who that Christ Jesus is:
“who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form”
Jesus is God’s only son. Remember those wonderful words from John’s gospel “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son”? But Jesus who was equal with God, who was by nature God, emptied himself, became human – was born of the virgin Mary as we said in the creed.
In Jesus, God all powerful and all mighty became a defenceless baby. From the glories of God, to the harshness of human life in the first century. He became one of us.
But he was special.
Paul writes in verse 8 that “he humbled himself and became obedient” – obedient to God that is. We know from the gospel accounts that he was at least some of the time not obedient to the religious authorities of his time, and that in so much of his life, in reaching out to the outcasts of society: lepers, gentiles, adulterers, tax collectors and so on, he was certainly not obedient to the social conventions of his time.
And it was in this time of course that Jesus did his teaching –
“You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.” -Matthew 5:38-40
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged” Matt (7:1)
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." -Matthew 7:3-5
"So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you." -Matthew 7:12
And so on…
But Jesus’ teaching wasn’t simply moral and ethical lessons for us – it was him declaring, as he stated right at the beginning of his mission, that the Kingdom of Heaven or the Kingdom of God had come near, and as we read the gospels we find that the Kingdom of God comes near through Jesus.
And so much of Jesus’ teaching is about God and the Kingdom of God. He says “The Kingdom of God is like this” and tells a parable. Or indeed, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." -Matthew 5:3
"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God." -Matthew 5:8
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God." -Matthew 5:9
I wonder how those people who say that Jesus is a great teacher, but who reject the idea of God, deal with those sorts of teachings. The witnesses we have to Jesus’ teachings are the witnesses we have to Jesus being the Son of God, and to me and to multitudes of Christians throughout the ages, it all just goes together.
And besides teaching, Jesus did other things in his ministry. Importantly, the gospels tell us that he fed multitudes. He healed people – people of all sorts of backgrounds and needs – and he cast out demons.
Paul tells us that Jesus became obedient “to the point of death— even death on a cross.”
You don’t get more obedient than that.
Jesus had many opportunities to avoid death… but he chose to be obedient. He prayed for another way. But in the end he gave himself up to suffer and to die, as we will be remembering particularly on this coming Friday – Good Friday.
The Apostle’s Creed puts it like this “he suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead.”
I think this really captures Jesus’ humanity.
If you think about it, being human consists of being born, living, and dying. And that’s what Jesus did. He was born in a stable in Bethlehem, he lived, and he died - On a cross outside Jerusalem, not all that far away from where he was born.
And I think too that we can take heart that whatever we face in life, right up to facing dying, Jesus has already faced. Jesus doesn’t tell us what to do; Jesus tells us to follow him – in all things, Jesus has gone ahead of us.
Because of Jesus’ obedience, because of Jesus’ death, Paul tells us that “Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name”. Or as the Apostles’ Creed tells us “On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father”
In his death and resurrection, Jesus has conquered death. The power of sin and death couldn’t hold the son of God and – as we will celebrate next Sunday – he rose again. Paul tells us in his letter to the Colossians that “Jesus is the firstborn from the dead” – the firstborn of the new creation.
That new creation is what we all can look forward to as followers of Jesus.
John tells us that Jesus is the way, the truth and the light and that no one comes to the father but by him, and here Paul tells us that God gave Jesus the name that is above every name. Jesus is unique. No one else can do what Jesus has done. No other person, no teaching, no philosophy, no good works, no wealth, no power, no ethical system, can ever bring us to God.
Finally, our creed reminded us that Jesus will come to judge the living and the dead. Some people will say that Jesus’ story ends with his death on Good Friday. Some will say it ends with him conquering death on his resurrection on Easter Sunday. Others will say it ends with his ascension to heaven – and after that it is all up to us…
But Jesus was clear that it didn’t end there. Paul was clear that it didn’t end there.
Billy Graham at a particularly tumultuous time reportedly stood up before a crowd and raised his bible in the air “It’s alright!” he assured them “I’ve read the whole thing. There is a happy ending.”
Of course, sometimes people become concerned by Jesus return. He’s coming to judge the living and the dead. Quickly, tidy the house! Look busy!
For his followers, though, it’s not something to be concerned about. ‘Judgement’ is a bit daunting, but without judging, the problems of the world can’t be made right.
The fulfilment of that is shown by Paul in Verse 10 and 11 which continue “so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,”
It’s a wonderful hope, a wonderful vision for the future. That all people everywhere will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. There will be peace. Not just peace on earth, but peace between God and all people. All because of Jesus.
All because of Jesus. Who lived for us. Who died for us. Who rose again for us. Who will return for us.
Jesus who was a great teacher. But who is also so much more than a great teacher.
Jesus who still calls us today to follow him.
All of us.
All of us at Carlingford, and all people everywhere to follow him. In life. In death. And into life everlasting.
So as Paul calls us to, let’s be of the same mind as Jesus, and all live out our lives as followers of Jesus and as members of his church.
And let us all look forward to the day:
“that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Amen.
Hymn: 609 May the mind of Christ my saviour
Offering and prayer
Gracious and generous God,
We give you thanks for all that you have provided for us, and we ask you to help us be gracious and generous to others.
We ask you to bless the gifts that we offer you, so that they may be used to help those in need, and to further your kingdom.
In Jesus’ name we pray,
Amen
Hymn: 279 The King of glory comes
Benediction
Go into the world to love your neighbours and share with them the king of glory.
And as you go, go with blessing of God almighty – the Father who created us, the Son who redeems us, and the Spirit who sustains us.
Amen.
Today: 28 March, 2021 ( Palm Sunday)
Mark 11:1-11, Philippians: 2:5-11
Theme: Who is this Jesus?
Good Friday: 2 April, 2021
John 18:1-14, 18:33-38, John 19:14-18, 28-30
Theme: It is finished
Lectionary Reading: Isaiah 52:13-53:12 Hebrews 10:16-25 or
Hebrews 4:14-16, 5:7-9; Psalm 22; John 18:1–19:42
Next Sunday: 4 April, 2021 (Easter)
Mark 11:1-11, Philippians: 2:5-11
Theme: Christ call us by our names
Lectionary Reading: Acts 10:34-43/Isaiah 25:6-9,
Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24, 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 or
Acts 10:34-43; John 20:1-18 or
Mark 16:1-8,1 Corinthians 15:1-11 or
Acts 10:34-43