11-22-20 “What do a child, a COVID patient, and a rock have in common?”

Scripture:  Matthew 21:16, Luke 17:11-19, Luke 19:37-40

 

THE CHILD

Matthew 21:14-16
The blind and the lame came to Jesus at the temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple area, "Hosanna to the Son of David," they were indignant. 16 "Do you hear what these children are saying?" they asked him. "Yes," replied Jesus, "have you never read, "'From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise'?"
Psalm 8:1-2     O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. 2 From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.
 
“Our Lord” personal to us collectively
Majestic like an awe inspiring ship pulling into port for the first time, the likes of which no one has seen before.
“Your glory above the heavens” is more about the inner character of God.
          The outward view of a ship would be majestic – the cargo of silver and gold would reveal its true glory – so it is of God.

Lips of children (Toddlers) and infants. Common to infants and toddlers is their need for someone to provide food for them. When they receive it, the moan and coo as an act of praise to the one providing it. As we see God’s external majesty and his internal glory, we make a beautiful noise of gratitude translated as praise. Romans 8:26  In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

THE COVID PATIENT

Luke 17:11-19
Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" 14 When he saw them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed. 15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him — and he was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?"  19 Then he said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well."
Luke 17:12   The Greek word was used for various diseases affecting the skin — not necessarily leprosy.    porrwqen = at a distance
          Not all of those with leprosy (skin disease) were contagious, but those who were, needed to remain at a minimum of 16 feet distance from others, and as others approached they were to call out “Unclean! Unclean!” They did not say “This is against my constitutional rights” – they did it to show compassion and care to others.
There are two recurring principles across Scripture. Both of these pervasive ideas lead us toward social distancing, as a biblical ethic that reveals our self-control and restraint for the sake of others. The two omnipresent principles in Scripture are: respect for elders and general care for the vulnerable.
Proverbs 23:22  Listen to your father, who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old. 1 Peter 5:5  Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."
THE VULNERABLE James 1:27  Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
          Imagine there are 10 people who have identical COVID symptoms of Fever, chills, Cough
Shortness of breath, Fatigue, body aches, Headache, loss of taste and smell, Sore throat, Congestion, vomiting, and Diarrhea. Every person they see for their 6 weeks in the hospital are wearing PPE and no family members are allowed near them – they fear death and feel very alone. All of a sudden a person walks into their unit and takes them all off the ventilator and says they are well and they should leave the hospital immediately. They all walk out of the hospital feeling sick until they step outside and then are miraculously healed and symptom-free. What would you do? Call your family and say come take me home. 9 of them did just that. One, however, ran back into the hospital to find the person who made them well, and when he found him came and thanked him with tremendous gratitude.
          When Jesus engages in our lives (which he does every day) we need to come to him with thanksgiving.

 

THE ROCK

Luke 19:35-40
They brought a young donkey, which had never been ridden, to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 36 As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. 37 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: 38 "Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!  Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" 39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, "Teacher, rebuke your disciples!" 40 "I tell you," he replied, "if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out."
          Riding on a donkey sets up Jesus entering the holy city as the king. Placing garments on the animal recalls Jehu’s regal accession in 2 Kings 9:13. The journey as a whole is like Solomon’s procession in Gihon (1 Kings 1). On a donkey, not a stallion shows a king, not of power but of humility and service. As Jesus rode through the Mt of Olives people (crowd of disciples) began loudly praising Jesus for his many miracles
Ps 118:26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you.
Luke does not mention the waving of palms. Waving palms was done at the feast of tabernacles but this was the time of Passover. The feast of tabernacles looked toward the end times, but Passover looked back at God’s deliverance and celebrated God’s forgiveness of sins. Jesus entering Jerusalem as he did represented both deliverance and looking forward to a new eternal kingdom.
With all this background in the minds of the observers, some Pharisees see Jesus as a blasphemer to the name of God. So, they appeal to Jesus to stop this right now – make these people end their praises to you – you are just a man. Jesus who knows Able’s blood cried out from the ground and that Habbakuk said, “The stones of the wall will cry out” Jesus, who calmed the sea and walked on water showing his power over creation responded to the pharisee’s saying, "if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out."
 

    Just as my dog, Skipper learned obedience for treats, eventually he did it just to please his master. So, we ought to not just praise and thank God when he blesses us (gives us treats) but all the time because he deserves our praise.

          What do a child, a COVID patient (or a leper), and a rock have in common? All three give praise to Jesus! This week is Thanksgiving when many of us for the first time ever will not be spending time together. So, now more than ever, we need to bring our thanks to the table. We have all been crying out to God for this pandemic to stop. Let’s turn our cries into praise and thanksgiving. If we don’t, the very ground you walk on will take your place and you will be seen like one of the 9 who were blessed by God but who never returned to give him thanks.
 
          Remember not only what you are thankful for, but how you are to be thankful – with loud shouts of praise, AND most important, to whom you are thankful:  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.