In this blog, we'll focus on the working being done at Sligo Presbyterian Church, Sligo, Pennsylvania. We'll also look at what's happening in Sligo, Rimersburg, Clarion, and all the other communities served by our congregation.
During the worship services of Holy Week, we’re focusing on The Paradox of the Passion: Exploring Holy Week in the Gospel of Matthew. Now, a paradox is a statement, idea, or situation that seems to contradict itself or defy logic, but which may actually be true or reveal a hidden truth. During Holy Week, we'll consider the paradox present in the following four stories:
During the worship services of Holy Week, we’re focusing on The Paradox of the Passion: Exploring Holy Week in the Gospel of Matthew. Now, a paradox is a statement, idea, or situation that seems to contradict itself or defy logic, but which may actually be true or reveal a hidden truth. During Holy Week, we'll consider the paradox present in the following four stories:
Sunday, March 29 - Palm / Passion Sunday (The Paradox of the Triumphal Entry)
Thursday, April 2 - Maundy Thursday Love Feast (The Paradox of the Last Supper)
Friday, April 3 - Good Friday Tenebrae Service (The Paradox of the Crucifixion)
Sunday, April 5 - Easter Celebration Service (The Paradox of the Resurrection)
On Sunday, we celebrated Palm/Passion Sunday by focusing on the paradox of Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Below is a video of the service, a presentation of the sermon, and the program & bulletin for the service. You can stream the service by going to the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. (EDT). You can hear a podcast of the service at the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel or the Sligo Presbyterian Spotify Page.
During the worship services of Holy Week, we’re focusing on The Paradox of the Passion: Exploring Holy Week in the Gospel of Matthew. Now, a paradox is a statement, idea, or situation that seems to contradict itself or defy logic, but which may actually be true or reveal a hidden truth. We'll consider the paradox present in the following four stories:
Sunday, March 29 - Palm / Passion Sunday (The Paradox of the Triumphal Entry)
Thursday, April 2 - Maundy Thursday Love Feast (The Paradox of the Last Supper)
Friday, April 3 - Good Friday Tenebrae Service (The Paradox of the Crucifixion)
Sunday, April 5 - Easter Celebration Service (The Paradox of the Resurrection)
On Sunday, we celebrated Palm/Passion Sunday by focusing on the paradox of Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Below is a presentation and the text of the sermon. You can stream the service by going to the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. (EDT). You can hear a podcast of the service at the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel or the Sligo Presbyterian Spotify Page.
Now, today we’re entering a period in the church year called “Holy Week,” a time that begins on Palm Sunday and ends with Easter. And since we’re moving from preparation to the event itself, we’ll be starting a series based on how this week is presented in the Gospel of Matthew entitled The Paradox of the Passion.
But before I tell y’all a little bit about what we’ll be doing, let me make sure we’re all on the same page about what the word “paradox” means. You see, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary,
A paradox is a statement, person, or situation that seems self-contradictory, illogical, or absurd but may contain an underlying truth or valid reasoning. It challenges conventional thinking by combining opposing ideas. [Merriam-Webster Dictionary]
Now that’s the definition according to Merriam-Webster. In other words, it’s like saying, “This sentence is false” or “Doing hard things makes life easier” or “I must be cruel, only to be kind.” Each of those reflect a paradox.
And I’ll tell you, I think we see this kind of thing going on in each of the four stories that we generally associate with the last week of Jesus’s life, at least as written by the Evangelist Matthew. For example, just think about his last supper with his apostles, something we remember on Maundy Thursday. I mean, this intimate time with his closest followers led to Jesus praying alone in the Garden of Gethsemane while Peter, James and John slept, and being dragged off as his disciples ran away. And the crucifixion, man, that might be the ultimate paradox. My goodness, how can a death that ends with “My God, my God, why have you deserted me?” [Matthew 27:46b, CEV] led those who saw him die to say, “This man really was God’s Son!” ?[Matthew 27:54b, CEV] And as written by Matthew, instead of it being the first step in Jesus’s departure from this world, the resurrection becomes the assurance of his constant presence with us. You see, according to Matthew, in each of these events, there’s something going on that’s a contradiction, that’s inconsistent and ironic.
In other words, I believe there are paradoxes throughout the passion story, starting with the one we’re looking at this morning, and now I’m talking about Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem. You see, when you think about what happened and compare it with what’s about to happen, there’s something going on that, on one hand, doesn’t make sense, but that, on the other hand, just may show us a lot about who we are and what might happen, if we’re not careful. And that’s what we’re going to talk about this morning. And to do that, we’re going to focus on three things. First, we’re going to look at the story itself, in other words, the passage from the Gospel of Matthew. And then, second, we’re going to talk about the paradox within the account and think about how it might represent a real problem for us. And then, third, we’ll consider the practical lesson we might be able to take from this story and apply to our daily living. Now that’s the plan for the next ten minutes or so.
Of course, we can’t really talk about the paradox or consider any kind of lesson we might learn until we’ve heard the story itself. You see, according to the Evangelist Matthew, right after Jesus left Jericho, this was what happened:
When Jesus and his disciples came near Jerusalem, he went to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives and sent two of them on ahead. He told them, “Go into the next village, where you will at once find a donkey and her colt. Untie the two donkeys and bring them to me. If anyone asks why you are doing this, just say, ‘The Lord needs them.’ He will at once let you have the donkeys.”
So God’s promise came true, just as the prophet had said,
“Announce to the people of Jerusalem: ‘Your king is coming to you! He is humble and rides on a donkey. He comes on the colt of a donkey.’ “
The disciples left and did what Jesus had told them to do. They brought the donkey and its colt and laid some clothes on their backs. Then Jesus got on.
Many people spread clothes in the road, while others put down branches which they had cut from trees. Some people walked ahead of Jesus and others followed behind. They were all shouting,
“Hooray for the Son of David! God bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Hooray for God in heaven above!”
When Jesus came to Jerusalem, everyone in the city was excited and asked, “Who can this be?”
The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.” [Matthew 21:1-11, CEV]
Now, that’s what Matthew wrote. And I’ve got to tell you, from my perspective, it seems pretty clear and straight-forward. I mean, on one hand, Jesus seemed to be cool and composed and in complete control, didn’t he? He knew exactly what he wanted and how to get it. And what he did was exactly what he was supposed to do. In fact, absolutely nothing got in the way of his first entry into the city. You see, on one hand, Jesus was calm and collected as he rode into Jerusalem. On the other hand though, the crowds were anything but cool and composed. Man, they were really excited, weren’t they, and I’m talking about when they spread their clothes on the road and put down branches that they’d cut from trees and shouted about “the one who comes in the name of the Lord.” You see, while Jesus was calm and composed, “everyone in the city was excited” and those in the crowd believed they were following a prophet. Now, that’s the story in a nutshell.
And I’ll tell you, it’s right there where we run into the paradox, especially when you compare it to what will come later. You see, in the space of four days, this crowd which was so excited and so exuberant and so enthusiastic would be the same group standing in Pilate’s courtyard, shouting something radically different. Just listen to what Matthew wrote:
During Passover the governor always freed a prisoner chosen by the people. At that time a well-known terrorist named Jesus Barabbas was in jail. So when the crowd came together, Pilate asked them, “Which prisoner do you want me to set free? Do you want Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” Pilate knew the leaders had brought Jesus to him because they were jealous.
While Pilate was judging the case, his wife sent him a message. It said, “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man. I have had nightmares because of him.”
But the chief priests and the leaders convinced the crowds to ask for Barabbas to be set free and for Jesus to be killed.
Pilate asked the crowd again, “Which of these two men do you want me to set free?”
“Barabbas!” they shouted.
Pilate asked them, “What am I to do with Jesus, who is called the Messiah?”
They all yelled, “Nail him to a cross!”
Pilate answered, “But what crime has he done?”
“Nail him to a cross!” they yelled even louder.
Pilate saw that there was nothing he could do and that the people were starting to riot. So he took some water and washed his hands in front of them and said, “I won’t have anything to do with killing this man. You are the ones doing it!”
Everyone answered, “We and our own families will take the blame for his death!”
Pilate set Barabbas free. Then he ordered his soldiers to beat Jesus with a whip and nail him to a cross. [Matthew 27:15-26, CEV]
Now that’s what happened. And you tell me, why? Why would that crowd turn on a dime? I mean, didn’t they understand the one they followed into Jerusalem? And didn’t they believe in the one they compared to a son of David? Well, clearly they didn’t, because if they had, if they had understood and if they had believed, they sure wouldn’t have gathered there in Pilate’s court and they sure wouldn’t have yelled, “Nail him to a cross!” There’s the paradox.
But I’ll tell you, before we judge them too harshly, we might want to take a step back, because I think this is something that’s really easy for us to do ourselves. For example, I think we’ve all known folks who sure seem to be all fired up about Jesus. Good night nurse, they talk about what they’ve given and who’s their Lord and how following Christ and doing what he wants them to do, man, that’s the most important thing in their lives. He’s number one and everything else is secondary. Man, they’d do anything for Jesus, even die, if that was necessary. And I’ll tell you, when they say it, I believe they are completely sincere and honest in their excitement and exuberance and enthusiasm. In other words, based on what they say, if he were entering Sligo on a donkey this morning, they’d be out there, lifting up branches and laying down jackets and shouting “Hosannas,” right? And that sounds all well and good, until you ask them about some of their moral values and political beliefs or until you see how they treat other folks who might disagree with them or until you compare their words and work with what Jesus actually said and did. And then, well, imagining them before Pilate shouting that the one about whom Matthew wrote in his gospel, not the one they want to follow, you know, the one who validates their desires and endorses their prejudices, but rather the one who talked about radical humility and self-sacrifice and unconditional love, man, seeing them shouting that this uncomfortable trouble-maker should be nailed to a cross, well, that doesn’t seem to be quite a stretch. I guess you could say, the paradox there in Jesus’s entry can be a real problem for us.
But you know, it doesn’t have to be, not if we take seriously the lesson offered by this story. You see, we don’t have to be like those folks with the branches and the “Hosannas” who couldn’t have understood who Jesus was and who didn’t believe in what he came to do. Man, we don’t have to be like them, calling for this revelation of Jesus Christ, his actual words and his genuine example to be nailed on a cross. And I’ll tell you why.
You see, right here now, we can decide to grow. In other words, we can decide that we’re going to understand, and I mean, really understand who Jesus was and what he taught. Of course, to do that, well, we might have to make a few changes in our lives. For example, to understand what Jesus taught we might have to study a little bit. You see, we might have to dig out the Bible that’s been gathering dust for years and do something really extreme, you know, like opening it and reading it. And if we don’t understand what we’re reading because our dusty Bible is full of dusty words like “thee” and “thou,” we can return it to its place on the shelf under the coffee table and get ourselves a Bible we can understand or maybe even an app phone with all kinds of translations. Trust me, they’re all pretty good, and they’ll help us learn about what Jesus actually taught. And along with studying, man, we can also pray, pray that the Spirit helps us understand what’s going on in God’s word on a deeper level so that we’re not fooled by some folks who just plain don’t know as much as they claim or think. And after studying and praying, we can engage with our Christian brothers and sisters, in worship or in studies or in service, because, as Jesus Christ himself said, “Whenever two or three of you come together in my name, I am there with you.” [Matthew 18:20, CEV] I’ll tell you, if we’re serious about understanding more about Jesus, we can decide to study and to pray and to engage. And in that way, I believe we’ll grow. Now that’s one thing we can do.
And along with growing, we can also decide to trust. In other words, we can choose to believe that Jesus is exactly who said he was. But while growing involves actions that we can do on the outside, I think trusting has more to do with what’s happening on the inside. I mean, for our faith to become stronger, somewhere down the line, we’re probably going to have to work a little acceptance and submission into our lives, and I’m talking about a willingness to accept that we just don’t have all the answers and to submit to the one who does. And we might also need to develop an attitude of repentance and humility, something we can do when we’re willing to admit our personal limitations and to rely on Jesus for both eternal salvation and daily living. And finally, there’s really no faith without a willingness to be obedient and active, in other words, taking everything we now understand and applying it to our moral values and political beliefs and to how we treat both our friends and our enemies. You see, in my opinion, to avoid falling into the paradox trap reflected by the crowds who welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem, we can decide to grow and to trust. And for me, that’s the lesson of this story.
Of course, the triumphal entry, man, that’s just our first Holy Week stop. On Thursday, we’ll experience both the broad fellowship and isolated loneliness that surrounded the last supper. And on Friday, we’ll share in both the despair and glory of the crucifixion. And finally, on Easter, we’ll consider how an empty tomb can remind us that Christ is with us all the time. Now that’s what we’ll be doing for the rest of the week. But today, before we put the palms and Hosannas away and move on, let’s remember the story about how Jesus entered Jerusalem surrounded by people who felt enormous excitement and exuberance and enthusiasm. And let’s remember the paradox, you know, how the crowd that followed him shouting, “Hooray for the Son of David!” would in less than a week be yelling, “Nail him to a cross,” something that can happen to us if we don’t understand and believe. And then, let’s remember that we can avoid this situation by applying a simple lesson, that right here and now, we can decide to grow and we can decide to trust. Now we can choose to do this. And I’ll tell you, if we do, I think we’ll be learning from this paradox of the triumphal entry.
During this season of Lent, we're moving through a sermon series entitled “Preparing for Easter.” In these five services, we're considering how we might get ourselves ready to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We’re focusing on the following:
During this season of Lent, we're moving through a sermon series entitled “Preparing for Easter.” In these five services, we're considering how we might get ourselves ready to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We’re focusing on the following:
Well, this morning we’re tying up the series we started on the first Sunday in Lent entitled Preparing for Easter. You see, next week, we’ll be moving on to what’s called Holy Week, the time between Jesus’s entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday through his last supper on Maundy Thursday and crucifixion on Good Friday right to the women finding the tomb empty on Easter morning. And during these last four weeks, we’ve talked about how we can get ready to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ by fasting and forgiving, by repenting and praying. Now, if you missed any of these, they’re all on our church blog and our Facebook page. Now that’s where we’ve been.
And this morning, we’re putting a bow on this series by talking about love, in other words, how showing love can also be a way for us to prepare for Easter. Now, that’s going to be our focus today. But before getting into our topic, I think I need to mention two things about the kind of love we’ll be discussing. I mean, one, this kind of loving involves acting, not feeling. You see, in the New Testament, there are two different Greek words that are translated “love.” On one hand, there’s φιλία, that deep emotional affection that one person might have for another, the kind of thing you see in the city of brotherly love, Philadelphia. On the other hand, there’s ἀγάπη, a kind of love that grounded in action, even sacrifice. As a matter of fact, it’s the kind of love you can show to people whom you might not even like. Now, it’s ἀγάπη that we’ll be talking about this morning. That’s one.
And two, we’re going to focus on showing love to others, not to God, although I recognize that, in his first letter, John wrote, “But if we say we love God and don’t love each other, we are liars. We cannot see God. So how can we love God, if we don’t love the people we can see?” [1 John 4:20, CEV] You see, our focus will be on one another and not God. And I’ll tell you why. You see, back on February 15, the Sunday before we started this series, we talked about how we might show our love to God, and again, if you want to review it, it’s also on our blog and Facebook page. And that’s two.
No, this morning, we’re going to focus on how we might prepare for Easter by loving one another. And as we’ve done before, we’ll be spending a little time looking at what the Bible has to say about love. And then we’re going to focus on three things we might want to remember, if we’re really interested in showing more love to those around us.
Of course, as we saw with forgiving and repenting and praying, loving one another is a pretty big deal in the Bible, and I’m talking about both the Old and the New Testaments. And I think it’s really interesting, different passages give us a slightly different perspective on what this love business is all about. For example, in a couple of verses that both Apostle Paul and Jesus Christ quotes, just listen to what the writer of Leviticus had to say.
Don’t hold grudges. On the other hand, it’s wrong not to correct someone who needs correcting. Don’t be angry or try to take revenge. I am the Lord, and I command you to love others as much as you love yourself. [Leviticus 19:17-18, CEV]
Now, that’s what it says. And I find it interesting that, in the nineteenth chapter of Leviticus, this command about loving others is smack dab in the middle of all these directions dealing with a whole lot of other stuff, you know, like economic justice and personal integrity, social protection and judicial fairness. Man, there’s even a command not to withhold a worker’s wages overnight. Now all of this surrounds the command to love others, which shows me just how broad and inclusive and practical Biblical love really is.
And then there’s this passage from Paul’s letter to the Romans;
Let love be your only debt! If you love others, you have done all that the Law demands. In the Law there are many commands, such as, “Be faithful in marriage. Do not murder. Do not steal. Do not want what belongs to others.” But all of these are summed up in the command that says, “Love others as much as you love yourself.” No one who loves others will harm them. So love is all that the Law demands. [Romans 13:8-10, CEV]
In other words, in the sight of God, not only should our love for others be broad and inclusive and practical, we should actually view love as a debt that we owe to those around us; And you know, if this is what we believe, then all of sudden every encounter is an opportunity to act on our obligation and right now it’s up to us to get rid of any thing that might get in the way of us making our payment on time. Now that’s from Paul, love is a debt that we owe.
And from Jesus Christ himself, just listen to what he said to his disciples right before his arrest and crucifixion:
My children, I will be with you for only a little while longer. Then you will look for me, but you won’t find me. I tell you just as I told the people, “You cannot go where I am going.” But I am giving you a new command. You must love each other, just as I have loved you. If you love each other, everyone will know that you are my disciples. [John 13:33-35, CEV]
Now, for me, that pushes love even further than what we saw in Leviticus or with Paul. I mean, not only are we talking about something that’s commanded, you know, something that’s broad and inclusive and practical and also a debt we owe, love is also sacrificial, isn’t it? Let me ask you, for Christ, what was the definitive example of the love we’re commanded to show? Well, it sure isn’t superficial kindness or good feelings. Instead, it’s making a real sacrifice. It’s something that’s actually more than active; man, it’s proactive. And it’s independent of what the other guy is doing, you know, whether he deserves our love or not. I’ll tell you, it’s as radical and extreme as dying on a cross to save the ones who drove the nails. You see, whether we like it or not, that’s the kind of love we’re commanded to show.
And even though, I’m telling you, doing that kind of thing will never be easy, I really believe it’s more than possible, especially when we remember three characteristics of ἀγάπη/love that the Apostle Paul shared with the Corinthians in the thirteenth chapter of his first letter. And let me share with you what they are.
For example, I think it’s important for us to remember that, according to Paul, love is essential. Now, for him, I believe that’s its first characteristic. I mean, just listen to what he wrote to the Corinthians:
What if I could speak all languages of humans and even of angels? If I did not love others, I would be nothing more than a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. What if I could prophesy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge? And what if I had faith that moved mountains? I would be nothing, unless I loved others. What if I gave away all that I owned and let myself be burned alive? I would gain nothing, unless I loved others. [1 Corinthians 13:1-3, CEV]
You see, according to Paul, when you get right down to it, without ἀγάπη/love, nothing else really matters. For him, love was essential.
And I’ll tell you, for me personally, that just makes sense. You see, our willingness to love gives meaning to everything else we do. For example, our words and our promises are worse than empty and shallow, if we don’t back them up with some action, something that James had in mind when we wrote, “If you know someone who doesn’t have any clothes or food, you shouldn’t just say, ‘I hope all goes well for you. I hope you will be warm and have plenty to eat.’ What good is it to say this, unless you do something to help?” [James 2:15-16, CEV] And all our wisdom and experience, even our faith is worth nothing, if we refuse to use what we know and what we can do and what we believe in order to help others. Man, even our relationship with God is absolutely worthless, if it’s not used to make a difference. Again, as James wrote, “faith that doesn’t lead us to do good deeds is all alone and dead!” [James 2:1, CEV] and a little later, “you can now see that we please God by what we do and not only by what we believe.” [James 2:24, CEV] As a matter of fact, even sacrifice without purpose is a big, fat waste of time and effort, because for action, even Christian action, to have meaning, love is essential, and for me, that’s the first thing we need to remember.
And second, I think Paul also believed that love is intentional. In other words, it doesn’t just happen at first sight nor is it the result of falling into anything. And I believe that’s his point as he continued his little discourse in the thirteenth chapter of first Corinthians. Just listen:
Love is patient and kind, never jealous, boastful, proud, or rude. Love isn’t selfish or quick tempered. It doesn’t keep a record of wrongs that others do. Love rejoices in the truth, but not in evil. Love is always supportive, loyal, hopeful, and trusting. [1 Corinthians 13:4-7, CEV]
For Paul, this was the kind of love we’re called to show, which means that, when you get right down to it, it has far more to do with the head than with the heart. Put another way, it’s not about feeling; it’s about deciding. We have to decide to love. For example, to love, we have to decide to be patient and kind even to those who don’t deserve it and to rejoice in the truth even when the lies make us feel all warm and fuzzy inside, because they reinforce what we already believe. And we have to decide that we’re not going to act like jerks, we’re not going to be internally proud and externally arrogant, and we’re sure not going to call people names when they do something we don’t like or to fly off the handle when they have the audacity of question our superiority or to be so obsessed with our own grievances that we celebrate when folks we don’t like all of a sudden face problems and pain. We’re not going to do it. Instead, we can decide to be “supportive, loyal, hopeful and trusting” [1 Corinthians 13:7b, CEV] even when those are the very last kind of things we want to do. You see, for Paul, this is something we can decide to do, because for him, love is intentional, its second characteristic and something else I think we need to remember.
And finally, third, I think Paul also believed that love is eternal. In other words, it lasts. As a matter of fact, when everything else has fallen away, the love that we show will endure. And I believe that’s exactly what he had in mind when he wrote this to the Corinthians.
Love never fails!
Everyone who prophesies will stop, and unknown languages will no longer be spoken. All that we know will be forgotten. We don’t know everything, and our prophecies are not complete. But what is perfect will someday appear, and what isn’t perfect will then disappear.
When we were children, we thought and reasoned as children do. But when we grew up, we quit our childish ways. Now all we can see of God is like a cloudy picture in a mirror. Later we will see him face to face. We don’t know everything, but then we will, just as God completely understands us. For now there are faith, hope, and love. But of these three, the greatest is love. [1 Corinthians 13:8-13, CEV]
Now that’s what Paul wrote, and I’ve to tell you, it speaks to me on a very personal level. You see, as some of y’all may know, my dad will be 92 next month. But since he had COVID about a year ago, we’ve seen a pretty dramatic mental decline. Right now, he’s in the hospital, and next week, he’ll be transferred to a memory care facility, because we’re just not able to take care of him at home. In fact, Debbie and I are going back to Virginia right after Easter to see him, maybe for the last time in this world. And you know, all this has caused me to think a lot about him and our relationship over my 68 years, but also about how I’ll be remembered when it’s my time. And although I’ve done a lot of stuff, good and not so good, I hope I’ll be remembered for patience and empathy, for the desire to forgive mistakes and to help folks grow, and for the willingness, on good days, when I’m not all tied up with me, to put the needs of others before my own wants. It’s like the old guy who was asked if he was a Christian and said, “Why are you asking me? Ask my wife or my kids. Ask the guys with whom I’ve worked or the girl who serves me coffee. They’re in a much better position to answer than me.” “And they’ll know we are Christians by our love.” You see, even though the faith we express and the hope we have are important, ultimately, we’ll be remembered by the love we show, because, as Paul wrote, love is eternal, the third characteristic we should remember.
And now, we’re done with this series. Starting next Sunday, we’ll move from Palm Sunday to Maundy Thursday to Good Friday right to Easter. And along the way, I hope we experience some different feelings, you know, like joy and peace, grief and hope. And in this last week we have to prepare, let’s decide to make the effort to fast and to forgive, to repent and to pray. And as we leave here this morning, remembering that it’s essential and intentional and eternal, let’s prepare for Easter by loving.
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