“Plenty of great teachers, mystics, martyrs and saints have spoken words full of grace and truth. In the case of Jesus alone, however, the belief has persisted that when he came into the world, God deigned to take on the likeness of a man in order that men might reach out.
“For myself, as I approach my end, I find Jesus’ outrageous claim ever more captivating and meaningful. Quite often, waking up in the night as the old do, I feel myself to be half out of my body, hovering between life and death, with eternity rising in the distance.
“I see my ancient carcass, prone between the sheets, worn like a scrap of paper dropped in the gutter and, hovering over it, myself, like a butterfly released from its chrysalis stage and ready to fly away.
“Are caterpillars told of their impending resurrection? How in dying they will be transformed from poor earth- crawlers into creatures of the air, with exquisitely painted wings? If told, do they believe it? I imagine the wise old caterpillars shaking their heads — no, it can’t be; it’s a fantasy.
“Yet in the limbo between living and dying, as the night clocks tick remorselessly on, and the black sky implacably shows not one single streak or scratch of gray, I hear those words: I am the resurrection, and the life, and feel myself to be carried along on a great tide of joy and peace.”

 
All this is possible because of Jesus’ resurrection.  Thank God for his resurrection power!  May we live in that power in the days and weeks to come until He comes again.  Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed!

We invite you to celebrate Easter with us this Sunday, March 23 at 10:30 a.m.

Faith Church is near Nipper’s Corner, on Old Hickory Blvd in S. Nashville – just east of the Publix grocery store and fire station. 15512 Old Hickory Blvd. (see our ‘location/directions’ page to the left.)
It’s going to be a great time of worship as we happily reflect on the fact that our

Savior has risen and is alive! Hope to see you there!

Matthew 26:57-68  The Triumphant King Stands Trial

Introduction:
 
I recently finished reading a book called “Blink” by Malcolm Gladwell.  The point of this particular book is that some people have the ability to look at something or someone and just be able to tell what a person is like or if something is what it appears to be just by a first look.  Gladwell says that people have the ability to just look at someone and know what they are like or what kind of person they are.
 
However, Gladwell also points out that there is something he calls the “Warren Harding error.”  Warren Harding was the 29^th president of the United States, serving from 1921-1923, and has been judged by historians as one of the worst ever.  How did he become president?  Someone looked at him and decided that he looked presidential and so groomed him through the political process to the point where he was elected.  The appearance was not at all an accurate picture of what he could do or who he was.
 
In a certain sense this is what happens in the next series of events on Jesus’ way to the cross.  Today we remember Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem.  The people crowded around Him, cheering Him because they thought He would be their save them from the Romans.  Now within just a few days, the people will be calling for Jesus’ death.  What happened within those few days to change that?  The people had proclaimed that Jesus was their king, but Jesus was King in a way that they didn’t understand.
 
We see this in this next section as Jesus endures the first in a series of trials.  As Jesus is being tried He very clearly identifies who He really is.  And who He is goes far beyond what anyone then could have imagined.  We too must be careful not to underestimate or view Jesus in a limited way.  Let’s read Matthew 26:57-68.
 
I. The Witnesses                   
II. The Interrogation
III. The Verdict            
IV. The Triumphant King Today
 
I. First let’s look at the Witnesses in this trial.
 
This trial at the house of the high priest reveals a number of irregularities.  First, no trial that could possibly lead to the penalty of death was ever allowed to be held during the night.  Yet Jesus was tried and condemned between 1and 3 am Friday.
 
Second, the law forbade holding any type of capital trial on the eve of a feast day, which in this case was the evening before the Passover.  Moreover, Jesus was executed on a Holy Day, which was also forbidden.
 
In capital cases where the person was found guilty, the sentence and execution could not be carried out on the same day.  But Jesus was sentenced and executed all on the very same day.
This trial was a mockery to any sense of justice, but they wanted Jesus out of the way quickly.  You see, to the Jewish leaders Jesus was merely a meddlesome person who threatened their authority and control over the people.  Since they didn’t recognize Him for who He really was, they had no problem bending the rules to get rid of this irritating person.
 
While Jesus was being arrested, the Jewish leaders had gathered witnesses that would support their charges against Jesus.  Evidently, they didn’t have time to screen the witnesses carefully for none of their stories were the same.  Either the things that they said were completely and obviously false or they couldn’t agree on what had supposedly happened.  If the Jewish Council couldn’t get some form of legitimate testimony, then they couldn’t bring the case to the Roman courts who alone could condemn Jesus to death.
 
Finally two witnesses made their stories agree with each other.  They claimed Jesus had said, “I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.”  In John 2:19, Jesus had actually said, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”  If the temple were to be destroyed, Jesus had claimed to make a new temple.  These witnesses were twisting what Jesus had said.  This was just enough for the high priest to go on the attack.            However, notice once again that Matthew introduces Peter and does so for two important reasons.  First, Peter is here to show that both Peter and Jesus are on trial here.  Peter will end up denying the Lord and failing miserably.  Jesus, on the other hand, even though he will be found “guilty” will show that He is victorious.
 
Second, Matthew also introduces Peter here in the group of witnesses.  The witnesses brought against Jesus were false witnesses.  Peter is the one who could have spoken up and defended Jesus and told the truth, but he remains in the background.  Peter too is a witness to Jesus but a silent witness.
 
That should make us consider how we respond when we hear our Lord being treated unfairly.  People put down our Lord by taking His name in vain.  Others mock or ridicule the promises of the Bible.
 
Voltaire, the 18th_century French atheist wrote bitterly against Christianity.  In a moment of triumph he once boasted, “In twenty years Christianity will be no more.  My single hand shall destroy the edifice it took twelve apostles to rear.”  But Voltaire’s arrogance was swallowed up in his death. He died, in his own words, “abandoned by God and man.”  Shortly after his death, the very house in which Voltaire wrote was made a depot of the Geneva Bible Society.
 
Ted Turner, founder of CNN and millionaire spoke several years ago in Orlando.  As he received the award for “Humanist of the Year” he shared a very emotional story.  Turner mentioned that he was raised in a God-fearing family and had a sister who was ill.  Her illness progressed; she became critical. He prayed desperately the Lord would spare her life and make her well.  She died.  Then Ted told the audience that from then on he knew, even as a kid, there was no God up there.  What kind of loving God would have allowed his sister to suffer and die?  Turner indicated he had lived the rest of his life depending on himself, not on an unfeeling, phantom being that did not exist.  There was wild applause.
 
Some people think that Christianity is just one big scam and you may well know people like that.  Do we stand up for our Lord when He is being maligned like this?
 
We must confess it’s easy for us to quietly stand by as Peter stood by.  We often fail as witnesses for Christ just as Peter failed.  This underscores once again how much we need God’s forgiveness.
 
 
II. Let’s look now at The Interrogation of Jesus in verses 62-65.
 
Now the high priest, Caiaphas, himself presses Jesus to answer:  “Are you not going to answer?  What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?”  The charge was very serious for the temple was a symbol of God.  To destroy the temple was to threaten God Himself.  Moreover, Jesus’ claim to rebuild it again sounded like something a Messiah would say.
 
Jesus could have exposed the false character of these accusations but He remains completely silent.  Why?  Jesus knew that His purpose was not to defend His innocence.  Jesus’ purpose was to suffer and die so that those who believed in Him wouldn’t have to suffer and die.  The prophet Isaiah had said the Messiah would be “oppressed and afflicted, yet would not open his mouth.”  Jesus knew that this was part of the suffering He would have to endure in order to bring salvation to His people.  However, Caiaphas knew that if Jesus said nothing, the whole trial would have come to nothing.
 
So Caiaphas asks Jesus very directly:  “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.”  This is the question that all the Jewish leaders wanted to know.  Now Jesus must answer because the honor of God is at stake.
 
Jesus first answers:  “Yes, it is as you say.”  Jesus had been implying to people throughout his ministry that He was the Christ, but he had not come right out and explicitly said so.  This time He clearly says “yes” He is the Messiah, but not the kind of Messiah that they were thinking of.
And so He goes on to say, “But I say to all of you: in the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”  Jesus here speaks with tremendous authority as He identifies Himself.  They may think that they are the judges now, the time is coming when He will be their judge.
 
Jesus is looking down the road past all the coming events of His crucifixion, death, resurrection and ascension.  He is thinking of his second coming when He will come to judge those who are judging Him now.  After all these events, Jesus is saying that there will be no doubt as to who He is.  He is Judge now, but someday all will have to recognize who He really is.
 
An atheist farmer often taunted and made fun of people who believed in God. He wrote the following letter to the editor of a local newspaper: “I plowed on Sunday, planted on Sunday, cultivated on Sunday, and hauled in my crops on Sunday; but I never went to church on Sunday. Yet I harvested more bushels per acre than anyone else, even those who are God-fearing and never miss a service.” The editor printed the man’s letter and then added this remark: “God doesn’t always settle His accounts in October.”  Jesus may not seem to be the Lord, the Judge of all time, but He is the one who will judge the whole earth.
 
Then the High Priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy!  Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy.”  This was exactly what the high priest was looking for.  Jesus had claimed to be able to do things that only God could do.  This was the same thing as claiming to be God.  This was punishable by death; the trial need not continue.
 
What Jesus is doing is very simple:  He is calling on everyone who heard this to make a decision — accept Jesus is who He says He is or reject Him.  There was no doubt as to who Jesus said He was.  Now it is up to them to decide whether to accept it or not.
 
That choice is one which everyone who has ever heard the gospel must make.  That is true for those who have only just heard the gospel.  That is also true for those who have heard the gospel from the time they were born.  At some point, we must each decide that we either believe it and accept it or not believe it and reject it.
 
 
III. Then finally the Verdict is given in verses 66-68.
 
They all agree that Jesus was worthy of death.  This was not yet a formal sentence.  They were supposed to wait an additional day before passing sentence but they seem to do this now in principle.  They were likely afraid of what Jesus’ followers and the general population might do if they took their time; now was the time to act.  They will still have to get Pilate’s approval, but as far as they are concerned, there is no doubt that Jesus should die.
 
Then something happens that we have become used to because the story is familiar, but it is truly shocking.  Jesus suffers horrible abuse at the hands of his enemies.  They spat and beat Him with their fists, actions of utter contempt.  They blindfolded him and then slapped him with their open hand and commanded him to tell which one of them did this.
 
You see, in their limited thinking, this proved that they were right.  The real Messiah would have the power to defeat his enemies.  Jesus’ suffering this abuse proves to them that Jesus is a fraud.
But in fact, this suffering proves that he was indeed the Messiah.  He wasn’t the kind of Messiah that they were looking for.  They wanted a military hero who would restore their country.  To them, Jesus was a loser who was spat on and wouldn’t fight back.  They believed a real messiah would fight back and defend himself.
 
Shortly after the first Gulf War, I watched an interview with General Norman Schwarzkopf, the hero of the war.  He was asked what it felt like to be spat on when he returned from Vietnam.  He bristled with anger and said, “No one spit on me!  I can assure you of that.  If anyone had spit on me, there would have been an immediate reckoning.  No one spits at me, no one!”
 
How different from Jesus! Jesus didn’t say, “I am the King!  No one spits on me!”  Jesus said nothing because as the King, He knew that he would have to suffer in this awful way to bring his kingship to earth fully.  We must remember what Jesus said to the high priest:  The time is coming when the one who is being judged will be the judge.
 
 
IV. That is why it is so important to see The Triumphant King Today.
 
Who is Jesus today?  Jesus today is not a beaten, abused, humiliated victim.  We must never forget the suffering of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Jesus’ suffering and death is no little thing.  But Jesus is not just a sad martyr who died as a result of an this travesty of justice.
 
Nor is Jesus just some hero that received a palm branch parade that we remember today.  Jesus is not just a great man that once captivated the hearts of many people so long ago.
 
Today we gather to worship Jesus Christ who is the living Savior and Lord!  I hope and pray that you see Jesus as your Savior.  Let’s realize that our sins are the reason he had to suffer in this way and die.  I hope and pray that you may simply say, if you’ve not said it before, “Thank you Lord for loving me and for dying for me.  I want to now live completely for you.”
 
I hope that today, you see Jesus as the risen, victorious Lord!  Jesus is our Lord who rules over our lives in every way.  As we will sing at the end of our service, “He is Lord, He is risen from the dead and He is Lord.  Every knee shall bow, every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.”
Is this victorious King your Lord?  Do we have in the confidence that we are living with the Lord?  Charles R. Swindoll wrote, “God’s calling the shots. He’s running the show. Either He’s in full control or He’s off His throne.”  Are we being faithful and bold witnesses of Him?  Or are cowering in some dark corner as Peter did?
 
Jesus, the Son of Man, the Judge of all is alive and ruling!  Let’s live in that confidence as we seek to follow Him in this week!

Snapshots from Kenya – Marich Church
 
After visiting the dispensary in Marich, we continued on our drive north, not entirely sure where we were or what we were going to be doing next.  As we peered out of the small windows in the back of the truck, we saw a small church building set among the hills.  As we got out we were greeted with a sight that will remain with me as long as I live.

Walking and dancing toward us was a group of approximately 20 women singing, playing instruments and waving small branches.  They were singing joyfully as they approached us.  It was another of those overwhelming moments where we felt that we did not deserve such a welcome as this.  We were simple ordinary folks who had not done anything extraordinary at all except come to visit.

 
As they accompanied us into the church, though, Rev. Murupus explained part of the reason for their wonderful greeting.  He pointed to large bags of maize piled along the back wall and explained that part of the money that had been sent from Faith Church had been used to buy 100 bags of the maize for these people in this community.  We were there to distribute some of that maize to the people that day.

However, before we did that we continued to sing and dance with the members of that church.  It was a praise and worship time unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.  After that Rev. Murupus spoke for a bit and then Mary spoke passionately and eloquently as she always did on such occasions.

Then a woman from the congregation was given the opportunity to say a few things.  She told us that their needs were very great and listed three things in particular that they needed help with.  The biggest concern was clean and safe water to use.  The second was health problems that often stemmed from bad water.  The final thing was security and safety.  She said that if there was anything that we could do to help in those things, it would be a great blessing.

Then it was Claire and my turn to speak.  What do you say to someone when the needs expressed are so big and so far beyond what I could possibly do?  This was a time when I felt God give me words to speak that I could not have possibly come up with on my own.  I told them that the problems were indeed very big and beyond our abilities.  I told them that we have someone in our church who helps people with water problems.  I told them that we have people in our church who are medical people and care about them.  I told them about our concern for their well-being and safety.
And I told them that it is also very difficult to help because the problems are so big.  I said that in fact some might think it would be impossible for us to do anything to help.  However, I also said that with God all things are possible and that we need to pray that God will show us the best way we can help.  We had already helped far beyond what we could have imagined through the bags of maize.  Who knows what God might do when we pray for his wisdom and leading to help more.

We then went outside and distributed some of the maize to the women.  We gave them each about 15 pounds of the maize which Rev. Murupus said later would feed a typical family for at least 2 months!  We then realized that for just a few dollars we were helping a family in Kenya to survive for 2 months.  I was amazed and profoundly humbled when I thought of how much money we spend on such an abundance of food.