ONEFAMILY Outreach

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ONEFamily Outreach exists to "Connect Kids to Community and Communities to Kids." Have you considered having a mission week for your church? This is one of my favorite "in-depth" ways of reaching out with the Great News of Jesus Christ. Activities can include:

Interactive and participative praise concerts for children, youth, and families;
Morning staff studies on "Authentic Leadership" and "Building a Culture of Intentional Courtesy"
Brown-Bag Luncheon Studies for your community focusing on our scriptural call to justice;
In-service for your volunteers or teachers on reaching today's youth and families with the vibrant, living, message of Jesus Christ;
Evening parent seminars based upon two of Jerry's recent books: "Significant Conversations: Helping Young People Live Meaningful Lives," and "The Deepest Longing of Young People; Loving Without Conditions."
Local networking with other area groups (secular or faith-based) regarding prevention and intervention strategies for high-risk and incarcerated youth;
Humorous and thought-provoking school assemblies (secular or religious, elementary through high school).

ONEFamily Outreach is primarily supported by your donations and by trainings, workshops, retreats and concerts.

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“If these become silent, the stones will cry out!”

Luke 19:28-40

Liturgy of the Palms, C

Luke 19:28-40

[Lk 19:28] After He had said these things, He was going on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.

[29] When He approached Bethphage and Bethany, near the mount that is called Olivet, He sent two of the disciples, [30] saying, “Go into the village ahead of you; there, as you enter, you will find a colt tied on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here. [31] “If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of it.’ ” [32] So those who were sent went away and found it just as He had told them. [33] As they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” [34] They said, “The Lord has need of it.” [35] They brought it to Jesus, and they threw their coats on the colt and put Jesus on it. [36] As He was going, they were spreading their coats on the road. [37] As soon as He was approaching, near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the miracles which they had seen, [38] shouting:

“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 Him, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.” [40] But Jesus answered, “I tell you, if these become silent, the stones will cry out!” (NAS)

Luke 19:28

[Lk 19:28] After He had said these things, He was going on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.

After He had said these things

Once again we find Luke stressing Jesus’ words and actions. He doesn’t want us to separate them; they are part and parcel, indelibly linked. In like manner, a person should be able to tell what I am going to say by how I live and know how I am going to live by what I say. All of the Gospels constantly remind us that the Follower of Jesus should become like Jesus in every way. Our lives should be marked by:

· Repentance;

· Humility;

· Gratitude;

· Transparency;

· Consistency;

And, above all, mercy.

Mercy [GSN1655 eleemon] means active love or practiced compassion. We can never separate the love of Jesus from the actions of Jesus. He was consistent in word and action, which is also our call.

The words of Jesus prior to this action are particularly important; for these are the words by which he enters Jerusalem for the final time. The parable that Jesus tells prior to his final march is like the command; “Charge!” So, they are very important words indeed. Just what is the “charge” of Jesus?

First, we must remember that he had just dined with Zaccheus, who was not “just a tax-collector” but a “chief tax collector” [v19:2]. We might say that you have your sinners, then you have your leaders of sinners. Zach was a leader of sinners who traded his pride for dignity and gave away half his fortune to follow Jesus.

That is when Jesus begins to tell the story of the ten minas (or, in Matthew 25, it is the story of the ten talents). Matthew elaborates upon this story and tells us a string of parables that reveal the difference between those who will join the Master in the feast and those who will be cast out:

1. The virgins who were not prepared and alert when the bridal party arrived were not allowed into the feast;

2. The man who does not bring a return on the investment the Master gave to him is condemned;

3. Goats are condemned while sheep are protected (goats were wild sheep that led the tame sheep into the wilderness—then when trouble appeared the goats would run off and leave the sheep exposed);

4. And, finally, those who do not see Jesus in the poor and treat the “least of these” as though they were the Lord himself—they are condemned.

Luke elaborates on the second story. The “final story” that leads to Jesus’ charge on Jerusalem ends in this manner:

Luke 19:26-27

[26] “I tell you that to everyone who has shall {more} be given, but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. [27] “But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them in my presence.” (NAS)

The closure of Jesus’ teaching ministry is filled with hope and fraught with warning. “Do not keep the gracious word of God to yourself!” Here is the condemnation of God’s “Chief Priests” and the restoration of the “Chief Sinners” like Zaccheus. One group kept the riches of God’s word to themselves (remember the story of the fig tree in Luke 13; “Why does it even use up ground?”) and the other spends lavishly on restoring the damage he has done to others (remember the extravagant gift of Mary that Judas condemned in John 12).

This is the final story of Jesus to the public. From here on his actions will attest to his ministry. This is the final “charge” of our Savior.

He was going on ahead, going up to Jerusalem

We have learned that Jesus was a wanted man even before he entered Jerusalem [John 11:57]. In fact, during the last year of Jesus’ ministry he played cat and mouse with both Herod Antipas and the Chief Priests. Jesus frequently retreats to Galilee (under the rule of Herod Phillip II) where the religious climate is far less volatile. We need to recognize that Jesus’ retreats are not in fear, they are strategic, those forays back to northern Israel give him more time to prepare his disciples to prepare for their responsibilities. Jesus chooses the time of his death by God’s prompting, not by man’s or by Satan’s.

How much does God’s timing rule my life, my speech, and my schedule? Do I know what issues to take on and when I should take them on? How often have I invested all my energy into the wrong issues? How many churches have been piously divided over theological or facility issues. These are luxury issues, not worth the paper that goes into them. We focus on these issues only when we have lost the compassion of Jesus. We argue about law only when we have forgotten about love. Jesus didn’t die to protect the law; he died to protect sinners from it. In a nation where a fifth of our children are “at-risk,” how in the world can we afford to debate theology or worry about the color of a new rug in the parish hall? Let’s save the money for a new rug and invest it in the well-being of our children!

Jesus knew every agenda from an eternal perspective, he knew every issue, and made his decision; the only issue worth dying for was our salvation.

If we are going lose a single heartbeat on any issue, let it be this; that we spent our lives loving sinners, just like Jesus.

Luke 19:29-36

“As you enter, you will find a colt tied”

The entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem was not through an alleyway, as one might expect of an outlaw sneaking into a city. Jesus literally bursts into Jerusalem in all the glory of the prophesied king:

Zechariah 9:9-10

[9] Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

[10] I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim And the horse from Jerusalem; And the bow of war will be cut off. And He will speak peace to the nations; And His dominion will be from sea to sea, And from the River to the ends of the earth.

This was not a coincidental event in Jesus’ life. He didn’t wander into Jerusalem and happen to find a donkey there. Jesus already knew where the donkey colt was, he had it fetched and then rode it in as a radical display of his Messianic claims.

In this manner, Jesus was following the prophetic model of many before him:

I Kings 11:29-31

[1Ki 11:29] It came about at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him on the road. Now Ahijah had clothed himself with a new cloak; and both of them were alone in the field. [30] Then Ahijah took hold of the new cloak which was on him and tore it into twelve pieces. [31] He said to Jeroboam, “Take for yourself ten pieces; for thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and give you ten tribes.’”

Jeremiah 13:1-11

[Je 13:1] Thus the LORD said to me, “Go and buy yourself a linen waistband and put it around your waist, but do not put it in water.” [2] So I bought the waistband in accordance with the word of the LORD and put it around my waist. [3] Then the word of the LORD came to me a second time, saying, [4] “Take the waistband that you have bought, which is around your waist, and arise, go to the Euphrates and hide it there in a crevice of the rock.” [5] So I went and hid it by the Euphrates, as the LORD had commanded me. [6] After many days the LORD said to me, “Arise, go to the Euphrates and take from there the waistband which I commanded you to hide there.” [7] Then I went to the Euphrates and dug, and I took the waistband from the place where I had hidden it; and lo, the waistband was ruined, it was totally worthless.

[8] Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, [9] “Thus says the LORD, ‘Just so will I destroy the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. [10] ‘This wicked people, who refuse to listen to My words, who walk in the stubbornness of their hearts and have gone after other gods to serve them and to bow down to them, let them be just like this waistband which is totally worthless. [11] ‘For as the waistband clings to the waist of a man, so I made the whole household of Israel and the whole household of Judah cling to Me,’ declares the LORD, ‘that they might be for Me a people, for renown, for praise and for glory; but they did not listen.’”

Jeremiah 27:1-11

[Je 27:1] In the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying— [2] thus says the LORD to me—“Make for yourself bonds and yokes and put them on your neck, [3] and send word to the king of Edom, to the king of Moab, to the king of the sons of Ammon, to the king of Tyre and to the king of Sidon by the messengers who come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah. [4] “Command them to go to their masters, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, thus you shall say to your masters, [5] “I have made the earth, the men and the beasts which are on the face of the earth by My great power and by My outstretched arm, and I will give it to the one who is pleasing in My sight. [6] “Now I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, My servant, and I have given him also the wild animals of the field to serve him. [7] “All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson until the time of his own land comes; then many nations and great kings will make him their servant.”

[8] “It will be, that the nation or the kingdom which will not serve him, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and which will not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, I will punish that nation with the sword, with famine and with pestilence,” declares the LORD, “until I have destroyed it by his hand. [9] “But as for you, do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your dreamers, your soothsayers or your sorcerers who speak to you, saying, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon.’ [10] “For they prophesy a lie to you in order to remove you far from your land; and I will drive you out and you will perish. [11] “But the nation which will bring its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will let remain on its land,” declares the LORD, “and they will till it and dwell in it.””’

Ezekiel 4:1-3

[Eze 4:1] “Now you son of man, get yourself a brick, place it before you and inscribe a city on it, Jerusalem. [2] “Then lay siege against it, build a siege wall, raise up a ramp, pitch camps and place battering rams against it all around. [3] “Then get yourself an iron plate and set it up as an iron wall between you and the city, and set your face toward it so that it is under siege, and besiege it. This is a sign to the house of Israel."

Ezekiel 5:1-4

[Eze 5:1] “As for you, son of man, take a sharp sword; take and use it as a barber’s razor on your head and beard. Then take scales for weighing and divide the hair. [2] “One third you shall burn in the fire at the center of the city, when the days of the siege are completed. Then you shall take one third and strike it with the sword all around the city, and one third you shall scatter to the wind; and I will unsheathe a sword behind them. [3] “Take also a few in number from them and bind them in the edges of your robes. [4] “Take again some of them and throw them into the fire and burn them in the fire; from it a fire will spread to all the house of Israel.”

The pattern is simple; when Israel would not listen to the prophets the Lord had them speak dramatically and symbolically. It was a last resort.

This pre-planned, dramatic charge into Jerusalem was Christ’s prophetic “last word” to the city that killed its own prophets:

Matthew 23:37-38

[Mt 23:37] “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. [38] “Behold, your house is being left to you desolate!”

Jesus dies forgiving. He is crucified inviting. Forgiving and inviting; forgiving our ignorance, inviting us to relationship. As he approaches the cross, his words become more pointed and his actions become more dramatic until the crux—the cross—of his life is expressed in the statement; “Father forgive them, they know not what they do.”

There are many times that we too approach a crux in our life; a crossroads where we become either more vulnerable or less merciful. Our Lord’s words speak to us, but if we don’t listen he becomes more dramatic letting his actions do the talking. The pattern is repeated endlessly in the Old and New Testaments; the pleading, the inviting, the endless giving, but one day he will ride into our Jerusalem and we will either try to silence him or lay down our pride for him to ride upon.

Two thousand years ago he rode into Jerusalem on a donkey colt. It was a symbol of a king coming to offer peace. A warrior king always rode in on a horse, ready for war. When he returns it will be as a conquering king on a warrior’s horse:

Revelation 6:2

[Rev 6:2] I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.

Will I heed the signs? Will I accept the King of Peace? Will he find my cloak on the ground? Or, will I oppose him each step? Will I seek to silence him and condemn his following of broken sinners and chief tax collectors?

Will this day find me on the temples staring down at the Lord or among the sinful crowd looking up to the King?

Luke 19:37-38

[37] As soon as He was approaching, near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the miracles which they had seen, [38] shouting:

“BLESSED IS THE KING WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD;

Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

For all the miracles which they had seen

Jesus was proclaimed by the testimony of his actions. There are two words in this reading which should be very familiar to us by now:

1. The people blessed Jesus [GSN2127 eulogeo];

2. For his miracles [GSN1411 dunamis].

We have studied these two words many times before, the words of blessing, one word is circumstantial and the other means, “what one does with their circumstances.” Jesus is blessed [GSN2127 eulogeo] for the latter, what he has done with his circumstances. Through Jesus, miracles flowed into the lives of the broken. We have seen the word that is used here for miracles is also used for power [GSN1411 dunamis]; it literally translates into meaning, strength, and ability. If we are to bear the name of Christ in our life or our churches, then we must dare to ask the question; “Does his meaning, strength, and ability flow out of us and into others?”

Do the vulnerable herald us as a blessing?

It is ultimately what we do and not what we say that comprises our eulogy. Would the vulnerable bless [GSN2127 eulogeo] our name if it were written on this day?

Luke 19:38-39

[39] Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.” [40] But Jesus answered, “I tell you, if these become silent, the stones will cry out!” (NAS)

“Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.”

If the Gospel were all “nice” (like some tiptoeing churches try to be) it would just be wishy-washy drivel; the kind of self-massaging pop psychology that drips off self-help racks and out of TV sets today. However, there is a flip side to advocacy of the poor that is very unpleasant. Those who use the system have the most to lose when those who are manipulated by the system find their voice. When the common people proclaimed Jesus “The King,” it was the Chief Priests who had the most to lose. In their opinion, Jesus was fine in the hinterlands (Galilee); but when he came to Jerusalem, he was a political and economic threat.

In my own life, I knew I was impacting street kids when dealers started coming after me. But I knew it even more when the religious leaders invited me to their meeting and started asking; “How many kids are you sending to church?”

I rephrased that question and asked; “How many members are you sending to be with our kids?” I said; “You can’t tell sheep where to go, you have to take them there.”

At that point, I became the heretic. Religious leaders in the community questioned my motives and said our outreaches weren’t Christian enough.

“Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.” It is still a cry of the religious. It means censure your followers; warn them to stop!

What do we say that emulates these chief priests? “Stop changing lives if you are not going to send them to our church?” The biggest obstacle to faith that I find in jails, detention centers, homeless shelters, and on the street is the hypocrisy of the religious. Every week I run into someone who says; “I’ve been to church, Jerry. I see how they treat each other!” In our country I have found the biggest impediment to Christ has been Christians. Is it possible to be religious without being belligerent?

“If these become silent, the stones will cry out!”

The more the Chief Priests tried to silence the faithful, the louder their voices sounded. This applied in Christ’s day, but it also applies to any movement or cause in our day. Attempting to silence a movement will only cause it to grow. The Religious Leaders had no comprehension of this and I see this attitude displayed repeatedly by those in power today. It is as though we are bent upon sticking a tongue depressor into a hornet’s nest and shaking it around.

As the crowd is amplified in purpose and volume, Jesus shares an important truth that can bring great hope to the weary faithful; “If these become silent, the stones will cry out!”

The success of Christ’s mission [Lk 4:18-19] is not dependent upon me. I am called (as Mother Theresa has said) to be; “Faithful, not successful.”

We may be abandoned by the crowds, scorned by leaders, unsuccessful according to this world, and even persecuted, but that would make us more like Christ than if we were accepted by the crowds, praised by leaders, successful according to this world, and living a life of comfort and ease.

Though we may fail by this world’s standard, Christ’s name will be proclaimed. All of creation, all of history faithfully points to him. The longer his claim has stood, the more his evidence is corroborated. Even the rocks (archaeology) speak his name. No claim has been more verified or testified to in history.

We can stand as affirmed in our faith as Jesus stood, knowing that his purpose is victorious, that love is stronger than fear, and that God’s salvation is greater than man’s sin. Though our lives may appear as failures; our God turns disaster into hope, for (as Paul has promised); “Love never fails [I Cor 13:8].”

So yes;

“BLESSED IS THE KING WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!”

And;

“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

Nothing can or will stop His Name and that blessing from flowing vigorously to the throne of heaven. Let our will be tied to his will and our joy be complete in him for he will triumph!

Zechariah 9:9

[Zec 9:9] Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.