Author: Saju Joseph

Today’s sermon is part of a series called “Our promise-keeping God” from the book of Joshua. And the passage we will be looking at is Joshua chapter 21 – the title is “Finding Rest in God’s Providence”.

As in the last couple of chapters, even this passage continues to list down the inheritance the rest of the Israelites got from the Lord.

The chapter begins by telling us that “the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites came to Eleazar the priest and to Joshua the son of Nun and to the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes of the people of Israel. And they said to them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, “The Lord commanded through Moses that we be given cities to dwell in, along with their pasturelands for our livestock.” So by command of the Lord the people of Israel gave to the Levites the following cities and pasturelands out of their inheritance.”

This chapter is particularly describing the land and inheritance that were shared among the Levites by the other tribes.

The immediate thing that stood out for me in the first 3 verses is the manner in which the people are communicating and conducting business with each other. There is an order in which things are being implemented where the respective leaders and heads are given due respect by involving them in the decision-making process – all of them ultimately following the Lord’s command.

The main leader and hero here is Joshua, the military genius who led Israel through 7 years of war. The second hero is Caleb, the daring strong-armed genius. And all the other brave men who fought with Joshua. Their efforts have won the victory over their enemies and now the land that was conquered has been distributed among the many tribes of Israel.

Though there were these men who were responsible for winning this battle verse 43-45 tells us …

Thus, the Lord gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers. And they took possession of it, and they settled there. And the Lord gave them rest on every side just as he had sworn to their fathers. Not one of all their enemies had withstood them, for the Lord had given all their enemies into their hands. Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.

Though men can achieve and perform great exploits with their strong will, desire and efforts – it would be absolute foolishness to ignore the fact that behind every success or new accomplishment is the hand of our Sovereign God who is ultimately responsible for what happens to us on this earth.

Israel’s success was God’s plan, and so were their failures. And it is the same with us today.

We can achieve great things in life with our self-efforts and think as though everything is our doing, but at some point in life, everything we experience in this world, the land we own, the possessions we acquire, and the money in our bank account will feel vain and meaningless if we fail to acknowledge God and his works in all our life.

If you don’t believe me, listen to the words of King Solomon who got to enjoy all the good things on this earth says in Ecclesiastes 1:12-18

I the Preacher have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. And I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven. It is an unhappy business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind. What is crooked cannot be made straight, and what is lacking cannot be counted. I said in my heart, “I have acquired great wisdom, surpassing all who were over Jerusalem before me, and my heart has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.” And I applied my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but a striving after wind. For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.

The question we should be asking is “Is it worth pursuing the things of the world at the cost of losing connection with the giver of life and his plans and purposes for our lives?”

Eventually, most of us will get to a place where we simply cannot make sense of life’s circumstances. Everything around us can feel like chaos! Whether it is a major tragedy that came suddenly or a series of closed doors that forces a change in the direction, we will need to respond.

For some, the response will be despair. For others, it will be a place of rest.

Of all the verses in chapter 21, my favourite is verse 44. It says “And the Lord gave them rest on every side just as he had sworn to their fathers”

While the world looks to karma, luck, and self-effort, believers should put their hope in God’s sovereignty and learn to rest in His Providence.

What is providence?

The protective care of God over our lives.

I like this description of providence I read in an article. I’m gonna read it as it is written

Divine Providence is the governance of God by which He, with wisdom and love, cares for and directs all things in the universe. The doctrine of divine Providence asserts that God is in complete control of all things. He is sovereign over the universe as a whole (Ps. 103:19), the physical world (Matt. 5:45), the affairs of nations (Ps. 66:7), human destiny (Gal. 1:15), human successes and failures (Luke 1:52), and the protection of His people (Ps. 4:8). This doctrine stands in direct opposition to the world’s idea that the universe is governed by chance or fate.

For the Israelites, to be in a place of rest was to be in a place where God is now watching over their lives.

And how did God offer his providence?

By giving victory over their enemies

verse 44b – Not one of all their enemies had withstood them, for the Lord had given all their enemies into their hands

By remaining faithful to his promise

verse 45 – Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.

What a great God He is. Isn’t He?

Can you see God’s loving heart for his people?

Today, our circumstances are different, we’re not fighting for any land, or are we surrounded by blood-thirsty men who are out there waiting to kill us. We have a different enemy though and we live in an oppressive, demanding, and broken world.

But God hasn’t changed, his desire for us as his children, even today, is to offer his providential rest.

He offers that …

1. By giving us victory over the ultimate enemy of our soul
2. By remaining faithful to his word to keep and preserve us from eternal damnation

By giving us victory over the ultimate enemy of our soul

Colossians 1:13-14 – “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

The Israelites may or may not have known the real battle was never “against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” – Ephesians 6:12

God was and is in the business of redeeming us from the enemy of our souls.

In the garden of Eden, since the time when Adam and Eve disobeyed God and rebelled against him, Satan had taken charge of our souls. Our sinful hearts drew us away from God, we became restless wanderers and seekers of self, living Godless lives.

By the life, death, and resurrection of his Son, Christ Jesus, he reduces us from the dominion of darkness and brings us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Hebrews 4:1-11

4 Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. 2 For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened.[a] 3 For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said,

“As I swore in my wrath,‘They shall not enter my rest,’”

although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. 4 For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” 5 And again in this passage he said,

“They shall not enter my rest.”

6 Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, 7 again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterwards, in the words already quoted,

“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”

8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God[b] would not have spoken of another day later on. 9 So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, 10 for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.

11 Let us, therefore, strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.

Brothers & sisters, unlike the Israelites, we are now united in faith with God through Christ, and therefore have access to enter God’s rest.

All of this is made possible only because the ultimate enemy of our soul has been permanently defeated on the cross.

If you consider yourself as a child of God, then Satan has no power over, no claim over your soul, no claim over your body, the shackles of bondage are broken, and you are totally free in Christ because that fellow has been defeated on the cross.

By remaining faithful to his word to keep and preserve us from eternal damnation

The second providential blessing for the Lord is his faithfulness towards us.

verse 45 confirms the fact that God will remain faithful to his word – Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.

To those who are been redeemed from the clutches of the ultimate enemy, Paul writes in Romans 8:35-39

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written,

“For your sake, we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Brothers & sisters, if we have truly repented of our sins and put our trust in Christ we have God’s word as an assurance that he will remain faithful till the end.

He is and will be like the Father of the prodigal son who waits with his arms wide open to welcome his children back into his arms. No matter how far we try to run away from him, his love will pursue us and compel us to get back to him.

This too is God’s providence for us.

In the light of this knowledge we have about our heavenly Father and what he has done for us, here’s what our response should look like.

Strive to enter his rest

Hebrews 4:11 – Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.

The word translated as “strive” in verse 11 means to concentrate one’s energies on the achievement of a goal – and the goal is to diligently believe in Christ and to walk in obedience.

We should daily evaluate and answer the question “What sort of Christian life are we choose to live?”

After receiving God’s forgiveness and lavish love, are we still living a defeated life? as though Christ’s death on the cross doesn’t mean anything to us.

As someone observing our lives from the outside, will they see us resting in God’s providence of His son Jesus? or will they see another human striving and struggling to make things happen on their own strength and efforts without acknowledging God.

The same verse that urges us to strive to enter God’s rest also warns us that there is a possibility of slipping into disobedience and making a mess of our lives.

In our Christian walk, we will encounter difficulties such as fear, exhaustion, human enemies, demonic opposition, and various other kinds of persecution that test our faith. And therefore, diligent faith and obedience are necessary in order to withstand such difficulties and enter God’s rest.

Striving to enter God’s rest today is working hard to look away from ourselves, to look to  Jesus, to trust in God’s promises, every minute of every day.

Striving to enter God’s rest is working towards living out Psalm 23 every minute of every day:

God is your shepherd; you lack nothing in Christ. He leads you in His paths – and they are good and restful, even if they pass through frightening and dangerous valleys. He delights in you and honors you as His own – and those who try to harm you, those who hate you and abuse you, will have to acknowledge that. His goodness and love will pursue you your entire life – and He will in the end bring you into His eternal rest as part of His beloved family.

1. Make it a habit to go to him repentant & humble because he is faithful to forgive and restore us back every time we sin and make a mess of our lives – He’s a God who keeps his promise.

1 John 1:9 – If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

He promised and he will keep his word for sure.

When we fall into habitual sins, our response should be to keep aside our pride, and instead of pretending and performing we should humble ourselves and confess our sins to God and others.

A homeless man was offered a free ship ticket from one country to another, it was month-long trip, throughout his journey he stayed with the servants on the ship, working hard day and night so they can offer him the leftover food from the day and survive the trip.

On arrival, he met the captain of the ship and the captain asked him, “Where were you all this while?”, I looked for you everywhere, especially during food time.

The man looked at the captain and said, I was living with the servants, helping them around so I can get some leftover food.

The captain looked at him and said, “You fool, didn’t you know your ticket included food and stay in the finest room on the ship”. It was I who sent you the ship ticket to take you to a better place and on the way meet all your needs. Brothers & sisters, consider your Christian walk a privilege, for the captain of the ship is the creator of this universe, a father who loves us and welcomes us into his presence, offering us a free gift of salvation and renewed life. Come rest and enjoy.

Happy Resurrection Day to everyone!

A warm welcome to all of you.

It is such a joy and privilege to be in God’s presence with his beloved people. I am once again glad that God has enabled me to preach from his word.

As we always say, we’re not standing here because of our smartness and eloquence but only because of the grace and mercy of God that he chooses to reveal himself through his word and through insignificant people like us.

Today, being the Resurrection Day, we will look at a passage that describes the resurrection event of Jesus to help us GRASP its relevance in our lives and to help us respond in faithful OBEDIENCE.

After Jesus was brutally killed – Afflicted, Humiliated, Rejected & Separated, the bible tells us that his body was buried in a tomb with a big stone rolled at the entrance and guarded by the roman soldiers.

Our passage today from John 20 begins by telling us that …

“On the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb”

I want us to pause here for a moment and understand what’s going on. To Mary and the people, it may have simply appeared that the stone at the tomb had been taken away. There could have been various explanations for that.

In Matthew 28:11-15 Matthew tells us what the roman guards and the Jews did –

*While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ ****And if this comes

to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” ***So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.

Unlike whatever the story has been told to this day, brothers & sisters, I want us to understand that Jesus’s resurrection from death was one of the most significant events in human history. Jesus’s resurrection from the dead completed the glorious mission that the Father had intended.

Why is the Resurrection of Jesus a significant event?

Jesus’s Resurrection is a significant event because …

It was the display of God’s immense power

To believe in the resurrection is to believe in God. Why? Because if God exists, and if He created the universe and has power over it, then He has the power to raise the dead.

If He does not have such power, He is not worthy of our faith and worship.

Only He who created life can resurrect it after death, only He can reverse death into life, and only He can remove the sting and gain the victory over the grave

*1 Corinthians 15:54–55 – When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” ***“O death, where is your victory?    O death, where is your sting?”

In resurrecting Jesus from the grave, God reminds us of His absolute sovereignty over life and death.

Jesus’s Resurrection is a significant event because …

It validates Jesus’s claim as a Son of God

Matthew 16:1-4 – And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and to test him they asked him to show them a sign from heaven. He answered them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them and departed.

The phrase “sign of Jonah” was used by Jesus as a metaphor for His future crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. It meant that as Jonah was in the belly of the fish for 3 days and came out the third day, so will the Son the God.

Jesus answered with this expression when asked by the Pharisees for miraculous proof that He was indeed the Messiah.

When Jesus was resurrected from the dead, he validated his claim as a Son of God.

Jesus’s Resurrection is a significant event because …

It brings hope to this dying world

*1 Peter 1:3-4 – Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ***to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

The bible tells us that when God created the world, the heavens, and the earth, animals, and birds – he also created man and women in his image and likeness. God’s original plan for man and women was to live in fellowship and friendship with him and thereby inherit the earth by bearing children and living in absolute harmony with God and each other.

But instead of walking in obedience to him, when the serpent tempted them, they were driven by selfish ambition to become like God and they chose to rebel against their creator God and decided to fix their lives their own thing.

The day Adam and Eve choose to disobey God, they lost harmony with God – A Holy God couldn’t stand the unholy men and drove them out of his presence. They and even the children they bore ended up as God-haters, selfish and mean, and to this generation, that is the state of every child, man, and woman born into this world – Disharmony with God – Hopeless and sinful.

In Romans 1:28-32, Paul shows God’s response toward disobedient people

Romans 1: 28-32 – And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.

I wonder what if God had decided to turn away from us forever and let us continue in sin. Have you wondered what would have happened to us if God had taken away all his gracious provision on earth from us?

We would have killed and butchered each other to death.

But God chooses to stick around with us. He chooses to love us. He chooses to be committed by keeping his part of the friendship.

The bible tells us that while we were sinners, he sent his son Jesus on earth, to live the obedient life we were supposed to live, earn righteousness from God and exchange it with our sinfulness on the cross of calvary, thereby giving us an opportunity to restore our broken relationship back to God.

If we confess and repent of our wrongdoings and trust in the finished work of Jesus we can be renewed and restored.

Jesus’s resurrection is a significant event because it completes the task for which he was sent on earth – to restore us back to the Father.

He did this for insignificant people like us – the ones who should have been afflicted, humiliated, rejected & killed because of our separation from God.

Mary Magdalene, who first came to the burial place of Jesus, the first person Jesus met after his resurrection, was a demon-possessed woman – Luke 8:2 tells us that Jesus healed her from evil spirits and her infirmities.

The disciple she first ran to, Peter, was a betrayer, he denied Jesus 3 times just a couple of days back.

The other disciples of Jesus acted foolish and dumb when they reached the tomb and did not understand what was happening. verse 9 says, they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead.

Friends, just like these guys, we too belong to the insignificant category. Possessed, failure, selfish, sinful, foolish, dumb, forgetful, good for nothing category.

But here’s the beauty of God.

Only a divine visitation from Jesus is capable of opening our eyes to see him, embrace him, and believe in him.

John 20: 11-16 – But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic,[b]  “Rabboni!”. – I SEE YOU!

Friends today could be your divine moment where Jesus is revealing himself to you.

And there could only be two responses from us –

One – We say I see you Jesus, but I choose to walk away because the world looks more fascinating to me, I think I like the darkness more than the light or

Two – We say, I see you Jesus, and I choose to trust in you because this world and the things of this world are fading away – Everlasting life, joy, and peace are only found in you because this is why I was created for – To know you and to be known by you – So here I am.

Our response should be … Jesus I confess I am a sinner and I repent of them … I need a savior to deliver me … therefore I put my trust in you.

Finally, if you have responded to Jesus and his love and found that liberating and peace-giving, then we all be like Mary.

John 20:18 – Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her.

Today, we get to hear the good news of Jesus because a bunch of disciples who witnessed the resurrected Christ went out and announced it to the world – almost every one of them was killed and martyred for their faith and bold proclamation. They were faithful in spreading the good news of Jesus, no matter what – Only because they saw and valued their life in eternity with Jesus as more precious than anything else in this world. It is our turn to do the same.

Let’s pray!

Good evening everybody! Even as I welcome everyone who has joined us in person at the hall and those who have tuned in online, I just want to say that I’m so thankful for the opportunity to gather in person during Passion Week after almost two years.

It’s so good to see everyone & together remember what the Lord has done for us during the events of Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday. As followers of Jesus Christ, these two events form the centerpiece of our Christian faith.

If we exclude the events of Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday, it leaves us with no base / no foundation for our Christian faith. And so that’s why it becomes so essential to us what happened on that Good Friday two thousand years back and how that impacts us even today:

37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he[h] breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son[i] of God!” (Mk 15:37-39)

In the year 2004, a film by the name of “Passion of the Christ” was released around Passion Week that year. This film was unlike most of the other Jesus films that were made till then. While the other previous films focused on the Life of Jesus and then the cross towards the end, this one specifically focused on Jesus’ last 12 hours until His crucifixion.

And they tried to realistically capture the horror and pain that Jesus could’ve probably endured on the road to the cross. In terms of reactions to the movie, ended up being the highest-grossing Christian-themed film of all time! Growing up this was one of the few movies that as a family we did end up going to. I remember coming out of the theater disturbed and saddened by the treatment and injustice inflicted on Jesus.

Like me, there were many others all around the world who watched the movie and were so saddened realizing what Jesus had to go through. However, for most people, it stopped feeling sorry for Jesus. And I think the same can be said about many people’s church experience on Good Friday, they’ll read these passages describing the horror and pain of Good Friday and they will probably experience deep sadness and grief when they think about Jesus but it stops there.

And that made me ask this question: “What difference does Good Friday make to us?” I think there can be at least 2 responses to that question. Either we respond by feeling sorry for Jesus or we can respond by worship and surrender. Either we can merely grieve the pain that Jesus went through or we could recognize how that was a gracious gift from God to save us. What’s it going to be for us this evening?

1. Affliction

21 And they compelled a passerby, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross. 22 And they brought him to the place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull). 23 And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. (v21-23)

The first thing that stands out for us immediately from this passage is that the journey to cross for Jesus involved extremely intense, agonizing physical affliction. There was a lot of physical pain which needed to be endured. In v21 we see how a man from Cyrene named Simon was forced to carry Jesus’ cross.

Why was that required? Because by that time Jesus was probably weakened and unable to carry his own cross due to the intense scourging and torture that took place the night before. Just a few verses before, it mentions that they had twisted a crown of thorns and put it on his head.

They kept striking his head with a reed which led to a lot of blood loss. And that’s why Jesus wasn’t able to carry his own cross on the way to Golgotha. Furthermore, in v23 it tells us that Jesus declined to drink the wine mixed with myrrh. And I wondered what that meant? As a did some research I realized that that mixture was actually like a drug offered to criminals so that it could numb the pain that they were experiencing.

And the suffering on a cross wasn’t like being killed with a gunshot or sword which causes instant death. Dying on the cross meant slow, agonizing death. Most people would die either by loss of oxygen or exhaustion. That’s why some of the Roman writers of that day criticized this way of torture saying that “No Roman citizen should ever suffer this kind of death on a cross”.

Extreme kind of torture. And then for us to realize that Jesus though He was the Son of God chose to bear the whole brunt of physical affliction for us. He was willing to be physically afflicted for His people.
But not only do we see His affliction but also His

2. Humiliation

24 And they crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take. 25 And it was the third hour[d] when they crucified him. 26 And the inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.” 27 And with him they crucified two robbers, one on his right and one on his left.[e] (v24-27)

I remember in early 2000 one of the popular trends was wearing a cross around your neck. Many celebrities would sport across as part of their wardrobe. Being influenced by that, even I started wearing a cross around my neck.

And there was this one uncle in the church who once challenged me with a question asking: Is this a fashion statement or a faith statement? Although now in culture, the cross has become a cultural statement, in the ancient Roman world, the cross signified humiliation.

In v24 when it tells us that Jesus’ garments were divided among the soldiers, it was actually a description of being stripped down & vulnerable. And that was one of the main purposes of the cross – was to publicly shame and make an example of the criminal so that no one would dare to do the same the next time. V26 reveals to us what Jesus was charged with.

He was charged with high treason because of the false accusation claiming that He came to challenge the authority of Caesar by making Himself a king of this physical kingdom. This is why V27, it tells us that Jesus was crucified alongside two robbers equating him to the same level as though he committed crimes worthy of capital punishment.

And we realize the gravity of what is happening, Jesus who is the Son of God perfectly glorious and covered in majesty, He who is worthy to be praised by His creation for all time now willingly gives Himself to be humiliated for His people

But not only do we see His affliction and humiliation, we also see His

3. Rejection

29 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, 30 save yourself, and come down from the cross!” 31 So also the chief priests with the scribes mocked him to one another, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. 32 Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also reviled him.

Right through history, we read many inspiring stories of people being able to endure extreme hardship because there were people to stand with them in support. There were people to cheer them on. And when we come to v29-32, we get a picture of how lonely Jesus was at that point. Virtually everyone who interacts with him is rejecting him.

Even those who were being crucified with Jesus reviled Him as well (v32). And who is the One who is being rejected, mocked, and scorned after all? He’s not an ordinary human being, He is the Perfect, Righteous Son of God who existed from eternity past, He is the One who created and formed us and now He’s being rejected by those whom He created.

He came to his own,[b] and his own people[c] did not receive him. (John 1:10) I kept thinking about it, if I were in Jesus’ place, I would’ve quit and abandoned the cross thinking “these people don’t care, why should I care? These people don’t deserve my sacrifice, they deserve to be destroyed because of the way they are treating me”.

And yet we see our Lord Jesus boldly endure the rejection of the people He came to save because He knew there was no other way to save them.

But not only do we see His affliction, His humiliation, and His rejection, we also see His

4. Separation

And when the sixth hour[f] had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.[g] 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (v33-34)

Out of all of the sufferings that Jesus experienced on the cross – physical affliction, humiliation, and rejection, this was the one that was the heaviest to bear. V33 tells us that for 3 whole hours, darkness covered the whole land. And this darkness was a picture of the sins of the entire world which were now being placed on Jesus.

Isa 53:6 – “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one – to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all”.

All our lies, all our lust, all our greed, all of our envy, all of our impatience, all our anger, all of our foul language, all our wickedness, and the judgment for it was placed on the One who knew no sin.

2 Cor 5:21 – For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin…

And as the weight of sin and guilt was placed on Jesus Christ, He was also facing the Holy wrath (Holy anger) of God meant for all of those sins. Because God is Holy and Just, He cannot just overlook sins, He has to punish people for their sins. And to realize that Holy and Just anger was now directed toward His own Son who was paying the price for our sins.

Isa 53:10 – Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him, he has put him to grief, when His soul makes an offering for guilt.

And in v34, Jesus cries out saying “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Why did Jesus say that? God the Father and Jesus the Son experienced intimate fellowship/relationship from eternity past. All that they’ve known was a close relationship, there wasn’t a single moment when they were not in fellowship and favor.

But now when the sin of the world was placed on Him & while the wrath of God was being poured out for those sins, the Father turned His face away from the relationship. The close fellowship and favor that they always enjoyed were cut off because of our sins.

And as I was thinking about this – I just realized that I could never understand what it took for the Father to “crush” the Son for our sins. I realized that I could never understand what it meant for the Father to turn His face away from His Son because of our sins. I realized that I could never understand what it meant for Jesus Christ to be spiritually separated from God. But all I know is that it was done for you and me.

Here is our Savior Jesus Christ who was willing to experience separation from the Father (close community – close intimacy) for His people.

But in this passage, we not only see the affliction, the humiliation, the rejection, and the separation, we also see

5. Provision

37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. (v37)

In v37 and v38 we see a paradox playing out. On one hand, it describes the death of the Son of God. And in v38 it talks about a provision that has been made for us. A new way that has been created for us to enter into the presence of God.

This curtain that is being described in v38 was a long, heavy, thick curtain that separated the holy place from the holiest place in the temple. The holiest place symbolized the Holy presence of God and no one except the high priest could enter that place that also only once a year when he came to offer a sacrifice of atonement for his sins and the sins of the people. There was a clear barrier between the people and God which was indicated by the curtain.

But now that Jesus paid the entire payment and bore the entire wrath meant for our sins, it meant that the way was opened for us to enter into God’s presence. Because Jesus was afflicted for us, we know we can experience relief in the presence of God. Because Jesus was humiliated for us, we know we won’t be shamed in the presence of God.

Because Jesus was rejected for us, we know we will be accepted in the presence of God. Because Jesus was separated from God for us, we know that we will never be cut off from the presence of God. And that’s why the writer of Hebrews uses these words to describe how we should approach God: with boldness, confidence, and full assurance!

I want to stop and ask us a question today: When you think about approaching God daily, what are the thoughts and feelings that run through your mind? Is it fear of facing punishment? Is it the uncertainty of how God’s going to respond to you? Is it wondering if God is going to shame you or reject you? And that’s why Good Friday is Good news for us.

Because if you have turned from your ways and put your trust in Jesus’ perfect life and death for you, then you can be assured on the promise of God’s very word, that you can approach him with boldness, confidence and full assurance.

But not only did Jesus endure affliction, humiliation, rejection, separation and make provision for us, it also demands our

6. Confession

39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he[h] breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son[i] of God! (v39)

What’s astonishing is that it’s not a Jew who is saying this, it’s a Gentile, pagan worshipping, Roman soldier who says this. When the centurion saw this, he recognized something else was going on in contrast to all the other executions that he witnessed. His response was in worship where he said “Truly this man is the Son of God”.

And I want to return back to the question that we asked right at the beginning: what difference does Good Friday make to you and me? At this very point, either we could be indifferent saying that this doesn’t concern me. Or we could feel sorry for what Jesus had to go through and stop there. Or we could be grateful and filled with a heart of worship because we realize what was done on that cross was for us!

Sometime back at work I went through this phase where I ended up making back-to-back errors at work. And these were not small errors, but they were big errors. Stakes were very high and the repercussions could be very severe.

Especially after the second error, I was filled with so much fear, shame, and confusion as I awaited what was going to happen to me. And at that point, my boss called me up and had a conversation with me. And by then I had already resigned to the fact that I was going to bear the brunt, and to my shock, he told me that he was going to take the responsibility on himself.

And my immediate response was “Why? I did this, I deserved it. It’s not fair for you to take the blame”. And he just responded back to me by saying “that’s what managers are for, we take responsibility for our team”.

And my heart was filled with so much gratitude because I experienced kindness that I never before experienced in the corporate world. And at that very moment, God just brought this to mind “now you’ve just seen what grace looks like in your workplace, now think about what it might have been for Jesus – the Son of God to bear the entire brunt for your sins”.

And I can remember how my heart was filled with so much of gratitude for Jesus? I think this passage confronts us with the question – what difference does Good Friday make to us?

And even as you’re pondering on that question – let me also add one last thing and close with this thought. In v40-41, it mentions the names of a few women. And the gospel writers mention their names very specifically and intentionally because they would end up being the first witnesses of the risen Christ 3 days later.

And so let no one think that the story of our Mighty and God and Savior ended in a tomb. Sunday is coming when He rose victoriously from the grave and showed us that He is the Living God who will be with us forever – not even death could hold Him back.

We are preaching through a series called “Our Promise keeping God”, as we are studying from the book of Joshua.

Last week we went to chapters 12 & 13, today we will cover chapters 14 through 19 and I’ve titled the sermon is “Responding to God’s Faithfulness”.

The context of these chapters is that Israel has conquered most of the land God promised them and now the land is been divided and distributed among the different tribes.

As we read through this account, what stands out to us is the Faithfulness of God towards his chosen people, **God keeping His promise**.

Let me remind you that God was showing this favor to Israel not because they were special people who looked different than others or had some special qualities about them – But purely because of his love for them and for the purpose of his glory.

7 It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, 8 but it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers – Deuteronomy 7:7-8

The people of Israel were just like us – God-haters, rebellious, selfish, mean, idol worshippers, and corrupt in all their ways, yet because they were God’s chosen people, people whom he had predestined to be his children before the foundations of the earth was build – He pursued them and continued to shower his loving-kindness – again, and again, and again.

Today we all have gathered here to worship that same living God – the God of Abraham, Issac & Jacob. Brothers & Sisters, please don’t think of it as a coincidence – We are here only because of his loving-kindness towards us – because before the foundations of the earth were laid he predestined you and me to be his beloved children – We are here because he pursued us, his loving-kindness, grace, and mercy were upon us. Not because we are special in any way, but because God chose to be faithful to us.

In chapters 14 through 19, we see God keeping his part of the promise to Israel as he is alloting them the land- so that they can settle and make a living after many years of pain and oppression. Watching God do that should fill our hearts with hope and joy.

Why? – Today, some of you may be experiencing pain, oppression, failure, and defeat – but even in the midst of the chaos, we see God’s faithfulness in small little blessings he brings our way, just like he showed his faithfulness when they were in the wilderness.

Last year when Jane was admitted to the hospital, going through the surgery, I remember one night we decided to count our blessings and there was an unending list of things we could thank God for – our children, their health, provision of finances to meet our needs, our families who stood and prayed for us, church family who loved and cared for us, friends all around the world who showered their love etc, this list was too long.

Yes, he shows his faithfulness and grace in many ways, but the greatest of all blessings we get to enjoy is the freedom in Christ. While we were sinners, the God who created us, choose us & loved us sent his only son Jesus to save us from eternal death and give us eternal life. Jesus came and lived the righteous and obedient life we were supposed to live, fulfilled God’s righteous laws, and exchanged it on the cross with our unrighteousness, granting us freedom from the penalty of sin.

Yes, of course, the Israelites were pleased with the good gifts God was granting them but the greatest gift they were experiencing was God’s presence dwelling among them, the ark of God that symbolized the presence of God was moving with them, it allowed them to periodically offer sacrifices and receive God’s forgiveness.

As Israel was been blessed by God, what was God expecting in return?

As we have been experiencing his faithfulness today, in Christ, have you wondered what is God expecting from us in return?

I believe we can find two clues in these 6 chapters.

Accepting God’s providence & provision with joy and contentment

If we consider the total mass of the land that was distributed among the people, I believe not every piece of the land had the same properties, some were fertile land right next to a stream of water, some were on the hills, some were in the forest, etc.

Therefore, most of the land distribution was not decided based on what Joshua or the leaders thought was right, but it was chosen by casting lot. It was God who decided who gets what? So that there was no quarrel among them.

Joshua 14:2** – Their inheritance was by lot, just as the Lord had commanded by the hand of Moses for the nine and one-half tribes.

And among the twelve tribes, the tribe of Levi was not even allotted any land.

Joshua 14:4b – And no portion was given to the Levites in the land, but only cities to dwell in, with their pasturelands for their livestock and their substance.

Why? Because they were set aside to be servants in God’s temple. Their portion came from the sacrifices that were offered in the house of God.

And in all this providence & provision God made for the people of Israel he expected them to be content, satisfied and joyful.

Brothers & Sisters, isn’t that what God would expect from us as well today.

The parable of the talents narrated by Jesus in Matthew 25:14-30 tells that not everyone has been given the same measure of talents.

15 – To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability.

The parable also tells us that when the master comes back he will ask for an account, and he will search the attitude of our hearts by measuring our faithfulness in handling the good gifts he has offered us.

We accept the providence & provision of God with joy and contentment because we know he is a fair God and he shows no partiality towards us in any way.

In Joshua 17:14-18, we see an interesting incident where Joshua characterizes God’s fair heart towards the people of Joseph.

14 Then the people of Joseph spoke to Joshua, saying, “Why have you given me but one lot and one portion as an inheritance, although I am a numerous people, since all along the Lord has blessed me?” **15** And Joshua said to them, “If you are a numerous people, go up by yourselves to the forest, and there clear ground for yourselves in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, since the hill country of Ephraim is too narrow for you.” **16** The people of Joseph said, “The hill country is not enough for us. Yet all the Canaanites who dwell in the plain have chariots of iron, both those in Beth-shean and its villages and those in the Valley of Jezreel.” **17** Then Joshua said to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, “You are a numerous people and have great power. You shall not have one allotment only, **18** but the hill country shall be yours, for though it is a forest, you shall clear it and possess it to its farthest borders. For you shall drive out the Canaanites, though they have chariots of iron, and though they are strong.”

In the parable of the vineyard which Jesus narrated in Matthew 20:1-16, we see the owner gives the same wage to every worker of the day, even to those who worked only half a day. The last shall be first and the first shall be last.

Beloved, God chooses to distribute what belongs to him according to his perfect will for us and we expect ourselves to be content and happy within at all times.

In fact, what he wants us to treasure the most in our hearts is His son Jesus, and the spiritual fulfillment and satisfaction he gives to us every day of our life.

The world we live in today is driven by competition that creates cravings to want and have more than what’s already been given to us by our loving Father.

The Internet and Social media is the tool the enemy is using to create such cravings and desires, distracting us from experiencing and living within the means God has already provided for us.

Of course, we can’t run away from the new technology advancements, they are good in some sense and do add value and exposes us to many good things which were not accessible earlier.

I have been there many times, and I know what it is like.

And therefore, to be rooted and grounded in the Gospel is much more needed & important for us in today’s generation. Because the Gospel opens our eyes to the brokenness of this world and reminds us of our true identity in Christ. It reminds us that our identity is not in the things we possess or the places we live in, but in Christ alone is our hope, he is the only true treasure we need for the longings of our soul.

1 Timothy 6:6-12 – But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.

Brothers & sisters, in response to God’s faithfulness to us, let us learn to accept his providence and provision with joy and contentment.

The second expectation he would have from us is to ..

To walk in obedience to his word

Brothers & sisters, Obedience matters to God.

I want you to read with me Joshua 14:6-14

6 Then the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-Barnea concerning you and me. 7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-Barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him word again as it was in my heart. 8 But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; **yet I wholly followed the Lord my God. 9 And Moses swore on that day, saying, ‘Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever because you have wholly followed the Lord my God.’ 10 And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the Lord spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old. 11 I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming. 12 So now give me this hill country of which the Lord spoke on that day, for you heard on that day how the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities. It may be that the Lord will be with me, and I shall drive them out just as the Lord said.”

13 Then Joshua blessed him, and he gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance. 14 Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the Lord, the God of Israel. 15 Now the name of Hebron formerly was Kiriath-arba.

In these verses, we see Caleb’s obedient and willing heart to serve the Lord. He reminds Joshua of the times when he obeyed the servant of the Lord Moses’s instruction to wholeheartedly, and the promise Moses made to him. And in verse 11 he again expresses his willingness to be sent for war if need be. In return, Joshua blesses him and allocates him the land his heart desired.

In response to God’s faithfulness to us he expects Obedience from us.

Why? Because …

• Obedience to God proves our love for Him (1 John 5:2-3)

2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.

• Demonstrates our faithfulness to Him (1 John 2:3-6)

3 And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. 4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: 6 whoever says he abides in him
ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

• Glorifies Him in the world (1 Peter 2:12)

12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

• Opens avenues of blessing for us (John 13:17)

17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

My dear friends, we have all seen and experienced God’s faithfulness to us in innumerable ways, the greatest one is the redemptive work of Christ on our behalf.

Then,

• Why is it difficult to flee from sin when it’s easy now since we are not in bondage to sin?
• Why is it difficult to stop engaging in the evil & lustful thoughts in our minds when we can engage with God?
• Why is it difficult to turn away from that dishonorable images, social media posts, reels, and videos when we can turn away and imagine the cross of Calvary where our loving savior died for our sins and iniquities?
• Why is it difficult to forgive one another when we have received forgiveness from our heavenly father?
• Why is it difficult to love when we have received the agape love of God in abundance because of Jesus?
• Why is it difficult to follow him and do his will when Christ sacrificed his heavenly glory and came to dwell among us, to be ridiculed, dishonored, tortured, and killed for our sake?
• Why is it difficult to confess our sins to one another and repent when he had surrounded us with brothers and sisters, elders and leaders to watch over our lives?

Isn’t it because we are forgetting to value and cherish his faithfulness towards us.

Because we choose to ignore him.

• When we wake up in the morning we choose to pick up our phones instead of going on our knees and meditating on his spoken word to us.
• When we are confronted with challenges and setbacks in our life, workplace, schools & colleges we choose to apply our own wisdom and understanding instead of seeking God and his will.
• When we go to bed, instead of closing our eyes thinking and thanking God for the day we choose to close our eyes on the last movie or television program or something on the mobile we watched.

Friends, our obedience matters to God, and unlike the Israelites, we have been given the Spirit of His Son Jesus to help us in these matters.

Romans 8:1-4 Paul writes

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

As we now partake in the communion, let’s remember his faithfulness towards us.