Bits and Pieces – 109th Edition – April 10, 2022

     On Palm Sunday about 2000 years ago, excitement in Jerusalem was steadily mounting.  The Passover would be in six days. Rumour was that Jesus the Prophet of Nazareth may come.  His miraculous works were well known, the sick were healed, and even the dead were raised.  Many thought He was the promised Messiah.  They suffered long under Roman bondage.  Would He claim the throne?  Would He cast off the Roman yoke?

     Their anticipation increased when they learned on Sunday morning that Jesus Christ was indeed coming.  This was the moment they were waiting for.  Matthew said, “Behold thy king cometh” [21:5].  And as He rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey, many of the Passover visitors to Jerusalem cried out, “Who is this?  Jesus did come that day, but not in the way they expected.

     He came as Christ the Anointed One. The people were ready to anoint Him, King, that day, but He already had been anointed by God to become the Saviour of sinners and the King and Head of the Church. [Psalm 2:6, 7].

     He came as Christ the Approachable One.  He rode into the city, not on the back of a camel – the beast of state, nor on a high-prancing stallion – a beast of war, but on a humble donkey. On a donkey Jesus was approachable.  Anybody can cry out “God be merciful to me a sinner” [Luke 18:13].

     He came as Christ The Compassionate One.  Jesus came down the Mount of Olives.  It was there that the mighty Conqueror broke down in tears as He gazed over Jerusalem.  No shout of triumph, just tears [Luke 19:42].  Jesus is compassionate toward seeking sinners.

     He is Christ The Cleansing One.  On entering Jerusalem He did not ascend the throne of Israel as some expected. He went straight to the Temple and began to cleanse it [Luke 19:41]. He pictures the human heart.  Before He reigns over it He must cleanse it.

     Sleeping Christians are wakened up.

     Lukewarm church members are fired up.

     Delinquent church members pay up.

     Timid witnesses speak up.

     Immature Christians grow up.

 [Author unknown]

     Two prominent Free Presbyterians have been promoted to glory this past week.  The Rev. Harry Cairns, retired minister from Omagh, and Charlie Gill who was a leading light in the Crossgar church.  Both men served the Lord faithfully during their lifetimes.  Please pray for their sorrowing families.

     Faith is defined as belief or trust in the word or statement of another.  Here we must exercise caution, for man’s promises are not always based on fact but perhaps even on fraud.  Many an eager investor has been entangled in the web woven by some unscrupulous financier and lost everything because he believed and trusted a liar.

     In the world of religion, unthinking people believe and put their trust in some nebulous claims while, the whole time, they are heading for eternal destruction.  Religious fraud is not unknown today, and many are deceived by it.

     The basis for Christianity is truth.  Paul speaks of those who turned from idols (False religion) to “serve the living and true God” [1 Thessalonians 1:9].  We are reminded, “that eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began” [Titus 1:2].  God does not lie and “cannot lie”.  Paul tells us “it is impossible for God to lie” and that His promises of salvation become “an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast” [Hebrews 6:19].That anchor has been taken by Jesus, the “forerunner” and eternally fastened in heaven.

     Do you feel the billows of life disturbing the repose of your soul?  Have innumerable afflictions caused you to almost lose hope?  Tune your ears to hear the sound of God’s winches slowly pulling the vessel of your soul toward heaven.  Someday, perhaps soon, the Lord will bring you finally and eternally into the safe harbour of heaven where you will be forever with the Lord.

     When Ruth was gleaning in the field of Boaz, the expression “her hap” is used [Ruth 2:3].  What does it mean? It has the meaning of fortune (good or bad), occurrence or event.  Therefore Ruth’s good fortune was to be led to the field of Boaz.  To “glean” is to gather grain left behind in the field after the grain has been harvested.

“Suspicions subtract, faith adds, but love multiplies.  It blesses twice – him who gives it and him who gets it.” [C.T. Studd]