View of the World
It was great to be back and see so many of you on Easter Sunday! I appreciated some comments that I received through email and other interactions on the phone or in person about the sermon on Easter Sunday. After thinking about it a little more, I am going to go on in Psalm 110 this Sunday. On the traditional church calendar, Easter Sunday is the “First Sunday of Easter” and the following Sunday is the “Second Sunday of Easter” and so on. The series explanation for Easter Sunday and this coming Sunday is reposted below.
I am persuaded that the truths touched on in Psalm 110 provide the basic and best biblical structure for shaping a Christian perspective and outlook about so much that is happening in our world today. Most recently attention has shifted to concern over the treatment of Asians and Asian Americans in our society. Please, when you have a minute check our link to Karalee Nakatsuka’s letter that she has given us permission to circulate. Also, if you have written anything or come across an article that you have found particularly helpful for evaluating or understanding these times in which we live, pass it along to me. I’d like to consider it.
The Right Man at the Right Hand — Psalm 110: View of the World
Three-Part Series on Psalm 110
Easter Sunday, April 4, 2021
Psalm 110:1-2
Second Sunday of Easter,
April 11, 2021
Psalm 110:3,5,6
Third Sunday of Easter,
April 18, 2021
Psalm 110:4,7
Arguably, the most frequently quoted psalm in the New Testament, Psalm 110 sets forth the authority and power of Jesus Christ over, and in, this present fallen world. King David, the author of the psalm, prophetically listens in and records God direct message to His anointed King. David’s reference to Him as “my Lord” is his act of worship, recalling Joshua’s worship and his humble question to the mysterious man he encounters outside Jericho: “What message does my Lord have for his servant?” In Psalm 110, Yahweh and His King are in Divine alignment with one purpose: to completely subdue and rule our world. Their unity of purpose is such that whether the setting is the throne (verse 1), or the battlefield (verse 5), they are at each other’s “right hand” to this end. Jesus began His conquest by breaking the power of sin’s punishment on the cross and now in the fullness of His resurrection, and through the work of the Holy Spirit, He is breaking the power of sin’s presence. The battle against sin is not over, not in us, and not in our world, but we can take heart. If we believe in Him, the right Man is on our side, as Martin Luther taught us to sing. No other psalm displays the divine Person of Christ, His passion, His power, and the prospect before Him.
Dear Friends,
…today I would like to share some of
my thoughts, not out of anger, but out of care for our community, to provide an opportunity for increased
awareness and understanding, in the hopes that we can continue to work to become a hospitable community for
all.