Hosanna - the Redeemer

Hosanna -

They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, "Hosanna!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Blessed is the king of Israel!"

John 12:13.

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.

And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

Revelation 7:9,10.

Oh, how beautiful isn't this. In gospel of John, people are shouting "Hosanna", means, "Save us now, or Please save, or Save now". It's like a prayer, Save, I pray.

Whereas when it comes to Book of Revelation, people from every nation, tribe, people and language, are crying out of happiness, "Salvation belongs to the Lord". Their white robes signify that they are Redeemed and are Washed by the Blood of Jesus.

In both of the verses from gospel of John and Book of Revelation, we see people holding the branches of Palm in their hands. They are symbolically used for such ideas as triumph, victory, peace, plenty and also fertility. It is always evergreen. In one of Judaism' cults (Kabbalah) palm is symbolized as the Tree of Life. The Romans rewarded champions of the games and celebrated military successes with palm branches.

What symbolism can a Christian derive from this. Yes, it is Jesus Christ who gave up His life as a ransom. In gospel of Matthew 20:28, Jesus says, "just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Apostle Paul writing to the Church in Ephesus, says, "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us" (Ephesians 1:7,8). For we are been "bought with a price" (1Corinthians 6:20). So lets "stop becoming slaves of men" and this world (1Corinthians 7:23) and "by all means, glorify God in your body" (1Corinthians 6:20), because you're a Winner over sin and eternal death through Christ' death and resurrection. So let's continue our journey of Spiritual warfare with this hope.

Knowledge Seeker

 Just a Knowledge Seeker -

I'm just a knowledge seeker,

On my way to the glory.

I know what truth is, but

I should learn to diffuse it.

Knowledge is the only source,

As I just learnt a jot and a tittle of it.

Of the chasm of knowledge, 

There are still areas unexplored. 

People force me to share it, 

For it would be like leaving them 

With a life boat in the middle of an ocean.

I know what they incur by it.

It is better to share what I'm confident of,

Than to show off as a Philosopher.

A halo and a nimbus I may desire to,

What worth is it for when I'm half empty.

For the LORD is the source of it,

From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

And I completely depend on Him,

As I seek it to enlighten my understanding.

Holiness

Holiness - 

When I wanted to write about this, I retrospect and introspect my life and my illness to speak or write about this inherent  charcter of the Lord. Isn't that why, prophet Isaiah when he had a vision in the times of king Uzziah, in Isaiah chapter 6, saw that the Seraphim, the dwellers of heaven, themselves covered their feet and their faces, as if they are not worthy to present themselves before the Lord or in the presence of the Lord, and cried to one another, knowing where they are, calling, "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Armies; His glory fills the whole earth" (v3). And Isaiah, the prophet who was watching all this dumb struck, felt the weight of his own sinfulness, said, "Woe to me! I [too] am doomed! - because I, a man with unclean lips, living among a people with unclean lips, have seen with my own eyes the King, ADONAI - Tzva'ot!", which means, "the King, the Lord of Armies" (v5). This is how the holiness of the Lord would be. No one is worthy to stand in this presence. When God called Moses in Exodus chapter 3, and presented himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Moses was awe struck and "hid his face because he was afraid to look at God" (v6). The Lord introduces Himself when questioned by Moses, replied as, "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you" (v14). 

Can man become holy? No. Never by himself, because Romans 3:23 says, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God". Man can become righteous by the salvific and redemptive blood of Jesus Christ. Jesus calls himself as "I AM", as in Exodus 3:14, in John 8:58. And Jesus also says that we die in sin, because, "for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins" (Jn 8:24). Matthew 20:28, Mark 10:45, reads, "Even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” 2Corinthians 5:21 reads, "He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God". We are made righteous by the blood of Jesus, but are in the process of being holy. We should  live a pious life to be made holy till the day of the Lord or until our last breath. Till then day after day we should live a life sanctified to the Lord. Romans 12:9-21, Colossians 3:12-17, etc, all teach how to lead a pious life, to present yourselves as "a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you..." (1Corinthians 6:19). Because "For you are bought at a price" (1Corinthians 6:20), the invaluable blood of Jesus.

Apostle Paul in his bid farewell address to Ephesian elders before leaving to Jerusalem (Acts 20:22), giving them a hope in the present and in the future says, "Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified" (Acts 20:32). Paul is speaking of an inheritance among all those who are sanctified, which means, the sanctified has an inheritance. They may be the believers and the church or may be those who inherit the heaven or the new heaven and earth. The scriptures says, "..we are children, then we are heirs - heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.." (Romans 8:16,17). His children are sanctified for this purpose.

The word "holy", render to mean sanctified. Sanctified is used in hope to encourage the believer and the Church in his spiritual journey, as well as, also the resultant act of Christ through the Cross. The scriptures also confirm that we are sanctified through the blood of Jesus. Hebrews 13:12; 10:10 reads, "And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood". "By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." Scriptures like 1Corinthians 6:11; 1Thessalonians 5:23; Hebrews 10:14; Revelation 22:11 and so on, are all there to encourage the believer and the Church in hope to encourage our spiritual warfare. But one thing is clear that we are sanctified and set apart for the Lord. Jesus before his arrest declares himself as "sanctified/ set apart" in John 10:36; 17:19, and He also wants his apostles to be "sanctified by the truth", and separating or consecreating them as "who are not of this world", in John 17:17-19. 

"25 And thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compound after the art of the apothecary: it shall be an Holy (qodes) anointing oil. 26 And thou shalt anoint the tabernacle of the congregation therewith, and the ark of the testimony, 27 And the table and all his vessels, and the candlestick and his vessels, and the altar of incense, 28 And the altar of burnt offering with all his vessels, and the laver and his foot. 29 And thou shalt sanctify (qadas) them, that they may be most holy (qodes): whatsoever toucheth them shall be holy (qadas). 30 And thou shalt anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate (qadas) them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office." Exodus 30:26-30. We can read the words "consecrate/ sanctify/ holy" all come under the same word "qadas". We can also read that the Levites, Aaron and his sons are also sanctified for the special work God has appointed for them. It makes clear that the Levites, the utensils and other things are all sanctified or consecrated for special work, just like Jesus himself, the Apostles. Even the believers are all sanctified for a special purpose and we need to accept it in faith and in hope.

To conclude, "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy (hagios) nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light" (1Peter 2:9). Ephesians 1:4 says, "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy (hagios) and blameless in his sight." Colossians 3:12-17, includes reiterating that we are "the elect of God, holy and beloved..", following with some rules for christian living to live a pious and acceptable life. Peter writing in his first letter encourages us to have a 'holy conduct' to 'be holy in all you do', "But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy” (1Peter 1:15,16).

There are many other things that are connected with holiness but out of those this is the most prominent thing I thought to write it down. I want to close with a hope and a wish that, "May he make your (our) hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints. Amen (1Thessalonians 3:13).

Idolatry and Idolaters

In the Salvation Cantata, Psalms, 115, v4-8, "But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see. They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell. They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats. Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them."

Very recently, I read about a Pompeii excavation, a four wheeled "Ceremonial Chariot" made of iron, bronze and wood, which has been found. Some archaeologists claim that the chariot was used for marriages for bringing bride and the groom and others claim that the chariot was used to carry the idols of gods and goddesses as a ceremonial possession on the roads. (Look for information on Tensa and Pilentum are given in the pictures below). Even today we can see such ceremonials happen all around the world.

In Roman history, we can see temples for the emperors like Julius Caesar and Augustus, and the adoration that took place in the temples, as like we can see the divine forms of the Egyptian Pharaohs as well. 

In the Holy Bible, we can see idolatory in the times of Moses. Aaron makes a golden calf and says, "Behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of Egypt", in Ex.32:4. In the next verses we can clearly see that an alter was built and sacrifices were made.

After the reign of King Solomon, Jeroboam with a contemptuous intention, if let the tribes on his side go to the temple in Jerusalem, may join Rehoboam and might kill him. So, he made two golden calves and said, "here are your gods who brought you up from the land of Egypt", 1Kings 12:28. And he made a special festival and offered sacrifices.

There are some more instances of the idols in the Bible.

"Your calf-idol is rejected..", (Hosea 8:5) says the Lord. You made those idols with your own hands and brought distruction upon yourselves (Hosea 8:4). Colossians 3:5 says that, "Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry." 1Corinthians 10:7,14, says "Do not be idolaters..", and "..flee from idolatory". The boasting Philistines, after capturing the Ark of Covenant, and placed it in the temple of Dagon. The next morining the people of Ashdod saw that the idol of Dagon fell facing ground before the Ark of Covenant and the next day they saw the fallen broken idol of Dagon (1Samuel 5:1-5). The Lord we serve is the Living God who calls Himself as "I am" (Ex 3:14) and even our Lord Jesus refers Himself with the same title in John 8:58, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abharam was, I am".

I want to close with a verse from Habakkuk 2:19,20, "Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it. But the Lord is in his Holy Temple: let all the earth keep silence before Him". And the Temple is your body, and the Holy Spirit lives in you and "You are not your own, for you were brought at a price. So glorify God with your body" (1Corinthians 6:19,20).

Intentions can change equations

Was 300<30?

Confusing!

Yes, the equation of Judas was completely wrong. When Mary has brought an expensive perfume [Spikenard (Nardostachys jatamansi, that grows in the hills of northern India)] about the price more than three hundred denarii (made of silver) and annointed Jesus' head (Mk 14:3) and feet and wiped His feet with her hair, Judas and others criticized her until Jesus mediated. 

We can read that Judas was a thief, stealing money from the money bag. I think Judas wanted the perfume bottle to be given as a gift and then later in time he could sell it and make money out of it. But his greed for money was not successful at this point of time. 

But Judas sold Jesus for only thirty silver coins which is way too much low when compared with three hundred silver coins. This shows how much Judas was possessed with greed for money. Judas made a pact with the chief priests to betray Jesus. The value for money may matter for Judas but for Jesus adoration and love towards Him mattered much, than above all else.

Proverbs 4:24 says, "Guard your heart above all else/diligence, for it is the source of life". Heart in hebrew is "leb", which usually refers to inner self, since it is considered to be the seat of one's nature. We need to gaurd it carefully from the worldly things and concentrate more on godly things. We are bought by the price of the blood of Jesus (Galatians 13:3a), and we are His people. So, let's be warned by that "..but one in a hurry to get rich will not go unpunished", (Pr 28:20), which Judah had at the end.

Intentions can change equations.

Mt 26:14-16.

Jn 12:3-8.

It's Time.

 Gaius Cassius Longinus, was a Roman Senator and a General best known as a leading instigator of the plot to assassinate Julius Caesar on March 15, 44 BC and was successful in his plot.

The above quote of Guais Cassius, "In great attempts, it is even glorious to fail", has reminded me of the attempts the Pharisees, the Sadducees and other sects tried on Jesus. We see many encounters these religious heads had directly with Jesus. Of many I remember one such incident in Lk 4:16-30. One comment of Jesus, flared up the people of Nazareth so much so that, they dragged Jesus out of the town and took him to the end of the cliff and wanted to throw him down. But Jesus withdrew from there and went on his way. It might look like a heroic failure, but has a significant cause.

In Jn 7:1-31, on v30, some tried to arrest him, yet no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. One radical move by Jesus has flared this up. But yet the attempt failed.

In Mt 21:46, the chief priests of the temple were trying to arrest Jesus but were afraid of the people around. Just a parable by Jesus has flared up this time. But even this was a failed attempt. There are still some more incidents of such sort. 

Pleople of this world will fall into plots and make plots for others, but Jesus was a complete human and God himself, it is His time and He knows it very well. Speaking to His mother Mary, Jesus said "My hour has not yet come", Jn 2:4. Jesus clearly knows what his time is. In Jn 8:21, Jesus testifies  about his time of departure. In Mt 26:45, Mk 14:41, Jesus says, "the time has come".

Even though His Father can send twelve legions of angles (Mt 26:53), approximately 72000 or 144000 in number, Jesus backoff to "let the Scriptures be fulfilled" (v54), which say it must happen this way. People can plot but may miss sometimes, but if it is God who planned it and inspired to write it, it must happen to what was prophesied.

No man has power over his own life, but Jesus had to fulfill the Scriptures. He exactly knows what's gonna happen. In Jn 10:17,18, Jesus says, "I lay down my life, so that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own". Standing before Pilate, Jesus replies back strongly when Pilate tries to command over, "You would have no authority over me (my life) at all.. if it hadn't been given you from above".

Jesus gave his life wilfully for us. In this time of Lent, let us examine ourselves and dedicate ouselves as a "living sacrifice" (Romans 12:1) to the Lord Jesus Christ, one who poured out His blood as propitiation [gk. hilastērion, Rom 3:25] , a sacrificial lamb for our sins and who gave us complete Redemption and Salvation (Rom 3:21-26).

Thank you Lord Jesus for shedding your precious blood for us, a must need which nothing can fulfill or replaced with.

Do Jesus have elder sisters and brothers, answer to a Rationalist

Penmetsa Subbaraju a Rationalist, a few days ago asked a question on his Facebook related to the sisters and brothers of Jesus. In his briefing, he claims that Jesus had elder sister(s), which would question the Virgin birth of Jesus as well as the Deity of Jesus. To which I posted my reply in number of comments. Because I cannot post the same, I summarised my comments and made it a prose/composition, for easy reading. My comments goes like this.

Brother, the verse may seem like a game changer to people like Penmetsa Subbaraju and Co, to denigrate and disparage the Deity of Jesus. But before going ahead with such sources, he must have made a more attentive study on the subject he was referring to.

In Mark 6:3, the words "adelphē" and "adelphós", the sisters and brothers of Jesus in greek, meant that, they are not the conjoined sisters and brothers, but are cousin sisters and brothers from a (?)distant relatives (extended family). The verse taken (Mark 6:3), does carry the meaning of a "kinswoman or a cousin."

See John 7:3,5,10, which clearly states that the brothers of Jesus are not conjoined. Though the greek word "adelphós" for brothers may carry the general meaning, we can still deal with it in a different manner.

Why/How I can still debate on John 7:3,5,10 as not own brothers of Jesus, but may be (?)Cousins. 

In the following verses we can see Brothers of Jesus, James, Joses, Simon and Judas and the Mother of Jesus, Mary, mentioned in the same consecutive verses. 

Matt 12:46,47

Matt 13:55

Mark 3:31,32

Mark 6:3

Luke 8:19,20

John 2:12 and also

Acts 1:14, (though not related to the point of discussion).

(1) All the above verses have as said, mentioned Mary and Brothers of Jesus in the same consecutive verses and not in John 7:3,5,10, though Jesus brethren(?) were mentioned, Mary, the mother of Jesus was not mentioned. Thus, making the possibility that either (a) the incident was not happening in Nazareth or in Capernaum, because as we saw all the other verses mentioned, Mary, the mother of Jesus and the brothers of Jesus in the same consecutive verses, drawing the meaning that, they all came as a family/collectively searching/in want of Jesus, and, (b) it clearly states that, the incident is happening some where in the region of Galilee and definitely not either in Nazaret nor in Capernaum, because the starting verse (John 7:1), clarifies that Jesus was not in Nazareth nor in Capernaum but definitely was in the region of Galilee, where the whereabouts of the incidence is unknown.

(2) The above mentioned verses clearly states that, this is all happening either in Nazareth or in Capernaum (except Acts 1:14 in Jerusalem), which are the hometowns of Jesus. And the incident that mentioned in John 7:3,5,10 is happening at Galilee, a much broader view of the area, where other cities/villages are also included other than Jesus' hometowns, Nazareth and Capernaum. Where there may be his distant relatives like his cousins who might be living in(?) which is unignorable. Isn't that? 

Matthew 2:22,23, Matthew 4:13, and Mark 4:3 mentions about Jesus' hometowns, Nazareth and later Capernaum.

   

So, to conclude, both of the above points makes it clear that the residence of Jesus' family and his brothers and sisters are and the place of occurrence, are not one and the same but different. As well as the derivation of meanings of greek words, "adelphē" and "adelphós" are not one and the same at every instance. This absolutely prove that you did a grave mistake against the beliefs and sentiments of Christendom. Hope you rectify it. Thank you.