Introduction
The International Herald Tribune Reports that “European governments would be ready to cut (greenhouse gas)emissions by 2020 to 30 percent below 1990 levels, from a current pledge of 20 percent— but only if other heavy polluters joined in, said Sigmar Gabriel, the German environment minister who led a meeting in Brussels that formally endorsed the EU targets.
“Germany, the biggest European economy, already was prepared to cut its own emissions even further if there was a broader agreement, Gabriel said, pointing to the 40 percent target supported by the German Parliament.”
These decisions are based on a perception declared by many scientists that we are headed for an environmental disaster which we have caused and if we don’t change our habits soon, we will destroy the world as we know it. The question we ask about that perception is, “Is that perception reality?” All of the evidence of science is beyond doubt that we are experiencing global warming that is causing some alarming problems and the fear is that it will cause even greater problems. A recent meeting of scientists left no doubt about that. However, at the same meeting, they were only 90% certain that we are the cause. There are some scientists who are not sure at all that our actions are causing the current global warming. This leaves at least some doubt as to whether the perception is reality. This is a fairly important issue and if we are destroying our house, we should certainly do everything we can to clean it up. Wouldn’t it be great to have certainty about what is reality and what is perception so that we could agree and not merely operate from a perception?
Today is Palm Sunday. It is the day we recall the story of the Triumphal entry of Jesus into the city of Jerusalem.
This story creates a perception. It is a perception that Jesus is the king. But as we read what follows, it becomes evident that this is really all that it is. It creates a perception, but what is the reality? Immediately following this story, we see evidence of God’s kingdom when Jesus heals those who are blind and lame, but we also see evidence that He is not king. Within a few verses we read that the authority of Jesus was being questioned and within a few chapters we have the story of Jesus’ crucifixion.
Is the triumphal entry story of Jesus being king a perception or is it reality? The world has a perception about the reign of Jesus but what is the reality? How does the reality impact our lives? The reign of God is a story which is played out in all of Scripture. One of the passages which leaves no confusion about the reality of that reign is Psalm 2. This morning as we examine this Psalm, we want to be reminded that the eternal reign of God through His Messiah is reality, not merely our perception and in spite of the world’s contrary perception. We want to be encouraged by this message and we will also think about the warning to those who reject that reign.
Read Psalm 2
The World Perception
There is a perception among the people and the rulers of the world about the reign of Jesus. We see that perception described in verses 1-3.
The world, its leaders and people, is angry at God. Verse 1 speaks about the rage of the world against God. They do not like God.
The world plans rebellion against the reign of God. They meet together to see what they can do to work against God and against His anointed one. The people of the world plot against God. They stand together against God.
The leaders and people of the world refuse to follow God. In verse 3 they agree that they will do whatever they can to break what they perceive to be God’s hold on them. They feel bound by God and they reject that feeling.
The kingdom of God is rejected by the kingdom of this world. As I read this I was wondering whether people deliberately reject God’s reign or if they do so unknowingly. Do the leaders of Canada ignore God because they just don’t think he exists or are they deliberate in their rejection of God? They do not make decisions with a conscious desire to hear what God is saying. But do they make those decisions because they are knowingly and consciously saying “no” to Him or do they simply not think about God? The impression we get from what the world says is that they just don’t believe in Him and so make decisions without a conscious awareness of God. This text would suggest that it is a deliberate rejection. Romans 1 would also suggest that no one unknowingly rejects God. They reject all the evidence pointing to God and so are in rebellion against Him.
Whatever the case, the common perception of the people and the rulers of this world is that God doesn’t count, He is not to be taken seriously, He is ignored, He is rejected. The majority of people in the world do not live in a relationship with God in their lives.
The evidence of people’s rejection of God’s reign was evident in the Old Testament. The reign of God was present in the nation of Israel, but from the beginning, nations rejected God’s people and fought against them. When Gideon told his 300 soldiers to cry “For the Lord and for Gideon” it was because those who came against them came not only against the nation of Israel, but against the Lord.
In the New Testament, this Psalm is actually quoted in Acts 4 following the release of Peter and John to explain why the Jewish leaders were rejecting the followers of Jesus. In Acts 4:26-27 it says, "Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed."
This opposition has continued throughout history. Several hundred years after the beginning of the church, Diocletian, a Roman emperor had a medal struck bearing the inscription, "The name of Christians being extinguished."
I read that James Dobson was invited to comment on sexual abstinence on a broadcast in New York. He took two days to participate in the filming and the final show aired 45 seconds of his interview. He writes, "I routinely turn down these kinds of network television `opportunities'...the deck is usually stacked against those of us with a Judeo-Christian point of view."
I also read this quote in The Humanist, "Do we need traditional Christianity?" "No!" "Once God was a big strong man with a beard, generally invisible, who ran the show...as human knowledge increased, such a God became less and less credible..."
I also read a story of a person who went into a jewellery story to purchase a cross. The sales clerk asked the person, “Do you want a plain one, or one with a little man on it?"
The perception of a majority of the world is that God isn’t or that He doesn’t count or He is to be rejected and opposed at all cost. But is that the ultimate reality of the universe?
God’s Reality
On the day when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, he was declaring reality. On that day, reality was not recognized, but that did not change what reality was. Psalm 2 declares what reality is and that is that God is the one enthroned in heaven. Revelation 4:2 affirms that reality when it says, "I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it."
The presentation of this reality in Psalm 2 is quite amazing. God laughs at the violent rebellion of those who oppose Him. God’s laughter was already seen in the Old Testament when the deliverer of Israel was raised in the house of Pharaoh. Just think about it. Moses was the one who would destroy Egypt and lead a slave nation out of that country. Pharaoh did not know that he who was raised in his royal house would destroy his people, but God knew and in that knowing was laughing at their rebellion against Him. He mocks their feeble attempts to overthrow Him. In his mocking he is saying to their feeble rebellion, “you can’t be serious!”
He not only laughs, he also rebukes them for their unwise rebellion. He causes His fear to enter their hearts because He is angry at their rebellion. In his rebuke He is saying to them, “you are dead wrong.” God is King and that is reality.
The kingship of God is declared and established on earth through His Son whom He has appointed King. Already in II Samuel 7:8-16, God had declared that a son of David would forever sit on the throne reigning His people. This is where the triumphal entry story and this Psalm connect. It was on the occasion of the triumphal entry that the world was able to see reality. Reality is that Jesus is the king who has come into this world. He is the one who was presented as King and became King when he ascended to the right hand of the Father following His death and resurrection. He is the one who will reign over all the nations of the earth.
Jesus is the one who will receive all nations as His inheritance. It was customary for kings to grant large gifts to people who were highly favoured. To Esther the king said, in Esther 5:6, "Now what is your petition? It will be given you. And what is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be granted." In Psalm 2:8, God, the King, promises that His Son, His anointed one will receive all nations as an inheritance in answer to His request.
He is also the one who will break down all rebellion against God. Psalm 2:9 is repeated in Revelation 12:5 where we read, “She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.” It is also repeated in 19:15 which says, “Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” His reign is further described in Revelation 18 where we see the vivid imagery describing the destruction of Babylon, the symbol of all nations rebellion against God. These are the truths of reality.
Scott Hoesee says, “You see, just based on the gospels, there seems to be virtually no hook-up between Psalm 2 and Jesus' actual life. But maybe that's because we're making the same mistake as the Babylonians and others made about ancient Israel: namely, we're looking only at the surface of history. Perhaps if our vision could penetrate deeper, we would see that everything Psalm 2 says about God's mighty anointed King applies to Jesus and then some. Perhaps if we could peek behind the scenes of history we'd see Jesus smashing the forces of darkness with something far firmer than even an iron sceptre: we'd see him defeating death itself through the unlikely weapon of his own cross.”
Responses To God’s Reality
What response is there to this reality?
Warning
Earlier I talked about the perception that we are headed for an environmental disaster. Those who perceive this to be reality warn us that we need to respond to this danger and make immediate changes in our lifestyle. They warn that if we do not, we will see more violent weather, extinction of certain animal species like the polar bear and increased flooding on coastal communities.
The perception of the world is that God is irrelevant. But, as we have seen, that is not reality. Reality is that God is King of all. Since that is reality, rulers and indeed all people need to take warning. This warning comes in Psalm 2:10-12.
God warns the kings to be wise and respond appropriately to the reality and not to their perception. All people, not only kings need to reckon with the reality that God is King.
God warns them that they should serve the Lord with fear. Recognizing His power and His ability to destroy all rebellion, they should rather serve God. In the musical “The King and I” the king sings a song about the difficulty of ruling and what is wise and what kind of alliances will serve the country best. He asks himself, “Shall I join with other nations in alliance. If allies are weak am I the best of all. If allies are strong with power to protect me, might they not protect me out of my own home.” Because God is King, a wise choice for any ruler is to serve God, to make a firm alliance with Him. For anyone, it is wise to make a relationship with God and to serve Him.
But please note what the text says, we need to serve Him with fear, for He is a ruler, He is a King, He is not merely a good buddy.
God further warns that they should rejoice with trembling. Recently Carla and I watched two movies which revealed some significant injustices which have happened in history. One contained a story of the horrible massacre of native Americans in the 1800’s. We normally think about Americans and Canadians as a just society, but what they have done to the native population is not just. The other movie told the story of the genocide in Rwanda in 1994. Once again the injustice and corruption of some in power was very evident. How thankful I am that God is not like that. This week I was reading Psalm 10 & 11 in my devotions. In these Psalms there is a powerful impression that God is a righteous King. He always does what is just and is always loving. Therefore we can rejoice before Him. All kings and indeed all people are encouraged to rejoice. But once again to do so with trembling recognizing His sovereign power.
The third response called for by the rulers and by all people on earth is to “kiss the Son.” To kiss is a sign of homage and submission. To kiss the Son is to acknowledge that Jesus is the Lord of all the earth. Today we have a picture of Jesus as meek and mild. In Matthew 12:20, we read that He is gentle and will not break a bruised reed. This is the present invitation to follow Jesus which comes today through the preaching of the gospel. But the reality is that He is also the King who in the end will punish all who reject Him. Now is the time to “kiss the Son” and recognize that He is the Lord of all and that all need to bow before Him.
If you are among those who have rejected the sovereign power of Jesus, be warned. This is not only for rulers, but also for all people.
Encouragement
This reality confronts the false perception. The false perception of the world is that God doesn’t count. The reality is that God is king. The triumphal entry presents Jesus as God’s anointed ruler. The end will leave no doubt. As Philippians 2:10 says, at that time every knee will bow in recognition of the reality.
How do we who have already perceived the reality and accepted it respond to this truth? How do we respond to those who have not accepted the reality?
One thing is certain, we must not respond with arrogance. We must not present ourselves to those who reject Jesus as those who are better than they are. We are sometimes tempted to respond in this way. We know the truth. We know how history is going to end. We know what is going to happen to those who reject Jesus. But Jesus knew all these things even better than we do and did not respond with arrogance or mocking. God laughs, but that does not give us the right to laugh. Rather, we must be humble.
At the same time, we can rejoice with tremendous encouragement. When the enemies of God seem so strong. When from the world’s perspective what we know as reality seems like just a perception and when their perception seems like the reality by all the things that are happening in our world, we are sometimes discouraged. We get tired of always having to explain, always being tempted to answer with a certain shame that we follow Jesus. The perception is that Jesus is a loser and all who follow Him are losers. It is in times like that that we need to remember what is perception and what is reality. It is the world’s perception that Jesus is nothing, but that is not reality. Reality is that Jesus is Lord. That God is the King over all and that in the end it is His kingdom that will be eternally established and it is His righteous and loving reign that will stand. Because that is reality, we can rejoice. The final line of Psalm 2 tells us, “Blessed are all who take refuge in Him.”
This is encouragement. It tells us that as we continue to hope and trust in God we will experience blessing. It encourages us that we can take refuge, that is we can trust and we can put all our confidence in God. If we ever doubt, a reading of this Psalm or a reading of a fuller description found in Revelation 1:5; 2:27; 4:2; 6:17; 12:5; 19:5. is an encouragement.
Understanding this reality is also a challenge. It challenges us to be faithful because it is worth keeping on in our relationship with God because it will result in blessing.
Conclusion
Scott Hoesee writes, “In the Epilogue to one of his books Lewis Smedes tells about Siauliai, a city in Lithuania. Just outside the city is the Hill of Crosses: a cemetery commemorating a host of loved ones and so, a hill so thick with crosses you can hardly see the ground because of them. That is an actual picture of it. When the Russians came in 1940, the Soviet Army made sure to mow down those crosses the way a farmer mows a wheat field. They then passed a law against any further cross-planting as an offence against the atheist state.
“But the Lithuanian villagers paid the law no mind and kept sneaking back in the night to replace the crosses the Russians took. For over 40 years a tug-o-war between the Soviets and the villagers continued until finally, by 1988, the Soviet Empire had enough other problems to occupy its fevered brain and so they left the Hill of Crosses in peace. And then the Soviet Empire died.
“Now those crosses have new meaning for the people of Siauliai. Now the people gather there to remember not only their loved ones but the wonderful way by which the cross of Jesus beat back the hammer and sickle emblazoned on those Russian bulldozers. For them, the Hill of Crosses has become a Hill of Hope--hope in God's Anointed One who alone will emerge the Victor in and through and over history's every conflict. Or as Psalm 2 puts it in conclusion, "Blessed are all who take refuge in him." Indeed. Amen."
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