Redeemed. Delivered.
DEBRA BLACKMAN
easter 2025 • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Intro
Intro
(VIDEO if possible)
HALLEL
Our text today is Psalm 118. Psalms 113-118 are the Hallel pslams - Hallel means praise.
Literally: Hal’-El
Praise - El (the Most High God)
They are sung together - to this day - at several Jewish holy days as a call to everyone to celebrate and remember the God of their deliverance from Egypt.
Jewish festivals and feast days are written into the law by God. He expressly gave them these touch points in the calendar for gathering and celebrating WITH HIM. Each feast has a purpose that reminds the community of their special relationship to God and His presence with them.
It’s more than just a time for families to gather etc. It’s worship, coming in anticipation of God’s presence, celebrating as one Body the unique familial, intergenerational, eternal bond of being God’s people.
FAST & FESTIVAL:
I was so pleased so many of you joined in the day of prayer and fasting yesterday -
Coming to gather hungry (by fasting), stirs up hunger in our spirits to anticipate God’s work. Hungry spirits worship in humility, listen eagerly, ask boldly. God is gracious with his presence and feeds our souls.
And then when it’s time to feast....and Jeni and Bea did such a beautiful work of presenting it...there’s a sense that you are together at the table of God. Feasting thankful for his past grace in provision.
Anticipating the Day when YHWH would bring an eternal salvation depicted as a feast together in the presence of YHWH as Moses and the elders ate in his presence on Sinai.
On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine— the best of meats and the finest of wines.
On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations;
he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth. The Lord has spoken.
In that day they will say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.”
Traditionally these Hallel psalms are sung - 113, 114 at the beginning of the meal after the blessing celebrating the grace of the Most High God to reach down and lift up the lowly and pour the blessings of a fruitful, beloved bride on her. The second psalm celebrating the miraculous way God rescued Israel from Eygpt.
The last four are sung after the meal following the final blessing and mark how Israel’s God has overthrown the power of false gods, rescued them from near death. There is an invitation in Psalm 117 for all nations to join in the praise of YHWH and Psalm 118 begins with praise and ends with the arrival of Messiah on the Day of Salvation.
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LAYERED REALITIES IN THE PSALMS
Reading these psalms is layered - because they exist on so many timelines.
They exist in the past - Celebrating God’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt and remembering all he did.
They exist in psalmist’s present - There’s no specific notation to tell us who wrote these particular psalms but there are intensely intimate moments in them that reflect something of the psalmist:
I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy.
Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live.
The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came over me; I was overcome by distress and sorrow.
Then I called on the name of the Lord: “Lord, save me!”
The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.
The Lord protects the unwary; when I was brought low, he saved me.
The way a songwriter today might write a song about a personal heartbreak or joy and others, who have a similar experience can own it and find personal meaning in it - these psalms were written in a context but translated over generations to have personal meaning in a variety of contexts.
These psalms exist in the Post-Exile period where they were gathered and arranged probably under the supervision of Ezra the priest - as they started to structure liturgy for Israel that helped them to wrestle with a relationship with God that was not dependant on land or temple - but saw God as faithful to his people in good and bad.
These psalms exist in Jesus’ time and in his experience - both as a part of God’s chosen people the Jews - but also as God’s unique servant-Messiah who would stand in the gap for the people and become the final sacrifice for their eternal salvation.
LAST SUPPER:
Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”
And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you,
for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
The hymn most likely sung by this group would have been the closing of the traditional Hal ‘el Psalm 118.
So, heading off to Gethsemane - in full knowledge that his body and blood were the sacrifice for their salvation Jesus left the upper room with this song on his lips:
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!
Let Israel say, “His steadfast love endures forever.”
Let the house of Aaron say, “His steadfast love endures forever.”
Let those who fear the Lord say, “His steadfast love endures forever.”
HESED LOVE
The word here translated as “steadfast love” is so beautiful but almost untranslatable in English because it is deeper and more intense than anything we usually associate with love.
Hesed is covenant - God freely bound himself to us in love. Like a marriage...boy did we marry up! Because of that love bond his expressions towards us are: mercy, compassion, love, grace, faithfulness - it’s more than an emotion (but it’s also an emotion). It’s loyalty and steadfastness no matter what.
One of the most beautiful expressions of this word I’ve ever heard is from Sally Lloyd Jones’ Jesus Storybook Bible. This is how she describes the love of God for sinners after the Eden story:
“You see no matter what, in spite of everything, God would love his children with a Never-Stopping, Never Giving Up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love. And though they would forget him, and run from Him, deep in their hearts God’s children would miss Him always, and long for Him - lost children yearning for their home.”
When Jesus sings the words of Psalm 118 - “His love endures forever”. He is both full of that love - and is moving, out of that intense covenant love, from Garden, to Arrest, to floggings and trials, to the cross to break the curse of our rebellion and re-make that Covenant - the God-human intimacy in a way that only God can.
HIS LOVE ENDURES FOREVER.
Out of my distress I called on the Lord; the Lord answered me and set me free.
The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?
The Lord is on my side as my helper; I shall look in triumph on those who hate me.
It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man.
It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.
In the multi-layers of this psalm we hear the psalmist declare that God is his source of security and rescue. That, in his own experience he has learned that God’s faithfullness is a much safer place than the best laid plans of humans. That although we don’t always see in the moment how God is saving us....he is indeed faithful to save.
This is a proclamation that resists our desire to control circumstances - to bow to fear - to avoid pain. It takes faith to enter the pain and wait on God’s rescue.
This is Jesus’ testimony in the Garden of Gethsemane:
When, approaching the most difficult moments of his life he asked his friends to pray:
Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.”
And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled.
Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.”
And we know they were not faithful - they fell asleep. They were not able to save - not even to keep vigil to his pain.
And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
Sometimes we know this story so well that we forget about the emotional/mental suffering before the cross. You know what it’s like to approach a painful situation you never wanted to face - the anxiety, the rock in the pit of your stomach, the feeling like you cannot breathe - cannot face this. The anticipation, the waiting, the approach is often as painful as the thing itself.
The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?
The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I look in triumph on my enemies.
It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in humans.
Through this psalm Jesus declares what he will live - it is the LORD who will save. (Though suffering comes first) I shall look in triumph on my enemies.
And of course - these enemies were much greater than the human enemies surrounding him - He would triumph over sin and the power of death - but only THROUGH the cross -
This is faith. It’s one thing to look back and praise God for what happened. It’s another to take steps into the darkness because you know God’s loving, Covenant nature, and that he will not fail - come what may.
All nations surrounded me; in the name of the Lord I cut them off!
They surrounded me, surrounded me on every side; in the name of the Lord I cut them off!
They surrounded me like bees; they went out like a fire among thorns; in the name of the Lord I cut them off!
I was pushed hard, so that I was falling, but the Lord helped me.
The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.
Of course this psalm wasn’t written about Jesus - likely the psalmist knew the experience of being the underdog in the warring of nations. Finding themselves in impossible battles - overpowered and in need of God’s rescue.
But it was certainly Jesus’ experience - Rome was a nation of nations. When the empire conquerored your land the strong young men were compelled to military duty. Those who who arrested Jesus were very likely
“the nations surrounding him on every side”
One commentator likened the swarming bees to the many piercings inflicted on Jesus by people who did not realize that in rejecting the Son of God they were, infact, harming themselves - as bees die after a sting.
(Too poetic - you decide)
THE SAVIOUR IS COMING:
And now we move to these pictures of the Saviour who the psalmist celebrates. I think you will recognize some of these images:
Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous: “The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!
The Lord’s right hand is lifted high; the Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!”
I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done.
The Lord has chastened me severely, but he has not given me over to death.
Open for me the gates of the righteous; I will enter and give thanks to the Lord.
This is the gate of the Lord through which the righteous may enter.
I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation.
The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone;
the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.
The Lord has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad.
Lord, save us! Lord, grant us success!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you.
The Lord is God, and he has made his light shine on us. With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession up to the horns of the altar.
You are my God, and I will praise you; you are my God, and I will exalt you.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
On this Palm Sunday one verse sticks out most poignantly.
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD.”
The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.
So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”
And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,
“Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!”
His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.
So, the psalmist, in celebrating the Victory of God in his Day points prophetically to the Ultimate Victory of God when the Messiah will ride into the beloved city - coming as a triumphant rescuer....
...but the rescue looked different than many imagined. He was being praised for his miraculous works and show of power - especially the recent raising of Lazarus from the dead. They thought he would save through power....
...but as the psalm says: “the festal procession leads up to the horns of the altar.”
And what happens at the altar??
That’s right. The sacrifice.
The Messiah’s triumphal entry is a precursor to his sacrifice. This is the saving work. This is the salvation of God.
Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment,
so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.
There are other overtones from the Psalm that Jesus identifies with:
Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord.
This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it.
I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation.
Jesus said:
I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture.
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
He invites us to fellowship with God. He is the open door waiting for us to enter. He is a place of life and safety to all who seek it.
You may also recognize the reference to the cornerstone.
Jesus alludes to this psalm in a conversation with the Pharisees. Identifying himself as this cornerstone and warning them that if they reject Him they reject the Salvation God is offering.
Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: “ ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?
Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits.
And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he was speaking about them.
And although they were seeking to arrest him, they feared the crowds, because they held him to be a prophet.
Jesus salvation for his people is not only the sacrifice that broke the power of sin and death over us - it is also the rebuilding of a new people of God.
He is the cornerstone of that new community
As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious,
you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”
So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,”
and “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
The Hope we have, the message we have, the love we have, the unity we have, the authority in prayer we have, the Spirit’s power we have — all we are as a people eminate from Christ our cornerstone who is building some thing beautiful in the world through all those who put their faith in him because of what Jesus did in Salvation.
Hallel! -
God saved, God is saving, God will save.
His Hesed love - his steadfast, faithful, never ending mercy and compassion WILL NOT FAIL. And as we enter into Holy Week with the expectation of the hope of salvation - the journey through loss and suffering - and the resurrection life on the other side we join the psalmist in saying:
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
PRAYER
