It might seem a little odd to be talking about resurrection power on Palm Sunday (‘aren’t you being a bit previous here?!‘), but Eph 1:19-21 is so revolutionary that it is worth considering again. Paul describes this power thus: ‘That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. (Eph 1:19-21)

As Chris Tomlin puts it, we have ‘resurrection power living on the inside.’ (‘Resurrection Power’) The same power that raised Christ from the dead – power beyond any we have ever seen, greater than the greatest nuclear explosion – lives in us. The resurrection and ascension of Jesus are proof that God’s power is greater than anything the world can throw at us. The God who spoke creation into being, the God before whose presence the whole world trembles (Ps 114:7), this is the God who raised Christ from the dead and Paul wants us to realise that this fact is not simply historical; it’s not simply a school fact of interest. The fact that God raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms not only means He is far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, far greater than Satan, far greater than any other name. It also means that this same power is available to us, for us, to be there living within us.

When Paul urges the Ephesians to ‘be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power’ (Eph 6:10), we see that this has huge practical implications for how we live our daily lives. Let’s hold on to that power in difficult times and be strengthened by the same power which enables us to serve a risen Saviour. (‘Same Power,’ Jeremy Camp)

Hope

Hope, one of those three great virtues mentioned in 1 Cor 13:7, is the opposite of despair. It’s what keeps us going when all around us is in darkness. Despite our unfaithfulness and sin, God does not abandon us and therefore ‘there is still hope for Israel’ (Ezra 10:2) and for us too. Hope brings security and confidence to our lives (Job 11:18, Ps 71:5). It reminds us that God is always watching over us: ‘the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love.’ (Ps 33:18). Hope, Paul reminds the Romans, does not disappoint us or make us ashamed. (Rom 5:5) It does not let us down. It does not leave us resigned and feeling that nothing will ever change; hope is a vibrant, dynamic thing which keeps our eyes fixed on God in expectation and anticipation.

Hope brings joy into our lives (Rom 12:12); it gives us a buzz and a sense that God is doing something, even when we can’t see what He is doing. Hope deferred makes the heart sick, says the writer of Proverbs (Prov 13:12). When we have nothing to hope for, nothing to look forward to, we become depressed and down-hearted, but when we realise what a glorious future God is preparing for His church, then our hearts are filled with hope. Hope is one of the greatest blessings that God gives to us, because it gives us the endurance we need in the present and allows us to look beyond our present circumstances to a future which is blessed and assured. (Titus 2:7, 1 Thess 4:13) We are wise when we learn not to trust in riches (1 Tim 6:17), but to hope in a generous God who gives us all things for our enjoyment.

The Riches of Our Inheritance

Paul wants us to know ‘the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people.’ (Eph 1:18) . We are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ. (Rom 8:17) All that God bequeaths to the church is ours. In the Old Testament, the Promised Land was seen as the inheritance God promises to His people (see Lev 20:24, Num 26:53); we read in Psalm 2 that the Messiah is encouraged to ask God for the nations as His inheritance (Ps 2:8) and see the fulfilment of this in Revelation 5:9, 7:9). Whilst we may have to wait for some aspects of our inheritance, God’s Spirit within us is the confidence we have of the fulfilment of all God has promised. (Eph 1:14) We don’t earn or deserve this inheritance, but God qualifies us to receive it (Col 1:12) by making us part of His family. This inheritance shapes our identity. We live not as paupers but as heirs of God. We live not as the rejected and forsaken, but as those who have been chosen by God (Eph 1:11). We live accessing the blessings and favour of God, because He has qualified us to receive. We live with confidence and hope.

HIs Incomparably Great Power

We may feel weak and helpless in our own strength (see 2 Cor 12:8-10), but God’s amazing power – so great that Christ was raised from the dead – is not only available to us but can live within us. (Eph 1:19) This power helps us to grasp the height, length, depth and width of God’s love (Eph 3:19) and is immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine. (Eph 3:20) The Holy Spirit gives us power to be witnesses (Acts 1:8) and God helps us to proclaim the kingdom of God, to heal the sick, to drive out demons, to cure diseases. (Luke 9:1-3) This power gives us endurance and patience in the trials of life (see Col 1:10-13). Without God’s power, life is simply an uphill struggle. With God’s power, we have the strength to carry on. Hebrews talks about Jesus having the power of an indestructible life (Heb 7:16) and it’s that kind of indestructability which is now available to each one of us because of His resurrection. Paul says, ‘We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.’ (2 Cor 4:8) Life may not be easy, but we can overcome through the power of His name living within us. Paul says to the Romans, ‘And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.’ (Rom 8:11) That is the oomph we need to live differently!

Many people didn’t enjoy lessons at school because they felt what they had to learn was irrelevant to life – most of us don’t use algebra or trigonometry every day, don’t need to know historical dates and can’t see the point of being able to conjugate verbs in Latin… These facts are all useful, but unless we see their relevance to our everyday lives, we tend to switch off.

The same can apply to our attitude to the Bible: it contains interesting facts, but what’s the relevance to our everyday lives? The Bible is not just a historical book of facts, however. Moses wanted the Israelites to celebrate the Passover on an annual basis so that every generation would know how God had intervened personally and miraculously in their lives in delivering them from Egypt. (Ex 13:3-8) Similarly, Paul prays that the Ephesians will have the eyes of their heart enlightened – an ‘inner illumination of the spirit’, as J. B. Phillips puts it – so that they may know certain things which then have a huge impact on their everyday lives. (Eph 1:17-23)

Hope, a knowledge of the riches of God’s glorious inheritance in the saints and experience of God’s incomparably great power for us who believe (Eph 1:17-23) are not simply academic facts which inform us. They are spiritual truths with the capacity to transform us. They are blessings which have the power to help us to live life with confidence, perseverance, joy and endurance. But it matters that our eyes are opened to get it!

Don’t forget the church outing to Scarborough on Saturday 9th June. Deposits of £5 are needed by the end of this month. We will be leaving church at 9 a.m. and leaving Scarborough about 5 p.m. for a fun day out – travel is by coach.

Looking further ahead, don’t forget the Dearne Community Arts’ Festival on Friday 31st August and Saturday 1st September at Dearne ALC (11 a.m. – 4 p.m., both days). This is a great opportunity to champion creativity and celebrate community with loads of arts on show (paintings, photography, crafts, woodwork, sewing, embroidery, tapestry, paper crafts, 3D printing etc.), performances on stage (dance, music, other performing arts) and workshops where you can get hands-on with different artistic endeavours (make your own pirate crafts for kids, make bath bombs and soaps, make your own jewellery and much more). We’re pleased to have received some funding from the Ward Alliance and Awards for All, so we hope to have additional workshops featuring Pit Mouse (virtual reality film clips) and circus skills as well. Ian McMillan (the Barnsley Bard) will be running a creative writing workshop for adults on the Friday afternoon (photo courtesy of Bob Dickinson) and Thurnscoe Harmonic Male Voice Choir will be giving a concert on the Saturday afternoon, so it really will be a great community event.

Coming up in April…

• Easter Sunday (1st April) – services are at 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. and we will be celebrating the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ!
• Sunday 8th April – in the morning, the service is at Cherry Tree Court at 10.30 a.m. and we will be offering Communion to all there who know the Lord. This will be done at least twice a year for residents there. In the evening, the service will be at Market Street at 6 p.m. as usual.
• Sunday 15th April – after the morning service, we will be taking part in the Dinosaur Day at Phoenix Park (12 noon – 4 p.m.) where ‘Dearne Churches Together’ will be hosting craft activities, a fossil excavation pit and the opportunity to discuss whether Christianity is outdated or whether we still have a message of hope for our communities! The evening service will be at 6 p.m. as usual.

Prior to the Dinosaur Day, there will be craft sessions at Thurnscoe Library in the Easter holidays for anyone with children interested in dinosaurs!

• Services will be at 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Sunday 22nd and 29th April.

Midweek meetings on Thursdays at 7.30 p.m. will be as usual. Youth club restarts on Monday 9th April and the Parent & Toddler group restarts on Friday 13th April, with coffee mornings running each Saturday throughout April from 10 a.m. until 12 noon.

During the Easter holidays, there will be no Mums & Toddlers or youth club, but the following events are happening over the next two weeks:

• Our prayer meeting will be on Thursday 29th March at 7.30 p.m. Please join with us to pray for our churches, our outreach and our world.

• The Good Friday Church Crawl will start with a service at Furlong Road Methodist Church on Friday 30th March at 10.30 a.m. and continues throughout the day with visits to the Salvation Army, our own church, the Parish church, Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, Thurnscoe Pentecostal Church and St Helen’s in Thurnscoe. We are hugely excited to have the opportunity to learn about Easter through crafts, film, messy church, the Stations of the Cross and sung worship as well as through the live theatre production ‘So On And So 4th’ from 4Front Theatre. Please feel free to come along to whatever activities you’re interested in and if it’s too far to walk between churches – when we will also be giving out Easter eggs, daffodils and literature about Easter – then feel free to drive from one church to the next. See below for more details. The craft activities at the Salvation Army and Thurnscoe Pentecostal Church are particularly suitable for children of all ages (including toddlers) and the theatre production at St Helen’s is suitable for children aged 8 and over, though younger children are welcome to attend with parents. Some of the other events may not be suitable for children (the film at our church will show scenes from John’s Gospel depicting the crucifixion of Jesus.)

• Coffee morning will be as usual on Easter Saturday (31st March) between 10 a.m. and 12 noon.
• On Easter Sunday (1st April), we will have services at 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. The evening service will be our family service, looking especially at the theme ‘Resurrection!’

• The Bible study (concluding our study of Psalm 119) will be on Thursday 5th April at 7.30 p.m.