Latest News
Last updated 11.15am Sunday 29 March 2026.
Sunday 29 March 2026 - Palm Sunday
Weekly Sheet
Is available to download (29/03/2026) as are the sermon notes.
Apologies - due to computer issues, there are no pictures of the weekly sheet.
Zoom
Join using this link from 10.15am ready for the service start at 10.30am.
Please enter your name on the meeting screen so we know who you are.
Sermon Notes
Also available to download.)
Palm Sunday
Zechariah 9:9-17 Behold Your King is Coming
A Familiar Story - Marks the beginning of the final week – Holy Week - of Jesus’ earthly ministry and the conclusion to his reason for coming – ‘When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem’ (Luke 9:51) Many of us will be familiar with the story of Palm Sunday, some more than others recently! Palm leaves, coats, crowds, disciples, Hosanna, Jerusalem, and Jesus riding on a donkey!
A Story Loaded With Symbolism - Each of the gospel writers understood the significance of these events, though only after Jesus rose from the dead – ‘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’ (John 12:16)
As is the case throughout his earthly life Jesus’ actions are foretold throughout the Old Testament through the Prophets (carriers of God’s messages to his people) – the total is somewhere in the region of 300+!
Zechariah, who lived and ministered over 500 years before the events of Holy Week, prophecies several of the events that would take place in this final week of Jesus’ earthly life:
· The Messiah entering Jerusalem riding on a colt (9:9)
· The Messiah being betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (11:12, 13)
· The Messiah’s hands and feet being pierced (12:10)
· The cleansing of sin through the Messiah’s death (13:1)
Other details to note:
· These events occur during the Passover – Jesus is about to become the ultimate Passover lamb
· John deliberately sets his account of the triumphal entry in the immediate aftermath of the raising of Lazarus from the dead – ‘So from that day on they made plans to put him to death’ (John 11:53)
· The waving of palm leaves was a nationalistic symbol of welcoming a returning king or war hero
· By intentionally riding a ‘donkey’s colt’ Jesus was both rejecting the crowd’s expectation and the worldly understanding of kingship and fulfilling the prophecy in Zechariah 9:9: ‘Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey’
A Story Within a Story - By shouting ‘Hosanna’ (‘save now’) the crowd clearly recognised Jesus as someone who would deliver them from the Romans. But they believed he would be a ‘political’ king who would drive out the Romans.
In contrast Jesus is fulfilling God’s eternal plan to save his people from their sin.
It can be easy to forget that there is something significant about these events that start a week that would define the rest of human history. The prophecy of Zechariah was not just about this event that would occur in the life of Jesus …
A Story of Hope – Past, Present and Future - Zechariah’s prophecy was part of God’s unfolding plan and anticipated three events ordained by God for the salvation of his people:
Past – God had promised a Saviour from the moment of the fall – Genesis 3:25 and then continually by God to Abraham, Moses, David and the prophets, including Zechariah. Plans that had in fact been in place since before the beginning of the world (Eph. 1:4)
Present – Both Zechariah and Haggai prophesied to Isreal as they began to return to the Promised Land having been exiled in Babylon for 70 years for their disobedience. What should have been a time of celebration was in fact a discouraging time as they faced opposition from enemies and the devastation of the temple and the city was painful to observe.
Good cop/bad cop - Haggai challenged their reluctance whilst Zechariah encouraged by reminding Israel that God would keep his covenant promises, through his promised Messiah.
Future – Zechariah’s prophecy also anticipated two advents – comings – of the promised Messiah:
· The first ‘advent’ – which was fulfilled by the coming of Jesus and his life, death and resurrection by which sins would be forgiven allowing God’s people to be restored to him.
· The second ‘advent’ – which was a ‘mystery’ to Israel for they could not anticipate the age of the church (see Ephesians 3:1-9 & Colossians 1:26-27) – and anticipates ‘the second coming of Christ’ when all God’s people will dwell with him forever.
Every Palm Sunday the church is called:
· To remember God’s great plan of salvation
· To celebrate the work of Christ in fulfilling that plan of salvation
To eagerly anticipate Christ’s return as the bridegroom to receive his bride and our participation in the great heavenly banquet.
Thursday 24 March 2026
Jim Harries - End-March News
In Jim's latest news he ponders whether he is a 'missionary'. This fits in well with our 'Love Your Church chapter on sending This is the video to which Jim refers:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday 15 March 2026
Heating at Church
The new boiler will be installed in the week commencing 13 April.
In the meantime we will continue to meet in the hall. Zoom will still be available - but not the same immersive experience.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------