“Hosanna!” 
  “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” 10″Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!” 
  “Hosanna in the highest!” Mark 11: 9-10

Jesus’ mind-warping triumphant entry into Jerusalem on a little borrowed donkey must have taken the masses by surprise.  They knew he was on his way into the city and also that He had been openly announcing the coming of a new kingdom.  They waited for this moment with baited breath, the conquering King would come and make things right, bring down the corrupt powers that be and release the Jewish nation from the Roman occupation.

But, in God’s upside-down Kingdom, the King doesn’t conquer with a sword on a white steed.   Rather, by design, He chose another Way.  Ignoring the powers that be and the systems of the world, He introduced the Way of love, in which God’s strength bursts forth in weakness and less means more.  In spite of the symbolic message he was sending the crowds by his less than impressive entrance on a lowly donkey, the crowds maintained their focus on the false expectation for liberation from the all encompassing system of the empire that had them all enslaved.   “Hosanna!  SAVE US NOW!” was their cry.  And it was a cry that came from a longing much deeper than the usual liturgical exclamations we make in our churches during Palm Sunday.

My question is, “shouldn’t our present day context compel us to shout from the depths of our souls the very same cry?”   Shouldn’t we be exclaiming, “HOSANNA, SAVE US!” more often?  Don’t we have the need for the same liberating King to come free us from our slavery to the empire and systems of this world?

The truth is that we know the King has indeed come.  We understand that His triumph did not come as we all expected it to.  We confess our enslavement to our old patterns, our old selves, and our old destructive “ways”.  And in our hearts we accept Jesus.  We confess our desire to become new creatures in a new system that our King established–the new “kingdom” he willingly gave His life for.  But how easy it is for us to become entangled. How easy it is for us to mock His death, His power…His triumph by our adherence to the kingdom of this world.

The RdC network churches we serve and support as DCC are increasingly aware of the blatant influence and control the world and her logic holds over us.  This world and its ways are normal to us.   As the Church,  “the called out ones,” we are commissioned to reveal the new Kingdom way of Jesus to the world bringing hope and transformation.   We are called, in fear and trembling, to jump off that which the world claims is stable and safe, and to let go of the rope we so desperately cling to, in order to fall into the grace of the Kingdom of God.

A kingdom where less is more, the humble are exalted, the weak are strong, and the smallest, most silent and imperceptible bit of yeast of truth permeates until it reveals an integrated “wholeness” in the most blatant and beautiful way.

HOSANNA!  Rescue us!  Shake us free from our conformity and slumber!  Wake us up to your reality and make us useful instruments in your hands!

The monthly and in some communities of faith, weekly, celebration of the Eucharist, or the Lord’s Supper, is an intrinsic element of the gathering of those who follow Jesus. It comes from Jesus’ radical revision of the Passover meal that he shared with His disciples the night before He was arrested and led to the culmination of His mission… the cross.

Jesus took the singular most significant and honored religious tradition among the Jewish people, the Passover celebration, which was very familiar to all Jews in his time with over 1,500 years of faithful practice, and He infused it with new meaning that has radical implications for His disciples.

His revised version came with a command that those of us who participate in the communion celebration must be aware of and mindful of its implications for our lives and His mission. As Jesus became the meal, offering His body broken and His blood poured out, He said to his disciples, “Do this in remembrance of me”.

Now whereas we so often hear this familiar verse recited during communion and take it to mean we should gratefully reflect on the unfathomable expression of love Jesus showed us by being broken and poured out on the cross, His command “do this” adds a level of complexity to the lesson He is conveying. His use of the verb remember is not merely asking us to recall and reflect in solemn gratefulness, but rather, He is saying DO THIS: “remember me by imitating me as the teacher become friend, be broken and poured out for others in my name”.

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Reflections on my Africa experience
By Tom Yaccino

Over the last couple of weeks we experienced some intense Kingdom connections during a gathering of the Amahoro Africa network, a sister network to the Red del Camino in Latin America.  Both networks share a common passion that we believe is God’s dream for all of creation, which is to bring about the total redemption and restoration of all things.

We also had a powerful experience in Burundi, where we connected with Dallas church, Community of Faith and local Christ-followers from the Batwa tribe.  Our time in Burundi reminded us again about the power and possibility of God’s vision for a restored creation.

Kingdom Reconciliation in South Africa

RdC Network leaders have been invited to be a part of the African network gathering since it started three years ago.   This year, Robert Guerrero and I traveled to South Africa to participate in the network’s annual gathering, “The African Reformation”.

The beauty of these moments of connection within the global Kingdom community is that as we share stories of how God makes himself known and felt in the midst of the suffering that is so prevalent in the world, we experience reconciliation and hope.

Our South African brothers and sisters opened our eyes and hearts to a country whose history is marked by divisions and has suffered decades of hatred, systemic discrimination, violence, and oppression.    Even in the darkest times of South Africa’s Apartheid, hope broke through the darkness through faithful followers of Christ who refused to conform to the “anti-kingdom” present in the form of governmental institutionalization of racism.   Leaders like Nelson Mandela continue to inspire the world with their perseverance and commitment to justice.    As a nation that still struggles with the scars caused by that horrible system, to this day it continues to move forward seeking reconciliation and equality.

During the Amahoro gathering we witnessed the mystery and power of God’s grace and love.   A white senior official of the South African national police force, who became a follower of Christ several years ago, shared his story together with his former black maid, two black clergy, and a former white anti-terrorist task force member who later became a pastor and now serves as an international consultant for development and reconciliation initiatives.

After hearing the police supervisor’s testimony, a new friend of ours, Sean, who still struggles with guilt and shame for the dark actions he committed under order from the Police authorities during the apartheid years, confessed to the ex-official that he still harbors resentment and hatred toward him.   He publicly asked for forgiveness.  In turn, the ex-official pleaded for forgiveness from him. Both, now under the Divine directive that promotes life and wholeness, symbolized their act of reconciliation by washing one another’s feet.    It was a Holy Moment–a sign of hope rising up from the ruins left by systemic injustice.

Signs of Hope in Burundi

After we shared a week with our family members from all over Africa who participated in the Amahoro gathering, we then traveled to Burundi where we experienced another powerful Kingdom connection between God’s people from the Batwa tribe and fellow Kingdom citizens from Community of Faith, a local church from Houston, Texas.

During our time with the Batwa, we were once again exposed to a people group who have been experiencing the by-products of marginalization and discrimination since before the time of Colonization.    The systemic oppression that this ethnic group has suffered at the hands of the dominant tribes (and afterward, the colonizers) has left them landless and left out of the potential benefits of the educational, health, and economic systems of the nation.   Their struggles only intensified during the 15-year period of civil war and political unrest.

As we heard their stories and were confronted by the conditions they live with, what surprised us most were the signs of hope.   These humble and marginalized people, many of whom have put their trust in Christ, shared their dreams for their communities that are in alignment with God’s powerful dream of restoration.

Against all odds, Batwa young and old, are sharing their story and participating in God’s plans to make all things new.

The Transformative Power of Suffering

These experiences reminded us once again that even in dire circumstances there is hope because of the One who lived among us as a suffering servant - Jesus, who gives life through his suffering, death and resurrection.

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by Tom and Dee Yaccino

Those of us awakened to the reality of the plight of millions of people suffering from injustice often get plagued by one question, “What difference can I really make in this broken and hurting world?” We may say it out loud or in our minds, but the truth is we feel guilty when we sigh at disturbing news reports, ignore heart-wrenching images of crying babies, or hurry by the beggar on the street. And maybe when we look at the world with our eyes riveted on the problems, it is a rational and logical thing to ask.

But, everything changes when we begin to see through Kingdom lenses—even our complacency and doubt.

In a message entitled “The Power of Ten”, RdC DR network leader and pastor, Robert Guerrero, challenged listeners to consider what God meant when He said He would spare an entire city from catastrophic consequences for the sake of ten “just” people.

The teaching has special significance for the small, often marginalized communities of faith represented in the RdC networks that struggle against the tide to make a transformative difference in their neighborhoods, but it has powerful implications for all of us who are stumbling towards Jesus along His Way.

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The Biblical text for the message comes from Genesis 18:23-32 where Abraham barters with God over the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?” 
He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.”

Abraham was most likely looking out for his own interests (his nephew Lot and his family) and not necessarily the well being of a corrupt and unjust city.  But what may have been a selfish inquiry by a concerned uncle is a useful object lesson for us all.  The presence of only ten just Kingdom citizens in a city can make all the difference in the world.

Kingdom math takes a linear equation into the realm of infinite possibilities.  For God, 2+ 1 ”the One” = ∞ “infinity”.

While we often get caught up in quantities, (how many volunteers are there, how much money have we raised, or how many people were baptized this month?) God seems more concerned that those of us who follow Him make His presence known by being truly “present” in alternative Kingdom ways in our towns, cities, and neighborhoods.

God continually reminds us that the mission is His. Our “Kingdom business” is to be about renewing and redeeming everything we can possibly influence.

Our constant struggle as a community of faith is that God’s measurements for triumph, success, power, and influence are usually co-opted by the world’s measurements so that, most of the time, we are scrambling in vain to accomplish plans and purposes that are not part of His mission to restore and transform.

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By Tom Yaccino

We all desire to be “successful” in those things that we put our hearts and sweat and time into.  We all desire to celebrate when we make it across the river, finish the race, or get good results from the work of our hands.  Through it all, we claim God’s grace and miraculous intervention in our lives. We thank God for helping us “succeed.” But ironically, in the vocabulary of God’s Kingdom, the word “success” does not mean what we so often think it means.

Jesus himself would hardly measure up against today’s definition of success.

The biblical narrative seems to highlight failure unabashedly. The Old Testament relates story after story of how God’s chosen people failed to carry out His plans. They rejected God’s Divine plan to be a people set apart under God’s rule, choosing instead to elect their own national King. Israel wanted to be like the other nations and bought into that view of success. King Saul, whose attributes and appearance had success written all over them, ultimately failed as a leader. Likewise, his popular young successor, King David, was a failure as a parent, husband and trustworthy leader.

Jesus himself would hardly measure up against today’s definition of success. Great numbers of His disciples abandoned Him early on in His ministry when things appeared to be out of control. And after His arrest and crucifixion, His inner circle betrayed, rejected, and abandoned Him. The Bible is riddled with stories of real failure and doubt.  “Where are you God?” “Are you the One or should I wait for another?” “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?” “Do you love me?”

Antonio Gonzales says that the essence of the Adamic framework unleashed into the world after the break from unity with God in the garden is this: that we justify ourselves by the fruit of our labors.

God chooses to teach us about real success through the failed, weak, and flawed characters of His divine narrative.  The upside-down Kingdom warns us that the glitter and shine that the world calls “success” is nothing more than rust on the surface of our lives and circumstances.

How did we become so captivated by the claims of worldly success?

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The term synergy or synergistic conjures up images of business world headlines announcing corporate mergers and partnerships. The Merriam Webster online dictionary even defines it in business terms as “a mutually advantageous conjunction or compatibility of distinct business participants or elements (as resources or efforts)”.

The church, which so often borrows ideas and practices from the business world to demonstrate its ability to be relevant and modern, has been using “synergy” and even “partnership” to reshape Christian thinking for local and world missionary endeavors.

But if we trace synergy back to its origins, we will find that the word we thought we had been importing into the church from the corporate world actually started among the radical group of disciples connected to the early Christian community—with a much more profound meaning!

Paul used the word in his letters to the newly forming churches to illustrate how we are called as followers of Jesus to work together in a cosmic partnership with God for the reconciliation of all things. The word originates from the Greek synergia “joint work, assistance, help,” which comes from synergos “working together,” and is related to synergein “work together, help another in work,” from syn- “together” + ergon “work”.

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“This is a remote place,” they said to Jesus, “and it’s already very late. Send the people away so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.”

But he answered, “You give them something to eat.” They said to him, “That would take eight months of a man’s wages! Are we to go and spend that much on bread and give it to them to eat?”

“Go and find out how many loaves we have,” he said. When they found out, they said, “Five. And two fish.”

Then Jesus directed them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass. Then, taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of leftovers. The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand. Mark 6 v.35-44

When we only open our eyes to the possible, and not the impossible, we become blind to the reality of God’s Kingdom among us.

We, like the disciples, often fail to consider the impossible option as a viable option. But Jesus did not distinguish between the possible and the impossible. Instead, he looked at what we call “problems” and “needs,” and he saw incredible opportunities to manifest the tireless love, life-giving hope, and infinite possibility that indicate the presence of God’s Kingdom.

When we see the world through Kingdom eyes, we realize that the resources, ideas, and experiences we are blessed with are more than enough. More than enough to make a difference. More than enough to bring God’s light into the world. More than enough to open up the way to healing and restoration. In small but powerful ways, many churches around the world, often in contexts of enormous need, are quietly revealing the truth of the “Kingdom among us.”

Churches like the Assemblies of God in Peralta, Dominican Republic, who, in the worlds eyes are poor and struggling (a mere 70 in number), are being salt and light in ways that make a tangible difference in the health of over 15,000 of their neighbors!

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