Issue 807 – Blackberry Chickadee – July 26, 2022
Chickadees are very social birds, often found in the company of flocks of other small birds. They are not particularly wary of people and can often be coaxed into eating right from your hand.
On a recent walk, a chickadee decided to accompany me. It would sit until I caught up to it and then fly on a few feet. At first, I thought perhaps it was attempting to get away, but it reversed course a couple of times, going the opposite direction from my travel. Each time, it returned, sat on a branch and whistled its sweet dee-dee-dee call.
I did manage to snap one quick photo of it resting on some old blackberry brambles. The blackberries that grow wild around here are an imported species and seem intent on taking over the world.
They grow seemingly everywhere and quickly. The brambles have sharp thorns and can cause a nasty gash if you get too close. Sometimes they hang near a trail and seem determined to grab and hold you. I have a few scars from brambles that caught me last summer.
The chickadee’s resting place among the thorns made me think of Christ.
Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged him. And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head and arrayed him in a purple robe. They came up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and struck him with their hands.
John 19:1-3
No doubt, the thorns used in the crown were larger than those on my brambles and caused great discontent. I am confident that the soldiers thought this display of mockery to be uproariously funny.
Roman soldiers were by a large a callous lot by nature. One joined the legions hoping to become a citizen of Rome eventually … if you lived and served long enough.
It was a hard, violent life and bred harsh, brutal, violent men. It is common for soldiers to dehumanize and demonize their enemies because it makes it easier to kill them when you have to. While that doesn’t excuse their behaviour, it does help us to understand where they were coming from.
The soldiers were probably not some form of supernatural evil, simply rough men in a rough business. Not so different from what you or I might be in similar circumstances.
I doubt it would have continued if they understood who they were mocking. Indeed, Christ could have prevented it all from happening, but it was part of the process of redeeming us that He chose to endure on our behalf.
It would be interesting to know the fate of that group of Roman soldiers. Did any of them come to know Christ as saviour? It is possible. We know that at least one Roman centurion did.
I marvel at the words of Jesus as He considered all those who put him on the cross.
And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments. Luke 23:34
Rejected, tortured, mocked and abandoned by his followers, Jesus hung nearly naked on the cross. The soldiers at his feet gambled for his last earthy possession. Still, He spoke words of forgiveness and blessing on them.
He continues to intercede today. By His grace, mercy and sacrifice, we are free of condemnation.
As we ponder His mercy, let us celebrate in song and praise.
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Hallelu Yah (Praise God)
Be blessed
Kevin.
Gleanings From The Word.
Experience an extraordinary God in ordinary life.
Soli Deo Gloria (for the glory of God alone.)
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