Scripture John 12:12-16
The next day the
great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to
Jerusalem.
They took palm
branches and went out to meet him, shouting,
“Hosanna!”
“Blessed is he who
comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Blessed is the king
of Israel!”
Jesus found a young
donkey and sat on it, as it is written:
“Do not be afraid,
Daughter Zion;
see, your king is coming,
seated on a donkey’s colt.”
At first his
disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was
glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him
and that these things had been done to him.
Here ends this reading of the word of God for the people
of God. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Let us pray…
Message Into Jerusalem
A few weeks ago, the Oscars aired on a Sunday night. All of
the movie stars and celebrities dressed up in the finest attire to walk the red
carpet. There were hordes of on-lookers behind protective barriers watching the
stars. Tons of reporters asked questions and snapped photos. Every last detail
of the famous celebrities’ looks were scrutinized – you could read about their
outfits and their jewelry and their hairdos and their makeup. Even their
perfumes were covered by the press – we had to use our imagination as we heard
about how good the celebrities smelled.
Many of us
find it fascinating to watch celebrities make their grand entrances at these
events. Yet, when Jesus made his entrances, the fanfare was a little less
spectacular. Jesus was the Messiah – the savior of humankind. People
waited for his entrance into the world for centuries before he came. They
expected the messiah to arrive with a lot of fanfare – he was anticipated to be
born as a literal prince to a royal family directly descended from the lineage
of King David. And, he was supposed to be a priest and an expert Biblical
Scholar – a king, a priest, and an academic.
They
expected the Messiah to be born in a palace, to a royal family, surrounded by
advisors and religious scholars.
And, when
Jesus, the true messiah arrived to the world, he was born to a teenaged mom and
her carpenter fiancée. He was born in a stable, not a palace. No advisors or
religious scholars authenticated his birth – instead he was surrounded by
sleepy animals and visited by smelly shepherds. His beginnings were
humble, not grand. His arrival was heralded by angels, but they didn’t appear
in the throne rooms of worldly rulers – instead they sang their heralds to
shepherds and sheep.
Jesus was the expected Messiah, but he was unlike everything the
people expected.
On the
first Palm Sunday, Jesus the Messiah paraded into Jerusalem – the king had
arrived in the royal city. In the first century, when important dignitaries and
royalty visited a city, they would have the first century’s version of the red
carpet rolled out – they would enter the cities to triumphant fanfare – people
would wave palm branches. The king would ride in sitting atop a mighty
warhorse. He would wear a garland of laurel leaves around his head – or a
golden crown that looked like a wreath of laurel leaves around his head. He
would have worn fine clothes, rode a fine horse, and be led to the finest
palace available.
In contrast, Jesus rode into town on the back of a young
donkey. He wasn’t met by the rich, successful, or powerful leaders of
Jerusaelm ... .instead, the common people who heralded him were very modest in
their means. They shouted hosanna, laid down their coats, and waved palm
branches. Instead of spending the night in a palace, Jesus returned to Bethany
to stay at the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. Instead of making a
positive and grand impression on the Temple leaders, Jesus’ arrival scared
them. The crowds were happy and excited to welcome Jesus to Jerusaelm; the
Temple authorities were upset by Jesus’ arrival. His arrival was the catalyst
for them to put into action their plan to eliminate Jesus.
Jesus wasn’t the kind of messiah
the Temple authorities wanted. Jesus wasn’t the kind of messiah the Roman
authorities wanted. Jesus wasn’t the kind of messiah the rich and powerful
nobility of Israel wanted. But, Jesus was the kind of messiah we needed….we all
needed even if he wasn’t what we wanted.
Jesus came for the least of
these….Jesus came for people who are Jewish and people who are Gentile….Jesus
came for people who are monetarily poor and people who are monetarily
rich….Jesus came for people who are ethnically Jewish, and ethnically
Samaritan, and ethnically Roman, and ethnically Ethiopian – as well as people
who are East Asian, and Australian Aboriginal, and European, and Latin
American, and Nigerian, and European, and every other combination of ethnic
group….Jesus came for young people and old people….Jesus came for women and men
and nonbinary people….Jesus came for religious people and irreligious
people….Jesus came for people who are imperfect in every way and are trying to
be better. Jesus came for us.
As we live through the next seven
days, we will remember the lowest point of humanity, when we met the Messiah
and killed him. And we will remember that despite all the terrible things we
do, God loves and forgives us. God loves us so much that Jesus gave himself
over to suffer and die for us, so that our salvation is assured. Jesus came to
save a wretch like me…and like you.
In response, let us live lives
full of gratitude to God. Just as Jesus gave of himself for others, let us work
to make other people’s lives better. Let us live lives full of appreciation and
generosity in response to the generosity we have received from God.
May it be so. Amen.
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