March 24 2024 Sermon (Palm Sunday)
Sermon title: "Jesus Enters Jerusalem"
Scripture: Mark 11:1-11
(Other lectionary suggestions include Psalm 118:1-2 and 19-29, and Isaiah 50:4-9.)
Mark 11:1-11
Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem
1When they were approaching Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples 2and said to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden; untie it and bring it. 3If anyone says to you, “Why are you doing this?’ just say this, “The Lord needs it and will send it back here immediately.’ ” 4They went away and found a colt tied near a door, outside in the street. As they were untying it, 5some of the bystanders said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6They told them what Jesus had said; and they allowed them to take it. 7Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it; and he sat on it. 8Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields. 9Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! 10Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David! Hosanna in the highest heaven!” 11Then he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple; and when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
We are at the beginning of what we call Holy Week, and it's not all that "holy," if you ask me. Today we celebrate the arrival of Jesus into Jerusalem, but we know what happens by the time Friday rolls around. The Lutheran minister Carolyn Coon Mowchan has an interesting take on the activities we just read about in Scripture. She is serving a Lutheran church in Duluth, Minnesota. She says this: "Every part of the passion story demonstrates in microcosm the ongoing struggle between good and evil, trust and fear, which repeat over and over again in our lives. This repeating cycle of praise, expectation, disappointment, rejection, and eventual despair can be the theme song of Christian living if we let it. Watch how the cycle unfolds in just a few short days in this story. Then look for the melody as it plays out in your life."
The commentator N. T. Wright says this about what we just read about as Jesus rode into Jerusalem: "Are we ready to put our property at his disposal, to obey his orders even when they puzzle us? Are we ready to go out of our way to honour him, finding in our own lives the equivalents of cloaks to spread on the road before him, and branches to wave to make his coming into a real festival? Or have we so domesticated and trivialized our Christian commitment, our devotion to Jesus himself, that we look on him simply as someone to help us through the various things we want to do anyway, someone to provide us with comforting religious experiences?" We don't have kings and queens anymore, or if we do know of some, their real power lies elsewhere. Says Wright, "Have we forgotten what, in biblical terms, a true king might be like?"
Some scholars have said that what we know about Jesus actually comes from perhaps the last year of his life, and maybe even the last WEEKS of his life. If so, what we see in the Gospels may be an OVER emphasis on the end. I am not saying that I believe that, necessarily - but it is good to ponder exactly what was on Jesus's mind as he rode in on that donkey - NOT a white war horse. And what did he think when he heard them shout, "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" And then the words, "Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David!" That had military overtones, and Jesus had already demonstrated that he was not going to use violence. In my mind, he's thinking, "They don't get it. They just don't get it."
Our Lutheran minister from Duluth has some insight. She thinks the cheering crowd has been swept up in the moment. Those cheering Jesus thought, "We're supporting the winning team after all. That means we'll taste some of the victory. So, the disciples repeated the words, 'The Lord has need of it' [when asked what they were doing untying that colt], and in that instance we're not told that the owner of the colt hesitated even a moment. It was one of those times when trusting in God was stronger than fearing for self. Praise God! Hosanna!"
Rev. Carolyn goes on: "Why fear? Their fortunes would be restored. Their political party would take control. God would raise their status and reward their faithfulness with worldly comfort and success. Their king, the king of the Jews, would at last free them from suffering and want. Wouldn't he? Isn't that the message of the Gospel? Even when the king comes riding a humble donkey, sort of like arriving in a Chevy pick-up instead of a stretch limo, we see what our hearts often yearn for. We see through the lens of our hopes for power, wealth, and status. That lens or perception clouds the truth. We cheer and shout. We are willing to sacrifice for the cause. 'The Lord has need of it.' No problem."
But, of course, we know that there is more to the story. "When the cheering stops and the crowd leaves, it gets more difficult to risk trust. The way can seem dark and dangerous, painful, uncertain." The Rev. Carolyn goes on through the rest of the week, and maybe I'll talk about that on Good Friday. But right now, nothing is happening....yet. Jesus goes into the Temple and looks around. Then he comes out and heads to Bethany where he'll spend time with the 12 Disciples during the days leading up to Passover.
For the moment, the author of Mark leaves us in suspense as to what will happen next.
As I said earlier, there is so much we don't know. For example, what if the Gospels emphasize the last few weeks of Jesus's life and not the three years of his ministry? One of the things we did NOT read about today is the cleansing of the Temple. The very next chapter of Mark has that story. What if - and I'm only speculating here - it was the cleansing of the Temple that REALLY inflamed the authorities? You may have heard me say this before, but interfering with one's money-making ability can really inflame somebody who's income you are interfering with! As I have said before, if you're leading prayers out in the countryside, nobody is going to come and stop you. BUT if you interfere with how somebody makes his living, THAT interference just might get you in trouble! So, when Jesus overturned the tables of the moneychangers, maybe THAT was the last straw. Again, I am speculating - but with today's Scripture lesson ending with not a lot happening, I just wonder what happened to make the crowds yell for his crucifixion later in the week.
I'll close with the words of the Rev. Carolyn Coon Mowchan: "In our heart of hearts we know that God didn't send Jesus just to bless us, but to turn us into the kind of people who focus on blessing others. In our heart of hearts, we know that our fear of pain and death can destroy our living if we let it. In our heart of hearts, we know that without help we will never be the people God intends us to be. Like angry children we turn our backs on those who tell us the truth and those who show us the truth about ourselves. Everyone loves a parade, but no one wants to see hopes and dreams shattered. No one wants to give up the hope of abundant life without abundant sacrifice. We long for Easter without Good Friday. We might cheer at the parade, but we leave when the resistance starts. We cannot escape a lifetime of our fearful betrayals without help. And so, we hide, and wait. We wait to see what God will do next. Like most things God does, it will surprise us." Amen.
Pastor Skip
