The Whole Story
Text: Matthew 21:1-11; 26:14-27:66
Palm/Passion Sunday
Note: This reflection was part of a larger service that included a dramatic presentation based on the entire passion narrative from Matthew, using the Contemporary English Version of the Bible. During the service for this Sunday, I only read the first paragraph of the following reflection. The rest of the dramatic presentation made the rest of it redundant.
The story of Christ’s Passion from start to finish is never a “convenient” read with what we have come to expect from Sunday morning worship. Usually if a passage gets over ten verses long, we begin to fidget, wondering when the next part of the service is coming up. This is the third year that we’ve taken this approach. In the same way that we tell the Christmas story through Lessons and Carols at that time of year, telling the entirety of Christ’s Passion, from his entry into Jerusalem to when they finally lay him in the tomb. At it’s best, Holy Week is supposed to be a recounting of those stories each day. On Palm Sunday, we celebrate the triumphal entry, on Maundy Thursday, we celebrate meal that we now mark as the Lord’s Supper, and remember the betrayal and arrest of Jesus, on Good Friday we mark the crucifixion… There is a power to walk through these stories on these days, but there is also a power in telling the story in its entirety. I am grateful to the choir for the addition of their voices to help us hear the whole story today.
But it all begins today, as we recall the great triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. The common people are waving Palm branches, throwing their cloaks down in front of this teacher from the north. Whispers of the Messiah has come to them… an heir to the throne of David, and the people have been waiting so long for this. They have struggled under the weight of Roman occupation for years… and before that Greek kings, and before that the Babylonians… and before that… well, it has gone on for far too long…
The expectations of the people of Israel have built up over centuries of oppressive rule. They want a political ruler… they want a powerful earthly king who will live up to their expectations… kicking the Romans out, and restoring things to the way they were… the good old days. When the crowds start to gather, those hopes and dreams build, along with their cries. They flock to his side, and shout their welcome to this one that people say is the Son of David. They shout “Messiah!” They shout “Hosanna!” They shout their welcome to this new king that has come into their midst. It is a joyous and triumphal day… but it is short lived… Soon the cries will turn into something else… something much darker.
Not even Jesus can live up to their expectations. His reasons for coming to Jerusalem are far more profound, but far more subtle than anyone can imagine. Not even his closest friends truly know what will come of this.
As much as we celebrate Palm Sunday with joyful praises, waving our palm branches, and joining in the choruses of “hosanna” I think we forget how misplaced those celebrations were. Everybody flocked to Jesus, thinking that he would fulfill their own expectations, their own desires and wants. Their praises and welcome were for an earthly king. Yet when it soon became clear that Jesus was not there to assume the throne, their tone changed. Soon the object of their praise would become the target of scorn and ridicule. Joy turns to anger, open hands become clenched fists… and by the end of the week, this welcomed teacher, hailed as messiah, stands condemned by the same people who welcomed him.
While it is tempting to simply skip ahead to next Sunday, the road to Easter stops at the foot of the cross. We need to remember our darkest moment, when all of humanity rose up against God… because God didn’t live up to our expectations. It is a very important part as we journey through holy week, because it makes the miracle at Easter that much more profound… because it is truly the whole story.
Amen.
Palm/Passion Sunday
Note: This reflection was part of a larger service that included a dramatic presentation based on the entire passion narrative from Matthew, using the Contemporary English Version of the Bible. During the service for this Sunday, I only read the first paragraph of the following reflection. The rest of the dramatic presentation made the rest of it redundant.
The story of Christ’s Passion from start to finish is never a “convenient” read with what we have come to expect from Sunday morning worship. Usually if a passage gets over ten verses long, we begin to fidget, wondering when the next part of the service is coming up. This is the third year that we’ve taken this approach. In the same way that we tell the Christmas story through Lessons and Carols at that time of year, telling the entirety of Christ’s Passion, from his entry into Jerusalem to when they finally lay him in the tomb. At it’s best, Holy Week is supposed to be a recounting of those stories each day. On Palm Sunday, we celebrate the triumphal entry, on Maundy Thursday, we celebrate meal that we now mark as the Lord’s Supper, and remember the betrayal and arrest of Jesus, on Good Friday we mark the crucifixion… There is a power to walk through these stories on these days, but there is also a power in telling the story in its entirety. I am grateful to the choir for the addition of their voices to help us hear the whole story today.
But it all begins today, as we recall the great triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. The common people are waving Palm branches, throwing their cloaks down in front of this teacher from the north. Whispers of the Messiah has come to them… an heir to the throne of David, and the people have been waiting so long for this. They have struggled under the weight of Roman occupation for years… and before that Greek kings, and before that the Babylonians… and before that… well, it has gone on for far too long…
The expectations of the people of Israel have built up over centuries of oppressive rule. They want a political ruler… they want a powerful earthly king who will live up to their expectations… kicking the Romans out, and restoring things to the way they were… the good old days. When the crowds start to gather, those hopes and dreams build, along with their cries. They flock to his side, and shout their welcome to this one that people say is the Son of David. They shout “Messiah!” They shout “Hosanna!” They shout their welcome to this new king that has come into their midst. It is a joyous and triumphal day… but it is short lived… Soon the cries will turn into something else… something much darker.
Not even Jesus can live up to their expectations. His reasons for coming to Jerusalem are far more profound, but far more subtle than anyone can imagine. Not even his closest friends truly know what will come of this.
As much as we celebrate Palm Sunday with joyful praises, waving our palm branches, and joining in the choruses of “hosanna” I think we forget how misplaced those celebrations were. Everybody flocked to Jesus, thinking that he would fulfill their own expectations, their own desires and wants. Their praises and welcome were for an earthly king. Yet when it soon became clear that Jesus was not there to assume the throne, their tone changed. Soon the object of their praise would become the target of scorn and ridicule. Joy turns to anger, open hands become clenched fists… and by the end of the week, this welcomed teacher, hailed as messiah, stands condemned by the same people who welcomed him.
While it is tempting to simply skip ahead to next Sunday, the road to Easter stops at the foot of the cross. We need to remember our darkest moment, when all of humanity rose up against God… because God didn’t live up to our expectations. It is a very important part as we journey through holy week, because it makes the miracle at Easter that much more profound… because it is truly the whole story.
Amen.
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