Matthew
21: 1-11
21 When they had come near Jerusalem and had
reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying
to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a
donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. 3 If
anyone says anything to you, just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ And he will
send them immediately.” 4 This took place to
fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying,
5 “Tell the daughter of Zion,
Look, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
Look, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed
them; 7 they brought the donkey and the colt, and
put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. 8 A
very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches
from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 The
crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting,
“Hosanna to the Son of
David!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
10 When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in
turmoil, asking, “Who is this?” 11 The crowds were
saying, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Philippians
2:5-11
5 Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ
Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with
God as something to be exploited, 7 but emptied himself, taking the form of a
slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, 8 he
humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a
cross. 9 Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is
above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in
heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
he
humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—
even
death on a cross.
·
What do we want
for Palm Sunday? A parade! Waving palms! Joyful music after all the minor key
Lenten hymns! Colour!
·
What do we get
this Palm Sunday of 2020? Stay at home orders. Phone calls from friends and
family. Groceries delivered to the door or maybe eating that frozen stuff in
the ‘way back of the freezer.
·
We can’t avoid
where we are today. That is how the world is at present. It’s what we have to
deal with… and we will, with the grace of God.
·
On this Palm
Sunday, we can enjoy the Gospel reading of the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem as
a triumphant king. The way it was done fulfilled prophecies and it excited the
people while upsetting the authorities, both local and Imperial Roman. It is a
triumphal procession, even though we know what is to come next in the story of
Jesus.
·
Since we can’t
have what we’re used to for this day, we’re getting a taste of Good Friday
already. In fact, Palm Sunday is supposed to include the reading of the
Passion. You all know how long that reading can be. (The Passion is to be proclaimed
every year and for a good reason.) To me, the quiet and isolation of our
present situation seems like Holy Saturday when the world seems to be waiting
for something.
·
We know what
we’re waiting for, don’t we? We’re waiting for the Good News, the best News.
First though, we have to continue to wait. While we wait, we might do well to
think on the reading from Paul’s letter to the Philippians.
·
In that letter,
we don’t have the Passion story repeated. What we do have is the reason
for the Passion outlined for us. Paul’s letter gives us the basis for the Good
News we are waiting for.
·
Paul actually
goes beyond a theological statement, as profound as that might be. He is
telling that Christian community (which includes us) that they should adopt
“the mind of Christ” as their way of living: Let the same mind be in you
that was in Christ Jesus… He then goes on to tell what the ‘mind of
Christ’ is for the Christian Church.
·
The humility and
the “emptying” of Jesus is highlighted. Paul tells of Jesus’ birth and life as
a human… with all the things that humans deal with in their lives. This common
humanity also includes death, although the death Jesus suffered was not a
natural death from age or disease. It was not an accidental death, but an
execution with political and religious reasons for his time: he humbled
himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross. No matter how we might see the situation, Jesus
suffered it in great humility and obedience to the will of God for the sake of
the world’s salvation… for our sake.
·
It is this
emptying of Jesus - this vital theological point - that shows the mind of
Christ. It is reflected in his humility and his obedience. The one we call the
Word made Flesh, the Son of God, whom Paul says was in the form of God,
laid that all aside and was crucified, suffering a most painful and shameful
death for our sake.
·
Because of that, Paul
writes that God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above
every name… Jesus emptied himself to the point of death on a cross
and was exalted beyond anything we might imagine. We could say he actually
returned to where he started.
·
Palm Sunday is
the prelude to all this. Jesus entered Jerusalem as a king and a prophet of
God. A few short days later, he humbly went to the cross as a criminal, knowing
full well what it would cost him. At both events, we see Jesus exactly as he
is, as the triumphant king entering into his reign and then as the suffering
servant who lays down his life for those he loves. In all four Gospels, the
cross is more than an instrument of torture and death; it becomes an altar of
sacrifice and in John’s Gospel in particular, it becomes Jesus’ throne, the
throne of the crucified king crowned with thorns. Like the bronze serpent in
the book of Exodus, he is raised up so that all who look to him might be
healed.
·
We are always in
need of that healing. We are ravaged and laid low by disease as our present
situation shows. We are broken by isolation, whether by a virus, by age, by
language, or by our own actions; we crave the healing that community brings. We
suffer under the weight of sin, whether our own (which would be enough) or the
sin seen in the human condition. Things are not as God would want them to be. It is the cross of Christ
that brings that healing and it is the mind of Christ shown in
the actions of Christians that brings that healing to the present time and
place. We live the Cross of Christ, as Paul says in his letter to the Galatians:
it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I
now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and
gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)
·
Now all we can
say in this present moment, under the weird and unsettling circumstances we
know today, is that we have hope – not in ourselves alone, but in the work of
so many people around us and ultimately,
in the grace, mercy, power of God in Jesus Christ. Even now and then later,
we’ll know that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on
earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
·
Amen and amen.
If you'd like, here is the sermon delivered on YouTube:
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