May the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts be pleasing to you, O Lord. Amen.
How great the disciples must have felt that day as they entered Jerusalem together with Jesus who was riding on a donkey! The crowds were cheering, acknowledging Jesus and spreading out their garments like a red-carpet to welcome their new king. It must have felt like a revolution – An unforgettable day in history.
What really led to this event was the miracle in Bethany, which is just about 5km away from Jerusalem. Jesus' friend Lazarus had died. He had been dead for four days but Jesus raised him from death. It was an astonishing miracle! The people, who were there for the funeral could not believe their eyes and got convinced, that Jesus must be the one who he claims to be, after all. As he made his way to Jerusalem, a large crowd that had witnessed this miracle followed him. Some even went ahead of him to spread the news. By the time Jesus and his disciples arrived the crowd was already waving and singing for joy. The ecstasy and adoration of the people made the Pharisees, the Scribes, the teachers of the law and the Jewish council very upset. They demanded Jesus to stop drawing all this attention to himself. They wanted him to tell the people to stop it but Jesus simply answered: "If these were silent, the very stones would cry out."
"Finally!", the disciples must have thought to themselves, "finally, Jesus claims the respect, power and attention which is due to him. Finally, he gets what he truly deserves." The breeze of change was in the air! If anyone had managed to interview one of the disciples that day, we might have heard a statement like this: "Well, we knew all the time that Jesus is really special. We have followed him for three years, long before anyone else knew him. Actually, it is about time people recognize him. What he has done over in Bethany, speaks volumes and it is just a beginning. Now folks, get ready. Some things are going to change drastically around here. It is going to be better than you can ever imagine! Jesus is an awesome leader. Oh, and by the way, we also have a special message to the Pharisees and leaders together with all those who never believed... You can pack up, guys! Jesus and the twelve of us, we are going to take it over from here. You are going to wish that you had never opposed us." A week later, as Jesus was hanging on the cross the Jewish religious leaders might have grinned as they scoffed: "Famous last words from a bunch of nobodies."
Of course, this is not exactly the way it happened. So, what exactly happened? How did the mood of the crowd change so quickly? What strategic mistakes did Jesus make, that he lost the continued support from the crowd? Was there any foul play involved from the Pharisees, Scribes, teachers of the law and the Jewish council?
To answer these questions we must understand 3 things... 1. Jesus' true character 2. The character of humanity 3. The destiny of those who purposefully rebel against God's plan.
Jesus true character The first thing we note about Jesus is that his life is made of contradicting circumstances. In the Scriptures: The Messiah is a mighty warrior – but also a humble donkey rider He is God – but he is also human He is king – but also a servant He had all the right to demand riches and comfort – but he remained poor by worldly standards He conquered death – but died suffering He loved immensely – but was hated fiercely.
What a tension-filled life Jesus lived! What stands out about Jesus, besides his obvious love for God and humankind, is his meekness and humility. Even though the crowd cheered and sang praises he knew that this adoration for him was not going to last too long. In fact, Luke's gospel tells us, that as Jesus was drawing close to the city of Jerusalem he wept over it saying:
"If you, even you, had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. Indeed, the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up ramparts around you and surround you, and hem you in on every side. They will crush you to the ground, you and your children within you, and they will not leave within you one stone upon another; because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God."
Yes, the crowds were cheering. Yes, they adored him at that moment. But all the fanfare and pomp was displayed, thinking that he would now overthrow Roman power in order to reign over them as their king but Jesus came to reign in their hearts first.
There will surely be one day, when we will see Jesus come again to reign the world, to overthrow the powers of evil, and to end the plight caused by imperfect, selfish human leadership but Jesus' first and foremost goal is to claim reign over the hearts and minds of people. Jesus knew the true character of humanity.
Oh, we love to see ourselves as good people.
But isn't it true, that humanity shows itself at its worst when it is given a chance?
Jesus hanging on the cross witnesses to us about that very fact:
The character of humanity The justice system had failed. To the principle which says: "It is better 100 guilty persons should escape than that one innocent person should suffer" was paid no attention to because Pilate was more concerned with pleasing the crowd.
Also, the moral compass of the society had failed. The people blindly followed their leaders not remembering what they had witnessed about Jesus just a couple of days before.
Moreover, the people went to great lengths to humiliate and torture Jesus. They showed great enthusiasm to execute the plan of their religious leaders. A crown of thorns was hand made, someone ran to fill a sponge with wine vinegar to in order to mock him and even passersby took the time to hurl insults, shake their heads and to challenge Jesus to save himself.
How quick we are to insult, mock and hurt and how slow we are to love, have mercy and show genuine kindness & grace? This is the state and the true character of humanity. Yes, we are made in the very image of God and can strive to become more and more like him but humanity also has great capacity to do evil and be cruel. This is the very reason why we so desperately need Jesus in our life.
In contrast to the spontaneous cruelty of the general crowd the Pharisees, Scribes, Teachers of the law and the Jewish council were guilty of having crafted and pre-meditated this evil plan even though they actually were willfully rebelling against God.
The gospel of John tells us about the secret conversations they had amongst themselves: "See", they said to each other, "this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!" (John 12:19)
"Here is this man performing many miraculous signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation" (John 11: 47,48)
Even though they were to represent God's will before the people their desire to stay in power was much stronger than the desire to carry out their duty as religious leaders faithfully. It is ironic though: despite their rebellious heart and intentions, they play a part in God's plan to glorify Jesus! By eagerly urging the posting of Roman guards in front of Jesus' tomb they close all loop holes to portray Jesus' rising from the dead as human interference with an unguarded tomb. This shows us the destiny of those who willfully rebel against God's plans. Not only do they not succeed but also do they even end up helping the cause unintentionally.
So, what is the significance of Palm Sunday in light of these findings? We know that:
In light of these points, we are reminded, that even though the original Palm Sunday was a very joyful occasion, we are to look behind it to see the suffering on the cross and to grasp the final victory in the tomb.
As he entered Jerusalem on that donkey Jesus knew there were just a few days left in his life. Yet, he obediently set his crucifixion in motion. His obedience and willingness to yield to God's will even in the face of great suffering and pain is unmatched.
As followers of Christ, we are called to follow in His footsteps. We might not have to die the exact same way as Christ did but there likely will be instances in our life where obedience and submission to God's will feels almost like that.
It is important to remember in such instances that we as Christians, live paradox lives too. On one hand, there might be great suffering, yet on the other hand, we enjoy a rich spiritual life and friendship with God. Each one of us plays a vital part in God's plan to bring God's kingdom into the world. Our sufferings in Christ's name are not in vain. Even though our suffering might seem private to us God often uses these circumstances for the glory of His name.
The Scriptures remind us that
So, as we prepare ourselves to meditate upon the passion of Christ in the coming week, let us closely watch the humility and gentleness of Christ as he is led to the cross.
May the Holy Spirit examine our hearts and reveal to us where we lack humility and submission to God's, will. May he help us to receive Christ singing "Hosanna". May Christ, who has treaded this path before us encourage and strengthen us to conquer the areas which hold us back. And may God give us victory like He has given victory to Christ over death.
Amen.
Archana Jacob