Lent 6/Palm Sunday - From Power over to Power with

 Hosanna!  Hosanna in the highest!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!

These words bring images of Jesus entering Jerusalem to the praise and adoration of the crowds as well, for many of us with church going backgrounds, of little children parading up the church aisle waving palm branches. Both of these are joyful, celebratory images that help us want to celebrate Palm Sunday every year. It is good to celebrate Jesus.

Unfortunately, there is more to the story. In Luke's telling of the entry into Jerusalem (chapter 19:29-40) we hear the crowds calling: "Blessings on the king who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory to the highest heavens." (CEB) The crowd was excited to see Jesus, not because he was teaching them how to follow God's way, but because they saw Jesus as someone who was going to overthrow Rome and become their new king. They were placing their political hopes on Jesus' power, which they hoped would be power over even the Romans. They did not understand that Jesus did not seek that kind of power.

I wonder how Jesus felt as he rode this little colt of a donkey down the street with people calling out these politically charged statements and throwing clothes down for the donkey to walk on. Did the praise bring him joy? Or did he feel sadness at their misguided hopes and understandings? As the pharisees tried to warn him to keep the crowds quiet for his own safety, he basically said there was no point: "if they were silent, the stones would shout." (vs40 CEB) Was this saying that the praise was good and natural? 

So many thoughts flood my brain as these images flash through. Where would I have been on that day?  Would I have turned up to worship and praise Jesus?  Would I have looked on him as a political saviour?  Would I have recognized his true power? Would I have recognized him as God in human form? Would I have heard his message of love for all? Would I have had the courage to leave behind the life I knew to follow him and learn? Would I have had the courage to show up at that rally, risking the "police" showing up to silence me? Is that what I would have been called to do?

There is much I don't know.  What I do know is that Jesus came to show us God's love, to teach us about God's love, to live out God's love. Jesus came to show us that, in love, we can have the power to work together to affect change. God is love. In God's love is the power to come together and speak for those who have no voice, clothe the naked, and feed the hungry.  Together we can bolster each other so that we do not fall when we are exhausted, or give up when our courage begins to give way. In Christ we are not powerless - but powerful as a body representing God on earth. 

So, while we know that later this week we will read of Jesus allowing himself to be powerless in the face of human political torture and execution, let us join with the crowds is praising him this week.  But let us remember that we, too, may have misconceptions of who Jesus is and what Jesus was teaching. Let us allow Jesus to continue to speak to us, to challenge us, to teach us what God would have us know, rather than trying to get Jesus to be and do what we want. Let us celebrate that, even when times are difficult and we don't know how to face whatever is coming, Jesus understands. God understands. May we with the Psalmist in Psalm 31 say:

". . . I trust you, Lord!

I affirm, "You are my God."....

Shine your face on your servant;

save me by your faithful love!

Let us trust God and God's unfailing love to give us the power to face the joys and sorrows of life, and to work together with others to embody all that Christ calls us to be and do.


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