Palm Sunday

The text: Luke 19:28-44

The coming of Jesus Christ riding on a donkey into Jerusalem, which we celebrate today, is a beautiful moments of glory, praise and thanksgiving. At last the Messiah, the King of the Jews has finally come! God himself has come to his people and all the Jews of Jersualem should have all welcomed their King with open arms.

But the response to Jesus is sadly quite mixed. Jesus’ disciples and other members of the large crowd celebrate him, but the Pharisees, the Jewish leaders stand there scowling and frowning at their King. They wish to truly spoil the party.

But is not as if this was a surprise to them. They knew Jesus was coming. Jesus as he approached Bethany did all the appropriate cultural practices of a true King or visiting member of state. Created originally by the Persian King Cyrus, visiting Kings and officials in the Middle East engaged in a practice called ‘angaria’ which everyone understood. You sent a representative ahead of the visit to borrow a donkey or horse from someone for official state business and there was often very few questions asked. So when the disciples obey Jesus and get the colt they utter words to the owner: ‘The Lord, or the master needs it’. That signaled that someone important was coming and so the borrow of the colt was culturally allowed.

Furthermore, as Jesus the King of Kings comes closer and closer to Jerusalem, people lay down their coats, palms and branches on the ground, creating a passageway for Jesus to ride through. It’s an exciting time when Jesus finally comes close, and the disciples are shouting out and praising God. But then suddenly a disapproving voice rings out: ‘Teacher rebuke your disciples!’ Jesus is very quick to answer: ‘If they remain silent even the stones will cry out!’

This is the turning point in the journey, where happiness turns to sadness. The Pharisees, blind to who Jesus really is, are shamed by simple stones! Even inanimate objects of creation know more about the Messiah than the Pharisees do!’ This is a true case of the Pharisees ‘missing the moment’.

Some words begin to get highly descriptive. In the original Greek language the stones are said to ‘shriek out’. It’s hard to know whether the stones are crying out in praise or they are crying out in protest because of the disapproval of the Pharisees. But now it is Jesus’ turn to cry out. As he gets close to Jerusalem’s walls in verse 41 Jesus doesn’t just shed a few tears, he cries a loud lament, his heart burnt with pain and anguish. In his pain he says:

“If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.”

This is a striking prophecy from God himself, of the fall of Jerusalem in the year 70 AD. The Romans did indeed build an embankment and surrounded it. They starved it to death causing terrible suffering, and then once inside killed thousands. But those stones of the temple were also all truly overturned just as Jesus said. Jewish historian Josephus records that as the temple stone walls were lined inside with pure gold, once it was all set on fire, the fire melted the gold, and it ran into the crevices of the stones. The Romans then got large crowbars and overturned every stone so that they could search for that melted gold.

This indeed was a tragic case of Jerusalem ‘missing the moment’. They had rejected and crucified their own king, and that rejection created a chain of rebellious events that would lead to the Romans destroying the temple. Jesus came to bring them peace, but their stones were overturned simply because they did not recognize God’s coming to them.

Friends, today we celebrate the coming of our King our Saviour. And he regularly comes to us in our lives in so many different ways; in his word the Bible, communion, through people, through events, and also through little things too. Although we do experience the coming of Jesus into our lives we also can miss him too. Sometimes we are too caught up in our own anxieties, habits and distractions. We can be so caught up with our Facebook feed we might unconsciously ignore a little child whose drawn a picture of Jesus and is very busy tugging at our legs to tell us all about it. That may be another form of God coming to us, yet we might be too busy or too distracted to notice.

But even though we can be like the Pharisees sometimes, where we are blind to God’s coming, we can be thankful that God is gracious and keeps on coming to us. He finds other passages and gates into our little ‘Jerusalems’ and he lives to help us and bless us. As Christians, we have the Spirit of God inside us. The Spirit not only forgives our missed moments but also helps us see the beautiful moments that Jesus comes to us in our lives; people like friends and family that he puts around us, as well as the small joys and innocent moments of young children. He reminds us of the words Jesus speaks to us as he comes to us through his word. He points us to fix our gaze on Jesus our King who has come to us, who continues to come to us through his word and sacraments, and the King who will come again.

During this Holy week and the weeks ahead, may we all see and experience more of God’s coming to us, and rejoice in the wonderful truth that we are his people, whom he loves dearly.

Amen.

‘The King who rode a donkey’

Palm Sunday: John 12:12-36

That last Sunday before Passover in Jerusalem was quite a day. People had been talking about little more than the famous preacher and miracle worker, the one who just a few days earlier had even called a man named Lazarus from the grave. They wondered whether he would actually show up in the city for Passover. The chief priests and other leaders were so worried about the following he was gaining that they had put our orders for his arrest. And Jesus himself had not been seen for several days. Not since he raised Lazarus.

That’s when the rumours began. Jesus was back. He was outside of Jerusalem, in the village of Bethany with Lazarus. And he would be coming into Jerusalem the next morning! Well, no one wanted to miss that. In fact, so many thousands turned out to see Jesus that the authorities could not get near him. And if they did, they would have been beaten by the crowds if they tried to arrest him. So the chief priests and the Pharisees and even the Roman soldiers all stayed away that morning. But no one else stayed away. It seemed that the entire city had turned out to welcome Jesus. People threw their coats down on the ground so Jesus would have a soft path. They cut down palm branches and held them up to shield him from the sun as he passed by. They welcomed him just like a king would be welcomed returning from a great victory in battle.

But Jesus didn’t look anything like a triumphant king. He wore the simple robes of a travelling preacher. His guard of honour was not armed soldiers, but his students. And he was not riding in a chariot. He was not riding a war horse. In fact, he was not riding a horse at all. Instead, he came into the city sitting on a young donkey, his feet lifted so as not to drag on the ground, as the beast slowly made its way up the road that led from Bethany to Jerusalem.

This did not seem like any king the people had seen before. But for those who paid close attention to such things, they would have reembered that a king sometimes did ride a donkey into a new or conquered city to show that he was coming in peace. Certainly this was a good sign. Others, who knew the scriptures well, would have recalled the passage from the prophet Zechariah that proclaimed concerning the messiah, ‘behold, you king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt’ (Zechariah 9:9). This is perhaps part of what spurred on the crowd to shout, ‘Hosanna! Blessed in the one who comes in the name of the Lord, the king of Israel’ which is another messianic text from Psalm 118 (vv 25 and 26). And just after these verses that John quotes the psalm reads that these words would be shouted with ‘branches in hand, in festive procession to the horns of the altar’ (v. 27).

The expectations on Jesus at this moment could not have been higher, nor more clearly messianic. And among the crowd were many who had witnessed the raising of Lazarus. And they were cheering loudly and continuing to tell everyone what Jesus had done (v. 17).

The Pharisees, who had been conspiring with the chief priest to have Jesus arrested, felt the sting of defeat. ‘Look,’ they said, ‘what can we do? The whole world had gone after him’ (v. 19).

For those waiting for the messiah to come and set them free, to show up and throw out the Romans and reestablish the throne of King David, the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey was the sign they had been waiting for. The moment, they believed, had finally come.

Then, before John continues the story, there is an interesting and unexpected interlude. Normally we pass over it without much thought. But is deserves a closer look.

When Jesus enters the city, at the point at which everyone expected him to head for the Roman garrison and throw out the soldiers. Or perhaps straight to the temple and overthrow the corrupt high priests, we instead find him pausing and talking to the people.

It was then that John tells us that there were some Greeks who were in Jerusalem for the festival. Now we don’t know if they were actual Greeks. For many Jews in Jesus’ time this was the name they gave to all non-Jews because Greek was the common language that most foreigners spoke. In fact, the men in question were probably not even non-Jews. The fact that they were there to worship suggests they were either Jews from a foreign land, or converts to Judaism. But what is clear is that these men were strangers to the city. Perhaps they had heard about Jesus in their home country. And now that they were in Jerusalem, they were very keen to see what was going on with this famous preacher called Jesus. But they couldn’t get near Jesus for the press of the crowds. They probably couldn’t even get a glimpse of him. Many of us have had the experience of being in a big crowd when someone famous passes by. And at the last moment so many people press in and jump up onto shoulders that we end up see nothing at all.

But these Greek visitors desperately wanted to see Jesus whom they had heard so much about. So they found Philip. Why Philip? John reminds us Philip was from Bethsaida, which we were told in chapter one. Bethsaida was culturally a very ‘Greek’ town, so Philip would have been fluent in the language and aware of the culture. Perhaps this is why they sought him out to help them gain an audience with Jesus. For some reason, Philip goes to Andrew, who was also from Bethsaida. And together they go to Jesus with the request from the newcomers.

Again, we recall the first chapter of John’s gospel and the account of the first disciples. Remember, it was Andrew (along with John) to whom Jesus first said ‘come and see’. And it was Philip who said to Nathaniel, ‘come and see’. John does not want us to miss the point that new people are still coming to Jesus. And their request is reminiscent of the theme from the first chapter of John’s Gospel. ‘Sir,’ they say to Philip, ‘we want to see Jesus’ (v. 21).

Jesus has been saying, ‘come and see.’ And now these men have arrived in Jerusalem and want to see Jesus. And we think we know where the story will go from here. Jesus, of course, will take the time to meet these newcomers, to let them ‘come and see’ for themselves.

But that’s not what happens.

Jesus, who often does not do what we expect, or at least not in the way in which we might expect him to do it, seems to ignore the request.

Instead, Jesus begins to talk about his death and his glorification. He tells his disciples and all who are listening how troubled he is in his very soul about what lays before him. But he stands firm in his intention and prays, ‘Father, glorify your name.’ And the Father responds audibly with a voice form heaven saying, ‘I have glorified it and will glorify it again.’ The crowd was confused about what they heard. Was it thunder? Was it an angel speaking to Jesus? Jesus simply responds that it was for the sake of those listening, and not for his own sake, that the Father spoke. Just as at his baptism, it is a confirmation of who Jesus is.

Then, speaking about his impending death, Jesus says, ‘When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people to myself’ (v. 32).

And here is the answer that the Greeks sought. It is the response, somewhat delayed, to the question that Jesus appeared to ignore. In the very last week of his life, yet more people are discovering Jesus. They too want to come and see him. Perhaps they are also hoping to become his disciples. But instead of inviting them to come and see by following him, as he did with Philip, Andrew and the other disciples, Jesus tells them and all who are in the crowd to look up. If they want to see Jesus, they will soon enough have the chance, for he will be lifted upon from the earth for all to see. And then he will draw all people, both Jew and Greek, to himself.

If you want to see me, he says, if you want to see the king being glorified. Just watch. You will see me lifted up, and from there, I will draw everyone to me.

At the end of Jesus’ life the invitation to ‘come and see Jesus’ is extended to all people, Jew and Greek, and to people of all times. If we want to see Jesus, if we want to see the king, the one who entered Jerusalem in peace on the back of a donkey, we need only look up to the cross. For Jesus made the cross his throne. And from there he calls us all to come and see what he has done for us.

Amen.

Pastor Mark Worthing.

Your King comes to save you

The Text: John 12:12-16 (esp. v 15)

When our sports heroes come back home, say, after the Olympic Games, and they’re given a parade in one of the capital cities, there’s great excitement. When a football team wins a grand final, its fans become delirious. It must have been something like that when our Lord entered Jerusalem on the Sunday before the Passover (12:1,12). The large crowd that welcomed Him was jubilant. Of the four Gospels, only St John tells us that people carried palm branches. For the Jews, palm branches were symbols of victory. 2 Maccabees, for example, tells us that after Judas Maccabeus won a victory over the Syrians in 164BC, he and those with him entered Jerusalem to cleanse the temple and rededicate the altar. It says, “carrying green palm branches and sticks decorated with ivy, they paraded around, singing grateful praises to [God] who had brought about the purification of his own temple” (10:7). On the occasion of our text, the crowd that had come to Jerusalem for Passover was stirred up because they’d heard how Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead (vv 9,18). Who had ever done anything as great as that?

For all the freedoms we enjoy in this life, especially in a country like our own, we human beings remain in the grip of death. We become alarmed when we hear of conflict between nations. We panic in the face of a pandemic. “In the midst of life we are in death.” Death in turn is the result of sin that characterises the fallen world in which we live. Each one of us sinful by nature and is also guilty of actual sins of thought, word, and deed. We haven’t loved God with our whole heart, soul, mind and strength, as He wants us to. We’ve failed to love our neighbour as ourselves. God has every right to consign us not only to death but also to eternal punishment. Instead, He loves the people He has made. He sent His own dear Son to save us from sin and death.

Jesus came to Jerusalem on that Palm Sunday so that He might be our Saviour. The people who welcomed Him thought of Him as their King. Their cry was a verse (26) from Ps 118 that was used to welcome pilgrims to the temple: “Hosanna! [Save now!] Blest is he who comes in the name of the Lord”. We shouldn’t question that they added the words, “even the King of Israel!” Many of the Passover pilgrims would have travelled from Galilee. No doubt some had been present the year before at the feeding of over 5,000 people on the other side of the Sea of Galilee (6:1, 4). On that occasion, people wanted to take Jesus by force to make Him their king, St John tells us (6:15). When the Passover crowds heard that Jesus had raised Lazarus of Bethany to life (12:18), they would have been sure that He was their king.

Yet they had no idea what Jesus would do as King. Jesus’ own disciples didn’t understand, either, that though almighty God, He’d come humbly to die as God’s ransom for human sin. They knew the Old Testament verses that mention the coming of Israel’s glorious King. But they had a blind spot when it came to those verses that tell about His suffering and death.

In Zechariah 9 the LORD tells the inhabitants of Jerusalem to rejoice greatly that her King would come to her victorious and bringing salvation. He’d come humbly, riding on a colt, the foal of a donkey. He’d rule over the earth in peace, but not peace brought about by war. The LORD says, “As for you also [daughter of Zion], because of the blood of my covenant with you, /I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit” (v 11). He wasn’t referring to the blood of the covenant that Moses splashed on the people of Israel at Mt Sinai (Ex 24:8). He was referring to the blood of Zion’s King. In those days kings were called shepherds of their people (e,g, Ezek 37:24). In following chapters of Zechariah there’s a mysterious reference to the shepherd of the flock whose wages would be weighed out as 30 pieces of silver (11:4, 12). The LORD says about Him, “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered” (13:7). He, the Shepherd, says, “when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn … as one mourns for an only child” (12:10). Then come these important words: “On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness” (13:1). (This verse was the inspiration for the hymn [LHS 68] that begins, “There is a fountain filled with blood, /drawn from Immanuel’s veins”.)

Jesus’ blood that would be poured out at Calvary is the blood of the new, eternal covenant. The only other mentions in Scripture of ‘the blood of the covenant’ are found in the New Testament, always in connection with Jesus’ death. For example, St Matthew tells us that at the last supper Jesus gave His disciples a cup of wine and said, “this [cup] is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Mt 26:28). Jesus is the King who would be sold for 30 pieces of silver and would be struck and pierced to save His people by the blood of His new covenant.

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion,” is how the passage in Zechariah begins. But the passage that St John quotes doesn’t begin with a summons to rejoice. It begins, “Fear not, daughter of Zion”. These words are from another part of Scripture, from the prophet Zephaniah. By using only a few words, Gospel writers usually (e.g. Mk 1:2f) draw in large amounts of the Old Testament Scriptures. It says in Zephaniah 3 (:16f), “Fear not, O Zion; /let not your hands grow weak. /The LORD your God is in your midst, /a mighty one who will save”. Just two verses earlier, the prophet calls on the daughter of Zion to sing aloud, shout, rejoice and exult with all her heart because, he says, “The LORD has taken away the judgments against you … /The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst”.

As earlier chapters of Zephaniah show, by her worship of false gods the daughter of Jerusalem deserved every one of the judgments of the true God. Who of us always puts God first in our lives? But the prophet also tells about the LORD, the King of Israel, coming among His repentant people to save them from His judgments. That’s what Jesus came to do. He’s not to be taken lightly, as His cleansing of the temple and His cursing of the unfruitful fig tree show. He’ll come as powerful Judge of all at the last day, to destroy His enemies. All the more amazing, then, that He came humbly the first time to be lifted up from the earth (on a cross) in order to draw all people to Himself, as last Sunday’s Gospel tells us (12:32). He’s not spiteful or vindictive. He has righteous anger over sin. Yet even righteous anger isn’t at the heart of His being. It says that He punishes people only to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Him, whereas He shows steadfast love to thousands of generations of those who love Him and keep His commandments (Ex 20:5f). His heart is full of grace and mercy (Ex 34:6). By that mercy, all who turn from sin to Him are saved for all eternity.

We’re saved by our King who shed His blood for us on a cross. The letter to the Hebrews (9:15) describes Jesus as the mediator of a new covenant/testament that gives an eternal inheritance. It says that His blood purifies our conscience from dead works so that we can serve the living God (9:14). It’s by His blood that we can come into the presence of God and live. As the song, ‘Shine, Jesus, shine’ says, addressing Jesus, “By the blood”—by your blood, that is—“I may enter your brightness”. In His Supper He comes to us in a hidden way to give us His blood to drink and His body to eat. By His body and blood, He forgives our sins and strengthens us in faith towards Him and in love towards one another. Therefore, we also rightly welcome Him among us with the words, “Hosanna! Blest is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!”

For now, many of His followers are treated just as He was. They’re killed in gruesome ways, as He was. But since He now rules over all things, eternal victory is also theirs. In the Revelation the apostle John was given (7:9-10), he was shown the huge number of people who can’t be numbered, standing before God’s throne and before the Lamb, Jesus, “clothed in white robes”, that is, cleansed from all their sins. They’re described as coming out of the great tribulation. But they’re victorious as He is. They stand before God “with palm branches in their hands”. They sing in a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” That victory is also yours, who, to use words from the Revelation, “have washed [your] robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (7:14). We aren’t privileged to have been among the Jerusalem crowds that waved palm branches and welcomed Jesus as their King. Nor do we see the great multitude that stands before His throne in heaven. Yet until we do, we are privileged to welcome Him among His Zion, His new Jerusalem, His church, whenever and wherever she is gathered together in His name. We join all His people whether living or dead, in praising Him. For Zion’s King comes humbly today also to you, daughter of Zion, so that you may belong to him in peace and joy for all eternity! Amen

Jesus’ triumphal entry

The Text: Matthew 21

When ‘Ivan the terrible’ came into town he needed no introduction. That’s because ‘Ivan the Terrible’ (who was the Tsar of Russia) was exactly what his nickname said he was – terrible! He was terrible and he was terrifying. He would torture animals just for fun. He beat up his pregnant daughter-in-law because he didn’t like what she was wearing, resulting in her having a miscarriage. When his son confronted him over it, Ivan fatally stabbed him with the sharpened end of his walking cane, which he always kept sharp so he could jab people with it. He mercilessly murdered people and tortured them. He was a maniac. He was a terrible king but at least people knew who he was.

History is littered with kings and great political leaders who are instantly recognisable, not so much for being famous but for being infamous. If I put a picture of Hitler on the screen you would know who he is, and the people of his time would have known him too. The great Caesars of Rome, the kings and queens of Europe, the pharaohs of Egypt – whether they were good or bad – all of them could be identified by their people. And still today, when dignitaries move through the streets, they do so with a great entourage, body guards, fanfare and impressive vehicles. Whether they are infamous or simply famous, kings and rulers are recognised by their people.

But when Jesus, the king of kings, arrives in Jerusalem, what do his people say? Oh great, here’s the king? Oh wonderful, our saviour has arrived? No, the people of Jerusalem see Jesus on a donkey, with the crowds cheering around him and his band of followers by his side and they ask: “Who is this?!!?”

Well, I guess that Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem sends out some confusing messages. On the one hand you have this big crowd shouting out ‘Hosanna to the Son of David!’ Now, ‘Son of David’ is code for ‘the king’. They think they’ve found the Messiah. And yet, the people of Jerusalem look at Jesus in disbelief, that this unimpressive man riding on a donkey could possibly be a king.

That’s because we all know that kings back then rode on horses, and today they drive in big fancy cars. They don’t get about on donkeys. You don’t win wars with donkeys, you win them with horses and chariots, with tanks and planes and ships.

And yet Jesus was going to war. Jesus had already made it clear to his disciples what type of war he was going to be fighting in Jerusalem. In the previous chapter, as they headed for the great city, Jesus said: “We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!”

Jesus rides into Jerusalem ready for a war of a different kind. It’s the war for your soul. Jesus came into Jerusalem on a donkey as the king prepared to die for his people, the very people who didn’t even recognize him and the very people who would put him to death. What a king! Jesus came to Jerusalem to tangle with Satan, to defeat him and sin and death in one very foul and bloody swoop.

And how was Jesus going to win this war? Through submission. Now that’s not what kings are meant to do – submit! We are meant to submit to them! But Jesus rides into Jerusalem with the specific aim of handing himself over to die, where he will become the atoning sacrifice for all human sinfulness. What a king!

It should be no surprise to us that no sooner had Jesus told his disciples about his purpose for coming to Jerusalem, that two of them ask if they can sit at his right and his left side in his glory. ‘Glory!’ they said. ‘Jesus give us some glory!’ That’s the sort of king they wanted.

But Jesus was not a king who came for glory—Jesus was a king who came to serve and through his service to you and me and to the world he would give his life. By his work and service and sacrifice we are reconciled with God. The war has been won.

That’s the king that Jesus still is for you. Jesus is our great defender and protector and he is continually working to keep us safe from evil, from the power of the devil and from falling into unbelief. Jesus continues to serve us by forgiving our sins, washing us clean, hearing our prayers, answering our prayers and giving us his blessing. Jesus is a king who serves and as people of his kingdom we are also called to live a life of service.

Why wouldn’t we serve a king like that? Many kings, like Ivan the Terrible, could scare us into serving them. But Jesus doesn’t do that. Our king comes to us gentle and riding on a donkey—an animal of peace. There is no frightening sound of galloping hooves, no cracking whips, no shouting. There are no tanks rolling or guns blazing. Jesus comes to us with gentleness to save and protect us. He is the King of Kings—and with him there is nothing to fear. Amen.

Jesus our king

Text: Matthew 21:8, 9
A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Hosanna in the highest!”

Jesus our king

As you look through history books you soon realise that when it came to kings and queens that some are remembered for the way they abused their power and used the people of their kingdoms.

One notorious ruler in England was King John who was born on Christmas Eve 1167, the youngest son of Henry II. When his brother, King Richard, was killed in France and Richard’s son was murdered, John became king. (Many believe that he was responsible for his nephew’s death).

John faced one disaster after another.
His army was defeated in France and had to retreat.
To rebuild his army he imposed incredibly high taxes.
The country broke into civil war when his nobles rebelled.
John even managed to get the church offside and was excommunicated by the pope and no baptism or marriage performed in England would be legitimate until the pope said so. And without church approved baptisms or marriages the people were afraid that they would all end up in hell. They blamed John.
John’s life was at risk when the pope declared that if anyone overthrew King John they would be legally entitled to do so.
After John was again defeated in France his barons were fed up. John was forced to sign the Magna Carta at Runnymede in 1215. This guaranteed the people of England rights that the king could not go back on.
When John tried to ignore the Magna Carta the barons rebelled against him again and soon after John died.

Today we hear about another king. This king is nothing like bad King John. He was quite the opposite. There was nothing arrogant or evil about this king. He demonstrated nothing but humility and kindness. He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, a work animal used to carrying loads for farmers and traders. The disciples and those who lined the roads hailed him as the king – ‘the king who comes in the name of the Lord!’

Even before Jesus was born the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that her son would be a king, a descendant of King David.
When the wisemen were looking for the Christ-child they asked King Herod, ‘Where is the baby born to be king of the Jews?’ When they found the child-king they knelt down and worshipped him, presenting him with royal gifts – gold, frankincense and myrrh.

King of the Jews! That title followed him into the trials before the Sanhedrin, King and Herod Pontius Pilate. The Sanhedrin, the Jewish Council, had found Jesus guilty of blasphemy on the basis that he claimed to be the Messiah. But they knew that the Roman Governor wouldn’t be interested in any of their religious reasons for getting rid of Jesus, so they brought a charge against Jesus they knew would interest Pilate. They accused Jesus of treason. He claimed to be a king and was a traitor to the Roman Empire.

Pontius Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus looked nothing like a king. In chains, beaten – having been slapped in the face, and with spit in his hair and beard.

Jesus’ answer is unexpected. He soon sets Pilate right about who he is and affirms clearly that he is a king. But not a king as Pilate might expect. John’s Gospel reports Jesus saying, “My kingdom does not belong to this world; if my kingdom belonged to this world, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish authorities. No, my kingdom does not belong here!”

Such an idea doesn’t make sense to Pilate. With puzzlement written all over his face, he asked a second time and Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. I was born and came into the world for this one purpose, to speak about the truth. Whoever belongs to the truth listens to me” (John 18:36-38).

So you see, Jesus admits to being a king but a king with a kingdom and a kingship quite different to anything that we have seen in history. Jesus wasn’t interested in power or politics, pomp and pageantry. His kingdom was not an earthly kingdom but one that existed in the hearts of people.

Pilate was puzzled. The people outside were quite clear about what they wanted done with Jesus. They called for the death of this meek and gentle king and the release of the brutal and murderous Barabbas.

Something is wrong here. Jesus hasn’t been brutal and oppressive. The crowd had hailed him as king when he entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and now they were asking for this king’s blood. Here is king who is on the side of the people, the friend of the poor, the sick, the guilty, the sad but the people turn against him. A murderer goes free, while a king like no other king, loving and kind, is heading for execution.

Pilate mockingly placed a sign at the top of the cross, “This is the King of the Jews.” This was truer than he imagined. This bleeding broken man on the cross really is a king. The criminal crucified beside him recognises Jesus as a king and says, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. And Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”

When we were baptised, through the simple water and the Word of God we were made members of God’s kingdom. Jesus became our king. Not a ruthless and pompous king like bad King John, but a king who was so generous that he gave his life for us.
A king whose throne was the cross,
whose crown was made of thorns,
who was dressed in a royal robe as a king and mocked by Herod and his soldiers,
whose blood was called for by the crowds when they said, “Take him away! Crucify him! We have no king but Caesar. …!
Jesus is our king who loved us so much that “he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross” (Phil 2:8).

What does it mean to have Jesus as our Lord and King?

- With Jesus as our king we enjoy a royal pardon for all our sin. This pardon means that there is nothing that stains our lives. We have been made clean with the righteousness of Jesus. When God looks at us he doesn’t see sin and weakness; he only sees the purity and newness that have received through the blood of Jesus shed on the cross of Calvary. When Jesus declared from the cross “Father, forgive them” he was also saying that to us.
- With Jesus as our king, he says to us as he did the thief on the cross, “Today you will be with me in paradise”. He promises that we too will share in his eternal kingdom where there will be no more pain, or crying or dying.
- With Jesus as our king – our ever present and living king – he promises all those who belong to his kingdom that he will always be there for us in times of joy, in times of sadness, and in times of suffering. When we are discouraged and weak, ‘the King of kings and Lord of lords’ (1 Tim 6:15, 16) assures that there is nothing that can stand between God and us; nothing that can stop him loving and forgiving us; nothing that can harm us. Even when we face death we can confidently say, “I have a king and a friend who will never give upon me and when the time comes for my departure, I am confident of his love for me.”
- With Jesus as our king he lovingly rules and directs our lives as citizens of his kingdom. He has bought us with his blood, made us his chosen people and urges us to lives of repentance, faith and love. In the Small Catechism Luther says after describing how Jesus rescued us from sin and death through the events of Good Friday and Easter, “Jesus did this so that I can belong to him, and he can rule over me as my king. I can live under him and serve him, innocent and happy forever” (1996 Openbook).

- With Jesus as our king we are joined together in his family, his kingdom, his church. He has placed us in a baptismal relationship with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
  We have been called to care for one another and to show compassion and understanding wherever it is required.
  We have been called to work together sharing the Good News about Jesus with those who need to know of his love for them.
  Through us, he calls them out of the darkness of sin into his marvellous light.
- With Jesus as our king we have an advocate before the throne of God. He hears our prayers and answers them. He sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty and has the authority and the power to answer all of our petitions.
- One day the king will return. He will come on the Last Day and will reward those who have trusted his love and been faithful to their calling as disciples. He will say, “Well done good and faithful servant. … Come and share your master’s happiness” (Matt 25:23).

As we enter this Holy Week it’s a good thing to ask ourselves where we stand in our relationship with our Lord.
Does he rule our lives?
Is he truly the Lord of our lives, Lord in the sense that he directs our actions, our words, and our thoughts?
Does the Lord of lords rule every corner of our lives; not just a small part but every part – our family life, our work life, our church life, our leisure life.
Because Jesus is our Lord and King no doubt there are some things that we need to change, some things we would stop doing, and there are other things that we could take up, all because Jesus rules our lives completely.

This is serious stuff that we don’t take seriously enough. We are good at giving all kinds of excuses. But Jesus is our Lord and King now. As Saviour he has committed himself to us, and as Lord he wants us to be committed to him.

But if we are honest, often we are like the people of Jerusalem – sometimes we are all excited about Jesus being our saviour and king but there are other times when our faith has grown cold (at best lukewarm) and we find ourselves distant from Jesus. Instead of Jesus ruling our words and actions we find ourselves so self-focussed that sin rules our lives as our words and actions hurt others.

When this happens this is a time for repentance – turning back to Jesus, his love and forgiveness, and his rule in our lives. It is a time for renewed faith and trust in him as the one who loves us, died on the cross for us, and calls us to be his people in the world around us.

We have a king who has done so much for us. Today let’s welcome Jesus with shouts of “Hosanna!” He is our Saviour from sin.
Let us also shout “Hosanna!” and welcome him as the Lord and King of our lives.
Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna!

© Pastor Vince Gerhardy

Palm Sunday

We are united in Christ, now in His suffering and humiliation, then finally in His resurrection and exaltation; let His life be yours.

Philippians 2:5
Let this insight be in you, which was in Christ Jesus.

Palm Sunday, that beautiful remembrance of Christ’s procession as the coming king into the city of God and to the altar of His temple. The beginning of the last week of His life, as He fulfilled the promises to the people of old; the king come to be crowned, yet with thorns on the throne of the cross (Isaiah 23:5); the priest to offer the final sacrifice on the altar, the sacrifice of the true Pascal lamb by which those trusting would be saved (Psalm 110:4; Isaiah 53:7); the servant who would bring salvation to all the nations, by His suffering, death and His resurrection and exaltation to God’s right hand, to His almighty power (Isaiah 49:7). And you are with Him in this. You know you are joined with Christ through baptism by the Holy Spirit, that we together are members of His body, that we share in His life, and so as the apostle says ‘let this insight be in you, which was in Christ Jesus’ let His life be yours.

And what is this insight? The Spirit teaches us with this ‘Christ hymn’ that the Second Person of the Trinity, the pre-incarnate Son, didn’t consider the almighty power and authority He possessed as God as something to be clung to, as we might clutch at good health, wealth or safety. His status as equal with the Father was not something He prioritised, like we might prioritise our position at work, or our status as citizens. Rather He gave of Himself taking the form of a servant to serve others though He is truly Lord of all and rightfully all should be serving Him, yet He came as a servant. He was incarnate, He took on our humanity in its fullness. He humbled Himself, from Lord of all to be a servant for all, from creator of all to be not just a human, but a human embryo, taking on our humanity from its beginning. And having become obedient, or in the Greek more ‘truly listening’ or ‘under to what is heard’, listening to His Father even to death, His excruciating passion flogged, shamed, and crucified.

Now we’ll take a break before going on. That insight of Christ is to not cling to the things this fallen world values, to power or authority, rather to fully listen to our Heavenly Father and live that out. Today I’m not going to highlight the truth of our sinfulness, and our helplessness. Instead I pray that the Holy Spirit has already done His Work, through the liturgy and the Word, that you who have been arrogant in your sin have been crushed, that God’s law has shown you that you fail to live with Christ’s humility and obedience. But now broken sinners do not despair, hear again God’s promise to you that, ‘you were united with Christ Jesus by baptism into a death like His, and shall certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His.’ (Romans 6:4-5). But what was His resurrection like? We’ll go back to the text.

Jesus humbled Himself, incarnated and died in obedience with God’s Word, fulfilling His promises. Therefore God highly exalted Him, He put everything under Christ’s feet, His power. He graced Jesus with the name or reputation above all others, that when all things, from the highest archangel to the lowest worm, when all hear Him we will glorify and praise Him, truly and rightly honouring Him and confessing together that Jesus Christ is Lord, master and king of all; to the glory of God the Father. This is an incredibly dense text, and where is the good news for us here?

The first half tells us what Jesus did, humbled, took on our humanity, died in accord with the promises. Then the second half tells what our Father in Heaven did in response, exalted Him above all things that all recognise Jesus as Lord. But why is this Good News for us? We’re told to let this way of life to be our way of life, to always live as Christ lives; how can we hope to measure up to what Jesus did, how much He loved all people, even those hating Him? Well it’s like St Paul, who was a murderer of Christians, writes elsewhere and honestly throughout his letter here, it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me (Galatians 2:20). We have been joined with Christ, He came to God’s city as King, came to the temple the earthly altar and sacrificed Himself destroying our sin and reconciling us to our Father. And we participate in this, are joined with Him, as we eat and drink His body and blood (1 Corinthians 10:16). Holy Communion is a foretaste of the wedding feast of the slain Lamb at the end of time (Revelation 19:6-9); when Christ marries us His church, a full and completely, perfect union of us lowly humans with God Almighty, our evil already dealt with, and then only the pure and beautiful love of God between us all.

Our common union together with Christ is what Holy Communion is, that’s where we’ve got the words. That we will be exalted and unified with Christ, reigning together with the power of God, Paul tells us later in this letter, ‘God will transform our bodies to be like Christ’s most glorious body’ (3:21). That humanity can attain such heights is proclaimed again in this hymn. The pre-incarnate Son emptied Himself, or came down to become a lowly human, to take on our humanity, eat, sleep, poop, and to die for us. Our Father exalted Him according to His humanity, giving Lordship over all creation to Jesus according to His humanity, because according to His divinity He already had it. Now you and I, joined into the God-man Jesus Christ can be assured that we too will rise with Him, exalted by our Father in our bodies to His glory. This is who you are in Jesus Christ. God has spoken, His word is sure. So now hear again, and truly listen to the Word of God, ‘let the life of Christ be your life.’

And until our full communion comes, the peace of God which passes all understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Pastor Joseph Graham.
Dubbo.

Palm Sunday 14th April

Philippians 2 : 5 – 11

‘and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!’

Today, on this ‘Palm Sunday’, we think of Jesus entering Jerusalem in joy and triumph! gus1

Even so, have you noticed how the story is told emphasizing the humility of Jesus?
The letter of the apostle Paul to the Philippians forms the basis of the response we use in worship during this season of Lent … Christ humbled himself and became obedient unto death – even death on a cross! (v. 8)

In the Gospel Reading for today, we have a quote from the Old Testament prophet Zechariah, (Zech. 9:9) which says …

‘see your king comes to you, gentle (or humble) and riding on a donkey’ (Matt. 21:5)

I suspect humility is a quality or characteristic not so well known in our modern world.

Humility is defined …

‘as the act or posture of lowering oneself in relation to others, … or having a clear perspective and respect for ones place in context.’

Now would you say you are a humble person?

Is it even your desire to be humble in spirit? Perhaps the more we think or speak of ourselves as being humble, the less humble we are!

While the less conscious we are of this state of humility, the more humble we become!

Whatever, today Jesus provides for us the focus and image of humility.

As inadequate as I am at this, I will attempt, from God’s word, to paint a picture of Jesus’ humility.

Jesus is God’s own Son. He is the eternal God. He shares the glories of heaven with his Father; yet he always lived in humility before God, his and our dear Father. (v. 6) He didn’t demand the glory!

Jesus only spoke the things his Father told him to speak. He said to the unbelieving Jews: ‘I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it.’ (John 12:49)

Jesus only did those things the Father asked him to do. Again, after healing a man on the Sabbath, Jesus said to the angry and disbelieving Jews: ‘the Son can do nothing by himself, he can do only what he sees the Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.’ (John 5:19) Jesus always gave God the Father glory!

Today the apostle Paul most vividly describes the humility of Jesus.

His incomprehensible, obedient, death-embracing humility!

It is the mystery and marvel of God’s kingdom revealing the depth of his love from the bloodshed of Calvary. From the bloodied cross we measure God’s determined purpose to be merciful … to the world!

Jesus teaches, and then he shows the world that there: ‘is no greater love than to lay down one’s life …’ (John 15:13) Jesus willingly and humbly goes to the cross for us.

John records Jesus telling us: ‘The reason the Father loves me is that I lay down my life – only to take it up again. No-one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have the authority to lay it down and the authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.’ (John 10:17-18)

Here Jesus emphasizes two qualities – love and humility.

The apostle Paul not only points us to the humility of Jesus.

It is in the name of Jesus that he calls us to live in this same spirit of humility in our lives

‘Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus’, he says (v. 6)

God not only calls us to be humble – he grants us the same ability to ‘empty oneself’ or ‘make oneself nothing’ (v. 7) in the service of others, because we are his children. Children who follow the Father!

The call is for us to follow Jesus by: ‘dying to self.’ This is what Jesus means when he says: ‘whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.’ (Matthew 16:25)

This is the paradox of following Jesus. The contrast between our earthly life here and now and the heavenly life God offers. Clinging to earthly life forfeits eternal life; but losing our life now in love for Jesus gains real life. This is the joy of a servant heart!

Do you know that real joy in your life?

The mystery is that when we lose ourselves in the service of something bigger than ourselves, we find real joy in life.

Could it be that Jesus’ model of humility challenges our understanding?

Is there something bigger, foreign even; about God’s humility in Jesus?

When we think about and describe ‘humility’, our minds tend to focus on behaviour or character.

But Jesus models humility thinking … relationships!

His … and God’s relationship with us … and the world!

He thinks of his relationship of love, loyalty and obedience to the Father who loves just as much! For Jesus, it was all about God … and his relationship with his Father.

He thinks about his relationship of love for you … and the world! A love that compels him to take on our human form. To be born a dependent and defenceless baby. A love that leads him to leave the glories of heaven behind, and take on the corruption of sinful humanity! Yes, a love that even demands he ‘be sin’ for the world, all the way to the cross; so that your and my sin can be cancelled forever. A love that surrenders to physical death and the grave. And then, in the power of God’s love, bursts alive from the cold, dark earth; so that we can be welcomed into his kingdom of life!

Yes, the truth is, our humility is also revealed in terms of relationships, isn’t it?

Especially in our relationship with Jesus! By the place that Jesus, God’s own Son has in our hearts.
So what is your relationship with Jesus?

Do you love Jesus? Do you love him for his sake, … or for your own sake? Do you really love him for who he is? God’s own Son, your Lord and Saviour! The one who gave up everything, even his very life, just so that you could become God’s child and heir!

How are you showing that love in your life?

Is Jesus at the very centre of your life? Or is he just someone out there – at arm’s length. Who you can call on, but only as you feel the need! Or just Sundays! Who you can take or leave, just as you like!

So let this be a challenge for every one of us as we model humility.

Humility before God, and humility as God’s people in the world.

As the apostle Paul says: ‘Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgement, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.’ (Romans 12:3) So what does it look like in your life?

Is it YOU first, OTHERS second, and JESUS third?

Or is it JESUS FIRST, OTHERS second, and YOURSELF last!

That’s what a heaven blessed humility really looks like! That’s what we get to see in Jesus. That’s what we experience when Jesus is first in our heart and life. Jesus truly brings JOY into our lives.

When you and I discover Jesus’ spirit of humility, then we truly begin to live!

Lord God, grant us something of the humility and gentleness of Jesus!

Hallelujah, Hosanna and Amen.

Pastor Gus Schutz