Palm Sunday
April 2, 2023
When
the great crowd of the Jews learned that he was there, they came not only
because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the
dead. So the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death as
well, since it was on account of him that many of the Jews were deserting
and were believing in Jesus.
The
next day the great crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was
coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to
meet him, shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the
Lord— the King of Israel!” (But) Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it;
as it is written: “Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion. Look, your king is
coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” His disciples did not understand
these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that
these things had been written of him and had been done to him.
So the crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to testify. It was also because they heard that he had performed this sign that the crowd went to meet him. The Pharisees then said to one another, “You see, you can do nothing. Look, the world has gone after him!”
If there’s anything we know about the human animal, it’s how deeply attracted we are to celebrities. Maybe at one point famous people were mere mortals, growing up in a town that nobody could find. And then something happens: a special achievement, a historic ascension, a moment of widespread recognition – and they become somebody special.
I regale my friends with tales about the people who pass through our area. In election season, everybody claims to come from Scranton; there are frequent sightings of VIP’s. Or there’s a hot tip that a star player for the New York Yankees has just stepped into a watering hole on Courthouse Square. Or the night a young adult in my family was working at the front desk of a downtown hotel when a bus full of professional wrestlers rolled in. Her brother was impressed! Two mornings later, she had a sighting of rock star Gene Simmons in the hotel lobby. I was impressed.
Truth be told, a celebrity sighting will always turn my head. Some years back, I was on a minister’s retreat in Malibu, California. I know, somebody has to do it. We discovered a Starbuck’s within walking distance, so next morning, off we went. It was Malibu – I was on high alert. And there she was! A movie star in line for a latte!
Soon as we got outside, I said to my friend, “That’s Uma Thurman!” The friend said, “No it’s not.” “Oh, yes, it is. She’s gorgeous. Didn’t you see her?” The friend said, “Get over yourself. You wouldn’t have a chance, and what’s more, you’re married.” Ahh, the truth can deflate your hopes.
So we walked back up the hill to the retreat center. We passed the homes of James Cameron, Mel Gibson, and Britney Spears. When we passed the driveway of Dick Van Dyke, I bent down to tie my shoes. I took my time, one lace, then another. You never know if he might step outside to check the mail.
Think about the amazing people you have seen, even from a distance. There’s little chance we might strike up a conversation, much less befriend them. Yet we can’t stop looking. What is the attraction? Why do they turn our heads?
According to the Gospel of John, Jesus has become quite the celebrity. Word has gotten out that he’s coming into town. Forget what you’ve heard from Matthew, Mark, and Luke about the story. In John’s account, the singular reason the crowd is looking for Jesus is because he raised Lazarus from the dead. It happened in a little town just over the hill from the city.
Just last night, Saturday night, the family of Lazarus threw a dinner party to say thank you. Word got out about that, too, and a crowd began to form. Everybody had hopes that they might see him. They were camping out, keeping vigil, waiting to catch a glimpse of the miracle worker – while the religious officials snarled.
Next day, the door opened – there he was! Lazarus, too, standing on his own two feet. It was quite the spectacle. It’s not every day you see a dead man walking. And the miracle worker who raised him! Everybody cheered as the religious officials snarled.
Jesus began to move. The crowd oscillated around him. Most of the disciples formed a protective bubble around him, yet he was out in the open, smiling, waving, making his way to the top of the hill to head down. Then something happened to give him pause. A few of the young men had scaled a palm tree. They were cutting bunches of branches and dropping them to the ground, where well-wishers scrambled to pick them up. They began to sing and wave the branches.
And Jesus stopped. Do you know how I know that? It’s not because it’s written in the text. No, it’s because Jesus remembered what they remembered. Nearly two hundred years before, the Jewish nation had been overrun, not by the Roman army of Jesus’ time, but by a Greek army. Judas Maccabeus, a valiant Jew and a bit of a guerilla fighter, led a rebellion to chase off the occupying army. This insurrection was cheered on by crowds who waved palm branches.[1] Palm branches – as a sign of righteous violence!
And if that wasn’t enough, they changed the words of the Psalm they were singing to acclaim Jesus as their King. Waving the palm branches, naming Jesus as king. And Jesus had heard that before. In chapter six, he fed thousands of people, who swarmed him and tried to make him king. He wouldn’t have it. He slipped away.
This time, surrounded by an enormous crowd, there’s nowhere to escape. No large rocks to hid behind. Yet there is something he can do. He claims a donkey and climbs upon its back. It’s a different kind of spectacle. That humble donkey cancels the acclamations and counters the palm branches. It announces Jesus is not coming in triumph, which is what our Palm Sunday hopes get wrong. He is coming in humility. He descends downhill in vulnerability.
Jesus knows that giving life to Lazarus is the very deed that will sign his death warrant. The religious leaders fear what he has done; frightened that they’ve lost their grip, they want him gone. The crowds cheer Jesus but misunderstand who he is and how he comes to rule over us. Which is to say, Palm Sunday according to John is a lot more confusing than we thought it was.
When we see a celebrity, what is it that we want? Let’s ponder that question for a minute. Are we drawn to the glamour, the appearance, the larger-than-life persona? Do we want some of their luck to rub off on us? Do we vainly hope that some of their good fortune will trickle down to us?
And if we see a miracle worker, are we hoping he might do a few miracles for us? Of course we are. As other crowds shouted to Jesus when he visited his hometown, “Do for us what you have done for others!”[2] It becomes obvious why so many celebrities are so consumed with pleasing the public that they develop bad habits, destroy their families, and lose all their friends.
Truth be told, the only celebrities who have their heads on straight are the ones who choose to ride a donkey. And of all the celebrities I could ever dream of meeting, there’s only one man who fits that bill. Jesus will not be the King that the crowd wants him to be – forceful, strong, and authoritarian. Rather he will be the kind of King that God has sent him to be – humble, merciful, clear-headed, and truthful, giving his life for the life of others. And he waits for us to receive him on God’s terms, not our own.
According to the Gospel of John, nobody understands who Jesus really is. On the very first page of the book, a thematic statement is there for all to see: “He came to his own people, and they did not receive him."
- The crowds
shout, “Hosanna! Rescue us!” and wave the palm branches of violent insurrection.
They don’t understand.
- The religious
leaders claim to love God. They are defenders of the faith, at all costs.
Yet they cannot comprehend the One whom God sends.
- And it’s true of even the twelve disciples. John sums up the Palm Sunday scene by saying, “They saw what Jesus did – how he chose a lowly donkey over the strong white horse – and they did not understand.”
Yes, even the
twelve were confused. Jesus has a way of exceeding our expectations. But then,
- when he was
raised up to take away the sins of the world,
- when he was
raised up to defeat the power of death,
- when he was raised up to rule over all who love him, as well as the world that still resists him,
they saw him glorified
for who he truly is. Jesus is the King who comes in truth and grace. Always in
truth, revealing who we are. Always in grace, revealing the mercy of God.
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