What If There Was No Palm Sunday? - Matthew 21: 1-13; Psalm 118: 1-2; 19-29 - April 17, 2011- Cicero United Methodist Church - Everett J. Bassett

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What if there was no Palm Sunday? That seems like a legitimate question to ask, because, on the surface, Palm Sunday had little lasting effect. Okay, great crowds showed up and cheered and waved branches and celebrated the arrival of Jesus into Jerusalem. But five days later, another great crowd - maybe even the same people as before -- showed up and yelled for his crucifixion. So what difference did that big Palm Sunday party make? And almost certainly, the people misunderstood what it meant when Jesus arrived - thought they were crowning an earthly king. This was a political rally, in their eyes. And they were wrong about that. As for Jesus' long-expected, dramatic arrival into the big city, this celebrated journey to bring his message to a wider audience - well, within five days of arriving, he was dead. The city went back to normal. He didn't have time to explain anything.

Later on, when writers like Paul and Peter wrote about what was essential in Christian faith, they mentioned key events like Jesus' temptation in the desert, his Last Supper, and, most important, his death and Resurrection. But Palm Sunday? Nothing. Doesn't play any part at alt.

Some historians would argue that Palm Sunday put into motion the circumstances that led to Jesus' crucifixion. And no doubt, his riding into Jerusalem and causing a big stir contributed to the forces that were mounting against him. But people were already plotting his death - we see that very early in the Gospels, long before Palm Sunday. So someone could make an argument that Palm Sunday was a misunderstood, unnecessary, temporary, over-dramatized event, with little lasting effect. What would have been different if Jesus had got to the city gates and just decided to skip it?

I would like to lift up two reasons that I think Palm Sunday is indispensible to us. Both are important because they give us essential information about Jesus.

The first reason we need Palm Sunday is that it fulfills so much prophecy, and corrects so many false ideas about our Lord. And the main messenger on that day was the one in the story we would least expect - it was the little donkey. The Bible does have a story about a talking donkey, kind of like the Shrek movies. But in the Palm Sunday story, the donkey didn't have to say anything - just the fact that it was there sent a powerful message to anyone who wanted to notice. It goes back to the Old Testament book of the prophet Zechariah, chapter 9, where words of great deliverance are spoken in the middle of a tough time: 'Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey..'

Next time you watch a movie that has a victorious king riding into battle, look and see if he is riding on a donkey. He's not; that triumphant king will be riding on a beautiful majestic steed. But the king of Palm Sunday rides in on a donkey - and that is God's way of letting us know that God was fulfilling a plan that the prophets had been talking about for centuries. In the chaotic, hectic world we live in, things seem to happen in a haphazard, indifferent way, with no rhyme or reason behind it. But the fulfillment of prophecy in the Bible reminds us that beneath it all, God has a plan. Something is unfolding - something we can trust and believe in. God is working behind the scenes in this world, and stories like Palm Sunday, and that little donkey, remind us of that.

But more than that, someone who truly contemplated the presence of that donkey would realize that when God brings His kingdom onto earth for good, it won't be an act of war and violence; it will be an act of gentleness and peace. Here's the second part of that Zechariah prophecy, Zechariah 9: 10: 'I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall command peace to the nations ... " God's kingdom, it turns out, won't be about conquering and destroying enemies; it will be about conquering hearts and unleashing the power of love.

Some people aren't comforted by that. Some Christian writers in history, and today, and even some of the writers in the Bible - would prefer to have a warrior king - a Christ ready to ride into battle and kick evil's butt. That kind of king seems so much more effective against the forces that are lined up against God in this world. When we are in hard times, and everything seems to be falling apart to evil forces - that steed-riding, sword-wielding warrior-king is most appealing. The problem is, that is not who Jesus is. And, if Jesus reveals the heart of God, as he claimed to, that's not who God is. This king comes gently and lovingly, riding on a humble donkey. And in this outrageous world, filled with so much anger, and justifying so much violence, we need Palm Sunday to remind us of the loving path of Jesus.

But to say that God's kingdom is one of peace and love by no means implies that it is soft or passive. The second thing Palm Sunday reminds us of is the boldness and courage it takes to truly love. Our loving, gentle Savior doesn't just hang back from the fight against evil in this world. He rides into town against it, meeting it head on. Sometimes when we talk about a loving person, what we really mean is someone who never makes any waves, passively accepts things the ways they are, lives a benign and ordinary life. But that is not who Jesus was, and Palm Sunday is perhaps the greatest reminder of that. Ordinary is good, to a point. And if this were a perfect world, love could afford to be ordinary. But it isn't a perfect world- it's a struggling, unfair, desperate world. And in such a world, the time comes when love, if it truly is love, has to mount up and ride into town.

And Palm Sunday tells us what that means. It means moving out of the comfort zone; it means risking everything, and even moving into danger. It might mean making powerful enemies; it might mean testing your relationships. It might mean losing your life.

But that's not all that it means. Because the Palm Sunday road turned out to be the road to salvation and victory. It turned out to be the path of the extraordinary, instead of the ordinary. And because Jesus was willing to move out of safety - the world was changed. Great things could happen. And you and 1 are here this morning singing about the power of his love, because Jesus didn't stay back in the shadows, where there would be no cross - but rode into Jerusalem, where there could be Easter.

I once asked a class of senior high youth to write down and share their goals. A few were pretty immediate - to ask Ricky out on a date; to get an A on the Math test. Some others were longer term - to star in a rock band; to play pro basketball; to become a doctor or a teacher or a scientist. But the one I liked came from a young woman who was one of the quiet leaders in the group. Her goal: To do something so amazing that even God will be surprised. That might not be great theology, but isn't it a great spirit? It's a Palm Sunday spirit. The world needs something amazing. So I'm riding in.

This week was the 150tb anniversary of the Civil War. I was reading about the Union general William Tecumseh Sherman. One of the things he is reputed to have said is that whenever he was on the front lines, he was full of hope. Something extraordinary could happen. Whenever he hung back, discouragement set in. I think there is great truth in that. There are some big and overwhelming challenges in this world - bigger than any of us. So we have a choice to hang back, and sense the whole weight of the obstacles before us, and the despair that follows. That's the choice that millions of people are accepting these days. Or we can step forward and offer our lives, our efforts, our resources, for the sake of love and peace. Palm Sunday left no doubt what our Lord chose. And in so doing he set into motion an extraordinary new possibility in the world. And he bids us to follow in his steps.

How would we do that as a church? Clearly this is a place where extraordinary things happen. Someone steps up and says, 'let's send a thousand cranes to the earthquake victims of Japan: Someone else steps forward and says, 'Let's start a new intergenerational service to reach out to a new group of people: let's go to Africa, or Appalachia, or Sabine Pass; let's form a cancer prayer and support group; let's hold a Dave Ramsey Academy; let's take a Sunday and go out into the community and change the world. People step forward in the name of Christ, and extraordinary things happen. We've been on that extraordinary path for several years; and now it seems to me that with the purchase of the Conference Center, and the expansion of parking and youth facilities and so on, a vision we've been holding for a long time is coming to pass. So the temptation may be to sit back and say, 'There. It's finally happening. Now we can rest.' But our Palm Sunday Lord reminds us that sitting back is not nearly amazing enough - not when the hurting and hungry and desperate still cry out for a church that will get on the front lines and take the power that Christ gives us to change the world in acts of love. There's no time for holding back; there's too many places Jesus needs to go. Let's keep moving.

That's the Palm Sunday call to our church. But what about you? What is God speaking to your heart? Isn't it the same message? Keep dreaming; keep planning; keep standing up for love and peace: do something that matters. And I'm not necessarily talking about something grandiose or attention- grabbing. Maybe it starts with making a difference in one person's life. But the key is risking -leaving your comfort zone. A sign hung on the bulletin board in one of the hospitals; it said, 'Remember. The first five minutes are the riskiest minutes of human life: And someone had written underneath, 'The last five minutes aren't so hot either.' The truth is, from beginning to end, life is risky - there is no place of absolute security. But the biggest risk is not living a life that counts; and from our Christian perspective, that means a life that steps forward to change the world in the name of Christ. For some, that has to do with mentoring or tutoring a child. For others, it's about speaking out against racism, or joining an anti-poverty organization. So many people are satisfied to stay back out of the battle, where the challenges and discouragements just grow in our minds, and seem so impossible. Out on the front line with Jesus, there is hope, because God is doing something amazing, and you and I can be part of it.

We have one more week of Lent left - the holiest week of the year. It is the time our Lord put himself in harm's way, knowing that the cross was ahead. But knowing too that Resurrection was ahead, and the triumph of love, and the kingdom of peace. Let this be a decisive week for you, when you accept the gift that Christ paid so dearly for, and step up for love, and find the extraordinary, abundant, amazing life for which you were made. Let's do something so wonderful, even God will be surprised. Hosanna!