Sermon for Palm/Passion Sunday

Text: Philippians 2:7-8 Of his own free will he (Jesus) gave up all he had, and took the nature of a servant…. He was humble and walked the path of obedience all the way to death— his death on the cross”.

He had it all. He gave it all up.

Jesus is riding on a donkey into Jerusalem and people are throwing their coats on the road as they would do when welcoming a celebrity.  There is a lot of happiness. There is a lot of excitement.  People are waving tree branches and making a path for the donkey to walk on.  The crowd around Jesus shouted, “Hosanna, Hosanna!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord”.

Some asked, “Who is this guy causing such a fuss?”  Some see him as “the son of David – the Messiah or a king who will bring in a new age of freedom from Roman rule.  The use of the word “Hosanna” which means “Save us” makes sense – “Save us from the awful Romans”.  No doubt many of the onlookers agreed with this sentiment and joined in welcoming this man riding into Jerusalem adding their “Hosannas” to the rest of the crowd.

Some see him as a prophet from God.  What better timing to have a rabbi, a holy man in the city, than at the Passover, the Day of Atonement when the High Priest placed all the sins of the people on a goat which was then driven out into the desert.  A day of cleansing and forgiveness followed by feasting and celebration, thanking God for their deliverance from 40 years in the wilderness. The presence of a holy man would make this an even better festival. 

But everything was not as it seemed.  Have you seen the work of one of those clever 3D artists on a footpath?  They can create a picture, mostly with just chalk, that looks as if there is a great hole in the path.  Your eyes are telling you that to step any further would mean a catastrophic fall to some deep place.  But as you look closely, you can see that the hole in the path is just an illusion – there is more going on here than first meets the eye.

Jesus could see that this royal welcome was just an illusion.  Amid all the happiness, cheering, and waving of palm branches he knew that this week would end in violence.  The one who rode the donkey was fully aware that “… the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to arrest him …  and kill him …”.  There was evil at work behind the scenes.  In just a few days, he would experience the pain and cruelty reserved only for the worst and most hardened criminals.  The cheerful “Hosannas” would fall silent.  The happy welcome would turn to angry shouts of “Crucify him”.

As he stood before the Jewish Council, was beaten, whipped, spat on and mocked by the soldiers, and then nailed to a rough wooden cross outside Jerusalem,
it’s hard to imagine that this bleeding and forsaken man is truly God, the King of kings, Lord of lords, Wonderful Counsellor, Prince of Peace, the Alpha and Omega.
As they drove the nails into his hands and feet and his blood soaked the wooden beam of the cross,
it’s hard to believe that God allowed evil people to shed the blood of his own dear Son.
As they laughed at him, mocked his cries of agony, and then watch with delight as his life slowly drained away,
it’s hard to believe that here was God's love going to the utmost extreme for them and for every person. 
He was dying to save all those who throughout time have in some way contributed to evil in this world. 
This man on the cross didn’t look like God.  His bleeding, suffering, anguished cries and dying was anything but God-like.  He appeared to be just another victim of an unjust legal system and corrupt religious leadership.

I’m not sure we can fully appreciate the total and complete way Jesus gave himself for us.  We are talking about the almighty God who created the universe giving himself completely to save you and me, small specks in the vastness of the universe, by enduring so much evil and cruelty and death.  It simply defies all reason that God would do this.  In the end, we just trust that this is the way God’s grace works.  His grace does things that to us are totally upside down and back to front.

It's no wonder the disciples were confused and upset.  The question is asked again and again throughout the gospel, “Who is this man?” or Jesus asks, “Who do people say I am?” Simon Peter confessed, “I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matt 16:16). This question of “Who is Jesus?” is a central question during the time the disciples spent with Jesus.  But seeing evil and corruption cruelly inflict the worst it could on Jesus’ body must have severely shaken their belief that Jesus is the “Messiah, the Son of the Living God”.

But the Bible has no hesitation in telling us that despite what it seemed, he is God who has come in the flesh for our salvation.  We heard the apostle Paul sum up God's plan to save everyone in the reading from Philippians.  He says,
“He (Jesus Christ) always had the nature of God, …
of his own free will he gave up all he had,
and took the nature of a servant.
He became a human being … .
He was humble and walked the path of obedience
all the way to death— his death on the cross.” (Phil 2:6-8).  

We might summarise what Paul is saying with these 2 sentences.  He had it all.  He gave it all up.  He had it all and gave it all up. 

It’s easy to search the internet and find people who’ve had it all and gave it all up. There is the billionaire, Charles Feeney, who started the Duty Free Shops in airports. He made billions, lived a simple lifestyle, and gave away his billions to health research, charities, schools, universities, reconciliation and human rights.  He had it all and gave it all up. 

What Paul is saying is something more. God’s Son who is above all things and had all power and authority at his fingertips, willingly gave it all up. He became one of us for us.  God died on a cruel cross for us and because of us.  We put those scars in the hands, the feet, the side of God’s Son. 

When the great artist Rembrandt painted the scene of the crucifixion, he painted his own face on one of the people in mob.  He knew that it was for his sins that Jesus was nailed to the cross.  It can easily be said that Rembrandt could have painted every one of our faces in the crowd that day as they called for Jesus’ death.  There was nothing good and innocent about the crowd that called for Jesus’ death – evil was doing its worst. 

A youth group presented a dramatization of Jesus’ trial and crucifixion.  The youth ministry leader played the role of Christ, the young people the jeering mob.  “Crucify him!  Crucify him!” they shouted angrily, and then they dragged the youth leader into the back yard of the church and hung him on an improvised cross.

The youth were hushed now, as “Christ” hung there and softly spoke to the angry mob and the rest of the audience, “Even though you are doing this to me, I still love you. My Father forgives you.” 

There was a young teenager standing in the front, clearly moved by the scene.  Tears were streaming down her face.  For her, this wasn’t a performance. It was the real thing.  She was there.  She had been transported back to Calvary and it was if she was there when the Saviour of the world hung there, suffering, and dying for her sin, and said to her, “I love you. You are forgiven”.

He says those same words across the centuries to us today, “Father, forgive them”.  It is for our sin that Christ gave his life. 
Through the violence, the suffering and death of Jesus, our peace was made with God. 
On the cross we see what lengths God went to get rid of the punishment we deserve and to restore our friendship with him again. 
What Jesus did, he did it for us.
He endured so much violence for us. 
Like a lamb led to the slaughter, he died on our account. 
What humility!  What love!  And, oh, what he accomplished there. 

I’d guess that’s why the Gospel writers don’t give us a lot of detail about the violence, the blood, and the gore of that day. 
They don’t want us to get side-tracked from the real issue by the horror of what happened to Jesus. 
They want us to focus on the reason for all the pain and suffering. 
They want us to see that it was for us that he died. 
They want us to realise that this death has brought about reconciliation between God and us.

As we enter Holy Week once again and recall again the love, the suffering, the dying and the rising of our Saviour, we are humbled as we realise once again what Jesus endured for us.
It is the evil in our lives that put Jesus on the cross. 
It is our sin that compelled God in his love for us to go to such lengths to rescue us from death and to ensure that we are his forever.
The Son of God gave up everything for us.

And secondly, we enter Holy Week with a repentant heart, aware of our sin, ready to turn away from the sins that grieve God and those around us. 
This is a time recommit ourselves to following Jesus more closely.
This is a time recommit ourselves to showing others the same kind of unselfish love, dedication and commitment that Jesus has shown to us.

And thirdly, as we enter Holy Week, we do so with an attitude of praise and thanksgiving. Because of the cross and the resurrection, God has given us the assurance that our living Lord is on our side in every circumstance of life. 
If God can love us so much that he will endure the cross for us, then there is no reason to doubt that God’s love will not fail us in every difficult time during our journey in this life. 
Holy Week leads to the Easter miracle of Jesus’ resurrection.   Even in the darkest valleys, the deepest times of sadness and depression, the confusion of what the future might bring – Jesus is there with us.  He is our ever-present helper, guide and giver of strength.

When you come forward for communion today do so with a sense of praise and thanksgiving.  Join with those white robed, palm waving saints gathered around the throne of the Lamb (Rev 21:8-10) and celebrate the forgiveness and renewal and victory that God is again giving to you through the body and blood of his Son in the sacrament. 
Be refreshed, revived, renewed and celebrate God's grace in your life as you eat and drink;
and look forward to that day when we shall gather around the table in heaven.

God bless us all as we reflect on and celebrate the passion of our Lord.