"A Different Kind of King!"

Zechariah 9:9-12; Mark 11:1-11

 Preached by Rev. Bob Matlack
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When Jesus came riding into Jerusalem, it was a time filled with triumph and excitement. The crowds of people who gathered were convinced that they were a part of one of those life-changing experiences that you will always remember. It was an electric moment, one charged with emotion, for everyone knew that something special was about to happen.

It's easy for us today to read the accounts of Palm Sunday in a casual way. Unlike the people gathered there as Jesus rode into Jerusalem, we know what happens. We've heard the story many times, and we know that the real climax is not until next Sunday. We're not impressed by Jesus riding on a donkey. For us a real king would come in grander style, and the prophecies of Zechariah seem almost irrelevant.

Back then, the people of Israel looked to Jesus as the Messiah - the Savior, the King who had come to bring them salvation. We hear that and we're somewhat puzzled, because in our minds kingship has become synonymous with wealth and power. Yet that was not so for the Israelite people. Because they understood themselves to be a people of God, they were ready for God to call people from even the humblest of positions to take on great power and authority. David was but a shepherd boy who became a great king. What was important to them, and what they looked for was a sign that a person had been anointed by God, that it was God who had assigned the person this task.

In that context, the donkey which Jesus rode on was a fulfillment of the prophecies of Zechariah and Isaiah, and the palm branches and the cloaks that were strewn before Jesus were a sign of the great respect and honor which the people offered to the rider. They truly believed that Jesus was the Messiah, the one who was called by God to save them.

Jesus was riding into Jerusalem, the city of power and authority, the very heart of the Jewish nation, and the people interpreted his arrival as a sign that He was ready to save them. They were right! And they were so wrong!

They were wrong because salvation to the Israelite people meant that Jesus would drive out their hated Roman conquerors. He would lead them back to the days of glory, like they had experienced in the time of King David when the Israelite people were a force to be reckoned with, when there was enough wealth so that everyone shared in it.

They were right that Jesus came to bring them salvation. They were right, that His ministry was about to come to a climax, that this trip to Jerusalem was a special, a critical time. Yet they were wrong about the shape that their salvation would take. Instead of physically freeing them from their bondage to Rome, instead of bringing physical power and might and authority, Jesus came to bring a salvation of the spirit.

It must have been a bittersweet moment for Jesus - the people had turned to him in droves, but for all of the wrong reasons, and Jesus knew that their faith would be seriously tested in the days that would follow. The people gathered that day had a very simple, very clear picture of what salvation meant - freedom from the Roman conquerors and their taxation, a return to the days of glory where they were the conquerors instead of the conquered. They pictured a physical salvation, and Jesus brought them spiritual salvation. They were looking to an earthly Kingdom, while Jesus was looking to the Kingdom of God.

If someone had told them that in 5 days Jesus would die on a cross, would be abandoned, denied, and rejected by those who followed Him so eagerly - they would not have believed it. Kings do not parade in triumph only to humbly sacrifice themselves - but Jesus did. The followers of Jesus rejoiced that day because they saw this event as the fulfillment of their dreams. They rejoiced because of what they expected to have happen. They rejoiced out of their misunderstanding.

How often do we do that in our own lives. We rejoice or cry because of the interpretation that we put on events - seeing them as good or bad, and little realizing that our interpretation may be wrong. Too often we think that God's will is the same as ours, that God's agenda is the same as ours, and when it's not, we're caught totally by surprise.

Jesus kept trying to prepare His followers for what was to come, but they didn't hear Him, because they were blinded by their own convictions. They didn't want to believe the truth. They could only see the kingdom that they wanted to come, not God's Kingdom.

We are reminded of our own humanness through the example of the followers of Jesus. They celebrated that day as Jesus entered Jerusalem in triumph. Looking back and knowing what happened later in the week, we see how mistaken they were, how they rejoiced for all of the wrong reasons, how they understood so little ... and when we're honest, we know that that is true of us as well. We are those followers of Jesus. We are the ones who misunderstood. We are the ones who rejoice, who fear, who mourn without really understanding, for we are human.

Some years ago Harper Lee wrote a novel about the South in the days when prejudice was institutionalized as an evil. The lawyer in the story is named Atticus Finch, and he is defending a black man in a system in which he had no chance at all of winning. But Atticus defends him anyway because he knows that the system is evil, and he knows that he must oppose it.

In the end, Atticus loses the case, his client is convicted even though he is innocent.

The lawyer's daughter comes to the courtroom at the conclusion of the trial. A little girl, she climbs to the balcony that is segregated for blacks, for the courtroom is packed and there is no room on the main floor. The verdict is given. The judge leaves. The white people downstairs all leave the courtroom. The black people in the balcony remain.

Atticus Finch picks up the papers off his table, puts them in his briefcase, and heads for the door. The people in the balcony stand. The black man next to Atticus Finch's daughter says to her, "Stand up. Your father is passing by."

He lost. He was defeated. But he was on the side of truth and righteousness. While the court said that he lost, the people stood in honor and respect, because of what he stood for. So he won.

Jesus stood for truth and righteousness, and in so doing brought a message that many didn't want to hear. He brought a message that still today there are many who don't want to hear. They wanted him to play by their rules, to fit into their system, and instead they found that Jesus was a different kind of king, because instead of following their rules, instead of doing what they expected and wanted, Jesus followed the lead of God.

As Jesus processed into Jerusalem, it was an incredible and yet confusing moment. The crowds were with Him. All of His closest followers were there - enthusiastic, excited, dancing for joy. They believed. They wanted to follow God, but they were unable to see the truth, unable to set aside their expectations and preconceptions. They believed that Jesus had come to drive out the Roman armies. They didn't really understand that He was a king who was different than any they had ever known, and so the path of their salvation would be far different than they expected.

In the midst of the crowd, Jesus was alone, for he was the only one who really understood what lay ahead. He was the only one who knew that the celebration of today would be followed by the betrayal and the agony of the cross. But Jesus also knew the reason.

You see, you can't go right from Palm Sunday to Easter. You can't go from one celebration to another without experiencing what lies in between. The celebration of next Sunday is rooted in the betrayal of Maundy Thursday, and the pain of Good Friday. Worship with us on these Holy Days, and discover that walking with Jesus through these difficult and painful days teaches us to celebrate Easter with joy that is real and lasting.

Jesus knew what lay ahead - the pain, the agony, the loss, and then the final victory that only God could bring. But in the midst of the crowd of Palm Sunday. In the midst of their joy and excitement and naivete - in the midst of it all, Jesus rode on alone. This year. This Holy Week let us ride with Jesus as we share His journey through Maundy Thursday - through the Last Supper, through the Garden of Gethsemane, and through the betrayal and the arrest of Jesus. Let us share his journey through Good Friday - through the flight of the disciples and the pain and agony of the cross. Let us gather on Saturday in a special time of vigil, and then let us gather next Sunday to celebrate the joy, the victory of Easter. This year let's walk with Jesus as we celebrate this different kind of king, as we too seek to follow where God leads.

Amen

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