For Palm Sunday most years since I have been at St. Andrew, Lisa, the associate pastor, and I preach the sermon together. I suppose it grows out of the way our liturgy starts with Palm Sunday and finishes with Passion Sunday and the stripping of the church. For those attendees who will not be here on Good Friday for the Tenebrae service, it reminds them that the crucifixion does take place between Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem and his resurrection.
In a way, the palm processional to start worship and the stripping of the chancel at the end of the service were both sermon illustrations.
“Life and Death” April 2, 2023; SAPC, Denton; Dr. Richard B. Culp; Matthew 21: 1-11; Matthews 27: Lenten 2023 series
When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2saying to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. 3If anyone says anything to you, just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ And he will send them immediately.” 4This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying, 5“Tell the daughter of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” 6The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; 7they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. 8A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!” 10When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, “Who is this?” 11The crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Matthew 27: 26-32 26So he released Barabbas for them; and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified. 27Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole cohort around him. 28They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on his head. They put a reed in his right hand and knelt before him and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30They spat on him, and took the reed and struck him on the head. 31After mocking him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him. 32As they went out, they came upon a man from Cyrene named Simon; they compelled this man to carry his cross.
Introduction:
RBC: on this Palm Sunday, we continue our preaching series on relationships (it’s almost over).
this week, we are invited to reflect on life and death.
Lisa: that seems like an odd relationship - life and death. I’m not sure where you are going with that.
RBC: I’m not sure either!
But since we celebrate Passion Sunday in conjunction with Palm Sunday, it seems to me that our liturgy invites us to see the connections between life and death as we move from palms to passion this morning.
Lisa: So, you’re saying Palms and passion are like life and death.
Move 1: RBC: yes I am!
First, let’s look at the Palm Sunday story of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem.
the story seems full of life.
excited crowds; people laying their cloaks and palm branches on the street for the parade
shouting “Hosanna, hosanna” as Jesus rides by on the donkey.
full of life; full of possibilities.
When the crowds shout “hosannas,” we know they are calling out to God, “save us, save us”
They shout with excitement because they expect the one who comes to save them will give them new life.
And here comes Jesus
riding into Jerusalem on a donkey.
not quite the ride a king might make,
but a ride that pointed to a future, a life still yet to live.
the palm branch charms we gave to the young disciples remind us the excitement in life that day Jesus rode into Jerusalem.
Triumph riding in;
perhaps death waiting.
Lisa: Shortly thereafter We read from the passion story, which brings us to death and Jesus is on another journey.
Jesus could easily commandeer a donkey for the triumphal entry, but he is now on a different parade route. It is crowded with people, but he is. . .
Trudging toward his death.
This wasn’t a surprise to Jesus. When he entered Jerusalem for the triumphal entry, he knew that his journey would lead to this moment.
The moment when the crowd turned, the possibilities faltered, and even those closest to him started to turn away and deny him. Now Jesus was heading to his death.
When the crowds shouted “hosanna, hosanna” with excitement, they did not yet understand that their cries of “save us, save us,” were going to take a death - Jesus’ death.
Jesus' life was coming close to an end. His death was so near that Jesus couldn’t even carry his cross. Simon of Cyrene was compelled to carry it for him in preparation for his death.
This story of life and death so intricately intertwined and connected.
(Step to top of chancel)
RBC: We live life with a purpose.
Not always joy, but the possibilities for joy.
Opportunities to engage and connect with others.
to discover our calling as God’s people.
to grow in our discipleship.
a life lived - whether many years or too few years, all the while growing into the new creations God calls us to be.
I am reminded of the words of the writer Erma Bombeck who said in a graduation commencement speech: ”When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left and could say ' I used everything you gave me!"
the Apostle Paul writes to the Romans: “If we live, we live to the Lord.”
our lives become the context in which we live to the Lord.
Lisa (move to chancel): Death often comes to us as a burden and a loss.
We know that when Jesus reached the end of his journey, he really died. The red of the cloth that we hold today reminds us of Jesus’ passion, his death on the cross.
Life and death are part of our life journey. Jesus lived these for us, too.
In life Jesus chose to live fully and in facing death Jesus knew that God’s power was stronger even than death.
(Walk to table)
Today we are eating at the Table, a place where we come to for new life and renewal, but the invitation comes to us through death on the cross.
After all, Jesus spoke these words at the Table, “Christ’s body broken for us and Christ’s blood shed for our sins.”
the Apostle Paul writes: “And if we die, we die to the Lord.”
(Go to table) Move 3: rbc: “so whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.”
Paul reminds us that the lives we live are a gift from God.
The one who breathes the breath of life into us calls us to live fully.
We know the joys of life and the challenges we encounter n our lives.
Every day is not a parade, but every day is a day lived in relationship with God.
to live most fully means opening ourselves up to God’s guidance and following where the Spirit leads us.
Lisa: “So whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s”
Our Life and death are connected by more than the cycle of life and death.
We serve a God that transforms death.
If we are connected to God in life and in death, then we claim both in the power of God. God will not only defeat death but redeem life and all of its possibilities.
They are connected because God claims us in both and is Lord of both.
My Aunt Vonn was a college professor of literature, who was not afraid of speaking her mind. When she was preparing for her funeral, she made it plain to me, as the minister who was called on to do the service, that I was not to read any inferior poetry in her service.
I kept this in mind as I prepared, hearing her voice in my head. Instead of inferior poetry, I chose to use a quote by pastor, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who wrote these words while imprisoned and facing his death as a member of the German Resistance during WWII. Bonhoeffer wrote, “it is only by living completely in this world that one learns to have faith. . . living unreservedly in life’s duties, problems, successes, and failures, . . . [Bonhoeffer closes with the section with these words] May God in [God’s] mercy lead us through these times, but above all, may God lead us to [God’s own self]”
It is this relationship with God that matters most.
In life we cling to God, and in death, we go to God.
Conclusion: RBC: if the parade of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem were to pass the parade of Jesus dragging himself to the cross
(I know that is a logistical impossibility).
But if they did, the crowds would not even recognize each other.
But Jesus would
Because he gives us life through his death.
Lisa: “If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.” Rom 14:8
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