03/20/05

The Lord Needs Us

Isaiah 50:4-9a
Philippians 2:5-11
Matthew 21:1-17

I always set high expectations for myself on high holy days like Palm Sunday, Easter, and Christmas. These are special Sundays, not only because there are usually more people in the pews, but also because people expect more from a preacher - so I think - on these special days. I want to do the best job I can, but sometimes it's hard to come up with something fresh and new when the story is so familiar.

Well, I've noticed two new and hopefully fresh things about the Palm Sunday story in my rereading of it this year, that I don't remember noticing before. One is, in Matthew's version that we're reading today, immediately following the entry into Jerusalem, Jesus goes into the temple and tosses out the money-changers, this is sometimes called the "cleansing of the temple." We'll look at this part of the story in a couple of minutes. The second thing I noticed was a phrase Jesus uses when he is talking to his disciples about getting him the donkeys (colts, asses, whatever) for him to ride on into the city. (By the way, it is a bit confusing why there was a need for two animals; it apparently has something to do with an editorial mistranslation of the prophet Zechariah. Don't worry about it; it's not important to the story.) The phrase Jesus uses is this: "If anyone questions you about taking the animals, tell them, 'the Lord needs them!'" May I suggest, that just as Jesus needed transportation into the city, and just as Jesus needed the disciples to do certain things for him, so also the Lord needs us.

The story of Palm Sunday is more than just a nice tale about a festive parade with a cheering crowd waving palm branches. It's also a story about us? and about how we are part of that fickle crowd, and about how God calls us out of the crowd to be God's people, to be disciples of Christ who are to do the things that the Lord needs to have done. And what might these things be? We're told that the disciples "went and did as Jesus had directed them." What Jesus directed them to do, he also asks us to do.

First, the disciples are told to "Go...and bring..." The specific request is for the animals, but the Lord makes a "go...bring" request of us also. He says to us, "Go into your places of work, your schools, even your homes, go where the needy or the discouraged, or the hopeless are, and bring them my message of love and peace, of reconciliation and forgiveness and hope." We convey this message through what we say to others; but even more effectively by what we do for and with others. Go into your neighborhoods and find those in need of a fellowship of caring Christians such as is found in this congregation, and bring them to church with you. Every study I know about evangelism and church growth says that the most effective way to get new people to come to church is for present members to invite them to come along with them. I'm not talking about cold-calling at the doors of strangers, but rather, being aware of the opportunities we have to reach out to the unchurched folk we already know, and give them the chance to be as enriched as we are by the many ways God has blessed our church family. Go...and bring. The Lord needs us to do this. Why not bring someone with you this coming Sunday, Easter Sunday? Our services will be at 9 and 11.

The Lord also needs us to perform many tasks right here, to use the time and the talents given to us to do the work God sets before us in the church and in the world in which we live. The disciples are told to get the donkeys, untie them, and prepare them for the ride into Jerusalem. It takes time and effort to do this. Somebody has to, and they respond. Some have to share their garments to put over the backs of the animals. Somebody has to, and they respond. Later that day others respond by spreading palm branches and cloaks on the road. Others respond by singing and shouting "Hosanna!" Many things need to be done, and many respond. There are many things that need to be done in our church and in the ministries of our church. The Lord needs us to respond to these needs. I'm excited by the many gifts and talents of our new members, and I look forward to having them share their gifts along with the rest of us in our growing church family.

Finally, we are called to do as Jesus did. And what does Jesus do? After he arrives in town, he enters the temple. Ah, some of you are thinking, Ken wants us to come to church more often. Not a bad idea; indeed I do, but Jesus does more than just enter the temple. He enters it and drives out those who are in there compromising the purposes of the temple. He confronts those who are exploiting the poor, and challenges those who are making a mockery of the faith they profess. Jesus resists the powers of evil, not just there in the temple that day, but whenever and wherever he finds it, and so must we. As the church of Jesus Christ we are called to have one foot in piety and the other in society. It's not enough just to be concerned about spiritual matters. We also must be concerned about the world in which we live. It's not enough just to be concerned about evangelism or making our church grow. We also must be concerned about issues of justice and peace, concerned about what's happening in Afghanistan, and in Iran and Iraq, and in Israel and the West Bank, and in Korea, and here in the United States, and even here in Duxbury. Jesus resists the powers of evil, and so must we. But let's not forget what happens later in Holy Week. Jesus pays for the actions he takes on Palm Sunday and the many times before; Jesus pays for them all on Good Friday. There is a price to be paid for servanthood, and the price is always sacrifice and sometimes it's a cross.

There is one other thing Jesus does in the temple, something quite different from what we've just been talking about. The blind and the lame come to him in the temple, and he cures them. If we are to do as Jesus does, then we too are called to a ministry of caring for others. We too are called to heal, to bind up wounds, to pray for those in need, to help others find wholeness. And we are called to cleanse our own temple, which is our body, our person-hood, who we really are deep down. What is there in your temple that needs cleansing?

The season of Lent, now almost over, is a time of introspection and repentance of sins, sins of commission or omission, a time when we come in touch with the forgiving grace of our Lord. Many of us may be like the paintings of Michelangelo that experts have discovered are more colorful than previously thought. For centuries the artist's works displayed in the Vatican, although unquestionable masterpieces, were thought to be rather dull. However, centuries of soot and grime on the paintings made them appear more lifeless than they really were. After years of restoration, colors of great beauty have been discovered, and these works of art, in all the vibrancy of color that the artist originally intended, are being seen again. In a similar fashion, God, the Great Artist, has painted a beautiful uniqueness in each of us, but this beauty is sometimes covered over, hidden by dirt and grime, the sins to which we all succumb. Only as we confess our sins, turn from them, and turn to the saving, restoring power of Christ, will we (and others) begin to discover the God-given beauty that the Great Artist had in mind for us from the beginning. (i)

It's easy to be Palm Sunday Christians, and really quite pleasant - palm-waving, singing "Hosanna," and all that. And it's easy to jump from Palm Sunday to Easter without pausing at Maundy Thursday (this Thursday at 7:30 PM) or Good Friday to fully encounter the cross of Christ. The cross, granted an empty one, is still the focal point of our worship. Life is not all sweetness and light; there's still a fair degree of difficulty and darkness. We're only kidding ourselves if we say it isn't so. It's much harder to be Good Friday Christians, acknowledging that pain, suffering, and death are all part of life. And yet we know they are. We know the full story of Palm Sunday and the days that followed; we know that Good Friday came at the end of the week. Good Friday Christians follow Jesus by doing what he did: being servants for others, emptying themselves, suffering and sometimes dying, being obedient to God's call.

A child, trying to understand the crucifixion, asks her mother, "Why did Jesus let himself be hurt if he was magic?" Perhaps that's a question you have asked. But Jesus was not magic. He was human ... and divine, neither of which gave him an exemption from suffering. And even if we call ourselves Christians, especially if we call ourselves Christians, we are not exempt either. But we do like to avoid suffering, don't we? A little boy and his younger friend walk into the dentist's office. "I want a tooth taken out, and I don't want any gas, and I don't want any novocaine, because we're in a hurry." The dentist says, "You're quite a brave young man. Which tooth is it?" The boy turns to his friend and says, "Show him your tooth, Albert." (ii)

We don't mind if God wants to make a better world. But we'd rather it be done without any inconvenience to us, without any disruption in our lives, without any pain or suffering for us. We would much rather skip from Palm Sunday to Easter, avoiding the unpleasantness, the uncomfortable story of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. But, as the old Gospel hymn goes: "If you don't bear the cross, you can't wear the crown."

The Lord needs us to be faithful disciples, to do what we are directed to do, to do what Jesus did. We do this by sharing our God-given gifts, our time, our talents, our very being, with one another, and especially with those in need. You and I have been given many gifts, not so much for our own sakes, as for the sake of others. We're like an apple tree that produces fruit, not for its own consumption, but for the consumption of others. Our gifts are given to us so that we can bless others by ministering to them as Jesus has taught us. We are "blessed to be a blessing." The Lord needs us - each of us, and each of our gifts. If even one gifted person - and we're all gifted - if even one of us fails to share our gifts, then the Body of Christ and this world that God has entrusted to our care will be deprived of what it needs to function well. (iii) The Lord needs us. Jesus calls us over the tumult of our life's wild restless sea; day by day his sweet voice is sounding, saying "Christian, follow me." May we willingly and joyfully respond to this call. Amen.

The Pilgrim Church of Duxbury
Rev. Kenneth C. Landall

i Pastor's Story File, 12.5.
ii Parables, Etc., 6.11.3
iii Pastor's Story File, 12.7.