"From Palms to Passion" (Sermon for Palm Sunday/Sunday of the Passion, on Luke 19 and 22

Today is a day that goes by two names. The one that we’re probably more familiar with is “Palm Sunday.” For it was on this day that Jesus made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, greeted by the cheering crowds, and the people used palm branches to welcome him. Palms to indicate victory and triumph. Palms to symbolize success and long life. And so on Palm Sunday Jesus is hailed as the messianic King of Israel, coming to Jerusalem to establish his reign: “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

The people with the palm branches were correct. Jesus did come to Jerusalem that day to bring in the messianic kingdom. But the question remained: How would he do it? How would this Messiah establish his kingdom? How would he win his victory? And the answer is, by suffering, by dying, by being crucified. This king’s conquest would come with strange and mocking signs: being arrayed with splendid clothing; having an inscription placed over him on the cross, “This is the King of the Jews.” From a procession of palms to a criminal’s crucifixion, this is how Jesus would triumph and bring in the kingdom of God.

The suffering that Jesus enters Jerusalem to undertake--this then brings us to the other name for this day, “The Sunday of the Passion.” “Passion.” What does that word mean? The root idea literally has to do with someone being acted upon, as in our word, “passive.” So “passion,” as we usually use it, has the idea that someone has been acted upon, has been overtaken, by a strong feeling. For example, we would say things like “They had a passionate love affair” or “He went about his work with a passion.” Those persons have had something happen to them.

So too the word “Passion,” when it is used in connection with our Lord Jesus Christ, has the idea of him “being acted upon.” It refers to Christ’s suffering and his death. Thus we speak of “The Passion of our Lord.” And so we refer to this day in the church year not only as “Palm Sunday” but also as “The Sunday of the Passion.” For on Palm Sunday Jesus enters Jerusalem in order to enter into his Passion, his holy suffering. This is the great week, that “Holy Week,” when our Lord suffered and died for our sins.

This week we go “From Palms to Passion.” That is the path that our Lord takes to victory. And we hear in the reading of the Passion Gospel just how willingly Jesus lets that suffering happen to him. He certainly knows going into it what’s in store for him. Listen to the things he says: “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer”; “the new covenant in my blood”; “the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table”; “the Son of Man goes as it has been determined”; “this Scripture must be fulfilled in me: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors.’” Yes, it is clear that Jesus knows that suffering is coming for him, and he allows it to happen.

And suffer Jesus did. Betrayed, deserted, and denied by his disciples. Rejected by the religious leaders of his people. Railroaded by unjust trials and testimonies. Beaten by soldiers, mocked by onlookers. Nailed like a common criminal to a cross.

But this was not any suffering that Jesus deserved. He had committed no crime. He had committed no sin of any kind. As Pilate declared, three times, “I find no guilt in this man.” As the one criminal next to Jesus said, “This man has done nothing wrong.” As the centurion said at his death, “Certainly this man was innocent!” But on that cross, the Son of God was taking our place, taking the judgment we deserved, so that God’s righteous condemnation would not come against us.

And so the Passion shows what is called Christ’s “passive obedience.” He let fall on him the punishment that we deserve. Even though he did no wrong, Jesus suffered the penalty that God’s law requires for all who break it. That punishment is death under God’s judgment. This is what Christ suffered. “He humbled himself and became obedient to death--even death on a cross.”

By that death--the death of the righteous Son of God, standing in the place of sinners like you and me--we are now forgiven. All our sins have been atoned for. Christ’s righteousness is credited to our account. We have been redeemed, set free from our bondage by the precious blood of Christ. Now God accepts us and cares for us as his own dear children, because we have been joined--by baptism and by faith--to his own dear Son.

We said earlier that the word “passion” usually is used in the sense of a “strong feeling,” but that, when referring to Christ, “passion” means “suffering.” At the same time, though, I think we can say that, also in the case of Christ, “passion” can mean a “strong feeling.” For Christ’s willingness to suffer in our place does show his strong feeling, his intense desire.

The Passion shows Christ’s desire to do the will of his Father: “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” Humanly speaking--and Jesus is true man, as well as true God--humanly speaking, Jesus dreaded the agony that awaited him. And yet he went through with it. So we see here Jesus’ passionate desire to do his Father’s will.

The Passion also shows Christ’s passionate desire toward us, that he has an intense passion to win our salvation. Jesus poured out his blood for you. Jesus cares very deeply about you. He wants you to be saved and to live with him forever. That is why he came. That is why he died. That’s why, having risen from the dead, he now sends preachers to you, pastors, to bring you God’s Word, so that you would trust in him and grow strong in your faith. Jesus has a passionate desire for you. He really wants you to have life in his name.

And so Jesus’ Passion, his suffering, also shows his passion--his strong, intense desire--both to do his Father’s will and to rescue us poor sinners.

This week, then, this Holy Week, we go “From Palms to Passion.” In the kingdom that Christ brings in, the way of victory is the way of the cross. That is the story of this day, “Palm Sunday,” also known as “The Sunday of the Passion.” The Passion of our Lord is where Jesus’ suffering for our sins and his strong desire for our salvation come together. And that is why we come together on this day and praise him with our palms.

Ride on! ride on in majesty!
Hark! all the tribes hosanna cry;
O Savior meek, pursue thy road
with palms and scattered garments strowed.

Ride on! ride on in majesty!
In lowly pomp ride on to die;
O Christ, thy triumphs now begin
o’er captive death and conquered sin.

Ride on! ride on in majesty!
The angel-squadrons of the sky
look down with sad and wondering eyes
to see the approaching sacrifice.

Ride on! ride on in majesty!
Thy last and fiercest strife is nigh;
the Father on his sapphire throne
expects his own anointed Son.

Ride on! ride on in majesty!
In lowly pomp ride on to die;
bow thy meek head to mortal pain,
then take, O God, thy power, and reign.

Andrew of Crete, 7th Century:

Let us go together to meet Christ on the Mount of Olives. Today he returns from Bethany and proceeds of his own free will toward his holy and blessed passion, to consummate the mystery of our salvation. He who came down from heaven to raise us from the depths of sin, to raise us with himself, we are told in Scripture, above every sovereignty, authority and power, and every other name that can be named, now comes of his own free will to make his journey to Jerusalem. He comes without pomp or ostentation. As the psalmist says: He will not dispute or raise his voice to make it heard in the streets. He will be meek and humble, and he will make his entry in simplicity.

Let us run to accompany him as he hastens toward his passion, and imitate those who met him then, not by covering his path with garments, olive branches or palms, but by doing all we can to prostrate ourselves before him by being humble and by trying to live as he would wish. Then we shall be able to receive the Word at his coming, and God, whom no limits can contain, will be within us.

In his humility Christ entered the dark regions of our fallen world and he is glad that he became so humble for our sake, glad that he came and lived among us and shared in our nature in order to raise us up again to himself. And even though we are told that he has now ascended above the highest heavens - the proof, surely, of his power and godhead - his love for man will never rest until he has raised our earthbound nature from glory to glory, and made it one with his own in heaven.

So let us spread before his feet, not garments or soulless olive branches, which delight the eye for a few hours and then wither, but ourselves, clothed in his grace, or rather, clothed completely in him. We who have been baptized into Christ must ourselves be the garments that we spread before him. Now that the crimson stains of our sins have been washed away in the saving waters of baptism and we have become white as pure wool, let us present the conqueror of death, not with mere branches of palms but with the real rewards of his victory. Let our souls take the place of the welcoming branches as we join today in the children’s holy song: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed is the king of Israel.

I have been watching the TV series ‘The Bible’ I don’t know and can’t settle my mind as to the composition although I really had the feeling of a powerful presentation. I am of old fashioned Lutheran faith up through being a parochial grade school graduate. Watching last evenings episode gave me a never before queasy feeling about what was being shown about Peter. Past biblical training had given me the opinion that Peter’s denial of Christ was a showing of a weak self serving/preservation moment. Last night a thought flashed through my mind that Peter known to be a disciple of Christ in the next and last part would be asked to give proof that indeed Christ was the man to be judged. My flash thought was that Peter did deny Christ three times BUT he denied so as to not give any such relative identity. Perhaps the last episode will clear up my queasy thought.

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