Maybe

Robert E. Hall
Tarrytown United Methodist Church

March 28, 2010
Palm Sunday

Luke 19:28-40

Imagine one of the disciples remembering the first Palm Sunday.

It has been a long time ago, but it was a day I will never forget.

We started the day with Jesus as he led us to the approach to Jerusalem. We were both hopeful and afraid. The city had been his destination, not ours. Already there were threats against his life. We were not ready for what followed. But maybe……

But maybe there will be a miraculous intervention – a Mt. Sinai revelation or a parting of the sea of anger. Maybe God will change the hearts of the Pharisees and scribes and they will receive him warmly, finally seeing him as the anointed one. And maybe the Romans will leave, seeing that Jesus means to start a new order based on mercy and justice, not military strength. Maybe they, too, will come to believe in Jesus as some Gentiles have already done.

Maybe... maybe we thought this kingdom Jesus has been talking about – this presence of God, this new way of living and loving and ruling – maybe it will come now. Our people had waited so long, suffered so much. We remembered Mary, Jesus’ mother’s song, sung as if God had already brought the kingdom with conception of Jesus!

 God has shown his strength with his arm, scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts, put down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of low degree.  God’s reign is here, an accomplished fact! An announced truth!

Plus, we remember the healing, the forgiveness, the new hope that Jesus had for the rejected and forgotten people and his love for the poor in spirit. Something truly new had been planted!

And what did Jesus mean by the parable of the nobleman leaving and later coming back, in the parable of the pounds which he told just before we began the approach to the city? Was he telling us that we must wait longer for the fullness of God’s reign!? He’s told us about dying and being raised, but how do we make any sense of all of this?

So here we were at the approach to Jerusalem. We had followed him this far. He was resolved to go on up to Jerusalem, even though he’d been warned. And, we wondered, what’s he going to say and do when he gets there? We were puzzled and worried about him---- and ourselves.

Things happened so quickly. Jesus was in charge----he knew exactly what he wanted.

He sent some of us into the village to get a colt, really a young donkey, and an unbroken one at that.  We asked ourselves: Is he the master of donkeys, too? Does he have special abilities in transforming animals, too? The fact is, we were as stubborn and afraid as  the young donkey must have been when Jesus called us to follow him. Maybe, in the donkey event, he was demonstrated something important to us, as prophets have been known to do.

We told him, “Kings don’t ride on donkeys!” Surely, a war horse would be more impressive. We’ve seen Jesus’ amazing power. How would he gain a larger following (which he would need to get anything done) when people saw him on a donkey? He’ll be looking more like someone surrendering than someone conquering!

But, we had obeyed him before when he told us to do something which seemed foolish and afterward we had seen the wisdom of him instructions. He was our master, our King, and we would fetch the donkey.
So, when the donkey was in place, we put our coats on the animal, and then we helped Jesus get on. The donkey, miraculously, did not protest and was tame as a pet. We chuckled to ourselves, thinking, “Even the donkey obeys this king!”

As he rode along toward Jerusalem, some in the crowd laid out their coats on the road as if they knew Jesus were a king. This was what you did when a king came to visit or a conqueror entered the city. Either out of fear or respect, you wanted to show regard. This was a sign of their acceptance, their worship of Jesus, even though some may not have known him that well. (Or, were they mocking him. We could not tell which.

We followed along after Jesus and we were so caught up in the excitement, the anticipation, that we shouted, over and over, as loudly as we could,

“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest heaven.”

We sounded like the angels who sang to the shepherds when Jesus was born!

We couldn’t help but think again, “Maybe this is the day the Lord has made!” Maybe Jesus was a king and we will reign with him, establishing Israel as a lasting light to the nations. We know, we know, we thought, he’s told us that he has to suffer and die----something we could never understand. But maybe he won’t have to go through that, to walk that humiliating path.

The parade became bigger as we got closer to the city. And then several of the Pharisees came up to Jesus and scolded him,

“Teacher, tell your disciples to stop this chant about your being a king!”

We knew why they said this.

We had an uneasy peace with the Romans. They would allow us to worship in the temple and teach what we wanted, so long as we didn’t challenge their authority. We knew, as the Pharisees did, that when they heard about a king’s arrival, they would not be amused: they would come down on us like sledge hammer! We knew this---- but, we thought, maybe Jesus has a plan he hasn’t told us about yet. We had seen it before; miracles do happen; people do make turnarounds in their attitudes. Jesus wouldn’t lead us all their way just for fomenting a hopeless insurrection. Maybe...maybe...

We looked at Jesus, wondering if we should’ve started shouting our praises, our joy, our faith in him. Maybe we should keep our mouths shut. We did not want to add to his troubles. Maybe he wanted to ride into the city as a simple peasant, to be low-key. After all, he never liked to lord it over anyone. He was always taking care of us and others, and though he attracted lots of attention, he also told us many times not to tell others about his miracles..

But in response to the Pharisees protest, Jesus said something really puzzling. We would not forget his words, ever. He said to them, as he turned and looked at us:

“If these friends were silent, the very stones themselves would do it for them, shouting praise.”

 Stones shouting? We wondered what this could mean. Were even the stones, the rocks on which we walked, rejoicing in Jesus’ arrival? Ready to welcome him? Or was he saying that, even though he----and we----could be silenced, God would just find others who would speak up, even if they seemed as insignificant as stones..

What a day! We were so full of hope, in spite of all the unknowns. It was event we thought about for many years, and a story we told over and over, to new believers.

What happened in the week following was, of course, devastating. Jesus would not relent in his challenge to the authorities! In fact, he became even more outspoken. The supper, then the arrest, the torture, the mockery, the crucifixion.  One by one, we dropped away, our hopes dashed. Our “maybes” turned to mourning.

But, as he did so often, Jesus astonished us (how can I tell you this without appearing to be crazy): He came back! He came back to us! Even now, especially when we break bread and pray, we know he is with us.

So, consider this:

We did not really understand what we were saying that day when he approached Jerusalem on a donkey.

What we now know, after much struggling and pondering, is this:

Jesus was not the kind of king we thought we wanted.

But he was the kind of king we needed.