This week is called “Passion Week” in the Christian community. Yesterday is known as Palm Sunday when Jesus rode into Jerusalem. It is the week he will give his life for the world (John 3:16-17). The festival is Passover that Jesus, his disciples and all the Jewish community will celebrate. It’s the celebration of Israel being released from slavery in Egypt and making their way toward the Promised Land.
Part of the process of Passover is that every family selects a lamb to be sacrificed for the Passover meal. That selection happens on the 10th of Nisan in the Jewish calendar. Not coincidentally, Jesus rides into Jerusalem on lamb selection day. The Lamb of God, who will be sacrificed, rides into Jerusalem on a donkey.
The story is found in all four gospels. And in every account, there are some truths we can pull out of the story. For this blog, I’m using John 12:12-19 and in this pericope, we discover Jesus is more appealing than religion. So many people are in Jerusalem to celebrate Passover and they come streaming out of the gates toward Jesus on the road calling out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the LORD.” That word means, “Save now…deliver us now.”
In Jesus’ ministry, they had seen his love and compassion…his forgiveness and inclusiveness. They had noted over the last 3 1/2 years how Jesus had reminded everyone of the love of God and how everyone was invited to the table of the Father. Jesus was so fresh and vibrant, so authentic and real. The people and us had been longing for something different for so long. And there are differences between religion and Jesus.
Religion emphasizes the outward but Jesus focuses on the inward. Religion was all about appearance and keeping the rules but Jesus was about changed hearts. Religion is often about what you can’t do but Jesus is about what you can do. Religion was consistently saying, “Thou shalt not…” while Jesus was saying, “Come as you are.”
Religion was about creating barriers for people while Jesus was tearing them down. The religious elite where categorizing and fencing in people while Jesus says in Matthew 11, “Come to me ALL of you who are tired and burdened and I’ll give you rest.”
Religion is often reminding us how we must work our way to heaven while Jesus says, “I am the way.” Religion is about what you must do; Jesus says it’s already been done.
In John’s account, he quotes two Old Testament prophecies from Psalms 118 and Zechariah 9, reminding us all that Jesus fulfilled so many old prophecies, some 300 Jesus fulfilled. He’s riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. Zechariah foretold that 500 years before it happened.
And finally, following is more important than inspection. Four groups of people are at Jesus’ triumphal entry. The disciples are there. The guys that have been following Jesus for over three years. The eyewitnesses to Jesus resurrecting Lazarus are there and their group of friends who want to see Jesus. The Pharisees are there wagging their fingers, “Look, the whole world is following him.”
This week we celebrate the Passion of the Christ. And Jesus is the one foretold…the Messiah…the Son of God. As you read the story, you have to choose one label for Jesus. To you, he’s either a liar, a lunatic or Lord of all. So how will you respond? What group would you be in as Jesus rides into Jerusalem? How will you respond now that Jesus has visited you? My hope is you’ll be a follower and walking so close to Jesus that his dust settles upon you. Blessings on your journey.