Pastor’s Corner – April 2, 2023
The stage is set. Jesus enters Jerusalem riding on a donkey. This unassuming Messiah enters with the welcome of a king, “Hosannah in the highest blessed it is he who comes in the name of Lord.” The word is out there. Jesus raised the dead from the grave. This decisive prophetic play reminds them of prophet Ezekiel’s vision- vast dry bones coming to life by breath of God’s Spirit with a promise to return from exile. Surely, he cannot be the messiah we’ve been waiting for? The one who will restore the Davidic kingdom? Diaspora gathered from all over the empire of Rome, to celebrate Passover to reenact God’s redeeming power from their memory of liberation. Then, something happened. The welcome cheers turned to condemnation, “Crucify him!”
What did Jesus do in the Temple or after he entered Jerusalem that turned the crowd against him? I invite you this Palm Sunday to ponder the great drama that will unfold, disclosing the true nature of messiahship, disclosing God’s love we could not have imagined, to find ourselves at the threshold of Christ’s Passion. As we descend into the belly of human suffering and longing, we hope, we long and we desire for hope. This story is not of the past, it’s our story here and now. Our deep memory of a people and story of God’s redeeming love is our story today. Let us come and worship God. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Pastor Dae