“Perception, Procession, Perspective”

March 28, 2010

Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 Luke 19:28-40

Responsive Reading: Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 (UMH 839)

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.
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Let Israel say: "His love endures forever."
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Open for me the gates of righteousness; I will enter and give thanks to the LORD.
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This is the gate of the LORD through which the righteous may enter.
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I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation.
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The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone;
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the LORD has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.
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This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
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O LORD, save us; O LORD, grant us success.
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Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD. From the house of the LORD we bless you.
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The LORD is God, and he has made his light shine upon us.
With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession up to the horns of the altar.
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You are my God, and I will give you thanks; you are my God, and I will exalt you.
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Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

Have you ever watched one of the President’s speeches on television? What about sports? Have you ever
watched a major football game on TV, or the World Series, or the Olympics or a NASCAR race? If you
tune in an hour or so before the thing even starts, what do you get to watch? Before any of these major
events, we are treated, perhaps subjected, to a host or commentator (sometimes several) who tells us what
we are about to see, what we can expect, what major issues can be expected and how they think things will
turn out. Then, of course, there is the actual event that we tuned in to watch, and finally we once again see
and hear from even more commentators who explain to us what we just saw and what it all means.

This morning I describe these three phases of before, during and after as Perception, Procession and
Perspective. Before an event there are various perceptions or understandings of what is about to happen,
the event itself eventually begins or proceeds, and finally the people involved, or even those who hear or
read about it later, each have their own understanding or perception of what has happened. Since this is the
day that we celebrate Palm Sunday and the triumphal entry of Jesus into the city of Jerusalem, I wanted to
look at his arrival the same way that we are accustomed to seeing other major media events. Let’s begin
with the story itself as recorded by Luke and written as a collection of eyewitness accounts. (Luke 19:28-
40)
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After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29As he approached Bethphage and
Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, 30"Go to the
village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden.
Untie it and bring it here. 31If anyone asks you, 'Why are you untying it?' tell him, 'The Lord needs it.' "
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Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them. 33As they were untying the colt, its
owners asked them, "Why are you untying the colt?"
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They replied, "The Lord needs it."
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They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 36As he went along, people
spread their cloaks on the road.
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When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of
disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:
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"Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!"
"Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!"
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Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, "Teacher, rebuke your disciples!"
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"I tell you," he replied, "if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out."

John’s recollection of the story is shorter but very similar to Luke’s and he adds this at the end…

John 12:16
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At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these
things had been written about him and that they had done these things to him.

Jesus had been warned more than once that the Pharisees and other church officials were looking to kill
him and if he valued his life and his health, he needed to stay far away from Jerusalem. He didn’t listen.
The perception of the disciples would have been a combination of confusion and pride as they came to the
capitol city as members of Jesus’ inner circle. They wondered why Jesus would risk his life to come but
the notoriety and importance of Jesus amplified their own importance. The Pharisees and the church
leaders who were conspiring against Jesus saw that his arrival would give them another opportunity to trap
Jesus and to get rid of him. The people who saw Jesus entering Jerusalem, who shouted Hosanna and who
laid palm branches in his path saw that this amazing prophet was coming to the city to start a rebellion, to
call upon the people to rise up and overthrow the Roman occupation and make Israel free once more.
Everyone who saw or heard of the arrival of Jesus thought they knew what was going to happen but none
of them did. Except one.

In this story we see that one person, Jesus, was different from all of the rest. Even before he begins his
entry into the city we understand that he alone knows more than anyone else because he alone knows the
future. As Jesus and his disciples climb the last hill before they cross the valley into Jerusalem, Jesus sends
two of his friends ahead into the village that lies at the crest of the hill. Jesus sends them into the village
and tells them what they will find there, what will happen when they arrive, what will be said to them and
how they should answer. Jesus did not have high-tech electronic or an extensive spy network that had
made all these plans in advance and had established secret code words that would give the disciples access
to an un-ridden, unbroken donkey colt. The only possible way in which we can understand these events is
for us to come to grips with the knowledge that Jesus knew the unknowable. Sports and political
commentators can make evaluations and calculate odds, and make educated guesses but what Jesus did
went far beyond all that. The only way that Jesus could have done what he did without the disciples
knowing how he did it, was for him to know the future before it happened, to know exactly who and what
were in the village, to know how they would respond and to know exactly what they would need to hear in
order for the disciples to return with the donkey. This donkey was pivotal to the entire story. This is the
donkey that, hundreds of years earlier, prophets had said would carry the Messiah as he entered Jerusalem.

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Naturally, the triumphal procession of Jesus proceeded properly, that is, it happened just the way that it had
been foretold by the prophets and just as Jesus knew it would. The people shouted and waved palm
branches and all the time thinking that this Jesus, who had demonstrated such incredible power and
magnificent intelligence, would be the one who finally would overthrow the Romans. The Pharisees on the
other hand, were very much afraid of this very thing. What’s more, they were worried that the Roman
garrison would overhear the shouting of the people and send troops out to kill people. History tells us that
this was a very real concern because that very thing had happened not too many years earlier. In either
case, whether Jesus was proclaimed king and actually managed to overthrow the Roman government or
whether the Roman garrison heard and reacted to the shouting of the people, in either case the Pharisees
and the rulers of the temple were almost certain to lose their jobs. For the people in power, then as now,
protecting the status quo was of primary importance. The words of John tell us that although the disciples
were intimately familiar with Jesus and his mission, and although they were present and perhaps even
participants in the procession, they did not understand what was going on. More than likely, they too
thought Jesus would proclaim himself king and lead a revolt against the Romans but only Jesus knew the
truth.

God had orchestrated this moment and Jesus knew exactly what was happening. The Pharisees told Jesus
to quiet his followers but Jesus knew that they were crying out just as the prophets had said they would.
Because Jesus had the power of knowing exactly what was going on, as well as what would happen in the
future, he replies that if the people were silent, the very rocks would cry out. Jesus knew that nothing or no
one could change the plan that God had set in motion. Jesus knew that because God had said that he would
be greeted by shouts of acclamation, that he would indeed be greeted by shouts of acclamation. If the
people were unable, or unwilling or if they were prevented from shouting, God would see to it that the
shouts of praise would emanate from the rocks that lined the road on which he traveled. Jesus knew it all
before it happened.

So what do you think that the players in this great spectacle were thinking after it was over? In our play-
by-play analysis, what was the message that each group took away at the end of the day? John tells us that
the disciples didn’t understand. He doesn’t say that that they understood parts but missed some of the
deeper meaning, John flat out says that they did not understand all this. Johns says that the disciples just
didn’t get it at all. Now for an analyst, that would be a pretty harsh critique, and that would be a difficult
thing even for a historian like Luke to say, but John was one of them. In fact, John was one of the three
leaders of the disciples, so if anyone had a handle on what had happened or on what was going on, John
would have been the one. The disciples participated in Jesus’ triumphal procession but understood it no
better than any of the people who lined up along the road. It was interesting to watch and exciting to be a
part of it, but although the event was filled with deeper meaning and laced with the fulfillment of prophecy,
they didn’t see any of it until much later.

The people who lined the road and who waved palm branches and shouted “Hosanna!” almost certainly
knew who Jesus was. They had heard of Jesus’ ministry, his teaching, his miracles and more than likely
had heard rumors of his clashes with, and harsh words toward, the Pharisees and other temple leaders. The
average person, and probably the disciples as well, believed that Jesus was coming to proclaim himself
king, to gather an army and to launch a rebellion that would cleanse their nation by removing the hated
Roman occupiers.

The Pharisees who witnessed Jesus’ demonstration saw many of the same things. They likely believed that
Jesus just might be trying to do what the people hoped that we would do and they knew that even the
attempt would result in far worse treatment at the hands of the Roman army. The Pharisees and the temple
leaders knew that the political arrangement they had made with the Romans was to control and prevent any
kind of insurrection. If Jesus were successful in even trying to do such a thing, the leaders knew that they
would pay the price through the loss of their power, their prestige, their money or even their lives. Even
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before Jesus entered Jerusalem, the spiritual and political leaders were planning to end Jesus’ influence
once and for all.

At every step along our journey this morning, Jesus demonstrated that he knew exactly what the future
held. Jesus knew the unknowable. Jesus knew where the donkey would be, and who owned it, and what it
would take to borrow it for the afternoon. Jesus knew what would happen if the voices of the people fell
silent. Jesus knew that God’s will and God’s plan could not be undone. It is therefore impossible to
imagine that, at the end of the day, that Jesus did not know the truth. It is impossible to think that Jesus did
not know exactly how the week would end. It is impossible to understand that Jesus did not know exactly
how terribly he would suffer and that he would indeed die, naked, humiliated and abandoned by his friends.

As they witnessed Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, each person and each group saw something different, each
had their own perception and at the end of the day that perspective, that biased opinion of the day’s events
shaped the actions that they would take in the days ahead. The disciples would follow but come unglued
when the events of the week began to go radically different than they expected. The Pharisees and church
leaders would move forward with their plot to rid themselves of Jesus and his dangerous theology. In order
to maintain their wealth, power and prestige, the status quo must be protected at all costs regardless of what
God wanted. The people were ready to rise up and overthrow the Roman government but if Jesus wasn’t
the military Messiah that they expected, then they would follow their leaders and dispose of him before
anyone else got hurt. Jesus alone knew the truth. As we read about the life of Jesus we, along with many
theologians, wonder exactly how well Jesus understood his mission and when he began to fully grasp
where God was leading him, but not today. As we read the story of Palm Sunday and Jesus’ triumphal
entry into Jerusalem it is plain that Jesus understood exactly what his role was to be. Alone among the
people watching his parade, Jesus knew exactly what God was doing and what God expected of him in the
days ahead. Jesus knew how grim and terrible things would become, but he also knew that God’s will and
plan could not be undone. Above all else, Jesus knew that he would do the things that God desired him to
do even if he had to pay with his own pain, his own blood and his own life.

As we consider Jesus’ devotion and faithfulness, we are compelled to reflect upon our own devotion and
faithfulness. Like the disciples, do we abandon our faith when events go radically different than we
expected? Are we like the leaders of Jesus’ church? Does our commitment to maintaining our wealth,
power, prestige and the status quo overwhelm our desire to do the things that God desires for us to do? Are
we like the people who are ready to toss Jesus aside when we find that he isn’t everything that we expected
him to be and that his agenda isn’t the particular political agenda that we hoped for? How willing are we
to do what God requires when God’s plans for us involve pain and loss and suffering? How much like
Jesus are we?

Our prayer this morning is that now, more than ever, we might put aside our desires for wealth, power,
prestige, political agenda and personal comfort in order to do the will of God.

Our prayer this morning is that now, more than ever, we might be like Jesus.

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You have been reading a message presented at Johnsville Grace and Steam Corners United Methodist Churches on the date
noted at the top of the first page. Rev. John Partridge is the pastor of the Johnsville Parish. Duplication of this message is a
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All Scripture references are from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.