March 16, 2008 — 4:27 PM
Expecting the Unexpected
Matthew 16:13-20
Philippians 2:5-11
Today is the sixth Sunday of Lent. But I'm guessing we probably all know it better as Palm Sunday. When you hear that title for this day, what do you picture? Do you have images of worship services from the past in which special liturgies or rituals took place? How have you marked and celebrated this day?
- waving palm branches
- processions into the sanctuary
- maybe laying down cloaks on the aisle to mimic Jesus' entry into Jerusalem
- singing special hymns or songs (i.e. "All Glory, Laud, and Honor")
Palms, cloaks laid down on the road, shouts of "Hosanna!", cries of joy and adulation. These are what greeted Jesus as he made his way into Jerusalem. That day is what we remember today as we gather for our Palm Sunday worship.
To those who were following Jesus this was a triumphant entry. They believed that surely he was the Messiah, the one who would finally put an end to the Roman occupation of their land. He would overthrow the Romans with God's help. Surely Jesus was about to reclaim the land for God and free them all. That called for celebration.
Jesus had tried to explain to his disciples that things weren't going to go exactly as they had planned. He tried to tell them what would happen once they were in Jerusalem. But time and again his efforts were frustrated by their inability to understand what he was telling them. It wasn't what they were expecting to hear so they were unable to truly understand what he was saying to them.
It seemed at one point that Peter actually got what Jesus was saying. He heard Jesus proclaim that the authorities would kill him. But that offended Peter's sensibilities too much. No Messiah should be killed. And especially not willingly! So Peter told Jesus that no such thing should happen.
Saddened by this reaction, Jesus responded, "Get thee behind me Satan!" Jesus knew that this type of thinking did not come from God the Father. Jesus had been trying to tell and show his followers that with God all things are possible. He even tried to tell them that even though he would be killed, he would be raised again.
But none of it got through, not really. So Jesus continued doing God's will, praying that soon the disciples would truly understand. He knew that those gathered along the road were cheering and yelling for the expected Messiah - the one who would come with power and might.
But Jesus knew that that messiah wasn't him. Actually, if the people had paid attention, they would have seen visual clues to help them understand this. Jesus came to Jerusalem on a donkey - an ornery, lowly, working animal. Shouldn't the expected Messiah come on something with a little more authority? Something that would set him over the people instead of just barely a little taller than they?
And if this was the coming of the expected Messiah, where were the troops that would help with the eviction of the powers that be? How would the Romans be overthrown if there were no soldiers to accompany Jesus?
But the crowds weren't deterred by these details. Jesus' miracles proved that he could overcome problems that seemed to big to them. They just had this feeling that he was the one they had been waiting for their whole lives. He must be the anointed one of God sent to free God's people from bondage.
And so Jesus entered Jerusalem, accepting the cheers and adulation from the crowds, knowing that everything they expected to happen was not what would actually happen. Instead of storming into the capital city, kicking out the occupying forces, and liberating the Jewish people, Jesus ended up arrested by those forces and condemned to die on a cross by the Jewish leaders for blasphemy.
Even his closest followers had a hard time staying true to their belief that Jesus was more than just another prophet. They ended up denying they ever knew Jesus and hiding out together waiting until things cooled down a bit.
This was certainly not how the crowds imagined the week would end when they gathered to cheer Jesus on as he entered Jerusalem. They were so sure of their expectations that they were unable to see what Jesus was showing them - that God was acting in a new and different way.
Only much later, after Jesus was resurrected from the dead and ascended into heaven did the followers begin to understand what Jesus had been telling them all along. Only with time and distance did they begin to let go of their expectations so that they could be surprised by the unexpected ways in which God was acting in and through the world.
The hymn that Paul uses in his letter to the Philippians is believed by many to be one of the earliest creedal statements of Christ's followers. It is, in a nutshell, what the Christian faith truly believes about God and how God works to save the world through Christ Jesus.
Listen to this passage again. [read Phil 2:6-11]
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a human being,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
What does it mean to worship a God who chose to humble God's own self by becoming a human and taking on the nature of a servant? A God who was even willing to die on a cross to show how great a love God has for all of creation?
What does that mean for you? What does it say about God? What does is say about us who are followers of Jesus, God incarnate?
[get feedback]
Paul used this hymn within his letter to the Philippians because he heard reports that people were acting in ways that were damaging to the community. In the verses just prior to our reading for this morning, Paul highlights what has become a problem for the community. In verses 3 and 4 he says:
"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others."
The people had become too caught up in their own concerns and were putting their desires and ideas before those of others. They had become too independent - believing their needs were more important than those of their fellow Christians. They had taken to heart an idea that has been popular in many times and places - an idea that is very prevalent in our society today. Brian, in Monty Python's The Life of Brian, explains this idea to the people who are mistakenly following him convinced that he is the messiah.
[watch clip - 1:05:23 to 1:07:54]
Now, independent thinking is not bad in and of itself. The Presbyterian Book of Order - part of the Constitution that binds our community of faith together begins with the historical statement that affirms the value of independent thinking. It says:
"God alone is Lord of the conscience, and hath left it free from the doctrines and commandments of men which are in anything contrary to his Word, or beside it, in matters of faith and worship."
This statement, which was part of the very first constitution of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., lifts up the Presbyterian belief that each individual has a personal relationship with God. And this relationship is what should guide each person's life. Independent thinking, guided by one's relationship with God, is crucial to who we are as a community of faith.
But independent thinking can become corrosive when it pushes one to elevate oneself above others. This type of independence breaks down community and is contrary to the very nature of God.
That is what Paul wanted the Philippians to know. And that is what his letter continues to teach us today.
It is human nature to want to put our concerns ahead of those of another. Being a servant to others doesn't always come naturally to us. We'd much rather be served than serve. But God shows us through Jesus' life, death, and resurrection that there is another way - the way of humility.
To some, maybe even many, it seems absurd to worship a God who willingly humbled God's self. But to Christians this is the key to our faith. Our God loves all of creation so greatly that our God willingly gave up the divine to become part of the creation. This is truly unexpected.
Our God acts again and again in unexpected ways - meeting needs, providing support, reaching out to those who all else ignore. And our God calls us to do likewise.
During this final week of Lent, Holy Week, I invite you to think about the unexpectedness of the events that happened in Jesus' life. What does it mean for you to be a follower of one who was willing to humble himself even unto death on a cross? How can you act in large or small ways this week to humble yourself for the building up of God's beloved kingdom?
Amen.
