Loving God, you teach us the things that make for peace through Jesus, and empower us by your Spirit.  As we continue on our life’s journey, make us aware of your presence with us, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

           This year, perhaps more than any other, we can identify with the mixture of joy and sorrow that is part of Palm – or Passion – Sunday.  It has been a year now, and we are still not able to be back together in the ways that we would like.  There is no crowding together in the narthex with our palms, ready for the procession into the sanctuary.  There is no shouting or even choral singing in the sanctuary, because those are some of the best ways to spread the virus.  And, even though we have celebrated the Lord’s Supper in our online worship, we have not been able to gather together in person at the altar.  Because of these things, and so much more, it is entirely appropriate that we are hearing the story from the gospel of Luke this year.

         As often happens, each gospel tells the story a little bit differently, choosing to emphasize different details.  In all four gospels, Jesus is riding on a young donkey down the Mount of Olives, people are shouting joyfully some verses from Psalm 118 (v. 25-26), and people are taking their cloaks and laying them down on the road in front of Jesus.  However, it is only in the gospel of Luke that Jesus weeps when he sees the city of Jerusalem.

         On the Mount of Olives there is a church called Dominus Flevit, which means, “the Lord wept.”  In that church, there is a carving, or frieze, of Jesus on the donkey, head bowed as he weeps, surrounded by people with palm branches.  He weeps over the city that has not recognized “the things that make for peace,” or “the time of [their] visitation from God” (Lk. 19:42, 44).  He weeps over the city that will be destroyed in less than 50 years.

         Oddly enough, only one of the four gospels specifically mentions palm branches (Jn. 12:13).  In fact, Luke’s gospel doesn’t mention greenery of any sort.  However, there is a good historical reason for the use of palms.  As it turns out, palm branches were symbols of the Hasmoneans, who had taken charge of Israel before the Romans conquered them.  This was the last time in recent memory that the Jewish people had actually been under Jewish rule.  And so, the palm branches were actually political symbols – an expression of the longing for freedom from Roman oppression, and a king from David’s line (Scott McAndless, via RevGalBlogPal.org).  In fact, kings were expected to ride into Jerusalem on a donkey, as is expressed by the prophet Zechariah (Zech. 9:9).

         And so, we have this very political scene happening that is all mixed together with praising God and saying, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Lk. 19:38).  Jesus, presumably, is aware of the type of kingship that the people have in mind.  They are thinking of the type of king described by Zechariah, who will rule from sea to sea and to the ends of the earth (Zech. 9:10).  They are thinking of the peace that would be commanded by God’s Messiah as an earthly ruler over all nations.

         Notably, Jesus does not shut the people down in their expressions of praise and their hopes for salvation.  Instead, he meets them where they are and weeps.  He weeps over the people and the city that have not recognized “the things that make for peace.”  While the people may have had in mind something like the “Pax Romana” where their own ruler would command peace by presiding over a vast empire, it seems most likely that Jesus had in mind the peace that can only come from God.

         Nations will rise and fall.  Earthly cities and empires will be destroyed.  Ultimately, peace will not come through military might, but through reconciliation with God and with one another through Jesus Christ.  This is the peace that the world cannot give.  This is the peace that surpasses all understanding.  This is the peace that is given by the Holy Spirit.  It is different, and ultimately much more valuable, than the peace that belongs to this world.

         Still, Jesus is aware of what lies ahead for him in order to bring about this reconciliation with God and with one another.  In fact, he can see the place where he will be crucified as he comes down the Mount of Olives.  Even though Jesus has come in love, he knows that only a few days from now he will be treated with hatred and jealousy.  Surely all of this, and more, is in Jesus’ mind and heart as he weeps in the midst of the joyful procession.

         For us, however, we are reminded today that whether we are experiencing joy or sorrow, Jesus walks with us and understands us.  At the same time, we have been taught “the things that make for peace” through Jesus Christ.  For, all those who put their trust in him have been reconciled with God and with one another – the peace that the world cannot give.  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

Palm / Passion Sunday (NL 3)                  Luke 19:29-44

March 28, 2021

St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church

Pastor Lynne Hutchison

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