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Pastor Jeremy Schultz
April 17, 2011
The portrait before you today is one of my very favorite pieces of religious art. It captures all of the brilliance, all of the confusion and all of the conspiracy that collided when Jesus entered the city of His destiny just four days before the Passover Lamb was to be slain. From our text we read...“And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, 'Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!'”
There are over 40 unique characters in this painting by artist, Tom DuBois. And each one has a unique perspective to share. I stand before you today, not as one confident about the mind of the artist and his specific intent. In fact, I could find nothing of his interpretation to share. Rather I stand before you as one who understands well this Biblical story and who will seek to share with you the particular point of view from some within this scene. There are many from which I could choose.
There are Roman soldiers, standing above the archway casting wary glances at the crowd below. There are babes nursing at the breast and innocent looking children leading the procession. There are lambs both being carried and running free - no doubt for sacrifice later in the week. There are Africans, who have assembled in Jerusalem for the Passover celebration. And there are shop owners coming outside to ask in the words of Matthew, “Who is this?” But the first narrator to receive a voice is this one.
The first thing I notice about this man...other than his radiant smile and the young girl he carries...is his bare arms. Those arms are not covered by a cloak, an outer garment that provided both shelter from the cold and an adequate pillow when rolled up at night. No, the man's cloak has long been given away. He was the first to lay it down so that even the hoofs of the colt Jesus rode on did not need to touch the ground. Perhaps this was even the man from the nearby village who allowed Jesus to use his colt for such a noble purpose. It's certainly possible. After all, if you were to borrow my car for a Memorial Day parade, I'd want to come to see it too. But even more, this man, by the look in his eyes, wants to see Jesus.
I imagine that he's followed the Lord for the last few weeks. Being from a nearby village, he had seen Jesus before...and so had the girl. The story is told in Matthew 19. “Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.'” Then Jesus took the children in His arms and blessed them! This father knew the importance of bringing his little girl to Jesus that He might bless her. And now that this parade had been formed, he wanted her to see Jesus again. “That's the man who blessed you! Do you see Him? Do you remember? Child, I tell you that you must always remember. And you must always follow this man! Listen to what they're saying. Hosanna, they cry! Hosanna to King David's greater Son!” Oh, she heard what they were saying. And by the passion in her father's eyes, I'm sure that she would never forget. But there were others in this portrait who also heard the passionate cries and who also have a voice to share.
“What are we to do?” That's what this one said...and not too pleasantly. “If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation!” Look at him with the unrolled scroll on his lap. The symbol, not just of God's law, but his own personal persuasion, power and place among the people. Look at each of them standing there. Caiaphas, bearing the breastplate of the high priest, another with the phylactery tied to his forehead. All of them with long, flowing robes - easy to be seen from every corner of the market place. But that's exactly where they gather...in the corner, conspiring together and conceiving every possible plot whereby they might arrest Jesus.
Their hatred of Him began long ago. He worked many miracles. But in their estimation, He was a lawbreaker who did it on the Sabbath. Therefore they concluded that Jesus could not be from God. They knew where Yeshua Ha Nazorii, Jesus of Nazareth, got his power. It was sorcery! “By Beelzebub, the prince of demons, He casts out demons!” That's what this angry one had said. But it wasn't so easy to convince the sheep. They kept going out after Him. And every time he opened blind eyes, caused lepers to walk or raised the dead, the sheep were harder to control. “Don't be fooled, people!” they would shout. “He's not from God!” But as the high priest that year, Caiaphas had prophesied, “It is better that one man die for the people, than that the whole nation should perish.” That was just fine with them. They would lie and wait. And when the time came, they would arrest Him, and they would make sure that He would die according to their law. But not here...not now.
The final narrator to the story of this event is Jesus Himself. He had entered Jerusalem many times before. But today, He is fulfilling the Scriptures, “Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.” As we have seen, the crowd is easily caught up in the excitement and those that hate him without cause will continue to hate. But Jesus is the ever self-aware Messiah. He sent two of his disciples to a nearby village and told them to get a donkey. It was all pre-arranged with a man who would not refuse the Lord, should He have a need. And so Jesus doesn't enter Jerusalem on the back of a white stallion or in the chariot of a conquering king. He comes into the City of David, as the Humble King who is ready to give His life for the very ones that by divine right He rules.
Look at Him. His hand reaches out to touch the hand of one who is blind. His grace extends to those in need. Just beyond that man and in the same direction of His blessed touch is a woman, sitting down, just out of your view, with her arms wrapped around her legs and her face pressed into her knees. This humble king, Jesus, has come for the poor and the lowly for the outcast and the sinners. He has come to set them free. The crowds are shouting, “Hosanna!” “Save us now!” I can't help but wonder in amazement that the Lord was thinking, “I am here to save you...and do you even know what that means?” As His arm is extended in grace, so the other one too will soon be stretched out and kept in place by nails driven through them and into wood. And afterward, Jesus will be hoisted up on that cross, where His death, as the Lamb for sacrifice, will atone for the sins of the whole world. Jesus is the Savior of all. He is the ever aware Messiah. He knows exactly what He's doing. For that man with the girl, for those Pharisees and for each and every one!
And I'll make you a promise. If you will follow Him all this week. If you will read your Bibles and devote your time to worship. If you will seek, by God's grace, a better understanding of the contrast between everything bright and festive with everything that has a darker hue. And if you hang in there all the way to the empty tomb of Easter. Then I promise you that you, O Son...and you, O Daughter of Zion, that you will know what it means that your King is coming to you! You will know the depth of His compassion and exhilaration of being released from all your guilt. You'll be able to worship with your head held high and with eyes that truly see. Because not only will Christ have been raised, but you too will have been raised to newness of life with Him.
This, by the way, is no mere artistic interpretation. But this comes from one who knows the story well and who, with you, is well known and well loved by his Savior. Amen.
© St. Paul Lutheran Church 2011