Palm Sunday
Mark 12: 12-16; Is 50: 4-7; Phil 2: 6-11; Mak 15: 1-39
Deacon Larry Brockman
It’s difficult, isn’t it, listening to such a gruesome account of Jesus suffering and death? The movie the Passion of Christ a few years back was so vivid in the depiction of the horror of these events; it too was hard to bear. And yet, these images come to mind as we hear the yearly proclamation of the Passion. They are reading a much longer version in our Churches, you know. This one is abbreviated in the interest of time. But we all feel the horror of the suffering Jesus went through, even with the shortened version and it is difficult and uncomfortable for us.
We are all told that Jesus carried the sins of all of us in his suffering and death. And indeed, when we read the book of Revelation, there are multiple references there to those who are saved having been washed in the blood of the Lamb- the Lamb being our savior Jesus Christ. So yes, the events we just heard describe how Jesus suffered and died a horrible death and shed his blood for all of us.
But you know what, God’s primary motivation for sending Jesus was love, not some super accounting scheme to send Jesus to remit our sins so we could all be saved. And so, we need to understand what the love is all about. God so loved us that he sent his son to show us the way. And the way involves suffering and death, not just for Jesus; not just for some of us; but for all of us. All of us must seek out and find God’s path for us, and then bear with the suffering that is part of our lives.
God loved us so much that He sent His son to live that message. Jesus was not spared his lot of suffering; in fact his plate was full. But if we understand that Jesus is God, and that God doesn’t have to suffer; and yet He was willing to bear human suffering for the sake of all of us, then we get the message. It is a message of love; the same kind of love that engenders forbearance of suffering for those who care for a loved one; the same kind of love that sacrifices self for the welfare of children; and the same kind of love that motivates a man to work tirelessly to support his family. Only it’s an infinitely pure love, a love that most of us can’t really conceive of. It’s love of mankind even when they ignore their God; defy their God; persecute their God; torture their God, and even kill him.
Today, let us reflect for a few moments on that kind of Love- the love Jesus had for us. That’s the kind of love all of us are called to practice in this world.
