Sermon 14th April 2019
Palm/Passion Sunday
Text: Luke 19:28-40 – God’s
invitation to Paradise
We are about to enter Holy Week where
our most holy observances begin on Thursday night with Maundy Thursday, the
night that Jesus was betrayed.
It continues the following day, Good
Friday where we worship around a bare altar, stripped of all its beauty and
colour to reflect Christ’s dignity that was also stripped bare dying on the
cross.
We will wait through Holy Saturday to
return around a fire for the dawn service to watch the rising of the sun as we
celebrate God’s Son rising from the grave.
It will see numbers in church
increase slightly as people still see the importance of worshiping God on this
most sacred of days.
Around the nations however, most will
be oblivious to the sacredness of this time in the church as there will be
different observances starting on Maundy Thursday night, Good Friday, Holy
Saturday and Easter Sunday as the nation gathers to cheer on their football
side.
Many of you can probably remember
when religious observances of these sacred times were held throughout society.
I even remember as a child that TV
programming wouldn’t start till lunchtime on a Sunday, the milkbar would be
open from lunchtime on a Sunday for a couple hours but no other shops would
open.
But now we have no influence on any
day that is sacred to the Christian faith.
Good Friday was the last stronghold
of any resemblance that our society had a Christian foundation – although it
would be difficult to actually remove the holidays associated with Christmas
and Easter – but as to them being religious holidays – don’t force your
religion down my throat.
Christmas is family time.
Easter is getting away for a very
long weekend before the winter starts.
Do you feel like being a Christian is
becoming more and more a thing of the past?
Do you feel more and more like the
church has a very limited life span and that one day soon in the future we
won’t have churches around.
Well, the theme of today’s service
speaks right into those fears.
We began as always with the reading
known as Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem or Palm Sunday.
The day that Jesus entered into
Jerusalem to the cheers of the crowd wanting him to become their king.
But as we journeyed further the
cheers of praise for Jesus became similar to what we hear today against
Christians and the Church, jeers full of mocking.
Jesus is going to example exactly
what his church is experiencing today and has experienced since the days it was
first established.
We think that these days are
difficult for the church –but let us
remember that after his resurrection, Christians experienced horrendous treatment
including being fed to the lions, imprisoned, exiled to deserted islands and
this harsh treatment of Christians continues still around the world if you read
news from the persecuted church.
It is believed that 11 Christians per
day are put to death for their faith – around 4,000 per year.
But the church is very much alive
today and we continue to see God’s hand at work today.
God is not going to let his church
die – even though from the outside it might look like it’s dying.
God promised that not even the gates
of hell will be able to destroy his church.
And in today’s reading at the start
of our service we heard that even if the entire world were to abandon God, the
stones would shout out praises to God.
It is so important that we don’t lose
heart.
The world may be telling us that the
church is not important – that the church is not relevant – that the church has
no place in today’s modern secular society – but God begs to differ.
The bible reminds us that Jesus is
still well and truly alive today and that all people will acknowledge that – if
not now then certainly in the future when at the name of Jesus every knee
should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue
should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
The difference will be from where
that is done.
The entire world is invited to do
that from the paradise of heaven – although not everyone accepts that
invitation.
And we see that at Jesus’ death when
the thief on the cross who is being crucified next to Jesus restores his relationship
with Jesus before he dies:
He said, "Jesus, remember me
when you come into your kingdom."
Jesus replied, "Truly I tell
you, today you will be with me in Paradise."
The same comfort was not given to the
other thief who continued to reject Jesus and hurled insults at him.
We don’t like to think about death
but Easter is where that subject must be considered because it is the whole
purpose of Jesus being born at Christmas leading to his suffering and death at
Easter.
Jesus died for our sins at Easter so
we can with confidence know where we will be when our time comes to stand
before God.
Will we live for eternity in Heaven –
in Paradise with Jesus – or will we choose to live separated from Jesus for
eternity.
In our Baptism Jesus has opened that
door for us and invited us into his Kingdom.
He has promised whoever believes and
is baptised will be saved.
We heard that promise made today.
And so we celebrate today for those who have received that promise today in Baptism.
Today they have received that same
promise we heard Jesus say – today you will be with me in Paradise.
The world, like the Pharisees, is
ordering us to stop – we are causing offense.
But it is only an offense if we say
that God loves and accepts only certain people.
But the invitation is for all people.
For God so loved THE WORLD that he
gave his one and only Son so that WHOEVER believes in him shall not perish but
receive eternal life.
Palm Sunday celebrates that Jesus is
the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
That Jesus is the one who brings us
Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven!
But our move to hear the suffering
and death of Jesus reminds us of the journey we have ahead of us as the world
continues to reject God’s invitation.
But today in the journey from Palm to Passion we are reminded through
our Baptism that our journey is not alone but with
Jesus by our side as he promises in our baptism – I am with you always till the
end of the age.
And at the end of the age we shall
join with Jesus and the dying thief on the cross along with all those who have
not rejected Jesus’ offer of Heaven that today we shall be with him in
Paradise.
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