photo #6112943

PALM SUNDAY March 24, 2024 Pastor Tom Steers Christ the Saviour Lutheran Church, Toronto OPENING HYMNN: 442 “All Glory, Laud, and Honour” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xAH7732uhw Lutheran Service Book Confession and Absolution Page 184-185 Introit Psalm 24, verses 7-10 7 Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. 8 Who is this King of glory? The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle! 9 Lift up your heads, O gates! And lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. 10 Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory! The Kyrie (Lord Have Mercy) Lord Have mercy upon us. Christ have mercy upon us. Lord Have mercy upon us. Collect Prayer: Almighty and everlasting God, You sent Your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, to take upon Himself our flesh and to suffer death upon the cross. Mercifully grant that we may follow the example of His great humility and patience and be made partakers of His resurrection; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. Our Bible Readings: First Reading Zechariah 9:9-12 Psalm 118, verses 19-29 Epistle Reading Philippians 2:5-11 Our Gospel Reading John 12:12-19 The Apostles’ Creed Page 192 HYMN OF THE DAY 443 “Hosanna, Loud Hosanna” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPSKbXxpudU THE SERMON – On a Sunday a little more than 2,000 years ago, the Holy City of Jerusalem was in an uproar. It was the Feast of Passover. People had come from all over Israel to be there. The population of Jerusalem would swell to about seven times its normal size. Families were busy going to the temple to pray. A Passover meal was being prepared. And a perfect lamb, or as perfect as one could afford, would be bought. But something was very different about this Passover. For years, there had been word about a travelling Rabi, or teacher, who could perform miracles. Recently, just days before this, Jesus of Nazareth had raised a man from the dead. And people from Jerusalem knew about it. It had taken place in Bethany, about 3 kilometres away. The Jerusalem crowds were ecstatic. Not only was this miracle worker headed to the Holy city, but He could be the long-awaited Messiah who would save them as a people. Save them from the hated Romans who’d oppressed them, at times cruelly. They wanted a worldly Jewish king to free them from their political bondage to Rome. And what better time than Passover to wave the Romans good-bye. So, when people come running to say this prophet is about to enter town, people pour into the streets. They take palm branches, a traditional way of welcoming royalty, and as He approaches, they shout, ‘Hosanna, Hosanna to the Highest, Hosanna to the Son of David, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’ This word, Hosanna, is one we read in the Bible and sing in hymns. We have a sense of what it means, but I want to speak about what they meant by saying it. We know the New Testament was first written in Greek, and the Old Testament in Hebrew. Our English word "Hosanna" comes from the Hebrew: hoshiyana. And that Hebrew phrase is found in only one place in the Old Testament, Psalm 118, verse 25, where it means, "Save, please!" It’s a cry to God for help. Like when someone pushes you into water before you can swim, and you come up hollering: "Help, save me.” But something happened to that phrase, hoshiyana. The meaning changed over time. In the psalm it was immediately followed by an exclamation: “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" So, over the centuries hoshiyana stopped being a cry for help. Instead, it became a shout of hope and joy. It originally meant, "Save, please!" But gradually came to mean, "Salvation! Salvation has come!" It’s the bubbling over of a heart that sees hope and deliverance on the way and can't keep that joy in. Yet as the man they’ve heard so much about approaches, the perceptive begin to notice something. He’s not coming in with an army, but with common people, with His poor disciples surrounding Him. He’s not riding a strong, military horse, but on a donkey’s colt, and it’s not even His own, He borrowed it. The King comes to Jerusalem to receive His Kingdom. The irony is that although Christ is the Messiah, the King of Kings, God in human flesh, He comes not in an overbearing presence, but in humility. The prophet Zechariah wrote this King, would come to His people in just this way, riding a donkey – a humble, working animal. If it hadn’t been predicted beforehand, the people might have had an excuse for rejecting Him. For not being able to recognize the true King, the Messiah, God’s only Son, when He made His entry into Jerusalem in such meekness. Christ didn’t come as a worldly conqueror. He came as a humble servant. He looked like a beggar, not a King. So, God gave them Zechariah, and that prophet’s warning that this would happen. Today, in our world, we also have God’s Word, and an opportunity to read, hear, and believe that the Saviour has come – for us. We, and all on earth, need to be concerned that we don’t miss Him. Because missing, or rejecting Him, has eternal consequences. Today, Christ comes humbly again through His Word and Sacraments found in His Church. He still doesn’t come as an earthly King. His message is against the usual things of the world – money, power, the pride of human reason. The all-powerful King still comes in gentleness, in humble earthly elements, the water of Baptism, the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper that joins us to His body, and to one another. And since He still comes in such a humble way, many refuse to receive Him. Because He doesn’t present Himself in the way they think He should. They want earthly glory, worldly success, and all its trappings. Or perhaps they desire mystical visions, and ecstatic experiences, that will elevate them above their sins. The humble Saviour, came down to earth, and took on human flesh. He spent His time reaching out to the poor in spirit, the ill, the broken hearted, and was determined to return to the Holy City. He would make the one sacrifice for sin to end all sacrifices. To atone for the sins of the world. He made that sacrifice at the end of Passover week. It was Himself, on a cross, for us. It’s a part of our broken humanity that we often yearn for earthly glory, and if not for ourselves, certainly for those we’d follow. As fallen beings we’re not comfortable in having a Saviour who redeems us through suffering, and a cross. Our old Adam would rather have experiences that inspire so we feel enriched. Seeing our Saviour in humility brings home the message, that we could not save ourselves. That is the great insight of the Lutheran Reformation. We hold fast to the words of the Bible that only Christ could save us, only He was perfect – we contribute nothing to the sacrifice of the cross. We confess that faith itself is God’s freely offered gift, as is salvation. When we look at the Palm Sunday procession, the crowds and their expectations, we remember something. Many in this crowd who cheer Hosanna, will jeer and yell “crucify” only days later. It is the human condition – we’re trapped in sin yet have hope of salvation. Christ doesn’t come to bring us an earthly kingdom defined by prosperity. The kingdom Jesus wants us to inherit is the Kingdom of God. He doesn’t come to offer riches in a fleeting world that turn to dust in our hands. He offers eternal life. And in order for us to receive this spiritual Kingdom, Christ had to suffer for it. He came to Jerusalem on Passover so He could be the Lamb without blemish, the Lamb of God. He came to be the sacrifice that sets us free, and makes eternal death pass us by. The punishment we so richly deserve could only miss us if it came upon someone else. The high King sacrificed Himself. And in doing so, He conquered not earthly kingdoms, but death itself. In this world we are poor, lost sinners. But through the blood of Christ, and by faith in Him alone, we are forgiven and destined for Heaven. In that eternal kingdom we can one day say, and truly mean: “Hosanna, blessed is He who came to win us salvation.” To Him alone be all glory, honour, and praise. Amen. PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH SERVICE OF THE SACRAMENT Page 194 THE LORD’S PRAYER Page 196 AGNUS DEI (Lamb of God) Hymn 962 THE DISTRIBUTION Post-Communion Collect (Left-hand column) Page 201 CLOSING HYMN: 441 “Ride On, Ride On in Majesty” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcxG2JasPds