Musical Prelude and Service.

Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 & Mark 11:1-11
We are all looking for heroes, aren’t we? At some point we cast our game about seeking someone to rescue us from the indifference or outright cruelty that is so often a part of our world.
The thing is, when we encounter the heroes we actually get, they don’t really live up to what we were convinced we actually needed. We discover their feet are made of clay. We learn they had ulterior motives for their actions; or they didn’t actually solve our problems.
Or, when we encounter our actual saviour we aren’t satisfied with his work.
This is what we get this week in scripture. This morning we hear the story of Jesus finally entering Jerusalem to great fanfare. Of course, it is suspected Jesus enters through one of Jerusalem’s smaller gates and he does it humbly on a colt or a donkey, depending upon the story. He is accompanied by his group of followers including fishermen, a former tax collector, women and zealots. Not exactly the upper crust of society.
But we are told people excitedly receive him and greet him as the coming Messiah. People are eager to see the Messiah come and overthrow the ruling puppet king and toss out the Roman Empire.
That’s what they are anticipating and that’s what they are celebrating. They are singing sons of praise to the coming liberator Jesus.
And less than a week later, we are told Jesus is betrayed. He is arrested, tied, tortured and executed according to the laws of the state. His followers deny him, abandon him, and leave him to die alone; with the exception of his mother, a few women followers, and, depending on the Gospel story, one of his male disciples.
People are excited at the promise of liberation, but their commitment to that cause proves to be quite shallow. It also stands to reason that they did not truly understand what Jesus was offering. Jesus was encouraging people to free themselves from a set of rules and assumptions about how the world must work. He was not naïve; overthrowing the empire of Rome was not part of his strategy.
But he wanted people to ask and answer the question, who are you ultimately loyal to? Where can you find your heart?
But he also took time to expose the corruption and hypocrisy of the authorities and the leaders. He was calling for upending the way the world operates, but for that to happen requires the participation of those eagerly awaiting liberation. The salvation Jesus offers requires you to take on some work. It requires you to take a hard look at how you live your life and how you might actually be participating in the work of the empire. It is only then that you can change your direction.
Jesus comes offering liberation, but he also expects you to do some challenging work to be part of finding salvation.
Over the coming week, what we call Holy Week, we typically recount such storis as Jesus overturning tables and driving the money changers out of the temple. We remember his last supper with the disciples. It is there he washes their feet, setting an example of humbling himself and serving those he loves, including his betrayer. Salvation, or liberation, comes through honesty and loving service to one another.
In his arrival in Jerusalem, Jesus presents himself as vulnerable. He arrives in humility – not with a show of strength and power. Jesus is not seeking to replace one oppressive military occupation with another military; merely changing the colour of the uniforms. He is urging his followers and his
listeners to replace the fear of violence or the reliance upon violence and threats of reprisals with love. He is telling those seeking liberation that they need to set aside greed and self interest; an expectation of transactional service with a commitment to real care and service. To truly love one another and to commit to a world of peace and justice, rooted in compassion and mercy.
But Jesus isn’t about to; in fact he can’t impose those values on the world. Jesus can’t make people love on another. Jesus can’t legislate loving your enemies and turning the other cheek. You don’t replace slavery with a different form of slavery and call that peace.
People kept waiting for Jesus to bring an army to overthrow the Romans. They kept waiting for Jesus to reveal his divine power and drive the invaders from their lands. And it didn’t happen. They walked away to await the next rebel and rebellion.
Mark’s gospel is full of stories about the disciples missing the point of Jesus’s teachings. They urge Jesus to greater action or to turn away from Jerusalem when they learn what awaits them there.
They argue about who will sit on his right hand. They are expecting a new kingdom like the one they have heard about in old stories.
The disciples are like the rest of us, trying to come to terms with what Jesus is telling us and frequently missing the actual point. It is only through frequent and repeated reflections and through bitter experience that we finally gain an appreciation of the truth.
Jesus isn’t going to respond to our calls for rescue in the ways we have come to expect. Our salvation, our healing, our liberation will not look the same as we have come to expect from so many different stories.
And finally, the healing Jesus offers; the salvation Jesus promises is something we need to be partners bringing about. It is not a spectator sport. It is not an event we get to passively wait and watch. We, working with Jesus, play our part in bringing about salvation by walking alongside Jesus; loving and healing and bringing peace and justice to our neighbours. Jesus shows us the way.
Jesus never promises an easy way forward. Jesus promises us love and mercy. Jesus offers us peace and justice. We are called to follow him in the way.
And if we are committed tot his path and to working along side Jesus, we will find he is the hero, the Messiah we were seeking. No feet of clay and no ulterior motive. Jesus is the Messiah we called out for. One of honesty, integrity, and authority; as long as we are ready to listen, to follow and to commit to the world he sees for us.
Thanks be to God.

Music provided with permission through licensing with CCLI License number
2701258 and One License # A-731789