the voices of palm sunday

“ The Voices of Palm Sunday”  Luke 19:28-40 & Luke 22:14-23:56

 

    “ And when he was come nigh , even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen” Luke 19:37

 

        What did the disciples hear?  They heard all the praise and rejoicing of the people and the other disciples.  Jesus was coming as a King on a lowly colt in fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecy of Zechariah 9, “ Rejoice, greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jersusalem: behold thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.”  Salvation was here. 

 

        What do we hear?  I hear a lot about listening in this quote from Henri Nouwen,   “Listening is much more than allowing another to talk while waiting for a chance to respond. Listening is paying full attention to others and welcoming them into our very beings. The beauty of listening is that, those who are listened to start feeling accepted, start taking their words more seriously and discovering their own true selves. Listening is a form of spiritual hospitality by which you invite strangers to become friends, to get to know their inner selves more fully, and even to dare to be silent with you.Listening is much more than allowing another to talk while waiting for a chance to respond. Listening is paying full attention to others and welcoming them into our very beings. The beauty of listening is that, those who are listened to start feeling accepted, start taking their words more seriously and discovering their own true selves. Listening is a form of spiritual hospitality by which you invite strangers to become friends, to get to know their inner selves more fully, and even to dare to be silent with you.
Listening as Spiritual Hospitality

 

 

 

To listen is very hard, because it asks of us so much interior stability that we no longer need to prove ourselves by speeches, arguments, statements, or declarations. True listeners no longer have an inner need to make their presence known. They are free to receive, to welcome, to accept.

 

 

 

Listening is much more than allowing another to talk while waiting for a chance to respond. Listening is paying full attention to others and welcoming them into our very beings. The beauty of listening is that, those who are listened to start feeling accepted, start taking their words more seriously and discovering their own true selves. Listening is a form of spiritual hospitality by which you invite strangers to become friends, to get to know their inner selves more fully, and even to dare to be silent with you.  “

 

I do not think that Jesus felt that anyone was really listening.  The same crowd would cry “ crucify Him “  instead of praising Him with branches and hosannas.  “ These things understood not his disciples at the first; but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they that these things were written of him, and that they had done these things unto him.” John 12:16

 

What were some of the other voices?  The religious leaders had their views.  Jesus told a parable about them before the entry into Jerusalem.  The parable of the pounds talks about a man who went into a far country in Luke 19.  When he returned “ his citizens hated him, and sent him a message saying,’ We will not have this man to reign over us.’ “  “ And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, ‘ Master, rebuke thy disciples. ‘ And he answered and said unto them, ‘ I tell you that , if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.’ “ 19:40  In other words the rocks got it.  The Pharisees did not.  Rocks were smarter . 

 

    What are we listening to?  Who are we listening to?  Who listens to us?  Bonhoeffer said this about the time .  “ Time is short. Eternity is long.  It is the time of decision.  Those who remain faithful to the word and the confession here will find that Jesus Christ will stand by them in the hour of judgment.  He will know them and stand with them when the accuser demands they be judged.  “

 

     Today as we celebrate the entry of Jesus into the holy city we are marked as well.  Our enthusiasm is not faith.  But true faith must have enthusiasm.  True faith knows the pain and the hour of testing and comes out with tested faith.  Faith that is just waving and shouting and leading without knowledge is temporary faith that has no foundation .  The voices of Palm Sunday call us to follow.  Which will we listen to ?  The voices of the Passion or the voices of the palms?  We need both.  We cannot wave palms without the passion .  The blood of Jesus is the only power on earth that can take away our sin.

Listening is much more than allowing another to talk while waiting for a chance to respond. Listening is paying full attention to others and welcoming them into our very beings. The beauty of listening is that, those who are listened to start feeling accepted, start taking their words more seriously and discovering their own true selves. Listening is a form of spiritual hospitality by which you invite strangers to become friends, to get to know their inner selves more fully, and even to dare to be silent with you.