The Prodigal Disciples

I read an article this week that breaks my heart and I could not stop thinking about it.

According to the Management Science journal, “Excessive workplace stress causes a staggering 120,000 deaths and results in nearly $190 billion in health care costs each year.”

These are some of the harmful health effects from excessive stress:

• Damage to key brain structures and circuitry,

• reduced ability to cope with future stress and increased anxiety and chronic depression;

• The onset of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD);

• Reduced immune system functioning; and

• Increased inflammation and depression.

Even diabetes has been linked to stress.

The World Health Organization has classified stress as the “Health epidemic of the 21st century.”

How does this information make you feel?

Bob Pierce, the founder of the World Vision, once said, “Let my heart be broken by the things that break the heart of God.”

I am sure this statistic breaks the heart of God. Does this break your heart? It breaks my heart.

Do you remember that at the beginning of Lent, I mentioned that we would spend this Lenten season searching God’s guidance and, by Easter, we will relaunch our church in this new place, with a renewed mission and clear vision to serve the community?

To serve the community, we must identify and address the felt need of the society. Now, the felt need is loud and clear that our society is suffering from excessive stress. The good news is we are well equipped to address that issue. Our Fruitful Life model is perfect to heal the stressful society.

As I dig deep into the issue of stress, I realize that this is not a new problem. It has been a problem since Genesis. I may have become intensified in the 21st century, but it’s not something new.

The first century Israel might have the same level of stress. In the context of the first Palm Sunday, Jesus triumphant entry to Jerusalem, people are suffering from excessive stress.

The Bible says in

Matthew 9:36 NRSV

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

People were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. That’s excessive stress. Jesus wanted to be the Good Shepherd for these sheep. He wanted to be the good King to care for the stressed-out people.

On Palm Sunday, he gave these stressed-out people a moment of euphoria, but Palm Sunday is not the enthronement of his kingship. Palm Sunday is about his departure.

In order to understand about Palm Sunday, we must understand the first century custom under the Roman Empire. A king must be ratified by the emperor Caesar in order to be official.

For example, when King Herod died, his son Archelaus would take the throne in Judea. However, he could not officially take the throne without the permission of the emperor Caesar in Rome. He had to go to Rome and be crowned as king in the temple of the Palatine Apollo.

Jesus explained to the disciples that his going to Jerusalem was for his departure. If you remember the Transfiguration story, when Jesus took Peter, James, and John to the mountain and prayed, the Bible says,

Luke 9:30–31 NRSV

Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.

Notice it says, that they were discussing his departure at Jerusalem. From then on Jesus started journeying to Jerusalem. So Jesus’ entry to Jerusalem was not for being crowned to be the king, but for the departure to receive the crown.

Of course, he is not departing to Rome to receive the crown, but to God to be crowned as the King of the universe. We don’t know what the divine plan is really look like behind the curtains of the heavenly kingdom, but Jesus is using the custom of the day as an analogy of his departure and return.

He wanted to make sure the disciples understand this so, if you read the context, the passage right before his entry to Jerusalem, he told them a Parable of the Ten Pounds.

Luke 19:12–13 NRSV

So he said, “A nobleman went to a distant country to get royal power for himself and then return. He summoned ten of his slaves, and gave them ten pounds, and said to them, ‘Do business with these until I come back.’

You know the story, but Jesus told them this parable right before he entered Jerusalem because he wanted them to understand that he is like the nobleman departing to get the royal power.

He planned his entry to Jerusalem to be low key. He didn’t enter Jerusalem on a warhorse of a conqueror, but on a borrowed young donkey. It’s a symbol of peace and humility.

However, the disciples didn’t understand Jesus intention. They might have been triggered by the memory of Zechariah’s prophecy that Zion’s king would come to her riding on a colt.

So they put their garments on the colt and also on the road as a sign of homage for a king. And they started chanting joyfully:

Luke 19:38 NRSV

saying, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven!”

The Bible says, they praise God joyfully with a loud voice. Obviously, Jesus attempt to defuse the euphoria by entering Jerusalem on a colt misfired.

The stressed-out crowd is hungry for a praise and worship. The sheep without shepherd cannot wait until the return of the Shepherd. Even though he hasn’t been crowned yet, he is the chosen king, why don’t they celebrate now?

In a few days they would have to face the biggest stress of their lives, witnessing the crucifixion of their master. They may have foreseen the excessive stress they were about to endure, but they just want this one moment of excitement and euphoria they believe they deserve.

Jesus didn’t stop them this time “because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” Jesus had compassion on them. This is the last chance they have the opportunity to celebrate.

Last week, we talked about Mary of Bethany pouring a pound of expensive perfume on Jesus’ feet, but Jesus didn’t stop the Prodigal Daughter. In the same way, Jesus didn’t stop these Prodigal Disciples for being extravagant with their love, joy, and praises.

Jesus knew they have too much stress that they need a relief. The best relief of stress is to worship the creator God because we are created to worship him.

However, some people didn’t understand the joy. They wanted to suppress the excitement instead of joining the parade and praising God. The Bible says,

Luke 19:39–40 NRSV

Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, order your disciples to stop.” He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.”

The first century Israel is about to explode with excessive stress. They were under foreign occupation and their own king is a corrupt minion of the enemy. Their religious leaders were equally corrupt.

If people voices were suppressed, the stones will shout out. It means the pressure is so high that even the nature is about to erupt.

To understand this concept, we must see the entire universe as one. It’s called the systems thinking. Everything is interconnected. The earth suffers when human beings suffer.

The earth is renewed, when human beings are renewed because the earth is created for human beings. It goes back to the allegory of the Beauty and the Beast again. The salvation of us--the Beasts--will bring about the salvation of the entire castle—the universe.

As mentioned at the beginning, The World Health Organization has classified stress as the “health epidemic of the 21st century.”

Jesus will be weeping to see the suffering of this stressful world today because two thousand years after he came, his followers haven’t yet set people free from stress and suffering. If he were to come back to day, he would see people being “harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” just like two thousand years ago.

Friends, we have a divine calling today. Trinity’s mission hasn’t ended yet. We have work to do. We have a message of happiness for the hurting world. Each of you are a messenger. As you join the parade to sing with joy and praise God’s name every Sunday, you also need to share that happiness with others.

This is the last week of Lent and also the Holy Week. Next Sunday will be our first Easter in this new place, and it will be our revival Sunday. Invite your friends and family this week and bring them to join the parade.

The crucifixion of Christ shows the level of stress in the society and the related anxiety and anger that made people did the unthinkable.

This Holy Week, we need to think about the level of stress in our own society and the related anxiety and anger that could make people do the unthinkable. We have heard many tragic incidents in the news about people doing the unthinkable.

As Bob Pierce said, “Let our heart be broken by the things that break the heart of God.” We must repent. Repent means change. Let the things that break the heart of God change us and set our heart on fire to serve our community and the world.

May God bless you with a thoughtful Holy Week. Amen!