Jesus: an encounter with a man on a donkey

Luke 19:28-40

I’m a bit of a fair weather football supporter when things are going well I’m there, when things are not I’m no where to be seen.

Being an Everton fan you can imagine this happens less and less these days that I’m shouting from the rooftops about how good they are.

Football fan or not, being fickle in our commitment is not just tempting but something that can easily become a bad habit.

We find this at New Year as well as at Lent - the promise to eat healthier, get fitter, maybe spend less time working and more time with family. It is true that life happens and things come up, or we’ve had a bad night or we can’t be bothered because its too hard.

So my question today is how committed are you?

When life peachy, good and you have motivation nothing can stop us. This as true for followers of Jesus as it is for those who committed to going to the gym each day or following a football team who will almost always let you down.

With commitment comes sacrifice - eariler in Luke in chapter 9:23 - Jesus predicts his death and says that unless they are prepared to take up their cross daily and follow that only then will they find true life to the full.

The important word here is daily. If want to be achieve anything, you have to be all in. For followers of Jesus this means the way of the Cross which starts today on Palm Sunday and will finish at the Cross.

Back in 1937 - Manchester City won the league the following season they were relegated.

The reality is both sport and life is that longterm success is never a guarantee. Things change in a matter of moments or in Jesus’ case in the space of a week.

A week in the life of Jesus

We join the action where Jesus’ popularity and ministry has peaked. Crowds and people are following Jesus hanging on his every word, waiting to see what he’ll do next. He’s been healing people, befriending the sinners and tax collectors, investing his time in the least, the last, the lost. He strengthened the weak and unsettled the strong. He comforted the disturbed and disturbed the comfortable.

What Jesus had done was truly amazing. Over the last weeks and months we have seen again and again how peoples lives were impacted and changed by encountering Jesus.

Jesus had been on a journey these past three years spiritually with his disciples and now physically as he had now made his way to Jerusalem. In the full knowledge of what was about to happen.

He gave his disciples very specific instructions about an untrained donkey or a colt that has never been riden. And if anyone asks just say ‘the Lord needs it.’ The disciples found that it was just as Jesus said. But what Jesus didn’t tell them was the reaction of the people.

In Luke there no palm leaves but the people lay their cloaks on the ground as a sign of respect and homage to Jesus. As Jesus approached the Mount of Olives many who had witnessed his miracles over the past few years began to chant.

In other gospels it uses the word Hosanna which means ‘save us’ but here in Luke it quotes Psalm 118:26 when it is likely they would have been chanting the whole Psalm.

Psalm 118:25-29 “Save us, we beseech you, O Lord! O Lord, we beseech you, give us success! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God, and he has given us light. Bind the festal procession with branches, up to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God, I will extol you. O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”

Then the Parisees asked Jesus make the people stop and Jesus replies with if they didn’t cry out the rocks would.

The reaction was unavoidable, have you ever been so excited that you have not been able to contain yourself. Where you have been given such great news that you are bursting to share it with someone. Then I would suggest that you multiply that by about a 1000.

However, the people had got the wrong end of the stick. They thought finally, someone to rescue us from the Romans who restore Israel to its former Glory. So the Paraisees asking Jesus telling the crowd to be quiet is because they were concerned because it challenged their authority and they didn’t want a revolt to result in a Roman Army to come down on them. Why? Because Jesus was establishing God’s eternal kingdom and not a political kingdom.

Jesus loses the dressing room

At this point Jesus loses the dressing room because it then becomes clear that Jesus is about spiritual revolution and not a political one.

Not everyone is a sportsfan here but we are probably familiar with the phase ‘the manager has lost the dressing room.’ This can happen in quite a short period of time:

The reasons for losing the dressing room could be many: string of losses, poor tactics, perceived unfair treatment of players, overmanagement, mind games etc. But the result is always the same. Players no longer respect their manager and even go as far to refuse to follow instructions. They slack off, ignore the game-plan and sometimes quit the team. When the coach loses the dressing room, this is visible in the intensity of the players on the pitch. They stop believing in his/her leadership, the system and the overall plan. They simply care less and partially give up. Sometimes, the star players on the team will go as far to try and get their coach fired. In most cases, losing the dressing room spells the end of the contract for the manager.

At this point the disciples have to decide are they with him or are they not?

The same question remains for us today? Are you with Jesus or not? Are you such a big star that you know better than the coach? OR Are you prepared to Trust ? Prepared to be Loyal? And will you Commited to the cause? In other words TLC

TLC

Trust - first we have to trust the game plan and think long term. In the 1996 Arsenal appointed Aresne Wenger who’s unique philosophy completely changed football. Which meant a complete change of culture for the players with preparation being absolutely key. From a change diet to players having a no fat and no sugar and eating boiled fish and vegetables and drinking only water. The results of this preparation would speak for itself by winning the league three times and the FA Cup seven times in his time at Arsenal.

In a similar way we are called to trust Jesus. Often it doesn’t make sense and their are many frustrations, things that we don’t understand but we are still called to trust.

An over quoted is John 10:10

John 10:10 NRSV

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

I think life in all its fullness or abundant life is one that embraces trust despite the circumstances.

Even when life is nightmare, everything is going wrong, when your boss is jerk, your mental health is at rock bottom and life is getting the better of you.

Trust, trust and trust again in the fact that Jesus is still faithful, is still the King and is still the one who saves; and will one day grant us success.

As the Psalm that the disciples chanted on that first Palm Sunday still rings true today.

That the stone that builders have rejected have become the cornerstone. He is the one and only firm foundation, in whom we have to trust.

Loyalty

With trust also comes loyalty and loyalty has to come from a place of trust.

Much like in the world of sport loyalty is one of the hardest commodities to grasp.

I spent four years as a Chaplain to a Rugby Team, Rochdale Hornets. One of the challenging things about being involved there was the lack of loyalty from both supporters and staff including the players. Part of the issue is the industry is so short term and therefore does not encourage loyalty. Having said once you got the team on the pitch the team was absolutely committed and loyal to each other where it was not about the individual and completely about the team.

It was the Basketball Player Kareem Abdul-Jabber: ‘One man can be a crucial ingredient on a team, but one man cannot make a team.’

There is a need for loyalty that way beyond the worlds standards and this is the challenge of Palm Sunday is that of loyalty. Where were the disciples in a weeks’ time. It was not the men it was the women who were at the tomb come Sunday morning.

Loyalty demands two responses first to Jesus and second to each other.

We come to Jesus and need to be loyal to Jesus because of his loyalty to us.

Probably what makes it harder is being loyal to each other. We can do this by giving ourselves to the life of the church.

This means stepping up and into what God maybe asking of us. I was asked by someone once who was really busy, they had a busy home life and busy work life and they asked how do I make more time for God. I thought about it for ages and eventually replied ‘we find time for things we value’

This starts by finding a place to meet with Jesus on a daily basis but also means finding a place to serve in the life of the church. But this begins by being committed each week and to each other.

Commitment

Finally C of our TLF - Commitment. By going back to myself being a fair weather Everton supporter as much I’d like to after a good win. I just lack the commitment.

In church today we have had the opportunity to dedicate Tirzah in other words give her back to God. No matter how you look it, it requires a commitment but it is something we cannot do on our own.

Earlier in the gospel of Luke 9:23 “Then he said to them all, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.”

The commitment for anyone who wants to follow Jesus is the cross, this is not a one off decision it is a DAILY decision.

That daily decision of commitment is a choice of choosing to praise whether it is the words of the Psalm of crying out to the God who saves or worshipping so because we know if we don’t the stones will.

God is calling us to take a different path to that of the disciples, to trust, be loyal and be committed because of who this Jesus is.

Conclusion:

The question for each one of us will we choose to trust the real King even when life does not make sense.

Will we be loyal to Jesus by giving him ourselves, the things we value including our time to worship and the serve him.

Finally, will we be commited by walking the way of the cross not just this week but every day. Committing ourselves no matter what the cost is by trusting, being loyal and committing ourselves this day.

Today their might be some people who might not be on this journey yet or may not know Jesus in a personal way or maybe you’re feeling a bit lost today for whatever reason. Please know that this week that Jesus went the way of the cross for you, will you respond today and do the same.

In a moment I am going to pray and we are going spend some time with the Holy Spirit as the band plays King of kings a song that speaks about the God who would reconcile the lost that includes both you and me.

Let’s pray together.