March
29 2015 Psalm Sunday
Some years ago a book was written with the title "When
The Cheering Stopped." It was the story of President Woodrow Wilson and
the events leading up to and following WWI. When that war was over Wilson
became an international hero. There was a great spirit of optimism abroad, and
people actually believed that this would be the war to end all wars and the
world would be made safe for democracy. On his first visit to Paris after the war Wilson
was greeted by cheering mobs. He was
actually more popular than their own heroes. Sound like someone we know today right? The same thing was true in England and Italy. They
said that President Wilson was coming and they knew that everything would be
all right. We look for a messiah but
what do we do when we find one?
The cheering lasted about a year. Then it gradually began to stop. It didn’t take long for people to become more concerned with their own agendas than they were about a lasting peace. At home, Woodrow Wilson ran into opposition he was not re-elected and the President's health began to fail. Once heralded as the new world Messiah, he ended his days with a broken confused spirit.
It's a sad story, but one that is not altogether unfamiliar to us. Ever felt that you were the lamb on the road to slaughter or that your friends had hung you out to dry. The ultimate reward for someone who tries to bring a message of hope and unity to a people who have been living in chaos, pain and suffering as their way of existing. I’m not kidding folks there are people who identify, and get meaning from the amount of chaos, pain or suffering in their daily lives. I’m not just talking about physical pain and suffering but also mental, caused by the way we think. Try and take that pain away and they get hostile, because it is part of who they are, part of their identity. The concepts of unconditional love, unity, peace of mind, everything for the good of all, why these ideals becomes the enemy!! It’s not as if people in general don’t long for these concepts, for we all do. But, they will uproot and expose our pain, suffering and chaos in such a way that people will resist the changes these concepts bring preventing them from hearing the saving words that Jesus offers us . It happened that way to Jesus. When he emerged on the public scene he was an overnight sensation. The masses lined the streets as he came into town. On Palm Sunday leafy palm branches were spread before him and there were shouts of Hosanna. In shouting Hosanna they were in effect saying "Save us now" Jesus, Save us from ourselves. Great crowds came to hear him preach. They began to build expectation of a changed world. But the cheering, even for him, did not last for long. There came a point when the tide began to turn against him too. It was so subtle at first, not many noticed. People still came to see him, but the old excitement was missing, and the crowds were not as large as they had been. His critics now began to publicly attack him, even the closes of his 12 began to turn away and question his motives. They became afraid to speak out, for fear of the masses, as they began to perceive that the fickle public was turning on him. Soon the opposition began to snowball. When they discovered that they could not discredit his moral character, they began to take more desperate measures. Before it was all over a tidal wave welled up that brought Jesus to his knees under the weight of a cross. In order to guard ourselves from this scenario reoccurring in the life of the church today, our attitudes must become more like Christ’s. Jesus was humble, willing to give up his human rights for the sake of another. We must take on the attitude of a servant, serving out of love for God and others, not out of guilt, fear, or obligation as many are now doing. Remembering that we can choose our attitude. We can approach life expecting that we be served, looking for the respect we deserve for our efforts, or we can look for opportunities to serve others, and in so gaining there respect from a humble heart. Jesus wants us to give us the best their is in life. His adversary wants us to want for the best in life. Let us Pray.
The cheering lasted about a year. Then it gradually began to stop. It didn’t take long for people to become more concerned with their own agendas than they were about a lasting peace. At home, Woodrow Wilson ran into opposition he was not re-elected and the President's health began to fail. Once heralded as the new world Messiah, he ended his days with a broken confused spirit.
It's a sad story, but one that is not altogether unfamiliar to us. Ever felt that you were the lamb on the road to slaughter or that your friends had hung you out to dry. The ultimate reward for someone who tries to bring a message of hope and unity to a people who have been living in chaos, pain and suffering as their way of existing. I’m not kidding folks there are people who identify, and get meaning from the amount of chaos, pain or suffering in their daily lives. I’m not just talking about physical pain and suffering but also mental, caused by the way we think. Try and take that pain away and they get hostile, because it is part of who they are, part of their identity. The concepts of unconditional love, unity, peace of mind, everything for the good of all, why these ideals becomes the enemy!! It’s not as if people in general don’t long for these concepts, for we all do. But, they will uproot and expose our pain, suffering and chaos in such a way that people will resist the changes these concepts bring preventing them from hearing the saving words that Jesus offers us . It happened that way to Jesus. When he emerged on the public scene he was an overnight sensation. The masses lined the streets as he came into town. On Palm Sunday leafy palm branches were spread before him and there were shouts of Hosanna. In shouting Hosanna they were in effect saying "Save us now" Jesus, Save us from ourselves. Great crowds came to hear him preach. They began to build expectation of a changed world. But the cheering, even for him, did not last for long. There came a point when the tide began to turn against him too. It was so subtle at first, not many noticed. People still came to see him, but the old excitement was missing, and the crowds were not as large as they had been. His critics now began to publicly attack him, even the closes of his 12 began to turn away and question his motives. They became afraid to speak out, for fear of the masses, as they began to perceive that the fickle public was turning on him. Soon the opposition began to snowball. When they discovered that they could not discredit his moral character, they began to take more desperate measures. Before it was all over a tidal wave welled up that brought Jesus to his knees under the weight of a cross. In order to guard ourselves from this scenario reoccurring in the life of the church today, our attitudes must become more like Christ’s. Jesus was humble, willing to give up his human rights for the sake of another. We must take on the attitude of a servant, serving out of love for God and others, not out of guilt, fear, or obligation as many are now doing. Remembering that we can choose our attitude. We can approach life expecting that we be served, looking for the respect we deserve for our efforts, or we can look for opportunities to serve others, and in so gaining there respect from a humble heart. Jesus wants us to give us the best their is in life. His adversary wants us to want for the best in life. Let us Pray.
"Why Are They Trying To Take Away Our Lord Jesus"
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