Sunday's Message - The Paradox of the Passion (The Paradox of the Triumphal Entry)

During the worship service next week, we’ll focus on The Paradox of the Passion: Exploring Holy Week in the Gospel of Matthew. Now, a paradox is a statement, idea, or situation that seems to contradict itself or defy logic, but which may actually be true or reveal a hidden truth. During Holy Week, we'll consider the paradox present in the following four stories:

• Sunday, March 29 - Palm / Passion Sunday (The Paradox of the Triumphal Entry)
• Thursday, April 2 - Maundy Thursday Love Feast (The Paradox of the Last Supper)
• Friday, April 3 - Good Friday Tenebrae Service (The Paradox of the Crucifixion)
• Sunday, April 5 - Easter Celebration Service (The Paradox of the Resurrection)

On Sunday, we celebrated Palm/Passion Sunday by focusing on the paradox of Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem.  Below is a presentation and the text of the sermon. You can stream the service by going to the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. (EDT).  You can hear a podcast of the service at the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel or the Sligo Presbyterian Spotify Page.

Now, today we’re entering a period in the church year called “Holy Week,” a time that begins on Palm Sunday and ends with Easter. And since we’re moving from preparation to the event itself, we’ll be starting a series based on how this week is presented in the Gospel of Matthew entitled The Paradox of the Passion. 

But before I tell y’all a little bit about what we’ll be doing, let me make sure we’re all on the same page about what the word “paradox” means. You see, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, 

A paradox is a statement, person, or situation that seems self-contradictory, illogical, or absurd but may contain an underlying truth or valid reasoning. It challenges conventional thinking by combining opposing ideas. [Merriam-Webster Dictionary] 

Now that’s the definition according to Merriam-Webster. In other words, it’s like saying, “This sentence is false” or “Doing hard things makes life easier” or “I must be cruel, only to be kind.” Each of those reflect a paradox.

And I’ll tell you, I think we see this kind of thing going on in each of the four stories that we generally associate with the last week of Jesus’s life, at least as written by the Evangelist Matthew. For example, just think about his last supper with his apostles, something we remember on Maundy Thursday. I mean, this intimate time with his closest followers led to Jesus praying alone in the Garden of Gethsemane while Peter, James and John slept, and being dragged off as his disciples ran away. And the crucifixion, man, that might be the ultimate paradox. My goodness, how can a death that ends with “My God, my God, why have you deserted me?” [Matthew 27:46b, CEV] led those who saw him die to say, “This man really was God’s Son!” ?[Matthew 27:54b, CEV] And as written by Matthew, instead of it being the first step in Jesus’s departure from this world, the resurrection becomes the assurance of his constant presence with us. You see, according to Matthew, in each of these events, there’s something going on that’s a contradiction, that’s inconsistent and ironic. 

In other words, I believe there are paradoxes throughout the passion story, starting with the one we’re looking at this morning, and now I’m talking about Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem. You see, when you think about what happened and compare it with what’s about to happen, there’s something going on that, on one hand, doesn’t make sense, but that, on the other hand, just may show us a lot about who we are and what might happen, if we’re not careful. And that’s what we’re going to talk about this morning. And to do that, we’re going to focus on three things. First, we’re going to look at the story itself, in other words, the passage from the Gospel of Matthew. And then, second, we’re going to talk about the paradox within the account and think about how it might represent a real problem for us. And then, third, we’ll consider the practical lesson we might be able to take from this story and apply to our daily living. Now that’s the plan for the next ten minutes or so.

Of course, we can’t really talk about the paradox or consider any kind of lesson we might learn until we’ve heard the story itself. You see, according to the Evangelist Matthew, right after Jesus left Jericho, this was what happened:

When Jesus and his disciples came near Jerusalem, he went to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives and sent two of them on ahead. He told them, “Go into the next village, where you will at once find a donkey and her colt. Untie the two donkeys and bring them to me. If anyone asks why you are doing this, just say, ‘The Lord needs them.’ He will at once let you have the donkeys.”

So God’s promise came true, just as the prophet had said,

“Announce to the people
    of Jerusalem:
‘Your king is coming to you!
He is humble
    and rides on a donkey.
He comes on the colt
    of a donkey.’ “

The disciples left and did what Jesus had told them to do. They brought the donkey and its colt and laid some clothes on their backs. Then Jesus got on.

Many people spread clothes in the road, while others put down branches which they had cut from trees. Some people walked ahead of Jesus and others followed behind. They were all shouting,

“Hooray for the Son of David!
God bless the one who comes
    in the name of the Lord.
Hooray for God
    in heaven above!”

When Jesus came to Jerusalem, everyone in the city was excited and asked, “Who can this be?”

The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.” [Matthew 21:1-11, CEV]

Now, that’s what Matthew wrote. And I’ve got to tell you, from my perspective, it seems pretty clear and straight-forward. I mean, on one hand, Jesus seemed to be cool and composed and in complete control, didn’t he? He knew exactly what he wanted and how to get it. And what he did was exactly what he was supposed to do. In fact, absolutely nothing got in the way of his first entry into the city. You see, on one hand, Jesus was calm and collected as he rode into Jerusalem. On the other hand though, the crowds were anything but cool and composed. Man, they were really excited, weren’t they, and I’m talking about when they spread their clothes on the road and put down branches that they’d cut from trees and shouted about “the one who comes in the name of the Lord.” You see, while Jesus was calm and composed, “everyone in the city was excited” and those in the crowd believed they were following a prophet. Now, that’s the story in a nutshell.

And I’ll tell you, it’s right there where we run into the paradox, especially when you compare it to what will come later. You see, in the space of four days, this crowd which was so excited and so exuberant and so enthusiastic would be the same group standing in Pilate’s courtyard, shouting something radically different. Just listen to what Matthew wrote:

During Passover the governor always freed a prisoner chosen by the people. At that time a well-known terrorist named Jesus Barabbas was in jail. So when the crowd came together, Pilate asked them, “Which prisoner do you want me to set free? Do you want Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” Pilate knew the leaders had brought Jesus to him because they were jealous.

While Pilate was judging the case, his wife sent him a message. It said, “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man. I have had nightmares because of him.”

But the chief priests and the leaders convinced the crowds to ask for Barabbas to be set free and for Jesus to be killed. 

Pilate asked the crowd again, “Which of these two men do you want me to set free?”

“Barabbas!” they shouted.

Pilate asked them, “What am I to do with Jesus, who is called the Messiah?”

They all yelled, “Nail him to a cross!”

Pilate answered, “But what crime has he done?”

“Nail him to a cross!” they yelled even louder.

Pilate saw that there was nothing he could do and that the people were starting to riot. So he took some water and washed his hands in front of them and said, “I won’t have anything to do with killing this man. You are the ones doing it!”

Everyone answered, “We and our own families will take the blame for his death!”

Pilate set Barabbas free. Then he ordered his soldiers to beat Jesus with a whip and nail him to a cross. [Matthew 27:15-26, CEV]

Now that’s what happened. And you tell me, why? Why would that crowd turn on a dime? I mean, didn’t they understand the one they followed into Jerusalem? And didn’t they believe in the one they compared to a son of David? Well, clearly they didn’t, because if they had, if they had understood and if they had believed, they sure wouldn’t have gathered there in Pilate’s court and they sure wouldn’t have yelled, “Nail him to a cross!” There’s the paradox.

But I’ll tell you, before we judge them too harshly, we might want to take a step back, because I think this is something that’s really easy for us to do ourselves. For example, I think we’ve all known folks who sure seem to be all fired up about Jesus. Good night nurse, they talk about what they’ve given and who’s their Lord and how following Christ and doing what he wants them to do, man, that’s the most important thing in their lives. He’s number one and everything else is secondary. Man, they’d do anything for Jesus, even die, if that was necessary. And I’ll tell you, when they say it, I believe they are completely sincere and honest in their excitement and exuberance and enthusiasm. In other words, based on what they say, if he were entering Sligo on a donkey this morning, they’d be out there, lifting up branches and laying down jackets and shouting “Hosannas,” right? And that sounds all well and good, until you ask them about some of their moral values and political beliefs or until you see how they treat other folks who might disagree with them or until you compare their words and work with what Jesus actually said and did. And then, well, imagining them before Pilate shouting that the one about whom Matthew wrote in his gospel, not the one they want to follow, you know, the one who validates their desires and endorses their prejudices, but rather the one who talked about radical humility and self-sacrifice and unconditional love, man, seeing them shouting that this uncomfortable trouble-maker should be nailed to a cross, well, that doesn’t seem to be quite a stretch. I guess you could say, the paradox there in Jesus’s entry can be a real problem for us. 

But you know, it doesn’t have to be, not if we take seriously the lesson offered by this story. You see, we don’t have to be like those folks with the branches and the “Hosannas” who couldn’t have understood who Jesus was and who didn’t believe in what he came to do. Man, we don’t have to be like them, calling for this revelation of Jesus Christ, his actual words and his genuine example to be nailed on a cross. And I’ll tell you why. 

You see, right here now, we can decide to grow. In other words, we can decide that we’re going to understand, and I mean, really understand who Jesus was and what he taught. Of course, to do that, well, we might have to make a few changes in our lives. For example, to understand what Jesus taught we might have to study a little bit. You see, we might have to dig out the Bible that’s been gathering dust for years and do something really extreme, you know, like opening it and reading it. And if we don’t understand what we’re reading because our dusty Bible is full of dusty words like “thee” and “thou,” we can return it to its place on the shelf under the coffee table and get ourselves a Bible we can understand or maybe even an app phone with all kinds of translations. Trust me, they’re all pretty good, and they’ll help us learn about what Jesus actually taught. And along with studying, man, we can also pray, pray that the Spirit helps us understand what’s going on in God’s word on a deeper level so that we’re not fooled by some folks who just plain don’t know as much as they claim or think. And after studying and praying, we can engage with our Christian brothers and sisters, in worship or in studies or in service, because, as Jesus Christ himself said, “Whenever two or three of you come together in my name, I am there with you.” [Matthew 18:20, CEV] I’ll tell you, if we’re serious about understanding more about Jesus, we can decide to study and to pray and to engage. And in that way, I believe we’ll grow. Now that’s one thing we can do. 

And along with growing, we can also decide to trust. In other words, we can choose to believe that Jesus is exactly who said he was. But while growing involves actions that we can do on the outside, I think trusting has more to do with what’s happening on the inside. I mean, for our faith to become stronger, somewhere down the line, we’re probably going to have to work a little acceptance and submission into our lives, and I’m talking about a willingness to accept that we just don’t have all the answers and to submit to the one who does. And we might also need to develop an attitude of repentance and humility, something we can do when we’re willing to admit our personal limitations and to rely on Jesus for both eternal salvation and daily living. And finally, there’s really no faith without a willingness to be obedient and active, in other words, taking everything we now understand and applying it to our moral values and political beliefs and to how we treat both our friends and our enemies. You see, in my opinion, to avoid falling into the paradox trap reflected by the crowds who welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem, we can decide to grow and to trust. And for me, that’s the lesson of this story. 

Of course, the triumphal entry, man, that’s just our first Holy Week stop. On Thursday, we’ll experience both the broad fellowship and isolated loneliness that surrounded the last supper. And on Friday, we’ll share in both the despair and glory of the crucifixion. And finally, on Easter, we’ll consider how an empty tomb can remind us that Christ is with us all the time. Now that’s what we’ll be doing for the rest of the week. But today, before we put the palms and Hosannas away and move on, let’s remember the story about how Jesus entered Jerusalem surrounded by people who felt enormous excitement and exuberance and enthusiasm. And let’s remember the paradox, you know, how the crowd that followed him shouting, “Hooray for the Son of David!” would in less than a week be yelling, “Nail him to a cross,” something that can happen to us if we don’t understand and believe. And then, let’s remember that we can avoid this situation by applying a simple lesson, that right here and now, we can decide to grow and we can decide to trust. Now we can choose to do this. And I’ll tell you, if we do, I think we’ll be learning from this paradox of the triumphal entry.