Crying Stones
Today is Palm Sunday and the beginning of Holy Week, the last week of Jesus’ ministry on earth before his death and resurrection. His journey to the cross was coming to its conclusion. After three years of teaching and preaching, helping and healing, Jesus arrived in Jerusalem. There he was met by the screaming crowds. They threw their clothes on the road. They cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. They waved palm branches. This was a parade, a victory celebration. Much like the victory celebrations we see on television after the NBA finals or the Superbowl or the international world cup series for soccer. The fans of the victorious team go crazy. They fill the streets. They wave flags and the colors of their team. Everyone is jumping up and down, shouting, screaming, singing, laughing, crying, high-fiving one another, hugging people they don’t know. I think it must have been something like this in Jerusalem the day Jesus arrived. People were shouting, laughing, crying, singing songs, celebrating — all because Jesus the King had ridden into town. Jesus has entered into the world and into our lives as Lord and King, as the Christ, the Savior of the world. What is our response to Him?
1. Jesus Is the King and Savior, the Messiah
Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem presented Him as the King who is coming to his people. The entry is the intentional, public declaration that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of David. But it also reveals the nature, style, and character of His kingdom and His mission as Messiah, both of which are very different from the world’s expectations.
Jesus gave clear instructions to his disciples regarding the donkey. He was purposefully preparing for his entry so that it fulfills the Old Testament prophecies. This shows that Jesus is Lord and He is in control. Everything was happening according to God’s plan. He was fulfilling his mission, for which the Father sent him. Jesus entered and encountered the crowds as King. All four gospels portray Jesus as a royal figure. He rode on a donkey. The crowds interpreted Jesus’ action as a claim to royalty, and they received him as king. Jesus also enters our lives and encounters us as King. He is the King.
Jesus also encountered the crowds as the Messiah. The people understood that He was declaring Himself to be the Messiah. So they were very excited. They were shouting, and singing one of the Passover psalms. With this they welcomed Jesus as the Son of David, as the promised Messiah. Hosanna is the cry for salvation and here it was directed at Jesus and to God the Highest. For so long they had been waiting, praying, and hoping for a king like David, the Messiah, to arrive and save them. Surely, they thought, this was the moment.
So they welcomed Jesus for what he in truth is, the Son of David, the Messiah of Israel. Yet it is precisely as such that they rejected Him. What went wrong? In their excitement, they missed a very important point that Jesus was making during his entry. It is the point about what his kingdom and mission are really about. And this is a point that the world still misses, and sometimes we also.
2. But … Jesus is the King of Peace!
Yes, Jesus is the King. Yes, He is the Messiah. But he also came, entered the world, and encountered the crowds, and us, as the King of Peace, the meek, humble Servant. The crowds did not get the meaning of his humble entry. Their thoughts, understanding, and passions were dominated by a political and cultural understanding of the Messiah. They had wrong expectations and a wrong understanding of the Messiah and his kingdom.
Jesus did not enter the city as a warrior general on a white stallion or a warhorse. He did not come as a strong leader. He was riding on a donkey which was a symbol of peace. He came as a king on a mission of peace, bringing peace, not war. Jesus came as the Meek, the Gentle, the Humble One. He came as the Suffering Servant to die. He did not come to take vengeance or condemn, but in mercy to save. The salvation he accomplished is much more fundamental, deeper, and comprehensive than the political liberation Israel was hoping for. He saves us from all forms of oppression, physical as well as spiritual, from our sins, from eternal death. He came to establish his kingdom, which is not of this world, but very, very different. His is a power and kingdom that rules through love, grace, gentleness, meekness, humility, and peace. He came to reconcile people to God and people with one another. Jesus is the King of Peace!
3. The World’s Response
What was the response of the crowds and the leaders to Jesus? How does the world respond to Jesus who came as Lord, Savior, and the King of Peace? In Matthew we read that the whole city was stirred, the Greek word for an earthquake. Someone was entering the city as a king, and some even said that he is the Messiah. This caused a stir, shaking the city. Jesus’ very public, royal entry, and procession was a direct challenge to the Jewish and Roman authorities. In the same way today, his kingdom rule is a direct challenge to our systems, structures, and ideologies.
On Sunday the crowds treated Jesus as royalty, and welcomed him as King and Messiah. On Friday, they were shouting for his blood. On Sunday they shouted hosannas and blessed is the king. On Friday they shouted, crucify him! Why? They were disappointed because Jesus did not meet their expectations. He was not the Messiah they wanted. For the world, the picture of the meek, humble, king of peace willingly going to his death is too pathetic, too weak. They could not stand this image of a king. They were ashamed of their King. They caved in to political, cultural, and religious pressures and views. He did not fit into their boxes. And, they rejected Jesus.
Jesus entering the city as King and Messiah disturbed the comfortable religious, cultural and political situation of the Jewish leaders. So, the Pharisees told Jesus to rebuke his disciples. What they were really saying was, "Jesus, tell your people to be quiet!" We can't have this noise. We can't continue this party atmosphere for this, this is the holy city of Jerusalem. You are disturbing the peace. There are rules and traditions we must follow. You are upsetting the way we have always done things.
And Jesus’ response? Basically, he said to them, “Tell the people to be quiet? Why, if I did that, then the stones on the street would start to cry out loud." The truth cannot be silenced. The emotion, the ecstasy, the joy of his entry into Jerusalem were so powerful, that even the stones on the road could feel it. That kind of faith is contagious. That kind of faith is dangerous. It is radical. It is revolutionary. That's why the Pharisees wanted it stopped.
And that is why the world wants it stopped. The world then and now does not want to accept that Jesus has come and entered the world as Lord, Savior, and the King of Peace. His kingdom is too different. He overturns the ways of the world. He upsets our human ideologies, politics, economics, and cultures. He does not meet the expectations of the world. They do not want to hear the truth and they try their best to silence the truth that Jesus has come and He is Lord.
Therefore, since that time, the world has been telling the followers of Jesus to be quiet. They tell believers, "Settle down, don't share the enthusiasm of your faith; in fact, don't even share your faith." It's offensive. It's politically incorrect. It's socially inappropriate. Religion is a private, personal matter and should not be expressed in public.
4. What Is Our Response?
So, what is our response? What is our response to Jesus Christ? And what is our response to the world which is telling us to be silent? I am afraid that we believed the world and the result is that our witness has been silenced or discredited. Our passion for Jesus is gone. We have become lukewarm disciples. We are no longer dangerous. We are no longer a threat to anyone.
First, our witness has been silenced. We are mourning and grieving, moaning and groaning about how the world is going down the drains. We are to be blamed also. We have become quiet. We are no longer shouting out to the world that Jesus is Lord. We have withdrawn and disengaged from the world. Many say Christians should not engage in politics and social issues. But we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Our Lord sends us into the world because we have to bring the values and lifestyle of His kingdom into our cultures, society, economics, politics, workplaces, communities, schools, and families. This is not an option. This is our commission and mission given to us by our Lord — to shout out to the world that He is Lord. He has come. We are to show that kingdom to the world by living out the kingdom life He gave us. Where and when you are doing that, praise the Lord. Continue, persevere even when it is difficult and painful, even when the world laughs at you, scorns, or rejects you. Don’t give up.
Second, our witness has been discredited. Often we have become hypocritical. We preach one thing but do another. We speak out against some sins, especially the blatant, obvious sins, but keep quiet about others. We preach love but then we can be the most unloving people. The world is watching. They see that. This is one of the reasons why so many young people are leaving the church. The fact of the matter is we have failed in our witness, in our mission as God’s people in the world.
We have listened to the voice of the Pharisees and the world for too long. We tolerate sin and immorality because it is not socially appropriate to make and hold people accountable for their sins. It’s uncomfortable, and inconvenient. One author said it this way: “It’s a little wink here, a little shrug there, a look the other way, and suddenly we find ourselves tolerating things and refusing to challenge behavior that is clearly wrong.”
How many times have you and I had the opportunity to tell someone about Jesus, and yet we remained silent? How often have we seen an injustice or sin done, and kept quiet? How many times have we had an opportunity to practice love to others, to the unlovable, and did not do it? Those are our sins of omission. Lent is a good time to challenge and confess those sins. We must not be afraid or ashamed to live out the kingdom life consistently. We must not be afraid or ashamed to tell anyone that Jesus Christ is our Lord and He rules our lives. We must not listen to the world.
It is time for us to become passionate about Jesus again. It is time that we tell the world about our love for the Savior. We are his witnesses. We are his salt and light of the world. It is time for us to shout out, and cry out to the world that Jesus has come and He is the Lord. We should sing it out, dance it out, and tell the world who He is. We should celebrate Him as Lord with abandon. If we are silent and fail in our calling and mission the stones will cry it out. Do we want to be bettered and outdone by stones?
Today, these stones stand for our sin of silence — the times we could have shouted to the world that Jesus is Lord but did not. As we lay them at the cross, may our passion for the Lord come alive. May our love for Him become known to all. Then the stones can be silent and we can sing and cry out in praise.
During the closing song please come forward when you are ready to lay your stone at the cross.
Today, also, when you leave the church you will receive another stone. This stone is different. It has a cross on it to remind us of what happened during Holy Week. Take this stone home with you. Carry it with you during this week. Keep it at hand when you do your daily devotions. Let it remind you of the stones, our sins, that keep us from loving God. And when Friday comes, Good Friday, let this stone remind you of our Lord’s suffering and his death on the cross. Let it remind you that on the cross He did business with our stones and sins. He carried them for us and took them away.