Sunday 2nd April 2023 - Palm Sunday

Matthew 21:1-11/Isaiah 50:4-7/ Psalm 21(22)/ Philippians 2:6-11/Matthew 26:14-27:66

There is so much to consider when hearing the readings on Palm Sunday, from the triumphant entry into Jerusalem to the crucifixion. The political manoeuvring of the Jewish authorities with their manipulation of the people. The squirming of the Roman Governor Pilate who abandoned his own judgement in favour of keeping the peace. Peter, the man chosen by Jesus to lead the Church on earth, making high handed promises only to abandon them in order to save himself. All of this is very human and if we look closely, we might see our own behaviour reflected in any one the characters involved.

The comment Jesus made in the garden of Gethsemane, ‘the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak’ sums up much of what we experience as human beings. We have our faith and we strive to be Godlike as Jesus calls us to be but we are often too weak in the flesh to match up to the ideals of the spirit. We can all in turn face Jesus and say ‘Not I surely’ but then we betray him in the way we live our lives. As humans living in a fallen world, we can easily stray into sin and betray Jesus even though we yearn not to. Peter was so sure of himself in front of Jesus and even had the courage to hang around after the arrest but when challenged directly he vehemently denied even knowing Jesus.

In his agony in the garden of Gethsemane Jesus was greatly distressed. He knew what was coming and what he had been asked to endure for our sake but being fully human Jesus prayed earnestly that this cup of suffering might pass him by. This was Jesus, the second person of the Holy Trinity, pleading deeply to God his Father that he might avoid the torture and death he was about to endure. We might ask that if even the prayer of Jesus is not answered in the way he asked then how can we hope that our prayers will be answered? The solution is found in the submission of Jesus to his Father’s will; ‘let it be as you, not I, would have it’. The prayer of Jesus was not answered in the way he asked but because he submitted totally to the will of his father it was answered immeasurably through the resurrection which was achieved by the death of Jesus. We can be assured that all prayer is heard, and all prayer is answered although we must, like Jesus, submit to the will of God. In this way our prayer will be answered in accordance with the will of God and not just for our passing comfort or convenience. We might think we know what we or others need but only God has the overall vision to know what we truly need.

Jesus had appeared to be an itinerant preacher but had gradually revealed himself to be much more than that. He had shown his power over the physical world by turning water into wine, creating vast amounts of food from a few loaves and fish, curing many sick people and even returning people from death. It was not for any of these miracles that Jesus attracted the hate of the authorities but his claim to be God that got him killed. The leaders of the people would not see Jesus for who he was and could only consider him to be a blasphemer. This mere human being could not be permitted to claim to be God so they manipulated the people into calling for his death.

Pilate, the governor of the occupying Roman state, knew the law and was keen to follow justice and release Jesus who appeared to have done nothing wrong. As is often the case for politicians Pilate find himself stuck between his own judgement and the will of the majority or at least the noisiest part of his constituency. In a vain attempt at walking a political tightrope Pilate handed Jesus over to be crucified but tried to wash his hands of the whole affair. I say vain because Pilate is destined for all time to be remembered by name in the Creed when we say, ‘suffered under Pontius Pilate’. We cannot simply wash our hands of decisions we make even if we make them under pressure or coercion.

Today we reflect on how the death of Jesus comes home to us in our own lives. In baptism we joined in the death of Jesus so that we can also join in his resurrection. We achieve the salvation won so dearly by Jesus through our own submission to God’s individual plan for us. We might be willing to always stand by Jesus but, like Peter, we will betray him from time to time through sin. On these occasions we must follow Peter and repent and not give up in despair as Judas did. Our faith in spirit may be strong but our human resilience can be weak in the flesh. We can pray not to be put to the test, but we need always to remember to submit entirely to the will of God confident that our prayer will be heard and answered but not necessarily in the way we want or expect.

God Bless Brendan.