The Holy Week begins with the Palm Sunday procession
commemorating the triumphant entry of Jesus into the Holy City of
Jerusalem. This liturgical action has
ancient roots and symbolizes our present willingness to walk with Jesus.
Some 500 years before the event we reenact today, Zechariah
prophesied to the Israelites captive in Babylon about the future messiah: “Rejoice
greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to
you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a
colt, the foal of a donkey” (Zechariah 9:9). The prophet foretold the
triumphant entry of the new king into the city. It would be a great day of joy
and celebration. The new king would come victorious and take possession of the
besieged city. There is no question that
Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem must be seen as the fulfillment of that ancient
prophecy. Nevertheless, while the king
comes to Jerusalem in triumph, this triumph is unusual. He comes mounted on a
donkey, not a powerful stallion. What kind of a triumph is that? This unusual
triumph is understood only through the person of Jesus. Jesus is the promised
king and messiah, but he is unlike any other king. He is a misfit king.
Jesus is not the type of king the ancient world, or any
other time or culture, is familiar with. He is a misfit king. He comes not to
conquer his enemies with military might. He offers them love and
forgiveness. He does not seek to be
served but washes the feet of his followers and commands them to do likewise.
He does not respond with violence but offers the other cheek. He does not
punish offenders but rejoices with their change of heart. He does not sentence
others to hell but pardons and promises paradise to those who want it. His throne is not made of gold but of rough
wooden beams. His crown is not bejeweled but made of thorns. His greatest
victory was accomplished through suffering and death.
His kingdom too is unlike any other kingdom ever. It is a misfit kingdom. It is founded on the
counterintuitive rule of mutual love and service. The citizens of Jesus’ kingdom are misfits too
as they live by the unpopular rule of the love of God and neighbor. They are meek and humble in the world run by power
and pride. They work for peace and rely on God in the world of aggression and
the ever-growing cult of self-centeredness. They hunger and thirst for justice
and speak the truth in the world that promotes personal benefit and moral
compromises. They give generously to the poor and protect the weak in the world
where the dignity of people is measured by their market value. They reject evil
in the world that pursuits its empty promises. They glorify God and give light
to the world by the way they live in the world that rejects God and celebrates
the works of darkness. They suffer
ridicule and rejection in the world of reversed values. Indeed, they are the true heirs of this misfit
king who came to establish his upside-down kingdom. And yet, it is those who pray for the coming
of this kingdom and practice its values that have historically accomplished the
most good in the world by being faithful in small and great things. In the end,
they will rejoice hearing “come, good and faithful servant, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”
As we walk with Jesus this Holy Week, let us honor our king
by living like faithful citizens of his kingdom, and thus prepare ourselves to
renew our baptismal allegiance on Easter Sunday.
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