From Palms to Thorns

A story is told of two men walking along a mountain road when a ferocious bear suddenly jumped in front of them. Without glancing back, the first man ran for the nearest tree and scrambled up the branches as high as he could climb. The second man wasn’t as fast and realized he wouldn’t be able to escape the bear. He dropped on the ground and pretended to be dead.

The bear lumbered over to the man on the ground and sniffed around him. The man held his breath and didn’t move a muscle as the bear nosed about his body and his head. Finally, the bear, thinking the man was dead, moved away into the brush. The man breathed a sigh of relief as the man in the tree made his way down the branches and onto the ground.

The first man said, “I noticed the bear whispering in your ear as you were lying there. What did he say?” the second man replied, “The bear told me it wasn’t wise to travel with a friend who would desert me at the first sight of danger.”

Chances are if we have a friend that cuts tail and runs when the chips are down, the so-called friend probably had an agenda. As you reflect on former friends that you had ask yourself, “Why did they hang around me?” Did you have a car and they didn’t? Did you have money and they didn’t? Do you have a membership at the country club and they don’t? Or reflect on your role as a friend, “Why do you hang out with the people you do? Do you genuinely have their best interest in mind?

Holy Week is a week full of contrast. We started out with a celebration. We joined in with the crowd waving palm branches and screaming from the top of our lungs, “Blessed in the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven." As the King rides in on an animal of royalty we shout, we scream, we get excited. With palm branches waving, agendas in hand, and our want lists ready we welcome the King. As you stand in the midst of the crowd you notice a revolutionary who is wanting to overthrow the Romans, he is buying for Jesus’ attention. On the other side is a religious Zealot who would like to befriend Jesus and convince him that religious purity and separation is the way to go. As you look even closer to the crowd you notice your connection to a lot of the people. Hard working, family supporting, tax paying, good citizen living life the best way they know. So caught up in the excitement, you don’t even stop and ask yourself, “Why am I waving these palm branches?” “And who is this man to me?” So caught up in the excitement, we follow the crowd.

Jesus rides in before a hungry crowd. Everybody loves a good parade. We gather because everyone else is gathering. Parades are great to watch from the sidelines. Parades are fun when the passer-bys throw out candy to a bunch of hungry dogs disguised as people. The good thing about parades is that as soon as they are over we can go home and let someone else clean up the mess. Sounds a lot like some of our attitudes of church!

Jesus leads a parade from Palm Sunday to the Cross of Good Friday. He began with a crowd and ends with a handful of committed. The problem is if you are simply following Jesus out of an agenda then you will never be a part of his mission. Our agendas fade out eventually, His mission is everlasting. Jesus shatters agenda’s. Following Jesus simply because we can get something out of it will not get us very far on the road to discipleship. We fall short of the cross and the cross is necessary for resurrection.

The past few years I have learned this myself. I have been confronted with my own reasons for doing some of the things I do. I have had to look long and hard at my agenda. And I noticed that some of my attitude for following Jesus came with ulterior motives. As I continue to let go of those I also continue to accept Jesus on his own terms and more and more experience greater resurrection presence. Resurrection presence is a freeing presence. It is a power that enables us to live in peace that no matter what happens God is in control. But if you continue to hold on to your agenda’s then you will never find this peace.