NL 432: The Crucified Messiah (and Triumphal Procession)
image: "Christ Crucified", John Petts 1914-1991, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. https://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=57342 [retrieved April 4, 2022]. Original source: http://christianchurchestogether.org/letter-from-birmingham-jail/
John 12:12-27
Initial Thoughts
Context - this takes place after Lazarus has been raised (Chap. 11) and the day after Mary has anointed him (12:1-11)
Bible Study
Only gospel which specifies Palm branches - Matthew and Mark say branches and leafy branches, but only John says Palms
Both the use of Palm branches and the recitation of Hosanna from 1Ps. 118 were most often associated with the Feast of Tabernacles - “no way to know whether this detail was transposed from Tabernacles to Passover” Adele Reinhartz, “John”, The Jewish Annotated New Testament, p.203
Hosanna
literally means, “Save us”
Direct quote from Psalm 118:25-26, but in John, “The King of Israel” is added
Saved from what?
Saved for what?
We must be able to answer these questions or at least explore them if we hope to speak about Jesus
Was it wrong for the people to want to be saved from Roman oppression?
don’t we hope to be saved from oppression- economic, political, social, etc.
Does Jesus care about Rome or about each person in community?
We join the crowds shouting, “Save us” but do we want to be saved from without (from poverty, oppression, etc) or saved from within (self delusion, jealousy, greed, victimhood, power and control seeking, fear)?
Colt
Wild horse - uncastrated, never ridden. Colt or donkey?
Never ridden - typical for sacred events.
Colt is a name for a young donkey or a young horse. Matthew says it is a donkey and a horse, but John points back to Zechariah 9:9 which tells of a king coming "humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey."
Unlike in the synoptics where Jesus behaves like a King (riding an unridden colt, ordering the disciples, telling them to act on his authority, etc), here he is simply declared to be king via the Zechariah quote.
Mike Baughman has another interesting take on the “colt that no one has ridden”
An unridden colt would be unneutered and untrained. Riding and unbroken colt would be a dangerous task, and the exact opposite of what a conqueror would ride - a trained and seasoned war horse.
Jesus coming to Jerusalem in a new way - with a new ride. He is bringing in an untamed, unknown way of doing things.
Zechariah 9
Messianic age of peace
God will overthrow the oppressive nations
All will dwell in peace
eschatological proclamation which “breaks” the militarism of human nations and will “speak peace to the nations”
Not a foretelling the coming of Jesus but the coming of a divine kingdom (on earth as it is in Heaven) ruled by God not by human interests
Mighty will be brought low and the low will be exalted- for the purpose of liberation and peace
What does God want? Zech. 8:16-17 “Speak the truth to each other; make truthful, just, and peaceable decisions within your gates.Don't plan evil for each other. Don't adore swearing falsely
Procession
Parody of a conqueror entering the city in a display of power
Roman generals returning from victories would be celebrated with a triumphus, a grand procession in which the victor, crowned with laurels, would ride a chariot pulled by white horses and go to the temple to offer sacrifices. The spoils from his victory would be displayed in the procession and along the way the crowds would sing hymns and shout acclamations to the victor.
This practice even redacted Rome, when Alexander the Great conquered Jerusalem, entered in triumph and offered sacrifices at the Temple.
The parodies are clear - he is riding a donkey, not a chariot. He will be crowned with thorns, not laurels, he will weep over Jerusalem, not celebrate it, and he will drive out the oppressive sacrificial system in the temple, not participate in it.
How does Jesus show his power? (James O’Duke, Feasting on the Word: Year A, Volume 2: Lent through Eastertide.)
“Lordship, indeed even messianic lordship, is here defined in terms of servanthood. Gentleness, humility, peaceableness, mercy, and self-giving acts of generosity and compassion are marks of God's domain.”
Jesus is not aligned with any political party- then or NOW
Jesus is not a republican or a democrat (or an American for that matter)
Jesus is challenging the political and social state of the world
Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan, The Last Week
Two Processions: Pilate from Jaffa Gate and Jesus from Galilee
Kingdom of God vs Empire of Rome
The stage is set for the week
Crowds
Palm Sunday is often focused only on Jesus, but it is a very communal event
Disciples get the donkey
Donkey is donated
Crowds chant and gather
Crowds proclaim who Jesus is...kind of
prophet from Nazareth in Galilee (not the Son of God)
“For peace and reconciliation become possible when common folk with uncommon courage oppose exclusionary practices and policies and together stand with "the one who comes in the name of the Lord" (v. 9). History is replete with the stories of common folk who have recognized that we are able to accomplish more together than we can alone; stories that we might reclaim and rehearse as we continue our Lenten journey. They include the women and men who provided safe passage on the Underground Railroad for persons seeking freedom from chattel slavery in the United States in the mid-nineteenth century. Remember also Dietrich Bonhoeffer and others in the Confessing Church in the 1930s, who took a definitive stance that their loyalty was to Jesus as Lord, not to Hitler and the Nazis. Youths in South Africa stood against apartheid and formed the African National Congress Youth League in 1944 under the leadership of Nelson Mandela, envisioning a world in which racial domination would no longer exist.” Veronice Miles, Feasting on the Word: Preaching the Revised Common Lectionary - Feasting on the Word – Year A, Volume 2: Lent through Eastertide
Two crowds coming together - one is the crowd that witnessed the raising of Lazarus, the other is the group who has heard of Jesus. The crowd is witnessing to Jesus because of what they have seen and what they have heard (cf. “Come and See”, John 1:39, 34; 11:34
Thoughts and Questions
Palm Sunday - if you want to call it that - doesn’t happen with Jesus alone. It happens because the disciples are faithful. They carry out Jesus’ orders, but they also help him - literally - carry out the plan. They get the horse. They put him on it. They cheer him when he enters. They praise him “for all the great things they have seen.” They might not completely get it, but they know they have seen something special. They cheer for this King - not because he is going to come and conquer - but because he will usher in peace. Some wish they would just be quiet, but in the end, they cannot be silenced.
Was it wrong for the people to want to be saved from Roman oppression?
don’t we hope to be saved from oppression- economic, political, social, etc.
Does Jesus care about Rome or about each person in community?
We join the crowds shouting, “Save us” but do we want to be saved from without (from poverty, oppression, etc) or saved from within (self delusion, jealousy, greed, victimhood, power and control seeking, fear)?
Jesus did not align himself with any religious or political party or group...would Jesus align himself with the church?
John 19:16b-22
Initial Thoughts
There is not a lot here. You might read this at the very end of the Palm Sunday service to ead into Holy Week.
Bible Study
Jesus carries the Cross
Unlike the synoptics, Simon of Cyrene does not carry Jesus’ cross, he carries it himself - similar to how Jesus found his own colt on Palm Sunday.
The crossbeam of the cross - not the whole cross. Adele Reinhartz “John” Jewish Annotated New Testament, p. 214.
Jesus is in control
The Inscription
Written in three languages to represent the entirety of the world- unknown whether this was unusual or typical
“The sign points to two major themes in the Gospel, the reaction of the Jews and the object of God’s love, the world.The fact that many of the Jews would read the description intimates the focus in this Gospel on “coming to believe” (20:31). The three languages represent the whole of the world at that time, emphasizing that the entirety of Jesus ministry is focused on the world that God loves.” Karoline Lewis, John, Fortress Preaching Biblical Commentary, p.228
Often depicted in art in it’s latin form : INRI - J(I)esus of Nazareth, King(Rex) of the J(I)ews
Whether this was a profession of faith (unlikely) or a continuation of his mockery and misunderstanding (more likely) is unknown
Beyond the reading for today
V. 23 - the tunic without seam - may be a reference to the temple curtain (which is torn at Jesus’ death in Matthew), but more likely simply adds to the reference in Psalm 22:6
Only in John are the women and the disciple gathered at the foot of the cross.
In the synoptics they are gathered at a distance
Unknown how many there are:
His mother
His mother’s sister
Mary the wife of Clopas
Mary Magdalene
Were the last three the same woman? Two women? Or three distinct women?
Jesus provides for his mother, and in doing so, established the community of the faithful who will care for one another after he is gone
I am thirsty
Only John refers to the wine and hyssop which most like refers back to the Exodus 12:22 in which hyssop branches were used the take the blood of the lamb and mark the doors.
It is finished
Jesus is in control, Jesus determines when he died, not Judas, not Caiaphas, not Annas, not Pilate - Jesus.
Calls attention to the impotence of those who supposedly have power - like pharaoh who is shown to not have the power of life over death and God, who, through the passover, does reveal the power over life and death
Life is more than breath and a beating heart- abundant life
Opening music: Misirlou, One Man 90 Instruments by Joe Penna/MysteryGuitarMan at MIM
Closing Song by Bryan Odeen