Jesus Is Your Number One Fan

Jesus is your number one Fan

Mark 11:1-11

Rev. Dr. Michael H. Koplitz

1 As they approached Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples, 2 and said to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here. 3 “If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ you say, ‘The Lord has need of it’; and immediately he will send it back here.” 4 They went away and found a colt tied at the door, outside in the street; and they untied it. 5 Some of the bystanders were saying to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6 They spoke to them just as Jesus had told them, and they gave them permission. 7 They brought the colt to Jesus and put their coats on it; and He sat on it. 8 And many spread their coats in the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields. 9 Those who went in front and those who followed were shouting: “Hosanna! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; 10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David; Hosanna in the highest!” 11 Jesus entered Jerusalem and came into the temple; and after looking around at everything, He left for Bethany with the twelve, since it was already late.

Jesus had decided that He was going to enter Jerusalem, and that stirred up trouble. By riding into the city on a colt, He was fulfilling an ancient prophecy about the Messiah. A question for Jesus would be why this time? Why cause all this trouble? There is some speculation that the year Jesus died was a Jubilee year. If this is true, then His death in that year becomes significant. Dying at the time of the Passover would allow for the theology of the Paschal Lamb sacrifice.

Perhaps it was just bad timing that the events of the week developed as they did. By Jesus challenging the religious and government authorities, his destination became crucifixion. Passover was a time of unrest in Jerusalem. The new governor, Pilate, had strict orders not to allow any incidents to arise in Jerusalem. His hands were tied when Jesus caused a disturbance. Pilate had to get involved.

The people cheering were waiting for the Messiah who was going to expel the Romans and re-establish the Kingdom of Israel. However, that would be restoring a temporary kingdom. When the Maccabees defeated the Greeks, the country was rebuilt only to be conquered by the Romans. Jesus knew that an independent Israel would be short-lived. Israel was too weak to survive as an independent state.

Instead, Jesus came to create the permanent kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is a kingdom that will last an eternity. God uses miracles for long-term gains, not short-term gains. The Kingdom of God is a worthy mission.

The Liturgy of the Palms is reading parts of Psalm 118 and Mark 11:1-11 in the liturgical cycle “B” which calls us to communal faith. The foundation of Christianity occurs in Passion week. Jesus had to die on Good Friday so that the gift of God could be seen and felt on Easter morning.

We need to feel the pain that Jesus endured. It is the sins of the world that placed Him on that cross. It was not a “simple” death. Instead, it was excruciating. Even though He could have avoided it, He did not. Everything Jesus did in His life was for our benefit. To honor His selfless act, we must remember all the events of Holy Week. Then the actual celebration of salvation can be celebrated on Easter morning.

I know it is easier not to contemplate what happened during Passion Week. The gift that the LORD gave us on Easter morning must be appreciated in the face of the events. The injustice of Passion week should remind us of how Satan can take over the world. Then on Easter morning, we can celebrate that the LORD is still in charge of things and won the day.

The situation of the people coming out to cheer Jesus’ entry on Sunday and by Thursday the people disappeared and so on reminded me of the local minor league baseball team. On the opening day of play, the stadium is filled with fans. They cheer for the home team. The fans look forward to a triumphal year. However, if the team starts to lose too many games, the stadium becomes void of fans. The only advantage to low attendance is that the concession lines become short.

Then the all-star game comes, which marks the middle of the season. The home team starts to win games. All of a sudden, they are in second place, fighting for the division title. When they win that title and go to the playoffs, fans who abandoned the team in the early part of the season come out in droves. The stadium is filled with cheering fans when the home team wins that year’s championship.