Palm Fronds and Smelly Christians

Easter comes next week amid tulips, flowering trees, and warmer weather.  It seems like our hopes start to bloom again like all those bulbs we planted last fall.  Leading up to Easter, many churches celebrate the “triumphal entry” of Jesus into Jerusalem on the Sunday before his crucifixion five days later.  We’re told to picture the majestic entry of the coming King into His holy city, hailed as the Messiah by all those assembled, only to have the crowds turn on Him a few days later.  But is being a follower of Christ as easy as waving your palm branch and shouting Hosanna?  Here’s the text from John:

Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany where Lazarus was, the one Jesus had raised from the dead…Then a large crowd of the Jews learned He was there. They came not only because of Jesus, but also to see Lazarus, the one He had raised from the dead. Therefore, the chief priests decided to kill Lazarus also, because he was the reason many of the Jews were deserting them and believing in Jesus.  The next day, when the large crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, they took palm branches and went out to meet Him. They kept shouting: “Hosanna! He who comes in the name of the Lord is the blessed One, the King of Israel!”   John 12:1, 9-13

Jesus had journeyed from the north and after crossing the Jordan River on His way to Jerusalem for Passover, stopped to linger with friends in Bethany.  Mary, Martha, and Lazarus were His closest friends outside of the circle of the twelve.  But the stir Jesus created by bringing Lazarus back from the dead (see John 11) wasn’t sitting well with the religious authorities.  They already wanted to kill Jesus, and now, they thought getting rid of Lazarus might help them quell this religious uprising.

On Sunday, Jesus headed for Jerusalem and many who had heard of Him DID go out to meet him.   The two-mile trip from Bethany to Jerusalem required a long walk down a steep slope, then back up another steep incline to the city.  But Jesus descended the path He was destined to take, and those who lived near there went out to meet Him.  They lined the road and heralded the One they believed would deliver them.  But they made all that noise OUTSIDE the city and away from those who would ostracize or even threaten them.

When we stand up for Jesus, it can bring turmoil into our lives.  Maybe your life won’t be threatened like Lazarus or Jesus, but people who are offended by your faith can make life more difficult for you.  Once Jesus entered Jerusalem, there is no discussion in Scripture of the crowds waving branches and shouting.  That all seemed to happen outside the walls of the city at a safe distance from the temple and its pseudo-faithful protectors.

So, this Sunday, if you’re given a palm frond to wave and encouraged to give voice to the Messiahship of the Lamb of God, do it and celebrate with the other believers there.  And when you leave the safe confines of your worship place, consider heading to Main Street or the mall to do the same.  But be ready – because there are Pharisees there who won’t like it, or you, very much. 

But thanks be to God, who always puts us on display in Christ and through us spreads the aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.  For to God we are the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.  To some we are an aroma of death leading to death, but to others, an aroma of life leading to life.   2 Corinthians 2:14-16

There are your marching orders.  Go smell up the place!

Jacob