What Wondrous Love Is This: Culmination

Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29; Luke 19:28-40

            We could debate whether I chose the right word for today’s sermon title.  I wrestled with it myself.  I chose the word “culmination” to describe Jesus’ triumphal entry into the city of Jerusalem.  You could argue that the crucifixion was really the culmination of his life.  Everything in Jesus’ life built toward and culminated in the crucifixion.  I finally decided that the crucifixion was the conclusion, not the culmination, particularly in the Gospel of Luke.  Remember, back in Luke 9 Jesus “set his face to go to Jerusalem.”  Everything in the Gospel of Luke builds toward this day.  John says that Jesus went to Jerusalem many times.  Not Luke.  Luke says he went only once, here at the end of his life.  Today everything Jesus believed and taught culminates with chants of “hosanna!”  and “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”

            We call it Palm Sunday, of course, and churches around the globe today are celebrating Jesus’ triumphal entry into the holy city of Jerusalem.  The people of Jerusalem were ecstatic.  If they had had social media, the tweets would have been flying. People would have been live streaming on Facebook and broadcasting on Instagram.  The people shouted for joy and praised God.  They called Jesus “the king who comes in the name of the Lord.”  They sensed he was the real deal, not the puffed up politicians they had grown accustomed to.  He was a champion of the common people, not a money-grubbing, power-seeking charlatan.  This was a day of triumph for the average woman and man…a triumph that would not last.  According to Luke, later that day Jesus drove the moneychangers out of the temple, surely rankling the powers that be.  As the week unfolded, things got worse and worse, until the people themselves turned against Jesus, eventually shouting in unison, “Crucify, crucify him!”  That was the conclusion. Today is the culmination.

            Matthew, Mark, and Luke each tell this story in their own way, emphasizing things they thought were important.  What I find interesting in Luke’s account is the story Jesus tells immediately before going into Jerusalem. Mark does not record this story at all.  Matthew records a similar story but places it in a different setting. According to Luke, the last story Jesus told before entering Jerusalem to be hailed as “the king who comes in the name of the Lord” is a story about a king, a greedy and vengeful king. 

Jesus said that a certain nobleman went to a “distant country.” Jesus’ hearers knew that nothing good ever happened in a distant country.  The nobleman’s intention was to acquire for himself the title and privileges of royalty.  He likely lived in a smaller land inside a large empire.  There was often a lot of competition to rule these smaller lands.  Typically, the one who could sweeten the pot the most was given the royal title.  Jesus said that before leaving, this nobleman summoned ten of his servants and gave them each about three months’ wages.  The only instruction he gave them was this, “Do business with these until I come back.”

            Jesus noted that the people in this land “hated” this nobleman.  They apparently received word of his intentions to become their king and sent a delegation to tell him, “We do not want you to be our king.”  It did no good.  The man sweetened the pot enough to receive his royal credentials and returned home as their king.   

The first thing he did was summon the servants to whom he had given the money.  Remember, he told them to “do business” until he came back.  The first servant did business very well.  He multiplied the money given to him by ten-fold.  The king congratulated him and put him in charge of ten cities.

            The second servant came in next.  He likewise did well.  He multiplied the money given to him by five-fold. He was put in charge of five cities.

            The last servant finally came in.  He hadn’t done so well.  He took the money that was given to him, wrapped it in a napkin, and put it away for safekeeping.  His excuse was that he knew that the nobleman, now his king, was a harsh man.  He should have ended his defense there, but this foolish servant went on to accuse the nobleman of stealing.  “You take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow,” he dangerously charged his new king.

            The king called this man a “wicked slave,” took the money away from him, and gave it to the first servant, the one who had done so well.  He told this last servant that if he knew he was harsh and that he stole from others, then he should have at least put the money in the bank so it would draw interest.  Bystanders saw what was happening and protested, but to no avail. The king then disclosed how things would operate in his kingdom: “to all those who have, more will be given; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.”  In other words, the rich will grow richer, and the poor will grow poorer.

I’ll warn you that this last scene is a bit gruesome.  This king proved just how harsh he could be.  As a final act of vengeance, he called in all those who opposed him—probably that delegation sent to dissuade him and maybe the bystanders who protested, certainly the last servant—and had them all slaughtered in his presence.

Now here’s my question.  Why would Luke have Jesus tell that kind of story right before he entered Jerusalem to be hailed as “the king who comes in the name of the Lord”?

This story about the greedy and vengeful king and the Palm Sunday story are placed side-by-side to create a contrast and help us see the kind of king Jesus was.  Unlike the king in the story who bought his kingship, Jesus was the real deal.  Luke is showing us that Jesus was a new kind of king.  He would ride into Jerusalem, the seat of authority, upon a donkey, called a colt in our text.  As I’m sure you have heard through the years, a donkey was a symbol of humility, not power.  Jesus had bystanders also, but his did not object.  They were so pleased to see this new kind of king that they removed their cloaks and spread them on the road in front of him.  Luke says that these bystanders praised God joyfully with a loud voice, saying,

                        Blessed is the king

                                    who comes in the name of the

                                                Lord!

                        Peace in heaven,

                                    and glory in the highest

                                                heaven!

It was a culmination.  A triumph of goodness.  A victory for compassion, justice, mercy, acceptance and understanding.  Jesus was the king of fishermen, tax collectors, Samaritans, harlots, people with disabilities, single moms, immigrants, people in the LGBTQ community, all people.  The cloaks thrown on the road that day were not expensive, designer garments but tattered, sweat-stained, and dusty rags. That’s the kind of king Jesus would be.

Have any of you seen the movie, “The Eyes of Tammy Faye”?  While it didn’t do so well at the box office, it won Oscars for Best Actress and Best Make Up and Hairstyling.  Jessica Chastain gave a fabulous portrayal of Tammy Faye.  It’s about the rise and fall of TV evangelists Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker.  In the beginning, they were poor, young, idealistic, and wanted to set the world on fire with the gospel.  They created the PTL Satellite Network and their very popular show The PTL Club.  If you’re not familiar with Jim and Tammy Faye, PTL stands for Praise the Lord.  Big money began to roll in.  Jim began building a 2,300 acre Christian theme park, Heritage USA.  At its peak, its attendance was second only to Disney World.  The big money wasn’t big enough though, so Jim began to divert funds.  Under the pressure, Tammy Faye became addicted to pills and had an affair.  Jim was eventually indicted for drugging and raping a church secretary named Jessica Hahn.  He was sentenced to eight years in prison.    He and Tammy Faye divorced.  Jerry Falwell took over Heritage USA, and it went into bankruptcy protection.  To his credit, Jim wrote a book titled, “I Was Wrong.”

Jim and Tammy Faye were king and queen of TV evangelism.  For a while.  But like many kings and queens, they were eventually exposed as charlatans. Jesus was real, and the people knew it.  They had seen their share of charlatans, the greedy and vengeful kings.  That’s why the people formed a parade and spread their cloaks on the ground.  That’s why the multitude joyfully praised God and shouted hosannah. 

It culminates today with the triumphal entry into Jerusalem.  Tomorrow everything changes as it moves toward its conclusion.  The Lenten season invites us to rejoice today because goodness has triumphed.  Compassion. Justice. Mercy. Acceptance. Understanding.  For the common people.  The real King has arrived.  So, let us be glad and rejoice as we experience the wondrous love of our Lord.

Closing Prayer 

Lord, we know what’s coming.  We sing your praise today.  Help us to be faithful tomorrow.  Amen.