Palm Sunday 2007
YrC Luke 19:28-40 Living the Passion
'The Lord needs it'.
It is with this instruction that the disciples go on ahead, to the village of Bethphage, to fetch a donkey. The donkey was needed to complete a journey: a journey to Jerusalem.
The journey we read of in today's Gospel is only a SHORT journey. And entering Jerusalem on a donkey wasn't really all that extraordinary either.
It was but the last part of a longer journey: a journey to the Cross: a journey of salvation.
We too made a journey today. From outside the church to inside. Only a short journey and in the scheme of things quite insignificant. But our journey today, like Jesus' short entry into Jerusalem, is part of something bigger and is more significant than it seems on the surface.
It represents our desire to follow him.
Normally we focus on going out, not coming in!: following Jesus out of the building into the world, taking the Gospel out and sharing it: into the streets and villages where people need to hear his message of hope.
Today though it's a pleasure to come in.
I hope YOU enjoyed coming in as much as I did after 7 months of not being able to GET in!
Despite the welcome we received at West Pinchbeck and Surfleet, these past 7 months have been difficult for Pinchbeck people: not having this church to worship in, to meet in and pray, to offer to visitors and passers by, a place where we can be resourced and fed for this journey out into the world.
Being back in church is quite an achievement. It has been 7 months of closure of the church but over a year of hard work leading to this point. Many times along that journey we could have said well, why bother?
It was a journey that was filled with stresses and strains, highs and lows an emotional reller-coaster. I have to admit that several times along the way I asked myself, Why bother? After all, the building is 800 years old anyway: In many ways it's
Too
big
Too
cold
outdated
uncomfortable
There's
not much in the way of facilities: no toilet, no proper sink or basic kitchen
facilities, no off-street parking, no ease of disabled access.
So
why bother?
It
could have been easier along the way to decide, well, let's just abandon it
and use the church hall instead!
So this short journey from outside to inside that we have made today has been important and represents something deeper:
1 our desire to follow Jesus with a lively faith
2 to share that faith with others
3 our determination to be a well resourced community with a facility such as this one from which to exercise this ministry.
4 Our presence here today represents our passion for the Christian faith, and our passion to share this faith.
I use this word passion for a reason.
Jesus' journey, as we read of it this morning, was characterised by his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, by the donkey, by palm branches, by cloaks strewn on the road, by cries of 'hosanna!'
But his journey was not about donkeys or cloaks or palms: Jesus' journey was about his passion.
The word passion has different meanings: basically it means an underlying emotion (an emotion that can be either +ve or -ve): love, hatred, joy, ambition, desire, fear, joy, revenge. These are all emotions that can be strongly held passions..
Jesus was passionate
person: passionate about God and God's Kingdom.
Of course the word passion derives from the Latin word passio, literally 'suffering'. It refers specifically to Jesus' sacrifice on the cross.
So don't join the Palm Sunday procession (no matter how short or insignificant it might seem on the surface) unless you're prepared to share Jesus' suffering and his dedication to God's mission.
Because our journey is
to be a passionate journey too!
We
are to be passionate about the
mission of God
and
willing to make sacrifices so that
this mission can be achieved.
Where is the passion in your faith?
In my faith?
The
passion we think about today was evidenced not just on that short journey on a
donkey but in the other events later that week
In
this regard it's helpful to put ourselves into Peter's shoes. Jesus asks him
three times 'do you love me?' Peter has to keep repeating the answer, 'yes,
Lord, you know that I love you'.
This
is evidence of Peter's passion. Where
is ours?
There is a lot of passion in the world around us. Some might say, yes, but they're worldly passions! But some of these are positive uplifting passions too.
I have a passion for sport, albeit mainly as a spectator nowdays!
I enjoy, with a passion, watching the Australian Wallabies win a game (especially when they beat England).
I enjoyed with a passion, seeing the Ashes won back last season.
I have a passion for education. Education means knowledge and empowerment and freedom. All children deserve the best education that can be offered. For this reason, myself and others worked with a passion for 2 ฝ years to see Pinchbeck school out of Special Measures. We didn't endure sleepless nights, heartache & long hours just to tick a box, or just because someone said we had to do it, but because we have a passion for the school and for education.
A lot has been said about this year being the 200th Anniversary of the Abolition of Slavery. William Wilberforce and modern-day anti-slavery campaigners were / are driven by a passion for justice and freedom. Thank God they were driven by that passion.
Many of you will know that in addition to my job as Vicar here I am also a Bishops' Adviser. This takes me to various parts of the country interviewing applicants to train for the Ordained Ministry. They come from various backgrounds and traditions: urban, rural, catholic, evangelical, charismatic. But what excites me the most is their passion: passion for ministry, passion for Christ, all expressed in their desire to serve him in their lives. For some this will be in the life of an ordained person, for others in some form of authorised lay ministry. But the passion shines through and I thank God for these future leaders of tomorrow's church.
For me however, pursuing any of these passions without an underlying passion for Christ would be meaningless.
So
while we rejoice this morning at moving back into church let's not forget that
there is still a lot more work to do which will only be done if we are
passionate about our mission here.
This
building has to be adapted so that it can better meet the needs of the
community that uses it.
So that it can be a better resource base for
Christ's ministry here in this village.
The building is not the church: the church
is people.
But
the church building is a place where the church/the people meet, worship and
pray.
It
was a passion for Christ that led to this church being built here in the first
place, centuries ago.
Let's
share that passion so that this building, and the God who is worshipped here,
can continue to be at the heart of community life.
Above all, let's be passionate about our faith. I need to be more passionate about mine. Maybe you need to be more passionate about yours too!
The theme of our worship today is 'Are we prepared to respond to the events of the last week of Jesus' life?'
Jesus' passion led to his sacrificing himself ... what are WE prepared to sacrifice for his sake?
Our gifts, our time, our priorities, our will, our money?
If this is your first time at worship for some time and you've been looking for an excuse to start worshipping regularly again, this is it!
Seize the day!
You'll be very welcome.
And there's no need to be embarrassed even the Vicar hasn't been seen worshipping here for over 7 months!
To close I want to quote one of my predecessors, West Wayet, writing in 1864, after this church had been closed for some time due to the restoration of his day:
Our services have lately been held in the school. (de ja vu!) I know full well the unity with which we have met there. It has drawn us closer together. I am almost afraid of moving into the large old church: our voices will be more widely scattered. If such should unhappily be the case I shall greatly grieve and wish myself back to the school hall. It is better to worship in a barn where there is unity and love than in the most gorgeous building if the service is only formality. But I will hope that the happier feeling will be brought to our old church.
Let that 'happy feeling' of which Rev Wayet wrote, be real so for us too. And let it arise out of our passion for Christ as we continue our journey to him. Amen