Episode 1419: Blessed is the One

[00:00:00] Scott Maderer: Thanks for joining me on episode 1419 of the Inspired Stewardship Podcast.

[00:00:07] Len Herstein: I'm Len Herstein. I challenge you to invest in yourself, invest in others, develop your influence, and impact the world by using your time, your talent, and your treasures to live out your calling, having the ability to remain vigilant and avoid complacency is key.

[00:00:23] And one way to be inspired to do that is to listen to this, the Inspired Stewardship Podcast with my friend, Scott Maderer.

[00:00:39] Scott Maderer: Despite all of that, maybe The truth is that we are called to shout Hosanna and to be fools for Christ, to step forward and look at the world that says that only the powerful's opinions matter and say, we believe [00:01:00] something different. Welcome and thank you for joining us on the Inspired Stewardship Podcast.

[00:01:06] If you truly desire to become the person who God wants you to be, then you must learn to use your time, your talent, and your treasures for your true calling. In the Inspired Stewardship Podcast, you will learn to invest in yourself, invest in others, and develop your influence so that you can impact the world.

[00:01:34] In today's Spiritual Foundation episode, I talk about Mark 11, verses 1 11. I talk about why we raise palms in celebration and in supplication, and I also share why we need to know that with the palms comes the passion. Mark 11, verses 1 11 says, When they were approaching Jerusalem at Bethphage and Bethany near the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his [00:02:00] disciples and said to them, Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find there a colt tied that has never been ridden.

[00:02:08] Untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, why are you doing this? Just say this. The Lord needs it, and we'll send it back here immediately. They went away and found a colt tied near a door outside in the street. As they were untying it, some of the bystanders said to them, What are you doing untying the colt?

[00:02:26] They told them what Jesus had said, and they allowed them to take it. Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields. Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting.

[00:02:43] Hosanna Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor, David Hosanna in the highest heaven. Then he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. When he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the 12. [00:03:00] One of the questions that gets brought up about this passage is this incident accidental or is it planned?

[00:03:09] Did Jesus one day decide to make a trip into Jerusalem and then a parade spontaneously broke out? Or was this deliberately chosen and planned out to make a statement at this specific time and place? And ultimately, I don't know that we'll ever know that or even really need to know it. But we do know that at least in the Gospel of Mark, the whole first half of the Gospel of Mark, Jesus spent telling people not to tell me.

[00:03:38] Not to tell anyone who he was, not to spread the news, but rather to keep it all secret. And then here, suddenly, there's this big announcement. He rides a colt into the city of Jerusalem, and his followers walk with him and shout, Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. [00:04:00] Those aren't random acts, by the way.

[00:04:03] They sound a little bit in the modern ear like they're just this weird event, but riding a horse is, through town, is what a king is doing when he's going to war. And here, Jesus is riding a colt or a donkey, depending on the stories that you hear and the translation that you hear, and declaring himself not a king of war, but a king of war.

[00:04:27] of peace. He's writing an unwritten cult and the words that are spoken, the Hosanna, blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the highest, all of these words are the kinds of words that are spoken when a king is coming into its power, when a king is being enthroned. All of these are words that are used to describe what happens then.

[00:04:57] It's rather hard to miss if [00:05:00] you know that history, it seems to be a slap in the face of the people that were in power, or at least thought that they were in power. Jesus seems to be making a declaration of authority and power in a place of power, Jerusalem, and the authority there sees him as an outsider.

[00:05:20] The one who appears powerless is here declaring his power. He's riding into a war zone and saying, I am the prince of peace. Hosanna, that word is a common word in royal psalms. And it is a statement of celebration. And a lot of times that's how we use that word today, is a shout of joy and welcome. And that's accurate.

[00:05:44] But it also has a translation that means, save us or save us now. The crowd is shouting, save us, to one who is in power, who doesn't seem to be concerned about his own safety and prosperity, and they're [00:06:00] shouting Hosanna to Jesus, one who can indeed save them, but they don't even seem to really know what's going on.

[00:06:10] And when we lift our palms and wave them on Palm Sunday, we are saying, we are here following the Prince of Peace as well. The one that the world considers to be a fool and did its best to destroy. And maybe we are fools for holding this parade, for remembering his death. Sometimes, the fool becomes the fooler.

[00:06:35] Maybe a better description is to acknowledge that the world resist being turned upside down, being taken in a way that is different and counterintuitive. The power of the world tries to rush back in and turn it back right side up and restore the order as they understand it. The status quo with the powerful on top [00:07:00] and the powerless on bottom.

[00:07:03] That's why it's important to remember that we celebrate Palm Sunday, but we also celebrate as Passion Sunday. There's a slash now in the church calendar where this is both Palm and Passion Sunday. It is a reminder that there is a risk involved in standing up for justice, standing up for the marginalized, standing up for the abused.

[00:07:26] There is a danger in challenging the status quo. And when you think you've won a point and gathered your crowd, often you look around and discover that the crowd is gone and you are alone again. At that least, that's what the experience of Jesus is in the rest of this passage. He comes in as a king of peace riding on an unridden colt or a donkey, and he becomes a hated criminal hanging on a cross.

[00:07:54] He goes from Hosanna to crucify him in just a matter of [00:08:00] days. Maybe it is. Maybe we are fools for embracing this life, for looking at it. Maybe Jesus is the fool. Maybe we are for proclaiming Easter joy when the world is still stuck on Good Friday. But despite all of that, maybe the truth is that we are called to shout Hosanna and to be fools for Christ, to step forward and look at the world that says that only the powerful's opinions matter and say, We believe something different.

[00:08:39] Thanks for listening.

[00:08:46] Thanks so much for listening to the Inspired Stewardship podcast. As a subscriber and listener, we challenge you to not just sit back and passively listen, but act on what you've heard and find a way [00:09:00] to live your calling. If you enjoyed this episode, do me a favor, go over to facebook. com slash inspired stewardship and like our Facebook page and market that you'd like to get notifications from us so that we can connect with you on Facebook and make sure that we're serving you to the best of our abilities with time and tips there.

[00:09:29] Until next time, invest your time. Your talent and your treasures develop your influence and impact the world.