Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD

 Now a great many of the Jews knew that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead.  But the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death also, because on account of him many of the Jews went away and believed in Jesus.

The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out:

"Hosanna!
'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!
The King of Israel!"

Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written:

"Fear not, daughter of Zion;
Behold, your King is coming,
Sitting on a donkey's colt."

His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him.  Therefore the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his tomb and raised him from the dead, bore witness.  For this reason the people also met Him, because they heard that He had done this sign.  The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, "You see that you are accomplishing nothing.  Look, the world has gone after Him!"

- John 12:9-19

Yesterday, we read that the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went from the country up to Jerusalem before the Passover, to purify themselves.  Then they sought Jesus, and spoke among themselves as they stood in the temple, "What do you think -- that He will not come to the feast?"  Now both the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a command, that if anyone knew where He was, he should report it, that they might seize Him.  Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead.  There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him.  Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair.  And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.  But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him, said, "Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?"  This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it.  But Jesus said, "Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial.  For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always."

 Now a great many of the Jews knew that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead.  But the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death also, because on account of him many of the Jews went away and believed in Jesus.  Here we see the threat that Jesus poses to the leadership:  many of their close followers now follow Jesus, and even desire to see Lazarus, because of those who came from Jerusalem to mourn with Mary.   In some sense, one must think politically to understand what is happening here; the ruling parties of the leadership are losing followers to Jesus.

The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out:  "Hosanna!  'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!  The King of Israel!"  Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written:    "Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your King is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt."  My study bible tells us that "Christ's Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem is celebrated by the Church on Palm Sunday.  By Christ's time, Jewish nationalism had led to the expectation of a political Messiah to deliver them from Roman control and to reestablish David's kingdom.  In humility, Jesus shows that He has not come to establish an earthly kingdom.  He does not ride on a horse nor in a chariot, but on a donkey -- a sign of humility and peace (Zechariah 9:9).   This entrance into the Holy City declares the establishment of the Kingdom of God.  It is also a promise of Christ's final entrance into the heavenly Jerusalem with all believers and of His accepting the New Jerusalem as His pure Bride (Revelation 21:2)."  The cry of "Hosanna! 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!" comes from Psalm 117:25-26, and was associated with Messianic expectation.  It was recited daily for six days during the Feast of Tabernacles, and seven times on the seventh day as branches were waved.  Hosanna means, "Save, we pray!"  So the people are greeting Jesus like the political messiah they await, a Savior not of souls, but of their country, a king who will deliver them politically.  The Feast of Tabernacles commemorates the time Israel wandered in tents (or tabernacles), but it is the Feast of the Coming Kingdom.

His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him.  Therefore the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his tomb and raised him from the dead, bore witness.  For this reason the people also met Him, because they heard that He had done this sign.  The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, "You see that you are accomplishing nothing.  Look, the world has gone after Him!"  The raising of Lazarus has both sealed the "faith" of the followers of Jesus from Jerusalem, and also the "fate" of Jesus at the hands of the parties who rule the temple. 

It's important, and interesting, to think about how much politics plays a role in this last week of Jesus' life.  It tells us how much it is possible to misread these signs in John's Gospel, as if they are merely pointing to a political reality, and not something much deeper and more potent, full of promise in our hearts.  What does it really mean to follow Jesus?  I wonder, how can someone whose life is steeped purely in political understanding, a worldly use of power, understand faith in Christ?  The leadership here, because of purely political thinking, see Him merely as a threat.  He's someone who's going to "take away their places."  John's Gospel interprets Caiaphas' prediction in light of his office as High Priest:  he unwittingly speaks true prophecy regarding Jesus' gathering of the children of the entire world.  But politically-minded, the irony here is that what he finally does (putting Jesus to death), symbolized by the freeing of Barabbas, eventually results in just what he feared that did come to pass in Jerusalem.  The followers here are those who have heard about Lazarus, from those who witnessed this final sign, the raising of the dead.  And so, people both want to see Lazarus himself, and the leadership also plots to put Lazarus to death.  Everything hinges around Jesus' acts of power, but everything also depends upon how one views those acts, with what perspective one comes to meet this place of Jesus' reality.  The purely politically-minded, it seems to me, are incapable of understanding Jesus and where He is pointing to, the faith He teaches, the identity He wishes to declare for Himself.  And it is my opinion that in today's world we face many of the same types of situation.  Faith, and holiness, will always be something "other" than worldliness, other than political manipulation.  Unfortunately it will be used by the political in ways the purely political find useful.  It all depends on how we see and hold our faith.  Is it something in the heart?  Is it a mere slogan to rally around?  What we have to think about here is the great and true pull of Jesus, which leads us to prayer and thereby to seeking His will.  That's not a mere political rallying cry.  It is the call of love and it respects the personal, the creation made to glorify the Creator.  You can't pigeonhole it by anything in this world.  It does not come down to slavishness or any form of cult-like behavior.  And this is what we pray for, that the Spirit that is within us and among us and Who is "everywhere present and filling all things" be glorified, be present in us and through us; His Spirit of Truth who works in ways we can't predict and that are not limited to our understanding.  This mystical connection isn't one to be exploited but it can be direly misused.  Let us remember Who comes first.  There are "political" actions that stem from compassion that Christ teaches us, such as "lifting up the lowly"  and protecting human life -- so often those who are  powerless  -- such as civilians subject to violence in wartime, persecuted on the basis of faith or ethnic origin, or the abused in any situation.  Protecting true values of life and love can take on so many, many forms.   But let us remember which loyalty comes first that teaches us about acts of love.  The politics in today's reading do not reach out in compassion nor in humility, but serve envy, position, lust for power, and control of wealth.  Where does He stand and what does He teach?