Palm Sunday
Phil 4:4-9
John 12:1-18
There’s a saying. No good deed goes unpunished. That’s what we see here with Jesus. He had raised his friend, Lazarus, from the dead. In this Gospel passage, we hear that the priests want to kill Lazarus, or as the passage says, they want to kill Lazarus as well. Why “as well”? In the previous chapter, we hear that the Chief Priests and the Pharisees had called a meeting of the governing council, the Sanhedrin, to hatch a plot to kill Jesus. And, of course, in just a few days, we’ll see that come to pass.
From a human view, why was Jesus targeted? Some suggest that he was a revolutionary who upset the Roman system. Yes, there were some Israelites at the time - Zealots they were called - who sought to drive the Romans out of their land. And, in fact, one of the Apostles came from their ranks. But Jesus was not one of them.
So, what does the text tell us? “Some of the Jews went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the council, and said, ‘What are we to do? For this man performs many signs. If we let him go on thus, every one will believe in him, and the Romans will come and destroy both our holy place and our nation.’ But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, ‘You know nothing at all; you do not understand that it is expedient for you that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation should not perish.’”
In short, the authorities were afraid that Jesus had become so popular that he might lead a rebellion, that he might become a leader of the Zealots. They were afraid of losing their power. Remember, he’d already cleansed the Temple early in his ministry. And, as it turns out, he’ll do it again in a few days.
Caiaphas, the high priest, even went so far as to say that Jesus must die for the nation. As the Gospel says, ‘You know nothing at all; you do not understand that it is expedient for you that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation should not perish.’ He did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus should die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad”. His notion, though, wasn’t that the death of Jesus would be sacrificial - he didn’t believe him to be the Christ - but that it was better that one man die rather than the Romans kill the nation.
Then, there’s Judas. We find out here that he had been embezzling money from the group’s funds. He was a thief. Like so many people today, he appeared to be with Jesus all the time, but he was an unrepentant sinner. And, John’s Gospel tells us that, at the Last Supper, a devil enters him. Luke’s Gospel talks about a devil entering him earlier. When you live in constant, unrepentant sin, you open yourself up to demonic influence. If that’s happening in your life, repent now and get to confession.
We all know what happens next. Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey. The people acclaim him, shouting “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest”, an acclamation that we echo in each and every Divine Liturgy.
So, let us ask - how do we avoid acting like the Priests, like the Pharisees, and like Judas? Because, you see, every time we sin, every time we act contrary to the Lord’s will, we betray him.
The Epistle answers that. Besides avoiding sin, there are two factors. Our attitudes have to be ones of rejoicing and thanksgiving. Last week I suggested that we should rejoice in the Annunciation. And this week, the Epistle says Rejoice in the Lord, always. And the Church reminds us of this; the verse for the Tone one Prokeimen is “Rejoice in the Lord. Praise befits the righteous”.
The second factor comes from one of my favorite verses, which is part of this passage. “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things”. Paul writes to the Romans, “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect”.
You see, God’s will is that we be transformed to His likeness. But that only happens if we give the Holy Spirit fertile ground to grow the seeds of righteousness, through the renewal of our minds. Our thinking on the good allows Him to mold us into what He wants us to be.
So, my brothers and sisters, don’t be like Judas, don’t be like the Priests and Pharisees.
Avoid Sin
Have an attitude of rejoicing and thanksgiving
Guard your thoughts, thinking of the good, so God can form you into His image.
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