the sunday of the passion
the PRAYER. . .
Everlasting God, in your endless love for the human race you sent our Lord Jesus Christ to take on our nature and to suffer death on the cross. In your mercy enable us to share in his obedience to your will and in the glorious victory of his resurrection, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
the READING. . .
It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, while the sun’s light failed; and the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, ‘Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.’ Having said this, he breathed his last.
the DEVOTION. . .
We have a problem. As people. As church. We like to think we don’t. We never admit it. But we’re afraid. Afraid to die. We try to ignore it. Pretend it doesn’t exist. Hope it’ll go away. Refuse, even, to use the word. People pass. They cross over. But they no longer die. But, when all is said and done, in spite of our best efforts, in the end, that’s all any of us do. We die.
Most of the time, we flip open the bible and everything’s fine. God’s rule book. Life’s instruction manual. Morals. Ethics. Principles. How tos! Do it ourselves! But then, comes all this. Sunday of the Passion. Maundy Thursday. Good Friday. We deny. We avoid. Skip from hosannas to alleluias, from palms to lilies. Skip over everything that scares us, that makes us uncomfortable. And we make believe there’s nothing in between. We pull Jesus from the cross and replace him with a big, bright smiley-face! Don’t worry! Be happy!
But this is faith. The suffering under Pilate. The crucifying. The dying. The burying, descending. Without it, there’s nothing to trust. Nothing to believe in. Nothing to stake our life on. This holy week is the heartbeat of god’s people. The inspiration, the breath, the very soul of the church. Because this – all of this – is what happens when god so loves …
Bob Barndt, pastor