The Final Week of Lent: Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord
Scriptures: Isaiah 50:4-9a; Luke 19:28-40
Key Verse: Jesus answered, “If they kept quiet, the stones would do it for them, shouting praise." (Luke 19:40)
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Hello, This is Jade.
Welcome to Yi.kigai
A space for all to explore the intersection between faith and daily life
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Lenten Blessings. This is the last Sunday of Lent. We call it Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord.
Have you been part of or seen a Palm Sunday procession? People of faith normally gather at a pre-designated location before worship. As they process into the church and the sanctuary, they wave palm branches, greet people, sing a hymn like “All glory, laud, and honor”, and shout, “Hosanna in the highest.” By doing so, they enact the story of Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem, which occurred less than a week before His crucifixion. The church is like the crowds in the first century, believing Jesus as the Savior and shouting for joy and hope. It is like the whole world was welcoming Jesus. But what was on Jesus’ mind that day? What is on the minds of Christians today in 2022?
Do you know or remember the story of your birth? It’s my hope and my prayer that it was a joyful story. You were probably surrounded by at least one of your parents, some relatives or close friends of your parents, and a hospital care team. I would like to assume that you lacked nothing, were well fed and received a lot of attention and care in love. Your birth story makes you feel that the world welcomes you. If your birth story isn’t a joyful one, you are ahead of many and realize much faster that the world doesn’t really welcome every life coming into the world unless one is good enough or has enough, and that ‘enough’ is defined by the world.
After Jesus told the parable of the Ten Pounds in Luke 11-27 and challenged his disciples to make good use of all that Jesus had revealed and given to them for the sake of God’s kingdom, Jesus set off to the city of Jerusalem. As he came close to the city, he wept for all those whose souls were crushed by the world and those who did not recognize God’s visitation in their midst. If you feel that your soul has been crushed because of the world’s message saying that you are not good enough and do not have enough, hear the message Jesus brought you.
On this Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord, may you recognize and welcome God’s personal visit to you now. God’s message is that you have been created good enough and given more than enough to be the people of God, to love and to forgive yourself as you love and forgive others. The more you use what God has given to you, the more you will be given. Since Jesus has assured the world that no one can stop his disciples from shouting God’s visitation to every person in the world, may you join me to spread the good news for joy and hope.
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May your coming week be blessed by God’s grace
As together we explore the intersection between faith and daily life
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