1 December 2019
Text: Matt 21:1-9
In the name of +
Jesus. Amen.
Now
that we have been hearing Christmas music in the stores for more than a month,
we now begin our Advent journey. Advent
is a time of expectation – not merely waiting for the 25th of December,
but waiting for Christ’s return, waiting for the end of this age and the life
of the world to come. And we wait for His
return by reflecting upon His first coming, His first Advent, even as we count down
to Christmas Day, the Feast of the Incarnation of our Lord.
The
world has a message for us at this time of year, dear friends. The world has skipped Advent – because who
wants to wait? For we are
consumers. We want what we want and we
want it now. And so the world is in full-on
Christmas mode. Our friends at Amazon
and Walmart and Target and Ebay have a Christmas message for us: buy stuff, and
lots of it! You can get anything with a
swipe of a card or a wave of a chip. Our
merchandisers – who want you to feel loved by them – want us to covet and fix
our eyes on stuff. The more the
better. They want you to believe that
money buys happiness.
But
the Church’s Christmas message to the world is entirely different. We have nothing for you to buy. We have nothing for sale. What we offer is entirely free, and yet not
even all the money of the richest man in the world – the guy who owns Amazon –
could ever afford what we offer. It is
not for sale at any price. For we offer
the salvation won for us at the cross of Jesus, and it is delivered to you not
by a delivery truck or an experimental drone – but in a chalice. We have the blood of Christ, we have His body,
we have His pledge of everlasting life. We
have the Gospel. And it is worth more
than Mr. Bezos’s fortune multiplied by a trillion. And yet, dear friends, it is free.
In
this first Sunday of Advent, we reflect upon our Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
This seems a strange thing to reflect
upon given the time of year. Instead of Jesus
in the manger, we are reflecting on a passage that will bring Jesus to the
cross. For the cross is the completion
of the manger. His death is why He was born. This is what we really mean by talking about
the “reason for the season.” Jesus has
taken on flesh, to offer His flesh, all to redeem our flesh, so that we too may
rise in the flesh. This is what the Word
“Emmanuel” means: “God with us” – with us in the flesh.
And
while the music of our season sweetly proclaims the Boy King, we must remember
that this King doesn’t enrich Himself like a Caesar or a CEO, but rather
empties Himself like a servant. He is
not crowned by gold, but rather by thorns. He does not sit upon a throne, but rather
hangs upon the cross. He is not
transported into His Royal City pulled in a magnificent chariot, but rather “humble,
and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.” And His march to the cross will be even more
humble, dear friends.
Our
King doesn’t flaunt his wealth – even though He owns all things. Rather He comes to us in humility, even
humiliation – willing to be put to death on a cross. For unlike the corporations from whom we buy
our Christmas gifts, Jesus actually does love us. All that He has, He shares with us without
price. No swipe of the card; no wave of
a chip. We come to this church and to
this communion rail as beggars – with empty hands and open mouths. We have nothing to offer. We do not leave with a bill and some bling,
but rather with the antidote to death without price. We depart the communion rail free and unburdened. We do not walk out of this sanctuary in debt,
but rather with our debts forgiven. For
we do not buy gifts here, but we are the recipients of the greatest gift of all.
Jesus,
our Boy King whom we will in a few weeks call to mind lying in a manger, is our
Savior. He is King of kings and Lord of lords. He was indeed welcomed into the Royal City of
King David, His royal father according to the flesh. He came into the city riding a donkey, as did David’s
immediate son King Solomon. And along
with those adoring crowds who knew they were welcoming their King, we too sing
with them: “Hosanna to the Son of David. Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”
And
in the manner of people who live in monarchies crying out “God save the King!” –
we sing “Hosanna!” And this word “Hosanna”
means “save.” But we are not calling for
the King’s salvation, rather we are confessing and celebrating the King’s
salvation of us! “Hosanna, King Jesus, Son
of David, Save us!” we sing.
We
reflect on His first coming to us: as a baby in Bethlehem, as a triumphantly
entering King in Jerusalem, as a crucified sacrificial Lamb outside the gate of
the city, and as our Risen Lord who has conquered death in the empty Easter
tomb in the garden.
All
of this is rolled together for our consideration, dear friends. For He was born that He might die. He died that we might live. And He rose again that we too might join Him
in eternal life. And the riches He
bestows upon us are immeasurable, and yet free.
And
so we welcome our King. We sing “Hosanna.” We pray for mercy from the Son of David. We rejoice in His coming. We anxiously await His return. We receive Him in Word and Sacrament. We anticipate His Advent even as did those in
days of old who saw Him at the manger, the cross, and the tomb.
We
see Him in His body and blood. We hear Him
in His Word. We receive His gifts
according to His promise. And we
continue to wait in expectation for His return, not according to the world’s
calendar, but rather according to His Father’s will. We wait for that time when we too will wave
our palms and sing not just once a week, not just once a year, but for all
eternity: “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed
is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the Highest!”
Amen.
In the name of the Father
and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
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