Matthew 21:1-9; Romans 13:8-14
St. Paul could have spoken these words to “the crowds that went before [Jesus] and that followed after Him” as He rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Why? Where was Jesus headed? He was headed to His cross and grave. He was on His way to fulfill what the Prophet Zechariah said: “Behold, your King is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is He, humble and mounted on a donkey.” Yes, Jesus was headed to accomplish salvation for sinners. Salvation from sin, death, and the power of the devil.
Salvation. That’s what the crowds following Him were hoping for. But what kind of salvation were they looking for? Salvation from what? Salvation from their daily problems and the difficulties of life. Deliverance from the Roman occupation of Palestine. The restoration of the throne of King David. And the good times of the good old days. So they greeted Jesus as king and heir of David’s throne. So they gave Him a triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
Wait a minute. A triumphal entry? Not so fast! First must come all that bloody business of Holy Thursday and Good Friday. First must come the humiliation and suffering of the cross. First the suffering, and then—only then—the glory. Then comes the triumph—the triumph of the empty grave.
You know the time. The hour has come. Salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.
St. Paul could have spoken those words to the excited, exuberant Palm Sunday crowds. Those words do point to the meaning of what Jesus came to do. But St. Paul did not speak those words to them. He does speak them to you here today! Salvation is nearer to you now! But what is the salvation that you are hoping for? What kind of salvation are you looking for?
Sometimes, the way we talk, it seems we want a “triumphal entry” of Jesus into our lives. We want a Lord who will save us from our problems, difficulties, and dysfunctions. We want a Jesus who will rid our lives of what causes us to be afraid or depressed. We want a King who snaps His fingers and gives us a “victorious Christian life” or our “best life now.” Our Lord’s “triumphal entry,” however, teaches us not to find our comfort in such things. We must look elsewhere for our salvation and hope.
Now we have a conundrum. We still want that successful and victorious living. We still want that problem-free, stress-free, fear-free, depression-free life. And that desire becomes very clear this time of year. What do I mean? Sometimes we try to achieve these things by how we prepare to celebrate Christmas. Much of modern Christianity has turned the celebration of our Lord’s Nativity into “a holy drama of His birth.” Just look at the popularity of “living nativity scenes.” Also, much of our modern culture has turned the meaning of Christmas into cartoon specials, music star specials, and never-ending holiday themed commercials.
But we don’t buy into that, do we? Or do we? The colorful lights. The familiar Christmas carols. The holiday rituals. And all during Advent! These all turn Christmas into a sentimental affair, to be sure. They can also draw us into a feeling that this is how we prepare for Christ’s coming. And we can forget about what worries us, what terrifies us, or what afflicts us. Perhaps, even for just a time, we can put out of our minds the difficulties and messes we have brought upon ourselves. We can ignore “the threatening perils of our sins.” We can try to sanitize our lives by focusing on “cute baby Jesus” in the manger.
But we will not find our real comfort in such things. And that’s not how our Lord teaches us to prepare for His coming. St. Paul tells us how to prepare: “Let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime.” Or, in the words of John the Baptizer and our Lord Jesus Himself: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mt. 3:2; 4:17). You know the time. The hour has come. It’s time for you to wake up from sleep. Salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.
“But Pastor, this is supposed to be a season of joy and making merry. Why this call to repentance?” Why? Because mother Church wants to prepare her children for a worthy and proper celebration of our Lord’s First Coming. When a special guest comes to your home, first you clean the house and straighten things up. When we hear the Advent message—“He is coming!”—it’s not just anyone who is coming. This is Someone coming from outside our world, Someone entering our time and space. This is Someone coming into our very human nature, to help us in our greatest need. And this Someone who is coming is none other than God Himself!
So the Church is not content only to remind her children of a past event for mental memory time. No, the Church wants her children to experience the Lord’s coming. We experience His coming in the liturgy. In her liturgy, you see, the Church calls sinners to repentance so that they might escape from the wrath to be revealed. She points them to the Blessed One who comes in the name of the Lord.
Not only has He come in the flesh, died on a cross, and risen from the grave; He also continues to come. He continues to come to us and among us with all of His grace and favor. And He comes through His Word and Sacraments. Ponder this as you sing just before you eat and drink Him who comes humble and riding in His Sacrament, mounted under bread and wine: “Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.”
You know the time. The hour has come. Salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. But that salvation does not come to you in a triumphal or even a sentimental way. It comes in a most humble and modest way. Martin Luther drew this out when he preached about humble King Jesus riding into Jerusalem and into our midst bringing salvation:
“There’s a big difference between this King and other kings. With the other kings everything is outward pomp, great and gallant appearance, and magnificent air. But not so with Christ. His mission and work is to help against sin and death, to justify and bring life. And He has placed His help in Baptism and the Sacrament, and incorporated it in the Word and preaching. To our eyes Baptism appears to be nothing more than ordinary water, and the Sacrament of Christ’s Body and Blood simple bread and wine, and the sermon hot air from a man’s mouth. But we must not trust what our eyes see, but listen to what this King is teaching us in His Word and Sacrament”(HP I:28).
You know the time. The hour has come. Salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. Our King and Savior is here. He comes to you today in His Word and Sacrament, offering and serving you grace and salvation. One day He will come again, visibly, in power and glory to complete your salvation by destroying death and leading you—triumphantly at last!—into eternal life with Him. Amen.
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