SUNDAYS TWO-CENTS WORTH: #30 : PALM SUNDAY MESSAGE

A SPECIAL PALM SUNDAY MESSAGE:

The following is a special Palm Sunday message to all of my Christian friends, no matter which Christian denomination you follow.

On this day, we celebrate the triumphal entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem. Today we become as one with the crowd of disciples who joyously accompanied Jesus into Jerusalem. This day is a joyful testimony that we give to Christ Jesus, in whom the face of God the Father is made known to each of us.

When we make our procession of palms, we profess the Kingship of Jesus Christ, recognizing Jesus as a son of David – the King of Peace. It means seeing in him the ultimate authority to whom we bow in humble submission. We bow and humble ourselves to him because we recognize his authority as being from God the Father and an authority of truth.

As it was for the disciples of Jesus, over two thousand years ago, our Palm Sunday procession is an expression and act of joy, because Jesus has allowed us to know him and he has given us the gift of eternal life, if we are willing to follow him completely no matter what the cost. What does it mean to follow Jesus Christ completely?

Two thousand years ago, it meant that the disciples gave up every thing, their professions; some left their families, their whole life to follow Jesus. They took up a new profession, that of discipleship, to entrust themselves entirely to Jesus Christ, which was both an outward and internal following. Outwardly, it was following behind Jesus as he traveled throughout the Holy Land. Inwardly it was a total surrender to the will of Jesus which meant a total renunciation of what one once possessed, and a detachment from self.

Today, it means a turning away, a repentance from our former life of sin. It means making an interior change of life. It means giving ourselves freely to the Other in truth and love for God, who, in Jesus Christ, goes before us leading the way. To truly follow Jesus means to enter into the service of truth and love. By so doing, you lose yourself to find your true spiritual self.

On this day, we sing Psalm 24, which is used in Israel as a processional song for the ascent of the Temple Mount. In this psalm, the question is asked: “Who may go up the mountain of the Lord?” There are two vital criteria to be met for going up the mountain of the Lord: first, you must be a person who truly and deeply desires to know God. This means not allowing yourself to be unduly distracted by life, not caring what others think or do. It means quieting your inner spirit and becoming attentive to the voice of God within you.

Secondly, to stand in the holy place, you must have innocent hands and a pure heart. Innocent hands means not having that are used for acts of violence or made filthy through corruption and bribery. A pure heart is a heart that is not haughty or filled with hypocrisy or falsehoods, a heart that is filled with true love for others and not merely a passion for the moment, a heart that does not seek after mere physical pleasures. When you walk with Jesus in truth and in love, you will be purified and will reach the reward for which all of mankind is destined, a relationship with God Himself.

I humbly pray for each of you and for my unworthy self, that Jesus will give us the strength, the perseverance, the innocent hands and purity of heart to reach this destination. I ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

+ “Abouna” Gregori