“When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face towards Jerusalem.” Luke 9:51
The gospel that we follow this year throughout most of the Lenten season is Luke’s. Luke reminds us that Jesus has set his face towards Jerusalem and that nothing would stop him on destination. Jesus knew that preaching the good news of God’s coming Reign would put him on a collision course with the powers that be in Jerusalem. The values and priorities of God’s Reign stand in sharp contrast to the powers that be, and those in power will arrest him, subject him to trial, and put him to death.
Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday forces the people of Jerusalem—and us, by extension—to either recognize the moment of our redemption or not. Unfortunately, we see parts of ourselves in many of the main characters of Holy Week. We see in ourselves the failure of Jerusalem to appreciate the moment of salvation. We see in ourselves the fear and suspicion of the temple authorities, the cowardice of a Simon Peter, and the treachery of a Judas Iscariot. We confront all of this about ourselves before we can truly appreciate the renewal and redemption of Easter Sunday.
Holy Week is a time of high drama and we experience the impact of that drama best by participating in at least one other service between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday. I strongly encourage you to be a part of those weekday services during Holy Week, so that your experience of Holy Week may be full and complete. (A full listing of Holy Week services and events is given in greater detail in the body of this newsletter.)
May these remaining weeks of Lent provide you and those you love with opportunities for spiritual growth.
Your servant in Christ,
Rev. Jim Hoppert
