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"Shout and cheer, Daughter Zion!
Raise your voice, Daughter Jerusalem!
Your king is coming!
a good king who makes all things right,
a humble king riding a donkey…”
- Zechariah 9:9 (the Message)
The great preacher, prophet, and professor Howard Thurman asked Gandhi, “How are we to train individuals and communities in this difficult act [of nonviolent resistance]?” Gandhi replied, “There is no royal road, except through living the creed in your life, which must be a living sermon….Seek first the kingdom of Heaven and everything else will be added unto you.”
Hosanna – Save us! We need a Savior. This Sunday we gather and remember the palm parade into Jerusalem. The people shouted "Hosanna-save us," as Jesus rode into town. Palm Sunday is more than an innocent children’s parade. It is a peace parade. How often we remember the Zechariah text. "Behold your king comes ridding on a donkey." But we omit the next verse, "I will remove the battle chariots from Israel and the warhorses from Jerusalem. I will destroy all the weapons used in battle, and your king will bring peace to the nations. His realm will stretch from sea to sea and from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth."
It was not the man Jesus who upset Rome and the church, but his ideas. Pilate will understand his ideas. The Sanhedrin will understand his ideas. In the last week of Jesus' life, his ideas will get him killed. If leadership is as Heifetz says, “...disappointing people at a rate they can stand,” then Jesus exceeds the disappointment rate. What does it mean to live in peace? Come Sunday and worship. Come and wave a palm branch. Come and become a living sermon.
Grace and peace,
Rev. Dr. Duane A. Anders (He, Him, His)
PS: I invite you Sunday to give a gift through the church to World Central Kitchen to help feed people in Gaza. Mark your giving for Gaza feeding.
You can read their story here: wck.org/story
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