"Mission or Agenda?" | By Rev. Jack Miller
 
In the story of Jesus entering Jerusalem, we witness a stark contrast. Jesus comes with a divine mission, while others come with their own agendas. Jesus moves toward the cross, toward reconciliation with humanity, toward the plan of salvation. The crowd hails him as king in the moment, but their hopes are tangled with political expectations. Jesus invites us into a mission that transcends momentary approval and personal ambition. He calls us to follow him in humility, obedience, and love that serves others.
 
Only Matthew and John mention the fulfillment of Zachariah’s prophecy as Jesus enters the city on that first Palm Sunday. Their quotation is carefully tailored to reflect the coming Messiah, not as a conquering warrior astride a noble steed, but as a Messiah-king who is one with the poor and lowly of the world. As you envision Jesus passing by that morning, you might think of the lines written by Henry Emerson Fosdick: "Genghis Khan, Alexander, Caesar, Napoleon all perished from the earth as fleeting shadows from a glass,” the only one to come, conquering down” through the centuries is Christ, who carries no sword, and rides a donkey.
 
When Jesus emerged on the public scene, he was an overnight sensation. Crowds of people lined the streets as he came into town. On that first Palm Sunday, the crowds welcomed Jesus with palms and cloaks laid before him, and there were shouts of "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"  As one preacher quipped, it was an “early Palestinian equivalent of a ticker tape parade.”
 
Bill Hybels is the founder and Senior Pastor of Willow Creek Community Church in Illinois. You may have heard of it and him. Bill Hybels wrote about that day in Jerusalem and the crowd of onlookers. “Everyone who lined the streets had a different reason for waving those palms,” he writes. “Some were political activists; they'd heard Jesus had supernatural power, and they wanted him to use it to free Israel from Roman rule. Others had loved ones who were sick or dying. They waved branches, hoping for physical healing. Some were onlookers merely looking for something to do, while others were genuine followers who wished Jesus would establish himself as an earthly king. Jesus was the only one in the parade who knew why he was going to Jerusalem--to die. He had a mission, while everyone else had an agenda.”  What about us? As we sing and wave our palms this morning, do we have an agenda or a mission?
 
There is a certain paradox with the traditional Palm Sunday liturgy. It begins with a sense of celebration as palm branches are carried and Hosannas sung, much like the people of Jerusalem did so many years ago. But Matthew’s account of Christ's Passion confronts us with the cruelty, injustice, and selfishness that led to his crucifixion and death. Are we any different? We welcome the Christ of victory, the Christ of Palm Sunday, but do we tend to turn away from the Christ of suffering and of the poor, the Christ of Good Friday? Do the palms we hold become symbols of the inconsistency that often exists between the faith we profess with our lips and the faith we profess with our lifestyle, the paradox of what we say and what we do? In celebrating Palm Sunday, do we have a mission or an agenda?
 
It is easy to welcome the Palm Sunday, Jesus, into our own Jerusalem because we see hope in him. He speaks of a kingdom in which we are forgiven, we are healed, and we are loved. But Jesus wants more. Jesus asks us to take up our own crosses and follow in his footsteps, insists that we sell all we have and give to the poor, and asks us to embrace a faith that is centered on more than words and rituals. On this Palm Sunday, as we wave our palms and shout Hosanna, Jesus wants us to have a mission, not an agenda. Jesus wants us to be his followers, not just curious onlookers with nothing else to do.
 
As we celebrate Christ this Palm Sunday, may we fully embrace the Jesus of love, justice, humility, and selflessness. As we strive to mirror Jesus' compassion, may we also be willing to imitate his limitless reconciliation and unconditional forgiveness. Let this week's focus be on the Christ of Alfred Lord Tennyson, who wrote: "The Lord from heaven born of a village girl. Carpenter's son. Wonderful. Prince of Peace. The Mighty God." Let us follow that image of Christ and join him in his mission to make our world a better place.
 
Let us examine our own hearts today. Are we waving palms in praise but clinging to an agenda that fits our comfort, our timing, and our ambitions? Or are we embracing a true mission, one that reflects the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, where our goals align with God’s redemptive plan for the world? May our worship move us beyond surface appearances into a life of mission, marked by humility, sacrifice, and unwavering devotion to the Savior who came not with power as the world defines power, but with love as God defines it.
 
May the Lord’s blessing be upon us all. May the Lord turn his countenance toward us and give us peace. And as we go from this place, may we carry a mission that mirrors Christ’s love, and may any agenda we have bow to the will of God. Amen.