It might’ve gone like this…
Steady Girl. The disciple patted the donkey on the snout. “I know we’re not your owners, but you have a very important job today. You will be carrying the Messiah through the streets of Jerusalem.” The donkey snorted. “That’s his way of saying, ‘Yes!’” His companion joked as he motioned to the right. “Here we go. This way to Jesus. I remember this olive tree from when we left.” They continued a little farther past the olive tree, over the hill’s pinnacle, to the boulder where Jesus and the other disciples were resting. Jesus smiled when he saw them approach: Just like I asked. Thank you.” One disciple took off his cloak. “Here Jesus. Use this as a saddle. It should keep the ride from getting too rough.” A few of the other did the same. Then, Jesus thanked them, steadied the burro, and swung his legs over its haunches. Together the crew began the afternoon journey to Jerusalem. It was a bit quiet. Some of the disciples had knots in their stomach. There were people in Jerusalem who didn’t like Jesus. People who were out to get Jesus. In fact, Jesus had told them (repeatedly now) that when they got to Jerusalem, he would be falsely accused, arrested, and…killed. A few of the disciples could be seen stretching their muscles. Just in case they ran into a mob. If only we can enter quietly. If only we don’t cause a scene. If only we enter, quietly… THERE HE IS! I SEE HIM. IT’S JESUS. The disciples were caught off guard. Shouting. Yelling. People. But they weren’t hostile. There at the entrance was a group of people. Hands in the air. Palm branches in the air. Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest! The donkey almost stumbled. The people had strewn their coats. Their outer garments. A variety of large leafy palm branches onto the road. A way to welcome their hero. Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest! The farther the group went into the city, the more people joined the celebration. A group of many were seeing who could shout louder to the right. A group of kids were having fun waving the palm branches on the left. A senior citizen was grinning ear to ear as he struggled past his arthritis to join the celebration. Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest! Suddenly, the group was in the thick of the city. More and more people had gathered to join the parade. It wasn’t just a small group anymore. It was a straight up crowd. Together shouting: Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest! The disciples shook their heads. This was no longer a quiet entry. This was no longer just ‘slipping in.’ This was a scene. This was a commotion. This… Was a parade! I. The Victory Parade This is Palm Sunday. A day we celebrate how Jesus paraded his saving authority into Jerusalem. It would be neat to celebrate with a parade. To wave a palm branch. To throw our coats on the ground. To shout Hosanna with the people of Jerusalem. But I don’t have that many palm branches. I didn’t wear a coat. And I’m fresh out of donkeys. But… That’s ok. Because to parade the message of Jesus… We have all we really need. Because to parade the message of Jesus… All we really need is you. The lesson comes from 2 Corinthians 2. It describes a different kind of parade, “But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere.” “Triumphal Procession,” refers to the type of parade that occurs after a military victory. The musicians would march the streets. The king would ride in on a stallion. The solders would carry the victory spoils of the war. Arms full of jewelry. Carts carrying golden statues. Cages carrying the occasional Bengal tiger. But by far…. For a king… The greatest victory spoils of all. Weren’t diamonds. Or gold. Or fine jewels. But people. People who were no longer a part of the warring nation. People who now served the king. TRUTH: We are Jesus’ VICTORY SPOILS! Jesus won us. He went to battle for us. He went to war for us. He went to bloody war on the cross for us! He defeated sin to win us. He defeated shame to win us. He defeated guilt… He defeated hatred… He defeated evil to win us. He defeated death itself to win us to himself! Speaking of death, that’s what the battle cost him. His life. He was a king on the front lines.. Battling to death for us. That’s uncommon to see a king do that. But do you know what’s uncommon. Seeing a king give up his life for his people… And then coming back to life three days later. Friends, Jesus won. You have already been set free. You are a part of his kingdom. You belong to Jesus. You are his victory spoils. II. The Importance of Parade Smells So how do you do parade for Jesus? Read on. For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ… (v.15) I love it! Paul sticks with the parade theme by discussing parade smells. What kind of smells do you usually associated with a parade? Fireworks. Horses. Cotton candy. Gasoline from that replica roadster. The sweat of the trombone player. The hot dog from that guy sitting a couple of sidewalk squares over from you. Paul says, We believers are to be the AROMA of Christ! It’s like walking into a restaurant and you immediately smell delicious oven baked pizza. What happens? Your mouth starts watering. Your tummy starts grumbling. Your wallet starts opening. All because the smell made you think of that delicious people. God wants you to be like that. That you live your life in such away, it makes people think of Jesus. Which leads to a very intriguing question… QUESTION: Can others smell Christ on you? Do those around you know that you follow Jesus? Your family? Your coworkers? Your friends? Can others smell Christ on you? Or do you give off a different kind of fragrance? Maybe you reek of your politics. Or your opinions about the virus. You smell like your ETSY store. Or your latest health kick. Of your self-promotion. Or racism. Or your sexual promiscuity. Or your vehement anger. Maybe your own spouse can’t even smell Jesus on you! If that’s the case, your smell isn’t pleasing to God. You smell of the world. God hates the smell of the world Because the world stinks of sin. Good news? Look at the passage again. It says, “We are the pleasing aroma of Christ.” (v.15) Notice the tense. We are. It doesn’t say, “We were.” Or we “might be.” We “are.” Confronted by the stink of my own life decisions, I ask: How? When we are confronted by our own stinky deeds, how can that be? There was this Febreze commercial where the room was covered in stink. Pet hair everywhere. Old banana peels. Dirty diapers. It looked like it stunk. But…the host took a bottle of Febreze. They sprayed it a few times into the air. And then, led a blindfolded person into the room to see what they smelled. “It smells like fresh linens. Am I in a laundry room?” TRUTH: Jesus covered your stench of sin. He covered your stench of sin. It’s a powerful scent too. You are covered with the fragrance of forgiveness. The perfume of peace. The scent of your Savior. Friends, God has covered you in the smell of his righteousness. Make sure others catch a whiff. III. Different Smells But that means we have to discuss one more very important point. It’s found in verses 15-16: We are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. Because people react differently to the same smell. My grandpa was a farmer. Sometimes when we are driving out in the country and catch a whiff of the cows, it generates pleasing memories of grandpa’s farm. I breathe it in. “Smells refreshing.” Julianna on the other hand? She’ll be plugging her nose. People react differently to the same smell. People react differently to Jesus. TRUTH: Some find the scent of Jesus OFFENSIVE. This was true for Jesus! Some people hated his message – that’s the whole point of Holy Week. The scheme to kill him does! Why? Was the problem Jesus? Was he saying the wrong thing? Nope. The problem was in their selfishly sinful sense of smell. They loved the stench of sinful pride. Jesus was threatening to overpower it. So… They were angry. This will be true for you. Some people won’t like it. They will tell you to keep your Jesus to yourself. They will tell you to stop inviting them to Easter. They will tell you to be quiet. Expect it. But do not quit sharing Jesus. Because while some hate the fragrance of the Gospel… TRUTH: Some find the scent of Jesus GLORIOUS. Think of the crowd chanting Jesus’ name! Many of them saw him as their Savior! When he entered Jerusalem they thought, “Mmmm…Here is that sweet smell of salvation. That fragrance of forgiveness. That powerful perfume of peace. And some of the people you interact with are just waiting for you for the message that your Savior brings. Sometimes it isn’t who you expect. Like Judy. Judy was a nurse down at a local retirement home. I used to visit this home every Friday and deliver a message that was tailored very specifically to the people of that community. For example, I’d focus a lot on end of life issues. And I’d drop any references to Twitter and Facebook. The message was tailored to the senior residents. But Judy came in to give out some medication. Judy sat down and listened to the message. Judy started crying. Afterwards Judy revealed to me that she was just diagnosed with cancer. She was afraid. She was a sinner. And felt far apart from God, but…this message seemed just for her. She was right. Who will God bring the Gospel to through you? IV. The Parade Route So… Where is this parade going? What is the parade route? I remember in the small town I grew up. People were always trying to get to the Zweig’s grill parking lot. It was the best spot in town to watch the parade. People would setup their chairs for the 4th of July parade the night before it happened. It’s like waiting outside the Apple store for the new iPhone. Only, instead of waiting for the latest technology. You’re waiting for a couple of stale Brach’s peppermints. Paul thought he knew where his parade should go. He’s the guy who wrote the lesson from 1 Corinthians. He had been on a mission journey and had made his plans to go and share the message of Jesus in Troas. Paul probably had big plans for Troas. Starting on church in the suburbs. Doing some urban ministry. Maybe even an Early Learning Center. But… Before he could enter, something happened… Paul went down to Troas. During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” (Acts 16:8-9) Did you catch that? God sent Paul a different direction. He re-routed the parade. And…What did Paul do? God, I really think the parade should go through Troas. The streets are wider and more people will see it! Nope. After Paul had seen the vision, he got ready at once to leave for Macedonia…” Paul trusted God’s plan for the parade. If God closed off one street… It was with good reason. Time to go the direction that God opened. TRUTH: When the planned parade ROUTE closes, God opens ANOTHER. I think about that a lot as I reflect on 2020. At the beginning of the year, we had big plans. A full-fledged sanctuary update. A possible 3rd option for jam packed in-person worship. A doubled down focus on ministry in North Raleigh. God had other plans. Instead of the sanctuary update, we got a technology update. Instead of a jam-packed 3rd service, we got a 3rd service out of necessity. Instead of keeping our focus here, we moved forward with plans for a 2nd site in Durham. When God closes one route, he opens another. Is YOUR LIFE where you thought you’d be? In the right career? With the right amount of money? Enjoying the friendships, you planned to enjoy? After 2020, probably not. But guess what. Even if you aren’t where you thought you’d be. You are where God thought you’d be. And he has good reason. He wants you to parade HIS Glory through the streets of your life. In front of the people that are in your life right now! That neighbor you see as you work from home in your backyard. That Amazon delivery driver who frequents your house. That guy on social media who you’ve never even met in real life. They are the parade route. That’s where God wants you to parade HIS glory. V. What Now? Parade! Because there’s nothing worse than a parade that doesn’t start on time. Ask any mom of three who’s had to calm down her cranky toddlers waiting in the cold for the first fire truck to show up. It’s the same thing with this parade! It’s time to get it going. So… Consider this the initial fire engine. It’s Palm Sunday, 2021. It’s time to display Jesus’ glory in your life. Don’t take a nap. Don’t fall asleep. Parade! Don’t take this year off. Don’t chalk it up to COVID. Parade! Don’t be quiet. Don’t be silent. Don’t be subtle! March. Skip Dance. Bounce. Ride the little scooter thing that they do in parades. Whatever it is God has given you to do. Wherever it is God has given you to do. For whomever it is God has given you to do it. Parade Christ’s glory! Shout it with me: Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest! Amen.
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October 2022
Pastor Phil Kiecker
and his wife, Julianna love serving the community of North Raleigh.
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