Lent Day 40 (Palm Sunday): We Are an Offering (VII)

 “Let us all become a true and faithful branch

On the vine Jesus,

By accepting Him in our lives as it pleases Him to come:

As the Truth to be told;

As the Life to be lived;

As the Light to be lighted;

As the Love to be loved;

As the Way to be walked;

As the Joy to be given;

As the Peace to be spread;

As the Sacrifice to be offered,

In our families and in our neighborhood.”

Mother Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)

The above exhortation was spoken by a follower of Christ -- Mother Teresa -- who was filled with joy and gratitude for a Savior who offered His all for the sake of sinful, despairing humanity. Gripped with conviction and hope, she lived a life that mirrored the prayer found in Dwight Liles' lenten chorus We Are an Offering:

"We lift our voices, we lift our hands

We lift our lives up to You

We are an offering.

Lord, use our voices; Lord, use our hands;

Lord, use our lives, they are Yours;

We are an offering.

All that we have, all that we are, all that we hope to be,

We give to You."

Today is the fortieth morning on our lenten journey.

Today is the last Sunday before Easter.

Today is Palm Sunday.

"The King of Glory comes, the nation rejoices.

Open the gates before Him, lift up your voices.

Who is this King of glory? What shall we call Him?

He is Immanuel, the promised of ages.

In all of Galilee, in city or village,

He goes among His people, curing their illness.

He gave His life for us, the pledge of salvation;

He took upon Himself the sin of the nations."

Extracted from The King of Glory of Comes, Willard F. Jabusch

On this day, we commemorate the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem -- the place where the events of Holy Week took place. Many individuals were ecstatic to welcome Him into this important city because they had heard of all His exploits . . .

. . . the lame were made to walk

. . . the blind were made to see

. . . the dead were made alive

. . . the sick were made well

In anticipation of what Jesus would do for their needs and wants, the people went out to meet Him with lavish doses of recognition, reverence, and respect. Hungry, naked, crippled, heartbroken individuals could not wait to witness or experience one of His miracles for themselves.

Understandably, "Hosanna!" was heard here; "Hosanna!" was heard there. Garments were placed on the ground and palm branches were waved in His honor. Shouts erupted from the crowd hailing Jesus King, Messiah, and Lord.

But what happened when they found out that Jesus had a different hope in mind for them than what they originally thought or craved? Did they surrender their earthbound hopes to Him?

And for us, before we jump on the self-righteous bandwagon, what happens to us when our earthly hopes are shattered and we come face to face with the reality of the Cross?

Might we ponder further as we look at one final phrase from our lenten chorus?

All that we hope to be . . .

Are we not tired of dashed hopes, broken dreams, rejection letters, incurable illnesses, unexpected breakups, and the like? At those moments, we readily put the blame on our own heads or seek desperately to improve our situations by taking matters in our own hands. Despite walls of pride and self-gratification erected to reach our hoped-for results, we all-too-often find ourselves dissatisfied and despairing. 

Why? Could it be that God allows those desired goals to remain unmet so that we can learn to hope for and receive our true identity in Christ instead of our falsified, fanciful, manmade ideals? Could it be that the dissatisfaction that invades our hearts is meant to unearth an uncommon craving for Jesus, the hope of glory?

The Lord instructs us through the prophet Isaiah that human strength is not enough to bring to fruition what we have set out to become; in fact, “even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:30-31, NIV).

Therefore, Jesus came. 

His coming, however, was different from what people were expecting -- “He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11, NIV). 

He came as a human baby. 
He came as a homeless traveler. 
He came as a lowly shepherd, riding on a donkey. 

The same people who waved palm branches and shouted, “Hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” felt free a few days later to hurl, “Crucify Him!” 

What about you and me?
Is Jesus the King we hail in our hearts? 
Is humble, patient, generous, forgiving, and loving Christ-likeness the hope of our hearts?

As we celebrate Palm Sunday today, may we welcome Jesus and wave our hearts to Him, declaring that He alone has the power to deliver our hearts from the shackles of our earthbound hopes and dreams! As we move forward with this Lenten season, may we meekly lay down at the foot of the cross the cherished aspirations of the flesh that pale in comparison to the glorious riches of Heaven!

And as we continue to prepare ourselves to meet our glorious King throughout our lifelong Lent, may we pray that God would fill us with the daring to dream for a stronger faith when there seems to be no use, the courage to finish the race of the faith when discouragement seeks to test our resolve, the boldness to refuse to wallow in self-pity when our world seems to be falling apart, the wisdom to wait actively for His ultimate good, and the genuine heart to offer our hopes to our King! 

Ride On, King Jesus; ride on the streets of our hearts.

O Jesus, Vine of Heaven,

Your love supplies a blessed cup of sacrifice.

O Jesus, Gentle Healer,

Your fatal wounds provide healing for our souls.

O Jesus, Conquering King,

To Your cross and crown we look and live.

O Jesus, Tree of Life,

Guide us to be rooted, grafted, and built on Thee.

In Your precious name, O Christ, we pray.

Amen!