Magyar Egyház, 1974 (53. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1974-03-01 / 3. szám
8 MAGYAR EGYHÁZ MAGYAR CHURCH PALM SUNDAY “And the crowds that went before him and that followed him shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed be he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:9) Very rarely do we find such a vivid display of courage on the part of a man as on Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem—on Palm Sunday. The scribes and Jesus’s enemies sought Him, and struggled to find reasons so He could be convicted. They were resorting to many means in order to justify the murder of Christ. An average man would have seen these as warning signs and turned around. Christ did not come into Jerusalem secretly, during the night, or by way of the back road. Instead, He entered Jerusalem majestically in broad daylight, viewed by hundreds who shouted “Hosanna. Blessed be he who comes in the name of the Lord.” The triumphant entry into Jerusalem was the greatest sign of bravery on Jesus’ part, who dared to look, life and death, friends and enemies, squarely in the eye. He knew His earthly life was coming to an end, but love filled His heart, and it is this love which carried Him from Palm Sunday to Good Friday. Christ’s entry into Jerusalem caused sharp divisions among the people. On one hand, were those who regarded their Master as the Messiah, shouting “Hosanna”. On the other hand, were His enemies, who perhaps were filled with more hatred than ever before. It is wonderful to speak about the disciples, for even the Bible mentions them first. Christ’s disciples were those who, for three years, walked with their Master, and who saw this end of the road as the time when His reign shall be established. Green branches, flowers, and palms were laid on the road before Him. This was the way they revealed their allegience to Christ — that they were HIS disciples. They had no doubts, nor did they ask in whispers, “who is this man?” Peter answered that question: “Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God!” The cheering crowd, however, did not only consist of His closedisciples, but those that witnessed His miracles, and heard Him speak, whose souls felt the impact and whose hearts testified to the fact that this man could only be the Son of God—-the Saviour. And so the praises resounded more and more— "Hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.” But when Christ entered into Jerusalem, there were separations among the people. As the gospel of Matthew describes the incident: “all the city was stirred.” Others asked, “Who is this?” as Jesus passed them in the crowd. But how many people remained cautious, silent; yet in their hearts burned the flame of hatred. No matter how good the man was, whether he be Christ or not, they had no good opinion of Him. Mockingly they asked eacli other, “can anything good come out of Nazareth?” They, along with many men today, could only see the things Christ did against the law, such as healing on the Sabbath, and performing such works that no man had ever done. These were the reasons why Christ’s enemies despised Him. On Palm Sunday, they could not reveal their deadly hatred toward Him, but we know that it was their voices during His trial that demanded His death: “Crucify Him!” No doubt there were others who were not on either side. They were not among His followers, nor among His enemies, — they were indifferent. They did not know that one day everyone must stand before Him in judgement. “Who is not with me is against me,” said Jesus. Those who are not Christ’s followers are Satan’s, no matter how hard the man tries to justify his indifference or neutrality. Perhaps trials await you, also: friends may desert you, and sinful hands may want to crucify you. But after Good Friday comes the triumphant Easter, — after the humiliation, the glorification. The Kingship of Jesus Christ was not destroyed by ceasars, by dictators, or political establishments. Our Lord and Saviour is King even today. His rule has no beginning or end. His name is praised by people around the world. Why don’t you, also, join His followers in proclaiming, “Hosanna to the Son of David, blessed is he who conies in the name of the •Lord. Hosanna in the highest.” D. Abraham
