When the Messiah Comes

I love living in Victoria. Every morning, I take a walk through Beacon Hill Park, out onto Dallas Road, around Ogden Point, and then back in along the Inner Harbour.

It’s a beautiful walk. Beacon Hill Park is always green, and this time of year it overflows with beautiful flowers of all sizes and shapes. And the ocean … every day it presents a different face – sometimes dark and brooding, at other times smooth and blue.

And the winter … I don’t even feel that’s the correct term for that season here in Victoria. I have pictures of cherry blossoms in January, and people cutting the lawn. And of course, I sent those back to family and friends in southern Ontario, just to let them know what they’re missing.

I don’t know how many times Judy and I have said to each other, “We should have moved here years ago!”

You see, in southern Ontario, winter is no fun at all. There are no greens … everything is in shades of white, brown and gray …

And when you step off the curb, you might find your foot mired in three inches of dirty water and slush; or even more treacherous, the sheet of smooth sheer ice, hidden under half an inch of powder snow.

But, I need to tell you, I don’t so much blame winter for being winter. That’s just the way it is.

What really annoys me is what I call “False Spring … False Spring!!”

You see, what always happens is, sometime in March, you get some really nice days – sunny and warm. And you foolishly say to yourself, “Ahhhh … isn’t it wonderful – Spring has arrived!”

The sun shines strong and clear. The earth gets warm. The crocuses begin to push up through the soil. The buds appear on the trees. Maybe you spot your first robin of the season. You put away the warm jacket and the gloves. You begin to think about taking a trip to the nursery to look at the plants. You begin to plan out the garden for the year.

And then out of the Arctic, comes the polar vortex! Night after night, it’s freezing cold. Maybe there’s a last blinding snowfall with howling winds, or as happened this year, an ice storm taking down the power for hundreds of thousands of people.

The robin is gone. The buds on the trees and shrubs are frozen. And you go muttering into the closet to find the warm jacket and the gloves you’d stored away!

It happens every year. It’s like Lucy pulling the football out of the way, just before Charlie Brown goes to kick it!

False Spring … false Spring …

A friend of mine always calls Palm Sunday, “False Easter.”

He’s borrowing, of course, from what I was just talking about, “false Spring.”

And so my friend calls Palm Sunday, false Easter ..

It seems like Easter for awhile – we have great singing and great music, there’s a good spirit, we wave palm branches. We sing songs of praise, “All glory, laud and honour,” “Hosanna loud hosanna” … it’s fun and joyful … like Easter …

And then the day drags on … and then on Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday … there is a cold blast out of the centers of power – both religious and political – in Jerusalem. The nights are cold. The plot thickens.

A friend of Jesus betrays him. A friend of Jesus denies him. All his friends abandon him. Soldiers intrude upon his private place of prayer, “You’re under arrest!”

The word spreads over the city, “Jesus has been arrested.” … and he suffered under Pontius Pilate

Cover your plants … bring in the pets … it’s not Easter … false Easter …

Now, don’t you think someone should tell those people in the Palm Sunday parade as they move into Jerusalem on that bright day – shouldn’t somebody tell them what’s really going on? They don’t have a clue! But they’re so enthusiastic and so excited and they’re singing and shouting and waving palm branches and laying them on the path; taking off their cloaks and putting them on the ground for Jesus’ donkey to walk over them “Hosanna in the highest!”

Shouldn’t somebody tell them?

What about you … are you going to tell them?

You see, the only sentence those ancient Hebrew peasants said in all their lives that makes any sense to them is this, “When the Messiah comes … when the Messiah comes!”

They say it when they see a disabled person on the street, “I wish I could help you … but when the Messiah comes, everyone will be healthy and whole … there will be no disabled people.”

They say it to the house where the children are hungry, “I wish we could help you, but when the Messiah comes, everybody will be well fed!”

They say it to the girl assaulted by the Roman soldier, “Now, now dear, I know … I know … I know … but when the Messiah comes … no violence …”

They’ve been saying it all their lives, “When the Messiah comes” and now they say, “The Messiah has come … and it’s Jesus!”

Now, are you going to tell them to be quiet ... it’s not Easter … I’m not going to tell them …

I know they’re wrong … they’re wrong …

What they’re expecting and what Jesus is going to bring – very, very different – but are you going to tell them? I’m not going to tell them!

You can walk up to them with your realism and your cynicism, and with your negative attitude, and say, “What’s the matter with you people? This stuff is just all wrong! You’ve got the Messiah all wrong. The Messiah is not Santa Claus!”

Go ahead … but I’m not …

In my neighbourhood when I was growing up, Mrs. Farrow lived in a small rundown house. When I was a teenager, Mrs. Farrow, who was elderly was caring for three young grandchildren. Her daughter had taken off. Her son-in-law was gone. She was left with these three grandchildren. She was so poor, neighbours would sometimes drop off food at her place. I don’t know how she got by.

Well you remember, in 1974, we had our first national lottery in Canada – it was to help pay for the ‘76 Olympics. Well, Mrs. Farrow had taken some of her hard earned money and she bought herself a lottery ticket. And the day of the lottery, she was out on the street talking to everyone. She said to everyone who went by, “I’ve going to have the tv on. I’m waiting until they broadcast the numbers for who won the lottery. You can win a million dollars! And I have a ticket! And soon they’ll be broadcasting the winner. And I’ve been praying all week that I would win the lottery! I told my grandchildren, “You can bring your friends over. We’re going to have a feast. We’re going to have a party. You know, they’ve never been able to bring their friends over for a party before …”

“I know I’ve got the winning ticket. I’ve prayed for it! I’ve got the winning ticket right here.”

Now, what I want you to do, because nobody in our neighbourhood could do it, is go up to Mrs. Farrow and look her right in the eye, and say, “Do you have any idea how slim your chances are?”

I didn’t tell her … nobody else did either … we just let her get the bad news herself … of course she didn’t win …

But her … all over the neighbourhood … happy she’d soon be able to have a party for her grandchildren and their friends … I wasn’t going to tell her … no …

Maybe Jesus is the one – it’s his parade?

“Jesus, why don’t you just turn around and tell all those people what the truth is in this? Tell them on Friday – you will be dead. You can do it softly. You’re a good speaker. Let them down easy. Put some cushions on the floor. You don’t have to be harsh or cruel, but gently tell them they’re on the wrong track. This is not really the way it’s going to be!”

Just make it clear to those people waving palm branches – there have been Messiahs come … and Messiahs go – and Messiahs come, and Messiahs go. You’ve been in this parade before … and you know what happens …

Within a week there are people trampling on those palm branches – getting their food at the market, going home and muttering, “Maybe next time …”

“Why don’t you just tell them? They’ve been there before … they’ll be there again … but nothing is going to change!”

Do you remember February 11th, 1990? Do you remember Nelson Mandela, after almost 20 years in prison – February 11th, 1990 – he was set free. And then May 10th, 1994, Nelson Mandela became the first black president of South Africa. And the country was so happy and cheerful and full of hope. Everybody was excited.

Nelson Mandela – president! Apartheid is over! It’s over!

And people left their little tents, they left their shanties. They left their little huts. They left their little tin lean-to’s. And they went up to Capetown … and up to Pretoria … and up to Johannesburg. And they just gathered in these places of government.

“Mr. Mandela is going to give us all nice houses. Mr. Mandela is going to give us all plumbing. Mr. Mandela is going to give us all electricity. Mr. Mandela is going to give us all food. Mr. Mandela … Mr. Mandela!”

And Mr. Mandela said, “We have a whole new future ahead of us … but it’s going to take time. We must put our children in school. We must learn good work habits. We must discipline ourselves for the future that’s ours.”

And they said, “Oh … Mr. Mandela has to talk that way because he’s politician … but we know… we know … we’ll all get houses and electricity and plumbing and food … Mr. Mandela?? … Mr. Mandela …”

A lot of people won’t travel to South Africa these days. People there are just so disappointed … there’s so much violence and crime … Mr. Mandela? … Jesus? …

Jesus … why don’t you just turn around and tell them … to hush! Tell them to be quiet!

And Jesus said, “I will not. I will not! Because if they are quiet, these stones will shout! Because the truth is irrepressible. Hope is irrepressible. The opposition to the good news of God will never succeed!

God has never been without witness in the world … and it is true … there is a new hope … a new joy … a new life … a new salvation for the world!

Now … I know … this little parade coming down the hill from the Mount of Olives and across the Kidron valley and up the hill through the gate of the old city … on the world stage it is nothing! It doesn’t even get a sentence in the history books. It is nothing! … a little group of peasants and Jesus … but that’s it … and we’re here … because of that … we’re here … with millions of others around the world …

“Hosanna in the highest heaven!’ Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!”