“The Master Has Need”

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord

St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, Brooklyn Center, MN

Sunday, March 28, 2021

Today, we gather to celebrate the final Sunday of Lent, the beginning of the Holy Week, the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. We gather to celebrate our Lord’s final days before he was crucified. We gather to celebrate the Palm Sunday. His entry into the city of Jerusalem was accompanied with pomp and pageantry, with ceremonial splendor and magnificent display. It was a period of joy and triumph, but we all know it only lasted for a few days before it turned to anguish and sorrow. The very crowd we heard shout, “Hosanna” in the Gospel, turned around to shout, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” 

Have you ever wondered why there was such a dramatic change in the mood of people in Jerusalem from Palm Sunday to Good Friday? Why the sudden change from Hosanna to the Son of David to crucify him? In both Greek and Hebrew, “Hosanna” means “Please save us,” or “save us, now!” It is a command or call to bring about or cause salvation. So, as Jesus makes his entrance into Jerusalem, the crowd of people saw him as someone who has come to fight, so they beckon on him to save them. A few days after he is arrested, their emotion quickly switched from cheer to jeer: “crucify him, crucify him!” Why the sudden change of emotion and interest? One answer among others is EXPECTATION! When people are excited and hopeful that their expectations are about to be realized and those expectations suddenly crashed to the ground, they become not only terribly sad but also angry. 

The Jews who cheered Jesus and shouted “Hosanna” hoped that Jesus was going to be  a warrior king like King David. They thought that God’s anointed One would like King David lead them to battle their enemies— Roman rulers, defeat them and secure the freedom they had longed for a very long time. But the moment Jesus got arrested and faced trial, the Jews in Jerusalem turned against him. Their frustration did not just happen. It has been building up and only reached its crescendo on Good Friday. Jesus indeed is the Messiah of the Jews and the Messiah of the world, but the Jews were expecting a different kind of king and messiah. They are hoping for a messiah who would live by the principle and philosophy of “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth,” instead they got a Messiah who teaches “If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn the other cheek as well” (Lk. 6:29). They wanted a vengeful king but got a merciful one instead. They desired a brash, cocky and self-assertive king that will demolish their enemies, instead received a meek and compassionate one. They wanted a power-drunk, authoritarian and mean spirited messiah who will show no mercy on their enemies, instead the Messiah they found is trying to win over their enemies with love. They longed for a messiah who will give speeches and tell the Romans how terribly bad they were, instead they got one who called Jewish religious leaders and scholars hypocrites. They want a messiah who will speak no evil of their land but got one who says, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her” (Lk. 13:34). Because of all these and many more, they become disappointedly angry and resolved to get rid of the “weak” and “powerless” messiah in their midst. They swore to kill Jesus by all means. 

So, the questions for us today is this: what do we expect God to do for us? What kind of a Messiah do we expect? When God does not answer your prayer the way you want him to, how do you react? Do you get upset with God? Some people get so upset with God for not answering their prayers and thereafter walk away both from God and from the Church. To such people, Judas Iscariot is their model. But instead of asking what we want God to do for us, why don’t we turn the question around today and ask ourselves, what does God want me to do?

Jesus sent two of his disciples into the village to bring him an expensive brand new colt, a colt that no one had ever used. He also told them that if anyone should ask you why you are taking the colt, tell them that “The Master has need of it.” You know, it would have been a different story if the owners of the colt had refused to give it up. The Gospel did not tell us the name or names of the owners of the colt. But does it matter? What matters is that they were kind enough to let Jesus use their colt. By so doing, they contributed something signifiant, something that enabled Jesus to ride into Jerusalem to complete and accomplish God’s assignment for him. The accomplishment of that task is what has brought us victory in Christ, friendship with God, grace in the Spirit, and salvation through faith and accompanying good deeds. So, no matter how unknown or unrecognized you may be, you can still play a significant role in the unfolding of God’s plan. Check this out! Jesus needs something from you, and from me just as he needed the colt. He needs something from each of us for the sake of furthering God’s Kingdom. Each of us has something in our lives that if given back to God could, like the colt, move Jesus and his Gospel further down the road. Do as the owners of the colt did. Don’t hold back. Don’t count yourself out. Sign yourself in!