“Hosanna!”

Meditation on Matthew 21:1-11

March 29, 2015

  “When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, ‘Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, “The Lord needs them.” And he will send them immediately.’ This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying,
‘Tell the daughter of Zion,
Look, your king is coming to you,
   humble, and mounted on a donkey,
     and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’
The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting,
‘Hosanna to the Son of David!
   Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!’
When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, ‘Who is this?’ The crowds were saying, ‘This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.’

***

   What leads a church to close, while others, with similar challenges, continue year after year? Why do some small, rural churches go on worshiping the Lord, engaging in fellowship, prayer and Bible study, and mission and outreach to their community, even if they have only 25 active members, while other small congregations decide not to be a church anymore?

     This is what I was thinking about on my way home from a presbytery committee meeting on Thursday. As part of a visioning team of teaching elders and ruling elders, discerning a new design for our presbytery, we had talked about some problems in our presbytery. This included a brief discussion of a small church that has voted to close its doors. This is despite the fact that they still have resources, including active members with gifts and talents. And they still have a community with needs, which presents opportunities for even a small congregation to serve. The people on my committee were shaking their heads sadly and asking, “Why?”

     This isn’t the first church that has closed in our presbytery since I arrived 4 years ago. I can think of several other small churches that, after struggling with dwindling membership and finances, decided they would struggle no longer. I know, also, that the trend of smaller churches on the decline isn’t new or unique to our denomination.

      I have heard some people blame church closures on aging membership. Few young people are joining churches, they say, so the churches decline naturally as our older members pass away. But that doesn’t explain why some churches are actually growing and many of them in the younger demographic. Others say it’s a financial problem--that people don’t have the money to give or if they do, the practice of tithing or giving 10% of one’s income to the Lord has gone by the wayside. While it is true that giving is down in our denomination and presbytery, this is not necessarily the reason why small churches close. In some small congregations, the average per member giving may be higher than the average per member giving in larger congregations.

    Others say it’s all the controversial issues being argued at the denominational level, stirring conflict locally and hurting membership and giving. Conflict, if not handled biblically, with prayer and loving, respectful conversation, can hurt relationships and divide a church. But conflict at the denominational level doesn’t usually result in church closures. The home-grown kind of conflict usually does more damage to a local church.

    I think, truly, it’s not any of these things--not finances, membership or conflict--that really bring a congregation to decide to end. If you think about it, the earliest “church” had no building and very little money or material resources. The first “church” was Jesus and the 12 disciples called to be “fishers of people.” They didn’t have one place of worship, praise and prayer. They moved from house to house and town to town, ministering in small groups or pairs. They were sent to cast out demons, heal the sick and call people to repentance, for the Kingdom of God was drawing near! Jesus told his would-be followers that if they wanted to be his disciples, they had to leave their families and homes behind -- let the “dead bury the dead!” He told them not to bring extra clothes, shoes, tunics. The Son of Man had no home; no place to lay his head. And if you think the Church from the very beginning didn’t have many conflicts from within and without to overcome, then you haven’t read the gospels or the book of Acts very closely.

   What I believe kills a congregation is a problem of the heart, mind and soul. A church struggles to continue when it lacks hope and joy, when it has, instead, an attitude of doom and gloom. Apathy can also spread like a disease and stop God’s work in its tracks--when people turn away from the Lord, and stop caring for one another and the needs of their community, and stop listening to God’s Word. Worst of all is when a church lacks faith. People stop believing that they are a church and that their congregation has a future together. They begin to think that God can no longer use them for His glory and His Kingdom purposes because of their financial challenges, small membership, building or other problems, including struggles with sin. They may forget that they are as strong as the Spirit that guides them and fills them with gifts, empowering them to walk in Christ’s ways. The Church is not a human institution or organization. It’s not a building or a place at all! We are the Church, Christ’s new Creation! We are set free from sin and death! Saved by God’s mercy and grace!

    

***

      This certainty of who we are as God’s Children, forgiven and set free, and the hope of our salvation through His Son--this is what is beginning to dawn on the people of Israel in our gospel reading today. They have listened to his teaching. His authority has astounded them! They watched him heal the sick and cast out demons. Never has anything like this been seen in Israel! Twice, they witness his miraculous feeding of the multitude with a few loaves and a couple of fish. And now Jesus enters Jerusalem, riding on a donkey, beginning at the Mount of Olives. It’s all coming together for them! It’s an “aha!” moment! He must be the Messiah, after all these miracles and now this, his appearing at the traditional location where the Messiah is expected to appear, riding on a donkey, fulfilling the prophecies of Zechariah and Isaiah. The triumphal entry is recalled in all 4 gospels, with slightly different details.  In each one, the crowd follows Jesus, riding an animal that two disciples have “borrowed” from a villager at Jesus’ request. The entire city is in an uproar. Some watch in amazement, asking one another, “Who is this?!” Others believe he is a prophet. But many more are shouting, “Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord!” A large number of them run ahead of Jesus to joyfully welcome him by laying down leafy branches cut from trees and spreading their cloaks on the road. Although they will turn against him when Jesus is brought to trial-- they will call for Pilate to “Crucify him”--on this day of triumph, many believe he is the one they have been waiting for, the one who has brought them what they need most of all --God’s salvation.

    “Hosanna!!” they shout, meaning, “Save us!” “Hosanna to the Son of David!...Hosanna in the Highest Heaven!”

    

***

    Friends, we live as new Creations in Christ, and we will live eternally with God because of the work of our humble Savior. He was sent from God to fulfill the words of the prophets of old. We don’t need to have 1,000 members or worship in the Crystal Cathedral to be Christ’s Church. We don’t even need a building or a piece of land! We need three things--His Spirit (and we have that) and faith that Christ has made us His Church when He laid down His life for our sakes. And we need, most of all, His Salvation, which is a gift of God’s mercy and grace!

    Let us never be like some other churches that see the glass as half empty and feel they don’t have enough of something--members or young people or money or … (fill in the blank)! Let us, by faith, with gratitude to the Lord for what He has done, always continue to be the Church God has called us to be. We have many gifts, talents and resources. We have opportunities to minister and serve locally and around the globe. And we have Christ’s compassion and hearts willing to share from our abundance with those in need.

      No matter how big or small we are in membership, no matter how rich or poor we are in material possessions, we are the Church and Jesus is our head. We are God’s Children, saved by grace so that the Lord may use us for His glory.

     Let us love God and neighbor with all heart, soul, mind and might, bearing witness to our humble Savior. Let us wait for our King of Kings in joyful anticipation, like the crowd on the Mount of Olives, who shouted on that day of triumph, “Hosanna! (Save us!) Hosanna to the Son of David!...Hosanna in the Highest Heaven!”

    

Let us pray.

Holy One, we give you our thanks and praise for sending us Jesus to be our Messiah, our King, our Savior! Thank you for your love, mercy and grace that led you to forgive us for all our sins through your Son’s death on a cross! Thank you for your Spirit that illumines your Word to us, so that we have all that we need for our salvation and to be Your Church. Lead us to walk in Christ’s loving, righteous ways, to be people of gratitude and grace, never falling into the trap of negative thinking or seeing the glass as half empty, instead of seeing, by faith, our cups filled to overflowing--all of our needs as a Church and individuals provided for every day. Forgive us if we have focused too much on material possessions, finances and the appearance of our church and not enough on ministry to the community and our world. Reveal your will to us and help us to quickly obey. Enable us to trust in your abundance so that we give more generously and love the things of this world a little less. Let us see with eyes of eternity so that all matters to us is your salvation and sharing our hope and promise in you. Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest heaven! Through your Son we pray! Amen.