Isaiah 50:4-7 / Philippians 2:6-11 / Luke 22:14 – 23:56
The full title of today’s liturgical celebration is: “Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord”.
So it is not just Palm Sunday or just Passion Sunday. It is both, with one leading to the other.
We began with the Palm Sunday gospel passage of the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem.
Then we heard a long gospel passage about the suffering and death of Jesus.
The contrast between the two passages is obvious.
And as we think about it, so are our lives – there is joy as well as sorrow, success as well as failure, peace as well as chaos, health as well as sickness.
So the contrast between the two gospel passages of today is also a reflection of our experience of life.
But as much as there is a contrast, there is also a similarity.
When Jesus made His triumphant entry into Jerusalem, the people hailed him as king.
When He was crucified on the cross, there was a notice with an inscription: This is the King of the Jews.
So in life and in death, Jesus held on to His identity as the King of kings.
And in our contrasting experiences of life, may we always have our eyes fixed on Jesus, so that we know who we are and that we belong to Him and that He will always be with us.
For now, let us be with Jesus and be with Him in His suffering and death, and keep faith in Him as we await for Him to raise us to new life.