Maundy Thursday - 2011

Psalm 118: 25-26 - O Lord, save us; O Lord, grant us success. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you.

Often when we experience some great emotional event, or are faced with a sudden and desperate situation, certain words are simply blurted out. A child may call out for their mother. In times of danger it may be a simple cry of “Help!” When reunited with someone we feared injured or worse, an “I love you!” In times of joy and triumph, we yell – “Yes!” Whatever the situation, at times our joy or fear cannot be contained and our emotions are expressed with words.

The opening words of the 25^th verse of Psalm 118 express a similar heartfelt emotion. Our English Bible gives us the full translation of a Hebrew word with which we are all familiar, the word hosanna – which means, “Save, now!” It was sung by the Jews every year at their Passover. It was shouted by the crowds when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. It has been sung for hundreds of years by Christians just before they receive the Lord’s Supper. Tonight, as we gather to celebrate the Lord’s Supper, as we remember Jesus’ last supper before his death, and as we remember his death as our Savior and substitute, we sing those words, “Hosanna in the highest!” It is still our passionate plea, and it is still our joyful blessing.

What are we proclaiming when we say or sing hosanna? Listen again to the psalmist’s words: “O LORD, save us; O LORD, grant us success.” Hosanna is a plea that the Lord would save us. But our simple English translation can’t quite capture the passion, emotion, and even the desperation in this plea. There is a feeling here of being trapped in a corner with no way of escape. Danger and evil are pressing closer and closer; it’s smothering us, about to overcome us. All we can think about is being someplace far away, where we are free, where no danger or evil can be seen. We long to be saved, to be safe—not just protected but free from any threat at all. “Hosanna! Lord save us!” is our passionate plea.

And Hosanna certainly fits the Passover celebration, doesn’t it? Before the first Passover, pharaoh made Israel’s slavery in Egypt more and more painful. He refused to listen to Moses. He refused to be moved by the plagues God sent. He kept tightening his grip on the Israelites lives. They were helpless to do anything about their situation. A desperate prayer of “Lord, save us!” was their only hope. It shouldn’t surprise us, then, that this psalm was sung as part of the Passover celebration year after year.

Hosanna also fits Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, although not for the same reasons held by many in the crowd that day. Many considered the rule and control of Roman power as the iron grip from which they wanted to be free. Many of them were looking for an earthly Messiah. But there was something else that was holding this nation captive, something far more serious - the hand of sin and unbelief. This is what Israel really needed to be set free from. And these evils not only had Israel, but the whole world, caught in a stranglehold from which only Jesus could release them.

So what about us? Do we have reason for such a plea? Do we feel our situation to be so serious that we could, that we should, cry “Hosanna! Lord, save us!”? Often times, I’m not so sure we sense the danger our present-day struggle with sin brings. But all we need to do is look at its self-destructive power! We see the young church member who is enticed by sex or drugs, and before you know it, it threatens to rob him of his life with God. We see the middle-aged member whose selfish career ambitions and love of money is driving him toward an early heart attack, neglect of his children, or an early end to his marriage. We see the active family whose obsession with recreation or sports threatens to become a rival god, and slowly drains away their spiritual life. We see the pious church member so confident in their own morality that they don’t feel any real need for the grace of God, putting their spiritual well-being in great danger. All of us face these temptations and are often led astray by sin. Sin corrupts and affects each of our lives. And it brings trouble and sorrow into our lives.

We certainly have reason to sing our hosannas with a genuine sense of urgency as we prepare to come to our Savior’s Supper today. It was not some random decision that led our forefathers to bring these words, sung for so many centuries at the celebration of the Passover, into the Christian liturgy of the Lord’s Supper. “Hosanna in the highest!” “Lord, save us!” was their passionate plea– as it is ours tonight. We need to be rescued from our sins. We need help!

Now, when help is in sight, our pleas for help often begin to take on a different tone. Anxiety and desperation begin to give way to a sense of relief and even joy when the rescue workers arrive. So it is with our song of “Hosanna in the highest.” That song is also our joyful blessing. “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD.”

Of course the one who comes in the name of the Lord is Jesus. And when we “bless” Jesus, we aren’t blessing him in the sense that we have anything to give him or that we have any way to improve his life. Our blessing of God is an expression of praise, our way of acknowledging the good and gracious things he has done.

In reality, the blessings are all ours, because Jesus is the one who comes in response to our cries of “Hosanna! Lord, save us!” He is the one who came on the heavenly Father’s true mission: forgiveness for our sins and rescue from death. Divine approval had been given to Jesus at his baptism and on the Mount of Transfiguration. There, God the Father declared, “This is my Son whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” Divine approval was stamped upon everything Jesus said and suffered during Holy Week. Proof, evidence that the Lord has saved us was powerfully demonstrated with his resurrection from the dead. The events of this week in Jesus’ life are not merely dramatic and moving stories. They tell us that Jesus was successful. He accomplished our salvation. He won the forgiveness of our sins. They assure us of God’s love for us! They tell us that by Jesus’ death and resurrection, the Lord has answered our pleas to save us from our sins!

It’s not hard, then, to see the connection with the Supper we are about to celebrate. Each one of us is burdened with our sins this evening. They weigh us down, try to drive us to despair, and threaten to smother us in guilt. We cry “Hosanna! Lord, save us!” and then what do we see? We lift our eyes to the cross and see Jesus take those sins on himself – suffering and dying to pay for them all. We lift up our eyes to the Communion table and see that in the Lord’s Supper we are remembering that death.

But there is even more! For the Lord’s Supper is more than just a memorial feast, more than a remembrance. We lift up our eyes to the Communion table and we see Jesus is coming! The Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, is coming right here, right now, to assure us that he has taken our sins away. Aren’t you filled with anticipation? Don’t you sense the significance of what is about to happen? In this very special way, Jesus comes to us and gives and assures us that our sins have all been forgiven. He speaks to each one of us personally.

No, he doesn’t come riding down the aisle on a donkey, but Jesus’ body and blood are present. In a miraculous way, that our human logic cannot fully understand, we receive Jesus true body and blood together with the bread and wine. And when we receive it, he says, “See how your sins have been removed. There is no offense, no guilt, that stands between us anymore.” With his own body and blood he take you in his arms and embraces you; assuring you that your sins are forgiven.

Certainly then, you see the certainty being offered to you here at the Communion table! When Jesus comes to you in his Supper, he still is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. He still comes on his Father’s mission. If Jesus tells you here that your sins are forgiven, then they are forgiven. If Jesus tells you here that God loves you, then God loves you. If Jesus claims you here as his own, then you are his own. That is the joyful blessing he brings with him tonight!

Yes, we recognize the terrible sinners we are. Sin affects our lives. We struggle against sin every day. Its guilt weighs on us. Our sins move us to cry out to God to save us…and our cries for help are answered. Jesus came to earth to be born a humble baby, to live and die as our substitute to save us. We have been forgiven and now our Savior continues to come to us again and again with his saving gifts every time we receive his Holy Supper. The Lord is here. He is here to answer our passionate please. He is here to give us joy. Forgiveness is ours. Jesus assures us of that fact. Hosanna in the highest! Amen.