Palm Sunday Unity

Hope is a powerful unifier.  People at political rallies feel a sense of kinship and camaraderie.  They are united by a cause or a person who promises to make things better.  There is a unifying vision for the future that connects people.  Sports fans who are complete strangers will often become dearest friends as they root for or celebrate their team’s victory.  As Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, the scene was probably not all that different.  With one voice they shouted and cheered for an alternate future that they all desired - a desire that unified them in the refrain: “Hosanna!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”

We celebrated Palm Sunday yesterday with greater understanding than the people who lined the road into Jerusalem 2000 years ago.  But we are just as united in our desire for a different future.  Together as God’s people, we long for the day when Jesus rides back into this world to bring restoration and wholeness.  That desire should bind us together with cords much thicker than those that bind political allies or people with a common rooting interest.  Our common hope makes us brothers and sisters.  Together with one voice we say, “Hosanna! Come, Lord Jesus!”