All Glory, Laud, And Honor
Preaching
The Life Of Christ And The Death Of A Loved One
Crafting The Funeral Homily
A Funeral Homily For Palm Sunday
We are at that time of year when we observe Palm Sunday, the holy day which ushers in the awesome events of Holy Week. This is the day that Jesus rode upon a simple animal and entered the holy city of Jerusalem accompanied by shouts of acclamation. He was proclaimed as King of kings by those who spread their garments and branches of palm along his way. Today Jesus is hailed as King, but before the week is out, Jesus will be crucified on a cross.
In our churches across this land and around the world, Christians gather to reenact that holy event. We gather the green, supple, freshly cut palm branches to be blessed and distributed. Gladly waving the branches of palm, we process into the church singing ''All glory, laud, and honor'' to Christ, our Redeemer King (The Hymnal 1982, 154, 155). Upon our lips are words of praise. We hail Jesus as our king; the branches are signs of victory.
All this is very close to the picture we are given in the seventh chapter of Revelation (or visions) of what heaven is like.
In Revelation chapter 7 we read:
After this, I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands ....
The vision reveals that those who have died in the Lord, those who have stood firm to the end, are in God's presence.
Heaven is described as a great multinational gathering of people from every corner of the earth. It is a summit of epic proportions. Joining with people from all over the world who have trusted in Christ, they stand before the throne of God. They are drenched in God's very presence.
They are dressed in white, the color which symbolizes purity, the liturgical color of Christmas and Easter, of baptism, and ordination, and marriage; and therefore the color of saints and of burial. We have a foretaste of that being dressed in white today: the white pall over the coffin; the white veil over the communion vessels, the white stole and vestments.
In their hands, as in our hands this past Sunday, they carry palm branches, signs of the victory of Jesus' resurrection over the forces of destruction and death. Signs, too, of their own victory over death.
And what are they doing? Verse 10 reads:
They cry out in a loud voice, saying,
''Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!''
Those who stand before the throne acknowledge God and the Lamb as the ultimate source of salvation, of the total well--being of the people. Their salvation, their sense of wholeness, is not in their selves, not in their accomplishments, not in their money, not in their own goodness. Salvation, health, wholeness, and well--being come from and belong to God. God alone is the source of salvation.
The heavenly world responds to this with affirmation. The angels and elders and four living creatures say, ''Yes, it is true that salvation belongs to God.'' They fall on their faces before the throne, and shout:
Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power be to our God forever and ever! Amen.
The echo of that heavenly chorus is heard on earth on Palm Sunday morning and every eucharist when we join our voices with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven, singing: ''All glory, laud, and honor, to thee Redeemer King!'' and ''Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.''
And there is another picture of heaven in this Revelation to John: those who have died in the Lord are in God's care. Listen:
... the one who is seated on the throne will shelter them. They will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat; for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
The picture of the end time is one of divine protection. Those with faith in Christ will never again know physical hardship, deprivation, or the cares of this world. Suffering, mourning, and tears will be no more. Christ will be at the center of their need, just as he is at the center of the throne.
In the face of death, in view of Revelation chapter 7, on Palm Sunday, this vision asserts eternal promises. It also raises some eternal questions: What palms are we waving? Whose praise are we singing? Before what thrones are we worshiping?
Those who worship Jesus Christ, the Lamb at the center of the throne, wave palm branches and process with song. When earthly Palm Sundays come to an end, we are promised that the procession will continue. And what a parade it will be, as all those who have trusted in Christ will join in one great voice:
Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever!
... All glory, laud, and honor, to thee Redeemer, King. ... Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!
Amen.
We are at that time of year when we observe Palm Sunday, the holy day which ushers in the awesome events of Holy Week. This is the day that Jesus rode upon a simple animal and entered the holy city of Jerusalem accompanied by shouts of acclamation. He was proclaimed as King of kings by those who spread their garments and branches of palm along his way. Today Jesus is hailed as King, but before the week is out, Jesus will be crucified on a cross.
In our churches across this land and around the world, Christians gather to reenact that holy event. We gather the green, supple, freshly cut palm branches to be blessed and distributed. Gladly waving the branches of palm, we process into the church singing ''All glory, laud, and honor'' to Christ, our Redeemer King (The Hymnal 1982, 154, 155). Upon our lips are words of praise. We hail Jesus as our king; the branches are signs of victory.
All this is very close to the picture we are given in the seventh chapter of Revelation (or visions) of what heaven is like.
In Revelation chapter 7 we read:
After this, I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands ....
The vision reveals that those who have died in the Lord, those who have stood firm to the end, are in God's presence.
Heaven is described as a great multinational gathering of people from every corner of the earth. It is a summit of epic proportions. Joining with people from all over the world who have trusted in Christ, they stand before the throne of God. They are drenched in God's very presence.
They are dressed in white, the color which symbolizes purity, the liturgical color of Christmas and Easter, of baptism, and ordination, and marriage; and therefore the color of saints and of burial. We have a foretaste of that being dressed in white today: the white pall over the coffin; the white veil over the communion vessels, the white stole and vestments.
In their hands, as in our hands this past Sunday, they carry palm branches, signs of the victory of Jesus' resurrection over the forces of destruction and death. Signs, too, of their own victory over death.
And what are they doing? Verse 10 reads:
They cry out in a loud voice, saying,
''Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!''
Those who stand before the throne acknowledge God and the Lamb as the ultimate source of salvation, of the total well--being of the people. Their salvation, their sense of wholeness, is not in their selves, not in their accomplishments, not in their money, not in their own goodness. Salvation, health, wholeness, and well--being come from and belong to God. God alone is the source of salvation.
The heavenly world responds to this with affirmation. The angels and elders and four living creatures say, ''Yes, it is true that salvation belongs to God.'' They fall on their faces before the throne, and shout:
Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power be to our God forever and ever! Amen.
The echo of that heavenly chorus is heard on earth on Palm Sunday morning and every eucharist when we join our voices with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven, singing: ''All glory, laud, and honor, to thee Redeemer King!'' and ''Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.''
And there is another picture of heaven in this Revelation to John: those who have died in the Lord are in God's care. Listen:
... the one who is seated on the throne will shelter them. They will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat; for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
The picture of the end time is one of divine protection. Those with faith in Christ will never again know physical hardship, deprivation, or the cares of this world. Suffering, mourning, and tears will be no more. Christ will be at the center of their need, just as he is at the center of the throne.
In the face of death, in view of Revelation chapter 7, on Palm Sunday, this vision asserts eternal promises. It also raises some eternal questions: What palms are we waving? Whose praise are we singing? Before what thrones are we worshiping?
Those who worship Jesus Christ, the Lamb at the center of the throne, wave palm branches and process with song. When earthly Palm Sundays come to an end, we are promised that the procession will continue. And what a parade it will be, as all those who have trusted in Christ will join in one great voice:
Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever!
... All glory, laud, and honor, to thee Redeemer, King. ... Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!
Amen.
