Blessed Is He Who Comes
“For the Souls in Purgatory – Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord”
Luke 19:28–40
After he had said this, he proceeded on his journey up to Jerusalem. As he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples. He said, ‘Go into the village opposite you, and as you enter it you will find a colt tethered on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it here. And if anyone should ask you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you will answer, ‘The Master has need of it.” So those who had been sent went off and found everything just as he had told them. And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, ‘Why are you untying it?’ They answered, ‘The Master has need of it.’ So they brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks over it, and helped Jesus to mount. As he rode along, the people were spreading their cloaks on the road; and now as he was approaching the slope of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of his disciples began to praise God aloud with joy for all the mighty deeds they had seen. They proclaimed: ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory in the highest.’ Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, rebuke your disciples.’ He said in reply, ‘I tell you, if they keep silent, the stones will cry out.’
Grace Prayed For
The grace of fidelity—to remain near Jesus not only in the hour of triumph but in the hour of His suffering.
Reflection
He enters Jerusalem exactly as He has managed everything—on His own terms, in a way no one expected. Not on a warhorse, not at the head of a political uprising, not surrounded by armed guards. A borrowed colt. An impromptu procession of disciples throwing their coats on the road because they have nothing else to offer. “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord.”
The disciples praise God “for all the mighty deeds they had seen.” Their joy is real. But it is built on a partial understanding of what kind of king is entering and what kind of victory is approaching. They are expecting Rome to be overthrown. What will be overthrown instead is death. Their hosannas are true—more true than they know—and yet within days those voices will go quiet.
We are in Week Six: Mission. We are being “sent forth to love.” And Palm Sunday confronts us with the central question of that sending: what kind of love are we offering? A love that only shows up for the triumphs? Or a love willing to follow all the way to the cross?
The Pharisees demand that Jesus silence His disciples. His response is one of the most exhilarating lines in the Gospel: “If they keep silent, the stones will cry out.” The praise of the Living God cannot ultimately be suppressed. Creation itself will raise its voice if human voices fail. And yet the question is whether we will be the voices, or whether we will leave it to the stones.
There is a call here for the missionary disciple that is both sobering and urgent. Jesus enters Jerusalem fully aware of what awaits Him. He does not turn back. He goes forward—not because He is unafraid, as we saw last Sunday—but because this is precisely why He came. The mission does not become optional when it becomes costly. If anything, the costliness is part of what makes it holy.
Lay your coat on the road today. Let your voice be among the ones that cry out. And resolve, as the week unfolds, not to fall silent when the crowd turns.
When Time Allows Reflect on the Posts in Library and Musings
Sharing
Jesus last words on Earth were to his disciples, can be found in Matthew Chap 28 when Jesus told his disciples, “Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
Jesus calls all of us to share in his redemptive mission here on Earth. I would ask you to share this Scripture reflection with your family, your friends and your acquaintances, and then share it with a couple of individuals that you may may not be comfortable sharing with, keeping in mind always the words of Jesus, And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age
Author was assisted by AI in the drafting of this Post