An Episcopal Sermon: Palm Sunday - March 24, 2024

Mar 26

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Subject of Sermon: THE READING OF THE PASSION OF OUR LORD

Sermon By: The Rev. Stacey Grossman at The Episcopal Church in Almaden

Today's Gospel Reading: Mark 14:1-15:47

THE READING OF THE PASSION OF OUR LORD
Narrator 1 It was two days before the Passover and the festival of
Unleavened Bread. The chief priests and the scribes were
looking for a way to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him; for
they said,
Priests Not during the festival, or there may be a riot among the
people.
Narrator 2 While he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he
sat at the table, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very
costly ointment of nard, and she broke open the jar and poured
the ointment on his head. But some were there who said to one
another in anger,
Disciples Why was the ointment wasted in this way? For this ointment
could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii, and
the money given to the poor.
Narrator 2 And they scolded her. But Jesus said,
Jesus Let her alone; why do you trouble her? She has performed a
good service for me. For you always have the poor with you,
and you can show kindness to them whenever you wish; but
you will not always have me. She has done what she could; she
has anointed my body beforehand for its burial. Truly I tell
you, wherever the good news is proclaimed in the whole world,
what she has done will be told in remembrance of her.
Narrator 1 Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went to the
chief priests in order to betray him to them. When they heard it,
they were greatly pleased, and promised to give him money. So
he began to look for an opportunity to betray him.
Narrator 2 On the first day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb
is sacrificed, his disciples said to him,
Disciples Where do you want us to go and make the preparations for you
to eat the Passover?
Narrator 2 So he sent two of his disciples, saying to them,
Jesus Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet
you; follow him, and wherever he enters, say to the owner of
the house, `The Teacher asks, Where is my guest room where I
may eat the Passover with my disciples?' He will show you a
large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations
for us there.
Narrator 1 So the disciples set out and went to the city, and found
everything as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover
meal. When it was evening, he came with the twelve. And
when they had taken their places and were eating, Jesus said,
Jesus Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating
with me.
Narrator 2 They began to be distressed and to say to him one after
another,
Disciples Surely, not I?
Jesus It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the bowl
with me. For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but
woe to that one by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would
have been better for that one not to have been born.
Narrator 1 While they were eating, he took a loaf of bread, and after
blessing it he broke it, gave it to them, and said,
Jesus Take; this is my body.
Narrator 1 Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them,
and all of them drank from it. He said to them,

Jesus This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for
many. Truly I tell you, I will never again drink of the fruit of
the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of
God.
Narrator 2 When they had sung the hymn, they went out to the Mount of
Olives. And Jesus said to them,
Jesus You will all become deserters; for it is written, `I will strike the
shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.' But after I am raised
up, I will go before you to Galilee.
Peter Even though all become deserters, I will not.
Jesus Truly I tell you, Peter, this day, this very night, before the cock
crows twice, you will deny me three times.
Peter Even though I must die with you, I will not deny you.
Narrator 2 And all of them said the same.
Narrator 1 They went to a place called Gethsemane; and he said to his
disciples,
Jesus Sit here while I pray.
Narrator 1 He took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be
distressed and agitated.
Jesus I am deeply grieved, even to death; remain here, and keep
awake.
Narrator 2 And going a little farther, he threw himself on the ground and
prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.
Jesus Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup
from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want.
Narrator 1 He came and found them sleeping; and he said to Peter,
Jesus Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep awake one hour?
Keep awake and pray that you may not come into the time of
trial; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Narrator 1 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words.
And once more he came and found them sleeping, for their
eyes were very heavy; and they did not know what to say to
him. He came a third time and said to them,
Jesus Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? Enough! The hour
has come; the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
Get up, let us be going. See, my betrayer is at hand.
Narrator 2 Immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas, one of the
twelve, arrived; and with him there was a crowd with swords
and clubs, from the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders.
Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying,
Judas The one I will kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away
under guard.
Narrator 1 So when he came, he went up to him at once and said,
Judas Rabbi!
Narrator 1 And he kissed him. Then they laid hands on him and arrested
him. But one of those who stood near drew his sword and
struck the slave of the high priest, cutting off his ear. Then
Jesus said to them,
Jesus Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest me as
though I were a bandit? Day after day I was with you in the
temple teaching, and you did not arrest me. But let the
scriptures be fulfilled.
Narrator 2 All of them deserted him and fled. A certain young man was
following him, wearing nothing but a linen cloth. They caught
hold of him, but he left the linen cloth and ran off naked.
Narrator 1 They took Jesus to the high priest; and all the chief priests, the
elders, and the scribes were assembled. Peter had followed him
at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest; and he
was sitting with the guards, warming himself at the fire. Now
the chief priests and the whole council were looking for
testimony against Jesus to put him to death; but they found
none. For many gave false testimony against him, and their
testimony did not agree. Some stood up and gave false
testimony against him, saying,
Accusers We heard him say, `I will destroy this temple that is made with
hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with
hands.'
Narrator 2 But even on this point their testimony did not agree. Then the
high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus,
High Priest Have you no answer? What is it that they testify against you?
Narrator 2 But he was silent and did not answer. Again the high priest
asked him,
High Priest Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?
Jesus I am; and `you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand
of the Power,' and `coming with the clouds of heaven.'"
Narrator 1 Then the high priest tore his clothes and said,
High Priest Why do we still need witnesses? You have heard his
blasphemy! What is your decision?
Narrator 2 All of them condemned him as deserving death. Some began to
spit on him, to blindfold him, and to strike him, saying to him
Crowds Prophesy!
Narrator 1 The guards also took him over and beat him.
Narrator 2 While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant-
girls of the high priest came by. When she saw Peter warming
himself, she stared at him and said,
Servant girl You also were with Jesus, the man from Nazareth.
Peter I do not know or understand what you are talking about.
Narrator 1 And he went out into the forecourt. Then the cock crowed.
And the servant-girl, on seeing him, began again to say to the
bystanders,
Servant girl This man is one of them.
Narrator 2 But again he denied it. Then after a little while the bystanders
again said to Peter,
Bystanders Certainly you are one of them; for you are a Galilean.
Narrator 1 But he began to curse, and he swore an oath,
Peter I do not know this man you are talking about.
Narrator 2 At that moment the cock crowed for the second time. Then
Peter remembered that Jesus had said to him,
Jesus Before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times.
Narrator 1 And he broke down and wept.
Narrator 2 As soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation
with the elders and scribes and the whole council. They bound
Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate. Pilate
asked him,
Pilate Are you the King of the Jews?
Jesus You say so.
Narrator 1 Then the chief priests accused him of many things. Pilate asked
him again,
Pilate Have you no answer? See how many charges they bring against
you.
Narrator 2 But Jesus made no further reply, so that Pilate was amazed.
Now at the festival he used to release a prisoner for them,
anyone for whom they asked. Now a man called Barabbas was
in prison with the rebels who had committed murder during the
insurrection. So the crowd came and began to ask Pilate to do
for them according to his custom. Then he answered them,
Pilate Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?
Narrator 1 For he realized that it was out of jealousy that the chief priests
had handed him over. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd
to have him release Barabbas for them instead. Pilate spoke to
them again,
Pilate Then what do you wish me to do with the man you call the
King of the Jews?
Crowds Crucify him!
Pilate Why, what evil has he done?
Crowds Crucify him!
Narrator 2 So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas for
them; and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be
crucified.
Narrator 1 Then the soldiers led him into the courtyard of the palace (that
is, the governor's headquarters); and they called together the
whole cohort. And they clothed him in a purple cloak; and after
twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on him. And they
began saluting him,
Crowds Hail, King of the Jews!
Narrator 2 They struck his head with a reed, spat upon him, and knelt
down in homage to him. After mocking him, they stripped him
of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. Then they
led him out to crucify him.
Narrator 1 They compelled a passer-by, who was coming in from the
country, to carry his cross; it was Simon of Cyrene, the father
of Alexander and Rufus. Then they brought Jesus to the place
called Golgotha (which means the place of a skull).
Narrator 2 And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh; but he did not
take it. And they crucified him, and divided his clothes among
them, casting lots to decide what each should take.
Narrator 1 It was nine o'clock in the morning when they crucified him.
The inscription of the charge against him read, "The King of
the Jews." And with him they crucified two bandits, one on his
right and one on his left. Those who passed by derided him,
shaking their heads and saying,
Accusers Aha! You who would destroy the temple and build it in three
days, save yourself, and come down from the cross!
Narrator 2 In the same way the chief priests, along with the scribes, were
also mocking him among themselves and saying,
Priests He saved others; he cannot save himself. Let the Messiah, the
King of Israel, come down from the cross now, so that we may
see and believe.
Narrator 1 Those who were crucified with him also taunted him.
Narrator 2 When it was noon, darkness came over the whole land until
three in the afternoon. At three o'clock Jesus cried out with a
loud voice,
Jesus Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?
Narrator 1 Which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken
me?" When some of the bystanders heard it, they said,
Bystanders Listen, he is calling for Elijah.
Narrator 2 And someone ran, filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a
stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying,
Bystander Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.
Narrator 1 Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.
Silence – about one minute long
Narrator 2 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to
bottom. Now when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw
that in this way he breathed his last, he said,
Centurion Truly this man was God's Son!
Narrator 1 There were also women looking on from a distance; among
them were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the
younger and of Joses, and Salome. These used to follow him
and provided for him when he was in Galilee; and there were
many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem.
Narrator 1 When evening had come, and since it was the day of
Preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath, Joseph of
Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also
himself waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God, went
boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate
wondered if he were already dead; and summoning the
centurion, he asked him whether he had been dead for some
time. When he learned from the centurion that he was dead, he
granted the body to Joseph. Then Joseph bought a linen cloth,
and taking down the body, wrapped it in the linen cloth, and
laid it in a tomb that had been hewn out of the rock.
He then rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. Mary
Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where the body
was laid