We begin the holiest week of the year. With Palm Sunday, and culminating with Easter Sunday, churches all over the world will be packed. That is indeed a good thing. We begin with the commemoration of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. We follow him throughout the week as we gather for the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Thursday and stay with Jesus into the night as we recall his agony in the garden. The somber rites of Good Friday remind us of his journey to Calvary, with the cross upon his shoulders, leading to his crucifixion and death. Saturday, we wait in the stillness and silence of the tomb. After sundown, in the great Vigil of Easter, we gather with anticipation, hope, and joy, for the resurrection. Sunday, at the light of dawn and throughout the day, we joyfully celebrate with all the festivity we can muster, the victory of Jesus over the darkness of sin and death. O The Crowds! O The Traffic! O The Parking!
Yet is that all there is?
There were crowds too, that day 2000 years ago, at Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. They waved palm branches joyfully crying out, Hosanna to the Son of David! They too felt the air of excitement. They too exalted in Jesus of Nazareth. Until they didn’t. The crowds then as today are fickle. On Sunday, they gleefully shouted Hosanna! And on Friday, they screamed, Crucify him! In the Upper Room Peter declared his undying loyalty and later that same evening declared, I know not the man! How do we move from being part of the fickle crowd? How do we move from being spectators and fans to disciples and witnesses? How do we avoid the despair of Judas and embrace the contrition of Peter?
It is easy for faith to be shallow. We expect too much and give too little. For faith to be alive and powerful within us, we can’t live it just during Holy Week and Easter. Jesus did not come to earth and die on the cross so that we can eat ham and chocolate bunnies. To be a faithful follower of Christ requires us, compels us, to follow Jesus and carry our crosses with him 365 days a year; not just on Good Friday. To be a disciple of Jesus, and not just a fan, is to love him and desire him every Sunday, not just Easter Sunday.
Faith is a journey and none of us are perfect or have perfect faith. That is why we have to practice our faith in every sense of the term! We are all sinners in need of God’s mercy and forgiveness. To be on the journey with Jesus, we must want more than the least amount possible. We cannot settle for shallow faith but must strive for a deep and vibrant faith, a faith that will sustain us in the darkest moments of our lives. God will be our strength but we must turn to Him and invite Him into our lives. To be a disciple, and not just a fan, is to want to live for Jesus every day, no matter what the cost, and want to live with Jesus for all eternity in the glory of heaven!