Roadblocks

Matthew 21:1-11
Matthew 27:11-54

On Palm Sunday, 20 March 2005, Mr. Hunter spoke on the roadblocks which make us stray from our intended path, our goals, our faith in Jesus Christ. For Christ's original disciples, Palm Sunday must have seemed like a fast lane to success. Holy Week, however, must have seemed like the detour from hell, as they encountered roadblock after roadblock.

As Christ's current disciplines, we encounter roadblocks to our faith, too:

1. God "disappointing" us. During Holy Week, Jesus refused to fulfill the dreams and desires of the crowd. He stayed faithful to God's plan for Him. Too often, our faith crumbles when God doesn't fulfill our plans, such as when we encounter evil in the world. Too often, if God doesn't live up to our expectations, we bail on faith.
   
   This is our mistake. Faith does not keep us from suffering, but it does promise that God will see us through the suffering.


2. Peer pressure is another stumbling block. Christ did not give in to the pressure he felt from the crowd in Jerusalem; consequently, the fickle mob deserted him and called for his death. Often we will encounter fads in faith which will offer a short-lived burst of enthusiasm for Christ. But we shouldn't depend upon the enthusiasm of those around us for our faith.


3. Fear is another roadblock--fear of where discipleship my lead us. Of the disciples who accompanied Christ to the Garden, only two followed Him to the high priest's house when He was arrested. And how many of the disciples were present at the crucifixion? We don't know, although the Gospels suggest more women disciples were present than men. Fear, perhaps, kept the men from being present.
   
   Are we able to follow Christ without fear? As Mr. Hunter asks, "Would we be willing to say to God, 'I will go wherever you want me to go, I will do whatever you want me to do, I will give you anything you need . . .,' or is that simply too scary because we are afraid that God might take us at our word?"
   
   Other roadblocks stand before us that Mr. Hunter didn't have time to expound upon, but which--with a little thought--ring true:


4. Busy schedules.


5. Misplaced priorities.


6. Not enough recognition for our effort.

Mr. Hunter suggests that if we are searching for a true model of discipleship, we need look no further than . . . the donkey who carried Christ through the streets on Palm Sunday. What were the donkey's characteristics that we might emulate?

• Serving Christ humbly.
• Following Christ’'s direction and going where He wants to go.
• Not getting spooked by the crowds or attention.
• Shedding a commitment to the hero image people want to pin on Jesus.
• Carrying Christ into enemy territory and trusting that God will provide protection.
• Never asking Christ to get off our backs.

Sunday's service deviated from our worship's regular order in order to illustrate the disorienting events of Holy Week, so Mr. Hunter ended with our Gospel reading--Matthew 27:11-54--urging us to "reflect on the obstacles that challenge our discipleship, the example Jesus set for us, and what we need to do to bear Christ into the world this week."