Palmarum (Palm Sunday), 2025

Rev. Thomas Van Hemert

St. Luke 19:29-40; St. Matthew 26-27

Palm Sunday (Lent 6)

April 13, 2025

In the name of the Father and of the +Son and of the Holy Spirit.

We find ourselves in the midst of a dire situation. One that requires not only a temporary solution but reconciliation. All we have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God. There are two types of sin that condemn us: Original Sin and Actual Sin. Even if we never committed any outward sin—any sin of thought, word, or deed, we would still fall short of the glory of God because of our inborn inclination toward sin. We have inherited an inborn sickness, a disease, a corruption, passed down from our first parents who ate from the tree that they were commanded not to eat from. By doing so, they cast the entire universe into chaos and death.

No matter how outwardly good or pure or pious or righteous someone might appear, all of us deserve, because of our sin, to go to hell. But what is hell? What is it like? God be praised that He has saved us, redeemed us, and reconciled us from eternal damnation in hell. But it is good for us to hear and to know what hell is and what it is like. Generally speaking, the Church has taught that there are three levels or three types of eternal punishment in hell, all of which are terrifying.

Hell is a real place where unbelievers are forsaken by God. They are cut off, alone. First of all, hell is a place of dark fire. It has the power to burn, but is deprived of light. The fire of hell afflicts and burns spirits and bodies, but it will never consume those bodies but will always afflict them. In hell, a man does not stop feeling. Hell is also the place where the worm spits out all poisons and eats all flesh, but it eats without ever being consumed and is never filled and is never satisfied. It causes unbearable pain with gnawing. If that wasn’t severe enough, hell is also a place of eternal scorn and disgrace.

Hell is known as the second death, ruin, and corruption. This death of the soul occurs when God abandons it because it lacks faith, just as the death of the body occurs when the soul is separated from it because it has sinned and transgressed God’s Commandments. To be abandoned by God is to be forsaken by Him; to be left alone to our own devices and sins. Because if you enjoy your sins, if you will not turn from them and repent and believe in Jesus, then eventually God will give you over to your sins.

But through, barring Christ’s return, we will suffer death, that is, the first death—the separation of soul from the body—we will not suffer the second death because we have cried out to God in faith. We, like the crowds, have called out, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Save us now.” And that cry has been answered in the person of Jesus Christ, fully God and fully man, who rides into Jerusalem in glory shrouded in humility, seated on a donkey. He rides on, toward the cross, to pay that price for us. To become like us. To suffer the most humiliating and anguishing death that could ever be suffered by men.

He is lifted up on the cross. All those who surrounded Him open up their mouths wide like ravening, roaring lions. He is the One who suffers the eternity of hell. He is roasted in His Father’s wrath. He is a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people. He is forsaken by His Father and endures hell on the cross in our place. He cries out to His Father, “Be not far off! Come quickly to My aid!” but His Father does not answer. The Son is alone. Forsaken. All this, so that He would gain us. We are the inheritance. We are the prize. Even we, who were yet unborn, we, we proclaim His righteousness. It is given to all. But we receive this righteousness in faith. We are the guilty party, to be sure, but we are also the ones who benefit.

The Son rides into Jerusalem to redeem us from the curse of hell. He knows full well what awaits Him. But He also knows the dire situation we are in, even though it is our fault. He rides on in majesty to His to the cross, to His death, because we need more than a temporary solution. We need more than relief from our crosses and trials in this life. We need a full redemption. We need reconciliation. We need to be restored once again, as the crown and pinnacle of creation. And He redeems us. He reconciles us to His Father by the sacrifice of His body given for us and by the pouring out of His blood.

Though He will die, He will rise. And if we should die, we know we will rise with Him on the Last Day. For we are His beloved. We are His prize. And so it is that we will reign with Him. And so we cry out with the crowd that day to our Champion and to our Savior, “Ride on, ride on in majesty! In lowly pomp ride on to die. Bow Thy meek head to mortal pain, then take O God, Thy pow’r and reign.” This is not a week of sadness. Though it is our sins that did this to Him, for us, this is the most blessed week that has ever occurred. We know that we are heaven-bound.

In +Jesus’ name.