Yesterday was Palm Sunday, which marks the beginning of Holy Week for Christians everywhere. Holy Week will culminate with Easter Sunday, when we will all celebrate the joyous resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. At church yesterday, all the parishioners held a palm or two to signify the welcoming of Jesus as he rode into the town of Jerusalem so many millions of years ago. It was a beautiful sight to behold. There was singing and dancing and just plain jubilation.
However, the highlight of the celebration was not the palms, I believe. Instead, it was a very moving, very touching skit performed by the youth group of the church. The skit was acted out to the song “Watch the Lamb”, which is really a personal account of what Simon went through the day he visited Jerusalem with his two sons.
“A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross” (Mark 15:21).
Just imagine watching this all live in the church sanctuary…
My heart was moved the moment the lyrics of the song was sung, and although I already knew what was coming, I still could not stop my tears from flowing as I imagined again the pain and suffering He must have felt. My heart bled with the sound of every whip that was cast on Him and the piercing sound of every nail that was struck again and again and again into the cross. The congregation was in total silence as the cross was lifted after the crucifixion, fully displaying the sacrifice Jesus made for us all. It was as if we were all transported back in time. And then the strains of the music started again, and again, I wept… It was a truly remarkable play and an extremely fitting way to start my reflection this Holy Week.
Watch the Lamb
Walking On the Road
To Jerusalem,
The time had come to sacrifice,
Again,
My two small sons,
They walked beside me down the road,
The reason that they came,
Was to watch the lamb…
And they said,
“Daddy daddy,
What will we see there,
There’s so much that we don’t understand,”
So I told them of Moses,
And Father Abraham,
And I said dear children,
“Watch the lamb….
There will be so many,
In Jerusalem today,
We must be sure this little lamb,
Doesn’t run away,”
And I told them of Moses,
And Father Abraham,
And I said “Dear children,
Watch the lamb….”
When we reached the city,
I knew something must be wrong,
There were no joyful worshippers there,
No joyful worship songs,
And I stood there,
With my children,
In the midst of angry men,
Then I heard a crowd cry out,
“Let’s Crucify Him!”
We tried to leave the city,
But we could not get away,
Forced to play in this drama,
A part I did not want to play,
Why upon this day were men condemned to die,
Why were we standing right here,
Where soon they would pass by,
I looked and I said,
“Even now they come,”
The first one cried for mercy,
The people gave him none,
The second one was violent,
He was arrogant and loud,
I can still hear his angry voice,
Screaming at the crowd,
Then someone said,
“There’s Jesus,”
I scarce believed my eyes,
A man so badly beaten,
He barely looked alive,
[ Watch The Lamb lyrics found on http://www.completealbumlyrics.com ]
Blood poured from His body,
From the thorns on His brow,
Running down the cross,
And falling to the ground,
I watched as He struggled,
And I watched Him when He fell,
The cross came down upon His back,
And the crowd began to yell,
In that moment I felt such agony,
In that moment I felt such loss,
Till the roman soldier grabbed my arm and screamed,
“YOU! Carry his cro———–ss!”
At first I tried to resist him,
But his hand reached for his sword,
So I knelt and I took
The cross from the Lord
I put it on my shoulders
We started down the street
And the blood that He’d been shedding,
Was running down my cheeck…
They led us to Golgatha
They drove nails,
Deep in His feet and hands,
And on the cross,
I heard him pray,
“Father, forgive them…”
Never have I seen such love
In any other eyes
“Into thy hands I commit my spirit,”
He prayed,
And then He died.
I stood for what seemed like years,
I lost all sense of time,
Then I felt two tiny hands
Holding onto mine
My children stood there weeping,
And I heard the oldest say
“Father please forgive us,
The lamb,
Ran away…
Daddy daddy,
What’ve we seen here,
There’s so much that we don’t understand,”
So I took them in my arms,
We turned and faced the cross
And I said
“Dear children
Watch the—– la—–mb…”
Little Miracles
Our Journey of Love
