Stop Giving Yourself a Free Pass | Palm Sunday Reflection
From Chris Stefanick Catholic Show by Chris Stefanick | Real Life Catholic
March 28, 2026 · 9 min
About this episode
Chris Stefanick reflects on the concept of giving oneself a free pass regarding sin in the context of Palm Sunday.
Every person who nailed Jesus to the cross thought they were a pretty good person. The soldiers? Just doing their job. The Pharisees? Protecting the system. Pontius Pilate? Just trying to keep his career on track. They all gave themselves a free pass. And we do the exact same thing. Listen to my Palm Sunday reflection to hear why that matters, and why it should change everything about how you enter Holy Week. When we read the Passion at Mass on Palm Sunday, we are forced to say the ugliest lines out loud—"Crucify him!"—because those aren't just ancient words. They're our words, every time we fall into sin. And I'm not saying this to make you feel bad. I'm saying it to make you feel grateful. Because when you see how ugly sin really is, you finally see how far God was willing to go for you. You couldn't pay the price for a single sin. He paid it all. As you enter into Holy Week, stop giving yourself free passes. Look your sin in the face. Take it to confession. And then look at the cross and say thank you. I'll be praying for you. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS1. Chris says every person involved in the crucifixion gave themselves a "free pass." Where in your own life are you most tempted to…
People in this episode
Host: Chris Stefanick
Topics covered
- Palm Sunday
- sin
- confession
- Holy Week
- personal responsibility
- gratitude
Keywords
- Palm Sunday
- reflection
- sin
- confession
- Holy Week
- gratitude
- responsibility
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: The Passion of the Christ
More episodes of Chris Stefanick Catholic Show
- The 14 Stations of the Eucharist | Fr. Jonathan Meyer · June 9, 2026 · 1h 5m
- Lonely-Proofing Yourself and the World · May 30, 2026 · 12 min
- Stop Protecting Your Kids From Everything — With Outdoor Adventurer Tom Zimmer · May 26, 2026 · 35 min
- How to Become a River of Peace | Pentecost Sunday Reflection · May 23, 2026 · 12 min
- Why Hating Your Worst Self Is Making Everything Worse | Dr. Peter Malinoski · May 19, 2026 · 1h 20m
- Part of You Is Already in Heaven (The Ascension Changes Everything) · May 16, 2026 · 7 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Chris Stefanick Catholic Show podcast page.