The Well
The Well |
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Connecting Hope to the Hurting | |
Tuesday
March 18, 2008
So they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their garments over it for him to
ride on.
Then the crowds spread out their coats on the road ahead of Jesus.
As they reached the place where the road started down from the Mount of Olives,
all of his followers began to shout and sing as they walked along, praising God
for all the wonderful miracles they had seen.
"Bless the King who comes in
the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in highest heaven!"
But some
of the Pharisees among the crowd said, "Teacher rebuke your followers for saying
things like that!"
He replied, "If they keep quiet, the
stones along the road would burst into cheers"!
But as they came closer to Jerusalem and
Jesus saw the city ahead, he began to cry.
Luke 19:35-41
Imagine with me this morning that you are a part of the triumphant entry of Jesus into your city. The news about Lazarus being raised from the dead has reached your town. People are rushing out in the streets to see Jesus. They push and shove to get a glimpse of this miracle worker; even throwing clothes down in the path before Him to make His journey smooth.
These people knew the miraculous works of Jesus personally. They knew His teachings, His healing, and how He fed the multitudes. In their hearts, they believed He was truly coming to town to be crowned the King of Israel. The joy in their hearts gave them a feeling of exultation. "At long last," they thought, "a ruler like David would once again return to the throne." At long last, they would be delivered from the oppression of the Roman rulers.
Little did the multitudes know that He would not be crowned the King of glory, but crowned He would be — in shame. Little did they know that soon their shouts of adoration would turn to angry shouts desiring to see Him crucified. Odd isn't it, how quickly our emotions get out of control when our expectations are not met in the way we so desperately feel they should be?
I love Palm Sunday. I love new beginnings. I love the triumphant King Jesus, but there was a side of Him we see today that they didn't see; He wept over the pain He saw before Him. He wept because of the sin running rampant in Jerusalem that day. His anger and disappointment led Him to turn over tables in the temple because the people were being cheated and misled. Oh that we would have His attitude of righteous indignation over the way people continue to misrepresent His Father and Himself.
Jesus is King, and He can be Lord of our lives. Let Him ride into your heart this morning. Let's glorify the King of Kings. With all our hearts let's sing Hosanna! Yet, let us also keep a prayer in our heart that souls will be saved, and Christians revitalized to the importance of prayer, worship, and an intimate relationship with our glorious Savior. Praise Him with heartfelt joy; don't let those rocks cry out!
