The Israelites had not had a king on the throne ruling them for several hundred years. They had been in captivity by Babylon, Persia, and now Rome. Then came Jesus. He was a great teacher, some called him a prophet, and many had their eyes on him as their coming king, their Messiah that would sit on David’s throne and rule them as a kingdom once again. He had become most popular among the common people. His many miracles had catapulted him to the top of their list of favorite, most likely to succeed people.
The religious leaders found themselves in a very dangerous position. So far, they had experienced great cooperation with the Roman government. They also had experienced a good bit of power and authority over the people and they were financially secure. This same Jesus caused them quite a bit of trouble and anxiety. He threatened their stability with the Roman government because an ‘uprising’ and establishing of a king would have meant war and likely annihilation of the Israelites. His popularity put them in the shadows where they did not want to be. And his teaching took the wind out of their sails. They didn’t look too good standing next to him. They had many reasons to not like this guy.
Jesus, on the other hand, was having a very different experience. He was quite aware that he was on his final journey to Jerusalem. He knew what was ahead of him and he had much to accomplish as he steadfastly moved toward the cross. He knew that he was heading toward a spiritual victory – the final blow to Satan. And in this moment, he would allow the people to celebrate this victory even though they were not fully aware of what they were celebrating.
So he sent two of his disciples ahead to secure a colt that had never been ridden which the owner gladly gave up when they said, “The Lord needs it,” as they had been instructed to say. “They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. As they went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory to the highest!’” Luke 19:35-38
This must have been a terrifying moment for the Pharisees – everything they feared was happening before their very eyes. “Some Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, rebuke your disciples!’” Luke 19:39 They wanted him to tell them to keep it down. We don’t want the Romans to see what is going on here. They will squash us like flies!
“’I tell you,’ he replied, if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.’” Luke 19:40 This was a moment in history that could not go unnoticed. The very rocks would celebrate if God’s people didn’t. I imagine the angels were there surrounding Jesus as well with their celebration.
Jesus looked down on Jerusalem as he approached and began to weep. “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace – but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and your children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.” Luke 19:42-44
I wonder… Was he concerned for the beautiful city? Was he concerned for the leaders? Was he concerned for the people within? I think yes, all of the above. To me this is one of the closest looks at the heart of God. Even while we are raging against him, acting like his enemy, his heart is breaking for us. Sounds a little like, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 Jesus could see what could have been and what could be if the people had chosen his way. But instead, they were choosing to get rid of him.
How many times do I try to get rid of or stay away from something or someone that makes me look less than perfect. Yet, Jesus offers to help me ‘clean’ or ‘fix’ those areas of my life that I would rather ignore or hide. He offers his peace, yet rather than work through the pain, I choose my chaos.
“Then he entered the temple area and began driving out those who were selling. ‘It is written,’ he said to them, ‘My house will be a house of prayer, but you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’” Luke 19:46 Jesus was cleaning house and restoring it to a house of prayer. When we read this passage, we tend to see it as Jesus expressing righteous anger and we focus on anger – is it okay or not okay to be angry. But for now, I want to focus on the cleaning house aspect. The people who were buying and selling in the temple were likely arranging for sacrifices. They were ‘good’ people doing what they thought was a ‘good’ thing. It was more convenient to do this business in the temple. So why was Jesus angry?
I wonder if he was upset because they were missing the whole relationship with God. They were busy doing all the things of ‘worship’ and ‘sacrifice’ – going through the motions. But they were totally missing the relationship with God. When Jesus was done cleaning out the temple, he began teaching. I believe he was feeling the urgency of teaching the people because he knew it wasn’t long until he would be leaving them. And the “people hung on his words.” Luke 19:48
I wonder, do I hang on his words? Do I long for the relationship with God that Jesus has made available to me? Or do I go through the motions totally missing the heart of God? Oh Lord, give me the courage to work through the things in my life I would rather hide. I long for your peace, not the destruction I pull down on myself when I ignore you or fight you on things. I want you to be King and Lord of my life – my whole life.
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