Easter comes next week amid tulips, flowering trees, and
warmer weather. It seems like our hopes
start to bloom again like all those bulbs we planted last fall. Leading up to Easter, many churches celebrate
the “triumphal entry” of Jesus into Jerusalem on the Sunday before his
crucifixion five days later. We’re told
to picture the majestic entry of the coming King into His holy city, hailed as
the Messiah by all those assembled, only to have the crowds turn on Him a few
days later. But is being a follower of Christ
as easy as waving your palm branch and shouting Hosanna? Here’s the text from John:
Six
days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany where Lazarus was,
the one Jesus had raised from the dead…Then a large crowd of the Jews learned
He was there. They came not only because of Jesus, but also to see Lazarus, the
one He had raised from the dead. Therefore, the chief priests decided
to kill Lazarus also, because he was the reason many of the Jews were
deserting them and believing in Jesus. The next day, when the large crowd that
had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, they
took palm branches and went out to meet
Him. They kept shouting: “Hosanna! He
who comes in the name of the Lord is the blessed One, the King of Israel!” John 12:1, 9-13
Jesus had journeyed from the north and after crossing the
Jordan River on His way to Jerusalem for Passover, stopped to linger with
friends in Bethany. Mary, Martha, and
Lazarus were His closest friends outside of the circle of the twelve. But the stir Jesus created by bringing
Lazarus back from the dead (see John 11)
wasn’t sitting well with the religious authorities. They already wanted to kill Jesus, and now,
they thought getting rid of Lazarus might help them quell this religious
uprising.
On Sunday, Jesus headed for Jerusalem and many who had heard
of Him DID go out to meet him. The
two-mile trip from Bethany to Jerusalem required a long walk down a steep
slope, then back up another steep incline to the city. But Jesus descended the path He was destined
to take, and those who lived near there went out to meet Him. They lined the road and heralded the One they
believed would deliver them. But they
made all that noise OUTSIDE the city and away from those who would ostracize or
even threaten them.
When we stand up for Jesus, it can bring turmoil into our
lives. Maybe your life won’t be
threatened like Lazarus or Jesus, but people who are offended by your faith can
make life more difficult for you. Once Jesus
entered Jerusalem, there is no discussion in Scripture of the crowds waving
branches and shouting. That all seemed
to happen outside the walls of the city at a safe distance from the temple and
its pseudo-faithful protectors.
So, this Sunday, if you’re given a palm frond to wave and
encouraged to give voice to the Messiahship of the Lamb of God, do it and
celebrate with the other believers there.
And when you leave the safe confines of your worship place, consider heading
to Main Street or the mall to do the same.
But be ready – because there are Pharisees there who won’t like it, or
you, very much.
But
thanks be to God, who always puts us on display in Christ and through
us spreads the aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. For
to God we are the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and
among those who are perishing. To some we are
an aroma of death leading to death, but to others, an aroma of life leading
to life. 2 Corinthians 2:14-16
There are your marching orders. Go smell up the place!
Jacob
