Day 70 Palm Sunday

Since today is the first day of the passion week, I would like to look at some of the responses of the people when Jesus entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Turning to Matthew 21 we can see three responses:

First, we see those who feel good about Jesus. They see Jesus as a great guy, and they want him to come and be king, but they aren't necessarily interested in what comes with it.

They are the kind of people who would look at these puppies and say "Ahhh! They're so cute! I want to take one home with me." But when they realize they have to feed it, clean up after it, and train it, they are irritated with the responsibility of having a dog. The puppy eventually looses it's charm.

How do we know this? Because, these same people who were crying "Hosanna!" are also the same who cried "Give us Barabbas!" and "Crucify him!" that coming Friday.

Then there are the indifferent people: Those who say "Who is this guy riding into Jerusalem on a donkey like he is someone important?" These people don't necessarily see any value in Jesus. He is nothing more than a 'come-and-go' messiah. They have seen others like him and they don't see anything special about this one. And when they crucify Jesus on Friday, their reaction is "Meh..." Jesus has been nothing more to them than a passing headline on the Sunday morning newspaper.

But then you have the enraged, angry religious leaders. Hate throbs through their viens, pulsating in their forehead. All they can think about is how they are going to kill this heretic. They hate Jesus and now he has gone too far. Now they have their eye on him like an eagle ready to strike their prey. He won't escape this time. Now it's time to act.

And they set their plan in motion. They pay off one of Jesus disciples to betray him, lead him through a mock trial, and lead him to the Romans to be executed for... treason? Wait, really? That's pretty lame. But to these people it doesn't matter how they get a conviction as long as he is dead. 

But then there is a fourth response. And this is the only response that matters. We don't really see these people (yet) in Matthew 21. These are the people who not only cry out "Hosanna!" but they bend their knees and submit themselves to the Kingship of Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

So the question is this, "Which of these four responses best describes your reaction to Jesus?"

I hope you will spend this next week preparing your heart, mind and soul for Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

In Christ,

Jay