OK, you can stop singing Land of Hope and Glory. That isn't what I had in mind. At the time of writing it's Palm Sunday, one of the bigger festivals of the Christian year. Traditionally churches would be quite full, even oveflowing, there might be a procession and palm leaves would often be distributed. This year, of course, things have to be scaled back and entry to a service may well be by ticket only. That, though, doesn't alter the fact that it marks a significant point in Jesus' life, one worth considering for a moment.
After three years of seemingly wandering around Israel, preaching, healing the sick, casting out demons and performing various other miracles, it was clear to much of the population that Jesus was a king - their king. He was the Messiah, the one annointed by God to usher in his Kingdom on Earth. He wasn't the puppet king Herod Antipas ruling in Galilee as a servant of the Roman Empire, or a Roman Governor, like Pontius Pilate: Jesus was a real king, appointed by God to rule over God's people. The anticipation was enormous as he approached Jerusalem. Everyone knew that he was a marked man as far as the Jewish authorities were concerned, yet here he was, brazenly walking towards the capital city.
Then, suddenly, Jesus escalates the situation. It had been prophesied that the Messiah would enter Jerusalem by riding in, so he sent a couple of his disciples off to fetch a chariot on which he could make a grand entrance. No, sorry, that's wrong - he got them to bring him a young donkey and its mother so that he could make a grand entrance. Seriouly?Pulling off a stunt like that - wowing the crowds by riding down the street on a small donkey - took a special sort of person. The Roman approach to arriving with pomp and circumstance was indeed the chariot, accompanied by soldiers and, if possible, prisoners of war; the crowds would have been familiar with that. Jesus rode in on a baby donkey escorted by fishermen, tax collectors, women and various other people of insignificance. Yet this was the grandest entrance that Jerusalem had ever known. Perhaps there wasn't much pomp, but there was a lot of circumstance and everyone knew it. Jesus was fulfilling a key prophecy which stated very clearly indeed who he said he was.
In fact, the crowd were so convinced that they were willing to throw their cloaks onto the ground in front of Jesus and his entourage, which might mean some cleaning and a bit of repair afterwards. They added to this with branches torn down from the palm tress along the road to make a green carpet. In doing this they were sticking their necks out themselves, showing public support for a wanted man. It was tantamount to rebellion, a popular uprising against the authorities. Of course, Jesus wasn't actually doing that and the mode of transport symbolized peace rather than war. He was making no threats against the state; his harsh words against the scribes and Pharisees had been intended to make them consider the state of their hearts, not demanding political change. However, for the moment he accepted the adulation of the crowd because it was, after all true: Jesus was the King of the Jews, entering his capital to usher in the Kingdom of God, a kingdom of peace located in peoples' hearts.
Jesus is the ultimate ruler. He doesn't want to overthrow nation states; he doesn't need to because his authority is higher than theirs and his kingdom is spiritually based rather than political. He wants our hearts. Are you going to let him have yours? Are you going to allow him to enter your life and take up his authority? Are you going to ask him to bring you forgivenss and peace in the midst of all that you have done and experienced? The Jews welcomed him into their city on this day around 1988 years ago. Today it's our turn to choose.
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