Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!
Luke 19:30
The Preparation
Jesus instructed His disciples to go and find a colt for Him to ride into Jerusalem. This colt was never ridden, and Jesus was going to make a grand entrance into the Holy City with great anticipation from the people who had waited hundreds of years for a Messiah. Before Jesus mounted the colt, the disciples placed their cloaks on it as a sign of respect and loyalty. What a great beginning to a wonderful day.
The Presentation
Jesus descended the Mount of Olives while many people placed their cloaks on the ground as Jesus rode towards what would be a painful week for Him. People were rejoicing and praising God because of Jesus. He was the Messiah. He never disputed them because He knew His role. Interestingly, the whole crowd celebrated with a loud cry because of the mighty works Jesus did (Luke 19:29). There was excitement. There was a buzz around town. This was it. The Messiah was here!
I think we do the same things sometimes in our own experiences. We shout the name of Jesus and give Him glory and great praise for the worderful things He does in our lives. The miracles and the healings. The care and the love. Their exuberance was most likely a result of what Jesus did. I think, in many ways, that those in Jerusalem didn’t understand Jesus’ purpose for being there. This tremendously difficult week for Jesus was nothing expected.
It wouldn’t be long. The cries of rejoicing and acclaim would change to cries of rebuke and anger—what a strange way to begin a week. But for today, the celebration seemed to be enough. They rejoiced over all the miracles Jesus did. Do you find that to be interesting? I do. I think we live in the same experience today. We are thankful for what Jesus did and does, but upset when Jesus chooses to declines to answer our prayers in ways that would seem appropriate.
The Pharisees
Of course, a story about Jesus would not be complete without the shady and self-serving Pharisees present in some way. And of course, this story is no different. The Pharisees were here as Jesus was riding towards Jerusalem and asked him to calm the people down and not allow them to have these kinds of loud cries and excitement over Jesus being the Messiah, because, in the eyes of the Pharisees, he wasn’t going to take their power from them. This commotion. The unrest. Stirring the people to a frenzy. It wasn’t right. The Pharisees would try to squash any attempt by Jesus to take His rightful place of authority.
Jesus’ response was a simple “no.” The Pharisees asked Jesus by calling Him “teacher” rather than “Lord” to “rebuke” his disciples. Can you imagine? Jesus riding a colt towards town, finally publicly revealing His ministry here on earth to all people, and once again being rebuked by the Pharisees. What a thorn in His side. His answer, however, was fascinating.
Jesus told the Pharisees that if He rebuked the people and they were silenced that even the rocks would cry out. Why? Because Jesus wanted the Pharisees to know that there was no one or no thing that failed to realize He was the Messiah. The Pharisees became dangerously concerned. They already wanted to kill Jesus because He raised Lazarus from the dead, which caused a terrible commotion and brought more fame and recognition to Jesus. And now setting up this sideshow of an event as Jesus rides into town on a colt? No way. The Pharisees could not let this happen. “We must stop Jesus,” the Pharisees thought. But there was not stopping Jesus. It was his time to proclaim to the world that He was the Savior of the world. This celebration was His time.