Daily Devotion

 

From Jerusalem to Jericho was only seventeen miles, and now Jesus had almost reached His goal. Jerusalem, journey's end, lay just ahead. The prophets had a regular custom of which they made use again, and again. When words were of no effect, when people refused to take in, and understand the spoken message, they resorted to some dramatic action which put their message into a picture which none could fail to see. It was just such a dramatic action that Jesus planned now. He proposed to ride into Jerusalem in a way that would be an unmistakable claim to be the Messiah, God's Anointed King. We must note certain things about this entry into Jerusalem.

 

(1^st) IT WAS CAREFULLY PLANNED. It was no sudden, impulsive action. Jesus did not leave things until the last moment. He had His arrangement with the owners of the colt. "THE LORD NEEDS IT" was a password chosen previously.

 

(2^nd) It was an act of glorious defiance, and of superlative courage. By this time, there was a price on Jesus' head (John 11:57.) It would have been natural that, if He must go into Jerusalem, He should have slipped in unseen, and hidden away in some secret place. However, He entered in such a way as to focus the whole limelight upon Himself. It is a breathtaking thing to think of a man with a price on His head, an outlaw, deliberately riding into a city in such a way that every eye was fixed on Him. It is impossible to exaggerate the sheer courage of Jesus.

 

(3^rd) It was a deliberate claim to be king, a deliberate fulfilling of the picture in Zechariah 9:9. However, even in this, Jesus underlined the kind of kingship that He claimed. The ass in Israel was not the lowly animal that it is in this country. It was noble. Only in war did kings ride a horse; when they came in peace, they came upon an ass. So, Jesus by this action, came as a king of love, and peace, not as the conquering military hero that the mob expected.

 

(4^th) IT WAS ONE LAST APPEAL. In this action, Jesus came, as it were, with pleading hands outstretched, saying, "Even now, will you not take me as your king?" Before the hatred of men engulfed Him, once again He confronted them with love's invitation.

 

Life Application: Think about how you would have entered Jerusalem if you were bringing them life, and hope? How do you reach out to your friends?

 

Praise/Prayer: "HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD!" Father, I am constantly amazed as I read the Bible, and see how You and Jesus do things. Then, I think about what You have asked me to do, and I realize, You are greater than what You have asked me to do for You. You are my strength, and the courage I need to see mountains move. You make the impossible, possible. Hallelujah! Amen!