Jesus Weeps at the Parade
Luke 19:41-44
April 13, 2014
I’ll make a little confession to you this morning. Especially since Debbie is at the youth retreat I know I can say this. But, she already knows I’m this way. I’m not really a big fan of parades. I get bored pretty easily and quickly. Now, I like the Alexandria parades, because they aren’t long and they throw candy your way. Victory parades are always good too.
But Debbie likes to watch parades. Like the New Year’s Day and the Thanksgiving Day parades. They are too slow moving, last too long and interfere with the food I want to eat and the football I want to watch! WOW! I feel so much better.
I’m not sure how I would have felt about the parade that occurred on the first Palm Sunday. I mean, what if you were on your way somewhere and traffic came to a stand still? Your way behind the crowd, you don’t have a clue to what’s going on. Would you have been up for a parade that wasn’t even on the calendar? Nobody knew it was coming.
As Jesus was nearing Jerusalem, He told 2 of his disciples to go ahead of the group and there would be a colt nobody had sat on, tell the owner, the Lord needs it, and bring the colt to me, so I can ride it into Jerusalem. This was to fulfill what the prophet Zechariah 9:9, wrote, ~
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
righteous and having salvation is he,
humble and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
These were very prophetic words. Remember, we never hear of Jesus riding into any town. He always walked in, but not this time. This was the fulfillment of Zechariah’s prophecy. Jesus was telling the people of Jerusalem, “Here comes your King!” And the people are lining the streets of Jerusalem, shouting and dancing and celebrating.
Matthew 21 tells us, 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”
So, people are really getting into this parade and celebrating the arrival of Jesus into Jerusalem. As always, we know there were people who weren’t very happy about Jesus’ arrival. But the entire city was stirred up and the Romans were on guard. Remember this was the beginning of the Passover celebration and the for the Jewish people this was a time of great celebration because of the miracles God performed to get the people out of slavery while in Egypt.
BLANK
Can you imagine some of the people in the crowd that day? There would be Mary and Martha and the newly revived Lazarus. Maybe there would be Bartimaeus, the man who was blind, but now could see. Maybe Zacchaeus made the trip with Jesus. What about the lepers who were now clean and came to give thanks to Jesus. Or Jairus and his daughter, who Jesus brought back to life. Or the mom and her son from Nain, who Jesus brought back to life. The centurion and his guard who Jesus healed. There would be the women, led by Mary Magdalene; and so many more followers and curiosity seekers who wanted a glimpse of Jesus.
There were also the faces of the ones who were against Jesus. The Sadducees and Pharisees were there. They were supposed to be keepers of the law, the spiritual leaders. But Jesus’ popularity led them to feel threatened. So, with hatred and jealousy they looked at Jesus. They were waiting for Jesus to make one mistake and that would be it for Him. That is, until they discovered Judas’ weakness.
The Romans were also there. They feared some sort of revolt. That happened before, so especially when the city would be filled with people, they were ready for any signs of rebellion. Their job was to stop and thoroughly crush any uprisings.
Jesus fully understood what was happening as He listened to their “Hosannas.” Soon those happy voices would turn into the voices which would cry out, “Crucify Him!” or simply stand aside and say nothing at all.
As Jesus was descending along the road from the Mt. of Olives, He stopped walking. They weren’t sure what was happening. Maybe He was going to say something to the people. Maybe someone had touched his garment and were healed. Maybe there were others who needed healing. Something was happening. The look on Jesus’ face said it all. The smile and laughter was gone. There was a look of pain. The pain turned into sorrow and tears. Jesus was weeping.
Luke tells us what was happening. In Luke 19:41-44, we read ~
41 And when Jesus drew near and saw the city, He wept over it,
42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.
43 For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side
44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
On what seemed like a great day for the disciples and Jesus, here’s Jesus weeping over the city. After 3 years of teaching and preaching and healing; they still didn’t get it. Jesus knew it, He understood what was happening and what was going to happen. And the thought of not only the present reality, but the future reality of how many people would actually reject Him in THE city, well, it just broke Jesus’ heart.
You may wonder why would Jesus cry if He knew what was going to happen. But how many times do we cry at movie scenes we know are coming and we cry every time we see them. Or certain events happen and we know they’re going to happen, yet we still seem surprised by them. Remember, Jesus was not only 100% God, He was also 100% man. He experienced emotions just as we do.
Jesus recognized the prophecy from Isaiah, as I mentioned last week, that the people had eyes, but didn’t see, they had ears, but didn’t hear. They missed it! They missed the message of God and it was the physical presence of God that they missed as well.
They were expecting this great king. This man who would lead the nation to their greatest moment as they would go to war and defeat their Roman oppressors. They would gain freedom and Israel would be a great military and economic power again.
But way back in Matthew 5, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told the people to love their enemies, to turn the other cheek, to give away your cloak, to go the extra mile. This didn’t sound like a warrior King.
The nation of Israel had the opportunity to show Rome something new and different. But because they didn’t understand Jesus, because they completely misunderstood His mission — Jesus wept over them because the opportunity would be taken away and they would never have it again.
These were God’s people — — God’s chosen people. God loved them and led them across the wilderness and into the Promised Land. But they didn’t under-stand the Messiah when He walked in their midst. Because of that, Jesus wept.
So, as we look at this story about Jesus riding into town — it was the Prince of Peace! The Messiah was riding through the streets of Jerusalem. The Redeemer, the Savior of the world could be touched, could give you His autograph … and they missed Him! Like so many of us, they wanted God on their terms.
They wanted a mail-order leader; they got a suffering Savior. They ordered a ruler; God sent a servant. They wanted a King with a throne and crown, they got a king with a crown of thorns, and the Son of God hanging on a cross. They didn’t understand! He came to liberate their souls, not their cities!
He came to deliver them from the eternal punishment of sin, not from a temporary earthly dictator! To conquer death, hell and the grave and to defeat the armies of the Kingdom of Darkness, not to destroy the Roman Empire.
Like so many of us, they were living in the here and now. They weren’t worried about what was right, let alone about eternity.
And so Jesus wept for them saying, “If you only knew! Things could have been so different. You are headed for destruction and I’m trying to save you. God sent me to you but you did not recognize the day of my visitation.”
These were God’s chosen people. But they did not understand or accept the Messiah when he was right their midst. And Jesus wept. He looked out and saw the towering Temple of God silhouetted against the sky. But he could see beyond that to the future years when the Jews would revolt. And the temple stones would be taken down and the city leveled. Thousands would die as the temple would be destroyed. It all could have been avoided had they believed in Jesus.
All of that because they didn’t recognize the Messiah when He came! How different their lives could have been! How different the history of Israel could have been if they had only recognized the one who came into town that day, riding on a colt. Jesus wept for the city.
And it extends beyond the borders of Jerusalem. It goes beyond all the big cities of the world. From Moscow to New York, London to Los Angeles, Tokyo to Chicago. To Indianapolis, Elwood, Summitville, Muncie, Anderson & Alexandria. Jesus looked out that day and saw all the people who would reject Him.
He weeps because we gather in our churches on this day to wave palm branches and shout “Hosanna!” but in many ways we’ve turned our backs on God. Like Jerusalem, we have our religion, we have our churches, but we’re missing God’s presence in our midst! Jesus looks out over our cities and sees the abuse, the addictions, the sin that runs rampant through society. He sees lives that are torn apart, kids without families, hearts that are empty, suicide, rape, murder, bitterness, incest, divorce, hatred, pornography, hopelessness.
Jesus sees it and He weeps. Is Jesus weeping over Alexandria? Does He cry out “O Alexandria! O Alexandria! If you, even you, had known, trusted, believed in me. Then on this day you would have peace. But since you have chosen to reject me, that peace you have longed for is now hidden from your heart.
Those who wanted to anoint Jesus, as King, cried out “Hosanna!” But soon those cries would turn into “Crucify Him!” So as Jesus looked out at the faces in the crowd, Jesus, the hero of the day, stood weeping.
As Jesus looks across our room this morning, He comes to offer complete forgiveness to all who will come to Him. What a gift from Jesus. If you’ve accepted Jesus and the forgiveness He offers you. GREAT! Are you living the life He wants you to?
What does Jesus see when He looks your way this morning? You may have shouted and sang along with the crowd this morning, but in your heart, have you made Jesus King of Kings and Lord of Lords? When He looks at you does He see a devoted follower or a deceiver? A denier? A fake? A smiling face who will be shouting “Crucify Him” on Friday?
Friends, we have an all powerful God, who has come to save you and me. He offers us His peace, His grace, His love and His power! Have you asked Jesus into your heart? Have you asked Jesus to change who you are?
Maybe you’ve let go of Jesus and moved through life on your own? You know Jesus, you professed faith in Jesus, but you’re doing life on your terms. Now would be a great time to come back to Jesus! Wouldn’t it?
