Revisiting the Triumphal Entry
Lk. 19:28-44
God bless Palm Sunday!
What if you were there to witness for yourself the events of the Triumphal Entry of Jesus into Jerusalem on that first Palm Sunday Celebration? How would you feel? What would you have seen or heard? What would you be thinking?
Imagine with me, what it would be like… Imagine I am the owner of the donkey colt that the two disciples of Jesus are untying to put Jesus on. Setting: house of the donkey owner talking with a friend…
What a week this is gonna be, eh Jo. Folks will be coming from all over the country to Jerusalem, to celebrate the Passover Feast at the Temple. It’s a big deal and I wonder just how Vancouver can pull it off with the 2010 Winter Olympics sized crowds with their tiny little roads and famous traffic jams. But I am sure Mahmoud will be happy, his Holiday Inn business will be packed out. Yeah, I know our famous Middle Eastern hospitality will be taxed to the limit, without question, but hey we are very open and very generous, and it’s just neat to party this whole week.
Look, Jo, there are two strange out of town guys walking right up to my donkey. What the…? Did u just see that? They are taking my steering lock off, untying them. Those 5.99 Walmart locks are useless! They are stealing my donkey right in front of me! Is this a home invasion?
That’s my colt! I can be hospitable as Ishmael over there, but ask me first. Think with me, how would you feel if someone just came by your house and started to turn on the ignition of your brand new car.
“Excuse me! Hey hold on a bleeped censored ancient cuss word minute there! Why are you untying the colt? If you want the colt, show me the money first!” “Don’t give me the excuse that it is tough week to get anything at Budget rent a donkey with the crowds streaming from all over the Middle East to celebrate the Passover Feast here. You can’t just drive away my brand new donkey colt, which no one had ever ridden (19:30). This is my new ride, with zero kms, my wheels for my business. It’s my livelihood you are taking away! It’s what I have to feed the kids! Let’s see what you gotta say before I call the cops and you know what they do with thieves here. They will crucify you! Like nail you on the cross, and torture and ohhhh the pain. Want some pain? So what’s the deal here?”
The disciples said, “The Lord needs it!” (v.34).
The Lord needs it?? Four words, man of little words, eh? That’s a new one! What kind of answer is that? I have heard my mother is pregnant and needs a ride to the local midwife. Or I need to get a ride to see the chariot race playoffs, because the superstar LeBron is racing. Or I need to get impress my future in laws, and your brand new colt here would be just the thing! But the Lord needs it? Huh?
Suddenly a light came on! Read 19:11 “he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once.”
Donkey owner thinking: “The Kingdom of God is going to appear right here and now. Man, the Lord needs it!” My donkey is gonna be used by a soon to be crowned king! Revolution, yeah, about time! Overthrow the pagan pork eating despised foreign occupation of our ancestral land. That’s big! Wow! Jesus wanting my colt! That’s like having free advertising for me too. The Lord is endorsing my product! That donkey is going to be a part of history making. Lemme see what shall I call my donkey products “Air donkey”, nah, that’s lame, as if anyone down the road would call anything air something, can anyone touch wind, might as well be playing air guitar.
Anyway, The Lord needs my donkey colt! Yeah! That’s cool! What can I say? No way?!? Over my dead stinking hairy hands? Or shall I say, Mastercard or Visa? If the Lord needs it, that means something big is going to happen. I can just feel it, see the goosebumps… ohhh… we will finally see the return of the King! Every Jewish guy is talking about the expectation that this Jesus guy is the real deal.
Bring it on, the Kingdom of David, the Kingdom of Israel is on the comeback trail, this will be bigger than King Kong. And my donkey is part of His plan! Yes! Maybe one day they will make a video game of it and what will they call it, Donkey Kong? Take it! Take the donkey colt.
Can this be real? – “no way this is real” but you pinch yourself and realized it is not a dream. You have heard the blind receiving their sight, lepers healed, even the dead can rise from the grave. WOW! God-stuff! Not only that, you have seen how warm and accepting and loving he is. Bad guys such as tax collectors, collaborators of the hated Roman empire, prostitutes, sinners, can even catch a break from him. You gotta love this guy! He talks to ordinary people, poor people, sick people, rich people, crazy people, all the time meeting their needs, blessing them, comforting them. Real class act! What a King!
To me, the ultimate sign of trust is this - when parents feel comfortable enough to bring their own lovely babies to have him touch and bless them. Wanna know what I heard Jesus said to his disciples who had no time for babies and their parents? Jesus said this “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it” (18:16,17). Babies in the kingdom of God. Be like babies to get God’s kingdom. I like this. Cause I am not the smartest cookie or spiritual holy type or super nice guy. I can be like a kid, I am a kid at heart. Mind-blowing stuff! In my culture, kids, babies and women are worse than dogs. God’s got to be in this! What a guy! What a King! Want my colt? No problem!
OK, you two. You can have my colt. Just be gentle, slowly break it in OK, like don’t go over 10 km/h for the first 100 km?
But just in case, these guys are con-artist. I better follow them.
As I followed the two who untied my colt I saw them bringing it to Jesus. They threw their cloaks on the colt. I guess they wanna make it a comfy ride for their Master. Then they put Jesus on the colt. I felt a bit of pride, yes, the king is on my colt!
There right before my eyes, as Jesus came near the place where the road goes down to the Mount of Olives, crowds began to gather and the ones who were following Jesus began joyfully to praise God in surround sound! If I didn’t clue in on what the crowds were doing I would have thought perhaps the Canucks just made it to the Stanley Cup playoffs.
This is like reality TV before reality TV was invented! And it comes unedited, live and uncensored! “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” Yeah, go King, go! I don’t mean the LA Kings! “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
Expectation of folks re: Jesus is sky-high - Things are gonna change for the better, sooner rather than later! Israel rules! We’ll be the powerhouse; the earth will shake under the new King, and a new Kingdom of David will rise from the ashes, with Jesus as King! Soon Jesus will slamdunk the Romans. V.48 describes it “The people hung on his words.”
But what if I were part of the conservative religious authorities called the Pharisees? I would be upset. Here is this guy that did not graduate from our Ivy League divinity schools coming to set Himself up as King. That God would be with Him! No way! Talk about visions of grandeur. That He is the answer to the Roman problem. Which school did he go to?
Gotta to remember we hear all the time some Jewish Messiah has come around only to be squashed like a bug with every uprising and revolt under the military strength of the Romans. Wanna die quickly and without mercy, then go ahead and organize an army to fight the well-armed and well-trained professional soldiers of Rome. Don’t link with me this Jesus. Hey Teacher, rebuke your disciples. Your theology is all wrong. This is getting out of hand. It’s getting real close to outright blasphemy. You have insulted our religious sensibilities. Praising God as if you are going to be prophesied Messiah that’s bringing in the Kingdom of God. You - the answer? You are the problem, not us, not the Romans, it is you! Tell them to stop shouting!
And who are you anyway to act as if you are the fulfillment of prophecy of Zech (9:9)
“See your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” By what authority are you claiming to be the king? Come on you are no king. You are a carpenter’s kid with no skill in warfare. There is no military power behind you. Where is your firepower? There is no way you can overnight overthrow the great and mighty Romans!
And what if you were a Roman soldier there? Imagine me perhaps standing guard, or riding in on my magnificent imported ride. Just in case there is riot breaking out. I am here to control the crowd, provide security against terrorist attacks. I am watching these events. Inside I am laughing at the whole scene.
What do I see a guy riding on a donkey! What’s he doing? Is he trying to mimick a victorious Roman general on a chariot of gold or a superb beautiful horse? I could give a ticket to whoever is responsible for copyright infringement here. This is like a cheap imitation. (Kar for in chinese).
If you wanna see victory procession, you gotta go to Rome! Soldiers in polished armor marching in unison, strong and dignified, with weapons of mass destruction in full display behind the conquering general. And behind them comes a bunch of slaves and prisoners in chains, - living proof of what happens to people who dare defy the mighty and powerful Roman empire! There’ll be carts filled with the loot, treasure that comes with victory And here is a poor imitation. The poor folks, what a pity they have so little to cheer for. They are under our power, ha..ha!.
What an army this guy on the donkey has! No weapons anywhere. No armor. No majestic stallions, the latest in chariot technology, not even a little ipod. What are they gonna do? Stop the mighty Romans with palm branches? It just kills me to see the kids and poor people running around him, waving palm branches laying down their cloaks. Instead of a smirking powerful dignified general, you see a not too majestic figure, what’s he doing? He’s weeping! If you are a King, this is no way to carry yourself. It looks bad, it looks weird, definitely not someone’s finest moment.
As Jesus approached Jerusalem, he wept over it because they did not see the time of God’s coming to them (v.41-44). Everyone has misunderstood Him. He will not force people to bow to Him, if they are willing to praise God, he is not stopping it. Jesus said “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” It is right to praise God!
What about you? Have you recognized the time of God’s coming to you? Jesus is here to offer us the Kingdom of God, a taste of the future today and now. Or do you just pity the poor Christians, praising God - for what? You see the donkey, that’s kingdom, you scoff! They have been deceived. There is nothing to show for.
But what if the Kingdom is not about political power, or wealth here and now or powerful shows of force? What if it is a Kingdom that’s different from what others expect it to be such as it was in the days of that first Palm Sunday?
God orchestrated that first Sunday. Jesus was in full control. He said there’s gonna be donkey there for the two disciples, and there’s donkey there for them to untie. He fulfilled prophecy of Zech and He will fulfill prophecy that he will come again and change this world and rule it as a gentle king. Yet He got emotional and broke down.
God’s orchestrating events of the world to bring about His purpose of turning people away from chasing this world’s dreams to and shattering that and replace it with a fully secure hope and a future that no Roman can take away, that money can’t buy, that no virus or disease can destroy, that no hacker can get at, where death is no longer a tool for fear, a future where needs are met and folks can be at home forever rested and at peace with God. But does anyone really understand that? The crowds wanted a political messiah, a hero in the shape of a conquering King David. The Jewish authorities saw Jesus as a growing threat to their powerbase. The Romans did not know what the big deal is, for their concern is just to keep the peace making sure every rebellion is crushed.
Jesus saw the Kingdom of God as God’s favor on humans everywhere – expressed as release for the oppressed, recovery of sight for the blind, freedom for prisoners. It is good news to the poor. Touch the future today, get excited because the King has come, and is pleased to offer you his kingdom, but you need to surrender to Him, willingly and openly. Will you catch a vision, and taste and hunger for His vision of the Kingdom? Does any one get it?
Jesus wept over the lack of insight of those who lived in Jerusalem. They see only what’s in the here and now. Jesus said, “if you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace.” You could have peace, but you rejected that! Jesus wept over the city’s impending doom and destruction because they did not see that God’s kingdom is offered to them.
I like to think we are like opening day of baseball season. Apparently, the Blue Jays had a huge turnout last Tuesday on their home opener. They did not win the World Series yet, but they can taste it. The fans cheer, the fans are excited, each hit, each run, each pitch celebrated. Like the crowd on Palm Sunday they cheered but where were they when Jesus was on the cross? Did they know the cross was God’s answer to the war between of hearts of people? God’s in full control, He will win, we’ll be the celebrants, we’ll be part of the picture, we’ll be there with Him forever celebrating the greatest victory of all in the Kingdom of God, like the Blue Jays fans, taste it today, as you look at Jesus ... Lord, reign in me!
The kingdom of God is not violent revolution but a quiet revolution of hearts. Hearts bowed in worship to the King. Hearts transformed by the Prince of peace. You can be sure He will return and inaugurate the Kingdom of God. Will we oppose Him or will we live for Him and so attain the full security of peace in heaven with God?
Today, will u open up your heart to Him. And will you praise Him, as you accept the King’s terms, surrender to Him, and recognized the time of God’s coming to you, and know peace that transcends human time and space?
