Luke 19:28-44 NASB
²⁸After He had said these things, He was going on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.
²⁹When He approached Bethphage and Bethany, near the mount that is called Olivet, He sent two of the disciples, ³⁰saying, “Go into the village ahead of you; there, as you enter, you will find a colt tied on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here. ³¹If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of it.'”
³²So those who were sent went away and found it just as He had told them. ³³As they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?”
³⁴They said, “The Lord has need of it.”
³⁵They brought it to Jesus, and they threw their coats on the colt and put Jesus on it.
³⁶As He was going, they were spreading their coats on the road. ³⁷As soon as He was approaching, near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the miracles which they had seen, ³⁸shouting: “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord; Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
³⁹Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.” ⁴⁰But Jesus answered, “I tell you, if these become silent, the stones will cry out!”
⁴¹When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it, ⁴²saying, “If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. ⁴³For the days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side, ⁴⁴and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”
Devotional
Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. (Matthew 4:17)
At this time, when we joyfully await His coming, and also in the days of Advent before the Christmas celebration, we love to sing: ‘How shall I receive you, how wilt thou be met?’ And ‘Glory to God, and peace on earth…’ That was also the case with the people at the entry into Jerusalem.
Jesus had a multitude of disciples it says, but they only followed Him because of the miracles they had seen. Soon these same people, who are now singing so enthusiastically, will cry out, “Crucify Him!” It’s terrible, but true.
They only want to follow Jesus when He conforms and performs, to their ideas of the Messiah. But if His way means suffering, they don’t want to follow Him anymore.
This is a warning to us!
The arrival of Jesus in Bethlehem, as well as His return, is a joyous event, which we can look forward to with joy. But we cannot separate Advent and Christmas from Golgotha.
If we do, we will also cry, ‘Crucify Him!’ when the cross comes into our own lives. Jesus saw through that joy; He wept over Jerusalem and wept over us if we do not understand what is good for our peace (Luke 19:42) and do not notice the time when God looks after us (Luke 19:44).
Jesus loves us and if we love Him too, we will repent of our misconceptions of Him. Because to the degree that we love someone, to that degree we can also weep for someone.
At this time, let us look forward to His return with humble and cleansed hearts!
Twitter: @SchoemakerHarry
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