53-RoyalSubjects-A

And We Thought We Knew You:
Soul Journey With the Real Jesus

Royal Subjects
DAY EXTRORDINAIRE

Sunday, about April 10, AD 30
Bethany, Judea

�� Three years.� Three years of seeing the impossible, carried out by the one with whom nothing is impossible.� Three years of hearing the unbelievable, spoken by the one with whom everything is believable.

�� "Good morning, everyone!"

�� It is hardly dawn and already everyone is up at Lazarus' home.� How were they able to sleep at all?�� The excitement over in Jericho and then last night at Simon's dinner has grabbed them and shaken them into the realization of a new dawn.� A dawn for mankind.� There is electricity in the air.� Everyone can feel it.� What next?� What next?

�� Thomas goes to the front gate and opens it.� He stands there staring, the gate ajar behind him.

�� "Hey, Thomas, what's up?"

�� "None of them left here!"

�� "Huh?" asks Matthew as he joins him.

�� "The people are everywhere!� It doesn't look like anyone left!� They have been out here all night!"

�� Someone leaning against a wall in the street shifts then stands.� He spots the two men and stands and shouts, "Everyone!� They're up!"

�� People wake out of stupors and bend sore necks from sleeping in cramped positions in a cool night.� One by one, but in an almost hasty succession, people stir, look in the direction of Lazarus' house, and walk closer to the front gate.� Drowsiness is quickly replaced with animation charged by wonder and hope.

�� A small group assembles close to the gate.� They are mostly people who have known or known of Lazarus for a long time.� Just a peek at Lazarus, the man brought back to life, is all they want.� And a look at Jesus who made it happen.

�� "I'm a personal friend of Lazarus, you know.� I was one of the first ones at the house after he died."

�� "My cousin was one of the official mourners hired by the family."

�� "He was dead and gone four days.� We all know that."

�� "Who but the Deliverer, God's anointed one, could bring someone back to life like that?"

�� Thomas, stepping over in their direction, has been listening in.� "Jesus has done it three times now," he interjects.� "Three times so far he has brought someone back to life.� I saw it myself." [1]

�� "We know it happened.� No one can deny it."

�� Another group forms on another part of the street out front.

�� "Do we need any more proof?"

�� "Everything makes sense."

�� Matthew joins them.� "If you're talking about all the prophecies he has fulfilled, he has done them all.� And his family could not have possibly manipulated his life to make them all happen."

�� "But the Deliverer was supposed to be born in Bethlehem."

�� "He was!" Matthew announces excitedly.� "He was!� His parents had to go there for that census 33 years ago." [2]

�� "But he has spent most of his time up north."

�� "Once more he was fulfilling a prophecy.� Don't you remember what Isaiah predicted?� The one who will rule forever with his ancestor David's kingship will first live up north in Galilee." [3]

�� "Man, I never knew that!"

�� Simon appears at the gate.� "I guess we'd better send word to those who stayed in the other houses to come as soon as possible.� Andrew, do you want to help?"

�� "We'll help too," Mary and Martha, their hostesses,announce.

�� They grab their cloaks and work their way through the crowd scattering in several directions. [4]

�� "And remember all those babies that King Herod killed in Bethlehem?� That was predicted by the prophet Jeremiah." [5]

�� "Well, one thing I know for sure," a stranger concludes. "When the Deliverer comes, he will be able to perform miracles like healing people."

�� "I saw him do it once," another in the group announces.

�� "He healed my cousin.� I know it for a fact."

�� "And we all see Lazarus for ourselves and know he was dead for four days." [6]

�� "It's all coming together!"

�� Suddenly another group in the crowd begins to chant loudly.� "Son of David! �Son of David!� Son of David!"

�� Thomas and Matthew excuse themselves, hurry back into the house, and close the gate.

�� The exhilaration out on the street grows.

�� "It's time!� This is it!"

�� "He's the one!"

�� "We have looked for him for over two thousands years!"

�� "It's him at last!� It could be no one else!"

�� "Why didn't we catch on before now?"

�� "He's actually from God!"

�� "He's going to take over the country!"

�� "The world!"

�� "He's got powers!� He can do anything!"

�� "The new kingdom of God is upon us! And we were lucky enough to be alive to witness it all."

�� "He can destroy our enemies!"

�� "With the wave of a hand!"

�� "Our Deliverer....Our Deliverer....Our Deliverer...."

�� The chanting goes on for a full hour.� People inside the house watch Jesus.� He is not stopping them!

�� Now and then a small group of Jesus' friends and followers who had stayed at other houses are admitted to Lazarus' home.

�� This really is it!� He is finally going to take over!� Their religion, their country, the whole world!

�� Not much talking inside the house.� Not with all the commotion outside.� But there are grins and nods of affirmation.� Heart beats increase to a race.�

�� "Man!� This is the time to be alive!� He is really going to do it!"

�� "Do you think he'll do it today?"

�� "Yes, I think today."

�� "We're going to have a big, day, everyone!� Better grab some breakfast.� It's in here.� Eat all you can.� Don't know when we'll be able to break for lunch."

�� "Maybe he'll create lunch for everyone out of nothing."

�� Everyone laughs.

�� "He has done it before."

�� ....Breakfast is over.� Jesus' friends go back to the windows.� The crowd has tripled.� A traffic jam out in the street.� People now arriving riding donkeys.� Parents pulling children in wagons.� Even a chariot parked nearby.

�� Jesus is sitting on the other side of a great room completely quiet.� Almost oblivious to the noise outside.� He had always been able to do that.� Just tune things out.

�� But why would he want to tune it out?� He has not tried to stop it.� Surely he approves.

�� Jesus, his friends realize, is absorbed in prayer.� His head down, his elbows on his knees, his fingers interlaced over the top of his head.

�� The others in the house follow his example.� Each finds a place to sit.� On a bench.� On the floor.� On a step.� Their heads are bowed too.�

�� They know it is about to happen.� They know it now without a doubt.� They, too, must be prepared.� Silence fills the house with sacred astonishment.� An overwhelming sense of future thrust upon them.

�� They all know that these last few moments will be just that ~ the last.� Never again will their lives be the same.� They will stand side by side with the Deliverer as he takes over the hearts and minds and wills of mankind.

�� Oh yes, and set up his headquarters in the Temple.� Maybe even move into the palace.

�� Of course the spies will follow them everywhere, but they know they can get used to it.� They have already had that to deal with for past three years.� They can handle it.

�� Ah yes.� Jesus, this is your day!� Your moment in time!� And we are right here beside you.� Like always.� You have trained us well.� We are more than ready.�

�� Jesus begins a song.� The others look up.� They join him.� It is a slow song.� A quiet hymn actually.� Not an anthem.� Not a pre-trained choir.� Not a grand organ or orchestra.� Just a quiet hymn.� It will calm them before they storm the city of Jerusalem with the glory of God.� They need this moment of calmness.�

�� It will not come again very soon ~ calmness.� A week from now after their world has turned upside down and inside out, how they will long for a return to this moment.� Though Jesus has tried to warn them a hundred times, they still do not understand.

�� The song ends.� Jesus pauses a few moments, stands up, takes a deep breath, and climbs the stairway to the rooftop.�

�� "There he is!� Up there!� It's Jesus himself!"

�� The crowd roars in an uncontrollable display of unleashed fire in their souls.� The triumphant moment is here!� He is the one!� Praise God, he is the one!� He is going to deliver us at last!�

�� Jesus, the Deliverer!� Jesus, the Deliverer!� Jesus, the Deliverer!

�� They chant over and over and over, voluntarily out of control.� How can they control such a moment even if they wanted to?� He is actually standing in front of them!� Right there in front of them!� Who would have ever thought it would happened in their lifetime, and to them in person!

�� Jesus, the Deliverer!� Jesus, the Deliverer!� Jesus, the Deliverer!

�� He smiles and raises his arms to them.� Simultaneously the crowd breaks out into a new and unmanageable chant.

�� "Hosanna!� Hosanna!� Hosanna!� Hosanna!� Hosanna!� Hosanna!"

�� "We're saved!� We're saved!� We're saved!� We're saved!� We're saved!"

�� Then he goes back down into the courtyard.

�� "We'll be going to Jerusalem through Bethphage on the Mount of Olives," he says calmly.

�� "That's out of the way, isn't it?"

�� "Shhh!� He's got a plan.� A strategy."

�� The moment is here.� Jesus takes a deep breath, picks up his robe and walks toward the gate.� After this, there will be no turning back.

�� "Wait a minute," Simon interrupts.� His twelve apostles rush in ahead of him to clear the way.� Then there are the others ~ family members and friends who have followed him all the way from Galilee.

�� Jesus pauses once more.� Everyone stands where they are waiting in silence.� Grins are hard to control.� Man, this is it!�

�� James Junior and Judas open the gate wide.

�� "Clear the way!� Clear the way!� Clear the way for our new king!"

�� The people run to each side of the street to encourage the king.� Cheers escalate to a peak that up until now seemed impossible.� Dogs bark!� People run wildly to find their donkeys or camels or carts so they can get in line for the procession.��

�� "It's starting!"

�� "Hurry, everyone!� It's starting!"

�� They walk slowly.� No one seems to mind.�

�� As they come to intersections, some of them stop traffic coming the other way so the procession can continue uninterrupted.

�� Many realize that the idea of treating it like a funeral procession is not a bad one.� So they shout, not in wails but in song.� Some even wave little banners that have become more and more popular with the star of David on them.

�� Yes, the funeral procession idea is a good one.� The people do not realize that this is exactly what it is.� But they do not want to realize it.� No one wants to.� Not even Jesus wants to, though he is the only one who has acknowledged and accepted it.� The dying.

�� He will not push the issue for now.� They need to confess him as king of their life first.� They need that.� So he will let them.� And perhaps he needs to hear it.� On the cross, perhaps he will need the memory.

�� It is a long trip.� Eventually the procession arrives at a grove of olive trees on the outskirts of Bethphage.�

�� Thaddeus goes back to the first group of public followers and tells them it is just temporary and everyone should give Jesus room to stretch and be alone.� They estimate the wait will be for about an hour.� The message works its way back to the end of the procession.

�� Gradually people go over to the side of the road.� Everyone honors the wishes of their new king Jesus.� Well, he is not king yet.� But he is going to show up in Jerusalem and miraculously take the city away from the present leaders.� So they may as well go ahead and call him King Jesus now.

�� Jesus turns to Nathaniel and Philip.� "Go into Bethphage.� At the first house you come to, you will see a donkey and its colt tied up side by side.� Bring them back to me."

�� "They'll think we're thieves!" Philip objects.

�� "Just tell them God needs them.� They will let you borrow them for awhile." [7]

�� During the wait more and more people join the procession, people who have come in off the highway wondering what was going on.�

�� "We're the ones who knew Lazarus, you know.� Jesus can do anything.� He brought Lazarus back to life after four days in his tomb, you know." [8]

�� "See that large olive tree up by the spring?� That's where Jesus is resting.� He is going to take over the country today.� With just a nod he is going to take over.� He can do anything.� He has consented to let us go along and watch it.� Want to join us?"

�� "It's like the Day of Atonement last fall!" someone surmises.

�� "That's right!� The day our sins are forgiven for another year, and we're free.� Except this time we're free of our enemies!" [9]

�� It hits everyone like a ton of bricks.� The crowd starts spreading the word.� "It's like the Day of Atonement!"

�� Heads nod in agreement throughout the crowd as the word is spread.

�� Hadn't they already said the words to him earlier in the day?� Hadn't they already called out "Hosanna, We're Saved" for a solid hour?

�� "It's the Day of Atonement all over!"

�� "The palm branches!� We need the palm branches!"

�� Everyone understands.� The Day of Atonement is celebrated at the beginning of the Feast of Booths.� That's when everyone lives in booths of branches as a reminder that their ancestors lived in booths and then tents when they left slavery in Egypt and made their way to Palestine. [10]

�� "Well, then, what's stopping us?� As far as we're concerned this IS the Day of Atonement!"

�� "You're right!� Over by those springs near the highway.� There are plenty of palm trees there."

�� "We've got to do it!� We've got to cut down those palm branches and announce to everyone as we go into town that this is the new Day of Atonement!"

�� "Jesus is going to save us from our enemies today!"

�� "Hurry, before they get ready to leave!"

�� The word is spread among the crowd and everyone enthusiastically runs back over to the highway and the group of palm trees.

�� Just as they finish up, they hear new cheering.� It is a donkey.� Why did they bring the colt too?� It will just be in the way?�

�� "A royal donkey!� He has been waiting for a royal donkey!" someone announces.

�� Just like David's royal donkey.� Just like the one he gave his son, Solomon, the ride when he was proclaimed the next king.� Now Jesus, the distant son of David, will ride the royal donkey. [11]

�� "Right on, Jesus!" another shouts in approval.� "Go into Jerusalem in royal style!� Show them you're now in charge!"

�� It is impossible to restrain themselves any longer.� They want to see Jesus mount the royal donkey.� It is a fine steed.� One that any king would be proud of.� He'll want to wave to his supporters.� They'll want to wave back.

�� Wait!� What is going on?

�� Hey, Jesus, the royal donkey is over there.� That's her colt you're getting onto.� That's wrong.� You're supposed to ride the royal donkey!

�� Jesus has chosen.� He will ride the colt.� Sometimes he will have to stop and let it rest and perhaps have a drink, so they will bring the mother donkey along.� But he will ride the colt. [12]

�� Will the colt buck him off?� Not this one.� The colt knows its Creator.� A tender creator.

�� But the colt will still be uncomfortable.� Perhaps they need to put some padding on it.� That's a long ride into Jerusalem.� Besides, royalty should have a saddle.�

�� Lazarus takes off his robe.� "Here, Jesus.� Put this on the colt."� Jesus accepts.

�� "Well, you may as well take mine," John adds.

�� "And mine too, Jesus." It is Nathaniel.

�� Now Jesus won't get dusty.� Wet either.� They have been hearing thunder. [13]

�� Jesus smiles and lets his closest friends put them on the colt.� He tests it out, and they are comfortable enough.� He and the colt will be fine now.

�� Jesus waves his assent.� He is ready.

�� Not quite understanding, the people watch as Jesus begins to pull out onto the highway headed toward Jerusalem.�

�� "He's going, everyone!� He's going!� Get in line!"

�� Not everyone does, however.� Some run ahead to prepare the people beside the road both out of and in the city.� And they begin to wave their atonement palm branches.

�� A strong voice begins hailing.� "Hosanna!� We're saved....Hosanna!� We're saved....Hosanna!� We're saved...."

�� The people join in, waving their palm branches deliriously.� "Hosanna!� We're saved!� Hosanna!� We're saved!"

�� Slowly up the highway to the holy city.� Slowly and gloriously to victory!� Freedom at last!� The new kingdom of God at last!� At last!

�� People yell at bystanders along the road who prefer to remain loyal to the old religion, the old government.

�� "You didn't think he could do it, did you?� You were wrong!� He's taking over."

�� "What are you talking about?"

�� "Jesus!� The takeover!� He's the one from God!� He can do anything!� The takeover is now!"

�� "You're crazy?� You'll get killed!"

�� "He works miracles!� He'll just zap anyone who gets in his way!� I'm telling you, man, the takeover is today!"

�� "Hosanna!� We're saved....Hosanna!� We're saved....Hosanna!� We're saved...."

�� Slowly they make their way toward Jerusalem.� Momentum continues to build.� A momentum that shakes the foundations of the world and of the Temple.� A momentum that is charged with glory and majesty.

�� "Hosanna!� We're saved....Hosanna!� We're saved....Hosanna!� We're saved...."

�� People in Jerusalem are beginning to hear the commotion.� The hopeful grow more hopeful.� The suspicious grow more suspicious.� Could it be happening at last?� Could Jesus finally be making his move?�

�� Over two million worshippers here from everywhere for the grand Passover.� Untold thousands swarm toward the city gate to see what is going on. [14]

�� "Have you heard?" someone shouts to a friend as he climbs onto his burrow-pulled cart.

�� "Heard what?"

�� "Come with me!� I'll tell you on the way....Jesus is coming!"

�� "Jesus, the carpenter?"

�� "Jesus, the new high priest and king of the Jews, and maybe even the whole world!"

�� "You want to be on his side when he takes over, don't you?"

�� "Get in.� You're going on the ride of your life!"

�� The two head out toward the highway to Bethphage.� It is not as crowded as they thought it might be.� That's good and bad.� At least they will have a better chance to see for themselves.

�� "Attention, everyone!"�

�� It is a chariot working its way back and forth on the road between Jerusalem and the procession.� It belongs to Nichodemus.� His friend Joseph of Arimathea is with him.� They are supposed to be part of the Sanhedrin, the arch enemies of Jesus.� They can no longer go along with it.� They have bowed out of the life of hypocrisy. [15]

�� "Attention, everyone!� Attention, everyone!� He is coming for the takeover!� Jesus is on his way!� The crowd with him has declared this the new Day of Atonement!� They are waving their palm branches!� They are shouting Hosanna, we're saved!�

�� "If you want to welcome him into Jerusalem, go now and cut down your palm branches while there is still time.� The procession is moving very slowly.� You will have time if you do so expeditiously."

�� Some scoff.� Most do not.� People rush out of the city to cut their palm branches.� Many return to the city to be as close to the Temple as possible.� To see the takeover up close.

�� Quickly people line the street by the Temple and the road leading into and out of Jerusalem waving their palm branches.� The palm branches for the Day of Atonement.�

�� The men in the chariot now have a new message.� "You all know the welcome song to Zion, the city of God.� Now is the time to sing it!� Welcome him and his followers into Jerusalem!� Welcome Jesus, our Deliverer, our king!"

�� Human, animal, and wagon traffic has moved from the normal of an ordinary day to the rushed. People run to get their palm branches, and now in slow motion wait impatiently to see and welcome their new king.�

�� Some decide to take the stairway to the top of the wall.� Indeed, it is the natural thing to do when welcoming a king.� But in this case it is THE king they welcome.� What better reception than the traditional welcome song written fifteen centuries earlier by King David.� David is back!� The great David is back!� Through his descendant, Jesus, David is back!� As before, he will build the kingdom! [16]

�� The people on the street below begin it, and it spreads like wildfire.� Everyone knows what to do and when to do it.

�� With hearts dancing and hopes leaping, they join in the song, still waving their palm branches.� Excitedly they sing.� Expectantly they sing.� Deliriously they sing.

�� It is God who made the world!

�� It is God who brought dry land up out of the oceans!

Then the people on the city wall reply:�

�� Who is able to climb the hill of God

�� and enter his presence?

The crowd below sings their answer with exhilaration.�

�� Only people with innocent hands and hearts!

�� Who don't deceive and lie!�

�� God will bless them!�

They will stand in the presence of the God of our ancestors

The people up on the wall join in with the crowd below.�

�� Let them through, city boundaries!

�� Let the King of Glory in!

Next the women sing alone and ring the proclamation out as though the very stars were singing. [17]

�� Who is the King of Glory?

The men reply in booming, thunderous reply

�� The Lord, forceful, stalwart,

�� Unbeatable!

Finally, everyone from everywhere joins in with a chorus made up of the glorious common people, the magnificent average people, the lustrous dull people.�

�� Yes!� Open up your city boundaries!

�� Let the King of Glory in!

�� Who is this King of Glory?

�� The Captain of the Armies of God! [18]

�� They pause.� All grow quiet.� They strain to listen.� They strain to hear.� Can they hear it?� Yes, they hear it coming toward the city.!

�� "Hosanna!� We're Saved....� Hosanna!� We're Saved....� Hosanna!� We're Saved...."

�� The voices in the chariot join in.� The people along the street near the gate of Jerusalem join in.

�� "Hosanna!� We're Saved....� Hosanna!� We're Saved....� Hosanna!� We're Saved...."

�� And they wave their atonement palm branches.

�� But the singing and chanting is suddenly replaced by a roar.� A roar of unimaginable delight.� It shakes their world like thunder.�

�� He is in sight!� There is a royal donkey.� Jesus is surely on the royal donkey.

�� Alternately is heard the hallowed roar and the sacred song.

�� "Hosanna!� We're Saved....� Hosanna!� We're Saved....� Hosanna!� We're Saved...."

�� As the donkey draws closer, someone shouts, "He's on the colt!� He's not on the royal donkey!"

�� "Hey, shut up, everyone!� What's he saying?"

�� The singing ebbs.� The man repeats himself.

�� "He is on the colt!� He's not on the royal donkey!"

�� "Are you sure?" someone else shouts.

�� "See for yourselves!"

�� But most still cannot see for themselves.

�� So undaunted, they resume their song.� "Hosanna!� We're Saved....� Hosanna!� We're Saved....� Hosanna!� We're Saved...."

�� But the colt has nearly come to a halt.� It is tired and needs fed by its mother.� Jesus gets off for a few minutes.� His twelve aides surround him protectively.�

�� "Let him rest, people!� Let him rest!� It's been a long rough ride!"

�� "On a colt is no way to ride!� The road is too rough!� He'll never make it in!" a bystander shouts.

�� "Look at the rocks on the road!� We've got to smooth the way out for him!"

�� "Well, isn't that what John the Baptizer said to do?"

�� "Now we've got our chance!" [19]

�� Spontaneously, people walk to the center of the road and place their palm branches out in the road where the rough rocks and furrows appear so Jesus will not have to watch for them and go around them.

�� Others see it.� Soon people all along the procession that now extends at least five miles out of Jerusalem do the same.� The road is made smooth for Jesus' and his little colt.

�� Others decide he needs the carpet treatment.� A few with cloaks throw them out on the road.� For their king.� The king who loves them.� The king who has come to save them from the Romans and crooked religious leaders.� The king of their hearts and minds and souls! [20]

�� The colt once more rested and fed, the procession begins again. [21]

�� Now, spontaneously, the chant changes.�

�� "Royal son of David!� Holy man of God!� Heaven is here!" [22]

�� Now closer on the gate of the Temple.� Everyone is convinced.� This is it.� This is the day Jesus takes over.� Today is the birth of the new kingdom of God.

�� People driving ox carts guide them crosswise and block side streets leading toward the Temple.�

�� People climb onto roofs and wave their palm branches.� They hang out of upper-room windows.� Others climb trees!

�� Jesus is now well within the city gates.� He raises his arms and waves.�

�� The crowd roars, the earth rumbles, and hell shakes in terror.� The angels of heaven stand and shout too.� "Halla-lu-jah!� Halla-lu-jah!� Halla-lu-jah!"

�� God stands.� He whispers.� Jesus stops still and listens.� You need this, Son.� They love you in their own way.� They'll turn on you in a few days.� Remember this, Son.� This is who you are dying for.��

�� The roar of the crowd swells uncontrolled, like a thunder storm and not even knowing it.

�� Someone breaks out of the crowd and runs up to Jesus before he can be stopped.

�� "Get them under control!"

�� Jesus just turns and calls back, "If they did that, the very stones would praise God!" [23]

�� At that, the man disappears into the crowd.� This is not the time and place.� They could mob and kill him for objecting.�

�� Soldiers appear.� Roman soldiers.� They rush to the scene.� They've been given orders to just keep peace.� They must be careful they do not start a riot.� Just keep the peace.

�� "Who is this guy, anyway?" one of the soldiers shouts to the crowd in general.

�� "Jesus!" someone beside him shouts back over the din of the crowd.� "He's going to kick you and all the other Romans out of town with a wave of his hand. He's the prophet from up in Galilee." [24]

�� "Nazareth?" he shouts back.� "Where's that?"� The soldier doesn't really take�it seriously ~ just another demonstration.��

�� On the procession goes.� Jesus on the colt.� The royal donkey immediately behind.� The out-of-town people following in a procession now ten miles long.

�� People refuse to relent.� Wildly they sing on.� Uncontrollably they sing on.�� The unbelievable song of victory!� �

�� Hosannah!� We're saved.... Hosannah!� We're saved....� Hosannah!� We're saved....

�� Very close, now, to the Temple, once more waves to the people.�

�� The crowd is in a wild frenzy!�

�� At last!� Free at last!�

�� "When is he going to do it?" someone shouts to a friend.

�� "Do what?"

�� "Zap the enemy.� You know!� Kill them!"

�� If Roman procurator Pilate at the palace nearby is worried, the high priest and Sanhedrin at the Temple are more so.� They know too much about the scriptures to be fooled.� They stand at the upper windows of the Temple and look out over the crowd nearing it's front gate.

�� "There's no stopping him any more! �The whole world is running after him!� We're gonners!" [25]

�� Jesus has Jerusalem eating out of his hands.� And Jesus knows it.

�� They have all forgotten it is Passover time.� This is the day they are to select their sacrificial lamb. [26]

�� The people have made their selection.� It is Jesus.� The people have spoken.� They rejoice, for they have no idea what, in reality, they have just done.� But Jesus knows.� Jesus knows.�

LIFE APPLICATION

1.�� Have you ever started something with a bang, then watched it later end with a hiss?� How did you feel at the time?� Try to think of some good that came from things moving that way.

2.�� These people who declared their loyalty to Jesus one day turned against him three and a half days later, demanding his execution. �Jesus knew they would.� He forgave them because they did not understand what they were doing (Luke 23:34).� Their understanding all along was shallow.� They were just using him to advance their earthly kingdom.� He had better things in mind for them - a heavenly kingdom.� He continued to pursue that for them and continues even today to invite them into it (Revelation 22:12).� Have you had people turn against you when they saw you wanted something long-term better for them than what they could have short-term?� How will you forgive them the way Jesus did?

3.�� Jesus did not stop their celebration, even though it was for the wrong thing, because they needed the hope he brought.� Have you ever put a damper on people celebrating for the wrong reason?� How could you have influenced them to direct their celebration to something just a little better?

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