Firstly, I imagine he was thinking, "This is all going to plan; amazing! I sent the two of them into a Bethany to get transport; and they went without any ifs or buts or maybes; just faith and obedience. And of course they found it just as I predicted; no surprises there." It was all part of a plan, this triumphal entry, this big parade in Jerusalem. The two who fetched the donkey were told to say, "The master needs it". Master is "Kurios", Lord. Jesus is the rightful Lord of everything, the true owner of the donkey, the one "owns all the Donuts".
Jesus was saying that he had the right to rule; that he was King; And when people later on started shouting "Hosanna (although Luke writing for Greeks doesn't use the Hebrew word Hosanna), blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord" Jesus doesn't have problem with it; there are right, and if they don't say it, the very stones will cry out.
Secondly, he was thinking that this wasn't his coronation. Lots of people may have thought it was, and lots of people may have hoped it was. They had seen the wonderful things he had done; healings, deliverance, miracles of feeding and calming storms, and the miracle of salvation, people's lives being changed. It was tempting to think that this was it; they'd seen signs of the Kingdom, so now they expected the Kingdom to appear shining intensely. But the signs of the Kingdom, the healings, the miracles, the conversions, don't mean the Kingdom has "appeared". The big parade doesn't mean the kingdom has appeared. Actually, the same is true today. We may see miracles, healing, conversions; we may be able to organize a "big parade", a special event. We did oen yesterday to celebrate Craig and Liza's wedding and it was great! But these are only signs of he Kingdom. They don't mean the Kingdom has appeared: there's always something to look forward.
He knew that this big parade was looking ahead: before the final, complete triumph, before his coronation, before the Kingdom could appear in power and victory, some things had to happen. It was like in the story he just told, the parable of the nobleman who went to receive a Kingdom. He told that story because "people thought the Kingdom was about to appear in all its intensity".
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| King Archelaus - 16th Century artist's impression in Public Domain |
Jesus knew that before he would be confirmed as King, there would be a journey, an absence. Before he can rule completely, he must receive that kingdom from his father. He must leave this earth, in order to return again as King. And while he is absent, during that gap period, he gives everyone of his servants a share in his own resources, so that they can carry on his business.
So I wonder if he looked around at his disciples, and asked himself how well they would do; would they trade profitably with the resources he would leave with them, or would they simply wrap them up in the hope of preserving them for posterity? It was down to each individual disciple, and it still is today. So if you are today a follower of Jesus, he has invested something in you, he has given you his Holy Spirit, his power, his gifts, and effectively has said "see what you can gain with this, for my Kingdom, until I return." How much Jesus has invested in us, and how important it is that we are "profitable servants ".
As with Herod Archelaus, there were those who wouldn't accept Jesus' reign. Whether the Jewish leaders of Jesus' own day, the Romans who insisted, "Caesar is Lord!" or the thousands who still want to rule their own lives, there have always been those who "will not have this man to reign over us." When he comes back, he will come back to judge, and to reign. He will judge his servants, for what they have done with his resources, how they have traded, how are prepared to take risks, in a difficult world. And he will judge those who have refused to let him rule their lives. That judgment may seem harsh to us, but Jesus wanted to show his hearers the seriousness of their position." As Jesus rode into Jerusalem, I imagine him thinking about what would happen while he was "in a far country," and what will happen when he returns.
But thirdly he was also thinking ahead, to something much closer. What would those who did not want him to reign over them do? He was fully aware of that too. A day or two later Jesus was going to teach in the temple, and some of the Jewish leaders would come right up and ask him what right he had to do the things he was doing. That would prompt Jesus to tell another story: this time it was about a farmer who planted a vineyard, and went on a journey, renting his vineyard out to tenants. At harvest time he sent a messenger to collect the rent, but every one was beaten up and sent back empty-handed. Eventually, the owner decided "I'll send my son; surely they will respect him." But they killed the Son, hoping to claim his vineyard for themselves. What will the owner do? He'll kill the offenders and rent the vineyard out to better tenants. In fact the Jewish leaders recognised that Jesus was telling us parable about them, and were so angry that they were ready to do exactly what the tenants in the parable did to the Son: they wanted to arrest Jesus there and then in the temple. Before the triumph and judgement, Jesus knows that he, the Son, will be put to death. This "journey to a far country" will be through his own death. Jealousy, greed, narrow-mindedness, will conspire to put Jesus on a Cross. He knows that. Even as he rides into Jerusalem, he's looking forward to that.
He knew that like the Son in the parable, he would be taken out side, not just the vineyard, but also the City, and killed. And although he knew that those who were responsible, especially the Jewish leaders, would answer to God for their actions, he still knew that he must face his own death, before the Kingdom could triumph.
Jesus knew that the cross had to happen. He about those who "didn't want to pay the rent". those who however religious they claimed to be, still refused to let God his due. He knew they would arrange his death. But he knew that through the Cross, he would save people from their sins. It was all working to plan. The enemy was not going to triumph; God could use even the most evil circumstances, to bring about his purposes. Jesus' looked forward to his suffering and death, and also to his vindication, his triumph, his victory, his rule.
What was Jesus thinking about as he rode into Jerusalem? He was thinking of people. He was thinking of you and me. Subjects, servants, tenants; through his death he has triumphed. He has earned the right to rule in our lives. We're all subjects and tenants. It's time to pay the rent; it's time to stop saying "We will not have this man to rule over us." And if you've already let Jesus in, it's time use the gifts he's given you, for his Kingdom. He'll be back.
© Gilmour Lilly April 2012
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