Dear Explorer,
Read Luke 19:41-44
We're still looking at Palm Sunday. As Jesus was looking over the city, Luke tells us that He began to cry. Why?
Jesus knew their future. He knew that a war was coming (70 AD) that would destroy Jerusalem and that all would suffer, and many would die. (600,000 Jews died in that invasion by Rome). If they had accepted Jesus as their spiritual Messiah, they would have gone to Heaven. But He knew that even though they were celebrating a political revolt, they had not accepted Him as their spiritual Messiah. This made Jesus very sad.
What is your attitude toward those who don't know or have rejected Jesus?
Do you weep over them or do you turn them away?
Sadly, many of our traditional churches frown at those outside the church. Jesus didn't. He loved them. He associated with them and showed them kindness. I am still trying to un-learn my attitude toward people who reject Jesus. I was taught to stay far, far away from empty people. But reading God's Word has shown me that God loves each and every man and woman, boy or girl. He's not mad at them. He loves them and yearns for them to come to Him and be transformed before it's too late.
Too many times we (followers of Jesus) expect empty people to act like followers. We are surprised when they don't. It's important to realize that God is hurt and saddened by our lack of love for all people.
Read John 12:16-19
John records that even though the disciples participated fully in this parade of the King, they didn't really connect the dots to the prophecies concerning Messiah until later.
Then he tells us that the crowds in Jerusalem were excited about Lazarus' being raised from the dead by Jesus and they were flocking to Jesus.
John tells us that the Pharisees felt that the whole world was turning to Jesus as the Messiah. Oh, I wish that were true. But many were just looking for entertainment.
Many, many people attend church each Sunday for the entertainment. They want their kids to have a good time, they want the music to touch them, they want the preacher to entertain them, they want to be comfortably warm or cool depending on the weather, and they want a good show. And of course, they want all their friends to be there, too.
As the week continues, we'll see that those same people who were cheering for Jesus suddenly began cheering for the other side.
Be careful that your focus is on Jesus. It may be a lonely road, but it is filled with the peace and love and joy that ONLY He can give.
In His service, dale
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