On the next day the large crowd who had
come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took the
branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him, and began to shout,
"Hosanna! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD, even the King
of Israel." John 12:12-13
Some
years ago a book was written by a noted American historian entitled “When The Cheering Stopped.” It
was the story of President Woodrow Wilson and the events leading up to and
following WWI. When that war was over Wilson was an international hero. There was a great spirit of optimism abroad,
and people actually believed that the last war had been fought and the world
had been made safe for democracy.
On
his first visit to Paris after the war Wilson was greeted by cheering mobs. He
was actually more popular than their own heroes. The same thing was true in
England and Italy. In a Vienna hospital
a Red Cross worker had to tell the children that there would be no Christmas
presents because of the war and the hard times. The children didn’t believe
her. They said that President Wilson was coming and they knew that everything
would be all right. But it wasn’t.
The
cheering lasted about a year. Then it gradually began to stop. It turned out that after the war the
political leaders in Europe were more concerned with their own agendas than
they were a lasting peace.
At
home Woodrow Wilson ran into opposition in the United States Senate and his
League of Nations was not ratified.
Under the strain of it all the President’s health began to break. He suffered a stroke and in the next election
his party was defeated. So it was that
Woodrow Wilson, a man who barely a year earlier had been heralded as the new
world Messiah, came to the end of his days a broken and defeated man.
It’s a sad story, but one
that is not altogether unfamiliar. The ultimate reward for someone who tries to
translate ideals into reality is apt to be frustration and defeat. It happened that way to Jesus. When he emerged on the public scene he was an
overnight sensation. He would try to go
off to be alone and the people would still follow him. The masses lined the
streets as he came into town. On Palm
Sunday leafy palm branches were spread before him and there were shouts of
Hosanna. A wave of religious expectation
swept the country. But the cheering did
not last for long. There came a point
when the tide began to turn against him.
Soon the opposition began to snowball. When they discovered that they
could not discredit his moral character, they began to take more desperate
measures. Before it was all over a tidal wave welled up that brought Jesus to
his knees under the weight of a cross. Why
did the masses so radically turn against him? How did the shouts of Hosanna on
Sunday transform into the shouts of crucify him on Friday? Why did the cheering stop?
The cheering stopped because Jesus did not meet their
expectations. “If this is the Messiah, where is his
horse?” “If this is King David’s heir,
where are his royal robes? Where is his throne?” “If Jesus is the Christ and God’s Son, how
could his life end on a Roman cross? How
could he die so horribly?” You see, they expected one
thing…but got another. Honestly, isn’t
that how we are with Jesus too? We say
we believe and have faith, but we still expect Him to do things our way. We want our prayers answered with our
answers, not His if they are different. The
inner despair of our frustrated expectations can cause us to give up on Jesus, quit
praising him, and live self-seeking lives.
The last week of Jesus’
life He got down to business. He knew
His time was drawing near and He had some serious business to attend to before
Good Friday. He spoke with a young rich
man and advised him to sell all his worldly goods and follow him. He was asking for a commitment. Some people watching this did not understand
why he would not utilize the wealth of this man who wanted to commit to Jesus
and His way. His message all through his
years of ministry had been primarily one of grace but now He was saying that
the time for miracles was over. It was
time for commitment.
I would suggest to you
that when that rich young ruler walked away sorrowfully that day, he was not
the only one. I think that it is safe to assume that a host of uncommitted
people also walked away. Jesus was no
longer talking only grace. He was now speaking about the other side of
religion--obligation. He began to talk about the obligation that rests with a
person who has accepted God’s grace. The
cheering began to stop when Jesus began to speak of commitment. How about you? Isn’t it time to get down to business? Take the step. Don’t lower your expectations of Jesus but
accept His will and make the commitment.
The time has come.
Scripture to Claim:
But without faith it is impossible to
please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a
rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Hebrews 11:6
