WE WANT A KING!

Luke 19:28-44

King James Version

MAKE WAY FOR THE KING!

A spirit of jubilation swept the city of Jerusalem as the people were celebrating the year’s greatest ingathering to worship at the temple. The amazing account of Jesus’ feeding of the thousands, followed by his raising from the dead, Lazarus, a man who have been buried days before, persuaded the throngs that here was the Messiah who would be crowned king. Surely he could lead them in triumphal rebellion against the hated Romans. They were ready for a king, so long as he filled their expectation of an earthly kingdom.

28 And when he had thus spoken, he went before, ascending up to Jerusalem.
29 And it came to pass, when he was come nigh to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called the mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples,
30 Saying, Go ye into the village over against you; in the which at your entering ye shall find a colt tied, whereon yet never man sat: loose him, and bring him hither.
31 And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him.
32 And they that were sent went their way, and found even as he had said unto them.
33 And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said unto them, Why loose ye the colt?
34 And they said, The Lord hath need of him.
35 And they brought him to Jesus: and they cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus thereon.

One can‘t help wondering if it was not his disciples, perhaps even the apostles who first cried out, “Make way for the king!” They had certainly been discussing that possibility, to the stage that they were even discussing who would hold what appointment in his kingdom. Judas, probably felt that just a “nudge” in the right direction could start such a demand, and that he possibly would become the treasurer, after all, he already carried the bag with their meager funds.

36 And as he went, they spread their clothes in the way.
37 And when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen;

This began on slopes of the Mount of Olives, and by the time they had descended to the valley, and started to approach the entry gate ahead, the throngs within the city heard, saw, and joined in. We celebrate this as “Palm Sunday.”

This king would not be a king like those they knew. His would not be a kingdom with armies and great military strength. Most can’t visualize such a kingdom. His is a kingdom characterized by love; a kingdom of peace. The non-believer does not see the multitudes of believers and of angels in his command.

38 Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.
It was the religious leaders associated with the temple and some of the Pharisees in the multitudes who spoke up against it. Their own positions of authority and power would be the first to fall away.
39 And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples.
40 And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.

His reply indicated that there was no way to stop them. How it must have broken his heart to know that he very multitudes who were now shouting praises would, in only a few days, cry for his death, and reject his purpose in coming in the first place. I am sure that he was also weeping for the world’s multitudes today who place their trust in men, and not God.

41 And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,
42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.
43 For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,
44 And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.

Only forty years later, the temple was gone, “not one stone upon another.” To this day two thousand years later, darkness and not light rules that mountain top. We await His return when we are told He shall enter in triumph through that, now sealed up gate in the wall of Jerusalem.
His Spiritual Kingdom thrives. It shall not be destroyed even though the whole world is destined to be burned.
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READ THE BIBLE THROUGH AGAIN IN 2012

APRIL

1st. Sunday – Deuteronomy 1, 2, Luke 8:41-56, Psalm 40:1-8
2nd. Monday – Deuteronomy 3, 4, Luke 9:1-22, Proverbs 8:22-31
3rd. Tuesday - Deuteronomy 5, 6, Luke 9:23-45, Psalm 40:9-17
4th. Wednesday - Deuteronomy 7, 8, 9, Luke 9:46-62, Psalm 41:1-6
5th. Thursday - Deuteronomy 10, 11, Luke 10:1-20, Psalm 41:7-13
6th. Friday – Deuteronomy 12, 13, 14, Luke 10:21-42, Proverbs 8:32-36
7th. Saturday - Deuteronomy 15, 16, 17, Luke 11:1-26, Psalm 42:1-6

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THIS WEEK'S SCRIPTURE

“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.” - Matthew 22:37-38
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http://www.amazon.com/P-J-Mills/e/B004KAS792/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0

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The T-Shirt -from Simon Says

My kindergarten-aged daughter suddenly announced just before school that she needed to take a clean T-shirt to class. She told us the teacher was going to iron an anti-drug message on it. My wife frantically swept through our daughter's room, finding nothing usable but one tee shirt that already had something printed on one side. She sent it off to school with our daughter.

That afternoon, our daughter returned and happily showed off her shirt. On one side it said, 'Families are Forever.' (Continued Next Page)

And on the other: 'Be Smart, Don't Start.