The whole crowd of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the miracles which they had seen, shouting: “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord; Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” ~Luke 19:37b-38
It’s Christmas. It’s also been a while since I’ve blogged here regularly. Now that life is slowing down again, I’m hoping to go back to every Monday. I thought about skipping the rest of Luke – it’s the story of the Resurrection. But I can’t leave a story hanging. I’ve read this a hundred times but I still want to see again how Jesus loved and taught the people.
In this particular section, we’re right at the beginning of the end. Jesus rode into town on a colt, with a few of the disciples’ coats as a saddle.
What’s the deal with the colt and the coats? To us that sounds degrading, but commentators are unanimous in saying that this was a sign of royalty. A king might ride through town on a horse or a colt, and the people would throw down their outer garments as a sign of respect. Something like rolling out the red carpet. Several commentaries even said that a colt, as opposed to a horse, symbolized a leader of peace.
Without hesitating, the crowd recognized Jesus as their king and they worshiped Him as such. He had that kind of effect on people.
Throughout the Gospels, we see that people, with the exception of very few, either worshiped Him or hated Him. How often do we need proof first? A thorough knowledge of the Bible, compared to other religions, narrowed down so we can make an informed decision? That’s not how this crowd approached Him. They acknowledged their King, and we’re not told, but just as we’re all on a journey of sanctification, we can assume that the same Holy Spirit that’s at work today was at work in them as well.
Jesus is King, no matter how much we know about Him or how well we follow Him. They gave their all without hesitating. What can we learn from that? Are we taking an all-or-nothing approach to God? Or are we doing our best with where we’re at? God loves us today. Not just tomorrow, or the yesterday that you came from. He loves you today, just where you’re at. If you wake up tired on a Sunday morning and your best clothes are in the laundry, are you still going to go to church? Or is that going to be an excuse to sleep in? In that, you’re saying that since you can’t give your best, then it’s not worth giving anything. Are you willing to worship Him with your whole being today, like this crowd two thousand years ago? He’s waiting with arms wide open.