Luke 19:28-40 gives an account of what we would often call the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem.  What a day!  As I read, I can almost feel the excitement and enthusiasm growing and bursting out.  There was no way to contain it.  Jesus gets to that point as he responds to the criticism of the Pharisees, “I tell you if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

Wow!  The crowd finally gets it.  There is recognition and rejoicing in the realization that Jesus is king — the sovereign one who comes to them in the name of Jehovah God.  Nothing can stop Jesus, or them, now.  The time had come for a public recognition and crowning of their king.  The people have turned to Jesus as the one sent from God — or have they?  It is within a week’s time that a crowd, likely with some of the same people, is led into a frenzied mob shouting, “Crucify Him!  Crucify Him!”

We’ve all seen it, right?  Someone arrives on the scene at work, in politics, even in our personal life, and is met with great rejoicing and hope.  They have fresh ideas and make us feel good by the deeds they do.  Finally, there is someone who will change the way things are here at work.  . . . in the government.  . . . in my relationships.  . . . even on my favorite sports team.  We use our selective vision and hearing to see and hear what we want in a person and conclude they are the answer — the answer that we have designed in our minds.  Then something happens.  They do something that doesn’t meet our expectations.  They’re not following our plan completely.  At first, it seems like a small thing here and a minor detail there.  Then at some point we take a good look and say to our self, “That’s not what I expected.”  We become disillusioned.  We lose hope, trust, and faith in that person.  Finally, we’ve had enough!  This person is an imposter!  He has to go.  My ideas and dreams and purposes aren’t being met like I expected them to be.  And so we “crucify” the person we thought would be our salvation and we quickly turn to seeking someone else to fill that need.

That’s the mistake the crowd made in the time of Jesus.  While they were acknowledging and proclaiming a king, that’s not what they were really looking for.  The end of Luke 19:37 reveals their motive as we read “the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen“.  Their praise wasn’t about a sovereign king after all.  They were praising God because they had seen a person who could meet their needs and expectations.  The miracles were foundational to their praise.  So, within a week they become disillusioned about their expectations not being met and many join the crowd seeking to get rid of this “imposter”.  They were not really hailing Jesus as king, sovereign over all.  Many were simply excited about the possibility of having their wants and desires fulfilled.

How about you and I?  Do we praise and worship Jesus for who He is as Sovereign Lord in our life, or because we think He is our best chance to get life the way we want it? 

I pray that we would recognize Jesus as sovereign over our life — as supreme authority in all aspects of what we say, do, and are.