The Return Of The King
Palm Sunday was just observed, commemorating the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. It fulfilled what Zechariah had spoken about the Messiah coming to Jerusalem on a donkey in Zechariah 9:9 “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.
But even though Jesus came as Zechariah prophesied He would, many did not recognize Him as such, nor did they understand the timing of His visitation or its purpose.
It is believed historically that the Pharisees had a saying, “if Israel were deemed worthy, the Messiah would arrive on a white horse, but if they were deemed unworthy, He would arrive on a donkey.”
Mt 21, Mk 11, Lk 19, and Jn 12 all say something about the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem on a donkey. Each account presents a similar but slightly different perspective.
Jesus had been preparing His disciples for the time of His suffering and told them He must go to Jerusalem, where He would be handed over to the Gentiles, scourged, spat on, mocked, and then put to death. But He also told them He would rise from the dead after three days. Jesus was heading into Jerusalem as a man on a mission. After the praises from the donkey ride, Jesus went straight to the temple, where He turned over the money changers' tables and drove the merchants out of the temple area with a whip He made. Then the blind and the lame came to Him at the temple, and he healed them. But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things He did and the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant and said to Him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” Jesus said, “have you never read, ‘out of the mouths of babes and nursing infants you have perfected praise’?” Jesus as a man on a mission, stirs things up in Jerusalem, and the religious leaders hate Him for it. He did it intentionally too!
I imagine that when Jesus got on that donkey, He might have said, “Let’s ride!” Kinda like Todd Beamer saying, “Let’s roll,” when they took out the terrorists on a flight during the 2001-9-11 attacks. Jesus was on a mission to manifest God’s presence and become the sacrifice to make it available to all who believe in Him.
The Prophet Ezekiel had a vision in 562BC where he saw the temple from the Mount of Olives, and the glory of God departed from the temple and came down on the Mount of Olives. That vision was true because the glory of God was still not in that temple in Jesus’ day; it was riding on a donkey into Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives! The Glory of God is His manifest presence! As a man on a mission, Jesus put the presence of God on full display.
Jesus will be coming again as a King on a mission! He will ride as King of kings and Lord of lords on a white horse. The Pharisees may have gotten something right after all because when Jesus comes again on a white horse, it is to claim the Israel of God He made worthy!
When I was young, my mom and dad sometimes would put my four brothers and me to bed and then drive down to the local PDQ for some ice cream. We’d all get out of bed and start playing hide and seek when they left. One of us would be the watchman keeping an eye out for headlights. If we saw headlights at the corner of our street, we’d all get back in bed. We knew they would be back, but we were misbehaving during their absence and only being watchful for when their return was near so we could pretend we had been doing what they expected and avoid any embarrassment or punishment.
Are you ready for His return? Do you recognize Him as your Savior and Lord? Are you looking for His soon return? Are you abiding in Him?
1John 2:28 And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.
When Jesus comes on His white horse, those born again get to join Him on that ride! I want to be ready to hear Him say once more, “Let’s ride!” I want to be watchful, anticipating joining Him instead of watching to avoid embarrassment. Jesus is still on a mission, He’s still upsetting people with His mission, and He is coming again soon! Hosanna! Come, Lord Jesus!
