Palm Sunday

John 12:12-15
₁₂The next day the great crowd that had come for the Feast heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. ₁₃They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, "Hosanna! " "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Blessed is the King of Israel!" ₁₄Jesus found a young donkey and sat upon it, as it is written, ₁₅"Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey's colt."

Have you ever had a good thing turn sour? I remember one time I was visited by a cousin who was my father's age. We would see him every few months and he would usually show up unexpectedly or call minutes before hand. I always loved seeing him as I thought he was pretty cool. One day my cousin showed up, unexpectedly and as always I was extremely excited to see him, however that day he showed up, he showed up for a reason. He had come to tell us that my grandmother, my father's mother, had passed away. All of the sudden the day had become very sad. My cousin didn't stick around for long and we mourned.

It's a good allegory for what happened on Palm Sunday. Jesus triumphantly came into Jerusalem, the people celebrated Him. They treated Him like a king and deservedly so. They straightened the roads for Him. Laid palm branches and their cloaks down so that His donkey could pass over them without dirtying itself and Jesus. But Jesus didn't bring the news that people wanted to hear.

To the people of Jerusalem, they didn't get a king in the sense they thought they would. What's worst is this very same king marched straight into the temple and drove the merchants out with a whip, flipping over tables as He went. Then this king seemingly blasphemed Himself to those in the temple and called them out for disobeying and rewording God's commands.

To His disciples and friends, He talked about how He was going to die in the coming week. He told them that there was a traitor among them. He told them that He would no longer be with them. He told Peter not to defend Him with his sword and when the time came to do so he would deny Him three times. He scolded them for falling asleep instead of waiting for Him to return.

My cousin came with bad news, my grandmother was no longer with us. But I knew she was in Heaven. She was a Christian. In every way, it was good news. No more suffering or sin. No more sickness or aching. No more hunger or exhaustion. I was just sad to not have her here with me anymore.

The people of Jerusalem and the disciples were somewhat like me. Jesus did something amazing that week. He died and forgave every sin so that we could have eternal life. He raised Himself from the dead on Easter and ascended back into Heaven so He can prepare a new home for us. But that's not what the disciples wanted. They wanted their perfect friend, their wise teacher; they wanted to be with Jesus for the rest of their lives, admirably so, however, this meant that He couldn't fulfill His promise from the Garden. The people of Jerusalem wanted a king, they didn't want Caesar or Harod. They wanted another David, they wanted Heaven on Earth. However this meant a God living among the sinful, not a new home without sin.

When it comes to Heaven, we can be short sighted. I can tell you I am going to Heaven, I can tell you my fellow believers are going to Heaven and I know people in Heaven right now. I also know Jesus is there. So I have to remind myself, when I get scared of an illness or worry about another Christian fallen ill that this suffering is only for a short while. Sometimes these things heal and sometimes we go home to Heaven. This is why we are thankful to know that we have a home with Jesus who is ready to welcome us with open arms.