From Cheers to Jeers

Easter.

Easter is the most joyous of events in Christendom. Easter should be the greatest event for all mankind, but it doesn't work that way.

We only have to look at the original Bible account to see why the world thinks of bunnies and not resurrection.

On Palm Sunday, according to John 12, the world celebrated the coming of the Messiah to Jerusalem.

The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They 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!"
Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written:
“Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.”
At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him.
Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word. Many people, because they had heard that he had performed this sign, went out to meet him. So the Pharisees said to one another, “See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!”

Even the Pharisees saw that the world rejoiced at the coming of Jesus.

A week later, these same crowds jeered as Jesus, the Son of God, carried a cross to His own crucifixion.

He chose to do this, because of His love for mankind, the same people who jeered at Him.

But why did they go from cheers to jeers?

Because Jesus did not do their will. He did not expel the Romans from Israel. He did not restore Israel to their previous independence.

Jesus did the will of God, His Father, instead.

We do the same thing. We rejoice when Jesus conforms to our image of God, when He does what we want Him to do.

When life no longer goes our way - when God's will does not conform to what we want - we reject Him.

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9 (NIV)

We don't need to understand God's will, but we need to accept His will for our life. Seek His will. Walk in His ways.

Don't let your cheers become jeers.