“‘See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey…’” Zechariah 9:9 “Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, ‘If you had known, even you…the things that make for your peace!’” Luke 19:41.
The wonderful thing about a Bible Study is the way scholars can string together a complicated message into one we can understand. Our two verses this morning is the New Testament fulfillment of an Old Testament prophesy of the entry of Jesus riding towards His death. However, Jesus was the only one in the crowd who fully understood what lay before Him. The disciples and followers were celebrating His royal entry, bowing and spreading their garments upon the path. They had come to celebrate Him…support Him…praise Him. But the throne upon which He would be seated would be in a City not seen to man. He would first have to be exposed to suffering…to rejection…to a brokenhearted reality. As He marched towards pain and suffering, His heart was still on God’s people. He didn’t weep for His own experience, rather for the condition of the hearts of God’s children. He knew then what we need to know now…even in our most heartbreaking seasons we can have the possible peace of God in our impossible pain.
When we have been rejected, we can take peace in God’s approval…When we have been devalued by those around us, we can find our value in Jesus. When we find our circumstances in chaotic disarray, we can find order in the presence of God. When our march towards the throne of Heaven must pass through the pain of the cross we can walk in determination and trust in God. Our mission is the same as Jesus’ mission thousands of years ago. ‘As determined living takes us into situations that seem hopeless, we can find courage in a God who does the impossible…The road ahead might be excruciating and challenging – it might even demand our very lives – but we can move forward anyway. Why? Because we are born again into a divine family that refuses to give up, and the power of Christ is our inheritance.’ Determined, Heather Dixon, pp 176-177.
We all approach cities of fear…cities of grief…cities of hopelessness. But we don’t experience these city battles empty-handed. We walk towards our circumstances tightfisted in faith…white knuckled holding on to His promises…worn out knees and tear stained faces because we know what Jesus knew…that our Father alone is our answer and our destiny in Heaven is our guarantee.
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