Accepting Jesus’ Authority

I love Palm Sunday. In the events of Jesus’ life it gives the appearance that he is finally getting the acclaim he deserves. Jesus is the one really good thing to happen to God’s people in occupied Israel. He heals, he teaches, he restores people’s lives and he is ‘the real deal’ from God.

And when he rides into Jersualem on the donkey, everybody knows that he is fulfilling the prophecy about the Messiah from Psalm 118:

25 LORD, save us! (=“Hosanna” in Hebrew)
LORD, grant us success!
26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD.
From the house of the LORD we bless you.
27 The LORD is God,
and he has made his light shine on us.
With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession
up to the horns of the altar.

Like our Pond Play for Palm Sunday, Jesus lived out the Psalm and the people took the cue and welcomed him with the branches/boughs and the cries of ‘hosanna’.

And of course he had to go to the Temple “up to the horns of the altar”. At last Jesus was declaring his authority as God’s chosen Messiah for all to see and acknowledge! But when he got there it began to turn sour.

You see the Temple already had people in it who thought they were in charge! Jesus challenged their way of doing things when he tipped over the tables of ‘rip off’ sacrificial animals.
So then it came down to a face off; would they bow to Jesus’ authority.

23 Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”
24 Jesus replied, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things.” Mt 21

The Pharisees were perfectly happy to let Jesus role play his way into Jerusalem on a donkey but it was a different matter altogether when he expected them to hand over control of the Temple to him.
In other words “religious celebration is fine as long as God doesn’t expect to take control of our lives.”

The Pharisees were no different from you and I. Church worship and Palm Sunday plays are fantastic and make us feel closer to God but the idea of giving God control of my life is a little bit threatening. Can God really be trusted with that much responsibility? After all I have plans for my life; and am I not the only who really knows what will make me happy?

On Palm Sunday, Jesus is marching up to the “Temple” of your soul and saying I’ve come to take up my rightful place as Lord of your life, let me in. Lord = the one in charge.
What is your response? “Yes, Lord!” or the more defensive “By what authority do you do this?”

Celebrate, Jesus as Lord!