Waypoints: Jesus Arrives in Jerusalem

In the Pulitzer Prize-winning Broadway comedy Harvey, the main character, Elwood P. Dowd, has a friend who is a seemingly invisible, six-foot tall white rabbit. The following quote is taken from the part in the play in which Elwood first notices the white rabbit named Harvey:
 
"I started to walk down the street when I heard a voice saying: 'Good evening, Mr. Dowd.' I turned, and there was this big white rabbit leaning against a lamp-post. Well, I thought nothing of that, because when you've lived in a town as long as I've lived in this one, you get used to the fact that everybody knows your name."
 
Elwood Dowd completely missed the point and intent behind this visual encounter. He seemingly didn’t get what he was seeing and experiencing. Have you ever missed the true intent or the point behind something? Maybe it was an instruction or directive that was given that was either misinterpreted or just not taken seriously. Missing the point and the true intent behind something can be embarrassing, confusing, lead to more work, and at times can even be dangerous.
 
Just like many of us miss the true intent and nature of things in our lives so too did the followers of Jesus when He was here on Earth. This week we are looking at Luke 19:28-47 where we see the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem.
 
This was a much-anticipated visit and time in His ministry. It was prophesied hundreds of years before it happened, it meant the near-culmination of His time on Earth, and it ushered in the Passion Week where He would ultimately give His life for the sake of humankind.
 
The true intent of Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem would be one of peace. Many of Jesus’ followers seemed to have other ideas as they desired that Jesus would bring His kingdom to Earth to subdue their Roman oppressors and establish the glory of Israel once again. They had missed the point. We see this intent missed again immediately following the arrival of Jesus into Jerusalem in the courts of the Temple. The intent of God’s House and specifically the Court of the Gentiles was that those from other nations who were not Jewish could worship and offer sacrifices to God. What Jesus found was that the religious establishment and the everyday happenings of the church brought distraction and division instead of unity in the worship of the Almighty God. They had missed the point.
 
We too miss the point many times when it comes to the desires, instructions, and will of God. Thankfully, His Word is full of His promises, wisdom, and guidelines for us. It is a help and an aide to those of us who are in desperate need of what Christ has to offer. Thankfully, the intent, purpose, and point behind the activity of God always wins out, even despite our misinterpretations. He desires to teach us, to lead us, to purify us, and to redeem us so that we can truly show others His true nature and His true intent.
 
Thanks be to God for His patience and love towards us.
Pastor Ben