Good Morning Friends,
“The next day the great crowd that had come
for the Feast 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 upon it, as it is written, ‘Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion; see,
your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.’” (John 12:12-15)
It must have been an exciting day for the
disciples of Jesus. This is what they wanted, what they had been dreaming of.
The multitudes were praising Jesus, declaring Him to be their king.
Jesus wasn’t so excited! He could see beyond
the shallow praise. He knew what was really in the hearts of the people. He
knew how quickly their attitudes would change. He knew what would happen by the
end of the week. Just a few more days and they wouldn’t be proclaiming Him
king, they would be shouting for His execution.
At times there are exciting news stories that
come out in the papers and magazines of America. They talk about the beliefs of
the multitudes. The multitudes are willing to say that Jesus is the greatest
teacher who ever lived. The multitudes say they believe He worked miracles. The
multitudes even say they believe He is God. It is exciting for us. That is what
we dream of. That is what we really want. We want the world to see Jesus for
who He is and worship and follow Him.
Jesus doesn’t get so excited. He sees beyond
the shallow praise. They proclaim Him to be the greatest teacher, but they
don’t listen to or follow His teaching. They even say they believe He is God,
but it makes no difference in how they live, they don’t worship Him or obey
Him. He knows, too, that if the situation should change, the multitudes would
quickly lay aside their praise and pick up the chant to kill Him once again!
Shallow praise means nothing to Jesus. Only
praise that comes from deep within in the heart matters. Only praise that is
evidence of a heart and life fully committed to Him counts.
What does Jesus think of your praise?
His, by Grace,
Steve
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