Irresistible Invitation by Maxie Dunham - Day 10
Irresistible Invitation: Responding to the Extravagant Heart of God
Day 10: He Comes as He Came
Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord. (Luke 19:38)
Maxie brings us to Palm Sunday -- to the journey Jesus took to Jerusalem and to examine what that journey has to say to those of us who are on our own journeys of faith. Dunnam points out to us that this is a journey still unfolding that, in fact, Jesus comes still today as he came then. There are three scenes in the Palm Sunday story as recorded in Luke that depict the character of Jesus, how he came to the place on a donkey and how he comes into the world today.
Jesus comes on a donkey. This is in fact the scene that most of us associate with this day, even the youngest members of the church family can probably tell you with great joy of the procession on Palm Sunday with Jesus riding in on a donkey. We need to remember that in those days when a king went to war he rode on a horse but when he came in peace he came on a donkey. So by appearing in Jerusalem on a donkey Jesus presented new ideas about peace, power, and humility. Jesus shows a new way, a way of power that is not also about violence, a way of peace that comes not by the sword but by strength of will.
Jesus wept over the city. In Luke 19:41-42 we learn that Jesus has come to Jerusalem, “As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, ‘If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace – but now it is hidden from your eyes.’” And so Jesus comes today, with compassion. Compassion is who Jesus is as well as the dynamic to which he calls us. We must remember that authentic love calls for compassion, which is often painful, painful enough to bring us to tears.
Jesus comes in judgment. Upon his arrival in the city Jesus heads straight for the temple where we are told he overturned the moneychangers and threw out the merchants. Jesus comes as he came. Now judgment is not a very popular 21st century term. We have all been raised in a time of moral relativism with the notion that whatever is right and good can be decided with a popular vote. “Because,” says Dunnam, “our culture teaches that we should determine what is right and good by popular vote, we might feel challenged by the idea of the judgment of Jesus.” Remember the church is not a democracy; it is not subject to majority rule. The authority we find in the church comes not from the consent of the governed but from Christ, who rules through the Word of Scripture and the Holy Spirit.
Christ comes to us in the very same way he came to Jerusalem, in judgment. So you may ask who will survive the day of His coming? Those who are willing to lose their lives for his sake, those who truly do “unto the least of these.” Yes Jesus comes as he came, on a donkey in humility to show us the way and power of peace, in compassion and in judgment. And so it is for us that we cannot get to the new Jerusalem by way of a different road, we must follow the path he has laid because he comes as he came.
The Heart of the Matter
When you think of Jesus, how do you picture him coming to you? In compassion? In humility? In judgment? Why do you think that is?
How might things have been different in Jerusalem had Jesus shown up on a horse, ready for battle, rather than a donkey?
In what areas of your life do you live out Jesus’ peace, compassion, or judgment? In what ways do you not?
Day 10: He Comes as He Came
Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord. (Luke 19:38)
Maxie brings us to Palm Sunday -- to the journey Jesus took to Jerusalem and to examine what that journey has to say to those of us who are on our own journeys of faith. Dunnam points out to us that this is a journey still unfolding that, in fact, Jesus comes still today as he came then. There are three scenes in the Palm Sunday story as recorded in Luke that depict the character of Jesus, how he came to the place on a donkey and how he comes into the world today.
Jesus comes on a donkey. This is in fact the scene that most of us associate with this day, even the youngest members of the church family can probably tell you with great joy of the procession on Palm Sunday with Jesus riding in on a donkey. We need to remember that in those days when a king went to war he rode on a horse but when he came in peace he came on a donkey. So by appearing in Jerusalem on a donkey Jesus presented new ideas about peace, power, and humility. Jesus shows a new way, a way of power that is not also about violence, a way of peace that comes not by the sword but by strength of will.
Jesus wept over the city. In Luke 19:41-42 we learn that Jesus has come to Jerusalem, “As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, ‘If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace – but now it is hidden from your eyes.’” And so Jesus comes today, with compassion. Compassion is who Jesus is as well as the dynamic to which he calls us. We must remember that authentic love calls for compassion, which is often painful, painful enough to bring us to tears.
Jesus comes in judgment. Upon his arrival in the city Jesus heads straight for the temple where we are told he overturned the moneychangers and threw out the merchants. Jesus comes as he came. Now judgment is not a very popular 21st century term. We have all been raised in a time of moral relativism with the notion that whatever is right and good can be decided with a popular vote. “Because,” says Dunnam, “our culture teaches that we should determine what is right and good by popular vote, we might feel challenged by the idea of the judgment of Jesus.” Remember the church is not a democracy; it is not subject to majority rule. The authority we find in the church comes not from the consent of the governed but from Christ, who rules through the Word of Scripture and the Holy Spirit.
Christ comes to us in the very same way he came to Jerusalem, in judgment. So you may ask who will survive the day of His coming? Those who are willing to lose their lives for his sake, those who truly do “unto the least of these.” Yes Jesus comes as he came, on a donkey in humility to show us the way and power of peace, in compassion and in judgment. And so it is for us that we cannot get to the new Jerusalem by way of a different road, we must follow the path he has laid because he comes as he came.
The Heart of the Matter
When you think of Jesus, how do you picture him coming to you? In compassion? In humility? In judgment? Why do you think that is?
How might things have been different in Jerusalem had Jesus shown up on a horse, ready for battle, rather than a donkey?
In what areas of your life do you live out Jesus’ peace, compassion, or judgment? In what ways do you not?
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