Welcome to Day 2349 of Wisdom-Trek. Thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Prepare The Way – He Comes, Riding On a Donkey – Daily Wisdom

Putnam Church Message – 03/24/2024 Prepare The Way – He Comes, Riding on a Donkey – John 12:12-19   Today, we continue our five-week Lenten series ending on Resurrection Sunday, March 31^st. Today, our message is “He Comes, Riding on a Donkey.” Our Scripture passage for today is John 12:12-19 on page 1671 of your Pew Bibles. ¹² The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. ¹³ They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna!^[a]” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”^[b] “Blessed is the king of Israel!” ¹⁴ Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written: ¹⁵ “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.”^{[c] 16} At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him. ¹⁷ Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word. ¹⁸ Many people, because they had heard that he had performed this sign, went out to meet him. ¹⁹ So the Pharisees said to one another, “See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!” Introduction Ticker-tape parades are not as common today as they once were. There was a time when our country honored our heroes and heroines with colossal spectacles. Celebrities would ride in a convertible down massive canyons of steel and glass. Bands played rousing Sousa marches. Young ladies tossed batons and swirled pom-poms. Tons of confetti, streamers, balloons, and ticker tape cascaded upon them. Everybody was there. It was a time of great excitement. Let us climb into the Way Back Machine and travel 2025 years back to the heart of Jerusalem and watch the most significant parade in the history of humankind.

1. Come and Join the Parade, All Are Welcome - (Bulletin Insert)

A mass of humanity was present. Perhaps as many as 2.5 million people crowded the narrow streets converging on the holy city of Jerusalem at Passover. From a distance, there came a noise - a kind of rhythmic, staccato chant that wafted in . . . now louder . . . and louder . . . from the southern gate of the city. People stopped talking to each other and turned their faces and their ears toward the sound. A recurring word could be heard: Hosanna. Hosanna. Hosanna. It was more like a cheer than a chant. As the procession approached, people began to see the dust rising from shuffling feet. Men pushed and shoved to get closer to the street. The Hosanna's got louder and louder, reverberating against stonewalls. A man came running ahead of the procession. He was saying something the people had to strain to hear: “Jesus of Nazareth is coming! The Prophet is coming! The man who raises the dead is coming! Hurry, Jesus is coming!” The crowd began to inch closer and closer to the street. Dads hoisted their children to their shoulders. Teenagers climbed trees lining the streets for an unhindered view. Everyone wanted to catch a glimpse of this strange prophet they had heard about. What they saw was strange - or, at least, totally unexpected. Jesus moved serenely on the back of a small white donkey, much like a man riding in a convertible. Jesus, the honored celebrity, was the center of attention, the eye of the hurricane. Around him, chaos, but in him, calmness. Rather than the sound of confetti and streamers ruffling the air, one could hear the slashing and whooshing of palm fronds (wave palm branches) as they were placed in front of the donkey's hooves. Other parade watchers took off their coats and cloaks and spread them before Jesus, much like a red carpet being rolled out for royalty. The coats made a mosaic of color. It was an incredible scene. I would have loved to have been there for that gala event, but I wouldn't have wanted to be the street sweeper. You see, all segments of humanity were at the Palm Sunday procession for Jesus that day. Do you know how I know? I know by what was left on the streets. You can tell a lot about people by what they leave behind.

1. The Uninformed Were There

The innocent passers-by had never seen Jesus before and did not recognize him now, but they found themselves caught up in the procession. Many were travelers and pilgrims with their burlap bags in Jerusalem for Passover. Perhaps, they had come early that morning to the marketplace to shop. Or maybe they had planned a family outing to picnic on the Mount of Olives. They knew nothing of what was to come. They were at the right place at the right time. They simply got caught up in the historical moment. Let me share this story I recently read. | Several years ago, a family vacationed in Florida near Cape Canaveral while NASA was still using the space shuttle to ferry astronauts to the International Space Station. One daughter loved the space and rocket museums, and the family loved the NASA tour. After several days on the beach, they welcomed the change of pace. The family departed early, anticipating arriving at the NASA visitor's center when it opened. When they turned off of I-95 onto State Road 528 and headed toward the Cape, they found themselves in bumper-to-bumper traffic. The last time they visited NASA, it was a breeze. On this day, it was different, "There must be a lot of people going to visit the space flight center, the father mentioned." They inched and crawled along for over an hour, wondering why so many people were going to the space center on that particular day. As they slowly moved closer and closer, they noticed that many people were parking on the side of the road. Some were getting out of their cars. Still, others had spread blankets out on grassy knolls with blankets and picnic baskets. Others had cameras hanging from their necks. A few cradled binoculars. And then, in unison, it hit them. A shuttle launch must be scheduled that day. They asked someone, and he confirmed their suspicions. It was 9:53 a.m. At 10:00 a.m., the space shuttle was scheduled to be lifted off. So they pulled the car off to the side of the road and got out of the car. They watched as the shuttle majestically jettisoned into the heavens. Like this family's serendipitous experience with the shuttle, many early pilgrims in Jerusalem for Passover were uninformed. They were innocent bystanders, caught up in the moment. They had not planned for this event. They just happened to be present when the parade came by. The family in our story that summer day traveling to Cape Canaveral were unexpectedly surprised by the chance of seeing the space shuttle blast off into outer space. In the same manner, the uninformed people who were in Jerusalem that day were glad that their paths crossed Jesus' path. They were awed by the majesty of the moment. It was more than the crowds, the chanting, and the chaos. It was the man at the center of it all. It was The Christ. They see in Jesus the look of wonder, the countenance of compassion, the face of a friend. They are enthralled by his determined pace and his purposeful steps. And at that moment, they want what he has. Far too long, they have wandered aimlessly and traveled meaninglessly. Now, they see what they have sought in the man on the donkey. They are caught unawares. And in an instant, they are changed. They drop their bags their few possessions therein, and follow Jesus. III. The Poor Were There The poor tagged alongside the Lord wherever he went. At the parade, it was the penniless who sang out Hosanna the loudest. They loved Jesus. And why not? Jesus had given them the one thing the world would never grant them - hope. The hope of a better today is studded with forgiveness, grace, and mercy. The hope of a brighter tomorrow is filled with an eternal home waiting for them. That's what the poor of Jesus' day felt. They were outcast by their society, downtrodden by the wealthy, and despised by the ruling class. So when Jesus entered the city riding a donkey, a symbol of the lower class, they identified with him. The poor blanketed the road with their robes and coats to honor his gift of hope to them, even though they did not have a robe to spare. They realized that one couldn't save themselves on their own merit. In lowering their worn and tattered cloaks to the ground, they humbled themselves, becoming poor in spirit, to reap the rewards of heavenly merit. They declared themselves spiritually bankrupt. Their pockets were emptied. Their options were gone. They stopped demanding justice; they begged for mercy. Only then, could they have the hope of salvation. On the road to Jerusalem that day, the poor found hope, life, and all the riches of heaven. III. The Zealots Were There The political class was present, too - the Zealots, who were hired Jewish Mercenaries. They were incited. "Despicable Romans," they thought. They despised the arrogance of the ruling Roman government. They hated their pagan practices and beliefs, their gods and goddesses, and their debauchery. They had a look of rage, like one preparing for battle. They carried sharp, razor-like daggers in their belts. And, if given a chance, they would slip behind a Roman and slice their throat, and disappear before anyone realized what had happened or who had completed the dastardly deed. They were the original terrorists. The Zealots saw in Jesus the fulfillment of their desire to be free from tyranny. They saw Jesus, as a liberator whom they believed would lead them in a fight for freedom against occupiers and dominators. Jesus would be their conquering king, their ruling monarch. So they welcomed Jesus with palm fronds - an open invitation for him to be the restorer and ruler of Israel. They were ready to do battle, and with a single word from Jesus, they would have fought to the death against the hated Romans. They wanted to Make Israel Great Again! But something that bothered these  Zealots was that Jesus was riding a donkey. A conquering king would ride a stallion - a symbol of victory, not a donkey - a symbol of peace. Jesus was offering peace. They wanted war. These folks wanted a revolution, not redemption. They desired deliverance from the hated Romans, not freedom from sin. The orders never came, but instead, the realization that their destructive ways had not prompted the desired changes they sought. In an instant, they pulled their knives from their belt, falling from their hands to the hardened, packed dirt street below. They entered the procession behind Jesus. They were ready to fight, but not a war of hatred and violence, but a battle for love and peaceful nonviolence.  

1. The Pharisees Were There

The powerful Pharisees stood back with their ever-watchful eyes glaring at Jesus. They were the narrow-minded, prejudiced, intolerant religious folks with their noses stuck in the air. |Jesus, by and large, throughout his ministry, avoided large crowds whenever he could. |He refused to take other contemporary leaders' dominant, power-orientated stance.| But on this day, he put on the symbols of the Old Testament prophetic utterances. |By his posture and bearing, he declared in no uncertain terms, “I am the King.” |He even picked the day - The Feast of the Unleavened Bread that celebrated the Jews deliverance from bondage in Egypt and marked the beginning of the wheat harvest. The exposure was evident. Only one problem: He picked the day not so much to gain the crowd's admiration but to force the issue of his whole reason for coming to earth. His triumphant entry into Jerusalem sealed his doom. It was the catalytic agent that aroused the anger of the religious establishment to a frenzy, setting the stage for the most significant event in human history. The Pharisees knew what Jesus was doing. That's why they commanded Jesus to tell his disciples to stop calling him a king in Luke 19:39. But Jesus' voice pierced the air and said in Luke 19:40, “If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!” The stones were the size of baseballs - the very stones the Pharisees carried in their hands. The stones they used to stone people who did not keep the law or adhere to their doctrine. The rocks they caressed were the ones with which they wanted to stone Jesus, but didn't have the guts. The rocks they loved to hurl at anyone in whom they found fault. Along the road were some stones. They were abandoned along the road Jesus traveled. These stones were not thrown at Jesus, though they were brought to the parade for that purpose. These stones had fallen gently from a few of the Pharisees as the message of Jesus pierced their hearts. They dropped their stones to follow Jesus. The stones cry out the power of Christ to change a life.

1. The Once Infirmed Were There

Dotted throughout the crowd in Jerusalem that day were people passionate about Jesus because of what he had done for them. For good reason, they cheered and screamed their praises. On one side was Bartimaeus, the blind man Jesus healed just last week at Jericho. He had no need of his dirty gauze patch. And ahead was the man who was lame for 38 years and lay by the Sheep Pool in Jerusalem, waiting for an angel to heal him. Then Jesus came. Because of Jesus' touch and wonder-working power, the formerly lame man had no need of his wooden crutches. And over there was the man with a withered hand, until Jesus came along and touched him. Now, he had no need of his bloody and puss-filled bandages. And yonder was Lazarus, tears of joy streaming down his face, because he was dead and now is alive. And beside him are Mary and Martha, friends of Jesus. No wonder they cry, dance, shout, sing, smile, and laugh. The One who rides on the donkey before them is the Healer, the miracle worker. Their lives have been transformed forever. They cannot contain their joy, their excitement. Have you felt the healing touch of Jesus? Has the wonder-working power of Jesus changed your life? If you have, you know what Bartimaeus felt, what the crippled man felt, and what the wounded man felt. If you have, by entrusting your life to Jesus, received the gift of eternal life, you know what Lazarus felt. For you, too, were dead and now are alive. Conclusion Hurry! The parade is coming. Hurry! You and I have a chance to be in the parade. Hurry! He who came as a man, who overcame death, who can heal the broken, restore sight to the blind, and raise the dead is on his way. The church is the continuing procession. The parade that started just outside of Jerusalem continues to march throughout history, as the church does. You and I are a part of the parade. We meet Jesus each week. He is present now. What do you bring to the parade? Jesus will take our coats, our palm branches, our daggers, our rocks. He wants our crutches, our bandages, and our patches. He'll take the brokenness of your life and put it back together again. He'll take the trash of your sin and make you clean and pure. He'll take your spiritual poverty and make you eternally rich. He'll take your lifeless today and give you a resurrected tomorrow. He is the hope of the world, and the hope of your life. What will you give Jesus today? He is passing by. He is looking your way. Will you look him in the eye, take him by the hand, and make him your King and Lord?   Next week is Ressurection Sunday, and our focus will be on He Is Risen! in a message titled “Blessed Are You Who Have Not Seen, and Yet Believe.” Please read John 20:19-31