The stone which the builders rejected, this became the chief cornerstone.
It became more and more obvious that the Scribes and Pharisees were out to get Jesus… any way that they could. First, they attempted to get Him to admit that He was the Son of God. This would be enough to convict Him. But He refused to fall into their trap. Then He warned them what would happen to them because of their rejection of Him by telling the parable of the vine-growers, showing them that He was the chief cornerstone of God. They tried to trap Him with spies sent to ask seemingly innocent questions about paying their taxes, the expected answers to which would convict Jesus. But again, He refused to fall into their trap. Luke tells us that each morning of Jesus’ final week on earth, the people would get up early and hurry to the temple to hear Him teach. And our Lord didn’t disappoint them. He spent all of each day speaking to them about God. With one explanation after another, He told the people who He was, and how important it is to remain alert to false teaching. And at night, He would go to Mount Olivet to be alone and pray.
The Scribes and Pharisees are still alive and still plugging at it today, aren’t they? Both within our churches and without. Within our churches, they’re the ones who are so busy creating man-made "rules" that they throw grace in the trash heap. They’re the ones who turn a church into an elitist group, with only those who dress right, and act right, and who are the right color, and whose bank accounts will benefit the church budget, and who appear sinless and pious enough are able to enter comfortably. They’re the ones whose prime directive seems to be to create discord within the Body of Christ – using back-biting and gossip as their weapons of choice. And they’re the ones who will be stunned when Jesus says, "I never knew you."
Outside of the church, they’re the ones who continually try to trip Christians up, with the same kind of entrapment that was used on Jesus. They’re the ones who refuse to recognize Jesus in favor of the seduction of Satan’s lies. They’re the ones who ridicule those who love the Lord.
Today, think about whether there is a Pharisee within you. Search the four Gospels for incidents that concern the Pharisees, and see if anything they did would describe you. If not, good for you! But if so, don’t you think it’s time for an eviction notice?
"It is written, ‘And My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a robbers’ den." Luke 19:46 NIV
Already in Jerusalem for Passover week, Jesus went to the temple. There he found not a place of worship, but a marketplace where vendors were selling animals for sacrifice. Try to imagine the scene where chaos reigned in this dusty, noisy outer courtyard of the house of God. The image was probably quite similar to those crowded street markets that exist in many areas of the world even today. Or it might be like a carnival, without the neon lights, but with the cacophony of the vendors hawking their wares and the bustling crowd… each person trying to make sure that he got the animal he needed for his Passover sacrifice. Imagine now how our Lord felt when confronted with this bedlam. This was supposed to be the house of God, a place of meditation and prayer, a place of worship. After His triumphal entry into Jerusalem , this is what confronted Him right before His final Passover feast.
The situation infuriated Him. Rather than the courtyard where people could meditate, learn and worship, as was intended, these people had turned it into a marketplace. The bedlam caused by all the buying, selling and money changing that was going on prevented those who were there to worship from being able to focus on their worship. These vendors were making a mockery of God’s house.
Did Jesus gently ask them all to quiet down, or to leave? Oh, no…! He drove them out of the Temple ! He wasn’t mildly irritated. He was ANGRY! Apparently, this was the second time this situation occurred, because a similar situation is described in John 2:13-16, which occurred early in His ministry. On that occasion, Jesus made a WHIP and used it to drive the vendors out of the temple courtyard!
Does this mean that you and I have the right to use force to correct those things we see as going against God’s will? Should we all grab a whip and start beating anyone who’s making a mockery of Jesus?
No. Period. No exceptions. But, some might say, if we’re to be like Jesus, then we should emulate Him in all things – and thereby try to justify violence committed in the name of God. Again, the answer is NO. Period. No exceptions.
Why? Because you and I don’t have the authority to do what Jesus did in this instance, just as you and I don’t have the authority to forgive sins and send someone to heaven. We don’t have the authority to be crucified and resurrected on the third day in sacrifice for the sins of others. We are not God Incarnate. But Jesus is. And on this day, He was acting with the full authority of God as God Incarnate in His own house. That’s something that you and I cannot do – now or ever.
If you find you’re filled with anger that is righteous, that’s good… because the things of God have become so important to you that when they’re demeaned or destroyed, you are angered. But when you’re filled with this righteous anger, STOP. Talk to the Lord and ask HIM how to use it. Don’t let your anger cause you to be a part of the mockery of His name. Instead, listen to His guidance, and let Him be glorified through you – even in your anger.
Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion !
Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem !
See, your King comes to you,
righteous and having salvation,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Zechariah 9:9 NIV
Five hundred years before Jesus was born, Zechariah foretold His triumphal entry into Jerusalem . When Jesus was getting ready to enter Jerusalem for the last time, He sent two of his disciples into a village to fetch a donkey and her colt that He said they would find there. They followed His instructions and brought Him the donkey and colt. Jesus rode the donkey colt into Jerusalem , on a road paved with people’s cloaks and olive branches. The people shouted praises to His Name and sang the words of Psalm 118:26a (NIV), "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD!" Jesus’ final entry into Jerusalem was triumphal, creating an uproar in the city unlike anything it had seen before. That crowd did not realize that this was not His entry as the conquering King… this was His entry as the Lamb of God, the final Sacrifice.
This prophecy by Zechariah was just one of the many that foretold of the coming Messiah… the Good Shepherd… the Lamb of God who would be sacrificed for all of our sins… the one who would be our salvation. One at a time, each of the prophecies about Jesus’ incarnation were fulfilled, from the place of His birth to the method of His death. This day – the day of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem as the Messiah – was not only foretold by Zechariah, but also by the prophet Daniel. In Daniel 9:25 (NIV), he prophesied the specific day that the Messiah would be revealed… “Know and understand this: From the issuing of the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench but in times of trouble.” From the date of the decree Daniel mentions until Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the day we call “Palm Sunday” was 173,880 days, the exact number of days that Daniel had prophesied!!
That is just one of hundreds of examples. Those prophecies were all fulfilled. They are a part of history… pieces of factual information to which we refer when substantiating our belief that Jesus is the Messiah. But the story doesn’t stop there… and neither do the prophecies… because Jesus is coming again.
Just as we believe the prophecies that were fulfilled with His first coming, we must also believe the prophecies that tell us about His return. No one has any idea exactly when that will be… but we can study the scriptures to get an idea when the time is close. Jesus said in Matthew 24:36-44 (NIV), “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem as the Lamb of God, the final Sacrifice, was triumphal. His return in the sky to call His own up to Him at the Rapture will be swift and will be marked by the sound of a trumpet heard worldwide. (1 Corinthians 15:52 NIV) But His return to earth as the King of Kings will make the first triumphal entry look like a Sunday picnic. Several people have asked me, "How will people know it’s Jesus? There are so many so-called ‘Messiahs.’ How will we know it’s really Him?" Folks, as I told those people who asked this question, it will be impossible to mistake who He is!
Jesus described His return to the earth this way, "At the time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other." (Matthew 24:30-31 NIV) So, again, there will be a loud trumpet call, but this time, He’ll have an overwhelming number of people with him – His Church – the Body of Christ, made up of all the people saved by His blood shed at Calvary – billions of people who have been waiting with Him in heaven for this final triumph – some that had died during the thousands of years since creation, and some that were raptured out seven years earlier – all of whom will be gathered by the angels “from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to another”!!!
Are you ready for that? Do you look forward to His return with fear or with joy? Do you think that those who remain on earth at that time will have any problem figuring out what’s going on? Sadly, far too many will have been foolish enough to let someone – a false prophet like Jim Jones or David Koresh or any number of other pretenders – mislead them. I pray that not one person reading this devotional will be among those who will have been deceived, and as such, will end up witnessing this awesome event from the ground. Jesus said, "For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect – if that were possible." (Matthew 24:24 NIV)
Jesus did one other thing for us. He told us ahead of time (Matthew 24:25 NIV) what to watch for. Study His Word so you can be sure you’re watching for the right person. If you don’t know Him personally today, then study His Word to learn who He is, and then accept His free gift of salvation. Because, no matter what else happens in the coming days or weeks or years, at some point the King is coming! If it happens within your lifetime, it’s your choice whether you will witness that event from the air or on the ground.
”Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death–
even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.”
Philippians 2:5-11 NIV
As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, tell him that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: “Say to the Daughter of Zion ,
‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”
The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna in the highest!”
When Jesus entered Jerusalem , the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee .”
On Palm Sunday, 33 A.D., a huge crowd of people filled the streets of Jerusalem in preparation for the celebration of the Passover Feast. Nearing the end of His three year ministry, Jesus chose that time, that day, to enter Jerusalem . And He did so on the back of a donkey colt, the most humble of all forms of transportation of the time. Why did Jesus choose that day and that time? The choice was not arbitrary. Instead, He chose that day and time to fulfill prophesy (Zechariah 9:9 NIV, Daniel 9:24-27 NIV) He also was able to avail Himself of a huge crowd of people before whom He could be proclaimed King. The crowd accommodated Him, waving palm branches and shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!" By what they said and did, one would easily assume that the entire, huge crowd of people were dedicated believers in Jesus as the Son of God, the Messiah
who brought salvation to the world. But that was that day. What about the next day? Did the exuberant faith displayed by that huge crowd of people stand fast? How real was it? It was only real for that moment. Because in only a few days, that same crowd was shouting again, but that next time their words changed from hosannas to "Crucify Him!"
The faith of the crowd was superficial. It was only a surface faith, a belief held only as long as it was convenient and easy, only as long as it was popular. The moment it was a difficult thing to proclaim Jesus as Messiah… the moment it was unpopular… the moment it might put one of them in an uncomfortable or precarious position… the faith was swept away like the cobwebs from which it was made, and was replaced by conformity to the popular opinion that surrounded them.
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth; He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth. (Isaiah 53:7 NIV)
When he was accused by the chief priests and the elders, he gave no answer. Then Pilate asked him, “Don’t you hear the testimony they are bringing against you?” But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge–to the great amazement of the governor. (Matthew 27:12-14 NIV)
The chief priests accused him of many things. So again Pilate asked him, “Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.”
But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed. (Mark 15:3-5 NIV)
When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform some miracle. He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. (Luke 23:8-10 NIV)
When Jesus stood before His accusers, He offered no defense for Himself. He was accused of blasphemy by the Jewish religious leaders because He claimed He was God (John 8:58 NIV). But this charge held no weight with the Romans, and the Jews needed Roman law in order to kill Jesus. So they created false charges against Him… things that were against Roman law which carried a death sentence – things like encouraging the people not to pay taxes, claiming to be a king, and causing riots. Not one of these charges was true, and yet Jesus offered no defense for Himself. In fact, He did not speak at all. He did not open His mouth. Why not?
Because Jesus knew the whole picture. He knew what His purpose was. He knew that He was the final sacrifice. And He knew that the time had come. If He had defended Himself and won, He would not have been crucified. And if He had not been crucified, you and I would still be required to come up with lambs and doves to be sacrificed on the altars of the temple if we wanted to be forgiven for our sins. We would have no salvation through Jesus. The world would not have been changed one whit. So, because He knew the future, He offered no defense. He did not open His mouth.
However, today, Jesus is not silent. When it comes to you and me and the things that we do wrong, He’s quite verbal. Unwilling to defend Himself in order to save you and me, He is quite willing to stand at the right hand of God and continually offer a defense for us, protecting us from the certain and eternal punishment that we deserve without Him. Praise God that He is no longer silent!
Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died - more than that, who was raised to life - is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Romans 8:34 NIV
But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth; He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth. (Isaiah 53:5-7 NIV)
Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate. And they began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Christ, a king.”
So Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”
“Yes, it is as you say,” Jesus replied.
Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.” (Acts 23:1-4 NIV)
Early in the morning, all the chief priests and the elders of the people came to the decision to put Jesus to death. They bound him, led him away and handed him over to Pilate, the governor. (Matthew 27:1-2 NIV)
But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer.
Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?” (Mark 14:61 NIV)
Jesus was an innocent man… a man without sin… a man who had done no wrong. Yet He was tried and condemned to the most horrible death his judges could create… tried and condemned while He offered nothing in His own defense… tried and condemned to suffer and die so that you and I might be saved from every evil thought, every evil action, everything that any of us has ever done or will ever do that is evil in the sight of God. And now, you and I look back at those who condemned Him and shake our heads in wonder that they couldn’t see who He was… amazed that they could reject Him so completely.
Hind-sight is twenty-twenty, isn’t it? Would we have recognized Him then? Possibly… and possibly not. But we recognize Him now. We can see the whole picture, the plan that God set in motion in the Garden of Eden.
Seven hundred years before Jesus was born, Isaiah saw the whole picture, too. He described what he saw in this passage. He wrote this passage and, I’m sure, shared this vision verbally with all he could find. Yet, few believed. Few recognized Jesus when He was on earth. And now, with the whole picture in hand, with the clear vision of the past firmly in our hands, few believe today. Jesus told Thomas that he was blessed because he had seen and believed, but those who did not see and yet believed were even more blessed. (John 20:24-31 NIV) In that same light, those who rejected Jesus in person were foolish, but how much more foolish are those who live today and have the whole story and yet reject Him?
Are you a part of His fold? Or are you still wandering around, lost because you can’t – or won’t – recognize the whole picture?