PALM SUNDAY
Today is Palm Sunday, one of the high holy days of the Church. It is one of the three most attended services on the Christian calendar. It is the day of the LORD'S triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
JESUS, to put it into today's terms, was a "rock star." Everywhere HE went, crowds followed. Many were deeply touched by the LIVING WORD of GOD that was spoken to them at HIS outdoor meetings that were attended by thousands of men, plus women and children.
Some attended merely for "the loaves and fishes." They came for the show.
Remember that 2000 years ago there was no TV, there were no movies; books were rare and entertainment of any sort was virtually impossible to find. Followers of JESUS discovered not only that the needs they had could be met by this itinerant preacher but HIS meetings were an amazing distraction from the mundanity of every-day life.
So, on Palm Sunday, as on so many other days, the crowds followed as JESUS rode a borrowed donkey into the city. They strewed palm fronds in HIS path as they sang loud hosannahs to glorify the MIRACLE WORKER among them. If HE would have permitted it, they would have declared HIM KING.
If one were to go merely by appearances on PALM SUNDAY, it could have been predicted that within a short amount of time, an army could have been mustered and the Romans would have been driven back to Italy.
But we all know that the adulation of this day of enthusiasm for the MAN who healed the sick and raised the dead would morph into a type of attention that would turn deadly.
The shouts of "HOSANNAH" would become, "CRUCIFY HIM!"
How about you?
Where does your relationship with JESUS stand? They say there are no atheists' in foxholes but life presents many other kinds of warfare besides that on battlefields.
Where do you stand with JESUS?
Is HE an integral part of your daily life? Do you walk beside HIM in the good times and in the bad? Do you speak to HIM only when you are desperate for HIS help or is your communion with HIM a regular part of every day?
Do you begin each day in prayer and thanksgiving to the ONE who has you always in HIS heart? Do you praise HIM for being the GOD who guides you through your daily routine and guards you through the enemy's schemes?
This Palm Sunday, make it a point to anchor yourself to the ONE who came to set you free from despair, from disease, from eternal death. Anchor yourself to the CHRIST who dries your tears when you weep and who deserves your hosannas whether or not life is good to you.
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