Exaltation, Jubilation, Anticipation, Celebration, Expectation—these would be words that characterize the people surrounding Jesus as he makes his “Triumphal Entry” into Jerusalem. And if the people did not celebrate, Jesus said the rocks would’ve cried out.
It is great to approach something with anticipation. Like a child for Christmas, or a family with the arrival of a new baby. So were those around Jesus anticipating God doing something fantastic.
And God was doing something amazing, for in one week from that day, Jesus rose from the dead! That may not have been the expectation of the crowds that day, but it was the wonderful work of God. God is the God of the rejected, disappointed, disillusioned, and downtrodden. Jesus quotes Psalms 118 about what God is doing in this Holy Week:
The stone that the builders rejected
has become the chief cornerstone.
This is the Lord’s doing;
it is marvelous in our eyes.
It is great to have an expectant view of tomorrow, but we have to allow God to be the God of the rejected to truly see the marvelous things God is doing.
Pastor Greg