Stones

They threw their own clothes on the colt, and they set Jesus on him. And as He went, many spread their clothes on the road. Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: "'Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!' Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, "Teacher, rebuke Your disciples." But He answered and said to them, "I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out." Luke 19:35-40 (NKJV)

Which crowd would I have been a part of if I had been alive and living in Jerusalem on the day that Jesus came riding into town? Would I have been like the Pharisees who were jealous and critical, or would I have joined the crowds that ran into the streets with shouts of praise? I think I have an answer: "I would have been a part of the crazy worshipers!" Here is my reasoning: Jesus still has His critics--those that despise Him and all of those that worship Him. He also has a world-wide group of crazy worshipers, called "The Church," and we are still extolling His name with passion!!

What a day of rejoicing that must have been for the city of Jerusalem. They had suffered long under the thumb of the Roman Empire and the "King of the Jews" had just arrived. After witnessing Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead--they were fully convinced that Jesus could handle the Romans. So, when Jesus came riding into the city, they turned it into a celebration. It started with a parade and ended with a worship service!

The Pharisees did not like it...not even a little bit. Not only did they want to kill Jesus, they even talked about killing Lazarus, the walking miracle. They were fearful that Jesus was going to replace them, or that maybe Jesus would lead a rebellion against the Romans and then they would all die. They expressed their disdain of the parade and party to Jesus. "Tell them to stop," they argued. Jesus said, "I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out." We have no recorded answer from the Pharisees. Perhaps they were afraid of earth quakes as well.

Prayer: "Dear heavenly Father, may my lips never be stilled from praising You. As long as I have breath I plan to praise Your Holy and Great Name. I'm not going to wait for the rocks to cry out--and why should I? You have been good to me. You have given me life and that more abundant. You have paid the price for my sin and my heart is whiter than snow. Hosanna! Blessed be the Name of the Lord! Amen"