Palm Sunday: “When Crowds Change Their Minds!”
Praise Tabernacle International, Plantation, FL
Pastor D.H.Dawkins
Today, Palm Sunday, marks the first day of Spring, and the beginning of Holy Week!
The key verses were from Luke 19: 28-44 (KJV):
"28 And when he had thus spoken, he went before, ascending up to Jerusalem.
29 And it came to pass, when he was come nigh to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called the mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples,
30 Saying, Go ye into the village over against you; in the which at your entering ye shall find a colt tied, whereon yet never man sat: loose him, and bring him hither.
31 And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him.
32 And they that were sent went their way, and found even as he had said unto them.
33 And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said unto them, Why loose ye the colt?
34 And they said, The Lord hath need of him.
35 And they brought him to Jesus: and they cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus thereon.
36 And as he went, they spread their clothes in the way.
37 And when he was come nigh, even now at 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 that they had seen;
38 Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.
39 And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples.
40 And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.
41 And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,
42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.
43 For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,
44 And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation."
Palm Sunday refers to the “laying of the palm leaves” by the people standing at the entrance saying “Hosanna! Hosanna!” as Jesus rode on a mule, into Jersusalem (John 12).
As they yelled “Hosanna! Hosanna! There were two motives behind this one praise:
1. National Standpoint: Save us from political distress, from the government.
2. Spiritual Standpoint- King of Kings! Son of David! Save us from our sin, and inward strife.
Different motives, one praise, same duration!
This same crowd that welcomed Jesus in, would be the same crowd declaring “Crucify him!” within the week (Luke 23)!
The change of mind from the crowd.
The same crowd that gave Jesus the “Crown of Praise,” would be the same crowd to give him the “Crown of Thorns.”
Be careful. Crowds change their minds.
Why Did They Stop Cheering?
1. They did not understand the PLAN.
The people liked the miracles, and the power that Jesus, but when He began to speak about what would come to pass, which included suffering they did not take a liking to that.
Jesus said to give Caesar what they owed Caesar, and to give to Him, what they needed to give (Luke 20:25).
However, the plan was too simple for man. Jesus would die, and they would live.
Man like their works. They like working their way to Heaven. They want to “earn” a place in salvation. This is religion. Religion is "work" based, and not "faith" based.
2. They did not like the PRICE.
Walking with Jesus means you have to pick up your own cross. The more life became a sacrifice, the less they cheered. They stopped cheering when it moved from a “feeling,” to sacrifice.
Be careful. Crowds change their minds.
The Disciples were comfortable until cultural tensions of truths, that were passed from one generation to another, were being questioned. They wanted Jesus to "slow down." This was due to personal reasons not correlating to His [Jesus] mission to accepting you.
Compromising position with the religion of Christ- stop cheering
Storms comes- stop cheering
We are told to turn the other cheek-stop cheering
Jesus, the most sought after, was the most hated in a week!
3. They did not realize the PENALTIES.
Refer to verse 41-44, above.
The magnitude of the moment.
For instance, when someone gets Saved/Baptized with the Holy Ghost, Heaven stands still, and rejoices! One soul is valuable to Christ. "The currency of heaven is souls” -Pastor Dywane Dawkins Sr.
The world wants you to believe that being a Christian is boring, and the worst mistake you can ever make. This is the complete opposite. We see how the world treats people.
The first time Jesus came, He came to save.
The next time Jesus rise, they will know He is coming as Majesty!
(Pictured Senior Pastor, D.H.Dawkins, Sr., Palm Sunday 9:30AM Service)
Life Application
What stood out to me the most was when Pastor made it clear, as described in Revelations, that you did not want to meet Jesus, in His Second Coming, with fire in His eyes. The first time Jesus came was to Save, the second time He is coming is to Judge. Many of us think because we are young, and that “GOD knows our hearts,” that we have ALL the time in the world to give our life to Christ, when this is NOT the case. THE TIME IS NOW. However, do not come to Christ because “others” have pressured you. Come to Christ when you want to come to Christ. This is the ONLY way that you will fully accept Him. I thank GOD that I found Jesus, and officially gave my life over to Him when I got Baptized last year. Some say they love Jesus, but their actions (not getting Baptized, keeping His commandments, and building a relationship) says the opposite. Giving my life to Christ has been THE MOST LIBERATING decision ever! Knowing that I am kept from harm, and this world, means that I have joy and peace that can NEVER run out! Not to mention, having EVERLASTING LIFE!!!
Will you come to Christ today?
Or do you want to meet Him when it is too late?
You decide.
Selahhhh!!!
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(Picture courtsey of http://i4.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article6647127.ece/ALTERNATES/s1200/Crowd-of-sports-fans-cheering.jpg & http://www.kepner-tregoe.com/default/assets/Image/blog/Booing_Crowd_300px.jpg)
