Surprised by Jesus
Some Good News
Maybe you saw this past week that John Krasinski started a new YouTube channel dedicated to good news. He’s started a show called Some Good News with artwork designed by his kids and filming from his home sharing good news stories with the world.
Stories of people cheering on healthcare workers. Or about the person who left gifts for their delivery person.
I especially love this one… April Danz posted that her daughter Coco finished her last chemotherapy treatment and on the way home, her friends family, and neighbors had lined the streets to welcome her home.
In every situation what made the good news good was that there was a surprise involved.
The healthcare workers were totally stunned that so many people would clap and cheer and flash their lights to say thank you. The delivery guy was blown away that someone would leave a gift for him. And Coco thought she was leaving one quarantine location to go to another, not expecting to see anyone or have the homecoming she was expecting a few weeks before. So to see the streets lined with friends and family was surprising, amazing, and wonderful.
We need good news stories.
Maybe now more than ever, we need good news stories.
But sometimes, we hear this… “I’ve got good news and I’ve got bad news.”
Several years ago I was a part of a medical mission team that went deep into the country of Belize where we set up a clinic to serve people for whom medical care wasn’t even an option. Thousands of people literally lined up waiting to be seen by a doctor or a dentist. People came from all over the region, most of them walking many miles with the hope of receiving medical attention for some ongoing problem they were dealing with.
I was there with our team to help in any way I could. About half way through the trip one of our team members, one of our teenage girls, got sick. It wasn’t too serious. She had gotten dehydrated. So our medical team gave her an IV with fluids in our hotel and told her to stay in her room and rest.
Later on that day, I was asked to go check on her. When I did, she said she was feeling better and that the IV fluids were done. She asked me to go back to the clinic and see if someone could come and take out the IV.
So I did.
When I got to the clinic, they were completely swamped with people. I found one of our doctors and he said they couldn’t spare anyone to go and remove her IV, but that I could do it. And he would teach me how.
I’ll never forget walking back to the hotel, knocking on her door and saying, “I’ve got good news and I’ve got bad news! The good news is that the IV is coming out. The bad news? I have to do it!”
What happens when the good news isn’t what we thought it would be?
I think this is what happens for many people when it comes to Jesus. The good news about Jesus really is good news, but it’s so different than anyone expected.
Here’s what happened on Sunday before the Friday Jesus would be crucified.
Luke 19.28-38
…Jesus went on toward Jerusalem, walking ahead of his disciples. As he came to the towns of Bethphage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives, he sent two disciples ahead. “Go into that village over there,” he told them. “As you enter it, you will see a young donkey tied there that no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks, ‘Why are you untying that colt?’ just say, ‘The Lord needs it.’”
So they went and found the colt, just as Jesus had said. And sure enough, as they were untying it, the owners asked them, “Why are you untying that colt?”
And the disciples simply replied, “The Lord needs it.” So they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their garments over it for him to ride on.
Unlike other kings, rulers, and emperors, Jesus didn’t come riding into town on a chariot with a huge procession, or on a mighty horse as a warrior king. Instead, Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a borrowed donkey.
As he rode along, the crowds spread out their garments on the road ahead of him. When he reached the place where the road started down the Mount of Olives, all of his followers began to shout and sing as they walked along, praising God for all the wonderful miracles they had seen.
“Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the Lord!
Peace in heaven, and glory in highest heaven!”
Is there any good news?
People are singing praises and shouting Hosanna which literally means, “Praise God.”
But Jesus wasn’t the Messiah the religious leaders were looking for. They were planning to kill Jesus!
And Jesus wasn’t a warrior king that worried the Roman powers in Jerusalem. They weren’t worried or concerned in this moment about a man named Jesus riding into town on a donkey.
There’s a crowd around Jesus in this moment for sure, laying down their garments. They’re even putting palm branches down before him as he rides into town according to another eye witness.
These are people who have seen the miracles he’s done. They’ve heard his teaching. They’re in need of HOPE. They’re desperate for deliverance. They want a Messiah. A deliverer. A healer. A leader. A new king. With new power inaugurating a new kingdom.
Into that pent up hope and expectation enters Jesus.
Riding into town on a donkey.
And it’s as if he’s saying, I’ve got good news and I’ve got bad news.
The Bad News?
The bad news? I’m not the kind of king you’re looking for.
If you’re looking for a king who is going to overthrow the Romans and kick them out of Jerusalem, who is going to take back the land of Judea and Galilee and restore the kingdom of God for the people of God to this place for this people at this time… then I’ve got bad news.
If you’re looking for a king who is going to put the religious leaders in their place, take away their pride, their power, their position over you and reset the priestly order and restore the Temple and the way we worship and take us back to the glory days when David and Solomon served as Israel’s kings… then I’ve got bad news.
If you’re looking for a king who is going to come into Jerusalem, sit on a man made throne and rule the city and this land with power and authority, if you’re looking for a king who’s going to rival the other kings of other nations in surrounding countries, if you’re looking for a king who will lead this nation back to relevance and importance in this world… then I’ve got bad news.
BUT, if you’re looking for a new kind of KING…
The Good News?
If you’re looking for a King who has a Kingdom that is not of this world…
If you’re looking for a King who will give you hope past the grave…
If you’re looking for a King who will offer you a new way to live with a new kind of hope with a new kind of mission and a new kind of purpose…
Then, I’ve got good news.
That day, some 2000 years ago, an unexpected person from an unexpected place entered Jerusalem at an unexpected time.
The idea that this is Good News, that there is Jew named Jesus from the largely unknown town of Nazareth who enters Jerusalem where people in power are plotting to kill him and effectively end his movement… that doesn’t sound like Good News. That sounds like bad news.
Surprised by Jesus
What happened that day in Jerusalem some 2000 years ago surprised the world.
And people continue to be surprised by Jesus today.
The good news today is the same good news that the people of Jerusalem celebrated that day as he entered the city riding on a donkey.
Jesus is here and His presence brings hope.
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