The next day, when the large crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, they took palm branches and went out to meet him. 

They kept shouting: "Hosanna!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord - the King of Israel!"

John 12:12-13 CSB

The religious & cultural leaders wanted Jesus dead.

The people wanted to make him King, and they were calling on the imagery of Psalm 118:25, God who saves the people from their enemies. 

The people wanted freedom from their Roman overlords and maybe they were looking for freedom from their own leaders too.

Sounds familiar. 

And in my heart it's often I want Jesus to fix my stuff. My health, my finances, my business, my exams, my relationships, my stuff. 

This is the king I want, the Jesus I want who's gonna fix my stuff. 

And it's a fully human thing to want. I'd be right there in the crowd putting my hope in this Jesus who's going to set the world right. 

We know how Jesus story ends, but this crowd on that day didn't. They were full of hope and energy that the Jesus they wanted was going to put the world right, restore them back to prosperity and power. 

Jesus kingdom is so often upsidedown, a kingdom of the heart, of the small. 

There's mystery here, no formula. 

But there is Jesus who is Love, who comes for us, just not always how we expect.

#gospelofJohn

#upsidedownkingdom

#easter