King for a Day
Zechariah 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
The Wisconsin Lutheran Lower School children have a neat practice where every day a different student gets to be “The Student of the Day” for his or her classroom. Being the “Student of the Day” brings a lot of special privileges with it. For example, you get to be first in line everywhere the class goes during the day. You get to lead the class to recess and the lunch room. You get to do special things for the teacher like hand out papers and do the calendar. It is really a good feeling to be the “Student of the Day” because all of the other students look up to you and wish they were able to do the things you are doing.
All of the students in the class look forward to the day when they get to wear the “Student of the Day” sticker. There is only one bad thing about being the “Student of the Day” – it only lasts for one day.
That’s pretty similar to what took place in Jerusalem 2000 years ago. A King was visiting the city. People lined the streets hoping to get to see the King. The King came riding on a small donkey, and as he rode through the streets of the city, some people spread their cloaks on the road and others waved palm branches and shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
The only problem with all this praise and acclamation was that it didn’t last. Jesus was only their “King for a Day.” Later that same week Jesus was arrested, beaten, tried, and crucified. Many of the same people who had cheered him on Sunday had probably turned against him. Now he wore a crown, but it was a crown of thorns.
Do we ever do that? Do we ever acclaim Jesus as our King, but only for a day? Maybe we worship him with our lips on a Sunday morning but then out of that same mouth on Monday morning comes cursing, lies and all kinds of filth. Maybe we accept Jesus’ rule over most of our life, but there are still some areas where the sin is too much fun and we want him as far away as possible. Maybe we lift high the cross when we are with fellow Christians but hide the cross when we are among Jesus’ critics.
This is exactly why Jesus came. This is why he rode into Jerusalem on a Sunday so he could be dead on a Friday. This is why he accepted the people’s “Hosannas” one day even though they may be shouting “Crucify him” later on. This is why he was hailed as a king and then mocked as a king. He went through all of this with the first Palm Sunday worshipers because he knew that the Palm Sunday worshipers in 2010 would do exactly the same things.
We are the same. For that we are ashamed. But our King is also the same. And for that we sing his praises!
The Bible tells us that one day every knee will bow and confess that Jesus Christ is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. (Philippians 2:9-11) The question is, "Why wait?" Why not give your heart and life to Jesus and receive the forgiveness that he offers? Why not today?
Jesus wants to be the ruler and Lord of your life. He doesn’t want to be your “King for a Day,” he wants to be your “Forever King.”
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