Swept Up in the Moment

By Danny Saavedra

“A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David!’ ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ‘Hosanna in the highest heaven!’ When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, ‘Who is this?’ The crowds answered, ‘This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.’”—Matthew 21:8–11 (NIV)

Have you ever been swept up in a communal reaction? Think about being at the big game watching your team win as the crowd goes wild and strangers are hugging and high-fiving, or even when you see THE WAVE coming around the stadium. Or how about being in the high school cafeteria and all of sudden someone bursts in and yells, “FIGHT!” Like sheep, everyone runs out and is soon caught up in the chaos, chanting, “Fight! Fight! Fight!”

The truth is a lot of our reactions to things are influenced by the masses. We can get swept up in the relevance and hysteria of a moment. Today, I want to touch on two instances that occurred during Jesus’ final week in which the people got swept up in a moment. The first moment is this very moment when Jesus rode into Jerusalem. You see, as Jesus says in John 12:23 (NKJV), “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified.”

And so, as Jesus rode into Jerusalem to fulfill His mission, people began to stir and suddenly everyone was getting swept up in it, laying out palm branches and shouting, “Hosanna in the highest!” The phrase in the highest implies to the utmost, highest degree, or in the highest heavens. Many scholars believe the people were likely calling on heaven to participate in glorifying Jesus with cries of salvation to confirm the growing suspicion that He was the promised Messiah.

Now, I don’t know about you, but I can understand how easy it must have been to get swept up in the excitement and buzz around the movement of Jesus. For three years, this man from “Nazareth in Galilee” had been performing incredible miracles, demonstrated unmatched authority over the physical and supernatural world, and taught revolutionary, authoritative teachings, which had never been previously uttered. Literally days before this, Jesus taught the crowds He was “the good shepherd” (a designation reserved for David) and had raised Lazarus from the dead! And so, with excitement and expectation at a fever pitch, the masses joyfully shouted in unison.

Sadly, we humans, like sheep, are fickle and easily swayed, and days later the same people who shouted, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord” would shout “Crucify Him!” This is the second instance I was referring to. Here, the Pharisees incited the crowd to demand Jesus die a gruesome death reserved for criminals.

But here’s the craziest thing about this: Jesus knew this would happen! He knew He’d be betrayed, suffer, and be subjected to a criminal’s death. But He did it anyway because He loves us so deeply, completely, and unconditionally!

Hebrews 12:2 (NIV) tells us, “For the joy set before him he endured the cross.” What joy? The joy of redeeming and restoring us to a right relationship with God, to make us children of God, to give us everlasting life! He did it for the joy of you! Psalm 18:19 (ESV) says, “He brought me out into a broad place; he rescued me, because he delighted in me.” Let this sink in: Because Jesus delights in you and desires a relationship with you, He endured the cross.

Today, I pray that if we get swept up in anything, it will be the reality of who Jesus is and what He did for us!

Pause: Why is it so easy for us to get swept up in the reactions of others? Can you think of examples of this happening in the world around you?

Practice: Pray today and every day that you will be swept up in the movement of the Spirit as He leads you to accomplish the work God has called you to . . . the work of telling the world about Jesus!

Pray: Jesus, I thank You for the hour when You were glorified by being lifted up on the cross. I thank You that Your glory came through the utter defeat of sin and death on my behalf. I pray that today and every day, by Your Spirit, You would guide me and help me avoid getting swept up in cultural movements, but in the movement of Your Spirit to accomplish Your perfect purposes in my life and the world. In Your name, I pray. Amen.