God’s will and our desires may not always be aligned. We may see part of the issue, but God always sees the big picture. Pick any account of what has become known as the “Triumphal Entry” and we see just this. God’s people were living in a precarious predicament when Jesus was preaching about the Kingdom of God; they still believed themselves to be in the midst of exile because the 12 tribes of Israel were still scattered all over the world. In attempt to return to the glory days of King David, the people of God yoked, or bound themselves strictly to traditions and laws that convinced them this was the way to have God draw back to them. A crucial part of how they interpreted the salvation of the Lord was deliverance from their enemies.
During the time of Jesus, Rome ruled much of the world and they occupied the Promised Land God gave their ancestors. What the people wanted was freedom from exploitation, taxation, and oppression from the empire of Rome. In God’s eyes Rome was simply fruit on the tree that was the cause for concern. God did not want to simply deal with Rome, He wanted to deal with the empire behind the empire: sin. What God is dealing with in our lives may not quite be the same thing we would like for Him to handle in the moment. Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey was not His declaration of war people anticipated. This King was not going to be victorious through military campaigns, but He would obtain victory through death. The victory God intended for Jesus was to be as a kernel of wheat that dies and produces a bountiful crop. We may not understand God’s will, but through His will we learn His ways.
During this holy week I find myself wrestling with God’s will. Like the people of God there is something I want, something I feel is good for me but I know the Lord is doing something else. In this season of life I identify with the people waving palm branches. I identify with people whose hope was in what I know would be a work of salvation from the Lord. While l identify with these people, I want to pray and mean the words of Jesus, “Not my will, but Your will be done.” This is a difficult prayer to pray for many because it requires surrendering our will and desires. This can be difficult when we focus on the uncertainty of what could happen but surrender isn’t simply to the unknown, it’s to the God who knows us and has good things in store for us.. This does not mean bad things won’t happen. What will happen is God will be with us despite what happens. It was God’s will for Jesus to go to Jerusalem one last time to be the sacrifice for the entire world. His will may also be for us to endure for a little while because on the other side of hurt is healing. On the other side of suffering is restoration. May God’s will be down on earth as it is in heaven.
Until next time, continue to stay guided by grace,
Tra
Guided by Grace 