Do You See Him?

Zechariah 9:9

“Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!  Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!  See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

We love throwbacks, watching old movies we have seen long ago. Last night, Sophie found Hannah Montana: The Movie. I won’t spoil it, but Miley Cyrus goes back to her hometown, where she is known as just Miley, not Hannah Montana. As the villain of the movie plans to change the whole town into a tourist trap, the townspeople find themselves in a pickle, and only a charity concert by someone huge could raise enough money to get the town out of that pickle. In comes Miley Cyrus, or Hannah Montana.

Sometimes we miss the Lord completely. You hear pastors say that He is all around us and all you have to do is pray, or you go to church expecting to find a King and Redeemer, but instead you find yourself sobbing and feeling like a sinner. Either way, what you expected to find did not meet your expectations. You have heard that God is not a vending machine where you put in your time so you can cash out on some ticket to heaven or a miracle to get you out of your own pickle.

The Israelites sure missed Jesus by a long shot. Even though the Old Testament is full of prophecies explaining exactly how He would show up and what He would do, to most of them, He was just a carpenter’s son, the firstborn to Mary and Joseph. They even said among themselves, “Is this not the carpenter’s son?” completely removing any hope of seeing Him as the Son of God.

I heard a sermon the other day about the need to sit back and ponder the greatness of God. If you have read the Bible at all, then you know that pondering the greatness of God can take a while. That is great to do, but what about those who just see church and the Bible as a collection of stories about God or simply a good way to live your life? It is those people who need to have the scales removed from their eyes, in Jesus’ name. Zechariah prophesied how Jesus, the Son of God, would come into Jerusalem, and as we read the New Testament, it happened just as he prophesied.

To the leaders of the day, Jesus was mocking this prophecy, but to some, it was a fulfilled prophecy, and they were watching the Son of God. Same road, same donkey, same place, same Jesus, but very different viewpoints. Zechariah prophesied and said that your King comes to you righteous and victorious, yet lowly and riding on a foal. Jesus showed up in Jerusalem already righteous and victorious. He did not come in on a great white horse with a band and parade. Rather, He showed up riding a foal, a young donkey.

In the movie we watched, Miley was just Miley, but she was also Hannah Montana, and no one knew it until she revealed herself to the town. Same girl, same talent, same family, different viewpoints. Today, realize that you may have missed Christ in some respects. Maybe you are the vending machine Christian, just showing up to get what you ordered, or maybe you are the hometown Christian who grew up in church and sees this Christian thing just like going to McDonald’s. Jesus told His disciples to stay in the upper room until they received the Holy Spirit. Why? Because Jesus knew that it would take the Holy Spirit in the hearts of men to change the world. He came riding on a foal, your King, righteous and victorious. Do you see Him, or do you see a carpenter’s son?

Prayer: Father, I pray that You remove the scales from my eyes and allow me to see the real Christ Jesus. I pray that my heart will be open to all You have for me and that I come to You to praise and honor You, not just as a vending machine. In Jesus’ name, amen.