God on Our Terms

In ancient Rome when a conquering hero returned from war, he would be riding a donkey. So when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and the multitude cried out, “Hosanna!” the significance of this was not missed by the Romans or the Jews.

The Romans thought Jesus was acting as though He were a returning war hero. But the Jews saw a different meaning. The prophet Zechariah had said of the Messiah, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey” (Zechariah 9:9).

For the Jews, Jesus was saying, “I am your Messiah.” And for the Romans, He was saying, “I am your king.” But Jesus did not come to conquer Rome. He came to conquer sin and death.

The crowd said, “‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ The King of Israel!” (John 12:13). These people wanted to see Jesus, but they wanted Him on their own terms: Lord, we want You to be our conquering King.

There are some people who say they want God in their lives, but they want Him on their terms. They essentially would say to God, “Look, God, you can come into my life. But don’t tell me what to do. I’m going to do it my way. But by the way, Lord, I could use Your help in this one situation.”

It doesn’t work that way. Who are we to stand and dictate terms to God Almighty? The Bible says, “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not” (Lamentations 3:22). We all deserve His judgment, yet He is loving and tolerant with us.