Who is This?

“And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.” Matthew 21:10-11.

Have you enjoyed our time together as we walked with the crowd around Jesus as He rode into Jerusalem? There were others there that day who could have told us some interesting stories. We can imagine we saw the little lad that gave his lunch to Jesus to feed the multitude; the woman who had pressed through the crowd to touch Jesus’ garment and be healed; the lepers who had been cleansed; Lazarus, Mary, and Martha; and many more. Take some time today to read Matthew 21 and picture who else might have been there and what they might have been thinking and talking about.

And now the procession has reached the city. It was nearing Passover time so no doubt there were lots of people beginning to gather in Jerusalem. As they saw the crowd approaching the temple, they knew something important was happening, and they began to question, “Who is this?”

And the crowd cried out: “This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.”

Can you imagine the anticipation as Jesus entered the temple? Would He declare Himself to be their King, their Deliverer, and would He set up His throne in their midst? But they were to be disappointed. They did not fully understand who He was, and that His kingdom was not an earthly one.

Instead, He looked around at all the things in the temple, items that were types and shadows of His great plan, and realized something was wrong.

Matthew 21:12-13 “And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.”

There is coming a day when Jesus will return to this earth as King. Will you and I be part of the crowd that welcomes Him on that day? Before we can accept Him as our King, we must accept Him as our Saviour and Lord.

The people in the temple saw the crowd worshipping and they desired to know whom they were honouring. When visitors enter our places of worship, do they see us praising and giving glory, and desire to know the One we are worshipping? Does the world see Jesus in you and me and want what we have? We must be careful that our worship comes from our hearts and not just our mouths.

Prayer: Jesus, help us to live lives that are pleasing to you and to worship you in spirit and truth. May the world see Jesus in us, and desire to know You.

Devotion by: Anne Johnston