Our Expectations for Jesus

Our Expectations for Jesus

Our expectations for Jesus

Singing Hosanna on the first Advent Sunday is a must. This year, due to Covid-19, I did so at home while virtually attending the service. Nonetheless, it is a powerful experience. It is good to cry for help with the body of Christ. Especially this year, don’t you think? We do need help. Hence our expectations for Jesus are high.

Hosanna could be translated as “Please, save us” or “Please, help us”. The crowd welcoming Jesus to Jerusalem was enthusiastic, to say the least. They were eager to make their lives better, safer, and easier. Their expectations for Jesus were high. They could hardly wait to get over their hardships. (And we can’t either, can we?)

And many [of the people] spread their coats on the road [as an act of tribute and homage before a new king], and others [scattered a layer of] leafy branches which they had cut from the fields [honoring Him as Messiah]. Those who went in front and those who were following [Him] were shouting [in joy and praise], “Hosanna ([aSave, I pray)!
Blessed (praised, glorified) is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
“Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!
Hosanna in the highest [heaven]!”
(Mark 11:8-10, AMP,*)

Our expectations for Jesus…

Have you ever wondered why on earth these same people a few days later were yelling “Crucify him”? Their expectations for Jesus were self-centered and when Jesus did not deliver according to their wishes, they were ready to crucify him. Sad, I know. But even sadder is the fact that we do the same to Jesus. Regularly.

You can deny it all you want but it does not change the fact our expectations for Jesus most often derivates from our selfish desires. And when they are not met, we get angry with God. We accuse him of betrayal, unkindness, forgetting us. And we could not be further from the truth.

If Jesus had come only to take care of our present-day problems, we would not have eternal hope. And that is much more important than life with ease, don’t you think?

…need readjustment

Maybe it’s time to readjust our expectations for Jesus, maybe we need to let him be what he is: our savior (and not a wishing well). And maybe we need to let go of our expectations of how we want God to act on our behalf. We don’t know what’s best for us but God does.

Letting go of our expectations does not mean God would stop working on our behalf. But it means we stop giving God orders on how our life should look like. We don’t know the big picture but God does.

So let’s continue to sing Hosanna but let’s stop shouting “crucify him” when life gets tough. Can we do that? Because when keep on singing Hosanna in our troubles, we will be saved. We will be helped in God’s way, in God’s time. And let me tell you, that is more than enough.

Dear God,
Forgive us for approaching you with our selfish interests.
We surrender ourselves and our expectations to you.
Save us, help us, bless us according to your plan for us.
May your will happen in the world and in our lives.
In Jesus’ precious name,
Amen

Q4U: Do your expectations for Jesus need readjustment?

Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, as you keep on following Jesus and praising him no matter what you’re going through. God is good, all the time.

Photo by Brady Leavell on Unsplash.

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