The Original Jesus Freaks

(Read Mark 11:1-11)

Most agree that there have been 5 Great Jesus Revivals in our history. The Jesus Movement, or the Twentieth Century Revival, is the one we might be most familiar with. It’s where the term “Jesus Freak” came from. Originally intended to reflect a positive light on people using spiritual gifts, Bible studies, and workings of the Holy Spirit in the modern world, eventually was hijacked by a subculture of the hippie crowd who focused on pacifism and universal love.

As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’”
Mark 11:1-3

Jerusalem was a royal city. King David made Jerusalem the capital of his unified Israel. Here we see Jesus arrive in Jerusalem for Passover, a time when an estimated 1,000,000 might have been present. It was a huge, frenzied crowd for this city at a time when Rome was hyper sensitive about gatherings and potential threats. News about Jesus Christ was widely known. Public opinion was not merely hungry for a kingly celebrity, but it had turned messianic. It awaited a Savior. All four of the Gospels recorded this account of Jesus publicly parading into the Holy city. There was no turning back.

For most of His earthly ministry, Jesus discouraged people from public adoration, especially using terms like the Messiah. Upon entering the gates of Jerusalem, Jesus invited all the public praise and adoration that He could get.

I was one of the adult chaperones for my son’s church retreats when he was in middle school. “Quake” is a national movement to encourage teens to grow in their faith and to empower them for Christian living, ministry, and leadership. I will never forget the excitement of the kids from the electricity of the experience. The music, the lights, and the preaching was so catchy. The kids were overflowing with faith. I wonder how many still feel that way.

The Jesus Movement is said to have faded away in the mid-1980’s. Does that mean the Jesus Freaks became freakish in something else or does that mean their faith took on a new look and style?

They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, some people standing there asked, “What are you doing, untying that colt?” They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted,

“Hosanna!”

“Blessed 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 11:4-10

The huge crowds during Passover were mostly Pilgrims from Galilee and other communities outside Jerusalem. On the day He triumphantly rode into the city on a colt, the people threw their clothes, palm leaves, and cuttings on the dirty road giving Jesus a red carpet treatment fit for a king. Covering the ground ceremoniously reflected Jesus’ royal identity much like the coronation King Jehu received. (2 Kings 9:13)

Originally, “Hosanna” was a Hebrew expression meaning “save” but here it was used as an exclamation of praise. “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” was a common pilgrimage refrain borrowed from Psalm 118 known as a Hallel Psalm which gave God the glory for having delivered Israel from Egypt. So, maybe these crowds were looking to Jesus to deliver them from the Romans.

“The crowd wanted Jesus for all the wrong reasons, and many times, we miss the point of who Jesus is ourselves.”
Paul Tripp

I have been to several Christian music concerts. I’ve been to multiple services at mega churches where there is a heightened sense of praise you can’t ignore. It sucks you in. There’s nothing wrong with feeling these highs in our faith — as long as they point to the reason. It is more important that our worship is pleasing to God, not ourselves. If it’s pleasing to God, then of course it’s pleasing to us too.

Being a Christ follower is not easy. It comes with more than the highs and lows of life that everyone lives with, it comes with the commitment to live with Christ inside us. To be like Him. To love like Him. To serve like Him. Not just to consume what makes us feel good.

The crowds proclaiming Hosanna or Hallelujah to Jesus for bringing God’s kingdom to bear might have been a different group of people from the ones condemning him to die a week later. The Friday crowd shouted, “Crucify Him.” It doesn’t matter whether they were the same or different. Where were they when Jesus was on trial? Had their buzz fizzled? What kind of faith fades after a week?

Despite the heroes welcome He received, Jesus knew what was in store for Him.

He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.
Mark 8:31

Jesus came as the Savior to Jerusalem, not as a military conquerer. He came to inspect the people of God. In the rest of Mark 11, we see the results of this inspection. Mark 11:11 says, “He looked around at everything,” which was prophesied by Malachi (3:1-3) 400 years earlier. What did our Messiah see during His careful assessment? Did He see through the temporary excitement of fair weather believers? Did He see a Holy city full of righteous people or hypocrites? What does Jesus see when He looks down from Heaven at our behavior?

Just like the crowds in Jerusalem we put Jesus on the cross every day, but somehow just like them, we are still saved by grace through faith in Christ Jesus. Our faith should excite us. It needs to be centered on a person, not an event, thing, or a place. We are believers because of grace.

“Either you’ll have to kill him or you’ll have to crown him. The one thing you can’t do is just say, ‘What an interesting guy!’”
Tim Keller

Key Application:

• Read Mark 11 How did Jesus refer to Himself? Do you see Him that way? Do you live each day as if you’re connected to the Messiah? How can you demonstrate to others that you have welcomed the righteous King into your life?
• Have you let your faith fade? It has happened to me on several occasions. My way through it is to look deeper. Examine what you believe? Does it point to Jesus? In your prayers this week, spend more time on Him, thank Him, praise Him, and less time on your petitions.

Where else in your life can you live out the teachings of Christ? Look for next week’s Devotion.