The Time of Your Visitation

Luke 19:37-40

And when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen;
Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest. And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples.And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.

A familiar account of the triumphal entry of Jesus Christ. I can imagine the anticipation, the excitement, the joy of knowing that their deliverance was at hand. Both the people and the pharisees saw Jesus with human eyes. Pharisees in disgust because he wouldn't cooperate with their religious agendas to control the people. The people with triumphant eyes over the oppressive Roman government who cared little about them and treated them as second class citizens. Can you imagine the sadness Jesus experienced at the fact that these people didn't see beyond the present to his real reason for being here. In reality, in a little known Scripture passage to me, we see his grief over the situations unfolding before Him.


Luke 19: 41-44

And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.

The Lord Jesus wept over Jerusalem because of their blind eyes and selfish motives for their praise. Jesus longs to give His people peace, longs to stay the judgment He knows is coming, and longs for His people to know that His presence was all they needed. He was there in their presence on earth, and yet they still didn't see Him for who He was. The Great I AM!  As a result, His people were massacred- over 600,000 were murdered, and the rest were taken into captivity in pagan lands. All as a result of "not {knowing} the time of their visitation." Today, people still reject Him after seeing His hand in creation, feeling their insatiable need for Him, and longing for peace. Their sin becomes a dear friend to them and their eyes are blinded to Jesus Christ and His power to break the chains of their sin, loneliness, turmoil. Like the Jewish people, they are looking for someone or something to appease their needs for acceptance, success, peace, and the list goes on.  The fact that these are spiritual needs is not even on their radar. They try to be philanthropists, get behind social or political movements, donate all their money, go to self help sessions, all to no avail. And the Lord weeps over these people. He longs for them to get to know Him, He touches their hearts when they hear the truth and weeps when they reject Him again- His own beautiful creation. Please, know the Lord at the time of your visitation! One day, you will die and your eternal soul can be with the Lord- don't miss your time of visitation!!

Luke 19:45-48

  And he went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought;Saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves.And he taught daily in the temple. But the chief priests and the scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy him,And could not find what they might do: for all the people were very attentive to hear him.

A note to church leaders and Christian lay leaders here- most of the Jewish people's issues stemmed from their resistance to Jesus and His influence. At every turn, they opposed Him and felt threatened by Him. The temple had become an economic success for these leaders, and they were comfortable with that. They didn't want anyone interfering with that or making their relationship with the Roman government more  strained than it already was. Leaders- is the church you lead a "House of Prayer," or merely a house of programs, philanthropy, and witty Bible lessons? Are you more concerned about popularity, economic success, political success, and social standing than you are about exhorting your brothers and sisters in Christ that you lead? Your responsibility as a leader is to be growing in a personal relationship with the Lord that is a testimony and springboard to minister to those under you. Leadership is not for you to control and rise in power and earthly success, but to serve those around you and placed under you. Can you honestly say your leadership invokes an attitude of prayer?

If you don't know the Lord, please recognize this time of your visitation and trust in the Lord's perfect gift of salvation to you. If you lead in the church in any way, is your personal emphasis on prayer, are you truly seeking the Lord's direction in your leadership, and are others invoked to an attitude of prayer by your testimony?

Isaiah 55:6  Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: