Everything Changes: The Big Story - Tim Knipp (John 12, 19-20)

No turning back now -
we're past the point of no return -
we've burnt the bridges
behind us -
everything has changed.

Knowing it's the last time,
He comes once more
to Jerusalem,
choosing as mount
a dusted donkey.
Palm fronds and accolades
quiver the air
but a defiled temple
soon resounds 
with rebuke
and riotous clamor
bounces between
pillars.

Knowing they will
remember and repeat 
His words, 
He redefines
the ritual dinner,
unveiling His fulfillment
of every promise
in bread crumbs
and shared wine.
He says,
"Watch Me. I'll show you 
the Way"
as he kneels
to wipe foul feet.

Abandoned,
convicted,
tortured and 
abased;
then loaded down
like the beast he rode in on,
carrying a wooded beam
and the burden
of broken mankind -
twisted shards
that cut His flesh -
He dies
a grisly death.

His lifeless body
lies lonely in the tomb
til death looses its grip
and Mary hears 
her name from the lips
of an unfamiliar
gardener and 
knows Him
for who He is.

Everything changes.

He offers the ultimate 
quid pro quo:
your failure for 
His life; 
your impossible dreams
for His improbable
Truth.

What was inconceivable
becomes rational
and the most obvious
of answers
as the jagged puzzle 
pieces
of history
fit smoothly into place
revealing the
face of a
God who
will never stop
pursuing us
and who has
made a way
for us to find
our way
home.