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Tag Archives: Triumphant Entry

The Day Before Passion Week

Dear God, I decided to go through all four gospels this morning and see what they record Jesus as being up to the day before the Triumphant Entry and Passion Week. Tomorrow is Palm Sunday so it seemed fitting to try to spend some time with Jesus today–the day before. He’s been through a lot at this point, and he knows where he’s going. He has been through the Transfiguration and visited with Moses and Elijah, perhaps even receiving clarity and encouragement from them. He has rebuked James and John for wanting to kill a bunch of Samaritans for not letting him stay in his town. And now it’s all come down to this.

Matthew and Mark actually record Jesus’s activities fairly similarly. They talk about him healing some blind men. because “Jesus had compassion on them (Matthew 20:34).” Mark 10 is more specific and identifies him healing Bartimaeus. I suppose they wanted us to know that Jesus was still having compassion on people and healing them as he prepared for his Passion.

Luke actually gives us a the story of Zacchaeus as Jesus enters Jerusalem but leaves out the blind men (Luke 19). Luke wants us to know that Jesus was still in the mode of extending grace and forgiveness as he entered his last week.

Finally, and true to form, John gives us a whole different perspective. He tells us about a specific scene in Bethany when Mary (of Mary and Martha fame) showed extravagant love to Jesus by taking our some expensive perfume and pouring it on his feet. One last act of genuine worship before the week began. I wonder if John didn’t appreciate Mary’s gift more in retrospect as he told the story of the fair-weather fans who lined the streets with their palm branches. What Mary gave cost her a lot. What they gave cost them very little.

Father, do I give anything that costs me? How selfish am I? Am I willing to stop and extend your power in the midst of my own strife like Jesus did in Matthew and Mark? Am I willing love someone else through their immorality and show them your grace? Am I willing to give all that I have for all that you are? In all of these areas, am I willing to give you my utmost for your highest? As always, the answer is that I am not nearly the man I aspire to be in these areas. If you’re grading on a curve, then I compare pretty well with people around me, but that’s a steep curve. The truth is, my righteousness is rubbish. Please speak to me and give me ears to hear your voice, your direction, and your conviction.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

Matthew 21:1-11

09 Sep

When they had approached Jerusalem and had come to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to Me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.” This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: “ Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘ Behold your King is coming to you , Gentle, and mounted on a donkey , Even on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden .’” The disciples went and did just as Jesus had instructed them, and brought the donkey and the colt, and laid their coats on them; and He sat on the coats. Most of the crowd spread their coats in the road, and others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them in the road. The crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David; Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest!” When He had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, “Who is this?” And the crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Matthew 21:1-11

Dear God, I’m not sure if I’ve ever asked myself this question before, but the question I asked myself as I read this passage this morning is, “Why did Jesus do this? It seems out of character for him.” Then this story is followed immediately by Jesus clearing the temple of the money changers.

I suppose the answer is obvious. He needed to put who his identity as your son and the Messiah out there to force the Pharisees to take a side. It was time to push people to the extremes for this plan to work. Most of the Pharisees would go to one side, while a couple of them like Nicodemus would follow him (albeit secretly).

As I try to think of how this might apply to my life, I suppose that I spend most of my time trying to stay even-keeled and making peace between people. But there are times when we are pushed to taking a side. I’ve always struggled with the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. He was a godly man who ultimately decided he had a role to play in Hitler’s attempted assassination. I wonder what that process what like for him. At what point did he decide that he had come into the world for such a time as this? I can’t imagine I would ever get to a point where I would allow myself to participate in a murder, but at what level would I be willing to stake out my position on an issue and allow it to cost me something? What injustice would it take? For Nicodemus, it took actually seeing you killed—that’s when he finally broke and helped Joseph care for your body.

Father, make me mindful of your call at any given moment. Help me to be aware of my surroundings, and to look deeply into your eyes and understand what you would have me to do. Love richly through me. Help me to be willing to pay any price you call me to pay.

In Jesus’ name I pray,

Amen

Emails to God – Mob Mentality (Matthew 21:6-11)

29 Mar

⁶ The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. ⁷ They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. ⁸ A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹ The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,

“Hosanna to the Son of David!”

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

¹⁰ When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”

¹¹ The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Dear God, what did they think they were doing? As they were laying their cloaks on the road, what did they think was going on? Did they understand who they were seeing? Was it just a mob mentality that had taken over? It says they said, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” which makes me think they understood that he was the Messiah, but there was no way they could know what that meant. Did they think they were on the brink of revolution? Were they ready to go to war? Were they surprised by him riding on the foal of a donkey?

There are so many times when I respond to a situation without understanding it fully. Sometimes my actions are driven by those around me and how they are responding. Sometimes I just go on instinct. And sometimes I am actually able to slow the process down enough to think through my actions a little. Our building issue is an example. We have to perform some major repairs on our building. There are a lot of issues to resolve. Who should pay for it? How will we fix the building? How will we continue to run our programs we offer the public throughout the repair process? There are times when I have to make an instant decision. There are times when people around me tell me how to respond and I have to discern whether or not it is the right thing to do. Then there are times when I am able to slow it down, think about it, sometimes pray about it, and then choose a course of action. Those last times are the ones that usually work out the best.

Father, help me to not follow an instinctive, mob mentality, but to follow the still small voice inside of me that you use to speak to me. Help me to understand that you are there to help me. You are there to take over the process. You are there to carry this burden for me if only I will let you. Love others through me. Glorify yourself through me. Draw others to yourself through me so that they might have your peace and spread your glory too.

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Posted by John D. Willome on March 29, 2012 in Matthew

Tags: Bible Study, Devotions, Jesus, Matthew, Prayer, Triumphant Entry