Skip to main content

Lent Day 40


Scripture Reading

Matthew 21:1-9


Today is Palm Sunday, the day that we prepare for Easter by celebrating Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem. Some churches celebrate Palm Sunday by having children enter the sanctuary waving palm branches as a reminder of this sacred day. Other churches will have people waving palm branches lining the center aisle of the church as someone dressed as Jesus enters the sanctuary. In both instances, what is happening is a visual reminder of the majesty of Jesus Christ who is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. 


The reaction of the crowd represents their acknowledgement of Jesus as the long-expected Messiah. The greeting that Jesus received (vs.9) was used in Psalm 118 to greet pilgrims as they entered Jerusalem during the Feast of the Tabernacles. Hosanna essentially means "save," but was probably used here as an exclamation of praise to Jesus. The phrase Son of David describes Jesus' fulfillment that the Messiah would be a descendant of David. "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" is also a phrase that acknowledges Jesus as the Messiah who had been foretold in the Old Testament. 


Can you imagine being one of the disciples and witnessing this warm welcome that Jesus received and then face what lay ahead of them in just a matter of days? No wonder most of the disciples scattered for fear of their life when Jesus was arrested in Gethsemane.


Prayer: Lord, you are exalted above everyone and everything. I want my life to honor you and serve you just like Jesus' life did. Help me to be faithful to the end of my life. Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Grieving With Hope

This past week has brought a sense of heaviness in my heart. My oldest child graduated from high school. She has achieved all that I could have possibly dreamed she would up to this point in life. To say I'm proud is an understatement. Completion of high school also means that life in our family is shifting. It won't quite be the same because she will experience a new season of life that will bring fresh experiences and countless life lessons. As I've talked to Cyd the last few days we both agree we feel a sense of sadness while simultaneously finding our hearts filled with hope for what is to come for our graduate.  Truthfully, the heaviness I feel is linked to other factors. For starters, this week marks 11 years since my Dad died from pancreatic cancer. I'm not a big death anniversary kind of person, but reaching a milestone with a child makes you miss a parent even more. The interesting thing about grief is that for most people, not a day goes by that you don't ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Lent Day 25

                                                                                         Scripture Reading      Ezekiel 34:1-24 Ezekiel was a prophet who lived during the time when Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians and thousands of Israelites were taken back to Babylon to live in exile as refugees. In addition to the Jews who had been taken into captivity, other Jews had been scattered throughout the Middle East.  This passage is both a critique of the leaders of Israel for their selfishness and poor leadership of the people of God, and a message of hope in the coming restoration of the people of God. The hope of this passage is that God will place a shepherd over them like David (vs.23). This does...
Post a Comment
Read more

Small Town Funerals

Over the last few days Bulloch county has laid to rest some incredible people. While I didn't get a chance to attend all the funerals, I had the privilege to attend one and officiate at another one. As I reflected on those events yesterday evening, it struck me the way people of faith handle funerals in a small town. Death brings with it all sorts of emotions which means that funerals and memorial services are a mixture of tears and sadness and joy and celebration. You will see and hear the flood of tears that grief brings and the laughter and joy that our hope in the resurrection brings all within a span of minutes if not seconds. We hear warnings of not trusting in Jesus as Lord and Savior, while hearing shouts of "amen" and "hallelujah" at moments of affirmation for our lives and faith.  I've never lived anywhere but the south, so I can't speak with authority on how other regions of the country handle these type of events, but most of these occasions ...
Post a Comment
Read more