Photo by Daniel Sandvik on Unsplash
Palm Sunday
Today is the first day of Holy Week. Begin today by taking a moment to read:
[Jhn 12:13-19 ESV] 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!" 14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, 15 "Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt!" 16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. 17 The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. 18 The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, "You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him."
Jesus began his ministry when He was about 30 years old. He taught us all about God the Father and performed many miracles. For three years He traveled around preaching and teaching. But it was on this day, what we now call “Palm Sunday,” that His last and most important work on earth began.
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all tell the story of the day that Jesus entered Jerusalem. That Sunday was the first day in the most important week of all time. Jesus would change eternity that week! The crowd that welcomed Him to town was a large one. They had heard He had raised Lazarus from the dead, and many came expecting to see a show. It wasn’t long before the cry of the crowd would change.
Each day this week set aside time to step away from work, distractions, and all of the voices that call to you. Take a moment to meditate on how Jesus spent His time on the most Holy of weeks, and know that He did it all for you.
Hosanna (feat. Kari Jobe) // The Belonging Co
Monday - Holy Week
[Mat 21:12-17 NKJV] 12 Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. 13 And He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.' " 14 Then [the] blind and [the] lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant 16 and said to Him, "Do You hear what these are saying?" And Jesus said to them, "Yes. Have you never read, 'Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise'?" 17 Then He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and He lodged there.
The Temple was a sacred place of worship. The sacrifices made there were a picture of the perfect sacrifice that Jesus would soon make. The people had taken this holy place and this holy act and made it about themselves and their own gain. Jesus cleared the room of the things that stood in the way of the people’s worship of the Lord.
Then the people came. They came for healing. They came to worship. Some of those that watched them come were “indignant” or angry and annoyed, but Jesus let the people come anyway.
What do you need to let go of today? How do you need to let Jesus “clear the room” of things that stand in the way of your worship of Jesus?
Are you in need of healing, is your soul weary and worn? Come to Jesus and worship.
Jimmy Needham "Clear The Stage" Official Lyric Video
Holy Week - Tuesday
[Luk 15:13-32 ESV] 13 Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. 14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. 16 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. 17 "But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants."' 20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' 22 But the father said to his servants, 'Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.' And they began to celebrate. 25 "Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.' 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 but he answered his father, 'Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!' 31 And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.'"
Jesus went back to the temple to teach. Jesus knows that we sometimes have a hard time understanding all of His lessons, so He uses stories to teach us. The story of the “prodigal son” is one of the stories He told that day. In this story we see God’s unrelenting grace as he welcomes home his wayward son, and as he reminds his other son that being with the Father is the true inheritance he has been looking for.
Which son are you? Are you the son that has wandered far from the arms of Jesus? Please, come home. Just as you are. Come home.
Are you the son that has been around the things of God for a long time, but perhaps you’ve forgotten or you’ve never really known God’s love personally. Today is the day for you to come home too.
You are never too far away. You’ve never been gone too long. Come to Jesus.
O Come to the Altar | Live | Elevation Worship
Holy Week - Wednesday
[Mar 12:28-34, 41-44 ESV] 28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, "Which commandment is the most important of all?" 29 Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these." 32 And the scribe said to him, "You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him. 33 And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." 34 And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions. ...
41 And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. 43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, "Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on."
There are so many important things Jesus teaches us in the week before His crucifixion. One is about what it means to obey His commandments. It is easy to get caught up in the dos and don'ts of what it means to obey, but Jesus sums it all up for us here. Love God. Love People. Obedience in the other areas will flow out of our focus on these two. That is why He declared that these are the two greatest commandments. Let your heart rest on loving God well. Let Him love people well through you.
Another lesson Jesus taught in this short time was about tithes and offerings. Tithes and offerings have always been a worshipful act of trust. We must ask ourselves in the giving, do we trust in ourselves to provide for our own needs, or do we trust in Jesus?
In these verses, on this day of Holy Week, we see Jesus bringing attention to a widow who placed her full trust in her Lord. The others gave, but their gift was not an act of trust. This principle applies not only to our money but to every aspect of our lives. We want to give to Jesus, but we struggle to give to the point that requires us truly trust Him to be completely in control (or at least I do anyway).
What does it look like to go “all in” with Jesus? What are you holding back in order to maintain control yourself? I pray you can let Jesus have that today. I promise He will do a better job of handling it than we ever could.
Holy Week - Thursday
[Mar 14:12-26 ESV] 12 And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, "Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?" 13 And he sent two of his disciples and said to them, "Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him, 14 and wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, 'The Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?' 15 And he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us." 16 And the disciples set out and went to the city and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover. 17 And when it was evening, he came with the twelve. 18 And as they were reclining at table and eating, Jesus said, "Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me." 19 They began to be sorrowful and to say to him one after another, "Is it I?" 20 He said to them, "It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the dish with me. 21 For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born." 22 And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, "Take; this is my body." 23 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. 24 And he said to them, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. 25 Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God." 26 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
The Passover began as a way to remember how God had literally passed over the houses of the Jewish people by the blood of a lamb that was spilt and painted onto the frames of their doorways. The judgment fell upon the Egyptians who did not have the blood of the lamb covering them.
Jesus and his disciples gathered together to observe the Holy Day, even Judas sat at the table. Judas, who was there and knew all about Jesus, and followed Him everyday with his feet, but never really followed Him with his heart. The story of Judas is one of the most tragic of all.
Jesus also instituted the ordinance we now call, “Communion” or “The Lord’s Supper.” He wanted us to remember the sacrifice He was about to make. He would soon replace the imperfect blood of that Passover lamb that could only temporarily cover the sins of the people and free us from the judgment we deserve, with His own perfect blood, that He would pay once and for all, to cover our sins.
Make sure you follow Jesus, not only with your outward appearance, but truly with your heart, and if you are facing a Judas, a betrayer, know that even in betrayal, Jesus’ plan will not only overcome, but that betrayal can be used as a part of the victory story.
Vertical Worship - Lamb of God (Official Lyric Video)
Holy Week - Friday
[Mar 14:32-34, 43, 46, 50 ESV] 32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, "Sit here while I pray." 33 And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. 34 And he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch." ... 43 And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. ... 46 And they laid hands on him and seized him. ... 50 And they all left him and fled.
[Mar 15:1, 15, 20, 32-39 ESV] 1 And as soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council. And they bound Jesus and led him away and delivered him over to Pilate. ... 15 So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified. ... 20 And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. And they led him out to crucify him. ... 32 Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe." Those who were crucified with him also reviled him. 33 And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?" which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" 35 And some of the bystanders hearing it said, "Behold, he is calling Elijah." 36 And someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink, saying, "Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down." 37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, "Truly this man was the Son of God!"
In the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth… In the beginning was the Word (Jesus) and the Word (Jesus) was with God and the Word (Jesus) was God. God said our sin would bring death. He is not a liar. He can not go back on His word. Our sin ruined His perfect creation and our sin deserves and has earned us death. We are the picture of imperfection and cannot dwell in the presence of a Holy, perfect God.
What hope do we have, then? We have Jesus. Both fully God and fully human, His perfect sacrifice, His death paid the debt we owe. The day of His crucifixion didn’t look hopeful though. That day it looked like death had defeated Him. The disciples forgot what He had taught them in the midst of the struggle.
Have you forgotten too? Sometimes life gets crazy and loud. The enemy tries to convince us that all hope is lost. We must remember the Truth. We must remember that the victory is won. His death gave us the gift of life.
Hymns Medley: Cross Medley (Jesus Paid it All, The Old Rugged Cross) | Anthem Lights
Holy Week - Saturday
I think if there was a way to measure pain that Saturday would have been the worst of all. The darkness the disciples must have felt in their souls must have far outweighed the light of the morning sun.
The Bible doesn’t tell us much about what happened that Sabbath after Jesus died. We know that guards were placed outside the tomb. The tomb was sealed with a huge stone, because the church leaders wanted to make sure that no one got in and stole Jesus’ body. They knew about the prophecy saying that Jesus would come back to life. They wanted to make sure that didn’t happen.
We know that many of the disciples went back to doing what they did before they followed Jesus, like fishing. They were sad and confused. They didn’t understand what Jesus was doing. They forgot that Jesus told them this day would come, but He also told them that it wouldn't last. He would overcome it.
How often do we feel overwhelmed by the darkness because we don’t understand what Jesus is doing? How often do we forget the promise Jesus made to see us through the dark days? How often do we let our fear of the unknown make us forget that Jesus has and will overcome it?
The disciples waited in despair, but soon Jesus would rise and defeat the hold of death once and for all. I challenge you today to take some time to sit quietly in the darkness and be at peace. Read these verses and remember that Jesus has won.
[Rom 3:23 ESV] 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
[Rom 5:8 ESV] 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
[Rom 6:23 ESV] 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
[Rom 10:9-10 ESV] 9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
https://youtu.be/DjNZf878ISQ - Oh My Soul by Casting Crowns
Resurrection Sunday
[Mat 28:1-10 ESV] 1 Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you." 8 So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 And behold, Jesus met them and said, "Greetings!" And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me."
Victory. Death is defeated. Sin is defeated. Our hope is provided for. We have the opportunity to be set free.
Jesus died for our sin and rose to life. Our debt is paid, and he offers us eternal life if we are willing to repent, and follow Him. Don’t ever let the reality of that Truth grow dull in your heart. We deserve the most tragic of judgments. We sin and sin brings death. But, Jesus loves us. He loves you.
Sometimes we hear that so much, we stop listening…really listening. Stop and listen today. Think about what your life would be like without Him. What would your story be like if He were not a part of it? How has knowing Him changed your life?
And if you don’t know Him, really know Him, take a moment to get to know Him now. Today is the day to be set free.
Then, go share the news with your world.
Anne Wilson - My Jesus (Lyrics)
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