Monday, March 29, 2021
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. "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: Matthew 21:1-4
A Holy and Passionate Love
It's passion week, the week between Palm Sunday and Easter. We call it passion week because we reflect on the last week of Christ and how much passion He had as He faced His death - a death that would mean life everlasting for us. He had passion to save us, to give us eternal life, and forgiveness of our sins. He was, and still is, passionate about giving us freedom from the bondage of debt, a debt we could never pay.
Yesterday we celebrated the "triumphal entry" of Jesus into Jerusalem, exactly one week before His resurrection. Palm Sunday. People lined the road to see Jesus and hail Him the King but then, later the same people were yelling “Crucify Him!” Imagine you are lining the road to Jerusalem with your palm branch in your hand, eagerly awaiting the Messiah to come. Would you be one of the crowd yelling “Crucify Him!” or eagerly waiting to exalt Him as the Messiah?
Before Palm Sunday, Jesus was outside of Jerusalem with some of the disciples, getting ready to go into Jerusalem. He sent a couple of the disciples into the village to borrow a donkey colt and told them exactly where they would find it. They found the donkey just as He had said and brought it to Him immediately. Jesus rode this donkey into Jerusalem to fulfill the prophecy in Zechariah 9:9: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. The disciples laid their coats on the donkey for Him to sit on, an act of respect for royalty.
The crowd laid their clothes and palm branches in the road for the same reason. The crowd was very excited as they had come to Jerusalem for the Passover. For the Jewish people, Passover was more than a religious observance, it was the time of year they celebrated liberation from Egyptian bondage.
As He passed, they waved palm branches and praised Him and shouted ‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’ Hosanna in the highest!” As Brother Van told us yesterday, “Hosanna!” – is an Aramaic term that means “Save us now!” And they proclaimed him their leader: “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord – the King of Israel!”
This is just the beginning of a long week that leads to a cross. We have a Holy Heavenly Father who loves us with a passionate love. Jesus’ passion and willingness to die for us is an extension of God’s love for us. What is it that you need to be freed from? The Jewish people cried “Save us now!” Is that what your heart is crying?
There was nothing kingly or extravagant about the way He made His triumphant entry, but the passion and love He has for us is extravagant.
