Monday, April 1, 2019
Good Monday Morning and happy April!!! For the month of April, I want to spend some time in preparation for Easter by focusing our attention on Jesus in His last week of life. I hope you will join me as we journey with Jesus to the cross.
You will need your Bibles, your journals and a pen. Let’s dig into the Word, asking the Holy Spirit to open our eyes so that we can see Jesus, maybe like we’ve never seen Him before!
This morning we will focus our attention in Mark 11:1-11. Read through this passage slowly writing down your observations as you read. Notice the scene. Pretend you are in the story. Look around - where are you? What do you notice around you? What is Jesus doing? What is He saying? What does he ask of his disciples? What happens when the disciples go into town to carry out His instructions? Does any of this surprise you?
Once the colt is brought to Jesus, what happens next? Describe the events of Jesus’ entry into the city. What do you think is going on here? Why are the crowds crying out and shouting Hosanna? Read Psalm 118 to help you with your answers.
Now read Luke 19:41-44. Jesus is having a very different emotional response during this time. Why do you think this is so? Why is Jesus weeping?
I am struck by these two opposing pictures. One of cheering and one of weeping - both at the same occasion. In these two pictures is the knowledge that our ways are not God’s ways nor are His thoughts our thoughts. The disciples and the crowds had a different expectation of who Jesus was and what His purposes were. And they were on the brink of having those expectations crushed. They wanted a peace that is temporal - a change in their circumstances. But His purpose was for a peace of an entirely different kind.
Can you identify with the disciples and the people in this scene? Have you struggled with false understanding of who Jesus is? Have you had expectations of Him that He has failed to meet? Spend some time today in prayer and in reflection - how can we learn to submit ourselves to Jesus as He is revealed in His Word and His purposes in our lives, trusting that these purposes are far better than we could hope or think?
Post a Comment