Folks, where have we been during this Season of Lent? Let me refresh your memory. In following The Way: Walking in the Footsteps of Jesus, we first went to:
The Jordan River near Jericho … where Jesus was baptized…
The Judean Wilderness … where Jesus was tempted for 40 days and nights…
His home-base of Capernaum … where Jesus healed the sick (amongst other things)…
Walked with him (and Gail) up the mountains … where Jesus taught about the Kingdom of God…
Sailed with Jesus across the Sea of Galilee … where he calmed the storm (showing us that he could calm the storms of our lives, too)…
And finally, we went to Samaria … where we found Jesus loving his ‘friends in low places’…
Now, this doesn’t cover every single aspect of Jesus’ three-year ministry, but it’s a fairly good summary of the high points of his professional life. Let’s get into the last week of Jesus’ ministry now, where Jesus enters the Holy City (Mark 11:7-10, NLT)…
Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their garments over it, and he sat on it. 8 Many in the crowd spread their garments on the road ahead of him, and others spread leafy branches they had cut in the fields. 9 Jesus was in the center of the procession, and the people all around him were shouting, “Praise God! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the LORD! 10 Blessings on the coming Kingdom of our ancestor David! Praise God in highest heaven!”
This final week that we’re entering into was so important! It’s traditionally believed that Jesus’ public ministry—from baptism to crucifixion—was three years long. All four of the Gospel writers attempt to summarize this time in Jesus’ life. But, what’s become most clear to me is the most importance of that last week—Holy Week…
Matthew devotes nearly 30% of his Gospel to this week…
Mark gives 40% of his Gospel to Holy Week…
Luke (if we include Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem, leading up to this week) allocates 62% of his Gospel to this time…
And John gives 47% of his workl to describing the events of Holy Week and beyond…
As Jesus rode into the city, he arrived in there as the week-long festival of Passover was about to begin. Jerusalem’s normal population swelled by about 200,000 during this week; they gathered to remember and celebrate Israel’s defining story—how God had delivered them from slavery in Egypt…
Jesus route to Jerusalem was via Jericho, where he ate with Zacchaeus & opened the eyes of Blind Baritmeus—two more ‘friends in low places.’ On the way, he also spent the night at Bethany (suburb of Jerusalem)—at Mary & Martha’s home. Then, on Sunday morning … Jesus entered Jerusalem for the Passover celebration. Five days later, he’d be put to death, but during this week, Jesus would be hailed a king! For those who surrounded him, the question was this: What kind of king was Jesus? As we think about the events of this week, let’s ask ourselves the same question… We begin with:
SUNDAY: PRINCE OF PEACE. Here, Jesus enters the Holy City, being hailed a king and the ‘prince of peace’…
For just a moment, I want to talk about Jesus’ mode of transportation on this day. For the majority of Jesus’ ministry, he walked wherever he went. So, why on this day, did he decide that he needed to ride a donkey?
Well, first, riding a donkey was richly symbolic—going back to the time of King David. The royal animal David rode was not a majestic horse, but a donkey. A donkey was more sure-footed than a horse on the rocky, hilly terrain of Israel, also able to travel farther on less water. It was also a humble beast reflecting David’s identity as the shepherd king. And Davidic kings from that time on rode donkeys to identify themselves with David…
Then, there’s the prophet Zechariah’s promise—super important to the Palm Sunday story! It was a promise given the Jewish people 500 years before Jesus came along. And it said (Zech. 9:9, NLT): “Rejoice, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey— riding on a donkey’s colt.” Have you ever wondered why the people reacted as they did, seeing Jesus on a donkey? Well, the crowd would have known the words of Zechariah—the promise of who would come riding on a donkey. So, when Jesus met up with his disciples, and hopped up on the donkey to enter the city, the people would have known instantly what was happening! He was clearly the one the prophet Zechariah spoke of—the long-awaited Messiah…
…I don’t know if you know this or not, but there were two more royal processions coming into the city on that day: Pilate had just come across from Caesarea by the Sea with 1,000 Roman soldiers. It was a show of force designed to suppress any rebellion that may take place during Passover. It was a show of force designed to let the people of Israel know who was really in control…
Then, there was Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great and ruler over Galilee and Perea—north/northeast of Jerusalem. This was the Herod who’d beheaded John the Baptist. Like Pilate, he too knew how to use violence to suppress the people … and they knew it, as he entered into the city on that same day…
Two of the three rulers entering Jerusalem in parades on that Palm Sunday were iron-fisted rulers known for their cruelty! They were perfectly willing to kill in order to hold power, and they used impressive shows of force to demonstrate that…
Jesus, on the other hand, had no soldiers. He had a rag-tag group of followers who waved palm branches as he passed by on a donkey. It’s been said this was history’s very first non-violent demonstration—a demonstration for a king and kingdom that was all about loving God … and loving each other—even our enemies…
So, what kind of King is Jesus? He’s a King (very much like another named ‘King’) who wanted his people to love their enemies—who promised that the peace-makers would be blessed! Then, we come to…
MONDAY: THE CLEANSING OF THE TEMPLE (HOUSE-CLEANING DAY). We don’t often see
Jesus angry, but when we do, it’s always righteous anger!
On this day, Jesus made his way to the Temple (Gospel of Mark). What Jesus found there were merchants and money-changers—those really controlling the House of the Lord…
Money-Changers – worshippers coming to the Temple were required to exchange their common currency for Temple Shekels. The exchange rate, of course, favored the money-changers. What were they doing? Taking unfair advantage of God’s people…
Merchants – Temple worship involved sacrifices. You had to have a perfect animal and, as luck would have it, you could always get one of those from these Temple merchants … and a very inflated price! What were they doing? Taking unfair advantage of God’s people…
So, Jesus cleared ‘em out … and that not only made the money-changers and merchants mad, but the priests of the Temple, too, since they got a cut of every deal made there. It was probably here, at the start of the week, that Jesus sealed his fate…
What kind of King is Jesus? He’s a King who refused to allow people to be taken advantage of, particularly by those who did so in the name of God…
TUESDAY: CONTINUING CONFRONTATIONS WITH RELIGIOUS LEADERS. Jesus knew what was coming, so he didn’t hold back in his feelings about the religious leaders of his day, as he made his way back to the Temple (gutsy)…
As people gathered around him, the chief priests & elders challenged Jesus: “By what authority are you doing these things … and who gave you that authority?” Can you imagine these guys asking THE SON OF GOD by what authority he came into his Father’s house? At that point, Jesus began telling parables that clearly spoke the truth about those challenging him—basically indicting them ahead of time for the crime they were about to commit. What they were doing didn’t look like GOD’S LOVE! What they were … were ‘hypocrites’ (i.e. actors, pretenders, etc.)!
What kind of King is Jesus? He’s a King who condemned hypocrisy and commanded us to love (2 great commands: Love God & Love People)…
WEDNESDAY: PARABLES OF THE LAST JUDGEMENT. Parables were Jesus way of truth-telling in a way that all would remember…
On Wednesday, Jesus left the Temple and continued his teaching on the Mount of Olives—just across the Kidron Valley. But, in doing this, something tragically symbolic took place on this day… Folks, think about this: Jesus, the very incarnation of God, had come to the Temple—two days in a row to the House of the Lord—and those in charge of the House didn’t recognize him! Now, in a way that no one but Jesus could have comprehended, THE GLORY OF THE LORD LEFT THE TEMPLE … and tragically NO ONE NOTICED! … So, Jesus told parables about the coming judgment upon Jerusalem (which happened in 70AD)! … Then this day ended with Jesus dining at the home of a leper and being anointed by a known ‘woman of the night’—two more ‘friends in low places’…
What kind of King is Jesus? He’s a King who chose to speak the truth of God, and to practice what he preached about LOVE—loving those the world would just as soon turn away…
THURSDAY: WASHING FEET (LAST SUPPER) & A GARDEN PRAYER. Here, we see Jesus showing the world about servant-leadership, before there was even such a concept…
What kind of King is Jesus? He’s a King who saw himself as a servant willing to su
ffer for his people… (We’ll talk more about this day on Thursday of this week…)
FRIDAY: A CRUCIFIED KING. The cross—we discover—was not the end, as the Romans (& Jewish religious leaders) had hoped; the cross was in fact the beginning of God’s new plan of salvation for humanity—for us…
What kind of King is Jesus? He’s a King who rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, was anointed by a prostitute, crowned with thorns, and then enthroned on a cross … so you and I might know the love and mercy of God, accept it, and follow him… (We’ll talk more about this day on Friday of this week…) Folks…
Jesus’ way calls for authentic followers, not religious hypocrites…
His way calls for us to be part of His Body, not a local religious club…
His way requires compassion for the hungry and thirsty and naked…
Jesus’ way is a path of servant-hood and sacrificial love…
And ultimately, walking in his footsteps requires we ‘take up our cross’ (God’s will/plan for our lives) and follow him… What kind of King is Jesus? Let’s continue to find out together, for the week is just beginning…