Daily Blast - Easter: Day 4
Scripture
“28 After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 As he approached Bethphage and Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, 30 “Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it.’”
32 Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them. 33 As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?”
34 They replied, “The Lord needs it.”
35 They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 36 As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road.
37 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole
crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had
seen:
38 “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”
40 “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”
41 As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it 42 and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. 43 The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. 44 They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.””
Reflection
Palm Sunday is a time to remember Jesus’ journey back to Jerusalem shortly before He’s taken to the cross to die for our sins.
The passage taken from Luke is incredibly powerful. At this point, Jesus already knows that He is going to die. He knows that the people surrounding Him, the people who are calling His name and worshipping Him, will – in a week – turn their backs on the Lord. And yet, despite Jesus’ sorrow He still enters Jerusalem baring peace.
In this passage, we see Jesus instructing His disciples to bring Him a donkey from the city ahead. Here, we need to explore the meaning behind this. Jesus didn’t order His disciples to get Him a donkey because He was tired of walking. Historically, kings who wanted to show peace would enter a city riding a donkey. This is a very poignant statement that Jesus is making. Even though He is entering a city that will soon dissert Him, He still comes peacefully. This is a mark of the great grace that Jesus has for mankind.
In Matthew (21:1-11), a very similar story is written, however, one that offers an additional perspective of the citizens’ response to Jesus. Here, we see the people of Jerusalem laying down and waving palm branches which is where we get the name Palm Sunday from. This was symbolic as palm leaves were associated with goodness symbolising Jesus’ goodness.
Challenge
I encourage you now to take the time to think about the peacefulness and goodness of Jesus: that, even though when faced with sorrow, He still acts humbly.