A Day of Everything and Nothing

Mark 11:1-11, CEB - When Jesus and his followers approached Jerusalem, they came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives. Jesus gave two disciples a task, saying to them, “Go into the village over there. As soon as you enter it, you will find tied up there a colt that no one has ridden. Untie it and bring it here.  If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘Its master needs it, and he will send it back right away.’”

They went and found a colt tied to a gate outside on the street, and they untied it.  Some people standing around said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?”  They told them just what Jesus said, and they left them alone.  They brought the colt to Jesus and threw their clothes upon it, and he sat on it.  Many people spread out their clothes on the road while others spread branches cut from the fields.  Those in front of him and those following were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!  Blessings on the coming kingdom of our ancestor David! Hosanna in the highest!”  Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. After he looked around at everything, because it was already late in the evening, he returned to Bethany with the Twelve.

 

                Jesus and His disciples arrive in the Jerusalem area and they stop at Bethphage/Bethany on the Mount of Olives.  Jesus arranges for his disciples to procure a donkey for the entrance into Jerusalem proper.  Entering the city on a donkey both fulfills messianic prophecy and dramatically reinterprets it at the same time.  Yes, Jesus is the long-awaited savior, but the salvation He brings is vastly different from all expectations.  There is much less pomp and circumstance in Mark than in the reports of the other three canonical gospels.  There is no mention that the branches laid before Jesus are palms.  Religious leaders whom Jesus will clash with are not mentioned as they are in other accounts.  People are indeed shouting their acclamations about Jesus, but there is no sense that anyone beyond this relatively small crowd has noticed.  When they arrive at the Temple, there is not much going on and it was late in the day.  So Jesus retires for the night back to Bethany.  As we will see, the real drama in Mark doesn’t begin until the next day.  For now, Jesus’s disciples have had an encouraging, if not misleading day.

In Mark, “Palm Sunday” is the calm before the storm.  Tomorrow, Jesus will harshly confront the money-changers  in the Temple, prompting authorities to begin plotting against Him.  This will set in motion the chain of events that have Jesus hanging on a cross before week’s end.  But for now, on this day, the mood among the disciples is celebratory.  Jesus is the Messiah who has arrived as prophets foretold that He would.  Jesus’s authority is established and recognized in a surprising way in the procurement of the donkey.  Jesus has repeatedly warned them about the trouble that is coming, but that trouble is not here yet.  It is a day to just be and enjoy being a follower of Jesus.  It is a gift. 

I have come to appreciate such days over the years.  There have been many times in the past when I knew trouble was coming, but before it arrived, there were times gracious celebration and gratitude.  They served as a confirmation that God was with me and they helped me be a bit more prepared before the turmoil arrived.  I have to admit that, in the moment, I often missed the blessing.  I was often too stressed to realize until later that the moment was a gift until much later.  But after this happening dozens of times over the course of my life, I have learned to recognize these serendipitous moments more frequently.  When I have been able to do that, the gift more fully served the intended purpose – to allow me to regain composure and prepare for what is next.

My encouragement today is to look for and welcome provided respites and celebrations when they come.  Especially in seasons of stress and difficulty, it is important to keep breathing and find ways to maintain composure. God is faithful to provide what we need when we need it, but the process works better when we learn to recognize the provision for what it is.  Celebrate the acclamations that come even when they are short-lived and/or few-and-far-between.   Welcome a day of nothing in a season full of stormy weather.  Trouble may indeed be coming, but God will get you ready if you allow it.

 

Question:  What do you normally do when you encounter a “calm” before a storm you know is on its way?

 

Prayer:  O God, you are an ever-present help in times of trouble.  Help us recognize the ways in which You seek to sustain us and prepare us for all that is to come.  We need Your provision; we count on Your faithfulness and grace.  We trust You; help us trust You even more. Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for people who are fighting chronic illness and pain.

 

Song:  Needtobreathe (ft. JohnnySwim) – Forever on Your Side

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKoHZkIGMnM

Palm Sunday – Part 1

Palm Sunday – Part 1

February 2, 2022

Matthew 21:1-5, NIV - As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me.  If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”

This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:

“Say to Daughter Zion,

    ‘See, your king comes to you,

gentle and riding on a donkey,

    and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”

 

Today, we consider one of the more familiar events from the Jesus story, the procession of Jesus into Jerusalem less than a week before He will be crucified outside the city walls.  This story is often remembered in various ways on Palm Sunday, the last Sunday before Easter.  It is one of the rare stories that is found in some form in all four Gospels in the New Testament.  Traditions often combine details from all four accounts into one merged story, but if we consider the differences between the accounts, we will discover what was important to, in this case, Matthew as he tells the story.

As you may remember from the last devotional entry, Jesus and His entourage have just walked from Jericho and arrive in Bethphage. Bethphage is on the side of the Mount of Olives.  If you were to visit today, you would notice that most of the side of this mountain facing Jerusalem is a vast Jewish cemetery.  It has been a cemetery for thousands of years and was such when Jesus rode through it into the city that day. 

Upon arriving in Bethphage, Jesus sends two of His disciples to fetch a donkey with the donkey’s colt.  Matthew is the only Gospel to stipulate that there were two animals.  This emphasizes that this detail is especially important to Matthew because he wants his readers to recall Zechariah 9:9:

“See, your king comes to you,

    righteous and victorious,

lowly and riding on a donkey,

    on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

Matthew uses the exact same words to refer to Jesus’s entry because he wants to it clear that Jesus’s donkey ride is one of the many prophecies Jesus fulfilled, showing that Jesus is the long-awaited Messiah.  What Matthew wants us to see is that Jesus Himself claims this title with His choice of a donkey to arrive in Jerusalem for the last time.  God’s chosen way for this to happen is paved by the disciples being able to secure the chosen animals without resistance. 

                Since the time of Jesus, one of the accusations leveled at the Christian movement is that the early church made Jesus something He Himself never claimed to be – the Messiah foretold by Jewish prophets for hundreds of years prior to the first century.  With subtle details like this instance of the donkey, Matthew is responding to those skeptics.  Jesus knew He was the Messiah, but He would radically depart from many traditional expectations of Messiahship.  By entering into Jerusalem on a donkey, Jesus recalls the another famous entry of an ancient Jewish king, Solomon, into the city.  The donkey also signifies that Jesus is a King of Peace, not war.  This is in contrast to the arrival of Pontius Pilate who came into the city on the same day, most likely mounted on an armor-cladded war horse.  That first Palm Sunday is about the clash of two very different kingdoms, a clash that continues to be evident to this day.  The Kingdom of God, which is described by Matthew, seems to turn the values of our culture upside down. 

 

Question:  How does the “contrast of kingdoms” continue to be evident in our world today?

 

Prayer:  Lord, help us to see the signs of the your kingdom in the midst of all that bombards us everyday in our culture.  Lead us by your Spirit. Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for those who you consider to be your enemies today.  (Note:  Instead of praying for God to “fix them” or “set them right,” pray for God to bless them.  Yes. Really.)

 

Song:  The Blessing (2022 Compilation)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d48-qbcovVY