Greetings, dear friends. I hope and pray this finds you all doing well. I admit, I do miss you and our regular interactions! But I am also enjoying retirement, which has included getting settled in our new Florida home, and some travel to far off places, like the Socorro Islands for Suzy to do some diving with manta rays, hammerhead sharks, whale sharks, and more! It was an mazing time. More travel is on the horizon, and Suzy officially retires on Good Friday. Two months late, but better than never!
Since this weekend we celebrate Palm Sunday, I thought I would reprise a post from a couple of years ago for this occasion. It also marks Holy Week, a time of deep reflection, contemplation, and preparation for Good Friday, and Easter next Sunday.
In keeping with the Lectionary, the Gospel below is from Year B, and we are in Year A now. The proper Gospel lesson can be found in Matthew 21:1-11. I am posting it below so you don’t have to look it up
May this Palm Sunday and the ensuing Holy Week bring a deepening of your faith and walk with God. May God bless and keep you all!:
Jesus enters Jerusalem
21:1When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples,
21:2saying to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me.
21:3If anyone says anything to you, just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ And he will send them immediately.”
21:4This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet;
21:5″Tell the daughter of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you, humble and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
21:6The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them;
21:7they brought the donkey and the colt and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them.
21:8A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.
21:9The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
21:10When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, “Who is this?”
21:11The crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”
It wasn’t all that long ago that we had Ash Wednesday, and Lent began. Well, the source of those ashes were the blessed palms from Palm Sunday the year before, saved, and burned, to be used as ashes. I love how these important occasions in the life of Christians come full circle like that. Just beautiful.
And this Sunday is Palm Sunday, when we get those palms or palm crosses, as we remember the triumphant ride of Jesus on a colt into Jerusalem. From Luke 19:28-40:
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!”[a]
“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.”
Indeed they would. Sorry, Pharisees, this was the Son of God riding on this colt into Jerusalem. There was no way He would not be glorified.
This classic hymn really sums up the ride of Jesus into Jerusalem:
Palm Sunday is very important for a number of reasons, beginning with Jesus declaring Himself in a big way in Jerusalem, with the crowds yelling out, “Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest!”
Palm Sunday is also the beginning of Holy Week, which includes Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, the day we remember the crucifixion of Jesus, and Holy Saturday. And of course, Easter next Sunday when we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus the Christ.
But I am getting ahead of myself. It is also the end of Lent. From Christianity.com.:
Lent is 40-days long and begins 46 days before the Saturday of Easter weekend (Easter Sunday falls on Sunday, March 31, 2024) but is only observed Monday-Saturday each week because every Sunday is considered a celebration of the Resurrection.
The 40-day duration is symbolic and represents the time Jesus spent fasting in the wilderness before beginning his public ministry.
But this week is significant as I noted because it is the most critical week in all of Christendom. From Maundy Thursday, when Jesus celebrated the Passover with His disciples, and when Judas betrayed him, to His crucifixion, and then Holy Saturday.
What happened on Good Friday was foretold in Psalm 22. This is completely prophetic, from start to finish. And it is POWERFUL. Here is Psalm 22 in its entirety:
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me,
so far from my cries of anguish?
2 My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer,
by night, but I find no rest.[b]
3 Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One;
you are the one Israel praises.[c]
4 In you our ancestors put their trust;
they trusted and you delivered them.
5 To you they cried out and were saved;
in you they trusted and were not put to shame.6 But I am a worm and not a man,
scorned by everyone, despised by the people.
7 All who see me mock me;
they hurl insults, shaking their heads.
8 “He trusts in the Lord,” they say,
“let the Lord rescue him.
Let him deliver him,
since he delights in him.”9 Yet you brought me out of the womb;
you made me trust in you, even at my mother’s breast.
10 From birth I was cast on you;
from my mother’s womb you have been my God.11 Do not be far from me,
for trouble is near
and there is no one to help.12 Many bulls surround me;
strong bulls of Bashan encircle me.
13 Roaring lions that tear their prey
open their mouths wide against me.
14 I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint.
My heart has turned to wax;
it has melted within me.
15 My mouth[d] is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth;
you lay me in the dust of death.16 Dogs surround me,
a pack of villains encircles me;
they pierce[e] my hands and my feet.
17 All my bones are on display;
people stare and gloat over me.
18 They divide my clothes among them
and cast lots for my garment.19 But you, Lord, do not be far from me.
You are my strength; come quickly to help me.
20 Deliver me from the sword,
my precious life from the power of the dogs.
21 Rescue me from the mouth of the lions;
save me from the horns of the wild oxen.22 I will declare your name to my people;
in the assembly I will praise you.
23 You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him!
Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
24 For he has not despised or scorned
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him
but has listened to his cry for help.
25 From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly;
before those who fear you[f] I will fulfill my vows.
26 The poor will eat and be satisfied;
those who seek the Lord will praise him—
may your hearts live forever!
27 All the ends of the earth
will remember and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
will bow down before him,
28 for dominion belongs to the Lord
and he rules over the nations.
29 All the rich of the earth will feast and worship;
all who go down to the dust will kneel before him—
those who cannot keep themselves alive.
30 Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord.
31 They will proclaim his righteousness,
declaring to a people yet unborn:
He has done it!
To me, that sums up the Crucifixion, the time of quiet sadness and deep meditation as we await the Resurrection of Jesus the Christ, and the subsequent devotion to our Lord throughout the ages. It is just stunning, is it not? Prophetic.
And for this coming Good Friday, this classic hymn, “O Sacred Head Now Wounded,” is a beautiful tune in remembrance of that day so long ago in which Jesus allowed Himself to be mocked, scorned, scourged, beaten, and crucified:
This weekend is an important one, and while we are allowed to celebrate on Sundays during Lent to remember the Resurrection, Palm Sunday is a day to be celebrated and affirmed in our faith walk.
And it is a reminder to us that this coming week is a critical one in the life of Christians. I hope and pray that you will have time throughout this week to prepare yourselves for what is to come, and the indescribable joy that awaits us next Sunday.
I pray that you all have that time, the time to reflect on the life of our Savior while He was here on Earth, all that He endured for us, and the gift of life eternal with Him that He has given us by dying as a sacrifice for our sins. If you are so inclined, this link provides the Scripture readings for Holy Week.
May God bless you and keep, you dear friends. Feel free to share whatever is on your minds in the Comment section below.
This is the Weekend Open Thread.
Rabblerouserruminations's Weblog 