SEPTEMBER 24- Nº 267 Matthew 21:1-11; 14-17; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:29-44; John 12:12-19
The next day Jesus headed to Jerusalem. As he approached Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples ahead into the village. “As you enter, you will find a donkey tied there with a colt,” he said. “Untie them both and bring them to me. If anyone asks you why you are taking them say, ‘The Lord needs them.’” The disciples found the donkey and the colt. As they began to untie them, the owners questioned them just as Jesus had said they would, and the disciples answered as he had instructed. The owners were happy to lend their animals to Jesus. So, the disciples brought them to him and placed their cloaks on them. Jesus sat on the colt. This was the first time anyone had ever ridden it. More than 500 years before, Zechariah had prophesied that this event would take place. He had said, “Say to the Daughter of Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey’” (Zechariah 9:9). By that time, a large crowd of people had joined Jesus and his disciples. Excitement kept growing. Many people spread their cloaks in front of the colt. Others cut down palm branches and laid them on the road. Many more followed behind. They were all honoring Jesus as their king and loudly praising God for the many miracles they had seen. As they traveled down the Mount of Olives, the people began to shout, “Hosanna!” (Save us!) “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” Some Pharisees who had mingled into the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples! Tell them to be quiet!” But Jesus responded, “I promise you, if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” As they entered Jerusalem, Jesus began to weep. “Oh Jerusalem! If you had only known what a special day this was meant to be—a day that would bring you peace. But now you will never see that peace. Instead, a mighty army will destroy your city and the Temple. They will kill you and your children. All this will take place because you refused to recognize that God had come to be with you.” Although the people were cheering, Jesus knew that the Jewish leaders had already rejected him as the Messiah. The whole city of Jerusalem seemed filled with excitement as Jesus approached the Temple. Visitors from other countries were asking, “Who is this?” The people answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.” They began to bring people who were blind and lame to the Temple, and he healed them. Even the children were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” acknowledging that Jesus was the Messiah. The Pharisees were angry. “Do you hear what they are saying? Stop them!” they warned. But Jesus replied, “Have you never read in the Psalms, ‘From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise’?” (See Psalm 8:2). Jesus left and went back to Bethany where he spent the night.
Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem appeared triumphant based on the response of the crowds. But we will soon discover that this response was short-lived. It was based on emotions and expectations instead of a personal understanding of who Jesus was and what he had come to do. Do you really know who Jesus is and what he wants to do in your life? Or is your relationship with him based on emotions and false expectations?
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