March 12th, 2024
Tuesday, March 12th
Being Confronted by Jesus
By: Shirley Davis
Matthew 21:1-17
21 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2 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. 3 If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
5 “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.’”[a]
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. 8 A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
“Hosanna[b] to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”[c]
“Hosanna[d] in the highest heaven!”
10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
11 The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”
12 Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13 “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’[e] but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’[f]”
14 The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.
16 “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.
“Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,
“‘From the lips of children and infants
you, Lord, have called forth your praise’[g]?”
17 And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.
Have you ever experienced a really amazing “high” emotionally when everything seemed so perfect it was like the culmination of years of waiting, yet was even MORE awesome? I imagine that was what Jesus experienced as he entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey. Verse 10 in the GW translation says: “When Jesus came into Jerusalem, the whole city was in an uproar. People were asking, “Who is this?” The AMP version says “…all the city was trembling with excitement!”
After his actions inside the Temple area, I imagine the uproar only increased! We go on to read how differently people reacted: some who had profound disabilities came to him and were healed; children shouted out and praised him as the son of David…. yet the religious leaders saw all this and only reacted with indignation and irritation!
We are still confronted today by Jesus – experiencing joyful, healing worship; miraculous happenings that we cannot understand; hearing the amazing testimony of another believer; reading challenging scriptures that go against our worldly nature….. How do WE react? Do we draw nearer to him in wonder, or become offended or annoyed? Let’s once again be like the little children and draw near with shouts of praise!
Being Confronted by Jesus
By: Shirley Davis
Matthew 21:1-17
21 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2 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. 3 If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
5 “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.’”[a]
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. 8 A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
“Hosanna[b] to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”[c]
“Hosanna[d] in the highest heaven!”
10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
11 The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”
12 Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13 “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’[e] but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’[f]”
14 The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.
16 “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.
“Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,
“‘From the lips of children and infants
you, Lord, have called forth your praise’[g]?”
17 And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.
Have you ever experienced a really amazing “high” emotionally when everything seemed so perfect it was like the culmination of years of waiting, yet was even MORE awesome? I imagine that was what Jesus experienced as he entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey. Verse 10 in the GW translation says: “When Jesus came into Jerusalem, the whole city was in an uproar. People were asking, “Who is this?” The AMP version says “…all the city was trembling with excitement!”
After his actions inside the Temple area, I imagine the uproar only increased! We go on to read how differently people reacted: some who had profound disabilities came to him and were healed; children shouted out and praised him as the son of David…. yet the religious leaders saw all this and only reacted with indignation and irritation!
We are still confronted today by Jesus – experiencing joyful, healing worship; miraculous happenings that we cannot understand; hearing the amazing testimony of another believer; reading challenging scriptures that go against our worldly nature….. How do WE react? Do we draw nearer to him in wonder, or become offended or annoyed? Let’s once again be like the little children and draw near with shouts of praise!
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