Bible scholars attribute many happenings to the Tuesday of Holy Week.  Jesus was questioned by the religious leaders as to by what authority was He doing these things.  Jesus cleverly trapped them in their own question and they left him alone. (Matthew 21:23-27)  After that confrontation, Jesus proceeded to teach with parables about the tenants who killed the messengers sent by the master, then the example of the wedding banquet where those invited refused to come and others were welcomed in.  Both of these pointed to the treatment of Jesus, God’s Son, by the religious leaders and Jews of His day.  Jesus also taught about taxes and where we owe our allegiance.  He spoke about marriage in heaven and who He really was. (Matthew 21:28-23:39)  Later in the evening, Jesus ate at the home of Lazarus, Mary and Martha.  There Mary anointed Jesus with pure nard, a very expensive perfume, and the disciples were upset at her for using this costly perfume on Jesus. (Matthew 26:6-12)  From morning until night, Jesus used every minute to instruct and build up the faith of His followers as He knew His time was short.

During this day, one of Jesus’ most important teachings was revealed.  The leaders asked Jesus what was the most important commandment in the Law?  Jesus replied: ³⁷ And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ³⁸ This is the great and first commandment. ³⁹ And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Matthew 22:37-39 (ESV)

This statement about priorities for our lives is so simply stated but difficult to live out on a daily basis.  Putting God first in our lives will keep everything else in balance and then loving others with as much love as we love ourselves comes next.  Do you love yourself?  Do you take care with what you put into your body, soul and mind? Jesus tells us that He expects us to love and respect ourselves and out of that love for who God made us to be for Him should come equal love for those around us.  Think about your priorities today and the fact that Jesus spent time His last week on earth telling us how to align our lives in the most productive way for ourselves and others.

Prayer:  Lord, sometimes I don’t act like I love myself at all.  I know you made me in your image and I have your Holy Spirit living within me so I have value to you.  Help me to view my priorities with your perspective.  Help me to focus on Jesus and loving You, myself and others today.  Amen.

Striving to love Jesus first then myself and others,

Linda

There are two specific actions Bible Commentaries assign to Monday of Holy Week.  Jesus entered the city humbly and triumphantly on Sunday and then cleansed the temple area of money changers and withered a fig tree on Monday.  Both actions seem harsh from our Lord but give a picture of the worldly opposition to God’s kingdom.  From both we get a glimpse of divine justice.  You can read the accounts in Matthew 21 and Mark 11.

Jerusalem at Passover was a bustling city with many pilgrims arriving to make offerings at the temple.  They needed to purchase animals for sacrifice and change money so they could pay the yearly temple tax.  The exchanges were all being conducted in the outer court of the Gentiles.  Here is Matthew’s account from 21:12-14.

^12-14 Jesus went straight to the Temple and threw out everyone who had set up shop, buying and selling. He kicked over the tables of loan sharks and the stalls of dove merchants. He quoted this text:

Now there was room for the blind and crippled to get in. They came to Jesus and he healed them.  (Message)

Jesus was then, is now and will be in eternity the Righteous Judge.  He saw the true motives of the people desiring to make money exorbitantly and uprooted and cast them out literally.  He placed priority for prayer and worship on coming to God’s house.  He got right to the work of his ministry- healing and allowing access to God for everyone.

As we near the cross, take heart from this short snippet in Jesus’ last week.  Know that He came to save and set right relationships and motives towards God.  What attitudes do you need adjusted by Jesus today?  Do you attend church to make ‘connections’ with people for business or do you come to pray and reflect on your walk with Jesus?  Looking at the heart is what Jesus did then and does now in our lives through the Holy Spirit.  Let Him cleanse your heart today and put you on the right pathway with right motives.  May our hearts be right with God today as suggested in this quote by Charles Wesley.  

Prayer:  Father God, I come to you today in need of readjusted attitudes and I desire that my motives be made pure.  Show me where I have wrong attitudes and motives.  Fill me with your Spirit anew today and guide me in your ways.  Cause me to walk with you in humility and openness. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Desiring to have a heart of prayer today,

Linda

All 4 of the gospel accounts of Jesus’ life and work record his entry into Jerusalem on the Sunday before their Jewish Passover.  Matthew, Mark and Luke tell the story of how Jesus obtained the donkey upon which He entered as it was prophesied that Messiah, king, would come riding a donkey.  Zechariah 9:9 was written hundreds of years before the event “Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion!  Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem!  your king comes to you gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the fold of a donkey.”   John was the only writer to mention the palm branches that were waved by the crowds as Jesus humbly rode into the city.  “So the took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!'” John 12:13  The waving of the palm branches was a celebration of victory, and was a reminder of Jesus’ royalty.  The only other place that palm branches are waved is in Revelation 7 where John records the following scene in heaven. ⁹ After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, ¹⁰ and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

As you worship Jesus today, cry out in praise to Him for who He is- our mighty King and Savior.  He is and always will be the victor now and forever!  Raise your palm fronds high in praise to your savior and proclaim Him the one who came to save you and me.  He was indeed the Lamb of God who took away the sins of the world!

Prayer:  Father, I praise you and your perfect plan of redemption.  Thank you for sending Jesus, the perfect savior, to take away my sin at the cross.  Help me to focus on Jesus and His great sacrifice on my behalf this Holy Week. Today let my praises join those in heaven proclaiming the name of Jesus.  Amen.

Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!

Linda

Daniel described God’s Sovereignty this way:  “He changes times and seasons, he sets up kings and deposes them.  He give wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.  He reveals deep and hidden things, he know what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him”.  Daniel 2:21-22 (NIV)

Knowing that God is in control of all things,  you have to conclude that He was directing all the events of Jesus’ last week and His crucifixion.  In Acts 4 Peter describes the control God had over the people and events. ^27-28 “For in fact they did meet—Herod and Pontius Pilate with nations and peoples, even Israel itself!—met in this very city to plot against your holy Son Jesus, the One you made Messiah, to carry out the plans you long ago set in motion. (MSG)

God had a plan for the redemption of mankind from the beginning of time.  The Old Testament is filled with prophecies about Jesus and His life, ministry and work on the cross.  Jesus told his disciples in Matthew 26:56  “But all this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.”  Next week we will see prophecy fulfilled as Jesus journeys to Jerusalem and His death and resurrection.  The work of Jesus and the will of Sovereign God come together at the cross and announce victory for the believer over death and hope of new life in Him.

Think about our Sovereign God today.  What are you facing that seems beyond what you can endure? Trust that God has everything under control and that there is a purpose for all things.  As Jesus faced the cross, He turned to God in prayer with his disciples in the upper room and then in the garden of Gethsemane.  Turn to Him in prayer and pour out you heart to Him.  He will listen.

Prayer:  Father God, you are indeed in control of all things.  As I look at the cross I see your sovereign hand directing the events.  You know what I am facing today.  Let me be encouraged today and grow my trust in You.  May your will be accomplished in me.  In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Looking to my Sovereign Lord,

Linda

God is Holy.  John declares it this way when he saw the vision of the throne room in Revelation 4:8b  “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”  Holiness is an attribute of God.  He cannot be parted from it as it is part of His being.  The dilemma for man is this- God is Holy and we as sinners can not appear in God’s presence or have a relationship with Holy God because of our sin.  At the cross Jesus’ death atoned for our sins and by faith in Jesus we can be made right with God. John 3:36 “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”    Faith in Jesus solves the sin problem.  God wants the best for us- that came through Jesus on the Cross.  “For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,”  1 Thessalonians 5:9  Praise God!

As you ponder the cross today, thank God for Jesus.  Without his sacrifice on the cross, we would be doomed to face the wrath of God for all eternity.  Jesus is our pathway to God so that we may enjoy the benefits of being a child of God, holy and acceptable to Him and living in the light of God’s love.  Thank you Jesus.

Prayer:  Lord, thank you for sending Jesus.  You brought me to a position of honor and accepted me as a member  of your family because of Jesus.  Help me to listen and obey your word and reflect Jesus as I talk and interact with people today. Amen.

Living blessed by my Savior,

Linda

When we are talking about Jesus being crucified, it is hard to see that as Just.  However, when we look at the work Jesus was doing, the work of redeeming you and me, He calls the work justice.  Here is an Old Testament quote from Isaiah as it appears in Matthew 12:18-21 from the Message.

Look well at my handpicked servant;
    I love him so much, take such delight in him.
I’ve placed my Spirit on him;
    he’ll decree justice to the nations.
But he won’t yell, won’t raise his voice;
    there’ll be no commotion in the streets.
He won’t walk over anyone’s feelings,
    won’t push you into a corner.
Before you know it, his justice will triumph;
    the mere sound of his name will signal hope, even
    among far-off unbelievers.

God calls Jesus his hand picked servant whom He loved.  He came with God’s Spirit to earth to bring justice.  Jesus quietly obtained justice for all of us at the cross and gave us Hope!  Jesus’ atoning work on the cross brought appeasement for God’s wrath over sin.  He brought us to Holy God by way of the cross.  His victory there, over death and sin, brings justice to all mankind.   I love the last line- the mere sound of his name brings hope to believers.  

Prayer:  Father God, I cannot imagine the extreme suffering that the cross brought to Jesus for my sake.  Your justice is complete and no other payment for sin is needed.  Thank you for sending Jesus to bring justice and to reconcile me to you.  I love being your child and the sound of Jesus’ name brings me hope each day.  In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Living by the just work of Jesus,

Linda

“⁹ But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.”  Hebrews 2:9  (ESV)

By God’s grace, we were saved from death by Jesus.  Grace is God’s unearned favor-we did nothing, could never do anything to be good enough to make ourselves right with God and take away our sin.  Only Jesus could do that for us.   Here are some verses to sharpen our focus and thankfulness about Grace and the Cross today.

G-   ¹⁵ For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God. 2 Corinthians 4:15                                             R- ⁷ In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.”  Ephesians 1:7                                                                    A- (Accessible)    ⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”  John 14:6                                                                      C- ⁶ Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, ⁷ casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:6-7                                                                                                                                              E– ²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Romans 6:23    

From this GRACE we learn that Jesus died so that many (you, me, everyone) will know Jesus and give glory to God.  From GRACE we learn that we are redeemed and forgiven all by the grace of God.  From GRACE we learn that Jesus made the way to God accessible to all who believe.  From GRACE we learn that we can humbly put all our cares upon Him because He cares for us.  From GRACE we learn Jesus took our sin and its penalty away and gives us eternal life as a trade, His gift to us.

Prayer:  Father, thank you for Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross.  As I gaze at the Cross and ponder its meaning today, cause me to strive to tell others about the redemption, love,mercy and grace You show us there.  Let your light and truth shine in my life so that You are glorified.  Amen.

Living by Grace,

Linda

Why mercy?  Jesus did for us what we could not do for ourselves.  By dying on the cross, He saved me the punishment for my sins and made me clean and pure so that I can stand before God a new creation.  I did not get the punishment I deserved for my sin.  He took it upon himself treating me with great MERCY!  1 Peter 2:9-10 explains this mercy.

⁹ But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. ¹⁰ Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (ESV)

Peter explains that in Christ we are now chosen, royal (family), holy, belonging to God and moved from darkness (sinfulness) into light (purity).  Before Christ we did  not belong to God’s people but now in Christ we are one together, a body to serve Christ. Before we had not received mercy but now in Christ we are treated with great mercy.  All because of Christ is the reason for our wonderful position that looks to the future with hope in the light of eternity with Him.

Prayer:  Father, Jesus is the reason for my hope. He died to make me whole and presentable to you, thank you Jesus.  I did nothing to deserve your merciful treatment, but I rest in your mercy now and forever.  Your mercy is eternal for your children. Help me to live today showing your mercy to those I meet. Thank you Jesus.  Amen.

Living forgiven by His mercy,

Linda

I can’t believe we only have one more week before Holy Week begins.  During our time together we have looked at many aspects of God and our faith.  This last week, I want to focus on the cross and what it tells us about God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit).  First and foremost, I see God’s love.  John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever  believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  Actually, I find that kind of love incomprehensible.  That God would love me so much He would send His only Son to redeem me at great cost to both Father and Son.  He sent Him to die a horrific death, experience humiliation at the hands of men, to be separated from all that was His in heaven and to live an exemplary life on my behalf.  What of Jesus?  He came willingly to live among us to show me who He was, reveal God the Father to me and pay penalty for my sin.  Only a truly loving Father and Son would go to such lengths to redeem me and bring me back into relationship with them.   Do you see this incomprehensible love as you gaze at the cross?  Micah 7:18 says it this way, ” Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance?   Such love!

Prayer:  Father, thank you for loving me and sending Jesus to die for my sins.  Thank you for redeeming me and bringing me to a place where I can fellowship with Holy God.  As I gaze a the cross of Christ this week, give me a new appreciation for the love and sacrifice that is displayed there.  Amen.

Looking at a loving God through Jesus,

Linda

Place yourself with John, in the throne room, and join the chorus of praise to God on behalf of our Savior, Jesus.  Let today be a day of thanksgiving and praise as you worship. Revelation 5:9-12

⁹ And they sang a new song, saying,

¹¹ Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, ¹² saying with a loud voice,