Prayer:
Almighty God, you sent your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, to take our flesh upon him and to suffer death on the cross. Grant that we may share in his obedience to your will and in the glorious victory of his resurrection; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Bible Reading:
Luke 19:28-48
Silence:
One to two minutes
Reflection:
The old saying, ‘a ten thousand mile journey begins with the first step’, certainly plays itself out in this passage describing Jesus’ the triumphant entry into Jerusalem. This first step begins a torrent of events that will lead to the cross on Golgotha. The irony of the event is awesome. The accolades, the shouting, the hosannas, all reserved for a conquering hero, were poured out upon this itinerant country preacher from Nazareth, a blip on the radar of history, a speck in the see of humanity in that city. Tongue in check would have been the newspaper description, sort of like a car honking parade along Geary at two o’clock on Sunday afternoon – no big deal for the rest of the population of San Francisco. And in addition, the bravos were but cover-ups for the shallow self preserving reactivity of the religious establishment. In reality, this “street theater” marked the truth of the divine plan, the march of God’s cosmic showdown with sin, death and the devil – victory! The stones even stand ready to cry out “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
Action – Repentance and Creation:
Think about this: the events of this week, recorded in the account of the Bible are not just something that happened during a week 2000 years ago, not just in a small corner of the Jerusalem, not just the last days of a man from Nazareth, but a cosmic event that reshapes reality.