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a grand entrance

Mark 11:1-2 (emphasis mine)
"1As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, 2saying to them, "Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here."
--
has that line ever caught your attention before? Jesus is about to enter the big city, with all its bright lights and night life. we've heard this a hundred times. we know about the palm branches and the donkey (mark says colt - difference?). but have we ever really paid attention that Jesus is riding through the crazy commotion on an animal that's never been ridden? i mean, i'm not an expert here by any means, but aren't animals who have never been ridden kind of proud of that fact? aren't they a bit rambunctious about keeping it that way? and i mean, there are people everywhere - little kids all up in the donkey's face, waving branches and yelling. how could Jesus have possibly made his grand entrance this way? what does this tell us about Jesus?
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even here, in his coronation parade, Jesus is clearly demonstrating that his kingship - his kingdom - is quite different than what we would expect. it is not built on the power that our kingdom's are built on: violence and control, muscle and manpower. it isn't symbolized by swords, shields and stallions. no, Jesus' kingdom is founded on a different kind of power - the power of love. of humility. of peace. so Jesus rides into the city, bareback, on an animal that's never been ridden. a complete and utter fool, it would seem. on a fool's errand, too. to show the world that life comes through death. that in the end, love wins. sorrow may come with the night, but joy comes in the morning.
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have a blessed palm sunday.
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Comments

chad said…
and so we follow God's own fool.
11:03 AM
Greg C said…
Reminds me of these words I received yesterday:

All I Do
By St. John of the Cross

Forever at his door
I gave my heart and soul. My fortune too.
I've no flock any more,
no other work in view.
My occupation: Love. It's all I do.
1:40 PM
Mrs. Milinovich said…
Reminds me of a guote I heard awile ago; I looked it up to be sure it was accurate:
“He dares to be a fool, and that is the first step in the direction of wisdom.”
James Gibbons Huneker quotes

May we all be as "foolish" and "wise".
9:44 AM
Rachel said…
Our pastor gave a sermon about Jesus' entry into Jerusalem this morning....he brought up an interesting point. Jesus called for the donkey AFTER having walked uphill 16 miles!!! Why would he wait until he reached the top of the Mount of Olives and only had a short distance to go into the city? Obviously it was to fulfill the scriptures accurately...The pastor read from Zechariah 9:9 "Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey."

Pretty sweet! The rest of the sermon was good, too. It was more about Barabas and his "back story"
8:10 PM
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