The Silence of Saturday

So, today is Saturday.  Silent Saturday, I suppose.  Why silent?  The silence of his death.


On this day 2000 years ago.....

Jesus let out his last breath, and it instantly was quiet.  Maybe not quiet as in the  noise, but a spiritual deadness kind-of quiet.  The one they thought had come to save them- to rescue them from Rome, the one they had worshipped and followed, the one they ended up abusing- he was gone.  Dead, just like that.  And now, there was quiet.  The rebellion that may have started seemed to be over, the fight was lost and Rome was still in control.  Were they just plain stupid to follow one born in a manger?  A king was never born in a manger and hung on a cross.  What about the disciples?  What are they thinking?  The same thing?  Or did this silence fulfill his truths and just leave them to ponder them all?  How is the temple torn down and rebuilt?

Just the silence of questions.


~~~
 ⁴² It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, ⁴³ Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. ⁴⁴ Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. ⁴⁵ When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. ⁴⁶ So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. ⁴⁷ Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph saw where he was laid.
~~~

Joseph was a follower of Christ, and, as described in the scriptures, waiting on the Kingdom of God.  He boldly goes up to Pilate and asks for Jesus' body.  He boldly goes up to Pilate and asks for Jesus' body.  Pilate is the governor-like person, and he goes up, not just goes up, but boldly goes up and asks for Jesus' body.  Pilate is surprised that Jesus is already dead.  I am actually kinda glad that Jesus  is already dead and not still in that horrible torture, especially since I know the end of the story :) 

The heart breaking part of this story is that Joseph, a follower of Christ, had to take down the body of his savior.  He had the hard job of taking the precious, wounded, misfigured body of Christ down from the cross.  He had to draw out the giant nails, take the body down carefully from the cross, clean it, and wrap it in white linen cloth.  This was not only a grueling task, but a task that put forth so much effort of emotions and strength  and love for his savior.  I can only say a few words to him: Wow and Thank you.  This is what a true follower of Christ looks like by doing those things that need to be done even though it may hurt you or others, and even after all those Jesus haters were after Jesus, now they may be after him.  Joseph is a true follower of Christ.  


Tomorrow seems to end our story.


But it really begins it.

Friday: It is Finished

Happy Good Friday!

***Before I say anything, Satan really does not want this message up because he has deleted it 2 times already, so...... HAHA to Satan!***

I hope you all have had a wonderful day!! Mine has been full of laundry and packing to leave as we have just completed our trip to my Grandmother's house for Easter.  Fun, fun!!



Sooooooo.........................

On this Friday 2000 years ago...

~~~~

Jesus Arrested

⁴³ Just as he was speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, appeared. With him was a crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders.
⁴⁴ Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The one I kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away under guard.” ⁴⁵ Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, “Rabbi!” and kissed him. ⁴⁶ The men seized Jesus and arrested him. ⁴⁷ Then one of those standing near drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.
⁴⁸ “Am I leading a rebellion,” said Jesus, “that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? ⁴⁹ Every day I was with you, teaching in the temple courts, and you did not arrest me. But the Scriptures must be fulfilled.” ⁵⁰ Then everyone deserted him and fled.
⁵¹ A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, ⁵² he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.

Jesus Before the Sanhedrin

⁵³ They took Jesus to the high priest, and all the chief priests, the elders and the teachers of the law came together. ⁵⁴ Peter followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. There he sat with the guards and warmed himself at the fire.
⁵⁵ The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death, but they did not find any. ⁵⁶ Many testified falsely against him, but their statements did not agree.
⁵⁷ Then some stood up and gave this false testimony against him: ⁵⁸ “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with human hands and in three days will build another, not made with hands.’” ⁵⁹ Yet even then their testimony did not agree.
⁶⁰ Then the high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” ⁶¹ But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer.
Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”
⁶² “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
⁶³ The high priest tore his clothes. “Why do we need any more witnesses?” he asked. ⁶⁴ “You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?”
They all condemned him as worthy of death. ⁶⁵ Then some began to spit at him; they blindfolded him, struck him with their fists, and said, “Prophesy!” And the guards took him and beat him. 

Jesus Before Pilate

¹ Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, made their plans. So they bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate.
² “Are you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate.
“You have said so,” Jesus replied.
³ The chief priests accused him of many things. ⁴ So again Pilate asked him, “Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.”
⁵ But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.
⁶ Now it was the custom at the festival to release a prisoner whom the people requested. ⁷ A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising. ⁸ The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.
⁹ “Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?” asked Pilate, ¹⁰ knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. ¹¹ But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.
¹² “What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?” Pilate asked them.
¹³ “Crucify him!” they shouted.
¹⁴ “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate.
But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!”
¹⁵ Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.

The Soldiers Mock Jesus

¹⁶ The soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called together the whole company of soldiers. ¹⁷ They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. ¹⁸ And they began to call out to him, “Hail, king of the Jews!” ¹⁹ Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him. Falling on their knees, they paid homage to him. ²⁰ And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.

The Crucifixion of Jesus

²¹ A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. ²² They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). ²³ Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. ²⁴ And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.
²⁵ It was nine in the morning when they crucified him. ²⁶ The written notice of the charge against him read: THE KING OF THE JEWS.
²⁷ They crucified two rebels with him, one on his right and one on his left. ^{[28] [a] 29} Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, ³⁰ come down from the cross and save yourself!” ³¹ In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! ³² Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

The Death of Jesus

³³ At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. ³⁴ And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).^[b]
35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, “Listen, he’s calling Elijah.”
³⁶ Someone ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down,” he said.
³⁷ With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.
³⁸ The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. ³⁹ And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died,^[c] he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!”
⁴⁰ Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph,^[d] and Salome. ⁴¹ In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.
~~~~



Okay, so it's a good bit of reading there BUT it's totally worth it :)


The first thing I notice is that Judas is with a bunch of people who are armed with clubs and spears.  I am guessing that they thought Jesus was a rebellion leader, but Jesus clearly asks "Am I leading a rebellion?".  The leaders were probably pretty taken aback.  "Aren't you?" they're thinking.  Jesus was seen as a rebellion leader, the one who was to fight back the Romans and save the Jews from oppression by the Romans.  Everyone thought Jesus was to be that way.  But that is not what kind of rebellion Jesus was leading.  He was a rebellion leader: a spiritual rebellion leader.  Another thing is that I noticed is that the priests never touched him in the temple because it was the temple.  If they touched him in there, it would ruin their whole reputation.  "But the scriptures must be fulfilled.".  Then when Jesus was before the Sanhedrin, the priests couldn't even testify against him!  They couldn't find anything against him, even with the testimonies that were false!  Now what do they do with him?  They try to trick him with this question:  Are you the messiah?  He has no choice but to tell the truth.  Then they blindfolded him and beat him, spit on him, and called him names. 

Then they take him to Pilate.  Pilate cannot get anything out of him but "I am king of the Jews.".  So when the time comes to release choose a prisoner, the people who praised him on Sunday chose to crucify him on Friday.  They chose to crucify him over a very sinful murderer, and Pilate himself wondered why.  Jesus hadn't done anything wrong, right?  The people just wanted him dead, and Pilate didn't want to take the blame.  But he sent Jesus off to be flogged and crucified anyways, just to satisfy the people.  Then the soldiers take him and spit on him and make fun of him.  I honestly want to cry reading this all: They beat my older brother, spit on him, called him horrendous names, and all for me.   If only they knew the truth. 

Then comes the seemingly simple sentence: They crucified him.  They whipped and beat him mercilessly, and forced him to carry a cross a long way.  And the cross wasn't hollow, short wood.  It was heavy wood, that burned and cut relentlessly into his back.  They then nailed the precious hands and feet of my king to these pieces of wood we now look up to.  They hoisted him up into the sky, and forced him to hang there.   They cast lots for the clothes, and put a mocking sign above him: KING OF THE JEWS.  But he is king of the Jews and of so much more: the King of the whole entire world.   And the temple rebuilding: it was happening then.  At that very moment, it was being torn down and built again.  He was saving others, including them.  He even asked God to forgive them!  The people being crucified with him were making fun of Him.  Then darkness comes over the whole land, and Jesus shouts: My God , My God, why have you forsaken me??  He breathed his last with a loud cry.  And then, something extraordinary happens: the temple curtain, which separates God and man was ripped.  And not just a little, but from top to bottom.  God was now with man!  And the centurion says "Surely this man was a son of God!".  He realized too late. 

Because now, it was finished.

Yet, it wasn't.

Tomorrow's story will have to tell.....

Thursday: Gardens and Dinners

Hi there!  Happy Last Supper Day!  Or Passover meal day!  Or Thursday!!

Hope you are all doing well!

On with Passion Week:

On this Thursday about 2000 years ago:

The Lord’s Supper

 ¹² On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, when it was customary to sacrifice the Passover lamb, Jesus’ disciples asked him, “Where do you want us to go and make preparations for you to eat the Passover?”

 ¹³ So he sent two of his disciples, telling them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him. ¹⁴ Say to the owner of the house he enters, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ ¹⁵ He will show you a large upper room, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us there.”

 ¹⁶ The disciples left, went into the city and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.

 ¹⁷ When evening came, Jesus arrived with the Twelve. ¹⁸ While they were reclining at the table eating, he said, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me—one who is eating with me.”

 ¹⁹ They were saddened, and one by one they said to him, “Surely not I?”

   ²⁰ “It is one of the Twelve,” he replied, “one who dips bread into the bowl with me. ²¹ The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.”

 ²² While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.”

 ²³ Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, and they all drank from it.

   ²⁴ “This is my blood of the^[b] covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. ²⁵ “I tell you the truth, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God.”

 ²⁶ When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

Gethsemane

 ³² They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” ³³ He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. ³⁴ “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”

 ³⁵ Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. ³⁶ “Abba,^[e] Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

 ³⁷ Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? ³⁸Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”

 ³⁹ Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. ⁴⁰ When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him.

 ⁴¹ Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. ⁴² Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

**Please note that part of what takes place here in the Garden happens also on Friday, considering the Jewish day starts as the sun sets.**

At the very beginning of the Last Supper passage, Jesus tells two of his disciples to go and find a man carrying a jar of water and follow him to the house he enters.  This man is probably the servant of the one whose house he goes to, considering it says "his master's house".  Another interesting thing about this is that I always thought that the women of the household went to get water from the fountain, but this specifically says a man.  Just a thought.  Also, the whole "go and you'll see this and that and follow him here and ask to have a room for passover meal this evening" thing is kinda REALLY trusting this guy and not just thinking that "He's a lunatic, let's go eat with our friends and families".  Because I might just be thinking that.  Although, after being with Jesus that long, you must know to just do what he says.  And the room was all ready prepared and ready.  Am I missing something here, or is that just a God thing?  Then to arrive and be eating the meal...... and there is no passover lamb on the table.  This is like no ham or turkey on the table for Thanksgiving!  But the lamb isn't on the table, because it's sitting at the table.  On top of that,  Jesus says, "Oh yeah, one of you is going to betray me."  And they cannot believe it, and all think "It's not me, right Jesus?".  You are thinking: i've followed this man, given up my family and friends and  old lifestyle and now I'm going to betray him?  There is no way.... It just makes me wonder how Judas felt at that point in time and what he was thinking.  It also said they were saddened by this fact as they asked if it was them or not.  If it says "they" were saddened, does it mean that Judas was sad?  I really don't know.  But I do think its great that they were all saddened at this fact.  Of course, it could have been the fact that "it would be better for that man if he had not been born".  Then take this as my body and this as my blood had to be kinda weird if he's talking about him dying.  They know by now that he is going to die, but I still think it would be a little weird if my teacher gave me some bread and said, "Eat it, its my body."  But the customs were different back then and not 21st century.   

Then in the garden of Gethsemane, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death." and, "Abba, Father, everything is possible for you.  Take this cup from me.  Yet not what I will, but what you will."  That last quote is a life quote, meaning I want to live by it-  Not what I will, but what you will.  Wow, especially considering the circumstances that he is going through.  And while he's pouring his heart, the disciples are sleeping.  Seriously??? He's about to die the most horrible death anyone will ever see and your sleeping?  That also means that if the disciples were sleeping, I'd be snoring hard.  But it is still hard to see both sides of the story and believe that they would do that.

And I know this amazing story leaves you hanging with the betrayal line, but I suppose you will have to wait until tomorrow to hear the rest of the story. (Unless you happen to have heard the story or have a Bible and be able to read it...)  But I will be a story spoiler and tell you has a very good ending.

Way better than the Hunger Games :)

Till tomorrow.........

Wednesday: Predictions and Sinners

 Happy Happy Wednesday!!  I hope you all have had a great day!   SAT testing for me, but it is all over now :) :) :) :)))))


***If you read yesterday's post, I just updated it because I left out a couple of facts.  Click HERE to read the rest***


Onto Wednesday.....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On this Wednesday 2000 years ago......

Please read the following......




Mark 13



 ³⁸ As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted in the marketplaces, ³⁹and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. ⁴⁰ They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely.”

Mark 14

¹⁴ “When you see ‘the abomination that causes desolation’^[a] standing where it^[b] does not belong—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ¹⁵ Let no one on the roof of his house go down or enter the house to take anything out. ¹⁶ Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. ¹⁷ How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! ¹⁸ Pray that this will not take place in winter, ¹⁹ because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now—and never to be equaled again. ²⁰ If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them.²¹ At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ^[c]!’ or, ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. ²² For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and miracles to deceive the elect—if that were possible. ²³ So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time.

   

²⁴ “But in those days, following that distress,

   “‘the sun will be darkened,
   and the moon will not give its light;
²⁵ the stars will fall from the sky, 

   and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’^[d]

First of all, he talks about the teachers of law trying to seem very important.  And holy.  And  everything in between.  These teachers were as much of a sinner as a murderer.  The way they flaunt themselves around taking important seats and "devouring widows houses" disgusted Jesus and disgusts me too.  Jesus called them hypocrites and snakes and he had every right too.  He was also teaching this to a crowd of people.  A crowd of people who probably supported and looked up to the priests but also probably didn't like them.  So this probably spread like wildfire, and only made the priests dislike him [ttttttttttttttttttttttttttthhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiissssssssssssssssssss] much more. And helped his chances of getting killed.  Ouch.  Jesus also spoke to his disciples in Mark 14 about the end of the age.  I only posted a portion of it here, but you can check the rest of it out in Mark 14. Jesus mourns Jerusalem's destruction and is pending destruction for them.  But on top of all this heavy stuff, he still knows that at that time tomorrow, he will be betrayed after praying so hard DROPS OF BLOOD roll down his face.  Not only is Jerusalem pending destruction but so is he.  And the disciples barely know anything.  And they are trying to take this all in: stars falling from the sky?  The sun will be dark????






And Thursday will be a big day indeed..... but not as big as Friday......... :)


Until tomorrow dear friends..........

Tuesday's Learning and Questions

Tuesday we didn't talk about as much in class, so we'll see how this goes :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On this Tuesday approximately 2000 years ago........

(this section happened the day before)
¹² The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. ¹³ Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. ¹⁴ Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.


(this happened on that Tuesday)

The Withered Fig Tree

 ²⁰ In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. ²¹ Peter remembered and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!”

   ²² “Have^[f] faith in God,” Jesus answered. ²³ “I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. ²⁴ Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. ²⁵ And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.^[g]”

......and then......

The Authority of Jesus Questioned

 ²⁷ They arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him. ²⁸ “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?”

 ²⁹ Jesus replied, “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. ³⁰ John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or from men? Tell me!”

 ³¹ They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ ³² But if we say, ‘From men’…” (They feared the people, for everyone held that John really was a prophet.)

 ³³ So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”

   Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”

Okay then.... wow!  He actually was questioned several more times after this, but I figured you may not want or have time to read them (if you want to, go to Mark 12).  Do you hear the wisdom rolling out of him?  I think it's amazing how he says it it seems without having to think about it, while the Priests thought for a while, contemplating these things.  Ha :)

So the disciples are standing there while Jesus says, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again!".   This was probably seen by them as just an expression of being frustrated, kinda like of us saying "Darn it" or, in Jesus' case "Stupid fig tree.  It won't have fruit for anyone else again.".  So when the disciples heard that, they probably didn't think much about it.  But when they walk by again the next day and it is withered, they are thinking,  as my youngest brother would say, "We are messing with the real deal."  

And, if I trust God enough, I could tell a mountain to jump in the ocean and it would do it.  That's ridiculous and would take an amazing amount faith.  Wow.  I don't feel like that faith is even fathomable to me.  Later on, he is questioned about his authority which was really a trick question.  And he replies with something I could, of  course, never come up with: another question.  Not only another question, but a good one.  And again, it just comes out of him, straight from God.  I think this really shows how close he is to God and God to him: they and the Holy Spirit are ONE.  So then people are in awe of Jesus, and the Priests are shamed and walk away quietly, probably afraid to do anything else for fear of embarrassment.  But secretly, they are plotting to kill Jesus: they want an end to this blasphemy-er.  

Ah, and this is where our story concludes for the evening.....

Until tomorrow....

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EDIT: i forgot a VERY important turn in the story: Tuesday is also the day that Judas contracts to betray Jesus.  So Judas, who was tempted with the amount of money offered, decided to betray Jesus 


Mark 14

¹⁰ Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them. ¹¹ They were delighted to hear this and promised to give him money. So he watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

Also, Tuesday (which apparently was a very busy day) was when the woman poured perfume on Jesus' feet, and it was very expensive perfume.  How did she know it was preparing him for his burial?? This puzzles me....  Anyways, right after this Judas went and betrayed Jesus :)

**If you are wondering why I put a happy face after that incredibly sad betrayal note, its because I'm very sad for Jesus and God, but very happy for his plan and my being saved :)  So I suppose I owe Judas a thank you....... but I think I may still be holding a grudge against him..... ;)**

Monday: The Turning of the Tables

Happy Monday everyone!

So approximately 2000 years ago today, Jesus turned over the tables AND in doing so, the tables turned for him.  Please read the following passage for today:

Jesus Clears the Temple

 ¹⁵ On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, ¹⁶ and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. ¹⁷And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written:

   “‘My house will be called
   a house of prayer for all nations’^[c]?

   But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’^[d]”

 ¹⁸ The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching.

 ¹⁹ When evening came, they^[e] went out of the city.

The section of the temple Jesus was in was called the Gentiles court (for gentiles- those that are not Jews).  The court was basically a mockery to God.  I mean, imagine this scene we were presented in class yesterday:  A quarter of a million lambs (that's just the lambs, not mentioning the other animals) and 3 times as many people as could fill the Bryant-Denny stadium all crowded in a court, shoulder to shoulder.  The place reeks of animals and waste, and its also getting near 100 degrees in the room.  People are shouting and yelling to, "Buy our lambs!  We've got the best!".  If this place is supposed to be the temple, place of worship to the almighty God.  You can kinda see why Jesus would be mad.  And he was really mad.  If you think about a fight at a college football game, everyone around them moves out of the way a little, but it doesn't disrupt the rest of the crowd or interrupt the game.  It usually only lasts a few seconds.  In the temple, where there were 2 to 3 times as many people as in the football stadium, he runs and turns the tables over, with doves and animals and people going everywhere, and actually scaring the people in the temple.  Actually scaring them away!  Its got to take a lot to do that.  Then he teaches to them the word of God.  The priests probably don't like this (1) They were probably making some money off the vendors (2) The people were amazed at Jesus, and they probably feared people following him and doing the same thing.  This is where the tables turned for Jesus: They started looking for a way to kill him. I don't blame him for trying to stop the whole thing, because without it, we wouldn't be here today.  On top of that, this is God's house and dwelling.  That's important.

And this part of the story is a bridge to the rest of the week.

Until tomorrow...

Palm Sunday and Easter week!!

NOTE: This is basically a replay of Sunday School class this morning.  Hope you enjoy!!

Happy Palm Sunday everyone!!!

I think we often misunderstand the importance of this day when I say that.  I mean, sure, Jesus walked into a city with leaves in front of him.  Cool.

No.  That's not the full details of the story.  In fact, this whole week 2000 years ago was just the prologue to the main story that's happening now.


Please read the following story behind Palm Sunday and reflect on it as you read my thoughts below it:

Mark 11

The Triumphal Entry

 ¹ As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, ² saying 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. ³ If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ tell him, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’”

 ⁴ They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, ⁵ some people standing there asked, “What are you doing, untying that colt?” ⁶ They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. ⁷ When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. ⁸ Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. ⁹ Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted,

   “Hosanna!^[a]”

   “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”^[b]

 ¹⁰ “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!”

   “Hosanna in the highest!”

These people were oppressed, having lost all family members, land, house and possessions all taken away from them.  They had, literally, nothing left, and were at the mercy of Rome.  When you hear Jesus is coming to town, (oh, yeah, he's kinda like the Messiah and Savior that's going to rescue them and save them from the Roman Empire), you take it seriously: like dancing in circles and shouting at the top of your lungs "Hosanna!!! Blessed is Jesus!!" and letting everyone hear it.  You take your cloak, (which is your shelter and warmth at night, protection from the sun, and your only possession left) and lay it down for a donkey to ride on.  You grab palm leaves and wave them to praise him, singing, shouting, so excited that your deliverer is here!   Your redeemer IS here: the humble king riding on a donkey.  This also says something: What does a great king ride on?  Probably a stallion, or in a carriage, or with people carrying him.  Never on a donkey.  Hmmm.

Now when I say this, it may have a different meaning:

Happy Palm Sunday, everyone!!


I think this week is very important.  I mean, like better than christmas.  But I thought nothing of it until hearing my youth minister talk about it and see how important this week really is, and also taught pretty much the same lesson (as in, my information and thoughts were taken/inspired from/ by him.  Thanks Scott! :)  I want to walk through this week with you, and post daily to tell you of what happened on this day 2000 years ago to lead up to the resurrection.  And yes, most of my notes will be from Scott and his awesome class.  But technically, its not from him.  Its from God, and he spoke through Scott to me and now (hopefully) to you.



Let me know what you think if you like :)

And get ready for monday.