Cross

On Palm Sunday -How Will You Receive Jesus?

/ pastorpete51 / Leave a comment

This week is Palm Sunday, and though we cannot be certain that we are celebrating on an exact date, or even as some question whether we should have a special holiday; it is a good time to reflect. On what we refer to as Palm Sunday, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, so that we would not be afraid to receive Him as King. But, no matter how He came, not everyone was ready to accept Jesus. How are you going to receive Him today?

The next day, the news that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem swept through the city. A large crowd of Passover visitors took palm branches and went down the road to meet him. They shouted, “Praise God! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hail to the King of Israel!” Jesus found a young donkey and rode on it, fulfilling the prophecy that said: “Don’t be afraid, people of Jerusalem. Look, your King is coming, riding on a donkey’s colt.” John 12:12-15 NLT
  1. Some received Him with joy and gratitude and followed Him to the cross

Standing near the cross were Jesus’ mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary (the wife of Clopas), and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside the disciple he loved, he said to her, “Dear woman, here is your son.” And he said to this disciple, “Here is your mother.” And from then on this disciple took her into his home. John 19:25-27

Jesus gave these people a special job to do

2) Some Received Him With Joy – but they ran to hide in fear

Then Jesus said to the crowd, “Am I some dangerous revolutionary, that you come with swords and clubs to arrest me? Why didn’t you arrest me in the Temple? I was there teaching every day. But this is all happening to fulfill the words of the prophets as recorded in the Scriptures.” At that point, all the disciples deserted him and fled. Matthew 26:55-56 NLT

Jesus came looking for these people and said, “Do not be afraid!” – And just as they were telling about it, Jesus himself was suddenly standing there among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. Luke 24:36 NLT

3) Some Did Not Receive Him at All and they nailed Him to a cross

 When the Roman officer overseeing the execution saw what had happened, he worshiped God and said, “Surely this man was innocent. ” Luke 23:47 NLT

Jesus prayed for those people – Father forgive them, for they know not what they do. Lk 23:34

But no matter which of these people you are today, we are really not so different. 

We all need to receive Him for ourselves and believe that He is the Son of God
We all need the cross of Christ for the forgiveness of our sins  
We all need the resurrection morning that will give us eternal life!

How Will You Receive Jesus Christ Today?

Are We Listening?

/ pastorpete51 / 3 Comments

In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. Matthew 26:12 ESV

Many years ago, as we sat through an average Sunday service, our pastor began to preach about the cross. First, he described the terrible beating that Jesus received and how the crown of thorns was pressed down on his head. “Next they took the nails” our pastor went on, “And they drove them through His hands….” he was suddenly interrupted by a tiny voice that pierced the silence of our congregation. “EEEW!” a little girl in the back cried out. The rest of us heard the message that morning, but I believe that in God’s eyes, she was the only person actually listening!

In our scripture passage today, it seems that just like that little girl; only Mary seemed to be listening. Jesus had told them many times that He was going to Jerusalem to die. But only Mary, understood that Jesus would not be with them much longer. Only Mary, who chose to sit at Jesus’ feet listening, did something to give Him her blessing while she still had time. Other people were celebrating and relaxing at the supper, but Mary poured out her alabaster box of perfumed oil on the Master’s feet. Everybody listens to someone. Who are you listening to today? If we want to fill the room with the fragrance of the presence of Christ, it all depends on listening at His feet and then acting on the words we hear!

Photo by Dhemer Gonu00e7alves on Pexels.com

Calm Surrender

/ pastorpete51 / 8 Comments

And he said to them all, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. Luke 9:23 KJV

Last night I had one of those “aha!” moments while we were watching our favorite television show, “Better human, better dog” with Cesar Milan. I love watching Cesar walk into a home where people have uncontrollable dogs, who are barking, biting and lunging, and in just a few moments, slip a leash around their neck and get them to sit down quietly next to him. Cesar calls this transformation “Calm surrender” and it reminds me of today’s verse. Just like those uncontrollable dogs, I sometimes struggle with what the master expects of me and end up barking at others, hurting those closest to me and in general making a mess our of things. I know what choices I need to make, but the problem isn’t the knowing, it is the trusting God enough to surrender to it.

Now the good news for those like me is that while Cesar Milan may be the dog whisperer, Jesus is the people whisperer! He isn’t at all intimidated by our lunging at our leashes, snarling and making a ruckus. He knows what we need most of all is calm surrender. But in order for that calm surrender to happen on the inside of our hearts, there must first be an invisible transaction of faith. We must trust him enough, every morning, to allow Him to slip the leash around our neck. We do that when we believe that God’s leash, called the cross, is not put meant to strangle us, but to lead us. We can calmly surrender our lives to Him, because we know He has come to give us a better one. When we lie down quietly at His feet, God can drop the leash, because He knows that what keeps us connected to Him is not that leash, but our hearts. Then when we calmly surrender, God can open the door and lead us out to all the good things He has planned for our daily walk with Him!

Photo by Quang Nguyen Vinh on Pexels.com