Title: The triumphal entry / Matthew 21:1-11
Contents
The Bible records meaningfully about the last time Jesus went up to Jerusalem a few days before His suffering on the cross. When we reached the village of Bethphage, just 5 li from Jerusalem, the Lord gave us unexpected instructions. If you go into town and bring a colt, you will ride on it and enter. This is reminiscent of the time when Solomon was anointed king and marched on the mule of King David. Moreover, the prophet Zechariah said, "Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion. Sing for joy, daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, your king comes to you, just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, the foal of a donkey, the foal of a donkey. He even prophesied.” (Zechariah 9:9).
As the prophecy of Isaiah, Jesus entered Jerusalem peacefully as the Prince of Peace, supported by the crowd waving palm branches and shouting Hosanna. But contrary to the outward appearance, Jesus' heart was complicated. This is because Jerusalem, which means 'place of peace', was only seeking a false peace made up of speculation and hypocrisy. Therefore, the Lord who came near the city wept and spoke with sorrow. 󰡒■■ (Jerusalem) You should have known today about peace, but now you have hidden it from your eyes. the day will come Your enemies will build a fortress around you and enclose you on all sides, and they will throw you and your children in the midst to the ground, and they will leave no stone upon a stone, for you do not know the day when you will be admonished. 󰡓 (Luke 19:42-44).
The Lord could not contain his tears of compassion as he thought about how much wrath he would receive in the future for the terrible sin of crucifying the Prince of Peace who came to restore peace to the people who had lost the peace they should have with God. However, for a mission he could not give up, he entered the city where danger, suffering, and death await. You are entering as a lone challenger towards the huge castle where the conspiracy of insidious power lurks. Although it seems reckless today, and even if it is judged as a failure, I am confident that the living God will be pleased and will give me the final victory, so I went forward boldly. He entered victoriously, looking at the glory that had already been won spiritually in the so-called battle that he had no choice but to avoid because he was afraid physically. Let's take a look at the triumphs of the Lord's entry into Jerusalem and receive grace.
1. It is the challenge of love over evil and hatred, and the entry of victory.
One week after Jesus entered Jerusalem, his life was consistent with countless conflicts. First, he entered the temple and rebuked those responsible for turning his father's house, a place of prayer for all people, into a den of robbers, and drove out the sheep and doves that were tied up in the yard. At that time, he rebuked the scribes and Pharisees, who were the leaders of the religious world at that time, as 󰡐Woe to hypocrites󰡑 without hesitation several times. He compared the wicked farmers in the vineyard, saying that they are a group of vicious men who murder the son sent by the master to take the master's vineyard.
At first glance, it seemed that the Lord was trying to die quickly. The Lord knows very well how much evil and hateful people he oppresses. He would have avoided the folly of increasing hatred if he had not said anything without knowing it. But the Lord risked his life to point out the sins and transgressions of the leaders. This is not an expression of hatred against their hatred. Rather, it was an act of loyalty that loved us to the end and urged us to repent. At last, hatred reached the extreme and when He was crucified, the Lord said, "Father, forgive their sins, for they do not know what they are doing." He showed true love, begging for forgiveness.
A true friend has the courage and love to say painful words to correct them by pointing out their mistakes rather than flattering ones. Sometimes, when the clergy relentlessly rebuke corrupt political powers, many become anxious or demand that they keep their mouths shut as it is outside the clergy's duties. But the clergy love their country and say things that are difficult to say because they really care about their leaders. These unfaithful leaders reject the right enlightenment, as they detained and killed John the Baptist. Christians who shut their mouths out of fear of these consequences have lost to evil. A saint who lays down his life to point out the sins of others and urge them to repent is a person who seems to have lost but is victorious
You just have to overcome the feeling of repaying evil for evil and thoroughly follow the Lord who repays you with love and good. Only then will we become the true victors who have triumphed over evil and hatred with love.
2. The entry of the Lord is a challenge and a victory for the precious suffering. Because no one in this world likes suffering, believers also try to be saved from tribulation and suffering through faith. However, if you try to avoid the hardship before you when it is meaningful and valuable, you become a loser.
It is easy for us to pass the suffering of Jesus on the cross as an event that has been formally accomplished in God's work of salvation. However, it can be seen that the prayer of Gethsemane on the night of the Lord's arrest was a cry of struggle in front of the hardships he had to face. 󰡒It is God's will to drink the bitter cup of suffering on the cross, and if it is a meaningful and valuable work, I will obey it." What you do is not a sentimental choice, it is possible when it involves bloody and sweaty self-sacrifice.
Kierkegaard distinguished between the natural person who lives only according to the desires of the flesh and the spiritual person who sometimes chooses to suffer for a meaningful life. The Bible shows us people with a mission who endured hardship because of the mission given by God. The prophets in the hands of God and the apostles in the hands of the Lord all suffered and even martyred because of the mission they were given. However, the Bible does not see them as losers, but testifies to them as victors who overcame the world. Hebrews 11:38 testifies that these people are not worthy of the world. Jesus' entry into Jerusalem was also a triumphant entry that overcame those sufferings by challenging them toward the sufferings of the cross.
Compared to our zeal to receive blessings today, our members have a very weak sense of duty to endure meaningful suffering. As a result, they became people who 'can't bear the world', not those who 'the world couldn't handle'. This work is also a responsibility that today's church leaders must feel heavy.
Apostle Peter said, "Because Christ already suffered in the flesh, in the same spirit, put on your armor, for he who suffered in the flesh has ceased to be a sinner... so that he may live the rest of his body according to the will of God. "(1 Peter 4:1-2) and teaches the active attitude of the saints toward suffering. As the Apostle Paul testified, those who challenge meaningful suffering with the attitude of “I will fill the rest of the sufferings of Christ in my flesh for the sake of his body, the church,” will become victors over suffering.
3. The entry of the Lord is a challenge to death and a victory.
The article 'Death of Man' by Cyblorus describes in detail the five stages of human death. It is only through the stage of denial and isolation, the stage of anger, the stage of compromise, and the stage of depression, that we reach the stage of adapting to death. If this is a common assumption, the courage of a person who challenges death is a great thing.
From today onwards, we meditate on the sufferings of the Lord and spend the Holy Week. To that end, please follow the Lord who entered Jerusalem. Let us follow the Lord into the city where evil and hatred lurk, the city of dreadful hardships, and even the city where the threat of death stands with its arms folded. Although we are weak, the Lord who is ahead of us is victorious, so we will surely be victorious. Let's boldly open our mouths to point out sins and become witnesses of the gospel calling for repentance. Do not be afraid of suffering for the sake of the gospel, and follow the Lord of Gethsemane in bloody and sweaty prayer. Even if the power of death threatens us, let us be bold and fully dedicate ourselves so that only Christ can be honored in our bodies. On the morning of the resurrection of the Lord, we believe that we will all sing the victory song with bright faces. Hallelujah!