April 5 - Silent Wednesday

Silent Wednesday

by Bambi Wheeler

Scripture: Matthew 26

Key Verse - Matthew 26:14-16

Then one of the Twelve- the one called Judas Iscariot- went to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver. From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

Today is Silent Wednesday. When looking at the events that took place each day of Holy Week, we know that on Sunday, Jesus made His Triumphant Entry into Jerusalem. On Monday, He cleansed the Temple of the corrupt money changers. On Tuesday, He gave His Olivet Discourse. And on Wednesday…well…we don’t really know what happened on Wednesday; the writers of the Gospels are silent on the events of that day. It’s possible that Wednesday was the day in which Judas agreed to betray Jesus for thirty pieces of silver, but as far as what Jesus specifically did on that day, we can’t be sure.

But there is one thing we can be sure of- Jesus knew what was coming. He knew that the following night, He would celebrate His last Passover meal with His disciples. He knew that He was going to be betrayed by one of His closest followers.  He knew that He would be arrested. He knew that He was going to be beaten and mocked by the very people He had come to save, He knew that He was going to be denied by one that He had spent the past three years pouring into, and He knew exactly what kind of death was awaiting Him on the other side of all of that. And we know all of this took place because, although the writers of the Gospels are silent about Wednesday, they have MUCH to say about Thursday and Friday. And I love Jesus with every fiber of my being, so it’s so easy for me to just feel anger toward Judas and the Pharisees and the Jewish mob and the Romans and even Peter for all that they put Him through in His final days, but I sometimes wonder…what side of the aisle would I have been on had I been there on Silent Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, or even Good Friday? I WANT to believe I would have been standing alongside Mary and John at the foot of the cross, but if I’m being perfectly honest, I have my own thirty pieces of silver, do I not? I didn’t physically sell Jesus out for a bag of silver, but how is my sin any different, any LESS than Judas’? 

This is an image of a 2000+ year old tree that stands in the Garden of Gethsemane today. This tree was likely in the garden the night Jesus cried out to God that if there was any way the cup be taken from Him, let it be. But He didn’t let His prayer end there; instead, He concluded with, “Yet not as I will, but as You will.” And when I first stood at the base of this tree, I was in tears as I imagined what it had seen that night; it witnessed my Lord and Savior praying that prayer so fervently that He literally sweat blood, and my own 30 pieces of silver helped send Him there. And it would be so easy for me to carry around a ton of guilt knowing that, but I don’t have to. Because I also know- Jesus wasn’t forced to that cross.  He didn’t even go out of a sense of obligation. No, He went because He loves me. And He loves you. And He loves every single human that has ever walked this earth. And that fills me with such an overwhelming sense of gratitude that I don’t have any space left for feelings of guilt. Have we all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God? Sure have. But do we need to carry around guilt from that knowledge? Sure don’t. Jesus went to the cross to handle all of that because He knew we couldn’t. And that is something Judas never realized; he allowed the guilt of his actions to overtake him, but we don’t have to.  Instead of clinging to our thirty pieces of silver, lamenting over our own shortcomings and failures, let’s hand it all over to Jesus and instead spend our time praising Him for what He’s done. 

April 2 - Celebrate!

Celebrate!

by Christin Byrd

Scripture: John 12

Key Verse: 

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.” His disciples didn’t understand at the time that this was a fulfillment of prophecy. But after Jesus entered into his glory, they remembered what had happened and realized that these things had been written about him. Many in the crowd had seen Jesus call Lazarus from the tomb, raising him from the dead, and they were telling others about it. That was the reason so many went out to meet him—because they had heard about this miraculous sign. Then the Pharisees said to each other, “There’s nothing we can do. Look, everyone has gone after him!”

John 12:12-19

Celebrate!

Prior to this passage, Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead and the word had spread. As the crowd gathered to celebrate Passover, there was great anticipation about if Jesus would attend. The crowd heard he was traveling to Jerusalem and many among them wanted to see and celebrate him. So, they went out to greet him. Palm branches were a symbol of triumph and victory and were the chosen method for greeting Jesus. Hosanna is used as an appeal to God for deliverance and as a shout of praise and adoration. This greeting was both one of action and words but was the same message that Jesus had demonstrated victory and triumph over death.

The part of the passage that stands out the most to me is verse 16: “At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him.”

Being in the moment must have been a time of trying to take everything in. To learn and to teach and to follow Jesus. There are several writings that had occurred that foretold the welcome that Jesus would receive into Jerusalem (Psalm 119:25, 26, Zechariah 9:9). I wonder how quickly writings spread in those days. Likely not the speed that they do now. However, in reflection trying to make sense of the circumstances, perhaps they were trying to answer that agonizing question of “Why”.

Jesus was a man loved by the people. John 12:19 “Look how the whole world has gone after him!” He performed many miracles and by all accounts set out to help those who sought him, and more importantly, was the son of God. Why had his life been taken, too early and in such a manner? Why did God allow it? Truly, I would have preferred God to crush the opposition in a mighty and forceful way, but where would that leave us in our relationship with God? God does not view death as we do.

Palm Sunday by Jan Norton

We can answer the “why” for Jesus because God has given us the promise. John 10:10: “I have come that they may have life and have it to the full”. With Lazarus’s raising from the dead, He demonstrated that He holds victory over death. By sending His son, He provided the way that we could have life, and ultimately victory over death. That we could spend our eternity in His presence. As we come together to celebrate Jesus, and what his life and death means for us, may we reflect on what his means for us as God’s children. Raise a palm branch to celebrate God’s triumph and victory, which He gives to us! Shout 1,000 Hallelujahs that we serve a God who is our way-maker and promise keeper 1,000 more that we may rest with Him in eternity!

Celebrate God’s Promises!