MESSIAH ON A COLT

“Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their clothes on it, and He sat on it" (Mark 11:7 NKJV).

The current hope of Israel was that their Messiah would come regally into Jerusalem as a mighty conqueror mounted on a horse. For Jesus to enter Jerusalem, meekly riding on a lowly donkey, hardly met their expectations. Yet, He was not at this time bringing political liberation to Israel; He was coming with spiritual salvation from sins. The Cross must precede the establishment of the Kingdom on earth.

“They brought the colt to Jesus…and He sat on it” – Here we see the Lord Jesus clearly dramatizing His Messiahship. This was God’s will, prophesied generations before Christ came. God wanted His Son to proclaim His Messiahship so clearly that the people could not mistake what He was doing. God wanted the world to know that He was bringing peace to earth through His Son Jesus Christ

“And He sat upon him” – It was normal for people to ride a donkey, not a colt that has never been ridden before. Yet, the Lord Jesus rode on a colt, not a horse. The horse riding will come later when Christ comes in triumph to rule and reign. Here He comes to die for our sin as a meek and lowly king. Humility comes before honor, the cross before the crown, and the donkey before dignity.

“They brought the colt to Jesus... and He sat upon him” - Amazingly Christ rode on a colt that was unbroken (it had never been ridden before - Mark 11:2). Normally a colt would not allow any person ride on him. But Christ sat on him without any problems. It required a divine miracle for Christ to ride on the colt without the colt rebelling. If God calls you to serve, He will provide the necessary circumstances for you to serve.

(Adapted from Butler Daily Bible Reading)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“A person may be worthy of admiration, but Christ alone is worthy of adoration!”

Anonymous

Word Study

Hōsanna

In Mark 11:9 we read, “Then those who went before and those who followed cried out, saying: Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!" (NKJV).

Hōsanna (ὡσαννά = ho-san-nah') is a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew word hoshia-na. It is made up of two words: “yasha” which means save or deliver and “na” which means now or please. Thus the word means save now.

The Septuagint does not read hōsanna, but uses the Greek word sōson, the imperative form of sōzō which means to save. The expression “hosanna” comes from Psalm 118:26.

When the people cried “Hosanna” to the Lord Jesus as He entered Jerusalem, they were making a messianic proclamation. During the Feast of Tabernacles the celebrants sang the Hallel (Psalms 113 – 118) while they waved palm branches. Children took part in this as soon as they were old enough to wave the branches. This explains why the children later greeted Jesus in the temple with the same shout of messianic recognition. The branches were called ‘hosannas,’ and the last day of the feast was known as the ‘Great Hosanna.’

The word Hōsanna appears six times in the New Testament, all associated with the entrance of Christ into Jerusalem. The messianic expectation of the people was at a peak, and they cried, “Hosanna,” in expectation of the fulfillment of the promises to Israel.

Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus

Old Testament Prophecy – Messiah would ride into Jerusalem on a colt (Zech. 9:9)

New Testament Fulfillment – Matt. 21:4

Did You Know…

Historical celebration of Palm Sunday or Passion Sunday, as the Sunday before Easter can be traced back over 1600 years. Palm Sunday is the last Sunday of Lent, the beginning of Holy Week, and commemorates the triumphant arrival of the Lord Jesus Christ into Jerusalem, days before He was crucified. Palm Sunday is known as such because the faithful will often receive palm fronds which they use to participate in the reenactment of Christ’s arrival in Jerusalem.

Bible Quiz

Who said, “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering?”

**Answer to last week’s trivia: What did the dry bones in Ezekiel’s vision represent? The whole house of Israel (Ezek. 37:11 NKJV).

That’s in the Bible

"Word in season”

“A man has joy by the answer of his mouth, and a word spoken in due season, how good it is” (Prov. 15:23 NKJV).

“Word in season” - The expression “word in season” carries the idea of saying the right thing at the right time. Appropriately spoken words delights not only the hearer but also the one who says them. Timely words (whether of love, encouragement, rebuke, or peacemaking) are beneficial. Rightly used, the tongue can be a great blessing to others

Did You Know – Christian History

Henry Hampton Halley was born April 10, 1874 in Kentucky. He was an American Christian Church minister and religious writer. He was best known as author of Halley’s Bible Handbook, first published in 1924.

Halley graduated from Transylvania University and the College of the Bible in 1895. He was ordained as a pastor in 1898, but had to leave the pulpit for a time because of ill health. During this time, he memorized large portions of Scripture. Eventually, he memorized the central theme of every book of the Bible. Over a period of 10 years Haley spent at least 10,000 hours memorizing scripture, achieving one of the greatest feats of memorization of scripture known to man. He could recite a total of 25 hours of nothing but scripture, including narratives of every book from the longest to the shortest.

One day he was invited to preach at another pastor’s church. He forgot to bring his notes. What should he do? He decided to recite some of the Scripture he had memorized, linking together related passages. The audience loved it. They invited him back to recite more passages. Other churches also invited him. Before reciting a passage, he always gave an explanation of its context.

Halley began his Bible Handbook in 1924, at which point it was only a 16-page pamphlet of introductory material, called ‘Suggestions for Bible Study.’ By his 90th birthday, they amounted to almost a thousand pages! The Handbook was now a published work on sale in bookstores. And it sold well. Its popularity was not only because of its usefulness (it featured maps, outlines of Bible books, archaeological discoveries and much more), but to the honor it accorded to God. Halley emphasized that the Bible is God’s Word. And he recognized Christ Jesus as the heart of that Word. As a consequence, Halley insisted that “every Christian should be a constant and devoted reader of the Bible...”

Halley was presented the Chicago Bible Society’s Gutenberg Award in 1961. Henry Halley died in 1965, and was buried in Lexington, Kentucky. New editions of the Handbook were issued by his family.

A Little Humor

“I have nothing against income tax,” said the man to his friend. “It’s just that every time my ship comes in, the government unloads it.”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“If you live wrong, you can’t die right!”