Tag: Matthew

Christ Came to Call -Mark 2:14-17

And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed him. And it came to pass, that, as Jesus sat at meat in his house, many publicans and sinners sat also together with Jesus and his disciples: for there were many, and they followed him. And when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eat with publicans and sinners, they said unto his disciples, How is it that he eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners? When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.(Mark 2:14-17)
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Many in society mistake the calling of Jesus.  We tend to do to one extreme or the other.  This story is one of those events that people love to use to take their side on “What Would Jesus Do?”. 

There are those who look at this story and use it as a basis to say that Jesus loves everyone.  They would not be in error to say that.  These are also those who would say that Jesus accepts us the way we are.  They would not be in error to say this either. In Matthew Jesus said, “They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.” (Matthew 9:12, emphasis added).  Keep in mind that the purpose of the physician is to make one well, not to leave a person in sickness and death. In addition, I want you to remember what Jesus said to Levi.  He saw Levi at the seat of customs.  He saw Levi in his sin, and going about his life, doing what Levi does.  He say Levi heading to death because of his lifestyle. Then he called Levi and said, “Follow me”.

Jesus’ calling of Levi recorded in Luke 5:27-32 gives us a similar tale.  Jesus saw Levi at the seat of custom.  The seat of custom was a booth that was set up in a particular place where the taxes to Rome could be paid.  It was near the city gate so that those who passed through the gates could easily be levied.  Those who collected the taxes were referred to as publicans.  They were despised by the Jews because they worked for the occupying government of Rome, and they were seen as traitors to their people and thieves. They were rightly seen as oppressors.  Through their efforts the local garrison was funded at the expense of the occupied people.

Levi (also known as Matthew) was one of these Jewish tax collectors who worked for the Roman government.  He was considered ceremonially unclean because of his association to the pagan government.  In addition, no good Jew would be found socializing with such a vile traitorous person.  As a Jew he was also raised up to know God.  However, because of his occupation and the resulting stigma he was not allowed to enter the synagogue. He was an outcast to his own people, and quite possibly to his own family. 

Like all tax collectors he has a reputation for being a thief.  This is because in addition to the taxes collected, the collector could also keep any excess revenue they collected.  This was considered their wages by the occupation forces of the Roman Empire. Tax collectors were heavy handed and were authorized to use force, the threatening of imprisonment, slavery, and in some cases execution for non-payment.  The fact that Levi could host such a great feast to welcome Jesus and to show him off in front of all his friends is evidence that Matthew was good at his job. Levi would have been properly viewed as an extortioner of his own people. The combination of all of these things would mean that the only people that Levi could associate with were people who were like himself, or worse.

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Levi (who would be Matthew), evidently did have a desire somewhere in his heart to know God.  This account does not tell us much about Levi’s secrets, but one thing is that Jesus knew his heart was seeking.  Jesus came into this crowded area that was full of people trying to see him.  Matthew knew that he could not dare to come to see the prophet from Galilee that everyone was talking about.  But he had a desire to speak with him.  But he knew that he was unclean and there was no way that a prophet would speak to him, a sinner beyond redemption. 

But he did speak to him.  Jesus came for Matthew. Jesus looked right at him, and said, “Follow me…”.  Matthew’s response was immediate.  He left what he was doing and followed.  He was excited and joyous that Jesus had chosen to speak to him.  The biggest news maker since John the Baptist was here and wanting to eat at his house.  So, he did what every young hotshot would do.  He had a party.  He invited everyone he could.  He wanted everyone to see his guest.

Jesus and his disciples were now eating and drinking with sinners.  They were with the rejects of proper Jewish society.  These were the dregs who everyone looked upon as unredeemable. Even they themselves has believed that they were just too broken for God to love. What Jesus saw was the same thing that he saw in the Garden of Eden…  Adam was hiding in shame.  He was naked and afraid.  God sought him out, picked him up, and clothed him.  Adam deserved death, but God showed mercy to Adam and delayed the onset of his death.  He even promised him that he would redeem Adam back to himself (God) in Jesus.  This was a mystery that Jesus was beginning to reveal. How the Son of God would become the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Therefore, redeeming Adam and all of his descendants who would believe on Jesus as the Christ.  

In this crowd at Levi’s home was undoubtedly a mixture of Jews and Gentiles.  People from all walks of life, some important, some nobody knew their names.  All were lost and needing to see the light, they all needed redemption. The mystery is finally revealed to us in full in the writings of Paul’s gospel. Paul charges that regarding sin, there is no difference between Jew and Gentile.

Romans 3:9-10 – What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

Romans 3:29 – Is he the God of the Jews only? is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also:

According to this Apostle, there is only one God, he the God of all people.  God created man (Adam), and since all men come from Adam, then God is the God of all men, the only God.

For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men (Titus 2:14)

But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. (Romans 12:15)

There is the mystery, that one man brought sin in the world and it infected everyman since.  In order to kill the infection and heal all of men, then if would take one man.  This man would have to be sinless in order to do the job.  Since no man can be sinless, it would have to be that God would become a man.  Live sinlessly and pay the penalty for sin (death) so that Adam and his children could live with God. This is why Jesus is the only way to God.

Those who are highly religious cannot see the unfolding of the mystery in our daily lives. Our text reveals false piety.  “And when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eat with publicans and sinners, they said unto his disciples, How is it that he eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners?” How quick are we to forget that WE are only here because of the mercies of God?  Sometimes we forget that we could not earn our own way.  We had to have Jesus come to us where we were. He had to call us out of our sinful lusts and evil desires.  He is the one who had to show the light upon our path and gently guided us to the safety of his shelter. He is the physician that healed our souls form the damages of sin.

The Psalmist wrote,

Remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses; for they have been ever of old. Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions: according to thy mercy remember thou me for thy goodness’ sake, O Lord. (Psalm 25:6-7)

O Lord, let us never be so cold hearted to forget the redemption we have at the suffering of your holy servant, and the blood that he has shed for us all.

Jesus told the scoffers, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. It is the sick who need the doctor, not those who are well.  When we see a person who is diseased, do we tell them to turn away and to heal themselves before they can come to the doctor?  Do we tell the blind to make your eyes whole so you can see the physician? No, we do not.  We have urgent care clinics, emergency rooms, ambulances, and medivac aircraft for those who need such urgent care. 

These hypocrites were put in those places and given those offices that they might guide those lost men, women, and children to God, not turn them away.  They were to educate them on who God is, what his requirements were, but also to treat the wounded, anoint the sick, and pray for the dying. 

But back to those who would say, What Would Jesus Do?  Let’s see what he did when he say Levi.  He said, “Follow Me”.  Then he told the Pharisees, I have come to “call… sinners to repentance.”.  Yes, Jesus met Levi in his sin, but, he did not leave Levi where he was.  Jesus called him out of his sin.  He called him to Repent, and to Follow.  He called him to turn away from his old life and his old manner of living, thinking, believing.  He called him to a new life.  He called Matthew to follow his teachings. Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” (Matthew 11:29) He called him to be discipled. Not to just make a confession of faith, but to act on that faith in following him and submitting to his teachings.

Jesus expected Levi to accept the truth of God. He expected Levi to die to his old sinful life.  Paul wrote, “Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry.” (Colossians 3:5) Jesus expected Mattthew to live in the newness of the righteousness of God in him, Jesus. Like a good physician expects his good patient to trust his diagnosis and follow his treatment plan, Jesus expects you to trust in him.  You too can have a good prognosis if you obey the Great Physician, Jesus Christ.   

Let us daily give thanks to Jesus Christ our God that he is our healer.  He is the one who called us out of darkness and death into his eternal light.  Let us no more walk in the bondage of sin that he delivered us out of.  Let our hearts say, Yes Lord, you are truth, you will be done in me as it is in heaven.

The Importance of Baptism

“Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” Acts 2:38 (King James Version)

Baptism, a tradition in our common faith, that a number of us do without full knowledge of how important this act is. Quite often, we are baptized at a young age before we know the importance and the meaning of the act of baptism. Now, that is not necessarily a bad thing, plenty of people in the Bible as we will discuss we simply told be baptized and so they got baptized. Though as you mature in your faith, it becomes important to understand just how import this symbolic act is.

The act of Baptism was so important to God, that Christ Himself got baptized and is one of 8 events that is recorded in each of the gospels (the others being: call of the first disciples, Christ’s entry into Jerusalem, the agony at Gethsemane, Judas’ betrayal of Christ, Peter’s denial of Christ, Christ before Pilot, then the death, burial, and resurrection). You can read the story in John 1:29-34, Luke 3:21-22, Matthew 3:13-17, and Mark 1:1-11. Mark 1:1-8 reads as this:

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God; As it is written in the            prophets, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins. And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey; And preached, saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and   unloose. I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. (KJV)

And Matthew 3:13-17 gives us a better completion of the story:

13 Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all  righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the  Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven,   saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (KJV)

Christ felt it to be so important to be baptized that He led the way with His own example. Then God, the Father said He was well pleased with His Son for the act of righteousness and faithfulness. So, if God almighty humbles Himself to be baptized, that should speak to the level of levity that this act has.

So, what is the big deal??? Well, Paul writes on that subject in Romans 6:4-11:

Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. (KJV)

It is the marking of our new life as believer’s. Used to be the circumcision, but now our mark which also serves as an outward symbol and metaphor for the death, and resurrection of Christ. To show the world that we are no longer who we used to be. That from that day forward we are Christians, followers of Christ renewed by the Spirit of God. The act of being fully submerged is the dying to our former selves as Christ died on the cross to take away our sins, and then the reemergence from the water a parallel to the resurrection of Christ in that a promise was fulfilled and our sins are no more. When we are baptized it is our symbol of dedication and a public testimony that Christ has begun this work of Salvation in us that will be completed on Christ’s return (Phil 1:6).

It marks the beginning of the relationship that you have with God. Like getting a friend request on Facebook or other social media, God has sent the request to everyone. And when you repent and accept Jesus as Lord, and Savior, that is you accepting the friend request. But, what makes a friend special on Facebook? It is the one you tag in everything, and the one that you talk about how proud you are to know them! Think of baptism as your first tagging of God in your life! That is the first moment that you acknowledge and profess Him before all of man! That is what is so important about baptism. What is the point of accepting Christ if you are ashamed of Him? There is no point, baptism is merely the completion of your old life and marks the beginning of your new one.

We can see this in the life of Paul, formerly known as Saul. In Acts 9, we read of Saul’s redemptive encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus, but his new life did not begin until he was baptized by Ananias (Acts 9:10-19). After his baptism Saul became one of the greatest apostles of Christ and went on to author the majority of the New Testament. Another great way to think about it is this: A brother in Christ once told me about this riddle. There are 7 birds on the wire, and all 7 decide to fly away. How many flew away? The answer might surprise you, but the answer is 0. None flew away, all 7 are still sitting on the wire. Just because you decide to do something, does not mean you have actually done it. This is the same with repentance and acceptance of Christ. If you never take the first step of Baptism, then have you truly dedicated your life to God?

In the Great Commission given to us in Mark 16:15-17 we are commanded to go all over the world and preach the gospel and “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned” (Mark 16:16, KJV). We are actually commanded to believe and be baptized! The book of Acts contains another great example, in Acts 8:26-39 we have the story of the Ethiopian Eunuch. Now, eunuch was a man that was devoted to purity of not only himself but of generally a lady he protected or some position that he held. In other words, they were men of righteousness and were beyond reproach. In this story, we can tell he clearly believed the word of God, he just did not quite understand it. Phillip was directed to go and preach to this Eunuch that he might understand the word of God. The eunuch, having it been placed on his heart, was full of conviction and asked Phillip to baptize him then and there on the middle of the road, in the middle of nowhere. That is how important baptism should be to us as believers!

The act of baptism should so important to us that when we confess our belief in Christ that we should straightway seek to act on that belief and be baptized! Even Christ did not begin His ministry until He was baptized! If nothing else is gained out of this, then remember that the Lord, your God, decided it was so important to Him that we should be baptized when we come to Him that He set the example and began His earthly ministry by being baptized. Now, yes Christ had performed miracles and even preached before then, but He did not set out to complete His Father’s work until after being baptized.

All of that to say this, baptism; is it important to your belief? Yes, we are all called to be baptized. If you are still having doubts about this whole Jesus is Lord talk, then I would encourage you to check out the other posts on this site and really read into the Bible for yourself and put to test the things you read in it! God is still in the miracle business, let the next one He works be in the transforming of your life! Repent of your sins, believe in your heart, and confess that Jesus is Lord and follow it up with baptism, and be saved! A future without worry of what comes after death is just a prayer away! If you have questions, please feel free to email us at twocministries@gmail.com . God Bless You, and have a Wonderfully Blessed Day!

Get Back to the Basics

Sitting here watching the rains come down by the gallons, I wondered away in thought.  It is kind of scary how far off our thoughts can get.  Well at least mine.  We have been reading in 1st Corinthians and I wondered.  How could the first century church get to far off from what the gospel was about?  I mean, the Apostle Paul is still alive, and writing to them.  They had Apollos, Cephas, and other spirit filled followers, of the Way, right there with them.  Paul even sent Timothy to follow up with them and make sure that they were following the teachings they had received.

Jesus commanded us, as believers, to “make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to observe ALL I’ve commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19-20)

The word observe has several meanings, but they all come down to follow with the eyes of the mind and stick to correctly, or conform ones actions or practice to.  So another way of putting it could be that Jesus said to teach them to conform to the commandments I gave you.  This is what discipleship is.  With that in mind.  What are the most important commandments of Jesus?

If we took all of his teachings and commandments, and the way he lived his life and put it all together, what would be the result?  What are we to conform our lives to?  Now I’m talking to believers, those who have repented, confessed Jesus as Lord, taken up their cross and are followers of the Way of Christ.

Does anyone remember what kind of house Jesus lived in?  Wasn’t it the biggest one on the block?  Wasn’t his chariot the newest thing out of Rome?  Does anyone recall when he was on the Mount of Olive and he said, those who are rich are welcome in the kingdom and the poor need to wait outside?  Well if you remember all these things you have a very different version of the New Testament then I do.

No he said that the Son of man has not where to lay his head.  He walked almost everywhere he went.  He said it is harder for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven then for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle.  He said if you give to the poor and the hungry and visit the prisoners, then you did so to him.

So what is the command?  Couldn’t he just come out and say it?  I can be pretty thick headed.  Hmmm… Well, thanks to Jesus thinking of me, and how I would need to have my hand held all the way, he did tell us very plainly.

When Jesus was asked, “What is the greatest commandment?”  He not only answered, plainly, but went the extra mile.  “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all our mind.  This is the first commandment.  And the second is like unto it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37-39, KJV)

Once again Jesus reiterated, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35 NIV)  By these two commandment, everything Jesus wanted us to observe is made perfect.

Just to make sure we understood how important these commandments are Jesus tells us in John 14:15, “If you love Me, keep my commandments.”  So… In loving the Lord we keep his commandments to love the Lord your God and to love one another.  But how do we love the Lord?  How do we express the way to love the Lord?  We live in a world where all we are taught is how to love ourselves.

Let us start with something basic.  Most of us being selfish, still know how to show love to our children, a spouse, a sibling, a pet, a close friend, or to parents.  I know, not all at the same time, but we have at least a starting point. You can express love to the Lord in the same way you express love to one of these that you do love.  Now this is only a beginning and meant to get you to find your own ways to express love for the Lord.

  • Give Thanks
  • Do Things For Him
  • Spend Time
  • Shut Up and Listen
  • Give Praise and Brag on Him

Give Thanks

Let’s start with being thankful. Expressing thanks to someone you love just for being there is a great way to show your love.  I love the fact that my wife is there for me, even when she doesn’t realize it, her presence lifts me up.  Sometimes I just reach over and tell her, Thanks for no reason.  When my son cuts the grass for me, I tell him thanks, because he did not have to do that.  When my wife brings me diner, and yes she does bring me diner.  I know in this day and age that is not the norm, so I thank her for it without fail.  She is not my servant, but shows her love for me in this manner. The Lord does things for you all the time, even when you do not know.  Show your love and appreciation by thanking him, as often as you need to. You should thank Him, as soon as you think of it.

Do Things for Him

That brings us to another point.  Do things for the Lord that He enjoys.  I help my wife with cooking, and dishes, and other household chores.  I make her little drawings, I by her flowers for no reason.  So what are some things we can do for the Lord?  Funny you should ask, because he told us in Matthew 25: 34-40,

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”

Spend Time

I love to just sit on the bed, or go for a drive with my wife and just enjoy being with her.  I love sitting on a peer with my son and fishing, or just being in the presence of my family without the phone in my hand, or theirs.  Just spending time with them lets them know they are important to me.  Spend time with the Lord.  Get up early and go to sit by the water and just enjoy His presence, or have a cup of coffee and meditate on His goodness.  Spend time with him and let him know you enjoy the time he has to spend with you.  Enjoy his voice.

Shut Up and Listen

Most of the time I spend with family is sitting in the living room or at the dinner table and they just talk about their day.  Most of the time they talk to fast I can hardly keep up with the conversation, much less add my own thoughts.  I often have to stop them and make them start over so I can understand.  They laugh at me a little sometimes, and sometimes they even repeat what they said, to make sure I know what was went on with them.  But just taking the time to listen, and try to understand is another way I show my love.  I care about what they are trying to say, even if I don’t always understand it the first time.  Spending time with the Lord in Prayer and study is a very good way to not only learn more about God, but to show Him that you love Him enough to try to understand Him.  Remember the Lord says to Seek and you shall find.  Ask and it will be given.  Set a specific time of day just to spend in prayer and study His Word.

Give Praise and Brag on Him

When my wife gives me a pat on the back, or brags about me to others, “Boy Howdy!”  I love it because I know she thinks about me, when I’m not there.  I will honestly tell you my wife is the best cook I have ever known.  I mean, I will lay money on it.  She knows it and so does everyone else.  I love to brag at work and tell everyone the latest culinary masterpiece that she developed in the cooking channel that is our kitchen.

The same way is with my son’s playing of the trumpet, everyone in the stadium knows that he is the best trumpet player in the band, and it they didn’t know before I got there, they do when I have left.  Or that my other son is the hardest working, biggest hearted man I know, who will literally give you the shirt off his back. The gentleness in his heart makes me cry every single time I think about him.

This is the way we should brag and praise the Lord.  Hey! Your God is the one who SAVED you from death.  Y our God is the one who formed you in the womb. our God is He who provides everything you have.  Your God is He who parted the Red Sea, and destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.  He is the creator or all that is see and unseen.  He is coming back to wipe away the heavens and the earth and create a new heavens and earth, and guess what, your gona have a front row seat!  Praise God! Brag in Him. “ I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart;  I will tell of all your marvelous works.” Psalms 9:1

Knowing that someone loves you is euphoric.  We are created in God’s image.  The Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit are one awesome God and deserve our love and our outward expression of love. So rejoice in the Lord and brag about being His beloved.  “For the Lord gives to His beloved even in their sleep.” (Psalms 127:2) Don’t take Him for granted.  Tell others how much He loves you and them.

This is only a short list of ways to love the Lord your God.  I am sure you have already thought of many more.  It is time to move away from the milk of the gospel and onto to cereals of the doctrine of love in Christ Jesus.  There is no division in Christ.  If you are a follower of Jesus there is no Jew, Catholic, or Protestant.  We are one church.  We are all baptized in to one resurrection, and by His love they shall know we are one in Him.

Behold Thy King Cometh!

Palm Sunday: Behold Thy King Cometh!

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem:  behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.” (Zachariah 9:9)

Palm Sunday is also referred to as Passion Sunday. This is the Sunday prior to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Jesus entered into Jerusalem knowing that his mission here on earth was coming to an end and that he would die in Jerusalem.  This event marked the public affirmation by Jesus that He IS the messiah, King of Israel promised in Zachariah.  This occurrence is one of the few stories that appear in all four gospels.

Jesus sent two of his disciples into the city to get a donkey that had never been ridden.  He entered Jerusalem on this colt to purposely fulfill the prophecy of the Old Testament. “All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet,” (Matthew 21:4) Jesus wanted his disciples to understand what he was doing and what it meant.  He was openly declaring himself the promised One of Jehovah.   Jesus wants us all to know, that he did fulfill all of the Law and Prophecy, and to have no doubt that he is the way of Salvation.

Jesus declared through this fulfilling of the prophecy that he is the Way to salvation. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.  If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.” (John 14:6-7).  According to all the accounts, Jesus rode into Jerusalem and a great multitude of people met him, laying palm branches and cloaks on the ground in from of him.  They declared him as the Son of David, the King of Israel.  They cried out Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.  Hosanna is a Greek translation that is a derivative of two words combined, this essentially means, “Save Us Now”.  This was a shout of praise for deliverance.  We could say, “Praise you, Son of David for Deliverance!”  What the people, and even his disciples did not understand was that he came to deliver salvation from sin, not to fight the Romans.

He came humbly riding on a donkey.  Not riding on a horse.  In ancient times when a king entered a city on a donkey it meant he was coming in peace, not as a conqueror.  Even though Jesus had told his disciples in advance that he must go to Jerusalem, and that he must die, and that he would rise again, they did not see the significance of this triumphant entry into Jerusalem.  We can look at this and celebrate, and thank Him for such an open declaration.  He boldly declared that He is the messiah, the salvation of man, the redeemer of creation.

He was born of a virgin. He was from Bethlehem. He was called out of Egypt. He did enter Jerusalem on a Donkey.  He did not hide himself from us.  He did suffer and die.  He did arise from the grave.  He will return again.  He will establish His kingdom in Jerusalem.  Hosanna in the Highest!

References:

 

Zechariah 9:9

Matthew 21:1-11

Mark 11:1-11

Luke 19:28-44

John 14:6-7

John 12:12-19

http://www.gotquestions.org/triumphal-entry.html

http://hermeneutics.stackexchange.com/questions/293/translation-of-hosanna-%E1%BD%A1%CF%83%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%BD%CE%AC