surrounding Mt. Celo Church. Palm Sunday will be observed in
many Christian churches this weekend. Knowing about Jesus and
His resurrection is not the same as knowing Jesus and receiving the
Holy Spirit which assures us of our own resurrection. Don't miss
the resurrection to eternal life--believe on Him!
Tomorrow "Palm Sunday" will be celebrated in Christian churches. Multitudes welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem as they cried, "Hosanna", Hosanna in the highest". They spread their clothes and the branches of trees in His path, and "rolled out the red carpet" for Him. However, in a few short days, many of these same people, no doubt, would be found in another crowd crying, "Crucify Him! Crucify Him!"
God knows us so well. In today's scriptures in Deuteronomy, God cautioned Israel (as well as us) about the danger of forgetting Him and thinking that our blessings are because of our own power and our own hands. (Sound familiar?) He reminded Israel that He led them, He brought water for them, He fed them. In Psalm 37, He also reminds us to commit our way to Him, to trust also in Him, to rest in the Lord, to wait patiently on Him. God does not choose us because of anything we have done or because we are great in any way (Deut. 7:7), "but because the Lord loves you" (verse 8). Verse 6, "For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth".
God loves us so very much--we can never be reminded of this enough! There are many in-depth studies we could do from these passages today. This is just one: One day God "will repay us to (our) face". Are we going to be ready for this face to face encounter with our Creator? "He will not be slack with him who hates Him; He will repay him to his face" (Deut. 7:10). I do not want "payment" for what I have done in this life! I certainly don't want "what I deserve". I need mercy and forgiveness! I have nothing of my own that is sufficient to save my life! And, I need a promise from God now, so that I can live in peace and have hope and know that when I stand before God, Jesus will be there with me acknowledging that He knows me--that the death penalty for my sins has been paid for with His blood!
We cannot count on taking care of this sometime in the future. When we come to understand how much God really loves us--we will not want to wait--even if we knew we would live well into our 90's! "For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land" (Deut. 7:7)! Why would anyone put off being blessed by God? From our study 2 days ago, we have this beautiful description of what God will do for us--now, at present: "They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of Your house, And You give them drink from the river of Your pleasures" (Psalm 36:8)! And from Luke 1:50, "And His mercy is on those who fear Him from generation to generation". We, in this generation, are included in this blessing. It is a choice, and God even urges us to make the best choice: "Choose life" (Deut. 30:19). When we seek God with all our hearts and grow in coming to love Him with all our hearts, we will not find ourselves in the mob crying, "Crucify Him!" Rather, our hearts will consistently recognize Him as King and we can say as Mary did in Luke 1:47, "My spirit (rejoices) in God my Savior"! Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest!
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