Lessons From Holy Week

Jesus taught us so many lessons during His short ministry; He showed us that we need a Savior because of our sins; He taught us how to love one another, and how to show mercy to others through the mercy He showed. He taught us that in Him is living water, and that He is the Good Shepherd.
During His last week of life, the most holy week of the year, He was still thinking about us, and teaching us, even with a horrible death lurking just over the hill.

Day 1 – Palm Sunday
Matt. 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-44; John 12:12-19
Our Lord rode a donkey into Jerusalem on this day, He didn’t just ride in, He rode in triumphantly; and the people followed Him, spreading their garments and branches a long the way, shouting and crying “Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest” Matthew 21:9 We too can ‘ride’ in triumphantly because of the cross and the work Jesus did there for us! In Christ we have already won, we are victorious! We have been redeemed, saved, and bought with a price; to live our lives any other way than triumphantly and victoriously would be a great tragedy.
Look at how the people responded to Jesus that day, they were excited to see Him, they followed Him and shouted praises to Him; just as we should be doing daily, following Him and praising His holy name; all the time, for everything!

Day 2 – Cleansing of the Temple and Cursing the fig tree
Matt. 21:12-22; Mark 11:15-19; Luke 19:45-48; John 2:13-17
Our Lord went into the temple, drove out those that bought and sold and all the animals, even pouring out their money and overthrowing the tables, and He told them, “Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.” Mark 11:17
Just as Jesus cleansed the temple, we too need to cleanse our ‘temples’ daily; What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? I Corinthians 6:19
Sin makes us so filthy; daily we need to take stock of our lives and get rid of any and all sin we may still be holding on to; “Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me”. Psalm 51:2-3. Jesus said, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect” Matthew 5:48; the Lord knows we will never be perfect while living on this earth, but we should be striving to be perfect, to be like Him. Jesus cursed the fig tree because it wasn’t producing any fruit; in that region, fig trees will produce fruit most of the year, but before they produce fruit they bear leaves, you have to search through the leaves for the fruit, but this tree had no fruit, much like someone who claims to be a Christian, looks like a Christian, acts like a Christian, but isn’t a Christian, they produce no fruit, the Bible says you will know them by their fruit in Matthew 7:16; don’t be a fig tree ‘Christian’.

Day 3 – Teaching in Jerusalem and Mount of Olives
Matt. 21:23-24:51; Mark 11:20-13:37; Luke 20:1-21:36; John 12:20-38
Jesus spent time teaching in parables about heaven, government, the resurrection, the great commandment, signs of the last days, and answering questions.
Did He not command us in Matthew 28:19 and 20 to go….go teach all nations…..teach them to observe all things He has commanded us, and in Acts 1:8, to be a witness to Him in our homes, our neighborhoods, cities, county, state, country, to the world? Are we fulfilling the great commission? Even if you are bound to your home, you are giving opportunities to tell someone about Jesus; we don’t have to go to seminary to be qualified to teach about or tell people about Jesus, the Holy Spirit equips us and tells us what we are to say! Matthew 10:9-10; 19-20.
If you don’t see an opportunity to tell someone about Jesus, ask the Lord to send someone!

Day 4 – Silent
Sometimes, we need to be still, and quiet. Psalm 46:10
It is so easy to let the noise of life drown out that still, small voice of the Lord. Are you taking time in your daily routine to just be quiet and still before the Lord? Pencil in some time now!

Day 5 – Last Supper; prayer at Gethsemane, betrayal and arrest
Matt. 26:17-75; Mark 14:12-72; Luke 22:7-62; John 13:1-38
Jesus took the Passover with His disciples one last time; we have replaced the Passover with the Lord’s Supper, Jesus said, “And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.” I Corinthians 11:24-25
In all that we do Jesus should be at the forefront of it; taking the Last Supper; getting the kids from school; work; everything, Christ should always be our first thought; Jesus prayed to our heavenly Father in the garden; He asked God to remove that cup from Him, but if not, that His will be done; what a beautiful example of prayer; Jesus made His petition, but ultimately prayed His heavenly Father’s will to be done.
Even in His betrayal and arrest, Jesus was calm, and trusted God. What are you calm, and trusting God about today?

Day 6 – Trial, Death, Burial
Matt. 27:1-62; Mark 15:1-7; Luke 22:63-23:56; John 18:28-19:37
Jesus died that we may live. Every day we should be dying to our sins. Jesus said, “And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.” Luke 9:23. 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. Romans 6:4-6
Because we have been buried with Christ by baptism into death, our old man, or old ways are dead and we should no longer live the way we did before coming to Christ.

Day 7 – In a guarded tomb
Matt. 27:62-66; Mark 16:1; Luke 23:56; John 19:40
Because the chief priests and Pharisees were scared that the disciples would come steal the body of Jesus, Pilate allowed them to set guards outside of His tomb. Just as His tomb was guarded, we should be guarding our hearts, and mind, from the things of the world. Keep thy heart with all diligence...Proverbs 4:23. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7.
We can guard our hearts and minds from the things of the world by reading God’s Word, daily prayer and being around others who love and follow Jesus.
The number 7 is the number of completion for the Lord. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. Genesis 2:2
The number eight signifies Resurrection and Regeneration. It is the number of a new beginning. Eight is 7 plus 1 and since it comes just after seven, which itself signifies an end to something, so eight is also associated with the beginning of a new era or that of a new order. In the Bible one can find many examples which bring forth and which associate the number eight with a new beginning.
One such example is of Noah. When the whole earth was covered in floods, it was Noah the eighth person who stepped out and took the responsibility of starting a new era of life, to commence new order of things.
The resurrection of Christ is also one fine example of this. The resurrection of Jesus is the ultimate new beginning. Jesus rose on the first day of the next week from the day he was crucified. Thus again it was Eighth day which was chosen by God. The eighth day marked the beginning of new life. Thus we can see that the number eight in the Bible signifies resurrection and new beginning. Not only this, there have been eight different resurrections in the Bible. Matt 17:3; Rom 5:14; 1 Kings 17:21-22; 2 Kings 32:35; 2 Kings 13:20-21; 2 Kings 2:11; Gen 5:24; Heb 11:5; Mark 5:22-23, 41-42; Luke 7:12-15; John 11:43-44; Acts 3:15; Matt 27:52-53; Ephesians 4:8; Acts 9:36-41; Acts 20:9-12; Rev 1:7; Rev 11:3, 7, 11; Rev 11:5-6; John 5:28-29; John 11:25.

Day 8 – Resurrection Sunday
Matt. 28:1-13; Mark 16:1-14; Luke 24:1-49; John 20:1-23
“And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for He is risen, as He said, Come, see the place where the Lord lay” Matthew 28:5-6 Jesus lives!!! And because He lives, we can too, triumphantly and victoriously!!!! Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: Ephesians 2:5-6
When we receive Christ as our Savior, our old, sinful man dies, 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: Ephesians 6:4-5. We are a new person; with the Holy Spirit living in us, living a new life, in Christ; remember who you are in Him; you are His child, you are not the same person you were before you received Christ as your Savior; you’ve been forgiven, redeemed, bought with a price, made new! Live like it, act like it!!
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. II Corinthians 5:17

Eight things we can learn from Holy week ..
1. live triumphantly and victoriously giving praise and honor to Jesus in everything; keep our temple clean
2. produce fruit
3. tell others about Jesus
4.be still and be quiet
5. remember Jesus, pray the Father's will and trust God in all situations
6. die to your sins
7. guard your heart and mind
8.remember you are bought with a price and live as the new creature you have been made into
We are given 1440 minutes every 24 hours, how are you going to live the next 1440 minutes?


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Jenn