An 8-Day Guide to Understanding the Power and Significance of Holy Week Welcome
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Holy Week AN 8-DAY GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING THE POWER AND SIGNIFICANCE OF HOLY WEEK WELCOME This guide will lead you through a daily experience with King Jesus as you walk alongside of him on his journey into Jerusalem to his divine destiny on a cross and his defeat of Satan, sin and death through his resurrection. This last week in Jesus’ life was the escalation of the meta-narrative of God’s Word. It is through Jesus that Yahweh is restoring Eden and creating family. All the Law, Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms pointed to this defining moment in the Messiah, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. (Luke 24:44, John 1:29) God has prescribed patterns for us to follow through the Jewish feasts and Kingdom calendar. There is power in these patterns. The Jewish feast of Passover, Unleavened Bread and Firstfruits are the pattern for Holy week. Jesus was crucified on the eve of Passover and he was resurrected on Firstfruits. As you enter into the patterns of holy week, our prayer is that you will encounter King Jesus in fresh, miraculous, powerful ways. BACKGROUND: Palm Jewish people are pouring into Jerusalem for the annual observance of Passover. It is a Sunday time of remembrance of God’s liberation of his people from the slavery of Egypt. In the DAY ONE Exodus event a perfect lamb without blemish or defect was selected and sacrificed (Ex- Now when they drew near to Jerusalem odus 12:5). The blood of the and came to Bethphage, to the Mount lamb was applied to the door- of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, frames of the houses so that 2 saying to them, “Go into the village in the angel of death would pass front of you, and immediately you will over the home. The judgment find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. of God fell upon all homes Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If without the blood of the lamb. anyone says anything to you, you shall Centuries later the selection say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will of a perfect lamb remained send them at once.” 4 This took place to at the center of the ongoing fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, Passover celebration of the saying, 5 “Say to the daughter of Zi- people of God. on,‘Behold, your king is coming to you, As travelers from all over Isra- humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a el trekked to the city to make colt,[a] the foal of a beast of burden.’” preparation for Passover, 6 The disciples went and did as Jesus Jesus triumphantly enters had directed them. 7 They brought the into Jerusalem on the Sunday donkey and the colt and put on them known as Palm Sunday. This their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8 Most is the first day of the holy of the crowd spread their cloaks on the week. Up until this moment road, and others cut branches from the Jesus had encouraged his trees and spread them on the road. 9 followers to keep his messian- And the crowds that went before him ic identity a secret (Matthew and that followed him were shouting, 16:20). Jesus knew it was time “Hosanna to the Son of David! Bless- to let the whole world know, ed is he who comes in the name of the especially Jerusalem, that Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 10 And their long-awaited Messiah when he entered Jerusalem, the whole was here. Jesus didn’t sneak city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” quietly into Jerusalem, but he 11 And the crowds said, “This is the didn’t arrive in the usual way prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Gali- a king would enter a city. A lee.” (ESV) conquering king would come riding in on a horse. Matthew 21:1-11 Jesus rode into the city on donkey fulfilling the prophecy of Zechari- “But thanks be to God who ah 9:9 that their king would come “gentle and riding on a donkey.” always leads us in His triumph Riding in on a donkey was a sym- in Christ.” Where in your life do bol of peace. People were stream- you need to see God triumph? ing into Jerusalem from Galilee to Believe God for victory in this celebrate Passover and area of your life. were singing the pilgrim Psalms, Psalms 113-118. They were shout- PRAYER ing and singing the Hebrew term “hoshiya na” which in English is Jesus, we worship you as the translated “hosanna.” They were perfect lamb of God that was slain singing and shouting “save now” so that our sins could be forgiven. from Psalm 118:25-26. The crowds Worthy is the lamb that was slain. laying down clothes was rem- We praise you. Because you won iniscent of how king Jehu was the victory, we can received in 2 Kings 9:13. In a scene walk in victory rich in symbolism, the Messiah, every day. the son of David, enters Jerusalem to bring salvation to his people. Jesus is the king of Israel, and the kingdom he is inaugurating will bring peace to all the nations and spread from sea to sea. The book of Revelation pictures the final fulfillment of Palm Sunday in the age to come like this: I looked and behold, a great multitude which no man could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, an crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb!” (Revelation 7:9, 10) REFLECTION Praise God for the triumph of the cross! Jesus defeated Satan, sin and death on the cross. Because of the cross, we can walk in victo- ry. 2 Corinthians 2:14 reminds us, Holy Monday DAY TWO On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. 13 And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14 And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it. 15 And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 16 And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. 17 And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” 18 And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. 19 And when evening came they went out of the city. Mark 11:12-19 BACKGROUND: in the temple. He confronts their sin by bringing to their remem- On the Monday of holy week, the brance Jeremiah 7:11 and Isaiah following events occur: 56:7 that the temple is to be a place of prayer. Jesus claims -Jesus curses the fig tree on the authority over the temple and the way to Jerusalem from Bethany Sadducees are threatened. -Jesus weeps over Jerusalem REFLECTION: Thank God for the fact that He -Jesus cleanses the temple doesn’t dwell in a temple any more. He dwells in you. You are Jesus had frequent conflicts with the temple of the Holy Spirit. He the Pharisees but the wealthy, wants to reign and rule in your aristocratic Sadducees who con- life. Just as Jesus had to cleanse trolled the temple did not view the temple, so we have to do this rural religious figure as a some house cleaning in our lives threat that merited much of their so that God can reign and rule in attention. However, this changed us. Is there anything in your heart dramatically when Jesus impacted that needs to be cleaned out or their business by cleansing the kicked out so that God can have temple. He directly attacked their first place? Anything that blocks business shutting it down and the reign and rule of God in our claiming the temple for God. lives, must go! There was an outer court of the temple specifically for Gentiles PRAYER that surrounded the inner sacred Holy Spirit, have your way in my courts of the temple. Many Jews life. I step off the throne and invite from all over Israel and the world you to take your rightful place on made pilgrimages to Jerusalem the throne of my heart. If there is to offer sacrifices and pay their anything blocking my relationship with you, reveal it to me and I will temple taxes. (Exodus 30:12-16) These pilgrims would need to purchase repent. animals for sacrifice and exchange their Roman or Greek forms of money for the accepted Jewish currency for the temple tax. The outer court of the Gentiles had become a market where exorbi- tant fees were being charged for purchasing animals and currency exchange. Jesus escalates the conflict with the religious leaders by directly challenging the abuses and abom- ination taking place Holy Tuesday DAY THREE O And when he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came up to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” 24 Jesus answered them, “I also will ask you one question, and if you tell me the answer, then I also will tell you by what authority I do these things.