Be Courageous (Luke 14-24) by Warren W. Wiersbe

Author:Warren W. Wiersbe [Wiersbe, Warren W.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Religion, Biblical Commentary, New Testament, Biblical Studies
ISBN: 9781434764997
Publisher: David C. Cook
Published: 1989-03-17T00:00:00+00:00

Sunday—Triumphal entry into Jerusalem

Monday—Cleansing the temple

Tuesday—Controversies with the Jewish leaders

Wednesday—Apparently a day of rest

Thursday—Preparation for Passover

Friday—Trial and crucifixion

Saturday—Jesus rests in the tomb

Sunday—Jesus raised from the dead

Keep in mind that the Jewish day went from sundown to sundown, so that our Thursday evening would be their Friday, the day of Passover.

Preparation (vv. 28–36). The owners of the donkey and the colt were disciples of the Lord and had everything ready for Him. The plan was executed quietly because the Jewish leaders had let it be known that anyone confessing Christ would be excommunicated (John 9:22). The fact that the rulers planned to kill Jesus made it even more important that the owners be protected (John 7:1, 19, 25; 8:37; 11:47–57).

We think of the donkey as a lowly animal, but to the Jew it was a beast fit for a king (1 Kings 1:33, 44). Jesus rode the colt (Luke 19:35) while the mother walked along with it. The fact that the colt had never been ridden and yet submitted to Jesus indicates our Lord’s sovereignty over His creation. The laying of garments on the animals and on the road and the waving and spreading of branches were all part of a traditional Jewish reception for royalty.

Celebration (vv. 37–40). This is the only time that Jesus permitted a public demonstration on His behalf, and He did so for at least two reasons. First, He was fulfilling prophecy and presenting Himself as Israel’s king (Zech. 9:9). How much of this the crowd really understood we cannot tell, even though they responded by quoting their praises from a messianic psalm (Ps. 118:25–26). No doubt many of the Passover pilgrims thought that Jesus would now get rid of the Roman invaders and establish the glorious kingdom.

The second reason for this demonstration was to force the Jewish religious leaders to act. They had hoped to arrest Him after the Passover (Matt. 26:3–5), but God had ordained that His Son be slain on Passover as the “Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29; and see 1 Cor. 5:7). Every previous attempt to arrest Jesus had failed because “his hour was not yet come” (John 7:30; 8:20; and see John 13:1; 17:1). When they saw this great public celebration, the leaders knew that they had to act, and the willing cooperation of Judas solved their problem for them (Matt. 26:14–16).

The theme of the celebration was peace. Dr. Luke opened his gospel with the angel’s announcement of “peace on earth” (Luke 2:14), but now the theme is “peace in heaven.” Because the King was rejected, there could be no peace on earth. Instead, there would be constant bitter conflict between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of evil (Luke 12:49–53). There would be no peace on earth but, thanks to Christ’s work on the cross, there is “peace with God” in heaven (Rom. 5:1; Col. 1:20). The appeal today is, “Be ye reconciled to God” (2 Cor. 5:17–21).

Lamentation (vv. 41–44). While the

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