It’s the Monday before Easter; Passover begins on Wednesday, so for both the Christian and the Jew, it is a holy week. Where the Jew celebrates and remembers the great miracles and judgments that occurred to deliver them out of the hands of the Egyptians. For Christians, Easter is also a celebration where we remember the great miracles surrounding the life of Jesus and the great judgment that He bore on himself to redeem all people.
This past Sunday, celebrated as Palm Sunday by many Christian denominations, marks the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. The crowds that would later shout out “crucify him” were the same crowds that were spreading palm fronds in front of Jesus on that Sunday morning. It is no marvel at all that the crowd that day turned so rapidly against Christ; our living generations would do the same thing today and it is demonstrated on nearly a daily basis. Many of the same people who attended church yesterday morning are now, today, acting no different from the lost world around them. I often wonder is this what Jesus meant when he warned, Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men (Matthew 5:13). Although these Christians proclaim the love, blood, and forgiveness of Christ, their very actions inoculate others against that same gospel. Christians are called to be different.
Standing in the shadow of the cross, I ask myself if I am the type of Christian I should be. I am not perfect and have my daily struggles with sin. There are times I do not understand why God would love someone like me, someone who is broken, has not made the wisest of choices, and for so long took the love and grace of God for granted. The good thing is that we have a patient God who does love us and is concerned about us. If we are willing to let Him, He will mold us and shape us in a way that not only will bring out joy in our lives, but refocuses our attentions from the word to Him. He also strengthens us, and through our studying of His word, He teaches us. God does not force our obedience but wants us to be willingly obedient to Him.
