Here He Comes!
On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.
John 12:12-13
I’m so glad the Easter holiday is
around the corner. I have been meaning to establish some traditions at home and
more importantly talk to my son about what this holiday means.
Recently he has
been asking me all these questions about why Jesus hung on the cross? Who put
the thorn on his head and why? Who the Jews are? Why did the soldiers beat
Jesus? And many other questions special thanks to the bible story book which he
is now reading – well not actually reading just looking at the pictures. So
this period when we celebrate the life and death of Jesus just seems like a
perfect time to start a new Easter tradition and explain the whole deal with
the crucifixion of Christ to a busy lil mind.
Just so I was sure of what I was going
to tell my son, I decided to read again the Easter story as told by John in the
book of John chapter 12. One of the lines that stood out was how people
welcomed Jesus to Jerusalem with Palm leaves. I looked up the significance of that
– the palm represents victory, peace and life. And although at the time the
people who welcomed Jesus didn’t realize they did this as prophesy that he was
going to bring peace to man by bridging the gap between man and God which sin
brought. And that this was going to enable them have eternal life if they did
believe in him. The people at the time joyfully welcomed Jesus with Palms
because they saw him as a strong leader that could deliver them from the hands
of the Romans.
But God’s plans are always beyond
the comprehension of men – so their symbolic welcome stirred up more strife for
Jesus among the political leaders at the time and instigated the clever plot
that ultimately cost him his life.
Today when we remember this
day in history, we are grateful for what it symbolizes – the peace with God
which his death brought us, the victory over sin which his blood brought us and
the eternal life we now have in him. Happy Palm Sunday.
Can’t wait to read the Easter
story to my lil boy when he wakes up J
Isaiah 53:5 KJV
ReplyDeleteBut he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. Isaiah 53: 5.... Happy Easter everyone
Thanks Seye for sharing this. Had my own little episode when Damilola who is now six asked on our way to Good Friday service, "If Jesus died over two thousand years ago, why are we still talking about it?" I had the priviledge of trying to explain the importance of remembering the what, how and why of the Easter Story and how it applies to our everyday lives in the plainest way I could think of at a second's notice. May The Lord help us and give us more insights and wisdom as we train up our children to know and serve Him.
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