Luke 19:28-48
28 And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, 30 saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’” 32 So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them. 33 And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 And they said, “The Lord has need of it.” 35 And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. 36 And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. 37 As he was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, 38 saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39 And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” 40 He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”
41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 43 For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side 44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
45 And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, 46 saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”
47 And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him, 48 but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.
Reflection
Just before his crucifixion, Jesus powerfully arrives in Jerusalem as God’s chosen King, worthy of praise and honor (Luke 19:36–38). In the presence of such divine greatness, the natural response is worship (v. 38). Yet not everybody responded to Jesus with joyful praise. As we have seen throughout the book of Luke, there is often another, opposite reaction to Jesus: grumbling and resistance (5:17–26; 6:1–11; 7:39; 19:7, 39).
This passage challenges us to evaluate our own response to Christ. Even as followers of Jesus, the same spiritual illness that made the Pharisees oppose God’s work can sometimes be our problem as well. We must constantly pray for God to open our eyes to see him truly and to allow that truth to penetrate our hearts (Ps. 51:1–19; Eph. 3:14–21).
2 Thessalonians 2:1-12
2: Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, 2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. 3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Reflection
Paul’s teaching about Christ’s return is aimed at encouraging the Thessalonians “not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed” about premature rumors of the Lord’s return (2 Thess. 2:2). Therefore, to answer questions about Christ’s return and to allow no one to “deceive [us] in any way,” Paul provides further details about “the day of the Lord,” and the events that will surround it (vv. 2–3). Throughout Paul’s vivid description of the day of the Lord is the clear truth of Christ’s victory and God’s power over Satan’s rebellion and all the difficulties that are to come (vv. 8–12). Christians may have to endure suffering upon the earth, but we will experience glorious relief when Christ victoriously conquers evil and brings a full restoration to the creation forever.
Psalm 59:9-10
9 O my Strength, I will watch for you, for you, O God, are my fortress. 10 My God in his steadfast love will meet me; God will let me look in triumph on my enemies.
We can find comfort in our suffering by remembering that Christ will soon bring victory over sin, Satan, and all the destruction that they have caused. Pray that the promise of Christ’s triumph would provide strength to those you know who are enduring the difficulties of our broken world.