#passion week

[many-sparrows]

When Jesus prayed for the cup to pass before him, I imagine Palm Sunday was echoing in his ears. The cries of "Hosanna-- deliver us!" And the faces of the sick he healed in the temple before driving out the money lenders must surely have been on his mind, with the devotion and bewilderment of his friends as he knelt to wash their feet. He Loved them til the end. He Loved them to the end. LOVE brought him out of the garden and to the cross.

[alwaysrememberjesus]

The Silence Was Watched

Matthew 27:62–66, Luke 23v56

The cross had already broken the earth. The tomb had already sealed the body. The sky had already gone dark. But some weren’t finished.

The next day, the chief priests and Pharisees went to Pilate. They remembered something the disciples seemed to forget. “That deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’” (Matthew 27:63) So they asked for a guard. They wanted the tomb sealed. They feared a fake resurrection. They feared a story that would not die. They feared the one they tried to silence. Pilate agreed. “Take a guard. Go make it as secure as you know how.” (Matthew 27:65)

And so they did. They rolled the stone. They sealed the grave. They stationed soldiers. The religious leaders were working. The Romans were watching. And the world was waiting.

Meanwhile, in quiet obedience, the women who loved Jesus rested. “They went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.” (Luke 23v56)

There was no sound. No preaching. No miracles. Just silence. But even in the silence, God was not still.

This moment was heavy with waiting. Grief was real. Hope was buried. And fear was busy trying to control the outcome. They thought they were guarding a corpse. But they were actually guarding the beginning of a revolution. The tomb was not going to hold what they feared. It was going to release what they never expected.

Jesus had spoken the outcome. He said He would rise. And even His enemies took Him at His word. Do we? Because sometimes we panic in the silence. We start building defenses around what God already said He would finish. We rush to secure what He has promised to resurrect. We forget that silence is not the end. It is the setup.

Where do you feel stuck in the silence? Where are you tempted to seal off what God said He would bring to life. This is the space between promise and fulfillment. It is uncomfortable. It is quiet. But it is not empty. God is still moving. He is still watching. He is still working.

So trust Him in the silence. And believe what even His enemies feared. The grave was never the end. It was the countdown to glory.

[dvoeverie-stitches]

Even before sunrise, or at dawn, on Good Friday people washed in rivers and streams, which were supposed to bring them health and protect them from fever, rash and other diseases.

Brrrrr . . . I can assure you—the water is colder on Good Friday than at Kupala. 🥶

[sodidjoballdays]

William Bouguereau (French, 1825-1905) The Flagellation of Our Lord Jesus Christ (1880)

[bojackson54]

Cleansing the Temple Was a Big Deal. What About Cleansing Our Hearts, Though?

Day Four of the Ten Days that Changed the World: Monday of Passion Week was a day of travel and cleansing, Mark 11:12-18. Jesus and the disciples walked from Bethany to Jerusalem and back. Remember, that’s about an hour’s walk each way, so these guys were in shape! We don’t live in an age of walking, but it gave life a different pace, and certainly provided time to talk, discuss and teach as…

Cleansing the Temple Was a Big Deal. What About Cleansing Our Hearts, Though?

[getting-used-to-different]

palm sunday yes, but also...

"table-flippin'-temple-cleansin' sunday" and "fig tree cursing sunday" are also acceptable

[prodigalsonreturnedhome]

"And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word that the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly." Luke 22,61-62.

[roratecaeli]

Our Lady of Sorrows, pray for us