Scripture: Matthew 21:1-11

Reflection:

Often politics and church are not a good combination! It may surprise you to learn

that today, as Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, is about as political as it gets. A

technical definition of politics is: “the activities associated among individuals or parties hoping to achieve power.” On this day we see Jesus ride into Jerusalem being recognized

as King and with the crowds shouting “Hosanna!” These are very political actions. They

raise questions about who is really in control. Jesus shows us He is in control by

exercising a very different type of power. His is a power of surrender, service, and love—not domination, coercion, or force. This King rides into Jerusalem not on a regal stallion,

but a lowly donkey. This King arrives to set up a new Kingdom based on sacrificial love

not the gathering of earthly power. The week begins with shouts of “Hosanna!” but ends

with shouts of “Crucify!” Jesus raises questions about where true power lies and what

true power looks like. This week spend some time thinking about the difference between God’s Kingdom, and the kingdoms we set up on earth and what it means to live in God’s

Kingdom.

Prayer:

Lord, this week help me to understand what your power looks like compared to the power of this world. Help me to commit to living into your Kingdom rather than my own.

Lord, as tempting as it is to believe that the ways of this world will prevail you remind us

this week that you are the ultimate One in control and that you are more powerful in your

love than even death. Help me to trust and live in the reality that you are in control of all

things. Amen.

Response Questions:

1. When I look around, who do I think is really in control? Why?

2. In what ways is the Kingdom of God different than earthly kingdoms?

3. What is the best parade you remember seeing or being a part of? What made it special? What do you notice about the parade that Jesus is part of today? Where is

the parade of Jesus taking Him? How does Jesus invite us into this parade?

Scripture: Luke 19:45-20:8 and Matthew 21:18-22

Reflection:

In life, we must have faith, believe in what we cannot see, and keep hope in the

truth of God (Heb. 11:1). God is mighty and powerful – but we must have faith. In Matt.

21:18-22, the disciples are amazed at the power of Jesus to wither a fig tree. He used this instance to show the power of God. Then Jesus tells the disciples that with faith, THEY

are capable of doing great things, even move a mountain They just have to believe and

not doubt. Jesus enters the temple courts filled with passion to restore holiness there

(Luke 19:45-48). Yes, Jesus drove out those who were selling in the temple, but he also went to teach the crowd about God. The religious leaders were intimidated by the power

Jesus had over the crowd as he taught- the people “hung on his words” (v28). In their

jealousy, they were trying to discredit Jesus’ authority with the crowd, and Jesus simply

asked a question in reply. In their answer, Jesus held the religious leaders accountable for

their lack of faith. We must have faith in God. Believing in God’s power and trusting that he wants to use US in a mighty way.

Prayer:

Father God, Help me to have faith. To stand strong in what I believe and courage

to stand up to disbelief. Help me in telling others about you. When I worry or make excuses: show me that is my disbelief. When I feel unworthy or incapable: show me that

is my disbelief. When I try to do it all myself: show me that is my disbelief. Give me

strength and courage to trust in you. God, use me to move a mountain! Take my life and

use it for your glory so that others can see your good works and your great love! I want

to hang on your every word so that I too may grow in my knowledge of you and affirm my faith! I ask all of this in your Holy, Powerful, Amazing name, Amen.

Response Questions:

1. Do you believe that God is capable of anything? Are there things in your life that

is stopping God from using you move a mountain? 2. As a family – take turns sharing how you have seen God work in your life (or

someone else’s) in a mighty way.

Scripture: Luke 20:1-40

Reflection:

On our journey through the gospels, we’ve encountered parables that stopped us in

our tracks. Some of the readings have left us asking: “Lord is it I”. The Parable of the

Tenants grips us by bringing us face to face with our trouble giving God his due. The tenants claim everything as their own. They fail to acknowledge the owner’s

goodness in letting them be there. They treat the owner’s representatives and even the

owner’s beloved son shamefully.

It’s an image of how God’s own people reject God’s authority, his prophets, and even his Son. It all gets painfully personal when we see ourselves in the story. We too

have been guilty of claiming full authority of our lives rather than giving God his due;

giving Jesus Lordship over our lives.

This Lenten season, travel the path of repentance; and live the joy of letting Jesus

be Lord of your life.

Prayer:

Lord God, forgive us our sins of pride; rejecting your Lordship while insisting on

our own way. Help us to see the ways we are claiming your place and ways we are

treating you shamefully. Thank you for your grace that is greater than our sin. And thank you for never giving up on us. Amen.

Response Questions:

1. How am I acting like I own the vineyard and not giving God his due?

2. In what ways have I treated Jesus shamefully? 3. What are ways we can base our family interactions on the Lordship of Jesus?

Scripture: Luke 22:1-6; Ephesians 4:25-27

Reflection:

You’re likely going to be surprised when I ask you…Do you remember Flip

Wilson? You’re thinking “he’s not old enough to know who Flip Wilson is!” Well, I am

a man of many surprises AND while I may only know of Wilson’s fame because of reruns and YouTube, he was famous for the line “The devil made me do it!”

Luke 22:3-4 tells us that “Satan entered Judas…and Judas went to the chief priests

and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus.” It would be easy for us to remove

Judas’ responsibility because of Satan’s role in what would become the most infamous act of betrayal in history, but Judas chose to give Satan a way in. Judas was disillusioned

because Jesus wasn’t the leader he expected. Judas knew that Jesus had unbelievable

power and His popularity had grown, but he also likely felt like Jesus wasn’t focusing on

the right things or moving in the right direction. Judas put his own desires and plans

before God’s. He gave the devil a foothold; a place to step in – the “Devil made him do it”. Jesus’ forthcoming death and resurrection were the most important part of God’s plan

all along, but Judas suffered the consequences of allowing Satan in. May we be vigilant

to not allow Satan the opportunity to use our hurt, bitterness, or false expectations to step

into the way of our devotion to Jesus.

Prayer:

Faithful Father, help us to resist the Devil so that we can fully live into Your

perfect will. Allow us to identify areas in our lives that we may be giving Satan a foothold

and, by your Holy Spirit, convict us of our sin so that we may find joy in being forgiven.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Response Questions:

1. Do you think that Judas recognized the bitterness, disillusionment, and frustration

that he felt with Jesus?

2. What are the ways that you guard against giving Satan a foothold? 3. What are some ways that we can help each other to make good decisions that

honor God?

Scripture: Luke 22:7-46

Reflection:

Everyone has a worldview, or a way that they see the world. One way to think

about this is to think about wearing a pair of glasses. We all have our own pair of

“worldview glasses” that affects how we see the world and thus encounter and engage the

world. However, there is a problem... Our worldview glasses are dirty and need to be cleaned so that we may shift from seeing the world from our personal perspective and

learn how to see the world from God’s perspective. As this happens, our glasses become

cleaner and we begin to see the world how God desires us to see the world. One way we

start seeing the world differently is how we see leadership. In Luke 22: 26-27 Jesus tells us, “... the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the

one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is

it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.” We can see

clearly that Jesus came to us to serve us. He offered himself to save us from our sin so

that we may be united with God! As Easter approaches, consider what parts of your glasses need to be cleaned. Specifically, consider how Christ came to serve us and how

that shifts your perspective on leadership and serving. Let us continue to seek out how

God wants us to see the world so that we can more clearly walk alongside Christ in this

world so that we may serve others as Christ came to serve us.

Prayer:

Lord, I confess the lenses of my spiritual glasses are dirty. I ask that you would

clear my vision, so I can see the world, this community, and people with the same

perspective that you have. Help my eyes to be fine-tuned to the moving of your Spirit

around me so I can serve like you did. Amen.

Response Questions:

1. How do you see the world differently because you are a Christian?

2. Does your view of leadership line up with what Jesus lays out here? Do you see

yourself as a servant leader? 3. How has your family served others in the past month? How can your family serve

others in the next month?

Scripture: Luke 22:47-23:48 and John 19:1-37

Reflection:

Recently, I took a hike in unfamiliar territory in search of a waterfall. The journey

was longer than I expected. The path, which started out paved and flat, became steep and

rocky. It started to rain. We came upon a small, picturesque waterfall and I suspected that we had reached our intended destination. But my companions wanted to continue the

journey and so we pressed on. We were about to give up when we heard a thundering

roar. Our journey was harder than I expected, but the destination far exceeded anything I

had imagined. The trail didn’t lead to a waterfall. It led to a panorama of waterfalls! Today, we reach a hard day in our Lenten journey. The first disciples believed that the

death of Jesus was the end. But the cross is not the end of the journey. Press on! The

journey continues. Because with Jesus, “the worst thing is never the last thing!”

Prayer:

Lord, help me to keep going when the journey is hard. When I am tempted to

give up, help me to believe that “the worst thing is never the last thing” and to

trust that you can do more than I can even imagine. Amen.

Response Questions:

1. What has been hard about your Lenten journey this year? 2. Identify an aspect of your life to which you need to apply the truth that with Jesus,

“the worst thing is never the last thing.”

3. Share with a family member or friend a story of when you didn’t give up.

Scripture: Luke 23:50-56 and John 19:38-42

Reflection:

Holy Saturday is often associated with the twenty-third Psalm, because the shadow

of death has come over the valley. Except in this case, it wasn’t just a shadow. Death

really came. The Shepherd was struck down. In all their prayers, beliefs, obeying, and following of Jesus the insufficiency still came. Their hope was crushed. Their manifested

Messiah was laid in a tomb, and all they could do was wait in the Sabbath.

There are seasons of our life when we pray and believe with a faith that can move

mountains, and yet the insufficiency still comes. The ends don’t meet. Hopes are consumed in flames, and we are swallowed up in death.

We find in the story of Lazarus a foreshadowing of the Easter account. Both

accounts show us that sometimes God shows up after the insufficiency. We have the joy

and hindsight of living on this side of Easter, knowing the resurrection has happened. We

get to live in hopeful expectation of God’s power and ability to work in miraculous ways for his glory, even after the insufficiency. If your insufficiency has come, Holy Saturday

is a testament to wait in the Sabbath like the disciples, and know that Easter is coming.

Prayer:

Lord, in my moments of brokenness and emptiness, I know that you are still God, but Lord help me in my unbelief. When the shadow of death comes over the valley of my

life, and the insufficiency still comes, I rest in the Sabbath of the Shepherd knowing that

Easter is coming. Resurrection is coming. New life is coming. I dine at the table in the

midst of my troubles being assured of my hope and faith in your resurrection power to

come. Amen.

Response Questions:

1. When was a significant time that you prayed for something and the insufficiency

still came?

2. Did this damage or strengthen your faith and your walk with Jesus? Explain. 3. For Children: What has been the hardest experience you have faced in your faith?

Parents: What experience have you faced similarly, and where did you find hope?