VOICE OF THE TEACHER part 8

Mark 11-12
March 29, 2009
with Adam Waters

What is “Palm Sunday”?
What book of the Bible tells us how to celebrate Palm Sunday?
What is “The Triumphal Entry”?
What book of the Bible tells us how to celebrate it?
In traditional Catholic ceremony, palm branches are waved (why not coats?) and then burned for Ash Wednesday the next year. So do we celebrate it just to have ashes for a ceremony at the beginning of Lent? The EAST and the WESTERN churches even argue if Palm Sunday this year is on April 5th or 12th… so we’ll talk about it in March just for fun
When Jesus entered Jerusalem 2,000 years ago, the crowds new why they thought they should wave branches, lay down their coats and shout to God. They were going to be released from Roman RULE! The Jews didn’t miss that their legends said that the one who bridled a donkey and entered through a certain gate coming from the Mt of Olives would be the Messiah.
BUT DID THEY MISS THE POINT?!? And if they did, why should we celebrate an event in which the Jews were wrong?
What if they missed that he entered on the 10th of NISAN (month) and that was the day that the lambs were chosen for Passover? Don’t miss the point of Jesus’ public entry into Jerusalem. He was not entering as a conqueror… he was a lamb going to the slaughterhouse (Isaiah 53:7).

THE TEACHER’S VOICE – Adventures in missing the point.
Don’t EVER miss the point of passion week. It is about our Father’s and His Son’s tremendous PASSION for the lost of the universe… Their passion to ransom and redeem all of creation unto themselves once again.
If Jesus has truly triumphed over the sin in your life, then there is reason to celebrate. (11:1-11) Also, there are some things that the 77 verses in 11&12 can teach us not to forget.


• Don’t forget to produce fruit! (11:12-14 & 11:20-25)
• Don’t forget why you go to church! (11:15-19 and 12:38-40)
• Don’t forget who’s in charge! (11:26-33)
• Don’t forget it all belongs to Father! (12:13-17 and 41-44)
• Don’t forget HE is alive! (12:18-27)
• Don’t forget to love! (12:28-25)

Don’t miss the point! Mark 12:1-12… God has hired us as farmers of His vineyard…

We must tune our ears to a different station…
• We are challenging you to live like what God has to say actually matters!
• If what he is saying matters, then we need to take seriously our responsibility to love. Our charge to work his fields… to reach out with the message of Jesus to a broken, distracted, confused community that is hurting, oppressed and depressed by their circumstance. There is NO HOPE without the Easter story! There is no future, no reason, no purpose… The Father is with us and His Spirit empowers us to care for the disenfranchised… you are NOT ALONE! Jesus is always with us… his is alive, he is in charge, he doesn’t make mistakes AND he’s left us to work the fields.
• The Point: Jesus came, showed us how to love, died and rose again. NOW, he works in concert with us to accomplish the Father’s will on earth.
• MARK (and the other 3 gospel writers) did not pen their books for any other reason save to teach you about Jesus…