And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!”

Mark 11:1-11

And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” Mark 11:9-10

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Mark 11:1-11.  Excerpts from the commentary's fourth (of five) division (vv9-10):

• The title of the third division per the commentary is "Worship the One Who Alone Can Save."   
• The author of my commentary, Danny Akin, marvels at the shouts of those seeing Jesus enter Jerusalem.  He writes in the commentary: "I am fascinated by the shouts of the crowd. Their words could not be truer, but they could not have been more misunderstood by those who were shouting them. Only Jesus knew the full significance of what they were saying. “Hosanna” means literally, “Save, I pray.” It draws from Psalm 118:25-26 (from the Egyptian Hallels; Psalms 113–118) which says, “Lord, save us! Lord, please grant us success! He who comes in the name of the Lord is blessed. From the house of the Lord we bless you.” Passover celebrated the Hebrew people’s deliverance out of Egypt. Now the nation of Israel anticipates a messianic liberation and deliverance from Rome." 
• "'Blessed' draws from Numbers 6:24-27 which says, “May Yahweh bless you and protect you; may Yahweh make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; may Yahweh look with favor on you and give you peace. In this way they will pronounce My name over the Israelites, and I will bless them.” The One who is blessed, or better, who will be the blesser, is (1) He who comes in the name of the Lord, and (2) He who is 'bringing the coming kingdom of David!'"  
• The commentary emphasizes the following text and how Jesus' fulfills prophecy: 2 Samuel 7:12-16, Isaiah 9:1-7, Isaiah 11:1-10, Jeremiah 23:5-8, Ezekiel 34:23-24, Micah 5:2-4.  At the same time, the commentary notes how "prophecy was not being fulfilled in the way they thought, hoped, and believed it would be. They are right. He is their King. But He is not here to purge Israel of foreign domination. No, He is here to purge His people of their sin! They are looking and longing for a temporal, political, and military Savior. He, however, is bringing what only He can bring: a complete and eternal salvation of body and soul! They want and expect a Savior only for Jews, but He is a Savior for the whole world, for any and all who will believe on His Name." 
• We are referred to John 1:12, 3:16, 14:6, Acts 4:12, and 1 Timothy 2:5.

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My Prayer: Jesus, You alone save!  And You saved me while I was still an enemy and hostile to You - I am saved not through anything I have done....thank You Jesus for my salvation.  The greatest gift of all time.  I am not deserving of such a gift.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers!

Mark 3:31-35

And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Mark 3:34

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, I focus on a commentary-assisted review of Mark 3:34, which is the text for the second division for 3:31-35. Excerpts from the commentary for the second division: 

• "The room is overflowing with those who were attracted to Jesus. They loved His miracles and exorcisms. They loved the show and what He could do for them. Remember, the crowds are never viewed in a favorable light in Mark. Crowds do not follow and stay for the long haul. Individuals do, of their own volition and decision. Hence Jesus looked around at those who were seated around Him."
• "People follow Jesus for different reasons and with different agendas. Some reasons are good and others are bad. Some want Him; others want what He can give them and do for them. Some follow for who He is; others follow for what they make Him out to be. They want someone they can fit into their world, wants, plans, priorities, and preconceived notions."
• The commentary then points us to John 2:23-25 where the text is pointed in this respect - we should not follow Jesus because of we want to follow someone who "can fit into [our] world, wants, plans, priorities, and preconceived notions."  No, we should follow Jesus because He alone saves, and provides life to the full now - unshackled from the slavery of sin.  It's not that we stop sinning, it's that Jesus makes us a new creation and we become more like Him every day until we meet Him in Heaven face to face and the sanctification process becomes complete.    

Jesus is not just a good role model - I made this mistake early in my journey with Christ - I thought I should follow Jesus because He was Holy and I could become more like Him.  While this may be true, it is insufficient - we must acknowledge our sin and that Jesus alone saves us from sin.  We must confess with our hearts our sin, seek Jesus to forgive us and for Him to enter our heart and lives, and we must follow His call for our lives (as each of us play a role in the church and Great Commission). Romans 10:10.

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My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God who loves us and who died for us so that we can have forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and abundance of life now - free from the slavery of sin.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of how You save...my sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

...Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

Hebrews 9:28

...Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. Hebrews 9:28

I agree with this post on DesiringGod.com that states that Holy Week is the most important week in all of history. While Holy Week and Easter have passed, I do want to read to completion John Piper's 50-day devotional Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die. Today I read reason #47: To Rescue Us from Final Judgment.  The devotion today reminds believers of what awaits those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of Jesus Christ - eternal damnation and destruction "away from the presence of the Lord."  It is a sobering and frightful reality and one that should animate non-believers to turn to Him and believers to live with the end in mind - as we never know when we will be called home or when Jesus returns for a second time (see Matthew 25:13).  Piper refers us to Hebrews 10:27, 12:28-29, Matthew 3:7, 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9, and Revelation 14:10-11 for text that gives us a glimpse into this sobering reality.  Even for believers, Piper shares that "[u]ntil we feel some measure of dread about God’s future wrath, we will probably not grasp the sweetness with which the early church savored the saving work of Christ in the future" - see 1 Thessalonians 1:10.  Piper continues, writing that "Jesus Christ, and he alone, can save us from the wrath to come. Without him, we will be swept away forever."  Believers are encouraged to take comfort in knowing that Christ will be our shield and for this we should "exult in [this] future grace."  Amen!

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My Prayer:  Father God, thank You for my salvation!  I am not deserving of such a gift - the greatest gift of all time!  My sin is great and it continues...please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin and towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Open your doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars! Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen, for the glorious trees are ruined! Wail, oaks of Bashan, for the thick forest has been felled! The sound of the wail of the shepherds, for their glory is ruined! The sound of the roar of the lions, for the thicket of the Jordan is ruined!

Zechariah 11:1-3

Open your doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars! Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen, for the glorious trees are ruined! Wail, oaks of Bashan, for the thick forest has been felled! The sound of the wail of the shepherds, for their glory is ruined! The sound of the roar of the lions, for the thicket of the Jordan is ruined! Zechariah 11:1-3

I continue my study of the last four books of the OT (complete: Zephaniah, Haggai; to complete: Zechariah, Malachi) - using the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary volume for this book.  For today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Zechariah 11:1-3, which the commentary outlines as the second of four divisions for the text 10:1-11:17 (10:1-12, 11:1-3, 11:4-14, 11:15-17).  The commentary shares how this text offers prophecy of what will occur to Jerusalem when Jesus arrives, as He is rejected by the Jewish elders and leaders.  The commentary shares: "There is strong reason to think that this is prophecy of what happened in AD 70, as the Roman army, under the leadership of General Titus, came into Jerusalem and completely leveled that city. Titus’s armies even tore down the temple, until one stone was not left standing on top of the other."  The problem described by the commentary is that when Jesus arrives and His ministry unfolds, He is rejected for who He is - the cornerstone or promised Messiah.  The Jewish elders and leaders sought an earthly leader and we all know that all earthly leaders are fallen and sinful - only Jesus is the perfect spotless lamb who can shepherd and save us.  We should not place faith in earthly leaders to do what only Jesus can do.  The text describes wailing over the destruction of Jerusalem and today there is much wailing over what exists in our broken sinful world - yet this will always be the case until Jesus returns for His second coming and as described in Revelation 21 when there will be a new Heaven and new earth.

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, Father God, only You save and You are saving a place for me and all believers where we will be united with all our loved ones and brothers and sisters in Christ who believe - what a glorious place this will be!  Thank You Jesus for my salvation.  Of course I am undeserving...my sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.