Tuesday | Matthew 21-28

Scripture spends a rather substantial amount of time on the events of Holy Week. The importance of this week to the believer cannot be expressed enough. It is important for us to understand this and embrace the enormity of Christ’s actions during this time. 

Yesterday, we dived into our own relationship with God and opened our hearts up to a renewing and transforming work by the Holy Spirit. We shall now spend the next four days looking at the actual events of Holy Week as told in the Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Each author was inspired by the Holy Spirit to present the facts of Christ’s life and sacrifice in a unique perspective and emphasis. We shall look at these verses and use this time as a launching pad to deeper mediation on these passages and the condition of our own hearts leading up to Good Friday and Easter.

Matthew 21-28

Matthew spends the majority of his Gospel after Jesus enters into Jerusalem in Chapter 21 (Palm Sunday) telling the parables Jesus shared in the city. These parables and the rest of the Gospel show a plain picture of denial. The people, priests, and even the disciples at times all denied the authority of Jesus. They chose to refuse to see the truth in front of them and embrace the mission Jesus had here on earth. Jesus, in turn, pointed it outright to their faces! Again and again, he told them they were refusing the truth and looking for salvation in the wrong places. Yet, they still refused to listen and continued to deny the authority Jesus had. The authority that gave Him the ability to die on the cross and pay the debt of our sin. 

Do you find yourself denying Christ’s authority? Do you seek out the comfort of hobbies, people, sin, or distractions when you feel anxiety or fear arise? Are you denying the encompassing grace offered to you through God’s sovereignty? Do not waste your time with frivolous idolatry when all you must do is surrender to Jesus. As Jesus says in Matthew 28, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

Spend time today meditating on the Gospel of Matthew. Meditate on the meaning of Christ’s authority and answer the question: Am I denying or embracing His authority in all aspects of my life?