His Last WeekSample

Jesus knew what was waiting for him in Jerusalem was going to hurt. Flogging and crucifixion were as bad as it could get. He didn’t prize comfort, convenience, or even his own life. Jesus predicted his own death three times before he arrived in Jerusalem. He knew the cross was waiting for him. And he came anyway.

As Jesus made his way into the city where he would die, people shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

All the gestures and words that day indicated that the crowd was welcoming Jesus as the Messiah. "Hosanna" is a plea for God’s salvation. What the crowd didn't fully understand that day was that Jesus wasn't coming to Jerusalem as a warrior to defeat Rome and liberate the Jewish people nationally and politically. He came to defeat a much greater enemy. Jesus' suffering on the cross was part of the full and final defeat of God's enemy. His purpose in Jerusalem would have reverberations far beyond his own life—but it would cost him his. Jesus would end the reign of Satan, sin, and death over the earth, but he’d have to go directly into enemy territory to do it. And it was going to hurt.

Jesus was fully committed to his Father's purpose, no matter the cost. He submitted willingly in Jerusalem to suffering because that was what it took. Jesus' purpose was for you to have a way to enter his Father’s Kingdom. He believed the eternal life of the people his Father loved was worth whatever was waiting for him in Jerusalem.

Are your eyes fixed on your Father’s priorities? Do you have a mission that you’d make yourself uncomfortable over? That would be worth a high cost? That you’d give time or money or lose relationships to keep focused on? Some of us back away from pursuing God's purpose for our lives because there's some sort of loss or death involved. But with Jesus, we may take a path through death but it inevitably gives way to life. All loss gets turned into gain by a loving Father.

Today ask yourself what you’re afraid to lose and how it could be in the way of following Christ.