THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY AND THE CLEANSING OF THE TEMPLE
MEMORY VERSE
Mark 10:45, ESV
For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
DAY 1
Matthew 21:1-3, NIrV
1 As they all approached Jerusalem, they came to Bethphage. It was on the Mount of Olives. Jesus sent out two disciples. 2 He said to them, “Go to the village ahead of you. As soon as you get there, you will find a donkey tied up. Her colt will be with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them. The owner will send them right away.”
BIBLE STUDY
Being the Son of God made Jesus the most important person who ever lived. A week before he died on the cross, he headed for Jerusalem, his country’s capital city. He sent two disciples ahead to get a ride for him. If I was Jesus, the all-powerful King of the Universe, I would have asked for the biggest and fastest horse. That way, everyone could see how great and powerful I was. But Jesus chose to ride on a colt, a baby donkey! This gives us a hint about his mission. Jesus wasn’t marching into Jerusalem to lead an army into battle. Instead of killing his enemies, he was on his way to be killed!
What city was Jesus going to? (vs. 1)
When the disciples took the colt, what were they to say to its owner? (vs. 3)
DAY 2
Matthew 21:4-5, NIrV
4 This took place so that what was spoken through the prophet would come true. It says,
5 “Say to the city of Zion,
‘See, your king comes to you.
He is gentle and riding on a donkey.
He is riding on a donkey’s colt.’ ” (Zechariah 9:9)
BIBLE STUDY
Genesis, the first book of the Bible, tells the sad story of the first sin. On that day, God promised to one day send a man to battle sin. God’s people had many special names for this God-sent savior: Messiah, Christ, Son of Man. Through the years, God spoke to men called prophets. He gave them messages to speak to his people. Sometimes, these messages had clues about the promised Messiah. One of those prophets, Zechariah, lived 500 years before Jesus. He said the Messiah would ride into Jerusalem on a donkey. When Jesus did exactly that, it was a big clue that he was the Messiah!
+ Turn to the Old Testament book of Zechariah, which was written about 500 years before Jesus came. Read Zechariah 9:9. What things did he say would happen?
DAY 3
Matthew 21:6-11, NIrV
6 The disciples went and did what Jesus told them to do. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt. They placed their coats on them for Jesus to sit on. 8 A very large crowd spread their coats on the road. Others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 Some of the people went ahead of him, and some followed. They all shouted,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Psalm 118:26)
“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up. The people asked, “Who is this?”
11 The crowds answered, “This is Jesus. He is the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”
BIBLE STUDY
When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, the people gave him a welcoming celebration fit for a king! They laid their coats on the road and waved tree branches. These were things they did for heroes returning after winning a big battle. They shouted, “Hosanna,” which means “save us!” They called him “Son of David”, a special name for the Messiah, the long-awaited savior. All through the city of Jerusalem, Jesus’ coming was big news. “Who is this guy?” they asked. “Is he the Messiah we’ve been waiting for? Has he come to finally defeat our Roman enemies and set up God’s kingdom?”
+ What two things did the crowd do to treat Jesus as a king? (vs. 8)
+ What does the word “Hosanna” mean?
DAY 4
Matthew 21:12-13, NIRV
12 Jesus entered the temple courtyard. He began to drive out all those who were buying and selling there. He turned over the tables of the people who were exchanging money. He also turned over the benches of those who were selling doves. 13 He said to them, “It is written that the Lord said, ‘My house will be called a house where people can pray.’ (Isaiah 56:7) But you are making it ‘a den for robbers.’ ” (Jeremiah 7:11)
BIBLE STUDY
There was no building in Jerusalem more special than the temple. It was the place where God met with his people. Each day, priests burned the meat of animals outside. This was a sacrifice for the sins of the people. Nearby, people sold animals to be used for these sacrifices. Jesus called these sellers “robbers.” Why? Because they made big bucks charging way too much money for their animals! The temple was supposed to be a place for visitors to pray, not for sellers to rake in piles of money. And boy, did this make Jesus mad! He knocked over their tables and chased them far from the temple!
+ What did Jesus do to the sellers’ benches and tables of animals? (vs. 12)
+ What did Jesus say the sellers had done to God’s house, the temple? (vs. 13)
DAY 5
Matthew 21:14-17, NIRV
14 Blind people and those who were disabled came to Jesus at the temple. There he healed them. 15 The chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did. They also saw the children in the temple courtyard shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” But when they saw all this, they became angry.
16 “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.
“Yes,” replied Jesus. “Haven’t you ever read about it in Scripture? It says,
“ ‘Lord, you have made sure that children and infants
praise you.’ ” (Psalm 8:2)
17 Then Jesus left the people and went out of the city to Bethany. He spent the night there.
BIBLE STUDY
By fixing blind eyes and lame legs, Jesus showed the people he was no ordinary man. After seeing such a sight, the people cheered, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” That meant, “Save us, Messiah!” But the cheers of the crowd upset the Pharisees. “How can these people possibly think Jesus is the Messiah?” To answer the Pharisees’ unspoken question, Jesus spoke words from Psalm 8, an old song about children praising God for his mighty miracles. Jesus wanted the grumbling Pharisees to know, “I’m God’s Son. Praising my miracles is exactly what they are supposed to do!”
+ Why was Jesus able to heal people who couldn’t see or walk?
+ Why were the Pharisees and religious leaders upset? (vs. 15-16)
DAY 6
Matthew 27:37-44, NIRV
37 Above his head they placed the written charge against him. It read,
This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.
38 Two rebels against Rome were crucified with him. One was on his right and one was on his left. 39 Those who passed by shouted at Jesus and made fun of him. They shook their heads 40 and said, “So you are going to destroy the temple and build it again in three days? Then save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” 41 In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders made fun of him. 42 “He saved others,” they said. “But he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross! Then we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him. He’s the one who said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ” 44 In the same way the rebels who were being crucified with Jesus also made fun of him.
BIBLE STUDY
All this week, we’ve read about Jesus entering Jerusalem on a donkey to the wild cheers of a crowd. People who study the Bible have a special name for this story: the Triumphal Entry. The word “triumph” means to win a great victory. People call this story the “Triumphal Entry” because the crowd treated Jesus like a conquering king coming home after winning a huge battle.
Many of the people in that crowd cheering for Jesus actually thought he’d come to fight. His country, Israel, had been controlled by the powerful Roman Empire for many years. These Israelites thought the Messiah, God’s promised savior, would defeat their Roman enemies. They believed the Messiah would rule on earth as a king after crushing the Roman army in battle!
The verses we looked at today describe what happened less than a week after Jesus’ “triumphal entry” into Jerusalem. The cheering crowds with waving branches were long gone. In the days that followed, Jesus was betrayed by one of his friends, beaten senseless by Roman soldiers, and nailed to a wooden cross.
One week earlier, a crowd had cheered, “Hosanna!” which mean “Save us!” But now, as Jesus hung dying on the cross, another crowd made fun of him They asked, “How can this guy possibly be the Son of God – he can’t even save himself!”
If you were one of the people who thought Jesus came to defeat the Romans, it was time to face the facts: Jesus had lost and the Romans had won. How in the world could someone who died in such a shameful way possibly be God’s promised Messiah?
But if you thought those things, you’d be wrong: very, very wrong! Jesus never said a single word about coming to defeat the Romans. Not once did he mention anything about leading soldiers to victory in battle. In fact, he didn’t even own a sword!
If he hadn't come to defeat the Romans, then why had Jesus come? Actually, he was pretty clear about that. One day, when his disciples were arguing about being in charge when Jesus set up his kingdom, Jesus told them, “I didn’t come to be served. I came to serve others, to give my life to pay the price for their sins.”
Jesus didn’t enter Jerusalem to battle the Romans; he came to battle our sin! And to win this battle, he had to die. Why? Because the punishment for sin is death. To the crowd, when Jesus died, it looked like he had lost his battle. But you and I know better than that. Dying is exactly what Jesus had to do to win. And we don't have to wonder if Jesus won his battle against sin. He proved he totally whipped sin and death by raising himself from the dead on the third day!
+ Who did the people think that Jesus had come to defeat?
+ How did the people mock and make fun of Jesus? (vs. 41-42)
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