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Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“[Jesus said] ‘Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden; untie it and bring it.’”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, April 5, 2020
by Dr. Kimberly Leetch, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: Jesus is a king unlike any we could imagine.
The people of Israel were in desperate need of a savior— one who would free them from their oppression by Rome. It had been some time since a Jewish king reigned. King Saul was the first, although was quickly replaced by David when Saul lost his mind. Following David, his son, Solomon, and then Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, the kingdom split. Israel and Judah both had a succession of kings. It was a turbulent time for Israel; they were conquered by Assyria, then Babylonia, and then Persia. The Persian king helped Israel reestablish Jerusalem but retained governing control. For a time, a Jewish rebel group, the Maccabees, took control, forcing conversions and reestablishing the Jewish religion. About 60 years before Jesus’ birth, Rome came into power, and allowed Jewish High Priests to act as governing bodies, but still under Roman control. It was into this turbulent, uncertain political landscape that Jesus entered.
Over the three years of Jesus’ ministry, he stirred things up quite a bit. By the time he entered Jerusalem, people believed he could overthrow Rome and restore Israel’s power and independence. The people shouted, “Hosanna!” (“Save, we pray!), encouraging Jesus to rise up and conquer the city. What they didn’t know, and couldn’t know, was that Jesus was a different kind of king. He was a king that would set right, not the earthly reign of Israel, but the universal reign of God over all things. To do so would be messy and ugly, and it would require the ultimate sacrifice—Jesus’ very life. His anointing would not be for earthly reign, but for burial.
Israel now has a prime minister, not a king. Many other developed and developing countries have prime ministers or presidents, dictators, and yes, even several queens and kings. Universally, all people have a supreme ruler, God, who is unlike any on earth. Jesus’ death and resurrection established a new covenant that God would reign over all people, not just Jews. God’s reign would ensure the eternal salvation that is even greater than the earthly salvation Jesus’ followers sought.
God’s reign is ultimate, intimate, universal, and personal. No kingdom will ever defeat the reign of God.
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