Begin with 2 minutes of silence and stillness before God.

Hey, y’all! Let’s dive into Matthew 21 today. Buckle up, because Jesus’ journey is about to move into hyper speed.

First off, we see Jesus arriving in Jerusalem on a donkey. Bold move, no doubt, but this wasn’t simply Jesus’ preferred method of transportation. It was a fulfillment of prophecy.

People were pumped at his arrival and began to lay their coats and branches on the ground to make a kingly path for him. Just think about how cool that moment must have been. Jesus, riding into Jerusalem with all of the people singing, “Hosanna.”

“The King is here.”

And what was the King’s first order of business? Entering His Father’s house and turning over the tables of the money changers. First the donkey, and now table flipping. Jesus is all about bold moves in this chapter.

But what we see here is just how passionate Jesus is about the way the temple was being used at the time. The temple was supposed to be a place of worship and prayer, Jesus says, but city leaders had corrupted it into a marketplace where people would have to “buy” their way in through sacrifice purchases. Jesus had had enough. No more buying, cajoling, or manipulating in the House of God. After He was finished, things would be different. He was about to make direct access to the Father available to everyone once and for all.

As you can probably imagine, Jesus’ arrival and subsequent WWE-style table flipping in the temple didn’t sit well with everyone in Jerusalem. The religious leaders of the time weren’t as thrilled about Jesus’ presence in “their city,” so they tried to confront him about it. They questioned his authority, and Jesus responds with two scathing parables. His point? There will be some who reject God’s authority, and there are consequences that come with those decisions.

So here’s the question for us today: are we being faithful to the authority of God in our lives, or are we rejecting it? Each day, we have to make that choice. When God calls, what is our response? We know that He is a good Father, so make the choice to follow Him, and see how your life begins to bear fruit.

Reflections:

• Take a look again at Jesus’ instructions to his disciples in verses 2-3. How would you have felt if He had given those instructions to you? Why do you think the disciples obeyed Him?
• As we will see in the story, Jesus didn’t meet the expectations of many who praised Him in chapter 21. He definitely didn’t meet the expectations of the religious leaders. What are some unrealistic expectations we sometimes have of God? What can we do to keep our expectations rooted in the truth of God’s character?
• Prayer: Jesus, as You made Your way into Jerusalem on that day, my prayer today is that You would do the same in my life and my circumstances. Help me welcome You into every part of my life, even the places I would want to hold fast to, like the religious leaders. Shake up the hard places in my heart, as You did in the temple. Help me to praise You continually, singing “Hosanna” in every circumstance of my life. In Your Name, I pray. Amen.

Take 2 minutes to reflect in silence.

Family Application: Matthew 21

Author: Cooper Herrington

Have you ever seen something take place that just wasn’t right? Maybe it was someone being treated unfairly or someone taking something that didn’t belong to them? Usually, when these types of things happen, someone stands up for what is right. In today’s Bible reading Jesus sees something that is not right and He stands up for what is right. The religious people had turned the temple into a place to buy and sell things rather than a place to worship God. Jesus changed that. He threw out the people who had turned the temple into something that it was not meant to be.

Jesus knew what was right and true. Jesus stood up for the truth. How do you know what the truth is? (This is a great chance to listen to where your kids think the truth comes from. Listen to what they say and then remind them that the truth comes from God and from His Word, the Bible.)

Jesus stood up for what was right and true. He didn’t just know what was right, He also did what was right. When you see something that isn’t right happening to someone, be their friend, and love them as Jesus does.

• Prayer: God, thank You for sending Jesus to take a stand against every evil thing in the world. God, thank You for always loving me. God, help me be a friend to the people that need a friend.