This week we are celebrating what Christians traditionally know as “Holy Week.” Palm Sunday right until until Resurrection Sunday ( Easter) with all of the tradition and days of remembrance in between.
In the past decade I’ve personally and slowly gravitated away from celebrating the traditional days of this week. I’ve felt deeply to replace being busy with traditional celebration, with a week of deeper reflection. Reflecting on what this week means very practically in my life and journey today and for 2026. But, I do think it’s a wonderful thing that the name, journey and cross of Jesus Christ is being publicly spoken about and commemorated. I’m thankful that we hear the name of Jesus often this week, whether it’s on a national news station or our social media news feed. If we publicly talk about other religions and their celebrations. It’s only fair that we talk about this one as well.
The week being commemorated begins with Jesus returning into Jerusalem riding on a donkey. Jerusalem was a place He was both familiar with and knew was where they would first celebrate Him before putting Him to death. Talk about a drastic turn of events and shift of popularity from one Sunday to the following. Regardless, He willingly went back into Jerusalem though. He knew it was all apart of the plan and had to happen.
The people willingly celebrated Him and hailed Him as their King. Most of them hailed Him because they loved the miracles, the food He multiplied, the power He showed through His public ministry. They waved palm branches and threw their coats at His feet as an act of worship. When He drove past the fanfare He went into the place where most of the religious activity and traditions were taking place. He flipped the tables over in anger of religion visibly becoming a big business inside a consecrated place. This place was supposed to be a place where suffering people could come to pray and find help.
As the week rolled on, so did the outward daggers to His heart. But again, He knew about each one because it was all apart of the plan. A plan that He accepted to fulfill a much greater purpose.
A few days later He had His last dinner on earth with who He felt would be His closest friends and followers. He knew this was His last dinner, they didn’t. These were friends that would all leave Him in the coming days and hours, when He needed them the most. After washing their feet and serving them food. One of His friends finally showed their true colors and the reason he was around in the first place. He left the dinner abruptly to finish conspiring against Jesus to have Him arrested, falsely accused and taken through a trial that wasn’t true. His “friend” had, behind the scenes , received a little extra money to move this process and mock trial along. Betrayal would be a vast understatement because this trial would lead to public execution.
The trial went on into the late hours of the night. Jesus was perfectly innocent yet found guilty. False accusers seemed to come from everywhere while His friends were all no where to be found. Maybe they didn’t want to be so closely associated with someone who the public’s opinion had turned on? Maybe this wasn’t exactly the kind of King they thought they initially wanted? Maybe they liked the power and miracles, not so much the denial of self and narrow path of servanthood? Whatever the reason was, many of the same people who hailed him at the start of the week. We’re shouting “crucify Him” by the end of it.
As He hung on the cross and his lungs filled up with blood in what we would call asi Between His gasps for air He also said a few prayers. He prayed for His friends that were no where to be found. He prayed for the Roman soldiers that had been charged to scourge Him probably beyond recognition. He prayed for the other ‘death row” criminals on the crosses on His right and left. He prayed for the religious hierarchy who had set up the false trial and physically abused Him during it. With some of His famous last words “Father forgive them because they don’t know what they are doing.”
It was all a part of the plan. The bitter with the sweet, the suffering followed by a world changing victory. Jesus knew that His resurrection had to be proceeded by much suffering. The point is, we can rest assured that even though we may not like or understand what’s happening in our lives at the moment. When we look to Him, He will assure our hearts that it’s all a part of a much greater plan. And one day soon we’ll fully understand.
” “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” ( John 16:33)
