Zechariah 9:9 "Passion Week." on this week's Word of Grace Devotional with Pastor Joe Marquez.

3/21/2016

The Word of Grace Devotion for the Week of March 24, 2016
Passion Week
Zechariah 9:9- “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
Beloved, the week before Resurrection Sunday is referred to as Passion Week because in that time, Jesus Christ truly revealed His passion for us in the suffering He willingly went through on our behalf.
Beloved, Jesus willingly went to the cross in order to pay for the sins of His people. Passion week begins with the triumphal entry of Jesus Christ on Palm Sunday on the back of a colt as prophesied in Zechariah 9:9, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
Passion Week also contained several memorable events. Jesus cleansed the Temple for the second time, Luke 19:45-46, then disputed with the Pharisees regarding His authority. Jesus gave His Olivet Discourse on the end times and taught many things, including the signs of His second coming. Jesus ate His Last Supper with His disciples in the upper room, Luke 22:7-38, then went to the garden of Gethsemane to pray. It was here that Jesus, having been betrayed by Judas, was arrested and taken to several trials before the chief priests, Pontius Pilate, and Herod, Luke 22:54-23:25.
Following the trials, Jesus was scourged at the hands of the Roman soldiers, then was forced to carry His Cross through the streets of Jerusalem where Jesus was then crucified at Golgotha on the day before the Sabbath, was buried and resurrected Sunday morning.
So, what should our attitude be during Passion Week? Beloved, there is a disease in our world, which has afflicted every human being. This devastating, debilitating and eventually eternally damning disease is sin. We have the cure. His name is Jesus Christ. Instead of keeping the cure to ourselves, during this Passion Week, may we be passionate in our worship of Jesus and in our proclamation of His Gospel!
I pray that you will have a blessed Passion Week. I love you and I will be praying for you!

In Jesus Love,
Pastor Joe

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Senior Pastor
Joe Marquez

Beloved, we are soon to once again celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the human Son of man and the divine Son of God. He is one hundred percent human and one hundred percent God.

While there were many people instrumental in the birth of Christ, this morning we will look at His birth through the eyes of Joseph, His legal father. There is not too much known about the man who would care for Christ as He grew up. We know that Joseph was possibly a carpenter but most importantly we know that he was a righteous man who did the right thing.

When others would have ran away from a responsibility that was not even their own, Joseph stood steadfast and remained faithful to the end. We can learn much from his character and apply his attributes of faithfulness, purity, and perseverance to our own lives.

May you have a Blessed Christmas week and may Christ always be at the center of your lives!

P.S. Come back this evening as we look at the birth of Christ through the Gospel of Luke!