Prepare Room for the King! Palm Sunday 2020

21 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, ² saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. ³ If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
⁴ This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
⁵ “Say to Daughter Zion, “See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”
⁶ The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. ⁷ They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. ⁸ A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹ The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
¹⁰ When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?” ¹¹ The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Matthew 21:1-11

Prepare him room, the Christmas song sings; prepare room for the king, Diana Nkhoma instructs us on this Palm Sunday of 2020. In this time where many of us are separated from each other when we would normally gather in crowds and processions mimicking the gathering in Jerusalem, Diana invites us to recognize that this might be time for us to prepare room for Jesus not in a city but in our own hearts. In this sermon she helps us to identify the different voices in the crowd surrounding Jesus as proceeded through Jerusalem on his way, ultimately, to the cross at the end of the week. Where are WE among those voices, she asks? We must take stock of where we are and how we relate to this Jesus, as the first step along the way to prepare room for the king.

Hosanna, hosanna, hosanna in the highest!

Next Step Questions:

1. Where are you in the crowd that was praising Jesus?
2. How do you need to prepare him room in your heart?
3. What is the invitation that Jesus is giving you as a response to where you are at?