Luke 19: 29-48

When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, saying, ‘Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, “Why are you untying it?” just say this: “The Lord needs it.” ’ So those who were sent departed and found it as he had told them. As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, ‘Why are you untying the colt?’ They said, ‘The Lord needs it.’ Then they brought it to Jesus; and after throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. As he rode along, people kept spreading their cloaks on the road. As he was now approaching the path down from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the deeds of power that they had seen, saying,
‘Blessed is the king
who comes in the name of the Lord!
Peace in heaven,
and glory in the highest heaven!’
Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, order your disciples to stop.’ He answered, ‘I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.’
As he came near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, ‘If you, even you, had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. Indeed, the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up ramparts around you and surround you, and hem you in on every side. They will crush you to the ground, you and your children within you, and they will not leave within you one stone upon another; because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.’
Then he entered the temple and began to drive out those who were selling things there; and he said, ‘It is written,
“My house shall be a house of prayer”;
but you have made it a den of robbers.’
Every day he was teaching in the temple. The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people kept looking for a way to kill him; but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were spellbound by what they heard.
Luke 19:29-48



Out of all of the activities that I had over Holy Week here in Misiones, Argentina, what stands out most to me is the Bible Study I was a part of in Olas Petri, the Lutheran church in Oberá (where I worship when I don’t have activities in San Martin or Caa-Yari) the Tuesday before Palm Sunday. We read the text of Luke 19:29-48, the text always read during Palm Sunday. Except we read further than I have ever heard the text read in the Presbyterian churches in the U.S.A.
Why did I not remember that after Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem, Jesus cleanses the temple? All of the people were in the streets, shouting Hosanna, asking Jesus to save them. Yet, where were they just a while later when Jesus cleansed the temple? Were the people really ready to do what needed to be done to be saved and to save others? We, the people of God, look to our Messiah to save us, but are we ready to do the actions needed in order for us to have world peace and God’s kingdom on earth? Are we ready to make the necessary changes? Or, would we prefer to point the finger at the one who tells us what actions need to be changed and say, “Crucify him!”? Are we ready to make personal choices that can create peace and justice?
As world citizens and Christians, with all kinds of power, including consumer power, are we ready to make choices that affect the world? Are we ready to make choices and actions that create the world we want to live in?