"Blessed are those whose strength is in You, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs." (Psalm 84:5,6)
We call it the Triumphal Entry or Palm Sunday. It's the Sunday prior to Easter when we remember Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey in fulfillment of prophecy. The city was crowded with tens of thousands of Jews celebrating this week of Passover. As He rode into the city people took palm branches and went to meet Him, shouting, "Hosanna!" "Blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Blessed is the King of Israel!"
Much would happen in the next few days. He would teach each day at the Temple as the chief priests and leaders sought ways to kill Him. He would share a final Passover meal with His beloved disciples. He would be arrested and tried in the dark hours of the night, betrayed and abandoned by His closest friends, and led out to be crucified on a tree.
The passage above from Psalm 84 speaks of those whose hearts are set on pilgrimage. They will pass through the Valley of Baca and make it a place of springs. "Baca" means weeping. This is a valley of tears, a place where there is no oasis or comfort. I'm reminded as I read of Jesus' last week that He too, in a sense, had to pass through a Valley of Weeping. It's called the Kidron Valley.
Historical records from Jesus' day indicate there may have been as many as 250,000 lambs sacrificed during Passover. The blood from those lambs along with the water used for ritual purification drained from the Temple altar into the Kidron Valley. The gospel writer John says: "When He had finished praying, Jesus left with His disciples and crossed the Kidron Valley." (John 18:1) This would be His final journey with His disciples across the Valley to the Garden of Gethsemane. They had eaten the Passover lamb together. In a few short hours, Jesus would become the Passover Lamb. I wonder as He walked through this Valley of Weeping, dark and crimson from so many sacrificed lambs, did the hem of His own garment become stained with the blood?
Let's go back to that Palm Sunday when He came riding on a donkey to choruses of praise. It was symbolic in those days for a king who came in peace to ride into a city on a donkey; if he came as a conqueror, he would ride a horse. What was going through Jesus' mind that Sunday as He entered the Holy City?
When He came on a donkey...
was He looking ahead to one day coming on a horse?
When He received praise from the Nation of Israel...
was He looking ahead to receiving praise from every Nation?
The Book of Revelation talks about that day. I am reminded when I think of Jesus riding on a donkey that there will come another day when He will ride a horse:
"I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True...His eyes are like blazing fire and on His head are many crowns...He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood..." (Rev. 19)
A robe dipped in blood. A Lamb Slain. A Savior crucified for my sins. Because He set His heart on pilgrimage to walk through the Valley of Baca - the Valley of Weeping where there is no oasis or comfort - He has made it a place of springs, a place that gives life. It starts at the Cross. Oh that I too might have a heart set on pilgrimage.
The passage above from Psalm 84 speaks of those whose hearts are set on pilgrimage. They will pass through the Valley of Baca and make it a place of springs. "Baca" means weeping. This is a valley of tears, a place where there is no oasis or comfort. I'm reminded as I read of Jesus' last week that He too, in a sense, had to pass through a Valley of Weeping. It's called the Kidron Valley.
Historical records from Jesus' day indicate there may have been as many as 250,000 lambs sacrificed during Passover. The blood from those lambs along with the water used for ritual purification drained from the Temple altar into the Kidron Valley. The gospel writer John says: "When He had finished praying, Jesus left with His disciples and crossed the Kidron Valley." (John 18:1) This would be His final journey with His disciples across the Valley to the Garden of Gethsemane. They had eaten the Passover lamb together. In a few short hours, Jesus would become the Passover Lamb. I wonder as He walked through this Valley of Weeping, dark and crimson from so many sacrificed lambs, did the hem of His own garment become stained with the blood?
Let's go back to that Palm Sunday when He came riding on a donkey to choruses of praise. It was symbolic in those days for a king who came in peace to ride into a city on a donkey; if he came as a conqueror, he would ride a horse. What was going through Jesus' mind that Sunday as He entered the Holy City?
When He came on a donkey...
was He looking ahead to one day coming on a horse?
When He received praise from the Nation of Israel...
was He looking ahead to receiving praise from every Nation?
The Book of Revelation talks about that day. I am reminded when I think of Jesus riding on a donkey that there will come another day when He will ride a horse:
"I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True...His eyes are like blazing fire and on His head are many crowns...He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood..." (Rev. 19)
A robe dipped in blood. A Lamb Slain. A Savior crucified for my sins. Because He set His heart on pilgrimage to walk through the Valley of Baca - the Valley of Weeping where there is no oasis or comfort - He has made it a place of springs, a place that gives life. It starts at the Cross. Oh that I too might have a heart set on pilgrimage.
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