Monday in Holy Week

Psalm 51 • Jeremiah 12:1-16 • Philippians 3:1-14 • John 12:9-19

The Pharisees said to one another, “You can see we are getting nowhere; all the world has gone after him!”(John 12:19)

The Pharisees and the chief priests are jealous and want to kill Jesus because everyone is starting to follow him. Raising Lazarus from the dead gained Jesus a big following, and Lazarus was there too.  I think that jealousy is a big factor in this passage because sometimes when you are losing something that someone else is gaining, it can be frustrating. In this passage I think the chief priests’ and Pharisees’ plan to kill Jesus and Lazarus is a little extreme but I could see why they are upset. A way I can relate to this story is I have been jealous about some video games my friends have, but I was also grateful that I get to play the video games with them.

In today’s reading, the people are starting to put their faith in Jesus, welcoming him and Lazarus to Jerusalem. On Palm Sunday we wave our palms around to welcome Jesus just like the crowd of pilgrims about two thousand years ago.

— Will Olson-Litherland