Dear First Pres,
“Lift up your heads, O you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is he, this King of glory? The LORD Almighty – he is the King of glory” (Psalm 24:7-10)
This Sunday we celebrate Palm Sunday. As we launch into the Holy week, we remember the way that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a small donkey in fulfillment of Zechariah 9:9. It was a different image of the King than we see in Psalm 24. Still, the crowd gave Him a kingly welcome that day: they spread their cloaks and tree branches on the road and they shouted “Hosanna to the Son of David!”
The wonderful thing about Jesus is that He is both the fulfillment of Zechariah 9:9 – the king coming with salvation “gentle and riding on a donkey” – and the fulfillment of Psalm 24 – the king of glory, “strong and mighty.” Psalm 24 reminds us that the long-awaited King, the One we really need to bring His Kingdom here as it is in heaven, is the LORD Himself. Zechariah 9 reminds us that He is a gentle and humble King who brings salvation. Jesus is that King. He is the Lion of Judah and the Lamb of God. He is the One who conquered death by suffering through His own humiliating death. He is the One we remember and celebrate and worship this weekend, and throughout the Holy week.
But Psalm 24 also raises a wonderful question for us.
Will you lift your head? Will you open your doors so that the King of glory may come in?
I’m not sure how this season of Lent has been for you, but I truly encourage you to spend these final days of Lent opening every door and window of your life to let the life of King Jesus shine in every room, in every closet, in every dark corner, and in every hidden compartment.
For me, a key part of that is participating in worship on Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday (7 p.m.) and Resurrection Sunday (normal worship times). I encourage you to do the same.
Blessings,
Jeremy
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