✝️ The Road to the Cross (Week 2 – 🌿Hosanna in the Highest🌿)
Welcome back to Week 2 of our 🌿Hosanna in the Highest🌿 study!
You did an amazing job walking through Week 1. I pray that last week’s reflections encouraged your heart and helped you draw closer to our Savior. As we continue our journey, we now turn toward The Road to the Cross, where we will witness Jesus’ final days leading up to His death.
This week’s passages will challenge us to deepen our faith, hold fast to His truth, and prepare our hearts for the victory to come!
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Week 2 – The Road to the Cross
In the Gospel of Matthew, we see Jesus moving with purpose toward His ultimate plan to give his life for our salvation. This week, we will reflect on:
- Palm Sunday – Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem as the crowd shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” (Matthew 21:9).
- Jesus Cleansing the Temple – His righteous anger as He cleared out the money changers, declaring, “My house shall be called a house of prayer” (Matthew 21:13).
- The Two Greatest Commandments – Jesus’ powerful summary of the entire law: Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-39).
As Jesus continued teaching, He warned of the dangers ahead and prepared His disciples for what was to come:
- The Warning of False Teachers – A call to be watchful and discerning, as not everyone who claims to follow God speaks truth.
- His Word Being Eternal – “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away” (Matthew 24:35).
- The Final Judgment – A sobering reminder that one day, He will separate the sheep from the goats, rewarding those who followed Him faithfully.
- Jesus Foretelling His Death – His clear revelation to the disciples that He must suffer, die, and rise again.
This Week’s Bible Reading Plan:
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This week’s Reflection & Discussion Questions
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Day 1
This portion of scripture is often called the Triumphal Entry of Jesus, and it fulfills the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9. The people recognized Jesus as the promised Mes- siah, crying out “Hosanna!” Their hearts were full of hope but the same people who shouted Hosanna to Jesus on that day, would shout “Crucify Him!” only 5 days later.
Jesus had come to bring them salvation, but not in a way they expected. This glorious king riding on a donkey did not look very much like a victorious king as He stood before Pilate beaten and bloody. He looked defeated and helpless. How could such a man bring salvation?
How often do we do this in our own prayer life? When a problem arises, we cry out, “Save me, God!” Yet, when God answers those prayers in a way we don’t expect we complain “Don’t save me like that, God!”
Consider today, the crowd spread their cloaks on the road before Jesus as a sign of honor to Him as the King. What do you need to lay down in your life to ful- ly welcome Jesus as your King? Perhaps it’s your fears, doubts, or even your own plans. Write a list below and surrender it all to Him.
Day 2
Immediately following the triumphal entry of Jesus, He went into the temple courts and began to cleanse it. The temple was meant to be a sacred place of worship and prayer, but it had become a marketplace.
The people were buying and selling animals in the outer courts of the temple for the purpose of temple sacrifices. They sold animals like sheep, doves, pigeons and cattle to those who were arriving to celebrate the Passover. Jesus saw the greed of the merchants and He called them a “den of robbers.”
Jesus did not stop after clearing the temple, He then went on to heal the blind and heal the lame. The children who saw this were amazed and cried out in praise “Ho- sanna!”. But we see trouble looming in the distance, as the chief priests and scribes watched it all and were not pleased.
This passage is such a powerful picture of who Jesus is. He came to cleanse, re- store and invite us into true worship.
Has the love of money tempted you away from the Lord in anyway? Is there anything in your life that’s crowding out space for prayer and communion with God? Ask Jesus to cleanse your heart so you can worship Him more fully.
Day 3
Jesus’ death on the cross was a display of his unfailing love for us. He submitted to the Father’s will even when it meant suffering unto death, and He loved us so much that He willingly gave his life to save us from our sins. When we reflect on the cross, we see that both greatest commandments were perfectly fulfilled in Jesus and because of His great love for us, we ought to love him with all of our heart, soul and mind and love others as well.
It’s interesting to note that his command to love others is based on our natural love of self.
I know that there is a lot of talk these days about self-esteem and teaching our kids how to love themselves, but at the end of the day—none of us must teach our children to be selfish. We don’t have to teach them to have desires to be loved, fed, clothed, or happy.
We all have a natural drive to be happy and think of ourselves first. So, this is not a command to stop loving ourselves but rather to love your neighbor AS yourself. This means in the same way that you want to be fed or loved or comforted, seek to feed, love and comfort others.
Jesus’ love for us was sacrificial and selfless. That is the type of love we are to give to others. In what ways do you love God with all your heart, soul, and mind? Is there an area where you need to improve in your love for Him? In what ways can you live out your love for the Lord by loving others this week?
Day 4
Jesus told his disciples that before He comes again, tribulation will grow more severe and the love of many will grow cold. In the midst of this tribulation, people will be seeking for someone to come and save them. Many will fall into deception as false teachers lead them astray.
Jesus told them to be sure that no one leads them astray. He alone is the only way, truth, and life. No man comes to the Father except through Him. (John 14:6) In a world filled with competing voices, we must remain rooted in the Word of God so that we are not deceived.
Many times, without realizing it, we look to people and things to save us from our insecurity, loneliness, or sorrow. We want to be saved from our troubles and trials and so we run to people rather than Jesus. In what ways do you find yourself turning to activities or people to escape your pain rather than God and his word?
Day 5
From Genesis to Revelation, we see God’s redemptive plan unfolding. Jesus’ fulfillment of prophecy proves that God’s word is true and reliable. May we be comforted by the fact that in a world that is ever changing, God’s word does not change. His words are eternal.
Everything we see with our eyes is temporary and will one day fade away, but God’s word will remain forever! Nations will rise and fall, and seasons will change but God’s word will remain. As we study Jesus’ journey to the cross, we see so many prophecies fulfilled. It is amazing. Jesus Himself is the living Word, sent to fulfill the ultimate promise of salvation.
Knowing that God’s word is certain gives us a firm foundation to build our lives upon. His word is truth, and it is an anchor in times of trouble and a light in the dark- ness when we can’t see what’s ahead.
What is one promise from God’s Word that you need to hold onto today? How can you live with an eternal perspective today, knowing that our God will reign forever, and His words will outlast the troubles of this world?
Day 6
As we celebrate Jesus’ first coming, it is good to remember that his second coming is still ahead! And though He came humbly as a baby in the manger at his first com- ing, at his second coming He says He will return as the King of kings, surrounded by heavenly hosts, and all the nations will bow before Him.
Jesus is not only our Savior, but He is the Good Shepherd and He knows his sheep by name. He knows YOU by name. Isn’t that exciting?! The resurrection assures us that the same Jesus who conquered the grave will return in power and glory, and He will return as the righteous Judge and separate the sheep from the goats.
As we wait for that day, we are called to live with eternity in mind, faithfully following Him. John 10:3-4 says that Jesus knows his sheep by name. How does re- membering this truth encourage you to live differently today? Are there any areas in your life where you can grow in obedience to your Shepherd?
Day 7
The Passover was coming, and Jesus began to prepare his disciples for what they were about to experience. He did not speak in parables like he had in the past. In- stead, He plainly told them that in two days He would die.
Jesus was fully aware of what awaited Him. He knew the betrayal, the suffering, and the weight of our sin that He would carry. Yet, He didn’t avoid it. His willingness to lay down His life was part of God’s plan from the beginning.
It’s important to note that this was during the time of the Passover. The Passover was a special time when God’s people celebrated the remembrance of their deliv- erance from death and the slavery in Egypt. They knew Jesus was Messiah and that He had come to save them, but their understanding was that He would rescue them from the power of the Roman Empire. But Jesus came to rescue them from another power—the power of sin.
How does reflecting on Jesus’ plan and willingness to go to the cross make you feel? How does it impact your relationship with Him? Write a prayer of thanksgiv- ing below.
This Week’s Verses of the Day:
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Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
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🙌 I can’t wait to see how God reveals himself personally to each of us, as we prepare our hearts to celebrate Easter and find rest for our souls as we lift our voices in praise—Hosanna in the Highest!
Have a wonderful week in God’s Word – I’ll see you back here on the blog next Monday as we go deeper into God’s Word together!
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Keep walking with the King,
COURTNEY
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