Breaking Ground
Who do you consider to be the best leader during your lifetime? Why?
The Dig
This Sunday, we continued our series Jesus the Christ by celebrating Palm Sunday & exploring Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem as King.
Begin by reflecting on the nature of leadership.
What do people tend to look for in a leader? Why do you think that is? What impact does this have on the kinds of leaders we empower & the kingdoms they build with that power?
Next, read John 12:12-19 & Revelation 7:9-10. Here, Jesus arrives in Jerusalem for Passover & the beginning of his final week alive. During his arrival, Jesus intentionally enacts a number of prophetic images from the Hebrew Scriptures concerning God’s Promised King (or Messiah); while mirroring the ancient practice of the Triumphal Entry, through which a victorious king would return home city after a successful conquest. However, Jesus combines these known tropes with a number of unexpected twists.
What stands out to you about Jesus’ arrival? What aspects of it seem strange when it comes to how you’d expect a warrior king to return home & parade through his city? What kind of King does this point to Jesus as being?
In hindsight, how does this arrival foreshadow the rest of Holy Week; as well as Jesus’ unexpected vision of leadership, victory, & real power? HINT: consider the cross & Jesus’ paradoxical teachings on winning by losing, leading through sacrifice, loving the enemy, gaining by giving away, etc.
Close by reading Revelation 7:9-10. In this vision, which mirrors pieces of imagery from Jesus’ triumphal entry, John provides the early Church with a hopeful image of the kind of community that Jesus intended to create through his followers.
How does Jesus’ example of kingship inform the sort of community he hopes to create? Why does such a community require his upside-down vision of leadership, victory, & power?
How can Jesus’ vision of leadership & community inform the way that we live in our world today? What would you need to change in order to better embody it in your own life & community today?
Getting Out of the Hole
In this series, take time each week to reflect upon the story from the story & how you can find yourself within it during this season of your life.
- Read John 12:12-19 & Revelation 7:9-10. First, break this story or teaching down into pieces. What is Jesus doing or saying? How are people responding to him? What changes by the end of the story?
- Next, close your eyes & reflect upon the story. Imagine yourself in it. Put yourself into the space of the various characters & imagine what it would be like to encounter Jesus in the story.
- What images, teachings, or ideas speak to you the most in this story? What intrigues or confuses you? What feelings arose as you thought about being in the story? How can this story impact your life & your relationship with Jesus in this next season?
Additional Resources*
TheBibleProject.com
Simply Jesus by NT Wright
The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning
Coming Up This Week:*
Sunday, April 20th: Join us next Sunday for our Easter Gatherings at 7:00, 9:00, & 11:00AM!* Please see mye3.org for details.