March Madness
March 24
The game was tight, the atmosphere tense. My husband, who had started upright in his recliner was now positioned like a sliding board as defeat loomed near, causing him to slide lower and lower into his chair. Then the tide turned, a foul was called and the shots made! He was on his feet, nose almost to the TV screen screaming, "Yes, yes! Along with 1,000's of other fans who bounced up and down in their seats watching their teams. March Madness is a sea of emotions!
Watching the variety of emotions in these basketball games drew me to think of the contrast of emotions Jesus experienced that last week of his life.
In John 12:13 we picture this scene: "They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, "Hosanna!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Blessed is the kid of Israel."
Were the same people in the crowd where we read seven chapters later: As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, "Crucify! Crucify!" But Pilate answered, "You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him.
Because of Christ's willingness to shed his blood on the cross, we can live victorious lives! No loss can cripple us. No sorrow steal our joy! All the madness of this world will one day cease and we will see the one who came in the name of the Lord, the one who conquered death, face to face! Amen!
