Devotions: Your King Is Coming
Devotions Mark Groen Devotions Mark Groen

Devotions: Your King Is Coming

Day 1: Prophecy and Expectation

Bible Reading: Zechariah 9:9; John 12:12-16

Devotional:

Today, we reflect on the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy through the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. As you read Zechariah's prophecy, consider how it speaks of a king who brings peace, not war. Then, in John's account, witness how Jesus' entrance on a donkey contrasts sharply with the crowd's expectations of a political liberator. Reflect on areas where your expectations of God might not align with His plans. Are there ways in which you might expect God to act according to your desires rather than submit to His will? Spend time in prayer, asking God to align your heart with His purposes.

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Palm Sunday 2024: Your King Is Coming
Sermon Mark Groen Sermon Mark Groen

Palm Sunday 2024: Your King Is Coming

While parades aren't quite the big deal that they maybe were in the past, parades are still a significant thing, aren't they? They are quite a spectacle. You arrive early, you wait for it to start and you just make conversation with the people. You just happen to be around and there is a sense of anticipation that the parade is about to start. But it's different because it doesn't have the excitement of a tip-off of a basketball game or the kick-off of a football game, for example. Instead of cheering in anticipation or waiting for something like that to start, instead, a parade normally starts with reverence and respect because the flags come and you stand in your quiet as the flag comes by. But then you have that moment where the flag has passed by and you're not sure how long you're supposed to stand in reverence, but, pretty quick, the people around you sit as well, and then the spectacle of sight and sound begins. There's marching bands, there's people throwing out candy, there's politicians making their way around to shake as many hands and kiss as many babies as they possibly can, and then you see old tractors and new tractors, a variety of floats, people waving at you.

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April 10 Sermon: From the Mouths of Infants
Mark Groen Mark Groen

April 10 Sermon: From the Mouths of Infants

There are some people who just know how to make an entrance. Whether it is someone walking into a room or an entertainer stepping on to the stage in a full arena some people can make their presence known. You can likely think of some elaborate entrance or presentation that you have been present for and when it happens an already excited crowd just pops and you know the person they’ve all been waiting for has arrived. The perfect example of this is a sporting event when they are announcing the starting lineups. The crowd has been anticipating the game for hours.

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March 28 Sermon: In the Name of the Lord
Mark Groen Mark Groen

March 28 Sermon: In the Name of the Lord

We are familiar with the idea of a celebrated arrival. We see the celebrations that occur when a sports team with a championship and they are greeted with fanfare as they come back into town. In recent memory our stellar girls softball team has returned to town with the trophy and if you were living under a rock and didn’t know that they had persevered in their final game of the year you would think that the town was on fire or something. People moving around, sirens blaring, and horns honking. It isn’t every day you see high school girls riding around on a fire truck, right?

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March 20 Sermon: Crying Stones
Mark Groen Mark Groen

March 20 Sermon: Crying Stones

What was the mission of Jesus? This is a question that comes to us front and center as we think about Palm Sunday and continue our journey to Easter. In both lessons this morning we see the expectation of a coming king yet we need to ask an important question. Was Jesus the type of king the people were looking for as he entered Jerusalem? That should also prompt a question within ourselves. As we embark towards Good Friday and Easter what are we expecting Jesus to be? What kind of a king are we looking for?

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