Pam Padgett ... teacher
As Jesus walked on this earth, He did
not seek glory and honor among men. Jesus humbled Himself before the Father, doing the will of
the Father in all His ways. We see strong examples of these things in
Matthew 21.
When Jesus neared Jerusalem, He sent two of his disciples to get an ass and colt for Him to ride on.
Matthew 21:1 And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and
were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two
disciples, 2 Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and
straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them,
and bring them unto me. 3 And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall
say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. 4
All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the
prophet, saying, 5 Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh
unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an
ass. 6 And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, 7 And
brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they
set him thereon.
This did not make Jesus look important. It did not honor the flesh. But
Jesus humbled Himself, fulfilling what had been spoken before in
scripture .... Rejoice
greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold,
thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and
riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. (Zechariah 9:9)
An elaborate procession and plans had not been prepared
by Jesus for His entry into Jerusalem. The multitudes that followed
Jesus put their own garments and branches from trees on the road before
Him as they cried out praises to Jesus and told those who asked who
Jesus is ...
Matthew 21:8 And a very great multitude spread their
garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and
strawed them in the way. 9 And the multitudes that went before, and that
followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he
that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. 10
And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying,
Who is this? 11 And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of
Nazareth of Galilee.
Although Jesus didn't seek glory of this world, He was fervent about
things of God, casting from the temple those who were defiling the
temple by buying and selling in the temple, things which had not been
ordained by God to do ...
Matthew 21:12 And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out
all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of
the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, 13 And said
unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer;
but ye have made it a den of thieves.
Jesus was concerned with things of God, upholding and fulfilling
scripture, rather than seeking glory among man. Jesus taught that if we are to follow Him, we also have to deny ourselves and obey God ...
Luke 9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me,
let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 24 For
whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his
life for my sake, the same shall save it. 25 For what is a man
advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast
away?
We have to deny ourselves ... not seeking after things the flesh desires such
as glory in the world and being important in the sight of others. And we must take up our cross daily ... doing according to the
word of God brought to us by the Holy Spirit according to the will of
God in the matter we're dealing with. We serve God by obeying Him, not by advancing ourselves on this earth.
Our flesh loves to feel important and seeks glory of man. But in order to serve God we have to humble ourselves before God, holding and obeying His word above all else.