March 29, 2026 – Lent - Palm Sunday – Exalting Jesus

Exalting Jesus

Isaiah 50:4-9a - New International Version (NIV)

⁴ The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue,
    to know the word that sustains the weary.
He wakens me morning by morning,
    wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.
⁵ The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears;
    I have not been rebellious,
    I have not turned away.
⁶ I offered my back to those who beat me,
    my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard;
I did not hide my face
    from mocking and spitting.
⁷ Because the Sovereign Lord helps me,
    I will not be disgraced.
Therefore have I set my face like flint,
    and I know I will not be put to shame.
⁸ He who vindicates me is near.
    Who then will bring charges against me?
    Let us face each other!
Who is my accuser?
    Let him confront me!
⁹ It is the Sovereign Lord who helps me.
    Who will condemn me?

What does Isaiah’s “well-instructed tongue” know (verse 4)?

Who opened Isaiah’s ears (verse 5)?

Who did Isaiah offer his back to (verse 6)?

Why will Isaiah “not be disgraced” (verse 7)?

Who is near Isaiah (verse 8)?

In your opinion, “who will condemn” Isaiah (verse 9)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about how to approach Jesus?

 

Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures forever.

² Let Israel say:
    “His love endures forever.”

¹⁹ Open for me the gates of the righteous;
    I will enter and give thanks to the Lord.
²⁰ This is the gate of the Lord
    through which the righteous may enter.
²¹ I will give you thanks, for you answered me;
    you have become my salvation.

²² The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;
²³ the Lord has done this,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes.
²⁴ The Lord has done it this very day;
    let us rejoice today and be glad.

²⁵ Lord, save us!
    Lord, grant us success!

²⁶ Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
    From the house of the Lord we bless you.
²⁷ The Lord is God,
    and he has made his light shine on us.
With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession
    up to the horns of the altar.

²⁸ You are my God, and I will praise you;
    you are my God, and I will exalt you.

²⁹ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures forever.

Why should we “give thanks to the Lord” (verse 1)?

What is Israel to say (verse 2)?

What will happen when the “gates of the righteous” are opened (verse 19)?

Whose gates are the “gates of the righteous” (verses 19 and 20)?

What has the Lord “become” (verse 21)?

Who rejected “the stone” (verse 22)?

Who made it “the cornerstone” (verses 22 and 23)?

How should we respond “today” (verse 24)?

In your opinion, what is the “success” we are asking to be granted (verse 25)?

Who is “blessed” (verse 26)?

What has the Lord made to “shine on us” (verse 27)?

How does the Psalmist identify who he will praise and exalt (verse 28)?

What “endures forever” (verse 29)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about how to approach Jesus?

In your opinion, how is the celebration of God’s enduring love in Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 an encouragement when thinking of Isaiah’s difficulties in Isaiah 50:4-9a?

Matthew 21:1-1 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, ² saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. ³ If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”

⁴ This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:

⁵ “Say to Daughter Zion,
    ‘See, your king comes to you,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
    and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”

⁶ The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. ⁷ They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. ⁸ A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹ The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,

“Hosanna to the Son of David!”

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

¹⁰ When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”

¹¹ The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Where did they come to (verse 1?

What were the two disciples to bring Jesus (verse 2)?

How were the disciples to respond if anyone said anything to them (verse 3)?

What was to be said to “Daughter Zion” (verse 5)?

What did the disciples do (verse 6)?

Why were the cloaks placed on the donkey and the colt (verse 7)?

Who “spread their cloaks on the road” (verse 8)?

Who did the crowds shout was “blessed” (verse 9)?

How did the city of Jerusalem respond (verse 10)?

Who did the crowds say Jesus was (verse 11)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about how to approach Jesus?

In your opinion, what insight into the celebration of Matthew 21:1-11 can be found in Isaiah 50:4-9a?

In your opinion, how is Jesus’s entry into Jerusalem in Matthew 21:1-11 similar to the celebration of Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29?

Philippians 2:9-11 – New International Version (NIV)

⁹ Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
    and gave him the name that is above every name,
¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
¹¹ and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
    to the glory of God the Father.

Where did God exalt Jesus to (verse 9)?

What name did God give Jesus (verse 9)?

Who will bow “at the name of Jesus” (verse 10)?

Whose tongue will “acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord” (verse 11)?

Who will receive glory when the tongues “acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord” (verse 11)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about how to approach Jesus?

In your opinion, how does Philippians 2:9-11 affirm the vindication promised in Isaiah 50:4-9a?

In your opinion, what does Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 teach the Christian believer about how to approach Jesus as He is portrayed in Philippians 2:9-11?

In your opinion, how is the celebration of Matthew 21:1-11 different from the exultation of Philippians 2:9-11?

In your opinion, what do these passages from Isaiah, Psalms, Matthew, and Philippians teach us about the exalting of Jesus?

In your opinion, how does bowing to Jesus today help us be successful in our daily challenges?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)