I was peeling an orange…

It was a thin skinned orange, but the skin was tough, so it was hard to peel it in one swoop.  I started thinking about a cooking show I saw once where they were trying to get a certain look to the orange so they cut it into a square to get the peel off.

I thought, “What a waste of a good orange.” 

But it dawned on me today.  It wasn’t a waste…

What did they know they refused to believe?

OK… let’s set the scene.  Jesus is preaching.  The “chief priests and the elders” confront Him and ask, “By what authority do you do these things?”  Now I say “confront” but I truly believe that there were some who really wanted to know.  There were undoubtedly some among who longed for God.  Perhaps they were among the first to here Peter’s Pentecost sermon and believe.

But back to the original discussion... Jesus answers them and says He answer if they will.  Then he asks,“The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men?”

Their response…

The ass and the colt

Jesus is about to enter Jerusalem in what is called “the Triumphant Entry.”  It is the famous scene where He comes riding in on a donkey and people are crying “Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed [is] he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.” Matt 21:9

And Jesus says to His disciples, “… 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.” Matt 21:2

Why and ass and a colt? And what were they saying?