We are in the third week of Lent, but Mark’s gospel is already at the beginning of Holy Week with Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. There’s a lot of rich material for us, and here are some questions to consider.
• Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem is one of the events that takes place in all four gospels. It is obviously important to the larger story and gives a good, if incomplete and misunderstood, view of Christ as King. Jesus sends two unnamed disciples to obtain a donkey colt who has never been saddled. Why do you think Jesus wanted a donkey instead of a horse or a chariot? What do you believe this symbolized?
• On the surface, it might feel like the disciples are stealing this animal. Jesus tells them to give the answer, “The Lord needs it and will send it back here immediately” if anyone asks them what they are doing. Do you think Jesus planned this with the owner beforehand? If so, why is this significant?
• One of the greatest conundrums in the gospels is how Sunday’s cheers turned into Friday jeers. What do you make of this? Do you think it was the same people in both stories? Why should this matter to us today?
• There’s a rather disturbing story of Jesus cursing a fig tree in this week’s reading. Does this account bother you? What do you believe Jesus was trying to teach, and what can we learn from this incident?
• We hear about Jesus cleansing the temple and driving out those who were buying, selling, and changing money. This greatly upset the chief priests and the scribes, and they began to look for ways to kill him. What is it about challenging the economy and livelihoods that upset people then and today? What are some tables that need to be overturned in our own culture and lives?
• At the end of the chapter, the leaders question Jesus’ authority again. This push back largely occurs because Jesus is challenging the status quo. What is it about change that elicits these kinds of responses?
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