Jesus Christ's sacrifice remembering during Holy Week

Christians everywhere are about to enter one of the most Holy times in the entire Christian year. It is a time when we celebrate our Lord Jesus Christ and all that He endured for our sake.

Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter are all connected and many Christians refer to this week before Easter as “Holy Week.”

The Sunday before Easter is Palm Sunday and celebrates Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Jesus rode a donkey into the city, and large crowds of people spread out palm branches on the ground before him as a sign that he was their king.

It is a joyous time, and in the United Methodist Church we still wave our palm branches in celebration of our Lord. Jesus is still our king.

Maundy Thursday is a holy day that gets overlooked a lot in our society. It celebrates Jesus’ role as a suffering servant. On the night he was betrayed, he had a meal with his disciples and taught them the meaning of the bread and wine. He developed communion as we know it.

But that isn’t all he did. He also washed the disciples’ feet to show humility and to demonstrate how to serve others. On Maundy Thursday, Jesus taught us how much He loves us and how we should share that love.

Good Friday represents the crucifixion of Jesus on the cross. It is a solemn service that is a reminder of what our Lord was willing to go through so that we could be forgiven of our sins.

It was a horrible death that no human should ever have to endure, but Jesus loved us enough to endure it. He was our one perfect sacrifice.

On Good Friday, we mourn our Savior’s death and remind ourselves that it is because of our sins that Jesus went through this pain from noon until 3:00 pm.

In the United Methodist Good Friday service, we, like other denominations, quietly reflect upon all these things and pray knowing full well that Jesus’ suffering brought us salvation. Something that we could never do ourselves.

Good Friday is followed by the most important Christian holiday…Easter. I know that Christmas is important, but Easter is the celebration of our Lord Jesus Christ’s resurrection from the dead.

This is the central event in Christianity and reminds Christians everywhere that death can no longer hold us. Jesus has the power and authority to forgive our sins and free us from death.

Easter is the symbol of forgiveness and rebirth through God’s saving grace and still today we know Christ lives. Because of that fact, we also have eternal life.

If you are looking for some place to celebrate this year’s Holy Week, come see us at the Royal City United Methodist.

Good Friday Service is March 25 at 7 p.m. and Easter Service is 9 a.m. on March 27 with an Easter egg hunt following the Easter service.

This Easter can be the beginning of your new life in Christ.