In Mark 11:1-2, we read about Jesus entry into the city of Jerusalem. It says, “Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples  and said to them, ‘Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it.’”

You can still make this walk today through Bethany. There’s an ancient church in Bethany in which is a door that leads down into an old tomb which is supposed to be the tomb of Lazarus whom Jesus brought back from the dead. From Bethany, you can continue the journey to Bethphage where there stands an old stone that is said to have been set there to commemorate the place where Jesus mounted the donkey. You could then cross over the top of the Mount of Olives and see the view of the city of Jerusalem. As you approach Jerusalem you’ll go by the tombs of the prophets, descend down into the Kidron Valley and then ascend back up into the old city of Jerusalem. Jesus made the journey from Bethphage to Jerusalem on the back of donkey that had never been ridden.

Why did Jesus call for an animal that no one had sat upon? The red heifer was used as a sacrifice for the sins of the people. It was to be chosen from among animals that have never been used for plowing. It was set aside for a sacred purpose. So too was the donkey. It was set aside for a sacred purpose. The red heifer was a type of Christ. It speaks to us of our purification from sin. It was by the ashes of the red heifer that the nation was purified and it’s through the blood of Christ that the believer is purified. The bible teaches us that without the shedding of blood there is no “purification” from sins, no forgiveness. According to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission. Forgiveness is only through the blood of Christ.

Chuck

“For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” Hebrews 9:13-14

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