A few years ago, I worked on an exercise where you ask yourself,

“What would I do if I only had a week left to live?”

You then answer that for a month, a year, five years, and a life.

It was a good exercise.

I learned some things about what I thought was important. For me, it wasn’t a bucket list exercise. It was a caring about others exercise.

In the time since then, I’ve done several of those things.

I started thinking.

How would Jesus answer the question, “What would I do if I only had a week left to live?”

We have the details, of course. We’re moving into Holy Week next week, the week between Palm Sunday and Good Friday. And this is the most documented week of his life.

I thought it would be interesting to see what Jesus did.

And to suggest that if THIS is what Jesus did, perhaps THIS is what Jesus thought was the core of living.

Over the next few days, I’d like to point out several things from the story of the last week of Jesus, drawing on all four of the Gospels. I’ll try to give enough detail to be helpful. But I’d also suggest that reading these sections this week will be helpful. Matthew, starting in chapter 21. Mark starting in chapter 11. Luke starting in chapter 20. And the whole last half of John, starting in chapter 12.

We’ll still hear from Rich Dixon. And these are words I’ve used in chapel. But I think we’ll both benefit from the review, as we think about our choices in the time we have.

Which, as I see regularly, is unpredictable.