Lent: Palm Sunday
“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” – Luke 19:38, NIV
Palm Sunday signifies the beginning of Holy Week, which we know as the week leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Holy Week began with a triumphant entry into Jerusalem. At the time of Jesus’s arrival in Jerusalem, there had been political and religious upheaval between the Romans and the Jewish people. For many years, a Messiah had been prophesied. As Isaiah 9:6 says: “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulders: and his name shall be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
The Jewish people believed the Messiah to be a political figure who would come to establish His Kingdom and save His people from their enemies. However, Jesus did not come as they expected. Almighty God, Wonderful Counselor, the God of the universe, came with humility into His own creation. He was not there to start a political campaign; He came to set the stage and fulfill God’s redemptive plan in a way that was totally contrary to the expectations of the Jews. And throughout His ministry, He demonstrates this.
This Palm Sunday, we remember Jesus, Messiah, who arrived in Jerusalem upon a humble donkey, not carried on a throne—like He deserved or like the Jews would have expected. He first arrived humbly to save and to humble himself at the cross, not to conquer. We can see their expectation at His arrival as He is greeted by people spreading their cloaks on the road for His donkey, praising Him as he rode by, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” (Luke 19:38). And we are grateful that Jesus did not come as the Jews expected, in awe of His humility and omnipotence as He approached the hour of Salvation. May we all reflect on Jesus’s humble spirit as He approached Jerusalem and praise the Lord throughout our week.
Dear Lord, thank you for your sacrificial love that was given through your son. Please grant us the same humble spirit as your Son and let us praise Him in gratitude for giving us everlasting life. Amen.