Sermons 2024

On donkey colt He rides to town
The people cheer, the foes plot on.
But soon we jeer, shout Crucify!
This sudden change just mystifies.

O Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable in your sight O Lord our Rock and our Redeemer.

Jesus enters Jerusalem in the most unlikely of ways. We would expect Him to enter in the most miraculous of ways, a shout, shining in power and glory coming down from the heavens. At the very least riding in on a majestic charger of a stallion showing His authority and might. Yet, what does He enter on? A donkey, specifically a colt upon which no one had ever sat.  Why? The same reason that David had Solomon do so, to show that he comes as King in peace rather than in the midst of war, conquering, and bloodshed.

This reason is why our Lord enters on a donkey as the ultimate Prince of Peace. He comes to make peace between men and men, but ultimately to make peace between sinful humanity and a righteous, just, and holy God by forgiving all of our sins by His death and resurrection from the dead.

What is the crowd’s reaction to this? They line the streets in a joyful procession. They wave palm branches. These were often used in military parades as symbols of victory over a conquered foe. Even today some funerals will have people buried hold palm branches as symbols of Jesus’ victory over death itself. The crowds line the street and shout Hosanna to the Son of David! Hosanna is a Hebrew word that means save us now. The phrase Son of David is used of the Messiah, as the One from the line of David whom the Lord had promised would reign forever upon David’s throne. They rejoice in the expectation that their King has come in order to save them. 

They think Jesus has come to save them from the hated Romans. Jesus has come to establish an earthly kingdom greater than David or Solomon ever could have imagined. They will have peace forever and never need for anything upon this earth again. 
 

Yet, as the week goes on, the crowds reaction changes. A joyous crowd on Palm Sunday turn into a hateful, spiteful, murderous crowd on Friday. As they saw that Jesus was not the warrior king they had expected, enthusiasm waned. The religious leaders were plotting Jesus’ death even as He enters Jerusalem. They spread lies about Jesus and slowly, public opinion turned. Many false messiahs had come and gone, leaving devastation in their wake. Because of the lies of the leaders, public opinion in Jerusalem had turned on Jesus. He was no longer the promised one, but another charlatan come to deceive. He was not who they thought he would be. So, when offered Barabbas or Jesus, they chose Barabbas, a convicted murderer and revolutionary, and called for Jesus’ blood.

Pilate gives into their demands for fear of another riot, because then he would have lost the favor of the Emperor and possibly his own head, but more on that in two weeks. He releases Barabbas and sentences Jesus to be crucified. Jesus is humiliated, shamed, mocked, and crucified. Why? To fulfill the plan of the Father. To be our Prince of Peace and reconcile sinful humanity by bearing the punishment of our sins with a just and holy God. Jesus does come as a Savior. Not a savior from only the Romans, but from Sin, death, and the power of the devil. He saves us from all of our foes by His death and resurrection from the dead. 

In Jesus’ name. Amen.