Palm Sunday 2025

Luke 19:28-40

Let’s stand for the reading of the Word of God.

28 And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, 30 saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’ ” 32 So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them. 33 And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 And they said, “The Lord has need of it.” 35 And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. 36 And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. 37 As he was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, 38 saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39 And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” 40 He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

Pray

Before I left for my trip week before last, I wrote the sermon that I was going to give today. I felt very proud of myself in that I had the fore thought to do that work early knowing I would want to hang out with the boys and catch up on all that I had missed from the previous week.

The task was completed, we embarked on our journey for a nice, relaxing vacation and I was awakened about 3AM a few days into the trip to the remembrance that today was not a normal Sunday, but it was Palm Sunday and I couldn’t preach the sermon that I had put so much work into because it was not a Palm Sunday sermon.

How did that happen? I am a church man. I, above all people in the congregation, should know that this day was coming. Palm Sunday and Easter had been on the calendar. They didn’t sneak up on me anymore than a birthday or anniversary, the only answer as to how I missed this is that I wasn’t paying attention.

All the signs were there. Christmas was over, New Years passed, Valentine’s Day had come and gone, it was the right season, everything was lined up and ready, and I missed it.

Needless to say I woke up in a panic, but the Lord was so kind to me right at that instant and I was reminded in my folly that I was not the only one that wasn’t paying attention. In fact, when Jesus was here, there were all sorts of people that were not paying attention. They were busy living their lives, they were good, they served their community, they were liked in their synagogues. They thought their relationship was good with God because they did all the things that they were supposed to do.

We see those people today. They are the hardest ones to preach the gospel to. They are the ones that have wealth, health, love. Everything has gone right in their life, they think they are good people and their community thinks they are great neighbors. Why do they need to pay attention to Jesus? In there estimation, they have done all this without Him, why now?

If they would have been paying attention they would have asked why they had become successful, what gifts they were given: good health, parents, resources, the right community to put them in the position to be successful. I would argue that the Christian life is all about paying attention, remembering, with every thought and word, we are to hold them captive to the Lord. We should be filtering our lives through the Word and listening for how the Holy Spirit would have us respond in situations. We should be seeing opportunities that the Lord is putting in front of us and following in obedience.

If the Pharisees had been paying attention to what the Lord said about the Messiah through their Scriptures, they would have seen Jesus for who He was. If they had been paying attention to the signs and the seasons, they would have seen that all the Scriptures were pointing to Jesus.

He was in the line of King David. Speaking to King David, God says in…

2 Samuel 7:12–14 ESV

When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

Jesus was born of a virgin as the Scriptures says that He would be in…

Isaiah 7:14 ESV

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

He was born in Bethlehem…

Micah 5:2 ESV

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.

As they watched Jesus and his miracles they should have seen Isaiah 35:5-6

Isaiah 35:5–6 ESV

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. For waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert;

They weren’t paying attention. If you remember just last year when we had the eclipse come through. We knew about it for years before it happened. We knew the date and even the exact time. Everyone was talking about it. If you weren’t paying attention and you were inside your house living your life or in an office making money, then you missed it.

As we look at today’s text, we see another example of a prophesy that was fulfilled. A prophesy is something that the bible says will happen before it does. In the case of what I just listed, 2 Samuel was written about 1000 years before the birth of Jesus. The Old Testament is littered with examples of this.

As we look at the text today, we see a fulfillment of another prophesy. This is what we celebrate on this day known as Palm Sunday.

English Standard Version Chapter 19

28 And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, 30 saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’ ”

Jesus is making his way to Jerusalem for Passover. It is never mentioned in the Gospels of Jesus ever traveling by anything except for a boat, so when you get to this text, it stands out. Where does this come from? Why is it important? Jesus does it for those paying attention. He did it for those that really studied the Word of God. In Zechariah 9:9

Zechariah 9:9 ESV

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

This was not the King that the religious leaders or the Jews expected. They wanted to make Jesus king earlier in the feeding of the 5000 because He created food and gave them sustenance. They liked the free meal. They wanted someone that would provide for them but better yet they were looking for someone to crush the Roman government that ruled over them. They didn’t want to pay taxes to a pagan government any longer. They thought the Messiah would be someone that would be like a war general who would overthrow the existing government and make Israel the top of the geopolitical world.

It’s amazing what you look over when you want your position to be the right one. We all have this problem to some extent in some area or time in our life. We don’t see any other way that this thing or idea could go, so therefore there is no option that I will listen to. We see this in politics and theology, I think, the most. I see it now in 14u baseball. When the kids go up to bat, as they have through the years from coach pitch to 8u to 10u to 12u, the only pitch they have ever seen is a fastball, right down the middle. In 14u, the main pitch may be a fast ball, but if you aren’t paying attention and you just think it is a fastball, you are going to be in the wrong place when that curveball comes.

Jesus throws curveballs to those expecting a fastball. The pharisees, the sadducees, the disciples were expecting a king to an earthly kingdom with the Messiah which would come from a David-like figure that was a warrior. What the prophecy in Zechariah is pointing to and what Jesus is displaying is a king that will bring peace. If you read Zechariah 9:10, you see it.

Zechariah 9:10 ESV

I will cut off the chariot (that is the main war vehicle) from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth.

Jesus did not come to usher in an earthly kingdom, but a kingdom that is not of this world. This kingdom was one where the children of God will be made right with the Father because the son waged a battle with sin and death and won.

The enemy was not the oppressing army that wielded their power over the Jews. The enemy was their sin-filled, wicked hearts. They needed a Messiah that would do what they could not. Reading on in Zechariah, this Messianic verse is showing what the Jesus will do.

Zechariah 9:11–12 ESV

As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double.

The Lord is the only one that can set the captives free. The pharisees and the religious elite were looking for someone to fix the outside world because they had it all figured out. They followed the law, they were good, they just needed God to fix everyone and everything else. It is hard to see the truth through the lenses of a pride-filled heart.

Jesus asks his disciples to get the donkey for him and they do.

English Standard Version Chapter 19

32 So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them. 33 And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 And they said, “The Lord has need of it.” 35 And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it.

I love the obedience of the disciples. They are looking for the same Messiah that the pharisees are, they are wrong in their thinking and their theology, but instead of closing their hearts, they take correction, they obey and follow this Jesus who has been kind to them, merciful, gracious and loving. They obey the words of their teacher and the go on this mission to find the donkey exactly as Jesus had said. Donkeys are expensive, the text said that the “owners”, plural, saw them untying the colt. It was likely a partnership between these two people to buy the colt. Stealing an animal is a big crime, but if Jesus told them to do it then they trusted that He would take care of them.

The disciples are slowly starting to see who Jesus is. It isn’t perfect and they will still make more mistakes as the story unfolds, but they know that Jesus is who He says He is, so they pay attention and obey.

Why a donkey? Shouldn’t a king ride in to tell everyone that his kingdom is here be riding on a great horse? When a king rode in on a horse it meant that he was bringing war, but if a king rode in on a donkey, it meant that he was bringing peace. This is the curveball that Jesus through. He was going to overthrow the world through sacrifice, not by the sword. He would not kill to establish His kingdom, but He would lay down His life for the ransom of many.

English Standard Version Chapter 19

36 And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. 37 As he was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, 38 saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

In Matthews gospel of this account, it says that the people cut branches or laid down palm leaves on the road, hence Palm Sunday. Also in Matthew’s gospel it says that the crowd shouted “Hosanna to the Son of David! Hosanna in the highest!” Hosanna is a plea for salvation and a cry of hope. The crowd is affirming that Jesus is the Messiah. They still probably didn’t quite understand, but they knew of His great works and His proofs that He was from God. Their hearts had been shaken by Jesus. They were paying attention. They had never heard anyone preach the way Jesus preached. They had never seen anyone heal in the manner that Jesus healed. They had never seen anyone perform miracles as Jesus performed miracles and I would assume that those around Him, His disciples, had never seen anyone that lived like Jesus lived.

Three years Jesus lived with these people. Night and day they were together except when He would go alone to pray. You can know someone pretty well by living with them for that long. I have lived with my life for almost 18 years and she deserves sainthood for that sentence, but I would never herald her as the Messiah. Can you imagine what it would be like to live with someone that was absolutely perfect in all that they did? This got the attention of the disciples and they are able to cry out “Hosanna” in regard to their friend.

Notice what doesn’t happen. Jesus doesn’t stop them or rebuke them. Don’t let anyone tell you that Jesus did not claim to be Messiah or claim to be God, because it isn’t true. He allows the disciples to worship Him, He allows the disciples to call Him Messiah. We find out why in the last part of our verse today.

English Standard Version Chapter 19

39 And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” 40 He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

The creation responds to its Creator. Did you know that every atom that makes up all things has a frequency, a sound? Everything is singing and praising God in your body whether you want it to or not. The pharisees refused to pay attention and not believe their lying eyes. Everything in all the Scriptures pointed to Jesus being the one God sent to save the world, yet some refused.

They refused Jesus because He wasn’t what they wanted. They wanted someone that would make their earthly lives better by establishing a government that was in their favor. They didn’t want someone that was going to require them to change.

Make no mistake, following Jesus requires obedience. The disciples had to change their entire lives. They walked away from their jobs and their way of life to follow. They did things that didn’t make sense. They lost their place in the society. Ultimately, most of them were killed for their beliefs. The call of Christ is the call to come and die. If you are looking for a Jesus that makes you healthy, wealthy and wise so that you can live like a king in this world, you will be disappointed, but if you have eyes to see and ears to hear and there is something that you are noticing that doesn’t sit right. Maybe everything is going great and has always gone great for you but you have this inability to stop sinning. Maybe everything is great and you are finding that there is still something missing that cannot be filled with more stuff.

This is the start of paying attention. Have you ever been lost in thought and someone starts to talk to you and you can’t hear them, then they say something like, “Hey!”? That startles you from your stupor and now you can hear them. Most people live in that stupor when it comes to the Lord. It is a blessing when He shouts at us and lets us see what is really going on.

When He blesses us with that wake up call, we should pursue everything from that point on with a spirit of listening and discerning what He is leading us to or we can miss it. Jesus came to seek and save the lost, Him calling you is the shout of a loving shepherd that doesn’t want to see you separated from the flock. The pharisees and sadducees heard the gospel and denied it. Jesus says in Luke 19:41-44 about city of Jerusalem

Luke 19:41–44 ESV

he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”

There is a judgement to all that don’t pay attention to the call of Christ. Church, pay attention. Lift your head up, listen and respond to the one that is calling you. Respond to the one that on this day, so many years ago, rode into Jerusalem, establishing His Kingdom. Be one that yells out Hosanna in the Highest. Praise Him for His great salvation that He offers you.