Palm Sunday

We’re going to spend this morning in Matthew 21 as we look toward Good Friday and Easter Sunday. To set the context, John 12 says that Jesus came to visit Lazarus, Mary and Martha in Bethany six days before Passover. He would have arrived on Friday and spent the Sabbath with them. It is this visit that Mary anointed Jesus with expensive perfume and wiped his feet her hair. It’s the same visit when Judas Iscariot complained about this incredibly worshipful moment.

They left Bethany and began the 2 mile walk to Jerusalem. As we see the map, it might seem that Jesus decided to take the long route by walking uphill to Bethphage, but the path Jesus took as he made his presence known was the “right on time” path. We’re going to see that Jesus drew near to Jerusalem. Not just geographically, but emotionally. His heart was set on the redemption of the cross.

Matthew 21 is going to show us three insights about the mission of Jesus.

The mission of Jesus delivered the anticipated coronation, but not the expected coronation.

Matthew 21:1–7 ESV

1 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” 4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, 5 “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’ ” 6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them.

Look at verses 1-3. “Hey guys, I need two of you to go ahead of us into Bethphage and grab a momma donkey and her colt that had never been ridden.” Let’s talk about some details that maybe we take for granted. Verse 5 references Zechariah 9:9 and the introduction of a king. A coronation doesn’t happen by chance or mistake. Think back a few years ago when King Charles assumed the throne after his mother passed away. He became king on September 8, 2022. His coronation ceremony took place on May 6, 2023. Those responsible for the day took eight months to plan out every detail. The Bible doesn’t tell us Jesus pre-arranged the use of these animals, but it doesn’t tell us that he didn’t either. However, the Bible does tell us that Jesus was purposeful in all that he did. I think that includes how and when he would ride into Jerusalem, including the animals that he would ride.

Why a donkey and not a horse? From my eyes, there are two reasons. First, rulers and military personnel riding a horse was a symbol of authority, power and forceful action. As much as Jesus communicated the authority given to him by the Father, he NEVER communicate power like the Pharisees, the Romans soldiers, or even Pilate. Jesus was intentional about separating his purpose from any type of earthly power. So, riding into Jerusalem on a horse would have communicated the opposite of Jesus’ life over the previous three years. Second, Zechariah 9 calls a donkey a ‘beast of burden.’ We might know that a donkey was an animal that served in a variety of capacities. Donkeys were the work truck of Israel. They used donkeys for everything. Some Bible scholars believe that rulers would use donkeys as their main form of transportation during peace time to let people know they didn’t need to worry about potential enemies.

In the previous chapter, Matthew 20:28 tells us, “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” The mission of Jesus matched the purpose of a donkey. It made sense that Jesus delivered his coronation riding an animal that matched his mission.

This donkey was unique. This donkey was unridden, untrained, unbroken, but submissive. There is a lesson for each of us. When the unfamiliar and uncomfortable happened in the donkey’s life, submission to King Jesus was the natural response.

Look at verse 5. “Behold, your king is coming to you, mounted on a colt.”

There is no debate that Jerusalem was ready to make Jesus their king and be delivered from the Roman empire. When we read Matthew 1, we learn that Jesus was the rightful heir to the throne of Israel. He could have claimed what he was entitled to. However, this anticipated coronation was not the expected coronation. Jesus offered redemption and a life free from spiritual oppression, but Israel wasn’t interested. They wanted an earthly king more than they wanted a spiritual king. In Matthew 21, Israel was the same nation they were in 1 Samuel 8 ~ “Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations.” But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.”

Centuries later, they continue to be more interested in an earthly king as they pursue the path of becoming like all the nations.

The mission of Jesus was met with a celebration of praise

Matthew 21:8–9 ESV

8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

The disciples had placed their coats on the donkey and Jesus began to ride. If they were in Bethphage, the ride would have been about two miles and gone downhill into the Kidron Valley and then uphill into Jerusalem. Jesus had an enormous following and drew attention everywhere he went. Verse 8 simply says the crowd. Bible scholars believe 260,000 lambs were slaughters during New Testament passovers and possibly about 2,000,000 people were in Jerusalem for the celebration. Any percentage of those people lining the street while Jesus rode into Jerusalem would have been noticed. I remember years ago, when President Bush made his way through Grand Haven and people lined US-31 hoping for a glimpse of the president in his caravan through our town. Except the caravan included three charter buses and nobody knew which bus the president was in. One leader riding a single donkey would have created much more excitement.

Many in the crowd followed the practice of 2 Kings 9 and spread their coats on the road as Jesus approached them. They celebrated him as king. Others cut palm branches and spread them on road as they celebrated Jesus as king. They put Psalm 118:25–26 in action as they began to shout in unison ~ “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” This sounds a bit like the angels in Luke 2:14 - “Glory to God in the highest.”

A celebration of praise probably doesn’t do justice for the level of excitement in the moment. There are few memories that might relate to a widespread audience. One of them is the national convention when an incumbent president is seeking another term. Listen for the chants. FOUR MORE YEARS. FOUR MORE YEARS. FOUR MORE YEARS. I have listened to this chant on both sides of the aisle. There is a level of excitement because the anticipation what could be in the near future. I believe that is what is happening in Matthew 21 as Jesus rides this borrowed donkey into Jerusalem.

Similarly to modern-day politics, things can go sideways quickly.

The mission of Jesus was not dependent upon the crowd’s opinion.

Matthew 21:10–11 ESV

10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”

What even just happened? Ten minutes ago, the crowds lined the streets with their coats and palm branches on the ground. They drank the King Jesus kool-aid. They sounded more confident than Detroit sports fans who think this is the year for a championship. They had an off-the-charts level of excitement because what could be around the corner.

They entered Jerusalem and the whole city was stirred up. When sanity and loyalty was questioned, the crowds capitulated to the influences around them. That’s Jesus of Nazareth; he’s just a prophet.

The mission of Jesus was not simply to draw a crowd along the street while he entered Jerusalem. His mission was to give his life as a ransom for many. You’ll have to come back next week to hear the rest of the story.

As we enter Easter week:

If you don’t know Jesus as your Savior, let’s begin there.

How is our submission to King Jesus? Does it resemble the donkey’s submission to Jesus?

How is our celebration of praise? Is there an anticipation that Jesus will something in your life around the corner?

Are you more loyal to Jesus or the influences around you?