Unexpected Triumph

Palm Sunday. Jesus carefully orchestrated the events of the day in order to ensure that his betrayal, arrest, trial and crucifixion would take place immediately prior to the passover.

Just for a moment, let’s consider the passover. Passover happened because the Israelites, the descendants of Abraham, were slaves in Egypt. The Egyptians treated them terribly. They instructed the Hebrew midwives to kill the male Israelite children as soon as they were born. Can you imagine a culture that would murder babies? Oh wait.

In order to rescue his people from Egypt, God sent Moses to seek Pharaoh’s permission to leave. Pharaoh refused. God tested Pharaoh 9 times with 9 plagues, but he refused to let them go.

The tenth and final plague was the angel of death. The angel of death would kill all the firstborn males, human and animal alike, though it passed over some households.

What caused it to pass over? If the Israelites slaughtered a lamb and sprinkled it’s blood on their doorposts and lintel, the angel of death would see the blood and pass over that house.

Three years earlier, when Jesus approached his cousin, John so that John would baptise him, John saw him coming and said, “Behold the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” Now keep this phrase in mind, we’ll come back to it in a bit. Let’s turn to our passage: Read Luke 19:28-40

Expected Provision

Jesus knew the hearts of the Pharisees. He knew they were both jealous of him, and afraid of upsetting the Roman occupation. Things were in a precarious balance most of the time, so they worked to keep the peace at all costs. But they also really enjoyed the power they had and did everything they could to keep it. Jesus knew this, and so orchestrated the events of Palm Sunday to coordinate a desired outcome.

Jesus expected the provisions would be present for him that Sunday. Whether by his own divine power, or through communication with the Father and the Holy Spirit, Jesus knew there was a colt of a donkey in the village ahead of them. And he knew his disciples would be able to get it for him.

It was so.

Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey in order to fulfil the prophecy of “Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

Expected Response

This elicited an expected response! The disciples, thinking about all the miracles they had seen, praised Jesus.

They laid their cloaks on the ground. The other gospels tell us the waved palm branches just like our Sunday school children did this morning! They praised God!

They recognised their king! Jesus is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

We still do this! When Prince William and Kate were married, the people were full of joy and happiness! They shouted their praises to their future king!

We are quick to shout and scream with joy when our hockey team wins!

I can just picture this very first Palm Sunday, can’t you?

The crowds, seeing Jesus riding on a donkey. Being filled with joy! Finally! Jesus is declaring his kingship! Watch him! Watch him set things right! Watch him kick out the Romans. Watch him get rid of the corrupt rulers. Finally, things are going to be way better!

The Pharisees tried to reason with Jesus, “Stop your disciples, Jesus. Let’s be reasonable here. No one wants to make the Romans angry. We’re making the best of a bad situation, no reason to go and make things worse by declaring some supposed kingship. Come on now, rebuke your disciples. Put them in their place, they’re overreacting.”

Jesus, I imagine him with a joyful smile on his face, said, “I tell you, If they kept silent, these very stones will cry out.” You’d just as well try to hold back the tide.

It was the expected response. While the disciples praised, sparing the stones their effort, it indeed set the Pharisees over the edge. No more waiting. Jesus had to die, even if it happened that week.

Unexpected Triumph!

Palm Sunday ushered in an unexpected triumph—unexpected for everyone there, totally expected by Jesus. Everyone was so focussed on the present reality, the Romans, the pharisees, the normal circumstances of life. They wanted a king.

Maybe a king would kick out the Romans. Maybe a new king would finally get the roads repaired, the debt reduced, the economy going again. Maybe the natural resources would once again be produced and sold for a fair price on the world market. Maybe the cost of living would go down. Maybe there would be enough to go around, for everyone. A drop in unemployment. Fair wages for fair work. Good food, good clothes, good shelter. Maybe even enough left over for an upgrade in transportation, double the horsepower!

All these things are expected. But Jesus had his sights set much, much higher. This passover wasn’t freedom from Egyptian or even Roman oppression.

It says in , that “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” teaches us that “the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Jesus came to set us free from sin, from the sentence of death that came as a result of sin. God freely offers eternal life in Christ Jesus.

The disciples were right to praise. The stones indeed would have praised! They saw Jesus, the one by whom all things were created! They knew what he came to do. To put an end to the curse, that affected everything, all creation.

Jesus Christ came to offer up his life. He came so that his blood, shed on the cross would cause the angel of death to pass over all who believe, all who receive Jesus.

On Thursday evening, we will celebrate communion. It is an opportunity to take, by faith, Christ’s body and shed blood. In faith, the same faith that the Israelites exercised in putting the blood on the doorposts and lintels of their homes, in faith we will take in Jesus’ blood, and have it cover the doorposts and lintels of our hearts!

The unexpected triumph is that death itself is defeated in Christ!

Behold your king! Your king gentle and riding on a donkey, full of righteousness and having salvation. Salvation from sin!

Receive your king!

And having received your king. Remain in him!

Let him be the fullness of your life.

Don’t go after riches or empty praise.

Receive him! He is your gift! Know the victory is won!

Know that you will reach heaven’s joys!

Let his heart be your heart!

Let Christ be your vision, Christ, the Ruler of all, let him rule in your heart, today, tomorrow, through the coming week, and forever! Amen.