Day 2849 – “Beholds He Comes!”  based on Zechariah 9:9

Putnam Church Message – 03/29/2026

Last week, we continued our study of the ministry of Jesus Christ with a message titled “There is Always Hope!”  We learned that the heart of discipleship is: Where Jesus is, hopelessness is never final.

Today, we are switching from our study of Luke for two weeks to focus on Palm Sunday and Resurrection Sunday. Today’s message is: “Behold He Comes!” covers the entire Passion Week, and our launching point today is Zechariah 9:9: 

Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem!

Look, your king is coming to you.

He is righteous and victorious,[b]

yet he is humble, riding on a donkey—

riding on a donkey’s colt.

Over the next two weeks, we step away briefly from Luke for a special journey—from Palm Sunday to Easter/Resurrection Sunday, from the shouts of “Hosanna!” to the cry of “It is finished,” and then to the glorious announcement, “He is not here; He is risen!”

The title of this message is “Behold He Comes!”

That is really the heartbeat of Passion Week.

Behold, He comes into Jerusalem.

Behold, He comes to the temple.

Behold, He comes to the table with His disciples.

Behold, He comes into Gethsemane.

Behold, He comes before Pilate.

Behold, He comes to the cross.

Behold, He comes out of the grave.

The four Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—tell this story in harmony, though each gives us a different camera angle. Matthew highlights prophecy fulfilled. Mark emphasizes the movement and urgency of the King’s mission. Luke gives us the tears of Jesus and the tragedy of a city that did not recognize its moment of visitation. John reminds us that many in the crowd were stirred because Jesus had raised Lazarus, and now excitement was running through Jerusalem like wildfire.

But Palm Sunday is not just a happy parade. It is the beginning of holy collision. Hope and misunderstanding meet on the same street. Praise and rejection are only days apart. The palms wave on Sunday, but the cross stands on Friday.

And yet through it all, one truth remains: Jesus is not swept along by events. He comes deliberately. He comes knowingly. He comes lovingly. He comes for us.

When Jesus approached Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives near Bethphage and Bethany, He sent disciples to bring a donkey and its colt. This was not accidental. This was not random transportation. This was revelation.

Matthew 21 points us directly to Zechariah 9:9

Now, in the ancient world, kings often arrived in one of two ways. If they came on a war horse, they came in conquest. If they came on a donkey, they came in peace. Jesus is King, yes—but not the kind of king the crowds fully expected.

The Jews wanted a throne. -> Jesus came with humility.

The Jews wanted Rome overthrown. -> Jesus came to overthrow sin and death.

The Jews wanted political rescue. -> Jesus came for eternal redemption.

Can you picture the scene? The road is dusty. Cloaks are spread down like a makeshift royal carpet. Branches are cut and waved. Psalm 118 is rising from the crowd: “Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!”

And John tells us specifically that these were palm branches—symbols of joy, victory, and national hope. Similar to us waving an American flag during a parade.

For first-century Jews, Jerusalem was not merely a city. It was the city of promise, the city of David, the city of the temple. And when Jesus comes riding down the slope of the Mount of Olives, every prophetic nerve in Israel starts to tremble.

The prophets had spoken. The covenant had promised. The generations had waited. -> And now Behold He Comes!

But notice the manner of His coming. There is no sword in His hand. No army behind Him. No chariot rumbling over stone. Only a borrowed animal, willing disciples, and a crowd that understands just enough to cheer—but not enough yet to surrender.

People are often happy to celebrate Jesus when they think He will fit their expectations. We welcome Him when He seems useful to our plans. We praise Him when the blessings are flowing. But when He comes humbly, when He confronts us, when He does not serve our agenda, we do not always know what to do with Him.

It is a little like someone expecting the President to arrive in a black limousine with security and flashing lights—but instead he shows up alone, in plain clothes, and sits down at the table to listen. Some would miss the significance because they expected power to look louder.

Hold up a gold-looking crown in one hand and a simple rope halter or small wooden yoke in the other.

Say: “Which one looks more like a king? Most of us would choose the crown. But Palm Sunday tells us that God’s King often comes in a form we do not expect. The crown is real—but the path to it runs through humility.”

Luke gives us one of the most moving moments in the triumphal entry. While the crowd rejoices, Jesus weeps over Jerusalem.

Luke 19:41 says, “But as he came closer to Jerusalem and saw the city ahead, he began to weep.”

Think about that. The crowd is shouting. The disciples are praising God for the miracles they have seen. The Pharisees are telling Jesus to quiet the people. And in the middle of all that noise—Jesus is crying.

Why?

They see a parade. -> He sees a city on the brink of judgment.

They see excitement. -> He sees hardened hearts.

They see what they want Him to do. -> He sees what He must do.

John tells us that many in the crowd were stirred because of the raising of Lazarus. That miracle had electrified public imagination. “If He can call a dead man out of the grave after four days, surely, He can take Jerusalem! Surely, He can establish the kingdom now!”

But Jesus knows that many voices shouting “Hosanna” do not yet understand holiness, repentance, surrender, or the cost of redemption.

Jerusalem had a history. It was the city of priests, sacrifice, pilgrimage, Scripture, memory, and hope. To an ancient Israelite, it was the place where heaven and earth seemed to meet. Yet it had also become a place where religious familiarity could hide spiritual blindness.

The tragedy of Palm Sunday is not that Jesus was rejected by pagans who knew nothing of God. The tragedy is that He was rejected in the holy city, among people who had every reason to recognize Him.

As the Church, which supplants Israel, there is a warning there for us.

It is possible to be around church things and still miss Jesus.

It is possible to know the songs and still not know the Savior.

It is possible to wave a palm branch in public and resist His rule in private.

Jesus sees beneath the surface. He sees the heart.

Imagine a doctor entering a room where the family is celebrating because a patient’s symptoms seem to have improved. The smiles are real, but the doctor has seen the scan. He knows there is a deeper problem that must be addressed. His concern is no less loving because it is more serious. In fact, it is more loving.

That is Jesus over Jerusalem.

His tears are not weakness. They are holy love. He is not coldly announcing judgment. He is grieving a city that would not come to peace.

Hold up a Palm Branch and beside it a handkerchief or cloth.

“Palm Sunday holds both together. There is celebration—but there are also tears. Jesus receives praise, but He also grieves. Why? Because He sees past the appearances and into reality.”