“The Triumphal Entries”

Palm Sunday Sermon [on screen]

Rev. Matthew C. McCraw, EdD

First Baptist Church, Bartow, Florida

April 14, 2019

Introductory Comments:

Happy, Palm Sunday, everyone!

I dare say that many of us know that Palm Sunday falls the Sunday before Easter Sunday, but that’s about all we know about Palm Sunday. 

We don’t celebrate Palm Sunday because we’re in Florida, and palm trees surround us. There is actually a biblical reason that we call this Palm Sunday. 

You see, as Jesus was coming into Jerusalem, as He was preparing for His crucifixion and resurrection, the people were welcoming Jesus into Jerusalem as a king. They waved palm branches in a celebratory fashion to welcome Him. That’s why we call it Palm Sunday. 

In fact, the welcoming of Jesus came with so much fanfare that we often call it the Triumphal Entry. 

However, did you know that the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem before His crucifixion and resurrection is not the only triumphal entry of Jesus in the Bible?

Well, today we’re going to look at the Triumphal Entries of Jesus as recorded in Scripture. 

Before we do that, let’s pray and ask God to speak to us. 

(Prayer)

The triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem is one of the biblical events that is recorded in every gospel account.

For today, I’d like for us to look at John’s account of this event.

Let’s look at John 12:12-16.

12 The next day, when the large crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, 13 they took palm branches and went out to meet him. They kept shouting: “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord —the King of Israel!” 14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written: 15 Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion. Look, your King is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt.

16 His disciples did not understand these things at first. However, when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and that they had done these things to him.

This is the first triumphal entry of Jesus. This is why we celebrate Palm Sunday. 

So let’s look at some aspects of this first triumphal entry and see what God is teaching us. 

I. The First Triumphal Entry [on screen]

It’s important to understand the people this passage expected Jesus to be a mighty warrior king who would help them regain their political and geographical status as the rulers of Israel.

The people were tired of being under the thumb of the Romans.

The people knew that Messiah was coming. They were thinking that Jesus might very well be this Messiah. They saw that He taught with authority, they saw that He healed, they saw that He worked miracles. 

They even shouted, “Hosanna,” which means Savior! They thought Jesus was sent by God to be their Savior King. They shouted, “Blessed is he who coming in the name of the Lord—the King of Israel.”

They’re pumped that Jesus will be their Messiah King!

However, Jesus was not the kind of king that they expected. We see that many of the aspects of Jesus’ entry were not descriptive of how you might except a conquering king to come into town. 

Let’s look at those. 

First, . . . 

Jesus came first riding on a young donkey. [on screen]

The first time Jesus came into town, He came into town riding on a donkey. Not just a donkey, but a young donkey!

We might except that Jesus would have come into town instead on a Clydesdale horse, or a lion, or something regal.

It’s worth noting that this was not unusual for a king to ride on a donkey, in fact, King David rode a donkey at times.

However, a king would probably not go into battle, and certainly wouldn’t seek to demonstrate strength, by riding in town on a young donkey. 

Jesus came as a humble Savior, not an intimidating conqueror. 

Interestingly, this very moment was prophesied. John points to the words of Zechariah the prophet who foretold this moment long ago. 

H