Luke 19:28-40

We know that, for centuries, the people of Israel had been under foreign rulers. But they’d never stopped hoping. At each point of their history there’s this drumbeat of expectation – that one day, God would send a Messiah – a Christos (anointed one) – who would be their Yashua (Saviour) to win their freedom!

While still one nation (around 1000 BCE) we see this longing expressed, e.g. through Psalms of David – as they prayed for a ‘One who would vindicate the afflicted and bring deliverance to Gods people – not only a king but an everlasting Priest…’[i] After they split in two (around 930 BCE) prophets Elijah, Elisha, Jonah spoke in the same way to the North before they fell to the Assyrians (in 720 BCE). While, in the south prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Micah spoke to the pp of Judah until it too fell in 587 BCE. 5 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. (Jer.23:5) …and so the longing continued! During their 70 years of exile in Babylon, Daniel spoke to them of a vision he had: I saw one like a human being coming with the clouds of heaven. And he came to the Ancient One and was presented before him. 14 To him was given dominion and glory and kingship, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not pass away, and his kingship is one that shall never be destroyed. (Dan.7:13,14)

Their hope was that in God’s good timing there would come a ONE who would finally get rid of all that oppressed them, and they would be free – ESPECIALLY POLITICALLY FREE!

Once they were allowed to return to their land under Persian authority Zechariah continued, stressing that it would be soon now! “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” (Zech. 9:9)

That Messianic hope and expectation is the KEY for understanding today’s text.

Jesus and the disciples had walked all the way from up north in Galilee. But for just these last two miles He wanted to ride into the city on a young donkey ‘The foal of an ass’. Jesus wanted the people of Jerusalem to recognize that here at last was their long awaited Messiah! The One who was to be bringing them their long-awaited freedom! Later, we know that Jesus[ii] specifically identified himself as the fulfilment of all those earlier OT prophecies – where after his resurrection he eats with those two strangers on the Emmaus Rd: “How foolish you are, how slow you are to believe everything the prophets said!  …And Jesus explained to them what was said about himself in all the Scriptures, beginning with the books of Moses and the writings of all the prophets…. They said to each other, “Wasn’t it like a fire burning in us when he …explained the Scriptures to us?”

And so, as he rode into the city on that first Palm Sunday, could this be the Messiah? The people celebrated by spreading their cloaks on the road and praising God in loud voices SANNA SANININA! SANNA SAN-A-NINA! ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’

Jesus was coming into a world that was singing His praises! We must notice how, in just a week: the same people here shouting ‘HOSANNA’ would soon be yelling CRUCIFY!!!

If you were there that Palm Sunday, I wonder who you would have been? With whom do we most identify in this text on this Palm Sunday?

There’s the crowd who were clearly welcoming Jesus as their liberator from political oppression. ‘Hosanna’ meaning “save us!” It was apparently common to spread garments in the path of princes and kings, especially at their coronation. Those people were cheering because they thought Jesus had come to destroy the tyranny of the Romans who ruled them. They were welcoming Jesus as