THEY CRIED "HOSANNA!"

You probably know the story of The Triumphal Entry of Jesus into Jeruslem quite well. That event may be better known to some as Palm Sunday, which is celebrated today! Palm Sunday is the beginning of Holy Week, culminating in the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus, The Messiah! All four of the New Testament Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John), record this event of Jesus humbly entering Jerusalem on the back of a donkey (not a prancing steed), while the large crowds cheer Him on, even as king (Luke 19:38)! In the Old Testament we find the Prophet Zechariah precisely prophesied this very event hundreds of years earlier: "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey" (Zechariah 9:9).

Jesus rode into the city while the huge crowds spread cloaks and palm branches in His path, shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest" (Matthew 21:9). YES, THEY CRIED HOSANNA!

The word "Hosanna" has a very specific and significant meaning. It is a Hebrew shout of acclamation and praise, with a literal meaning of "I beg you to save now!" or "Please deliver us now!" It is a desperate cry for divine help, deliverance, an intervention of God to bring freedom from oppression!

Misconceptions about who Jesus was and what His mission was truly about, abounded in all of Israel, and especially in Jerusalem during His 3-year ministry. The mistaken ideas of the crowds were surely on display in the city that very day and in the days that followed. Instead of focusing on the definitive Old Testament prophecies, and His own teachings concerning His true mission, the Palm Sunday crowds were focused on their own human needs, desires and feelings!

In thinking about this, don't we often do the same? Don't we find ourselves crying out "Hosanna"? "I beg you to save me from. . . . .or deliver me from . . . . .? Many times we tend to make Jesus our "genie in the bottle" so to speak. We want Him to conform to our beliefs, our needs, our feelings and wishes rather than to be conformed to His teachings and commands. How often do we think or even say things such as:

1) "Jesus, save me from my pain."

2) "Please, Jesus, deliver me from this circumstance."

3) "Jesus, solve or fix my problem."

4) Maybe even, "save us from the politics we don't like."

The list could go on, but you get the point I'm making. The crowds that day in Jerusalem continued yelling out "Hosanna", please save us! They were tired of the oppression and control of the Roman Government in every area of their lives! They wanted to be free, and a "King Jesus" was expected to be the ONE to get the job done! In their minds, He was the One who would lead and win a rebellion against the Roman authorities and the Roman Empire. But, Jesus did not lead them into the city to crown Him as their king. No, He led them to the Temple (the place of worship to the One True God) and reminded them what the Temple's true purpose was by chasing out the commercial business going on there. Not at all what they expected!

And then, Friday came. . . . .! - The Passover Celebration. Passover marked the deliverance of the Israelites from Egyptian Slavery. When, after 400 years in captivity, God sent Moses to Pharoah with the message to set the Israelites free. After nine severe plagues God sent on Pharoah and upon Egypt, Pharoah still refused God's command. Then, one last plague. God told Moses to have every Israelite family kill a spotless lamb (a type of Jesus, the spotless Lamb of God) and place its blood over the door posts of their houses, so when the death angel from God passed throughout Egypt, killing the first-born, the angel would passover the Israelite homes where the Lamb's blood was seen. The first-born would be saved, and protected from death because of the blood. There was a great LOSS AND AGONY IN THE UNPROTECTED EGYPTIAN HOMES that night!

So, it was Friday and Passover in Jerusalem! Jesus was arrested by the religious leaders in the middle of the night, subjected to an illegitimate and secret trial, and rushed off to Pontius Pilate (The Roman Governor) to be interrogated by him and hopefully be put to death. King Herod also had his say in the matter. After being mocked, beaten and tortured, Jesus again stood before Pilate and the Jewish crowd that had gathered there. Many in this crowd had been present on Palm Sunday, just five days earlier, crying out "Hosanna to the Son of David, please save us!" NOW, as Pilate asked, "What shall I do with this man, Jesus?, they joined in with the religious leaders, now crying, "Crucify Him, Crucify Him!" This was the urgent, chaotic, persistent and angry cry from a Jerusalem Mob demanding Jesus' execution. Persuaded by the religious leaders, the crowd now demanded this fatal Roman punishment. . ."But they kept shouting all the more, saying, 'Crucify

Him' " (Matthew 27:33).

In just five days, the celebratory crowds turned into a violent, belligerent, murderous mob that wanted Jesus to be killed. Why? Because they were thoroughly disappointed in Jesus. In their thoughts He had failed them, failed to meet their expectations, wishes and desires! In their misguided minds, He was not a king after all. He was not able to save them! He didn't possess any political or military clout! He could not do anything about their oppression or circumstances. He was not worthy of their alligence! So, just kill Him!

Here we see the misconceptions about Jesus and His true mission were abundant. They were predominate in the attitudes, thoughts, desires, and actions of the many people who crowded the

streets, public spaces and the synagogues. Though they had seen His miracles, happily ate the food He miraculously provided, listened to His teaching about the Kingdom of God, they had NOT sought to truly understand any of it! The word "Hosanna" was now unheard, while the cries for His crucifixion and death were deafening! The shout to crucify Jesus stemmed from their religious leaders who said, "We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God" (John 19:7). You see, Jesus ate with sinners, welcomed the outcasts, healed on the Sabbath Day, touched the lepers, and gave hope to the lowliest of people. None of that was deemed appropriate behavior for a righteous man, let alone a prophet, and certainly not for the Son of God!

This angry mob shows that public opinion changes quickly. We want what we want and we want it now! Better yet, we want it yesterday! Our desires certainly can, and frequently do, tend to be selfish and short-sighted. As believers who trust in Jesus, we must avoid at all costs being guided, influenced or ruled by public opinion or popularity polls. We must be ruled by faith in the true Son of God - JESUS! We must cultivate the gift of spiritual discernment that enables us to refuse to fall victim to the misconceptions about Jesus and His mission in this world!

Jesus did not save people from their political oppression, militaristic government or from the pain and suffering that accompany our human bodies in everyday life on this earth. No, He did not respond to the cries of "Hosanna" that called Him to save people from these things. He did not save people by way of rebellion, political protests, or taking up arms to fight.

But, the cries of "Hosanna" truly came to be reality as Jesus went to the Cross of Calvary to save people from their sin and eternal death! "Hosanna" or "save us now" was fully realized when Jesus saved people by giving up His own life. He died that people might live because His Death and His Resurrection mean He provided Eternal Life! We read in the Bible, "God demonstrated His love for us in this: while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8). Through Jesus' death we are provided God's forgiveness for our sins. Through His resurrection, we are provided God's gift of abundant, full and complete life right now, and eternal life in heaven, perhaps much sooner than we think.

Palm Sunday reminds us that God is a Promise Maker and Keeper! He is a Prophecy Fulfiller! Unlike public opinion, popularity polls, fickle crowds or religious leaders in name only, God can truly and absolutely be trusted! God in Jesus continues to bring His Word to complete fulfillment even in your own living room! Zechariah the Prophet said, "your king" - HE IS, YOU KNOW!

Palm Sunday should be a definite reminder that JESUS IS KING! Just as Jesus was King, He remains King, will always BE King, and will remain King for ALL eternity. In celebration of Palm Sunday, we must not only shout "Hosanna" but we also shout "Blessed IS the KING" and each day we choose to live submited hearts and lives before our KING!