Month: March 2026

Hosanna in the Highest!

This Sunday, we celebrate the beginning of Holy Week by observing Palm Sunday. This joyous festival marks the final arrival of Jesus into Jerusalem leading to his crucifixion and resurrection. It is a festive event, celebrated by both Eastern and Western churches as Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into the holy city. It is full of visual imagery – Jesus riding on a donkey, people waving palm branches and laying them and their cloaks on the ground before Jesus as he rode,  and the crowds singing “Hosanna” and “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” It stands in stark contrast to the events of the coming Friday.

When I think of the events of the first Palm Sunday, a couple questions come to mind.

First, why is so much space and detail given in the Gospels to Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem? All four Gospels report it – in a combined 53 verses. Details leading up to the entry,  and follow-up events to the entry are included. So why so much detail? After all, the writers could have summed up Palm Sunday in a single sentence: “Jesus entered Jerusalem.” As the Apostle John wrote in his Gospel, “Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written” (John 21:25). So why this one event important enough to warrant inclusion? I think there are at last two reasons:

1. The first reason is that it actually happened. This was not a parable with a moral lesson, nor political propaganda to enhance a leader’s reputation. Jesus actually rode a donkey as he entered Jerusalem, and the crowds welcomed him enthusiastically. All four Gospels record it, each supplying various details to give us a full picture of the event. Matthew tells us of a donkey and its colt. Mark tells of “leafy branches” and John tells us they were palm branches. Luke tells us that it was the multitude of his disciples who shouted “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” and that the Pharisees told Jesus to rebuke his disciples. Then Luke tells us that Jesus made his famous reply to the Pharisees, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.” The fact all four Gospels agree on the big picture, but supply different yet complimentary details, add to the veracity of the accounts.

Jesus had previously told his disciples that he had to go to Jerusalem to die, and this was the fulfillment of that prediction. Matthew 16:21 says, “From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.” This was confirmed in Matthew 20:18 when Jesus said, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death.” So, the entry, and the purpose of the entry, were both predicted and fulfilled.

2. The second, and just as important reason for the biblical narrative of the events of Palm Sunday, is that it is intended to prove that Jesus is indeed the Messiah. Before this event, Jesus was cautious early in his ministry about declaring he was the Messiah – “for my time has not yet fully come” (John 7:8). But John himself declares the reason for what he wrote, including the Palm Sunday account, by saying, “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:30-31). 

What are the proofs of this conclusion? First, there are the similarities to the triumphal processions of Roman emperors after victories: the king rides at the head of a procession, while the crowds waves branches before him and and greet him with shouts of  acclamation. Of course, Roman generals would be followed by their conquered enemies – which imagery Paul used of Christ in Colossians 2:15, “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” – though of the larger picture of Jesus’ victory more than about Palm Sunday.

Another evidence is the quotation from Zechariah 9:9, which prophesied, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” This was cited in Matthew’s Palm Sunday account, “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’” This was not only literally fulfilled on Palm Sunday, but also the significance of the event was given by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in both Matthew 21:5 and John 12:15. The king was coming to Jerusalem in the person of Jesus.

Yet another evidence of the Messianic message of Palm Sunday is what the crowds shouted to Jesus. “Hosanna” means literally, “Save us now” and refers to the one person the crowd looked forward to saving them – the long-awaited Messiah. Next, they shouted, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” which is a direct quotation of Psalm 118:26. Psalm 118:25 calls on the one who comes to “Save us, we pray, O Lord!” which fits with the message of Hosanna. Finally, the crowds shouted, “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!” (Mark 11:10) and Hosanna to the Son of David!” (Matthew 21:6). These references to King David show that the people expected the Messiah to be of the lineage of David. Why? Because the Lord has promised that David and his heirs would have an everlasting kingdom: “And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever” (2 Samuel 7:16). This was not only the crowd’s expectation – it was the fulfilled truth, because Jesus was of the house and lineage of David.

A Jewish reader of the first century would have clearly recognized the message of the Palm Sunday accounts that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. 

A second question I have always had regarding Palm Sunday has to do with the supposedly “fickle” crowds that turned from praising Jesus one day, to calling for his crucifixion just five days later. I’ve often heard that point made in sermons, to prove how fickle people and their faith can be. There’s some truth to that assertion – after all, the disciples vow their loyalty to Jesus at the Last Supper on Thursday, and then run and hide and even deny him on Friday morning. And certainly in our own lives, the fervency of our faith can waver from Sunday to Monday, so we need to guard our loyalty to Christ every day.

But I think the point is not valid when it comes to the crowds and Jesus. The point is, that we don’t know that the Sunday crowd consisted of the same people as the Friday crowd. In fact, I believe they were very different people.  This point is especially made by Luke, who said it was “the whole multitude” of Jesus’ disciples who “began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen.” When the Pharisees heard this, they told Jesus to rebuke his disciples, showing again the nature of the crowd that was praising Jesus and calling him king and messiah. (Luke 19:39). If any non-disciple Jews were in the crowd, they were non-Jerusalem Jews who came from around the Diaspora to Jerusalem for the high feast. It was their duty to travel to Jerusalem, so as Jesus entered, he could have been welcomed by the non-Jerusalem Jews.

But on Friday, Jesus was condemned by a hastily convened court of Jerusalem’s religious leaders, who then took Jesus to Pilate for the death sentence. So who were the crowd members that day? Almost certainly the leaders’ friends, family, and supporters – people the priests could count on to demand the crucifixion of Jesus. The trial before Pilate was hastily called and held in the morning; it was unlikely the priests went around trying to gather a supportive crowd, especially of those who had welcomed and praised Jesus. They were correct that a crowd of Jesus’ disciple would hardly support their call for crucifixion. The jury was rigged, and the priests saw that it was so.

So, are we often fickle in our faith? Yes, but the idea that the same people who praised and welcomed Jesus one day and called for his death a few days later, just does not fit.

As we come to Palm Sunday, may your celebration be joyous, and may you recognize Jesus as your Messiah today and every day. May you welcome his triumphal entry into your life and greet him with shouts of, “Hosanna in the highest!”

May the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, may the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:8-40; John 12:12-19.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Forensic Pastor Returns

In my last blog, I introduced the character of Pastor R, the Forensic Pastor, and his case of judging the qualifications of a potential saint. At the end, I closed with a common trick of television shows – teasing the next episode with a short description of the plot. Well, it backfired; several readers told me they wanted to actually read the next episode, so here it is.  

Episode 2: The Forensic Pastor Returns

The scene opens with Pastor R poring over several books: one containing photos of a cuneiform tablet recently discovered in the ancient city of Ugarit, another a dictionary of the cuneiform alphabet, and a third a proposed translation of the tablet. Looking through his magnifying glass, Pastor R smiles to himself, saying, “This translation almost has it right . . . just one minor change and my work here is done!”

Suddenly the phone rings, and Pastor R puts down the glass and picks up the phone. “Hello?”

“Are you the Forensic Pastor?” asks a woman on the other end. “I need your help!”

Pastor R replies, “Then you should call 911.” “I did,” she answers, “and they referred me to you.”

“Not again,” he thought, but instead he asks,”What’s the problem?” “My brother died, and I want to give him a Christian burial. It would mean so much to our parents!” “So, what’s the problem?” She hesitates for a second, then answers, “Well, he was an atheist, as am I. But our parents are Christians and they had him baptized as an infant. Is that a problem?”

Pastor R thinks for a moment, and suggests, “Why don’t you come by my office?” My wife can bake us some chocolate chip cookies, and we can talk.” They set an appointment for the next day and say goodbye.

The next day, at the appointed hour, Pastor R answers the door and welcomes the lady in. He introduces his wife, Mrs. K, and the woman shakes her hand and says, “Hi, nice to meet you; my name is Abigail.” Pastor R motions the visitor to the seat across from him at his desk. “So, then,” he begins, “tell me about your brother.”

She begins, “His name was Alistair. He was very smart and knew a lot about the Bible. . .” Pastor R interrupts her, not unkindly, saying, “So does the devil. But knowing the Bible is not the same as believing it. James 2:19 tells us that even the demons know about God, and they shudder in fear! Also, denying God is not a mark of intelligence, but of foolishness. Psalm 14:1 says, ’The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’”

She retorts, “But he was a good man! He was moral and gave generously to the poor.” Pastor R nods approvingly, but says, “Good works are good to do, but they do not save us. As Martin Luther said, ‘Good works do not make a man good, but a good man does good works.’ St. Paul told us in Romans 3:28, ‘For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.’ So your brother’s civil righteousness was good, but it did not save him apart from faith in Jesus Christ. Peter tells us in Acts 4:12, ‘And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.’ Did your brother ever express faith in Jesus Christ?”

She mutters, “Not that I know of.”

Noting the look on her face, he encourages her to continue. She does so. “As I said, he was baptized at about the age of one and went through catechism. But when it came time for confirmation, he said no thanks, and walked away from both the ceremony and the church and never went back. It was because of what he learned in school about evolution. He knew both evolution and the Bible couldn’t both be true, and decided to embrace science instead of religion. I was so proud of him, I did the same. No religion or church for me – which is why I feel a bit awkward asking you for a Christian burial.”

“So, why do you want a Christian burial,” asks Pastor R, “How he is buried won’t make a difference as to where he spends eternity. The Bible tells us we are appointed once to die, and then comes judgment (Hebrews 9:27). And, whether we believe in him or not, we will stand before him at the judgment and give account of all we did in life -including whether we believed or not (1 Peter 1:5).”

“But I thought God is supposed to be a loving God who couldn’t condemn anyone to hell,” she counters.”Yes, he is, and he showed his love in this – that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. You cannot fault God for a lack of love, but remember that he is also a holy God who cannot abide sin. Jesus warned us that the path of salvation is a narrow one, while the way that leads to destruction is wide, and most will follow it (Matthew 7:13-14).”

“But, my brother was baptized! Doesn’t that count for something?” she asks, her lip trembling.

“Yes. At that moment God claimed him as his own, and sent the Holy Spirit to him. The problem is that he willfully rejected God and his baptism, and as far as we know, he never came back. The Book of Hebrews warns us that those who believe and then fall away can never be restored, because they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. Also, the Scriptures warn us against grieving the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30).

“So, Pastor, does this mean you won’t do the funeral?” she asks, sadly.

Just then, Mrs. K walks in with a plate of warm, gooey, chocolate chip cookies. She smiles and points to a couple cookies on the side. “And here are yours, Honey, just as you like them – from the freezer. I’ll bring the milk next.” She set the plate down and exits.

Pastor R says, “About your question. Yes, I will conduct the service. But understand, the funeral is more for the living than the dead. I want to make clear what the Bible says about life, death, forgiveness, and eternal life. Hopefully, believers will be strengthened in their faith, and non-believers will hear the Gospel and come to faith. Hopefully, you also may believe. I won’t belittle your brother, because all human life is sacred to God. He made us in his image, and doesn’t want anyone to perish, but that we should reach repentance (2 Peter 3:9).”

“What will you say about him?” she asks. He thinks for a moment, and answers, “I will tell of his good works, but stress that ultimately, faith is what matters. I will say that faith was a problem for him, but that God continued to be faithful, even to the end (2 Timothy 2:13). Hopefully, before the end came, your brother grabbed onto the faith in which he was baptized, and believed in his Savior. Even as one of the thieves on the cross was saved at the last minute by acknowledging Christ as Lord, so I hope Alistair found that ultimate truth – the truth that matters.”

Abigail nods her head.

Pastor R continues softly, “Abigail, let me pray for you, that this experience of caring for your brother may awaken you to the hope of the Gospel, so that when your time comes, your loved ones may say with confidence that you believed, and fully trusted that when you pass, as your eyes close in death, they opened to see your Savior. Let us pray . . .”

———————

Thus ends the episode. Unfortunately the network canceled the show due to a writer’s strike. Thanks for your support.

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Colossians 4:6,  Peter 3:5, Jude 3.