My wife, Stacey, and I, met our junior year in high school. She sat in front of me in Algebra class. And I, of course, noticed her on the first day of class. One day, the guy who normally sat next to her was out sick, so I slipped into his seat and he never got it back. Now, two kids and forty years later, here we are.
But we almost didn’t make it through our first six months. We started dating probably in October of that school year. When we got to February, I knew she had a birthday coming up but I couldn’t remember when. So I called her mom and asked, “When is Stacey’s birthday?” Her mom said, “Well, it was today.” I had forgotten her birthday. We had gone the entire school day, and I didn’t even tell her happy birthday. She was pretty crushed. I did my best to make it up to her and she was very forgiving, obviously. But needless to say, I have not forgotten her birthday once in the past forty years.
In your family tradition, do you celebrate particular times of year that are central to your family? Perhaps celebrating birthdays is important for your family. Or maybe everyone gets together at Christmas time, and that’s the one time of year that you all gather and celebrate together.
Regarding our faith, no celebration is more important than Resurrection Sunday morning, the day we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection from the dead.
This is hands down the most important event we celebrate as followers of Jesus.
Why? Paul tells us in his letter to the Corinthians.
1 Cor 15:13-19 (CSB)—If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation is in vain, and so is your faith. Moreover, we are found to be false witnesses about God, because we have testified wrongly about God that he raised up Christ—whom he did not raise up, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Those, then, who have fallen asleep in Christ have also perished. If we have put our hope in Christ for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone.
Everything we believe, everything we are and hope to be, hinges on Jesus’s resurrection. It is the single most significant event in mankind’s history. I am not overstating this.
Easter Sunday is more than pretty new clothes, Easter baskets, and brunch with the family (all fun things my family will participate in). On Easter Sunday morning, we celebrate the moment Jesus emerged from the tomb where his lifeless body was placed. But even more than that, we celebrate what the resurrection means to us. When Jesus emerged from the tomb, it was God the Father’s statement that the sacrifice made by Jesus on our behalf was enough. It was acceptable. That means forgiveness for our sins, once and for all time, and it means everlasting life in God’s Kingdom for those who receive his free gift of forgiveness.
The resurrection of Jesus is important.
To celebrate that moment this year, we will examine Jesus’ final week, often called Passion Week.
Different denominations celebrate Passion Week in different ways.
Some celebrate each day of Passion Week, while others focus on a few specific days. Most Baptist churches focus primarily on Resurrection Sunday and gloss over the seven days prior. But a lot happened during Jesus’ final week.
Here are the seven days before Jesus’ Resurrection:
Sunday – (Palm Sunday) The Triumphal Entry
Monday – (Holy Monday) Jesus cleanses the temple
Tuesday – (Holy Tuesday) Jesus challenges the Pharisees
Wednesday – (Spy Wednesday) Judas conspires to have Jesus arrested
Thursday – (Maundy Thursday) Jesus celebrates Passover meal, arrested
Friday – (Good Friday) Jesus is crucified
Saturday – (Holy Saturday) The disciples hide in fear
Sunday – (Resurrection Sunday) Jesus rises from the dead
Today we will look at Palm Sunday and the Triumphal Entry of Jesus to Jerusalem.
The events of this day are recorded in all four of the gospels.
Matt 21:1-11, Mk 11:1-10, Lk 19:28-40, Jn 12:12-19
Here is Matthew’s account:
Matt 21:1-11 (CSB)—When they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage at the Mount of Olives, Jesus then sent two disciples, telling them, “Go into the village ahead of you. At once you will find a donkey tied there with her colt. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them at once.” This took place so that what was spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled: Tell Daughter Zion, “See, your King is coming to you, gentle, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” The disciples went and did just as Jesus directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt; then they laid their clothes on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their clothes on the road; others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them on the road. Then the crowds who went ahead of him and those who followed shouted: Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven! When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in an uproar, saying, “Who is this?” The crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Why was the city in such an uproar? Why were people so excited that Jesus had come to Jerusalem?
Was it because of his reputation for healing people? Was it his wisdom in teaching? Was it because he could feed 5,000 people with just five loaves of bread and two fish? Or was it because a little earlier, he had raised Lazarus from the dead?
In part, yes, it was those things. But to really understand their excitement you have to understand Israel’s history.
1 Sam 8:4-8 (CSB)—So all the elders of Israel gathered together and went to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Therefore, appoint a king to judge us the same as all the other nations have.” When they said, “Give us a king to judge us,” Samuel considered their demand wrong, so he prayed to the LORD. But the LORD told him, “Listen to the people and everything they say to you. They have not rejected you; they have rejected me as their king. They are doing the same thing to you that they have done to me, since the day I brought them out of Egypt until this day, abandoning me and worshiping other gods.
God’s original plan for His people is that he would be their God and they would be His people. They would have no need for a king because He was their Creator, their Father, and their King. But Israel rebelled against God’s plan.
God tells Samuel to warn the elders of Israel of the problems of having a king.
Look at verse 19:
1 Samuel 8:19-22 (CSB)—The people refused to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We must have a king over us. Then we’ll be like all the other nations: our king will judge us, go out before us, and fight our battles.” Samuel listened to all the people’s words and then repeated them to the LORD. “Listen to them,” the LORD told Samuel. “Appoint a king for them.”
The Israelites thought an earthly king would make life better for them. They looked around at all the other nations, saw their facebook and instagram posts about how great life is with a king, and they said, that’s what we need. We need a king.
What do they say? Be careful what you wish for. If you read the history of Israel’s Kings in the Old Testament, you will find that except for a few bright spots, each of the kings that Israel had left them wanting a better king.
But instead of searching for what they sought in God, they looked for it in an earthly institution.
Now, 1000 years after the events of 1 Samuel, not much has changed regarding the attitude of the Israelites. The Romans had conquered Israel, and they hated life under the authoritative rule of Rome. They misunderstood the prophecy about the coming Messiah, the coming King of Israel, and believed that He would come as a conquering King to conquer the Romans and restore Israel to its former glory.
They saw Jesus and they recognized Him as the King. Not just a king, but the King. Prophesied about by the Prophet Zechariah said in Zec 9:
Zech 9:9 (CSB)—Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout in triumph, Daughter Jerusalem! Look, your King is coming to you; he is righteous and victorious, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Then, it goes on to describe how this conquering King will proclaim peace to all of the nations.
Zech 9:16 (CSB)—The LORD their God will save them on that day as the flock of his people; for they are like jewels in a crown, sparkling over his land.
All of the Jews would know this prophecy. Every year, they celebrated in anticipation of the day the Messiah would come.
And now, here’s Jesus, fulfilling this prophecy, and they are ready for Him to go to war for them, save them, and bring peace.
They spread out their cloaks and palm branches on the road, knowing He was the King.
But Jesus had no intention of being an earthly king. His Kingdom is greater than any earthly kingdom could ever be. The peace that this King of Zech 9 would bring is not a peace won by defeating nations but by defeating sin and death.
Instead of bringing temporal happiness and satisfaction, Jesus came to bring reconciliation between us and God. He came to bring forgiveness, abundant life, and eternal life.
When Jesus did not meet their expectations to lead them against the Roman tyranny, it only took 5 days for the city of Jerusalem to turn on Him. The same people shouting Hosanna one day were shouting crucify Him five days later.
Now, here we are, 2,000 years later and still not much has changed.
We are still looking to temporal things to be king of our hearts.
Maybe we aren’t looking for a new king to rule over us, but we are certainly looking for that thing that will be king of our hearts. Today, this tends to be our mindset:
- If our political party wins, then all wrongs will be righted, and finally we will have peace.
- If I can just finish that degree then what I really want will be within my grasp.
- If my marriage were just a little bit better, I know I’d finally be happy.
- If I was just making a little more money, then I could afford the life I really want.
- If I could just find the right partner, then my life would be complete.
- If I just had more time to do that hobby that gives me my identity, then I would be fulfilled.
There’s a long list of temporal things that we think are the answer to the longings in our life.
There is nothing wrong with any of those things, by the way. We need good political leaders. Degrees and education are good. Better, stronger marriages build healthier kids and honor the Lord. Money is a blessing, and the things we own are a blessing from God. Finding a spouse and building a life that glorifies Him is marvelous. Hobbies can be healthy things that help bring rest to our souls.
But if you are looking to these things to bring meaning to your life and if you are relying on these things to give you joy and peace, then you will be sorely disappointed.
When we acknowledge Jesus as the King of our hearts, then we will begin to understand what real peace, fulfillment, happiness, and joy look like. What does that mean to make Jesus the King of your heart?
You were designed to be in a relationship with God. He created you in His image and He created you to live your life filled with His presence.
Glove illustration
This glove is made in the image of a hand. Apart from the hand, however, the glove is pretty useless. It isn’t until the glove is filled with the hand that it suddenly begins to fulfill its purpose. When you try and fill it with a foot, it isn’t very useful, but once filled with what it was made in the image of, it suddenly finds its purpose.
You were made in God’s image. Designed by Him to be filled by Him. Made to be filled with His presence. Apart from His presence, we struggle to find our purpose. And so we try to fill the void with all kinds of different things but none of them truly fit.
It is when we give our lives to Him and begin to follow Him daily that we begin to understand why we were created. We were created to know Him.
The Jews thought Jesus was going to fill an earthly throne. But His Kingdom is greater than any earthly kingdom. Let’s acknowledge the one true king. Jesus is the only King of our hearts.
Let’s pick up our cross and follow him daily.
If you’ve never given your life to Him … don’t wait. Do it today.
Chris Hankel 
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