From the

Chaplain

Palm Sunday

 

Palm Sunday is the Sunday before Easter and this year it happens to be this coming Sunday, 28th March. But why is Palm Sunday so special? Jesus’ death and resurrection are the most important events in human history and this special time of the year gives us time to reflect on their significance and impact on all of our lives. I realise this is a very bold statement and not one with which everyone will agree, however, if God truly became human in the form of Jesus and shared in the vulnerability of human life with us, sacrificing Himself and defeating death so that we can live, then Easter is unequivocally a sacred celebration.

 

On Palm Sunday Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, a symbol of both His unique kingship and the peace He was bringing to the world (donkeys were seen as gentle and humble animals). The donkey also fulfilled Jewish prophecy (Zechariah 9:9) which describes the Messiah arriving on a donkey. The Palm Sunday story from Matthew makes reference to Jesus fulfilling this prophecy: 

 

This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:

   “Say to Daughter Zion,

    ‘See, your king comes to you,

gentle and riding on a donkey,

    and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’” – Matthew 21:4-5

 

The crowd was verbally joyful that this King Jesus was coming to town and it appears that many had hoped Jesus would establish a new kingdom on Earth, a political kingdom that would finally eradicate the oppressive Roman rule. What the people didn’t understand was that Jesus’ kingdom was not political, His was a kingdom that would last much longer than any political regime. Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight. … My kingdom is from another place” (John 18:36). The crowd cheered as they shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” (Matthew 21:9) but these hopeful cheers would soon turn into jeers. Jesus did not wage war against the Roman occupation which would have been more than a disappointment to many. Jesus also challenged many of the legalistic religious practices of the time exposing much self-righteousness disguised as piety. Jesus was not who many people thought He was; He was much more.

 

Within one week Jesus went from being celebrated to being put to death. Matthew 21:10 says, ‘When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”’ Did they understand the full and very big picture of what Jesus was really doing? It is interesting to wonder what we would have done if we were there in the crowds. Would our opinions of who Jesus was change over the course of a week? Would we be influenced by what other people said about Jesus? We may or may not have welcomed Jesus 2000 years ago. Regardless of how we would have responded to Jesus back then, we now have a fresh opportunity to welcome Jesus into our own lives this year as we reflect on who Jesus really is, and why He lived, died, and rose to life again on that very first Easter day: “Christ died for sins once for all … to bring you to God” (1 Peter 3:18). Palm Sunday is special because it is ultimately a celebration of what King Jesus was getting ready to do in order to invite us to be part of His eternal Kingdom.

 

Mr Luke Webb

Chaplain