Palm Sunday: Praise Him With the Palms (First Fruits of Your Life)

Today is Sunday April 14, 2019 and it is a special day because it is “Palm Sunday”. On Palm Sunday we celebrate Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem

The Start of Something New

Jesus was creating a new covenant with his people and his entry would be the sign because years of prophecy unfolded before people's very eyes. Believing on Jesus would be the new way to salvation and animal sacrifices would… Click To Tweet

A Young Donkey, Coats and Palm Branches: the Symbolism Behind His Triumphant Entry

Scripture
Matthew 21:1-9, John 12:12-19

The Donkey

Jesus asked his disciples to bring him a donkey and he told them they could find it tied to a post in town. He instructed them to tell them “The Lord Needs It” if anyone tried to stop them from taking it. Riding on a donkey was necessary so that the prophecy of Zachariah 9:9 could be fulfilled.

Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!
    Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you,
    righteous and victorious,
lowly and riding on a donkey,
    on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Zachariah 9:9

The donkey Jesus rode on had never been ridden before (see Luke 19:30).

God needed one kind of animal for sacrifice (see Deuteronomy 21:3, 1 Samuel 6:7, Numbers 19:2). This donkey was a special gift for the Messiah.

The Coats

When people in town saw Jesus coming their way on a donkey, they rushed to take off their coats and throw them on the ground. Throughout the Bible, laying your coat down was a sign of respect for royalty. People were submitting to Christ authority over them and offering their coat was the sign of the change in their heart and mind.

The Palm Branches

Why a Palm Branch? Because the Palm Branch brings to mind the “Festival of Booths” which is a festival set aside to remind Israel of their deliverance from Egypt. At the beginning of the Festival of Booths people would take palm branches and worship the Lord for seven days (see Leviticus 23:40) (Source).

At the Triumphal Entry, Christ was celebrated as the one who would bring His people out of the captivity and slavery of sin (the spiritual Egypt, if you will). Jesus was welcomed by the same sign of palm branches and shouts of rejoicing, and a new Feast of Booths was initiated.

Source

The Reason for Palm Sunday

Why did Christ enter Jerusalem on a donkey? There’s only one reason and that reason is YOU. Christ knew that he was heading to the cross but before he made it to the cross, he had to enter his home town and fulfill the prophecies which had been written about him long ago. I pray that as you contemplate his entry into Jerusalem, as you praise him with the “palms” or first fruits of your life (your time, your devotion, your mind) that you would remember that everything he did, he did for you. “Hosanna, blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord” the one who came to save you and me.

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