Sermon: 24 May 2020 (Palm Sunday Celebrated) - Matthew 21:1-11, "Hosanna, Lord Save Us!”
“And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were 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
Brothers & Sisters in Christ,
Most of us have probably been some thinking over the past couple of months as the virus has spread around the globe. We heard of China’s outbreak with the virus and how it spread to places like Korea, Italy and many more as it also made its way to our country. We saw huge problems in New York, Detroit and a few other cities. We’ve wondered. We’ve hoped. We’ve prayed that God would spare us and those we love from this pandemic.
Our hopes and our desires are things that are important to us. Preserving our earthly lives and the earthly lives of those we love is important to us. We want a good long life here on earth. We want to enjoy the things God has given us here as long as possible. And the Scriptures commend that kind of thinking when we see it all as God’s good gifts for us.
In our text today, Jesus makes His “Triumphal Entry” into Jerusalem. The text shows He is fully in control of the events taking place. As He and his disciples come near Jerusalem, He sent some to borrow a donkey, He told them exactly what to say to the owner if they were questioned and He assured them the owner would agree.
Jesus had a plan for His “Triumphal Entry” and the events took place exactly as He was telling them. Jesus was in control of the situation. Jesus would enter Jerusalem to the cheering crowds. In a very real sense it reminds me of ancient Israel in Egypt when God says “I have heard your cries,” and He proceeds to free them from bondage. On Palm Sunday He hears their cries of “hosanna” and comes to save them.
The Palm Sunday Crowd Wanted an Earthly Salvation
The people of Jesus’ day were looking for a Savior. Their cries of “Hosanna” were cries that literally meant “Save us” or even more drastically “Save us now.” Under foreign domination, they wanted to be set free from Roman rule. They wanted to be able to set their own course, to make their own decisions, determine their own outcomes. They wanted independence and they were calling on Jesus for that.
We see some of this foreign domination during Holy Week, as the Sanhedrin, the Ruling Council, wants Jesus crucified but cannot make that decision on their own. They have to involve the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate, and they have to manipulate the facts and the entire situation to convince him to act as they want and not as Roman Law would have required.
And the people themselves, were looking for an earthly savior. Someone who would ascend to the throne of David, militarily defeating Rome and liberating Israel. That’s what they wanted. That’s what they hoped, “The prophet Jesus,” would provide for them. That’s what they thought they needed. That’s what they thought was most important. “Hosanna, Lord save us!” was their cry. And Jesus heard that cry.
Jesus Came to Bring a Heavenly, Eternal Salvation
However, Jesus also knew their real need was far greater than being set free from Rome and having an earthly kingdom reestablished. The people, all people, had a problem with sin, death and the power of the devil. They were suffering under a far greater foreign domination than Rome. Since the Fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, all mankind has suffered the effects of sin, the separation it brings between them and God, the eternal damnation they face.
God offered a solution to that. It was a promise made right there in the Garden as God pronounced Judgement on Adam, Eve and Satan. God promised in Genesis 3:15 that a Savior would come Who would defeat Satan, crushing him for us. That promise continued on for centuries, being repeated at many times and in many places until finally Jesus entered into our world. True God and true man, He entered into our world to live under the Law and to fulfill that Law for us. He came that He might live, die and rise again, being the perfect sacrifice for our sins, satisfying the demands God required for our sin.
Jesus knew our real need. Having fallen into sin and being separated from God even at conception, we needed a Savior Who could restore us to God Himself. That’s what Jesus was doing as He entered our world. That’s what Jesus was doing as He entered Jerusalem. He heard the cries of the people, “Hosanna, Lord save us.” But He knew their real need and was going to meet it.
They needed a Savior Who would bring them eternal life, forgiving sin and restoring them to God. This was beyond the ability of any earthly king. Only God could accomplish this. And Jesus, God’s only Son, was doing just that.
Jesus Came to Meet Our Need
So what is our need today? Over the past few months we’ve prayed for a cure for Covid-19. We’ve prayed for vaccines. We’ve prayed for lives to be spared. And, I would say God has responded in keeping the infections and especially the deaths fairly low. Yet, we do face the virus every day. It has affected our lives, many of our livelihoods and our world dramatically. As with Israel of old, we pray for a savior from this deadly disease.
Yet God knows our real need is far greater. And Jesus Triumphantly entered Jerusalem to take care of just that need. He came to ascend to the Throne of the Cross that we would have the salvation we needed. Through His suffering and death, done in our place, we would be taken out from under the Law and placed under the Gospel. Through Jesus’ work we have eternity opened to us.
Thus God tells us in Hebrews 12:2 to “…look to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith.” That’s where our only true hope is found. Our immediate needs with this virus will pass. It’s our eternal troubles that need our attention. St. Paul makes it clear when he writes, “For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.” (Rom 14:8) All is secure as long as we are in Him.
Jesus knows our real need. He wants us with Him for eternity. He has taken care of all of that through His life, death and resurrection. He calls us to look to Him. In Him all of our needs are met. In Him we have assurance that no matter what we face, or how difficult it may appear we will be ok. Our world looks elsewhere and often lives in fear or even a false security. They look to themselves, science or some other place for some hope for the present.
Jesus gives us hope for eternity. He promises to be with us in the present. He will never leave us alone to fend for ourselves. Therefore, we cling to the cross, knowing He paid for our sins in full right there. We keep our trust in Him Who paid for our salvation with His own shed blood. That’s where true hope is found, where we can endure the present in the full expectation of an eternity of the glories of heaven with our Lord.
Jesus has ascended to the throne. He is our king, our Lord, our God. Fix your eyes and your hearts on Him. In Him is life that will see us through this present darkness. “Hosanna, Lord save us,” we cry. He hears your cry. He has paid for your sins. He is with you now, your Lord, God and Savior. Through faith in Him you will be with Him through all eternity. Amen.