One Week Before Redemption
What started as a celebration would end in sacrifice, sorrow, and the victory that opened the door to redemption.
When it comes to Palm Sunday, most people think of celebration. It was a moment in history filled with the excitement and joy of a people longing to be delivered from the oppressive rule of the Roman Empire. Their hope was deeply rooted in Scripture and prophecy. The celebration hailed what they believed to be their long-awaited conquering Messiah.
But when Jesus rode into Jerusalem, He did not come on a mighty steed or a warrior’s stallion. He came on a donkey and that was very significant.
Those in the crowd expected reform, power, and freedom from Roman oppression. They wanted a Messiah who would confront Caesar and break the weight of Rome’s rule. They were looking for a conquering King who would overthrow the enemies of Israel and restore national strength. But within just a few days, that celebration would give way to betrayal, desertion, torture, and sacrifice.
And yet, what looked in the end like death and defeat would become the very means by which God would bring life, freedom, and redemption.
Palm Sunday marks the beginning of what Christians call Passion Week. It is not called that because of Mel Gibson’s 2004 film The Passion of the Christ. The term had already been in use long before that, dating back at least to the early 1800s. And in this case, the word passion is not speaking of emotion. It comes from the Latin word passio, which speaks of suffering and endurance, which is exactly what our Lord did for us.
So this day is far more than a church tradition or a familiar story on the Christian calendar. Palm Sunday is the first day in a week-long chain of events that would culminate not only in the brutal torture and crucifixion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, but also in His glorious resurrection. It is the opening scene of the final road to redemption.
Palm Sunday marked the beginning of Jesus’ final week of active public ministry before the crucifixion, and from this point forward, everything would move rapidly toward one destination: the cross.
I want to take just a few moments to highlight three things we see on that first Palm Sunday: Jesus’ humble kingship, the crowd’s misplaced expectations, and what this Triumphal Entry really meant then and what it still means now.
Let’s talk about the crowd for just a moment.
It never ceases to amaze me that the same crowd celebrating and praising Jesus, laying down their garments and palm branches before Him, would eventually cry out for His crucifixion. That is one of the most sobering realities of this account. The very people shouting “Hosanna” did not truly recognize the One standing before them. They were not welcoming Jesus for who He truly was, but for who they wanted Him to be.
They wanted freedom from Rome, but Jesus came first to offer freedom from sin. They wanted political deliverance, but Jesus came to bring spiritual redemption.
And that is what makes Palm Sunday so profound. What looked like a royal welcome was actually the beginning of a death march. What looked like a public celebration was really the opening scene of Christ’s final steps toward Calvary.
In Luke 19:41, we read this:
“Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it.”
I have read that verse many, many times, and unfortunately, I have sometimes passed right over its significance. The picture we see there is one of deep humility, love, and compassion. Jesus knew exactly what was about to happen to Him. He knew the suffering that awaited Him. He knew the rejection, the mockery, the scourging, and the cross were all directly ahead. And yet His heart was still toward the lost.
As Jesus approached Jerusalem, He was grieved that His own people were so spiritually blind that they could not recognize the prophetic hour they were living in, nor who it was that was riding before them. He also knew that within just a few decades, Jerusalem would be overrun and destroyed by the Romans. Judgment was coming, in part because of their rejection of Christ.
They were so focused on being physically delivered from Roman rule that they failed to see the One who had come to deliver them spiritually and offer them everlasting life and peace.
That is still the danger today. Many people want a Jesus who will fix earthly discomfort, remove hardship, improve circumstances, or serve as some kind of financial benefactor with deep pockets. But Jesus did not come the first time merely to improve man’s condition. He came to deal with man’s sin.
That is why He came into the world as the suffering Messiah.
It was necessary. It had to happen. Our Lord had to suffer in our place so that we might have everlasting life in Him.
So then why is it called the Triumphal Entry?
After all, Jesus would be betrayed with a kiss by one of His own for thirty pieces of silver. He would be left alone in prayer. He would be deserted by His disciples. He would be punched, spat upon, and mocked. His beard would be torn from His face. A crown of thorns would be pressed onto His head. He would be stripped and whipped with a cat of nine tails until His back was torn open. Then He would be led to Golgotha, the place of the skull, where He would be nailed to a cross in one of the cruelest forms of death imaginable.
That does not sound like triumph, does it?
Oh, but triumph it is!!!
What many Jews missed then, and what many people still miss now, is that Jesus came the first time as Redeemer. Under the Levitical system, the shedding of blood was necessary for atonement. Sin had to be dealt with. A price had to be paid. But Jesus came as the ultimate spotless and sinless Lamb of God, not merely to cover sin, but to cleanse us from all sin and make us whole. He came to justify us, just as if we had never sinned.
This is why His riding on a donkey matters so much. A mighty horse or war steed would have signaled conquest by force, military power, and political overthrow. But the donkey pointed to humility, peace, and the fulfillment of prophecy. Jesus was openly presenting Himself as King, but not in the way the crowd expected. He did not come first to crush Rome. He came first to bear sin.
That is the heart of Palm Sunday. The King was there. And before the crown, would come the cross.
All throughout the Old Testament, we see prophecies pointing to the suffering Messiah. Isaiah 52:13 through 53:12 is the clearest Old Testament prophecy of the suffering Redeemer. Psalm 22 is a Messianic Psalm that points powerfully to Christ’s suffering and even to the crucifixion itself. Zechariah 12:10 says:
“And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.”
Then there is Zechariah 13:7:
“Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.”
Jesus Himself applies that to His arrest and to the scattering of His disciples.
And then, all the way back in the beginning, in Genesis 3:15, we have one of the great early prophetic pictures of Christ’s suffering and victory:
“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”
This passage is loaded with meaning. It points not only to Christ’s suffering, but also to His ultimate victory through it.
Let me touch briefly on the phrase, “He shall bruise your head.” The Hebrew word there is shuph, pronounced shoof. While older English translations use the word bruise, the sense is much stronger. The idea is that of a crushing blow, an overwhelming strike, a fatal one.
Now, someone might rightly point out that the same Hebrew word is used both for the head and for the heel. And that is true. But the difference is not in the word itself. The difference is in what is being struck. A strike to the heel is a wound. A strike to the head is a final blow.
So in this early Messianic prophecy, we see both the suffering of Christ and the total defeat of Satan. Through Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection, the enemy’s power was broken and his final destruction made certain. Satan’s defeat does not mean that he ceased to be active after the cross as the master deceiver. It means his doom was sealed, his power was broken, and his final overthrow was guaranteed through the person and work of Jesus Christ.
That is why Palm Sunday matters so much.
It reminds us of Christ’s obedience to the Father, His humility, His love, and His mercy toward us. While we were still sinners, this triumphal entry was already leading to His suffering, death, and resurrection for you and me. The crowd saw a King, but not the kind of King Jesus had come to be in His first coming. They were thinking about Rome. Jesus was thinking about the cross. They were looking for political deliverance. He came to bring redemption from sin.
And that is the great difference.
Jesus did not enter Jerusalem as a victim of circumstance. He entered Jerusalem as the obedient Son of God, fully aware of why He had come. He came to lay down His life. He came to fulfill what the prophets had written. He came to make bridge the gap that sin had created between God and man. He came to save and redeem those who were lost—all of us.
So may this Palm Sunday not pass us by as just another familiar Bible story or another date on the church calendar.
May it stop and humble us. May it cause us to remember that our King first came in humility, riding on a donkey, on His way to the cross. But the next time He comes, it will not be in meekness, but in majesty, as the conquering King of kings and Lord of lords.
Have you made Him the Lord of your life? If not, do not put it off. Call on the name of the Lord and be saved today!
Grateful you’re here.
— Pablo
Thanks for reading Serpents & Doves®. If you’d like to keep up with the work, you can subscribe for free and receive future posts.
Share.
Forward this post, repost it, or pass it along to someone who might need it.
Support.
This broadcast is listener-supported. If you’re in a position to help sustain it, you can do so here:
Buy Me a Coffee (one-time or monthly)
PayPal (direct donation)
GOSPEL CARDS: PLANT A SEED!
If you’d like to get your hands on the gospel cards that we produce, please go HERE, fill out the form and let me know how many you’d like—for free!
My only request is that you’d cover the cost of shipping.
If you feel led to support and want to DONATE beyond the cost of shipping to help offset the costs of production (printing, ink, labels, etc.), we would be blessed. But if you cannot, we’ll still send them your way!
So well written as we approach the celebration of the most important event of our existence.
Thank you