Palm Sunday

We’re just a few short days away from Palm Sunday, the start of Holy Week on the Christian calendar. Palm Sunday serves as a reminder for all of us, that the coming of Jesus will always be met with mixed reviews.

As Jesus enters into the city of Jerusalem, He is met by people who are excited to see Him. Some people, crowds of people, really, are excited to welcome Him into the city. They’ve been waiting for a new king who was going to remove the Roman oppressor and restore Israel. When they see Jesus coming, they welcome Him as this king.

They lay down their coats and wave palm branches. There is a general excitement at His coming, but not everyone is excited. The Pharisees (the religious leaders/zealots) rebuked Jesus, telling Him to make the crowds stop. These Pharisees believed that only the Lord should receive the worship and adoration that Jesus was receiving, missing the fact that Jesus is Lord.

As we look at the record of the triumphal entry of Jesus into the city, we see that there are only two responses to the coming of King Jesus. We either accept Him as Lord, or we reject Him all together. These are the only two responses - if you do not accept Him as Lord, you reject Him.

The Pharisees rejected the fact that Jesus was Lord, and when they told Jesus to rebuke His disciples, Jesus told Him that even if they were quiet, the stones would cry out. This illustrates the fact that truth is truth, whether or not it is believed or accepted. If someone rejects Jesus as Lord, that does not remove Him as Lord. Just because you don’t believe it doesn’t mean that it is not true.

How are you receiving Jesus in this Holy Season?