Who Is Jesus? Part 8: Palm Sunday, Not the Triumph They Expected

 

An unexpected task and an expected animal Luke 19:28-34

Of all the things Jesus ever asked his disciples to do, this had to be one of the hardest. He tells them to go to a certain place and take a donkey--a colt of a donkey, actually--one that was tied up, so it obviously belonged to someone. "Just untie it and bring it to me." It would be like stealing a motorcycle would be today. 

But there is no hint of argument, even as Jesus hints that someone might object. "Just tell them I need it," He says. The disciples had at least learned enough about Jesus that this task was not too much of a stretch for them to obey. They trusted Him. Perhaps they also realized the important symbolism of what Jesus was about to do. Perhaps they remembered that passage from Zechariah that spoke of a righteous, victorious king coming to Jerusalem on a donkey's colt (Zechariah 9:9). It would have been more fun to see Him race in on a big white warhorse, but God does things differently sometimes, they have learned. They didn't need horses and chariots when they had Jesus. 

An expectant crowd and a fear-filled opposition Luke 19:35-40

I have heard interpretations of Palm Sunday where the crowd that praises Jesus is the same crowd that calls for His crucifixion later in the week. I do not think that was the case at all. Luke identifies the people loudly praising Jesus as "the whole crowd of disciples." While the disciples will abandon Him when He is arrested, it is hard to believe they are the same ones the Pharisees later stir up at His trial. Most of the disciples were hiding somewhere hoping they wouldn't be arrested as part of an insurrection. 

Right now, the crowd of disciples understood the symbolism before them, and quote Psalm 188. Their King was here, and they were excited to see Him openly make this display. The Pharisees, however tell Jesus that He should tell the disciples to be quiet. A crowd proclaiming a new king would certainly have implications that could rile up the Romans against them, and they certainly didn't want that. 

Jesus foresees an unexpected result 19:41-44

The crowd is excited, but Jesus foresees a result they are not expecting. The disciples are still expecting Him to rid their land of the Romans and reestablish the ancient kingdom of Israel. Jesus has come to establish a kingdom, but it is to be a heavenly kingdom of the heart based on love, not an earthly kingdom brought in by vengeance and war. While His disciples celebrate, Jesus weeps. Jerusalem, for the most part, will reject His way of peace and love, which will lead to their destruction in 70 AD. There will be victory, but not a victory His disciples are expecting.