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When we think of Palm Sunday, we rarely look to Old Testament sources—yet I have learned much by discovering prophecies concerning Jesus. I’m including some you might be interested to read.
Matthew 2:15-17 quotes Jeremiah 31:15. Malachi 3:1 foretells that He would preach and teach in the temple, and we know Jesus was a student of the Old Testament and knew its teachings well. He knew He would die with transgressors, Isaiah 53:12. He knew He would be spit upon, as told in Isaiah 50:6, and that His garments would be divided among the soldiers, Psalm 22:18.
So, this knowledge was in His mind, and likely on His mind, as He instructed disciples to go and locate the donkey.
Jesus was on the Mount of Olives when He instructed the disciples to go and locate the donkey for the brief journey down through the valley and up to Jerusalem. As He rode the colt, people began spreading garments and palm branches and praising God.
But why palm branches? The palm was a sacred tree in some cultures and became a metonym for victory— a sign of any kind of victory. Palm fronds also communicated triumph, peace and eternal life. Ever since this day in Jerusalem, palm branches have been associated with Jesus’ Triumphal Entry.
Indeed, His entry began the ultimate victory—one of the spirit over flesh and, ultimately, over death and the grave.
Why is this important to me and you today?
Does anyone need a victory?
Our battles vary, and many are uniquely personal, yet secretly we long for victory. We have the choice to turn to Jesus with our pain and struggles, to live in the victory He gained on our behalf.
Luke 19:37-40 says, “… the whole multitude began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice, saying, ‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’” Then criticism began.
Jesus’ response to the criticism was, “I tell you, if these (worshippers) become silent, the stones will cry out!”
All of nature declares the presence and beauty of God—just look at spring flowers, bright skies and rainbows reassuring us of His promise.
Please join me in praise for His willingness to pay the price and penalty of sin, and make a way for us to be made right with God, to be born again. Until next week, Anita
Onarecker, a writer, author and minister to women and adults, earned a Master of Christian Education from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2007.
