Have you ever been in a public place as a kid and mistook another adult as your parent? Do you remember the horror that comes when you discover that that person is not actually your parent?
I once was with my dad at a store, not paying attention, and wandered. I eventually found him again and quietly hung out with him while he went about his business. At some point I think I tugged on his shirt or punched him in the arm, only for him to turn around and I discovered this was not my dad.
I didn’t know who this man was. I’d been hanging around him for awhile, and now I don’t know where my dad is. There was some shock and, to be honest, a sense of disgust as I looked at this man because he was not who I thought he was. That change in perception impacted my interaction with this stranger.
Something similar happened with my mom when I was a teenager and a little more confident. We were also at a store and had split up to each get different things. I saw her crossing the aisle later and thought it would be hilarious to pretend to steal her purse. I snuck up on her, stepping lightly, and right as I prepared to strike she turned around. This was not my mom. I nearly mugged some random black lady at the store.
My perception of these people influenced my approach with them, for better or worse. Realizing they were not who I thought they were changed how I responded. Nothing changed about who they were, but my perception did.
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Perceptions of Jesus on Palm Sunday
Jesus received a lot of praise as he entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. The crowds welcomed him as a king because of their perceptions of who he was. However, some had a false impression of who He was. That impression influenced their approach toward him and impacted their worship of Him.
We’ll look at this event and unpack what happened then. Doing so may confront us with a question: How does our perception of Jesus influence our approach to him? How does it impact our praise, especially on Palm Sunday?
A lot is happening in the eleven verses of our text, Matthew 21:1-11. It takes place during the Passover, a time celebrating God’s deliverance of His people from Pharoah. People would come from all over, some walking 20 miles or more to join the celebration. Some scholars estimate that there were as many as a million people in the area.
This is a time that’s five days away from the cross. Jesus had been preparing his disciples for his crucifixion, but it’s very possible they had their own misconceptions of who Jesus was. It’s an important celebration, an important time, and some meaningful things are about to happen.
As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you’ll find a donkey tied there with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them and he will send them right away.”
Matthew 21:1-3
An unconventional request
As Jesus and his disciples approach Jerusalem, he gives them a strange request. “Hey guys, before we go into Jerusalem, I want you to go into this place where you’ll find a donkey and a colt. When you see them, I want you to take them. I want them for myself. And if anyone asks you about it, just say the Lord needs it.”
This is an unconventional request. If I were one of the disciples, I’d think it was kind of sketchy. “Jesus, why do you want me to take a donkey and her baby? What are we doing here?”
Understanding the use of a donkey
It seems like a strange request, but keep in mind the environment and what’s about to happen. People thought this was the Messiah and some would jump at the chance to serve the Lord this way. While a donkey and her foal are a weird pair to ask for, our next verse helps understand it a little better.
This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: “Say to daughter Zion, ‘see, your king comes to you gentle and writing on a donkey and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.'”
Matthew 21:4-5
This unconventional request by Jesus was his way to fulfill prophecy. It helped people to understand who He was. While Jesus saw it as fulfillment of the prophecy from Zachariah 9:9, why a donkey? What was the need for the steed?
There was symbolism related to the donkey and the colt. They weren’t just animals, but symbols of the kind of king that Jesus would be.
A conquering king would ride in on a horse, as it symbolized dominance and power. But a donkey, this meek and humble animal, symbolized peace. One name we could have examined in our Names of God series was the name found in Isaiah: Prince of Peace. Jesus is communicating that he’s not bringing war to the city, but peace.
Is God asking unconventional things of us?
This was an unconventional request for the disciples, but it had a lot of meaning behind it.
I believe this may be for someone: The Lord might ask you to do something that sounds unconventional. He may ask you to do something that sounds strange weird or unintuitive. But with how God works, if it’s that unconventional, you better believe it will have meaning and impact later on.
Picture yourself in Jerusalem at this time
The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. They brought the donkey and the colt, and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.
Matthew 21:6-8
Picture yourself in the scene as it escalates in a wonderful way. Imagine you’re in the moment. Watch the disciples lead the donkey and colt to Jesus. At this point, no words are spoken or other instructions, but the disciples take off their garments and lay them on the donkey and on the colt.
You’re there, and maybe you do the same thing. All this is so Jesus has a place to sit. As he rides into Jerusalem, you notice the crowds when they discover him. They’ve heard his name and know of his miracles. You see the excitement on their faces as they see him coming down the street. It’s not just that it’s Jesus, but this is their king, their Messiah.
Their perception of Jesus influences their response to him. They’re laying down cloaks and palm branches on the street so that neither Jesus nor the donkey carrying him needs to touch the ground. They’re waving palm branches and shouting praise. Some don’t have much to give but they’re giving all they have.
Imagine watching the crowd become more jubilant, seeing more people join in. This scene that starts with a simple donkey becomes a procession that escalates. People are shouting, as we see in verse 9:
The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “
Matthew 21:9-11
Hosanna to the son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “who is this?” The crowds answered. “This is Jesus the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”
As you’re in the crowd you see the people going crazy. The entire city of Jerusalem joins in, and you hear them saying something strange: “Hosanna, Hosanna to the son of David, Hosanna in the highest.” That expression of praise hits your ears strangely because you know that translated literally, it means “save,” “oh save,” or “save now.”
The crowd’s perception of who Jesus was.
This is where perception influences their approach. Even though Jesus, known as the prince of peace and riding on a steed of peace, many people see him as a warrior king. They expect he will liberate them from Roman rule. In their minds, he’s not just their king and Messiah, but he will put Israel back on top.
Many of these people like this plan. They want to see their people liberated, they want to see Rome defeated. That influences their approach, leading them to offer praise, welcoming Jesus as their Messiah and Savior.
Don’t get me wrong. This is still a fantastic day of praise. Jesus is worthy of all the praise he’s receiving. But I wonder how the praise of the people would’ve changed If their perception was more accurate to who Jesus really was.
Does misperception of Jesus influence one’s praise?
Jesus is the Messiah, the son of David and the king. But what if they understood that his kingdom is not of this world? What if his deliverance was from eternal chains instead of their current chains? How would they respond if they understood that the Messiah will save them not just for the moment but for forever and a day?
Would they give him a “Hosanna” if they knew he wouldn’t do what they expected him to do? I wonder if they would stop waving their palm branches or take their cloaks back. Would they revoke their praise if they understood that Jesus’ intent differed from their expectations of him?
It’s an amazing time and celebration. Excitement is in the air, but I wonder if they’d think he’s worthy of their praise if he didn’t answer their prayers like they wanted? Would he still be worthy of their praise if his mission differed from theirs? Would they still give him a “Hosanna” if they didn’t get what they so desperately waited for and expected to receive?
From this side of the story, we know that Jesus isn’t a warrior king to conquer Rome. Instead, he’s the Prince of Peace. This king isn’t here to conquer enemies of the people, but to conquer the Enemy himself.
He wasn’t who they expected. Would they still praise him if they better understood who he was? To be honest, we don’t know how much their understanding would have changed their praise. We can’t be sure they’re the same people calling for his death five days later.
We don’t know about them, but it provokes this question: would we still praise Him if he didn’t meet our expectations?
Where does our praise come from?
What about us? Does our praise come from what we want from Jesus or for who he is? Does our praise come from his identity as Messiah and as God, or is it based on what we hope to receive from him in our prayers? Will we give him a “Hosanna,” that expression of praise, even when he doesn’t do what we want him to do or doesn’t answer our prayers in the ways we hope he will? Will we give him a Hosanna if, for whatever reason beyond our understanding, his will is different from ours?
We may not know what the crowds would have done if their perception of Jesus were more accurate. But we can ask what we will do with our palm branches.
Where does our praise come from?
We don’t know whether the crowd’s praise would change if they understood Jesus more accurately. However, we can ask what we will do with our palm branches today.
Where does our praise come from?
When our praise is transactional, it becomes easy to revoke.
When we say, “God, I’ll give you a Hosanna I’ll wave my palm branches, I’ll celebrate you as long as you do the way the things that I want you to do, as long as you move in the ways I want you to move,” or when the posture of our hearts says we’ll praise him as long as his will lines up with ours, it becomes so much easier to revoke that praise when he doesn’t do what we want.
Our praise becomes more about his ability than his identity. It becomes more about what I want him to do for me than it is about who he is as God. Praise becomes more about our own desires and motives than about his Messiahship. It becomes contingent on the deliverance we’re asking for rather than the deliverance he offers.
If we don’t check where our praise comes from, it becomes more transactional than we realize.
Praise rooted in the identity of God allows us to praise him even if.
When our worship is rooted in the identity of God instead of his ability, we can worship him even when he’s working on a different timeline than we are. When it’s rooted in him being Messiah, Lord, and Savior, rather than what he can do for us or bless us, worship centers on Him.
Worship rooted in the identity of God allows us to praise him even if things don’t go the way we want them to go. We can praise him even if we get unwanted news. Worship becomes about who he is, not what he can do for us.
An example of “even if” praise
This is modeled beautifully in the story behind the hymn “It is well with my soul” by Horatio Spafford.
Horatio was a successful businessman and lawyer who suffered losses in the great Chicago fire of 1871, and then again in the 1873 financial crisis. He planned a family Christmas trip to Europe to get away from the troubles. His wife Anna, and daughters Annie, Margaret Lee, Besse and Tina boarded the SS Villa du Havre for Europe while he stayed behind to handle some business issues, planning to meet them later.
On a clear night, the Villa du Havre collided with another ship and sank. An estimated 226 passengers were killed. The story says that Anna held on to her girls as long as she could before losing them to the waves. Anna was rescued, unconscious, and later sent a message to Horatio that said “Saved alone, what shall I do?”
As Horatio sailed to France to meet her, the captain pointed out the area where his girls likely drowned. Horatio returned to his cabin and penned these words:
When peace like a river attendeth my way
It is Well With My Soul by Horatio Spafford.
When sorrow like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to know
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend
Even so, it is well with my soul.
It’s a heartbreaking story that we can’t imagine what it was like. Out of it came a beautiful hymn where Horatio praised God for who he was, not for what he could have done.
The hope for eternity through Jesus and knowing he’d see his four girls again probably helped his praise. However, Horatio could give God his Hosanna and praises for who he was. His praise was rooted in the identity of Jesus over the ability of Jesus.
Horatio did not pick back up his palm branch, pick up his cloak, or revoke his praise. Instead, he offered praise for who Jesus is:. the Messiah and the one who conquered sin and death. He is the one who loves me and continues to pursue me.
What will we do with who he is?
It’s Palm Sunday. In five days he’s going to the cross to redeem me, to show me he loves me, to allow me to be with him for eternity, and to free me from the spiritual forces that try to enslave me.
I will give him my Hosanna, I will give him my praise. Not just because of his ability, but because of his identity.
We may not know how different the praise of the crowds 2000 years ago would have been if they better understood who Jesus was. However, today, we can choose if we will give our Hosanna. We can decide if we’ll raise our palm branches and spread our cloaks because of who he is, not because of what we want him to do for us.
Praise him because he is the Messiah. Praise him because he does love you, has redeemed you, is pursuing you, and because he is worthy of your Hosanna.
He is worthy of your praise because of who he is, not just for what he can do. Hosanna to him in the highest, give him your praise. Not because of what he can do for you, but because of who he is and what he’s already done.