This article in number two of three on the subject of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ
Jesus did what He did on Palm Sunday for the single purpose of fulfilling prophecy. He knew what the people were thinking. He knew they had it all misread. With His supernatural ability to know what was in the hearts of the people, He was aware that the people accompanying him were not really committed to Him but to their own agenda. The crowd following Him through the entrance to Jerusalem was energetic and expectant. But they were expecting the wrong thing. They had watched Him perform miracle after miracle over the past three years and they were expecting a miracle on this particular day as well.
So, Jesus did not ride into Jerusalem with a crowd of people expecting a spiritual solution to the problem of sin. They were looking for a political solution to the Roman occupation of Israel. His purpose was higher than what the people were expecting. This day was the beginning of the week which would culminate in his death and resurrection and He rode into Jerusalem on what we know as Palm Sunday knowing full well of what was to come. He did what He did that day in order that the prophecy in God’s Word concerning Himself would be fulfilled.
The purpose of the coming of Jesus to the earth was not to rule over an earthly, political empire. The people had it all wrong. They did not see His true purpose which was to seek and save the lost; to provide a sacrifice; to make salvation possible. When He came, the people of His day missed the reason for His coming. Men are still missing it today. Jesus wept two times in scripture. He wept at the tomb of Lazarus his good friend and He wept over Jerusalem because He knew what was coming and He also knew that the people with Him did not understand who He was and why He had come.
How fickle a crowd is! This has always been true. We see it in our day when large crowds of people gather to protest just about any viewpoint especially those which are obviously wrong. The more radical the proposals, the more radical the crowd will be. When Jesus came to enter Jerusalem, the crowd thought that He was going to crush the Romans with the help of angels which they looked for on a momentary basis. Freedom from the Romans was utmost in their minds, not the salvation of human beings and not the fulfillment of prophecy concerning Jesus and His death on the cross. They loved Him on Sunday and by Friday the same group of people were a part of the ones crucifying him. This was a huge change in the attitude of the multitude.
We are very much like these people were. People today still want someone who will make everything o.k. But, salvation is NOT just having Jesus make everything o.k. It is having Him reign in our hearts and minds. A dangerous characteristic of Christians of today is to have Jesus as a prosperity savior. They reason that they must be right with God if everything is going just fine for them. This is not necessarily true and people need to understand that. People somehow think that having Jesus means having everything we need and happiness as well. That is essentially what the people of Palm Sunday thought as they entered Jerusalem with Jesus. How wrong they were! They were focused on the here and now and He was focused on eternal life for mankind. People today want a Jesus they can cling to in popular moments. A soothing Jesus when things are unpleasant. They want a Jesus they can get excited about when they desire Him to do something wonderful for them. They want to feel good about their relationship to Him. But, we must remember that how Jesus feels about us is infinitely more important than how we feel about what WE think OUR relationship to HIM might be. We are not equipped for heaven because we feel good about Him, but because He feels good about us because one is saved. If we don’t have a Palm Sunday Mentality about Jesus then He will be able to be much more involved in our lives.
The Bible records that Jesus wept over Jerusalem. He knew who He was and He knew what they were going to do. He also knew that destruction would come because the people didn’t really know what He was all about. The main thing wrong with a Palm Sunday mentality is that it is fickle. It lasts for less than a week. Emotions run high with a Palm Sunday Mentality. “Bring Jesus to town and we will let the world know we love Him.” But, when enthusiasm is draining away; when the excitement is over; when the energy of a popular moment is gone, it is most often replaced with a cheap Palm Sunday Mentality.
True commitment to Jesus outlasts the Conversion experience; the moment you get saved from your sins. It will also last longer than the excitement following a great revival. There are times when one knows that the Lord has helped them through a very tough trial and they experience a rich, warm, loving relationship to Him. True commitment carries one on into maturity and clings to that relationship with Him. It is more than simply happiness for being delivered but a real and deepening personal relationship with Him.
Palm Sunday Mentality can get you to Sunday School one Sunday bit it won’t last a week until the next Sunday. It will get a person to say they are going to give everything to Jesus but then take it all back. Palm Sunday Mentality will get a person to say great things about Jesus but that’s about all it is…a word. A word of approval or agreement but it doesn’t last long. It’s not a true testimony of an abiding life. It will also leave a person with some regrets. On Palm Sunday the people were serious but by the nest Sunday these people were beginning to wonder who it really was that they accompanied to Jerusalem. Some wondered who they had walked away from. The “Palm Sunday Mentality” was willing to settle for less than Jesus really is. It would take the good and give up the best. And, we are still doing that today. We take the good benefit of being able to “shout” but we give up the best of a deep, committed relationship with Him.
We must realize this: the consequences of such a rejection of Jesus is TOTAL DESTRUCTION as found in Luke 19:43-44….”because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation”. It’s a serious thing to miss out on Jesus.
The time came and went for the people of Jerusalem. They shouted for the moment but ignored eternity. They suffered from the Palm Sunday Mentality. Don’t let it creep up on you.
WFH…4-11-2025
