Customs and traditions; we all have them. If you were to do a study on the customs and traditions in the United States you find a diversity that is similar to the diversity of the entire world. This is because people from every region of the world have come to call this great land home.
For example the Boling’s family tradition is to gather once a month and celebrate the anniversaries and birthdays of everyone in the family. It’s a tradition that goes back to the early 19th century when the family was separated by hundreds of miles and once a month they would hop on the horse drawn wagon and make the long journey to catch up on things and celebrate the important dates in the lives of their loved ones.
Terry Clark’s family on Christmas Eve opens their house to neighbors and friends in a pot-luck style dinner. On this night an Irish potato soup is made. For fifty years she can remember having Irish potato soup on this night. When she asked her mother as a little girl as to why they had this soup every year her mother replied, “To remind us that there are those who do not even have this simple soup to eat and to remind us of all of our blessings.”
Our own Garner family has a tradition. It is my understanding that once a year they have a family reunion out on the farm and families by the dozens come to town.
It was also a custom in Jesus’ time for all the Jews to gather in Jerusalem from all over the world to remember and celebrate the Passover Meal. It was similar to our 4th of July celebrations. On the 4th of July we celebrate America’s Independence. It is the day many consider to be the birth of this awesome nation. The Jews celebrated a moment in their history when God spared their firstborn children. It was the last plague on the Egyptians, but it was the final act that led to Pharaoh’s decision to surrender and let God’s people free.
It was also a tradition to welcome Jews coming from all over the world to celebrate the Passover by waiting for them on the roads leading into Jerusalem. There they were welcomed and branches were cut and placed on the road before them. It was sort of like rolling out the red carpet.
With Jesus in our scripture something different is happening with this custom. Matthew, a disciple of Jesus and author of the gospel tells us that Jesus chose a special way to enter into Jerusalem for the Passover meal. Jesus, first of all, has chosen to ride in on a donkey with her foal. They placed their cloaks on the animals and Jesus sat on them both. Notice Jesus didn’t sit on one of them, but on both of them.
Is there some sort of significance to this? Matthew tells us that this was done so that the prophecy would be fulfilled from Zechariah 9:9.
“Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you… gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
I find it strange that Matthew left out an important part of this verse, but then again I think maybe he did for emphasis. If one were to go this prophecy in the scripture and compare it to Matthews quote they would see that Matthew left a very important piece of this scripture out. When anyone would go to Zechariah 9:9 and they would have read:
“Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you,” here is the section he left out, ‘righteous and having salvation,’ gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
They might wonder why he left out “righteous and having salvation.” These are two very important qualities that all of scripture proclaim concerning the Messiah. Two qualities the Bible emphasizes concerning Jesus. So why would Matthew leave it out. I believe he left it out for emphasis. Wouldn’t it make a person who knew the scriptures and was reading this ask, “Wasn’t Jesus righteous and didn’t Jesus have salvation?” Maybe it was left out so that the reader and possibly the hearer might seek the answers and give affirmation to this question for themselves.
I don’t know for sure, but it made me wonder and ask these questions. It made me affirm in my own heart that yes Jesus was righteous and Jesus did bring salvation.
You know the man “Socrates taught for 40 years, Plato for 50, Aristotle for 40, and Jesus for only 3. Yet the influence of Christ’s 3-year ministry infinitely transcends the impact left by the combined 130 years of teaching from these men who were among the greatest philosophers of all antiquity. Jesus painted no pictures; yet, some of the finest paintings of Raphael, Michelangelo, and Leonardo da Vinci received their inspiration from Him.
Jesus wrote no poetry; but Dante, Milton, and scores of the world’s greatest poets were inspired by Him. Jesus composed no music; still Haydn, Handel, Beethoven, Bach, and Mendelssohn reached their highest perfection of melody in the hymns, symphonies, and oratories they composed in His praise. Every sphere of human greatness has been enriched by this humble Carpenter of Nazareth.”
—Henry G. Bosch
Why? Because of the fact He was righteous and He brought salvation.
I once read about a “translation of a letter sent by Publius Lentulus a Roman citizen and Jew to the Roman Senate during the Roman Empire period.”
He wrote, “There appeared in these days a man of great virtue, named Jesus who is called the Christ, who is yet among us; (meaning he is still among us) of the Gentiles accepted for a prophet of truth; but his disciples call him the Son of God. He raises the dead, and cures all manner of disease. A man of stature somewhat tall and comely, with a very reverend countenance, such as the beholder must both love and fear.
“His hair the color of a chestnut full ripe, plain to the ears, whence, downward, it is more orient, curling and waving about his shoulders. In the midst of his forehead is a stream or partition of his hair, after the manner of the Nazarites; forehead plain and very delicate; his face without spot or wrinkle, beautiful, with a lovely red; his nose and mouth so forked as nothing can be represented; his beard thick, in color like his hair, not over long; his look innocent and mature; his eyes gray, quick, and clear.
In reproving, he is terrible; in admonishing, courteous and fair-spoken; pleasant in conversation, mixed with gravity. Many have seen him weep; in proportion of body most excellent; his hands and arms delectable to behold; in speaking, very temperate, modest and wise; a man of singular beauty, surpassing the children of men.”
Even Publius Lentulus could see something special about this Jesus. Why? That’s simple to answer, because He was divinely injected into the world and because He was righteous and brought salvation for all.
As Jesus comes into Jerusalem straddling a Donkey and colt there were those in front of him and those behind him who also saw something in Jesus’ appearance, character, and actions. They too saw what Matthew had left out of his quote from Zachariah 9:9.
It was on that road they cried out, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna in the highest!”
How does this reveal their belief that Jesus was righteous and that He was bringing salvation? They revealed their belief by the use of the word Hosanna and the use of the name Son of David.
Son of David is a term Israel used for the Messiah, the savior, the king that would come and rescue the nation from slavery and their enemies.
What does Hosanna mean? Hosanna means, “O’ save us”
They were crying, “O save us Messiah.” Blessed is he who comes in the name of God, “O’ save us in the highest.”
If there was ever something for us to be shouting today it’s this.
“O save us Lord from ourselves, our ever learning, but never grasping the truth, from the love that has waxed cold in our day and time, from the pursuit of selfish gain and selfish fulfillment to the place of surrender and service, from disillusionment, bitterness, and cynical attitudes. O’ save us Lord from greedy politicians and profiteers, from trust in men and woman to rescue us from our nation’s predicament to trusting in you!” Here is something to shout about!
“Save us O’ Lord from ignorance, and indifference, and the poverty of Your Spirit, to knowledge and wisdom of You and Your ways, to fullness of Your Spirit with overflowing care and concern for your righteousness and salvation to be carried out into the world. Hosanna! O Save us.” Give us the ability to shout a loud and sincere, “Hosanna.”
Matthew tells us that as Jesus rides into Jerusalem and as the crowds are shouting, the whole city became stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
This shouldn’t surprise us, because Jews from all around the known Roman Empire had returned to Jerusalem this year. These visitors were asking, “Who is this?” You might ask why they hadn’t heard of him before this. The bible tells us that during the second year of ministry Jesus
Who is this that the people are screaming O’ Save us? Who is this they are hailing as Messiah? He is the one who is righteous and is bringing salvation.
The answer you received depended on who you talked. If you went and sought out the answer to this question from the leaders of the Jews, then you would have heard that Jesus was a blasphemer who claimed He was God. He claimed He can forgive sin. He performs miracles by the power of Satan, and He speaks the lies of the devil with His forked tongue. He does not respect the Sabbath Day, nor does he respect the Temple, the law, or those God has chosen as Israel’s leaders.
If you were to ask the followers of Christ, those who had been healed, those who had been forgiven, those whose lives had been changed by the truth He taught, then you would have heard something else. To say that Jesus is the prophet from Nazareth doesn’t tell us much. If you would indulge me for a moment, then I think I could better translate what the crowd following Jesus was really saying.
They were in essence saying, He is the Messiah, the savior, the healer, the one who speaks truth, the one who brings salvation, He is righteous and Holy, The Son of Man and the Son of David, He is compassionate, loving, kind, wise, and full of power, He is full of grace and humble, He is Jesus, He is who He has revealed Himself to be! He is the one whose birth, life, death, and eternal nature have been written about since the beginning of recorded history. He is the one who is going to rescue the lost children of God, so they can once again know that God loves them and come to the knowledge of God as Father.
If you ask who Jesus is today, then the answer you might get depends on who you ask. If you ask a secular, non believing College professor or a lying religious hypocrite who says they are Christian, then you might hear that, “He was only a man who was very wise and charismatic. He is a life philosopher and offers people good way to live and is worthy of study.”
But if you ask me or one of the believer’s in this church, then you might hear this? He is my healer, my redeemer, my savior, the air that I breathe, My God and my king, He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, the light of the world, the truth, the way, and the life, the Good Shepherd, the bread of life, the gate to heaven, the one who died and who is alive forever more, the one whose blood was shed, whose life was given as an offering for the sins of humanity, He is the bridge to God, the ever present help in the time of need. He is righteous and He has Salvation to offer every creature in creation. He is the one who gives me something to shout about.
And if you don’t know Him today, then I invite you to do a shout out. I invite you to shout Hosanna. I invite you to lay down the branches for Christ on the road into your heart and life. I invite you to accept the one who deep in your heart you knew existed, but may have never encountered. I invite you to this altar so that Christ can bring down the dividing wall between You and God. The dividing wall of Your sin and life without God. The invitation is made and the door is open for you. Amen.
