The King Who Came for You - Palm Sunday and the Call to Follow Jesus
Today we come to one of the most sacred, striking, and deeply moving moments in the earthly ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ: Palm Sunday.
This is not merely a story about crowds, cloaks, branches, and celebration. This is not merely the beginning of Holy Week in the church calendar. Palm Sunday is the public presentation of Jesus Christ as King. It is the moment when heaven’s King rides into earth’s rebellion—not on a war horse, but on a donkey; not with a sword in His hand, but with salvation in His heart; not to crush sinners, but to be crushed for them.
And if we are truly disciples of Jesus, then Palm Sunday confronts us with a searching question: What kind of King are we willing to follow?
Do we want a King who serves our agenda, or do we bow before the King who came to save us from our sin?
So today I want to preach on this theme: The King Who Came for You
Our key text is found in Luke 19:28–44, and we will draw supporting light from the other Gospel accounts and prophetic Scriptures.
Introduction: When the Crowd Gets It Almost Right
There is something deeply revealing about a crowd.
Crowds can be loud without being surrendered.
Crowds can be excited without being transformed.
Crowds can sing the right words and still miss the true King standing before them.
Palm Sunday is a day of praise, but it is also a day of exposure. It reveals the beauty of Christ, but it also reveals the instability of the human heart. The same city that welcomed Him with cries of worship would soon echo with cries for His death.
And is that not still true in the 21st century? We live in a culture that likes Jesus in fragments. A Jesus of inspiration. A Jesus of kindness. A Jesus of justice language. A Jesus of seasonal symbolism. A Jesus who fits neatly into social media captions and sentimental religion. But the real Jesus does not come to decorate our lives. He comes to rule them. He does not come merely to improve us. He comes to redeem us. He does not come asking for applause. He comes demanding repentance and faith.
Palm Sunday teaches us that Jesus is the promised King, the humble King, the saving King, and the rejected King—and every true disciple must respond accordingly.
Luke 19:28–40 (NLT): “After telling this story, Jesus went on toward Jerusalem, walking ahead of his disciples. As he came to the towns of Bethphage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives, he sent two disciples ahead. ‘Go into that village over there,’ he told them. ‘As you enter it, you will see a young donkey tied there that no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks, “Why are you untying that colt?” just say, “The Lord needs it.”’
So they went and found the colt, just as Jesus had said. And sure enough, as they were untying it, the owners asked them, ‘Why are you untying that colt?’
And the disciples simply replied, ‘The Lord needs it.’
So they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their garments over it for him to ride on. As he rode along, the crowds spread out their garments on the road ahead of him.
When he reached the place where the road started down the Mount of Olives, all of his followers began to shout and sing as they walked along, praising God for all the wonderful miracles they had seen.
‘Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the Lord!
Peace in heaven, and glory in highest heaven!’
But some of the Pharisees among the crowd said, ‘Teacher, rebuke your followers for saying things like that!’
He replied, ‘If they kept quiet, the stones would burst into cheers!’”
And let us also read the solemn continuation, Luke 19:41–44 (NLT): “But as he came closer to Jerusalem and saw the city ahead, he began to weep. ‘How I wish today that you of all people would understand the way to peace. But now it is too late, and peace is hidden from your eyes. Before long your enemies will build ramparts against your walls and encircle you and close in on you from every side. They will crush you into the ground, and your children with you. Your enemies will not leave a single stone in place, because you did not recognize it when God visited you.’”
This is the Word of the Lord.
Palm Sunday is triumph wrapped in tears. Praise fills the air, yet grief fills the heart of Christ. Why? Because the King is welcomed by mouths, but not received by hearts.
Today I want us to walk through four great truths from this passage.
1. Palm Sunday Reveals Jesus as the Promised King
Jesus did not drift into Jerusalem accidentally. He entered deliberately, publicly, prophetically, and sovereignly.
Luke tells us that Jesus sent His disciples to fetch a colt. This is not random detail. This is royal fulfilment. Jesus is consciously fulfilling prophecy.
Listen to Zechariah 9:9 (NLT): “Rejoice, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey —riding on a donkey’s colt.”
What a staggering prophecy. Written centuries before Christ entered Jerusalem, and yet fulfilled with breathtaking precision.
Zechariah says, “your king is coming to you.” Not a philosopher. Not merely a teacher. Not merely a healer. Not merely a moral example. Your King.
The Hebrew idea behind this royal announcement is covenantal and messianic. God had promised His people a coming ruler from David’s line, one who would reign in righteousness and bring the true peace of God. Jesus is not inventing a title for Himself here; He is stepping into the ancient promise of God.
And notice that the disciples say, “The Lord needs it.” Not, “The teacher needs it.” Not, “The rabbi needs it.” “The Lord needs it.” Luke is making something unmistakably clear: Jesus is acting with divine authority.
Palm Sunday matters because it tells us that God keeps His promises in Christ. Everything the prophets longed for, everything the faithful remnant hoped for, everything redemptive history was moving toward, meets in Jesus.
Genesis 49:10–11 (NLT): “The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from his descendants, until the coming of the one to whom it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor. He ties his foal to a grapevine, the colt of his donkey to a choice vine…”
Even in Genesis, the Spirit of God is planting royal images that bloom fully in Christ. The kingly promise is ancient. Palm Sunday is not a detached event; it is the flowering of the whole Bible’s expectation.
The Greek word often associated with Christ as king in the New Testament is basileus, meaning king, sovereign, ruler. But the significance here is not merely political. Jesus is the King who possesses rightful authority over hearts, lives, nations, and eternity.
Discipleship begins when we stop negotiating with Jesus and start bowing to Him.
Many in modern Britain, and across the Western world, are happy to admire Jesus as long as He remains symbolic, gentle, and non-disruptive. But once Jesus is acknowledged as King, everything changes. My preferences must bow. My morality must bow. My relationships must bow. My ambitions must bow. My identity must bow. The disciple is not one who simply appreciates Jesus; the disciple is one who is ruled by Jesus.
Imagine a long-awaited rightful king returning to a land that has been occupied by rebels. His arrival is not merely ceremonial. It means the end of false rule. It means the exposure of treason. It means the restoration of rightful order.
That is Palm Sunday. Jesus rides into the city, and by His very presence declares: “The true King has come.”
Tim Keller said, “If Jesus rose from the dead, then you have to accept all that He said; if He didn’t rise from the dead, then why worry about any of what He said?”
And that is wonderfully incisive. In the Dean Courtier spirit, let me say it plainly: Christ does not offer Himself to us as an optional spiritual enhancement. He presents Himself as the risen, reigning King. If He is Lord, then selective obedience is still disobedience. Palm Sunday calls us to wholehearted surrender.
2. Palm Sunday Reveals Jesus as the Humble King
Now here is the surprise. The promised King comes—but not as many expected.
He does not come mounted on a stallion like a conquering Caesar. He comes on a colt. That detail is full of theological beauty.
In the ancient world, a horse was often associated with war, power, conquest, and military triumph. A donkey, particularly in this context, signified humility, peace, and royal gentleness. Jesus is declaring the kind of King He is.
He is majestic, but not proud.
He is sovereign, but not harsh.
He is holy, but approachable.
He is powerful, but gentle.
Palm Sunday shatters worldly assumptions about greatness.
Philippians 2:5–11 (NLT): “You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Palm Sunday cannot be understood rightly unless it is read in the shadow of the cross. His humility is not weakness. His lowliness is not lack. His gentleness is not inability. It is chosen, sovereign, saving humility.
The Greek word in Philippians 2 for “humbled himself” is etapeinosen, from a word meaning to make low, to bring down, to take the low place. Christ willingly descended. He stooped. He condescended. He took the servant’s path for our salvation.
And on Palm Sunday, the donkey becomes a sermon in itself. Jesus is saying, “I am the King—but I have come in peace. I have come to save.”
Discipleship means learning the humility of Jesus.
We live in an age of platform-building, self-branding, visibility, performance, and curated image.
The world says, “Make yourself known.” Jesus says, “Take up your cross.”
The world says, “Protect your status.” Jesus says, “Serve.”
The world says, “Be first.” Jesus says, “Be faithful.”
To follow Jesus on Palm Sunday is to say:
“Lord, strip me of pride.”
“Lord, save me from self-exaltation.”
“Lord, teach me the beauty of hidden obedience.”
“Lord, make me like the King who rode lowly into Jerusalem.”
A great cathedral is not held up by its stained glass windows, beautiful though they may be. It stands because of hidden stones, buried foundations, unseen strength. In much the same way, the Christian life is not sustained by moments of public display, but by hidden humility, prayer, obedience, repentance, and surrender.
The humble Christ produces humble disciples.
Charles Stanley said, “To become more like Christ, we must learn to think, act, and respond as He did.”
That is not sentimental language; that is discipleship language. And how did Christ act? He moved toward suffering with obedience. He embraced humility without complaint. He served when He had every right to be served. Palm Sunday calls the church back to Christlike lowliness—not performative humility, but real surrender before God.
3. Palm Sunday Reveals Jesus as the Saving King
The crowd begins to cry out in praise:
Luke 19:38 (NLT): “Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in highest heaven!”
The parallel Gospel account gives us the cry “Hosanna!” which is especially significant.
Matthew 21:8–9 (NLT): “Most of the crowd spread their garments on the road ahead of him, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Jesus was in the center of the procession, and the people all around him were shouting, ‘Praise God for the Son of David! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Praise God in highest heaven!’”
The word “Hosanna” comes from a Hebrew expression meaning, at its root, “Save now” or “Please save!” It is both praise and plea. It is worship wrapped in desperation.
That is important, because Palm Sunday is not ultimately about liturgical excitement; it is about salvation. Jesus came to Jerusalem to die. He came not merely to be admired, but to be crucified for sinners. The road lined with garments would lead to a hill stained with blood. The branches of celebration would soon give way to the timber of the cross.
The crowd wanted rescue, but many of them wanted the wrong kind of rescue. They longed for political liberation, national restoration, visible triumph, immediate relief. But Jesus came for a deeper deliverance. He came to save us from sin, guilt, judgement, death, and hell.
John 12:12–16 (NLT): “The next day, the news that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem swept through the city. A large crowd of Passover visitors took palm branches and went out to meet him. They shouted, ‘Praise God!
Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hail to the King of Israel!’ Jesus found a young donkey and rode on it, fulfilling the prophecy that said: ‘Don’t be afraid, people of Jerusalem. Look, your King is coming, riding on a donkey’s colt.’
His disciples didn’t understand at the time that this was a fulfilment of prophecy. But after Jesus entered into his glory, they remembered what had happened and realised that these things had been written about him.”
Is that not striking? Even the disciples did not fully understand in the moment. And sometimes we do not either. There are seasons when Christ’s ways are mysterious to us. We do not understand why He leads us through sorrow, delay, pruning, or waiting. But later we see that the King was wise all along.
Palm Sunday announces that salvation is here—but it comes by the way of sacrifice.
Isaiah 53:4–6 (NLT):
“Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
But he was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him
the sins of us all.”
There, beloved, is the heart of Palm Sunday. The King rides in to become the Lamb led out. He enters Jerusalem to bear our rebellion. He comes through the gates not to take life, but to lay down His own.
The Hebrew word in Isaiah 53:5 for “pierced” carries the sense of being wounded through, pierced through, fatally stricken. This is not vague suffering. This is substitutionary suffering. Christ did not die as a tragic example only. He died in our place, for our sins, under the judgement we deserved.
And that is why the cry “Hosanna” reaches its fulfilment not in the waving of branches, but in the empty tomb. He saves because He dies. He saves because He rises. He saves because He is both King and Saviour.
Many people still want a Palm Sunday Jesus without a Good Friday cross and without an Easter resurrection. They want inspiration without atonement. Comfort without repentance. Celebration without surrender.
But discipleship means receiving Jesus as He truly is: the saving King who rescues us from the deepest problem we have—our sin against a holy God.
In the 21st century we are surrounded by false saviours. Technology promises mastery. politics promises renewal. wealth promises security. self-expression promises identity. entertainment promises escape. But none of these can wash away one sin, quiet one guilty conscience, or open one grave.
Only Jesus saves.
A person trapped in a burning house does not need advice shouted from the pavement. He needs someone to come in and carry him out. That is what Jesus has done for us. We were not spiritually inconvenienced; we were spiritually dead. Christ did not come merely to improve our conditions. He came to rescue us at infinite cost to Himself.
John Piper said, “Jesus did not come into the world mainly to make bad people good; he came into the world to make dead people live.”
That is gloriously true. Palm Sunday must never be reduced to a religious parade. It is the opening movement of a redemptive rescue. The King came to save the perishing, to awaken the dead, to redeem the guilty, and to bring rebels home to God.
4. Palm Sunday Reveals Jesus as the Rejected King
Now we must not romanticise the scene.
Yes, there is praise. Yes, there is celebration. Yes, there is public honour. But Luke, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, will not let us stop there.
Luke 19:39–40 (NLT): “But some of the Pharisees among the crowd said, ‘Teacher, rebuke your followers for saying things like that!’ He replied, ‘If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!’”
And then immediately: Luke 19:41–44 (NLT):
“But as he came closer to Jerusalem and saw the city ahead, he began to weep. ‘How I wish today that you of all people would understand the way to peace. But now it is too late, and peace is hidden from your eyes. Before long your enemies will build ramparts against your walls and encircle you and close in on you from every side. They will crush you into the ground, and your children with you. Your enemies will not leave a single stone in place, because you did not recognize it when God visited you.’”
What a scene. The King is praised, yet opposed. He is welcomed, yet rejected. He is celebrated outwardly, yet resisted inwardly.
The Pharisees cannot bear the worship of Jesus because to accept His kingship would mean the end of their own self-rule. And that is still the issue today. The natural heart does not mind religion so long as religion does not dethrone the self. But Jesus does dethrone the self. He does not come merely to assist your kingdom. He comes announcing His own.
And then, in one of the most tender and heartbreaking moments in all the Gospels, Jesus weeps.
He does not weep because He is weak. He weeps because He is holy love. He sees the coming judgement on Jerusalem. He sees a city full of religion, yet empty of recognition. They had the Scriptures, the temple, the history, the promises, the prophets—and yet they missed the very Son of God in their midst.
Psalm 118:25–26 (NLT): “Please, Lord, please save us. Please, Lord, please give us success. Bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord.”
This psalm lies behind the Palm Sunday cries. But tragically, many could quote the words without truly receiving the One those words were about.
John 1:10–12 (NLT): “He came into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognize him. He came to his own people, and even they rejected him. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.”
There is the dividing line. Some rejected Him. Some received Him. Some resisted His rule. Some believed and became children of God.
The Greek word for “wept” in Luke 19:41 carries the sense of loud weeping, deep lament, visible grief. This is not a single quiet tear. This is the broken-hearted sorrow of the Son of God over those who refuse the peace He came to bring.
And the phrase, “you did not recognise it when God visited you,” is one of the weightiest statements in the passage. In Christ, God had drawn near. God had visited His people in mercy, truth, grace, and power. Yet they did not recognise the hour of visitation.
It is possible to be near the things of God and still miss God Himself.
It is possible to know church language and not know Christ.
It is possible to sing Christian songs and still resist the King.
It is possible to have admiration for Jesus and yet no submission to Jesus.
Palm Sunday warns us against superficial religion.
We live in a time when spirituality is fashionable, but repentance is not. People want blessing without bowing, peace without holiness, hope without truth, comfort without the cross. But Jesus does not come merely to be observed. He comes to be received.
A doctor may stand at the bedside with the very medicine that can save a dying patient. But if the patient refuses the treatment, the presence of the doctor alone does not heal him. In the same way, Jerusalem had the presence of Christ but refused His peace. What a tragedy to be so close to salvation and yet perish through unbelief.
R.T. Kendall said, “The greatest mistake we can make is to be near the kingdom of God and not enter it.”
That is a sobering word, and it fits Palm Sunday with painful precision. The city was near the King, near the truth, near the hour of grace—yet many remained unchanged. Let it not be so among us. Let us not merely wave the branches of religion while withholding the throne of the heart.
The Gospel at the Heart of Palm Sunday
Now let me bring us to the blazing centre of this message.
Palm Sunday is the doorway into the saving events of the Gospel.
Jesus entered Jerusalem.
He was betrayed.
He was arrested.
He was mocked.
He was scourged.
He was crucified.
He died.
He was buried.
And on the third day, He rose again in victory over sin, Satan, death, and the grave.
This is the Gospel.
1 Corinthians 15:3–4 (NLT): “I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said.”
Palm Sunday is glorious, but it is not complete without Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
The King who entered Jerusalem humbly is the King who went to Calvary willingly.
The One praised with palm branches is the One pierced with nails.
The One hailed as King is the One crowned with thorns.
The One rejected by men is the One vindicated by the resurrection.
And why did He do it?
For sinners.
For rebels.
For the guilty.
For the lost.
For us.
Romans 5:8 (NLT): “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”
Beloved, Jesus did not wait for you to become worthy. He came while you were still in sin. He came while you were wandering. He came while you were spiritually dead. He came because grace is not earned; grace is given.
And now the risen Christ calls every man, woman, and child: Repent, believe, and follow Me.
Call to Discipleship: How Then Shall We Respond?
Palm Sunday demands a response. Not admiration only. Not seasonal emotion. Not religious appreciation. A response.
1. Receive Jesus as King, not merely helper
Do not reduce Christ to a spiritual assistant who helps you build your own life plan. He is King. He has the right to govern every area of your life.
Ask yourself:
Have I actually surrendered to Jesus?
Is He Lord over my speech, my relationships, my finances, my thought life, my private habits, my future?
Am I following Him, or merely using Him?
2. Follow Jesus in humility
The King came lowly. Therefore His disciples must not live in pride.
Lay down:
self-promotion
bitterness
entitlement
the need to be seen
the hunger for applause
Choose instead:
hidden obedience
servant-hearted love
quick repentance
quiet faithfulness
Christlike gentleness
3. Trust Jesus for true salvation
Stop looking to broken cisterns. Politics cannot save your soul. Money cannot cleanse your conscience. popularity cannot heal your heart. Morality cannot erase your guilt. Only Jesus saves.
4. Worship Jesus with truth, not merely emotion
The crowd shouted loudly, but many did not endure faithfully. Let your worship be more than a moment. Let it become a life. Real worship means obedience on Monday, not merely songs on Sunday.
5. Do not miss your hour of visitation
If Christ is speaking to your heart today, do not harden yourself. Do not delay. Do not presume upon tomorrow. The Jesus who wept over Jerusalem now extends mercy to you.
Invitation to Salvation
My dear friend, perhaps you are listening to this and you know in your heart that you have never truly trusted Christ. You may have been around Christian things. You may know the language. You may have sung the songs. But deep down, you know that Jesus has not been enthroned in your life.
Hear me with love and urgency: You need more than religion. You need salvation.
The Bible says that we are sinners by nature and by choice. We have broken God’s law. We have gone our own way. We deserve judgement. But God, in His astonishing mercy, sent His Son.
Jesus lived the sinless life you could never live.
He died the death you deserve to die.
He was buried in a borrowed tomb.
And He rose again in power and glory.
Now He offers forgiveness, peace with God, new life, adoption into God’s family, and eternal hope to all who will repent and believe.
To repent means to turn from sin, self-rule, and unbelief.
To believe means to place your trust wholly in Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord.
Come to Him now.
You do not need to clean yourself up first.
You do not need to become impressive first.
You do not need to carry your guilt one more day.
Come to Jesus.
You may pray from your heart:
“Lord Jesus, I confess that I am a sinner and that I need Your mercy. I believe You died for my sins and rose again from the dead. Forgive me, cleanse me, and save me. I turn from my sin and place my trust in You alone. Be my Saviour, be my Lord, and help me follow You all my days. Amen.”
If that is the cry of your heart, Christ will receive you. He is mighty to save.
A Closing Exhortation to the Church
Church, Palm Sunday is not merely a date to remember; it is a King to follow.
Follow Him when the crowd is cheering.
Follow Him when the crowd is hostile.
Follow Him in public praise and in private obedience.
Follow Him with palm branches and follow Him to the cross.
Follow Him not only as the miracle worker, but as the suffering Saviour.
Follow Him not only for what He gives, but for who He is.
The true disciple does not merely join the procession for a day. The true disciple keeps walking with Jesus all the way.
There is a great difference between welcoming a king into the city and yielding the keys of the city to him. Palm Sunday asks more of us than celebration. It asks for surrender. Not “Christ, visit me,” but “Christ, rule me.” Not “Christ, bless my plans,” but “Christ, have Your way.”
And when He rules, He does not ruin. He redeems.
When He reigns, He does not destroy. He restores.
When He commands, He does not oppress. He leads us into life.
Conclusion and Benediction
So let us leave this message with holy clarity:
Jesus is the promised King.
Jesus is the humble King.
Jesus is the saving King.
Jesus is the rejected King whom we must not refuse.
Let us not be a people who sing loudly and surrender lightly. Let us be disciples who bow deeply, trust wholly, love fervently, and follow faithfully.
May the Lord grant that our cry of “Hosanna” would not be empty enthusiasm, but genuine faith. May our praise be joined to repentance, our worship joined to obedience, and our confession joined to lives wholly yielded to Christ.
And may the King who rode into Jerusalem in humility now reign in our hearts in power, until the day we see Him come again—not on a colt, but in glory.
Amen.
