I heard this story recently; “A little boy was sick on Palm Sunday and stayed home from church with his mother. His father returned from church holding a palm branch.
The little boy was curious and asked, “Why do you have that palm branch, dad?”
“You see, when Jesus came into town, everyone waved Palm Branches to honor him, so we got Palm Branches today.”
The little boy replied, ” Aw Shucks! The one Sunday I miss is the Sunday that Jesus shows up!”
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Jesus is on the move everyday and yet like the little boy above who was sick, we who aren’t sick never knew that He had touched our day multiple times. In fact we have NO story to tell as we
missed seeing each encounter of Jesus into our day. NO Hosannas! No, aw shucks! We missed HIS touch. We didn’t look for his touch in our day! We never knew HE was with us all day long. Maybe today we’ll do better. Maybe today we will SING HIS praises!
“The victor’s palm,” we say; “yield the palm” to one who excels; and from very ancient days a palm-leaf has been an emblem of victory. The Greek goddess of victory was represented with a palm-leaf in her hand. It is a relic of the ancient perception that the palm-tree corresponds to a knowledge of the truest kind of victory; a knowledge of the power of the Lord’s commandments to conquer in spiritual conflict.”_ [The Sciences of Correspondences]
When Jesus rode into Jerusalem that first Palm Sunday there was no mistaking as to Who He was or What He was. They had recognized His greatness, His anointing, His divine calling. But one week later many of those who cried in the streets, ‘HOSANNA, HOSANNA’ [save us] would have forgotten, changed their minds, been persuaded by His adversaries, duped, tricked, fooled, bribed, overcome with their own cares…so that now, instead of crying ‘Hosanna’, they cried, ‘Crucify Him!!
And they did!
The simple faith and belief of this child is so straightforward. No wonder Jesus said, “”I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven.”
When I taught Sunday School we would read a story from the bible and a story I had written, called Under the Hand of Jesus. The people that Palm Sunday were under the hand of the KING OF KINGS. He rode in to serve up LOVE and not death. He rode on a donkey and not a war horse. He came to lay HIS life down for the people. God, the Almighty, would do that for US????!!!!!
Excerpt from the Book:
(Leon was messed up and in trouble, as we all are. The following excerpt begin with the Sunday School teacher speaking.)
“Leon all you have to do is call out to Jesus and He will come to you. Next you need to tell Him what each of those arrows (sins) stand for and he will do the pulling out. You’l feel NO pain. In fact after you have finished you will feel a great joy come over you. Your heart will be much lighter. After this you need to go to Jesus daily and he will pull them out daily so you are not so loaded down with arrows,” said the teacher.
“Well how do I begin?” asked Leon.
“Leon we first go before Jesus. I’ll start a prayer to help you, but you’ll have to do the rest. Take my hand and after I have introudced you to Jesus, Ill leave you alone with him. Lord Jesus this is Leon. He has come to me for help, but YOU are the only one who can truly help him. Lord I know you see his heart. He has lots of arrows in it. Please help him Lord Jesus,” the teacher softly and earnestly spoke.
“Well Leon it is now up to you, remember Doctor jesus’ line always begins on your knees,” the teacher said and then she directed him to a place to kneel. Leon knelt and very quietly started naming as many arrows as he could think of as the Lord reminded him. The list of arrows went on and on and one.
Suddenly Leon felt the hand of Jesus on his head and a soft voice said to him, “Leon I would have died on that cross even if you were the only one I needed to die for my child. Leon that is how much I LOVE you, Remember what the scripture says in I John 1: 9 King James Version – If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Leon that scripture tells you that I will do the cleaning up if you ask. All I want from you Leon is for you to continue your walk with me and I’ll be there for you all the time just like I am here today. I’l do this as long as you live. forever!” JESUS SPOKE.
After the complete reading without a word being said the children made crosses out of the Palm Leaves. Kids get the message of Palm Sunday. It is all about Jesus.
This is song Leon sang after Dr. JESUS set him free.
Under the Hand of Jesus
Under the Hand of Jesus
I feel HIS awesome LOVE
As HE floweth through ME
Oh I stand as a Testimoney
Jesus washed away my sins
with His Blood, with His Bood, with His Blood.
Under the Hand of Jesus
Don’t you want to be there too?
come stand under the Hand of Jesus
and feel HIS Love.
Oh I stand as a Testimony
Jesus washed away my sins
with His blood, with His blood, with His blood.
Under the hand of Jesus
I want to be there always
because He LOVES ME
for all eternity
When I saw the palm branches waving in our church in celebration of Jesus on Palm Sunday, singing Hosanna in the highest, and knowing He was the very One that died for me and my sins, the Joy of Jubilee sprang forth in my soul. Yet, knowing by coming Friday I would be singing songs of, how could this be, with a sad heart mixed with Hope? Knowing, hopefully, in three days my voice with multitude of others will spring forth with; Up from the grave, He Arose.. Hallelujah Christ Arose.”
I hope you will find a gathering on Easter Sunday and sing and celebrate what I believe by faith is the greatest happening that has ever been recorded. Yes, sing, “Because he lives we can face our tomorrows, He holds the future and we have a greater Hope in the future knowing we Know Him.
And, a side note, yet even more important as my holding a palm and singing. We gathered our palms and visited a long term health care facility to share our palms. O, when eyes in pools of tears saw the palms they know, it was Palm Sunday and Jesus rode into Jerusalem. And, for many He had rode into their precious hearts. They, like many of us know, He Lives and we can face each day. Please all join in this Easter Celebration in some meaningful way.
A couple of definitions of “palm” – “an unbranched evergreen tree with a crown of long feathered or fan-shaped leaves, and typically having old leaf scars forming a regular pattern on the trunk. A leaf of such a tree awarded as a prize or viewed as a symbol of victory or triumph”
“…typically having old leaf scars…” This brings to mind on this Good Friday the price that Jesus paid for us when the nails were driven into His palms. He even brought His nail scarred hands to Thomas’ attention in John 20:27 so He would believe on Him. And God said “See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands” (Isaiah 49.16). Your definition, tholton, surely is a ‘symbol of victory’ for us to consider and give thanks for.
John 12: 12-13, “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 down the road 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!'” (footnotes) “Jesus began his last week on earth by riding into Jerusalem on a donkey under a canopy of palm branches, with crowds hailing him as their king. To announce that he was indeed the Messiah, Jesus chose a time when all Israel would be gathered at Jerusalem, a place where huge crowds could see him, and a way of proclaiming his mission that was unmistakable. On Palm Sunday we celebrate Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem as Lord of lords and King of Peace. The people who were praising God for giving them a king had the wrong idea about Jesus. They were sure he would be a national leader who would restore their nation to its former glory, and thus, they were deaf to the words of their prophets and blind to Jesus’ real mission. When it became apparent that Jesus was not going to fulfill their hopes, many people turned against him.”
“many people turned against him”….. Lord, help us to stay focused on You, help us not to be blinded. In Jesus’ name, Amen. I’d like to share the devotion, from Sarah Young’s book, “Jesus Calling”, for today. Read with me: “In Me you have everything. In Me you are complete. Your capacity to experience Me is increasing, through My removal of debris and clutter from your heart. As your yearning for Me increases, other desires are gradually lessening. Since I am infinite and abundantly accessible to you, desiring Me above all else is the best way to live. It is impossible for you to have a need that I cannot meet. After all, I created you and everything that is. The world is still at My beck and call, though it often appears otherwise. Do not be fooled by appearances. Things that are visible are brief and fleeting, while things that are invisible are everlasting.”
“…they were deaf to the words of their prophets and blind to Jesus’ real mission”. The words of the prophets didn’t and don’t always make us ‘feel’ good. But they bring the truth and it is the truth that sets us free….really free.
If in the story that opened Sara’s post had to do with Palm Sunday and Jesus’ “SHOWING UP”, then Easter has to do with Jesus’ “Rising Up”!! ( Out of the tomb He arose! With a mighty victory over His foes”. (Hymn)