Palm Sunday   Palm Sunday (or should it be Lamb Sunday?) Our story begins in the mind of God before the foundation of the earth. There was to be a Messiah, or savior, of the man that God would create. The day in which He would come was announced to Daniel: “until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks” Daniel 9:25 This represents 69 weeks of years; i.e., 483 years. To the exact day it was the day that Jesus was ascending to Jerusalem (Luke 19:28.) Notice that after the 69 weeks the Messiah will be “cut off” and the city would be destroyed. (Dan. 9:26). Psalm 118:24 and Zechariah 9:9 describe this day! The people had seen false Messiahs before – all promising triumph over the Romans. The celebrations were not allowed to get too noisy, for they might be punished severely by the Roman authority. Palm branches were a national symbol of exuberance, much like we would wave a flag today for a conquering hero. It was evident to Christ that the people had forgotten the prophecies of Daniel. He wept over the city. Luke 19:41-44. “You did not recognize the time of your visitation” Luke 19:44. (Have you ever seen a conquering hero weep?) My friends, do we recognize the times? Jesus always wants us to be ready, to discern the times, and to see His hand at work among us. It was “lamb selection day”. The Israelites would bring unblemished lambs on Sunday for the Passover celebration later in the week. Jesus was in effect saying, “Select Me”. All the events of that week would highlight the mission of the Messiah. He cast out the thieves in the temple. He told the parable of the vineyard (Luke 20), which really was a story of Himself. He told the parable of the widow, who gave all that she had. (Luke 21). (Christ gave all that He had as well). He told of the coming destruction of Jerusalem. They ate the Last Supper, and they joined in the communion of the bread and the wine. It was the celebration of a new covenant of His blood (Luke 22:20) He was tried, condemned unjustly, and crucified—all so that we might find new life in Him. Amazing grace-- that He would die for me! At about 3 PM He gave up His life. “It is finished.” At about that same time it was customary for the priests to sacrifice the lamb that had been selected. The horn of Shophar would sound out from the temple to announce to the city “the lamb has been slain”. Yes, the real, perfect lamb truly had been slain. Oh, had they only known what they had done! All these events signify that we too are to be a sacrifice to others. We are to give them first place. We do this by the power of the living Christ within. We can do no less than to give Him our lives and service. Everything is His. .                                              Back