Today is Palm Sunday, a Christian day of remembrance which celebrates Jesus’ humble and triumphant entry to Jerusalem five days before he was crucified. Matthew 21:8-11 records the scene:
They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”
It took me a long time to understand the relationship of his entering Jerusalem to the following week’s activities. I remember learning as a kid about the crowds yelling “Hosannah!” I remember learning about Good Friday, when Jesus was crucified. I remember learning about Easter Sunday, when Jesus rose from the dead. But finally putting all of the pieces together—Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Silent Saturday and Easter Sunday—was a gradual process.
One thing I learned specifically about Palm Sunday was that Jesus knew what was coming. “Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, ‘Whom do you seek?'” (John 18:4).
Jesus knew that the people cheering for him on Sunday would call for his death on Friday. Jesus knew that he’d be sold out by one of his disciples after three years of demonstrating the kingdom of heaven to him. Jesus knew he’d be falsely accused, mercilessly mocked, beaten to within an inch of his life, and prisoner-exchanged for a murderer. All that was before he was executed using one of the cruelest methods of capital punishment.
But he rode into Jerusalem anyway. Why? Because of his passion.
The Passion of the Christ
When we hear the word “passion” we tend to think of a strong emotional desire for something we enjoy, like an activity, hobby or skill. We’re told to pursue our passions to get the most out of life, we’re asked what our “passions” are when we interview for a job, and sometimes we find ourselves passionate about a romantic relationship.
That’s why the phrase “the passion of the Christ” is somewhat perplexing to us—the use of the word doesn’t match our understanding of it. When we hear it, we think of Mel Gibson’s movie, which shows with graphic detail the suffering that Jesus endured. “Well, that’s not enjoyable,” we think.
It’s our modern definition that’s the problem. The original meaning of the word passion comes from the Latin passionem (“suffering, enduring”) and the Latin pati “to endure, undergo, experience” with a sense of “that which must be endured.”
Jesus endured great suffering, so it’s not inaccurate to describe his passion as “suffering.” But there is a richer sense of the word that goes beyond simply enduring intense pain and humiliation.
Someone may endure suffering as a consequence of failure or to achieve a lofty goal or to prove a point. In its purest sense, however, passion “is being willing to suffer for what you love.” It goes to the very heart of what motivates someone to willingly endure the suffering.
It would be natural to assume that “what” Jesus loved was more of a “who” he loved—you and me. Jesus came to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10). But was there something that motivated him even deeper still?
Before he loved us, Jesus loved his Father (John 15:9-11) and did exactly what his Father commanded. In John 14:28-31 he says to his disciples,
“You heard me say, ‘I am going away and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe. I will not say much more to you, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold over me, but he comes so that the world may learn that I love the Father and do exactly what my Father has commanded me.”
Jesus was obedient to death—even death on a cross (Phil. 2:8)—because he loved his Father. And because God the Father loved us, he gave us “his one and only Son” (John 3:16) who said of his coming distress, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39). Yes, Jesus loves us, but his love for his Father precedes his love for us.
When Jesus entered Jerusalem that day, he knew what he was walking into. But he did so anyway out of obedience to the Father for our sake—for our salvation.
Take a moment to thank God for his Son who, for the joy set before him, endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Heb. 12:2). Then we can indeed shout, “Hosanna!”