"The crowds that went ahead of him and ... shouted, 'Hosanna!" (Matt. 21:9)
Palm Sunday ... the last week of suffering for the Savior has begun.
The disciples obtained a donkey on which Jesus rode into Jerusalem, via the suburb of Bethpage. The large crowd of spectators gave Him an enthusiastic welcome. They spread palm branches and garments on the road in his honor. They sang from the Psalter, "Hosanna in the highest..."
Jesus' response to this course of events was mixed. On the one hand he accepted this honor; when the Pharisees asked him to silence the crowd; he replied that their applause was necessary, lest the stones cry out. On the other hand, he was deeply aware of the blindness of the people. When Jesus appeared to them in the valley, he wept over it, because he knew the unbelief.
How selfish the singing crowd! They saw in Jesus the solution to the problems of the day. They thought his revolutionary armies would drive out the hated Romans and would set up a glorious kingdom. That Jesus came to save them from themselves and restore them to God was the farthest from their minds. The crowds became very disappointed later. Less than five days later, they shouted, "Crucify him, crucify him!" Palm Sunday became the entry way to the place of crucifixion.
We have similar problems with Christ. We want him to change our disagreeable circumstances. He wants to change our disagreeable hearts.
