1 April 2012
Palm Sunday is celebrated by Christians as a the triumphant entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem, the week before his death and resurrection.
Palm Sunday, often referred as "Passion Sunday," marks the beginning of Holy Week, which concludes on Easter Sunday.
The Bible reveals that when Jesus entered Jerusalem, (knowing completely that this trip would end in his sacrificial death for the sin of mankind).
Jesus sat on the donkey and slowly, humbly, made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
By riding into Jerusalem on a the colt of a donkey, Jesus fulfilled an ancient prophecy in Zechariah 9:9: "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey."
This was the only instance (stated Gospels) in which Jesus rode on an animal.
The crowds greeted him- waving palm branches and covering his path with palm branches.
spreading and covering his path with palm branches reflects the act of homage and submission. The people were recognizing Jesus as the promised Messiah
The crowd went on shouting "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!" Matthew 21:9
The people's cries of 'Hosanna' came from Psalm 118:25-26. Hosanna means "save now." Despite what Jesus had foretold about his mission, the people were looking for a military Messiah who would overthrow the Romans and restore Israel's independence
Immediately subsequent to this time of celebration in the ministry of Jesus, he begins his journey to the cross.
(The biblical account of Palm Sunday is there in the bible as Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-44; and John 12:12-19.)
