Devotional: He came for you!

“Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” — Zechariah 9:9 Palm Sunday is a special day. This was the Sunday before the Passover celebration.

This was the day the people selected their lambs to sacrifice to God. Passover was a celebration of thanksgiving to God for rescuing their ancestors from their slavery in Egypt. How fitting it was then for Jesus, God’s chosen sacrificial lamb, to ride into Jerusalem on this day.



Jesus presented himself as our substitute, and he received appropriate praise from the people. Did the people understand why Jesus was there? Maybe some did, but many didn’t. Many were excited to finally see the one who had performed all those miracles he was famous for.

Perhaps he would perform a miracle during the festival. Many were excited because everyone else was excited. Either way, the praise Jesus received was appropriate.

He deserved such acclaim, and he still does today. Jesus understood what was happening. He knew why he was there.

He was the fulfillment of all of God’s promises to his people about sending a Savior. The prophecy from Zechariah was only one out of 100 predictions about Jesus. Jesus would fulfill them all including the most important one in one week by rising from the dead.

But before he could rise, he had work to do. He had work to do because he had a mission to fulfill, and that mission was: saving you! On this day, we see what is in our God’s heart, us. You and me! We hear it even on this day as he entered Jerusalem.

As Jesus looked over the city he started to shed some tears. While he wept, he said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace — but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side.

They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.” What love Jesus had.

He even cried for his enemies. That is important because that is who we are by nature. We are his enemies because we are sinners.

Palm Sunday is all about Jesus’ love for the world, his love for you and me so that we can be called children of God. Happy that Jesus came to save me, just like you! Jacob Hanneman is the pastor of Shepherd of the Plains Lutheran Church in Fort Morgan. In-person worship is at 9 a.

m. Sundays. Online worship can be found at www.

shepherdoftheplainslutheranchurch.com..