“On the next day, the large crowd who had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet him, and began to shout, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD, even the King of Israel.’ ” (John 12:12,13 NASB).
Five days before the Passover, Jesus leaves Bethany to go to Jerusalem. Lazarus had just been raised from the dead after being dead for four days decaying in a tomb. The religious leaders of the Jews became enraged and alarmed and sought to put both Lazarus and Jesus to death as large numbers of people “were going away and were believing in Jesus” (John 12:11 NASB). A large crowd gathered anticipating Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem. They “took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him” (John 12:13a NASB). The Scriptures tell us that most of the people spread their coats in the road, and spread the palm branches over the road ahead of Him (see Matthew 21:1-11). Hosannas filled the air as Jesus rode triumphantly into Jerusalem against the backdrop of the Mount of Olives in the distance. These events are celebrated by many on what is now known as Palm Sunday. Yet these events in their history declare a prophetic picture of the particulars surrounding Jesus’ triumphal entry into our lives. Jesus seeks to make a triumphal entry into you heart!
“The Spirit of The Lord is upon Me, because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” “And He began to say to them, ‘Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’” (Luke 4:18-19;21 NASB).
One of the prophetic resonations is delivered to us in John 12 as we picture the Mount of Olives east of Jerusalem. Picture this: Jesus descends into Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives which is covered with olive groves. The anointing oil was made of olive oil. This oil was used to anoint kings, priests, prophets, and the High Priest as well as sacred vessels. It symbolized the presence and power of the Holy Spirit upon a person and sanctified all it touched unto the holy purposes of God. Jesus’ triumphal procession into Jerusalem took place because He is the promised Anointed One.
Jesus anointed of God, upon whom the Spirit of God descended, remaining on Him (see John 1:33), comes in His Anointing to take the fallen and unregenerate areas of our hearts in triumph! He came to not only forgive us of our sins but to save us from sin and give us Life. In Isaiah 10, God promises deliverance from the yoke of the Assyrian and the burden of sin that is represented in their bondage to the Assyrian. “It shall come to pass in that day, That his burden will be taken away from your shoulder, and his yoke from your neck, And the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil” (Isaiah 10:27 NKJ). The yoke of sin represents the control sin has over our lives. In Romans, sin is called our master and all who yield to sin become its slaves (See Romans 6:16); it seeks to dictate what we do, how we feel, and what we desire. All have sinned and all are under its bondage, and the heaviness of its grief, shame, and torments because of its deceiving pleasures. But all who struggle with its propensities have this promise… All who have been controlled by sin and are feeling lost by its destructive desires and appetites… We all have this prophetic promise that “the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil.” Jesus, today, embarks to make a triumphal entry into our hearts anointed to destroy the yoke of sin that troubles us (see Hosea 2:14-15)!
Whether you are lost or whether you are a Christian struggling with fallen and unregenerate areas in your heart, we have this prophetic promise in the portrait of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem: He descends from the power of heaven clothed in the anointing of the Spirit making His way into our hearts. He comes to forgive, cleanse, and set us free from the law of sin that rages and wars in our members (see Romans 7:23). He will do what He does if we will receive Him – if we will make a way for Him.
“Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” (Matthew 11:28,29 KJV).
If we will make a way for Him, we must learn the way of meekness and humility to experience the gentleness of His transforming nature in our lives. If we will take His yoke upon us, we must embrace Him in meekness and humility. He calls to those who are weary and heavy-laden. He beckons those who have passed beyond the season of pleasure that sin affords us. Jesus invites any of us who have grown tired of struggling with the encumbrances “and the sin which so easily entangles us…” (Hebrews 12:1b NASB). Let us fix “our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith” (Hebrews 12: 2a NASB), for He approaches the gates of our hearts. He calls, “Come unto Me.” As the crowd gathered together before Him, we must draw near to Him in adoration crying out, “Hosana!” Which means “Oh Save!” The Salvation of Yahweh comes in the power of the Anointing to break the yoke of the strongholds in our lives.
But we must humble ourselves. We must submit ourselves to God. Submission begins when we present ourselves to Him as we truly are. No pretensions. No falsehoods. Submission is consummated as we surrender our will to His, our way to Yahweh, and our desires surrendered to His. The prophetic portrait of laying down the palm branches before Jesus as He proceeded gives a powerful revelation.
Early in church history, Christians continued to embrace the symbolism of the palm leaf on what came to be known as Palm Sunday. Why palm branches? They symbolize victory, triumph, peace, and eternal life. Yet the Palm Tree in the Old Testament from its Hebrew word, represents one standing tall and strong. There are areas in our hearts that are yet unlike Christ, that strongly resist God and are contrary to His nature. These are the palm trees.
So, the lesson is this: If we will have victory over sin, One greater than sin must bind up the strong man. And He will if we will make a way for Him.We must humble ourselves – stretch out the branches of our Palm Trees and lay them down before Him. Through surrender, we have victory. Through our submission to God, Jesus triumphs over the faithful enemies of our soul and the sin that easily entangles and troubles us! We can no take His yoke upon us, and we can walk as He walks, go where He goes, do as He does, and become Christlike bringing to pass this declaration, “as He is, so also are we in this world” (1 John 4:17c NASB).
Rest and Peace
Latent sin and sinful propensities rob us of peace of mind. Our consciences struggle with the offenses of our ways, and we tire of keeping them hidden and secret. We grow weary of always asking forgiveness from God. It is to those who struggle and lack peace that He promises rest. Let us lay our struggles down at His feet. Let us come boldly to the throne of grace to find grace in our times of need (see Hebrews 4:165)! Jesus is the Prince of Peace. As we make a way for Him in humility and meekness, and in surrender submitting ourselves to God, He comes into our hearts with His victory and further establishes the peace of God that will keep our hearts and minds in Him (see Philippians 4:7).
Let us apply the prophetic lessons found in Jesus’ triumphal entry. He will cleanse us, and He will break the yoke of bondage! Come and present yourself to God and submit yourself to Him. He will transform you, conforming you to the image of His Son. In meekness and humility, in surrender and submission, He will triumphantly establish His victory and presence in our hearts.
Heavenly Father, we you for the richness of Your Word. You have revealed Yourself in so many ways. Father, today, we humble ourselves before You. We confess the areas of sin and resistance to you. We declare, Oh God, that we are weary of the struggle, and no longer want to bear the weight of any pretensions and falsehoods in our lives. We call upon Jesus, Oh Save! We cry Hosanna! Break the yoke of bondage, and set us free from the latent and obvious sins in our hearts. We surrender the strongholds of resistance to You, and we submit our hearts, lives, and desires to You! We thank You, for the victory You give to us now, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Hal Garms eWord Messages 