Hosanna, Son of David

The sermon opens by emphasizing the extraordinary significance of the final week of Jesus' earthly life. Nearly one-third of all four Gospels — Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John — focus on the period from Palm Sunday to Easter morning. This concentration demonstrates that the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is the central theme of the Gospels, not merely a concluding episode in the story of His life.

The first major point is that the King came at His appointed time. The sermon explains how Jesus previously instructed those He healed to tell no one, so as to delay opposition from the scribes and Pharisees. But on Palm Sunday, the divinely appointed moment had arrived. Habakkuk 2:3 is quoted to affirm that God's plans are fulfilled exactly on schedule — never early and never late. The sermon then gives a detailed exposition of Daniel 9:24-25, demonstrating that from the decree of Artaxerxes in 445 BC allowing Nehemiah to return and rebuild Jerusalem, counting 483 years according to the Jewish calendar of 360-day years, one arrives precisely at the date of Jesus' triumphal entry in late March to early April of AD 32.

The second major point is that the King came in the manner He chose. Jesus rode a young donkey into the city, in complete contrast to the warhorses ridden by conquering kings. The sermon compares this to Simon Maccabee, who was welcomed as a national hero on horseback 200 years earlier. Jesus, by contrast, fulfilled the prophecy of Zechariah and deliberately chose the donkey to show that His kingdom is not won by force but by love, sacrifice, and forgiveness. Philippians 2:7-8 is cited to highlight His self-emptying. The sermon warns that accepting Christ as Savior while refusing Him as Lord is a fundamental misunderstanding of who Jesus is.

The third major point is that the King came for those He chose. Jesus entered Jerusalem during Passover week, when the city's population swelled from 20,000–30,000 to approximately 150,000, because He desired all people to be saved (2 Peter 3:9). Yet not everyone who saw and heard Him believed. The sermon draws on the contrast between the two thieves crucified alongside Jesus: one mocked Him to the end, while the other repented, trusted in Him, and received the promise of paradise (Luke 23:41-43). Ultimately, all of humanity divides into only two groups — those who reject Jesus and those who receive Him.

The sermon concludes with a practical illustration: a man who called his pastor at midnight fearing he had terminal cancer, but after tests confirmed otherwise, told the pastor he no longer needed him — and no longer needed God. This illustrates the danger of seeking Christ only in crisis. The congregation is called to fully trust God's timing and methods, and not merely to receive Jesus as Savior from sin but to surrender every area of life — relationships, finances, plans, and dreams — to Him as King and Lord.