Rotation.org Writing Team

PALM SUNDAY

MORE BIBLE BACKGROUND

PALM SUNDAY: THE REASON JESUS HAD TO BE KILLED

On Palm Sunday the crowds of Jerusalem set the stage for what came later in the week. The people welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem at the height of his popularity. They proclaimed that he was the one sent by God (the Messiah) and they gave him a royal reception. That is the truth that we see in this story. This is only natural since it is absolutely true. Jesus is the Messiah. He is the King of Kings. Yet there is something else going on here that we as adults should see. It is the place of Palm Sunday in the bigger picture.

Palm Sunday was the reason that Jesus had to be killed. Do not misunderstand me. Jesus died to pay for our sins. This is why he came to earth – to die and rise again. But God’s plan required that he be put to death and Palm Sunday was a means to that end. To fully comprehend this we must understand the Sanhedrin (the council of Jewish rulers) and its political roll in this process. The Sanhedrin was the religious court of the Jewish people, but it was also the buffer between the people and Rome. The members of the Sanhedrin knew that if Jesus was to be declared the King of the Jews in a popular uprising that Rome would retaliate without mercy. Such an event would result in the destruction of Jerusalem and possible slaughter of the Jewish people. The members of the Sanhedrin were much more politically savvy than the common people. So they decided that Jesus had to die. The Bible makes this clear in John 11:45-53. Caiaphas, the high priest, is quoted by John as saying, “…it is better for you to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed.” (NRSV) According to John this took place before Palm Sunday, but it is Palm Sunday that forced the issue. (John most likely knew about Caiaphas’ statement because Nicodemus was a member of the Sanhedrin.)

What happened on Palm Sunday was that Jesus was arranging for his own execution. He was following the plan. He was using the rulers of the Jews, the Sanhedrin, to carry out God’s plan for our redemption. The Sanhedrin was not alone in being politically savvy, Jesus was as well. Throughout the Gospel of John we see Jesus avoiding political acclaim. He told people not to tell anyone who he was. He was avoiding having Palm Sunday happen too soon. But now the time was right. It was the week of the Passover – the time when the sacrificial lamb would be killed – the lamb that reminded the Jews of the way that God saves. The time was right for Jesus to be sacrificed as the Lamb of God. So Jesus went to Jerusalem, allowed himself to be recognized by the crowds as the Messiah and used the Sanhedrin to orchestrate his death. Seen in this light, Jesus was not a victim either of “the Jews” (Sanhedrin) or of the Romans (Pilate); he was, rather, the master planner of his own crucifixion and resurrection – and our Salvation.

I invite you to reread the Gospel of John, paying close attention to how Jesus manages his popular acclaim. Throughout the entire Gospel John demonstrates how Jesus ministry is focused on arriving at this critical event.

CONTRIBUTOR: Ken Wezeman