James Bonham was a young lawyer from South Carolina. He had only been in Texas for three months when he volunteered to fight at the Alamo. And you know the Alamo. It is a small fort near the Guadalupe River in San Antonio, Texas. On February 23, 1836, as General Santa Anna and his 2,000 Mexican troops gathered, the 182 brave men of the Alamo prepared for battle. Just then, James Bonham courageously broke through enemy lines and rode his horse to find help, and more troops. He first went to Goliad, Texas, but no one was willing to fight and die. Next, Bonham rode to Victoria, Texas. Like in Goliad, no one in Victoria was willing to fight and die, either. What did James Bonham do? What would you do? James rode back to Alamo, back to the fight, back to the battle, certain he would die.
As we continue following Jesus to the places of His passion, we resume our walk in Bethphage. Bethphage is a village on the Mount of Olives. At Bethphage, Jesus rides into Jerusalem, back to the fight, back to the battle, certain He would die, and He knows it.
Matthew begins by stating this question: “When He entered Jerusalem, the whole city was shaken up, asking, ‘Who is this?’” “Who is this?” That is the question for Palm Sunday, and truly, it is the question for the ages. Who is Jesus? If you get this right, you get everything rights. If you get this wrong, you get everything wrong. As we enter Holy Week, Matthew reminds us Who Jesus is. He shows us the real Jesus and the one that we need.
Matthew says that Jesus is our humble King Who serves/Matthew says that Jesus is a King. “Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, ‘Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them.’” Jesus is King. He employs the law of royal levy. The law of royal levy gave a king authority to get anything, from anyone, at any given time. “The Lord needs them!” As Creator of the Universe, it is His donkey and colt, anyways.
Jesus is a King, the King, and Matthew tells us just what kind of King He is. “Behold, your King comes to you, humble and riding on a donkey.” What is fascinating is when you compare this with the verse that Matthew is quoting from Zechariah. Zechariah 9:9 reads, “Behold, your King comes to you, righteous and having salvation, humble and riding on a donkey.” Isn’t it surprising that Matthew omits Zechariah’s phrase, “righteous and having salvation”? That describes Jesus perfectly, doesn’t it? Jesus is righteous and give His righteousness. He certainly has salvation, and is going to win it . And these words are even big concepts in Matthew’s Gospel. He uses the word righteous 17 times and salvation 15 times. So, why skip over it?
By leaving them out, Matthew emphasizes Christ’s attribute of humility. In Matthew 11:29, Jesus makes this clear when He says, “I am humble and lowly in heart.” And the donkey further accent’s Jesus’ humility. By not riding on a horse, which is what kings would have done, Jesus announces that He doesn’t come to bark out orders, but to wash feet. Jesus doesn’t come to dominate or intimidate, but to love, forgive, and shed tears. Jesus doesn’t come to raise an army, but to stretch out His hands upon the cross, for us and for our salvation.
Jesus is a King, and He is a humble King, but He uses authority to serve. And who does He serve? Us! In Matthew 20:28, Jesus says, “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, back to the fight, back to the battle, most certain He would die. And why does He do that? To give His life as a ransom for many.
A ransom is a sum of money paid to release prisoners. Have you ever viewed yourself as a prisoner? Ever seen yourself as captive, and living in chains? You are. You are prisoner. And what are we prisoners to? Things like anxiety, emptiness, fear, death, sin, and selfishness. Martin Luther says in the Small Catechism that Jesus ransomed us, “not with gold or silver, but with His holy precious blood and His innocent suffering and death.” Prisoners to sin, we’ve been ransomed and redeemed, bought back by the blood of Jesus. The shackles are off. We’re no longer captive to all that anxiety, emptiness, fear, death, and selfishness, too. Our Lord reworks and reorients our lives in Baptism, where we live in the freedom that Jesus has won for us. Jesus is our humble King Who serves.
Matthew goes on. Who is Jesus? He is our Mighty Warrior Who fights. He is a humble king, but don’t be misled. Jesus is not only merciful, He is mighty. He is not only saving, He is sovereign. He is not only tender, but He is tough. He is a mighty Warrior Who fights. Matthew says, “The crowds that went before Him and that followed Him were shouting, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the Highest!” Hosanna means, “Save us now!” It was an ancient victory cry. “Save us now!” Now couple that with the palm branches. Palm branches were an ancient Roman sign of victory. Put Hosanna and the palm branches together, and you have a mighty Warrior.
And this mighty warrior fights. He fights for you, for your salvation. It is why He is going to Jerusalem, to give His life as a ransom for many. He is going to fight for our salvation, fight for our restoration, fight for our sanity, and fight for our final resurrection. Jesus fights for you. Do you feel the odds are against you? That your health is against you? Or your boss? Emotions? Your life seem against you? Jesus fights for you. He continues on to Jerusalem. He fights sin and Satan, demons and death, and wins on the third day, His resurrection day.
Who is Jesus? He is our humble King Who serves and a mighty Warrior. He is also our radical prophet Who shakes the city. Matthew says, “When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was shaken up.” The Greek word there is seizo, which is where we get our English words seismic, and seismograph. It means an earthquake. There are three earthquakes in Matthew’s Gospel. This is the first one (we’ll look at the other two in a moment). Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem creates a stir, an earthquake. Why is that? Jesus is our radical prophet Who shakes things up. Prophets do that. Prophets shake things up.
And boy, do we need it. We can become lackluster, lethargic, listless, and lukewarm in our faith. Prophets shake things up. They get our attention. Isaiah walked around naked for three years (20:3). Jeremiah buys a field with captivity and destruction looming around the corner. Ezekiel lays on his left side for 390 days and then lays on his right for another 40 days. Hosea marries a prostitute and names his kids things like, “Unloved,” and “Not-my-people.”
And Jesus? What did Jesus do to shake things up? Jesus allowed people to spit on Him, beat Him, mock Him, whip Him, and crucify Him. Words collapse before the enormity of Jesus’ sacrifice. Describing His death, Matthew 27:51 states, “The earth shook and the rocks split.” There is the second earthquake in Matthew’s Gospel. God is saying, “Right here, let me get your attention! This is how much I care for you.” But there would be one more. Describing Easter, Matthew 28:2 says, “And behold, there was a great earthquake!” The Crucified One is not dead. He is risen! That shakes everything, and changes everything! The resurrection means Jesus is Who He says He is. It means death no longer has its hold. It means sin’s shackles are broken and destroyed. Satan has lost its hold. My identity has changed, and I am God’s beloved child through Jesus Christ. The resurrection changes everything! Jesus is our radical prophet who shakes the city (and our lives).
Who is this? As we enter Holy Week, Matthew answers that question. Jesus is our humble King Who serves. He is our mighty Warrior. He is our radical prophet. He is our Lord who goes back to the fight, back to the battle, certain that he would die for you and me.