CLICK HERE For FREE RESOURCE: Hope is Alive: A Devotional Journey through Holy Week!

Close your eyes for a moment and picture the scene. The streets of Jerusalem are buzzing with excitement. The air is filled with the voices of people shouting, celebrating, hoping. A humble man on a donkey makes His way through the crowd. He isn’t wearing a royal robe or riding a war horse. There’s no army marching behind Him. And yet, the people lay their cloaks on the road before Him, waving palm branches in a joyful, expectant welcome.

This is Jesus, the long-awaited Messiah. The people cry out, “Hosanna!”—a word that means “Save us!” They had been waiting for a king, someone to overthrow the Romans and restore their nation. And in this moment, as Jesus enters the city, their hopes are soaring.

But here’s the thing—Jesus was about to save them in a way they never expected.

Hope That Rides a Donkey

Jesus wasn’t like the kings they had known. He didn’t come in power and force; He came in humility and peace. That’s why He rode a donkey. In ancient times, conquering kings rode mighty stallions, but a donkey was a symbol of peace. Jesus wasn’t coming to take over Rome—He was coming to take over sin and death.

And isn’t that just like Him? He doesn’t always show up in the ways we expect, but He always shows up in the ways we need.

The people on the streets of Jerusalem had no idea that in just a few days, their “Hosanna!” would turn into “Crucify Him!” (Matthew 27:22). Their hope was built on a temporary rescue, but Jesus came to bring an eternal one.

Hope That Lasts

Think about your own life for a moment. Have you ever placed your hope in something, only to have it fall apart? Maybe you thought a relationship, a job, or a dream would be the thing that finally made everything okay. But then it didn’t work out the way you planned, and you were left wondering if hope was ever real to begin with.

Palm Sunday reminds us that true hope isn’t found in circumstances. It isn’t found in power or success. It isn’t even found in our best ideas of how life should go. True hope is found in a Person—Jesus.

The same Jesus who entered Jerusalem that day knowing He would suffer and die is the same Jesus who walks with us in our struggles today. He doesn’t promise a life free of hardship, but He does promise victory over it.

Hope That Calls Us to Trust

The crowd that welcomed Jesus that day expected Him to fix their present problems. When He didn’t meet their expectations, they turned away. How often do we do the same? When life gets hard, when prayers seem unanswered, when hope feels distant—do we trust that Jesus is still good?

Palm Sunday invites us to shift our hope from what we want God to do to who He is.

Jesus may not always answer the way we expect, but He will always give us what we need—Himself. His presence, His love, His victory over sin and death. That’s the kind of hope that can’t be shaken.

Walking in Hope This Week

Jesus is here. He is the King who brings peace, the Savior who brings true rescue. And because of what He did this week, we have hope that never fades.

Hosanna! Our King has come!

Thanks for reading.