The Beginning Of The End

Tomorrow is Palm Sunday – the beginning of what Christians call Holy Week.  It marks the beginning of the end for Jesus on this earth.

It is a celebration of the day that Jesus, along with His disciples, returned to Jerusalem.  There were a lot of people in Jerusalem at that time because of the upcoming important Jewish celebration of Passover.  As Jesus rode into Jerusalem, those people were filled with joy and anticipation of His arrival.  They had taken tree branches and laid them on His path – rejoicing in His presence there among them.  Only days later, He would be arrested, tried and crucified.  

Jesus came into Jerusalem that day already knowing exactly what was to come – everything that His future held.  Was He fearful?  Was He anxious?  I am certainly no Bible scholar, however, I personally believe He likely was.  I have read some writings where the author said that He was not.  Why?  They say because He had taught against fear, doubt and anxiety so therefore to feel those emotions would have been sinful.  Okay, I could certainly be wrong here, but I don’t personally believe just feeling emotions is sinful, so there’s that.  Jesus was a flesh and blood human – just like all of us; and, the Bible teaches that while He walked on this earth, He suffered everything that we would suffer, was tempted by everything that we would be tempted with.  That is how He can be such a caring, compassionate Savior.  So I say yes – He was likely at least a bit fearful and anxious.   

Just consider His feelings and reactions when He was in the Garden of Gethsemane with His disciples.  Matthew 26:36-38 (TLB):  “Then Jesus brought them to a garden grove, Gethsemane, and told them to sit down and wait while he went on ahead to pray. He took Peter with him and Zebedee’s two sons James and John, and began to be filled with anguish and despair.  Then he told them, ‘My soul is crushed with horror and sadness to the point of death . . . stay here . . . stay awake with me.’”  This sounds to me like Jesus was experiencing fear and anxiety.  Then in verses 39-44:  “He went forward a little, and fell face downward on the ground, and prayed, ‘My Father! If it is possible, let this cup be taken away from me. But I want your will, not mine.’  Then he returned to the three disciples and found them asleep. ‘Peter,’ he called, ‘couldn’t you even stay awake with me one hour? Keep alert and pray. Otherwise temptation will overpower you. For the spirit indeed is willing, but how weak the body is!’  Again he left them and prayed, ‘My Father! If this cup cannot go away until I drink it all, your will be done.’  He returned to them again and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy, so he went back to prayer the third time, saying the same things again.”  And there we see that He prayed not just once – but 3 times about not really wanting to suffer what was ahead; but, yet He was willing to do the Father’s will regardless of the emotions He was experiencing as a flesh and blood man.

Because Jesus trusted His Father and had full confidence in Him & His eventual plan for mankind, He was willing to go through the horrendous suffering, all the way to the cross.  He was fully prepared to submit to the Father in order to fulfill the end plan – to give all of us a way to live, to die and to live again.

So, I choose to celebrate Palm Sunday as a day of joy and anticipation.  A day that ultimately had me – and you –  in mind. Palm Sunday is the first chapter in the short story of resurrection!

Matthew 21:9 (TLB) “Jesus was in the center of the procession, and the people all around him were shouting, “Praise God for the Son of David! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the LORD! Praise God in highest heaven!”

Written by Karran Martin 

Originally written April 5, 2020

Revised March 22, 2024/Revised March 30, 2025/Revised March 24, 2026 

[All bold emphasis is mine]