Palm Sunday: Who Is Jesus? A Call to Surrender

Mar 30, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: The Central Question of Our Lives

The events of Palm Sunday are not merely a historical account but a mirror for our own souls. It invites a deep and personal evaluation of our faith. This moment calls us to move beyond tradition and ask the most important question we will ever face. It is a question that brings either clarity or condemnation, and it is one we must answer every single day. [44:34]

“Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’” (Matthew 16:13-15 ESV)

Reflection: As you consider the narrative of Palm Sunday, what specific circumstances or desires in your own life most often cause you to lose sight of who Jesus truly is?

Day 2: Earthly Perceptions Versus Heavenly Reality

Humanity is often tethered to an earthly perspective, seeking salvation from immediate troubles rather than eternal redemption. The crowd cried "Hosanna" for liberation from Roman oppression, missing the deeper salvation from sin that Jesus offered. This tendency to focus on temporal solutions over God's eternal plan is a struggle we all share. We can easily become distracted by the chaos of the world and miss what heaven is doing. [51:00]

“Jesus said to her, ‘Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’ The woman said to him, ‘Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.’” (John 4:13-15 ESV)

Reflection: Where in your life are you currently asking Jesus for "water" to solve a temporary problem, when He is offering you a spring of living water for eternity?

Day 3: The Cost of True Discipleship

Following Jesus requires a complete reorientation of our lives away from self and toward His will. It begins with a full surrender, denying our own desires and control. This is followed by a willingness to sacrifice, which is at the very core of the Christian life. Finally, it demands a posture of submission, choosing to follow Him in the way He chooses, not the way we would prefer. [01:07:26]

“Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.’” (Matthew 16:24 ESV)

Reflection: What is one practical way you can "take up your cross" this week, moving from a life of holding things tightly for yourself to holding them openly for God and others?

Day 4: The Danger of a Consumer Faith

It is possible to celebrate Jesus in one moment and curse Him in the next when He does not meet our expectations. Our faith can quickly shift from worship to shaking a fist at heaven when life becomes uncomfortable or unpredictable. This reveals a faith that is often conditional, based on what we want God to do for us rather than who He is. Palm Sunday invites us to confront this tendency within ourselves. [01:00:32]

“And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, ‘Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.’ But he turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.’” (Matthew 16:22-23 ESV)

Reflection: When have you recently been tempted to "rebuke" God because His plans for your life didn't align with your own? What does that moment reveal about your perception of Him?

Day 5: Fixing Our Eyes on the Unseen King

In the midst of life's storms, the call is to keep our eyes locked on Jesus, not on the waves crashing around us. Looking down, we are governed by human logic and fear; looking up, we walk in faith that defies circumstance. Our identity is not found in the instability of the world but in the sovereign control of Christ. He is the King who is always in control, even when His ways are illogical to our understanding. [01:36:58]

“And Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’ He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, ‘Lord, save me.’” (Matthew 14:28-30 ESV)

Reflection: What is the "wind" you are seeing right now that causes fear and distracts you from keeping your eyes fixed on Jesus?

Sermon Summary

Palm Sunday appears as a mirror that forces honest self-examination about Jesus and the shape of discipleship. The parade into Jerusalem unfolds as a public drama of fulfilled prophecy — a king riding a donkey, cloaks and palm branches cast down, cries of "Hosanna" ringing out — yet the crowd reads victory in purely earthly terms. Their cry for rescue targets Roman oppression, while the true messianic movement points toward sacrificial obedience, death, and resurrection. The tension between popular expectation and divine purpose recurs in Peter’s arc: sudden clarity in naming Jesus as the Messiah gives way to fear and human strategizing when Jesus describes a path of suffering. The rebuke “Get behind me, Satan” reframes discipleship as attention to God’s concerns, not human comforts or control.

Discipleship demands a decisive posture: deny self, take up a cross, follow. Denial calls for real surrender of control, not cosmetic compliance; taking up the cross names costly, regular sacrifices that reconfigure life around neighborly generosity rather than consumer entitlement. The early church’s witness grew less from tactics than from sacrificial obedience that erased “mine” and produced mutual provision. Trials and suffering expose where identity lands — on circumstance or on the Lord who obeyed the Father to death. Stories of faithful endurance amid calamity illustrate that seeing God rightly reshapes grief into trust and panic into patient hope.

Palm Sunday invites a sustained, daily posture rather than an annual emotion. The central question — Who is Jesus? — determines worship, prayer, and moral imagination. Answering that question with the full reality of Christ’s kingship and cruciform obedience transforms expectations, redirects power, and grounds courage for whatever comes. The week that begins with palms becomes holy only when it catalyzes honest repentance, true surrender, and a communal life shaped by costly love.

Key Takeaways

1. Palm Sunday as personal mirror Palm Sunday functions as more than ritual remembrance; it reveals where devotion lands—on spectacle or on the cross. Seeing oneself in the crowd exposes whether allegiance tracks popularity and convenience or follows the uncomfortable path of obedience. This mirror moment calls for truthful appraisal rather than sentimental nostalgia, prompting repentance where image outweighs substance. [43:24]
2. Answer the question: Who is Jesus? The identity attributed to Jesus governs every moral and spiritual choice: a liberating political leader or a sacrificial Savior yields radically different loyalties. Confessing Christ’s kingship must include recognition of his cross; otherwise devotion calcifies into a conditional, convenience-based faith. Persistent reflection on this question prevents quick turns from “hosanna” to “crucify” when circumstances shift. [44:21]
3. Deny self; take up cross True discipleship requires active surrender of control and consistent willingness to accept cost. Denial of self dismantles entitlement and locates security in divine purposes, not in situational fixes or political rescue. Cross-bearing shapes daily priorities, visible in smaller sacrifices that accumulate into a cruciform life. [1:06:20]
4. Sacrifice builds true community Sacrificial living abolishes “mine” and produces mutual dependence that evangelizes by example. When possessions, time, and comfort get reallocated for common flourishing, needs vanish and witness deepens. Community formed by costly love resists commodified faith and points to the kingdom in practical, tangible ways. [1:08:50]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[40:38] - Read Matthew 21
[43:24] - Palm Sunday as a mirror
[44:21] - The central question: Who is this?
[47:07] - Prophecy fulfilled in public entry
[50:05] - Crowds’ earthly expectations exposed
[56:44] - Peter’s confession and failure
[1:02:04] - Rebuke: “Get behind me, Satan”
[1:06:20] - Deny self; take up your cross

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading: Matthew 21:1-11 (ESV)
Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then 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,’ and he will send them at once.” This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’” The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And 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!” And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred, saying, “Who is this?” And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”

Observation questions

What specific actions did the crowd take as Jesus entered Jerusalem, and what was the symbolic meaning behind laying down cloaks and palm branches? [49:25]
What was the crowd shouting, and what does the word "Hosanna" literally mean and what were they asking to be saved from? [50:23]
How does the prophecy from Zechariah 9:9, quoted in Matthew 21:5, describe the king who is coming, and which part of that description might the crowd have overlooked? [48:40]
What is the central question the people of Jerusalem ask in verse 10, and why is that question so significant to the event? [44:21]

Interpretation questions

The crowd had a vision of a Messiah who would bring political liberation from Rome. How does Jesus's actions and path of sacrifice directly confront and redefine that expectation? [53:09]
Jesus tells Peter, "You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns." What is the fundamental difference between God's concerns and human concerns as displayed in the Palm Sunday story? [01:02:20]
Why is it so significant that the same crowd that shouted "Hosanna" could so quickly turn and shout "Crucify him" just days later? What does this reveal about the nature of faith based on circumstance versus faith based on identity? [53:48]
The sermon describes Palm Sunday as a "mirror." What is this event meant to reflect back to us about our own devotion and expectations of Jesus? [43:24]

Application questions

When you cry out "save me" in prayer, what are you most often asking to be saved from? How does this compare to the salvation Jesus actually offers, which involves surrender and sacrifice rather than just circumstantial relief? [50:45]
Where in your life are you most tempted to look at your circumstances—like finances, health, or politics—and take your eyes off Jesus, much like Peter looked down at the waves? What does that panic reveal about where your trust is actually anchored? [01:03:25]
The call to discipleship is to "deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow." Denying self means full surrender of control. What is one specific area of control—a relationship, a plan, a fear—that you are currently clutching instead of surrendering to Christ's lordship? [01:07:26]
Sacrificial living abolishes "mine" and creates true community. Practically, what does it look like for you to move from a mindset of "mine" to "yours" with your time, possessions, or comfort this week? Who is one person in your community you can practically serve in a costly way? [01:08:50]
Who is Jesus to you right now? Is he a genie you pull out for help when things get hard, or is he the King you obey even when his path doesn't make sense? What would need to change in your daily routine and priorities to answer that question differently? [01:14:01]
Think of a recent time when God didn't meet your expectations—when a prayer went unanswered or a situation turned out differently than you hoped. Did your response look more like "Hosanna" or "crucify him"? What does that moment reveal about the true object of your worship? [53:48]
The early church's witness grew through sacrificial obedience, not strategy. What is one way you can shift your focus from trying to strategize a solution to a problem and instead simply focus on being obedient in a small, sacrificial step of love this week? [01:09:09]

Sermon Clips

37s

#SeekChristNotRoutine

“What is this all about that we're doing here? Is this just a traditional thing? Showing up to church, doing the dance, checking it off the list. We're just reading our bibles because it's just a really good thing to do. We're praying because you should. Or is it just like, I see Jesus. I wanna follow Jesus. I wanna live for Jesus. I wanna look like Jesus. Paul says this, I just wanna know Christ. I just wanna know him in his death, in his resurrection, in his I just wanna know him. Do we have that heart?”

42s

#JoinHisStory

“So the question that you and I have to ask in our life is this, who is Jesus? Jesus is the king of the universe, the creator of all things who choose, and he chooses in this moment, in Palm Sunday, to obey the father to the point of death so that he who knew no sin became sin. Why? So we could become the righteousness of God. This is his movement to the cross. This is him going, I know who I am. I'm the son of the father and I will obey him. And here's the thing, you're being invited into that story.”

41s

#JesusOfSacrifice

“Because there are two stories that are happening. The Jews, all they can see in Jesus is success. Finally, the one who is going to liberate us, he's going to be successful, he's gonna come in with the sword and destroy what the but Jesus' story is sacrifice, is death. Who is Jesus to you? Who is this man? It's amazing to me. And I think we need to sit in this and this is a part of our story is this, five days later they were yelling, crucify him.”

40s

#FullSurrender

“Many of us came to Jesus and gave our lives to him wholly and fully but situationally, many of us have gotten so distracted and we need to face that part of ourself. We need to be honest with that part of ourselves because what Jesus is saying is this, you need to deny yourself. We need to deny yours ourselves which means this, full surrender. Full surrender. When you made a commitment to follow Jesus, you said, full surrender.”

33s

#SteadfastNotFickle

“And I think we need to sit in this and this is a part of our story is this, five days later they were yelling, crucify him. How quickly we change when things don't go our way. How quickly we move from God you are good to God what's wrong with you? God how could you? How dare you? How quickly when life becomes uncomfortable, unpredictable that we go from worshiping him to to blaspheming, to yelling to heaven, to shaking our fist.”

31s

#PalmSundayMirror

“Here's the interesting thing about Palm Sunday is Palm Sunday is like a mirror. I'm so bummed out that we only think about this time as like a it's just a a blip on the church calendar. This is a moment that we're supposed to be living out every single day. It's a mirror and it's inviting you to be there every day. It's inviting you to actually see yourself in the crowd.”

20s

#HeartCheckMoment

“And I just went, oh my gosh. I think I've been doing this for so many years. I think I've been using people, not meaning to, to accomplish things. I oh my gosh. I think I've done this with my wife. Oh my gosh. I think I've done this with you ever had those moments where you just all of a sudden, your life kinda opens up and you see pretty clearly. This is what Palm Sunday's doing for us.”

37s

#TakeUpYourCross

“And then he says, take up your cross. So surrender, give up, but then also sacrifice. Sacrifice is at the core of a Christian's life. If you are not sacrificing, you're not looking like Jesus. It's costly. And what does it really look like to sacrifice in your life? You know, I find it interesting in Acts two and four that Jesus added to the numbers of people who came to know him not because they had a really great SOP,”

18s

#StopRushingToEaster

“Because here's what I've come to understand as I have worked through this is that I'm trying to move past this moment a lot of times just to get to Easter Sunday. I think we do the same thing with Good Friday. Let's get to the good stuff. And there's something really great that's happening here, but also something that we really need to face ourselves.”

26s

#PeopleOverObjectives

“He said, you know, Jeff, I I know you care about me and I know you care about a lot of people, but I feel like you looked through me to the objective as opposed to just being with me. And you ever have one of those moments in your life where somebody says something and the spirit of God just awakens the world to you? And I just went, oh my gosh. I think I've been doing this for so many years. I think I've been using people, not meaning to,”

22s

#CourageousConversations

“And so I'm not afraid of confrontation. I'm not afraid of having hard conversations. So I said, hey, can we go grab coffee? We sat down from across from one another. And I said, is there anything that I've done that's made it so you can't come talk to me? You gotta go talk to all these other people. Is there something I've done that has made it so you can't talk to me? And he apologized and then he said this.”

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