Hosanna: Pt. 1 (John 12:14)

"And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written..." - John 12:14

I wonder how it played out in the minds of the disciples. They walked with Jesus and saw him fulfill scriptures daily before their very eyes, like in this moment. Jesus found a colt and rode it into town as the people cried Hosanna! - talk about the image of the invisible God! This fulfilled, as the next verse states, the passage in Zechariah 9 - "Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt!" It is a promise, expounded upon throughout the rest of Zechariah 9. This verse is just the beginning, the Lord goes on to say He will bring peace and set the prisoners free, He will protect His people and He will use them "like a sword" to defeat the enemy. Zechariah wraps up the prophecy by saying, "On that day the Lord their God will save them, as the flock of his people; for like the jewels of a crown they shall shine on his land. For how great is his goodness, and how great his beauty! Grain shall make the young men flourish, and new wine the young women." Promises and blessings abundant from the Lord! How great is His goodness! No wonder the hearts of these people were so moved to cry out praises to Jesus as he entered the town. I imagine the scene - that many of the people couldn't explain themselves, they just felt an overwhelming compulsion to worship this man before them. Their souls cried out from deep within, recognizing him as the Christ, the Savior promised for so long, the Son of God. It was undeniable, the natural tendency to shout out to him, Hosanna!
And how does it play out in our own minds? When we read of Christ crucified and we see His grace in our lives day-in and day-out, how do we respond? These promises of freedom and peace, protection and blessing apply to us as believers. Some time has passed, but our souls are the same as those in the streets of Bethany that day, and Jesus is the same as he was on the colt that day. He has come to set us free from sin and death, to bring peace to our hearts. He blesses us with life and strength of spirit, and He protects us and uses us "like a sword" against the enemy. This was his triumphal entry, riding in on the colt, the great Prince of Peace, and He is still the triumphant Prince of Peace. Our souls from deep within cry out to worship Him. It is our nature as His creation, and it is a question of whether will embrace this or try to suppress it. Either way, our souls know what to do, and scripture says we will all proclaim it in the end. We were made to worship Him - Hosanna! is printed on our souls and climbing up to reach our lips. Seek the Lord, consider His grace and truths, and shout out praise to Him as you see Him in the streets of your own life.