Hosanna: The Steadfast Love of the Lord Endures Forever

In one paragraph

Palm Sunday 2022 found us in John 12, with Pastor Mark stepping away from the regular flow through the Harmony of the Gospels to look at Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. The message traced the political and historical weight carried by a crowd waving palm branches, and then turned that lens on our own tendency toward fickleness when God does not deliver what we expect. Psalm 136 closed the...

Read together

1. John 12 Palm Sunday triumphal entry, large crowd with palm branches shouting Hosanna
2. Psalm 118 The Hosanna cry identified as coming from this psalm, the lesser Hallel sung on ascent to Jerusalem
3. Zechariah 9:9 Prophecy of the king coming humble and mounted on a donkey, fulfilled at the triumphal entry
4. Amos 3:3 Can two walk together unless they be agreed, used to call people to agreement with God
5. John 14:2 In my Father's house there are many dwelling places, quoted in prayer of thanksgiving
6. Psalm 34 Taste and see that the Lord is good, used as a giving song
7. Psalm 105 Sing to Him, sing His praises, tell everyone about His wonderful deeds
8. 1 Kings 1:32-34 David commanding Solomon to ride on his mule to Gihon to be anointed king
9. Judges 5:10 You who ride on white donkeys, shout out in praise
10. Psalm 136 The greater Hallel, steadfast love of the Lord endures forever, read responsively
11. 1 John 4 We know and rely on the love God has for us, God is love, whoever lives in love lives in God

Talk about it

1. Pastor Aaron described the crowd waving palm branches as a nationalistic symbol, people who wanted God to do things their way, and said that less than a week later many of those same voices were crying 'crucify him.' Where do you see that kind of fickleness in yourself, and what do you think produces it?
2. Pastor Aaron pointed out that Jesus wept over Jerusalem before entering it triumphantly, saying 'if only you had known the things which make for peace.' What do you think it looks like today when someone is close to the things that make for peace but still misses them?
3. The sermon contrasted the crowd crying 'hosanna, save us now' with a political agenda in mind versus a genuine trust in God's plan. How do you personally tell the difference between bringing your real needs to God and trying to recruit God to your side?
4. Pastor Aaron read through Psalm 136 as a call and response, saying that habitually praising God even in difficult circumstances is part of how God makes a way for others to know Him, and he used Rahab as an example of someone moved by hearing what God had done. Can you think of a time when someone else's spoken faith in God's steadfast love had an effect on you?
5. Pastor Aaron described God's steadfast love in Hebrew as a 'sticky love' that pursues us and stays with us, and said that recognizing it is what can arrest our fickle behavior. What is one practical thing that helps you return to that recognition when you feel yourself drifting?