After The Parade Passes By

(5-minute read)

It is common to see people posting or posing for self-promoting images skilfully crafted with only photos and clever captions. People pay greater attention to photos taken with influential people they meet than they care about their relationships with them. Superficial signs make grabbing headlines because people love optics more than they are interested to discover deeper meanings. It therefore goes without saying that we now run the risk of making misinterpretations because of our over reliance on visuals to understand situations and stories.

Most people have a mental script for many things they do. They are conscious of how they will be perceived – particularly among believers - and the impressions others get. Jesus, on the other hand, cared little for optics. In fact, from His birth to His crucifixion, Jesus often presented counternarratives that contrasted sharply with people’s expectations of Him. He was the Word made flesh and His life had meaning only to the extent that it fulfilled the prophesies in the Word of God. The One who said, “My food… is to do the will of Him who sent me and to finish His work” did not cut difficult corners or embellish presentations to elevate self-importance (John 4:34). 

Matthew 21:1-11 depicted the time Jesus rode into Jerusalem with a donkey and a colt. This is a scene that is commonly brought up during Easter in churches around the world. Today, the sight of a prominent person riding on a donkey would instantly generate internet memes with outrageous captions. 

But to Jesus, there could be no other mode of transport that fit His purpose. “This took place to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet: ‘Say to Daughter Zion, “See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”’” (Matthew 21:4-5).

Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem garnered immediate attention and created a hype among the Jews that He was their deliverer.

“A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road,

while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.”

There were crowds of people ahead of Jesus and behind Him, shouting, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!’  Unrehearsed, their unified cries echoed a nationalistic aspiration for deliverance from Roman rule and oppression. They saw Jesus as their saviour, and gave him a kingly treatment fitting for one with a political agenda. Little did they know that the pomp and parade they put on display for Jesus would have a very different ending than what they had in mind.

In fact, to the Romans, Jesus’s triumphal entry seemed almost like a parody of a typical triumphal Roman procession that the Roman citizens were familiar with. A typical Roman victory parade marked the victorious return of a Roman general with an elaborate display of treasures looted from their enemies, of gaunt and wounded prisoners of war paraded like hunters’ game, and of Roman infantry that survived the battle undefeated. The Roman general himself would be carried in a golden chariot as he basked in the drowning cheers and applaud of the crowds, while temple priests burnt incense in his honour. And then for the finale, crowds would be entertained in a colosseum where the captured prisoners would be brutally fed live to ferocious lions. 

Imagine how Jesus’ triumphal entry paled by comparison! His treasures were men and women healed, forgiven and set free. His army comprised of unschooled and ordinary followers. He came riding not on anything that was easily maneuvered on wheels but on an ‘unbroken’ and skittish donkey with uncertain gait. Jesus’ parade was not intended to end in entertainment for the crowds but to take people to a place of commitment with Him. The crowds that turned up were celebrative, curious, and well-connected to the latest news trending within Jewish communities. The hype of kingship and the idea that Jesus would make a great king for the deliverance of the Jews overshadowed Jesus’ true mission. So, in successive choruses, the people shouted, ‘Blessed is the king of Israel’. (John 12:13). 

However, the people would soon discover that Jesus was not going to be the king they had hoped for. After the parade, event after event dashed all their expectations because victory stories should not be chaotic, a saviour should not be beaten, deserted and crucified, and most of all, the One who promised eternal life should not experience a tragic death! Soon, as quickly as they gathered, the crowds thinned out, people distanced themselves from the One who would become the king of Kings and Lord of lords of all mankind throughout the world. 

So, in our post-parade analysis, did Jesus stage a triumphal or a tragic entry?

For many of us who have experienced the immeasurable grace of God, Jesus’ arrival at Jerusalem before His crucifixion was definitely a triumphal entry. At the same time, let’s not forget when Jesus also made His entry into our own lives. We joined people cheering Him on, our hearts overflowing with praise and thanksgiving to the Saviour who forgave our sins and gave us a new hope and purpose to live for. But since that milestone event, we have allowed our passion to live for Christ quietly peter out. Now, we are content to live out our salvation dutifully and passively with little evidence of God in our lives. We adopt Christian habits without practicing our faith and demonstrating the Word of God in our lived realities. Increasingly, we hesitate and hold back from talking about the goodness of God in ordinary conversations with friends and loved ones. 

After the parade passes by, are we like the crowds that grew disinterested and distant, or are we like Mary Magdalene, who stayed pass the celebrations, chaos, confusion and crucifixion to witness the resurrection of her Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. 

This is a summary and reflection based on a virtual BIR Session held on 12 April 2025.