The Saint Paul globe., 1899-03-27
PALM SUNDAY LESSON
REV. DIR. DAVIS breaches ON
JESUS TRIUMPHAL ENTRY
TO JERUSALEM
DAY OF BRIGHT PROPHECY

Future TriumfihaI Entry When
the Whole World Shall Recognize
His Kingshfp and Peace and
Coed viii 'WHi Reign Among
Men. fi.a
81 RI.
Rev DR.. Davis. of Manchester, preached
the Palm Sunday sermon at House of
Hope Yesterday morning. He said in
part
| Christ's march to- the capitol was the
recognition of great fact, for there are
set the thrones of the house of David
Ihey shall call Jerusalem the throne of
| the Lord; 1t is the city of the Great King.
But He went straight into the tenn
ple-the fit terminus Of His Journey. IT
was fulfillment of Haggais word that
the glory or this later house shall be
greater than the former; and of Mala-
chi word, that the Lord, whom we seek.
snail suddenly come to His temple And
mercy and Judgment were round about
I1lm still. On the one hand He healed
| many of their diseases; on the other Tre
orove out with whip of small cords
those who had desecrated His Fathers
mouse. He had come as a refiner's fire.
ana as 1uiler's soap. 1t was the first dis
tinct act OF that purifying process which
| has gone on ever since.
The day on which our Lord made His
triumphal entry is also significant for ono
| other thing. 1t was the only dav ON
which there We're no signs of decided op
| position to Him. He had reached the
crest Oh the high wave Of popularity, only
10 sink with it and be dashed to pieces
on the rock of malicious hate
But it was a bright prophetic dav,
In His own good time He will ride on the
crest or a still higher wave. The whole
"orid snail recognize His kingship. and
because of its undivided loyalty to Him
| there Will be universal good will among
men.
w hen the Pharisces saw what they
| evidently regarded as solemn mockery.
they asked Jesus TO rebuke His disciples
But He replied, in view clearly of what
ne nad done for them, that If they should
| holo their tongues the very stones would
cry out In indignation al them.
" hen He came into the city 1t was
| an astlr at this popular demonstration in
Ills tavor. Those who did not know Him
asked Who He was. His own countrymen
! replied that it was their own prophet.
| Jesus Of Nazareth
AGAIN one of the most pathetic touch
| es In this picture Of Christ's entry is the
praise of the children as they took I'D
the song in the temple, 'Hosanna to the
son OF David. And why should they not :?
f1ao they not received His most holy
| benedlction? Had they not felt In many
ways the new hope He had brought into
life? And that chorus Of praises, started
| uhder Sucn strange circumstances has
| peen taken up with ever-increasing VOL
uaie ana enthusiasm until in thousands
OF homes in this and other lands. In Sab
path school and grand cathedral you
| may near youthful voices still singing
| 'Hosanna to the Son of David TT was
not long before He went I'D to receive he
praises OF those dear little ones in His
| Fathers home on high. g. 80.
! But 1t was this fact In the temple that
! caused the Indignation Of priest and
scribe to fame forth against Him and
LED to that stinging ;rebuke, Did ye never
reaa, out OF the mouths Of babes and
stockings thou hast perfected pratse?'
From the use of palm branches on this
occasion 1t has given the tree q most
| conspicuous place in Christian SYMBOL
ism. 1t is regarded as the most stately
! OF all trees in the Orient GROWING I'd q
great height, it throws out at the ton
splendid canopy of leaves affordine
grateful shelter from the heat Of the sun.
1ts fru1t-the date-is much used as an
article of food. There is scarcely usa
to which some part Of the treeimay NOT
De put in daily life. and 1t was always a
sign OF water or moisture in the place o,.
vicinity of it's growth
TWO places are famous In Biblical
history for them. When Israel reached
rim on It's weary march they found
Twelve springs and seventy palm trees
How suggestive Of peace and refresh.
ment. ooii-
Ihe second place Is Jericho-known -as
the city of palm trees.
because of it's abundance and use-
fulness it has been used as figure op
speech very largely in Eastern poetry and
proverbs.
"On account Of its use on the present
occasion the Sunday preceding Ea ster has
from the fifth and sixth centuries been
called Palm Sunday by the Anglican and
Latin churches, the Sunday Of the palm
Bearer by the Greek church. and Ho-
sanna Sunday by the Syrian and Egvn-
| t1an churches.
| In the catacombs IT is found scuIptur-
ed on stone coff1ns@as an emblem of vic
tory, and today we use it for the same
purpose. The dying Christian knows
| nothing of defeat r
1t Is now time for us to ask what &c
| the purpose of this remarkable act of
| our Lord? 1 have not found it easv to
answer that question So many ideas
! ho
| reduced to single statement. In s,,h-
| m1tNng to the rite of baptism He said i.
| 1T became Him to fulfill all righteous.
ness that is, to conform to the externa1
! economy Of things. Therefore. If He
claimed kingship. 1t was necessary for
Him to visualize that claim by conform
! Ing to the practice of a triumphaI entry
into the metropolis, while at the same
| time His kingdom was not of this worId :,
| Perhaps the central idea then fe IJis l5or
| mite assumption Of kingship
| The next has to do with His charao-
| ter. In contrast with earthly kings He
| Is meek and lowly. That is certatnIv tho
| most pronounced feature, both of the nro-
| phetic picture and Of the actual history
Discarding the pompous trappings Of
| royalty, He wears the plain. sinnple rohe
! OF mummy. HIS aoornments are moral.
| not material. Spiritual grace is its own
ornament and attraction Divine lordsbin
needs no brilliant colors or flashing steel
| to impress the imagination The Roman
| soldiers laughed to scorn, probably. that
| peasant procession, and yet that hmm
| bic ass in the course of a few wears
1 would put to fight their dashing steeds
and charfots and shatter their colossal
| empire to fragments. 1t is this meekness
of, Jesus that has always given Him a
| place In the hearts of the common peo-
| pie. And SO we pray: In Thy majesty
| ride on prosperously, because of meek.
| ness
1.-The next idea has to do with the n.
| ture of His rule Zechariah saws He Is
| just, righteous, i..e., In His relations with
his subjects. righteousness is the norm
! OF his government; each one is treated
with equity his rights are respected and
honored. and never .traJmpled upon by any an,
aggrandizing policy. sf While there have
! been noble exceptions In the history or