The Spiritual Condition of America, Politics, Culture, and Current Events Analyzed Through the Lens of Scripture. Welcome to the Alex McFarland Show. One of the great holy days in the Christian year is Palm Sunday, the day that Jesus Christ rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, and the people shouted, Hosanna, Hosanna, and then just really hours later, the very same people would be shouting, Crucify him, crucify him. Hi, Alex McFarland here. Very, very honored to be talking about the beginning of what is known as Holy Week, Palm Sunday, and then Christ would ultimately be arrested.
unfairly tried, nailed to a cross, but three days later rise again. And these are just some of the great, great realities of the Christian faith. And I want to give in this program some facts about Palm Sunday and how it really does relate to Christ's return. In Matthew 21, 8 and 9, it says, A very great multitude spread their garments in the way. Others cut down branches from the trees and strawed them in the way.
They laid these branches down. And the multitudes that went before and that followed cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David, blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the highest.
Well This is a very, very significant part of Christ's ministry here on earth, Palm Sunday. And as I do this program and Christians around the world are celebrating, I want to talk about just some of the fascinating, miraculous facts about this. And I want you to think of, shall we say, from the Beth Phage Road to the Eastern Sky. What do I mean? I believe there's a connection between Palm Sunday and ultimately Christ's return.
Now, the passages, if you want to read in the New Testament about Christ's triumphant entry into the city, Matthew 21, 1 through 11, Mark 11, 1 through 11, Luke nineteen verses twenty eight through forty four, and John twelve, twelve through nineteen.
Now all four Gospels record this, and rightly so. But really, On Palm Sunday, Jesus was fulfilling Old Testament prophecies.
Now we know that the Lord fulfilled many, many Old Testament prophecies through his birth. His life, ministry, death, and resurrection. Really, the entire Bible. Tells the story of Jesus. Norm Geisler, the great apologist, and he was a friend and a colleague, he would often say, to understand the Bible, look for Jesus.
And the events of Palm Sunday really are found in Old and New Testaments. I want to give you some Old Testament passages that reference Palm Sunday. Of course, many people know about Zachariah 9.
Now, the book of Zachariah was written about 500 years before the birth of Jesus. And in Zachariah 9, verse 9, it says, Rejoice greatly, daughter Zion. Shout, daughter Jerusalem. See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly. And riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
So Jesus coming in. Uh the Pharisees and the religious hierarchy, they would have known what was going on. That not only was Christ presenting himself as Messiah, many people were believing on him as Messiah, he was quite literally fulfilling Bible prophecy. Psalm 118:25 and 26 says, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you.
And the people were crying that out. A lot of people may not realize that. Palm Sunday, in a way, reenacts something from the life of Jehu. Uh in 2 Kings 9.13 Jehu, he was a king in the Bible. He was one of the military leaders, one of the the judges.
if you will. And he was anointed by Elisha. To execute judgment on the evil house of Ahab.
Now, the Bible says Jehu did right in the eyes of the Lord. And he was anointed as king, but he assassinated Joram, who was one of the kings of Israel, and Ahaziah, the king of Judah. And so during Jehu's Ministry. There was the elimination of Baal worship. And in fact, he killed prophets of Baal.
He destroyed the temple of Baal, that was a demonic god. And so God did bless Jehu. And Jehu, his name, by the way, means Yahweh is He. He reigned for 28 years. And he did do that which was right in God's eyes, but he didn't completely restore.
and reform Israel. But really Palm Sunday In 2 Kings 9:13, Jehu was coming into Jerusalem, and they blew the trumpet and they shouted, Jehu is king. And it says they took their cloaks. and spread them on the ground, And on the steps. And at least in a partial way, Palm Sunday, where people threw.
palm branches on the ground to really sort of Carpet the thoroughfare and pave the way for the one who really is, Yahweh is He. I mean, in many ways, Jesus was the fulfillment of what was alluded to just briefly in the life of Jehu. And so, as I said, all four gospels record the Palm Sunday entry. And in a way, so much of the life of Jesus was prophetic. And I want to talk about that and how that really is just an indicator.
Of the fact that he is Messiah. In fact, in my hand, I'm holding a book that is 126 years old, Christus Octer. A Manual of Christian Evidences. It's a very early apologetics book. I've got a first edition that was printed in 1900.
And it begins with a talk about Jude verse 3. And this is by Dr. Warren Candler. And it reads like a brand new book. And he says this: Christ is the central evidence of Christianity.
Now, in Jude verse 3, it says that we're to earnestly contend for the faith once delivered to the saints. And He opens the introduction. And by the way, Christus Ocher is Latin for Christ is the author. And just to show you how significant this book is, it's out of print. Whenever it does show up, it's usually $40 to $100.
On Amazon It says that this book, Christus Octer, a manual of Christian evidences, has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. End of quote. And Candler begins this book by saying the key to resolving doubt If you are in a struggle between faith and doubt, the key to resolve this is Christ Himself. Let me read this. He says that the life, character, and work of Jesus is.
To be accepted as fact and not delusion. Jesus, says Dr. Candler, is the true defender of the faith. He is the refuge of truth in this age of doubt. He has been its dwelling place for all generations.
And he says this: the apologetic literature of the U.S. and other lands, and how much apologetic literature existed in 1900, I don't exactly know, but he says this. fulfilled prophecy, miraculous deeds, risen from the grave, Jesus Christ is the central evidence of Christianity. And I would agree.
Now we've got to take a break. We're going to come back and we're going to give more and more facts about Palm Sunday and how it actually not only validates his Messiahship, but ultimately Points to his return. Stay tuned, we're back after this. Fox News and CNN call Alex McFarland, a religion and culture expert. Stay tuned for more of his teaching and commentary after this.
Mike Segovia here, producer of the Alex McFarland Show. Here's Alex talking about prayer. You know, folks, our nation needs a spiritual awakening so desperately. We need the Holy Spirit of God to sweep across this nation, and prayer is the key. Please, if you would go to alexmacfarland.com/slash united in prayer, we'll send you a weekly devotional.
We'll help your family, your church start praying with power. AlexMcFarland.com/slash united in prayer. Do you have a desire to deepen your faith, better understand Christian apologetics, or to get a biblical perspective on current events?
Well, I've tried to make it simple for you to do just that. On my website, alexmacfarlane.com, there's a new section called Ask Alex Online. It's simple, it's clean, and you can read my answers to common questions about God, faith, and the Bible.
So visit the website, alexmacfarlane.com and look for the section that says Ask Alex Online. Yeah. He's been called trusted, truthful, and timely. Welcome back to the Alex McFarlane Show. Welcome back to the program.
Alex McFarland here. We're talking about Palm Sunday and ultimately Christ's return. I hope that you are part of a church that makes much of Easter and so much fulfillment of prophetic word in the life of Jesus. And if you're a minister or a Sunday school teacher or a pastor, oh my goodness, this is the Mount Everest of Christian. Proof that Jesus He rose from the dead.
Holy Week. And as we go into this week and we think about next week, I'm going to talk about the unfair trials of Jesus and the final days in Christ's ministry. And Sunday, Palm Sunday, really. kicks that off, and then we'll talk about the other days of Holy Week. But I hope you're reflecting on this and worshiping in your heart and really meditating on all that the Lord Jesus Did and has done to purchase our redemption.
Henrietta Mears, she was amazing. She founded Gospel Light Publishing. I wrote four books for them. And she wrote a wonderful book called What the Bible is All About. And it's been put in many languages.
And of course, you may know that Henrietta Mears was very, very influential in the lives of people like Billy Graham. Bill and Vonette Bright. Uh she was very influential in the life of J. Vernon McGee. and many others.
But here's what she said about preaching and presenting the gospel. Henrietta Meer said, Make Christ magnificent in the eyes of men. And that's what we're doing. Jesus is magnificent. He is the Saviour.
He is the Lord. He says, close by is a prayer. And we want people to know about him. I hope you know him. If you don't or you're unsure, go to our website, alexmacfarland.com, and look at that tab that says what does God say about my relationship with him?
And if you need to come to Christ. Or you need to come back to Christ. We want to help you in that regard. But it's amazing. Palm Sunday.
Jesus had come from Bethany to Bethphage.
Okay. Bethany means house of suffering.
Okay, Bethphage means house of unripe figs.
Okay, now what does that mean, you might ask?
Well, Jesus comes down from the Mount of Olives, entering Jerusalem, and the crowds lay their clothes on the ground and the palm branches to welcome the promised Messiah as he triumphantly enters Jerusalem. But soon their cries of Hosanna Which means, by the way, quote, save now. They would turn to shouts of crucify him, crucify him, and Christ's triumphal entry. Is commemorated by believers everywhere on the Sunday before Good Friday, that is Palm Sunday.
Now, how might the two events be connected?
Well, let me tell you something: he's coming down Approaching Jerusalem, the Luke 19.41, it says, When he was come near, he beheld the city and wept over it. Jesus looked over Jerusalem. This is very vital. Matthew 23:37 through 39 records something that he says. He says, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone them that I sent to you.
This is an amazing proclamation of his deity. I mean, the prophets of old, Daniel, Isaiah, Jesus was essentially saying, I sent them, they work for me.
Okay, you kill the prophets that are sent to you. How often would I have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings? But you would not. Behold, your house is left unto you desolate for I say to you, You shall not see me henceforth till you say, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
So Jesus is weeping over Jerusalem. For one thing, this shows that humans, yes, do have free will. He said, You know, how often would I have gathered you to myself as a mother hen gathers her chicks, but you would not? Uh it wasn't a matter that salvation hadn't been offered. His messiahship was presented to them.
What got in the way was human unbelief. By the way, growing up on a chicken farm, as some of you know, I grew up on a chicken farm. We were in the egg business sixty-eight years, my grandfather, my dad. We had At any given moment, 35,000 laying hens Uh it that might sound like a lot, but really as egg companies go, that's not that many. But we at one time, when I was a little child, uh they had an incubator and they would grow little baby chicks and pullets and they would become layers.
I've seen many times a mother hen gather her chicks up under her wings, very loving, very protective. And that's how God wants to care for us. His arms are open. And they were open to Jerusalem and the world, and they still are. But let me contrast.
the triumphant entry and his triumphant return.
Okay. Like Genesis and Revelation, like Joseph and Jesus.
So many things that they're bookends. All right. On Palm Sunday, Jesus came on a donkey in peace. When he returns, he'll be on a white horse in power. He came on Palm Sunday humbly.
As the teacher and savior, he will triumphantly return victoriously. as judge and king The triumphant entry, localized, appearing in Israel. His triumphant return, a global return, every eye will see him. The triumphant entry Jesus came, graciously offering the kingdom. when he returns and it is likely near.
it will be actively Establishing his kingdom. Let me ask you this. Had you been there when you with Jesus on that Palm Sunday, What would have been your response? You know? Would we have been one of the ones saying Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord or Crucify him, crucify him.
You know, Palm Sunday. precedes what we might call Palm Friday, let me explain. On Palm Sunday, two thousand years ago, Jesus opened his hands, offering to receive the people to himself. and only days later. Let's call it Palm Friday.
Jesus opened his hands, willing to receive nails. and the punishment for our sins, they laid down palm branches. And he laid his back to a beam of wood, the one who by the Bible is called the branch. The root of Jesse the Savior. It's just amazing.
It really is. And his triumphal entry to Jerusalem, salvation was initiated. salvation and the church age, his triumphant return to earth, salvation and this gospel era is concluded. Do you know him? He says close by is a prayer.
Now stay tuned. When we come back, I'm going to give five facts about what Palm Sunday signifies.
So please don't go away. We're back with more for God's glory. And for your growth and salvation after this. Stay tuned. Fox News and CNN call Alex McFarland, a religion and culture expert.
Stay tuned for more of his teaching and commentary after this. Would you invest a financial contribution to see young people saved, people give their lives to Christ, and people care about God and country? If you would please make a donation securely online, you can give at alexmacfarlane.com or please mail a check to TNG P.O. Box 485 Pleasant Garden, North Carolina, 27313. Your gift will be faithfully handled, fruitfully used, and we thank you in Jesus' name.
Producer Mike for the Alex McFarlane Show, listen to this. Alex is the Christian voice we need right now. I love listening to him, and the guests he has on the show are just amazing. I highly recommend his podcast. Great words, Alex.
Well, we give God the glory. We thank the listeners for kind sentiments like that, but we give God all the glory. But folks, please listen in, spread the word. You're spreading the gospel. Tell others about our programming, and we sincerely thank you.
Uh He's been called trusted, truthful, and timely. Welcome back to the Alex McFarlane Show. Welcome back to the program. We'll resume our look at Palm Sunday and Christ's Return in just a moment. But I want to encourage everybody to please pray about participating in some of the exciting things that our ministry is doing this year.
For example, I will be at the Cove, the Billy Graham Conference Center in Western North Carolina, July 17 through 19, teaching Bible prophecy and the book of Revelation. Then I'll be back just about a week later, July 27 through 31, with Gary Habermas, the world-renowned expert on the resurrection of Christ, one of the most amazing speakers you'll ever hear. By the way, we've been praying for his dear wife Eileen, who has pancreatic cancer. But as of the time of this recording, she is improving. Slightly.
I just moments ago got off the phone with Gary Habermas. But for those who've been praying for Eileen, his wife, please, please continue to pray. But he and I will be there together this summer at the Cove. The website is thecove.org, T-H-E-C-O-V-E, theCOVE.org. And of course, we've got our summer camps with youth, and we need your help.
It's $400 to sponsor a week of summer camp for a teenager, middle school, high schooler. And we had over 600 youth pray to accept Christ and be saved last year. And we give them materials. We help them get grounded and equipped, not only in their Christian faith, but we talk about America. And as I say, we try to woke-proof American teens.
So we need your help. Much more going on. We've got our speaker series in Myrtle Beach again, Conversation. That matter, and we'll be telling you much about that. Do you know, last year, video.
Of our event with Charlie Kirk just two weeks before he was killed, but the video was viewed online over 30 million times. And we were mentioned on Fox News and really media around the world. Even President Donald Trump tweeted two different video clips.
So folks, when you pray for this ministry, when you invest in support, God is using it. Thousands are getting saved every year. Many, many people we hear from say what this ministry means. And so, if you would consider going to alexmcfarland.com, just in faith, we incur many expenses: printing, shipping, plane tickets, renting coliseums, renting camps. And God is using it, and we give Him the glory.
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But let's talk about how Christ fulfilled prophecies. Every step of his life and ministry was fulfilled prophecy. And in fact, just amazingly, I want to talk about the very day of that original Palm Sunday. Very likely, it was March 30th. of A D 33.
As We celebrate Palm Sunday in 2026. It's march 29. 2026. But think about this. Four days before the Passover, Jesus entered Jerusalem, and as we said, Old Testament prophecies like Zachariah 9 were being fulfilled, and they said, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Well, the entry of Messiah, King Jesus, into Jerusalem was very pictorial of something that happened in 1 Kings chapter 1 when David's son, Solomon, had ridden on a donkey, and the cheering crowds welcomed him into Jerusalem a millennium earlier than Jesus. But Jesus enters Jerusalem riding on a donkey to publicly claim. his messiahship, and he was the greater son of David who would sit on David's throne.
Now this is amazing, folks. This is amazing. Five hundred years earlier, God had revealed to the prophet Daniel That the Messiah would come at a very specific time. How specific to the day? Because Daniel prophesies in Daniel 9:25 that.
Messiah would come four hundred and eighty three years. After the command, To rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
Now the command to rebuild Jerusalem was given by king Artaxerxes of Persia in the month of Nisan. In the twentieth year of his reign. This is found in Nehemiah 2:1 through 6.
Now, it's important to note that the Jewish people they didn't use a solar calendar as we do today, and the Jewish year was counted as 360 days. And this really is referenced in Revelation as well.
So, to make the math work out, if we go and we figure out that the command to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem was given Nisan, March 5th, 444 BC. four hundred and eighty three years. of three hundred and sixty days each later. and that's one hundred and seventy three thousand eight hundred and eighty days. Jesus entered Jerusalem on march thirtieth.
thirty three A D. In other words, Daniel nine From the decree to rebuild the walls to Messiahs being cut off, Yichorat is the word, a violent, painful death. It's astounding, and there have been incredible writers that marvel at this: that to the day, Christ's triumphant entry and eventual crucifixion was prophesied.
Now the day that the lambs were were selected to be slain at Passover. were four days before Passover.
Now this is amazing, as Christ the Lord rode into Jerusalem. On Palm Sunday, That was the day that the lambs were being chosen. to be killed. To atone for the sins of the people.
Now, this is really amazing, folks. And I want to give you some things to think about as we regrettably run out of time. Five thoughts. Number one, God's plans are always exactly on schedule. His first coming was, his second coming will be.
Secondly, God offers. to Israel back then. than to you right now. Salvation. restoration.
And Jesus' offers are absolutely legitimate and real. His offer to establish the kingdom was a legitimate offer. But the people said no, and he was crucified. But Christ's offer to you right now of forgiveness. A fresh start in the Eternal life.
Peace, blessing it is a legitimate real offer. And all you need do to to accept it is call out to him right now. And thirdly, all that God has done or has allowed to happen has meaning. purpose and is being done to bring you to himself. It's amazing.
the love of Jesus as one old song says, Oh, the love that drew salvation's plan O the grace that brought it down to man O the mighty gulf that God did span at Calvary. There are no accidents. Nothing is happenstance. God wants you to know Him and to be saved and to be blessed. In ten thousand ways.
Now, fourthly, throughout history, and for every person, there comes a moment in which a decision. about Jesus must be made. I mentioned the verse where he said, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who stone the prophets, and kill those I sent to you, how often would I have gathered you to myself, but you would not And so you have to make a decision. And if you say, well, I don't want to make a decision, well, that's a decision in itself. Turn to Christ and be saved.
And the final thing I would say is: opportunities come and go. they present themselves and then they Pass. But the results of our decisions remain. They really, really do. And so.
Choose wisely, choose well, choose Jesus Christ. Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week. And why? Because he loves you. Why did Jesus do this?
I close this amazing prophecy. In Zachariah nine nine, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem Behold, your King is coming to you He is just and endowed with salvation, humble, and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. and in Luke nineteen thirty five through thirty seven Matthew twenty one six through eleven We read this. They brought it to Jesus, the donkey. And they threw their garments on the colt and put Jesus on it.
And as they were going, The people were spreading their garments in the road, and as he was now approaching, Near the descent at the Mount of Olives, Well, we'll talk further about Easter and the victorious resurrection from the dead, but in the meantime, please remember Jesus loves you. He did all this for you. And for me. and he's as close by as a prayer. Call out to him to death.
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Thanks for joining us. We'll see you again on the next edition of the Alex McFarlane Show.
