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One of my favorite movies is a musical called The Music Man. It’s an older film, set in the summer of 1912. The music is memorable and fun.

There is a great stir in River City, Iowa, when the Wells Fargo wagon comes to town. As the horse-drawn wagon enters Main St, folks are drawn to the excitement….they drop everything-- whatever they’re doing--and line Main street. Their heads are craned toward the place where the wagon will first be seen.

The air is festive and just right for the famous song to begin…. Oh-ho the Wells Fargo Wagon is a-comin’ down the street oh please let it be for me…

The Wagon is filled with orders that were placed long, long ago…and, now, everyone in town is waiting for something especially for them.

They are expecting something.

Jesus begins his entry into Jerusalem, and Matthew says that people begin spreading their cloaks on the road before him. As he moves from the Mount of Olives toward the city, crowds went ahead of him…and crowds followed him. All of them were shouting,

Hosanna to the Son of David!

Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!

Hosanna in the highest heaven!

The Pharisees and Chief Priests are watching the parade, too. 

The disciples, the crowd, and the Chief Priests are all expecting something. 

The disciples and the crowd:

Jesus sends the disciples on a mission, “Go to the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ And he will send them immediately.” The disciples go and, as with their many unusual experiences with Jesus, all of it unfolds exactly as He said it would. 

Matthew says this event fulfills the word of a prophet: “Tell the daughter of Zion, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey.” The disciples and the crowd still imagine that Jesus holds kingly power. They lay cloaks on the back of the donkey and on the parade path as one might for royalty. For them, this is a triumphal entry into Jerusalem…the One who will overturn the Roman oppression--and lead Israel--has come at last.

This is the moment they expect.

For the disciples, the crucifixion is an unimaginable conclusion. 

The Chief Priests:

Jesus has stirred the crowds yet again. The parade into the heart of Jerusalem is the last straw for them. They are looking for false testimony against Jesus so that they might put him to death. They find no one whose testimony will hold up in court. And so finally they ask Jesus, “Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God”.  Jesus answers them. And then they tear their clothing and shout, “He has blasphemed!”. It is the moment they expect.

For the chief priests and the council, the crucifixion is an inevitable conclusion. 

Jesus: 

The author of Creation makes his way toward the cross. He, alone, knows what is at stake for Creation --for all that God has spoken into life --and for each of us along the parade path in this moment.

For Jesus, the cross is an act of divine reconciliation…a continuation of God’s redemptive work in our world. It is neither a beginning nor a conclusion.

Unlike the crowds, the disciples, or the chief priests, we know that this story is not about earthly power or even a cross. It is about the empty tomb—and God’s self-emptying love for us.

As you walk with Jesus this week, what are you expecting?