"Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming o you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey. Zechariah 9:9 (NKJV)

A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed 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!" Matthew 21:8-9 (NRSV)

Hosanna is a Hebrew expression meaning literally " Save now!" When the people cried it out they were expressing the words recorded in the psalms.

Save now, I beseech you, O Lord: O Lord, I beseech you, send now prosperity. Blessed be he that comes in the name of the Lord: we have blessed you out of the house of the Lord. (Psalm 118:25-26

With these words, those in Jerusalem that day may have been appealing to Jesus to take immediate action as the Messiah and rescue them from roman occupation. It is clear by their use of this term that they saw Him as a great deliverer.   What they didn't understand is that Jesus was delivering humanity according to God's plan, not their perception of what he should be doing.

Are we much different today? Do we look to Jesus, singing Hosanna, "Save us", thinking in worldly terms rather than in heavenly terms?   Do we shout our praise and thanksgiving for Christ's redemptive work on the cross, to save us from our sin, or would we simply rather have him deliver us from that in the world which oppresses us?  

Our shouts of Hosanna should be those of Praise and Worship, giving thanksgiving for our Salvation. Pastor, and author, Robert Morgan suggests using the following Hosanna acrostic as a guide to meaningful worship of our Lord and Savior.

H - Heart, real worship should bubble up from a sincere heart.

O - Offering. Worship should be given as an offering, the sacrifice of Praise.

S - Singing. Worship in the Bible was often accompanied by song.

A - Appreciation. Real worship involves thanksgiving and gratitude.

N - Now. Every moment of life is an opportunity for praise.

N - New. The Bible tells us to sing to the Lord a new song. Be fresh in your worship, keep it new.

A - Adoration. Only those who are in deepest love with Jesus can richly worship Him.

When you sing Hosanna this Palm Sunday, do so with a heart of worship; looking forward to Christ's triumphant return.