We begin Holy Week with a shout: Hosanna—Lord, save us.
We end it with another: Hallelujah—praise the Lord.
But if we rush from one to the other, we miss everything that gives those words meaning.
Because what happens in the middle of the week… changes everything.
Palm Sunday reminds us of celebration. Crowds, palm branches, cloaks on the road, and Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. It looks like victory. It feels like momentum.
But by the end of the week, those same voices will cry out, “We have no king but Caesar.”
What changed?
The middle.
The Donkey, The King, and The Calling
There’s a fascinating connection between Palm Sunday and the story of Saul in 1 Samuel.
Saul goes out looking for donkeys—and never finds them.
The disciples go out looking for a donkey—and find it exactly where Jesus said it would be.
In Saul’s story, the donkey leads him to Samuel—and ultimately to kingship.
In Jesus’ story, the donkey carries Him into Jerusalem—revealing a very different kind of King.
The people once said, “We want a king like everyone else.”
And when Jesus arrives?
They don’t recognize Him as the King they truly need.
The Real Issue: Hearing vs. Obeying
Here’s the core truth:
Hearing the Lord’s voice is a prerequisite to heeding His command.
Before we can follow God, we have to learn how to hear Him.
Samuel didn’t recognize God’s voice at first. It took guidance. It took repetition. It took a mentor.
But eventually, he responded:
“Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”
That moment changed everything.
Samuel vs. Saul
Samuel heard—and obeyed.
Saul heard—but hesitated, doubted, and eventually disobeyed.
When pressure came, Saul took matters into his own hands. He didn’t wait. He didn’t trust. He acted out of fear instead of faith.
And that’s where many of us live.
We hear… but we don’t follow.
The Danger of Impatience
Saul’s failure wasn’t ignorance—it was impatience.
He knew what God said.
He just couldn’t wait for God’s timing.
And how often do we do the same?
- We rush decisions
- We force outcomes
- We step ahead of God instead of walking with Him
Just because we hear God doesn’t mean we’ll obey Him.
Learning to Hear God
Hearing God is not automatic—it’s learned.
It grows through:
- Scripture
- Prayer
- Community
- Stillness
It’s cultivated over time.
And without it, we’ll never fully understand what God is calling us to do.
A Better Response
Samuel teaches us the right posture:
“Speak, Lord…”
followed by
“I will go, Lord.”
Hearing must lead to doing.
Listening must lead to obedience.
Why the Middle Matters
Holy Week reminds us:
You can’t fully experience the resurrection
without walking through the cross.
You can’t fully celebrate “Hallelujah”
unless you’ve wrestled with what happens in between.
Final Thought
God is still speaking.
The question isn’t whether He is calling.
The question is:
Are we listening… and will we follow?
____ _____ ____ ____ _____
Sermon video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jG6AWJ9n9oI
[Blog post created by Sunday Message Repurposing Assistant from original sermon content preached by Rev. Kent F. Jackson on March 29, 2026.]
Sermon Series NOTE: The Story by Max Lucado ch. 10 “Standing Tall and Falling Hard”
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