Hosanna! One of my favorite words, a celebration word, it exalts God to the highest heaven. When thank-you Lord" and "praise God" seem weak and unsatisfactory, we can dig deep and find that perfect word - Hosanna.The crowds who hailed Jesus as the long-promised Messiah and led His procession into Jerusalem one week before the crucifixion used that word - Hosanna. They had watched Him relieve the afflicted of demons. Their hearts had burned within them as they listened to His teaching. They said, "No man has ever taught like this man."
When the crowds saw Jesus set the afflicted free, joy overcame them. They spread their cloaks on the ground, a carpet for Him. They sliced branches, laid them on the road to cushion his ride. They danced, sang and shouted, "Hosanna!"
According to Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (a book thick enough to stand on to reach a high cupboard), Hosanna is used only six times in the Bible - three times by Matthew, twice by Mark and once by John. All three were disciples of Jesus.
Hosanna is a marvellous word. I wish we used it more often. It stirs the Spirit. It's a word perfectly suited to Jesus and to no one else. Besides being a praise word, it can also mean "Save us." Jesus, the One and only Savior earned our Hosanna praise by His death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead.
In this holy week that culminates in Christ's resurrection, let's remember the word Hosanna - praise and exalt Jesus for giving His life to save us from our sins. Do you need the Savior? Call out to Jesus, "Hosanna in the highest!"
Visit Rose McCormick Brandon at her faith blog, Listening to My Hair Grow. Read stories of British Home Children at The Promise of Home. Rose is a frequent contributor to several Christian publications. Read more about her here.
1 comment:
Thanks Rose, for this Palm Sunday and Holy Week focus. Since childhood I've had a warm sense of praisefilled jubilation associated with the word "Hosannah," and loved singing Palm Sunday hymns that included it.
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