A flashback - that's what this story is when it is read on the First Sunday in Advent. It has nothing to do with Jesus' birth, nor with Christmas. It has to do with his true identity, his last days before his death, his coronation as "the King of the Jews" on the cross of Calvary. And it ties together Christ the King Sunday, the end of one church year, and Advent, the beginning of a new church year. A flashback - that's what it is when we read and hear it today. And that's why it is so important.

This story highlights the impending death, not the birth of Jesus Christ. He entered Jerusalem in the manner that the prophets had foretold - "Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord." What a strange king! He chose to commandeer a lowly beast of burden for his glorious ride into the…