In Rides the King

Well known as the triumphal entry,
where Christ essentially has completed his preaching ministry. He will continue to preach and
offer lessons even in this final week. Now, just six days before
the Passover meal, six days before he will begin to face the arrest
and ultimately the crucifixion on the cross. This is the final
week of Christ’s earthly life. And so we’ve turned a corner,
but as we turn a corner here in the Gospel of Luke, The triumphal
entry doesn’t begin here in the Gospel of Luke. And I want to
keep your finger there in Luke 19, but I want to take you directly
to John 12. Because there, in John 12, the
context is more perfectly established for us. Look, if you would, at
John 12, and I want to take it beginning in verse 1. This is one of the difficulties.
Years ago, I went to do a Bible study on the book of Hebrews,
and if you’ve ever studied the book of Hebrews, you can’t jump
into chapter 10, verse 25 and do any kind of a lesson. Because
you’ve got to go back to chapter 10, verse 24, and that takes
you back to chapter 9, and that takes you back to chapter 8,
and so on and so forth. I’m going to spare you that.
We’re going to jump in right in the middle of the story here
in John 12, verse 1. What has just taken place is
the raising of Lazarus from the dead. And as you can imagine,
a miracle like that was so stupendous, so miraculous, that it caught
the attention of everybody in the neighboring villages. Pick
up, if you would, in verse 1. Jesus, therefore, six days before
the Passover, came to Bethany where Lazarus was. whom Jesus
had raised from the dead.” This is the same Lazarus, and John
wants to make perfectly clear that we know that there is the
excitement there about this event. Jesus came to Bethany, Lazarus’
home, where Lazarus was, and mentions directly that this was
the same Lazarus who he had raised from the dead. If you will, skip
down to verse 17 of chapter 12. We’ll come back to this verse
in a moment, but it says, So the people who were with him,
when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from
the dead, there was this crowd that directly witnessed what
took place. And they were fomenting the excitement
among the rest of the crowd. They were passing along the eyewitness
accounts of what had taken place. This raising of Lazarus from
the dead. So the people who were with him
when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from
the dead, continued to testify about him. For this reason also,
the people went and met him because they heard he had performed this
sign. This is directly the context. We have an equally exciting context
in Luke’s gospel. We’ll return to visit it in a
moment. But Luke leaves out this healing. We don’t know why. Each gospel writer included different
details, but the direct context, the excitement that is driving
this whole crowd is the raising of Lazarus from the dead. And
well, it should have been. Verse two continues in John’s
Gospel. So they made him a supper there
and Martha was serving. Martha had already had her bout
with pride about serving while Mary was worshiping. But Lazarus
was one of those reclining at the table with him. I mean, what
a unique position for Lazarus to assume. What a natural place
for him to be, having been raised from the dead. Now he literally
lays at Christ’s feet, very much alive. But Mary, therefore, took
a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard. Now, there was
another if you’re familiar with the Gospels, there was another
similar incident and Christ was rebuked in that incident, too,
for being wasteful. How could you allow somebody
to spill this costly perfume? Mary took a pound of very costly
perfume of pure Nard, anointed the feet of Jesus, wiped her
feet with her hair. This was I mean, this is an almost
unthinkable act of worship on her part. Her brother, though,
if you think of it, had just been raised from the dead. And
in that sense, what what a more pure act of worship this was.
And it says the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
And then we see a dark cloud. Here is this glorious moment,
Lazarus raised from the dead, people serving, people worshiping
in almost unprecedented terms. And John’s gospel says, but Judas.
But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples, was intending to betray
him. and said, why was this perfume not sold for 100 denarii and
given to poor people? It’s a good question. And in
some contexts, it’s even a reasonable question, except that this was
an act of worship for Christ, who had just proven Himself to
be the Savior in raising Lazarus from the dead. This was a most
noble act of worship. And then we see Judas’s motives
exposed. Now, he said this not because
he was concerned about the poor. I mean, isn’t that the truth? I mean, don’t you hear that all
the time? You know, you hear this argument all the time. What
about the people in Africa? Well, what about the people in
Africa? If you’re so concerned about the people in Africa, why
haven’t you gone? He said this not because he was
concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief. And as
he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it.
God knew. God knew it was hard. Everybody bought into Judas’s
lie, but God himself. Jesus, therefore, said, let her
alone in order that she may keep it for the day of my burial.
This was, in a sense, an anointing for burial. For the poor, you always have
with you, but you do not always have me. So there you have the
scene opened, and if you just continue to the next paragraph,
John’s gospel launches right into the triumphal entry. It
is as if they rose from dinner and went right out into this
crowd of people. into this throng that was clamoring
for Christ. Look at verse 9, the great multitude,
therefore, of the Jews learned that he was there and they came
not for Jesus sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus,
whom he raised from the dead. Here was this at least curiosity,
if not, you know, in some people’s case, they had flat out decided
this has got to be the Savior. Anybody who can raise somebody
from the dead, this is him. But the chief priest took counsel. And so you already have the machine
in place. To bring about the end of Christ,
the chief priest took counsel that they might put to death
Lazarus also, because on account of him, the Jews were going away
and were believing in Jesus and heaven forbid they couldn’t have
that. And so we come to the triumphal entry, that is the context. We’ll
look at the additional context of Luke in a moment. But now,
if you will flip back to Luke’s gospel and begin reading along
with me quietly. Luke chapter 19, verse 28. Luke chapter 19, we pick it up
in verse 28. After he had said these things,
he was going on ahead up to Jerusalem. When he approached Bethany and
Bethany near the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of
his disciples saying, go into the village ahead of you. There,
as you enter, you will find a cold tide on which no one yet has
ever sat. Untie it and bring it here. If
anyone asks you, why are you untying it? You shall say the
Lord has need of it. So those who were sent went away
and found it just as he had told them. And as they were untying
the cold, its owners said to them, why are you untying the
cold? They said the Lord has need of
it. They brought it to Jesus and they threw their coats on
the cold and put Jesus on it. As he was going, they were spreading
their coats on the road. As soon as he was approaching
near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of
the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice
for all the miracles which they had seen, shouting, Blessed is
the King who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven
and glory in the highest. Some of the Pharisees in the
crowd said to him, Teacher, rebuke your disciples. But Jesus answered,
I tell you, If these become silent, the stones will cry out.” There is the context. There exactly
is the passage at hand this morning. I want to pick up. I mentioned
that we had a context here in Luke’s gospel, and I want to
pick up just looking briefly over our shoulder at that passage. Jesus there in verse 11 told
them a parable about a king who went away and then returned.
And there was this essentially these returns that the king was
bringing. It is exactly that context when
Luke records in verse 28, after he had said these things. So
the likely scenario is what I have. What I have is this. Luke raises
Lazarus from the dead. He ends up going to lunch. It
draws this great crowd. They’re in there in Lazarus’s
home having a meal together. They go out. Jesus tells this
parable about a returning king and this returning king is bringing
something for everyone. He brings something for the faithful. He brings something for those
who are fickle, who claim to believe in him, but really don’t.
And he brings something eventually to the foes. That was our direct
context last week. Let’s pick it up. He was going
on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. Jesus knew what he was doing.
Jesus knew where he was going. And in a sense, you get the picture
here, if not literally, certainly symbolically, Jesus is leading
the way. Jesus isn’t being dragged to
Jerusalem. He’s not under arrest. He’s not
compelled to do so by anything other than his desire to obey
his heavenly father and to bring about the redemption that was
the whole plan. Now, we read about the donkey. And there is
a ton of ink spilled about whether, you know, this discussion of
whether Jesus set up the donkey rental in advance or whether
it was supernatural of how the whole thing would play out. Supernatural
knowledge on the part of Christ. And I want to tell you, pure
and simple, it was a miracle. This was miraculous knowledge, proof
of Christ’s deity, just like all the other times where Christ
knew what was going on and knew in his heart and head the facts
of the matter before they became known in an earthly sense. Just
like he knew the name of Zacchaeus, he called Zacchaeus out of the
tree by name and Zacchaeus, having heard it, almost fell out of
the tree. He knew Nathaniel before, while he was sitting under the
tree, before he even had formally met Nathaniel. An event that shocked a number
of people. The bottom line here, Jesus knew
exactly where the donkey was. Look at all the facts of the
case. Look at verse 29. He approached Bethphagia and
Bethany near the mount that is called Olivet. He sent two of
his disciples. He had an intention for this
purpose, and it’s possible that some many months later, when
he happened to be in Jerusalem, that he set up with some people
to go have their donkey bred and have a baby that would be
this much old at this particular time and have it ready that on
this particular day, six days before the Passover, I’m going
to come back into town, have the donkey ready, have him tied
up at this post. It’s possible. You’re right,
it’s not possible. He sent to his disciples saying,
go into the village ahead of you there as you enter. He tells
him what village, he tells him where the colt is going to be.
You will find a colt tied on which no one has ever sat. In
a sense, he tells him exactly how old the colt is. Just like
with horses, there was a certain age at which the donkey was to
be ridden. for the sake of his structural
development of his spine. There was a time period where
nobody was supposed to sit on him. And Jesus knew exactly how
old the donkey was. The time was time. This wasn’t
cruelty to animals on Christ’s part. Jesus knew where the donkey lived,
what city. He knew how it was contained.
It was tied by a rope. It wasn’t in a corral. He knew
that it was a colt, a young donkey, never having been ridden. And
it was a donkey. tied up right near the city gates.
And he said, untie it and bring it here. What loyal disciples. Because from a human perspective,
what they might have heard was go steal a donkey. This wasn’t
stealing. The bottom line, God owns everything
anyway. And I believe even as we lay
out the facts of the matter, you’ll see that I think even
the way they presented the need But it was a bold move. To go
into a city, walk up to a perfect stranger, and without asking,
untie his animal and begin to lead it away. And offer no other
excuse than the Lord has need of it. Now, the bottom line, they hadn’t
yet admitted guns. But they did have sticks. They
had clubs. They had stones. They had sticks.
They had clubs. And a thief was still a thief in those days.
And these disciples didn’t even question Jesus’ request. They’re
going to secure this transportation for him exactly as he requested.
In fact, Jesus prepared them. If anyone asks you, why are you
untying it? I mean, what more logical question is that? What
are you doing with my donkey? I mean, if somebody comes out
and gets in your pinto, right? What are you doing in my car?
You shall say the Lord has need of it. Now, I’m not suggesting
you try this. Don’t try this at home. Perhaps
and I mean, perhaps because there’s nothing in the text that proves
anything else, nothing here. Perhaps Jesus knew these people.
Perhaps they knew Him. Perhaps they were disciples.
As I said before, perhaps Jesus had set up this rental donkey
months earlier. But an even more likely scenario
was that these were hardworking, God-fearing people who likewise
sensed the excitement in the city. Perhaps they had even heard
of this Christ. The disciples in making request
of the donkey, I believe, were likely quite gracious in pointing
out the Lord’s need of the beast. These were not obnoxious people.
We like to live that way, don’t we? If we’ve got the facts, we’ve
got some kind of authority. Man, we strut in and we wait
for some people to stumble into it and to make a fool of themselves.
And then we let them know on whose authority we’re there.
I don’t believe that was the case with these disciples. I
think they went, began, you know, gently untying the animal. And
as soon as they were requested, they said, the Lord has need
of it. And that was enough. Miraculously, the people trusted
them and they desired to serve the Lord, even in this very small
thing. I mean, you know, and there I
mean, I didn’t go here. I’m not going to spend much time
here, but there is a message right there. Then even if that’s
all we’ve got, even if all we’ve got is a donkey colt, a baby
donkey, is that not enough to serve the Lord if the Lord has
need of it? And really, if the Lord, if somebody came to you,
a godly friend came to you and suddenly told you the Lord has
need of it, wouldn’t you respond in the same way? I mean, if somebody came and
asked for your classic 65 Mustang that sits in the garage and said,
the Lord has need of it. I mean, would you not hand them
the keys? Right. If the Lord came to you
and sent a friend to you and said, you know, that never been
used compressor and pneumatic nailer combo that sits in your
garage, the Lord has need of it. John, wouldn’t you let me
borrow it? So, verse 32 says, those who
were sent went away and found it just as had been told them. They were as astounded by the
facts of the matter. I mean, why even record it if
this wasn’t miraculous, supernatural knowledge? They went walking
into town, you know, perhaps not even having ever been there.
And lo and behold, there’s the donkey tied to the post with
a baby donkey right next to it, this was supernatural. Luke records
the almost astonishing discovery just as he had told them. And everything else continues
to unfold just as he had told them. Look at verse 33. As they
were in untying the colt. I mean, you might have assumed
this. Look, if anybody sees you, you know, look, just tell them
this. I mean, you might have assumed that. And its owner said
to them, why are you untying the colt? They said the Lord
has need of it. And that’s the end of the argument. They didn’t ask for collateral,
they didn’t ask for payment, they didn’t ask for anything,
there’s not even a word of additional discussion. And so the king has
his transport. A providential little donkey,
a fulfillment of prophecy, a means of transport for his triumphal
entry. the Savior of the world coming
into the great city, Jerusalem. Verse 35 records that they brought
it to Jesus. They threw their coats on the
colt and put Jesus on it. And you say, a donkey? Now, granted, I mean, I read
the studies and the studies are They’re all over the board on
whether a donkey really has the image that it does in our society. Horses were not as plentiful
then as they are now, but certainly a king could afford a horse,
and a horse was no less noble a creature then as it is now. There are several elements to
why a donkey. And I know you’re sitting there
saying, I can’t believe that we’re sitting here on Sunday
morning, got up an hour early. Maybe you didn’t. And here I
am going to sit and listen to a lesson about a donkey. Well,
let me tell you about a donkey. The donkey was typically the
beast of peace. It was generally a beast that
brought about labor. A horse was almost exclusively
an image of war. Now, Christ will ride a horse
one day. But on this instance, there was
a purpose for Him riding in on a donkey. It was a beast of peace.
Christ was coming as the Prince of Peace. He came to bring peace. Peace on earth. He came in riding this donkey. And it was an unused donkey.
A donkey that had never been ridden before. And that had symbol
2. A donkey is very similar to a
horse in the fact that once you first get on a horse that has
never been ridden before, you’re probably in for the ride of your
life. And a donkey is no less favorable to being ridden for
the first time than a horse. It’s a surprising thing to them,
they’ve never been in that position before and they don’t like it
and they let you know part of the imagery here is that Christ
Gets on a donkey that’s never been ridden and walks gently
right in through the gates of Jerusalem. The meaning of a previously unused
creature in scripture. Is presented to us as being sacred
and noble, Numbers 19 to. The statute of the law, which
the Lord commanded, saying, Speak to the sons of Israel that they
might bring you an unblemished red heifer in which no defect
and on which no yoke has ever been placed.” It was an image
of sacredness, set-apartness for the Lord. Deuteronomy 21.
It shall be that city which is nearest the slain man that is
the elders of that city shall take a heifer of the herd which
has not been worked and which has not pulled a yoke. And unused. calf for Samuel six, seven, take
and prepare a new cart to milk cows on which there has never
been a yoke and hitch the cows to the cart
and take their calves. The donkey’s history was more
noble than we might think. Numerous kings are recorded in
Scripture as having straddled the donkey to come riding into
the gates of the city. Even Abraham, Genesis, Abraham
rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, took two of his young
men with him and Isaac, his son. We know that Abraham was a rich
man. Why didn’t Abraham go out and buy a horse? Because this
donkey was the symbol of peace. It was a it was a more of a neutral
symbol than in our society. Genesis 49 called one city a
strong donkey, and this was a compliment. Not in our society, but to them,
it was a compliment. In the book of Judges, when one
of the prophets wanted to rebuke them, he said, you who ride on
white donkeys, you who sit on rich carpets and you who travel
on the road sing. So a donkey in this society wasn’t
necessarily a bad thing. But given the circumstances,
there is absolutely an element of that. There is absolutely
an element of humility associated with a donkey. And it probably wasn’t altogether
different than in our day and age. I mean, let’s think about it.
A donkey What are the ladies horse experts, what do you call
it, canter? A donkey can’t do that fancy thing with his legs,
he just shuffles along. A donkey doesn’t make the noble
noise that a horse makes, he just makes that obnoxious braying
sound that is characteristic to a donkey. And a donkey in
those days was no less appealing to look at than it is now. The horse was no less noble to
appearance. And Christ, I mean, if I was
going to give Christ, if we didn’t have a limo available, if I was
going to give Christ the means of transportation in the city,
it would certainly be a horse, not a donkey. I’ll give you a
personal illustration. A couple of months ago, right,
we went up to Yellowstone. Kids were going up to Yellowstone.
Can we ride a horse? We’re going to see, we get to Yellowstone,
we’re going to see, look, Look there, I’ve never seen in the
wild before a moose. There’s a moose. Can we ride
a horse? We’re going to tomorrow, we’re going to see Old Faithful.
Every 62 minutes, it geysers out 60 feet into the air. Can
we ride a horse? And all week long, that’s how
it went. Can we ride a horse? Can we ride a horse? Finally,
the Monday, the day that we’re to leave, we get to the And we’re
all packed up and we’re ready to go. And now comes the promised
moment. We’re going to ride a horse,
right? We’re going to ride the horse. Get to the stable. There
in the stable is all the handsome steeds. And of course, the kids
had already picked out the ones that they wanted to ride, but
they’re not in charge of the stable. The kids didn’t know this. But
the ranch hands came over and started talking to me about the
level of expertise of the kids and what horses or creatures
they tended to put kids on, one of which was a donkey. And I
knew that if I suggested to my little girl that after waiting
all this time that she was going to have to ride a donkey, I was
going to have serious tears to contend with. My boy is bigger. He would have
punched me. And then as I began to surmise
the situation, I feared that I might be the one they were
going to put on the donkey. And I didn’t like that much either.
I would have preferred the tears of the punching. And so a donkey
was no less. Viewed in that society than it
is in our own. A donkey was a donkey was a donkey
and in came writing the savior of the world. On a donkey. There was an element of humility
in Christ, our Savior, riding in on a lowly donkey, especially
a colt. In fact, this image of Christ
riding in on a donkey, the early Christians captured this image
in some of their paintings and artwork. And it became a point
of mockery by the Romans. They called Christians, because
of this depiction, they called Christians, those who hated Christ,
donkey worshipers. It was the worst thing that they
could think of. You know what? God had a purpose. God had a
purpose to all this. It wasn’t just that a donkey
was the only thing available. If you would keep your finger
in the Gospel of Luke and turn to Matthew, Chapter 21. In Matthew
chapter 21, we have the reasoning behind this. We have God’s mind
behind the use of a donkey. Matthew chapter 21, verse 4. And not only does Matthew record
this portion, John records it too, not quite as extensively. But Matthew chapter 21, verse
4, same context, same passage, Matthew just gives a bit more
detail that Luke omits. When he speaks of the donkey
and putting Christ upon the donkey and Christ riding the donkey,
this baby donkey into town, this took place, verse four, to fulfill
what was spoken through the prophet. Say to the daughters of Zion,
Behold, your king is coming to you, gentle and mounted on a
donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.” God had
a purpose. And for centuries, the Jews had
looked to this passage, Zechariah 9, verse 9, and they saw that
as a sure sign of the Messiah’s coming. that when He came, He
was going to come in riding in peace, gently on a beast of burden
called a donkey.” Matthew quotes it almost verbatim. Rejoice greatly, O daughter of
Zion. Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, your King
is coming to you. He is just and endowed with salvation,
humble and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a
donkey.” What a beautiful image. And Christ
is fulfilling it all. There was an element of humility
in riding in on this lowly donkey. He could have come in on a horse.
He could have come in with a thousand horses. All stepping in time
together. And that wasn’t what God had
in mind. This is God that is planning
out this event. God isn’t pressured by the appearance. God rather appreciates this appearance
of lowliness, of humility. First Corinthians tells us why
the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. You
tell somebody about Christ who died on a cross and most people
will mock you for it. That’s what you worship. 1 Corinthians 1 says it this way,
the foolishness of God is wiser than men. The weakness of God
is stronger than men. For consider your calling, brethren,
there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty,
not many noble. I mean, am I not the greatest
example of that? Aren’t you? But God has chosen
the foolish things of the world to shame the wise and God has
chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which
are strong. And the base things of the world.
I mean, is a donkey not one of the basest creatures? The base
things of the world and the despised God has chosen. The things that
are not so that He might nullify the things that are so that no
man may boast before God. This is the same Savior that
was born of a virgin. Born to a poor couple. The son
of a carpenter. Of Galilee. Of Nazareth. In his apex of his ministry,
he had a ragtag band of followers, died a horrible death on an inglorious
cross. I mean, a donkey? What could
be more fitting in God’s design? It was perfect. It was perfect. Look at verse 36. And as he was
going, Suddenly, we come to the scene where they’re spreading
their coats on the ground. Verse 37 records that as soon
as he was approaching near the descent of the Mount of Olives,
the whole crowd of the disciples began to praise God. They knew
who Christ was. They saw him for what he was,
for what Scripture itself presented him to be. The whole crowd of the disciples
began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the
miracles which they had seen. Shouting, blessed is the King
who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory
in the highest. I want to give you one other
piece of detail before I close out this morning. This detail
is found in the Gospel of John. If you would turn to keeping
your finger in Luke 19. Your fingers are going to be
sore this morning. Keeping your finger in Luke’s Gospel. Turn
to John chapter 12. In John chapter 12, they heard
this impromptu praise service that was breaking out on the
road. They heard what was going on. They heard what was being
said. And they didn’t like it. Look at verse 19 of John chapter
12. So the Pharisees said to one
another, you see that you are not doing any good. And this
is clearly, this is an image here where now once they begin
to turn on each other, it’s like a sport, a sports team. Once
they begin to turn on each other, you know the end is near. They
can’t possibly play well if they’re feasting on one another. The
Pharisees said to one another, you see that you are not doing
any good. Look, the world has gone after
them. And that was their perspective, is that the entire world now
is worshiping Christ. And they had had enough. Flip
back, if you would, to Luke’s gospel. Some of the Pharisees
in the crowd said to him, that is Christ, teacher, rebuke your
disciples. I mean, did you hear what they’re
saying about you? Hosanna to the son of David and
blessed is the king and all this stuff. Rebuke them. You know
what they did in doing so? They put the whole responsibility
of this on Christ. And you know what the amazing
thing is? Christ didn’t rebuke them. Not only did He not rebuke
them, He endorsed their worship. He appreciated their worship.
He accepted their worship. And you know what He said? Look
at verse 40. But Jesus answered, I tell you,
if these become silent, the stones will cry out. I mean, you talk
about the origin of rock music, right here. Jesus says, look,
if these people stop praising Me, all of a sudden the stones,
I mean, rocks are going to come to life in some animated fashion
and praise Almighty God for this day. For the Savior that has
come near. The bottom line, the Pharisees
had no ability to keep this multitude in check, they had lost control.
And that was their most precious commodity. And perhaps not even daring to
try, they attempt to get Jesus. And in attempting to get Jesus
to stop this praise service, they make Him all the more culpable.
Because in accepting this worship, they saw that as additional sin. To accept the worship that was
due only the Messiah to them, was the last straw. You know
what? The end of Jesus’ ministry is
just like the beginning. You know what? At the beginning
of Jesus’ ministry in Luke chapter 3, it said this, He began saying
to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by Him, You
brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
I mean, what a great way to start a ministry. Therefore, bear fruits
in keeping with repentance and do not begin to say to yourselves,
we have Abraham as our father. Here was the tendency that people
were tending to live just on how they’d been born and say,
well, that’s enough. I’m in the family. You hear it all the time,
I’m in the covenant, my parents were raised in the church. Jesus said, don’t try that excuse
on me. Don’t say to me that we have Abraham as our father, for
I say to you that from these stones, God is able to raise
up children to Abraham. The end of Jesus ministry is
just like the beginning. I want to take us back briefly.
In the few minutes that I have. briefly to a portion of our text
this morning for some particular consideration pertaining to worship. And I just want to look at the
four elements of this worship that was being offered to Christ. Verse 36 says that as he was
going, they were spreading their coats on the road The other gospels offer some
additional scenarios here, some additional details. Matthew chapter
21 says most of the crowd spread their coats on the ground and
the others were cutting branches from the trees. And people, we
don’t know this image. All we have is the image of trees,
you know, from the hurricanes lying everywhere. And they’re
a nuisance. This was an act of homage, this was an act of worship
to line the streets so that Christ didn’t have to get his feet dusty. They were cutting branches from
the trees. Mark’s gospel says they were leafy branches which
they had cut from the fields. John’s gospel said they took
branches of the palm trees. Leafy branches from the palm
trees were laid out like a carpet before Christ. The worship service
is just beginning. Look at verse 37. As soon as
he was approaching near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole
crowd of the disciples began to praise God. They saw the moment
for what it was. And it’s possible that not every
one of them was saved. Not everyone really was a follower
of Christ, but they couldn’t help but get caught up in the
moment in praising God. Both Matthew and Mark highlight
the crowd. It says that there were those that were going before
and some who followed. You know what? You had a processional
in front of Christ singing his praises and you had people following
up behind. And all of it was in harmony
in this grand worship service that was going on on the road.
To Jerusalem. Now, there will be much educating
in the next week. of Christ’s earthly ministry.
Christ is going to point out that He was not the earthly Messiah
that they all thought He was going to be. He’s not taking
over right now. He’s going to His Heavenly Father.
He’s going to be crucified first, raised on the third day. He will
return one day as a triumphant Savior. I want to look at four elements
quickly in the worship due to the King of Kings. Four elements.
First of all, it is heartfelt. It is heartfelt. I know the difficulty
that John goes through every Sunday morning in leading us
in worship. I’ve been there myself. What we’re trying to get you
to do in those moments is to do what ought to come natural
for us. It is to start from the depths
of our being and to reach down and to recall all that God has
done for us and to sing to God accordingly out of a joyful heart. Joyful heart. The passage that
immediately comes to my mind, I shared it with the kids in
Olive Tree here a couple of weeks ago. The wise men had come looking
for the Christ child, right? Herod sends them out and says,
go search carefully for the child. When you found him, report to
me that I too may come and worship him. What an evil man, evil. He had no intentions of worshiping
Christ. After hearing the king, they
went their way and the star, which they’d seen in the east,
went on before them until it came and stood over the place
where the child was. And get this, when they saw the
star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. Is that what
describes your worship? I mean, just think of today’s
worship. Is that what described your worship today? Did you rejoice
exceedingly with great joy? Joy is not like the happiness
that you get from other worldly endeavors. It’s not the happiness
that you get from a good meal or when your team wins the game. Christian joy is the happiness
that comes from realizing or remembering God’s mercy. When you come in before Him,
that should be the only thought on our mind, not what happened
this week, not what we have to look forward to in the coming
week, but what God in His mercy has done for you. How was your worship? Was it
joyful? Secondly, second element of worship that
is due the King of Kings, not only is it heartfelt, it’s exuberant.
I mean, look at what you can’t even embellish this. They sang
with a loud voice. I am no music teacher and I’m
no expert on music, but I do know this, that when you sing,
you need to open your mouth and that the bottom line image here
is that these people were shameless in their praise of Christ. They
sang their hearts out on his behalf. They shouted from the
top of their voice their praises of their great Savior. Thirdly,
not only heartfelt and exuberant, but it was purposeful. They praised God for all the
miracles which they had seen. And I’ve taken you to the context
already. John 12, verse 17, “…so the people who were with him,
when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from
the dead, continued to testify about him. For this reason also
the people went and met him because they heard that he had performed
this sign.” And you say, well, they had something to praise
God for. I didn’t see anybody raised from
the dead this week. You have no fewer miracles. for
which to give praise to God. In fact, I would say you have
even more. Because we have the whole body of Scripture now.
These people were seeing just snapshots in time. Here a miracle. And now here’s a message. And
now here is someone raised from the dead. But we have it all.
In addition to all that Scripture records, we have our life experience.
For what miracle should you be giving praise to God? What about life? What about the
breath that you just took? What about the week that you
just enjoyed? What about the birth that you’ve
seen? What about the sustenance that you’ve enjoyed at God’s
hand? What about His protection of you? What about providence
in your life? What about the jobs that you
have? The fellowship that you have with other believers? Their worship was purposeful.
Sometimes we just shuffle into worship and expect everybody
else to put on the show for us. It can’t happen. Won’t happen.
There’s a fourth and final element. As much as maybe I’ll come back
and preach this justice someday. Not only is worship heartfelt
and exuberant and purposeful, fourthly, it is substantive.
There was something to it. In our day and age, simplicity
has become so glorified that you can sing just a couple of
words over and over again and believe that you’ve worshipped. It’s the dumbing down of the
church, and it’s not only deemed as being acceptable, but it’s
hardly embraced. Just keep it simple. MacArthur years ago said it this
way. He said, my heartfelt concern
is that there’s too much shallowness today with regards to God’s holiness. Our relationship to God has become
too casual. In the modern mind, God has become
almost human. So buddy-buddy that we don’t
understand His holiness. These people did. I mean, you
look at the substance of their worship in verse 38. What were
they shouting? What were they singing? Blessed
is the king who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven
and glory in the highest. This was known. All of these
things come from what was known as the Hallel. Those series of
Psalms beginning in Psalm 113 through 18. All of which praised
God for what he had provided and they saw what they had been
provided. Both all three of the other gospels,
Matthew, Mark and Luke, say that it starts off with that curious
word to our ears, Hosanna, which originally meant Lord save. But
in the context, it’s Hosanna or glory to God in the highest
for the salvation that he has brought us. They knew. Most of
these people knew exactly who Christ was and what he claimed
to be. Matthew’s gospel points out Hosanna
to the son of David. That was a direct reference to
the Messiah. They knew that he was the Messiah,
the Savior that had come to earth. Blessed, oh, how very blessed
is he that comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed be the kingdom
of our father, David, who comes in the name of the Lord. These
people knew. There must be content to our
worship. I’ve said before, You know, sometimes
we pray so generally, God bless all the missionaries in the whole
wide world. And sometimes we worship the same way. Oh, God,
thank you for all that you do for me. What is that? These people spelled out in specific
terms, looking to God’s word and seeing how God had provided.
And now I ask you, how was your worship? Is your worship heartfelt? Is it exuberant? Is it purposeful
and substantive? Let’s examine our hearts before
Him. Oh, Lord God, You are the changer
of hearts. You are the glorious King who
came humbly riding on a donkey. Lord, we humble ourselves before
you because we too know you to be the one that Scripture spoke
of. We believe you to be the Messiah,
the one, the only one who would come for the salvation of souls,
sinners like us. Lord God, we thank you and praise
you. We do bless you because you came in the name of the Lord
Lord, we thank You because You came bringing peace and enacted a peace treaty between
a sinful, warring people and a peaceful, holy God. We thank You in Jesus’ name.