Restoration Week III: The King Who Restores
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Series: Restoration – Finding New Life in Jesus
Palm Sunday – The King Who Restores
INTRO / ILLUSTRATION
Have you ever tried to fix something by doing all the wrong things but harder?
Missions and no one speaks english
Solution is to speak louder
But the real problem is being disconnected from the culture
We don’t speak the language
You smack the remote, flip the batteries, try the same old moves—
But the real problem is disconnection from the source.
That’s religion without Jesus.
We show up. We clean up. We know how to act.
But deep down we’re still tired, still broken, still disconnected from the life only Jesus gives.
Palm Sunday is not about palm branches and parades.
It’s about a King who enters a city full of religion to bring the one thing religion can’t: restoration.
TENSION
In the Bible Belt, we’re surrounded by Christian language.
We know the words.
We do the church stuff.
But too many people know religion—and don’t know Jesus.
We admire Him—but we don’t trust Him.
We believe facts about Him—but we haven’t surrendered to Him.
We’ve been around Jesus—but we’ve never been restored by Jesus.
And that’s exactly what we see in this story.
TRUTH
POINT I
Jesus restores how we respond to His authority.
1 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” 4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying,
5 “Say to the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’ ”
We Want All the Details First
Most of us hesitate to obey until we know how it’s going to work out.
We want clarity, comfort, and control.
But that reveals something deeper:
We’ve lost sight of His authority.
We treat Jesus like a consultant, not a King.
When Jesus Restores His Authority, He Restores Our Response
• We stop negotiating—and start surrendering
• We stop delaying—and start obeying
• We stop fearing—and start trusting
He May Not Be Calling You to Get a Donkey…
But He is calling you to forgive, to give, to go, to repent, to trust.
And the only way you respond with “Yes, Lord” is if His authority is restored in your heart.
POINT II
Jesus restores our expectation of who he really is.
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”
The crowd cheers. They quote Scripture. They wave branches.
But they don’t understand who He really is.
They expect a political hero, not a suffering Savior.
They want Jesus to fix their enemies—but not confront their sin.
So when He doesn’t meet their expectations, their praise turns to rejection.
Religion wants Jesus to serve our goals.
Restoration sees Jesus as the goal.
We do the same thing.
• We want a Jesus who blesses our plans—but not one who disrupts them
• A Jesus who affirms our values—but doesn’t challenge our hearts
• A Savior who comforts us—but doesn’t confront our sin
That’s not the real Jesus—that’s a version we’ve edited.
We Remake Jesus in Our Image When…
• We expect Him to fit our political party, personal preferences, or cultural values
• We reduce Him to a life coach, therapist, or mascot for our cause
• We treat Him as useful, not as Lord
But Our Expectations Are Restored When We See Him Rightly
Jesus entered Jerusalem, not on a war horse—but on a donkey.
Not to take power—but to lay His life down.
Not to meet our expectations—but to exceed them.
He didn’t come to take sides—He came to take over.
Here’s the Shift:
When we see Jesus rightly, we stop asking:
“Jesus, are you on my side?”
And we start asking:
“Jesus, am I surrendered to yours?”
Key Takeaway:
Jesus doesn’t come to meet our expectations—He comes to transform them.
And when His true identity is restored in our hearts, we stop following the Jesus we want…
And start following the Jesus who is.
POINT III
Jesus restores the purpose of true worship.
10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”
The city is stirred. People are excited. But when asked, “Who is this?”
The crowd answers: “It’s Jesus, the prophet.”
Not wrong—but incomplete.
He’s not just a good teacher. He’s not just inspiring.
He’s the King, the Messiah, the Son of God—and He came not to be admired, but to be trusted.
Real worship isn’t a moment of praise—it’s a life of surrender.
Jesus Restores Our Worship When We Stop Making It About Us
Worship loses its meaning when it becomes centered on what we want:
• Our preferences
• Our feelings
• Our experiences
We’ve made worship about the songs we like, the atmosphere we want, or whether we “got something out of it.”
But true worship was never about us.
Worship has becomes something we consume—not something we offer.
Jesus Restores Worship by Re-centering It on Himself
Worship isn’t a genre—it’s a posture.
It’s not about hype—it’s about humility.
Worship isn’t performance—it’s surrender to the King.
Real worship says: “Even if I don’t feel it… even if nothing changes… You’re still worthy.”
Here’s the Shift:
When Jesus is at the center, we stop asking:
“What did I get out of worship?”
And start asking:
“Did I give Him what He’s worth?”
Key Takeaway:
Worship is not about expressing our preferences—it’s about exalting our King.
And when Jesus restores our view of worship, we stop performing for ourselves…
And start surrendering to Him.
APPLICATION
What does gospel-shaped restoration look like?
It’s not about behavior management.
It’s about reorienting our lives around Jesus as Savior and Lord.
APPLICATION POINT I
Submit control—Jesus is King.
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
Where are you calling the shots in your life?
Restoration begins when you stop negotiating and start surrendering.
If Jesus is Lord, then obedience isn’t optional—it’s the natural result of trust.
APPLICATION POINT II
Lay down false expectations
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
What version of Jesus have you created to serve your comfort or politics or plans?
Let the real Jesus confront you and transform you.
APPLICATION POINT III
Make worship your way of life.
1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
Don’t let your faith stay stuck in Sunday routines.
Invite Jesus to shape your decisions, your time, your relationships, your goals.
Worship isn’t a song—it’s a life re-centered on Jesus.
GOSPEL INVITATION – Trust Jesus as Lord
Some of you have never truly trusted Jesus.
You’ve believed things about Him. You’ve done religious things for Him.
But you’ve never surrendered your life to Him.
Hear this:
Jesus didn’t ride into Jerusalem for applause.
He came to offer His life.
He lived the life you couldn’t.
He died the death you deserved.
He rose so you could be restored.
He is not just Savior. He is Lord.
And the only right response is surrender.
So today—stop performing.
Stop pretending.
Stop trying to fix yourself.
Turn from your sin.
Trust in Jesus.
Call on Him as Lord. And He will restore you.
CALL TO THE RELIGIOUS
If you’ve known Jesus in name but kept Him at a distance in practice—
Lay down the image.
Lay down the control.
Return to the King.
Not with your performance.
With your heart.
LANDING
Jesus didn’t enter the city to be celebrated for a day.
He entered to be crucified for your sin.
And the same King who came riding in humility
Will return in glory.
So the question today isn’t, “Did you grow up in church?”
It’s “Have you surrendered to the King?”
BOTTOM LINE:
Jesus didn’t come to make you more religious—He came to restore your life through surrender to His Lordship.
