When Heaven and Earth Collide (Part 1)
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20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.
And then heaven collided with earth.
Collide — to come together with solid or direct impact
When heaven and earth collide …
I. You Have No Excuse Not to Immediately and Confidently Follow (vv. 28-34)
I. You Have No Excuse Not to Immediately and Confidently Follow (vv. 28-34)
28 After He had said these things, He was going on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 When He approached Bethphage and Bethany, near the mount that is called Olivet, He sent two of the disciples, 30 saying, “Go into the village ahead of you; there, as you enter, you will find a colt tied on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here. 31 “If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of it.’ ” 32 So those who were sent went away and found it just as He had told them. 33 As they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 They said, “The Lord has need of it.”
The Clarity of the Gospel Accounts
When you read the Gospels, you will see this:
“as it is written”
“this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet”
The triumphal entry of Jesus is recorded in all four Gospels
Do you think maybe this account is important?
4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: 5 “Say to the daughter 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.’ ”
14 Jesus, finding a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written, 15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your King is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.”
Confidently Following the Call
The call of Peter, Andrew, James, and John
18 Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 19 And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. 21 Going on from there He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and He called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.
The call of Nathanael and Philip
43 The next day He purposed to go into Galilee, and He found Philip. And Jesus said to him, “Follow Me.” 44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, of the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law and also the Prophets wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 Nathanael said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” 47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him, and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” 48 Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” 49 Nathanael answered Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.”
The call of Matthew
13 And He went out again by the seashore; and all the people were coming to Him, and He was teaching them. 14 As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting in the tax booth, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him.
Confidently Following the Purpose
Jesus Himself summed up His purpose, His mission, and His ministry:
16 And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. 17 And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed, 19 To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” 20 And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
Jesus revealed this purpose through His early ministry
13 and leaving Nazareth, He came and settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali. 14 This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: 15 “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— 16 “The people who were sitting in darkness saw a great Light, And those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death, Upon them a Light dawned.”
Jesus revealed this purpose in His commission of Paul the apostle:
16 ‘But get up and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you a minister and a witness not only to the things which you have seen, but also to the things in which I will appear to you; 17 rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, 18 to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.’
Was the purpose Jesus was sent for accomplished immediately?
No! There was a plan.
Confidently Following the Plan
The disciples didn’t fully understand the plan
16 These things His disciples did not understand at the first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written of Him, and that they had done these things to Him.
They just knew the bigger picture:
16 “The people who were sitting in darkness saw a great Light, And those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death, Upon them a Light dawned.”
12 Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”
When heaven and earth collide …
II. You Have No Excuse Not to Cry Out and Praise (vv. 35-40)
II. You Have No Excuse Not to Cry Out and Praise (vv. 35-40)
35 They brought it to Jesus, and they threw their coats on the colt and put Jesus on it. 36 As He was going, they were spreading their coats on the road. 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 joyfully with a loud voice for all the miracles which they had seen, 38 shouting: “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord; Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.” 40 But Jesus answered, “I tell you, if these become silent, the stones will cry out!”
The Significance of the Coats
Coats declare:
Giving our all — your coat was your covering, your protection, your comfort, your possession.
Giving our allegiance — an act of submission, honor, and loyalty
13 Then they hurried and each man took his garment and placed it under him on the bare steps, and blew the trumpet, saying, “Jehu is king!”
The Significance of the Palm Branches
Palm branches declare:
13 took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him, and began to shout, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.”
Joy
40 ‘Now on the first day you shall take for yourselves the foliage of beautiful trees, palm branches and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days.
The reason:
43 so that your generations may know that I had the sons of Israel live in booths when I brought them out from the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’ ”
To remember and celebrate God’s deliverance and provision.
Victory
“No antique symbol is more familiar to us than the palm branch carried in the hand in token of victory. Given to successful competitors in the athletic and other contests which abounded in the Greek and Roman world, it acquired, at least in metaphor, a universal significance and was one of the commonest attributes of the goddess Victory herself.”
Tarbell, F. B. “The Palm of Victory.” Classical Philology 3, no. 3 (1908): 264–72. http://www.jstor.org/stable/261788.
Victors were bestowed palm branches in the games
Kings and generals were wreathed or rode in atop palm branches following military victory.
The Significance of the People:
The multitude declares:
12 On the next day the large crowd who had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem,
Luke’s account says “the whole crowd of disciples”
A knowledge of God’s purpose and plan
26 Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord; We have blessed you from the house of the Lord. 27 The Lord is God, and He has given us light; Bind the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.
Don’t confine this to only the twelve. There was a large crowd of people waiting because they knew God’s plan which had been declared in advance.
The Significance of the Words
The words declare:
An understanding of their condition
13 took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him, and began to shout, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.”
The English word hosanna comes from two Hebrew words in Psalm 118.
25 O Lord, do save, we beseech You; O Lord, we beseech You, do send prosperity!
yasha — deliver and save
anna — beg, beseech
An understanding of His ability
The Significance of the Rocks
The rocks declare:
The truth of Jesus must be told
The truth of Jesus must be praised
The truth of Jesus must be worshipped
Sometimes our worship looks more like a silent rock, than a Christian, an image bearer of God, who is saved by the blood of Jesus Christ.
“Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him!
How I’ve proved Him o’er and o’er!
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!
O for grace to trust Him more!”
My Jesus, I Love Thee (‘Tis So Sweet)
This is the first day, in Jesus’ entire three years of ministry, that Jesus allows Himself to be worshipped as King.
When heaven and earth collide …
III. You Have No Excuse Not to See (vv. 41-44)
III. You Have No Excuse Not to See (vv. 41-44)
41 When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it, 42 saying, “If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. 43 “For the days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side, 44 and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”
Letting it All Out
Nothing is veiled. Nothing is hidden. All has been revealed.
Zechariah didn’t understand the fullness of what he was prophesying.
Isaiah didn’t understand the fullness of what he was prophesying.
Micah didn’t understand the fullness of what he was prophesying.
But in the person of Jesus Christ, the fullness of God’s Word — His call, His purpose, His plan, His authority to be worshipped, His victory, His ability to save — is revealed.
1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have on your behalf and for those who are at Laodicea, and for all those who have not personally seen my face, 2 that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
The Time of Your Visitation
When Jesus comes to you today, and He comes riding on a donkey, and He crests the hill, how does he respond?
Does He weep?
Does He rejoice?
