The King Who Comes in Peace

Good morning, everyone! Whether you're here with us in the room or joining online—listening live or later—I am truly glad you're here. Leaf River Baptist church exist to Know Christ, Grow in faith, and to Go make Him known.

Part of us gathering together is the 5th Sunday tradition that we started last year. That means that every 5th Sunday we have our family Sunday. It’s a time when the whole family worships together and so we have some opportunities for the kids to follow along as well as learn in a way that truly helps them. As parents and grandparents this is designed to help you have open conversations about faith with your kids after church. All while keeping our focus on the Lord and all he has done for us.

So, this morning we are going to be in John 12, so you can go ahead and grab your Bible and be prepared to look at the text. Listen, if you don’t have a Bible that you understand, I would like to invite you to grab one of the blue paperback Bibles in the back and just keep that as our gift to you. We also have Bibles in the seats in front of you and you are welcome to use one of those if you forgot your Bible….The thing is though, that we actually like using our Bibles around here and so you’re going to want to have that ready so you can read for yourself. Listen, I don’t care who the speaker is…it is ALWAYS your responsibility to read along and see what God’s word says for itself, and don’t just trust sme guy up here about what the Scripture says, ok…

Now—before we move into the text I’d like to ask you all a question…just something to think about

If a King came to Leaf River today—what would you expect? Maybe some sirens, definitely some security. They would likely come with power in everything they had.

But on Palm Sunday, Jesus entered Jerusalem—and it looked nothing like that…nothing like one would expect.

There was no war horse—not even an army—just a guy on a donkey.

That picture forces us to ask a very important question…”What kind of ‘king’ is this?”

Now, at the time the crowds, they thought they knew what kind of king was coming in. They shouted loudly, “Hosanna”

The problem is that just a couple of days later, many of that same crowd will be begin to shout, “Crucify him!”

Sooo, that leaves us with the question of , “What changed in just a few days?”

But what if the real problem wasn’t Jesus…but their expectations of him?

That’s what we’re going to see today. We will look at both the king everyone wanted, as well as the King Jesus is—and then what that means to us today as we live a life pleasing to the Lord.

So—buckle up and let’s take a look at this story again with fresh eyes this morning. The first thing we’re gonna look at is

The King Everyone Wanted

Let’s start by looking at how the crowd responds when Jesus enters into Jerusalem.

John 12:12–13 ESV

12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”

Check that out…this is a moment of intense excitement—there is celebration, longing, and even a strong expectation—but they may have missed the mark on understanding who Jesus is.

So the people of Jerusalem wanted a king…they had been desiring a king ever since the Old Testament. Remember when the nation was led by prophets, and they begged for a king so they could be like everyone else? So they had times with kings, and none of those kings ultimately fulfilled what God desired for this nation. Now, it’s been centuries since they have had a king in Israel and they are all hoping and praying for a mighty king to show up and rebuild the once great kingdom of Israel.

So

They Wanted a Deliverer from Rome

It’s amazing and we don’t always realize this but, when they would shout out “Hosanna”…this was a term meaning “Save now” and they were applying it for a political liberation. They were crying out for Jesus to save them now…In other words, they expected Jesus to be entering and conquering the area of Israel and kick Rome out of their homes.

Even the palm branches were a national symbol that was pointing to this being a Davidic King, who was long thought as the best king Israel ever had, and the long awaited and promised Messiah king would come from the line of David, so they are acknowledging this.

They are singing and shouting words that come straight from Scripture—but they’re missing the whole point.

Look at this in

Psalm 118:25–26 ESV

25 Save us, we pray, O Lord! O Lord, we pray, give us success! 26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! We bless you from the house of the Lord.

This is a song the Jewish choir would sing as they were weighting for this new king.

What the people of Jerusalem truly desired was a political liberator.

So they celebrated this new king…but they missed the purpose…you see,

They Celebrated Without Submission.

They are very loudly calling him king, which he is…but they are searching for a king on their terms…much like when Israel first began searching for a king.

They wanted all of the benefits of having a king, but non of the repentance that goes along with this leader.

What about you? Have you been celebrating a king that you’ve refused to fully submit to? Have you worshiped Jesus without repenting and making him your Lord?

You see, they are looking for and seeking a military—political king, and the one who enters is someone very different. There were people who were worshiping the Messiah who would come in come in power and remove them from Roman occupation.

Much like today when there are people who worship a Jesus who accepts and affirms every kind of sin that we like to commit. We have churches, even in our own community that would praise the LGBT ideologies, or celebrate those who would choose to kill their pre-born child secretly in the form of a pill. We have pagan churches that worship men and not God.

Folks, there are whole religious sects who will simply affirm sin and reject the truth of the Gospel, while attacking those who do teach the Gospel. Maybe that’s even been you in the past…You’ve been searching for Jesus, but the Jesus you’ve been searching for isn’t the Jesus who died for you.

The deal is that the crowd is not wrong to call him king—but they are completely wrong about what kind of king he truly is. Maybe today you are starting to realize that you need to cry out to Jesus as the King who died for you.

Let’s look at

The King Jesus Actually Is

John makes very clear to us that this moment is not an accident—Jesus is fulfilling prophecy.

John 12:14–15 ESV

14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, 15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!”

This is a prophecy that was written hundreds of years earlier, pointing to this very moment. Look at this…

Zechariah 9:9 ESV

9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

This is the kind of King Jesus is and he is intentionally revealing himself in this way.

Jesus is a Humble King

This is something we’ve talked about recently as we’ve been looking at Philippians.

So just like God once delivered his people through Moses, now he is sending a greater deliverer—One who will rescue not from Egypt, but from sin.

So they are celebrating the salvation of God through Moses, and now they are being introduced to the greater Moses…So just like God once delivered his people through Moses, now he is sending a greater deliverer—One who will lead them from the slavery of sin into the freedom of the King of Kings.

Look at how Jesus came entering into Jerusalem. Jesus enters Jerusalem riding on a donkey—a symbol not of war, but of peace…not to conquer Rome…but to conquer sin.

Theologian John Calvin said this,

“(Christ) did not assume royal pomp, but came in lowliness, that he might subdue our pride”. — John Calvin

Jesus came as a humble king, but that’s not all.

Jesus is a Saving King.

In Zechariah we just read that this this righteous king is coming having salvation. Jesus is riding, not a throne—but towards the cross where he will carry your sins and pay that price for you and me.

It’s so encouraging to see the context of what is happening here though. You see, this is all happening 6 days before the Passover celebration. Remember, the passover celebration was a celebration of Israel being saved from slavery in Egyptian. The Passover specifically was begun when the Angel of the Lord passed over Egypt and put to death every first born child that was awake or sleeping. This death visited every house, expect for those where there was the blood of a lamb. You see, God gave specific directions to sacrifice and then to cook and eat the lamb whose blood was painted on the doorposts of the house of the Israelites.

Jesus is riding in on a lowly donkey to be the lamb that will shed his blood to save a people from their sins.

Look at what John the Baptist said about Jesus when he saw Jesus coming towards him.

John 1:29 ESV

29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

Even Jesus’ own disciples didn’t fully understand who Jesus was at the time

John 12:16 ESV

16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.

This right here tells us something really important. You see, we often misunderstand Jesus until we see Him through His death and resurrection.

Jesus isn’t the King we naturally want, we want a king who will make my life easy—but he is the King we desperately need.

So what does all of this mean for us here today?

Well, first there are a few different types of people that are here today.

Some of you here today are seasoned Christians who have been following King Jesus for decades…

I want you to ask yourself today…are you still trying to control what kind of King Jesus is? Do you follow him for who he is—or for what he gives you? Are you searching for some spiritual high, or spiritual depth at church while you reject him all week long? Listen, you are responsible for your relationship with the Lord…not the church, not your parents, not your children…you.

True faith— is faith that submits to Christ as he reveals himself in Scripture. Which means you need to be in Scripture daily…This does not mean listening to sermons, or Christian music, or anything else other than you putting your eyes and ears into the Word of God.

Some of you here today are newer Christians. Maybe you have just recently in the last year come to submit your life to the Lord and receive him in your life.

New Christian…you need to learn to reshape your expectations around Scripture…not around the world. This doesn’t happen immediately, but you need to be willing to listen to other Christians and understand that Jesus did not die to leave you where you were…but he died to bring you to him. That means there’s a change happening inside of you.

You see, Jesus’ Kingdom is far deeper than circumstances…it’s about salvation from who you were, into who he is changing you to be. That change…only happens when you humbly read his Word every day of your life. At a minimum, read the Bible more days that you don’t read the Bible. Read at least 4 days per week and allow his words to change who you are.

Now, some of you here today haven’t yet found the Jesus you’re searching for. Some of you here haven’t yet made a commitment to submit to Jesus the King of all Kings.

You admire Jesus—but you haven’t yet submitted to him. Maybe you come to church every week and you feel a little better while you’re here and you don’t really understand that…That very well may be the Lord drawing you—even now—through His Word.

The same King who entered into Jerusalem 2,000 years ago is now calling you to repent and believe. He didn’t just come to improve your life circumstances though—he came to save your soul.

Today as we prepare our hearts for communion, I want you to take a moment and respond honestly to this quesiton before the Lord.

Am I truly submitted to Jesus as Lord—or am I still trying to live life on my own terms?

So—go ahead and grab that commitment card that was on your chair when you sat down, and take a minute to write down a response there.

Listen, the same crowd that waved palm branches would soon turn away—because Jesus didn’t meet their expectations.

And the question for us is the same:

“Will you recieve Jesus as he truly is—or only ask you want him to be?”

Jesus is the humble King.

Jesus is the saving King.

And Jesus calls you today—not just to admire him—but to repent, believe, and follow him.

Let’s pray

Today we are celebrating communion as a faimly. We do this because it’s important for us all to remember the crucifixion and resurrection of the king of all Kings who sacrificed himself for you and me.

Listen, today is Palm Sunday—today Jesus rides in as a King—By Friday, he hangs on a cross—Then by Sunday, he rises in victory. This is the King who comes in peace—not to destroy sinners, but to save them.

Now, there will be music playing and everyone will have time to come up and place your card in the basket and take the elements in the little cups and return to your seat to prayerfully recieve those elements and worship the Lord. If you’re new here, you should know we practice open communion, which means you don’t have to be a member of LRBC, but you do need to be a Christian. If you’re a christian then we would ask that you join us as one large spiritual family that is here to worship together.

Come forward as you are ready…