2026-03-29 Palm Sunday

🌿 The Triumphal Entry: From Parade to Heart-Check

Introduction:

The 1st iPhone was released in 2007, nineteen years ago. When it first debuted, a man described seeing it behind a glass display case, spinning slowly. Thousands of people turned out just to catch a glimpse of it. There was even a guard stationed there to ensure that no one got too close. Sometimes, we want something so badly and get so excited that we believe it will revolutionize our lives; we dream big about how it will help us and expect it to be exactly what we want it to be.

Yet, when people first got computers—and even still today—they often find themselves asking, "Why did I buy this thing?" It ends up being more of a headache than it was worth.

Link:

Our expectations are shattered when we put our hope in something for what it isn't, or when it fails to perform according to the unrealistic standards, we set for it.

I want to talk about some folks in the Bible today who had expectations for something that wasn’t God’s plan.

I. The Conflict of Expectations ⚔️

The Triumphal Entry was a collision between what the people demanded and what God provided.

For 93 years Jerusalem had been under Roman suppression since 63 B.C. The people weren't just excited; they were desperate for a political liberator. The 93-Year Weight:⛓️

The crowd asked, "What can I get from Jesus?" rather than "What can I give to God?" The Consumer Mindset:🤲

When Jesus doesn't fulfill our specific worldly desires, we are prone to turn on Him. The Danger of a "Genie" Faith:🧞‍♂️  This shows how self-centered and selfish we are.

📖 Philippians 4:19 (NKJV): "And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."

II. The Nature of the King 👑

Jesus’ arrival was a deliberate fulfillment of prophecy that redefined the meaning of "victory."

In Roman culture, the donkey signaled a hero bringing peace. Jesus brought spiritual peace between man and God. The Donkey vs. The Warhorse:🐴

📖 Luke 19:37–38 (NKJV): "Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: '“Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!” Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!'"

📖 Zechariah 9:9 (NKJV): "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey."

When the people were rejoicing they were quoting Psalm 118:26 Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.

III. The Identity of the Messiah 🛡️

We must worship Jesus as He truly is, not a version we’ve created in our own image.

The crowd turned their backs when He didn't fit their picture. King for a Day:👤

Do you ever turn your back on God when he doesn’t fit your mold?

· Perhaps you feel God is there to save your sins but then He doesn’t let you run around and do whatever you want?  Afterall you now have Fire Insurancefrom hell, right?

o You need a correction to your view of God.

o Illustration:  The Bunny in the Cage:The bunnies cage is a boundary to keep him safe from the kids messing with him and hurting him.  Likewise, God’s Boundaries, his rules of protection are designed to keep us safe from the torment of the world.  To keep us in a peaceful relationship with Him 🏠

· Perhaps you feel like you are not who you should be, your eyes are the wrong color, your skin the wrong tone, your hair is to straight, God gave you the wrong set of genes. 

o Submission to the Potter: True joy is found in accepting the shape He has given us. 🏺

📖 Romans 9:20–21 (NKJV): "But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, 'Why have you made me like this?' Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?"

NLT:  No, don’t say that. Who are you, a mere human being, to argue with God? Should the thing that was created say to the one who created it, “Why have you made me like this?”

V. The Temple: Bridge or Barrier? 🌉

Also sometimes we get upset not just with ourselves and how God made us, but to why did God put “THESE OTHER PEOPLE IN MY LIVES?” 

Jesus removed the obstacles that religious leaders had placed between God and the people.  But lets make sure we don’t fall into the same trap these religious leaders did.

A "House of Prayer" turned into a "Den of Thieves." The Scam in the Courtyard:🛑

📖 Luke 19:45–46 (NKJV): "Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it, saying to them, 'It is written, "My house is a house of prayer," but you have made it a "den of thieves."'"

📖 Mark 11:15 (NKJV):"So they came to Jerusalem. Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who sold and bought in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves."

BKC:  A pilgrim traveling to Jerusalem could go to the temple, buy an animal, and offer it as a sacrifice without ever having anything to do with the animal. This led to an impersonalization of the sacrificial system. The commercial system was apparently set up in the area of the temple which had been designated for devout Gentiles to pray and so was disrupting Israel’s witness to the surrounding world.

The church isn’t just for Christians.The church is for praising and worshiping and praying to God, but the church is also a Hospital for the hurting, the dying (Thoes w/o Christ)A Hospital for the Hurting:   

Are we helping people reach God or judging them at the door? 🏥

How are you treating them when they come into FBC?  Do you critique their singing, their clothing, their children?  Don’t fall into the same judgmental state that the Jewish leaders did.  They may have had a different motive then you do but none the less both are still sin.

VI. Conclusion: The Final Choice 🎯

Trusting that God knows what we and those around us truly need. The Higher Way:☁️

saw Jesus coming in on the donkey, they had big ideas of what he was doing and why he was there.They found out a day later that it wasn’t what they wanted and they ended up judging and crucifying Him.So when the Jews 

Are you currently in a place where you have big plans for Jesus? Has He ever 'let you down' by not following those plans? I hate to break it to you, but if you come to church and get angry because things have changed over the last few years—not the Bible or our doctrine, but just the fact that things look different than they did a year ago—then it’s time for a heart-check. You need to step down from that stool of self-importance. Stop acting like God revolves around you. Instead, put God in the place of honor and find out why He is here and what He is doing. It isn’t about you; it’s all about Him. The crowd in Jerusalem missed that 2,000 years ago, and unfortunately, many of us still do today.

📖 Isaiah 55:8–9 (NKJV): "“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.”"

The "ABC" Invitation: 📣

dmit you need a Savior.A

elieve Jesus is the one.B

hoose Him today.C