You Are My King

12 The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, 13 took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out: “Hosanna! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ The King of Israel!” 14 Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written: 15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion; Behold, your King is coming, Sitting on a donkey’s colt.” 16 His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him. 17 Therefore the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his tomb and raised him from the dead, bore witness. 18 For this reason the people also met Him, because they heard that He had done this sign. 19 The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, “You see that you are accomplishing nothing. Look, the world has gone after Him!” 20 Now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast. 21 Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus. 23 But Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. 24 Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. 25 He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.

PRAYER

BE SEATED

1001 Illustrations that Connect Illustration 183: Greatness Snuffed

King Louis XIV of France, who preferred to be called “Louis the Great” and had declared, “I am the State!” died in 1717. His court was the most magnificent in Europe, and his funeral was the most spectacular.

In the church where the ceremony was performed, his body lay in a golden coffin. To dramatize his greatness, orders had been given that the cathedral would be very dimly lit with only one special candle that was to be set above the coffin.

The thousands of people in attendance waited in silence. Then Bishop Massillon began to speak. Slowly reaching down, he snuffed out the candle and said, “Only God is great.”

—Jeff Arthurs, “Laying the Foundation for Peace,” PreachingToday.com

There is a particular praise song that I love to hear. When it is playing I stop whatever I am doing to make sure I can hear it. Unfortunately for those around me I end up singing along with it.

The song is quite stirring when you stop to pay attention to the words.

I am often convicted however when I sing it because the words are so powerful and full of commitment.

They should not be sung if they are not meant in the heart.

That song is Amazing Love.

I am accepted, you were condemned

I am Forgiven cause you were forsaken

I am alive and well, your Spirit lives within me

It's my Joy to honor You, in all I do I honor You

Amazing Love, how could it be that you my King should die for me Jesus, You are my King

That song really makes you question yourself as a Christian. Have I really corona-ted Jesus as my King?

The meaning of the word coronation is: the act or ceremony of crowning a new monarch, a king, a sovereign. That word sovereign is a real kicker.

To be King means that Jesus has complete authority over my life including my wants, my wishes, my time, my plans, my money, how I love and lead my family, how I live my life, how I do my work, the way I love, interact and minister to other people, so on and so on.

For him to be King means giving up every area of life to his control. In all I do is it true do I really honor him or do I only pretend to honor him.

That means honoring him in the way he wants me to worship him, to spend time with him, the way He wants me to serve him, by seeking to operate His church according to His ways not my ways. The way I love my family, and the way I love, interact and minister to other people, and that all of those things are done in accordance with His word and His will.

To make Jesus king means to serve Him. To serve Jesus means to Follow Jesus.

The people surrounding Jesus on his entry into the capital city thought they were seeing the coronation of a King. They would soon find out that following King Jesus would require a deeper level of following than most of them were willing to give.

Transitional Sentence/Keyword: I see in this text 4 levels of how people follow King Jesus. The First 2 are carnal in nature and the last 2 are spiritual. The last 2 will never be seen in the world, but unfortunately the first 2 can too often be found in the church.

A Casual Level

1. A Casual level

In v. 13, they use the word "Hosanna" which is an Aramaic expression meaning "Save now' used literally and as ascribing praise to God.

The Jews were very familiar with the term from - which was sung each morning by the Temple choir during each Feast of Tabernacles - the feast of remembrance for how God carried them in the wilderness.

It had also come to be associated with the Passover - about how God saved the firstborn of the Jews from the angel of death in Egypt.

So, now Jesus comes riding in during the time of Passover. The people were ready to be saved right then but in the way they wanted it, not according to God’s plan.

In this instance it was some cry of nationalistic hope of being saved from Rome, when sin was a greater problem than Rome could ever be.

When it came time to make a deeper commitment it was no farther than the edge of their lips not in their hearts. These same people yelled "Crucify' Him".

A number of years ago Norman Cousins wrote an editorial in Saturday Review in which he reported a conversation he had on a trip in India. He was talking with a Hindu priest named Satis Prasad.

What some people call a name dropper. People who claim to be Christians, but never see them committed to His church (except some Sunday mornings) nor committed to serving him if its uncomfortable.

A number of years ago Norman Cousins wrote an editorial in Saturday Review in which he reported a conversation he had on a trip in India. He was talking with a Hindu priest named Satis Prasad. The man said he wanted to come to our country to work as a missionary among the Americans. Cousins assumed that he meant that he wanted to convert Americans to the Hindu religion, but when asked, Satis Prasad said, "Oh no, I would like to convert them to the Christian religion. Christianity cannot survive in the abstract. It needs not membership, but believers. The people of your country may claim they believe in Christianity, but from what I read at this distance, Christianity is more a custom than anything else. I would ask that either you accept the teachings of Jesus in your everyday life and in your affairs as a nation, or stop invoking His name as sanction for everything you do. I want to help save Christianity for the Christian. "

The man said he wanted to come to our country to work as a missionary among the Americans. Cousins assumed that he meant that he wanted to convert Americans to the Hindu religion, but when asked, Satis Prasad said, "Oh no, I would like to convert them to the Christian religion. Christianity cannot survive in the abstract. It needs not membership, but believers. The people of your country may claim they believe in Christianity, but from what I read at this distance, Christianity is more a custom than anything else. I would ask that either you accept the teachings of Jesus in your everyday life and in your affairs as a nation, or stop invoking His name as sanction for everything you do. I want to help save Christianity for the Christian. "

Clayton Bell, in Preaching, May-June, 1986

Many people get to a point where they want to be saved right then, but that is as far as it goes. They call on the name of Jesus, use the name of Jesus in a prayer but are not committed to following Jesus any further.

What some people call a name dropper. People who claim to be Christians, but never see them committed to His church (except some Sunday mornings) nor committed to serving him if its uncomfortable.

A Curious level

A Curious Level

v.18 - At this time Jesus was the people's choice for King.

He was popular because of what he had been doing.

Many had been healed.

Thousands and Thousands had been fed.

Many of these common people had seen or heard about the Lazarus event and they came out to see Jesus.

Public miracles hardly ever produce a lasting personal faith. Following Jesus means doing so even when the miracles can’t be seen.

1001 Illustrations that Connect Illustration 612: Refusing Bullet-Point Faith

A man once appeared at my office door asking for some quick points on Christianity to help make sense of the dinner conversations he was having with his wife, a recent convert. He made it clear that he was very busy and very successful and didn’t really have time to study her beliefs—just bullet points, if you please.

It would have been easy to hand him a book or pamphlet. But instead, I said, “I can see you are a very busy and very successful person, so I don’t think this is a good idea.”

“Why?” he asked, frustrated.

“Because if I were to give you the bullet points and you were to really understand them, they might work in you so significantly that your life could really get messed-up. You would have to rethink the meaning of success, of time, of family—of everything, really. I don’t think you really want to do that, do you?”

It was an effort to raise his thirst, not to give him answers. In his case, it worked.

—Mark Labberton, “Pastor of Desperation,” Leadership (Winter 2006)

You have many in church on Sunday mornings because something has been going on there in the church which has peaked their curiosity.

You have many in church on Sunday mornings because something has been going on there in the church which has peaked their curiosity. - The New flavor in Town.

They want the bullet point faith

They want to check out the New Flavor in Town

The problem with curiosity is that it fades away rather quickly, especially in the face of persecutions, trials and hardships.

Bullet point faith church members leave when times are not easy or when something uncomfortable is asked of them

The member who likes Vanilla church today usually like the Strawberry church a few years later - No depth to their membership

Now these last two are the spiritual levels of following Jesus. The first of these two is not what Jesus prefers but He can work with it to move it to the next level.

A

A Closeted Level

Look on down in this chapter to - v. 42-43

Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimethia were most likely part of this group along with others. They were a part of a society that put a lot of pressure on these type. It was definitely not the thing to do to believe in Jesus let alone admit it.

Some people truly believe in their hearts.

They experience the change.

They are, however, kept in the closet for Jesus by fear.

It is not popular in our society or world to be a Christian.

The approval of man often overrides the commitment level of these people.

God seems to have a way of moving people from this to a deeper level. Joseph of Arimethia let his faith be known after the crucifixion.

A Committed level

A Committed Level

v. 26

v. 26 - Making Jesus King means that a person followed him no matter what.

Making Jesus King means that a person followed him no matter what.

The disciples spent 3 yrs following Him because they were curious, but they gave up their lives because they were committed to Jesus and Christianity.

That was because they saw Jesus was committed to them.

He knew that if he stopped short of the cross his ministry was a failure and did no good for mankind.

His love kept him committed to that cross.

The cross was not plan B. It was the plan even before anything was created. It was no surprise. It was no uh-oh.

It was God saying I love you to much to leave you like you are.

God said, "l am committed enough to you to let my Son die for you."

Jesus said, "l am committed to providing a way to heaven for them even through death."

Because of that commitment on the cross and through the resurrection, the disciples had the courage and faith to live for Jesus even if it meant dying for him. They had conviction.

Declaration of Independence: Fifty-six men signed the Declaration of Independence.

Their conviction resulted in untold sufferings for themselves and their families.

Of the 56 men:

5 were captured by the British and tortured before they died.

12 had their homes ransacked and burned.

2 lost their sons in the Revolutionary Army.

Another had two sons captured.

9 of the 56 died from wounds or hardships of the war.

The true church of Jesus Christ is the one he died for by His commitment to the cross. Following Jesus for you and me might not look like the apostles, boiled in oil or hung upside down on a cross, but He says if I plan for you to follow me in this way I look for you to be committed to my plan.

Conclusion: We see a decrease in churches all throughout the SBC and other denominations because we have seen the falling away of the casual and curious followers. The opinions of men have gotten more noticeable, so the closeted followers find it harder to move to the committed level of following.

The Church, this church is in dire need of many more committed followers.

That means honoring him in the way he wants me to worship him, to spend time with him, the way He wants me to serve him, by seeking to operate His church according to His ways not our ways. and that all of those things are done in accordance with His word and His will.

The survival of any church depends on them.

Our country depends on them.

This community needs you to be that committed to Jesus.

Time of Decision and Call to Prayer

Jesus needs people with conviction leading to commitment not name droppers.

May we only ever be found guilty of being a church, the body of Christ.

Related Media

Related Sermons