The Coming King

Introduction

Good morning! We weren’t with you all yet, but this past February much of the country was able the watch the 91st Academy Awards, which is also referred to as the Oscars. We are not very big TV watchers. We do watch some content, but if we engaged in Oscar trivia; I would loose hands down. You know each year when the red carpet is laid out, you get a chance to see the actors and actresses really strut their stuff. Some of the various outfits are modest and tasteful, and other outfits are sometimes pushing the limits of the fashion industry. The red carpet is the welcoming path, the entrance into the hall which many will gather.

If you’ve ever watched the Academy Awards, I’ve only seen various photographs of the event. From some of the photographs, there are many people who line up along the red carpet with the hopes of seeing their favorite actor or actress. They are lined up ear-muff to ear-muff. The point is there are a ton of people at this event all trying to get that glimpse of that particular person or persons.

Today is Palm Sunday, or the Sunday before resurrection Sunday also known as Easter. You know, I heard this story once where:

A little boy was sick on Palm Sunday and stayed home from church with his mother. His father returned from church holding a palm branch. The little boy was curious and asked, "Why do you have that palm branch, dad?" "You see, when Jesus came into town, everyone waved Palm Branches to honor him, so we got Palm Branches today."The little boy replied, " Aw Shucks! The one Sunday I miss is the Sunday that Jesus shows up!"

This morning our Scripture takes us to where our Lord makes His way in to Jerusalem and there is a great celebration. It you have your Bibles, or taking notes, turn with me to John chapter 12. We will be reading verses 12 through 19.

John 12:12–19 NIV

12 The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. 13 They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the king of Israel!” 14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written: 15 “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.” 16 At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him. 17 Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word. 18 Many people, because they had heard that he had performed this sign, went out to meet him. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!”

Pastoral Prayer

Friends, this is an event of outstanding significance. This entry is of vital significance in understanding the messianic mission of Jesus. As we begin, notice how John gear this One who came out of eternity into the calendar of the world. The words “the next day” most likely refers to Sunday of Passion week, which is known as Palm Sunday.

Lets pull back for just a moment and take a look at what is happening in the background. We hear John mention in verse 12 there is a great crowd. Similar to the red carpet event where everyone what to get a glimpse of the action. The great crowd is like that. The historian Josephus records the crowd to be in the neighborhood of 2.7-Million pilgrims. This is a rounded number. But nevertheless, it gives a picture of the number of people who have traveled to Jerusalem. On the other hand, the population of Jerusalem at the time is estimated to be about one-hundred thousand people. You get the idea - the city and area have swelled at this time.

Another contributing reason to the influx of people has to do with the festival. This festival is the Passover celebration. The people here would have been your typical visitors, the locals who had witnessed the raising of Lazarus, and the religious leaders. So we have many thousands of people here not only to celebrate the Passover, but to see JESUS! I can just about hear the chanting from the crowd now - it’s Jesus - here comes Jesus! And, yes Jesus was coming. Jesus proceeds to prepare to enter the city of Jerusalem, to force the issue of His death.

Although Jesus was coming, Jesus did not stroll through the front door with a red carpet to announce his arrival. Jesus entered through another gate in the Jerusalem. The people were waiting, and waiting with much anticipation. In verse 13 John mentions the crowd took palm branches and went out to meet him. The palm branches are considered to be a Jewish national symbol. By waving palm branches the people hail Jesus as the Davidic king. But as they shouting/crying (whichever your Bible says), the are shouting/crying - HOSANNA ! The Hebrew expression is a cry to the Lord for salvation - “Save us Lord.” This cry for salvation echos in Psalm 118 where the writer says in verses 25 and 26:

Psalm 118:25–26 NIV

25 Lord, save us! Lord, grant us success! 26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you.

The crowds hardly understood what they were saying. Many of them were looking for some kind of political deliverance, but that is not at all the kind of victory that Jesus came to win. He came to give his life as an atonement for sin. They were acclaiming Jesus to be their rightful king. They say, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” There are many people today who are willing to saying hosanna to Jesus on Palm Sunday. But will sometimes forget about Jesus the rest of the year. Or they will sing His praises on Easter and Christmas. Will celebrate His resurrection on Easter. But live as though He were dead. We will celebrate His birth and arrival at Christmas, but then we will live as though He never came.

That’s what these people were doing. They wanted to see Jesus, but they wanted Him on their own terms. “Lord, we want you to be our conquering king.” There are some people that say they want God in their lives, but they want Him on their terms. They would essentially say to God, “Look God, you can come into my life. But don’t tell me what to do. And I won’t tell you what to do. Don’t tell me who my girlfriend or boyfriend should be. Don’t tell me who I should marry or not marry. Don’t interfere with my business.

"Hosanna!" is partly a cry of victory; it recognizes that Jesus has the power to save. But it is also a cry of needy desperation, the prayer of a sinner who needs a Savior. "Save me, Jesus!" Or, as the people said on Palm Sunday, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" Since Jesus is the Son of David—the rightful king—submit to his sovereign rule. Since he is praised with loud hosannas, ask the victorious king to be your gracious Savior. The salvation He offers is deliverance from sin, from death, and from the eternal wrath of God.

John changes gears when we arrive to verses 14 and 15. John leaves the multitude and turns to Jesus who is coming from Bethany. We have Jesus found and mounted on a donkey heading toward Jerusalem. What Jesus did was a clear fulfilment of prophecy, and the people of Jerusalem should have seen this immediately; but it was missed.

Let me back off and give you a little footnote. There are many ways to prove the Bible is the Word of God. We talk about a lot of them. We talk about experience. We talk about science. We talk about a lot of things. The two, and mark these well in your mind, the two greatest proofs that the Bible is the inspired Word of God are, number one, fulfilled prophecy and number two, miracles. They are the two supreme proofs, the greatest fulfilled prophecy, the second, miracles. Since those are the two greatest proofs of the truth of the Word of God, they are also the two greatest proofs of the truth of the Messiah of God. So what we have here in the presentation of Christ is an emphasis on number one, fulfilled prophecy, and number two, miracles. And by those two emphases John is declaring to the world, “This is Messiah, the Christ of God and it can be verified by His fulfilling of prophecy, and His ability to do miracles.” Those are the two classic supreme proofs of deity messiahship. So we want to see two proofs that verify the claims of Christ: number one, the words of prophecy; number two, the works of power. And that’s the outline, just two points … the words of prophecy and the works of power together prove Jesus to be Messiah.

This prediction is found in two places. Although it is sometimes overlooked. There is an even older prophecy that explains why Jesus rode a donkey. And so they gathered as Genesis 49 verses 10 to 11a said they would:

Genesis 49:10–11 NIV

10 The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his. 11 He will tether his donkey to a vine, his colt to the choicest branch; he will wash his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes.

What is hinted at in Genesis was made plain in the Gospel: Jesus, the Son of David, from the tribe of Judah, rode into Jerusalem as Israel's rightful king.

The second fulfilment of prophecy is found the book of Zechariah. In chapter 9 verse 9 of Zechariah, we see where it is written:

Zechariah 9:9 NIV

9 Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

One element the crowd is attaching themselves to is the idea of triumph. But! That is not the goal of the King. Gentleness is one of the royal attributes Zechariah mentions in his prophecy: "See, your king comes to you … lowly" (Zechariah 9:9). The king's gentleness is symbolized by his mode of transport. At the very least, one could expect Jesus to ride in on a horse. But instead of coming on a mighty war horse, he rides a lowly beast of burden. He is riding a donkey, of all creatures—and a borrowed donkey, at that! By entering Jerusalem on a donkey would have been considered an attention getter. Jesus understood that there was another perspective in the meaning behind the surface of the words in Zechariah. That perspective is humility.

You could say the disciples heads were spinning a bit. You know the feeling when you expect one thing, and something completely different is shown. John’s use of Zechariah NINE NINE was from his looking back on Jesus’ life from a time after Jesus’ resurrection. There were mysteries about parts of Jesus’ earthly life that were solved only after he was glorified and sent the Holy Spirit to teach and remind his followers.

Now as all of this commotion is taking place. Turn your attention to verse 19 of chapter 12. They many make an interesting statement! They say, “The world has gone after Him.” Sometimes it seems like our world has gone after Him. You read all of these surveys of how many people claim to be Christians. Especially in the United States of America. The world has gone after Him. Have they? These people weren’t going after the real Jesus. They were going after a different one. One that they had essentially made in their own image. One that would overthrow Rome and not rule in their lives. They didn’t want the real Jesus. So they weren’t really going after Him.

Conclusion

Jesus fulfilled prophecy, some people call it a triumphal entry, I call it a tearful entry. He came to die because it was time to die. We have the two classic proofs, the two greatest proofs of divine revelation and of the right of Jesus to receive the homage as Messiah … prophecy and miracles. My friend, the case is closed. There doesn’t need to be any more evidence. Nobody’s gathering evidence about Jesus any more, it’s a closed case. Friends!!! Jesus is Messiah, He is the Christ of God, He is the Savior of the world, that’s a settled issue … prophecy, miracles finish off the case.

The Jews called him the Son of David, and spread their cloaks before him. This was an ancient custom, where people threw down their garments to make a carpet for the royal procession.

Today, we recognize His sovereignty by laying our hearts before him, throwing down our wills in absolute surrender, and asking Jesus to govern everything we think and say and do, then praise him as our rightful king.

The only thing that remains is what you do with Jesus Christ. The statement of Pilate comes to my mind. “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called the Christ?” That’s the only thing left for discussion. The case is closed on who He is, it might still maybe open what Jesus is in your life.

My church family, are you ready to lay down you heart for the coming King? Friends, the alter is open. I invite you to come and lay your heart before the King of Kings and Lord or Lords!!

Closing Prayer