3/28/2021

Introduction

Good Morning Church. It’s great to see you all on this Palm Sunday. Today is the day we celebrate in Jesus’ life when he began His triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. This was a huge event for many of the locals. After all Jesus was coming to town. I remember when I first heard this story, this got me thinking, if Jesus was coming what would I do? What would you do? For the locals, Jesus was over the threshold and through the gate. Say this was you’re home, Jesus had just walked through the front door. What would you do with no advanced notice? Or, what if you had advanced notice that Jesus was coming? I looked up some answers of what some have said in answering the question, “if you knew Jesus was coming today what you would do?”

One person said, “I’d go back to bed.”

Another said, “I will not be doing what I’m doing now.” When I read that, it could go one of two ways. I would not be doing what I’m doing now, perhaps meaning something that should not be doing, or doing something because of a door He opened.

Another person said, I’d share the gospel again with the kids.

I was reading about an 8 year-old who said, “she would read the Bible everyday” (this was given the fact there was time to prepare for Jesus).

The one who really peaked my interest was the one who said, “I have a lot of dusting to do, and trash to take out.”

Perhaps there are some us of like that here today that have some dusting to do and some trash to take out. When Jesus made His entry into Jerusalem, there were some who knew He was arriving. There were some didn’t know about The Coming King of Zion. In fact, that’s the title of our message this morning, The Coming King of Zion. Our passage comes to us from the book of Zechariah. Zechariah wrote during the time when the Babylonian exiles were returning. The Prophet was concerned with restoring the community , but his overall focus was on the future, not the present. Our passage this morning talks about the future time when our Lord makes His way into Jerusalem, which we can later see is fulfilled in the New Testament. If you look it it up, all four gospel writers talk about it. I’d like to invite you to open your Bible with me to the 9th Chapter of Zechariah, and lets read verse 9 together.

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.

Pastoral Prayer

We’re reading prophecy this morning, and our Lord fulfills it beautifully! As we open, we’re greeted with a pair words, “rejoice greatly and shout aloud.” But why. Why rejoice? Why shout? The reason is THE COMING KING OF ZION! We’re getting a little a head of ourselves. Zechariah is trying stir up some excitement here. He’s trying to get folks to get to the edge of seats. He’s trying to get them excited! He’s trying to get them pumped-up.

And, he’s doing that with what’s thought to a be a personal invitation. We see Zechariah addressing the nation as “O daughter of Zion, O daughter of Jerusalem.” Zechariah is informing the people of what is to come — the Messianic king entering Jerusalem. That’s what the whole urgency is all about. I know you’ve been there when you felt a sense of urgency about something that had to be communicated to someone. When that happens we do all we can to express our appreciation of its significance. We want the other person or persons to share in the same passion. This would like sending a text or an email with a word or words in CAP LETTERS. We’re trying to stress the urgency.

From Zechariah’s perspective, these are future events to happen, and when we fast forward to the New Testament, we have a both a biblical and theological significance happening on a tremendous scale. It’s demonstrating Jesus had come to be king. Matthew speaks of this in:

Matthew 21:4–5 NIV

4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: 5 “Say to Daughter Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”

Pretty much an exact quote from Zechariah 9:9. The residents understood Zechariah's prophecy to point to Jesus, the Messiah, the One true anointed king. You see the Jew’s knew Old Testament Scripture, and many would have remembered Zechariah’s words. In turn, they would be able to see what our Lord was doing. The had seen Him coming, how He was coming. And, in Matthew 21:9, they are essentially claiming Jesus as the rightful king.

In Matthew 21:9, we can read about how the crowd that followed Jesus, they were shouting “hosanna to the Son of David, hosanna in the highest heaven!” They recognized that He was in the kingly line, although they do not seem to have entered fully into the concept that He was coming into Jerusalem as their King.

[Display Verse 9]

We have this great multitude of folks. They’re laying palm branches. They’re laying down garments before him. You could think of this as a “Red Carpet” event. We have a royal procession happening. Jesus’ loyal court are recognizing His kingship. Let’s fast forward to today, Sunday March 28th in the year 2021. Here’s where 1st century theology meets modern life.

How do we participate in a 21st century “Red Carpet” event?

How can we have part in the royal procession?

Many of us in this room today, and those listening to the sound of my voice, are loyal followers.

How can we recognize His kingship?

We can recognize our Lord’s sovereignty by laying our hearts before Him. We can come before Him in absolute surrender. This would include allowing Jesus access and permission to govern our mind, which means we turn over spoken and unspoken words. We come before praising him as our rightful “King of kings and Lord of Lords” (Revelation 19:16).

Some time around the year 1911, there was a Presbyterian minister named William P. Merrill who wrote a wonderful hymn. The hymn is titled, “Rise up, O Men of God, or Rise Up, O Saints of God.” Our hymnals title this hymn “Rise Up, O Church of God.” It’s hymn number 293 if you wish to look up. The first stanza says, “rise up, O church of God! Have done with lesser things; give heart and mind and soul and strength to serve the King of kings.” This stanza is powerful. It serves as a challenge for some. It can serve as a charge. And, it can be a prayer.

Jesus Christ is our rightful king, but He’s also our victorious king! If you’re following along in your King James, New King James or ESV, you might will the words “He is just and having salvation,” or “righteous and having salvation.” A couple things to help us understand this prophecy. Jesus is the rightful king (meaning he does what is right and good). Our Lord is the only one who was able to keep all of Gods commandments. When Peter spoke of living godly lives in a pagan society (in the second Chapter of 1st Peter), Peter confirmed in:

1 Peter 2:22 ESV

22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.

Our Lord’s thoughts are pure, words are true and His actions are just. Since Jesus was 100% pure in thought and action, then in what way is He victorious? Jesus is victorious over death by the power of the Holy Spirit! Next Sunday we’ll be celebrating Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. The grave could not hold Jesus! Whooo! I’m already excited about that, and I hope you are too.

[Display Verse 9]

When we consider the middle of verse 9 and the words, “righteous and victorious” and contrast with how Matthew quotes this verse; we can see how Matthew had this prophecy in mind. The question could be why didn’t Matthew mention this. The reasons could be many. One possible reason could be: when Zechariah was giving this prophecy, he was talking about a future that would happen. When we try and put Zechariah and Matthew together, we’re at the Triumphal Entry, it’s Palm Sunday. Our Lord didn’t win victory over death on Pal Sunday. Our Lord defeated the grave and death on Easter. That’s when victory was won!

Some that were there that day could have had some trouble tying to put the pieces together. Some were looking for deliverance from Rome, and while that would have been nice. The scope is actually much broader that a single event. Jesus gave his life as an atonement for sin. The salvation through Jesus is not deliverance from a Roman government or a political situation, it’s salvation from eternal separation from God. That’s a reason to say (Hosanna … Blessed … Hosanna) (middle of verse 21:9):

Matthew 21:9 ESV

9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

Today, right now, we can praise Jesus with hosanna’s. Jesus Christ is the rightful king. Jesus is the victorious king. But! Jesus is also the gently king.

[Display Verse 9]

Turn your attention with me back to Zechariah 9:9. When our Lord rolled into town, how did he come in? Jesus strolled in “on a donkey.” Jesus didn’t come in like Alexander The Great Style — on a horse. When a king made entrance, there was not doubt who was there. When a king rolled up, there likely would have been a show of power and prestige. Jesus comes through the gate “on a donkey.” This shows Jesus’ meekness and humble nature. Our Lord didn’t ride in proudly. Seeing Jesus ride in on a donkey was a clue, He was not riding into town to establish a kingdom by military power. His kingdom was different. The spiritual kingdom he came to establish in the hearts of his people was based on his lowliness. He didn’t insist on his rights as the Son of God but rather came to our level and took on our humanity. Jesus is seen identifying with them in a personal way. Jesus isn’t coming alongside of his people as a harsh overlord with intent of emphasizing his status.

When Jesus came into Jerusalem, it must have been an amazing sight, not to mention the sound from the massive crowd. As the the word was spreading, I could only imagine how the mass of people became more dense wherever Jesus went.

Many of his followers and greeters that day believed exactly who Jesus is. If you have doubt who Jesus is, Jesus is who the Bible says He is! Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus was the rightful, victorious, and gentle king in the first century. Because of what we’ll be celebrating in a few days, His victory, that means for us today — Jesus IS our rightful, victorious and gentle king! This also means, as the visitors and pilgrims in Jerusalem were shouting “Hosanna to the Son of David,” this is the welcome we can give the “King of kings and Lord of Lords.” As Jesus was at and came through the gate of Jersualem, the Bible tells us in:

Revelation 3:20 ESV

20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

Jesus Christ the gentle king stands at the threshold of you heart. Do you hear the knock? Here’s the interesting fact about a knock — a knock on the door is something everyone hears. It’s not like the ding from Ring door bell. Now, I’m talking about the brand “Ring.” Many of us have a Ring door bell. When that thing goes off, we have the option of accessing our app, and WHAMM we have instant video showing us who’s at the door, which then we have the option of answering the door or not. A knock on the other hand can usually get us up. For one, because we can’t see who’s at the door. Second, we could be in the back rook and hear the knock — thinking who could that be, or say, “hey did you just hear a knock at the door.” Now we’re curious.

Application

Jesus isn’t ringing the door bell — He’s knocking! If you look through the spy hole on your front door and see Jesus — what do you do? Do you:

Go back to bed? Or perhaps do you find yourself looking around at the cobwebs hanging from the corners, the mess in the kitchen sink, the pile of shoes at the front door, perhaps thinking I knew I should have cleaned the bathroom last week!

You don’t have to answer — JESUS ONE MINUTE PLEASE (as we might try to jamb everything in sight into the nearest closet, as we try to answer the door calmly).

Jesus isn’t there with a white glove to inspect the kitchen sink, toilet or corners of the house! The Coming King of Zion is there for you! Jesus wants to come into your heart. He wants fellowship with you. He’ll get things cleaned up.

The blood he shed at the crucifixion is for you!

His death is for you!

His resurrection is for you!

Perhaps today you need some grace in an area of your life. Perhaps you need peace today. Perhaps you’re seeking the victory of salvation. The invitation is yous. The invitation is personal. Come to the One true King!

Closing Prayer