Triumphal Travels
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Introduction
Introduction
Hosanna, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Those words rung out from the people in Jerusalem as Jesus rode the donkey from Bethany towards the city. Some Pharisees admonished Jesus for allowing his followers to speak like that, to have this show into the city. But Jesus answered them, “If they were silent then even the rocks would cry out.” This was the celebration they had been waiting for for countless generations. Israel had not been a free people for almost 70 years. They were hungry for a new messiah.
For those of us who did not come to faith early in our lives today holds a special meaning. We understand what that oppression feels like. We know how it feels to be in such great need of a savior and when we finally accept Jesus we want to shout it from the roof tops. We can’t be silent or even the rocks will cry out.
We all need this king in our lives, just like the people of Israel. But what is a king. A modern understanding of a king is someone who controls a population. I think of King Edward I in the movie Brave Heart. He is a cruel ruler who chooses to suppress the people and when they do not listen to his rule his edicts became more restrictive and more sever. So is this the king that the people of Israel were excited for or were they looking for something different.
To really understand Jesus as our king we must understand the role of a king in the Ancient Near East.
Kings Protect
Kings Protect
(Mighty Warrior)
A kings first responsibility in the ANE was to defend their kingdom
Kings did not sit back in their castles while the army went out
Kings did not sit on some high hill and watch the battle take place.
Kings lead their troops into battle.
This is why the people claimed they wanted a king in
But the people refused to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.”
Saul led his armies into battle.
David led his armies into battle.
All of the kings after them did the same
Jesus lead the way into battle against the enemies of the Kingdom of God
He confronted false teachers (Pharisees)
He stood up to evil spirits and demons (τὴν χώραν τῶν Γερασηνῶν, Λεγιὼν ὄνομά μοι, ὅτι πολλοί ἐσμεν)
He even stood up to satan.
He did all of this to protect his flock, his subjects
Kings Teach
Kings Teach
(Lawgiver and Judge)
A king gives order through teaching the law and judging it properly
Solomon was a wise king and taught the people much
He also kept the peace
A King is responsible for making sure his subjects are knowledgeable about the laws
Laws are meant to keep order
Laws are meant so people can live in harmony
When king Josiah found the book of law hidden in the temple he tore his clothes and had it read in its entirety to the people
2 Kings 22.
It was his responsibility to teach the people about the law
Jesus came to teach us about God’s law.
This was not the expanded law of Moses
This was the true intent behind the law
Kings Defend the Faith
Kings Defend the Faith
(Establisher and Defender of Religious Cultus)
It is the priests role to exercise the faith but the king to lead the faith
David and Solomon preparing and building the temple
Hezekiah, Josiah, Uzziah all tore down the invaders
Appointed the priests, temple guards, ect.
Jesus came to defend our faith
When the temple workers were mistreating the faith he turns the tables
He argues with Pharisees and Scribes about faith often
Calls them white washed tombs
Calls them brood of vipers
Calls them hypocrites
Kings Provide
Kings Provide
(Conduit of Agricultural Fertility)
The king is the one who is responsible for the bounty of the crops and flocks
Endow the king with your justice, O God,
the royal son with your righteousness.
May the mountains bring prosperity to the people,
the hills the fruit of righteousness.
May he be like rain falling on a mown field,
like showers watering the earth.
In his days may the righteous flourish
and prosperity abound till the moon is no more.
May grain abound throughout the land;
on the tops of the hills may it sway.
May the crops flourish like Lebanon
and thrive like the grass of the field.
If crops failed, if there was a famine, a drought, infestation, or general lack of fruit it was blamed on the king
eg. Israel’s drought in 1 Kings 17.
Jesus brought a perfect harvest
Jesus offers water that perfectly cures thirst. John 4:14
but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
Jesus offers food that will nourish us for eternity
Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them.
In Jesus there will never be hunger or thirst again
Conclusion
Conclusion
When Jesus entered Jerusalem they were not cheering him because he was going to rule over him. They were cheering him because they wanted a king who would protect them, who would teach them, who would strengthen their relationship with God, and who would care for them. They were excited for the coming of the king.
When we make Jesus the Lord of our lives, we are not saying we want someone to rule over us with an iron fist. We are saying that we are looking for a lord who will do these same things for us. Jesus protects us from the forces of evil, he, through the holy spirit, teaches us to live as God’s chosen people, he strengthens our relationship with God in ways we could never imagine and never hope to do on our own, and he feeds us his eternal meal. We will never hunger or thirst again when we are filled with the Holy Spirit, when we make Jesus the Lord of our Lives. Let’s pray.