Triumphal Entry

Luke chapter 19. Luke chapter 19 verse 36-38. Luke chapter 36. And I I understand that we are a few weeks removed from from Easter and uh but our Sunday school curriculum and our Sunday school lessons, this is following a pattern uh of of bringing the story to life. And I think it's it's very I think it's sometimes good to to to delve into these subjects even when it's not what I would call seasonal because sometimes we can get caught up in the season of a of a subject and then we we okay we're doing it because this is not a seasonal per se message just because it's Easter. This is a revelatory truth found in the word of God that I think has lasting implications. And as he went, they spread their clothes in the way. And when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice. and from all the mighty works that they had seen, saying, "Blessed be the king that cometh in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory in the highest." So today, I want to I want to teach to this this great Sunday school class this morning on the the triumphal entry. My wife and I have had the privilege to go to Israel and and to literally go down the road that they they give honor in memory to this to this event or to this occasion. It is a marked road and uh where you stand it it is literally a descent down. Uh it was very almost breathtaking and a a very emotional moment when you when you look from the Mount of Olives and you look that this is the the direction that our Lord and Savior went uh uh to to eventually be beaten and eventually be crucified. So uh when you look at this scripture and you look at the text there there are moments in scripture that demand more than just a just an ob observation. They demand a response. The triumphal entry is not just a a parade but I believe that I can I can safely say it was a a proclamation. It was a proclamation and it was basically heaven saying your king has come. But the real question is not did he come. The question is have we crowned him king in our lives. Have we I want us to ask ourselves this question today. Have we crowned him king in our lives? Because the same crowd that cried or shouted hosana would later cry crucify him. And because and I as I began to study this lesson and begin to basically peel the layers back, they they they shouted hosana. They they would later cry crucified because they praised him emotionally but never surrendered to him completely. I believe that's something to be said today about about us that we can easily get caught into the trap that we praise him emotionally. But I believe that God is is putting something into us today that he is wanting us to surrender to him completely. Somebody say completely. I'm not talking about just lip service. I'm not talking about ju just acknowledging him, but letting him be lord, letting him be king, letting him be ruler over our lives. This Sunday school uh lesson calls us beyond praise into allegiance. Beyond praise into allegiance. When you look at before the crowd ever shouted hosana, Jesus had already arranged everything. Nothing about this moment was accidental. When you look at it, Jesus told his disciples exactly where to find the cult. This wasn't just some random act. It was an intentional prophecy that was found in Zechariah chapter 9. And when I when you see this scripture uh and you read it, the Bible says, "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion. Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, thy king cometh unto thee. He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding upon an ass and upon a co the fo of an ass. Jesus was wasn't just becoming king. He was revealing that he already was king. That's what he was doing. He was born king of kings and lord of lords. But he came unto his own and his own received him not. So to th this lesson that I'm teaching today wasn't that of him becoming king. It was about him revealing that he was already king. God planned that the plan of God had been set long before this day. And what looked like it was a spontaneous act upon the part of our our Lord and Savior was actually a sovereign act. It was already it was designed by God, a fulfillment of prophecy. What are you trying to say, pastor? I'm trying to say God is never late. God is never confused. God is never, you know, improvising his will. If he fulfill prophecy, then he will fi he will fulfill his promises. Now, I don't know about you, but I've still got some promises over my life that hadn't come to pass. I I got some prayers that have not been answered yet, and until every prayer is answered, until every promise uh I is is walked into and realized, I'm going to just keep believing that God's not finished yet. He's never late. never confused. He's never improvising his plans. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. I just come to encourage somebody today. You may have walked into this house thinking it's accidental. No. God knew exactly where you needed to be today to receive the word in this class. Jesus came as a a peaceful king. He didn't ride in on a war horse. He came on a donkey. When you look at the symbol of this animal that he rode upon, it was a symbol of peace. It was a a symbol of humility, a symbol of gentleness. And this is what confused everybody. They were wanting a conquering king. They were wanting a a warrior. They were wanting someone to come in and establish them as a a a military stronghold or or their military uh excellence. But that's not the way Jesus he didn't come as a conquering king. Let me tell you what Jesus came. Jesus came as a redeeming king. He came to redeem us with his own blood. You see, they were looking the the people were looking a at Rome and its military excellence and and and the military strong t strong force in that area. But Jesus did not come to overthrow Rome. He came to overthrow sin. He came to deal with the sin problem that would go all the way back to the Garden of Eden. And and and here's where I want to tell somebody today in the spirit. Sometimes uh Jesus doesn't show up the way we expect, but he always shows up the way we need. What would we just today just take our just take our guards down and say, "Okay, God, this may not be how I expected it to play out. This may not be what I expected to receive on this Sunday morning. And it may be coming in a in a tone and a voice that may be a little different, a little unexpected, but but but could we just say today, Lord, I'm here and ever how you show up, it's just meant for me to receive it, and this is how I need to receive it on this Sunday morning. I believe that's how mindful God is of us. We think one thing is going to happen and something else happens. We think God's going to work it this way and he says, "No, I'm going to do it that way." Because why is that? Because his ways are not our ways. His thoughts are not our thoughts. And when we look at God like that and we see how he moves and orchestrates the affairs of our lives, I've just lived long enough to understand when God is in control. And when God has his way, things always end up far better, far better than if I'd have got it my way and in my timing. Anybody ever realize that? that when I said okay God it's in your hands God I want your will God I want your way now I wish it would happen this way but you chose it this way when we say Lord be it unto you this day I want you to orchestrate I don't understand and I see you sister Pat and brother Terry I see you in the house of the Lord we prayed for you already this morning I don't understand why you're going through what you're going through today but I can promise you this church is praying And I believe when it's all said and done, God's gonna get glory out of it. God's gonna get glor whatever the sickness, whatever the diagnosis, whatever the the issue, the trauma, whatever you're going through, when we understand he is our redeeming king. He has a way of redeeming the pain. I said he has a way of redeeming the pain for purpose. Amen. He has a way of redeeming what we have been through. And we can look back over our lives and we can say what the enemy meant for harm, God meant it unto good. And we don't, we don't need to quit reading that verse. The Bible says to save many people alive. What if your story, what if what you've been through is what God is going to use to help breathe life into somebody, life into their home, life into their marriage, life into their children. It looks hopeless today, but God has a way of showing up in ways that we least expected. According to our lesson today, I think it's so important that we we we recognize this. It's important. And it was a declaration in our in our Sunday school lesson. And I charge you today. I will see Jesus for who he really is, not who I want him to be, catch that right there. The crowd had an image of Jesus. the crowd that a political a political deliverer, a a national hero, a miracle worker. They seen him move and operate, heal, and I mean, he did so many notable miracles and he was just he was messing with their minds and just they could never figure him out because they wanted him to be something that he wasn't. Amen. Could that be a frustrating point in our lives that we want Jesus to be something he's not? But are we willing to accept him for who he is in spite of what we want him to be? He refused. He refused then and he still refuses now to be shaped by our expectations. If God is limited to how we expect him to move, we will never see the miraculous power and the hand of God in our life. If we just limit him to our expectations, we'll never see it. But when you look at Jesus for who he is, not what I not what necessarily what I want him to be, we step into a dimension of faith that he's not just a helper, he's Lord. He's not just a provider, he's still king. He's he's not just a savior, but he is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords that demands our complete surrender. Jesus said, "I am the way. I am the truth. I am the life. No man cometh unto the father but by me." Philip said, "When are we going to get when are you going to see the father? Show us the father and it sufficeth us." And he would look at Philillip and say, "When you've seen me, you've seen the father because my father and I are one. When you say the name of Jesus, you said it all. When you invoke the name of Jesus, uh, you said it all. I I just wish today that there would be a revelation that would come over this house that I will see Jesus for who he really is. I don't want to go through my life and never see Jesus for who he really is. Amen. I I don't want him just to be I want to see him for who he is, not what I want him to be. Because when I do, I'll see him in ways that literally blow my mind. When I look at circumstances and I look at situations and he just comes right alongside, sometimes you'll see him as a friend that stickketh closer than a brother. Sometimes in loss, he'll come alongside and he said, "I'll be your comfort." In time of need, in time of loss, times of weariness, the joy of the Lord will become your strength. Whatever you what if you will see Jesus for who he really is, I believe he will become what you need. I believe that as Jesus entered in into Jerusalem, the atmosphere exploded with praise. As I as I read, the people cried, "Hosana." Hosanna meaning saved now. They were desperate. They were expectant. They were vocal. They laid down their branches. They laid down their garments. They these were symbols of honor and submission. There's one one point that our lesson makes that real worship cost something. They didn't just shout, they laid something down. When we come into his presence, there's just some things we lay down. I love I love in a congregation this size and when our classes come and they come and join us in our 11:00 worship service and you're going to see young people, you're going to see uh young adults, you're going to see uh our college and care, you're going to see all of our classes come in and you're going to see worship being demonstrated in many different ways. You're going to see people more than likely, some may cry, some may lift their hands, some may leap, some may shout. There is a there is a flow of worship that enters into us because we understand that real worship costs something. But when you understand who saved you, who delivered you, who freed you, who died for you, who redeemed you from sin, I believe whatever we whatever we give him, whatever it may cost, he is worthy. He's worthy of that. That's why we here at the sanctuary there there there's going to be a worship in this house out of the heart of the redeemed. And you may have not have ever looked at worship like this, but I believe that people worship God out of a heart out of a heart of gratitude that we say, "Thank you, Lord, for what you have done and been to my life. Thank you for how you saved me. Thank you for how you redeemed me." And so that's what's going to happen here in just a little bit. Real worship is going to cost us something. You see these in this in the text today. They didn't just shout, they laid something down. I wonder if today in our shouting, in our declaration that we could be spiritual enough to just say, "I'm going to lay some things down at his feet. I'm going to lay some things at the altar. I'm going to rejoice in the God of my salvation." Hallelujah. You believe that today? Hallelujah. In both Matthew and Luke, the lineage of Jesus is recorded back through David. Jesus is the messianic king who sits on the on David's throne forever, thus fulfilling the Davidic covenant that God would always have a king on David's throne. They recognized him as the promised messiah. Matter of fact, they said, "Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord." This was a bold declaration. Basically, they were saying, "He is the rightful king. He is heavenscent. He is worthy of praise." But let me give some exciting news. This king is not just the king of the Jews. He's the king of the Gentiles as well. It wasn't just limited just to a select group of people. No, no, no, no, no. On the day of Pentecost when the Holy Ghost was poured out, yes, it filled the 120 that were gathered. Uh but you just keep reading and you keep you keep understanding the declaration of truth throughout the the whole book of Acts. It finally got to us who were afar. And to those of us that were afar, he grafted us in. He became our king. He is our king today. That's exciting today. He is our king. Hallelujah. You would think that that that's enough to to make anybody surrender or make anyone become allegant to him. But it's so amazing in the word of God that while others praised, the Pharisees protested. While others were happy, others protested. Teacher, they would say, "Teacher, rebuke your disciples." Religious people often resist what they refuse to recognize. I'm gonna say that again. When people resist, religious people often resist what they refuse to recognize. Jesus responded, "If these hold their peace, the stones are the stones are going to cry out. The stones are going to cry out." Creation itself was ready to testify if the people would not. I've just come on this Sunday morning to tell you, we can either join the praise, join the worship, or be replaced by a rock. I don't know about you, but I don't want a rock to take my place. I don't want a rock to take I want to be the one that stands responsible for my own pray. That's the unique thing about pray. I can't praise for you, brother Spurgeon. You can't praise for me, brother Tim. I can't praise for you. You can't praise for me. But oh, the collective body of Christ today when we begin to worship him in spirit and in truth. There's something powerful that happens. There's something liberating. And yes, there may be those that say it looks a little radical. I don't understand why you got to praise and wor. No, we don't have to. We get to. Why? because he's been mighty, mighty, mighty, mighty good to us. Uh, if you only knew where he brought some of us from. If you only knew what he delivered us from, if you only knew the power of God in our lives, if I could take this mic and I would pass it around and I would put it in your hand and you would just tell this people what God did for you. Now, some of us might be shocked. That was you. That happened to you. That hap. But then you know what? Maybe we need to re and I say that and I've said this recently. We need to revive some of our testimonies. Tell somebody what God's done in your life. Tell somebody what God's doing in your life. See, I rejoice over partial victory. I I re well maybe the complete victory hadn't happened yet, but there ought to be a praise in your heart because God's casted you in the direction to complete victory. You may not got it all figured out. You may not have it all worked out yet, but where are you now? What direction are you heading? And if you're heading in the right direction, there ought to be a praise in your hands. There ought to be a worship in your lips. There ought to be a worship flowing out of your heart. I want to join the praisers today. Not the mockers, not the faultfinders, not those that that will belittle someone. Because those that belittle, those that make fun are simply the ones that just don't understand who he is. They don't understand who he is and what he's done. That's right. Because if you knew, I said if you only knew what he's done in our lives, if we were to sit and write it all out, and again, that might be something if you've forgotten, you ought to sit down and write down what God's done. He bless me. I I I've got a wife. I've got children. I've got a roof over my head. keep on. It's the little things of life that sometimes with all the pressures of this world, all the pressures of life, all that's going on, it clouds really. He's been good to us. Has God been good to us? all the pressures of life, all the circumstances of life, all but if we could just pause and just say, "God, you've been good to me. And my good days outweigh my bad days. I won't complain." I said, "I won't complain." The crowd, let's get back to our uh the the progression of this of this message. The crowd followed Jesus into Jerusalem, but many would not follow him to the cross. It's easy to follow Jesus when he's being celebrated, but it's harder to follow him when he's being rejected. There's got to be a personal commitment in every one of us today. I will follow Jesus not just in moments of praise but in seasons of sacrifice. It's easy to follow him when health is good, economyy's good, blessings are flowing. It's easy to follow him when everything is just going picture perfect. But what are you going to do when times get tough? What are you going to do? And well, pastor, I lost my job this week. That's the time you need to worship him more than ever. That's the time you need to be faithful more than ever. That's the time you need to be determined more than ever because he's still God. It doesn't matter. He's not relegated by our circumstances. He's still king of kings and lord of lords. No matter what we're where we're at and what we're going through, we've got to get a personal commitment in our hearts. I will follow him no matter what. And when we do this, there is there is that's where relationship comes. And I know I'm speaking to adults uh in this house here. There there's a lot of married individuals in this in this room. Every marriage, every home goes through seasons. We don't walk out because it gets hard. We just buckle down and say, "You know what? Let's work through this together. It's a season of sacrifice. We're going to make it." Somebody say, "Amen." Right there. I need a little help this morning. It's easy. It's easy to stay married when when it when it's good. But when it gets tough, times get tough, a hard time, you know, we we have to work through some things and work through some moments and work through some changes of life. But that's the that's the moments that God puts us closer together and the bond becomes stronger. The bond becomes stronger. Hit me with your best shot. We're going to make it. We're going to we're going to sustain oursel through the word of God, through prayer, through consecration, through this season of sacrifice. Uh, and I will be found praising him in the house of God because he's worthy. I will follow him wherever he leads. Hallelujah. Let God draw us closer together. I'm gonna come back to this. It may be a season of sacrifice. That's the time we got to draw closer together. Season of frustr understanding. Be loving. Be kind. And allow God to let something bloom in the midst of this season. When we look at Jesus's sorrow, this is where the tone shifts while the people rejoiced. Jesus wept. We're still talking about the triumphal entry. The people rejoiced, but Jesus wept. Luke 19:41, when he came near, he beheld the city and wept over it. You may say, why after such a triumphal entry, why would he do such? Here's here's what I feel. And when you look at scripture and and and how the next chapters in the story plays out, it's simply this. is because they celebrated him without truly knowing him. They wanted what he could do but not who he was. Their praise was loud but their heart was far. You can be close to Jesus geographically and still be far from him spiritually. It It's like today you're going to be you're in his you're in his presence. His holy presence is here today. You can be close to him. You can watch others respond to him, but you can be far from him spiritually. I said this many years ago in a Bible lesson on a Wednesday night. It's very important to be where your feet are. You're here, but where's your mind? You're here, but where's your spirit? Are are you thinking about this? Are you thinking about it? Are you disconnected here? Be where your feet are today. be where the we're among the praisers, but am I one? We're among the worshippers, but am I one? I'm I'm where the miracles are happening, but am I going to be one today? I don't want to be close to Jesus at 11:49 Main Street West. I don't want to just be close to him and far from him spiritually. They thought this moment was about restoring a city, but Jesus knew it was about redeeming the world. The kingdom of God is eternal. They were looking for something temporary. As any kingdom, it comes and goes. As any leadership comes and goes. We have a sitting president, but there'll be another one in couple years. We've got senators and representatives that are representing us in Washington, but give it a few years and there'll be another one. There'll be the rise of another. But the kingdom of God is eternal. It changes not. While they were focused on politics, he was fosted he was focused on salvation. He was not focusing on on just the temporal or or the the momentary. No, no, no. He was looking far beyond what they could understand. And here's where I've come to tell somebody. Don't reduce Jesus to your immediate needs. He came to give you eternal life. What will you be after you get what you prayed for? Because what he gives you, if it's a gift or a blessing, I hate to burst your bubble, but it's temporal. It's temporary. That house you prayed for, I rejoice. That car you I rejoice. That job, rejoice. But don't ever forget, it's temporal. There's people that showed up to work yesterday morning at Spirit Airlines that thought they had a job. They didn't get a twoe notice. They didn't say, "Hey, we're going to fly planes for another month." No. Immediate. No more flying. Spirit Airlines gone. Just as I believe it said four decades of flying gone. I started thinking about all we think we're here forever, but it's just temporal. Jesus came to give us eternal life when we've got to get our minds thinking beyond the here and now. That's what they were trapped in. They were wanting a a a a restored Jerusalem. They were wanting a restored power in a city that would rival the Roman Empire. But he was way more concerned than a Roman Empire. He was still concerned about the kingdom and and a kingship that would have no end. And the heart of the message today and I come to a close. The heart of this message I'm trying to convey. Not just I will praise him. Not just I will admire him. Not just I will call on him when I need him. He's not my genie in a bottle. No. But I will serve him. I will submit to him. I will pledge my allegiance to him as my king. Somebody say as my king. What does allegiance mean? My will bows to his will. My life reflects his rule. My loyalty is not divided. My loyalty is not divided. Forever, oh Lord. That word, thy word is hid in my heart that I may not sin. The grass witherth, the flower fadeth. This is going to last forever. And I like this. I like Jesus is not running for king. He's not up for election every four years. He already reigns. He already rules. But the question is, does he rule and reign in you? Is he controlling the affairs of your life in your world? And you may say, how can we serve Jesus as king today? How can I? Somebody say that. How can I serve? How can I serve Jesus as king today? I'm going to give you I'm going to give you some points here that's going to help you. If he is truly king, then our lives should reflect it in just some practical ways. Number one, honor him with your daily life. Live in a way that reflects his authority. Integrity when nobody's watching. holiness in a compromising world. Just honor him in your daily life. Don't live one way at church and one way at home. Don't live one way at church and one way in the public. Be consistent and let your life honor him with your daily life. You ready for this? Lay down what you treasure. Wow. This one got me. this one. Lord, help me. They laid garments down. They laid garments down at his feet. They laid garments down and they were trampled upon. Do you know what that is for us today? When we lay down what we we lay down our pride, we lay down our control. We lay down our sin. We lay down what we treasure because he's king. Number three, praise him boldly. Don't let a rock take your place. And let me just go a little step further. Don't let a rock take your place on Monday. It's easy to not let a rock take your place in here. But what are you going to do on Monday and Tuesday when nobody's around? You're driving down the road and you, man, life is settled in. When are you going to start? Uhuh. I got to take a praise break. I got to just lift my I know I may look stupid at a at a at a red light and I throw up my hands and praise the Lord. Thank you, Jesus. Don't let a rock take your place on Monday or Tuesday. Worship publicly. Speak his name without shame. Say the name of Jesus. Speak the name of Jesus. If you'll do these things, I can promise you what's going to happen next. You are going to follow him completely because when you honor him with your daily life, when you lay down what you treasure, when you praise him boldly, there is something that's birthed in you. You follow him completely. You can't serve two masters. You can't serve, you can't have divided loyalties. You follow him completely. Not just when it's easy, but when it's costly. And number five, serve his kingdom faithfully. Love people. Share the gospel. Build his church. Not our church, his church. I'm so happy to see guests all across this building. And when I close in a few moments, I pray that this body would become activated. It's good to see you today. Honored to have you today. We're building his church. We're sharing and showing the love of God. The same Jesus that rode into Jerusalem, I believe this so strong, is riding into hearts today. He's not looking for a crowd. He's looking for loyal subjects that will say yes to him. Will we v will we just wave a palm branch or will sometime today will we bow a knee? Will we wave our hands or will we bow our knees? Our pledge and commitment today in this Sunday school hour and I pray it over every life is this. I will serve and pledge my allegiance to Jesus as my king. Let this just not be a statement, but let it be your surrender. Why don't we stand right now? The Lord is in this house today meeting and ministering. both of these words and it has happened two weeks in a row that what I'll preach in the next service and what I've what I've taught this Sunday school lesson are going to go hand in hand. I'm just praying today that there would become a surrender.