What Kind of King is Jesus? Lenten Sermon Series: The Final Week Mark 11:1-11

Transcription

1 What Kind of King is Jesus? Lenten Sermon Series: The Final Week Mark 11:1-11 Rev. Michael D. Halley February 14, 2016 Suffolk Christian Church Suffolk, Virginia First Sunday in Lent ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This year during Lent we will be looking at Jesus final week of his life here on earth. His final week started on the Sunday we have come to call Palm Sunday, his triumphal entry into the city of Jerusalem. Normally, Jesus went about his ministry in a quiet and even private way. But now, Jesus chooses to come into the holy city in the most obvious way possible. This entry into Jerusalem that day was not some last-minute thing he thought up. It was carefully planned out, even to the detail of where the donkey would be and how to get it. Jesus had set up a password: If anybody asks you, Why are you doing this?, just say, The Lord needs it, and will send it back immediately. And look at the time Jesus chose for this dramatic entry into Jerusalem. It was Passover 1, and during Passover Jerusalem was crowded with visitors. It was a requirement that every Jewish adult from a twenty mile or so distance from the city must attend the celebration. And to this number would be added many more who would come from even farther away. New Testament scholar William Barclay estimates that as many as two and a half million people might have been in Jerusalem at that time 2. So clearly Jesus chose a very public time and place for this entry into the city. Why the donkey? 1

2 Page 2 In the ancient world donkeys were not a lowly animal. In fact, kings, when they came in peace, rode donkeys. In war, they rode a horse. And, Jesus was quite aware of the prophesy given by Zechariah (9:9) that said Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; he is just, and endowed with salvation, humble and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. Jesus knew that the people would quickly recognize the symbolism of what he was doing, that he was a king and he was coming in peace. However, that is not what the people wanted. They were long tired and weary of the Romans occupation of their beloved nation. Yes, they wanted a king, but they wanted one who would shatter and smash and break 3. But Jesus was not that kind of king. I wish we could have been there to see this spontaneous parade! As people began to see Jesus coming into the city, they got branches and even took their cloaks and spread them on the road before Jesus. Hosanna 4! some cried. Others shouted out, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!, while others called out Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! and Hosanna in the highest heaven! Do you think Jesus was impressed by all this adulation? Do you think he was pleased that the people understood even a little of what he was trying to show that day? Let s look at it another way. Jesus knew exactly what he was doing. The reaction of the crowds did not take his attention away from what was going to happen very soon. The religious authorities in Jerusalem were out destroy Jesus. This entry into the city was an act of pure courage in the face of extreme danger. This was Jesus final appeal of love and he was making this appeal with a fearless courage that was downright heroic.

3 I grew up in church 5 using the Broadman Hymnal, probably a something edition. As a young boy I would thumb through that hymnal looking at the titles of the hymns and reading some of the words. There was one hymn in that book that we never sang, the title of which always intrigued me: Gentle Jesus, Meek and Mild 6. This hymn does not totally describe King Jesus riding into Jerusalem that day. What kind of king is Jesus? One day he will be a conquering king, but this day he came in peace. He came not to destroy, but to love. He came not to condemn, but to help people find life. He came to help, not in the strength of military arms, but in the power of love. That s not what we expect from a king, is it? Someone wrote a reflection 7 on King Jesus: Page 3 Jesus wasn t a king who lived in a palace. He lives in our broken and wounded hearts. He wasn t a king who was aloof from his people. He became human and lives among us still. He wasn t a king who used fear to gain people s loyalty. He gains that through love and humility. He wasn t a king who took from the poor to make himself rich. He makes us rich by assuming our poverty. He wasn t a king who commanded violence. He commands forgiveness for those who wrong us.

4 Page 4 He wasn t a king who demanded to be served. He washes our feet. He wasn t a king who ate sumptuously every day. He feeds us daily with His own Flesh and Blood. He wasn t a king who wore expensive clothes. He wears human flesh, torn for love of us. He wasn t a king dressed in immaculate, royal purple. He is dressed in a blood-stained garment. He wasn t a king who wore a crown of gold. He wears a crown of thorns. He wasn t a king who held a bejeweled scepter in his hand. He holds the old rugged Cross. He wasn t a king who ruled from a throne. He is enthroned upon a Cross. He wasn t a king who needed weapons for victories. He gains the victory by the shedding of His Blood. He wasn t a king who wore armor into battle. He lays down His life in love that we may live in love. He wasn t a king who was carried on people s shoulders. He carries us in His heart, a heart opened with a spear. He wasn t a king who fought for immortality and fame. He is the eternal King born to die that we may live forever. And this reflection concludes with this: Jesus may be a strange kind of King but I want no other King but Him.

5 If Jesus is a king like this, then what does this mean for us? It means that we owe him our very life. He is Jesus the Christ, the Second Adam, the Bright and Morning Star, the First and the Last, victorious in battle, whose hands bring healing, Mighty Second Person of the Trinity, Son of David, Son of Man, Word of God Incarnate, the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. 8 My friends, believe the Gospel message. May King Jesus rule in your heart and in your life. Let us pray: Gracious and loving God, we bow before Jesus, the courageous Saviour who loved us enough to suffer torment and punishment and even death on the cross. May we be like him, our Father, loving and kind, giving to others, and courageous in our daily walk with you. God bless all of us with your peace and your salvation as we pray this in the name of our King, even Jesus Christ. Amen Page 5 All Scripture references are from New International Version, NIV, copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc., unless otherwise indicated. +==+==+==+==+==+==+ Sunday Sermons from Suffolk Christian Church are intended for the private devotional use of members and friends of the church. Please do not print or publish. Thank you. Suggestions for sermon topics are always welcome! 1. Passover (or feast of unleavened bread ) was the first of three annual festivals in the Jewish faith. It took place on the 14 th day of the first month of the calendar year. Passover

6 commemorates the escape of the Jews from slavery in Egypt. It was a Passover meal that Jesus had with his disciples during his final week on earth. See Passover, by Larry Walker, Holman Bible Dictionary, edited by Trent C. Butler, c The Gospel of Matthew, vol. 1, p As Dr. William Barclay puts it, in his commentary on Mark 1: Hosanna is a Hebrew and Aramaic word which means save now or as a prayer, save us, we pray. See Holman Bible Dictionary, cited above. 5. Highlawn Baptist Church, Saint Albans, West Virginia. Their website is 6. Written by Charles Wesley, first published in Hymns and Sacred Poems, What kind of a king is Jesus, posted March 29, 2015, at 8. From a sermon illustration, Proclaiming King Jesus, by Ken Langley, of Zion, Illinois, Page 6