KEEPING THE STONES QUIET
How many Palm Sunday sermons have you heard in your lifetime? If you are a Senior Citizen like I am you may have heard 50, 60, or 70 or more Palm Sunday sermons. A few years ago the people who are in charge of liturgical concerns in the church combined Palm Sunday and Passion Sunday together. Previously, Passion Sunday which celebrates the agonizing experiences of Jesus during his final week on earth leading up to Good Friday was recognized on the Sunday before Palm Sunday. So preachers have an option of preaching a traditional Palm Sunday sermon on this Sunday before Easter or recognizing the tragic events of Holy Week leading up to Good Friday.
If there are no services during Holy Week it does seem somewhat awkward to go right from Palm Sunday to Easter without acknowledging what Jesus went through during his passion week leading up to Good Friday. But having said that, since the Palm Sunday tradition dies hard and most people expect a Palm Sunday sermon on this Sunday before Easter, I have chosen to preach a Palm Sunday sermon. Since people have heard so many Palm Sunday sermons during their lifetimes it is difficult to come up with something fresh and new.
However, this morning I am going to focus on a verse found in Luke 19:40. I found very little in the commentaries dealing with this verse. As Jesus rode into Jerusalem with his disciples and followers acclaiming him as the Messiah, the Pharisees became jealous and said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell your disciples to stop.” To which Jesus replies in verse 40, “I tell you if these were silent, the very stones would shout out.” In other words if his disciples did not shout the praises of Jesus as he entered the city, the stones would have to speak for them. So we are going to speak about keeping the stones quiet. Jesus is to be praised on this triumphant day and if we don’t praise him who will? As a spiritual put it, ”If we don’t praise him the rocks are going to cry out.” I’m sure none of us want the stones and rocks to praise Jesus for us. What do we have to do to keep the stones quiet?
Some may think it strange for Jesus to speak of inanimate objects like stones praising God. But it is not unusual for the Bible to speak of objects like rocks, hills, mountains, and trees praising and acknowledging the power and authority of God. Even the creation recognizes the authority and majesty of the creator. In the creation story found in the early pages of Genesis, the Hebrews never got the creation mixed up with the creator. Other creation stories of the ancient world confused the creation with the creator. They either had the creation creating the creator or they worshipped the creation instead of the creator. The ancient Hebrews never fell into that trap. They were unique in worshipping the creator and not some tree, hill, or mountain. God was in charge and even the rocks, hills, trees, and mountains recognized his authority.
So we find verses like Psalm 96:1 which says to let the heavens rejoice, the earth to be glad, and the seas roar with the fullness thereof. Or that majestic verse in Isaiah 55 speaks of the mountains and the hills breaking forth into singing and the trees of the fields clapping their hands together. Or in Hab 2:11 which has a direct relation to our text where we find the stones crying out of the wall. Then in one of my favorite verses found in Job 38, God speaks about the morning stars singing together.
These verses are not just literary tricks or gimmicks. . The creation does acknowledge the power and dominion of God. We can think of God calling the sun up every morning to start its journey from the east to the west. We have a hint of this in the psalm which says the heavens are telling the glory of God. And the irony is that while many of God’s creatures have trouble giving him credit, the creation has no trouble recognizing the majesty and dominion of God. And even when Christ was crucified, we read of the sun refusing to shine, the earth shaking, and the rocks splitting apart. So Jesus was not far fetched when he said that if my disciples are silent the stones will cry out. If we don’t want the stones crying out for us, how do we keep them quiet? Let me suggest some ways coming from our text today in Luke 19:28 to 38.
I. WE MUST ACKNOWLEDGE THE POSITION OF CHRIST
In the first place if the stones are to keep quiet we are to acknowledge the position of Christ. The disciples recognized the authority of Jesus. They obeyed his command. In the first part of this passage Jesus told the disciples to go into town to find a colt tied up that had never been ridden before. If someone asked them what they were doing they were to say that the Master needs it. Some of us might have found that to be a very strange request. But the disciples did as Jesus told them. And the book of Mark said they found everything as Jesus had told them. If we would keep the stones quiet we must acknowledge the position of Christ as Lord and Master of all. We must pledge our complete allegiance to Christ as Lord. We must recognize that God wants our complete obedience. It is not enough to praise him with the sound of our voices, but we must obey his word. As the old hymn says we are to trust and obey. The words of that hymn are as true today as they ever were. How much trouble do people experience by not obeying the commands of Jesus?
Some of the things in the Bible are hard to understand especially in the light of contemporary situations. But there are enough things in the Bible that can stand the test of time. The Ten Commandments are just as valid today as they were centuries ago. How about honoring our parents? How about putting God first? How about refraining from lies? How about being jealous over what our neighbors have? And how about the greatest commandment of all which is to love God with all our hearts and minds and our neighbors as ourselves? Can you imagine Philadelphia with 100 murders at least up to the present time if people were to follow that commandment? And it doesn’t matter how many street demonstrations we have and how many policemen we put on the streets or even how many guns we appropriate.
Without love people will find a way to kill each other. How much anger and hate is boiling up within the breasts of these people who have no compunction about killing each other? And then we can’t blame to murderers and criminals on the street. How much love do we display to the members of God’s church, to the disciples of Christ? If we would keep the stones quiet, we must acknowledge the position of Christ and obey him with our hearts, minds, and souls.
II. WE MUST ACCEPT THE PURPOSE OF CHRIST.
Secondly, to keep the stones quiet we must accept his purpose. Many people
who welcomed Christ on that first Palm Sunday had many different agendas on their minds. They wanted Jesus to do their thing. Some wanted Jesus to overthrow the Roman authorities and establish himself upon the throne. Even two of the disciples were seeking places of honor for themselves at his right hand on the throne. I’m not sure if the 12 disciples understood the nature of the kingdom Jesus came to establish. He said that his kingdom was not of this world. But many of the disciples were still looking for a king in the military or political sense.
We must accept the purpose of Christ. We cannot dictate to him what our desires are. His purpose and will must prevail. Too many times we go on our merry ways, doing our own things, and then ask God to bless what we have already decided. Are we letting God create us in his own image or are we trying to create God in our image? Are we Lord or is Christ Lord? All sin is putting our wills and desires above God’s will. It was the original sin of Adam and Eve who sought to do their own things instead of obeying God. We must decide and understand that God knows what is best for us. We dare not lean unto our own understanding. God has a purpose and a plan for all of our lives. We must wait and see what God has in store for us. Many times we refuse to wait and be of good courage. We refuse to let God do his thing in his own good time. Accept God’s purpose for us through Jesus Christ.
III. WE MUST AFFIRM THE POWER OF CHRIST.
How do we keep the stones quiet? The third thing is to affirm his power. The disciples praised God for all the great things they had seen him do. No doubt many there had seen how he raised Lazarus from the dead. Many had seen how he multiplied the loaves and the fishes. Many had seen how he healed blinded eyes, activated limp limbs, and unstopped deaf ears. They found no difficulty in praising God for his power. How often do we praise God for the great things he has done in our lives?
I heard a sermon last week about Jesus and the repentant thief on the cross. The preacher said that Jesus held back death long enough for himself and the thief that he might usher him into the heavenly kingdom. How many things has God held back from us? Think of all the dangers, seen and unseen, you have escaped in your life. Many of your friends and relatives succumbed to sickness, illness, and tragedy. But God somehow held all of those things back from you. We look with dismay at what those people are doing on the streets of our city, drugs, crime and murders. But can we say that but for the grace of there go we? We could have done some of those same things. Some of us went through some of the same experiences and situations they went through, but for some reason God held those things back from us. God had his hand upon us.
We praise God a lot of times for the things he has done for us. But how about praising him for the things he has withheld from you? And even when you experienced hard times and difficult situations in your life, God was still there to help you bear the burdens. When you couldn’t pay your bills, somehow God showed up. When you suffered that sickness, somehow God healed you. When you were tempted on every side, somehow God gave you his strength. When you had that marital problem, somehow God straightened it out. Everybody here can find something to praise the power of God for.
. God through Jesus Christ still has all power in his hands. God’s hand is not shortened. He still has all power in his hands. He can still make a way out of no way. He can still open doors that no one can shut. Some folks who didn’t know any better would say that these are just clichés that we have heard others say. But this is not hearsay evidence. We have experienced these things for ourselves. We can tell others that what he has done for us he can do for you. We can tell them that it is no secret what God can do. Just put your trust in him and experience his power in your life. How can we keep the stones quiet?
IV WE CAN APPRECIATE THE PEACE OF CHRIST.
We can keep the stones quiet by appreciating the peace of Christ. The disciples cried out, “Bless the king who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory to God.” Christ is called the prince of peace. His peace passes all understanding. Have you ever experienced the peace of God? When things were falling apart all around you, somehow you had the peace of God within you. When sorrows like sea billows rolled, when all around your soul was giving away, the peace of God still enabled you to say, “It is well with my soul.” The last thing Jesus gave to his disciples was the legacy of peace. He says in John, “My peace I leave with you. Let not your hearts be troubled.” Jesus Christ is still the prince of peace. He who spoke peace to the winds and waves of the sea can still speak peace to us. He still gives us the peace that the world cannot give. How do we keep the stones quiet?
V. WE ACCLAIM THE PRESENCE OF CHRIST.
Finally, we keep the stones quiet by acclaiming his presence. The disciples cried out, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord.” Jesus Christ is the one who comes to us. He has promised never to leave or forsake us. He dwells within our hearts today. He has come to take up his abode in our hearts. He wants us to crown him king of our lives. He wants us to make a temple for him to dwell. Paul said that the only hope we have is Christ in us, the hope of glory.
What better thing could we do on this Palm Sunday but invite Christ into our hearts and lives today? Wouldn’t it be nice if we could say all over again, “Into my heart. Into my heart. Come into my heart, Lord Jesus. Come in to stay. Come in today. Come into my heart, Lord Jesus?”
How do we keep the stones quiet? ACKNOWLEDGE HIS POSITION. ACCEPT HIS PURPOSE. AFFIRM HIS POWER. APPRECIATE HIS PEACE. ACCLAIM HIS PRESENCE
I don’t know about you, but as far as I am concerned, I’m going to tell the stones to keep quiet. Keep quiet stones! With all due respect, stones, I have a special relationship with Jesus. I can’t let you praise him before I do. He made me in his own image. He’s done so much for me. I know you respect him too, stones. But he hasn’t done for you what has done me. Keep quiet stones! You haven’t born your burdens in the heat of the day. Keep quiet stones! He hasn’t made a way for you as he has for me. He hasn’t been your anchor in the midst of the storm. Keep quiet stones!
With all due respect, stones. But he hasn’t been your rock in a weary land. He hasn’t been your shelter in the time of storm. He hasn’t brought you this far by his faith. I’ve got a preemptive privilege to praise him. I’ve earned a right to praise him. Jesus said if I didn’t say anything you would speak for me. But I decided to speak for myself. I wasn’t going to say anything at first. But I just couldn’t keep quiet. It was like fire shut up in my bones as Jeremiah said. I decided to let it all out. So keep quiet stones! .
I’m going to praise Jesus all day long. Keep quiet stones! This is my story this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long. Keep quiet stones! I love to tell the story of Jesus and his love. It will be my theme in glory to tell the old, old story of Jesus and his love.
Thank God we don’t have to let the stones speak for us. As long as we acknowledge Christ’s position, as long as we accept his purpose, as long as we affirm his power, as long as we appreciate his peace, and as long as we acclaim his presence, the stones will keep quiet.
