Hollow Hosannas
Text: Matthew 21:1-17
Introduction: On the Sunday before His crucifixion Christ entered the city of Jerusalem riding upon a donkey while a multitude of people “went before and those who followed cried out, saying: "Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!" (Mark 11:9-10 NKJV) Hoshana (äåùòðà), a Hebrew word and the Aramaic equivalent hosanna meaning "help, I pray" or "save, I pray,” had become had become strictly a shout of praise or adoration. The crowd was lifting up praise to Christ. They were shouting "praise to you, Son of David". For some these shouts of praise were true and acceptable expressions of worship; for others they were hollow hosannas – hollow hosannas which were empty words that outwardly appeared beautiful but lacked substance. Are the words of praise that we lift up to Christ hollow hosannas? Hollow Hosannas consists of...
I. Insincere Praise
A. Isaiah 29:13 “Therefore the Lord said: "Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,”
B. That which is insincere is that which is not genuine. Praise that is insincere is nothing more than flattery. God does not stomach flattery or cheap, insincere praise. There is an old quip that says, “Flattery is like soft soap, about 50% lye.”
C. Matthew 15:8 “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me.”
D. Halfhearted or insincere praise does not honor God. Our holy, omniscient God will not pretend that we are honoring Him when we really are not.
E. 1 Corinthians 13:1 “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.”
F. Though I shout praise to the Lord but do so with insincerity, I have become a clanging cymbal.
G. We can praise the Lord with great emotion and energy but if it does not stem from our whole hearts and is not founded in truth it is nothing more than collective clatter.
H. Illustration: Two sailors were adrift on a raft in the ocean. They had just about given up hope of rescue. One began to pray, "O Lord, I’ve led a worthless life. I’ve been unkind to my wife and I’ve neglected my children, but if You’ll save me, I promise..." The other shouted, "Hold it! Don’t many any incredible promises yet! I think I see LAND!" When the other one also saw the distinct features of land, he finished his prayer by saying, "Never mind, God!" – copied
I. Psalm 111:1 “Praise the Lord! I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, In the assembly of the upright and in the congregation.”
II. Incongruent Praise
A. Incongruent means not corresponding in structure or content. Incongruent praise means inconsistency between words and deeds, between saying I love you Lord and demonstrating that love in actions and behavior.
B. Luke 6:46 "But why do you call Me ’Lord, Lord,’ and do not do the things which I say?”
C. "Those who testify by the yard, yet live by the inch, ought to be kicked by the foot!" – B.P. Carroll
D. Matthew 7:21 "Not everyone who says to Me, ’Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.”
E. Imitation is the highest form of praise. The greatest praise offered to Christ is a life lived in His likeness.
F. 1 Samuel 15:18-22 “Now the Lord sent you on a mission, and said, ’Go, and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.’ Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? Why did you swoop down on the spoil, and do evil in the sight of the Lord?" And Saul said to Samuel, "But I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal." So Samuel said: "Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams.”
G. A lot of people play at praise. You can fool everyone around you by going through the motions of praise, but you cannot fool God. He knows whether or not your life matches your words.
H. “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Well done. Not well said. Not even well believed. But well done! Talk is cheap and it’s often easy to say you believe something. But the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Will you actually do something about what you say you believe? The story is told of Jean Francois Gravelot, also known as “The Great Blondin”, who crossed Niagra Falls on a tightrope. On the return crossing he offered to carry someone on his shoulders to the other side. Everyone believed he could do it but no one was ready to demonstrate that belief by volunteering to take the ride. They might have heard a “well said” or a “well believed”, but no “well done”. – Pastor Randy Cook
I. Matthew 24:46 “Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing.”
III. Infected Praise
A. Psalms 66:18 “If I regard iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear.”
B. Psalm 24:3-4 “Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully.”
C. As born again believers sin doesn’t sever our union with God. When we sin, we don’t stop being saved; but there are consequences to our sin. Sin, however, sever our fellowship with God, separates His holy presence from us, it hinders our ability to know Christ intimately and deeply. Sin blocks our fellowship with our Lord. Sin causes our prayers and praise to rise no higher than the ceiling.
D. 1 John 4:20 “If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?”
E. Matthew 5:23-24 “Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.”
F. "If we despise our brother, our worship is unreal, and forfeits every divine promise. When we come before God with hearts full of contempt and unreconciled with our neighbors, we are, both individually and collectively, worshiping an idol."—Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship
IV. Insidious Praise
A. Praise with an ulterior motive
B. It is seen in the praise of the Pharisees who offered flattery to trap Christ
• Mark 12:13-15 “Then they sent to Him some of the Pharisees and the Herodians, to catch Him in His words. When they had come, they said to Him, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of men, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Shall we pay, or shall we not pay?" But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, "Why do you test Me?”
C. It is seen in the betrayal kiss of Judas Iscariot for thirty pieces of silver
• Matthew 26:47-49 “And while He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, with a great multitude with swords and clubs, came from the chief priests and elders of the people. Now His betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "Whomever I kiss, He is the One; seize Him." Immediately he went up to Jesus and said, "Greetings, Rabbi!" and kissed Him.”
D. It is seen in the prayer of the Pharisee seeking to exalt himself
• Luke 18:10-12 ““Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.”
E. It is seen in the praise and prayer of those who praise in order to derive some benefit for themselves whether it is a feeling good, an answer to prayer, acceptance by a community of saints, experiencing some kind of warm fuzzies. Praise is not about us; whether we’re happy or living easy. Praise is all about God, glorifying all that God is, and all that God does.
F. Psalm 96:1-3 “Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! Sing to the LORD, all the earth. Sing to the LORD, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.
