Luke 19vv25-48 The Wrong Horse
Two Kentucky farmers who owned racing stables had developed a keen rivalry. One spring, each of them entered a horse in a local steeplechase. Thinking that a professional rider might help him outdo his friend, one of the farmers engaged a crack jockey. The two horses were leading the race at the last fence, but it proved too tough for them. Both horses fell, unseating their riders. But this calamity did not stop the professional jockey. He quickly remounted and won the race.
Returning triumphant to the paddock, the jockey found the farmer who had hired him fuming with rage. "What's the matter?" the jockey asked. "I won, didn't I?"
"Oh, yes," roared the farmer. "You won all right, but you still don't know, do you?"
"Know what?" asked the jockey.
"You won the race on the wrong horse!"
While this situation does not occur often at horse races, it happens in every human life. Each of us, trying hard to win the race, tends to climb on the wrong horse from time to time. If we don’t discover our error, we cross the finish line a triumphant failure.
Today is Palm Sunday. In Scripture it’s Jesus’ last week alive on earth. 2000 years ago, By Thursday of this week Jesus will have been arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane; His faithful followers desert Him, and within a few hours after that the Son of God, Creator God, Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End was subjected to inexplicable humiliation, ridicule, torture to the point of death, and ultimately death on the cross.
It was a race between good and evil. God obviously knew what He was doing but evil jumped on the wrong horse. When evil crossed the finish line, Jesus said, “It is finished”
Physically, emotionally and Spiritually, it was a terrible time for Jesus. But Jesus knew something no other person knew. The writer of Hebrews said: NS
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. NS
Jesus knew the race for Him and His followers would end in victory. He also knew that His victory would forever seal the fate of all who reject His plan for life and salvation.
I’ve read the passage many times but this time what stood out to me this time was two groups of people. I saw those who were surrendered and obedient and those who were religious but lost.
Then I saw what happened when Jesus came to town. The surrendered and obedient went through a period of transformation to dedicated service while the religious but lost continued on a path of complete destruction. As Jesus is led to the slaughter the obedient are rocked to the core but then firmly planted on that rock. And to those who led Jesus to the slaughter, they are crushed by this rock.
NS Romans 9:33 “Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and a rock of offense, and whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”
For years the religious people hid their sins behind a self-righteous masquerade. When Jesus exposed them in the light of His truth they tried to cover it up but instead their sins were fully revealed. NS 1 Peter 2
7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, “ The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone,” 8 and “ A stone of stumbling And a rock of offense.” NS
When God shows up the truth comes out, there’s nowhere to hide. The crucifixion of Jesus was supposed to put an end to God’s control over the planet and everything in it but instead the crucifixion exposed the hideous gruesome sin nature of humans. We can dress it up, cover it up anyway we want but when we face the Son of God, he will expose everything.
I washed my truck Friday. It hasn’t been that long since I gave it a good washing. December I believe. The need arose because we are blessed to have a few precious little birds who love the purple berry bush next to the driveway. Those purple berry droppings stand out on a white truck. So I took the hose and rinsed off the bird shots and the truck looked fairly descent. But when I took the sponge and wiped it across the hood I was amazed at the difference between the pearly white paint and the coat of pollution on top. My truck still looked white, but next to the clean spot it looked filthy.
You can see the same thing if you take a white peppermint and hold it next to your teeth. Your teeth next to your skin may look fairly descent, but they won’t next to a white peppermint.
That’s what the Pharisees were doing before Jesus came. They were looking at their religious actions and holding those actions up to the Gentiles and proclaiming themselves righteous in light of the Gentiles.
You’ve probably heard this but it’s good so I tell you again. There were two brothers who were the richest men in that small town. They were also the mean dirty low down scoundrels. Well, one of them died, the other went to the preacher of the local church and asked him to do the funeral. He said that he would give the church $25,000 if the preacher would say that his brother was a saint. "But I can't do that!" said the preacher, "Everyone knows what kind of man your brother was." But the more he thought about it, he realized that the church really needed that money. So on the day of the funeral he got up and said, "all of you know that this man was a dirty low down lying, cheating, stealing, wicked old man. But next to his brother, he was a saint."
That’s what happens when Jesus shows up. He exposes the truth and the truth is, next to Him we are all dirty. Before Christ went to the cross, no one was clean; all were dirty in sin and in need of His sacrifice. But it was the crucifixion that defined those two groups as light defines dark. As Jesus went to the cross the race was, the battle raged. There was a crash between the two. It seemed for a moment that evil had triumphed as Jesus was taken to the cross. But when evil crossed the finish line, to his surprise he had mounted the wrong horse and lost forevermore.
What was defined then stands defined for eternity. Now the only race is for the souls of men and women. So let’s look at these two groups and hopefully you find yourself winning the race.
READ Luke 19vv25-48
Surrendered and Obedient
Sometimes I think of what my life would have been if I had not been born to the parents I have or in the time I live. I thank God for the opportunity given me to know Him and to serve Him. There are so many who will die and go to hell because of the ungodly influences that surrounds them. I have been so very blessed to have been surrounded by Godly influences with praying parents, and testimonies in the church. The majority of the world doesn’t have this. That’s why it is so very important for Christians to look for moments to share Christ. We literally live in an ocean of death.
NS Jesus said, “wide is the gate and broad is the way to destruction and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matt 7:13-14
It’s sad but every indication we get from Scripture has most people rejecting God. In His parables on the Kingdom of God, Jesus has 1 out of 4 seeds producing a good crop. In the parable of The Great Supper, Jesus told of three different individuals who rejected the Kings invitation and then he said go out into the highways and hedges, the city to compel others to come in.
But you don’t have to be one of the many. The Bible is clear in Romans 10:13 “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Therefore, there is absolutely no reason for anyone here to leave without knowing Jesus as Savior Lord, and Master. For those of us who do Him we are called be:
1. Surrendered and Obedient. In verses 30-35 there are folks who are listening and obeying Christ. Christ gives the order and they surrender and obey. It’s just a few short words but Jesus tells two disciples to go and get and he obviously had made arrangements for a colt to be waiting for Him. “Surrendered and Obedient.” The two should go hand in hand but they definitely don’t.
I heard about a little boy who wasn’t being particularly obedient to his mother’s wishes. He had some kind of attitude and was purposely defying her instructions. Finally mom got tired of and decided to sit the little fellow in a corner for awhile. And she said, “now you just sit there until you can learn to be a little more obedient.” To which the little fellow replied, “I may be sitting on the outside but I’m standing on the inside.”
That’s a humorous story that any parent can relate too But what’s so sad is what’s happening between the parent and the boy. The fellowship is broken. The enjoyment of the relationship has been set aside. That little guy is missing out on some good times with mom.
I know that’s simple but it works the same in our relationship with Christ. NS When we are Surrendered and Obedient to God we gain some very special privileges in the Kingdom of God. One is:
A. Membership in the Kingdom of God. Matt 12:50 “For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother.” Matt 7:50
Let’s let the Lord explain that a little bit more from earlier in Matt 7: “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.
NS 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
NS 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
We can make this simple, NS Followers of Christ Follow Christ.
This is as simple as it gets. The crucifixion defined this. There are a lot of Religious people going to hell today. Just like the Pharisees, they have put on a good façade (FACE), they act the part in some ways when it is beneficial to them but Jesus said
NS My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. John 10:27
Wow! That’s about as plain as it gets! I grew up in the church; I said the sinner’s prayer at least three times as a boy and a teenager. But I never followed Christ until I surrendered my life and set out to be obedient to Him at the age of 22. If you saw me apart from my parents, and apart from the church, you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between my way of living and anyone outside the church. The difference could only be seen on Sunday.
Many people have asked me, “Were you saved as a teenager?” I couldn’t really say. But I can say this, I wouldn’t want to take a chance in standing before God with the life I had before I surrendered my life to Christ. But, today I stand here with confidence knowing that “I am a blood-bought, born-again, sanctified, walking-with-the-Lord child of God. I know I am not what I should be but I know what I am. I hope you can say the same with confidence; but if you can’t then do the only sane thing and turn your life over to Christ. NS Surrender and obedience give you membership in the Kingdom. There is a second benefit:
B. Brings Kingdom Purpose. The disciples who went for the colt had divine purpose and the colt had a divine purpose. It was in all respects the same as any other colt that had come along. If you were to compare it to the other colts I am sure that it had four legs and a tail just the same. But this colt was exceptional in that this colt was designated to be ridden first by the King of kings. You may call it a stretch but I don’t doubt for a moment that this colt knew Who was riding on his back. NS Jesus said:
“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”
I can’t imagine how excited that little guy was to have the King of kings riding on his back.
Back at the coral he may have listened to the other colts being led away to serve at the palace, or be purchased to serve the General, or the governor. But he was set aside to serve the King of kings.
I wish this meant more to Christians. Paul tells us in that wonderful letter to the Ephesians:
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10
In Christ, in the kingdom of God, we find life. In the Kingdom of God we find divine purpose in an obedient and surrendered life to Christ. Your life matters to God. He chose you even before He set the foundations of this world and you will never find fulfillment anywhere else.
I want you to see one more thing here:
C. Brings Fellowship with the King. I know this is stretching things a little here but not much. I’ll bet you that colt was never more satisfied in all its life, than carrying the Lord Jesus Christ into Jerusalem.
We got this dog a little more than a year back. She is a pesky demanding little thing, but I love her. When I get up in the morning she gets out of bed and follows me to the bathroom and sits on my clothes while I take a shower. When I go to make coffee she sits on the floor by my feet. When I go down stairs for my morning time with the Lord, she comes down there. If I leave the house and come back after 30 minutes she won’t stop pestering me till I pick her up. When I go to sit in my easy chair, most of the time she’ll beat me to it. I can’t sit without picking her up because she beats me to the chair. Sometimes, not all the time, it seems all she wants to do is be with me.
I’ll say it again; I’ll bet you that colt was never more satisfied in all its life, than being with his Master. All he did was carry the Lord Jesus Christ into Jerusalem but what a ride it must have been.
Some of you will know what I’m talking about here; you go on vacation and when you get back you feel robbed. You’ve just spent lots of money that you either saved or now have to pay back and feel like it just wasn’t worth it. I’ve done a lot of stuff in my life but I‘ve never done anything more satisfying than living in surrendered obedience to Christ. I get more satisfaction, I feel more alive in what I do for the Lord than anything else.
In Matthew’s Gospel there is a time when Jesus took Peter, James and John on a mountain, and the Bible says He, Jesus was transfigured right before their eyes. He was shining like the sun. It was a glorious time. Then Moses and Elijah showed up and old Peter said, “Lord this so cool, can’t we just build a house and hang out here for awhile?” That what exactly what God the Father wanted to hear and He told Peter to just shut up and listen. What Peter was saying is “Lord, can it get any better than this?”
I know there are a lot of toys out there. The world has some things that are just flat out fun and exciting to do. But, if you would just take some special time and surrender your life to the Lord, I promise you, God will do something in your heart that will put those things in perspective and give you real meaning and purpose such that nothing in this world can replace. Besides all that, we’re not going to stay here things. Eternity is coming. We are preparing for a new world and the things of this world can rob you of the things the Lord wants to give you. Listen to what God tells us in 1 John 2:17
And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
I am not telling you to leave the hobbies or the anything else in the world and do nothing but study your Bible and pray. What I am telling you is that if you are letting the world stand in your way of a growing relationship with Christ you are riding the wrong horse. You are losing the race. It may look like you’re winning because you seem to be ahead of everybody. But you aren’t and you can’t because you can’t get ahead of God.
