Submission on Palm Sunday
Chuck Sligh
March 24, 2013
TEXT: Please turn in your Bibles to Luke 19
INTRODUCTION
Today—one week before Easter Sunday—is what is known as Palm Sunday. It’s so called because of the palm branches used in Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem. This event is recorded not only by Luke, but by all the Gospel writers.
Let’s look at the setting and the scene of this story: Jesus and the disciples had come from Bethany to Jerusalem (about two miles from the south). The triumphal entry took place about five days before the most important of all the Jewish religious festivals—the Passover—was about to begin. There were probably no less than 300,000 pilgrims in Jerusalem for the Passover. A religious zeal pervaded the atmosphere. There was excitement and expectancy in the air.
But I want to draw your attention away from the festive multitude to the submissive minority. Because in this story, as well as in the story of the crucifixion, there are drawn for us in the God’s Word several beautiful pictures of submission—a quality highly valued by God. Consider with me today three illustrations of submission in our text:
I. THE SUBMISSION OF JESUS TO THE WILL OF THE FATHER – Luke 19:28 – “And when he had thus spoken, he went before, ascending up to Jerusalem.”
Notice that last phrase: “…ascending up to Jerusalem…”. That little phrase is brief, but pregnant with meaning:
• In that little phrase, there was FULFILLMENT OF PROPHECY.
Zechariah had said centuries before: “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 colt the foal of an ass.” (Zechariah 9:9) Christ fulfilled this prophecy precisely by riding into Jerusalem on a donkey.
But it was more than just the exact fulfillment of a prophecy. Daniel, in his extraordinary Seventy Weeks prophecy had prophesied the exact DAY Jesus would ride into Jerusalem as Israel’s Messiah.
• Not only was there FULFILLMENT OF PROPHECY in this little phrase, “…ascending up to Jerusalem…” there was also DANGER in it.
The last time Jesus had been in Jerusalem, there had been an attempt on His life that is described for us in John 10. There Jesus asserted His deity in no uncertain terms and John 10:31 says “Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.” Later in the chapter we read that there was another attempt upon, but that he escaped (verse 39b) and went to be with John beyond the River Jordan.
From that point on, Jesus was in constant danger. This danger increased after Lazarus was raised from the dead. Jesus was safer in the countryside, away from Jerusalem, the center of power of His enemies, but once He stepped foot in Jerusalem, the Jewish leaders would immediately plot to kill Him. And yet here we read that He was “…ascending up to Jerusalem…”—knowing full well the danger this act placed Him in.
• There was prophecy and danger in that phrase, “…ascending up to Jerusalem,” but also there was SUBMISSION TO THE FATHER’S WILL in it.
This act would lead to the cross—the whole reason for His coming.
> Ahead would be the awful mental and emotional turmoil in the Garden of Gethsemane.
> Ahead would be the traitorous betrayal of Jesus by Judas with a kiss.
> Ahead the disciples of Jesus would turn tail and run, and Peter would deny Him three times.
> Ahead lay a mock trial by a kangaroo court.
> Ahead was the rejection by the multitude, for the same multitude that cried at the Triumphal Entry “…Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord” would shout “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” just a few hours later.
> Ahead lay shame and mistreatment—the mocking of the soldiers, the plucking of the beard, the horrible beating by the Roman soldiers, the wipping with the cat-of-nine-tails, the crushing of the crown of thorns into Christ’s holy brow.
> Ahead lay the cross, the agony, the suffering, the pain, the drink of vinegar and gall, the crowd’s mocking, the spear in His side.
> Worst of all—ahead was when Jesus would bear our sins on the cross and God the Father would turn away from His Son and pour out His righteous wrath for our sins upon Him, and Jesus would utter that mournful cry, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
When Jesus ascended up to Jerusalem, He knew ALL of that was before Him. And yet—Jesus was still submissive to the will of His Father. Though in His human side He dreaded what was to come, in the garden He prayed “…not my will, but thine, be done.” (Luke 22:42b).
Perhaps no Scripture shows for us the submissive heart of Christ like Philippians 2:5-7 – “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God [lit. “He did not consider equality with God something to be selfishly grasped or held on to”]: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”
But the submission of Christ was not the only example of submission in this story.
II. NOTICE SECONDLY WITH ME, THE SUBMISSION OF THE DISCIPLES TO THE WILL OF THE SAVIOR IN VERSES 29-35 – The disciples were given strange instructions about the colt in Luke 19:30-31 – “Saying, Go ye into the village over against you; in the which at your entering ye shall find a colt tied, whereon yet never man sat: loose him, and bring him hither. 31 And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him.”
The disciples willingly submitted to the command of their Master, Jesus Christ.
It’s fascinating to examine this passage of Scripture because in it we can see some striking parallels to our responsibility to submit to Christ’s Great Commission commands.
• In verse 30, Jesus said to his disciples, “Go ye.”
And in His Great Commission, Jesus commands each of us, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” (Mark 16:15)
Jesus told them in verse 30 to go “…to the village over against you.” In other words, begin at home. But then before His ascension up to heaven, Jesus expanded the directive and said in Acts 1:8 – “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and [then] in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
• Jesus told them in verse 30, “…ye shall find a colt.”
Jesus knew just what the disciples would find. He knows all about what is ahead. He knows the people we will run into who we need to tell about Jesus Christ. He has prepared them for our witness and testimony.
• Jesus said His disciples would find, “a colt TIED.”
¿Can you not see represented here all of humanity in the bondage of sin? We’re to go to those who are TIED, who are BOUND, who are NOT FREE.
• And then Jesus said this colt would be one “whereon never man sat.” Here is humanity with its unbroken will.
> “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all,” Isaiah says in Isaiah 53:6.
> “As it is written,” Paul declares in Romans 3: “There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. …18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
• Then verse 30 of our text, Jesus told His disciples that when they found this colt, they were to “Loose him.”
When we lead sinners to Jesus, we EMANCIPATE THEM.
> We FREE THEM from the prison of sin and judgment.
> We LIBERATE THEM from the chains of Satan and his minions.
• Then Jesus told his disciples to “bring him hither.”
> We don’t bring them to THE CHURCH DOOR; we bring them to JESUS!
> We don’t bring them to GOD’S LAW—to follow rules and ordinances and precepts and statutes to earn God’s favor; we bring them to JESUS where His grace is freely bestowed without charge.
> We don’t bring them to RELIGION; we bring Him to JESUS!
• Jesus went on and said in verse 31, “If any man ask you.”
Oh yes, there will always be public opinion, and it will never be sympathetic to the cause of Christ. Your sharing the Gospel with others will FALL ON MANY DEAF EARS.…
> Some might even mock and make fun.
> Some may oppose and contend and hinder.
> And in some lands, some even persecute and oppress.
• Finally, Jesus instructed his disciples that if any man asked what they were doing to say: “The Lord hath need of him.”
Think of it—“The Lord hath need of him!”
> Not, “the Lord is going punish him,” which would surely be just and fair for every sinner on earth.
> Not that—but, “The Lord hath NEED of him!”
> Finally, a PURPOSE in life! God’s purpose for you is to LIVE for Him, and to SERVE Him, and to GLORIFY Him in your life.
Folks, when I saw those parallels, I was reminded that God tells us to go and tell the Good News that Jesus can loose people from their sin and give them everlasting life, and a future in heaven and peace and joy and fulfillment! Many are out there waiting to be freed; the question is: Are we submissive to Christ’s command to go and tell?
Jesus told these disciples exactly what to do about this little donkey, and they were submissive in every respect. May God help us as believers to be submissive and go as Christ has commanded.
Besides Jesus and the disciples, note one more picture of submission in our text…
III. THE SUBMISSION OF THE DONKEY TO THE CREATOR AND KING – Luke 19:35-38 – “And they brought him to Jesus: and they cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus thereon. 36 And as he went, they spread their clothes in the way. 37 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 for all the mighty works that they had seen; 38 Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.”
The disciples brought this colt to Jesus, cast their garments on it, and Jesus sat on it—a cold on which never a man sat before, according to verse 30, that is, it was not broken. And yet, when Jesus sat on it, it docilely carried Jesus into the city amid the loud throng. Amazing!
You see, the most stubborn animal of all equine species is the donkey. Any farmer knows that the donkey has a reputation for being the most ornery, stubborn, hard-headed, contrary animal on the farm. And yet here we have the stubborn will of a donkey totally submitted to Jesus!
ALL of nature was submissive to Jesus—storms, the winds, the sea, fish, rocks—they were all subject to His will. Only MANKIND shakes his stubborn fist in the face of God in rebellion.
But that’s foolish and dangerous. God is your maker and the maker of something is its boss. You can live in sin if you choose and reject God’s free gift of salvation offered through His Son, Jesus, but someday a day of reckoning is coming.
The writer of Hebrews said, “…it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” (Hebrews 9:27)
Paul says in Ephesians 2:4 that God is “rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us.”—But in the verse just before that, He says those without Christ are “the children of wrath”—under condemnation for sin.
Even a donkey submits to His creator, so today, why don’t you listen to Him?…
What does He want you to do? Jesus said in John 6:40 – “And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.” God’s will is that you believe on His Son, Jesus Christ, for salvation.
¿Are you here today and lost, bound by sin, facing God’s judgment? Dear friend, flee to the loving arms of Jesus who will cleanse you from all sin and give you life everlasting if you’ll but TRUST Him to do it.
Sadly, those without Christ aren’t the only ones who are not submissive to God. Even Christians sometimes refuse to be submissive to their Maker.
> God works in our lives and wants to change us and give us the power over sins in our lives, but sometimes we’re stubborn, like an old mule.
> Sometimes God decides the best thing for us are some trials to mold us and make us more like His Son, and often we stubbornly resist the trials.
> Sometimes we ask Him to do something for us and in His infinite wisdom He answers us with a “no” or “not now” and we don’t want to submit to His will.
Brethren, God wants to take full control of your life and be your master and He wants you to submit to Him in all things. Oh, that we would just learn to be like this dumb mule and submit to God! We would be so much happier and we would save ourselves so much heartache.
CONCLUSION
So there you have it—three examples of perfect submission:
• JESUS was obedient unto death—even the death of the cross.
• The DISCIPLES obeyed Jesus’s instructions, even an odd one about securing a mule for Him.
• And a stubborn old DONKEY obeyed the King of Kings!
How about you?
• Have you submitted to God’s command to believe on Jesus and be saved?
If not, then why don’t you bow your head today and tell God that you know you’re a sinner; that you’re under condemnation; that you accept His free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ; that you believe Jesus died for you; that you want to serve Him the rest of your life!
If you’ll do that, you have the solemn promise of God in John 3:15 – “That whosoever believeth in him [shall] not perish, but have eternal life.”
• Christian, is there some way you have not submitted to God in your life?—Perhaps some sin you’re excusing you know God wants you to stop?; some habit God wants you to quit?; some activity you know God wants to have His way in your life over?
Have you submitted to be baptized?; to go and tell others about Christ?; to live a holy life?; to love and forgive even those who treat us most harshly?; to tithe to God’s work?; to help the poor and needy?; to have a part in missions?
I could not begin to cover all the ways God may be dealing with you in your life, but whatever He says, obey His voice; submit to His commands; yield to His will.
It is only as we obey that we experience the greatest joys in the Christian life.
This morning, I want to extend to you the call to surrender…to be like Jesus, His disciples, and even a stubborn mule.
