(This is a shorter sermon used on Facebook Live during the Coronavirus pandemic)
What is today? Today is Palm Sunday, the day we set aside to remember what many call “The Triumphal Entry” of Jesus into Jerusalem.
Where do we find that? Matthew 21:1-11
As you look that up in your Bibles to read along, let’s try to see how this connects to what we have been doing these past couple of weeks.
Pastor Karenlee has challenged us to diligently look into Psalm 119 to see what the Lord has to say to us and how we can apply what we learn to our spiritual lives to help us grow.
At the same time we have been looking at what is known as The Lord’s Prayer found in Matthew 6:9-16.
We see this prayer as a pattern for prayer and not as a prayer to be endlessly repeated as a magical incantation. Jesus was teaching His disciples to pray.
Last week we looked at the opening portion of the prayer that says,
“Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed by Thy name.” and how that points out that we are to pray only to God the Father and that we are to pray with great reverence and worship.
Today we will try to connect three things …
- The second part of the prayer, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
- How it connects to Psalm 119
- And, how that relates to Palm Sunday
We see in Psalm 119:2-3 it says, “Blessed are those who keep His statutes and seek Him with all their heart - they do no wrong but follow His ways.”
That tracks right along with, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”, right???
With that in mind please read along as Pastor Karenlee reads Matthew 21:1-11
Let’s try to place ourselves back into that time frame.
- It is the time of the great festival and feast of Passover
- Jesus has performed many great miracles including the raising of Lazarus
- In John 11 we are told that the Jewish leaders had put a plan into place to arrest Jesus and they were
wondering, “What do you think? Isn’t he coming to the festival at all?” John 11:56b
- Jesus had disputed with the haughty Jewish leaders; something which no one else dared to do
- Is He the Messiah, the Christ?
- Will He throw off Roman rule over Israel?
- Will He perform a miracle for us to see?
- Most do not know even what He looks like
- Now He has been identified and many in the crowd of people streaming into Jerusalem run to see Him.
- Others run out of the city to meet Him
- Children are shouting praises of:
o Hosanna to the Son of David (title for the Messiah)
o Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord
o Hosanna in the highest Heaven
- It’s a madhouse!
o Many adore Him hoping He is the Messiah
o Many hate Him believing Him to be a heretic
“Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Is the will of the people the same as the will of Jesus?
(PKL reads Luke 19:37-44)
What was God’s will for Jerusalem?
Ever since the time when King David began gathering materials for the Temple to be built in Jerusalem it was to be the City of God.”
Jerusalem was where the Jews gathered each year for the three great feast festivals. These festivals all celebrated acts that the Lord had done to save and prosper Israel when they lived in obedience to His word.
So, what do we see on what we would refer to as the first Palm Sunday?
We see:
- The celebration of a great miracle worker
- The celebration of a political figure who would deliver them from Roman dominion
What should they have seen?
- Someone who was performing miracles by the power of God the Father flowing through God the Son
- Someone who was going to bring deliverance from slavery to sin
- Someone who would free them from the everlasting penalty of sin
But once again they were falling into the trap of, “My kingdom come, my will be done on earth” instead of “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
What about Jesus in your life? What about Jesus in my life?
Am I seeking His kingdom or my kingdom?
Am I seeking His will or my will?
Am I interested in God having the same authority in my life as He has in Heaven?
Am I desiring to be a part of His kingdom here on earth or do I want Him to build my kingdom here on earth?
Is my greatest desire to be healthy or would I be willing to suffer physically if it brought glory to God?
Is my desire to prosper financially or am I willing to be obedient to the Lord even if it costs me a promotion or even my job?
Are we excited to praise God when things are going well and quick to complain when something does not go our way?
Are we committed to the Lord, “To love and to honor Him from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness or in health until in death we meet Him in a way more gloriously than we can ever know Him here?”
If we make the commitment by the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus will make a Triumphal entry into your heart today!
But remember, just as on that great day when Jesus entered into Jerusalem 2,000 years ago it was leading to the Cross of Calvary where He would die in my place and in your place for our sin.
We can never forget the cross.
We can never take the cross for granted.
The cross is not only a celebration of what Jesus did for our salvation.
The cross is also a symbol of shame that reminds us that it was our wretched, sinful state that made His death necessary.
(Sing Lead Me to Calvary)
Final thoughts and prayer
