Just as Jesus came into the ancient city of Jerusalem back then, He’s come again and again into our churches and our lives. He came physically then but He has the ability to come even more powerfully now. He is here in this room but His presence can become even more apparent. The atmosphere can change and we experience His royal presence. We call these times a revival or an awakening. It's a time when God Himself visits His people.
Periodically great awakenings punctuate our spiritual history. It’s the time when God comes near. The streets of Jerusalem were alive that day – alive with the splendor of the King. Do you desire to see the streets of DFW alive with His splendor?
I wonder why so many of us are so sluggish today? For the next few moments, my goal is to see us to burn with a fresh desire to praise Him as they did on this day some two millennia ago. Oh, that our streets would blaze with the splendor of the immortal King as they did in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday!
Perhaps God would grant me the ability to speak a sentence today to incite your enthusiasm for Jesus this morning. If only our hearts would be set on ready and we sit on the edge of our seats with a passionate desire to see Him come again down the streets of our city. Maybe God will permit me the opportunity to inflame someone’s soul with a fervent desire to welcome the King in our midst today. Would this be the day when heaven and earth again ring with His praises?
Today’s Scripture
Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” 4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying,
5 “Say to the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:1-9)
Today, I want to speak to you about Five Essential Ingredients of Real Revival.
1. You Get Excited
Times of worship and awakening happen are astonishing. There are simply times that no one can explain – when the fullness of the Spirit breaks out on God’s people. It’s as if Christ has ridden among His people over and over again.
The 1857-1858 Awakening in Wales
There’s this terrific story about a little boy. There was a revival that broke out, a tremendous movement of the Spirit of God that broke out in Northern Ireland in the county of Derry, in a little town called Coleraine, I think. Here’s how it broke out: One day there was a little boy who had been going to church. He was about twelve years old and he was in school. He was very unhappy, and he found himself getting depressed and crying, and his teacher tried to help him out. Then finally the teacher said, “Look, I don’t know what’s wrong, but you need to go home.” Actually, the little boy had been coming to church and was wrestling with whether or not he was a Christian and what it meant to be a Christian. So the teacher suggested, since he was very upset, that another one of his friends, another little boy, take him home and then come back. It turned out that the other twelve-year-old boy was a Christian, and on the way home he was talking to his friend and he found out he was wrestling with what it meant to be a Christian and he explained it. His Christian friend sat down and talked to him and led him to Christ. He showed him what it meant to put his trust in Christ. When this happened, they were so excited and so happy, and the little boy who was brand new in the kingdom, turns around and says, “There’s no reason for me to go home. I’m going to go back to school. I feel great.” So what happens is they go back to school. Now, you know it’s a revival when boys want to go back to school.
This is true. This happened in 1857. The little boy comes back on in, comes up to the front, and says to the teacher, “It’s all right. I don’t need to go home.” The teacher says, “Well what’s going on? What happened? Why are you feeling better?” He says, “It’s all right. I’m a Christian now. Jesus has saved me,” and he sat down. When he said that, just those few words, there was this tremendous silence that happened in the room. Over the next few minutes, the teacher began to get kids who came upfront and said, “Can I talk to that kid who walked out with the second kid? I’m concerned about my soul as well.” It got so bad that the teacher began to find that most of the room was very interested and the teacher didn’t know what to do. A couple of hours later, many of the parents came to pick up their children and found that all of the class was broken into little prayer groups all over the courtyard, all over the schoolyard, all over the school. Not only were their children in there, but the teachers were talking to this little boy and they were talking to one another. They were praying, they were leading one another to Christ, and they said, “Oh my gosh, what are we going to do about this?”
Somebody sent for one of the local pastors. When the pastor got there, he found the parents were involved in this thing. That school and the schoolyard became clogged with people from town, and nobody would go home. The minister began to try to talk to them, and they stayed there all night. There were literally dozens and dozens of people finding Christ, talking to one another, weeping out their sins, and so forth. The next day everybody said, “Something amazing has happened. Let’s get together and have a special church service and listen to the testimonies of the new believers.” They went and the church couldn’t fit all the people into it - virtually the whole town was there. When the minister had preached his sermon and they all prayed, he said, “You can all go home,” but nobody would. They stayed there for two days straight, singing, giving testimonies, insisting that various ministers get up there and preach to them. What ended up happening over the next two years was there were 300,000 people living in Northern Ireland at that time in those six northern counties, and over one-third of them were converted and came into the church in a period of about eighteen months.
What happened? How does this kind of thing happen? Why don’t we experience this all the time?
I prepare my sermons. I pray over them and work hard. Yet, here’s this one kid who gets up there in front and says, “It’s all right now; Jesus has saved me,” and sits down and turns an entire culture on its ear. What happened? I’ll tell you what happened – Christ rode into town.
When Christ rides into your town, it was not possible for men to be cold at the sight of his majesty. People surrounded Jesus on this day with a flaming love and a heated passion. There was enthusiasm for Christ everywhere you went throughout the city of Jerusalem on that day. Children climbed trees to see Him and the shouts of praise weren’t for a football game! The shouts were loud and long! Whenever the presence of Christ is near, there’s enthusiasm among God’s people.
Here the words of the Psalmist: “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever!
2 Let Israel say, “His steadfast love endures forever.”
3 Let the house of Aaron say, “His steadfast love endures forever.”
4 Let those who fear the Lord say, “His steadfast love endures forever” (Psalm 118:1-4).
Someone may complain, “Pastor, there’s too much excitement! Some of you Jesus people are embarrassing.” Listen, we’ve erred so long on cold and boring that if the boat leans to the side of heat and fervor, it won’t be the worst thing to happen. I’m not afraid of cooling down a few zealots – it’s warming up the corpses that keeps me up at night. If only there was more evidence of global warming inside worship centers, we’d have a different nation.
2. You Are Obedient
Take special note that the disciples obeyed Jesus. Jesus says “Go” and they went. Jesus says, “Speak” and they spoke. Jesus says, “Take” and they took. Part of the reason this celebration took place was because His children obeyed Him.
Disobedience hinders the progress of the gospel. Disobedience dampens the tenor of worship and praise. So many people gather for worship with no real need of obeying Him.
Look at these men … they have reverence for Jesus’ every word. They obey immediately and cheerfully. Many will come to Jesus asking, “Will you be my consultant?” Jesus says in reply, “I’m much more than your consultant. I can be your shepherd, your brother, your friend, and your guide. But I will not be anything less than your King.” “I want all of you or none of you.”
There was excitement…
There was obedience…
But notice the third ingredient…
3. You Give Gladly
The owners of the colt and donkey quickly surrender their possession for Jesus’ entry into the city. Even the disciples contributed their cloaks and piled them on the back of the colt for Jesus. They weren’t going to have Jesus ride this animal barebacked. Look, they didn’t have much to give but what they had, they gave. Those who didn’t have an animal for Christ to ride gave a cloak. And those that didn’t have a cloak purchased or cut down a nearby Palm branch and offered this. Every hand contributed and every person gave was willing.
How can there be a celebration when no one spreads their cloaks? And how can there be a celebration when no one gives up their donkey or colt? Mark this: Jesus will take away His Spirit from a people who fail to give generously. He’ll remove His anointing upon a people who give grudgingly.
A generous spirit marks all real worship. No one withheld on the day of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem.
There was Excitement…
There was Obedience…
There was Glad-Hearted Giving…
But notice the fourth ingredient…
3. You Give Gladly
4. You Praise Publically
Real worship is marked by public praise. I’m leery of anyone who calls themselves a Christian and doesn’t praise publicly. Moles stay underground and bats hide away in caves. But real believers boldly praise Him.
Again, we hear… “Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength!
8 Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts!
9 Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness; tremble before him, all the earth” (Psalm 96:7-9)!
When the cool breeze of the Spirit blows through God’s people, you’ll see people publicly praise His name. In places all across the globe, people are not allowed to publically praise Jesus for fear of persecution and retribution. When Jesus’ name is spoken publically in the streets of North Tarrant Parkway and Keller Parkway and on Airport Freeway, we’ll see a stirring.
Read this account in each and every gospel and you’ll not find one place where Jesus rejected the praise that was offered Him. He stopped none of His disciples and commanded no children to be silent. Here the words of the Psalmist: “Praise the Lord, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! 2 For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord!” (Psalm 117:1-2)
When Jesus is with His people, the complaining and the griping cease. And every heart is tuned to the loudest notes of praise.
How else would God’s people act when He is present, for our hearts long to be with Him when He’s away: “For a day in your courts is better
than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of wickedness” (Psalm 84:10).
If this is how you feel when He’s away, imagine what happens when He’s present! When the King is with His people, there is singing and shouting. The Pharisees always complain of His praise: “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out” (Luke 19:40).
What I would give to hear the people spontaneously say, “Hosanna!” That all people of all races, both wealthy and poor, would gather together with one voice – “Hosanna!”
Young men and old men with one voice – “Hosanna!”
You Get Excited
You Are Obedient
You Give Gladly
You Praise Publically
But lastly…
5. You Witness to Others
When real worship, real awakening comes to God’s people, it always stirs people to witness.
The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. 18 The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”
20 Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. 21 So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus” (John 12:17-21).
Listen again to the words of the Pharisees: “Look, the world has gone after him.” (John 12:19b)
His Enemies Are Quiet
He rode publicly through the streets where Herod and Pilate held their courts, yet they did not attempt to molest him. The Romans were very jealous of their authority, they were always prompt to seize upon any person who pretended to be a king, and yet not a solitary praetorian guard laid his rough hand upon the King of the Kings. Not one of Herod’s men appeared upon the scene. The scribes and Pharisees barked a little but there was little bite to their complaint. In a few days, He’ll submit to the Roman scourging but now, watch Him ride through the city streets without even a sword to protect Him. On Monday, He’ll enter the Temple to overturn the tables of the moneychangers without so much as a whimper of resistance.
Behold, the King has come!
Invitation
There’s no joy like the joy when Christ is with His people. When spring arrives, the frozen ponds break open. And when the King arrives, frozen hearts spring forth with life! Listen: “Behold, he comes.”
On one hand, His majesty and His might are infinite - none can resist Him. But on the other hand, he comes gently. He takes in the lepers. He takes in the blind and the lame. He takes in the children and the prostitutes.
What kind of king is this? Coming to the cross to pray.
