OUTDONE BY A BRICK
Text: Lk. 19:28-40
Introduction
1. Illustration: It was Palm Sunday but because of a sore throat, 5-year-old Sammy stayed home from church with a babysitter. When the family returned home, they were carrying several palm branches. Sammy inquired as to what they were for. 'People held them over Jesus' head as he walked by,' his father responded. 'Wouldn't you just know it?' Sammy complained, 'the one Sunday I don't go, and Jesus shows up.' [funny-jokes.com]
2. Well, Jesus is here today, in fact, he’s here every Sunday! The question is do we come prepared to give him the kind of worship he deserves?
3. Our text this morning not only tells us about the events of the first Palm Sunday, but also it tells us about worship. It tells us about…
a. Preparation For Worship
b. Exuberance In Worship
4. Read Lk. 19:28-40
Proposition: When we worship, we need to give God everything we have to give.
Transition: First, Palm Sunday teaches us about…
I. Preparation For Worship (28-34).
A. You Will See a Young Donkey
1. Jesus’ journey to the cross is starting to come to its height. To show that he knew his mission, and that it was not a hap hazard attempt, Jesus made detailed preparations to complete his journey. In v. 29, we read, “As he came to the towns of Bethphage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives, he sent two disciples ahead.”
a. Bethphage and Bethany were two towns that were about a mile apart from each other and were located on the Mount of Olives to the east of Jerusalem.
b. This was an area they knew well because Jesus’ friends Mary, Martha, and Lazarus lived in Bethany.
c. Luke tells us that Jesus sent two of his disciples ahead on a mission.
2. The mission that he gives these two disciples in rather unique. He says, “Go into that village over there,” he told them. “As you enter it, you will see a young donkey tied there that no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks, ‘Why are you untying that colt?’ just say, ‘The Lord needs it.’ ”
a. The mission he sent them on was miraculous.
b. First, Jesus knew there was a young donkey there, it was unbroken and had never been ridden on.
c. The second part of the miracle is that Jesus knew the opposition they would face, and he told them exactly what to say.
d. He said, “just tell them the Lord needs it.”
3. Well, guess what? It happened just as Jesus said it would. “So they went and found the colt, just as Jesus had said. 33 And sure enough, as they were untying it, the owners asked them, “Why are you untying that colt?” 34 And the disciples simply replied, “The Lord needs it.”
a. It was remarkable that everything happened as Jesus said it would.
b. They found the donkey and untied it, and again, just as Jesus said, they were asked why they were taking it.
c. So, the disciples did as Jesus told them and said, “The Lord needs it.”
d. Now, understand what’s going on here. To just show up and take someone’s donkey for them is like someone showing up and running off with your car.
e. Now, I don’t know, but if someone walked into my driveway unannounced and starts climbing into my truck, we’re gonna have a problem!
f. And if they look at me and say, “The Lord needs it! I’m gonna tell them, “The Lord better come and ask me in person!”
g. But that is not how the owner of the donkey responds. He just lets them take it.
4. This whole scenario is very significant.
a. First, only an animal that had never been used for ordinary purposes were appropriate for sacred purposes.
b. Another reason it is significant is a donkey was a sign of humility.
c. Jesus wasn’t coming to take over from a worldly standpoint. He wasn’t coming to make war, he was coming to bring peace.
5. However, the most important thing in all of this is that Jesus was fulfilling prophecy. In Zechariah 9:9 it says,
a. Rejoice, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey—riding on a donkey’s colt.
b. Jesus was identifying himself as the Messiah. The donkey showed that he was a king in the royal line of David because before and during David’s reign the donkey was seen as a royal animal.
c. Secondly, it shows his humbleness. So, he was both a king and his character as a servant.
B. Prepare Your Hearts
1. Illustration: Of the 6 foundational faith practices- worship, evangelism, discipleship, fellowship, stewardship, and compassionate service—most churchgoers embrace worship. A new Barna survey reveals that 75% of all adults, and 92% of churched adults; say it’s very important to them to worship God. 1/3 of church attenders always feel they experience God’s presence or interact with Him at church, another 1/3 say it happens often, and for the remaining 1/3 its less frequent. Men had such an experience less often than women. Only 4 out of 10 frequent church attending adults prepare for worship. Those most likely to ready themselves were women and residents of the Northeast. Many church attenders do not make worship a daily exercise but reserve it as a special weekend activity. While 68% of all church-going adults say they always "look forward to worshiping God," millions of churchgoers struggle to clear their minds to focus on God in worship. (Barna.org 2/21/01)
2. We need to prepare our hearts, minds, and bodies for worship.
a. “In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.” (Jer. 29:12-13)
b. When we come to church on Sunday morning, are we prepared to worship the Lord?
c. Do we wake up on Sunday morning excited to worship God with our church family? Or do we wake up and go, “Ugh, I have to get ready for church!”
d. When we say we’re getting ready for church what does that mean? Is it just physically, or are we preparing ourselves spiritually to worship God? Are we preparing ourselves mentally to worship God?
e. What is our attitude about church? Honestly, this ought to be the best part of our week! We should look forward to going to church!
f. Are we preparing our bodies for worship? If you’re too tired to go to church on Sunday maybe, you ought to go to bed earlier on Saturday night!
g. What do you listen to on your way to church? Consider listening to worship music on your ride to church.
h. The bottom line is we need to prepare ourselves to worship the Lord.
Transition: We need to prepare ourselves for…
II. Exuberance In Worship (35-40).
A. His Followers Began to Shout and Sing
1. So, now Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem begins with, as Luke tells us in vv. 35-36, “ So they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their garments over it for him to ride on. As he rode along, the crowds spread out their garments on the road ahead of him.”
a. First, his disciples take their garments on the donkey for Jesus to ride on.
b. This is what they did for royalty in Jesus’ day. So, this was literally a ride fit for a king.
c. In addition to the disciples’ garments on the donkey, the people in the crowd began to spread their garments on the road in front of him, kind of like a carpet.
d. Now, Luke only tells us about the garments, but Matthew and Mark tell us that they also laid palm branches in front of Jesus too.
2. Then in v. 37, Luke tells us, “When he reached the place where the road started down the Mount of Olives, all of his followers began to shout and sing as they walked along, praising God for all the wonderful miracles they had seen.”
a. As Jesus began riding closer to Jerusalem, people began to get excited.
b. Luke tells us that the people began to shout and sing.
c. They were praising God for all the wonderful miracles they had seen Jesus’ perform.
d. You’ll notice that this spontaneous praise was not something laid back or stoic, but they were exuberant.
e. They were shouting and singing as they praised God for all they had seen and heard.
f. Come, everyone! Clap your hands! Shout to God with joyful praise! 2 For the LORD Most High is awesome. He is the great King of all the earth.” (Ps. 47:1-2)
3. One of the things that Luke tells us they shouted was, “Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the LORD! Peace in heaven, and glory in highest heaven!”
a. The saying “Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the Lord!” was often recited during the Passover festival as a blessing given by the people of Jerusalem to visiting pilgrims.
b. The people lined the road, praising God at the top of their lungs, waving branches, and throwing their garments in front of the donkey as it passed by.
c. What they were saying was “Long live the King!” They knew that Jesus was fulfilling prophecy of the long-awaited Messiah.
4. But as you might imagine, there were some folks that weren’t as excited about all of this, that’s right, the Pharisees. “But some of the Pharisees among the crowd said, “Teacher, rebuke your followers for saying things like that!” He replied, “If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!”
a. What a bunch of fuddy duddies, kill joys, and party poopers! They thought that what the crowd was saying was sacrilegious and blasphemous.
b. A part of the reason for their objection was they were jealous. People were following Jesus and ignoring them.
c. Furthermore, they were afraid the Romans would get angry because the people were calling Jesus a king.
d. But Jesus told them, “If they keep quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!” Jesus is making a reference to Habakkuk 2:11, “The very stones in the walls cry out against you, and the beams in the ceilings echo the complaint.” (Habakkuk 2:11)
e. When the people of God are worshipping Jesus in spirit and in truth nothing can silence us!
B. In Spirit and in Truth
1. Illustration: The Call to Worship had just been pronounced starting Easter Sunday Morning service in an East Texas church. The choir started its processional, singing "Up from the Grave He Arose" as they marched in perfect step down the center aisle to the front of the church. The last lady was wearing shoes with very slender heels. Without a thought for her fancy heels, she marched toward the grating that covered that hot air register in the middle of the aisle. Suddenly the heel of one shoe sank into the hole in the register grate. In a flash she realized her predicament. Not wishing to hold up the whole processional, without missing a step, she slipped her foot out of her shoe and continued marching down the aisle. There wasn’t a hitch. The processional moved with clock-like precision. The first man after her spotted the situation and without losing a step, reached down and pulled up her shoe, but the entire grate came with it! Surprised, but still singing, the man kept on going down the aisle, holding in his hand the grate with the shoe attached. Everything still moved like clockwork. Still in tune and still in step, the next man in line stepped into the open register and disappeared from sight. The service took on a special meaning that Sunday, for just as the choir ended with "Alleluia! Christ arose!" a voice was heard under the church shouting…"I hope y’all are out of the way ‘cause I’m coming out now!" The little girl closest to the aisle shouted, "Come on, Jesus! We’ll stay out of the way." (Autoillustrator.com, "WORSHIP")
2. Let’s not be outdone by a brick!
a. He replied, “If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!”
b. I’ve got to be honest; we worship like a bunch of Episcopalian’s!
c. Now, back in January when the Georgia Bulldogs won the National Championship, I know y’all got excited!
d. Well, if we can get excited about a football game, why can’t we get excited about worshipping Jesus?!
e. Have you ever noticed the United Methodist logo? It has a cross and a bright red flame alongside of it. The reason for that was we had a reputation for being on fire for God!
f. Come on church, let’s put the fire back in the Methodist Church!
g. Let’s get excited about worshipping Jesus!
Conclusion
1. Well, Jesus is here today, in fact, he’s here every Sunday! The question is do we come prepared to give the kind of worship he deserves?
2. Our text this morning not only tells us about the events of the first Palm Sunday, but also it tells us about worship. It tells us about…
a. Preparation For Worship
b. Exuberance In Worship
3. What’s the point? The point is we serve the King of King’s and Lord of Lord’s, so let’s worship him fire in our hearts and shouts of joy coming from our mouths.
