The Better King Series

OPEN: There’s a parable about the donkey that carried Jesus into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. When the donkey awoke the next day he walked into town and strutted in front of some people gathered at a well. But they didn’t notice him. They just went on drawing water and paid him no mind. He was shocked! The day before they waved palm branches as he approached. The crowd had shouted out “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD.” But now someone slapped him on the side and ordered him to move on. So, the donkey moved on to the market hoping maybe they’d remember him. But nobody paid any attention to him. He strutted down the street, but no one seemed to notice him. Hurt and confused, the donkey returned home to his mother. And his mother smiled and said: “Foolish child. Don’t you realize that without Him, you are just an ordinary donkey?” (Adapted from Hot Illustrations for Youth Talks by Wayne Rice. Copyright 1994 by Youth Specialties, Inc.)

Now, that’s just a parable. But it points to something very important. The donkey felt the praise and the attention was for him. But instead it was for Jesus. Instead it was the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Without the King, that donkey was just an ordinary donkey.

Our text today points out that God had this all planned out from the beginning. Long before Jesus was born of Mary, Melchizedek appeared in Genesis. And God intended to use Melchizedek as portrait of Jesus. When you see Melchizedek… you’re seeing Jesus. Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God… by translation… his name (is) KING of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, KING of peace.”

You see, Melchizedek was a king of righteousness and a King of Peace. That’s who Jesus was born to be. When you read about Melchizedek, you should be seeing Jesus because God intended you to see Jesus in who Melchizedek was.

Jesus was born to be a King. And not just any King. He was born to be a better king and a greater king than any other ruler who’d ever come before… or who’d ever come after.

Revelation 19:30 described Jesus as “KING OF KINGS and Lord of lords.”

Isaiah 9:6 prophesied: Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

And as a result, Philippians 2:10-11 says, “At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

One day, every king -- and every ruler --- will bow before Jesus, and they will confess that He is Lord to the glory of the Father. There is no king on earth that has ever been as great as Jesus!

But what is it that makes Jesus greater? What makes Him better than other Kings and rulers of this world? Well, He’s greater because of WHO He is… and WHAT He could give.

Hebrews 7:2 says “He’s the King of righteousness.” What does that mean? It means that, not only is He completely righteous, (which no mortal King could ever be) but He can make YOU righteous!

Now, that’s no small thing because God has made it clear. “There is no-one righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:10), and “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)

So… you’re not righteous! And if you’re not righteous, how’s Jesus EVER going to make you righteous? Well, the answer is: Jesus came to give you His righteousness.

2 Corinthians 5:21 says “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that IN HIM (in Jesus) we might become the righteousness of God.”

You and I are not righteous. We’ve NEVER done anything that would make God say “Hey, that person deserves heaven!” But God loved us so much that He sent His only begotten Son to die in our place to give us His righteousness so that we might have everlasting life.

ILLUS: Someone once noted that - when a baby lamb’s mother dies in childbirth - that newly-born lamb desperately needs the care of its mother. Without a mother… that lamb will die! But, why not give the lamb to another female sheep who had lost a lamb about the same time? Well, apparently that doesn’t work. Every lamb has its own unique scent. A mother sheep recognizes her own lamb by its scent. And if a lamb doesn’t have the right scent, the she will reject it. So, what can be done with a hungry orphaned lamb? Down thru the centuries, what shepherds have done is to take the skin of a lamb that has died in birth and wrap it around the motherless lamb like a sweater. Then the “clothed” lamb is presented to the mother of the dead lamb. She sniffs the lamb, recognizes the scent, and accepts the lamb as her own. If that baby lamb doesn’t “SMELL” right, and it’ll be rejected. And… because of our sin, we don’t smell RIGHT to God either. According to Isaiah 59:2 your “sins have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” Like orphaned lambs and we would be destined to die. But God loved us so much that He provided a remedy to our predicament: He gave His Son—the Lamb of God (John 1:29)—to die on the cross for our sins (Ephesians 1:7). Jesus, the sinless Lamb DIED in our place. And that made it so that we could be “wrapped up in Jesus.” We can take on HIS righteousness… His smell (if you will)