Blessed Is The King

BLESSED IS THE KING

Mark 11:1-11

For some thirty-three years Jesus Christ lived and served here on earth. Fulfilling the prophecy recorded in Isaiah 52:13, He “dealt prudently.” God’s Servant discerned and accomplished His will. Our Lord fulfilled many prophecies, preached with power and authority, performed many miracles, changed countless lives, and saved many souls.

Throughout His ministry Jesus often declared that His “hour had not yet come.” When He made His Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, His hour had arrived.

The events of Passion Week began on a dusty road just outside of Jerusalem. That road would lead to pain, sorrow, anguish, and death; however, this road would lead to the ultimate victory!

As Jesus entered the city a great celebration took place. The people began to lay their clothes in the way before Him and they waved palm branches and cried, "Hosanna! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!' Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!"(Mark 11:10). Within a few days the atmosphere in the city would change dramatically. The shouts of “Hosanna” would soon be replaced with cries of “crucify Him.”

I would like for us to examine Jesus’ Triumphal entry and the events that followed His arrival and consider the thought, “Blessed Is The King.”

There were certain preparations that we made before Jesus made His way into Jerusalem. To the Disciples it may have seemed as if they engaged in some menial, unimportant task, but they would soon witness the fulfillment of Bible prophecy. Let’s examine:

THE PROPHECY THAT JESUS FULFILLED

v1 Now when they drew near Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples; 2 and He said to them, "Go into the village opposite you; and as soon as you have entered it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has sat. Loose it and bring it.”

Jesus instructed His Disciples to go into a certain village and retrieve a young donkey. The Lord knew that someone would ask why they were taking it; so He said, “if anyone says to you, 'Why are you doing this?' say, 'The Lord has need of it,' and immediately he will send it here." The Disciples obeyed their Master and found a colt that had never been ridden tied by a door near the street. As predicted, someone asked why they were taking the colt. The Disciples said, “the Lord needs him” and the people allowed them to proceed. “Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their clothes on it, and He sat on it.” (v7)

On surface it may seem like an insignificant detail that Jesus borrowed a young donkey and rode it into Jerusalem. However, this detail is particularly important because it was a fulfillment of biblical prophecy. The prophet Zechariah spoke about this moment back in 520 BC. He said: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey. (Zechariah 9:9)

In Zechariah’s day, Jerusalem was still in ruins and the process of rebuilding had just begun. But He spoke of a day when the Messiah would come and Jerusalem will be filled with His glory.

Jesus fulfilled many prophecies during His time on earth. Every prophecy that He fulfilled proved that He was exactly who He said He was. Scholars say that the probability of one man fulfilling just eight of the prophecies referring to the Messiah is 1 in 100 Trillion. Jesus fulfilled over three hundred prophecies the first time He came. Riding into the city on this young colt was just one of the many evidences that Jesus was (and is) the promised Messiah.

The Disciples brought the donkey to Jesus and then threw their clothes on its back in the place of a saddle. Jesus ascended the donkey and began to make His way towards Jerusalem. When He entered the city, a multitude was waiting for Him. Let’s take some time and examine:

THE PEOPLE WHO WERE GATHERED

There were many different kinds of people in the crowd on that day; some were genuine followers, some were enemies, and some were skeptics. Notice that:

A. SOME WERE FOLLOWERS OF CHRIST

Many of the people in attendance were genuine followers of Jesus. Some had been with Him almost every step of the way throughout His earthly ministry. It is likely that Bartimaeus, Zacchaeus, Lazarus, Mary, Martha, and others were present on this day. We know that the 12 Disciples were there. It is a safe assumption that there were many other faithful followers there as well.