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Palm Sunday A.D. 2020

Christ Church on April 5, 2020

Matthew 21:1–11, Psalm 118

1-7 The King Enters Jerusalem

Jesus had visited Jerusalem many times before, but this was to be his last visit prior to his arrest. And when he entered, he entered on the back of a donkey, in fulfillment of an Old Testament prophecy.

It is important to understand that in biblical literature the donkey was actually a sign of kingship. This goes all the way back to Jacob’s dying prophecy over Judah (Gen. 49:10-11). And throughout Scripture we continually see kings riding donkeys. Remember when David publicly announced that his son Solomon was to be the new king of Israel, he demonstrated this by parading Solomon through Jerusalem on the back of the king’s donkey (1 Kings 1:38, for other examples of rulers riding on donkeys see Judges 5:10, 10:4, 12:14). So it make sense that Zechariah would prophesy that the new king of Israel would arrive in Jerusalem on a donkey, a king who would exercise universal dominion (Zech. 9:9-10).

8-11 Hosanna

This next bit gets particularly hard to understand. The people lay branches in the road before Jesus as he enters Jerusalem, and they cry out “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” This seems like a bizarre way to behave. But to understand what is happening here, you need to understand Psalm 118 and that is not easy.

Psalm 118

Psalm 118 is like a confused dream if you just read it by itself. But when you hold it up to the rest of Scripture, especially to the life of Christ, and especially to his triumphal entry, then instead of being this confused dream, it turns into an answer key that helps to make everything else make sense.

Feast of Booths

Remember that in Old Testament Israel there were three pilgrim feasts – Passover, Pentecost, and Booths. At all three of these celebrations, the Jews would sing the Hallel – Psalms 113-118. And as part of the Feast of Booths, the Jews would bring their lullavim, made from the branches of the fruitful trees of Israel, and cast their lullavim onto the altar, while reciting Psalm 118:25. The cry “save now” in Hebrew is Hosanna!

So the people were taking the pieces of their celebration of the Feast of Booths and were applying this ceremony to Jesus. What they had celebrated as a type and a shadow they were now able to actually celebrate in its reality.

The Cornerstone

In verses 22-24, the Psalmist describes a rejected cornerstone, describing the very humble beginning of a building project. This is likely why bits of this Psalm are picked up to celebrate the laying of the foundation of the second temple (Ezra 3:11-13). But in a very early Jewish tradition this passage is understood as referring to David’s selection as king over all his brothers. And so you see all of these elements picked up in Jesus’ triumphal entry.

The Rejection

Over the next several chapters the Jewish leaders (Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians, the chief priests, and the scribes) all make clear their final rejection of Jesus’ teaching. He makes this the point of his parable of the wicked vinedressers (21:42-45, quoting Ps. 118:22-23). And again, after completing denunciation of the Jewish leadership in Matthew 23, he concludes with 23:38-39 (quoting Psalm 118:26).

Conclusion

One of the greatest vices of the evangelical church over the past century has been our bad habit of attempting to read our Bibles in light of our current events, instead of the other way around, which is to read our current events in light of our Bible. In Scripture you have a firm and certain word. In the world around you, as we have right now, you have a raucous multitude driven by whatever emotion has worked its way to the top of their esophagus. If you go from that raging emotion to Scripture you will have no end of confusion. But if you start with the clear testimony of Scripture you will find that you suddenly have your feet on an immovable rock.

So let’s start with Scripture and the promises of Psalm 118. These things have been promised to us and for us to be obedient means reading our current situation in light of this text.

The Greater Lazarus (Psalm Sunday 2019)

Christ Church on April 14, 2019

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Introduction

We are seeking to recover a Christian sense of time and history, and in some sense this means a recovery of the church year. But though we are seeking to escape a secularized calendar, we must never forget that we got this secular calendar (in part) because of a reaction away from the problem of “saints days glut.” And this means we cannot just be aware of the problems with ourimmediate past. We have to look farther back than this, and hence it is a means of guarding the future. What we need is balance.

The Text

On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord . . . (John 12:12-26).

Summary of the Text

Quite a few people heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem (v. 12), and when they heard this, they cut down palm branches and went out to meet Him (v. 13). Jesus, finding a young donkey, sat on it (v. 14), and thus fulfilled the words of the prophet Zechariah (v. 15). The disciples did not get the import of the Triumphal Entry until after Jesus was glorified (v. 16). People were in Jerusalem, talking about the raising of Lazarus (v. 17). This, in part, was why such a great crowd gathered (v. 18). The Pharisees had trouble seeing outside the immediate moment (v. 19). There were some Greeks there, who came to worship (v. 20), and they had heard about Jesus and asked Philip if they could see Him (v. 21). Philip and Andrew then come and ask Jesus about it (v. 22). Jesus answers (although it does not appear to be an answer), and says that the hour has come for Him to be glorified (v. 23). Death is necessary in order to bear fruit (v. 24). He then applies the principle more broadly, to all His followers (v. 25). Follow Me, Jesus says, and the Father will honor you (v.26).

The Time for Openness

Throughout His ministry, Jesus had spent a considerable amount of effort to get people to keep His miracles quiet. But His hour has come, and He does nothing to get thiscrowd to be quiet—as He says elsewhere, if the people were quiet, the stones would cry out. This crowd is here because of the resurrection of Lazarus, and Jesus does nothing to discourage them.

Deeper Glory

The disciples were caught up in the moment, and all they knew was the glory of it (and it was real glory). But it was only glory in preamble form, and there was a deeper glory coming. But in order for that deeper glory to arrive, it was necessary for the “corn of wheat” to fall into the ground and die (v. 24). Jesus had to explain this to His disciples. The exultation they felt was not the grand moment of victory.

In the same way, the Pharisees (with the same carnal eye) looked at the triumph of Jesus entering Jerusalem on a royal mount, heard the crowds, and lamented their loss— “behold, the world is gone after him” (v. 19). In other words, this was to be a roller coaster ride for them: despair, scheming, victory, and then ashen despair again. The disciples were operating on the same carnal level—only opposite. And this shows that there is a kind of “opposite” that is not really a demonstration of the antithesis at all, but is simply a matter of “taking sides.” This is why we have left and right, conservative and liberal, and so on. But the real antithesis is death versus life from the dead.

We Would See Jesus

In the pandemonium, certain Greeks came and wanted to see Jesus. Philip and Andrew ask about it, and Jesus gives a cryptic answer. But the answer is not a change of subject; the Lord is actually explaining how it is possible to see Jesus. But the answer involves much more than simply arranging for an appointment (which may have been what they were asking for).

The hour is coming when the Son of Man will be glorified (v. 23). How will that glorification occur? The seed must die (otherwise it remains solitary), but if it dies, it will bring forth much fruit (v. 24). The one who hates his own life shall regain it in eternal life, and the one who grasps to keep it will lose it (v. 25). This principle is now being extended by Jesus to His followers. What He is going to go through, they must go through also. If these Greeks want to really see Me, Jesus is saying, they must follow me. If they follow Him, they will be where He is and will do what He does also. They will also die, and they will also be fruitful. If this happens, then the Father will honor them. Now this is the only means these Greeks have of “seeing” Jesus that was different from how the Pharisees were also “seeing” Him at that moment.

The Greater Lazarus

Now the crowd was there because they had seen Lazarus raised, or had heard about Lazarus being raised (vv. 17-18). This meant that the multitude with the palm fronds knew that Jesus had authority over death. But what they did not know is that He had authority over death from the inside of it. If Jesus was here and death was there, then Jesus could fight with death the old-fashioned way, the way a knight might fight with a dragon. But Jesus was interested in far more than simply being opposed to death in some form of external combat. He walked into the maw of death in order to be swallowed by it, and to defeat death while a dead man. It was this feat that defeated all death at one blow, instead of having to bring people back, one at a time, like Lazarus.

Delayed Insight

The disciples did not realize until later that they had been the instrument of fulfilled prophecy (v. 16). They did not know these things at the first. But when Jesus was glorified, they realized it all. But Jesus talked to them about His approaching glorification (v. 23), and so it had been part of their conversation on that day. They talked about glorification, but it was not until they saw Jesus as glorified that any of this made any sense to them. But note what Jesus had taught here. It did not suddenly make sense to them simply because time had elapsed, because Jesus had died and was now glorified. It made sense to them because they had also died. They had gone through this death in different ways—Peter and John, for example, were quite different. But the shepherd had been struck and the sheep scattered. This, in a way, meant that the sheep had been struck as well. And when Jesus rose from the dead, so did His followers.

Jesus did not die so that we might live. He died so that we might die; He lives so that we might live.

Death and Fruitfulness

Many Christians glibly talk about having a fruitful Christian life, or a fruitful Christian ministry. They often mean nothing more than learning how to not mess up in obvious ways. But we use phrases like this in a way that should make us think of the request made of Jesus, that two brothers might sit on His right side and His left. Do you know what you asking? The answer was yes, but the answer was really no. When you ask to be fruitful, do you know what you are talking about? Not fully, but Jesus still issues the graceful invitation in the midst of His triumph. Come with Me. Come and die.

Palm Sunday 2018

Christ Church on March 25, 2018

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Introduction

We live in a world that hates authority. The world hates authority because it hates the Author (Jn. 15:17-24). The world hates the fact that God has exalted His Son to His right hand as Lord of all. Because Jesus is Lord, the world hates all lordship. But the good news of Palm Sunday is that Jesus is Lord and God is in, the process of restoring the gift of godly authority to us for the healing of the world.

The Text

“When Jesus drew near to Jerusalem He sent two disciples into a nearby village to commandeer a donkey and a colt for His use (Mt. 21:1-2). Jesus told them that if anyone asked what they were doing, they were to say that the Lord needed them (Mt. 21:3-4). Matthew says that this was done to fulfill Zechariah’s prophecy, and the disciples went and obeyed the command of Jesus (Mt. 21:5-6). The disciples spread their clothes on the donkey and the colt, and Jesus sat on them, and the crowds joined in spreading their garments and cutting down branches and laying them on the path and heralding Him as the Son of David (Mt. 21:7-9). When He arrived in Jerusalem, the whole city noticed and asked who He was and the multitude told them it was Jesus of Nazareth (Mt. 21:10-11). Jesus went all the way into the temple where He cast out those buying and selling, arguing that they had displaced prayer with theft (Mt. 21:12-13). Meanwhile, the blind and lame came to Him in the temple and were healed, and many children were shouting that Jesus was the Son of David (Mt. 21:14-15). This made the chief priests and scribes angry, but Jesus said that this was God’s doing, perfecting praise from infants” (Matt. 21:16).

The Commandeering King

Don’t miss the fact that authority is laced through this entire text. It begins with Jesus commanding two of His disciples to take some poor guy’s donkey and colt (Mt. 21:2-3, 6). And notice that both commands require faith. The disciples had to believe that Jesus had the right to command them and the fellow the donkey and colt belonged to. We know from Luke’s parallel account that the disciples were asked by the owners what they were doing, and the disciples told them exactly what Jesus said to say, the Lord has need of them (Lk. 19:33-34, Mt. 21:3). Notice that: the Lord needs them. No explanation, no further information. This is merely an assertion of authority, and the only possible response is to believe or not. Matthew says that all of this is actually even higher stakes than just commandeering a couple barn animals. He says that Jesus is fulfilling Zechariah’s prophecy that Israel’s King would come to Jerusalem riding on a donkey in order to defend His city, drive away all her enemies, and take up a dominion from the river to the ends of the earth (Mt. 21:5, Zech. 9:8-10). Finally, Jesus exerts His authority by driving out the money changers in the temple, quoting Isaiah 56, asserting that the temple belongs to Him (Mt. 21:12-13). Again, the response to this assertion is either acceptance or rejection. The chief priests and scribes reject His authority (cf. Mt. 21:23), while the lame and the blind and the children believe.

Authority and Faith

If you live in this world, our culture, you are marinating in hatred of authority, and so it cannot be any surprise to find that the Church has imbibed a great deal of this hatred, even while still saying things like Jesus is Lord. But the rot goes down deep, and we create workarounds to deal with our limp. But what we don’t realize is that getting used to the limp is getting used to the wrong sort of weakness. What is it that overcomes the world? “And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith” (1 Jn. 5:4). As a result of the Fall, authority has been corrupted and misused and this really does add to the difficulty and challenge of embracing lawful, biblical authority, but in our arrogance, we think it best to just ratchet all that authority talk way down, lest anyone misuse it, lest anyone get hurt. And in so doing, we are insisting that no one actually exercise any faith. Submission to authority requires faith. One time a centurion came to Jesus begging Him to heal his servant, but he told Jesus to just give the word because he understood how authority worked, and Jesus said He never saw such faith (Mt. 8:9-10). Many holy week sermons subtly succumb to exactly what the world wants us to say. You often hear that Jesus came to be a King, but He’s not a king like everyone expected. He’s a suffering King. And this is true as far as it goes, but the cumulative effect is often the message that Jesus wins through laying down His authority. And so the application becomes the same. But this is absolutely not true (e.g. Mt. 26:53, Jn. 19:11). Jesus insisted that no man could take His life from Him, that He was the only one who could lay it down and with the same authority He could take it back up again (Jn. 10:18).

Jesus Our Healer

Far too many people come into the Christian faith thinking that Christianity is a way to get God to bless your plans. But the most basic Christian creed is Jesus is Lord. This means He is your Master, your King. When Jesus calls a man, it is abundantly clear that He demands everything. But this is good news because only Jesus knows what it will take to eradicate our sin. So He assigns judges, pastors, presidents, husbands, fathers, mothers, teachers, etc. He must take our colts; He must overturn our tables; He must die. What is He doing? He’s healing us (Mt. 21:14). This means coming to Him with everything that ails us and praising Him like jubilant kids.

Jesus Our King

Matthew says that when Jesus rode into Jerusalem, He was fulfilling Zechariah’s prophecy: Israel’s King had come in order to encamp around His house as a guard, in order to destroy Israel’s enemies, in order to establish His reign from the River to the ends of the earth, because of the blood of His covenant (Zech. 9:8-11). Jesus came to do what only He could do in order to secure His people forever. He came to live the perfect life we could not live, to suffer the scorn and death that only He did not deserve, to lay His life down with full authority, and having paid the wages of our sin completely, He took His life back up again. Never for one moment did Jesus relinquish His authority, but at every step He exercised His authority to encamp around His house as a guard, to drive away our enemies, and establish His kingdom forever. And in His kingdom there are many priests and kings, many lords and ladies. Faith in the authority of Jesus receives this good news, and the same faith in the authority of Jesus receives these good works. And this is our victory that overcomes the world.

Palm Sunday 2017: The Crowded Heart

Ben Zornes on April 9, 2017

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Introduction:
You have often heard here that we have no real reason to assume that the crowds that welcomed Jesus in the Triumphal Entry and the crowd that was gathered to scream for His crucifixion were made up of the same people. Those two events, just days apart, are often pointed to as evidence of “the fickleness of crowds.” But there is no good reason to identify the crowds with one another, and a number of good reasons not to. But there are still complexities.

The Text:
“Then Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil hath he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him” (Mark 15:14).
“And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest” (Matthew 21:9).

Summary of the Text:
We have two crowds, exhibiting two completely different attitudes toward Jesus. One crowd wanted Him lifted up . . . on a cross. The other crowd wanted Him lifted up . . . in praise. One crowd was manipulated by men. “But the chief priests moved the people . . .” (Mark 15:11). The other crowd had no earthly leader—although it did have an earthly focus. They just appeared, rejoicing as they came. One crowd wanted blood—“crucify Him.” The other crowd wanted gladness and rejoicing. One crowd wanted a regicide. The other wanted a coronation.

Divided Jerusalem:
Now each crowd was unified in what it wanted. Each crowd had a very particular focus. Each crowd was single-minded. Each crowd had a defined goal. But they were going in decidedly opposite directions. But they were both Jerusalem crowds, and this meant that Jerusalem was divided. Each crowd was not divided, but the city was therefore necessarily divided. But in the struggle between the crowds, the city was making a decision. The city was in the process of making up its mind. One crowd chose wisely, but the city chose poorly.

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Matt. 23:37).
This is sometimes cited by those Christians who believe we have the capacity to withstand God’s election, but note carefully what Jesus says. He does not say “I wanted to gather you, but you would not.” He says “I wanted to gather them, but you would not.” The problem with Jerusalem was in the leadership. And they successfully held onto their control of the city, running it into an overwhelming judgment. We are talking, not about the salvation of individuals, but rather the damnation of a city.

You Are a City, Not a Monad:
Now many Christians make simplistic assumptions about themselves. A monad is an indivisible unit, and we think of ourselves that way—with a brake and an accelerator, and simple steering wheel. Life should be that simple, right?

But then you actually get into the turbulent life of your own soul, and discover that it is a lot more like Byzantine politics during a coup than like driving on a straight road in Nebraska. And you don’t know what side anybody is on.

“He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls” (Prov. 25:28).
And if you deal with the consequences of the political turmoil, while clinging tenaciously to the idea that you are simply driving on a straight road, your confusion about what is going on will be massive. But if sanctification is more like a new king learning the lessons of crowd control, and it is understood to be such, that clarity can be enormously helpful.

Double-Minded or Single-Hearted?
“A double minded man is unstable in all his ways” (James 1:8).
“Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded” (James 4:8).

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates” (Deut. 6:4–9).

What God wants from us is simplicity, not duplicity. What He wants is singleness of mind.

The Basics of Rule:
The word for rule in Prov. 25:28 carries the meaning of restraint, or holding back. The mobs of your heart, the ones from the bad side of town, are the parts of you that want to tip over cars and set them on fire. There are sections of your heart that want to throw rocks at the riot police.

Are you going to rule like Josiah, tearing down all the idols (2 Kings 22:2)? Are you going to rule like Manasseh (2 Chron. 33:3)? Or are you going to try to split the difference like Asa (2 Chron. 15:17)?

So What Do You Make of Jesus?
So then bring it back to the two Jerusalem crowds. Everything came down to just one thing. What do make of Jesus? Do you want Him to die, or do you want Him to reign? If you want Him to die, then you want Him to stay dead, and thereby stay out of your life. If you want Him to reign, that is good, because He is going to reign regardless.

Palm Sunday 2017: The King’s Pre-Victory Parade

Ben Zornes on April 9, 2017

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Text: Matthew 21:1-17

COMMON SENSE UNDER HOOF
You don’t throw a victory parade until you’ve won the battle. This common sense seems to be tramped under donkey hooves as Jesus leads a victory parade into Jerusalem before winning the victory. The great battle on the cross is still a few days away, and the great victory in the resurrection is even beyond that. Why can Jesus organize a “Pre-Victory Parade?” Because he believes the Scriptures, and believes the God of Scripture. Jesus trusts God that he would win the victory and so acts as though he had already won the victory.

WELL-SCRIPTED IN SCRIPTURE
The triumphal entry is a well-scripted event which was planned in the Old Testament Scriptures. Notice the biblical support for Jesus’ transportation, the crowds’ chants, the responses of everyone and everything. The “whys” of this passage are answered by pointing back to God’s word in the Old Testament. Why the Donkey? Bible. Why the temple destruction? Bible. Why the children hollering “Hosanna?” Bible.

REJOICE, HERE COMES THE KING (ZECHARIAH 9)
Matthew 21 begins with Jesus sending two disciples on a mission (vs 1-4). Jesus organizing the donkeys intentionally follows the scripted directions from Zechariah 9:9––a king riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. A war horse is fit for battle, but a donkey for the victory parade. So when Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, he is announcing that the battle has been fought and the victory secured. Zechariah shows the king doesn’t declare war on the nations, but speaks peace to the nations. He doesn’t carve out a corner to rule, but his kingdom covers sea to sea, from the River to the ends of the earth. He doesn’t conquer through spilling others blood, but his own (Zech. 9:10-11).

HOSANNA TO THE SON OF DAVID (PSALM 118)
The disciples obey and, of course, everything happens just as Jesus says (vs 6). As they move closer to Jerusalem, the expectant crowd lines the road and cry out, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! Hosanna in the highest!” (vs 9) They quote Psalm 118:25-26 which is a good choice as Psalm 118 declares the Lord’s triumph of life over death (vs. 17-18). Temple Overturned and Outcasts Gathered (Isaiah 56) Jesus enters the temple and rampages (vs. 12). Jesus again returns to the Scriptures to justify his actions. “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer, but you make it a den of robbers.’” In Isaiah 56, the Lord specifically highlights that the deliverance He is preparing is not just for Israel, but absolutely includes the “foreigner” (Is. 56:6-8). When the temple is overturned, the outcast are gathered in (vs 14).

PRIESTS IN DIAPERS (PSALM 8)
The chief priests and the scribes are indignant at the kids’ continued chorus (vs. 15). Jesus gives a sharp response, “Have you never read?” ‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies You have prepared praise for Yourself’?” (vs. 16) Again, Jesus explains by quoting Scripture. In the psalm, the kids are praising the LORD our Lord (Ps. 8:1) And who are the kids praising in the temple? The high priests have failed to praise God in the temple, so the children take over.

PRE-VICTORY PARADE OF FAITH
How could Jesus do all of this in his pre-victory parade? He had faith in what God said. We have the advantage of reading the story knowing the events from the last chapter. Jesus lived the story trusting God for the last chapter. Faith confidently celebrates with a parade before the final victory. Because Jesus entered Jerusalem in his pre-victory parade, we can join the celebration, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”