Why This Triumphal Approach? (AM Sermon Notes)
GIST: We need to see Jesus as the real King who came to bring true peace and deserves our actual praise.
SCRIPTURE: Mark 11:1-11
1 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples 2 and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. 3 If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’” 4 And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. 5 And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6 And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. 7 And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. 8 And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. 9 And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! 10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!”
11 And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
We’ve come again to a familiar passage. And it might feel strange to be addressing this not on palm Sunday. Nonetheless, the message is relevant to us at all times of the year. Jesus is approaching Jerusalem where He will soon be crucified in our place and rise again for our salvation. He does so in a very public and intentional manner. He could have slunk into town in secret, or even just continued with the crowd on foot like all of the other pilgrims coming to Jerusalem. Instead, He makes a scene. In fact, in this chapter of Mark, He makes quite a few scenes. He’s not trying to hide His purpose. He’s not attempting to conceal His person. He knows the cost; He’s been trying to get His disciples to understand it too; and He comes boldly. We could probably just say, “Amen!” and end there!
However, today I want to take a few minutes to look at the images in this scene and what they represented to those who first saw them, as well as what they still mean to us today. Famously, the passage opens with the disciples going to get a colt, which we know from the other gospel accounts was a donkey colt. Jesus tells them where the colt will be and how to get it without raising suspicion of donkey-theft (He does promise to return it☺). This either points to Jesus’ omniscience or His prearrangement. Both have been argued in favor of; both point to Jesus’ authority and provision in the matter. The disciples then return with the young donkey and lay their cloaks on it as a saddle...because it didn’t have one...because it had never been ridden.
Then, this crowd follows suit and starts laying their garments and branches in His path. This is a crowd of pilgrims traveling for the feast in Jerusalem, but John’s account gives us further insight into the crowd in John 12:17-19, “17 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.” So, clearly they are also interested in and intrigued by Jesus. There is an air of excitement and anticipation. This is intensified when the progression then proceeds to sing praises. The atmosphere is jubilant! Then, Jesus enters Jerusalem, goes to the temple, looks around, and goes back to Bethany. It almost reads like a build up to nothing, but there is most definitely much for us to digest here. The gist? We need to see Jesus as the real King who came to bring true peace and deserves our actual praise.
I. JESUS IS THE REAL KING
The Imagery Points To A King. The first point to note is the “king imagery” here.
Prepared Way. Possibly the most recognizable one would be the garments being laid in His path. This was something done for a royal procession. An example of this can be seen in 2 Kings 9:12-13 when Jehu is made king.
The Peace Donkey? However, even the donkey had a king symbol. Honestly, I had missed this point before. I had always thought of this in terms of humility, which is the case. However, at this time in was also common for a king to come into a city on a donkey in times of peace and a horse in times of war. We see an example of this 1 Kings 1:33 when Solomon is made king. Apparently, donkeys from this part of the world also had a different reputation than donkeys do in ours--as peaceful rather than stubborn animals ☺.
The Kingdom of David. Either way, Jesus coming into Jerusalem, the City of David, riding on a donkey, while everyone else is walking, and having a cloak and branches path laid out before Him would have left a definite impression. “This guy is riding in like a king!” Add to that the references to the “kingdom of David” in their songs, and the point is unmistakable.
But He Wasn’t The King They Expected. They wanted an earthly king like David. He was so much more. He is the Almighty God in human flesh. And He’s riding on a donkey now because His purpose is peace (which is our next point ☺); He came to make that possible. However, He’s coming again, and Revelation 19:11-16 tells us, He’ll be riding on a horse next time.
II. HE CAME TO BRING TRUE PEACE
The Imagery Points To The Messiah. He came as the king who brings true peace. That’s the Messiah, the Christ, the Savior.
Prophesied Donkey. Matthew’s account quotes Zechariah 9:9 which was a Messianic prophecy--a prophecy pointing to the coming of the Messiah. “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” Again, the Messiah is portrayed as a king humbling Himself by riding on a donkey and coming to bring salvation. And here’s Jesus...doing exactly that.
Peace Purpose. That same prophecy also pointed to the peace the Messiah came to bring. Verse 10 of Zechariah 9 reads, “I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth.” (See verse 16, as well!) When the Messiah came, He would bring peace to His people. Now, hold that thought for a second because we’re going to talk about that more, but imagine being these people seeing this procession and knowing this truth. They were ecstatic. This is the Messiah they have been waiting for!
Temple Destination. Furthermore, in Malachi 3:1-2, one of the last Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament, we’re told that when the Messiah comes He’ll go straight to the temple to clean things up. (“Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. 2 But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap.”) Look at verse 11 again. Where does He go immediately when He arrives in Jerusalem? The temple. He looks around, and then leaves. Which seems anticlimactic, but it’s not. He’s just ridden into town as king and takes in everything that’s happening at the temple. Then, He leaves...but He comes back. And if you’ve been looking ahead you realize that when He comes back, He won’t just be looking at the temple. He knows what’s there...and He starts flipping it on its head...literally. He comes back to clean up the temple.
But It Wasn’t The Peace They Expected. That might not seem very peaceful, but it was the kind of peace He came to bring. See, this crowd was expecting a military peace. “Kick out our oppressors, the Romans!” He came to bring true peace--the peace they really needed--the peace we really need. He came to free them from spiritual bondage. They thought they were good in that area, that their problems were physical, not spiritual. He comes to show them...they were wrong.
III. HE DESERVES OUR ACTUAL PRAISE
They Sang The Right Song. This is the last of the truly noticeable aspects in this scene. This crowd doesn’t just lay down garments and branches for Jesus; they’re singing while they do it!
Hallel Psalm. Specifically, they are singing from Psalm 118:25-26 which is one of the Hallel Psalms. These were Psalms of praise which were sung during festivals like Passover and the Feast of Booths. So, the fact that they were singing it during this time was not necessarily tied to Jesus’ presence. They would have been singing praises like this anyway. Nonetheless, the song they chose to sing was a very specific praise. It was tied to God saving His people. “Save us, we pray, O Lord! O Lord, we pray, give us success! 26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! We bless you from the house of the Lord.” Hosanna was a cry for salvation.
+ Bonus Material. Mark tells us they even added some bonus material, “10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” This wasn’t part of the psalm, but rang of Messianic expectation. Their salvation would come from the long expected Messiah, the king from the line of David. So, they were definitely singing the right song!
But Their Hearts Weren’t As Good As Their Words. Often, this crowd is called fickle because they seem to praise Jesus today and then cry out, “Crucify Him”, shortly after. However, several of the commentators I read this week pointed out that the two crowds might not have actually been the same. However, even if they weren’t amongst the ones calling for His death, they weren’t stopping it either. It’s like what Jesus said of the Pharisees back in chapter 7, “6 And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me”. They are glad to praise this kingly procession, but fell away when He suffers and dies for their salvation.
His Heart, However, Was Breaking. Yet, while we can, and should, call into question the motives of the crowd, Jesus’ motive was clear. He came to save. Luke 19:41-44 records His reaction when He sees Jerusalem. From what I’ve read, this would have been a magnificent sight. This city which represented the Jewish people like nothing else with this vast temple as its centerpiece. The crowd would have cheered louder at its sight. What did Jesus do? He wept. “41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.” I don’t feel like I need to add much more to that. Their praise was circumstantial. His compassion was not--which is why He deserves our actual, wholehearted praise!
TAKEAWAYS
1. Who’s your King?
We’re all serving something. This crowd, like the disciples, were looking for an earthly solution to their earthly problems. Aren’t we often the same way? That’s the deal. When we think our problems have a tangible cause, we’ll look for tangible solutions. And whatever we think will fix that, well, we throw our full support behind it--it becomes our king. What are you serving? What could you not live without? If the answer isn’t this Jesus, you’ve made someone or something temporary and transient and powerless to affect meaningful change--your ultimate authority.
2. Where does your peace come from?
We all want peace, right? I know last Sunday morning when I woke up, my prayer time started like this: “Father, I’m tired.” I’m sure many of you could say the same. We want peace...and Jesus came to give us the peace we need. The first question is, have you experienced this? If you’re looking for peace in this life… you won’t find it. But Jesus came to die for your sin, to fix your deepest need. You want peace? Come to your Savior. And if you are saved, are you living in this peace He died to secure? Or are you still allowing the cares of this world and desires of the flesh drive you frantic?
3. Who and how are you praising?
Like I said before, we’re all serving something...and that service comes with praise. So, are you praising the right who? Are you praising the real Jesus--not your version of Him, or who you wish He was, but the one who really came and really died and really rose again to save you and who is really revealed in His word. And...are you really praising Him--not just offering lip service? Want a test? Are you rejoicing in times of excitement and in places where it’s easy (like church) and fleeing in times of trial and heartbreak?
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