PALM SUNDAY: LUKE 19:28-44
(A fulfilled Prophecy & A Missed
Opportunity)
Introduction: A great crowd greeted him with joyful
exuberance on the first Palm Sunday, could this finally be the king who would
make things right? We are separated by time and space; therefore, it would be
hard for us to understand the heightened expectations of the crowds that came
from around the world into the city of Jerusalem during the Passover. In order
for us to get a glimpse of the first Palm Sunday, let’s watch this video clip
of Jesu’s Triumphant Entry.
Last week we learned that Jesus set His
face firmly towards Jerusalem, on the way he healed ten lepers, but only one
returned to give thanks and praise to God for his healing. After that in
Chapter 18, he took his twelve disciples aside and made his intentions clear to
them.
Luke 18:31-33, taking
the twelve disciples aside, Jesus said, “Listen,
we’re going up to Jerusalem, where all the predictions of the prophets
concerning the Son of Man will come true. 32 He
will be handed over to the Romans,[a] and he will be mocked, treated shamefully, and spit
upon. 33 They will flog him with a whip and kill him, but on the third
day he will rise again.”
Jesus was hinting
to his disciples that some of the prophecies concerning him were going to be
fulfilled right in front of their eyes, yet they didn’t understand any of this.
The significance of his words was hidden from them, and they failed to grasp
what he was talking about.” Palm Sunday is not about palms and a donkey but it
is about a fulfilled prophecy regarding the Messiah and about people in spite
of seeing many signs yet missed a golden opportunity.
I. BEHOLD
YOUR KING! (A Prophecy fulfilled)
As Jesus approached Jerusalem, he
sends two of his disciples with specific instructions to a house to bring him a
donkey. They brought him a donkey and threw their garments over it so that he
could ride on the donkey. The crowds spread out their garments on the road
ahead of him. Matthew notes, “and others cut branches from the trees and spread
them on the road.”
What
does a donkey, and palm branches have to do in the redemptive story? Jesus
enters Jerusalem riding on a donkey in fulfillment of a prophecy. Zachariah
9:9-11, 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.
I
will remove the battle chariots from Israel…I will destroy all the weapons used
in battle, and your king will bring peace to the nations.
His realm will stretch from sea to sea and from the Euphrates River to the
ends of the earth. Because of the covenant, I made with you, sealed with blood,
I will free your prisoners...”
The
first and the last message that Jesus ever spoke was about the Kingdom of God.
He gave many signs as to what the Kingdom of God was going to look like. By way
of riding on a donkey, Jesus positioned Himself to be the future King of the
universe. Jesus’ use of a donkey fits the description of a king who would be
“righteous having salvation, and gentle.” Rather than riding to conquer, this
king would enter in peace. This happened in fulfillment of the prophecy.
What
is the significance of the spreading of the clothes and the cut palm branches?
This gesture was a sort of rolling out of an ancient “red carpet.” In the OT, when
people took their cloaks or outer garments and laid them down in front of
someone it meant that they respected the one who has the power and authority
over them. In a way, the crowd was showing respect to Jesus as their King, and
they were simply delighted at His Triumphant entry into Jerusalem.
As
Jesus’ entourage started down the Mount of Olives, all of his followers began
to shout and sing praises to God for all the wonderful miracles they had seen. Vs38,
“Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and
glory in the highest heaven.” It was taken from Psalm 118: 26, “Bless the one who
comes in the name of the Lord.”
This
phrase was often sung at the Passover with anticipation of God’s redemption,
and an expectation of the rule of the Davidic kingdom on the earth. They also
sang about “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest heaven.” What is peace all
about, and who brings peace?
II THE
KINGDOM OF PEACE
The Israelites once knew what it
was to live in peace from all their enemies from all directions. It was during
the reign of King Solomon. I Kings 5:4, “But now the Lord my God has given me
peace on every side; I have no enemies, and all is well.” Can you imagine what
it is like to have peace on every side, and not having any enemies and
everything is going well?
That
peace lasted as long as Solomon was King over the nation of Israel, and it
became fragmented and completely disappeared after his death. As we read the
history, we will know that the Jews were scattered all over the world, not
having their homeland for a very long time, and they were more haunted and
persecuted than any other people group in the world.
We
can’t blame them from wanting to return to their own place and live in peace
from their enemies, so they sang expectantly for a King who could bring them to
a place of Peace and bliss. Even today many Jews in Israel are longing for
peace, but who can truly give them peace?
Zachariah
prophesied that one day a king will come riding on a donkey, and he is the one
who will establish the Kingdom of peace, and bring forth peace to the nations. When
the disciples saw Jesus entering Jerusalem on a donkey, they couldn’t believe
their eyes, they must have thought this is it! so they began to sing, “Peace in
heaven and glory in the highest heaven.”
It
sounds rather odd, they were looking for peace on earth, but they were singing
saying “Peace in heaven.” In Luke 2:14, the angels proclaimed “peace on earth”
here the disciples were singing, “peace in heaven.”
The
former proclaims that God intervened in the birth of Jesus that has brought
peace, inviting humanity share in salvation. In light of the actual response to
this invitation by people, however, “peace on earth” remains an intended
future. “Peace in heaven,” then refers to the divine intention, the reality of
God’s reconciling presence, its full manifestation on earth interrupted by
opposition to Jesus.
What
does divine peace look like? God’s peace is the absence or end of all strife.
It is a state of untroubled, undisturbed well-being. Consider these scriptures
on the Peace of God: Acts 10:36, “This
is the message of Good News for the people of Israel—that there is peace with
God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.” Ephesians 2:17, “He brought this
Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and peace to the
Jews who were near.”
How
could anyone achieve this state of bliss? It is brought about not by human
efforts but by the grace and loving mind of God. It is the result of being
reconciled with God. It is brought about by the atonement of Christ. That’s
what Jesus came to offer to us.
John
14:1-27, “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me…
27 “I am
leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift
the world cannot give. So, don’t be troubled or afraid.” By believing in Jesus
one can be saved and live in peace with God. Unfortunately, many during Jesus
time missed this opportunity for salvation.
III.
A MISSED OPPORTUNITY
One would wonder, how come after
having been foretold that one day the future king would enter Jerusalem riding
on a donkey, and after seeing those events unfolding right in front of their
eyes, yet except for a few of his followers, the Pharisees, and the Sadducees,
and many others Jerusalem have missed a golden opportunity? What caused them to
miss that opportunity? It was their willful blindness. Bishop TD Jakes, notes,
“sight is a choice.
At
times though we may be seeing certain things yet we choose not to see them. It
is not that the Pharisees and Sadducees were ignorant of the prophecies. In
fact, the Sadducees had a tradition in which they believed that the Messiah
would show up four days before Passover. They kept the gates of the Temple open
so that He could walk right into His rightful place.
Yet
when they saw Jesus entering Jerusalem, they choose to ignore the prophecy,
whereby they missed a wonderful opportunity. The crowds in the city, on the
other hand saw all the miracles that Jesus had performed right in front of
their eyes yet they too were blinded to the fact that Jesus is indeed the
Messiah, hence they too missed an opportunity.
When
Jesus saw this blindness and the hardening of hearts of people in Jerusalem, he
wept over them saying, Vs 42-44, “How I wish today that you of all people would
understand the way to peace. But now it is too late, and peace is hidden from
your eyes.
Before
long, your enemies will build ramparts against your walls and encircle you and
close in on you from every side. They will crush you into the ground, and your
children with you. Your enemies will not leave a single stone in place, because
you did not accept your opportunity for salvation.” As we know In AD 70,
Jerusalem city was indeed destroyed.
What
a tragedy! Although the crowds (lower classes and outcasts) shout out praises
to God and symbolically accepted Jesus as their king, the Pharisees, the
Sadducees and the learned have rejected him as their king. But who can truly
silence the praises of God’s people? Who can truly oppose Jesus from establishing
His Kingdom on the earth?
The
Pharisees may have ignored the prophecy and paid no attention to it and some in
the crowd may have been blind sighted on the first Palm Sunday. But the Holy
Spirit is speaking to us on this Palm Sunday, saying, today is the day of your
salvation. Do not miss this wonderful opportunity to recognize, and invite
Jesus to come into your heart and let Him rule your life.
More
than ever in history, today the followers of Christ and the students of
God’s word are in greater advantage because the Holy Spirit has revealed to us
how the world is going to end, and how Jesus is going to establish his eternal
Kingdom on the earth and rule in righteousness and with Justice. In His
Kingdom, there will be eternal peace forever.
In
closing I want us to take a sneak peek into the book of Revelation 11: 15-17, “Then
the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices shouting in
heaven: “The world has now become the Kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ,
and he will reign forever and ever.”
The
twenty-four elders sitting on their thrones before God fell with their faces to
the ground and worshiped him. And they said, “We give thanks to you, Lord God,
the Almighty,
the one who is and who always was, for
now, you have assumed your great power and have begun to reign.” My prayer is
that none of us will miss the opportunity to worship Jesus, along with the multitudes
from every language, nation, tribe and people that will gather in front of the
throne of God wearing white robes and holding Palm branches in their hands. (Rev
7:9) Amen!
