Palm Sunday Praise

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A look at the reasons for worship on Palm Sunday

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It was the week before Easter and little Johnie was too sick to go to church. He really wanted to because the Pastor had been saying for weeks that this would be a “special” service, that it would be exciting and people would receive a gift
But Johnie’s Mom said that he was too sick to go with his siblings and that he needed to stay home and rest and she promised to tell him all about the service when she got home
It seemed like an eternity before his family returned home from church but then he finally heard the car in the driveway and so he ran to the front door to greet them
They came in carrying some really weird plant things and little Johnie asked what they were
As she took off her coat his mother explained that these were palm branches and that people laid them down in front of Jesus as he road a donkey
Little Johnie immediately burst into to tears as he yelled, ‘Oh great! The one Sunday I don’t go to church and that’s the week that Jesus shows up.’
Well I trust that your experience is that Jesus shows up every week in our services but today IS Palm Sunday and I have to say that it is a big day in the scriptures
Palm Sunday is one of the few events in the life and ministry of Jesus that is recorded in all 4 of the gospel accounts confirming for us that God too thinks it is an important event and worth a closer look
There are so many aspects of this special event that we can focus on, in the past I’ve considered the role of the donkey, I’ve considered the role of the disciples, I’ve considered what Christ did as He entered the Holy City,
But this morning what I want to do is zoom in on the crowd that was there that day and what we can learn from them
The reason is that I find it fascinating what transpired within this crowd between the triumphant entry, as we’ve come to call it, and the trial of Christ just a few days later
The gospels all tell us that as Jesus and the disciples approached Jerusalem that day , with Jesus riding on a donkey, a crowd began to gather, in fact Matthew describes it as a “very large crowd” and John tells us that it was actually two large crowds that joined together to become one very large crowd
The reason was because there was a Jewish tradition that said that the Messiah would show up 4 days before the passover
Accordingly the religious rulers kept the gates to the temple open on that day so the Messiah could go right up and take his rightful place
Because of this tradition the fervor of the Jews was always at a peak on that particular day, so much so that Rome always increased security and had all troops on alert lest some zealous Jew rise up and cause a revolt
So when the word hit town that there was already a large crowd gathered just to the east of the temple , at the Mount of Olives, as the prophet from Galilee was getting ready to mount a donkey and ride into town fulfilling the prophecy of , everyone who could rushed out to see for themselves
And that’s when the story becomes truly amazing because as Christ makes His way down the hill the people begin to lay their coats and palm branches in His path as a sign of respect and all of a sudden an impromptu worship service breaks out
For the vast majority of His public ministry Christ had avoided the limelight often ducking away when people tried to extol Him but this time He does nothing to stop them, a point that was made very clear by Luke’s recording that the Pharisee’s that were there to keep an eye on things rebuked Jesus for not telling the people to stop
On a side note I can’t help but wonder if Saul was one of those Pharisees that tried to oppose Christ that day
But that’s for another time
Anyway let’s take a look at the worship that took place that day and see if we can learn anything from it
The first thing to note about the worship is that the people were praising Jesus for the things that He had done for them
Luke Records in 19:37
Luke 19:37 NIV
When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:
No doubt that some of those in the crowd were the very people that Jesus had fed with the two fish and five loaves, or maybe they were in the crowd when He healed the women with the issue of blood, or maybe a few of them were some of the lucky ones that got to taste the last batch of wine at the wedding in Canaan
Regardless of which miracles they were praising Him for, their praise was charged with an electricity that only comes when you have seen God do something in your midst that only He is capable of doing
John even tells us that the source of one of those miracles was the raising of Lazarus from the dead
Whatever miracle they had in mind, they praised Christ because of it
Our praised needs to be charged by the things that God has done
David was a man who knew a thing or two about seeing the hand of God at work and so he wrote in ,
Psalm 96:1–3 NIV
Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples.
Psalm 96:1-
And in 1st Chronicles we read,
1 Chronicles 16:9 NIV
Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts.
1 Chronicles 16”9
Does His grace still amaze us? Is His faithfulness towards us still impress us as great? Does He still deserve to receive the glory for the great things that He has done?
Than it needs to be reflected in our praise towards Him
Now I’m not saying that we all have to be flag waving, mosh-pit jumping praisers, but I am am saying that our praise needs to be charged with the energy supplied by the things that He has done
Imagine the atmosphere as the crowds lined the narrow dirt road and they could see that Jesus was almost getting to where they were and Aiken elbows the guy next to him and says, ‘Ya know I was there when He fed us all with nothing more than that small boys lunch.’
And the guy next to him says, ‘Oh ya well I was there when he healed that guy who had been living in the cemetery’
And the guy behind them speaks up and says, ‘I was only 3 feet away when He said, “Lazarus come forth.” It still gives me chills’
The second thing that we note about their worship that day is that it was inspired by the hope of what they wanted Him to do in the future
With the exception of Luke who was writing to a Greek audience, all the gospels tell us that the crowds shouted “Hosanna” which I’m sure we all know by is a Hebrew term meaning “Save us” or “Help us”
Now we can certainly make the case for how far from God’s plan of salvation these people were, how they were looking for a political messiah to release them from the rule of the Romans not realizing that Christ had actually come to set them free from their sins
But even if their expectations were way off base, their praise was anchored in their hope for the Messiah
No matter what we face and what life might through at us our praise needs to reflect the fact that ‘Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness’
Let’s go back to the Psalms once again and see what they say about this
Psalm 18:1–3 NIV
I love you, Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I have been saved from my enemies.
Psalm
Psalm 34:1–6 NIV
I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. I will glory in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.
Psalm 42:5 NIV
Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
Psalm 42:
Do you remember the story about when Paul and Silas landed in jail after receiving a brutal beating and all for casting the demon out of a slave girl? tells us
Acts 16:25 NIV
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.
The reason they could do this was because their hope was not in the judicial system or a legal representative or an escape plan, but because their hope was in the one to whom they were giving praise
Paul wrote to the Philippians church and told them
Philippians 4:4–6 NIV
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Even if it is the great things that God has done for us in the past that initiates our praise, it is our hope in God’s Son that fuels our praise
This supersedes our feelings or emotions, our physical stamina or even our circumstances, we praise Him because He is our hope
And we can take solace in the fact that we might not have everything figured out for the future, we may even be way off base on what God is going to do but we can trust Him and His plan that it is the very best thing for us
The third thing that we can take away from the crowds impromptu praise is that they also praised Jesus not for what He has done, and not for what He is going to do but simply for who He is, the Son of God
Luke and John both record that the crowds cried out “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord”
Let’s go back one more time to Psalms
Psalm 145:1–3 NIV
I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever. Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever. Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom.
Psalm 145:1-
a little earlier we read the first few verses of , well this time let’s read the entire chapter
Psalm 96:1-
Psalm 96:1–13 NIV
Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and glory are in his sanctuary. Ascribe to the Lord, all you families of nations, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come into his courts. Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth. Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.” The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity. Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it. Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest sing for joy. Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for he comes, he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in his faithfulness.
Psalm 89:5-
Psalm 89:5–16 NIV
The heavens praise your wonders, Lord, your faithfulness too, in the assembly of the holy ones. For who in the skies above can compare with the Lord? Who is like the Lord among the heavenly beings? In the council of the holy ones God is greatly feared; he is more awesome than all who surround him. Who is like you, Lord God Almighty? You, Lord, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you. You rule over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, you still them. You crushed Rahab like one of the slain; with your strong arm you scattered your enemies. The heavens are yours, and yours also the earth; you founded the world and all that is in it. You created the north and the south; Tabor and Hermon sing for joy at your name. Your arm is endowed with power; your hand is strong, your right hand exalted. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you. Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, Lord. They rejoice in your name all day long; they celebrate your righteousness.
And one of my all-time favorite scriptures has to be the scene around the throne in Heaven recorded by John in
Revelation 4:1–11 NIV
After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and ruby. A rainbow that shone like an emerald encircled the throne. Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads. From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God. Also in front of the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal. In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying: “ ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’ who was, and is, and is to come.” Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”
Revelation 4:1-
On the day that Jesus fulfilled the prophecies and rode the foal of a donkey into Jerusalem as the King, not only of the Jews but of all who would accept His rule and be part of His Kingdom, on that day the crowds broke out into a spontaneous worship service and we can learn from them
That our praise ought to be inspired and energized by what God has done
That our praise is fueled by our hope in Christ and the future that He has for us
That our worship is due Him if for no other reason than who He is
Let’s pray
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