HG128b Pt2 Matthew 21:1-11, 14-17, Mark 11:1-11, Luke 19:29-44, John 12:12-19
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Now when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.”
All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:
“Tell the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold, your King is coming to you,
Lowly, and sitting on a donkey,
A colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”
So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them. And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:
“Hosanna to the Son of David!
‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’
Hosanna in the highest!”
And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, “Who is this?”
So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”
1
We are now entering the week called Passion week. ‘Passio’ comes from the Latin word for suffering. Jesus has set His face to go to Jerusalem and along the way He has told His disciples what to expect, that He would be betrayed and crucified and rise three days later. But somehow the words do not sink in. In the previous chapter Jesus said:
28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
Now He is among a great crowd of people following Him. And though there is this great multitude He still has time to stop and show concern for two men whom society had cast off and which the crowd had sought to silence and He heals them and restores their sight and they join the populous in following Jesus. Now He approaches Jerusalem which is about a mile away. He stops at Bethphage which is at the Mount of Olives.
Bethphage is like the commuter belt due to it being close enough to go back and forth to work and because of a lack of affordable homes people from here went into Jerusalem to work.
2
Had Jesus been to Bethphage before? Had He already made arrangements for His transport? It is unlikely but in His Divinity He knew that there would be a donkey and a colt tied together which could be used in His service. Not only would the donkeys be used in fulfilling God’s Word Jesus sends two disciples to get them. Jesus, then, involves these disciples in His work. In the same way we are also invited to participate in His work. What was special about these disciples? We do not even know their names. These two, probably unbeknown to them, were fulfilling prophecy.
Some Christians think that they do not have any gifts from God to be used by Him. Some think that they are useless. Some think that they are not clever enough. Some think that they have too many phobias. Some think that they are too disabled. Some think they are too old or too young. Some think that as they do not think of themselves as having anything to contribute to the work of Jesus God is not able to make use of them. But let me ask you this: Did it require intelligence to follow Jesus’ orders to go get a couple of donkeys? Did it require them to do public speaking? Did it require them to be gifted musically? Did it require them to be healthy? If none of these things, what was required? Was it not simply to do what Jesus said?
We should never be jealous of those who seem more gifted than us, who may have ten talents when we barely have one…there is greater responsibility on those who are multi-talented to use all that they have been given and they will answer to God for them. But what is required from everyone is obedience to what Jesus says. And we do not have an excuse for not knowing what is required for we have the Word of God, the Bible and His Holy Spirit to help and direct us.
If this does not help there is a default position to take which is to continue what we have been doing until God says otherwise or circumstances force the issue as is God’s way sometimes. But further to this Scripture tells us what to do:
8 He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God?
Back to our our passage we are told in verse 6 that the two disciples went and did as they were told even having to explain why they were taking the donkeys by saying ‘the Lord has need of them’. Were they stealing? Were they sinning by taking the donkeys? No, of course not. The Lord required them. He is Lord of all and owner of all. The universe is His and everything in it. Or as the Psalmist says:
1 The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness,
The world and those who dwell therein.
The Lord always provides a way to do what He has called us to do and He utilises all that He has, which is everything. This also means He will provide for us if we seek Him first and do what He says.
4-5
But now is the culmination of a 9-month journey on the road - a road that led to and will end in Jerusalem. Along with the crowds there would have been newly raised Lazarus along with Mary and Martha and two newly seeing disciples as well as the scathing Pharisees.
Preaching the Word: Mark—Jesus, Servant and Savior The King’s Deliberate Preparation (vv. 1-6)
In all of this we observe Jesus’ painstaking premeditation. He had carefully ordered everything. The day and hour were selected from eternity with countdown perfection. This Triumphal Entry on the first day of the week would precipitate his terrible death on Good Friday, his “rest” in the grave on the Sabbath, and his triumphant resurrection on the following first day
Preaching the Word: Mark—Jesus, Servant and Savior The King’s Deliberate Preparation (vv. 1-6)
He was purposely going public. Never before had he done anything to promote a public demonstration. In fact, he had repeatedly withdrawn from the crowds if there was any hint of this. But now he invited it. He courted danger and did it with calculated purpose.
Well, Jesus sits on the young donkey which is a direct fulfilment of prophecy from
9 “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.
This prophecy reveals who Jesus is, He is King, He is righteous and He is coming to bring salvation.
By this time Jesus had already fulfilled many prophecies: The virgin birth, the Messiah coming from Bethlehem, the escape to Egypt, the massacre of the infants as a result, John the Baptist coming before, the calling of Jesus out of Egypt, settling in Capernaum, and many others besides the very many prophecies that Jesus will fulfil in the coming week. All-in-all Jesus fulfils well over 300 prophecies during His lifetime, death, burial, resurrection and ascension.
7
Most Kings of Jesus’ time would ride on majestic horses to show off their power and authority but, strangely, what happens? He arrives on a donkey. Can’t you hear the Roman soldiers garrisoned in Jerusalem snickering as they saw Jesus ride in on a donkey? When a Roman leader came cruising into a city, it wasn’t on a donkey, no! Roman rulers rode black stallions followed by chariots and thousands of soldiers marching in step with shields gleaming and probably trailing slaves behind them.
Preaching the Word: Mark—Jesus, Servant and Savior The King’s Deliberate Preparation (vv. 1-6)
What an honored beast that animal was:
When fishes flew and forests walked
And figs grew upon thorn,
Some moment when the moon was blood
Then surely I was born.
With monstrous head and sickening cry
And ears like errant wings
The devil’s walking parody
On all four-footed things.
The tattered outlaw of the earth,
Of ancient crooked will;
Starve, scourge, deride me: I am dumb,
I keep my secret still.
Fools! For I also had my hour;
One far fierce hour and sweet:
There was a shout about my ears,
And palms before my feet.
But riding this donkey is Jesus who is the King of kings, more powerful than anyone else yet comes humbly into Jerusalem. He has every right to use the authority He has but instead comes as a lowly man. This is the very essence of meekness, power under control, which is not used to further His own ambitions.
God releases His power when we are weak not when we think we are strong. His power comes when we are powerless. His power comes when we are humble not proud. His power comes when we submit to God. His power comes when we could use what is our every right to do but instead advance with humility instead.
8-9
And although He comes humbly the people celebrate just as Zechariah told them to. And they treated Him as anyone should treat a King.
Preaching the Word: Mark—Jesus, Servant and Savior The King’s Triumphal Entry (vv. 7-10)
The palm branches represented their nationalistic desire to be delivered, for when Simon Maccabaeus delivered Jerusalem 150 years earlier, it was celebrated with praise, palm branches, and musical instruments (1 Maccabees 13:51). The palm frond was the symbol of the Second Maccabean Revolt.
With their Hosannas and with clothing and palm branches laid down before Him, in other words He was getting the red carpet treatment. Hosanna in the Highest! What does hosanna mean? It means Help! Save us!
Preaching the Word: Mark—Jesus, Servant and Savior The King’s Triumphal Entry (vv. 7-10)
The people were prophetically repeating over and over and over that Jesus was their deliverer: “Save us! … Save us! … Save us!”
Of course, they did not realise what kind of salvation Jesus was bringing.
They were expecting a Messiah to come and reign, a Messiah who would save them from the Roman Occupation, a Messiah who would destroy the enemies. But 5 days later their expectations were not met and faith dissipated. The people turn quickly from supporters to opponents. Even today we find that people are fickle, they can be pro something or someone than just as soon be against that something or someone.
This is a warning for those who come to faith in joy but when the initial high levels out they soon leave. We have to be aware how often our emotions dictate what we believe. Our emotions are not the standard for what is right and wrong. But it is all too easy to rely upon them. Today’s society will tell you different, they say, “if it feels good it’s got to be good”, what drivel! Our emotions, our health, our medication can all have a bearing upon our emotions and thoughts. To trust these is sinking sand. Where do we find our standards? Is it not the Bible? Indeed it is. We are to base all our beliefs upon the Scriptures and no other. Of course we should listen to the Church and its understanding of the Bible for that is why God has given us teachers, to help us understand. But out basis for what we believe is not how we feel, whether we feel up or down, good or bad, but God’s Word.
I might be misrepresenting the people who said Hosanna to the Son of David on the Sunday and those who said, His blood be upon us and our children on the Friday, for they may not have been the same people. Well, it is not entirely clear. But people can be coerced as a group to act in a way they would not do on their own proven by political rallies and riots that happen periodically.
Even so, it is easy for our faith to diminish when we see our expectations are not fulfilled. But this faith was not faith in the first place but selfish desire. Faith in truth is when we lay aside our expectations in order to submit to God’s will. The focus of our faith should be God’s will not our selfish ambition.
These people had all heard of Jesus’ provision of bread, the healing of those who were sick, even raising the dead, they wanted an earthly Messiah who will provide for their material welfare not a suffering servant. I wonder at what point the crowds began to wonder if Jesus was not all they thought He was going to be. They declared Him to be the Son of David who would again reign as King in Jerusalem.
In the midst of all this noise and hullabaloo did it suddenly die down as they saw that Jesus was not happy but crying. They were within sight of the gates of Jerusalem and yet we read in:
41 Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, 42 saying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 43 For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, 44 and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
The King not only comes on a donkey but He breaks down crying when He sees Jerusalem. This is not the typical picture of One who is a King. But He has compassion for Jerusalem for He knows they will reject Him for they did not realise who Jesus really truly was.
Preaching the Word: Mark—Jesus, Servant and Savior The King’s Tears (Luke 19:41-44)
By prophetic vision, the Lord saw the proud, unrepentant Holy City reduced to a pile of rubble wet with the blood of his people. Forty years later this all came true under Titus’ Roman legions. The Jews’ resistance was so fierce that Titus finally ordered his besieging legions to encircle the walls of Jerusalem with a barricade and starve them out. The resulting famine made Jerusalem a graveyard, and finally when the Jews lacked the strength to bury their dead they cast them over the walls into the surrounding ravines
10
And no sooner had that happened Jesus arrived. The whole city is disturbed. What is going on? Who is this? Still there were some who did not know! I wonder what the authorities were thinking. But the question that everyone wanted to know: who has just arrived in town? And though there is an answer given, it was not the entire answer.
11
The whole crowd answer: This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee, and they were absolutely right. Moses foretold of Him in:
18 I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him.
Jesus was one that Moses had pointed to as the One to hear and obey.
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD! But they still hadn’t grasped who Jesus is. He was their Saviour, not from the Romans as they hoped but instead a lowly One who had come to pay for their sins. They did not really see who Jesus was, their Messiah, and to this day most of the Jews are still blind.
But between this Sunday’s Hosannas and next Sunday Jesus is betrayed and crucified and buried. Hope becomes despair. All will seem loss. Until the victory of Jesus’ resurrection. And what we see is that this Sunday is a foreshadow of the following Sunday. Jesus victory was always assured and the beginning of it started on Palm Sunday when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey’s colt.
If we follow Christ solely because we think He'll shield us from life's hardships, heal all our sicknesses and guarantee prosperity, we're headed for disillusionment. But if we renounce sin, take up our cross, and live for Him because He is our Lord, our Creator and Redeemer, we will never be disappointed in Him.
He still sheds tears over the unrepentant to God and who lack faith towards Jesus.
The next time He comes, He won’t be on a donkey. It says in:
11 Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.
The Messiah appears again as a conqueror flying down on a white stallion of heaven followed by ten thousands of His saints (Jude 14). You see, the first time Jesus came, He came as the suffering Servant. But the next time He comes, it will be as the conquering King. For He truly is not just a man but the Son of God, King of kings and Lord of lords.
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
Prayer: Like the donkeys, like the two disciples getting the donkeys help us to obey the directions of Jesus. Help us to not follow selfishly or have false expectations but to give honour to the One who rode into Jerusalem that day to die in our place. We honour the king of kings and we look forward to the time when you will return.
Benediction
Benediction
20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.”
Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Bibliography
Bibliography
Hughes, R. K. (1989). Mark: Jesus, servant and savior. Westchester, IL: Crossway Books.