Church Sermon - April 13, 2003

REJOICE, HERE COMES THE KING!

Rev. Bernt P. Tweit

Epistle Lesson; Philippians 2:5-11
Gospel Lesson; Mark 15:1-39
Sermon Text; Zechariah 9:9-10

How did it come to be that we call this day Palm Sunday? How did it come to be that Jesus had palm branches waved at Him, as He rode into Jerusalem? Well, just a few days prior to the events of this day, Jesus performed the greatest miracle outside of His own resurrection from the dead. He had raised a good friend named Lazarus, back to life from the dead! This caused quite a commotion. Word of Lazarus’ resurrection spread, and the people wanted to come and see this Jesus.

On Sunday, when Jesus came into Jerusalem, He was coming for the Passover Festival. He was surrounded by a whole bunch of pilgrims, who were also on their way to the Passover Festival. Some may have seen in Jesus, truly what the Old Testament had foretold. But others were possibly following Jesus for the wrong reasons. ("Look at the miracles He has performed. We want to make this Jesus, our earthly king.")

Nevertheless, these people picked up palm branches to wave and to lie before Jesus. They also laid down their coats to cover the road before Jesus! They were clapping and shouting "Hosanna", which means "save us".

This morning I would like you to do something that may seem un-Lutheran! I want you to clap, in church. Go ahead! Clap your hands.

Next I am going to ask you to add the word "Hosanna". Remember the word Hosanna means, save us! So now I want you to shout, "Hosanna", as you clap your hands together!

The feeling on that first Palm Sunday was similar to this, but on a much grander scale, as the people were welcoming Jesus into Jerusalem, clapping their hands, possibly stomping their feet, and shouting "Hosanna"! Whether people wanted to make Jesus a king by force, or truly saw in Him as the Messiah, foretold in the Old Testament, that is how they welcomed Him.

Shouting and clapping are impressive, and today we do a lot of it. Shouting is an important part of sporting events. Imagine any kind of athletic game played, without shouting. Imagine going to Lambeau Field and it was completely quiet, because no one was cheering. Or going to the Kohl Center and not hearing a sound. Or being at one of the local high school gyms like the Lafollette gymnasium, East’s, or even here at Holy Cross, for a basketball game, and there was not a sound, because no one is shouting or clapping. Would the effort being put out by the players be any fun at all, if no one was backing them, or supporting them with shouting and clapping?

People shout themselves hoarse, at an athletic contest. I have visited with many of you, after you have returned from an exciting game, and you are very hoarse. When people are not able to be at the game in person, they even shout from their living rooms at a glass screen, which mirrors an event taking place, hundreds of miles away! Shouting is impressive!

That shouting and clapping is exactly the excitement behind Palm Sunday, for us today! We can shout, clap and rejoice today, because our King has come!

Let’s read through these two simple verses from the Old Testament book of Zechariah 9:9-10. After I have read them, I want to lay the background and set the stage for why these words were written.

"Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, you king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will take way the chariots from Ephraim and the war-horses from Jerusalem, and the battle bow will be broken. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth."

Zechariah wrote these words, after the city of Jerusalem was destroyed in 586 B.C., which was 500 years before Jesus even rode into Jerusalem. He wrote these words to people who were returning from the Babylonian captivity. Imagine how downcast these people were. They knew that a Messiah was coming, but they were downcast because they were looking at the destruction of their city and temple. The rebuilding effort was not coming together, as quickly as they wanted it to be and they were becoming very discouraged. They may even have doubted God’s promises.

So that is why Zechariah wrote these words. They were words of encouragement. In these two verses, he reminds those returning people that God’s promise of a King is still true, so don’t be discouraged, but rejoice.

"Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your King comes to you…"

He wanted to bring encouragement to these people, who saw a bleak outlook on life.

And now today, as we dissect the two simple verses from our text, two things emerge. And that is…the Manner of our King, and the Message He brings to us.

When someone says the word king, we envision a person who is royal, who is rich, who is powerful and mighty. Back in Jesus’ day, a king would have had an entourage, with many people protecting him. A king would probably come into town either riding in a chariot, or at least riding a fine steed, a stallion, or a horse.

But the King that we are talking about doesn’t ride into Jerusalem on a horse. How was it that Jesus entered into Jerusalem? He rides in on a donkey. And it wasn’t even a full-grown donkey, but a young colt or foal that had never been ridden on before. A donkey is a young, foolish animal that would be more likely to disgrace its rider, than anything else. This King had no saddle, only clothes on the donkey’s back.

Jesus also came into Jerusalem in humility and gentleness. Our epistle reading makes mention of that, when it says,

"He did not consider

equality with God

something to be grasped,

but made Himself nothing,

taking the very nature of a servant,

being made in human likeness.

And being found in appearance as a man,

He humbled Himself…"

Jesus is God and yet He set that aside. He is humble and gentle. And, as our gospel reading shows for us this morning,

"He humbled Himself

and became obedient to death,

even death on a cross."

When Jesus was accused of being a king, He didn’t even respond. He was silent and He was humble. Our King had a crown of thorns upon His head. Our King was spit upon and punched. And still, He was humble and gentle. That is the manner of our King.

Also today, we consider the message of our King. Earthly kings regard military power as essential for defending and enlarging their kingdoms. Those kings talk about their power and their might. They show off their military strength. Today, our kings may talk about their tanks, helicopters, jets, cruise missiles are used today. In Jesus’ day, chariots, war-horses and battle bows were essential.

Jesus, our King, doesn’t need to have a message of power. He is a King who brought a message of peace.

In Zechariah, Chapter 9, we notice there is a tense change between verse 9 and verse 10. Zechariah was speaking in verse 9. He says,

"Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey."

Notice the next word in verse 10. It uses the pronoun I in the first person. That is not Zechariah, but Jesus speaking 500 years before His birth. And what is it that Jesus is saying here? Jesus is not speaking about military might and power. He is speaking about peace.

"I will take away the chariots from Ephraim

and the war-horses from Jerusalem,

and the battle bow will be broken."

Jesus, our King, doesn’t need power and He doesn’t need might. He doesn’t need chariots, war-horses and battle bows to bring peace. He only needs to speak His Word to bring peace. This message of peace can be most clearly seen in a conversation Jesus had, while speaking to His disciples. He simply said,

"Peace I leave with you;

my peace I give you."

We need to remember the message that our King brings. It is a message of peace, in context with what this week is all about. This is Holy Week, or the Week of Passion. The message of peace, to all mankind, is possible only because of the events of Holy Week – because of the suffering, death and resurrection of our King.

Today, as we gather here on this Palm Sunday, are you troubled because of your sin? We are just like the people Zechariah was speaking to. They were carried off into captivity. We have been carried off into captivity, because of our sin. They were released from captivity by the grace of God. It is also by the grace of God, that we have been freed from our sin. They came back to see a destroyed city and temple, and may have doubted the future and thought they had a bleak outlook on life. We sometimes too, even though we are God’s children, see the world crumbling around us, and have a bleak outlook on life. Zechariah brought them a message of rejoicing.

He reminded them that their release from captivity was but the first step of God’s promise. And today, we too can rejoice, because Jesus came with a message of peace. Jesus died for our sins and rose again for our salvation. We are reminded that what Jesus did for us during Holy Week, (even though His death and resurrection for our sin is a completed act) isn’t something we will fully realize until Jesus comes again, or until we die.

The events of Palm Sunday should also be a picture for us of what Judgment Day will be like. That great and glorious day, Judgment Day, will be coming, in which our King will come. This time, instead of coming in humility, He will come showing His great exultation. He will be showing that He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.

Today we can rejoice, because our King has come and given to us the message of peace that only He can bring! Jesus brings a message of forgiveness and of salvation, because He has taken our sins away!

Hosanna to the Son of David!

Blessed is He that comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!

Rejoice,

your King has come!

Amen.

Top of Page || Church Sermons || Return to Home Page