Welcome to another posting of the Weekend Sermon. It is good to be with you all this week. It is my prayer that all is going well for each and every one of you who read this blog. May the blessings of the Lord be upon you.
There is much to be thankful for this week. As a mentioned in a previous post, my friend's wife is out of the hospital, and the doctors think that she will be able to go back to work next week. My foot that has been giving me trouble is better this week.
I would ask that you continue to pray this week for peace in the troubled areas of this world. I listened to a report on the radio this week detailing the trouble with terrorist groups in Africa. The report specifically mentioned the nations of Nigeria, Niger and Chad. Let us pray for peace in these places. Let us also pray for peace in Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Ukraine, Syria and Libya.
I would also like to ask that you continue to pray for me as I am having a very difficult time at work. I also need prayer for the overall state of my health. Pray that the Lord Jesus will help me to make it through. As I have mentioned, I have fought a battle with depression for the majority of my life. Please pray that it does not get the victory over me.
For the past few weeks, we have been in a series of messages on the book of I Peter. This week and next week, we will be focusing on Palm Sunday and Easter. We will return to our series in I Peter after that.
Today's message focuses on Palm Sunday which was Jesus' triumphal entry into the city of Jerusalem the Sunday before Easter.
Palm Sunday is one of my favorite days of the year. When I was younger, the church where my family attended gave out palm branches for the kids to wave in honor of the events that transpired on Palm Sunday. I always remember an exciting and vibrant time around the church on Palm Sunday.
It must have been an exciting occasion when the first Palm Sunday took place almost 2,000 years ago. Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the donkey in fulfillment of the prophecy of the book of Zechariah. As Jesus rode into the city, the people laid their garments in his path. The people waved the palm branches and shouted Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. When the religious leaders demanded that Jesus make the crowds end their praises of Him, Jesus said that if the people didn't praise Him the very rocks would cry out their praise of Him.
All of this praise of the Lord Jesus would take a 180 degree change in less than one week. On Good Friday, the shouts of Hosanna would change to shouts of crucify Him. We will not have this man to rule over us.
This leads me to believe that the people were expecting Jesus to ride into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and declare Himself to be the one who would lead a rebellion against the Roman occupiers. When Jesus did not do this, the people turned against Him because they could not, or would not, understand the type of kingdom that Jesus wished to establish.
So, what is the message from the events of Palm Sunday for us today. I believe that there are several things for us to learn.
The first thing that I am always reminded of on Palm Sunday is the fact the Jesus Christ is worthy of our praise and adoration. Jesus is the divine Son of God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity who took upon Himself human flesh and came to live among humans. Jesus lived a life of sinless perfection as our example of how to live in this world. He was willing to suffer agony and humiliation on the cross in order to bear our sins and accept the punishment for sins that we rightly deserved. Jesus did this because He loved us and cared about us.
Because of who He is and for what He has done, Jesus is worthy of praise. Revelation chapters 4 and 5 speak about the praise and adoration that are due to the Lord and to the Lamb that was slain. I urge you to read these chapters and see the praise given to Jesus in the courts of Heaven because of what He has done through His redeeming work.
Every time you go to prayer, set aside a portion of your prayer time to praise the Lord Jesus. Give unto Him the honor that He is due. In church, fully enter into the time of praise and worship. Concentrate your mind and your thoughts on Jesus. Focus your full attention on giving Him the glory.
Another aspect surrounding Palm Sunday that is very important is the entire idea of the Kingdom that Jesus came to establish. The people of Jesus' day were expecting one type of kingdom, but it wasn't the type of kingdom that Jesus was representing. The people were expecting Jesus to led a violent revolt. However, these were not the kingdom values taught by the Lord.
Jesus calls those of us who are His followers to represent the values of the Kingdom of Heaven that Jesus preached about while He was here on earth. Jesus clearly expressed His kingdom principles in His teachings found in the Sermon on the Mount.
Jesus' kingdom in not a kingdom of violence, it is a kingdom of non-violence. Jesus calls us to love our enemies and pray for those who are opposed to us. Jesus us calls on us to share our resources with those who have little. He calls us to live lives of holiness that are pleasing to the Lord. Sadly, many who call themselves followers of the Lord Jesus today do not grasp the kingdom values of the Lord. They are for war when Jesus calls for peace. They seek to justify the economic oppressor instead of the economically oppressed. Instead of caring for the poor, they care for the values that increase wealth for the wealthy. Instead of serving God, they often serve mammon.
I see very little of what Jesus taught and stood for being practiced in the majority of churches in my country. I can't really speak for the rest of the world since I have only first hand knowledge of what happens here. I truly believe that if Jesus returned today and entered many of the churches here in the United States He would be rejected.
Jesus called His followers to lead a radically new kind of life filled with love, peace and non-violence. How different that is from what is being taught by so many in churches today where guns, violence, militarism, corporatism, greed and exploitation are lauded from the pulpit. I believe that Jesus would have just as much trouble with the religious leaders in America as He did with the religious leaders of His own day.
Finally, Palm Sunday reminds me of the fact that Jesus is coming again. When Jesus rode into Jerusalem the first time, He rode in to give His life as a sacrifice for the sins of the world. His death would begin the process of returning the universe to the state in which it existed before sin came into the cosmos.
When Jesus left this world, He said that He would come again. One day, Jesus Christ will come again bringing His saints with Him. He will come riding a white horse. He will then descended from Heaven to the Mount of Olives.
When Jesus comes again, every eye will see Him and every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. The Bible says that every creature on planet earth, including animals, will give praise and honor to Jesus Christ the King.
When Jesus returns, He will establish a kingdom of justice, peace, love and goodness. All of the created order will live in harmony. Nation will no longer rise against nation. The Bible says that each person will sit under his own vine and no one will make him afraid. There will be perfect peace, safety and tranquility.
I long for the day of Christ's return. I hope that He will come even this very day to rule and reign in righteousness forever and forever.
You can be a part of the glorious reign of Jesus Christ upon this earth. Turn to Jesus in repentance and faith. Confess your sins and ask Jesus to forgive you. Believe in His resurrection from the dead, and make Jesus the Lord of your life. Then you will have a place in His reign on earth that is to come.
In the meantime, those of us who are Jesus' followers need to promote and live out the values of the kingdom right now. We must promote love, peace, goodness and non-violence as we attempt to impact our world for the glory of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Next week, I will post the verses on Monday. There will not be a review this week. On Thursday and Friday, I will post Holy Week material. The Weekend Sermon for Easter will be posted on Saturday. May God bless you. Amen.
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