We're going to begin our worship this morning. Let me read to you from God's Word in Zechariah chapter 9.
! Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you, righteous and having salvation as he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, full of a donkey.
Today we'll be thinking about the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. We'll be thinking about the title, the Son of David, and how it applies there.
And so as we do so, we're going to gather this morning, raising our voices, along with the crowd who welcomed Jesus to the city on that day, in the words of Psalm 118.
This is in Sing Psalms, page 156 in the Blue Book.
We're going to sing from verse 15 through to verse 24.
Please stand to sing, if you're able.
singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing, singing
He does all things well.
I shall not die, but I shall live.
The Lord's great works I will proclaim.
The Lord's of the air rechastened me.
I've rescued me from death's domain.
Oh, like the gates of righteousness,
I tell the fear, thanks to God.
This is the gate of God through which
the righteous come before the Lord.
You answered me, I will reply.
Salvation comes on you alone.
The stone that filled the child refused
Has not become the cornerstone.
The Lord himself has done all this
Ages of marvel in our sight
This is the deed the Lord does need
In the dark's secret delight
Let's bow our heads in prayer to God.
This is the day the Lord has made.
We thank you, Lord, and we rejoice today
That we can say these words with confidence
That you have appointed this day
As a day of salvation.
You have appointed it as a day of worship.
You have appointed it as a day of memorial and rest
Giving thanks for the finished work of your hands.
We thank you, Lord, today that we gather, therefore,
As people who have all of these reasons to rejoice and worship.
Today we remember that you have made this world
In which we live, in all of its beauty and intricacy
And its marvel and wonder
That we can see your handiworks in it
As the psalmist says,
It is a world which continually speaks
To God's glory and to your character
That we can see so much of you
In what we see around us
But we thank you that today
We also remember the finished work
Not just of creation
But the finished work of Jesus
We thank you for the resurrection
We thank you that
Early in the morning
On the first day of the week
That the tomb was found to be empty
That that earth-shattering truth
Had come to pass
That death was defeated
And hope abounds now to the children of man
And so we pray today
That you would fill our hearts with thanksgiving
That as we worship you today
We would lift up and glorify your name
That you would help us
To resound to the praise of your glory
We come confessing before you today our sin
We know we need the cleansing blood of Jesus
To wash away all iniquity
And so we ask today, Father
That you would give us a true sense and vision
Of Christ Jesus
That we would recognize in him
The one who takes away the sin of the world
And so we ask and pray
That today each one of us
Would in our own hearts
Acknowledge our sin and our shortcomings
That we would not seek to hide from you
The things that we have done amiss
But that rather with that full confidence
Of knowing that there is salvation
And forgiveness and hope available
That we would come clinging only
To the blood of Christ
And not our own self-righteousness
Help us therefore we pray
In our worship today
To look to Jesus for cleansing and healing
Help us to see him as the one
Who has mercy upon us
And may we therefore be blessed
In receiving today the mercy
And the grace of almighty God
Renew us and refresh us in this we pray
In Christ's name
Amen
So I have with me today
An item from our house
It's kind of hard to believe
Six months and we're still
Working on the house
And what I have with me today
Is the stage we are at at the moment
We are laying
New hardwood floors
In our living room
And so I have brought with me today
The sample block
It has the sticker on the back
That tells you all the information
About this wood
And tells you what colour it is
And what strength it is
And how you should lay it
And everything else
And on the front you can see
What it's going to look like
And so we were quite impressed with this
And thought that's the wood
That we want for our floor
You might be thinking to yourself
Well why Gordon have you brought
A piece of wood with you today?
Why on earth have you brought
A piece of wood?
And Roddy was certainly asking me
That question this morning
When I was coming into church
But my piece of wood is a reminder to us
That today is Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday is a Sunday
On the Christian calendar
It's called the liturgical calendar
So the Sunday before Easter
Is always called Palm Sunday
And this isn't a piece of palm
Obviously
This is a piece of oak hardwood
Floating
Engineered timber
So you wouldn't want to
Wave this at somebody
If it was Palm Sunday
That's what people did though
On the first so-called Palm Sunday
Jesus was going into Jerusalem
And people were waving palm branches
And singing Hosanna to God
We can read about it actually
In Matthew's Gospel
It's in Matthew chapter 21
We'll read verses 1 to 11 just now
Just very briefly
So that you'll get the picture
And when they came near to Jerusalem
And they came to Bethpage
In the Mount of Olives
Then Jesus sent two disciples
Saying to them
Go into the village in front of you
And immediately you will find
A donkey tied
And a colt with her
Untie them
And bring them to me
If anyone says anything to you
You shall say to them
The Lord needs them
And he will send them
At once
This took place to fulfill
What was spoken by the prophet
Saying
Say to the daughter of Zion
Behold your king is coming to you
Humble and mounted on a donkey
And on a colt
The foal of a beast of burden
The disciples went and did
As Jesus had directed them
They brought the donkey
And the colt
And put on them
Their cloaks
And he sat on them
Then most of the crowd
Spread their cloaks
On the road
And others cut branches
From the trees
And spread them
On the road as well
And the crowds went before him
And that followed after
Were shouting
Hosanna
To the son of David
Blessed is he
Who comes
In the name of the Lord
Hosanna in the highest
And when he entered Jerusalem
The whole city was stirred up
Saying
Who is this?
And the crowd said
This is the prophet Jesus
From Nazareth
Of Galilee
So
What's happening there is
Jesus is riding into Jerusalem
And he's riding
On a donkey
And all the people
Are going around
And they're getting
Not hardwood flooring
To put down on the floor
That wouldn't be very practical
But what they do is
They get their coats
So instead of grabbing bits
Of wood
They're grabbing their coats
Like this
They're taking their jackets off
And they're throwing them
On the road
In front
I'm not going to throw
This jacket
Because I'll probably
Get in trouble for that
But they would throw
Their jackets onto the road
And then when Jesus
Rides by on the donkey
He's walking
Not on the road
But on the jackets
And you think
That's a very strange
Thing to do
Isn't it?
But it's just like
Laying hardwood flooring
The people thought
The roads are too dirty
For the king of kings
To walk on
The roads are too dirty
For this
Exalted holy person
To come on
We will put our jackets
On the floor
And he can walk on them
And the reason
They're doing that
Is because they want
To show
That they recognize
Jesus as their king
They want to be able
To say
This is Jesus
He's above us
He's over us
He's the one
That we listen to
And that we follow
And that we
Will go after
And so by throwing
Their jackets on the ground
They're saying
It's okay for Jesus
To walk in our jackets
Because we are beneath him
He is our king
It's quite a strange thought
Isn't it?
But that's what was happening
On
Palm
Sunday
They wanted to show
That Jesus was over them
Because they realized
Jesus
Was their king
And so they were singing
These words
Hosanna
Which means save me
It's a cry to God
To save us
Hosanna
To the one who comes
In the name of the Lord
Hosanna
To the son of David
They're recognizing
That Jesus
Is a king
Who brings
Salvation
And so for us today
We're going to be thinking
About that a wee bit
In the sermon
We're going to be thinking
A bit about Jesus
As the son of David
But the simple thing
If there's one thing
I want you to remember today
It's this
That we can show
Every day
That Jesus is our king
That we should ask
For God
To give us
The wisdom
And the strength
Every day
To live for Jesus
And to show
Jesus
Is the one
That we follow
And that doesn't mean
That we throw our jackets
On the road
When we're coming to church
But it does mean
That every day
We say
Jesus
Your word
Is over me
Your word
Is what I'm going to follow
Your ways
Are how I'm going to go
Where you call
I will follow
And when you offer
Salvation
I'll listen to you
And I will believe
In you
And I will trust you
We're going to say
The Lord's Prayer
Just now
One of the things
That we say
In the Lord's Prayer
Remember is
Your kingdom come
And your will be done
On earth
As it is in heaven
So these are important
Words to remember
Because Jesus
Is our king
And it's his kingdom
And it's his will
Being done
That we're praying for
So let's pray
Our Father
In heaven
Hallowed
Be your name
Your kingdom come
Your will be done
On earth
As it is
In heaven
Give us this day
Our daily bread
And forgive us
Our debts
As we forgive
Our debtors
Lead us not
Into temptation
But deliver us
From evil
For yours is the kingdom
The power
And the glory
Forever
Amen
We're going to continue
Singing just now
To God's praise
This time from
Psalm 130
In the Scottish Psalter
This is page 421
In the Blue Book
When Jesus arrived
In Jerusalem
It looked as if
Everyone was
Greeting him
And welcoming him
Gladly
But not everyone
Recognized their need
Of him
And this is a psalm
Which is really about
Us recognizing
Our need
Of God
Our need of the
Cleansing
The cleaning
The washing
That God alone
Can bring to us
And that he brings
Through the blood
Of Jesus
So we're going to sing
The whole of this psalm
To God's praise
Lord from the depths
To thee I cried
My voice Lord
Do thou hear
And to my supplications
Voice
Give an attentive year
Lord who shall stand
If thou
O Lord
Shouldst mark iniquity
But yet with thee
Forgiveness is
That feared
Thou mayst be
Please stand
If you're able
I will sing
The whole of this psalm
Lord from the depths
To thee I cried
Lord from the depths
To thee I cried
My voice Lord
Do thou hear
Of the voyance
O Lord, who shall stand if thou, O Lord, should smile in me?
Iniquity, but yet with thee, forgivenesses, that fear thou mayest be.
I wait for God, my soul not wait, my hope is in His word.
More than they lie, for morning watch, my soul waits for the Lord.
I say, Lord, I may not do watch, the morning light to see.
Let Israel open the door, for within her trees be.
Unplenteous redemption is ever unquited.
And from all its iniquities, He is the child redeemed.
Would you turn with me, please, in your Bibles to read in Matthew's Gospel, Matthew chapter 1.
Matthew chapter 1.
The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron,
and Hezron the father of Ram, and Ram the father of Amminadab,
and Amminadab the father of Nashon, and Nashon the father of Salmon,
and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth,
and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king.
And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,
and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah,
and Abijah the father of Asaph, and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat,
and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah,
and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz,
and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh,
and Manasseh the father of Amos,
and Amos the father of Josiah,
and Josiah the father of Jehonichai and his brothers at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
And after the deportation to Babylon, Jehonichai was the father of Shealtiel
and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud
and Abiud the father of Elakim and Eliakim the father of Azor
and Azor the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Achim and Achim the father of Eliud
and Eliud the father of Eliezer and Eliezer the father of Mathan
and Mathan the father of Jacob and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary
by whom Jesus was born who is called Christ.
And so all the generations of Abraham to David were 14 generations
and from David to the deportation to Babylon 14 generations
and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ 14 generations.
Amen.
This is God's word to us today.
Let's bow our heads once again in prayer.
Heavenly Father, as we have today read in your word a long list of names,
most of whom we barely know anything about,
we have to come, Lord, in the wonderful mystery of your great providence
and recognize that in all of that story,
in all of these centuries, in all of these generations,
you were working out a plan to bring the Christ into the world.
And you did this in sending your son, Jesus,
to be a savior,
to be a firstborn of many brothers and sisters
so that today we can come to you in the words that Jesus taught us
and say,
our father in heaven.
As a privilege, Lord,
that has been worked out
through the unmistakable hand of your providence,
not just in the generations that we've read about
in Matthew's gospel,
but in the mystery of the generations that have gone before us.
We can think of our parents.
Many of us received the gospel from them.
We can think of a long line going all the way back
to days of awakening and revival
and reformation in the church.
And we see throughout all of that
the mystery of your purposes being unfolded.
We can truly see your kingdom coming.
We can see the emergence of the kingdom of God.
And so as we pray today,
your kingdom come,
help us to remember that
what we are praying for there
is something you yourself
are already intimately involved in
and care about
and are working towards.
We thank you that today
we can see evidence
of the Holy Spirit working in people's lives.
We can see the marvel of the rebirth.
We can witness and pay tribute
to regeneration,
awakening the hearts of men and women
to the great truth that is in Christ Jesus,
and enabling men and women
to express faith and trust in him.
And that, Lord, today is our prayer
for our community,
for our church family,
for our home families,
for the extended family
of the nation in which we live.
We cry to you, Lord,
and we pray that you would remember us
in your mercy
and that you would bring many
to know Jesus
as their Lord and as their Savior.
We want today to be able to say
not only that your name is hallowed,
made holy,
thought of in a special and unique way
by the people of this world,
but that we would see
that your name, Lord,
is worthy of honor
because your ways
are worthy of honor.
And so we long to see
your will being done on earth
as it is in heaven.
We think, Lord, today
of the issues
that are before us as a nation.
So often, Lord,
the headlines in the news
will focus on the economic situation.
And we know, Lord,
that there is a reality to that
that affects many people.
We know many people
are in danger with jobs
and lack of security.
We know people long for employment
and hope in that respect.
And we pray for these things.
But we also remember, Lord,
that the moral heart of our nation
is at stake as well.
We see, Father,
the decisions of our politicians
and our leaders.
we fear, Lord,
that their ways are not your ways,
that their priorities are not yours.
We see it in the stripping away
of the sanctity of life
more and more in our culture.
And as we lose more and more
of that biblical rootedness
that has informed
how we think about the world,
we're losing sight
of what makes humanity
special and precious
and worthy of fighting for
to the end.
And so we pray, Father,
for wisdom for those who lead.
We pray for our own MP and MSP,
that you would give them
a heart that seeks
after your ways.
We pray for our counsellors locally.
We ask that you would bless them
in the decisions that are taken
in our local authority.
And we pray, Father,
for those who serve
in our community
in these public roles as well.
We think especially this week
of teachers going back
this week after a break,
we ask that you would bless them.
Pray for them as they
are used to shape
the minds of young people
in our community,
that you would help them, Lord,
both with their educational
responsibilities,
but also the character
that they will pass on
in that environment.
We ask and pray, Father,
today that you would bless us
each day with our daily needs
being met.
We think, Lord,
of those in our community
who are lonely
and who are going through
difficult times emotionally.
We ask and pray, Father,
that you would speak
into their lives
with compassion and tenderness.
Give to the lonely friendships
that are valuable
and trustworthy.
Give to those who are isolated
a lifeline of hope
and connection
with other human beings
who care passionately
for their welfare.
We know into that, Lord,
again, we think of those
who have public responsibility
in that.
We pray for our health service,
for those who are involved
in care for the elderly,
and for adult social care
in other ways as well.
And we ask, Lord,
that in all of these ways
that compassion and grace
would be shown,
that your concerns
would be reflected
in what we do
and in how we live.
We want to pray today, Father,
for your ongoing blessing
on those who are struggling
through the turmoil of life.
So often, Lord,
the traumas that we carry,
the things that have been done
to us in the past,
and that the things
that we have experienced,
they remain with us
and they blight our lives.
We pray, Father,
that into such darkness
you would bring your light.
Release people, therefore,
from the chains of addiction,
but also, Lord,
the chains of sinful patterns
that are unrelenting.
So often,
we don't forgive
when we should.
We don't let go
of past wrongs
that continue to hinder us
as we move on in our lives.
And so we ask, Lord,
that you would bless
and prosper
those who seek
to bring reconciliation
in people's minds
and relationships
and experiences as well.
We want to pray, Father,
for our world today.
It is a broken world,
we know.
We see it so often
on the news,
in the reality
of what happens
in the world around us.
We remember, Lord,
that there are many places
where there is violence today,
where there is uncertainty,
and that in so many
of these places,
your people
are very often
at the heart
of the distrust
and the affliction
that is visited
in these lands.
We remember the church
in parts of sub-Saharan Africa today.
We pray for the church
in places like Nigeria
and Sudan.
We ask and pray
that you would remember
your children there
and remember them
in the midst
of affliction
and sorrow,
persecution
and violence.
Bring relief,
we pray.
We want to pray today,
Father,
as well,
for the peace
of the world.
We pray for an end
to conflict,
and we pray
that that would come
through reconciliation
and blessing.
We think,
therefore, again,
of the witness
of the saints
in places of conflict,
that they would be
given the grace
to set examples
of forgiveness
and hope,
that you would see
good done.
In all of this,
Lord,
we ask that your name
indeed would be hallowed,
that your reputation,
your fame among the nations
would grow,
that men and women
would bow the knee
before you
and recognize
that you alone
are God
and there is no other.
Help us then
to worship you,
to declare you,
to witness for you,
to make Jesus known
in our lives
day by day,
and we ask all these
things in his name.
Amen.
We're going to sing
once again
to God's praise
before we turn back
to the word
in Psalm 72.
This is in
Sing Psalms,
page 92
in the Blue Books.
We're going to sing
the first two stanzas
and then the last
two stanzas
of this psalm.
It's a psalm
that recognizes
the lordship,
the reign of Jesus
ultimately,
and he is the one
who is very much
in mind
as the royal
character
at the center
of the psalm.
Endow the king
with justice,
Lord,
the royal son
with righteousness,
your people,
your afflicted ones.
He'll judge
with truth
and uprightness.
The mountains
will bring peace
to them,
the hills
the fruit
of righteousness.
He will defend
and save the poor
and crush all those
who them oppress.
And then
the last two
verses of the
two stanzas
as well,
verse 17,
forever may his name
endure,
may it continue
as the sun,
all nations
will be blessed
in him
whom they will
call the blessed
one.
It's interesting
that this psalm
echoes the promise
given to Abraham,
we'll note it
in just a moment,
promise given
to Abraham
that in his seed,
the offspring
of Abraham,
all the nations
of the world
would be blessed
and it's through
Jesus ultimately,
this royal son
through whom
all the nations
will be blessed.
So we're going
to stand and sing
to God's praise
and do the king
with justice,
Lord.
Amen.
singing voy voy voy
voy
!
voy
as the sun.
All nations will be blessed in Him,
whom they will call the Blessed One.
Thanks to the Lord, to His blessed God,
His awesome deeds proclaim to man.
His name He prays eternally,
His glory fill the earth. Amen.
Please turn with me in your Bibles back to Matthew's Gospel.
We read there these opening words,
the book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ,
the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Jesus Christ, the son of David.
Let's bow in prayer before we study the Word.
Heavenly Father,
as we turn our attention for a moment just now
to the Word of Truth,
we pray, Lord, that you would speak into our hearts today
encourage us with a knowledge of who our Savior is.
Help us to see Jesus clearly,
to see who He is and what He has done,
to recognize Him in His titles,
and to worship Him for what He has done
and how He has proved Himself worthy of worship
in the way He fulfills that office and title as well.
We ask that you bless us in this,
in Jesus' name.
Amen.
One of the most groundbreaking movies in my,
in fact, technically just over my lifetime,
was released in the UK the Christmas before I was born,
is the film Star Wars.
It was an absolutely marvelous piece of cinematic theater,
and I would encourage you,
if you get a chance to watch it,
you will enjoy yourself.
But George Lucas, the director of Star Wars,
does quite an impressive feat at the beginning of it.
He launches that movie right into the action
after what's called a cinematic crawl.
Some text appears on the screen that you have to read,
and the act of reading draws you in
because you're concentrating on the words
as they scroll past on the screen.
And you're drawn into the story
and immediately plugged into this amazing adventure
that is taking place in the movie as it unfolds.
And strangely, Matthew is doing exactly the same thing
with his introduction.
And you may be thinking,
well, hang on a minute, Gordon.
There are a list here of 42 names,
most of which you've probably got wrong
as you were reading them this morning.
How on earth is Matthew catapulting us
into the action of the gospel
with this fairly long
and fairly boring list of names.
But in fact, Matthew wants his readers
to understand the importance
of one of the titles he uses of Jesus.
And what he's doing is he's drawing attention
to this title, the Son of David,
in these verses.
David and this title, the Son of David,
is central to Matthew's understanding
of who Jesus is
and who it is
who on that first Palm Sunday,
all of these years ago,
went into Jerusalem riding a donkey
and around whom the crowds shouted,
Hosanna!
Blessed be the name of the Lord
for the salvation he brings.
He does it, first of all,
by telling us about the titles,
Son of David, Son of Abraham.
And both of these refer back
to promises that were given.
Abraham was promised a seed,
an offspring.
God had taken Abraham out
and said to him,
Abraham, look up at the stars
of the heavens.
See the sand on the seashore.
Such will your offspring be.
But then the promise kind of narrows
in a little bit as well
because Abraham's given more.
He's told,
in your seed,
all the nations of the world
will be blessed.
And so Matthew,
as he's writing his gospel
to the church,
which is not just a Jewish church,
but is a Gentile church
spread throughout the world,
across the whole of the Roman Empire
and in some places beyond
by this point.
Matthew is writing and saying,
the blessing of the nations
comes and flows through Jesus,
the son of Abraham.
He's the one who fulfills
the promise given to Abraham.
But then he also uses
this other title,
the son of David.
And again,
it's one of these covenant promises
that's given in the Old Testament
that David was given
a promise by God
that the Lord would establish
his throne forever.
So not that David would have
a constant line of descendants
after him into infinity,
but that eventually someone
would sit on the royal throne
of David forevermore.
That David's ultimate,
final son would reign forever.
And that covenant promise,
that commitment on God's part,
that's a covenant.
It's a commitment
that's made by a sovereign.
The Lord makes that covenant
with Abraham
and promises that Abraham
will have a descendant
who will reign forever
in his name.
This is Jesus.
And so when Matthew
gives us this long list
of names,
he's catapulting us
into that story.
He's saying this story
about Jesus
is, you know,
which so often we tend
to think is just this little bit
of the end of our Bibles,
is actually all about
the big bit
at the other end.
That the story of Jesus
doesn't just come into
a vacuum.
Jesus comes
as the fulfillment
of these promises.
And then Matthew
just kind of underlines
that for us a little bit.
And he does it
with 14 reasons why.
And the 14 reasons
are these little blocks
that he gives
of generations.
14 generations
from Abraham to David,
14 generations
from David to the exile,
and then 14 generations
from the exile
to the present,
to the days of Jesus
2,000 years ago.
And each time
he's reiterating
this structure,
14 generations,
14 generations.
They're not literal
because we know
some of the sequence
of the kings
are missed out.
There was actually
an extra three kings
in the descendancy.
So it's a rhetorical structure
he's using,
a literary structure.
It's not meant
to be a true reflection
of the exact number
of generations involved.
But nonetheless,
he uses this structure
to point us
at something important.
And the likelihood
is that it's pointing us
at the name of David himself.
Because if you were
a scholar of Hebrew numerology,
you would know
the number of David's name
is 14.
Hebrew text writes
only the consonants,
and the name of David
has four consonants in it.
D, V, D.
And so you work through it.
A D is the fourth letter
of the alphabet,
so that's number four.
V is the sixth letter
of the alphabet,
number six.
The other D,
a four again.
Four plus six plus four
gives you 14.
And if you were
a student of that,
then you would think
immediately,
oh, wow.
there's 14 generations
and there's 14 numbers
in David's name
and they must be connected.
And it's pointing
firmly and squarely
to David
as the significant person.
So Jesus,
when he comes onto the scene,
is fulfilling
and doing something
relating to David
in terms of who he was.
And there's really three things,
just to note very briefly.
There's fulfillment,
there's status,
and there's mission.
There's fulfillment
because a promise
has been fulfilled.
A covenant promise
made to David
has been fulfilled.
The covenant bond
between God
and his people
through their head,
through their representative,
is now
more firmly established.
The covenant
made with David
was a promise to David
that the people
would be well led,
that the people
would be secure,
that there would be
a champion
who would fight for them,
that there would be
a leader
who would direct them,
that there would be
blessings found
in the path
that the leader
would take them in.
And as long as the leader
walked in God's way
and kept his covenant
responsibilities
and obligations
as a king,
blessing would flow.
And obviously,
the descendants of David,
we know this,
were failures.
None of them lived up to it
until eventually
the kingdom itself
was removed.
And after the days
of Shealtiel,
things just disappeared
completely.
The kingdom
disappeared,
vanished,
visibly.
There's still records
of descendants
charting through them.
Jews took pride
in their heritage
in that way,
so they had a record.
And that's what Matthew
relies on
when he has the genealogy
of Jesus.
And Luke relies on
when he has the genealogy
of Mary.
But it's pointing back
to this truth
that the promise,
the line of promise
is unbroken.
even if the people
in there
hadn't kept
their side
of the bargain.
And so God
does something merciful.
He steps in
to establish
his covenant
more fully.
There's a fulfillment,
therefore,
of the covenant.
There's a status
that is confirmed
as well
because the status
doesn't come
from the palatial
setting
of what happens.
Matthew
tells us about that.
That's why he tells us
about the bit
after the exile.
Once the palace
is lost,
the palace
is gone.
So when Jesus
comes into the world,
he isn't born
in a palace.
You remember,
that's what the magi,
the wise men
from the east,
they thought
when the king
who has appeared
has come into the world,
he will be found
in the palace.
So they go to Jerusalem,
they go to Herod,
and they say to Herod,
where is the king
of the Jews?
Because we have seen
a star in the east.
And Herod's like,
what are you talking about?
Interestingly,
Herod thinks,
this king who has been born,
this son of David,
is a threat to me.
He must be eradicated.
But the wise men,
Herod asks the religious leaders
and says,
well,
where will the son of David
be born?
Where will the king come from?
And they say,
oh,
Bethlehem.
And so off the wise men
go to Bethlehem,
and they discover
in Bethlehem
the king of kings
and lord of lords.
They discover him
lying in a manger.
They present to him
their gifts,
their gold
and their frankincense
in their mirror.
This is the son of David.
A status is conferred,
not because of where
he is born,
but because of what he does.
Because this son of David,
he receives
the father's affirmation.
Remember,
just a couple of chapters on
in Matthew's gospel,
Matthew tells us
that Jesus went
and was baptized
by his cousin John.
And when he's coming up
out of the water,
the Holy Spirit
descends on him
like a dove,
and a voice is heard
from heaven saying,
this is my beloved son
with whom I am well pleased.
The father announces
the status of Jesus.
Right at the outset
of his public ministry.
And Satan sweeps in
almost immediately,
takes him away
into a desert place
and tempts him
and says,
you can have the glory,
you can have the power,
just bow the knee before me.
Just do things my way.
Forget the path
that the father
has given for you
and follow in my steps instead
and I will lead you
and I will take you
to a place
where all the outcomes
will be good.
And Jesus says,
no, get behind me,
Satan, and so on.
But the point is
in all of this,
the royal status
of this person
is established
by the father.
The father says,
this is my beloved son
with whom I am delighted
and well pleased.
And he is therefore
on a mission.
It's interesting in fact
because Jesus
at the end of Matthew's gospel,
he confirms this.
We call it
the great commission.
He's talking to the disciples
and he sees all authority.
In heaven and on earth,
everywhere,
it's all mine.
Therefore,
I am sending you out
to make disciples
of all nations
and all peoples.
And Jesus is claiming
that authority
because he is in fact
the son of David.
And so what Jesus says
at the end of the gospel
flows out of
what Matthew tells us
at the beginning.
That Jesus has
this fulfillment,
thrust upon him.
He has this status
afforded him.
He has this mission
to go out
and to gather in
the flock of God's people.
And that is today
what he commissions
the church to do.
So Matthew is telling us
right at the outset,
this is important.
This matters.
This title,
the son of David,
is what Jesus
is all about.
And then he goes
through his gospel
and gives us
lots and lots
of examples.
And the examples
are all of people
reacting to,
normally because of
his reputation,
reacting to Jesus
and realizing
he is the son of David.
And it's fascinating
when you go through
Matthew's gospel,
there's two categories
of people that Matthew
wants us to see
and I suspect that today
that remains the case.
There are two categories
of people in the world,
there's two categories
of people in this church.
There are those
who get it,
who see that Jesus
is the son of David
and what that means
and there's those
who don't.
And who reject
everything,
in fact,
that it means.
So first of all,
there's those
who get it.
One of the things
you can track
through Matthew's gospel
is those who get it.
There is particularly
the blind.
So Matthew,
on three occasions,
tells us about
the blind who come
to Jesus
and call him
the son of David.
Matthew 9,
you've got two men,
blind men,
shortly after Matthew
himself is called
by Jesus,
who come to Jesus
and say,
son of David,
have mercy on us.
And then a little bit
later in the gospel
in Matthew 20
is Jesus is passing
through Jericho.
In some of the other
gospels,
there's the story
of Bartimaeus
who uses the same
language.
There's also another
two blind men.
It's interesting,
the other side of Jericho.
So it's as if
Jericho is bracketed
by blind men
who say,
Jesus,
son of David,
have mercy on me.
But there in Matthew's
gospel,
in Matthew 20,
you can read about it,
two blind men in Jericho
who cry out,
Jesus,
son of David,
have mercy on me.
And then in Matthew 21,
when Jesus has gone
into Jerusalem
after the triumphal entry,
he goes to the temple
and there's blind
and lame people
there in the temple
who come to Jesus
and ask for mercy.
And they use
the same formula,
son of David,
have mercy on me.
Among those
who get it,
there are simply
the blind.
And they recognize
that the son of David
is an instrument
of God's mercy.
You know,
today,
that's what God's
doing with us.
He's come to us
with Jesus
as an instrument
of his mercy.
And it's a fulfillment
of the promises
of the scriptures,
particularly of Isaiah,
where Isaiah says,
the servant of the Lord
will come
and one of the things
he will do
is he will bring sight
to the blind.
And it's interesting
that the cry for mercy,
it's a word in Greek
that means
give me relief.
Release me
from this miserable experience
that I have been afflicted with.
And Jesus brings
that relief,
he brings that
freedom
into the experience
of these blind people.
Same in Matthew 12.
And Jesus,
on this occasion,
casts a demon
out of someone.
And the crowds
are astonished.
And they ask themselves,
they ask the question,
could this be
the son of David?
Because once again,
what you see there
is the people recognize
the son of David
is the one
who brings
this messianic hope,
the hope of the Messiah
breaking into this world
as the one
who has the authority
to drive out Satan
and bring to an end
all of his destructive works.
He just brings
deliverance
to people.
The promised
son
of David.
There's another category
of children
running around
at the temple
when Jesus arrives there.
The children run about
saying,
this is the son of David.
And they're singing,
Hosanna to the son of David.
And the scribes
and the Pharisees
hate this.
And they want to rebuke
these kids.
They want to say,
no,
don't let children
speak this way
about you.
And Jesus
quotes the words
of Psalm 8
and says,
out of the mouths
of infants
will come praise
to God.
I say that today
to young people here.
Don't ever
think
you're discounted
from following Jesus.
That you're disallowed
or that there's a barrier
or there's something
that says
you're not entitled
to join in
in the praise.
It's not.
It's for you as well.
Salvation is for us.
That God has brought us
redemption
in the person of Jesus.
And for all of us,
therefore,
to love and respond to him
and worship him.
There's another interesting
category as well
in Matthew,
in Matthew chapter 15.
There's a Canaanite woman
comes to Jesus.
And she's very interesting
because she's a pagan.
It doesn't mean
that she's ethnically Canaanite.
It means that she's
religiously Canaanite.
She still worships
the Canaanite gods
from the Old Testament
who are still worshipped
at this point
in places like Tyre and Sidon.
And Jesus goes up
towards Tyre and Sidon
in Matthew 15.
And there he meets
a Canaanite woman
who says,
Son of David,
have mercy on me
and on my daughter
because she's grievously ill.
And the impression you get
is she's tried
the Canaanite gods.
She's tried going
to the Canaanite god
of,
do I find the name
in my notes here?
The Canaanite god
of
of Eshnum.
It's a huge temple
of Eshnum in Tyre.
Just three miles away
from where that incident
took place.
And she's gone
hoping that the Canaanite gods
would bring deliverance
to her grievously ill daughter
and found them
to be empty,
false,
worthless,
powerless
to help.
But she's heard
about Jesus.
And she says,
Jesus,
Son of David,
have mercy on me.
And so once again,
there's that sense
that someone
who has found
everything else
to be empty
and worthless
and in her desperation
turns to Jesus,
discovers that
the Son of David
is the one
who can help,
who can bring
deliverance.
And today,
I'm sure
there are people
here like that.
There's people
who've turned
to Jesus
in their desperation
and have said,
have mercy on me.
I'm sure
you've worked
with people
like that.
You've ministered
in people's lives
like that.
I'm sure
you've experienced
it yourself.
People have discovered
that Jesus
is trustworthy.
There's another group
though,
and that's the ones
who don't get it.
And there's an interesting
couple of categories here.
On the one hand,
there's the scribes
and the Pharisees.
Throughout Matthew's gospel,
the scribes
and the Pharisees
repeatedly say,
shut up.
When someone says
Jesus is the Son of David,
they know full well
what that claim means.
And their response is,
nah.
We're not having it.
Rebuke the children.
Tell the woman
to be quiet.
Who on earth
do these blind people
think they are
saying that Jesus
is the Son of David?
The Pharisees
see Jesus
as a royal threat
to their power.
I think that's
the bottom line
with them.
Jesus had said
that they were
enslaving the people,
that they were
misleading them
and misdirecting them.
so they see
Jesus as a threat.
And maybe today
there's people
like that here.
Maybe today,
quite simply,
you're quite happy
being in control.
Maybe today
you're quite happy
saying to yourself,
I know how my life
is mapped
and charted out.
I know what's up
in front of me.
If I was to recognize
Jesus as my Lord,
then that might
make changes.
It might mean
I have to stop
some things.
I have to part
with some things.
It might mean
that my life
is no longer my own,
that I no longer
have authority
and control.
And I don't want
to figuratively
bow the knee
to someone.
I don't want to
listen to somebody
else's instructions
and call on my life.
Maybe even as a Christian
you're a bit like that.
You don't want to
recognize the authority
of the Son
of David
and his call
on your life.
Maybe because
it's a call
that's expensive.
It's costly.
It means giving up
something that you find
very comfortable.
So he calls us
into ministry.
Or he calls us
into service.
Or he calls us
into giving.
the Son of David
is not someone
to be trifled with
because his call
is costly.
but he's worthy
because of who he is.
The other group of people
and this is quite
where we hit
Palm Sunday
just briefly
just at the end.
The other group of people
are the crowds
on Palm Sunday.
So as Jesus
comes into Jerusalem
and as the crowds
throng around
and as
they see
something
of the significance
of here
is a man
entering Jerusalem
riding a donkey
and they remember
the prophecy
of Zechariah
and they say
hang on
Zechariah says
that the king
will come
humble
riding on a donkey
and here's Jesus
entering the city
riding a donkey
and so they make
this connection
they say
this must be
the son of David
this must be
the promised Messiah
the one who's going
to come
and do what?
well he's going
to come
and he's going
to restore
the throne
the Jews
had this massive
expectation
that God's purposes
for them
were to re-establish
them as an
independent nation
of their own
so he's the one
who's going to win
the referendum
for us
and by referendum
they mean
armed military revolt
he's the one
who's going to
get independence
for us
he's the one
who's going to
boot out the Romans
he's the one
who's going to
re-establish
the sanctity
of the temple
he's the one
who's going to
remove the
gentile influence
from our nation
he's going to
make it all well
that's what the
son of David
is going to achieve
and so when
they're singing
Hosanna
to the son of David
as Jesus
enters Jerusalem
you can be pretty
sure they don't
mean David
have mercy on me
they don't mean
we are blind
and we need to see
they don't mean
we are oppressed
by demons
and we need your
authority to cast
them out
they don't mean
have mercy on me
for my daughter's
sake
because she is
ill and I
cannot find a
cure
they mean
boot out the
Romans
I want to say
this particularly
to young guys
today
there's a younger
generation
that are discovering
this in you
the folk who
listen to
Jordan Peterson
they find that
Jordan Peterson
and his
like
will say
very appealing
things about
Christianity
about even
Jesus
that Jesus
has a good
influence to play
in shaping
people's moral
outlook and
perspective on the
world
it's incredible
even Richard Dawkins
one of the
architects of
new atheism
has conceded
that actually
the west
needs
Christianity
to survive
because our
entire civilization
is built on
Christian principles
and that's like
the crowds
who want
Jesus for
what he offers
them by way
of political
direction and
influence
I want a
Jesus who
makes sense
to me
on my
terms
I want
a Jesus
who's going
to come
in
and be
rational
and sensible
and help
us to
establish
some sort
of order
and perspective
on the
world
that makes
sense
and everything
is going
to be
okay
and there's
nothing
inherently
wrong with
that
so long
as you
don't miss
the salvation
if you
isolate
Jesus
from his
salvation
and the
hope of the
gospel
if you
cut Jesus
off from
the teaching
of repentance
that he
is the
one who
comes as
the sin
offering
to take
away that
sin
that's at
the heart
of the
covenant
with David
it's at
the heart
of the
covenant
with Abraham
the blessing
for the
nations
isn't that
Jesus has
a political
way of
living
a sensible
!
pattern
for life
that makes
sense for
people
it's that
he brings
salvation
from our
sin
it's that
he sets
us right
with God
that he is
God's king
on the
throne of
David
ruling over
God's
people
and leading
us forever
into the
glorious future
that belongs
to the
children of
God in the
new heavens
and the
new earth
if that's
not your
Jesus
you've got
him wrong
if that's
not your
Jesus
you've
forgotten
what's
most
important
and so
today
as we
gather
on
Palm
Sunday
as we
look forward
to
Easter
ultimately
the
resurrection
and we
celebrate
that next
Sunday
there'll be a
family service
you're very
welcome to
come along
and bring
your friends
but also
as we
think about
Good Friday
in between
as we
think about
the cross
the Golgotha
road
that Jesus
treads
because that's
what he does
as a son of
David
he comes in
and he goes
the path
when he arrives
in Jerusalem
on Palm
Sunday
he goes up
to the
temple
he's a
pilgrim
he goes
there
and he
leaves
because the
temple's
finished
it's about
to be torn
down and
replaced
with something
altogether better
his own
body and
blood
shed at the
cross
the cross
is what
we need
if we
want to
understand
and grasp
just who
the son
of David
is
and so
today
will you
join me
in coming
to the
son of
David
and saying
to him
Hosanna
to the
son of
David
save us
son of
David
because you
alone
can wash
away my
sin
you alone
can take
away my
guilt
you alone
can bring
the mercy
of God
to me
let's pray
lord this
day
may Christ
come in
may Christ
come in
to the
lives of
people here
who do
not know
you
may Christ
come in
to our
lives
and show
us
mercy
abounding
to sinners
and show
us what he
achieved at
the cross
of Golgotha
that there
he died
in the place
of sinners
like us
and that he
has risen
now to
everlasting
life
Hosanna
to the
son
of David
amen
we're going
to conclude
our worship
today
singing in
psalm
134
again the
sing psalms
version page
175
this is the
last of the
songs of
ascent
it's the
last of the
songs that
pilgrims would
sing as they
went up to
Jerusalem
and the
picture behind
this psalm
is of
these pilgrims
arriving at
the temple
and they're
asking for
God's blessing
they're basically
saying Hosanna
save us
be merciful to
us
may the
blessing of
God
come to
us
and that's
what we
look for
if we
recognize
Jesus as
the son
of David
we want
him to
bless us
the one
who made
the heavens
and the
earth
to bless
us
from his
throne
so let's
sing the
whole of
the psalm
to God's
praise
praise the
Lord all
you his
servants
as you
serve
with one
accord
praise the
Lord
and your
night
watches
in the
temple
of the
Lord
raise
your
hands
within
his
temple
to the
Lord
your
God
give
praise
he who
made
the
earth
and
heavens
bless
you
from
his
holy
place
let's
stand
to sing
praise
the
Lord
all
you
his
servants
as you
serve
with
one
accord
praise
the
Lord
in
your
night
watches
in
the
temple
of
the
Lord
praise
Lord
and
the
praise
you
from
his
praise
he
who
made
the
earth
and
heavens
bless
you
from
his
holy
place
now
the
grace
of
the
Lord
Jesus
Christ
the
love
of
God
the
Father
and
the
fellowship
of
God
the
Holy
Spirit
be
with
each
one
of
us
now
and
always
Amen
voy
!
Thank you.