WEBVTT 00:00:00.360 --> 00:00:04.879 Well, welcome to you. My name's Tommy, one of the pastors here. If we haven't met, I 00:00:04.879 --> 00:00:10.019 hope to meet you perhaps after the service. If you're just joining us at Advent, if this 00:00:10.019 --> 00:00:14.080 is your first time with us, you've come on a special day. It's a day that we call in 00:00:14.080 --> 00:00:21.199 the Christian calendar, the church year, Palm Sunday. And it's a day when we celebrate what 00:00:21.199 --> 00:00:26.080 you've been hearing about already in this service, what we call the triumphal entry, 00:00:26.079 --> 00:00:31.599 this climactic moment when Jesus rode into Jerusalem to a cheering crowd. 00:00:33.519 --> 00:00:39.879 And there are a lot of aspects of the Bible that when we talk about them, once we talk 00:00:39.879 --> 00:00:43.539 about them, we may not come back to them for a while. But there are certain things that 00:00:43.539 --> 00:00:51.259 we come back to again and again and again, certain moments that we return to. And this 00:00:51.259 --> 00:00:57.239 is one of those moments. You have this incredible scene of Jesus as He's processing. People are 00:00:57.239 --> 00:01:03.239 lining the streets. They're waving palm branches in the air like some of us were doing. They're 00:01:03.239 --> 00:01:08.959 singing and they're celebrating. They're throwing the palm branches down on the ground. And at 00:01:08.959 --> 00:01:13.280 the end of our service, as we process out, we'll do that. As the cross goes, we'll throw 00:01:13.280 --> 00:01:17.879 our palm branches down. People also threw garments. You're welcome to do that if you would like. 00:01:17.879 --> 00:01:26.579 And this was all a recognition that they saw Him as a kind of king, but not like any king 00:01:26.579 --> 00:01:32.140 the world has ever seen. It was an amazing spectacle. And one of the reasons we take time 00:01:32.140 --> 00:01:37.539 to remember this moment every year on this day is because it's a key moment, not only in the life 00:01:37.539 --> 00:01:45.219 of Jesus, but in history. You know, I give a lot of credit to the New Testament scholar Tom Wright, 00:01:45.219 --> 00:01:51.640 who's really helped expand my own understanding of everything that's happening at this moment. 00:01:51.739 --> 00:01:58.480 Because you see, at this moment, as Jesus rides into Jerusalem, Wright says He's riding into the 00:01:58.480 --> 00:02:09.300 middle of a perfect storm. There's a converging of forces, agendas, in other words. And they form a 00:02:09.300 --> 00:02:15.040 perfect storm, as Wright says. It's a beautiful analogy. And Jesus rides right into the heart of 00:02:15.040 --> 00:02:24.560 it. There's the Roman agenda. There's the Jewish agenda. And then coming right into the middle of 00:02:24.560 --> 00:02:30.680 it is God's agenda. So we're going to look at each of these agendas, how they illuminate and help us 00:02:30.680 --> 00:02:36.800 understand this event. And then lastly, inevitably, we have to turn and take an honest look at our own 00:02:36.800 --> 00:02:44.760 personal agendas that we have brought here with us this evening. So the passage is Luke 19, 28 to 48. 00:02:44.900 --> 00:02:54.160 Let's pray. Our Father, we do recognize that as we put on our garb and as we wave our palms and as we 00:02:54.160 --> 00:03:00.980 read these passages and as we sing the songs and pray the prayers and as we reenact this processional 00:03:00.979 --> 00:03:09.339 here in this building, that all of this would be meaningless if it were just us. Our great hope and 00:03:09.339 --> 00:03:16.579 great prayer is you are a God who is in the midst of us, who speaks to us. And so we pray, Lord, because 00:03:16.579 --> 00:03:21.379 we desperately need to hear that you would speak. And we pray this in your Son's holy name. Amen. 00:03:21.379 --> 00:03:29.780 So first let me give you a little more context as to what's going on. We don't have things like this 00:03:29.780 --> 00:03:39.120 often in our culture. Pilgrims are steadily streaming into Jerusalem for the Passover feast. This is the 00:03:39.120 --> 00:03:48.039 great Jewish celebration of liberation. It remembered a time when Israel was enslaved to Egypt and when God, 00:03:48.039 --> 00:03:56.519 the mighty hand of God through Moses brought liberation. And so God liberated his people and 00:03:56.519 --> 00:04:04.139 gave them an identity. He formed them into a distinct people group. And so this story is much more than just 00:04:04.139 --> 00:04:13.719 good times in Israel's past. This was the core of their identity. This story shaped who you were as a 00:04:13.719 --> 00:04:20.319 Jewish person as a member of this people group. And so it's a very important festival with a lot of 00:04:20.319 --> 00:04:27.579 themes that are rich in people's minds. And at this time, Jesus had become a celebrity. He had performed 00:04:27.579 --> 00:04:33.399 enough miracles and gained enough notoriety that he could no longer travel in public. He had to travel 00:04:33.399 --> 00:04:40.839 in secret. And by this point, because of his celebrity, he had stopped moving around. And so rumors as to his 00:04:40.839 --> 00:04:46.259 whereabouts abounded, and everybody wanted to know, will Jesus be at the Passover? 00:04:48.659 --> 00:04:54.639 And then word begins to spread that Jesus has been spotted in Bethany. That's like saying Jesus is in 00:04:54.639 --> 00:05:01.979 northern Virginia and he's headed this way. It's just right down the road. And Jesus had not too long 00:05:01.979 --> 00:05:07.419 ago raised Lazarus from the tomb. And so John's gospel tells us that people are coming to Bethany 00:05:07.420 --> 00:05:14.980 not just to see Jesus, but to see Lazarus. Is he really in fact alive again? So you can imagine all 00:05:14.980 --> 00:05:20.540 the inns and pubs and hotels and everything is absolutely booked solid. And everybody's buzzing about 00:05:20.540 --> 00:05:28.460 Jesus. So when Jesus comes out and people see him, and he sets out deliberately toward the city of 00:05:28.460 --> 00:05:34.920 Jerusalem, excitement begins to build. People begin to stir. You can imagine people running and telling 00:05:34.920 --> 00:05:38.759 their families, you know, busting the doors open, come on, come on, it's happening, it's happening, 00:05:38.900 --> 00:05:46.640 Jesus is here, come see. So they strike up the familiar song that brings back all of the memories, 00:05:47.640 --> 00:05:54.200 Psalm 118, a familiar pilgrim song to sing at this time of year, and yet they direct it at Jesus. 00:05:56.200 --> 00:06:01.580 Blessed be the king, but not just any king, blessed be the king who comes in the name of the Lord. 00:06:01.579 --> 00:06:07.899 And you begin to see this sort of ad hoc royal procession ensues, Jesus riding in on a colt, 00:06:07.939 --> 00:06:12.000 people throwing their garments on the ground, creating this amazing scene. 00:06:13.939 --> 00:06:19.019 And yet we have to wonder, did anyone there really understand the significance of this moment? 00:06:20.459 --> 00:06:26.360 I was in Boston in 2004 when the Red Sox won the World Series. 00:06:26.360 --> 00:06:34.319 And for the first time in 86 years, the Sox pulled it off, and they did so with one of the greatest 00:06:34.319 --> 00:06:41.500 comebacks in baseball history. And I was there downtown in Boston at a quarter till midnight 00:06:41.500 --> 00:06:46.840 on October 27th when they won their final game against the St. Louis Cardinals 3 to nothing. 00:06:46.839 --> 00:06:53.939 And the city went absolutely ballistic. I mean, people went nuts. People were screaming and 00:06:53.939 --> 00:06:57.479 cheering and shouting in the streets. You know, all the cabs are laying on their horns, 00:06:57.539 --> 00:07:02.139 and you can hear horns and sirens all around the city, and people are celebrating in every window 00:07:02.139 --> 00:07:07.839 everywhere. It was bedlam. It was wonderful. It was this incredible celebration. And I was right in 00:07:07.839 --> 00:07:13.519 the middle of this crowd with my Red Sox hat on, and I was cheering with everyone. And the only problem 00:07:13.519 --> 00:07:22.759 was I'm not a baseball fan. That's why I never use sports illustrations in my sermons. I'm not a sports 00:07:22.759 --> 00:07:29.379 fan. I hate to admit it. I have to look this up to use it in a sermon. I'm like, what year was that 00:07:29.379 --> 00:07:37.079 again? Was that? Oh, 2004. And I'd write it down. But I was there, and I had my Sox hat on. And, you know, 00:07:37.139 --> 00:07:42.500 Dan and Josh are both baseball fans, but every time they start talking about baseball in the office, 00:07:42.500 --> 00:07:48.040 I just got to smile and nod and then walk away because I have no idea what they're talking about. 00:07:49.300 --> 00:07:54.220 But I was there because it was exciting. I was there because there was an enormous amount of energy. 00:07:54.360 --> 00:07:59.579 I was there because my friends were there. I knew a few of the players' names, and I knew a few of the 00:07:59.579 --> 00:08:06.180 key games that had gotten them there. I knew it was a big deal, but I had no idea how big a deal 00:08:06.180 --> 00:08:15.860 until long afterwards. And I wonder how many people in this crowd would fit that description. 00:08:17.220 --> 00:08:21.040 I think there were a lot of people like me that day. They're all thinking they understand Jesus 00:08:21.040 --> 00:08:26.879 and this entry, and yet they're missing it by miles. And I think this becomes clear as we look at each of 00:08:26.879 --> 00:08:35.700 the competing agendas. First, you have the Roman agenda. The Roman agenda. If you know your history, 00:08:35.820 --> 00:08:41.279 you know that up until recently, at this point in history, Rome had been a republic. 00:08:42.820 --> 00:08:50.860 And then that had fallen apart because of Julius Caesar, his assassination that kicked off a long, 00:08:50.860 --> 00:08:59.460 bloody, awful civil war. And then after that civil war, his adopted son, Octavian, eventually rose to 00:08:59.460 --> 00:09:08.899 power, and Octavian named himself Augustus, which means majestic or worthy of honor. And then he began 00:09:08.899 --> 00:09:14.200 to tell people and to declare and to announce that his father, Julius, his adopted father, had actually 00:09:14.200 --> 00:09:22.460 been divine, which made him divine as well. And more specifically than that, it made him, if your 00:09:22.460 --> 00:09:30.780 father is God, then you are the son of God. So as Tom Wright says, the word went round the world, 00:09:31.420 --> 00:09:37.460 which Rome was quickly conquering. Good news, we have an emperor. The son of God has become the king of 00:09:37.460 --> 00:09:47.980 the world. No, that's not a unique statement. The son of God has become king. And so this began a line 00:09:47.980 --> 00:09:56.620 of Roman emperors who believed themselves to be divine sons of God, kings of the world. So their 00:09:56.620 --> 00:10:02.840 primary interest in Jesus is determining whether or not Jesus poses any threat to Roman authority. 00:10:02.840 --> 00:10:10.220 Is Jesus just a local celebrity enjoying his five minutes of fame before the next person comes along? 00:10:10.480 --> 00:10:18.220 Or is he a threat? Is he a possible rebellion leader or a rival to Caesar or someone, in other words, 00:10:18.259 --> 00:10:25.420 who needed to be put down quickly and violently? So this is part of the reason in verse 39, 00:10:25.419 --> 00:10:35.099 everybody's cheering and the Pharisees say, Jesus, tell your disciples to be quiet. Because what are 00:10:35.099 --> 00:10:40.219 they saying? Blessed be the king who comes in the name of the Lord. Well, there was only one king who 00:10:40.219 --> 00:10:47.699 came in the name of the Lord, and that was Caesar. So if anybody else claims to be king, and anybody 00:10:47.699 --> 00:10:53.579 is seen supporting that person, that's what? That's treason. So the Pharisees say, be quiet. You're going to get us 00:10:53.580 --> 00:11:02.040 all killed. So this is the Roman agenda. It's Caesar's agenda to stay in power, to keep the peace, 00:11:02.920 --> 00:11:12.340 and to make sure to crush any possible rebellion. So that's the Roman agenda. Now if we consider the 00:11:12.340 --> 00:11:19.280 Jewish agenda, it's very different. It's hard to imagine what it must have been like to be a Jew 00:11:19.279 --> 00:11:27.000 in this day and age. Imagine if from your earliest memories, from the time you were a toddler, 00:11:27.879 --> 00:11:34.779 you had been told that you were fortunate enough to be born into a special people group, 00:11:35.360 --> 00:11:41.839 a people group that God had come to and God had made a promise to, a people group who knew from their 00:11:41.839 --> 00:11:48.379 earliest days of existence that God had great plans and great things in store for them, that they had a 00:11:48.379 --> 00:11:54.320 a massively climactic destiny at the very heart of the future of the world. They occupied a special 00:11:54.320 --> 00:12:00.159 place right in the middle of it. And if your story again and again and again, and you knew your whole 00:12:00.159 --> 00:12:05.879 identity was wrapped up in the idea that God had delivered you again and again and again, miraculously 00:12:05.879 --> 00:12:13.539 delivering you, especially from Egypt. And this formed your hopes, it formed your dreams, it formed your 00:12:13.539 --> 00:12:22.539 fantasies, it formed your politics. And here you sit under the regime of a pagan government, 00:12:23.480 --> 00:12:34.719 of pagan rulers who blaspheme your God, who reject and mock you for your faith, who've established their 00:12:34.720 --> 00:12:43.540 own pantheon of gods, and who simply tolerate you as long as you pay your taxes. In all of your 00:12:43.540 --> 00:12:48.600 prophecies, when you go to church on Sunday, when you go to synagogue on Saturday, rather, your prophecies 00:12:48.600 --> 00:12:54.300 all talk about the time when God will again send his anointed king, this king greater even than David, 00:12:54.399 --> 00:12:59.700 to come and to set you free finally once and for all. And here you are at the Passover feast, 00:12:59.700 --> 00:13:08.759 the feast of liberation. And Jesus, who you've been hearing about for at least a couple of years now, 00:13:08.860 --> 00:13:14.879 Jesus chooses this time to have this climactic moment of entering into Jerusalem as a king. 00:13:16.220 --> 00:13:22.460 So how could you not think that this was the time when God's anointed Messiah was going to come and 00:13:22.460 --> 00:13:27.759 finally overthrow Rome? There's no way you couldn't think that. Even his disciples who had been with him 00:13:27.759 --> 00:13:34.179 begin jockeying for position. Okay, so when he finally, you know, raises his hand in lightning, 00:13:34.720 --> 00:13:40.460 nukes Caesar, and there's a smoking crater left, who's going to be in his cabinet when he takes over? 00:13:41.919 --> 00:13:48.319 So what is Israel's agenda? If Rome's agenda is to stay in power, what is Israel's agenda? 00:13:51.799 --> 00:13:53.840 Make Israel great again. 00:13:57.759 --> 00:14:00.259 Make Israel great again. 00:14:02.379 --> 00:14:12.519 Anytime you have people who feel weak, disenfranchised, angry, afraid, 00:14:12.779 --> 00:14:19.360 they long for a leader who will make them feel strong, who will vindicate them, 00:14:20.500 --> 00:14:23.179 who will show everybody else who's boss. 00:14:23.179 --> 00:14:27.339 Make Israel great again. 00:14:29.259 --> 00:14:31.120 They're tired of feeling like that. 00:14:32.879 --> 00:14:38.899 And yet there are clues all along the way, clues that God has something altogether different in mind. 00:14:41.279 --> 00:14:44.079 The cult is an interesting detail. 00:14:45.439 --> 00:14:48.479 Some people say cult, some people say donkey. 00:14:48.480 --> 00:14:50.399 It was actually probably more likely a donkey. 00:14:51.600 --> 00:14:55.620 But the point being, this is not a horse befitting a conquering king. 00:14:57.860 --> 00:14:58.779 It's a cult. 00:14:59.639 --> 00:15:06.220 And it recalls Zechariah 9 verse 9 and the ride of the humble, peacemaking Messiah. 00:15:06.399 --> 00:15:07.639 Not a warrior. 00:15:07.639 --> 00:15:12.279 It doesn't convey power and it doesn't convey strength. 00:15:12.460 --> 00:15:14.240 It doesn't convey vindication. 00:15:14.399 --> 00:15:16.799 It doesn't convey we're going to show the world who's boss. 00:15:17.139 --> 00:15:19.639 It conveys humility and service. 00:15:21.399 --> 00:15:22.939 And then there's Jesus. 00:15:22.940 --> 00:15:29.240 Amid all the shouts and cheers, all the singing and celebration, 00:15:30.740 --> 00:15:34.200 as Jesus draws near to Jerusalem, he's weeping. 00:15:35.180 --> 00:15:37.380 The juxtaposition is so powerful. 00:15:37.740 --> 00:15:40.620 You can cut the tension with a knife. 00:15:41.000 --> 00:15:42.520 Cheering and singing and praising. 00:15:43.700 --> 00:15:46.080 And then the central figure is weeping. 00:15:46.080 --> 00:15:50.280 And the word actually conveys that he's audibly sobbing. 00:15:51.160 --> 00:15:52.700 He's bawling his eyes out. 00:15:52.700 --> 00:15:55.560 You know, we imagine the kind of Arian Jesus with a little tear. 00:15:56.440 --> 00:16:02.480 Imagine a Middle Eastern Jesus with tears pouring out of his eyes, audibly weeping. 00:16:06.460 --> 00:16:10.280 He's come not to liberate Jerusalem but to declare its destruction. 00:16:14.020 --> 00:16:18.060 For the days will come upon you when your enemies will set up a barricade around you 00:16:18.060 --> 00:16:21.759 and surround you and hem you in on every side, tear you down to the ground. 00:16:21.759 --> 00:16:26.559 You and your children within you and they will not leave one stone upon another. 00:16:26.659 --> 00:16:30.419 And of course, this is exactly what happened a little while later in A.D. 70. 00:16:31.419 --> 00:16:33.939 The Jews tried unsuccessfully to rebel. 00:16:34.319 --> 00:16:39.639 The Romans sacked Jerusalem and they destroyed the temple and raised it to the ground. 00:16:39.639 --> 00:16:40.639 And this is why Jesus is weeping. 00:16:40.639 --> 00:16:42.439 And this is why Jesus is weeping. 00:16:42.439 --> 00:16:50.080 This is why he's bawling his eyes out and audibly sobbing is because of his deep, profound love for this city and these people, 00:16:50.399 --> 00:16:56.360 knowing that they have dug their own graves, knowing what is about to befall them. 00:16:58.059 --> 00:16:58.980 He's weeping. 00:16:58.980 --> 00:17:02.600 And you ask, well, why is all this happening? 00:17:02.879 --> 00:17:07.140 And he gives us the answer, because you did not know the day of your visitation. 00:17:08.360 --> 00:17:10.819 You did not know the time of your visitation. 00:17:11.839 --> 00:17:13.980 They're so locked in their nationalism. 00:17:14.460 --> 00:17:16.799 They're so locked in their desire to be great again. 00:17:16.900 --> 00:17:21.279 They're so locked in their desire to show all their enemies that they cannot be threatened. 00:17:21.279 --> 00:17:28.059 They're so locked in their desire for vindication that they have completely lost sight of God's agenda. 00:17:28.279 --> 00:17:29.279 They're blind to it. 00:17:29.960 --> 00:17:34.519 They'd forgotten that God actually wanted to use them to redeem and rescue the world. 00:17:36.359 --> 00:17:43.859 And they had lost sight of the even more important fact that they themselves, like Rome, had fallen under God's judgment. 00:17:45.899 --> 00:17:48.819 And they were in need of redemption, and yet they're blind to it. 00:17:48.819 --> 00:17:53.539 So this is God's agenda, which overrules all other agendas. 00:17:54.779 --> 00:17:57.379 To the Romans who were wondering, is this a king? 00:17:57.599 --> 00:17:59.059 Is he a threat to the throne? 00:17:59.559 --> 00:18:04.039 The clear answer from this moment, as Jesus enters Jerusalem, is yes. 00:18:05.299 --> 00:18:06.339 He is a king. 00:18:08.559 --> 00:18:15.000 And if you don't think there's political implications from this passage, we really need to read it again. 00:18:15.000 --> 00:18:26.059 This is not just about having a private experience where Jesus becomes the king of the way I live my life, although that's a part of it. 00:18:26.099 --> 00:18:32.779 No, this is a declaration of kingship, but not just over Israel or Rome, but over all of creation. 00:18:33.720 --> 00:18:36.480 The Pharisees say, please tell your disciples to be quiet. 00:18:36.519 --> 00:18:37.480 And what does Jesus say? 00:18:37.859 --> 00:18:38.680 Well, I tell you the truth. 00:18:39.019 --> 00:18:41.400 If they're silent, even the stones will cry out. 00:18:41.400 --> 00:18:47.940 Every grain of sand, every molecule recognizes their true king. 00:18:49.320 --> 00:18:50.060 Except you. 00:18:51.660 --> 00:18:59.300 And yet to the Jews who want him to be their champion, who want him to be this mighty conqueror, he's equally challenging. 00:19:00.140 --> 00:19:02.080 He says to the Romans, yes, I'm a king. 00:19:02.540 --> 00:19:04.320 Yes, your power is finite. 00:19:04.640 --> 00:19:06.380 Yes, your authority will come to an end. 00:19:06.740 --> 00:19:08.740 Yes, you are just a pretender on the throne. 00:19:09.080 --> 00:19:10.519 No, you are not divine. 00:19:11.400 --> 00:19:16.860 But he says to Israel, I'm not the conquering king you fantasize about and tell stories about. 00:19:16.859 --> 00:19:22.399 I'm not the one who has come to crush your enemies. 00:19:23.639 --> 00:19:28.839 I'm the one who comes to be crushed by all of the enemies of God. 00:19:28.839 --> 00:19:44.119 He came on a cult in peace, not to defeat the bad guys, but to take all of the evil and hostility and rage of the world and absorb it into himself. 00:19:45.579 --> 00:19:48.220 And holding it there and then dying. 00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:50.879 Extinguishing it. 00:19:54.059 --> 00:19:54.899 Emptying it. 00:19:54.900 --> 00:19:59.820 So this isn't about the liberation of one tiny nation state. 00:19:59.900 --> 00:20:01.440 It's about the liberation of the world. 00:20:01.440 --> 00:20:08.220 So this week, we are embarking on a kind of journey. 00:20:10.080 --> 00:20:16.259 We are here on Palm Sunday, celebrating and remembering this moment, but there's more to the story. 00:20:16.400 --> 00:20:22.759 We will move through the week, what we call Holy Week, and we will move to the evening we call Maundy Thursday, 00:20:22.759 --> 00:20:30.500 when we remember and celebrate Jesus' institution of the commandment to love one another and the washing of his disciples' feet. 00:20:30.619 --> 00:20:37.099 We will move to Good Friday, when we recount the events of Jesus' crucifixion. 00:20:37.099 --> 00:20:45.460 We will move into Holy Saturday, a time of waiting, uncertainty, where God is dead. 00:20:45.460 --> 00:20:54.100 And then we will move to Sunday, when we announce together the great resurrection on the first Easter morning. 00:20:54.240 --> 00:20:56.460 And there's a whole story that we're embodying. 00:20:56.539 --> 00:21:01.940 And so we ask, as we think about it at the outset of this week, how should we think about this time? 00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:04.579 What effect should this time have on us? 00:21:04.620 --> 00:21:05.720 I would suggest this. 00:21:05.900 --> 00:21:11.940 As we walk these last days with Jesus, that we should take the opportunity to honestly examine our own agendas. 00:21:11.940 --> 00:21:24.860 Like Rome, do we see in our heart of hearts, Jesus as a threat to our power, our autonomy? 00:21:26.480 --> 00:21:33.400 You know, perhaps some of us do, as long as we can think of him as a teacher or a moral example or an inspiring person 00:21:33.400 --> 00:21:39.279 or someone who gives great advice or maybe just even a religious myth, he poses no threat. 00:21:39.279 --> 00:21:42.599 There's no response demanded of me. 00:21:43.180 --> 00:21:49.160 I'm simply meant to take his words and incorporate them into the advice journal of life. 00:21:51.200 --> 00:21:58.259 Perhaps like Israel, instead of rejecting him, we attempt to co-opt him into our personal agendas. 00:21:58.259 --> 00:22:07.000 We think, well, Jesus' real reason for being is to endorse my life plans, to endorse my career aspirations, 00:22:07.339 --> 00:22:13.119 to endorse my sense of timeline, my goals, my priorities. 00:22:14.099 --> 00:22:16.279 And it's a good time to be honest. 00:22:16.379 --> 00:22:19.299 When I pray, do I pray, thy will be done, my king? 00:22:20.099 --> 00:22:21.299 Thy kingdom come. 00:22:22.079 --> 00:22:27.339 Or do we pray, I really hope that you will make it so that my will is done? 00:22:28.259 --> 00:22:33.359 And so that my kingdom, which has come, can be maintained. 00:22:35.660 --> 00:22:41.119 I think people in every age have attempted to co-opt God to fit their agendas. 00:22:42.680 --> 00:22:50.259 You know, you have this persistent American nationalism that believes that God has specially blessed the U.S. 00:22:50.259 --> 00:22:55.680 and that Jesus is, if ever he was on a side, he is on our side. 00:22:57.440 --> 00:22:59.059 I look at what we do in the world. 00:22:59.579 --> 00:23:01.400 I look at the injustice that we're a part of. 00:23:01.440 --> 00:23:06.059 And I look at the fact that the church is flourishing, not here, but in places like China and Africa. 00:23:06.359 --> 00:23:07.740 And I have to question that. 00:23:07.740 --> 00:23:12.940 We have the kind of pervasiveness of the prosperity gospel. 00:23:13.160 --> 00:23:16.339 And you may not think of yourself as someone who believes in the prosperity gospel. 00:23:16.339 --> 00:23:20.660 But the idea that if I do this for you, God, and I sow these seeds of faith, 00:23:20.740 --> 00:23:24.279 and I act in these ways that are faithful to you, and I volunteer in these ways, 00:23:24.359 --> 00:23:26.500 then surely there's going to be a tit for tat. 00:23:26.579 --> 00:23:29.000 And at some point, you're going to pay me back. 00:23:29.000 --> 00:23:34.960 And we know that we think that way because when God doesn't do what we want, 00:23:35.640 --> 00:23:37.740 do we still sing Psalm 118? 00:23:39.200 --> 00:23:43.460 Do we still sing, blessed be God, blessed be King? 00:23:44.900 --> 00:23:47.180 Or is that only when God is doing what we want? 00:23:51.019 --> 00:23:54.519 There's a prevailing notion that God is love, 00:23:54.619 --> 00:23:57.319 what I heard somebody recently call the John Lennon Jesus, 00:23:57.500 --> 00:23:58.579 which I thought was kind of funny. 00:23:59.000 --> 00:24:01.920 The idea that all we need is love. 00:24:02.720 --> 00:24:04.720 That Jesus is really just about love, 00:24:04.720 --> 00:24:08.779 and we can do anything we want as long as it's in the name of love. 00:24:08.920 --> 00:24:12.180 And it's interesting that although the Bible does say that God is love, 00:24:12.259 --> 00:24:14.140 it doesn't say that he is only love. 00:24:15.660 --> 00:24:18.119 Because a God like that would never have been crucified. 00:24:20.099 --> 00:24:22.640 Jesus was crucified not because he claimed to be love, 00:24:22.759 --> 00:24:23.920 but because he claimed to be king. 00:24:23.920 --> 00:24:29.640 As we think about our agendas, 00:24:29.640 --> 00:24:32.440 as we think about how we approach Jesus, 00:24:32.580 --> 00:24:33.779 how we come to Jesus, 00:24:33.900 --> 00:24:35.060 how we perceive Jesus, 00:24:35.180 --> 00:24:37.340 and what we think it means to follow Jesus, 00:24:38.840 --> 00:24:41.640 we should remember that at the beginning of his ministry, 00:24:41.640 --> 00:24:43.220 Jesus said what? 00:24:43.560 --> 00:24:45.220 The kingdom of God is at hand. 00:24:46.240 --> 00:24:47.540 Repent and believe in me. 00:24:49.200 --> 00:24:49.920 You know, it's interesting. 00:24:50.020 --> 00:24:51.660 When I heard that for years, 00:24:51.720 --> 00:24:53.660 I thought, well, that just means that I need to look at Jesus, 00:24:53.759 --> 00:24:55.100 look at myself, feel bad for my sin, 00:24:55.160 --> 00:24:56.040 tell Jesus I'm sorry, 00:24:56.180 --> 00:24:56.960 and try to do better. 00:24:58.240 --> 00:24:59.280 That's not what it means. 00:24:59.560 --> 00:25:00.680 Not fully what it means. 00:25:00.680 --> 00:25:07.480 Josephus was a first century Jewish writer and historian, 00:25:07.480 --> 00:25:10.720 and he talks about this phrase, 00:25:10.860 --> 00:25:11.779 repent and believe. 00:25:11.960 --> 00:25:16.299 See, Josephus had gotten in good with the Roman leaders, 00:25:16.299 --> 00:25:19.420 and he saw other Jewish brothers 00:25:19.420 --> 00:25:23.820 who were amassing, planning a rebellion against Rome, 00:25:23.860 --> 00:25:25.920 and he knew that it was going to end in a bloodbath. 00:25:26.420 --> 00:25:27.580 He knew that if his, 00:25:27.579 --> 00:25:30.939 that while he was attempting to choose diplomacy, 00:25:31.240 --> 00:25:34.299 he knew that his brothers and sisters were taking up arms, 00:25:34.359 --> 00:25:36.059 and he knew the power of Rome, 00:25:36.119 --> 00:25:38.000 and knew that if they did what they were planning to do, 00:25:38.039 --> 00:25:39.039 they would be slaughtered. 00:25:39.939 --> 00:25:41.259 And so what does he do? 00:25:41.720 --> 00:25:45.000 He goes and he visits the leader of the rebels, 00:25:46.000 --> 00:25:49.799 and he talks to this leader about the futility of his plan. 00:25:50.720 --> 00:25:52.859 And what do you think he says, Josephus? 00:25:54.179 --> 00:25:55.559 Repent and believe. 00:25:56.339 --> 00:25:57.299 What does that mean? 00:25:57.759 --> 00:25:59.059 Let go of your nationalism. 00:25:59.599 --> 00:26:00.619 Let go of your identity. 00:26:01.079 --> 00:26:04.639 Let go of this plan to do what you think is necessary 00:26:04.639 --> 00:26:06.199 to fix the problems of the world. 00:26:06.359 --> 00:26:07.399 It's not going to work. 00:26:07.539 --> 00:26:08.399 It's a dead end. 00:26:08.720 --> 00:26:09.419 Let it go. 00:26:09.619 --> 00:26:13.019 Abandon all of that and come and take my way 00:26:13.019 --> 00:26:15.240 and follow in my steps. 00:26:15.399 --> 00:26:16.579 I have a better plan, 00:26:16.579 --> 00:26:18.119 but in order to be a part of this plan, 00:26:18.179 --> 00:26:19.679 you have to let all of that go. 00:26:22.799 --> 00:26:25.119 Jesus certainly meant more than that. 00:26:25.220 --> 00:26:27.079 He certainly was talking about sin. 00:26:27.079 --> 00:26:30.359 He certainly was talking about repentance in that way, 00:26:30.579 --> 00:26:32.179 but he did not mean less than that. 00:26:32.339 --> 00:26:35.539 And I believe he meant very much the same thing. 00:26:35.819 --> 00:26:36.899 My kingdom is here. 00:26:37.659 --> 00:26:39.179 If you want to be a part of my kingdom, 00:26:39.279 --> 00:26:41.099 you have to let all of that go. 00:26:42.099 --> 00:26:44.199 Your identity, your nationalism, your agenda, 00:26:44.339 --> 00:26:46.559 your personal ambitions, your timeline, your priorities, 00:26:46.799 --> 00:26:47.819 let it all go. 00:26:47.819 --> 00:26:50.639 You're either a part of my way or you're not. 00:26:53.200 --> 00:26:54.599 So the question this week, 00:26:54.679 --> 00:26:59.099 I believe that we can profit ourselves by asking honestly, 00:26:59.639 --> 00:27:03.460 are we blinded by our own agendas, 00:27:04.099 --> 00:27:10.519 or do we have the eyes to recognize the time of our visitation? 00:27:10.519 --> 00:27:12.700 Let's pray. 00:27:14.839 --> 00:27:15.799 Our heavenly father, 00:27:15.940 --> 00:27:21.099 we recognize that we need your power to take your word 00:27:21.099 --> 00:27:22.400 and drive it into our hearts. 00:27:22.400 --> 00:27:27.660 And we ask that whatever is not of you would be stricken from memory. 00:27:28.460 --> 00:27:31.639 Whatever is from you would be embedded deeply in us. 00:27:31.640 --> 00:27:38.060 We pray this that we might leave our little paper crowns 00:27:38.060 --> 00:27:40.500 and many kingdoms 00:27:40.500 --> 00:27:42.880 and become a part of your great kingdom 00:27:42.880 --> 00:27:44.440 that is turning the world upside down. 00:27:45.160 --> 00:27:46.960 We pray this for our good and your glory. 00:27:47.480 --> 00:27:48.700 In your son's name, amen.